TRANSACTIONS OF ALTON HORTICL'LTURAI, SOCIETY. 200 



Captain Hollister gave a brief verbal report on this subject. He said 

 now was the time to sow your lettuce, cabbage and raddish in hot beds. 

 To succeed here, plants must be started early ; cauliflowers should have 

 been started even before this. He used the hot air flues and would use 

 no other. He had tried them for two years, and liked them. All plants 

 should be transplanted, in hot bed, to make them stocky and firm. The 

 Wakefield, Wyman and Oxheart, are the varieties of cabbage most in 

 favor among us. 



Mr. Huggins made a verbal report upon the condition of the Secre- 

 tary's book, and the need of stationery for the use of the Society. 



The Society voted that the incoming Secretary should make the 

 necessary purchases of stationery, and draw on the Treasurer for the 

 amount. 



Captain Hollister reported the balance in the Treasury, $71.23, 

 whereupon a great burden was rolled upon the Society to know what to 

 do with so much money! Some wanted to offer premiums for excellence 

 in this direction or that. Some thought the Secretary deserved pay 

 for his services. Some thought one thing, and some another. All were 

 seemingly anxious to get rid of the money. The final conclusion was to 

 let the funds remain untouched, as an inducement to increase the mem- 

 bership. When men come to understand that we are not bankrupt, but 

 have money in the treasury, they will treat us with great consideration, 

 and many will be happy to join our number. 



E. A. Riehl presented four of five bottles of wine, including Concord 

 and Virginia Seedling, which was pronounced to be standard in all 

 respects. 



The President, O. L. Barler, about to make his bow and step out of 

 office, conformed to the custom and read the following : 



THE GOSI'KI, OK HORTICULTURE. 



" Josh Billinfjs divides the human race into three classes : 'Those who think it is 

 so ; those who think it is tiot so ; and those who don't care whether it h so or not.'' 



•' Now, there are among us three classes of persons : Those who think horticulture is 

 a failure ; those who think it is not a failure; and those who do not care much whether 

 it is a failure or not. 



" You will class me, if you please, among those who think it is not so. And I now 

 propose to discourse briefly concerning the Gospel of Horticulture, for I helieve there arc 

 good words and promises recorded for the encouragement and cheer of all who are 

 legitimately and intelligently engaged in horticultural and agricultural labors. 



"That the majority of those who affect to till the soil make wretched failures, I must 

 allow. That nine out ten who start in horticultural and agricultural pursuits have greatly 

 inflated and exaggerate<l ho])es, which, of course, are never realized, I do lielieve, and 

 I hear the moan of the disappointed and oppressed ones all about me. How sad and 

 disheartening is the stoiy of many a would-be successful farmer. One of them, in writ- 

 ing to the Country Gentleman, recently, gives in his experience thus : • I have five hun- 

 dred acres of land ; I keep fourteen horses; don't h.ive much gnuss ; keep twenty head 

 of cattle, and hire seven hands on the farm. I buy hay; I buy corn ; I buy mill feed ; 

 I buy straw. I am clean out of fodder. I milk eight cows ; I don't get much milk ; 

 my cows are poor. I buy fertilizers; I buy seed oats; I buy vegetables; I buy meat. 

 In fact, I buy nearly every thing I use. I pay taxes on my farm and I pay taxes on my 

 stock. I culiivale a large surface of land, and I don't sell any thing except about enough 



