Tenth Annual Meeting 39 



again its conviction that, without more cooperation than at pres- 

 ent exists between its members and the members at large of the 

 Society, the possible usefulness of the committee is seriously 

 impaired. The appointment, by this Society, of a special Com- 

 mittee on Fungous Diseases, and the fact that it demands peri- 

 odical reports from that committee, give some evidence that the 

 fruit-growers of Connecticut are alive to the importance of the 

 practical study of such diseases. Yet the evidence of any inter- 

 est in the subject, on the part of the individual members of the 

 Society, amounts almost to nothing. 



During the past season we have received not a single report 

 or communication concerning the prevalence of any well-known 

 fungous disease, or the means which have proved successful in 

 combating it, while we have received no more than a ''baker's 

 dozen" of inquiries concerning diseased plants, accompanied by 

 specimens. The question, therefore, arises, whether your Com- 

 mittee on Fungous Diseases was appointed merely because it has 

 become the fashion among pomological societies to have such a 

 standing committee on its letterhead, or whether it owes its 

 appointment to a desire on the part of the members of the So- 

 ciety to turn it to some practical use. If the former view is 

 correct, then your committee would respectfully suggest that it 

 be dismissed without delay. If, however, the Society desires to 

 encourage the investigation of diseases which annually reduce 

 the profits on fruit crops in a very considerable degree, the 

 committee stands ready to render every assistance in its power, 

 by receiving specimens of diseased plants and submitting them 

 to experts in such matters; by determining, as far as possible, 

 the specific cause of disease and suggesting remedies; by visiting 

 orchards; by responding to inquiries concerning spraying appa- 

 ratus and the use of fungicides; by conducting cooperative ex- 

 periments; by receiving and collecting data relative to the preva- 

 lence and spread of fungous diseases ; and by doing all it can to 

 assist the members of the Society in their efforts to produce 

 fruit of the highest quality, and thus to add materially to the 

 value of membership in the Society. 



If your committee is continued on the basis of cooperation, 

 and only on that basis, it is prepared to take steps which, in the 

 opinion of its members, will in future make its work of practical 



