February 5, 1910 



H O F. T I C U L T U K E 



18'J 



AMERICAN CARNATION SOCIETY 



Final Convention Proceedings and Banquet 



The enthusiasm of the Carnationists 

 and attending visitors to the Pitts- 

 burgh Convention never dulled from 

 their arrival to the time of departure. 

 It was not unusual to say a "good-bye" 

 to a fleeting guest, and to meet him 

 later in the day and be told that it 

 was impossible to leave such a happy 

 throng behind. The air was resonant 

 with bubbling jubilation. It was like 

 a large family reunion — everybody pat- 

 ronized, everybody knew everybody, 

 and those who did not know one an- 

 other soon became acquainted. Tbe 

 fact that the hotel housed the whole 

 convention, including the carnations, 

 the carnationists and the meetings, 

 added greatly to the success of the 

 nineteenth annual reunion. I will say, 

 there was some pretty maneuvering as 

 to where the convention should go next 

 year, but one could feel it in his bones, 

 so to speak, that Boston would win 

 the prize. The members should be 

 congratulated on their good judgment. 

 It augurs well for the society and for 

 the National Exhibition in 1911. 



The local club worked harmoniously 

 and like a well-oiled machine, and was 

 guided by a master hand from start 

 to finish. 



The "English Room," where the ex- 

 hibition was held, made a unique set- 

 ting. The floor was approached by 

 four steps (downward) so that one 

 could stand at the entrance and get a 

 panoramic view of the whole — an in- 

 spiring sight when one can look back- 

 ward to the "initial performances." 

 The dark oak walls and sombre trim- 

 mings of this hall intensified and em- 

 phasized the coloring and beauty of 

 the flowers. 



If criticism could be offered to fu- 

 ture exhibits of this sort, I would say 

 that the tables were too high, and that 

 the stereotyped arrangement of the 

 tables in parallel lines is wrong from 

 an artistic and aesthetic point of view. 

 If the tables could have been arranged 

 in graceful serpentine form around the 

 hall, interrupted here and there by a 

 mantle, or altar decorations of carna- 

 tions and the center of the hall al- 

 lowed to remain more open, filled here 

 and there with table and other decora- 

 tions showing to what good use this 

 grand flower could be adjusted, it 

 would have a tendency to broaden not 

 only the ideas of the grower and the 

 storenian but the ultimate consumer, 

 who is the fellow we are after. Prizes 

 to the retailer, covering all his work, 

 and prizes for the most unique and 

 novel arrangements of carnations 

 would not only educate but enlarge 

 the scope of work and success of the 

 A. C. S. 



The meetings were all well attended 



and the interest keen — no extraordi- 

 nary point, however, was revealed and 

 few novel suggestions brought out. 

 The social end was well taken care 

 of and did not interfere with the busi- 

 ness meeting. The banquet was mag- 

 nificent from all viewpoints, nearly 

 three hundred attending, and the ora- 

 tory was filled with enthusiasm. 



The Banquet. 



The "English Room," by the magi- 

 cians wand was evolved into the ban- 

 quet hall and visitors inspired to fiow- 

 ery oratory; the ladies vieing with the 

 kaleidoscopic colorings of the "divine 

 flower" in rich and beautiful toilets. 

 The blooms previously staged were 

 banked on either side of the banquet 

 hall and the round tables were decor- 

 ated with the same festive blooms. 



The banquet was but a climax to a 

 long list of successes, and from a floral, 

 oratorical and gastronomical view, a 

 rare awakening to all participants, not 

 forgetting the interspersing of beauti- 

 ful nuisic and song, all of the highest 

 order. The menu was in keeping with 

 everything else. It was adorned with 

 an embossed spray of red carnations 

 and gave, in addition to the list of 

 pieces by the Carnegie Tech Glee and 

 Mandolin (31ubs, a series of verses and 

 rolicking choruses in which the entire 

 company from time to time joined. 



William Falconer was toastmaster. 

 After the banquet the first thing in 

 order was the presentation of the S. 

