212 
THE NATIONAL NUESERYMAN 
state whose minds and hearts are God directed. And then, as 
my heart turns to the blood drenched fields of France and Bel¬ 
gium, where our sons are pouring out their life’s blood that a 
world may live and he free, I thank God that the leader of our 
soldiers in that field of carnage is a man who believes in the 
righteousness of our cause, who believes “that we shall be saved 
through prayer.” 
As a nation we are called upon to make the most stupendous 
sacrifice which ever came to a people, and we make the sacrifice 
because we believe it is right. America is yet to bear the brunt 
of Germany’s defeat. We are, 1 fear, just entering a long night 
of suffering, of sorrow, and of trial, and, as the night grows 
darker and darker, as our casuality list grows larger, as we are 
called upon to give and give, our souls will be tried as if by fire. 
Through it all I pray that we may be true, that our courage may 
not fail, and that we may count it a privilege to give, even of 
our very selves, on the altar of our country. 'And, when the 
world has been purged of selfishness and greed, when the peoples 
who sit in darkness have seen the great light of freedom, when 
despotism as represented by Prussian militarism shall have been 
crushed to earth to rise no more forever, then, and not until then, 
can America say, “1 have fought a good fight, 1 have finished my 
course, 1 have kept the faith.” 
KEPORT OF THE LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE OF THE 
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF NURSERYMEN 
FOR THE ANNUAL MEETING AT CHICAGO, 
JUNE 26th, 1918. 
By Wiliiam Pitkin, Chairman Pro Tern. 
At the 1917 meeting in Philadelphia, your connnittee 
reported the situation regarding the ideas of some of the 
members of the Horticultural Inspectors’ Association, 
favoring the absolute exclusion of foreign nursery stock. 
You were then advised that the Inspectors had appointed 
a committee, headed by Prof. Sanders, which was to con¬ 
fer with your committee at a later date, and you passed 
a resolution expressing the sentiment of the Association 
as opposed to the exclusion of foreign nursery stock, and 
authorizing the legislative committee and the executive 
committee to take charge of the matter, and confer with 
the committee representing the inspectors. 
About August 1st, 1917, your legislative committee 
held a conference with Prof. Sanders’ committee in New 
York City, and while the subject was discussed generally, 
no delinite conclusions were reached, and the conference 
adjourned, subject to the call of Prof. Sanders. 
Later, about November 1st and December 1st, there 
were meetings in Pittsburgh of various associations made 
up quite largely of our scientific friends, at which your 
committee was urged to be present, hut we felt that noth¬ 
ing could be accomplished by general discussion in an 
open meeting, and insisted that according to agreement 
there should he another conference by our committees, 
and therefore, we did not attend the Pittsburgh meetings. 
Contrary to the understanding and agreement, some of 
the associations or individuals meeting at Pittsburgh 
passed a resolution favoring the exclusion of foreign 
nursery stock, and following such action a hill was intro¬ 
duced in the United States Senate by Senator Weeks of 
Massachusetts providing for the absolute exclusion of 
foreign nurserj^ stock, effective July 1st, 1918. That hill 
did not receive the support of the Federal Horticultural 
Roard, and has never been reported by the Senate Com¬ 
mittee and probably will never he heard from again. 
The Federal Horticultural Roard announced a hearing 
in Washington on May 28th, 1918 to consider the gen¬ 
eral question of exclusion of foreign nursery stock, and 
paiticularly such items as are usually imported with 
halls of earth on the roots. Your committee consisting 
of Mr. Dayton, Mr. Meehan, Mr. J. M. Pitkin, Secretary 
Smith, and your Chairman, attended the hearing and a 
connnittee reprpesenting the American Florist Associa¬ 
tion was also present. 
There were present, of course, many of our scientilic 
friends, who talked veiy emphatically about the insects 
and diseases prevalent in foreign countries, and the 
probability that these dangerous insects would conceal 
themselves in the balls of earth so they could not be 
found under the ordinary methods of inspection and 
could not he killed by the ordinary methods of fumiga¬ 
tion, and would thus enter this country and he prepared 
to spread destruction over the face of this fair land. One 
very prominent scientist had a list of 2000 such insects 
and was ready to give us the pedigree and family history 
of each one of them, hut fortunately was shut off by the 
Chairman, Dr. Marlatt. 
As a matter of fact, they had very little delinite, posi¬ 
tive information about these dangerous criminals hut 
they did have a slight suspicion or fear that something 
might happen, and that the only way to safe guard this 
great and glorious country of ours was to positively pro¬ 
hibit the entrance of any foreign nursery stock. 
They would he glad to see such a regulation in force 
at once, without regard to the available supply in this 
country and without regard to the effect of such exclu¬ 
sion on the nursery business, the orchardists and the 
general public. If we may judge by the statements that 
have been made in the past by some of these same men 
and their associates, they are now as they were then, 
“Worrying about a lot of things that will never happen.” 
Your committee took the ground that at the present 
time there was no sufficient source of supply in this 
country for fruit tree seedlings and rose stocks and many 
of the items usually imported with halls of earth; that 
the nurserymen had tried for years to develop that part 
of the business, and with the exception of apple, no ma¬ 
terial progress had been made and that even today there 
were not enough apple seedlings produced in America to 
supply the American demand; that many nurserymen 
preferred to import French Apple seedlings and pay more 
money for them, believing that thereby they could secure 
better blocks of better trees; that many of us had tried 
earnestly to produce fruit tree seedlings and rose stocks 
on a commercial scale, and had absolutely failed; that 
