gjhe Storij 
of 
The beginning of the 
American Iris 
Socieli^ 
In June, 1917, 1 attended my second National 
l^eony Show, which was held in Plnladelphia, 
Pa. 1 spent a delightful half hour selecting anti 
arranging six of iny very best Jubilee blooms to 
win the most coveted prize in all Peony Shows— 
that for the best six blooms of any one variety. 
After Jubilee had received all the help I 
could give her in the contest, 1 began examining 
other exhibits. In a j^rominent location, 1 saw a 
display of iris and was delightetl to find that 
every variety shown was growing in my own 
garden, ^\hile admiring them 1 was apjwoached 
l)y a personable young man, who greeted me by 
saying that he was glad to see me enjoying the 
iris from his garden. When I told him that 1 was 
trying to call eacdi one by name, for tliey were 
all growing in my garchm, his res[)onse was so 
cordial that it was the beginning of a friendship 
whicli has continued for over twenty years. He 
informed me that he was John C. Wister, of 
Germantown, Pa.; that he had been [)articularly 
interested in growing tree [)eonies, and that he 
very recently became interested in the iris. 
He told me that he had enlisted in the ser- 
