INDIANA HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 293 



I believe that it rests with the farmers to see that this institution does 

 not hicli for support from the State. 



In concluding, allow me to say that I am glad so many are here, for it 

 only tends to show the interest and the desire of one and all to have a 

 most successful meeting both today and tomorrow. 1 am glad to welcome 

 you here. In one of the best and most enlightened farming communities 

 01 the State of Indiana. You are in Spring Valley. This is the garden 

 spot of this part of the country, and these good people will take care of 

 you while you are in their midst, so make yourselves at home, and feed 

 on the good things of the land. 



To conclude, in behalf of the Horticultural Society of the South, and 

 in behalf of the Society Central, and in behalf of the Practical Farmers' 

 Club of the North we welcome you to the best country in the greatest 

 State in the Union. Lastly, may I caution you that the success of this 

 meeting is largely what you make it, I thank you. 



Px'esideut Stevens: Friends of Madison County and good people of the 

 vicinity— On behalf of the Society I wish to say that we accept this cordial 

 welcome in the spirit in which it is tendered, and you may rest assured 

 that we will do justice to the occasion and will prove ourselves grateful 

 for the feast you have prepared for us, and I am sure you will have evi- 

 dence of that fact before we leave you. I thank the committee that 

 selected this place for our summer meeting. I think possibly they had 

 been here before and knew something of the generosity and hospitality 

 of the good people of this section of the country. This is the first time 

 that I have ever had the pleasure of visiting this particular locality, and 

 you must see that I ha^ve been very favorably impressed with your coun- 

 try, and I believe that the gentleman that has just had the floor has kept 

 along the line of truth very closely, because I think you have the garden 

 spot here. I also feel that we are welcome when we are in a community 

 of farmers like this. I see you have three local societies here, and wher- 

 ever I go I find an interest. I know that you organizations are progres- 

 sive. We will not have progressive farmers until we get them to belong 

 to some club. It has been my pleasure for the last two or three years 

 to belong to a farmers' club, so I speak Avith experience along that line. 

 I know this club does us a great deal of good; in fact, as I said before, we 

 will not have progressive farmers this day until we belong to some 

 society. We must keep up with the times. The time has passed when 

 a farmer can go it alone. He must have counsel and advice if he makes 

 the greatest success. 



While we have met here for our summer meeting, it is n meeting of 

 pleasure as well as of business, and while we are onjo.ving ourselves and 

 having a good time we must do some business. We must also take up 

 the woi"k of the World's Fair at St. Louis next year. We have an appro- 

 priation from the State of $5,000, which, in my capacity as chairman of 



