THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
than at tlie i)resont time wlien help is scarce and the 
men are too inde])endent. 
As business inci’eases we employ more clerks, bet¬ 
ter class of men and more foremen. Foremen, if 
they understand the business, are ])aid higher sal¬ 
aries from year to year as we do not want to let them 
o'O 
'^riie above are i)rinci])al reasons for ‘‘increased cost 
of |)roduction. ’ ’ 
AVe have more taxes and thev are much higher each 
year. 
Former years we ])aid $1.50 for a cord of manure, 
then $2.00, $2.50. Now we pay $3.00. 
It is the same case with wood ashes. I can re¬ 
member ])aying’ $8.00 or $8.50 |)er ton and now it is 
$11.00 at lowest wholesale prices. 
Even charges on all kinds of freight is consider¬ 
ably higher than 10 years ago. 
About ten years ago I paid for a good pair of 
145 
clothing, even hair (uitting and shaving cost more in 
])ro])oidion. A few yeai’s ago we used to shine our 
own shoes. Now we give the nionev to some one else 
to do the work, and have to tip the shoe-shiner. Shoe- 
shining stores are now in every town while a few 
years ago there were none. 
Coal, grain, wagon-repairing, harness repairing, 
are also higher now than tliey were. 
All mechanics, and cai-])enters that build our green¬ 
houses, ])acking sheds, stables, garages, would work 
for $3.00. Now they demand .$5.00. 
On account of electric cars, land has become more 
expensive, and harder to obtain. Land that could 
be bought, in previous years, in our vicinity for 
$250.00 per acre costs now $400.00. 
Burlap, roi)e and es])ecially lumber for ])acking 
boxes are much higher than they were. The same 
case with gasoline, last year 10 cents, this year 18 
cents. 
Office and Packing House of the Durant Nursery Co., Durant, Okla. 
horses, the same kind as we have to-day, $175.00 or 
$200.00. Now the same kind of a pair of hoi'ses cost 
from $500.00 to $600.00. 
A few years ago we were satisfied with horses for 
carting, driving, etc. To-day we are not satisfied. 
Time is more expensive than it was. AVe all want 
automobiles and trucks. (That is another reason for 
the Increased Cost of Production. (These automobiles 
and trucks cost a great deal of money and the stock 
has to produce it. Trucks require skillful labor and 
every man can not be trusted to drive a truck. A 
man that takes this ])osition demands higher salary. 
That is not all an automobile wants. They recpure 
garages. AVe build a garage, generally for one o’* 
tAvo machines and in a short time the s])ace is not 
large enough, so we build additions. (Another reason 
of the increased cost of ])roduction.) 
AVe also must account for the high cost of living. 
AVe all know that living cost about 55 ])er cent, to 60 
])er cent, higher than a feAv years ago. Everything 
Ave buy, as vegetal)les, all kinds of ])rovisions, also 
In ju'eAnous years there Avas no Ornamental OroAA’- 
ers Association and Ave did not join so many other 
associations. There are the ex))enses tor ti’aAmeling 
and such good times Avhi(‘h Ave did not liuA’e a teAv 
years ago. These are ])rincipal reasons of the in¬ 
creased cost of production. 
Aly idea is that the cost of ])roduction is fully trom 
55 ])er cent, to 60 ])er cent, higher. Did the i)rices 
of stock increase accordingly? 
There are a number of other reasons, gentlemen, 
that I liaA^e not mentioned, but Avill leave them to 
you for further discussion. 
A FEW WORDS IN REGARD TO UNIFORM STATE 
LEGISLATION. 
At the Portland C'onvention, a s])ecial committee, 
AA’ith niA’self as chairman, and Air. A oungers, ot Neb¬ 
raska, and Air. AIcDonald, of Oregon, Avas a])pointed 
to take up the matter of uniform state legislation. 
