208 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



peiuls l:vi<2;oly upon our accoinmoilatlons for satisfactorily display- 

 ing exhil)its wiiich may l>e made liere, and the convenience with 

 which our lil)rary can he consulted, and moreover ease in plac- 

 ing our exhibits and also good light in which to examine them are 

 important requisites ; conseciuently we n^quire such halls ami rooms 

 as will best and most conveniently serve these various purposes. 

 Thus, a hall on the ground floor and with am|)le windows, a library 

 with good light and sufficient shelving, and in whi'^'h quiet can be 

 secured, and committee-rooms such as to allow the quiet consid- 

 eration of questions of awards and management, are essentials. 

 With such facilities the good work which h is always been done 

 here can be largely increased. It seems to be only a question of 

 short time what shall be done to improve the present accommo- 

 dations. 



How can we further aid in bringing about the general home 

 embellishment of which we have spoken ? It must be chiefly by 

 increasing and promoting a love for the beautiful, and by foster- 

 ing a desire to understand the process of formation and growth 

 of our fine trees, shrubs, vines, and plants, that we may hope to 

 materially increase the number of embellished homes in Massachu- 

 setts. 



Again, by encouraging the judicious decorating and planting 

 of all school-yard borders (allowing ample play ground), and of 

 grounds al)out all postoffices, railway stations, city and town halls, 

 and all pul)lic buildings, where any decoration in this line is pos- 

 sible, we should be taking a foundation step towards the accom- 

 plishment of this desirable en.d. Consider the number of eyes 

 that would then see and minds that would be led to think of the 

 advantages of embellishing grounds ; and consider the large pro- 

 portion of persons who would sooner or later attempt to adapt to 

 their own homes the suggested ideas. 



The Transactions of our Society for this season will contain 

 valuable papers already presented ; one relating to "Trees and 

 Shrubs," by Mr. Levi W. Russell, and another on " Ornamental 

 Climbing Plants," by Mr. John G. Barker. In addition, I would 

 again call attention to Mr. Jackson Dawson's essay on the " Prop- 

 agation of Trees and Shrubs from Seed," in our Tkans actions for 

 1885.* We hope also that gentlemen present will add the names 



* Part T. pasres 145-164. 



