140 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



This man gets a magnificent white head of cauliflower, ten, twelve 

 or fifteen inches across. I am not exaggerating this ; I am tell- 

 ing you what I have done myself, and what others have done a 

 great deal better than I have, for I do not claim to be a grower 

 of vegetables ; I only grow enough of such as will grow in this 

 climate for my family. That is what I mean. I say that you 

 can carry that principle all the way through. To illustrate 

 further : there are men here who are very particular about their 

 animals. If I should show them a good Jersey animal they 

 would say " Where is his pedigree ? " and if I said, " I cannot 

 show you his pedigree, but I can assure you he is a very good 

 animal," they would say, " We don't want that animal at any 

 price ; " but you buy your seed without regard to its quality ; 

 you put that seed into the ground in any way you can ; you are 

 not particular how the garden is ploughed up, and yet expect 

 to get a good crop of turnips or cabbages or beets ; that is not 

 the way to do this work ; if it is worth doing at all it is worth 

 doing well. 



Now certain gardeners about Boston have acquired a repu- 

 tation for certain things. I can tell just as well who will have 

 certain articles first-rate, as a butter dealer can tell who makes 

 good butter up in Western Massachusetts or in New York, and 

 who will make it good every year. I will tell you where you 

 can always get a first-rate article of lettuce or cauliflower or 

 celery every time, and they will never fail. Why ? Partly, 

 perhaps, because they had made a specialty of these things, but 

 mainly because they knew their business. They know what a 

 good thing is to begin with. 



Now do not find any fault with me, for I do not mean any 

 particular agricultural exhibition, but I have seen crowds of 

 vegetables in various agricultural exhibitions that never ought 

 to have been there. In the first place, it misleads the public. 

 They think those vegetables good when they are not good, and 

 they ought not to be admitted. The exhibitors ought to be told 

 to raise better vegetables, and then they will be shown. It is a 

 good deal as it was up at Amherst last fall. Some men came 

 to Colonel Clarke and said, " We have entered for this horse 

 race, but here is a man who has got a horse that will distance 

 all our houses, and take all the money." " Well," said the 

 colonel, " Let him do it if he can. I am glad of it if he can 



