WINTER MEETING. 145 



President Evans — Hogs like them, and if you choose you can feed 

 them down. You can sow them as late as July. You can buy them in 

 Memphis or St. Louis at about $1 per bushel. 



The following from Mr. Hartzell touches the facts of orchard- 

 growing, and is here submitted. 



Secretary. 



To the St. Joseph Horticultural Society : 



Your correspoudent, a member of your Society, hereby makes report of a re- 

 cent journey and tour of inspection of fruit and agricultural interests for the ben- 

 efit and encouragement of these interests in Missouri— first in Missouri and 

 Kansas, then further south, even to the great pear-growing locality of Southern 

 Texas, at North Galveston, Alvin, Virginia Point, Webster City, Hitchcock and 

 Arcadia. I saw the great pear orchard of Mr. Stringfellow at Hitchcock, Texas, 

 and held an extended interview with the owner and proprietor, Mr. Stringfellow. 

 I ate of the pears grown in that great orchard. Am quite well prepared to give 

 many items of interest to any person desiring to investigate. 1 offer hereby the 

 sequel— the result of my investigations—having solved the question, the cause of 

 the remarkable success of pear-growing on the Gulf coast, which is because of its 

 approximate nearness to the salt water. Ttie land is on a level with the Gulf of 

 Mexico, and the constant presence of the Gulf breezes, together with the eff"ect8 

 of salt in the land, same as it is on the Pacific coast, where pear-growitig has at- 

 tained such profitable proportions, but giving the pear-eater a very inferior pear 

 when compared with Missouri pears of same name. The Keifter pear of Texas is 

 not near thp equal of the Keifffer of Missouri as a table pear. 



My investigation and researches for the past 10 years' coupled with more 

 recent developments and disclosures made at the Chicago Worla's Fair, have fully 

 and clearly decided that Missouri, as a fruit-growing state, is not excelled by any 

 other, either in quality or quantity per acre, when proper attention is given to 

 the business from start to finish by the orchardist ; enough is now known of suit" 

 able soil and climate in Missouri for successful fruit-growing, to fully justify fur- 

 ther efl"ort and perseverance in the more progressive channels ; giving up the old 

 ways which have been abortive, namely, planting trees without preparing the 

 land, planting too many to the acre, and refusing to grow trees for profit ; very 

 many otherwise intelligent men argue in favor of short-lived trees, short body 

 trees ; and short profit trees is the result, sure. 



Seeming great success sometimes is seen in very young orchards, with all the 

 above named non-progressives to modern and to previous death-dealing meas- 

 ures, always attributed to natural causes instead of giving credit to the real trans- 

 gressor ; when the very young orchard falls to be as productive as at the start, it 

 is evidence that a wrong beginning is the cause, and not always the adverse season 

 or natural cause. 



Yes, I could give you very many names of men in many localities, as well as 

 a description of many orchards in many parts of the United States, where I have 

 been a close observer of all that pertains to horticulture and agriculture. I am 

 not an office-seeker, nor have I an ax to grind, but I do desire to assist the wealth- 

 producer — the agricultural and horticultural interests— in all ways possible, from 

 the preparation of the soil to the best result in marketing the produce. I have 

 witnessed the results both in fruit and grain production, where poor and imperfect 

 work caused many complete failures, and also have carefully performed the work 

 H— 10 



