10 SUPPRESSION OF INSECT PESTS AND PLANT DISEASES. 



Ten thousand peach trees may he shipped into a State, and so far as any one can 

 determine they may he perfectly healthy. Notwithstanding- this, 50 per cent or more 

 of the trees may he infected with j^ellows, and what is more, the malady may not 

 develop for a year after the trees have heen planted. What is true of peach yellows 

 is true of many other diseases, particularly those Avhere the leaves alone are the parts 

 attacked. 



Without further argument, therefore, it may he said that any general laws looking 

 toward the control of nursery stock are likely to prove impracticahle, first, hecause 

 the nature of the diseases is such as to render proper inspection exceedingly difficult, 

 if not impossible, and second, no one with any regard for scientific truth or accu- 

 racy would care to risk his reputation in giving an opinion where so many compli- 

 cations are involved. 



Of course there may he special cases where laws would he an advantage. Take, for 

 example, pear hlight in the nursery. Young trees may become infected and the 

 disease remain dormant in them until they are set in the orchard. Inspection here 

 might be of benefit, but it is questionable whether legislation would facilitate 

 matters in the least. Probably not one nurseryman in a thousand would refuse to 

 take the proi)er precautions for eradicating hlight if the way were pointed out 

 to him. It would he a matter of business for him to do so ; and this introduces the 

 question as to how far many of the problems involved in the matter under discussion 

 could he controlled by proper organization among the experiment station workers 

 and others Avho might be easily induced to cooperate with them. I can see no reason 

 why a properlj^ organized force of this kind, acting throughout in a uniform manner, 

 would not accomplish much good, not only in educating nurserymen and others 

 in the lines of work that should he followed where emergencies may arise, but also 

 by taking such legitimate and proper action, where the exigencies demand, as to 

 make it to the interest of all owners of nursery stock to be able to truthfully say 

 that thej^ have put forth every effort to have every tree sent out absolutely free 

 from dangerous insect, fungous, or other pests. 



So far our discussion has dealt mainly with the nurseryman. It must be remem- 

 bered, however, that there are other jihases of the problem. The fruit grower himself 

 is to be considered and may often prove an important factor to deal Avith. The 

 energetic, successful man, Avho puts forth eA^ery effort to keep his trees free from the 

 various foes Avhich beset them, may often haA^e his best efforts rendered more or less 

 futile by the fact that his neighbor's trees harbor all sorts of insects and fungi. It 

 is a delicate matter to say Avhat shall be done in such a case. The man whose trees 

 are infested may not be shiftless. He may be the A'ictim of natural laws, for which 

 he is in no way responsible, or he maj^ for personal or other reasons, not be able to 

 care for his trees as should be done. To hold the law oA'er this man and say that he 

 should spray his trees or destroy them, or else pay a fine or go to jail, would be mani- 

 festly unjust. Public sentiment Avould support him, and therefore the law, should 

 it exist, could not be enforced. 



Finally, there is a question of imported pests to consider. What has been said of 

 the impracticability of inspection laws will also apply here. It may sometimes 

 happen, howcA^er, that a dangerous pest is imported, and althoiTgh established in 

 one or more places, might he quickly and easily eradicated by prompt and intelli- 

 gent action supported by proper legislation. Ea'cu here, howeA^er, the futility of 

 State laws can be seen, for the pest may be established at isolated spots in three or 

 more States, and while the laws of one State may make it impossible to extermimite 

 the enemy, those of the next may be Avholly powerless to cope with it. In such 

 cases, and also where any pest Mtlferto confined to comparatively limited areas 

 shows an alarming tendency to spread, proper Federal legislation might serve a 

 useful purpose. AVhat would constitute proper Federal legislation is not within our 

 province to say, as the complications involA^ed are far too numerous to be considered 

 here. Suffice it to say, however, that the precedent for such legislation seems to 

 have been established in creating the Bureau of Animal Industry of the United 



