state; pomological society. 31 



fear of bodily harm from her husband, and she said, "What, that 

 httle cuss over there?" And that is pretty much our relation 

 with the Capitol city. 



We give you a hearty welcome to our city. We do not as in 

 the time honored custom, give you the keys, but we have 

 unlocked the doors and thrown the keys away. But one condi- 

 tion is attached to our hospitality, and that is, you must promise 

 to come again. 



Take a good look around and when you come again in three, 

 five or ten years from now, as sure as large aches from little 

 toe-corns grow, we will show you a greater and a grander 

 Gardiner. 



In closing, Mr. Chairman, I wish to express to you my regret 

 that ]\Ir. Patten, former president of the Board of Trade, and 

 by whose invitation you are here, was taken from this life in 

 September. He was most interested in your visit and would 

 have enjoyed meeting you as I know you would have been glad 

 to meet him. He was big hearted, generous, and endowed with 

 the finest disposition imaginable. He would have tried to do 

 much more for your entertainment than we have been able to do. 



RESPONSE TO ADDRESS OF WELCO^IE. 

 By WiiviviAM Craig of Auburn. 



I have had the wind knocked out of me by being asked to 

 respond to this address of welcome. For a rustic farmer, who 

 has been accustomed to milking cows and working on stone piles 

 and doing manual labor, it is a pretty difficult thing, without 

 warning, to be called upon to respond to an address of that kind. 



I congratulate the city on possessing a mayor with such good 

 looks, and who has given us such a warm welcome that we can- 

 not help but feel at home and look forward to a profitable and 

 interesting convention. 



I commend the idea of opening a convention of this kind with 

 prayer. And I would also suggest that we mix more sentiment 

 in with our work along these horticultural lines. A man 

 embued with a love for his calling, realizing the extreme 

 delicacy of what we might call a real ball of cells, will handle 

 fruit very carefully, instead of throwing it into the baskets as 

 is usually done. 



I would again thank the mayor for his welcome. 



