REPORT ON FLOWERS. 



The committee on Flowers would respectfully submit the following 

 report : 



Mrs. J. H. Demond, of Northampton not being present, Mrs. E. 

 N. Fisher of Belchertown was appointed in place of Mrs. Demond. 

 The chairman found the assistance of these ladies of great value. 

 They brought to the discharge of the duties devolved upon them, a 

 high appreciation of their responsibilit}' and manifested an earnest 

 purpose to render an impartial, unbiassed judgement, and to give to 

 each exhibitor exact justice. B}^ their interest in the cultivation of 

 flowers and their evidently practical acquaintance with tiiem and their 

 cultivation, the committee were enabled to ascertain many of the 

 merits of the exhibits, which a less intelligent acquaintance with the 

 subject would have passed by. 



The display of flowers was not only much larger than for some 

 3'ears, but very much larger than last year. The arrangement of 

 many of the exhibits were worthy of great praise, as exhibitions of 

 patience, labor and taste in the designs, and in harmou}' of form and 

 colors. 



The committee accepted the entries as made in the class book, but 

 could not otherwise properly recognize some of the designs as bou- 

 quets which were entered as such. Large trays, with pyramids and 

 arches and other forms, are not in floral work, called bouquets. It 

 seems to the committee that tlie society should either add to its pre- 

 mium list and award for "flower designs," or limit its committee and 

 so its list to the universally accepted meaning of the article known 

 as " bouquet." The term does not admit of a wide range of arrange- 

 ment of flowers in every oossible form and design. 



The committee found pleasure in studying tlie designs and arrange- 

 ment of the flowers, and discovered in them so much to admire and 

 commend, that in several cases there was much difficulty in reaching 

 what they believed to be a just, impartial decision. The collections 



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