THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
43 
ling ” as used in the tariff act for that reason is applicable only to those 
seedlings which have not been transplanted and which remain in the 
locus of germination. 
This Board has previously held that the word “seedling ” as used in 
the tariff act was used in the sense and as defined by the recognized 
authorities. In that sense it is defined in the Standard Dictionary as 
“a plant grown from a seed as distinguished from one propagated by 
a cutting, budding, or grafting;” and in the Century Dictionary as “a 
plent reared from a seed as distinguished from one propagated by 
layering or from the bud or grafted tree or shrub.” This seems to be 
the sense in which these words were used by Congress. It will be 
noted in the paragraph quoted that in three places are used in the same 
order the words “stocks, cuttings, or seedlings.” It is manifest from 
the repeated use of the words thus phrased that it was intended by 
Congress that these descriptive words should embrace every possible 
kind of plants or trees of the kinds subsequently enumerated however, 
and by reference to the manner propagated in the first instance. It is 
equally manifest that the word “ seedlings,” as used in this phrase, is 
intended to be used as descriptive of the manner of the generation of 
the plant as to whether from a cutting, stock, or seed, and not with 
reference to its subsequent conditions, growth, or transplanting. 
That there is no uniform trade understanding in this country that a 
seedling which has been transplanted ceases to become such, is made 
evident by some of the evidence submitted by the importer. In 
Samuel C. Moon’s trade list submitted is catalogued, under “Deciduous 
ornamental trees,” “Purple leaved seedlings, two or three feet, twice 
transplanted; ” and on page 8 of the same catalogue are described 
“ Cydonia Japonica seedlings, 18 to 24 inches, transplanted.” And so, 
in the letter of September 19, 1902, submitted by F. E. Olmstead, 
acting chief of the Bureau of Forestiy of the United States Depart¬ 
ment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C., it is stated : 
“ I do not know of any acknowledged classification of seed bed and 
nursery evergreen stock. My opinion and practice in the matter are as 
follows : One, two or three year old plants in the seed bed are seed¬ 
lings; one, two, or three year old stock transplanted from seed bed to 
nursery rows are transplinted seedlings up to four years; nursery stock 
older than four years, transplanted any number of times in the nursery, 
are nursery trees.” 
From this evidence it would appear, and we find as a fact herein, 
that neither in the understanding of botanists nor in the trade was 
there a general and uniform understanding at and prior to the passage 
of the present tariff act that a seedling which has been transplanted 
ceases to be a seedling. 
It may be noted with reference to the repetition of the term “ ever¬ 
green seedlings ” in the paragraph, bearing different rates of duty, 
first, that the former is the more specific designation extending to 
“evergreen” seedlings only, whilst the latter extends to seedlings 
“ evergreen and deciduous; ” and, secondly, that the former provision 
levies the higher rate of duty of the two, $1 per thousand and 15 per 
cent, ad valorem, as against 25 per cent, ad valorem, both of which 
reasons make applicable the former, more specific and higher rate of 
duty. 
The protests are therefore overruled as to all the merchandise except 
the Buxus suffructicosa (case 298, protest 5151h), and as to that item 
that protest is sustained. The collector will be governed accordingly. 
Winchester,Tenn., April 20.—Southern Nursery Company: 
“ Spring planting is over. Prospects for stand of apple and 
pear grafts were never better. The stand of peach seedlings 
is good, except where Smock seed were planted. Only about 
one-fourth stand of these pits are up. 
“ The outlook for nursery trade for fall is very bright. 
Nurserymen here are already booking large orders for peach. 
It is estimated that 5,000 bushels of peach seed were planted 
here last fall.” 
Denison, Tex., April 4. —T. V. Munson : “ Business with 
us better than ever before. Cleared up on nearly every line.” 
Sherman, Tex., April 27.— John S. Kerr : “Our nursery 
trade the past season has been the best by far of any season 
in our thirty years’ history. Nurserymen have all done well.’ 
SOUTHERN POINTS . 
Wet Weather Affected Orders, Some Being Countermanded—May 
Be Shortage of Peach—Five Thousand Bushels of Peach 
Seed Planted at Winchester, Tenn, —Texas Bust, 
ness Better Than Ever—Maryland Grow¬ 
ers Shipping Strawberry Plants 
Berlin. Md, April 24—J. G. Harrison & Sons: “Sales 
in the first part of the year were very good, especially whole¬ 
sale ; but dropped so much later in the season. The retail 
orders also dropped off, I think principally from the country 
being flooded with water and people could not get on their 
grounds to plant. We had many good orders countermanded 
that were placed early in the year.” 
Snow Hill, Md , April 20.—William M. Peters’ Sons : 
“ We have no reason to complain. Our trade this spring has 
been very satisfactory. Everything but strawberry plants 
closed out very close. If collections prove as satisfactory as 
the number of orders received and shipped, it will be the ban¬ 
ner year in the history of our business. Our stock of straw¬ 
berry plants proved to be much greater in numbers than we 
had estimated. Orders in numbers exceeded those of any 
previous season, but not so large. Our season opened up 
much earlier than usual for shipping, and we are still shipping 
strawberry plants, and orders will probably continue to come 
in for them until May 10th. 
“Our stock of peach for the coming fall in one-year olds 
will probably not exceed 300,000, much less than half of the 
past season, and this section will, beyond a doubt, be short on 
peach especially. We shall try to overcome this shortage to 
some extent by June budding, and are using our efforts in 
that direction, hoping to supply our Southern trade in this 
way. Prospects for a good stand of peach seedlings are very 
promising at this time. 
“We are planting out two millions of grape cuttings, thirty 
or more acres of strawberry plants, also largely of California 
privet, asparagus, and other fruit stocks, but not trying to in¬ 
crease over former years. While we have had a very unfavor¬ 
able spring for planting, on account of too much rain, which 
has delayed the planting later than in previous seasons, we 
hope that we will be favored with better weather from now on. 
Up to this time it has been the wettest season we have experi¬ 
enced in early spring for over thirty years. So far as we can 
learn, we think that very little stock of any kind will be carried 
over that was ready to go out this spring. As far as we can 
determine, the shortage in this state will be peaches. 
“We see nothing at present indicating a surplus for the 
coming season, and we look for as good results as we had the 
past season. This, of course, will depend some on the present 
crop of fruit. While it is hurt some, there are at this time 
prospects of an average crop through this peninsula. From 
reports made us throughout this section, we predict another 
prosperous year for all industries. Everyone seems to be 
busy, there is no lack of employment, and all seem to be 
happy.” _ 
Severe frosts, snow and hail storms in France during April 
damaged the crops of nurserymen, vineyardists, fruit and seed 
growers. Damage was also caused to stock in other European 
countries. 
