Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-01-20
FARMERS ROBBED
Of MANY MILLIONS
BY SPURIOUS SEEDS
Result Was Raising of Enormous
Crops of Weeds Instead OF
Produce.
DEL ELAWARE WAS HIT HARD
speciaI Dispatch From Every Evening
l,ir,ertrI, l,nrrnsnnnlcnf.

Special Dispatch From Every Evening S
Washington Correspondent.
Washington. Jan. 20.-Farmers of
Delaware and Maryland have suffered
losses aggrcgating millions OF dollars
through the innocent purchase by them
of impure seeds, obtained in the main
from mail order houses. Complaints have
been made TO the Department ot Agrl-
culture and it is likely the attention OF
the Attorney-Gcneral will be called to
the matter.
when the farmers were urged to put 100
ner cent effort into the business OF pro-
ducing food for the armies III the held,
certainl vendors of seeds advertised bar
gam ralcs. Instead of raising large crops
0f edibles, many of the agrlculturlsts Mt
harvest time found themselves cncum-
bercd with great fields oi nOXlous weeds.
An ANALYSIS Of some Of the seeds sup
plied bv some mail order houses dlscloscs
that 500 noxious weed seeds found Il
place among the supplies distributed 10
the farmers WAethcr this was done by
design or through Ignorance isnot known.
1t is planned, however, to run he matter
To earth and If anybody has been guilty
of a deliberate fraud on the farmers, that
person is likely to be brought 10 justice.
c. 7. Smith, seed inspection officer Of
Maryland. complains that the mal! oTttcr
houses failed to give an accurate account
of the percentage OF weed seed IN the
supplies sent to farmers by parcel post
Il i inevitable. MIR Smith points out,
that some weed seeds would &c ~ ali
,inplies hut tho Delaware and Maryland
farmers have raised such vast quantities
If weeds from the sccds they have bought
from distant houses rs 10 arouse the
suspicion that thcy were deliberately I'M
posed upon.
HUGE PROFITS FROM FRAUDS
Certain mail order houses have taken
advantage If the recent conditions and
have organized huge business which has
rcapcd them enormous prohts IS the en-
pensc of thousands Of American farmers.
Mr. Smith sand IN his letter % the Dc
partmcnt oj Agriculture.
Mr.. smith said Delaware, Maryland
Virginia, New York. Michigan and Ohio
were the chief sufferers from the noxiouS
weed evil and tie thinks the Federal
government Should institute an immediate
inquiry
The economic loss IN tho aggregate Is
simply appalling, said Alr. smith II
understand that some States estimate
rhcir losses from tins avoidahlc evil at
about seventy million dollars annually.
REMEDY ~ 1.hw.
II i understood a b.ll viii re intro
hlred in the Senate for n Federal Seed
Supervising Bureau This hurcau would
hc charged with the responsibility If
fixing standards and would cooperate
with the Postmastcr-C General in curhing the
The pernicio1Is activities of seed distrihu-
tors who are trying TO got rich quick At
the expense If the farmers of the nation
Postmaster-Gencral Burlcson when his
attention was called 10 the evil said he
would notify all postmasters q II careful
about receiving seeds. hut IS there Was
no way for the average postmaster to
determine the quality 81 seeds sent
through the mails, Il would hc exceed
inglv difficult 70 deal effectively with thc
abuse
Sonator Wolcott will II asked to
present the bilI providing for Federal
Supervision Of >ced distribution