noual eeting. 
December 7-10, 1897. 
JOURNAL OF THIRTY-FIRST ANNUAL MEETING OF 
MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 
HELD IN MINNEAPOLIS, AT THE COURT-HOUSE, 
DECEMBER 7-10, 1897.3 
(For program of this meeting see page 481, Report of 1897). 
The annual meeting of the Minnesota State Horticultural 
Society convened in the rooms of the county commissioners of 
Hennepin county, at 10 0’clock, on the morning of December 7th - 
TUESDAY FORENOON SESSION. 
The meeting was called to order by President Underwood, 
who opened the meeting with the following brief remarks: 
Fellow Members of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society: 
—It is necessary to again take up our work for another year. For 
the thirty-first time we commence the annual meeting of the Minne- 
sota State Horticultural Society. I need not say, perhaps, to me it 
is a great pleasure to meet you here, to meet the old friends I have 
not met fora year, and to make new acquaintances. I wish you to 
observe this rule in our society, and that is, while you are with us I 
want you to feel perfectly at home and feel as though you werea 
part of the association and free to take an active partin all of our 
deliberations. We like to have every one feel perfectly at home 
here and free to express themselves on all topics we may have 
under consideration, and free toimpart any information they mzy 
possess that may be of benefit or of interest to any of the other 
members. I think this is the spirit that has always prevailed, 
although I have somehow thought that sometimes people came into 
the meetings who felta little diffident about making the:nselves 
prominent in our discussions, and they did not know how much 
good they might do by making themselves a little more familiar. 
_ We have nota very large representation with us this morning, but 
I trust they may increase in numbers as the meeting goes on, and I 
trust we shall havea good many ladies to take part with us, and 
that they will feel at home with us, and feel as though they hada 
perfect right to takea prominent part in our society. I donot know 
