THE HEROES OF MINNESOTA HORTICULTURE. 423 



And yet twenty-three years later, in 1895, when Professor Green 

 and I visited him, he seemed as hopeful as ever, and when he died 

 four years later, at the age of eighty-one years, he left a large 

 number of seedlings that were distributed by our society. What 

 a lesson we have here of courage and patient persistence. 



I can see him now as with fine, erect figure, his snowy locks 

 forming a kind of halo about his serene face, he came before the 

 society for the last time. I think that it was altogether fitting 

 that one who had forced the very elements to bow to him should 

 after a period of alienation have received the capitulations of the 

 society and graciously taken us back again into his favor. 



As a near neighbor I had an interesting acquaintance with 

 Mr. Dartt, of Owatonna. He was a much older man than I, and 

 I think took no small pleasure in steering me safely along the 

 path to success, in our chosen vocation. I remember his going 

 over with me the first crude little catalogue that I sent out and 

 saying encouraging things about it that were very creditable to 

 his kind heart. Like a large share of the early experimenters he 

 was an uncompromising prohibitionist, standing among the few 

 in his city who began the good fight against the saloon that in 

 these days is winning such signal victories. 



It was my privilege to meet Mr. Sias, of Rochester, but once 

 and that was for but a few moments on his house grounds, just 

 after a tornado had swept over the city, demolishing his orchard 

 and almost everything about the place. The wreckage had 

 scarcely been cleared away, but I found him in his natural quaint 

 and happy humor at work with his hoe out among the plants that 

 the vicious storm had left him. I was glad that he was able to 

 spend the closing years of his life in the sunny south, where a 

 kinder climate seemed to harmonize better with the serene and 

 happy spirit that always animated his person. 



I would be glad to go on and speak of others into whose 

 labors we have entered, and whose characters are as fragrant as 

 the fruits and flowers that they have bequeathed to us. Some of 

 them are with us yet, rounding out full years of blessed usefulness 

 and enjoying the fruition of many of their cherished hopes. We 

 would today do honor to them all, not only by these words of 

 scanty appreciation, but by taking up anew the good work that 

 they have begun and carrying it on with the same noble spirit of 

 devotion and self sacrifice. 



