198 Wisconsin State Horticultural Society. 



Man has made great advancement in the scale of human 

 progress when his gesthetical nature has developed to a de- 

 gree that prompts him to surround himself with the beau- 

 tiful and to cultivate fruits and flowers. He has then ad- 

 vanced sufficiently to dignify the labor that has developed 

 and glorified him; that has made him the fittest to survive. 

 For:— 



" Labor is life. Tis the still water faileth, 

 Idleness ever despaireth — bewaileth. 



Although labor tends to individualize and energize, yet 

 man makes no intellectual advancement by labor mechan- 

 ically performed. He who merely plods along will never 

 meet with marked success, for to succeed in any profession 

 one must have a real love — a stirring enthusiasm — for his 

 work; an enthusiasm born of love of the work — an enthusi- 

 asm which lifts it above drudgery. Especially is this essen- 

 tial to perfect success in the profession of horticulture. The 

 ethical culture of the horticulturist should be of the broadest 

 kind. Honesty of purpose and integrity in dealing with his 

 fellow man should be strongly defined in his code of ethics. 

 Benevolence, conscientiousness, punctuality and order 

 should be the cardinal points in his character, and tributary 

 to these, all other qualities that tend toward the advance- 

 ment and elevation of the individual. 



It is an incontrovertible fact that the nature of a man's 

 business vitally affects his character on both its moral and 

 intellectual sides. There is a peculiar beauty to be found in 

 horticultural pursuits — an ineffable charm and delicacy in 

 watching the growth and caring for fruits and flowers that 

 constantly tends towards the development of a higher moral 

 and intellectual life, for no one will deny that there is a 

 moral development in beauty itself for the individual who 

 possesses a sense of appreciation, and he will be uplifted by 

 it; its influence on him will only be limited by his ability — 

 whether natural or cultivated — to appreciate the beautiful 

 in the world. The indifferent eye sees no beauty in his lines 

 of life, while the sesthetic eye sees beauty in every shrub 

 and wayside flower. While each expanding bud preaches a 



