29 



investment is comparatively safe. He seldom loses his mon- 

 ey. The business offers him a continued livelihood. In 

 mercantile and manufacturing lines this is untrue in a larger 

 percentage of cases. 



Fruit-growing presents no dead-line. In business occu- 

 pations men are shelved early in these days of keen compe- 

 tition. The fruit grower is sure of a business and an occu- 

 pation so long as he is able to conduct them. 



The financial returns from the business compare favor- 

 ably with those from any other line demanding equal cap- 

 ital and intelligence. The average fruit-grower's salary 

 probably exceeds that of the average teacher or college grad- 

 uate. 



The business offers the best of opportunity for indeped- 

 ence and for service to the comunity and to one's fellowmen. 

 It enables the owner to live amid pleasant surroundings and 

 to build a home in conjunction with a business, an oppor- 

 tunity which many a man without a home can appreciate 

 better than the fruit grower himself. 



At 11.30 Mr. Geo. F. Wheeler of Concord read the fol- 

 lowing paper on 



STRAWBERRY GROWING 

 Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen : 



This subject has a wider range than I have been able 

 to give to it in so short a paper, so I can only bring to it a 

 few observations as a grower of this fruit in the town in 

 which I live. I wish I could bring statistics to show what 

 the production of this fruit is now compared to twenty 

 years ago ; my observation leads me to say the crop has 

 fallen off largely. So I am glad to have the subject brought 

 up yearly to show there is an interest taken in it. Our 

 population is increasing and wants native strawberries. I 

 Tsnow our markets are sometimes crowded with southern 

 "berries so this competition cuts our prices down at times but 

 my experience has been that there is money to be made in 

 this crop and I think it will continue to hold its own with 

 the other fruit crops we grow. 



The introduction of the Hovey's Seedling gave a great 

 impetus to strawberry growing. During the time of its pop- 

 ularity I was led to purchase some of the plants together 

 with the Brighton Pine. Growing strawberries first for 

 home use, afterwards for market and at the time I obtained 



