﻿77 
  

  

  much 
  inferior 
  to 
  the 
  average 
  pecan 
  here. 
  We 
  also 
  haven't 
  the 
  

   black 
  walnut 
  there 
  as 
  a 
  native. 
  That 
  is 
  I 
  have 
  never 
  seen 
  it 
  native 
  

   though 
  it 
  probably 
  was 
  originally 
  so 
  in 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  country. 
  How- 
  

   ever, 
  when 
  planted 
  it 
  grows 
  to 
  a 
  very 
  large 
  size, 
  and 
  makes 
  a 
  mag- 
  

   nificent 
  tree. 
  About 
  ten 
  miles 
  from 
  my 
  house 
  is 
  the 
  largest 
  in 
  the 
  

   state. 
  We 
  have 
  lots 
  of 
  butternuts 
  over 
  the 
  country 
  but 
  no 
  nut 
  

   tree 
  that 
  compares 
  in 
  beauty 
  and 
  usefulness 
  with 
  the 
  pecan 
  here. 
  

  

  The 
  President: 
  Dr. 
  Smith 
  should 
  be 
  able 
  to 
  size 
  up 
  the 
  situa- 
  

   tion 
  and 
  give 
  us 
  some 
  of 
  his 
  impressions. 
  I 
  want 
  to 
  get 
  them 
  in 
  the 
  

   record. 
  

  

  Dr. 
  Smith: 
  Gentlemen, 
  I 
  don't 
  see 
  how 
  anybody 
  can 
  live 
  by 
  

   these 
  trees 
  here 
  and 
  not 
  realize 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  a 
  source 
  of 
  fortune. 
  

   I 
  can't 
  understand 
  how 
  men 
  can 
  look 
  at 
  them 
  every 
  year, 
  gather 
  

   and 
  sell 
  the 
  nuts 
  and 
  not 
  realize 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  a 
  source 
  of 
  livelihood. 
  

   I 
  just 
  measured 
  a 
  big 
  tree 
  in 
  a 
  tobacco 
  field 
  down 
  the 
  road 
  that 
  was 
  

   thirteen 
  feet 
  and 
  eleven 
  inches 
  in 
  circumference, 
  that 
  had 
  a 
  sixty 
  

   foot 
  reach, 
  and 
  was 
  about 
  one 
  hundred 
  and 
  twenty-five 
  feet 
  high. 
  

   We 
  measured 
  another, 
  that 
  had 
  a 
  sixty-six 
  foot 
  reach 
  and 
  they 
  were 
  

   all 
  bending 
  down 
  with 
  fruit. 
  It 
  was 
  marvelous 
  and 
  they 
  were 
  

   certainly 
  giving 
  us 
  their 
  evidence 
  that 
  the 
  thing 
  for 
  us 
  to 
  do 
  is 
  to 
  go 
  

   ahead 
  and 
  reproduce 
  them. 
  

  

  The 
  President: 
  Dr. 
  Van 
  Duzee, 
  tell 
  us 
  your 
  impressions 
  of 
  

   these 
  trees. 
  

  

  Col. 
  Van 
  Duzee: 
  Mr. 
  Chairman, 
  I 
  simply 
  will 
  add 
  this. 
  As 
  

   I 
  came 
  through 
  this 
  wonderfully 
  fertile 
  section 
  of 
  the 
  country, 
  I 
  

   observed 
  people 
  building 
  bungalows 
  and 
  cottages 
  and 
  setting 
  out 
  

   trees 
  other 
  than 
  pecan 
  in 
  their 
  dooryards. 
  That 
  is 
  the 
  pity 
  of 
  it. 
  

   As 
  Dr. 
  Smith 
  says 
  these 
  people 
  here 
  are 
  living 
  close 
  to 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  

   most 
  magnificent 
  natural 
  trees 
  I 
  have 
  ever 
  seen, 
  and 
  yet 
  they 
  will 
  go 
  

   and 
  plant 
  around 
  their 
  gardens 
  trees 
  that 
  will 
  do 
  nothing 
  in 
  the 
  world 
  

   but 
  produce 
  shade. 
  It 
  seems 
  to 
  me 
  there 
  is 
  room 
  for 
  the 
  best 
  kind 
  

   of 
  missionary 
  work 
  here. 
  I 
  am 
  glad 
  the 
  nut 
  growers 
  met 
  here 
  and 
  

   I 
  hope 
  the 
  effect 
  will 
  be 
  to 
  cause 
  people 
  to 
  think. 
  As 
  we 
  came 
  down 
  

   the 
  road 
  we 
  estimated 
  that 
  on 
  one 
  tree 
  there 
  were 
  four 
  or 
  five 
  hun- 
  

   dred 
  pounds 
  of 
  nuts. 
  The 
  owner 
  of 
  that 
  tree 
  didn't 
  study 
  the 
  soil 
  

   that 
  produced 
  that 
  magnificent 
  crop. 
  Our 
  driver 
  said 
  they 
  had 
  

   had 
  two 
  years 
  of 
  failure 
  in 
  their 
  farming 
  operations 
  and 
  yet 
  right 
  

   here 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  place 
  nature 
  has 
  handed 
  them 
  another 
  magnifi- 
  

   cent 
  crop. 
  I 
  have 
  an 
  idea 
  that 
  the 
  average 
  annual 
  value 
  per 
  acre 
  of 
  

   crops 
  on 
  the 
  farms 
  of 
  southern 
  Indiana 
  and 
  Illinois 
  will 
  run 
  in 
  the 
  

   neighborhood 
  of 
  a 
  ten 
  dollar 
  bill, 
  and 
  here 
  is 
  a 
  tree, 
  one 
  tree, 
  present- 
  

   ing 
  thirty 
  dollars. 
  I 
  have 
  do 
  doubt 
  in 
  the 
  world 
  that 
  there 
  will 
  be 
  

  

  