SOCIETY OF NORTHERN ILLINOIS. 367 



2d. To the Illinois Central Railroad we tender our cordial thanks for 

 courtesies to our members coming over their road. 



3d. To the hotels for their reduced rates and good fare. 



4th. To the Kev. Iloyne and other preachers of the Gospel, for attend- 

 ance, together with the hi'dies who honored us with their presence. 



And whereas, we feel a deep and abiding interest in Agricultural and 

 Horticultural Experiment Stations, therefore, 



Resolved, 5th, That we heartily endorse the bill now before the Con- 

 gress of the United States, for the establisiunent of at least one such ex- 

 experiment station in each State and Territory of the Union. 



0th. That we urgently solicit the earnest efforts of the Senators and 

 Representatives from Illinois in aid of the early passage of said bill, and 

 that a copy of these resolutions be forwarded to our members of Congress. 



7th. To Hon. Emery ('ol)b, for the use of his Farmers' Club room, we 

 tender our sincere thanks. 



8th. That we offer our thanks to Dr. Dewey and others connected with 

 the Asylum for the Insane, for courtesies extended to this Society, and 

 gladly bear testimony to the neat and efficient manner in which the institu- 

 tion is conducted. 



0th. That the warmest thanks of this, the Xorthern Illinois Horticul- 

 tural Society, are hereby tendered to Prof. Budd, of the Iowa College, and 

 <jeo. J. Kellogg, of Wisconsin, for the information they have given us, and 

 to their respective Universities; and further, we regret we cannot offer the 

 5ame to our own Agricultural College. 



WEDNESDAY EVENING SESSION. 



Society called to order at 7:30, as per adjournment, and the 

 following paper was called for and read: 



TOP GRAFTING THE APPLE. 

 BY J. V. COTTA. 



Mr. President and Members of the 



Horticultural Society of Northern Illinois: 



The present deplorable condition of apple orchards, not only in 

 the northern half of this state, but throughout the greater part of 

 the northwest, furnishes a good deal of material for reflection to 

 every farmer, orchardist and nurseryman whose lot may be cast west, 

 and even a considerable distance south, of Lake Michigan, and the 

 inquiry naturally arises: How can a similar occurrence of such wide- 

 spread destruction be most efEectually guarded against in the future, 

 or is there any method l»y which our trees may be grown to enable 

 them to better resist the injurious effects of our climate? 



Upon taking a candid retrospect of western orchard culture, we 

 find that very fair crops have been produced in former years, and 

 occasionally we have been blessed with even an abundance of apjiles, 



