THE STIRLING HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Fig. 1545. — Mrs. Jas. Boldrick, President. 



£s\ p^HE Secietary, Mr. David Sager, 

 sends us a very good review 

 of the work of this Society 

 during the year 1898, which 

 was read betore the Society by the Vice- 

 President, Mr. J. S. Carstairs. He also 

 encloses us a photograph of the Presi- 

 dent, Mrs. Jas. Boldrick, of her home 

 "The Cedars," and of the home of Mr. 

 Carstairs, " The Gables." 



1. The financial condition of the 

 Society furnishes excellent ground for 

 congratulating the Board of Manage- 

 ment. Of the total receipts amounting 

 to $128, more than one-third has been 

 returned to the members in premiums 

 and prizes ; another third was expended 

 on our periodical, The Canadian Horti- 

 culturist, and the remaining small third 

 includes our running expenses of less 

 than $15, and our handsome little sur- 

 plus of $26.41, which is reposing snugly 

 n the bank. As a fact, we have col- 



lected one dollar a piece from our fifty- 

 three membeis ; we have given them 

 each what has been received, and we 

 have still on hand one- half of what we 

 collected, still at your command ! 



2. Practically there have been three 

 distributions of premiums First, the 

 premium of the Horticulturist ; the 

 shrubs and trees received have been 

 generally successful, in some cases 

 shrubs have flowered in the first year. 



In fhe Spring distribution of the 

 Society itself, $2889 was expended, 

 each member thus receiving seeds and 

 vines costing about 45 cents, which 

 owing to our discounts were worth from 

 75 cents to 90 cents. Altho' in some 

 cases the seeds, or the man with the 

 seeds, or the weather failed ; still we 

 are led, both from our own experience 

 and from the testimony of others to re- 

 gard this distribution as a success, con- 

 sidering the spring and summer ; a suc- 

 cess, it is true, that we may make greater 

 in the year 1899. Our third distribu- 

 tion, $13.80 worth of bulbs, that is about 

 15 bulbs for each member is still to 

 be heard from, and still to be sean in 

 the brightening glory of tulips, hyacinths 

 • and narcissi, that will gleam in a half 

 a hundred homes of Stirling. 



3. The monthly meetings of the 

 Society have all been regularly held 

 with the exception of the December 

 meeting. Whether it is» owing to the 

 moon or the members, the attendance 

 has been only fair. However, there are 

 many of the members, chiefly ladies, 

 it must be said, whom neither darkness, 

 nor storm kept away. Perhaps in the 

 new year, both the attractions of the 

 programme and a little self correction 

 in the members may give us larger 

 meetings, a wider enthusiasm, and thus 

 wider usefulness as a Society. 



