﻿63 
  

  

  When 
  I 
  was 
  about 
  fourteen 
  years 
  old 
  I 
  came 
  into 
  personal 
  posses- 
  

   sion 
  of 
  twelve 
  acres 
  of 
  land 
  which 
  had 
  descended 
  to 
  me 
  from 
  my 
  father's 
  

   estate. 
  The 
  land 
  was 
  almost 
  valueless 
  for 
  general 
  cropping 
  purposes, 
  

   hut 
  I 
  had 
  already, 
  at 
  that 
  age, 
  determined 
  something 
  of 
  the 
  value 
  of 
  a 
  

   pecan 
  orchard, 
  and 
  I 
  proceeded 
  to 
  gather 
  nuts 
  from 
  the 
  best 
  trees 
  in 
  that 
  

   section, 
  and 
  the 
  following 
  spring 
  planted 
  the 
  whole 
  twelve 
  acres 
  in 
  

   pecans. 
  I 
  knew, 
  however, 
  that 
  even 
  though 
  the 
  ground 
  was 
  not 
  very 
  

   productive 
  it 
  would 
  have 
  to 
  be 
  cultivated 
  that 
  summer, 
  so 
  I 
  planted 
  the 
  

   pecans 
  around 
  stumps 
  where 
  the 
  young 
  trees 
  would 
  be 
  protected. 
  My 
  

   information 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  value 
  of 
  pecans 
  was 
  accurate 
  and 
  unerring 
  ; 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  there 
  were 
  several 
  things 
  I 
  had 
  not 
  taken 
  into 
  consideration. 
  First, 
  

   that 
  a 
  pecan 
  that 
  is 
  kept 
  in 
  the 
  dry 
  all 
  winter 
  is 
  very 
  slow 
  to 
  germinate 
  

   in 
  the 
  spring, 
  and 
  in 
  fact 
  the 
  percentage 
  of 
  them 
  that 
  does 
  germinate 
  

   is 
  very 
  small. 
  Second, 
  that 
  the 
  field 
  mice 
  have 
  an 
  abiding 
  hunger 
  for 
  

   pecans. 
  Third, 
  that 
  the 
  pecan 
  does 
  not 
  come 
  true 
  to 
  seed, 
  and 
  that 
  an 
  

   orchard 
  of 
  seedlings 
  is 
  of 
  very 
  questionable 
  value. 
  The 
  first 
  two 
  facts, 
  

   which 
  I 
  failed 
  to 
  take 
  into 
  consideration 
  — 
  that 
  is, 
  the 
  poor 
  germinating 
  

   qualities 
  of 
  a 
  dry 
  pecan, 
  and 
  the 
  appetite 
  of 
  the 
  field 
  mice, 
  relieved 
  me 
  

   from 
  the 
  embarrassment 
  of 
  the 
  third, 
  for 
  it 
  is 
  needless 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  this 
  

   attempt 
  made 
  twenty-five 
  years 
  ago 
  was 
  a 
  complete 
  failure, 
  and 
  for 
  the 
  

   time 
  being 
  discouraged 
  my 
  ambitions 
  in 
  this 
  direction. 
  But 
  after 
  many 
  

   years 
  they 
  revived 
  sufficiently 
  to 
  stimulate 
  me 
  to 
  action 
  again 
  in 
  the 
  line 
  

   of 
  pecan 
  culture. 
  

  

  I 
  mention 
  the 
  above 
  facts 
  merely 
  to 
  show 
  my 
  credibility 
  as 
  a 
  witness 
  

   on 
  this 
  subject. 
  Being 
  a 
  lawyer 
  by 
  profession. 
  I 
  have 
  learned 
  long 
  since 
  

   that 
  the 
  value 
  of 
  one's 
  opinion, 
  and 
  especially 
  the 
  value 
  of 
  testimony 
  is 
  

   directly 
  in 
  proportion 
  to 
  one's 
  knowledge 
  of 
  and 
  interest 
  in 
  the 
  subject 
  

   matter 
  at 
  issue. 
  Therefore, 
  trusting 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  sufficiently 
  established 
  

   my 
  credibility, 
  at 
  least 
  to 
  my 
  own 
  satisfaction, 
  I 
  shall 
  proceed 
  to 
  make 
  

   some 
  observations 
  relative 
  to 
  nut 
  culture 
  in 
  the 
  North. 
  

  

  First, 
  let 
  me 
  say 
  that 
  I 
  most 
  heartily 
  endorse 
  the 
  line 
  of 
  work 
  

   undertaken 
  by 
  our 
  Association 
  — 
  that 
  is, 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  collecting 
  and 
  dif- 
  

   fusing 
  information 
  in 
  reference 
  to 
  nut 
  culture 
  that 
  will 
  be 
  valuable 
  to 
  

   the 
  prospective 
  grower. 
  Our 
  southern 
  brethren 
  have 
  very 
  largely 
  passed 
  

   this 
  stage 
  in 
  nut 
  work 
  in 
  the 
  South. 
  They 
  still 
  have 
  many 
  problems 
  

   before 
  them, 
  but 
  the 
  fundamental 
  problems 
  of 
  the 
  determination 
  and 
  

   propagation 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  desirable 
  varieties 
  of 
  pecans 
  have 
  been 
  already 
  

   worked 
  out 
  and 
  they 
  are 
  producing 
  in 
  their 
  nurseries 
  hundreds 
  of 
  thou- 
  

   sands 
  of 
  fine 
  budded 
  and 
  grafted 
  pecan 
  trees. 
  There 
  is 
  such 
  a 
  lack 
  of 
  

   information 
  on 
  this 
  subject 
  in 
  the 
  North 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  indeed 
  opportune 
  that 
  

   our 
  Association 
  should 
  at 
  the 
  beginning 
  of 
  the 
  interest 
  in 
  nut 
  culture 
  in 
  ' 
  

   that 
  section 
  take 
  up 
  these 
  various 
  question 
  and 
  give 
  the 
  public 
  the 
  ben- 
  

   efit 
  of 
  our 
  experience 
  and 
  information 
  in 
  reference 
  to 
  them. 
  There 
  are 
  

  

  