SOUTH HAVEN AND CASCO POMOLOCxICAL 



SOCIETY. 



OFFICERS FOR THI'] YEAR lw9. 



President — Joseph Lanuiu. 

 Vice-Presiclciif Lewis Shuniway. 

 Seo'eiarij — Wm. H. Payne. 

 Treasurer — J. J. Atherly. 



The weekly meetings of this society are usually well attended, and 

 although the same old straw of past years is threshed over, yet there 

 always seems to be some new information or experience developed in 

 regard to best modes of cultivating, trimming, picking, packing, sale, and 

 care of fruits generally; and continually some some new variety is intro- 

 duced to notice and its good qualities and faults debated, while the 

 transportation and marketing of our fruit conies in for a never-ending: 

 discussion, in a further effort to establish a fruitgrowers' exchange, on the 

 basis of full-size packages, honest packing, with the shipper's name on 

 the package, and cheaper transportation. There was considerable talk and 

 H number of papers were read, most of these taking the ground that their 

 writers had given up trying to make all the commission men honest in their 

 returns; that reforms, like charity, must begin at home; that we must first 

 establish our own reputation for honest packages and honest packing of the 

 fruit, and then we could demand fair returns from commission men, who all 

 suffer from the i-ascality of some of their fraternity just as the honest fruit- 

 packer suffers from the dishonest packing of some of the fruitgrowers. vSome 

 wanted cheaper lake and express rates, some wanted a man sent to Chicago 

 to look after our interests, some lower commissions, etc. But the keynote 

 was struck when it was remarked that we are trying to save at the spiggot 

 while we are losing at the bung; and how to distribute our fruit, so as to 

 prevent the gluts in our markets, was the vital question, and with this 

 solved all others would disappear, for there is a demand for all the good 

 fruit we can raise, and a fair price could be obtained if we could manage 

 to furnish oidy just what was demanded and no more. Let dealers send 

 their orders here, and we ship only on orders, and there could be no fears 

 of a glut at the point of sale. 



The annual festival and dinner of the society. Jan. 14, was well attended, 

 and the programme of literary exercises well carried out. This social 

 reunion at the beginning of the year is a grand feature of the society, 

 when the meml)ers' wives and families meet to renew their social ties and 

 lay plans for the coming year, while at the oiit-door meetings or basket 



