FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
59 
has been said. I could not add to the 
impression which you all have now that 
this disease must be eradicated or we shall 
suffer immeasurably. 
Personally, having spent a good deal of 
time at Tallahassee, I believe it will pass. 
There is not a shadow of doubt, if things 
pursue a normal course, but that it will 
pass by a large majority. The man who 
has been opposing it has not been able to 
say a hopeful thing about his chance of 
success. The most hopeful thing he has 
been able to say is that if he could send 
ten men home from the House, he could 
beat it. But he can’t send those ten men 
home. (Applause). 
The political situation at Tallahassee is 
one of uncertainty. An unusual thing 
has been done. The appropriation bills 
are all going to be bunched practically in¬ 
to one consideration; that may or may not 
be wise, but it is the will of the Senate and 
we have no way to interfere with it. But 
I am sure this Committee has done a wise 
thing in preparing this explicit resolution, 
and that you have done a wise thing to 
pass it unanimously, and when that reso¬ 
lution is read in the two Houses of the 
Legislature, I am sure it will make an im¬ 
pression most favorable to this cause. 
(Applause). 
Mr. Hume: When your Committee 
went to Tallahassee two years ago to se¬ 
cure the passage of the Plant Act with 
all that it means and will mean to Florida, 
when the Committee secured at that time 
the funds wherewith to put into operation 
the work of that Plant Board, and secur¬ 
ed additional appropriations with which 
to take up the fight, the one thing which 
strengthened our hands more than any¬ 
thing else, was between 700 and 800 tele¬ 
grams that went into Tallahassee. 
I have seen men stand up in the Senate 
with a wad of telegrams as thick as this 
book, and shake them at the men on the 
other side of the Senate who were oppos¬ 
ing it, and say “That is what I got from 
home, and I do not need them, for I am 
going to vote for it. But I am here to 
tell you that you have got to vote for this 
bill and every telegram in my hand will 
tell you so.” 
It strengthened the hands of those men 
in the fight. We won. (Applause). 
Mr. Gillett asked you a few minutes 
ago to do' this very thing over again. 
Now, if you have any interest in the wel¬ 
fare of this state, if you have any interest 
in the industry which means so much to 
it, do not forego those telegrams. Let 
them begin to get into Tallahassee just 
about the first of May. Give the Wes¬ 
tern Union the biggest week’s business 
they ever handled in Tallahassee and do 
your share in putting this thing over. 
Don’t forget it. Don’t think it is not 
your business; don’t leave it to the other 
fellow to do. Your Committee has done 
its part; now do yours. (Applause). 
Now, then, enough of that for this ses¬ 
sion. We all hope it will be the last time 
it will be necessary either for your presi¬ 
dent or for the Citrus Canker Committee 
to have to bring this matter before you. 
I believe if we put it over this time, we 
are through with it. 
