INDIANA HOETICULTURAL SOCIETY. 247 



they have seut them different varieties from what they ordered; they find 

 this out after the trees begin to bear. Not long ago I had a letter from a 

 man in the northeast part of the State, giving his experience in regard to 

 trees he had purchased. He had ordered certain varieties, and they had 

 given him other varieties, as he found after the trees came to fruit, and he 

 wanted us to publish the name of the nurseryman, so as to show he was 

 doing an injury to his customers. It would not do for us to publish the 

 names of reliable nurserymen; it would ruin their business, so we sent 

 the letter, in this case, to the nurseryman, and he made the best defense 

 in his point of view. < He said they could not guarantee trees after they 

 had gone from them— the agent might have gotten them somewhere else; 

 he said they were not responsible for the agent's mistake, i tiimk there 

 was something in that. He might have bought trees from this nursery 

 and gotten others where he could. There ought to be some way whereby 

 purchasers of trees could tell the kinds purchased, or the kiud he pays 

 for. If nurserymen could afford to put a seal on trees they send out (1 

 don't know whether they can or not) it would be a great help. This ought 

 to be done in cases where the purchasers require it. In that way they 

 could secure themselves in this matter. 



A Member: I am not a nurseryman. I have been working some 

 in a nursery, and I want to say a word in defense of the nursery. I 

 worked some little for the nursery, and I want to say that I atii sur- 

 prised that there are not thousands of mistakes made where there is one. 

 because, while the nursery here is not as large; as some, they have to 

 depend altogether on hired labor— hands they can pick up in the neighbor- 

 hood—to help them out in the delivery season, and I notice some of the 

 hands are very careless, and on that account it seems impossible to put 



a seal on every tree. I know by personal observation that wears 



himself out during the delivery season trying to see that everything goes 

 from his nursery in first-class order. It is impossible for him to see 

 everything done that is done, and I judge from that it is the same in all 

 other nurseries. 



E. y. Teas: There is one thing in Indiana we all ought to do, and 

 there is not a farmer in the State but what can if he wants to. and that 

 is, send to the nursery and get what he wants, but he won't do that. In 

 preference, he will depend on the man that goes along from house to 

 house, swindling everybody. There is no use to push the l)lame on the 

 dealers. 



H. W. Henry: There is one way that this can be settled very satis- 

 factoi-ily. The Legislature should pass a law that every man who sells 

 nursery stock must take out a license. 



President Stevens: We will take up the next sub-topic. "Preparation 

 of Ground, Laying Out and Flauting," and Mr. Burton is first. 



