STATE rOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 47 



placed and guarded that it shall uever ag-alu be depleted or drawu upou 

 to pay premiums or the running expenses of the society ; and I would 

 suggest that a committee be appointed to devise ''ways and means" to 

 bring about this much desired condition. One of the ways that might 

 be well for the committee to consider is whether or not it would be wise 

 to carrj- all annual membership fees to that account for that purpose. 



At our annual exhibition an expert judge was employed, and in the 

 main I think gave good satisfaction. A score card was used in judging 

 collective exhibits, with a scale of points prepared with much care by 

 the Secretarv after consulting the best aulhoi-itv obtainable, and pub- 

 lished in a pamphlet presented to all former exhibitors and others who 

 called for it. This principle of judging I am convinced is right, but the 

 ratings of the different varieties and the manner of applying the scale 

 should be made the subject of very careful study, so that in its applica- 

 tion every exhibitor can see and be thoroughlv convinced that he has 

 received justice. 



Another subject I would like to call to the attention of the members of 

 this Society (for united action after a full discussion of a subject will 

 secure results that individual eftbrt can hardlj' accomplish), and that is 

 the immense amount of money and effort that is being spent on testing 

 new varieties of fruit. The "tree agent"" has his instructions to push 

 certain new kinds at outrageous prices, and niuet\--nine per cent of the 

 money and eftbrt thus spent is wasted. Something in the line of testing 

 new varieties is being carried on at our State Experiment Station, but the 

 loca ion of the station will not answer for the whole State. A^arieties 

 that are hardy and desirable for propagation at the station may be wholly 

 unsuited to Aroostook county and the northern part of the State, and the 

 same may be said in the opposite direction in regard to tlie southern part. 

 As an illustration we will take the Wealthy apple. There is no doubt 

 but that it is a very desirable apple for this section of the State, being a 

 very hardy tree and a winter apple ; but in the southern part of the State 

 I maintain that it is not proving satisfactory to the fruit growers, being 

 an early fall apple. That variety alone has cost the farmers many thou- 

 sands of dollars to test its qualifications and find them wanting. True, 

 they can be re-topped, but that takes time, and much valuable time has 

 been lost already-. And what is true of the Wealthv will applv to other 

 varieties almost without number. 



Would it not be practical for our Experiment Station, which is main- 

 tained by appropriations by the general governme t for the benefit of 

 our whole State, to establish two or three experimental plantations in 

 difterent parts of the State, at a very moderate outlay, to do just this 

 kind of testing that depends entirely upou location and climatic condi- 

 tions for success or failure, therebj- saving to our farmers and fruit- 

 growers many thousands of dollars? This will cover not only apples but 

 the many varieties of small fruits that are being extensively introduced 

 aud cultivated throughout our State. And as results were obtained, a 

 list of the varieties tested could be published, giving the standing of each 



