92 PRESENT STATUS OF THE INDUSTRY. 



sold for a penny apiece, which, by the way, is less than 

 market price to-day. We do not know of any dealer 

 who is offering seeds at a penny apiece. If you will 

 take the trouble to figure this up, you will find that, if a 

 bed could be grown to average one hundred seeds to 

 each plant, the seed crop would be worth $1089 to the 

 square rod, or $174,240 per acre. 



"On the other hand on a different soil the 

 writer had a bed of five hundred plants in which, owing 

 to the wet weather in the early part of the season, every 

 one of the plants died down during the month of June. 

 We expect a few of them will come up this season. 

 There is no question but that the ginseng business 

 offers a big chance for making money and also a big 

 chance for losing money, if not well handled." 



It is probable that at this time, if not before, the 

 would-be grower will ask if the prices demanded for 

 plants and seeds are reasonable, and if the possible 

 profits to be derived in the business warrant the outlay 

 of his money. Since the author believes that there is 

 now no one sending turnip and similar seed, nor wild 

 sarsaparilla plants, instead of ginseng seed and plants, 

 he will confine his remarks to ginseng prices and leave 

 this type of fraud without further comment. It is his 

 candid opinion that the prices some men demand are 

 far too high, and the exactions that others impose as to 

 the number of plants or seeds they will sell to one per- 

 son are ridiculous. With respect to other dealers, the 

 whole matter rests upon the law of supply and demand. 

 Ginseng growing is on the boom and investors must 

 expect to pay high prices. 



Knowing that first-class fruit trees can be pur- 

 chased for twenty cents, and acknowledging a weak- 

 ness for fruit, the author would hesitate to pay the sum 

 mentioned for a little plant smaller than an undersized, 

 unmarketable radish that he can't eat, and five cents 

 for a single seed, knowing also that if he should sue- 



