\ AM>KV IIOHTICULTURAI. SOOIKTY. '2U!'t 



\'i:gi;tai}i.es. 



L. K. < 'iiniiiii^liJiiu, c'oiiunittee. niadt' ;i \>'r]i;il rfport. 



COMMUXICATIONtS. 



The Seeretiirv read a card from Hon. W. S. Hawker, our r('i)rf'- 

 seiitative. in which he stated that tiie State Horticultural Society 

 .\i»)>r()|)riati(tn Hill had pjissed hotli houses. Mr. Hawkers cfFdits in 

 Itehalf of this l)ill ;ire highly appreciated. 



The (Tiee ('lul) here rendered a comic selectuui. winch was luucli 

 enjoyed. 



Tlie President stated that H. N. McKinstry was al)sent on 

 account of ill-health, and then called ujjon Prof. 1'. X. Tracy, the 

 essayist of the day: 



HORTICULTURAL. 



HY K. N. TR.U'Y. 



The position uow accorded to horticulture of liein^ at the acme 

 of agriculture has not heen attained hy any isohited achievement. oi- 

 in any brief ])eriod of time. Like all other enter]U'ises it has had its 

 seasons of success and its times of defeat in its advance towai'ds the 

 high position which it now occupies among the industries and civil- 

 izing agencies of the world. Francis Bacon says: " (-Jod Aliuighty 

 tirst planted a garden." 



According to Pliny, among the Romans the art jittained an 

 advanced stage, especially in the de})artment kiu)wu as tloi-iculture. 

 The ladies cherished their gardens of violets, roses, and other fra- 

 grant tlowers with (piite as high regard as that in which they are 

 held at the present time. Some of the chcjicest plants and tlowers. 

 which we are wont to regard as rare ami new. were cultivated jind 

 called hy names in theii- own tongue hy the ancient (Jreeks. Not- 

 withstanding this art had made such great progress at so earlv a 

 day l)y the overthrow of Rome it received a l)low. after whic h long 

 years passed before it began to be revived. 



In Fram-e. ('harlenuigne did not negh'ct to numbei- gardening 

 among the numy civilizing enterjirises to which he gave his atten- 

 tion. He regarded it of so much importance that he prescribed the 

 plants to be grown in the gardens which he established by royal 

 edict. Hy this example other countries were led to make much 

 advancement, and at the close (»f the sixteenth century the lauioiis 

 garden founded by Henry \\ . at Montpelier. France, contaim^d over 

 thirteen hundred choice jilants. Hut the j)eriod from which horti- 

 culture, as a science, may be said to lia\-e made steady progress, takes 



