The courier-index., 1919-04-25

There has never been a time when there was such a general opposition to running for office. Many who have been mentioned have declined on the ground that public office does not pay adequate salaries to compensate for the ability and time expended in the performance of duties. Any one qualified to hold any office from governor down to constable can make great deal more in business. And then, after serving two or three terms, the of flee holder is out of touch with the business world, and a very small per cent of them is able to "come back" There is not an office in the state that pays enough to jus tify a successful business man in giving up his business to engage in the expensive and uncertain contest time to the duties of the office-at least that is the position that has been taken by many whose we'll meaning friends would endeavor to inveigle them into the maelstrom There is no law passed by the last legislature that affects more farmers than the Arkansas Nursery Fraud Act. Every farmer at some time or other buys fruit trees, and they like. to be assured that they are not being defrauded.
 Fraudulent agents, unfortunately, have brought discredit very often upon a legitimate and very neces- sary business.
 l To remedy this evil, the legisla- ture enacted law that will protect | the legitimate dealer as well as his customers.
 | It provides for a system of l- censing the nurserymen and dealers, who shall file with the chief in- spector of the state plant board a bond of $1,000, conditioned upon the faithful compliance with the terms of the act, relating to the sale, disposition, delivery, inspection and disinfection of nursery stock grown, dealt in, imported, sold, ham, dled or delivered by him during the 1 term of the license.
 It shall be unlawful for any per son, firm or corporation to sell or 1 import into the state any nursery stock, or to act as agent, salesman
 or solicitor for nursery stock, with
 out first securing a license.
 The annual license fee shall be
 S5 for nurserymen and dealers in
 nursery stock, and one dollar for agents, salesmen and solicitors. All licenses shall expire on July 1 fol
 lowing the date of issue.
 ! Any person selling, delivering or
 taking orders for nursery stock with
 out license shall be guilty of a
 misdemeanor and subject to fine
 of not less than $10 nor more than
 $200, or by imprisonment in the
 county jail for not less than 20 days Thor more than months, or by both
 fine and imprisonment.
 Nurserymen and dealers shall be
 required to file with the chief in-
 spector of the plant board a dupli- cate of the complete invoice of each
 sale within thirty days of the date
 of sale, name of salesman, name ot purchaser, name and quantity of
 varieties, and prices of all nursery
 stock sold.
 Any person who shall wilfully and
 maliciously misrepresent, deceive or
 defraud any person or persons in
 the sale of nursery stock by substi.
 tuting inferior or different varieties
 of trees, or who shall falsely repre-.
 sent the age, name, class, or condi. tion of any nursery stock, or who shall misrepresent by making any
 false statements or promises for the
 purpose of making a sale of stock
 shall be guilty of a misdemeanor
 and subject to a fine of not less than $50 nor more than $500, or by Imprisonment not less than 30 days nor more than isx months, or by ] both fine and imprisonment, and
 shall be liable to the party damaged or injured for expense and loss of
 time.
 III Any person contracting to render expert advice or services regarding
 horticultural practices as part of the value received in the sale of
 nursery stock, shall be required to furnish satisfactory proof to the chief inspector of the plant board
 that he is qualified to give such ad- | vice or perform such service, and
 shall be required to secure certi-
 ficate to that effect, for which a
 fee of one dollar shall be required. | Prosecutions under this act may
 be commenced at any time within seven years from the time of de-