512 BOARD OF AOUICULTURE. 



by-laws to g:overn you, as in any other association. But ilu-y usually 

 collect a fee— any grower can become a member, but tliej' usually pro- 

 vide that a grower shall not be a solicitor for any commission firm. 

 They become members by usually paying fees of a dollar each— say, for 

 instance, a dollar— it might be more or less; that goes into the treasury. 

 Now, if it costs twenty cents a case to ship berries to Chicago and mar- 

 ket them, the association would add on a cent a case, probably, to pay 

 expenses, and your distributor would probably charge you about five 

 dollars a car, or may be only three dollars, and he would add that on 

 at the other end. The thing is self-sustaining all along; you do not have 

 to collect from the members; you charge that by the rate of freight, and 

 each member pays according to what he ships. You just add enough to 

 the charges to pay expenses. The plan will work "all right, because you 

 do not necessarily have to go to any member for fees or anything of that 

 kind, for it is charged up as you go along; and when the shipper gets his 

 return his freight is charged up at that rate. In a season you will save 

 a great deal of money by that plan if you ship four or five cars a day. 



Now, if there are any more questions you want to ask, do not be back- 

 ward about asking. 



Chairman Latta: Topic No. 2 of the theme assigned for this evening, 

 on "Metiiods that Win with Fruits," is now in order, and we will hear 

 from Mr. C. W. Thomas, of Corydon, on "The Pear." 



Mr. Thomas: Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen— I insisted that 

 Professor Latta do not place me in this predicament of appearing before 

 you as an instructor in this line, for I feel very much like I am only a be- 

 ginner, and ought to remain a pupil, having only had about six or eight 

 years' experience in raising pears; and I am persuaded, moreover, that 

 my remarks will possibly not fit the subject. The theme is, "Methods 

 that Win," and to some extent, ladies and gentlemen, I have to acknowl- 

 edge to you that on account of an obstacle with which we have been 

 unable to cope, I have in a large measure failed. In a measure I thought 

 I was successful in the pear culture— at least we were successfiil in rais- 

 ing an orchard, where we have several thousand pear trees now running 

 from four to eight years old, all bearing. But last year and this year, 

 especially, Ave find ourselves in the middle of the woods; we have lost 

 our bearings to a great extent, and I do not know whether we shall ever 

 be able to get out or not. I allude to the subject of blight. Our pear 

 orchards this year— several of them— most of them, have the appearance 

 of old dead ones. They were formerly the pride of our hearts. There 

 is nothing prettier than a pear tree. It is straight, it is ornamental, and 

 there is nothing more beautiful than a pear orchard. We delighted to 

 get in there and work Avith it, and talk to it. I do not know how you 

 are, but I talk to my trees— talk to them mentally, at least, and some- 



