296 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



value of others without waiting for the trees to bear ; 

 and great satisfaction was felt that the introduction of 

 ocean steam navigation had rendered the interchange 

 of such collections possible. Among the pears was the 

 Doyenne du Cornice, now widely known as a variety of 

 superlative excellence. 



One of the most useful, services rendered by the Soci- 

 ety at this time was the work undertaken by the Fruit 

 Committee of formally testing new varieties of fruits* as 

 presented from week to week, either from imported 

 trees or native seedlings, and carefully comparing them 

 with standard varieties ; minutes of their decisions being 

 made at the time. The report of the committee for 

 this year is fuller than any previous one, and gives the 

 names of about forty pears of foreign origin which had 

 been exhibited and tested for the first or second time ; 

 and this list was not complete, but embraced only those 

 which had particularly attracted the attention of the 

 committee. Among the forty we do not find one now 

 deemed " worthy of general cultivation." A large num- 

 ber of new native pears had also been examined as well 

 as of other fruits, large and small, native and foreign. 

 At this time the Early Virginia, Hovey's Seedling, and 

 Jenney's Seedling strawberries, were thought, taking all 

 circumstances into consideration, probably the most 

 profitable, and best for general cultivation in this vicini- 

 ty. The Christiana melon, raised by Capt. Josiah Lovett 

 from a green Malta melon impregnated with a very 

 early variety, it was believed had not been equalled. 

 To mark their appreciation of its merits, and recom- 

 mend it to growers, the Society awarded Capt. Lovett a 

 piece of plate of the value of fifty dollars. Early the 

 next year, a similar special award was made to John M. 



