76 THE HORTICULTURE OF 



In Braintree, was the residence of Benjamin V. 

 French, a vice-president of the Massachusetts Horti- 

 cultural Society, eminent for his devotion to horticul- 

 ture and agricultural pursuits. His collection of fruits 

 embraced most of the varieties which gave promise of 

 being good, especially of the apple, of which he had one 

 of the most extensive collections in New England, and 

 for the encouragement and culture of this fruit he left a 

 bequest which amounted, in time, to the sum of about 

 twenty-five hundred dollars, the annual income of which 

 was to be appropriated for this purpose. This fund was 

 established originally by the members of the Massachu- 

 setts Agricultural Club, and other friends, and was to 

 revert to the Massachusetts Horticultural Society after 

 the decease of Mr. French and his wife ; which have both 

 already taken place. Mr. French was much interested 

 in the improvement of rural cemeteries, especially of 

 Mount Auburn, which from the first, he was one of its 

 earliest friends and promoters. 



Hingham was much interested in the cultivation of 

 the soil and the improvement of fruits, a hundred 

 years ago. Among her farmers was Benjamin Lincoln, 

 the father of Gen. Benjamin Lincoln, himself a farmer, 

 who under the favor of Washington had the honor of 

 receiving the surrender of the British army at York- 

 town a hundred years ago, an event which has just 

 been celebrated with great display and manifesta- 

 tions of public rejoicing. Early in this century the 

 Herseys and Burrs had nurseries, and did much for 

 horticulture ; but to no one of her sons is she so 

 much indebted for progress in terraculture as to the- 

 late Albert Fearing, president and founder of its 

 Agricultural Society, and donor of the Agricultural 

 Hall and the Free Library Hall. Much attention has 

 been given to planting of shade trees on the streets, 



