i56 ■ STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



THE ANNUAL BANQUET. 



The annual banquet Avhieli is a most delijiiilt'ul social feature of the 

 meetings was held in the Auditorium of the. Pythian Castle, AVednesday 

 evening at 7 :30 and was the largest gathering the Society has ever had, 

 there were 300 seated at the festive board. 



Hon. Chas. W. Garfield, the earliest member of the Society present, 

 who found the Society' in the first year of its life, acted as toastmaster. 

 His genial personality, and delightful way of introducing the different 

 speakers, made the banquet one long to be remembered. 



He said in ])art in his o])ening remarks that as he wished to make 

 the evening an Historical evening he had invited a number of the old- 

 est members to respond. In a few well chosen words he first introduced 

 Mayor A. B. Conabal, of Kalamazoo, who replied in a very cordial man- 

 ner, Avelcoming the State Horticultural Society and its friends extend- 

 ing the hospitality of the City to them, and expressing a wish that the 

 meeting would prove most successful, and that the State Society would 

 again visit Kalamazoo in the near future. 



Mr. Garfield next introduced Mr. E. O. Ladd, of Old Mission, and 

 asked him to respond to the toast, "The Horticultural Scout, Mr. George 

 Parmalee." 



Mr. E. O. Ladd responded as follows : 



In the study of my first little text book on geograjyliy two things im- 

 pressed me very strongly. One was "The (Treat American Desert," com 

 prising about one-third of the map of the United States. The other was 

 on the map of Michigan, a narrow strip of land in the southwestern 

 part of the state along the lake shore known as the "fruit belt of Mich- 

 igan." 



Time has brought about a great change. "The Great American Desert" 

 has disappeared from the maps of our modern text books and nearly dis- 

 appeared from the face of the earth. Methods of conserving moisture or 

 artificially sup})lying it has transformed much of this once arid region 

 into profitable farming lands. 



On the other hand the "Original Fruit Belt" of Michigan has outgrown 

 its narrow limits of fifty years ago and has gradually extended its bor- 

 ders until Michigan has come to be recognized as one of the leading fruit 

 growing states of the Union. 



Among the pioneers who did much to help discover and develop the 

 horticultural possibilities of the state was Mr. George Parmalee, who 

 first settled near Benton Harbor, and attained marked success in the 

 peach growing business. 



Mr. Parmalee was a man of enciuiring mind and a great student of 

 nature. He studied the conditions of soil and climate which favor the 

 production of fruit, noted the prevailing winds, the influence of the 

 lake on the temperature of Western Michigan during severe storms, the 

 tendency of cold air to settle in low places, and the desirability of the 

 slopes rather than the hill-tops or the valleys as suitable locations for 

 fruit growing. 



He naturally desired to know more of the great state of Michigan, the 

 extent of its resources, its possibilities for development, its beautiful 

 scenery, etc. He started out on a scouting expedition and traveled ex- 

 tensively over the state, observing and comparing conditions in different 

 localities. He finallv became convinced that the Grand Traverse Eegion 



