THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
41 
Washington at work on Market Development for us. 
And this big demand for fruit-trees is the direct result of 
what they said and did. 
It shouldn’t have been difficult to include ornamentals 
in the planting idea; it would be the most natural thing 
in the world. Why, the Secretaiy of War helped us there, 
for the Government took the position that the boys 
needed trees and plants and hedges and flowers around 
the cantonments; that they contributed to their pleasure 
and stimulated their morale. And all the while we were 
trying our best to persuade ourselves and our customers 
that nurseiy stock was one of the non-essentials and that 
maybe it wasn’t exactly patriotic to plant things. But 
the Government gave country-wide circulation to a dif¬ 
ferent idea. That is why we are having right now an 
unusual and country-wide demand for stock. It shows 
what publicity can accomplish. 
THERE ARE OTHERS 
The manager of one of the trade organizations wrote 
this comment in “Printers’ Ink” on his bunch who are 
cooperating in publicity and other things: 
“These fellows have a fine thing and they deserve to 
make a success of it and they undoubtedly will, but right 
here and now I want to confess in advance that it isn’t so 
much the advertising that is going to do it—though you 
may be sure we are going to take credit for it. Tbe thing 
that really brought these boys together and is going to 
make “good dogs” of them is a morbid sense of fear and 
suspicion and cut-throat competition. The association as 
it now stands is a wonder and so far the work of holding 
them in line is like herding jack-rabbits without a fence 
around the herd.” 
Do you recognize any of the symptoms? 
ROUND TRIPS 
I heard a good story the other day. Aunt Mary Wells 
is one of the few “befoh de wah” darkies left in a little 
Kentucky town. Recently she was discussing with her 
employer the merry-go-round that was running up on 
the comer. 
“Nawsuh, Mr. Malcolm,” she said, “nawsiih, I don’ 
ride on none o’ dem things. Why, Mr. Malcolm, Ise seed 
some o’ these here fool niggers git on dat thing an’ ride as 
much as a dollar’s wuth and git off at the very same 
place they gits on at; an’ I sez to em, ‘Now you done spent 
yo money, nigger, whah yo’ bin?” 
I wonder if we nurserymen aren’t taking a good many 
“round trips” and landing again at the identical point 
from which we started? I mean, with our various trade 
organizations. They are so numerous that we have to 
card-index them. And mostly they seem to be unable or 
is it possible?—unwilling to do the things that brought 
them into existence. It is a sort of general merry-go- 
round. Some gentle pessimist said that the nursery bus¬ 
iness is not a business at all—but a habit. 
There are two things that every head of a family needs 
and ought to have. And yet they are the two hardest 
things to sell him: Life Insurance' and Nursery Stock. 
They are rarely bought; they are usually sold. There’s 
a difference. 
Criticism is like Charity, for charity covers a multi¬ 
tude of sins; and unlike charity in this: that Charity be¬ 
gins at home. 
OLD STOCK^ CUT-BACK AND TRANSPLANTED 
An unwise substitution maketh a sad nurseryman. 
Payments deferred maketh the bank-book sick. 
A rose by any other name might have to be replaced. 
The spring cellar-surplus-count goeth before destruc¬ 
tion and a haughty field-estimate before a fall. 
A perverse man scattereth abroad surplus-lists. 
Special offers are human ;to stick to the price-list is 
divine. 
A good name for a variety is rather to be chosen than 
great merit. 
Train up a child in the way he should go and when he 
is older he will not become a nurseryman. 
He that planteth Ben Davis shall not harvest Baldwins; 
and the rod of his wrath shall fall. 
Foolishness is bound up in the heart of many a cata¬ 
logue and plate-book. 
Rob not the poor but soak the rich sucker. 
Remove not the ancient labels which thy fathers have 
set. 
“Improper packing” covers a multitude of complaints. 
A profit is never without honor save in the nursery 
business. 
Thou shalt take heed of thy neighbor; his advertising 
and his service; his goods and his grades; his prices and 
his practice. 
And thou shalt watch thyself and thy business just a 
little bit more carefully than thy neighbor’s. 
On these two, hang all the Loss and the Profits. 
And now, bretheren,—Let us spray. 
_ The Optimist. 
ANNUAL CONVENTION OF THE NEW ENGLAND 
NURSERYMEN’S ASSOCIATION 
The annual meeting of the New England Nurserymen’s 
Association was held at Boston, January 28th and 29th 
with headquarters at the New American House instead 
of Hotel Bellevue as here-to-fore. 
It is the aim of the association to accomplish something 
and make the organization worth while. 
One of the features of the program was an illustrated 
lecture by J. Horace McFarland, Harrisburg, Pa., and 
President of the American Civic Association, to which the 
public was invited. 
Mr. McFarland speaking under the title “How can we 
make New England more Fruitful and more Beautiful?” 
aimed to bring out the thought that “the modern tendency 
has been to make our gardens chromos instead of pictures, 
each being an imitation of another rather than a develop¬ 
ment of individuality. Horeover, there has not been that 
fine thought of combination in effect which ought to be a 
part of the consideration. It seems to me that a garden 
which does not include trees, shrubs, perennials, dahlias, 
gladiolus and cannas, for example, in the broad effect in 
mind, is likely to be weak. The customer is frequently 
quite ignorant and he needs suggestion and help from the 
informed standpoint. If he gets it he will buy more stuff, 
and that is the basis of market development.” 
A subject of great interest at the present time was dis¬ 
cussed by Mr. William W. Colton, city forester of Newton, 
Mass. His paper entitled “Living Monuments for Our 
Soldiers” urged the advisability of planting trees as 
memorials and advise the proper sorts to plant. 
