54 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
GENERAL OPINION. 
Frank Expressions For and Against the Pro¬ 
posed Insect Law—Nurserymen Who Favor 
I j — A Noted Entomologist’s Views. 
Following are opinions, from various sections, regarding 
the proposed federal law providing for the inspection of 
nursery stock : 
SHOULD NOT BE INDORSED. 
William Pitkin, secretary Chase Brothers Co., Rochester, 
N. Y.:—“We did not receive any invitation to attend the 
Washington convention, and haven’t understood that nursery¬ 
men generally were invited to be present. 
“ We feel that the bill drafted by that convention is very 
imperfect in detail and should not be indorsed in its present 
shape by nurserymen generally. In our opinion the letter from 
Mr. Rouse in your April issue hits the nail on the head and we 
can subscribe heartily to what he said. The matter should 
come up at the next annual meeting of the American Associa¬ 
tion of Nurserymen for careful discussion, and we think should 
be referred to a good committee, with full power and authority 
to act on such lines as may be adopted by the convention. 
“ The Washington meeting was evidently made up almost 
entirely of fruit growers and theorists, who had no knowledge 
or interest in the nursery business and no desire to formulate 
a bill that would be acceptable to the nursery interests and yet 
effective. We believe such a bill can be drawn by a commit¬ 
tee of the American Nurserymen's Association, and one that 
will not be too rigorous in its provisions, and yet effective in 
preventing the spread of San Jose scale and other injurious 
insects and diseases.” 
FAVORS AN AMENDED LAW. 
N. H. Albaugh, president Albaugh Nursery and Orchard 
Co., Tadmor, O.;—“With the already enacted state laws, 
generally drafted by men ignorant of the real needs of fruit 
growers and nurserymen, on the line of noxious and destruc¬ 
tive insects (no two laws alike) and other laws and states 
rapidly following ‘ pell mell ’ on this line, I believe a plain, 
practical national insect law would be a god-send to nursery¬ 
men and fruit growers. 
“ I was invited to attend the meeting at Washington city, but 
could not attend on account of previous engagements. I saw 
the draft of the present bill, however, and think it, in the main, 
a practical measure, needing however some amendments on 
fruits. Better by far, have a good national law, than forty dif¬ 
ferent state laws, no two alike and many of them impractical, 
and really prohibitive to outside nurserymen.” 
WANTS A JUST LAW. 
Charles Wright, Seaford, Del.:—“I fully agree with Mr. 
Rouse, page 38, April issue. ‘ If we have a law let us have a 
just law.’ It’s a good deal like wanting the other fellow to kill 
his cow with the anthrax and let yours alone. Why keep our 
trees and plants infested with San Jose scale and continue to 
propagate and scatter it far and near on California oranges, 
pears, plums and other fruits which go into every country town 
in the United States ? If we are going to stamp it out let us 
do it right. 
“ Not many nurserymen would care to send out stock so in¬ 
fested, and most of the better class of the profession now send 
a bill of health with their goods. It seems to me that each 
state should pass a law providing that no such infested fruit 
shall be exposed for sale within the limits. 
“ California gave us the scale ; now let her find a market for 
her infested fruit, and not inoculate every eastern state with it. 
The nurseries that were so unfortunate as to get this scale on 
stock bought for propagating purposes from California, were 
the first to fumigate and use every means to send out only 
such stock as they knew to be free from scale.” 
REALIZED MORE TIME NEEDED. 
J H. Hale, South Glastonbury, Conn.:—“I was at the con¬ 
vention of horticulturists and entomologists at Washington on 
March 5th and 6th as a representative of the Connecticut 
Bornological Society, but more particularly to look after the 
interest of the nursery trade and while I have only hurriedly 
read your article in relation to the convention in your April 
issue, I think that you did not have a full understanding of 
the matter. 
“ There is no possibility of any legislation at this session of 
congress and before the matter comes up for final action I 
think fruit growers, nurserymen and all interested parties will 
be able more thoroughly to study the matter and help to shape 
a bill that will be just and fair to all interested and be of real 
value to the commercial horticulturists of the country. 
“C. M. Hobbs, of Indiana, C. M. Hooker of Rochester, 
William C. Barry, a representative of W. T. Hood & Co. of 
Richmond and myself were at the convention as the represen¬ 
tatives of the nursery interest, and I think we realized that 
before any legislation was passed the matter would have to be 
put in better shape than there was time to consider in the two 
days’ convention.” 
SHOULD BE DISCUSSED. 
Edwy C. Reid, editor Horticultural Gazette, Allegan, Mich.: 
—It is by no means a perfect measure, but seems practicable 
in most of its features and should be thoroughly and carefully 
discussed by the horticultural public.” 
HEARTILY FAVOR THE BILL. 
Edward H. Bissell, Richmond, Va.:—“I am heartily in 
favor of the bill proposed at the Washington convention of 
fruit growers, and I think that the nurserymen and fruit 
growers should unite and have the bill passed at the earliest 
hour possible. The expense necessary to fumigate stock is 
very small, and the protection afforded thereby will be of in¬ 
calculable value. In my opinion nurserymen will find that 
this will work greatly to their advantage, in that the small 
expense necessarily incurred to fumigate the stock will be 
counterbalanced by the much greater freedom with which fruit 
growers will order. Fruit growers will order stock confident 
that they will be incurring no risk from insects by doing so. 
“ If national legislation is neglected, various states will un¬ 
doubtedly pass laws which will be greatly to the disadvantage 
of interstate commerce. In the nursery business it is abso¬ 
lutely necessary to secure prompt delivery, and it would be 
disastrous to have a system adopted which would necessitate 
inspection in transit.” 
W. T. Hood & Co., Richmond, Va.:—“We are heartily in 
favor of the law proposed by the Washington convention of 
fruit growers. In our packing last fall in order to meet the 
