54 ANNUAL REPORT 



tural Society at these farmers institutes, or any similar organiza- 

 tion that will go out among the farmers of the state, to the 

 smaller towns of the state, and there give them object lessons, 

 and such information as will encourage them to become interested 

 in the work of this Society. It certainly is the best field and 

 the best direction in which we can work, in my estimation, and 

 I should say most decidedly the members of any society should 

 at least pay our State Society a dollar for a membership and 

 our transactions. 



Mr. Sias. Mr. President, I recommended that reduced fee to 

 members of our society at Rochester, for the reason that we have 

 no state appropriation; and after looking at the matter for some 

 time we concluded it was better to make this arrangement until 

 we could get some aid, and to make our membership fees low un- 

 til we got a start. When we get well started in our work in the 

 course of a few years we may probably change and make it the 

 same as the State Society, one dollar. 



, Mr. Smith. I don't know as this matter of membership fees 

 amounts to very much anyway. I believe all who are members 

 of the State Horticultural Society are members because they 

 have an interest in the work as an industry, and not so much on 

 account of getting the reports; because we know there are hun- 

 dreds of copies distributed gratuitously every year to those in- 

 terested in horticultural pursuits. I think those that have 

 sufifi cient interest in horticulture desire a membership in the 

 Society and pay their dollar, and those who are not interested 

 do not pay it. So I do not think that amounts to very much. 



Horticulture in Minnesota has not yet passed out of the mis- 

 sionary stage. We as a central organization, as a State Society, 

 must carry this work to the farmers, interest them in the work, 

 and it will be time enough to decide in regard to membership 

 fees and the price of the reports when there comes to be a 

 demand for them beyond the supply; but while there is an 

 over supply of reports on our hands, and while it remains a 

 question as to how we can best get the reports into the hands of 

 those who will be benefited by reading them, perhaps we had 

 better not be too particular about the membership fee. Because 

 I believe, so far as I am concerned myself, if there is some poor 

 fellow out on the prairie that really needs one of these reports, 

 who would be benefited by having it, I would rather give him a 

 quarter to take it than ask him to pay a dollar for a copy. That 

 is the work we are doing rather than collecting fees. I can not 



