STATE HORTICULTUBAL SOCIETY. 337 



DISCUSSIOIf. 



Mr. Fuller. Mr. Chairman, I don't know that I ought to say a 

 word in regard to this, but I have thought several times when I have 

 been hearing these things that if a lot of boys were in here they would 

 say "chestnuts." Sixteen years ago, when I first attended the meet- 

 ings of this Society, our tables were filled with perhaps thirty varieties 

 of apples, and we had a number of seedlings of the finest quality; and 

 the same things precisely that were said in this essay were said then; 

 and it was reiterated again and again that we must raise our seedlings 

 from our hardy apples. A.ny of the old members of the Society know 

 very well that we have been running down hill ever since then, as far 

 as large apples are concerned; we have less seedlings to-day than we 

 had sixteen years ago; we have less apples. I don't speak of this dis- 

 couragingly; I always answer when people say " Are we ever going to 

 raise apples in Minnesota?" by saying "I hope so;" [ feel like still 

 trying. But it seems to me entirely useless to reiterate, again and 

 again, these theories, unless we can show some results for them. 



Now, a year ago last fall we had some splendid seedlings at our 

 State Fair, and I don't know when I have seen them excelled. But a 

 few days afterwards Mr. Sias and myself went down to see the trees. 

 Well, it shows the difference, perhaps, between Mr. Sias and myself; 

 I may be disposed to be over-critical and to look for the faults in a 

 thing; but as Mr. Sias would open his eyes so widely at those " splen- 

 did apples," I said, " Mr. Sias, look down here, that tree is dead." 

 And there it was, rotten all through the sides and half the limbs; the 

 tree was already killed. 



So with all these seedlings; this Peerless seedling may accomplish 

 something, but if it has been growing so long as Mr. Brand states, 

 why haven't we some results from them? Let us graft it and see 

 what it will do under other conditions, and before we reiterate it 

 again let us have the results. 



Now, there is our friend Gideon out here, who talks so hopefully; 

 his Wealthy apple is failing. And I don't know to-day — except in 

 our favorable points in our State— of a single apple that will stand; 

 I know it is so at least in our section of the State. I believe in telling 

 the truth about these things, and not deceive ourselves or deceive 

 others with these grand platitudes that mean nothing. I believe in 

 experimenting with these things hopefully, and doing the best we can 

 and not saying much about it until we get a few results. [Applause.] 

 Mr. Pearce said he believed in the principle illustrated by the story^ 

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