The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1900-01-05
SCRAMBLE FOR SEEDS.

a n impartial examination of the queS-
ton Of the annual distribution of seeds
| by the Agricultural! Department leads to
the conclusion that, while it is not, per-
haps, justitiable except from a paternal
standpoint, little harm results to the trea-
sury, Will, some benefit is derived by the
members Of Congress who sends out seeds
and possibly by those who receive them.
| Practically all the objections come from
secdmen who bid too high to secure the
contract.
Under the old system when the depart
ment went into the open market and pur-
chased seeds wherever it pleased and at
market prices the seedmcn had no COM
plant to make, but the substitution of the
contract system by Secretary Morton,
which system is still in vogue, gave rise
to complaints. These, however, were
without substantial foundation. The
annual appropriation for seeds is $130,000.
As the distribution is now conducted
there is no Disgusting the fact that it is
run principally for the benefit of men,
SNiS VI
est care taken in arranging the schedule
of distribution so that the greater possible
| advantage will be gained by members of
Congress, but the varieties of seeds dis
tributed are such that any claim that they
are sent out for experimental purposes
seems 10 be absurd. The cultivation of
peas, leans, corn. etc, has been observed
too long for the department to obtain val
liable scientific information from the
planting of seeds sent out by Congress
men.
When lawn grass seed was added to the
list, inquiry was made as to what benefit
could come from distributing it. In re-
ply it was stated that many members of
Congress came from thickly settled dis
tricts were their constituents had no
farms or even back yards in which to
plant vegetable seeds, ut many of them
had few square feet in front of their
tenements or cottages which they would
be deli GIFTED to improve by sowing lawn
grass. At present 5000 pounds of the
best Kentucky bluegrass are sent out
every year.
On January 10 Charles Parker of Santa
Clara, Cal will begin to put up the seeds
for Congressional distribution. He Sc
cured the contract some months ago, be-
ing the lowest bidder. He will employ a
large number of women and girls, who
will place the seeds in packets, so many
packets to the pound, al 4 then assert
these packets into packages of five pac
kets each, the work beng done in Wash
ington. Each member of Congress will
then be entitled to so many packages of
each kind of seeds, which will soon be
flying through the mails to voters all over
the country. When the flowers, vege-
tables or grasses push their tiny heads
above the ground, the voters will rise up
and call their Congressman blessed In
the spring the Congressman sends out
the seeds and in the fall he gathers the
votes
Senators Wellington and McComas and
Representatives Baker, Mudd and Pearre
will receive $40 packages of vegetable
seeds, 400 packages of flower seeds, 10
packages of tobacco and Go packets of
lawn grass seed. Representatives Smith,
Wachter and Denny will get $3.50 pack
ages of vegetable, 400 of flower and 60
of lawn grass but no tobacco seed.
As certain members of the House come
from city districts where their constitu-
a.
change has grown up by which those
members having large rural constituencies
secure the quota Of their city brethren,
giving ill exchange for the seeds certain
documents which are more useful to the
city than to the rural members. Every
year there is a scramble among rural
Congressman to be first to strike a bar
gain with city Representatives. One
enterprising member from the South has
already on file at the department orders
from four ether members for their quotas
of seeds.
Some strange ideas are entertained in
regard to the distribution of the seeds.
Almost every day letters are received at
the A gricutural Department with stamps
or money inclosed asking for certain
varieties of seeds, while thousands of
letters are received yearly asking for
seeds, but without enclosing money. One
man in Texas wrote for ) bushels of
cottonseed, , bushels of peas, IA pounds
of radish seed and large quantities of
other vegetable seeds. He had an idea
the Government would seed his entire
farm for him.