218 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



which owe their planting and success to the Society, and other thoa- 

 sands which indirectly are located in the State because of it. The 

 Society is not only the open book for others to read ia these matters, 

 but it also an immigration bureau, and thousands write, saying: "I am 

 going to move and want to know about the fruit interest before I go." 

 I believe we can safely say that the Society has helped to locate more 

 people than any other one thing. 



We can point with pride also to the displays this Society has made,, 

 at the many different cities of the Union. The World's Fair and last 

 year at St. Louis, where next to St. Louis, the most perfect exhibit was 

 kept up for weeks and weeks. 



Only the other day I met the pret-ident of the college at Marshall 

 and he never forgets to give us due praise and thanks for the planting 

 we made there on the 40 acres of campus. Today it stands as a monu- 

 ment to this Society, and in every catalogue the fact is mentioned. 

 The planting at Warrensburg, and Drury, and Kirksville, and Kidder 

 and Clinton are parts of our work. 



The great orchards that we find scattered over the State of 400, 

 500, 1,000, 1,500 acres are a result of the Society, its work and its 

 members. 



The local societies are one of the best outgrowths of the Society, 

 and it is the best advertisement of a county to have a band of fellow- 

 workers there scattering knowledge. 



The reorganization of the agricultural college and the establish- 

 ment of the course in horticulture is an outgrowth of our discussions 

 and efforts. 



But why outline more of these ways, more than to call your atten- 

 tion to some of the work this Society is doing for the betterment of 

 the State ? 



The work of the Experiment Station is now taking upon itself just 

 that kind of work that they should have taken years ago, and we find 

 our Board of Curators giving it the support both financial and moral 

 that we have been fighting for, lo, these many years. 



Our library we have added unto until we have quite ? collection 

 of books which are at the service of the members whenever they wish 

 them. Very many have made use of the books when needing some 

 especial help on some particular topic. I have mailed the book or 

 books to them and after reading they have returned them in the same 

 manner. Let me call your attentioo to this very valuable plan for 

 using the library. We can make it a circulating library in fact. 



The farmers' institutes are a very, very important factor in our 

 education and development, and our Society has its share in all this. 



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