STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 435 



mer and have their feasts as indicated above. Always under the 

 shade of the most gigantic tree of a certain variety (to be se- 

 lected by a committee of three), to be found, say within a limit 

 of twenty miles of this city. The next season select another 

 variety and proceed as before, and so on until every variety 

 shall have been visited and passed upon. Make it the duty of 

 the society to make and keep a neat and permanent record of 

 each one of these trees. When the tables are set and loaded 

 with the choicest fruits of the season and surrounded by the 

 friends and members of the society, have some good artist handy 

 to photograph the scene, the secretary to be instructed to place 

 this photograph in the society's book, under which to make a 

 careful record of the aforesaid tree, giving name, height, cir- 

 cumferance, where located, exposure to sun and wind, nearness 

 to living water, chemical analysis of the soil, a microscopical 

 report of the style and condition of the leaves, etc. A thick 

 pubescent leaf, like the Aloe, or Century plant, that is obliged 

 to store up moisture enough to take it through a protracted 

 drought of five months, will do for Minnesota. When you come 

 to hold your feast of the apple under some giant wild crab tree, 

 you will doubtless ascertain just about what sort of a leaf we 

 must have in our apple orchards. The great benefit to be derived 

 from this new mode of conducting our summer meetings must, 

 I think, be clearly apparent to all. 



While doing committee work for the State Horticultural So- 

 ciety last fall, it was my good fortune to be able to visit "the 

 little babbling brook," Kedron, in Fillmore County, where, in 

 company with G. W. Fuller, of Litchfield, we feasted our eyes on 

 what is thought to be the tallest specimen of the Abies Alba on 

 record. Also White Pines, Fir Balsams, Eed Cedars and Yew. 

 We would suggest this as a proper place for you to celebrate the 

 feast of the Spruces. Mt. Horeb and Eesurrection Spring are 

 not far away. If you can explain why the above named White 

 Spruce made such wonderful growth, it will be information of 

 great value to everyone who plants a tree of this desirable va- 

 riety. Someone gave as reason for the Green Mountain boys 

 growing so tall, was, "because they were in the habit of going 

 out every morning before daylight to stretch their necks up over 

 the mountain to seethe sun rise." In a like manner it occurred 

 to me that this spruce was making a desperate efibrt to get a 

 peep at the sun. The soil about the roots of these spruces is 

 rich in alluvial and leaf mould. These object lessons are worthy 



