THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
*9 
inspection of nursery stock and it will undoubtedly become a 
law. It would seem better policy for the State of New York 
to await the action of the federal authorities, and then if fur¬ 
ther legislation is needed, it should be made on the lines of 
the federal law and not in conflict therewith.” 
The representatives for Western New York in the legislature 
have expressed a determination to consider the wishes of the 
many nurserymen in their districts and the representatives of 
other districts, in response to the demands of their constituents, 
have declared that the nurserymen are entitled to a hearing in 
the matter. Fruit growers, entomologists and nurserymen 
agreed upon the federal bill and it is believed that it covers 
all the requirements. It bears directly upon the inspection of 
nursery stock in all the states and in a uniform manner. 
There is no need of widely differing state laws on the restric¬ 
tion of the transportation of nursery stock. As to fumigation, 
it is expensive, may be dangerous, and would certainly cause 
delay at a time when the interests of the nurserymen would be 
most apt to suffer. It may be that the time may come when 
fumigation will be necessary, but that necessity does not 
appear to be at hand. 
A CONVENTION SUBJECT. 
Throughopt the year since the American Association met in 
convention, the operation of the tariff has been the cause of 
many discussions which have indicated a strong desire to have 
present conditions improved upon. In this issue of the journal 
is published a suggestion by a prominent nurseryman and im¬ 
porter on the subject of custom house methods, supplementing 
that of Thomas B. Meehan in the February issue. 
It is proposed that the tariff be amended by omitting the 
ad valorem duty and increasing the specific duty. Opinions 
may differ upon this point. At all events the subject might 
properly be discussed at the coming annual convention. 
Many nurserymen are interested in it. In the meantime we 
would be glad of the opinions of others. 
A MONUMENTAL WORK. 
Crowning the long list of publications which Professor L. H 
Bailey has given the horticultural world is the “ Cyclopedia of 
American Horticulture,” the first volume of which has just 
been issued from the press of Macmillan & Co., New York 
and London. It is a monumental work, the greatest of its 
kind, the importance becoming better realized with use. In 
previous issues of the National Nurseryman we have antici¬ 
pated the appearance of this work. An examination of the 
first volume convinces the reader of the care and completeness 
with which it has been prepared. In his preface Professo r 
Bailey has concisely outlined the purpose of the cyclopedia 
which is to make a complete record of the status of North 
American horticulture as it exists at the close of the nineteenth 
century. The work discusses the cultivation of fruits, flowers 
and garden vegetables, describes all the species which are 
known to be in the horticultural trade, outlines the possibili¬ 
ties of the various states, territories and provinces, presents 
biographies of those persons not living who have contributed 
most to the horticultural progress of North America, and indi¬ 
cates the leading monographic works relating to the various 
subjects 
It has been the dream of years, says Professor Bailey, to 
close the century with a comprehensive index to American 
horticulture and for a long period he has collected notes, books, 
plants and information for the furtherance of the work. Be¬ 
fore the active preparation of the manuscript was begun, a 
year was spent making indexes and references to plants and 
literature. Every prominent plant and seed catalogue pub¬ 
lished in the United States and Canada has been indexed and 
the horticultural periodicals have been explored. A dozen 
artists have been employed in various horticultural centers to 
draw plants as they grow. Expert cultivators and botanists 
have contributed on their various specialties. All the impor¬ 
tant articles are signed, thus giving each author credit for his 
work and holding him responsible for it. The work is made 
first-hand, from original sources of information. Every effort 
has been made to present a truthful picture of American horti¬ 
culture, by describing those plants which are or lately have 
been in the trade, and by giving cultural directions founded 
upon American experience. Particular attention has been 
given to the tropical and subtropical plants which are now 
being introduced in Southern Florida and Southern California. 
These plants already represent the larger part of the cultivated 
tropical flora, and a knowledge of them will be of increasing 
importance. The work is intended to cover the field from Key 
West and the Rio Grande to Quebec and Alaska. 
North America, observes Professor Bailey, is a land of out¬ 
door horticulture, and the hardy fruits, trees, shrubs and herbs 
are given the prominence which they deserve. This feature 
makes the cyclopedia of especial interest and value to the nur¬ 
seryman. In most works of this character, the glasshouse and 
fanciers’ plants receive most attention. Throughout the cyclo¬ 
pedia the nurseryman will find that just the information he 
seeks has been provided, for the point of view is the garden, 
not the herbarium ; the herbarium is the adjunct. In other 
words, the stress is laid upon the plants as domesticated and 
cultivated subjects. Special efforts have been made to por¬ 
tray the range of variation under domestication and to suggest 
the course of evolution of the greatly modified forms. The 
descriptions have been made under the personal supervision of 
the editor, so far as possible ; no trade cuts have been pur¬ 
chased. 
Professor Bailey considers this book but a beginning. It is 
the first complete survey of our horticultural activities and it 
is intended that it shall bring together data in order that fur¬ 
ther studies may be made. In the partial list of collaborators 
are the names of 218 specialists in various lines of horticulture. 
In many of the most important subjects two authors have con¬ 
tributed, one writing the culture and the other the botany; and 
in some cases the culture is presented from two points of view. 
The names of nurserymen figure prominently in the list of con¬ 
tributors. Wilhelm Miller is the associate editor and a large 
part of the work was performed by Alfred Rehder, specialist 
in hardy trees and shrubs. The cyclopedic matter is presented 
in clear type, in double column, profusely illustrated, inter¬ 
spersed with full-page plates, the descriptive matter being 
arranged to indicate classification by means of different type. 
The whole is printed on heavy paper, and is appropriately and 
substantially bound. There are to be four volumes. The first 
volume comprises topics from A to D inclusive and contains 
509 pages. 
We desire again to call attention to the practicability of the 
