nineteen Hundred and Ten 



I INCE handing you my last catalogue we 

 have all passed another milepost along 



S\\f life's hiehway and I hope that every 

 \X reader of Allen's catalogue finds himself 

 \l or hersell happiei , wiser or >icher than 

 you were one year ago. And now that 

 ve have aunched our craft on the broad 

 sea of 1910 let us strive with all ourmisrht 

 to make good pilots and let us be ever 

 watchful least we miss some frienlly breeze that would 

 promote our calling and fill our sails with success: let us 

 i lear our deck for action with a determinition t ) make 

 this voyage of 1910 a memorable one by bringing our 

 ship in port with flying colors and heavily ladened with 

 a rich cargo. As to whether this comes true will in most 

 cases depend largely on our own efforts, 



1909 with me has been a decided success. Our plant 

 and seed business has in Teased fully twenty-five per 

 cent over any previous year and for this I am indebted 

 to several thousmd satisfied customers many of whom 

 have sent thuir friends to me for plants. I 'uUy apprec- 

 iate such confidence and goodwill of those who have 

 dealt with me and assure you I shall always try hard not 

 to give you cause to r-gret sending your orders to me or 

 recommending your friends to do so. We have again 

 had a very dry summer and the plant crop is quite short 

 in general, not only in this section but in many others. 

 By constant cultivation, heavy fertilization an 1 increas- 

 ed acreage I have succeeded in growing a good substan- 

 tial stock of most varieties and especially the good old 

 standard kinds. In order to take good care of our cus- 

 tomprs and their friends I shall do very little if any ad- 

 vertising this season. I followed this course last year in 

 order to take good care of my customers and they have 



taken good care of me and I believe they will do so 

 again. We were never better equipped to handle your 

 business than we are now. It is my constant aim to 

 please every cus omer and we nave almost succeeded in 

 doing so there being- only four or five real complaints to 

 every thousand orders filled, and we are now growing 

 more of the things that our people want, such as Goose 

 b rries, Currents, Raspberries, Blackberries, Grape 

 (Vines, Ornamental Shrubbery. Hedge Plants, Chrysan- 

 themuns. Hardy Phlo.v, Dahlias, Cannas, etc. Vegetable 

 plants a'so have become quite an item having sold sever- 

 i'al million the past season. We e.xpect to Increase this 

 ;l trade this season and shall prepare to do so. 

 il Before closing these few preliminary remarks I want 

 'to thank you for that order you sent me tnis year, for 

 I you will, won't you V ft is indeed gratifying to be able 

 ' to say that our sales tor 1909 went far ahead of any prev- 

 ious year and it was you kind friends ' hat made it possi- 

 ] ble and I think the business was handled the best, the 

 ■; promptest and the most satisfactory of any previous 

 ] season, But we are not satisfied yet, we e.xpect to ex- 

 ] eel even last year's record in every way and we want all 

 I our friends and their friends to stay right with us and 

 J if we do not please you it will not be because we do not 

 , try. 



y Again thankinr you most sincerely lor your orders 

 I and for your kind words to others (of which we have 

 3 many evidences) I hope to airaiT soon be busy filling 

 J your orders which I assure you I shall try to do to your 

 ' entire satlsfacti in. May happiness and prosperity be 

 J served with a liberal hand to every reader of this cata- 

 ^ logue is the sincere wish of Yours faithfully, 



W. r. ALLEN, Sarisbury, Md. 



Please Bead This, and then, Please Beadit Again 



We fill strawberry plant and other small fruit plant 

 and Shrubbery orders any time after November 1st dur- 

 ing November, December, January, February, March 

 April and until May 1st. From May Ist to May lOth we 

 will fill a limited number of orders on any stock that is 

 unsold and put it in the very best possible order but at 

 purchaser's risk as to results. 



After May lOth and during .June, July, August, Sep- 

 tember and October we most positively will not fill any 

 orders for small fruit plants. (This however does not 

 apply to vegetable or flower plants.) 



During March and April the great planting season al- 

 most our o tire attention and that of over one hundred 

 employees is given up to filling plant orders. 



Weare willing to answer any questions during th 

 summer months as promptly as possible, if written in a 

 short letter and to the point. Long letters are subject 

 to long delays. This notice was made necessary from 

 the fact that we receive hundreds of orders for straw- 

 berry plants during the summer months when wo have 

 no plants in fit condition to transplant and when not one 

 in len could make even good plants grow if we could 

 send them, unless it were potted plants which we do not 

 grow at all. Thanking you for yourattention, I remain. 

 Yours faittifuUy, 



W. r. ALLEN, 



Salisbury, IVId. 



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