THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
67 
TARIFF 
Hearing of the Tarriff Committee of the American Association of Nurserymen before the 
Ways and Means Committee 
The Ways and Means Committee of the House of Repre¬ 
sentatives are holding public hearings in Washington for 
the purpose of framing a new tariff bill to be presented to 
Congress at its next session. 
By prearrangement, Irving Rouse of Rochester, New 
York, received a hearing before the Committee on Monday 
afternoon, January 20th. With him were John Dayton, 
Paincsville, Ohio, Wm. Pitkin, Rochester, New York and 
Thomas B. Meehan, Drcsher, Pa., all members of the Tariff 
Committee; also Wm. Flemmer, Springfield, New Jersey 
and Henry Moon, Morrisville, Pa., representing the Orna¬ 
mental Growers’ Association. Mr. Moon and Mr. Meehan 
were also there in behalf of the Pennsylvania Nurserymen’s 
Association. 
The Committee were unanimous in the opinion that it 
would be unwise to ask for any changes from the present 
tariff but to urge that the rates of duties now in force be 
maintained. It was conceded that some slight changes might 
be the means of opening up the entire subject, leaving the 
possiblity of a severe cut in the present rate. 
The argument of Chairman Rouse to the Ways and Means 
Committee was as follows: “Hon. C. F. Underwood, 
Chairman, and members of the Committee on Ways and 
Means. 
Gentlemen: We represent the American Association of 
Nurserymen which embraces practically the entire nursery 
interests of the United States. We have also with us dele¬ 
gates from the Ornamental Growers’ Association. 
Previous to the last Tariff Act we had a mixed specific 
and ad valorum duty, and at the request of this Association 
Congress changed the law to a straight specific duty on 
seedlings as follows: Stocks, cuttings, or seedlings of 
Myrobolan Plum, Mahaleb and Mazzard Cherry, three 
years old or less $1.00 per thousand plants, and on Apple, 
Pear and Quince stocks $2.00 per thousand. This specific 
duty was what the nursery trade was anxious to secure and 
what we especially desire to have retained in the pending 
bill. It is really of more importance than the rate of duty. 
We ask for a specific duty such as we now have, because 
these goods are an annual crop, like com or potatoes, and 
are affected by the weather and climatic conditions and thus 
subject to violent fluctuations in price. At least 85 per cent 
of the crop is bought from three to nine months in advance 
of the actual delivery, as the goods can only be shipped in 
winter when the growth is completed and the plants dormant. 
Now the ten to fifteen per cent of the crop unsold in Europe 
at the beginning of the shipping season fixes the price, so 
far as the United States Appraisers valuation for duty is 
concerned, of the entire crop. If the demand is heavy or 
the crop poor, the price for this unsold balance is higher than 
the 85 per cent of the stock purchased early and there is no 
way whereby the early buyer can tell what the market is at 
the time of shipment, and he is thus liable to fines and 
penalties by reason of the fact that he enters his invoices at 
actual prices purchased, which are or may be lower than the 
market price fixed by the Board of Appraisers. If on the 
contrary, the price for the unsold balance goes down, the 
importer does not benefit, as he must pay on invoice prices 
even if they arc higher than the market rates at the time 
of shipment. This creates an almost intolerable situation. 
A straight specific duty avoids this trouble entirely. 
On stocks, cuttings, or seedlings of Myrobolan Plum, 
Mahaleb and Mazzard Cherry, Manetti, Multiflora and Brier 
Roses three yeors old or less we ask that the present rate of 
$i per thousand plants be continued. 
The average prices quoted the past season by five of the 
leading French nurseries are: S9.00 for Myrobolan Plum, 
$5.00 for Mahaleb and $8.00 for Mazzard Cherry and $8.00 
for rose stocks, an average of $7.50 per thousand on which 
our present rate of $1.00 per thottsand amounts to 13 2-10 
per cent ad valorum, the average price on stocks quoted the 
past season taken from the five leading French nurseries 
is Pear $8.00 per thousand, Apple $7.77 and Quinces $6.00, 
so that the average for the entire list is S7.07 and under the 
present duty schedule of $2 per thousand we are paying 
25 per cent ad valonmi. 
A specific duty also tends to lessen the planting of seedlings 
of inferior size and quality which do not produce strong and 
healthy trees, and which when met by a specific duty do not 
seek a market in the United States. Previous to the pas¬ 
sage of the Dingley Act, very little of this stock was grown 
in this country. Today at least 80 per cent of all the Apple 
seedlings planted are grown here with a less quantity of other 
items. 
For the above reasons we ask that the present specific 
duty on these items be retained. 
Rose plants, budded, grafted or grown on their own roots, 
4 cents each. Stocks, cuttings, and seedlings of all fruit 
and ornamental trees, deciduous and evergreen, shrubs and 
vines commonly known as nursery or greenhouse stock, not 
specially provided for in the section of this Act, 25 per cent 
ad valorum. 
This latter rate is necessar^^ We formerly paid for 
unskilled labor from $1.00 to $1.50 per day, we are now 
paying $1.75 to $2.00 per day for the same labor. In France 
and Holland, where most of the stock comes from, there has 
been no material increase in labor in the past ten years. 
The average price for nursery labor in France is 40 to 
50 cents per day for eleven hours and from 30 to 50 cents 
per day for women, and in Holland from 30 to 60 cents per 
day for twelve hours as against $1.75 to $2.00 per day for 
nine or ten hours work in the nurseries of the United States. 
