WORCl'.STER COUNTY 



HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 



7th January, A. D. 1904. 

 A D D 11 E S S 



BY 



O. B. HADWEN, President. 



It has become a custom of late years that the winter meet- 

 ings be openetl by the presiding officer, with brief remarks 

 regar(hng the interest and progress of the Society, antl the 

 objects it seeks to encourage. I will not dwell on the past, 

 with which you are all familiar, but rather today look forward 

 and see, as best we may, what in the future will demand our 

 attention; and first will say that the financial condition of 

 the Society was never better. The old New England thrift 

 with which our Society has been managed for the long term 

 of its existence has largely contributed to our wealth and 

 prosperity, and we owe a debt of gratitude to the noble men 

 whose foresight led them to purchase this spot of ground upon 

 which our building stands; and to the benefactors whose 

 money and timely efforts give us a building second to none 

 in location and convenience, in this country. 



Valuable contributions to horticultural science have been 

 made through the lectures and discussions of our weekly meet- 

 ings during the winter season for the past several years. We 

 have kept in view the fundamental object for which our Society 

 was formed, ''for the purpose of encouraging and improving 

 the science and practice of horticulture," and with our sixty- 

 three years of experience, which seems yearly to be on the 



