The Weekly Florists' .^.eview* 



July 25, 1907. 



is to be filled out and returned the same 

 month. Failure to do so gives the board 

 the right to set what they think is a just 

 assessment. They sent me one and I 

 went to the board and had a talk with 

 them. This new member told me if I 

 did not know how much stock I had 

 and what it was worth, he would come 

 and help me out. So one fine day in 

 dropped the five assessors. They looked 

 over my stock, asked me how much cut 

 flowers sold for and how many I grew, 

 also what bedding plants sold for and 

 how many I grew, and I told them. 

 Then they went away, after directing me 

 to come to their office in the city hall 

 in a few days, when they would tell me 

 how much they would assess me. I went 

 and I was surprised when they told me 

 $5,000. I thought this was unjust and 

 asked them whether, if a man had a 

 corn field inside the city limits, they 

 would assess him the same way they did 

 me. "Well," they replied, "that's not 

 your business. If you do not like our 

 style you may go to a lawyer and fight 

 it out in the courts." 



I went away, feeling sore, and think- 

 ing I had to pay just as much taxes on 

 my stock as on my greenhouses, each 



if I should make a test case of it, if they 

 would help pay the costs of fighting it 

 out to the supreme court, and some said, 

 "No; if you want to fight the city, go 

 it alone. "We will listen to the music" 

 Not knowing what .to do and not hav- 

 ing time or money to waste on lawyers, 

 I went to the city attorney, he being the 

 man who advises the board on legal ques- 

 tions. I laid the matter before him 

 fairly and asked him what he thought 

 was a fair assessment. He asked me a 

 good many questions about the business 

 and I told him frankly. He said, "I do 

 not believe that you should be assessed 

 at all. But if the board insists that you 

 pay, I believe that a daily average of 

 your sales for an entire year would be 

 a fair assessment. Do you not think 

 sof If you don't, you will have to go 

 to court and get a decision." "Well," 

 I said, "I hardly think I should pay it, 

 but I do not like to go to court alone to 

 fight it out, not only for my own benefit, 

 but for the benefit of all my brother 

 florists. I sell $6,000 worth of stock 

 per year," I said, "and will show you 

 the books and also show them to the 

 assessors if they want to see them." 

 But he said, "I will not insist on that. 



Richard Witterstaetter. 



being assessed at $5,000, though the law 

 of our state says that property may be 

 assessed at only fifty per cent of its true 

 value. I figured out that my green- 

 houses were worth about $10,000, but I 

 knew my stock was not worth it, so I 

 did not know what to do. I talked it 

 over with several brother florists, asking 

 them how they liked the idea of having 

 their stock assessed, but they all seemed 

 to be afraid to give me the desired in- 

 formation. Some seemed to be afraid 

 that if they kicked too much it would 

 only make matters worse. I asked them, 



All blanks that are filled out and re- 

 turned to the assessors' oflBce must be 

 sworn to, and we will certainly believe 

 you under oath, the same as any other 

 citizen. ' ' 



So I went to the office of the board, 

 got a new blank and figured out the 

 daily average of my sales. I have done 

 that every year since and have never had 

 any further trouble. ' I think this is a 

 fair way to assess a florist. If his aver- 

 age daily sales are $100 or $1,000, let 

 him pay taxes according to his income. 

 To make this clear, so that every reader 



can understand it: I mean, if a florist's 

 daily average is $250, /let this be the 

 amount that he be asscEfsed for the next 

 year, and as his business increases his 

 taxes will. 



I believe every florist wishes to be 

 honest and pay his just share of the 

 taxes, but if the assessors try to do as 

 they did with me and with other florists 

 in different localities, then it is time to 

 speak up and fight the assessors the best 

 way you can, either alone or by clubbing 

 together, and see what is considered 

 right by the supreme courts of the dif- 

 ferent states. I do not know how the 

 other florists get their stock appraised 

 or how much they pay, because after 

 they let me fight it out alone I did not 

 go to the trouble to inquire. I thought 

 it was best to do as they did — look wise 

 and say nothing, I wrote this article, 

 not because I am an able writer, but 

 because I have read many articles in the 

 Revievst which were worth a good many 

 dollars to me, and I think the best way 

 to learn is to let every florist in the 

 United States or Canada try to write 

 and do the best he can. There is noth- 

 ing that will awaken more interest in the 

 florists' papers than a discussion of all 

 matters pertaining to the trade, whether 

 legal matters or otherwise. 



COENELIUS KUNST. 



RICHARD WITTERSTAETTER. 



There is, perhaps, no better known 

 person in the florists' business today 

 than Eichard Witterstaetter, recently 

 elected president of the Cincinnati 

 Florists' Society. Not only is he well 

 known, but he is liked by everyone who 

 knows him, and his fame as a square 

 man and a true friend is widespread. 



He was born November 17, 1859, in 

 the locality where his home now is, at 

 the corner of Fischer avenue and Foley 

 road. West Price Hill, Cincinnati. At 

 the age of 17 years he went to St. Louis, 

 and for a year clerked in a grocery store 

 owned by his brother. Tiring of this, he 

 took a position in the brass finishing 

 foundry of J. C. Kupserle, also in St. 

 Louis. After six months of this he re- 

 turned to his home in Cincinnati, and 

 then saw the beginning of his labors as 

 a florist. At the home place there were 

 two greenhouses and he undertook to put 

 them on a paying basis. This was the 

 beginning of the present model plant. 

 Gradually, by dint of hard and careful 

 work, house by house was added. 



Early in his career as a florist Mr. 

 Witterstaetter was atti-acted by the pos- 

 sibilities of seedling raising. His flrst 

 venture was with the chrysanthemum. He 

 produced numerous seedlings, but one of 

 which was put upon the market. Many 

 will still remember the fame of Marie 

 Louise, which won the Columbia gold 

 medal at the Chicago world's fair. 



In 1892 he first turned his attention 

 to the raising of carnation seedlings, 

 paying particular attention to scarlet. 

 The first seven years were devoted to ex- 

 perimental work. A complete record was 

 kept of the first 60,000 to 70,000 crosses, 

 and from these data he was able to 

 formulate a plan to obtain nearly what 

 he wants. This plan he uses now in all 

 of his crosses. About 5,000 seeds are se- 

 lected every year. These are sprouted 

 and are planted in the field. Here the 

 process of elimination is commenced and 

 but 800 to 1,000 are housed in the fall. 

 Variegated varieties are always cast 

 aside and only the straight colors are 

 selected. 