 A. F. medals. 



Fred Dorner, Jr. received the gold 

 medal for Hoosier Lad, with graceful 

 acknowledgement. Richard Witter- 

 staetter received the silver medal for 

 President Valentine and Eugene Dail- 

 ledouze the bronze medal for White 

 House. Both made modest acknowl- 

 edgement. 



At this point a telegram from the 

 Boston banqueters, appreciating the 

 fact that the convention was going to 

 Boston and according a cordial wel- 

 come and that a pot of Boston beans 

 would be immediately put on the fire, 

 was read amid great enthusiasm. 



The toast-master then called on 

 President llerr to make a few remarlis 

 about the society, which he did in a 

 most complimentary and sanguine 

 vein. Ex-President Valentine then 

 spoke for the S. A. F. & O. H., in a 

 humorous and eloquent manner, stat- 

 ing that he thought when he had be- 

 come an Ex that he had laid down 

 the laurels of office, but it was not to 

 be. He spoke of the segregation of 

 the different societies and of their 

 work and thought that more cohesion 

 would be better for all concerned. He 

 congratulated the A. C. S. upon their 

 good sense in going to Boston, and 

 spoke along the lines ihat unity was 

 strength 



Mr. P. S. Randolph had for his sub- 

 ject, "Onr Boys and What Are We 

 Going to Do With Them?" He thought 



they should follow in the footsteps of 

 their fathers and that they would have 

 an easy time as all the pioneer work 

 nnd hard labor had been well nigh 

 completed. 



E. C. Reineman spoke enthusiastic- 

 ally for the Pittsburgh Florists' Club, 

 of which he was the first president, 

 which has now a membership of 160. 



The toast-master, in introducing the 

 next spea!;er, F. R. Pierson, stated 

 that next year the flower show in 

 Boston would be the finest and largest 

 the world ever saw. President Pierson 

 for the S. A. F. & O. H.. and for the 

 National Flower Show, 1911, discussed 

 the future of the society and outlined 

 the work for the great exhibition in 

 the Hub city. He said that the Bos- 

 ton show was the greatest opportunity 

 that the allied horticultural societies 

 had ever had and that all should take 

 advantage of it. It was an immense 

 undertaking and $10,000 had already 

 been guaranteed. The Chicago Nation- 

 al Show had cost $25,000 and had been 

 successful. The 1011 Show would be 

 entirely different, coming as it would 

 in the spring, and with the co-opera- 

 tion of the Carnation Society, the 

 Rose Society, the Massachusetts Horti- 

 cultural Society, the allied New Eng- 

 land and other societies, could not help 

 but be a tremendous success. 



W F Kasting spoke of the "Influ- 

 ence of the Carnation in Politics," in 

 which he claimed that this flower had 

 played an important pan. and gave 

 several instances and anecdotes relat- 

 ing to same. 



H. B. Howard spoke for the "Trade 

 Press and Its Influence." He said that 

 while the Carnation and other societies 

 held their annual conventions, the 

 trade paper was a convention in itself 

 52 times a year. 



.Judge Vesey spoke for the ladies iu 

 a practical, poetical and sentimental 

 vein, and seemed to think that flowers 

 pven in their single state played an 

 important part with lovers in the ab- 

 original ages. 



Arthur G. Burgoyne of the Chronicle 

 Telegraph spoke for the Pittsburgh 

 press and recited an original poem. 



Robert Craig replied to the toast, 

 "The Old Boys," and their influence 

 in the past. He asked his audience 

 to overlook their faults and to remem- 

 ber only their virtues and the work 

 they had done, and joined the names 

 of Peter Henderson, John Thorpe, W. 

 R. Smith, Wm. Scott, Edwin Lonsdale, 

 and regretted that he had not more 

 time to mention others. 



Prof. Brashear, Sam'l McClements 

 and others also spoke, and after the 

 sinsing of Auld Lang Syne, three 

 cheers for the Pittsburgh Florist Club 

 and the Pittsburgh ladies, and much 

 hanrlshaking, the banqueters retired, 

 all voicing the praise of the welcome 

 and hospitality which had been so 

 generously bestowed. 



Mr. Falconer made an ideal toast- 



