Los Angeles herald., 1907-02-05
Use SQUASH SEEDS
TO PLAY POLITICS
C0NGRESSMEN REFUSE TO
GIVE UP GRAFT
Venality Of House In Using Public
Money to Further Political
Schemes Arouses Storm
Of Criticism
BY Associated Press.

BY Associated Press.
ATLANTA, Ca, Feb. 4.-De-
feat of the free seed bill by the
United States senate is called for
by c. B. Barrett, president of the
National Farmers union.
The whole custom is graft,
pure and simple" he said today.
Special correspondence of The Herald.
WASHINGTON. Jan. 29.-The action
of the house in again voting down its
committee on agriculture on the free
seed question has aroused a storm of
criticism for the alleged veniality of the
members The committee adopted the
recommendation of the department of
agriculture, intended to provide for the
distribution of really rare and valuable
seeds, bulbs and plants. The house,
however insisted the distribution of
pumpkin and squash seed should be
continued, and although the chair ruled
the amendment continuing the pumpkin
seed distribution out of order the house
overruled the chair by a vote OF 1876
to "a.
The arguments of the friends of the
humble squash and the luscious turEip
would be ridiculous We're they not 80
childish and so manifestly insincere. 1t
was pointed out that the department Of
agriculture favored the change, and the
free-seeders replied that it did 50 to eX-
tend its own work.
1t was then represented that every
organization of farmers in the country,
state, national and local, which had
acted on the question had urged that
the old varieties they had been receiv-
ing for twenty years be cut out and
the money given to the department of
agriculture for purposes of some real
benefit to agriculture.
To this the pumpkin-seed advocates
replied that the hundreds of organiza-
tions referred to were not real farmers
and did not represent the farmers.
1t was finally pointed out that sub
stantially every newspaper of impor-
tance, including the solid agricultural
press had condemned the spending of
government money to give away seed
which could be purchased at any coun
try grocery store. Their answer to this
was that the seedsmen had subsidized
the press with their advertising!"
Call Seedsmen Lobbyists
Last year the great point made was
that the committee had struck out the
appearing before it against the item.
This year the seedsmen had hearing.
and the ones who complained because
they We're absent last year turned and
called them lobbyists because they
had appeared.
The plain truth is, as everyone
familiar with the subject knows, that
many of the congressman believe, and
most of them privately admit, that their
constituents are fattered by receiving
these miserably insignificant gifts, and
think their congressman has personally
remembered them. They insist on hav
ing them for their campaign value, pure
and simple.
Millions of packages are sent to peo-
pie who live in cities some of whom
have small gardens, but most of them
without any real use for the seeds. The
worst feature of all, however, is the
fact that the seeds are openly bought
and sold in the corridors of the United
States capitol
No member will admit selling them,
but many admit buying them. The
seeds which the house apportionS to its
members are thus made a source of
revenue to some one. 1t is not charged
that members vote for this appropria-
ton and then sell the seeds for money,
but as they are sold it is fair to assume
that the members or some one close to
them profit by the sale.
1t is possible that some frugal-minded
statesmen thus further increase their
stipends as some of them do by using
committee stationery and pocketing
their incidental stationery allowance in
cash.