REPORT OF DELEGATE. \ 31 



Plums. — Desota, Wyant, Hawkeye, Forest Garden, Miner, Sioddart, 

 Forest Rose. Rockfortl, Bi.xby, Gaylord, Cheney, Wolf, 



GOOSEHEKKIKS. — Hou^hton, Downing, Colunibus, Golden Prolific 

 Tetonka, Biof Bob, American Wild, Lee's Prolific. 



Grapes.— Concord, Worden, Moore's Early, Janeaville, Green 

 Mountain, Delaware, Agawani, Brighton. 

 . Red Raspberries. — Turner, Kenyon, Shafifer, Golden. 



Black Raspberries.— Gregg-, Ohio, Older, Nemaha, Palmer, Kan- 

 sas, Eureka. 



Strawberries. — Crescent. Warfield, Bederwood, Ilaverland, Par. 

 ker Earle, Robinson, Shuckless, Greenville, Enhance, Wolverton 

 Gardner. 



Blackberries. — Snyder, Ancient Briton, Agawan. 



Juneberries.— Success, Dwarf. 



Wednesday afternoon. Reports of delegates were heard to and from 

 Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Northwest Iowa Society. 



These reports were given careful attention and covered much 

 ground outside of the regular work of the society and make a val- 

 uable addition to their horticultural records. 



At the evening session, several papers were read of great literary 

 merit, the subjects being treated with clearness and comprehension, 

 and they were highly appreciated by all present. The session was 

 also enlivened by excellent music. At the request of the president, 

 Mr. Van Houten gave an informal talk upon the horticulture of the 

 Sandwich Islands, India, China and Japan, also slightly comparing 

 their social relations to those of our people. He had personally vis- 

 ited these countries and parts of Europe to gain horticultural 

 knowledge and to satisfy himself as to whether there was a more 

 desirable abiding place. 



He had come back to Iowa perfectly satisfied to remain, with no 

 desire to go beyond its boundaries, as he knew by personal obser- 

 vation that no more contented, thrifty, intelligent and prosperous 

 people lived on the face of the earth than were to be found in "our 

 own free and happy homes." The audience was treated to one of 

 the most vivid, beautiful and interesting oriental pictures of some 

 of those tropical regions where nature had lavishly bestowed in pe- 

 rennial beauty the most gorgeous coloring on shrubs and llowers, 

 and had scattered in endless profusion many of the choicest fruits, 

 with a climate of perpetual summer and harvest. And yet the back- 

 ground of this picture, representing the social condition of large 

 classes of the people of India and China, was revolting to all our 

 ideas of Christianity, virtue, happiness or pleasure. Some of their 

 ornamental plants are very desirable, but with the exception of some 

 of the citrus fruits of Japan, he would not give one of the apples of 

 Iowa for all the fruits of the tropical regions, and, finallj', he would 

 not exchange one of the happy homes of Iowa for any other abiding 

 place to be seen in all his travels. 



