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he National Nurseryman. 
FOR GROWERS AND DEALERS IN NURSERY STOCK. 
Copyright, 1898, by the National Nurseryman Publishing Co. 
Vol. VI. 
ROCHESTER, N. Y., APRIL, 1898. 
No. 3. 
CANADIAN RESTRICTIONS . 
Drastic Measure Summarily Adopted at Ottawa—AH Nursery 
Stock from the United States Barred from the Dominion — 
Two Commoners Make Vigorous Opposition, 
On March 16, the Canadian House of Commons adopted a 
bill excluding all nursery stock from the United States from 
entry into Canada, for the stated reason that the spread of San 
Jose scale was feared. Minister of Agriculture Sidney A. 
Fisher said he had been importuned by fruit growers for a 
year to present such a bill. He asked that it be passed at 
once. 
“ My honorable friends ” said he, addressing the House of 
Commons, “can understand that once it is known in this 
country that a bill of this kind is likely to pass through the 
Parliament of Canada, immediately a large number of those 
nurserymen in the United States who have been in the habit 
of sending large quantities of nursery stock into Canada will 
ship their goods into this country, so that they may be able to 
evade the provisions of this bill, and if it were delayed for two 
or three weeks, as it would likely be if it were subject to the 
ordinary course of procedure in the House, the.object of the 
bill would be defeated, because at present or within the next 
two or three weeks is the time when the importations of nursery 
stock from the United States would take place ; and if it were 
known to the nurserymen of the United States that the Cana¬ 
dian Parliament was considering such a bill as this they would 
immediately shove their stock into Canada as quickly as pos¬ 
sible. They would be able to send in carload after carload, 
and we might feel assured that in that stock there would be a 
large quantity of this scale insect introduced into this country. 
The only way in which, so far as I can see, we may be able to 
prevent that procedure is to pass this bill as quickly as pos¬ 
sible.” 
Mr. Sproule—“Why did you not introduce the bill a month 
ago if there was that urgency, before there was any importa¬ 
tion of stock ? ” 
The Minister of Agriculture—“If I had introduced the bill 
a month ago the same thing would have occured then that I 
am pointing out as likely to occur now. The nurserymen 
would have been rushing in their stock just the same, the 
moment it became known that Parliament was considering the 
advisability of passing a bill of this nature.” 
Mr. Charlton opposed the bill vigorously, saying that it was 
of a very drastic nature. The sources from which most of their 
nursery stock is taken, in the neighborhood of Rochester, were, 
he said, singularly free from the pest. A total prohibition of 
the importation of nursery stock would be an injustice to those 
in Canada who desired to secure new stock. He did not be¬ 
lieve that the measure was one that was called for in the public 
interest. Some measure was undoubtedly necessary, but he 
did not think that absolute non-intercourse was called for. If 
the bill was passed its necessary consequence would be the 
prohibition of the importation of fruit. He thought that Mr. 
Fisher had been misled by parties anxious to control the sup¬ 
ply of stock for the Canadian market. He suggested the pos¬ 
sibility of retaliatory action on the part of the United States 
government. 
Sir Charles Tupper insisted that drastic measures must be 
used or the object aimed at would not be secured. The 
Minister of Agriculture had, Sir Charles stated, convinced him 
that action was necessary. The bill should be passed imme¬ 
diately so as not to defeat its object. While it might be true 
that there were portions of the United States which were free 
from the pest, still, as Mr. Fisher had pointed out, it was so 
difficult to detect the disease that discrimination was impos¬ 
sible. Sir Charles expressed the hope that Mr. Charlton would 
not impede the passage of the bill. 
Sir Wilfrid Laurier denied that this was a measure of hostil¬ 
ity to the United States. 
Mr. McCleary criticised Mr. Charlton for his anti-Canadian 
attitude, and said the bill should be passed regardless of the 
interests of United States nurserymen. 
Mr. Ellis, of St. John, opposed the bill. The rules were 
then suspended and the bill was passed through its various 
stages. 
On the following day the senate passed the bill with a rush 
and on March 18, the governor-general, Lord Aberdeen, gave 
royal assent to the bill and the new law went into effect on 
March 19, four days from the date of its presentation to the 
lower house. 
TEXT OF THE BILL. 
Following is the full text of the bill : 
An Act to protect Canada against the introduction of the insect pest 
known as the San Jose scale. 
Her majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the senate and 
house of commons of Canada, enacts as follows: 
1. This act may be cited as the San Jose Scale act. 
2. The importation of any trees, shrubs, plants, vines, grafts, cut¬ 
tings or buds, commonly called nursery stock, from any country or 
place to which this act applies is prohibited. 
3. Any nursery stock so imported shall be forfeited to the crown 
and may be destroyed, and any person importing nursery stock from 
any such country or place, or causing or permitting it to be so im¬ 
ported, shall be deemed to be guilty of an offense under section 6 of 
the customs tariff, 1897, and shall be liable to the penalty prescribed 
by that section. 
4. The governor in council may from time to time declare that this 
act applies to any country or place as to which it has been made to 
appear that San Jose scale exists therein ; and, when satisfied that the 
importation of nursery stock from any country or place to which this 
act has been applied may safely be permitted, he may in like manner 
declare that this act no longer applies to such country or place. 
5. The governor in council, upon its being made to appear to his 
satisfaction that any class of plants is not liable to the attack of San 
Jose scale, may exempt plants of such class, and grafts, cuttings or 
buds thereof from the operation of this act. 
6. The governor in council, may from time to time, notwithstand 
ing anything contained in this act, permit the importation from any 
