52 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
agricultural bill include a like amount, 
provided Florida meets them; in other 
words, the Federal Government says, 
“We will put up $300,000 for the next 
two years’ fight beginning July 1st, when 
Florida has appropriated a like sum." 
They could very properly say, the Gov¬ 
ernment will not put up any more money 
with which to carry on this fight until 
Florida has appropriated what the Gov¬ 
ernment has expended in the past for 
which no such funds have been available. 
On the first of next July, there will have 
been expended in Florida from Govern¬ 
ment funds, $740,000. “Now,” they say, 
“We are willing to forget the past; we 
will simply wipe that off the Board, but 
from July 1st next, we will travel along 
horse and horse.” 
You cannot deny that this is a most lib¬ 
eral policy. It is a policy which has never 
before been established by the govern¬ 
ment. In all eradication measures in 
which they have heretofore participated 
in the eradication of diseases among ani¬ 
mals, and even in the eradication of dis¬ 
eases among men, they have required cer¬ 
tain state participation, and those moneys 
have had to be appropriated and available 
for expenditure before the treasury of the 
Government was available for use. 
We were met with this problem when 
we went to Washington a year ago 
last December, and on every occasion 
since that time; the one question in the 
minds of the Federal Government has 
been, “What has Florida done, and what 
will she do when her next Legislature 
meets?” Our representation in Con¬ 
gress have appeared before the Congres¬ 
sional Committee time and time again, 
and on every occasion they have made 
the strongest representation that our Leg¬ 
islature met only on alternate years; that 
when they last met they appropriated 
$125,000, which was all we asked for at 
that time, and that if the Government in 
this emergency would step in and take up 
this fight until our Legislature did meet, 
then Florida would not be found wanting 
in doing her full duty. 
This is the first time in the history of 
this country that the eradication of a 
plant disease has ever been undertaken, 
and it will be the first time it has ever 
been successfully accomplished. (Ap¬ 
plause). 
Just for a moment suppose the same 
energy and the same amount of money 
had been expended at the beginning of the 
infestation of boll weevil in this country, 
and see that thousands and hundreds of 
thousands of dollars the growers in this 
state would have put in their pockets if 
we had taken the whitefly or any other of 
the numerous insects and pests which cost 
us so much money, not to eradicate but to 
cure and control. 
In approaching this subject, there are 
three definite conclusions which we must 
accept as final; first, citrus canker can be 
eradicated. This has been proven be¬ 
yond controversy. Second, if citrus can¬ 
ker is not eradicated, our properties will 
be confiscated; third, it will take approxi¬ 
mately two years more to accomplish this 
work, as best we can obtain from those 
in authority who have knowledge of the 
situation. 
We are asking the Legislature of the 
State of Florida to appropriate $150,000 
per annum for two years to meet the ob- 
