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a meeting of their customers in that neighborhood, and spread a 

 knowledge of this association I think that we could build up a local 

 interest that would advertise this organization wonderfully. 



You have got to advertise and you must show to the common 

 people who are going to be your members, who are going to be in- 

 terested in nut trees, that they are valuable; that an ordinary acre 

 of nut trees is worth ten times the value of any crop of wheat raised 

 in Illinois, and Illinois is the wheat country. Before the hard wheat 

 was discovered in Minnesota the whole south half of Illinois was 

 given to wheat. But now so far as white wheat is concerned, and 

 spring wheat, it isn't wanted and the result is that you have got to 

 get something else into that country. Now that wheat country of 

 southern Illinois is a natural nut country. Pecans, persimmons, 

 chinkapins, grow wild all over there, and there is no reason why that 

 land, which can be bought for from ten and fifteen dollars an acre 

 up to twenty-five, according to the improvements, if the oil rights 

 are eliminated, can't be made to produce a hundred to five hundred 

 dollars an acre. If that is so, why not do it? 



Today, Illinois has over 11,000,000 bearing apple trees, and they 

 raise just as good apples there as any where, but they haven't got 

 the organization, they don't advertise, and we don't know it gener- 

 ally. If we can organize and distribute our information, get these 

 vice presidents from two or three cities to join with the chambers 

 of commerce and have a meeting down at Evans ville, among the nut 

 growers, for instance, the growers of Indiana pecans, and see what 

 they grow, and what they are worth, why then you can get the 

 people interested. You must have somebody that is interested in 

 the propagation of a new idea. Don't get somebody who just comes 

 here for a good time without any desire particularly of learning any- 

 thing. If he doesn't want to learn we don't want him. 



The Secretary : I understand that, in view of the very gener- 

 ous offer of the president to get a hundred new members in the en- 

 suing year, and of the pledge of ten other men to get ten more mem- 

 bers, or turn in the necessary amount to the treasury, each of us 

 goes forth from the meeting tonight with the understanding that he 

 is morally under obligations to do what the other members have 

 promised to do. 



The President : It would be a nice thing to give a Christmas 

 gift of a membership in this association and a subscription to the 

 American Nut Journal. A great many of us receive Christmas 

 gifts which are appreciated when received, and maybe for a week 

 or ten days, two weeks or a month, and then they're forgotten ; but 

 this membership and the American Nut Journal that one would 

 receive every month, would be a constant reminder of the giver. 

 What do you think of that, ladies and gentlemen? 



The Secretary : It is a fine idea, Mr. President, and I will 

 see that it is also incorporated in the letters to the state vice presi- 

 dent that each vice president give to at least one friend a subscrip- 



