The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-12-09

Sometime since Well-knoWn eastern
borticulturist wrote upon this subject,
and his essay was read with general in
terest. There is no department of in
dustry in which there has been more
bare-faced swindling than there has been
in horticulture. Especially has this been
true in the West. Our horticulture in
this section has been compelled to feel
its way along in the dark. Our people
have been anxious to improve the char
acter of our fruits, but have had no ex-
pertinent for soil, climate and general
conditions were new. The experienced
borticulturist has not often been imposed
upon, for it was impossible to convince
him of the practicability of impossbili-
ties. He has had the commendable de-
sire to grow fruit If a valuable charac-
ter. and has shown willingness to ex-
pend his money for alleged valuable varie-
tics. When, therefore, the oily-tongued
agent came with his glass jar of fruit
and his responsiveness, the farmer often
let his enthusiasm get We better of his
Judgment, has taken thu tempting bait
and found at last that he was deceived.
So often has this been the case that there
is no class in the country who have a
worse name than tree agents. Yet some
of them are honorable men and are of
positive benefit to the horticulturist and
fruit grower. There are many fine
orchards in the country which never
would have been had not the tree agent
come into the communities where they
are. But on the other hand there are
many perfectly useless orchards, and
thousands of useless trees that the
agent has imposed, upon the people.
There is no way to do, that we
know of, if we buy of agents at
all, but to use our best Judgment and to
buy only of the representatives Of we'll
known nurseries. If a man tells us that
he has plant that will grow blackber-
ries or strawberries at will and the rep
reservations of some of the agents are
scarcely more reasonable than this-it
will not require much judgment to see
that he is telling a very great whopper.
The best thing to buy is something that
we know the general character OF. If
an agent comes along with some new
and rare variety of fruit, it will be better
to let him pass on. We cannot afford
the risk of buying something that we
know nothing about. There must be
some varieties of nearly all kinds of fruit
that we know do well in our neighbour
hood, and if so they are the varieties
that we want if we are going to buy.
One of the very safest guides in selecting
fruit trees is the fact that certain yarie-
ties are a success in our locality.
Therefore we ought to know in such
case Just what we want. If the agent
comes along with an apple which he
alleges came from New Zealand or the
North Pole; and will bear in the middle
of winter, we had better tell him that we
do not want apple trees to bear in that
season of the year that we are satisfied
with variety that our neighbor grows
successfully, and that we want that if we
have any. But we shall have to look
sharp that the agent does not impose the
variety we want upon us out of the same
pile that he alleged was an eternal bear
ing, never freezing, non rotting foreign
variety. One popularity Of the tree
agent is like that of the man with the
apartment bottle-which gives forth
coffee, wine, water, whisky or milk, as
may be required-he can find any variety
of fruit called for in the same nursery or
same lot of trees. We should in short
buy nothing unless we are pretty positive
that we must know that the man we are
dealing with is an honest man. If we
do not know that, we had better not buy.
Nurseries are not always strictly to
blame for the dishonesty of their agents.
They ought to know pretty certainly that
man will be honest before they send
him out, and any reputable nursery
thinks it does know. But it may be mis-
taken, and whenever it is, and the public
is imposed upon, it ought to make good
the losses which have been inflicted
through the dishonesty of its represent
atives. That is the very least that ii
should do. Our advice to our readers is,
never to buy tree of any man who does
not represent a iirSt-class nursery, and il
you are uncertain as to the character of
the nursery that he claims to represent,
inquire of some one who does know
Having ascerained the responsibility OF
the nursery, then be satisfied that the
man is It's representative, and if not salts
ned otherwise, write to the nursery.
These directions, if followed, involve
some trouble and the expense Of postage,
but il will pay to follow them.
Lastly, it is always better to buy of a
reputable home nursery, if you have one.
1t is altogether likely that the varieties
in such nursery are the best adapted
to the needs of your locality, and the
seller is right at hand to make amends
for any errors that may happen to be
made. Ot course it is possible that the
very best intentions may miscarry-that
mistakes will happen. None of us are
perfect, and we will commit errors. If,
therefore, our home nurseryman should
commit an error, he is where he can be
convinced of it, and where he can
remedy it at once Western Rural
Chinese Apr ec;atiOn OF an Oath.