518 



The Weekly Florists' Review, 



FEBRrAKY 26, 1903. 



even pace with the advancement of our 

 society. The size of the flower has prac- 

 tically reached that of the largest blooms 

 produced by the English carnation cul- 

 turists as early in the nineteenth century 

 as 1830, at which time the English car- 

 nation seems to have reached the apex 

 of its improvement and popularity. At 

 that period carnation blooms nearly five 

 inches in diameter, upon strong stems ap- 

 proaching four feet in length, were grown 

 and exhibited. This was, however, done 

 by developing the flower with artificial 

 feeding, much in the same manner as the 

 enormous chrysanthemums of the present 

 day are grown. In addition to this, it 

 was necessary to bind up the calyxes of 

 the flowers and to split down the points 

 to prevent bursting, as well as to extract 

 surplus petals and arrange those remain- 

 ing in order to produce a shapely bloom. 

 Then, too, the English carnation was pro- 

 duced during the early summer months, 

 a much easier cultural feat under Eng- 

 lish climatic conditions than is the pro- 

 duction of our magnificent blooms in 

 mid-winter. 



Little need be said regarding cultural 



secretary of state at Albany, and has 

 been appro\ed by him as well as by a jus- 

 tice of the supreme court of the slate of 

 New York, and filed in the office of the 

 county clerk of (^)utens county. The 

 board of directors has carefully com- 

 piled a constituticn, which will be pre- 

 sented for consideration this evening, and 

 to which I would invite your careful 

 attention 



So far as n>y mental vision can now 

 forecast the future, our skies seem to be 

 clear, with but slight exception, and that 

 exception is one wl.icii we niay easily 

 avoid. Our members are well aware 

 that the general sentiment of our asso- 

 ciation has Irom the beginning been in 

 favor of maintaining the Carnation So- 

 ciety upon a substantial and in- 

 dependent basis; not binding our- 

 selves in any partnerships, but main- 

 taining such friendly attitudes to- 

 ward other national floricultural and hor- 

 ticultural organizations as would secure 

 for us a free and untraiiimeled field for 

 the performance of our particular work. 



A few years since the agitation of a 

 scheme to combine all American horticul- 



James Hartshorne, Joliet, 111., Vi«-Pr«sident-Elect American Carnation Society. 



methods, the exhibition of seedlings, or 

 the granting of certificates, as that 

 ground has been thoroughly thrashed 

 over by my predecessors. Be it sufficient 

 to state that from present appearances 

 there has not been, nor will there be any 

 diminution of the enthusiastic experi- 

 mental work and careful study by the 

 members of our society. 



It is with pleasure that I am able to 

 announce the completion of the incorpo- 

 ration of our society under the laws of 

 the state of New York. The certificate 

 of incorporation has been filed with the 



tural societies was begun by some lead- 

 ing members of the Society of American 

 Florists. While such combination seemed 

 to be fraught with considerable danger to 

 the interests of our carnation society, 

 consideration of the subject was entered 

 into in a broad and liberal spirit, with 

 the view that if any feasible method 

 could be devised whereby an association 

 of these societies could be brought about 

 upon a plan that would sufliciently safe- 

 guard the interests of our society, I 

 would favor such union and would join 

 my influence to bring it about, although 



aware at the time that many of our in- 

 fluential members were honestly and 

 firmly opposed to such effort. 



No less a gentleman than our esteemed 

 fellow-member and wise counselor. Mr. 

 W. N. Rudd, early pronounced the scheme 

 a hopeless one, and strenuously advised 

 its abandonment, a position which he has 

 since consistently held. 



While I am of the opinion that it 

 would be possible to organize the various 

 florists' associations into a representative 

 body, upon lines similar to those upon 

 which the government of the United 

 States is planned, nevertheless, after 

 having served for two consecutive years 

 as chairman of the committee upon closer 

 relations in the Society of American 

 Florists, and having during this period 

 endeavored to co-operate to the best of 

 my ability in bringing about such union 

 as would be acceptable to all of the in- 

 terests involved, and at the same time 

 to protect the future welfare of our car- 

 nation society, I am finally forced to the 

 firm conclusion that the task is hope- 

 less. 



Tliere are certain radical elements 

 among the membership of the Society of 

 American Florists who believe that that 

 society should be given such a dominat- 

 ing position in the association as will 

 eventually cripple the independent posi- 

 tions of the other associations, and until 

 such radical element shall have changed 

 or have been overcome by the more con- 

 servative members, to the end that their 

 views may become so modified as to en- 

 able them to consider the project in a 

 greater spirit of liberality, recognizing 

 that the carnation, chrysanthemum, 

 peony and other national horticultural 

 associations may stand upon the same 

 footing as that of the Society of Ameri- 

 can Florists, and be represented in the 

 combined body according to the numer- 

 ical strength of their membership, there 

 would seem to be no practical hope of 

 bringing about such a combination, and 

 that further agitation or discussion of 

 this subject would lead only to misun- 

 derstandings, and perhaps feelings of 

 animosity. 



It is my belief, and I think the opin- 

 ion of those most interested in the future 

 welfare of the carnation society, that its 

 present position, free and untrammeled 

 by any copartnership with any other 

 association, should t>e maintained. Part- 

 nerships between individuals are more 

 or less dangerous, and partnerships be- 

 tween associations are equally so. Neith- 

 er should be entered into unless it be 

 necessary for the protection of the con- 

 tracting parties, or unless the benefits 

 which appear to be certain to be secured 

 are of suflScient magnitude to warrant 

 the risks incurred. It would seem as if 

 no such valid reason exists in this case, 

 and consequently the subject should now 

 be dismissed. The Carnation Society has 

 a necessary work to perform. Up to the 

 present time it has performed that work 

 well, without the assistance of other as- 

 sociations; in fact, in the face of more 

 or less opposition, it has demonstrated 

 that it can carry on and maintain its 

 work; and wherever it has held an an- 

 nual convention it has been received with 

 open arms, and better still, bidden to 

 come again. 



The increase in the carnation industry 

 of the countiy, which is undoubtedly a 

 permanent one, will render it more or 

 less easy as the years roll on to main- 

 tain our present status. The carnation 

 is unquestionably second to no flower as 



