Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1863-09-22
MOrtester Datlp Spp
THE DAILY spy,
horticultural Exhibition Reports.

The committee on pears, having attended
to the duty assigned them, have directed me
to submit the following report -
The committee, before pas sing to the more
material parts of their report, can not refrain
from suggesting, that if any evidence were
wanting to prove the value of associations
like ours, in promoting and encouraging the
pursuit of pomulogy, we have tin album
dance, upon the tables of this society, at its
annually recurring exhibitions. The society
has Just attained its majority; and nothing
could be more profitable or pleasant, had we
the time, than to trace its progress from its
formation to the present moment. few
words, however, in relation to the department
IN the charge Ut your committee, must suffice.
Those who witnessed the first exhibition of
the society are the only ones who can fdlly
appreciate the vast Improvement made IN the
culture of the pear. From the smallest be.
ginnings we have arrived at Il degree of ex-
cellence which fairly challenges competition.
Twenty years ago, few people knew of any
varieties other than the pound pear" or the
"button pear" as they were respectively
called; and whoever was the fortunate pos
SCISSOR OF tree of either variety was the envy
of the neighborhood nobudy knew or
dreamed that any one, with little trouble,
Beyond few professional or amateur grow
erS, the subject OF pear cultivation was never
aSltated or thought Of The first few exhibit
tons Of this society, however, conceived and
carried out, by few public-sprited gentle.
men-Some OF whom have ever since been,
and now are, active members-gave an i'm
pulse to pear culture which has never abated
And your committee submit, that there are
very few IN the community who realize the
great obligations they are under to those pi-
0neers in the good work. We have now ar
rived at a period when a man, having the care
or being the owner of any land, who pays no
attention to the culiyatiOniO this fruit, forms
an exception to the general rule. The nom
enclature OF the pear, so extensive, and once
so torbldding, and regarded as beyond the
comprehension of ordinary people, has be-
come comparatively familiar with nearly all
who have taken any interest in the subject.
And who has not?
So common now has the cultivation of this
desirable fruit become-more desirable still,
since the peach has become so nearly ex-
tlnct-that always the first question asked in
the description OF a mans homestead is
'What have you for pears?" For no mans
plot of land is so small but there is room for
pear tree; aud combining, as that tree does
in an eminent degree, the useful with the or
namental, few are so far wanting in taste and
good sense as to neglect the planting of it.
To the influences of this association in its
transactions, this universal attention and con-
slant zeal, in the cultivation of this fruit in
the community, now is directly traceable;
thus giving to almost every one luxury, in
comparative abundance, which but IL few
years since was enjoyed only by a few. Nor
has the influence Of your society stopped
1
your efforts, others have taken up the work,
and local societies have sprung up in almost
every part of the county, emulating, with
commendable zeal and activity, the example
you have set them.
In passing along the tables during the eX-
animation made by your committee, they have
been gratltied to find decided and very
marked Improvement in the quality of the
fruit submitted to them. \ change seems to
have been made by some contributors in their
collections, by regarding quality as of more
Importance than quantity; change which
you committee cannot but regard as an omen
of much good and still further improvement
in the future. This they d, not say to dis
courage the bringing in OF contributions, but
rather Tor the purpose of increasing contribu-
tons, and to excite a laudable emulation in
regard to the quality Of specimens and vari-
GUYS lC llllle HAS DGeU, anu WlIUlu Il lew
years, when the great aim seemed to be to
produce as hLahy UGrieticS as possible, with
out regard to the qualt, of the kind or excel
lenCe ct the fruit-a multiplying of names,
whether the fruit they represented was valua-
bic or worthless-as if ''the largest and best
collection" simply meant the longest catalogue
OF names 1t was an evil which perhaps was
the result of novelty, and which grew out of
a desire to see how far the matter of
different varieties" could be carried New
ertheeSs it was heresy, and one which be-
came so firmly rooted that the society found
it necessary to adopt rule instructing com
mttees in cases of ''largeJt and best colec-
tons to ''be governed by quality rather than
by the number of varieties merely" The
salutary effect of this rule was very soon no.
ticeable. Contributors cut down the number
of their varieties, bringing only to the table
such as were choice and valuable, or such as
had been tried and found, at least, desirable
for cultivation; so that although your collec-
tons may not always be large, numerical
To- as formerly, the exhibitions, as WHOLE
will prove far more attractive and creditable;
and more than thlS-the effect will not stop
with eXhi5itionS-w it will not prevent The
trial of new varities and the adoption of such
as may prove worthy, it will induce cutiyat
ors to reject such as have already been found
worthless and to substitute other choice and
valuable ones, giving permanent and SUBJ
stanual Improvement to the character and
quality Of fruit produced in our community
generally
But there is an error on the other hand,
into which a certain class of contributors are
very liable to fall-the result of which is,
practically, that they allow their modesty to
stand in the way of Improvement They are
very apt to assume that their contributions
weuld be inferior, if made. and so neglect TO
make them at all, lest they should suffer by
comparison with others. This is unjust to
the society, and ottentmes, more uniust to
themselves. Let no one be deferred from
contributing to the society's exhibitions.
Their contributions may be inferior to those
of others. What then? The very compare
son eXcites, or should excite, emulation and
stimulate to an effort for Improvement in fu-
ture attempts with the same truit-provokes
enquiry as 10 soil, treatment, or any other &C
cident, which may lead to the discovery and
correction of errors in the contributors mode
OF cultivation which might not otherwise be
discovered or corrected. lis, the only mode
of answering the purposes, objects and aims
of the society-all OF which may be summed
up in one word-Improvement.
The number of entries found in the secre-
tary's book for this year is eight hundred and
twenty-one, or about fifty less than the aver.
age number for the four last exhibitions Blu
while the number of entries is not so large a;
in some former years, the quality of the fru
and tue evident care taken In the selection 0
A.