No. 200.] 65 



exhibited ; their value, in connection with the time occupied in suc- 

 cessive renewals, cannot be computed at less than five hundred dol- 

 lars a larger sum, by five times, than the cost of the premiums awar- 

 ded by the Institute to the cultivators of this splendid floral gem. 



By adopting the new regulation of adjudging distinct premiums for 

 Ornamental Designs, renewed during the Fair, and appointing one 

 day expressly for the awards on the 25 best specimens of Seedling 

 and other choice varieties, a goodly number of amateurs assembled 

 together in friendly communion. Monday, the 15th day of October, 

 will be long remembered in the annals of American Floriculture. A 

 more gorgeous display of the varieties of the Dahlia was never before 

 witnessed on the American Continent : their glowing colors, their 

 rich contrasts, and beautiful perfection, excited general admiration 

 Well did these brilliant favorites repay the well-spent hours devoted to 

 their cultivation. 



Finally, the conviction that the interests of Agriculture, Horticul- 

 ture, and Floriculture, are of vital importance to the welfare of ihe 

 human race, and that Associations established for encouraging impro- 

 ved methods of culture, may be truly designated the " collective wis- 

 dom" of the Republic, is the only apology your Chairman has to offer 

 for enlarging on thi^ interesting subject in the present Report. 



That each member of the American Institute may energetically ful- 

 fil the patriotic duties he has undertaken, in promoting the noble ob. 

 jects contemplated by its founders ; that the proceedings of the Asso- 

 ciation, in time to come, may continue to be dignified by the adminis- 

 tration of " EQUAL JUSTICE TO ALL;" and that it may ever prove the 

 firm friend of the Farmer, the Gardener, the Mechanic, and the Manu- 

 facturer, is the heartfelt wish of your Chairman, 



THOMAS BRIDGEMAN. 



New-York, October ^b, 1845. 



Assembly, No. 200,] 



