THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
37 
‘ Be it Resolved, that we, the members of the Northern 
Retail Nurserymen’s Association, extend to the family of 
Clarence Wedge our most heartfelt sympathy, and that a 
copy of these resolutions as contained in the minutes of 
this association be forwarded to the family.” 
Mr. Loss offered this resolution: 
“With the passing of Mr. ,1. M. Underwood, head and 
founder of the Jewell Nursery Company, Lake City, Min¬ 
nesota, this association has suffered a great and irrepar¬ 
able loss. Through the death of our fellow nurseryman 
we have lost one who has always been ready, ever eager 
to assist in every movement for the betterment of nur¬ 
sery conditions and horticultural developments. 
“Few men may live to leave a finer monument after 
them than has Mr. Underwood. As a result of his fifty 
years or more of ardent, sincere, unselfish work in the 
horticulture world, the imprint of his efforts can he seen 
everywhere in the horticultural history of the Northwest. 
“With his passing, one more of the pioneers has left 
us. The rank is daily growing thinner. May we per¬ 
petuate each and individually in our effort in business 
as well as daily life, an emulation of the example that 
this great old man, young in spirit, has set before us. 
“In his public life, Mr. J. M. Underwood made his in¬ 
fluence felt in the development of our great state, through 
the unselfish efforts, horticulturally as well as politically, 
and the many honors conferred upon him were well earn¬ 
ed in the spirit of unselfish service so characteristic of 
this, our friend. 
“As a fellow nurseryman, we miss him as a friend, 
we mourn his death as a man. In our memory we see 
him. charitable as an opponent, staunch as a friend, as 
a business man a worthy example of integrity of purpose. 
Truly a lovable character. His place in our midst can¬ 
not be filled, but his memory must he always with us. 
“We, the Northern Retail Nurserymen’s Association, 
take this way of expressing to the family of Mr. J. M. 
Underwood our heartfelt sympathy in our mutual loss. 
“Be it Resolved, that this resolution he placed on the 
records of this association and a copy forwarded to the 
family of Mr. J. M. Underwood.” 
On motion of Mr. M. R. Cashman these resolutions, 
were approved by all the members rising and remaining 
standing silently for one minute. 
Officers were elected for the coming year. After talks 
by the retiring officers and by the incoming president, the 
meeting adjourned. 
ADDRESS GIVEN BY PRESIDENT E. C. HILRORN 
Before the Convention of the Northern Retail Nurserymen’s Association Held at St. Paul, on 
December the 4th and 5th 
Gentlemen: 
I was never more proud of the nursery fraternity than 
I am this morning. The large number gathered in this 
morning’s session on the first day of the week is signifi¬ 
cant; you have all come to place a high value upon the 
work of this association. It is but a few years ago that 
I he men boosting this association had almost despaired 
of accomplishing any results. Rut now every man seems 
anxious to give to the members of the association some 
new or workable idea which he has found to benefit his 
business, and there is a healthy competition to render 
service to the public which is reflected in more busi¬ 
ness for the entire membership. There is keen competi¬ 
tion throughout the district; each man goes ahead with 
his business plans, confident that he will get nothing but 
fair competition from firms whose business is conducted 
on a sensible business basis. 
I shall not attempt a wordy speech this morning for 
there is much business ahead, but there has been one 
thought running through my mind while the train rolled 
over the prairies toward this city, that I should like to 
give to you if I can make my thought clear. 
Some may feel that the purposes of this association 
have been largely accomplished, but I am convinced 
that we never needed the association more than we need 
it now and in the days ahead. The nurserymen have 
been more or less in the limelight the past few years 
and have been receiving some severe criticism from the 
press. As is usual in such cases, the trade as a whole 
has been condemned for the practices of a few, and also 
for the evil practices of bygone days. Any analysis ol 
the nursery business would show a more charitable 
spirit on the part of the press. The average large indus¬ 
try today is a business first and is organized through the 
various departments come to reflect the spirit from the 
central office. But the average nurseryman was a farmer 
before he was a business man. A man who had learned 
% 
how to graft, bud, etc., would secure a piece of land 
and start growing trees. Having no outlet, he con¬ 
nected up with some tree dealer to sell his product. This 
tree dealer, having no business to defend or build, was 
out to make a killing for the season. He and his sub¬ 
agents got all there was in it and gave as little as possible 
in return. By keeping in green fields he was able to do 
a thriving and profitable business. The tree dealer has 
been the curse of the nursery business and largely re¬ 
sponsible, directly or indirectly, for the bad practices of 
the tree agent. As the farmer’s nursery grew and organ¬ 
ized its own selling department, it was the natural thing 
to take over these men and let them work along estab¬ 
lished lines, and many of the nursery salesmen got their 
instruction from the tree dealer. These old dealers and 
agents were hard to down, and their theory and practice 
has influenced each sales force throughout the country. 
As an example of the old tree dealer's art, I recall the 
case of the Carrie Gooseberry. About twelve years ago 
an experienced salesman started to work on our force. 
We observed an unusual amount of Carrie Gooseberries 
being sold, and were curious to know why such an un¬ 
usual demand had sprung up for this gooseberry. The 
first time he was in the office we questioned him. “Why 
that’s easy. The old gooseberries that the people have 
are all so sour and require so much sugar that the people 
don’t want them, but these that I am selling are grafted 
on maple seedlings and the sugar in the sap grows a 
sweet gooseberry—there’s nothing to it. You men ot 
