STATE POMOLOGICAIv SOCIETY. 1 73 



I returned from one of my trips in the south and landed in New 

 York, to find a very fine apple, a very fine flavor and color, 

 shipped from the state of Oregon. That is the first time I ever 

 knew that apples were raised to any great extent in the state of 

 Oregon. I was also much surprised at one time when I was in 

 Havana and was quite apple hungry, in going into the markets 

 there and looking over the fruit and seeing what poor fruit there 

 was for sale, and I purchased one apple — and that apple was 

 called the Ben Davis — and what do you suppose I paid for it? 

 ten cents for a Ben Davis apple, but I was apple hungry and I 

 wanted it. That reminds me of the first time my attention was 

 called to the raising of that apple in this State, and that was a 

 man by the name of Benner who lived in West Gardiner but has 

 since died. He purchased nursery stock of a salesman thinking 

 they were Baldwins, but when the fruit appeared they were an 

 apple that neither he nor his neighbors ever heard of. They 

 shipped them to Boston and from there they w^ent to Liverpool 

 and he got the highest price of any apples that he ever sold, 

 somewhere between three and four dolars per barrel, and he 

 derived an income from that orchard larger than he derived 

 from all of his other crops. 



Secretary Knowlton — About thirty years ago this Society held 

 one of its earlier meetings here in the city of Gardiner. Only 

 tw^o or three of them are present at this banquet tonight. It 

 was considered then an excellent meeting. I have read the 

 report in years back, how they got together, and did good work 

 and had a most excellent meeting. I wish some of those men 

 who have passed away — one a prominent citizen of your own 

 city here who took a great interest in the Society for many years 

 of his life. I wish some of those men could look down upon 

 us here tonight as we are assembled at this banquet, and as we 

 have assembled across the way, and compare results and see 

 what progress we have made. It would be no reflection upon 

 their work, but it would show to them that the work they did 

 has progressed and gained in power and strength as the years 

 have rolled along. 



Now I am exceedingly proud of this meeting. And I am 

 proud of the work accomplished at this meeting. There are 

 certain elements which have entered into this meeting and its 



