62 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
THE POINT EXACTLY. 
Professor F. W. Mally’s Sound Argument 
ON THE Federal Insect Bill — A Good 
Measure when Properly Amended. 
Professor Frederick W. Mally of Hulen, Tex., makes the 
following comment on the federal insect bill in the Dallas, 
Tex., News : 
“ In a recent issue the News called attention to a bill (No. 
96) now pending in congress, providiiig for the inspection and 
treatment of plants infected by insects or disease. I have read 
the bill and find a few most serious omissions in its provisions 
—omissions serious enough that the advisability of its passage 
in its present form is questionable. 
“Sections i, 2, 3 and 4 provide for the inspection of all 
kinds of nursery stock and propagation material, and also 
fruits imported to the United States. The penalty for attempt¬ 
ing to import trees, scions or fruits infected with dangerous 
insect pests or fungus diseases is heavy, and justly so, for cer¬ 
tainly measures looking to the accomplishment of such im¬ 
munity can not be too rigidly provided for and prosecuted. 
“In section 5 the first important omission occurs. It pro¬ 
vides for the inspection of all kinds of nursery stock and 
propagation materials, grown in the United States which may 
become subjects of interstate commerce, but omits the inspec¬ 
tion of fruits grown in the state and which are also subjects of 
interstate commerce. The advisability of spending time and 
money in providing for the rigid inspection of the one and not 
the other is a questionable expenditure to say the least. It 
should be remembered that for any given locality the fruiting 
orchards are the sources of infection for either the fruit grower 
or the nurseryman. Propagation wood is almost universally 
taken from bearing trees whenever the same are accessible. It 
must, therefore, be evident that the nurseryman needs protec¬ 
tion from the orchardist with his bearing trees, should they be 
infested, in which case protection against the fruit of such 
trees should be provided for, since it is well known that some 
of the worst insect pests attack the fruit quite as freely as the 
trees. 
“ In these days of rapid progress and the high standard of 
the general and agricultural press, nurserymen are compelled 
as a matter of business and self-preservation to be thoroughly 
informed about these various injurious pests and diseases, and 
with but few exceptions no effort on their part is spared to 
protect their nursery from infection. There is consequently 
less danger of the widespread dissemination of injurious in¬ 
sects, etc., through the transfer of nursery stock than through 
the hundreds of miscellaneous shipments of infested fruits. 
Both the orchardist and the nurseryman, as a class, recognize 
the importance of the strictest vigilance in these matters, and 
it is manifestly inadequate to legislate for the one ana omit 
the other. 
“ The worst feature of the present form of the bill develops 
when one considers that of the shipments from any one given 
locality those from the orchard are the most certain to trans¬ 
mit the pest in its most virulent form, and that these products 
are exempted from inspection. Nursery stock is usually grown 
for a year, or in many cases two years, and the probabilities 
are that if infested wood has been used in propagation it will 
be detected and thoroughly disinfected or destroyed before 
any shipments are made. Furthermore, shipments of nursery 
stock are more or less limited in their power to disseminate, 
inasmuch as they are not sold usually, annually to the same 
parties, while the fruits go to every home and castle each year. 
Should either be omitted from inspection it must be evident 
that the one fraught with the least danger to all concerned 
would be the product of the nursery rather than that of the 
orchard. 
“ From the foregoing it must be evident that the deficiencies 
in the bill could easily be adjusted by providing for a thorough 
system of orchard inspection, since the orchard is the direct 
and original source of both the fruit and the propagation mate¬ 
rial. A suitable penalty could be inflicted for allowing trees 
in an orchard, when known to be attacked, to remain infested 
without the application of heroic measures to eradicate the 
pest. The proposed bill provides for about one-third of the 
legislation required'to make it an effective measure and to 
enable its enforcement to accomplish the desired control of 
and immunity from injurious insect pests to other diseases. 
“As general manager of an extensive nursery and orchard, 
my experience easily places me in a position to foresee the 
application of a perfected bill in its three features, namely : 
Inspection of nursery stock, inspection of fruits and inspection 
of orchards. I also fully realize that a perfected bill would be 
of untold benefit to every interest involved, and its passage 
would be a consummation devoutly to be hoped for. Such a 
measure will be heartily indorsed by every fruit grower and 
nurseryman in Texas, and since our Texas orchardists and 
nurserymen have fortunately maintained a high standard, they 
have nothing to fear or suffer from the passage of a perfect 
bill. An imperfect bill is objectionable, first, for the reason 
that it is imperfect, and second, many an orchardist or nur¬ 
seryman might feel securely protected in all respects through 
the provisions of a bill which has been made a law, but which 
he later finds in fact, and much to his sorrow, lacking in im¬ 
portant respects. The incomplete bill works a hardship for 
the plain and simple reason that it does not protect in the 
several important essentials above outlined. 
“ In view of these serious omissions we should urge our 
senators and representatives in congress to provide for the in¬ 
sertion of suitable amendments to the bill, and then secure its 
passage. Let our suggestions be in the spirit of co-operation 
rather than that of antagonism, and let it be our aim to secure 
a great good, equitably distributed among all interests in¬ 
volved. We would suggest that all of our friends, fellow 
orchardists and nurserymen, take an interest in this bill, and 
give our senators and representatives in congress the benefit 
of their experience, observation and co-operation in a laudable 
endeavor. 
PENNSYLVANIA PEACH BELTS. 
Professor George C. Butz of the Pennsylvania Experiment 
Station estimates the total area devoted to peaches at 11,000 
acres, containing about 2,000,000 trees. These are in well- 
known “peach belts.” The largest, the Juniata belt, com¬ 
prises 3.500 acres and lies principally in Juniata county, but 
extends into the counties of Mifflin, Perry and Snyder. The 
South mountain belt lies wholly within Franklin county and 
contains 2,500 acres. The third district is not made up of a 
belt, but the trees are scattered qver the line of counties from 
