THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
73 
LEGISLATION. 
NURSERY LEGISLATION IN WEST VIRGINIA. 
The Legislature of West Virginia passed a bill on February 
18th, which forces all nurserymen, dealers or growers, who 
employ salesmen or agents, and sell trees and vines in that 
state, to ake out a license in some county of the state, which 
license may be secured from the assessor on payment of a 
fee of ten dollars. On taking out the license, the dealer or 
grower shall file a list of salesmen operating in the county or 
state. Any person violating the section shall lie fined not 
less than $25 nor more than $100, and may be confined in 
jail, not to exceed six months. All salesmen are required to 
carry certificates from their employer, showing that they are 
duly authorized to do business for him. Failure to exhibit 
a certificate is punished by a fine of $10 upon conviction. 
Section 3 of this act attempts to cover the false or fictitious 
naming of varieties. Section 4 states that the agent who 
shall deliver trees without the consent of the purchaser, from 
other nurseries than that which he represents, shall be deemed 
guilty of a misdemeanor. This bill goes into effect on May 
18th. Nurserymen who are doing business in West Virginia 
will do well to acquaint themselves fully with the provisions 
of Senate bill, No. 62. 
OPINIONS OF ATTORNEYS 
The above act of the Legislature of West Virginia was 
submitted by Mr. Pitkin to the attorneys in charge of matters 
connected with the legislative committee of the Association 
for an opinion. Messrs. McGuire and Wood have transmitted 
in substance the following opinion to the chairman of the 
legislative committeee: “The attorneys point out that the 
punishment for the misdemeanors outlined in this act are 
visited upon the agent and salesman, and not upon the nurs¬ 
eryman. The only acts of the principal that are made mis¬ 
demeanors are false labelling and substitution.” The at¬ 
torneys further say that the provisions of sections 1 and 2 
imposing an annual license of $10, and requiring the filing 
of license of agents,are in their opinion clearly unconstitutional 
and void, in so far as they apply to nurserymen who are not 
residents of the State of West Virginia. “The fee imposed 
is simply and solely a tax. It is not incidental to any proper 
purpose, to which the police power of the State might be in¬ 
voked. If it is valid legislation, then the Legislature of the 
State of West Virginia may at its next session increase the 
tax to $50 per year, and so on until it will not be possible 
for nurserymen to do business in West Virginia. Certainly 
this is a regulation of interstate commerce is so far as it applies 
to non-resident nurserymen.” 
“The practical difficulty which the members of your associ¬ 
ation will meet, will be that of engaging agents in the State 
of West Virginia, except upon compliance with this invalid 
statute, until such time as by an authoritative decision its 
invalidity has been judicially declared; and while it may 
be easier to submit to blackmail to the extent of $10 per year, 
we have no doubt that ultimately the statute in question 
will be held void.”’ 
Mr. Pitkin has the following to say in transmitting the 
opinion: 
Editor National Nurseryman. 
Dear Sir: —In behalf of the committee on Legislation of 
the American Association of Nurserymen, I bed to hand you 
an opinion from Messrs. McGuire & Wood, Attorneys of this 
city, who have have had charge on behalf of the Legislative 
committee of matters pertaining to the license laws of West 
Virginia and other States, and which I trust you can print 
in your May issue. 
The opinion of our Attorneys covers the situation fully, 
and in talking with them it has seemed to the writer better 
to let the present law stand without contest and pay the an¬ 
nual license fee of $10. The tax is not heavy and while no 
doubt the law is unconstitutional and could be beaten in a test 
case, still if that action were taken and with that result, it 
might lead to the enactment of legislation in the future, which 
would be even more burdensome, and under which it would 
be harder for the nurseryman to do business. While the at¬ 
torneys have not covered this in their formal opinion, it was 
their verbal suggestion that it will be best to let this law stand 
without attack, and after going over the matter thoroughly 
1 would concur in their opinion. 
Yours truly. 
Rochester, N. Y. Wm. Pitkin. 
FREIGHT CLASSIFICATION. 
Editor National Nurserymen. 
Dear Sir: — It may interest the Committee on Transporta¬ 
tion of the A. A. N., and your readers, to learn that the 
official classification on “imported dormant plants and seed¬ 
lings,” in cases, has been fixed since about beginning of 
February at “ third class rates ” to Chicago and points west 
thereof; based on 50 cents the 100 pounds rate to Chicago. 
East of Chicago second class rates continue, wherever they 
are lower than 50 cents to the 100 pounds; but where higher, 
only the 50 cents rate will apply. A certificate must accom¬ 
pany each shipment, verifying the goods to be imported 
stock, shipped from the dock within ten days after landing. 
We add a copy of such an official certificate at foot of this. 
Some concession you see has been made to the request for 
lower rates by the A. A. N. transportation committee sup¬ 
ported by the personal appeals of us Eastern importers. 
Continued strong action on the part of the A. A. N. should 
bring further concessions. 
Yours very truly, 
New York. Winfried Roelker. 
The following is a form of the certificate: 
IMPORT CERTIFICATE. 
We hereby certify that the property covered by this receipt 
was imported in the S. S.from. 
on arriving at this port on.that it has not been in 
any private warehouse but is carted to R. R. Station direct 
from. 
AUGUST ROLKER & SONS. 
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF NURSERYMEN. 
At West Baden, Indiana. 
, .June 14th, 1905. 
For the above occasion we have arranged to run a special Pullman 
Sleeping Car through (without change) from Rochester to West Baden, 
Indiana at rate of $4.00 per berth, and room at $14.00 via New York 
Central; Lake Shore and Michigan Southern, Big Four Route and 
Monon Route. 
June 12th, 1905. 
Leave Rochester, 9:45 P. M. 
Arrive West Baden, Indiana, 5:55 P. M., June 13th. 
For rates, Sleeping Car reservations or any other information, apply 
to Mr. .1. C. Kalbfleisch, D. P. A., N. Y. Central, Rochester, N. Y., or 
to Mr. Chas. L. Yates, care National Nurseryman, Room 205 Cox 
Building, Rochester, N. Y. 
