Worcester morning daily spy. (Worcester, Mass.) 1888-1898, 1898-02-03
PEACH GROWERS MEETING.

To the Editor of the Spy
At the meeting of peach growers in
South birmingham on Friday, notice of
which appearedsin your issue of Jan. OF,
spirited opposition to the peach vel
lows bill now before the legislature was
developed. The meeting was called to
order by Jonathan Eames of Sherborn,
and F. T, Daniels of the same town was
made secretary and treasurer Of the pro-
posed association. Earnest speeches
strongly opposing the theory Of contag-
ion and denouncing the motives of the
petitioners for the bill were made by
Representative Charles D. Lewis of
birmingham, II. G. Parker Of Holden,
the latter member of the house com
mittee on agriculture, ex-Representative
DoWse of Sherborn, State Grange Lee
/ turer Abel Stevens, Turner ]. Sanderson
OF F1tchburg, William H. Johnson of
Northboro, Jonathan Eames of Sher-
born, W. D. Kinds of Townsend, and
other large peach growers. An encourag-
ing communication from Prof Samuel
I. Maynard of the Amherst Agricultural
College urging the fruit growers to stand
by the truth and their rights was read.
He referred to the cantagion theory of
peach yellows as mere personal opinion
the light of the science of plant growth
and plant diseases" AS affecting the
market for superior fruit he put scabby
apples, small potatoes, mouldy rasp-
berries, widowed grapes and yellowed
peaches in the same class, urged fruit
growers to refrain from sending such
fruit to market as a matter of self-in-
terest, and believed that legislation to
control the marketing of such products
We q aI.Iz
A committee of five was chosen to per-
feet permanent organization II thought
expedient, and to embody the views Of
the meeting in a circular letter to the
legislature and to peach growers
throughout the state, urging them to be
present at the state house hearing on
Feb. s, at 1880 o'clock a. m.
The following reasons were presented
why yellows legislation is unnecessary:
First-It is not called for by either the
growers or consumers of peaches, but
by commission men and interested
nuserymen from outside the state.
Second-A similar law in Connecticut
has, after four years. trial, just been re-
pealed and all fines RENTED.
Third-That yellowed peaches are not
in any way injurious as human food or
to public health.
Fourth-That the cause of the disease
lation can be had.
Fifth-That contagion does not exist,
as proved by the experiments Of the
United States government expert, Prof.
Erwin F. Smith, and the experience of
other intelligent investigators,
Sixth-That apparent contagion may
be nationally explained under the as
sumption that the unfavorable condi-
tons which will cause the disease in one
tree may cause it in the next. In other
words, 1t IS the propinquity of unfavor-
able conditions of tree growth and nour-
ishment which causes the apparent
"spread" of the disease rather than the
transmission of any specific germ of dis
ease.
Peach growing in Massachusetts has
become a precarlous business for the
last % years, owing to changed climatic
conditions. We no longer have the con-
slant, deep, protecting SHOWS through
| out the winter, and immunity from
early and late freezing of the trees re-
spectively, before the sap is out of the
tree in the fall, and after 1t starts in the
spring. While the prevalence of yellows
has correspondingly increased, it is
worthy of note that in spite of increas-
ing adverse conditions, there are still
some large and successful growers who
have overcome all difficulties to a sur
prising degree, and whose continued
success in the face of others failure will
undoubtedly give added weight to their
opinions and testimony when presented
before the joint committee on agricul-
ture at the state house hearing on Feb.
Is.
Fred H. Johnson.
Northboro Jan 80 1898