STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY, 169 



O. L. LARRABEE. 



For several years past our exhibitions have contained more or 

 less fruit grown by O. L. Larrabee of West Levant. He was 

 an old man, suffering more or less from deafness, but these in- 

 firmities only intensified his enthusiasm for fruit culture. Com- 

 petitors soon learned that he knew well the best methods, for his 

 fruit was among the best. 



At our Bangor exhibition he showed signs of failing health, 

 but there was no weakening of his enthusiasm for his fruit. 



The secretary is indebted to Mrs. C. C. Cloudman, West 

 Levant, for the following facts: 



He was born in Greene, Me., in 1819, went to Bangor when a 

 young man, 19 years of age and learned the blacksmith's trade 

 at Hinkley & Egery's and worked for them a number of years 

 and later on worked for Muzzy & Co. In 1877 came to West 

 Levant, bought a farm in company with his son-in-law, C. C. 

 Cloudman, and devoted his time to the care of orcharding until 

 within the last year, when his health began to fail and he passed 

 away March 12, 1897, from the effects of a shock of paralysis. 

 He married Miss Nancy G. Cowan of Hampden in 1846. He 

 was a good neighbor and a kind father. He leaves two daugh- 

 ters, Mrs. C. C. Cloudman of Levant and Mrs. H. A. Locke of 

 Cambridge, Mass., to mourn his loss. 



PLUMS AND THEIR CULTURE IN MAINE. 



It is very gratifying to note that there is an increased interest 

 in plum culture in the State, 1896 was a great year for plums, 

 and at our exhibitions there were shown numerous plates that 

 no one was able to name. Confusion still exists in the nomen- 

 clature, and perhaps will for years to come, but there is a steady 

 increase in knowledge among our fruit growers and more varie- 

 ties are known than a few years since. Just after our exhibition 

 in Lewiston, the secretary received a letter from Dr. S. L. Good- 

 al of Saco, in which he writes: 



"May I ask of you the favor to send me a list of all or so far 

 as practicable of all which are found to succeed in this State in 

 recent years, not omitting any Japanese or native American 



