PROCEEDINGS OF THE ANNUAL MEETING 67 



ANNUAL MESSAGE. 

 BY PRESIDENT ROLAND MORRILL OF BENTON HARBOR. 



There is very little that I think of that I feel it is necessary for me to 

 say here and now. My o])inions are hardly worth while putting before 

 you, and as we have good papers that will bring (tut all of the opinions 

 that I may have, before Ave get through, and which will have a fair dis- 

 cussion, I do not know that I care to say much more than in a general 

 way to talk of what^ might perhaps be termed the horticultural situation, 

 and talk of it from a commercial standpoint. 



It has hvvu urg(Ml I'epeatedly by some of our oldest and most respected 

 members, and by others not members of the society, that we were paying 

 altogether too much attention to the commercial side of horticulture; but 

 when I discuss it, for some reason there does not seem to be any other 

 way for me to do. About the only knowledge I have of horticulture is the 

 growing of fruit and vegetables for money. So, if I say but little about the 

 ornamental side of it, those of you who bring a message of that character 

 can fill it in. I do not like to talk to you about anything with which I am 

 not myself familiar. 



There is a condition of affairs that seems to extend all over the United 

 States at present, in regard to the horticultural situation, that it seems 

 we should begin to study carefully. There is over-production or under- 

 consum](tion. For fear that we might discuss politics, perhaps we would 

 better not use those terms, or go too far into that; but tliis condition of 

 affairs is somewhat variegated. There has not yet been a year but in some 

 particular location some crop sold for less than its cost of production, since 

 I have been in the business. At the same time, there has been some other 

 point where the same crop, if it could be placed there, would have sold at a 

 profit. There are many elements that have intervened. There are the dis- 

 honest practices of certain men, and they interfere with the fair distribu- 

 tion of fruits and with getting what they are worth, or at least getting 

 the money back to the man to whom it belonged. Those things will be 

 discussed later on. But w^e will go back about five vears, and sav that fruit- 

 growing in general was then a very profitable occupation all over Mich- 

 igan. We will deal particularly with Michigan in this. Ordinary farming 

 (the growing of grain and raising of stock) was becoming depressed. It 

 was not showing the margins it had shown in the past, and it was gen- 

 erally understood that, through the action of the State Horticultural 

 society and other societies, fruitgrowing was a profitable occupation. We 

 went out and told everybody how we did it. Various societies and various 

 men have traveled over the country, explaining how they have succeeded, 

 telling of their failures, pointing out the things to avoid and the things to 

 be observed, and the farmers left their farming and went into fruitgrovr- 

 ing. planting fruit trees where before they had i»]anted wheat. 



In 1896, so far as small fruit was concerned the people of Michigan 

 found themselves confronted with crops which they could not market at a 

 profit. We find that in farming sections having small cities and viUages,. 



