270 ANNUAL EEPOET 



Mr. May. I will wager you a hundred dollars that no clerk 

 in my office ever made that statement to you. I will put the 

 money up and donate it to the orphan asylum. I tell you talk 

 is cheap. 



President Elliot. We want to get at the bottom of this thing, 

 and we have some few here that have run against the agents 

 of this L. L. May & Co. 



Mr. J. M. Smith. The gentleman I referred to I have known 

 a good many years. I said to him, ^' You had better write over 

 there. I know some of the Minnesota people and I have never 

 heard of any such firm, although it may exist." A few days 

 afterwards he came to me again saying that he had further let- 

 ters froo May & Co., and they wrote him their stock was grown 

 in or about St. Paul, and that it was perfectly good. How is it 

 that this young man should turn liar all at once? 



Mr. May. Well, I don't know; but I assure you upon the 

 word of honor that I have never represented to my men that 

 our stock has been grown in Minnesota. 



Mr. J. M. Smith. Did you send the man good stock — that 

 was reliable — when you filled his orders'! 



Mr. May. I think we do. We pride ourselves on the quality 

 of stock we ship; I don't say all of it; I will leave that to you; 

 what do you think of our stock! 



Mr. Smith. The most of it I thought was very poor. 



Mr. May. What varieties ? 



Mr. Smith. I didn't buy but little of it myself. My wife 

 bought a little vine. 



Mr. May, What kind of vine, please ? 



Mr. Smith. I forget the name of it. 



Mr. May. Of course you are horticulturist enough to know 

 that all varieties don't grow alike. 



Mr. Smith. Where large quantities of stock were sold, as far 

 as my experience goes, it did not live well. 



Mr. May. Of course there is a good deal in the care of stock. 

 But what I may say here is this, we don't claim to grow our 

 stock in Minnesota. What we claim is we grow our stock in 

 Eochester, New York. We deliver stock true to name of the 

 hardiest varieties and of the best varieties that come out. We 

 are now propagating some seedlings through our agents, and in 

 a year or so shall have those for sale. 



Mr. Cutler, Where are you propagating them? 



Mr. May. In Eochester, N. Y, 



