402 ANNUAL REPORT. 



of her most prominent members, C. G. Patten of Charles Citj' and 

 C. L. Watroas of Des Moines, and the Illinois Society by Professor T. 

 G. Burrell of Champagne, and J. V. Cotte, all of them gentlemen 

 whose acquaintance it was a pleasure to make, Thursday, the 4th, was 

 by far the most interesting day of the agricultural convention and 

 the audience was large and attentive. One of the pleasing features 

 of the day was the great number of ladies in the audience and, another 

 the intensely interesting papers by Mrs. Dr. Juliette Severence of 

 Milwaukee; subject, Farmer's Wives. Mrs. Ida E. Tilson, West 

 Salem, Home Adornment, and the Education of our Girls, by Mrs. Vie 

 H. Campbell, Evansville. 



The exhibition of fruits although hardly up to other years was verj- 

 fine and numbered about 553 plates, among them about sixty varieties 

 of apples, twenty-two of grapes, three of pears and a collection of 

 cranberries, in six or seven very distinct varieties, by S. and A. C. 

 Mills, of Madison, several of these were cultivated and have been greatly 

 improved through a careful selection of plants for setting, and we 

 understand that a part of them were seedlings; for size and beauty 

 they excelled anything of the kind we had before seen, and shows 

 plainly that this hardy and valuable fruit responds liberally to cultiva- 

 tion and should engage more of our attention than it has heretofore 

 received. The Messrs. Mills have promised to give us a paper and make 

 an exhibit at our next winter meeting. The varieties of apples upon 

 exhibition showed very plainly that there are sections in Wisconsin 

 where the trees did not suffer as severely in the last winter as in Minne- 

 sota. There were among them several new seedlings of extra quality 

 and good appearance, but from what we were able to learn of their 

 I)arentage, we can hardl}^ expect that anj' of them will be of value to 

 us, yet they encourage us in the belief that the originating of new 

 varieties by selection of seed is a move in the right direction. We 

 were disappointed in not finding a collection of new Russians in the 

 exhibit. 



In conclusion we will say that we believe these annual conventions 

 of the Wisconsin farmers are placing the Wisconsin agricultural 

 society into a position far in advance of ours. We may and we intend 

 to beat them in the management of our State fairs, but they are beat- 

 ing us in the dissemination of knowledge among the people, and 

 encouraging a sentiment favoring better homes, better farms and 

 better educated men and women to manage them. We regret that 

 our farmers cannot enjoy tJie benefits of such conventions, and that our 



