September 20, 1906. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review^ 



U23 



Establishment of Frank B. Rine, Lewisburg, Pa« 



the carnations were still giving first-class 

 flowers. Mr. Bine says that he thinks 

 the shade of the tomatoes helped the 

 carnations, for they continued in full 

 health after the weather became hot. 



Mr. Bine started in business in 1882 

 and has biiilt up a fine trade. He grows 

 a full line of cut flowers, plants and 

 vegetables. 



SUMMER BUSINESS. 



There is an ancient expression, "the 

 good old summer time, ' ' and another 

 about "the melancholy days, the sad- 

 dest of the year." He was not a florist 

 who coined these phrases. The perspir- 

 ing days of summer are those in which 

 the grower does his heaviest labor, and 

 the ones in which his receipts are light- 

 est. When nature is in "the sear and 

 yellow leaf," the greenhouse man "sits 

 up to take notice" that there is a de- 

 mand for his products; his harvest sea- 

 son is at hand. 



It is worth while noting, however, that 

 the summer seasons steadily are becom- 

 ing better. It ia not possible to say 

 that business continues good through 

 the heated term, but there is, neverthe- 

 less, a noticeable increase in the volume 

 of trade, possibly largely due to the fact 

 that in the wholesale cut flower centers 

 growers have been making something of 

 an effort to provide summer flowers of 

 attractive quality. Good Beauties are in 

 demand in the summer, and those grow- 

 ers who have had crops the past season 

 have made excellent money on them. 

 Houses of summer roses, also, have 

 proven profitable, and the tendency for 

 better tilings in summer weather was 

 sufficiently marked this year that Irvin 

 Bertermann mentioned the fact in his 

 excellent paper read at the S. A. F. con- 

 vention. 



Centbalia, III. — J. W. Boss, when he 

 has a little surplus stock, gets good ad- 

 vertising from it by sending a bouquet 

 to each of the teachers in the city 

 schools. 



BiNGHAMTON, N. Y. — Harry Thorndy- 

 craft has built a new greenhouse on his 

 River street property and expects to 

 hare a crop of lettuce in it ready for 

 the Thanksgiving demand. 



DUTY ON GLASS. 



At the florists' convention held at 

 Dayton, O., President Kasting's address 

 brought out matters which led to a 

 discussion on the high cost of green- 

 house glass, and that the tariff thereon 

 had a marked effect in keeping up the 

 very high cost. 



How many millions of square feet of 

 glass there are used by the florists of 

 the United States, I am unable to say, 

 but all men who have greenhouses or 

 cold frame plants are greatly interested 

 in the cost of this important commodity. 



At the discussion which ensued at the 

 time, it was stated that if there was 

 to be anything done in the modification 

 of the present tax on glass, some action 

 must be taken, otherwise nothing would 

 ever be accomplished. 



The matter, after debate, was referred 

 to a committee of which the writer is a 

 member, and to give a correct status 

 of the present rate on glass, application 



was made to the Commissioner of Com- 

 merce and Labor. 



Prior to the Spanish war (so-called), 

 the rate on glass used by the greenhouse 

 men was as follows: 



On all sizes not exceeding 10x15 

 inches the import duty was 1 cent per 

 pound; on sizes above 10x15 inches and 

 not exceeding 16x24 inches, ll^ cents 

 per pound; above 16x24 inches and not 

 exceeding 24x30 inches, 1% cents per 

 pound. 



It will be noted that the tariff is not 

 placed upon the square foot nor is it 

 an ad valorem rate, the valuation being 

 placed on the net weight of glass in 

 the boxes, which is fifty feet or as near 

 as may be, and glass will approximate 

 fifty to eighty pounds net in a box, ac- 

 cording to thickness. Such was the rate 

 in existence in 1896. 



In 1897 the tariff was changed and 

 it is under this tariff that the glass 

 now used in the United States is pro- 

 tected. The paragraph which governs 

 that duty is as follows: 



"Glass not exceeding 10x15 inches, 

 1% cents per pound; above that and 

 not exceeding 16x24 inches, 1% cents 

 per pound, and not exceeding 24x30 

 inches, 2% cents per pound." 



Provided, that the duties shall be ac- 

 cording to the actual weight of the glass. 

 The reader will see at a glance the sub- 

 stantial increase in the cost of each 

 box of glass which this protection gives 

 over and above i896 and previous. In 

 1896 the volume imported of the cylin- 

 der, crown and common window glass 

 was $54,189,854.13 and for 1905 it was 

 $17,933,028.50. 



The question before the greenhouse 

 men of the country is, whether it is 

 worth while to make an effort to pro- 

 cure a less duty on glass, to bring be- 

 fore the proper authorities the sense that 

 the time is ripe and should be carried 

 into effect of modifying for the gen- 

 eral good, the high rates of the present 

 duties. 



Of course this matter effects not only 

 greenhouse people but every builder and 

 sash-maker in the land. 



It was suggested at the Dayton con- 

 vention that the florists of the United 



Tomatoes and Lady Bountiful Carnations at F. B. Rine's. 



