No. 4.] NURSERY INSPECTION. 289 



shall receive five dollars for each day's service required of them 

 under this act, and the travelling and other expenses necessarily 

 incurred in the said service. 



"Section 7. A sum not exceeding one thousand dollars may be 

 expended by the state board of agriculture in carrying out the 

 provisions of this act. '[Apjjroved June 19, 1902. 



The appointment of a luir.sery inspector in accordance with 

 this law was made July 22, 1902, and arrangements for the 

 work of inspection were at once begun. Almost no knowl- 

 edge of the nurseries of the State was available, their number, 

 location and size in most cases being unknown. Accord- 

 ingl}^, circulars Avere sent to more than one hundred ad- 

 dresses, asking for information, and from the replies received 

 the inspection work was laid out. This took time, and, as 

 it was also necessary to obtain certificate blanks, printed 

 copies of the law, etc., it was August 19 before actual in- 

 spections could be begun. 



Three deputy inspectors were appointed to assist in the 

 work, viz., Messrs. P]. A. Back of Florence, A. H. Kirk- 

 land of Boston and II. E. Hodgkiss of Wilkinsonville, all 

 having had a careful training, both in field inspection and in 

 determination methods in the laboratory. Unfortunately, 

 no one of the deputies could devote more than a small por- 

 tion of his time to the work, and, as new nurseries were con- 

 tinuall}' heard of and added to the list, it Avas very late in 

 the fell before the inspections were completed. 



Eighty nurseries have now been inspected. Of these, 

 fifty-seven were found to be infested in various degrees by 

 injurious insects or diseases. At the present time sixty-five 

 hold certificates of fi-eedom from these pests ; nine fumigate 

 all stock sent out, working under section 4 of the law ; and 

 six have suspended all sales, while putting their nurseries 

 into a satisfactory condition. In other words, twenty-two 

 nurseries were found free from dangerous insects or diseases, 

 forty-three have been cleared of these foes and are selling 

 under certificate, and nine others secure the same result by 

 fumigating all stock sold. 



The ' ' dangerous insect or fungous pests " met with in 

 Massachusetts are fortunately few. The gypsy moth, brown- 



