220 GENERAL HISTORY. 



"The light sand of the valley proving unfit for nursery, peaches and cherries 

 to a great extent being a failure, by liSoO Tve had decided to locate near 

 Adrian, -where we have since lived, and our little concern was known as the 

 Adrian nursery. 



**In the winter of 1842 and 1843 I \vas teaching near our old home in Ohio, 

 and brought back from there and from New Brightou, Penn., a variety of 

 cions, among which were Belmont Willow Twig, Newark Pippin, Sweet Van- 

 devere, and later, from the east. Northern Spy, Chenango, Red Canada^ 

 Wagener and Early Joe, and still later, from Smithiield, Jefferson county, 

 Ohio, Grimes' Golden, all of which, so far as I know (except Red Canada), I 

 was the first to introduce. 



"In addition to the above were the best cherries, peaches, etc., obtainable at 

 an early day, from William R. Smith and J. J. Thomas. About 1846 or 

 1847 I bought a very good assortment of strawberries, etc., of the Lay 

 Brothers of Ypsilanti. To these were added, from time to time, and from 

 various sources more shrubbery, herbaceous plants, roses, and a great variety 

 of ornamental trees, evergreens, etc., all supposed to be pretty hardy; but 

 many of which, both deciduous and evergreen, shrubs, trees and flowers, can- 

 not now be found in this county. I remember particularly regretting, after 

 several years' trial, the loss of Deciduous Cypress, Washingtonia Gigantea, 

 and the sweet little Swamp Magnolia {M. glanca). Pages might be filled 

 with such losses, and the yet keener disappointment of finding fruits that 

 had received unlimited praise, utterly worthless upon trial here. But I 

 forbear, as all who have been long in the business know all about such 

 matters. 



"Of course the strongest reason for commencing the business was to make a 

 living; but I trust a higher motive had its influence. For some time mine 

 was the only nursery in this vicinity, and the desire to furnish the very best 

 of everything to my customers took possession of me, and the thought that 

 this was the way God designed that I should be of use to my fellows, light- 

 ened my labors and exalted my calling. But, alas! in looking over the past, 

 how many mistakes and failures appear owing, in great measure, to my own 

 ignorance of the best varieties and adaptation to soils, climate, etc. And 

 yet there is some satisfaction in remembering that an honest effort was made 

 to carry out my ideal. 



"The fi'st apples I saw were in Daniel Smith's orchard in 1834 (the old 

 Bailey orchard, of canker worm notoriety), but I understood that Corn- 

 stock's, and perhaps others, had borne some a year or so before. A Golden 

 Russet, planted by D. Comstock, bore thirty-three bushels in 1848 and 

 seventeen bushels in 1849. This the proprietor at the time told me, and that 

 he sold that number of bushels each spring following from that tree for one 

 dollar per bushel." 



In 1852 the committee on farms awarded a first premium to that of Dr. T. 

 H. Bailey, of Adrian. He reports of bearing apple trees, two hundred and 

 eighty ; planted in orchard, two thousand; of peach trees, eight hundred; 

 cherry, seventy; pears seventy (six bearing); quinces, sixty; nectarines, 

 three ; apricots, eighteen ; ten thousand nursery trees, seven thousand of 

 good size for transplanting. 



The foregoing premium orchard is doubtless the one referred to in a pre- 

 vious paragraph, as " The old Bailey orchard, of canker worm notoriety." 

 The case is in several respects so notable that the following history by a near 

 neighbor, B. W. Steere, of Adrian, is given almost entire: — 



