Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-05-11
LAW IS INVOKED
! TO SAVE DOGWOOD
Virginia State Senator Cites
Statute to Protect Lands
Against "DespoiIers."

Virginia's law against despoiling OF
the trees and flowers of the country
side without the consent of the owner
of property has come into fresh promi-
nence with the demand of State Senator
Saxon w. Holt of Newport News, who
has suggested that the law should be
strictly enforced.
The suggestion comes in the midst
of the campaign being waged in Wash
ington and vicinity to preserve and
protect the Towering dogwood, which
still is in full bloom.
Senator Holt proposed that State
motor cycle patrolmen, highway police,
game wardens and forest rangers be
authorized and instructed to arrest any
one found denuding the woodlands OF
flowers and Spring blossoms. He pointed
out that the State has ample law on
the subject, but apparently is making
no effort to enforce the law.
Newspaper Backs Senator.
Commenting on the Senator's sug-
kestion. the Roanoke, Va, World News
editorially says: The statute is quite
explicit. 1t makes it unlawful and
provides penalty for cutting, breaking
or pulling up shrubbery or blooming
things on the lands of another, without
the owners consent in writing.
every Sunday afternoon at this sea-
son of the year." declares the World
News, "the highways are filled with
the cars of city people bringing back
whitening branches of the things they
have hacked down in wanton destruc-
ton. 1t is Senator Hollis suggestion
that such cars be stopped by highway
police, game wardenS and other State
oficers and be made to show their
permits.
"For such things can only be cut on
ones own land, or under written permls-
sion from the owner. To the mind of the
Newport News Senator, obvious posses
sion should be a sufficient ground for
inquiry. 1t is prima facie evidence that
the law has been violated.
Persuasion Proves Failure.
"It would be unfortunate and en-
earrassing to have to resort to such
tactics. But the efforts at persuasion
have been signal. failures. Vandalism
of recent years has practically stripped
the main highway of dogwood and other
shrubbery. One has to wander on the
back roads. far from the usual haunts
of the Sunday driver, to see Virginia
in It's Spring beauty.
Some people never seem to learn that
wild flowers wither as soon as they are
cut For the roads are often strewn
with branches that have withered on
the way home, and are not worth keep
fng. And city people never learn how
to trim blossoms without hacking off
limbs, and so destroying more than they
take away.
1.-THE gushing sentimentality of those
who rave about the beauty of nature,
while expanding their best efforts to
destroy it, is AN obvious pose and pre-
tense. For no real lover of beauty wan
tonly destroys beauty. And the real
beauty of the wild flowers is in their
native setting.
Thinks Prosecutions Will Help.
",The public will not take kindly to
Senator Hollis suggestion OF stopping
all cars on the roads to see whether
they contain contraband Spring bios
fon1s, stolen from the lands of others.
But few good court prosecutions might
help in saving our landscape from de-
struction."
The practice of stripping the dogwood
from nearby highways, complained of
Do the Roanoke paper. is the very
vandalism against which a campaign
has been directed, with apparent sue
cess in the vicinity of the National
Capital. Under direction of the Wild
flower Preservation Society and the
committee of the National Capital of
tl1e Garden Club of America, the cam
paign has been waged each year, and
the amount of dogwood in public parks,
private estates and along the highways,
is said to be appreciably increasing Of
ficials behind the local campaign are
much interested in the proposal to en-
force strictly the Virginia law,