The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1882-08-17
HORTICULTURAL SOCIETIES.
The Immense Good that On, 10
Them.

"oou tilRt can he nnpa L..
Them.
The address of President r NJ g.;
,,a ueaoie the state Horticultural Society q,
Ine Tue, meeting in Columbia on Thur:da, q
Ladies and Gentlemen: have boor
instrumental in calling you together r.
.ilahe one more earnest efiort to revive ~
~ establish State Horticultural Sociatv y
ny, connection with this society RIM,
PACK but a few years. A few fr;ana
lnet and organized the society nnda,
i!atheT promising circumstances. Wa h =
Just obtained the reins of this State GOV m
eih''leht.commerce, society, eycry,hino
.."u over U0dy seemed TO be moved hv :
new spirit. Our sister society. the Siatt
agricultural Society, droopinp almost ~
oespalr, took better heart and steadie,
s'ao s,ep ana marched steadily forward to the
success IL mas now attained. We mo,
,I unce more IN Charleston and discussed d
Inc Pian OF Fall meeting in Columbia
during the next Fair week. " 80
,. Cniortunately when the time came we
ulscoVered that the secretary of the socie.
y mad moved from the State and had
lasen with him all records of member.
sup ana the transactions of the first two
meetings. The next given was in 1879
ana by the kind help of the good pconIe
OF Columbia and particularly of thc In.
ules we hada very respectable mectinc
ana exhibition. Then came two wears Of
disaster to crops, and We failed in that
time 10 have a meeting. We are here
now to DO whatever is in cur mower n
revive this society, aud 10 encourage tho
growth ofhcsiiculture in eve: way noss;.
bic throughout the State. f''
Ihe first question which suggests itself
70 our minds is, how can we best do this ?
Admitting that the enterprise in which
we are embarking has sufficient merit to
commend itself to the thoughtful, intel.
ilgent and progressive portion of our
people, how arc we to induce bem to
1eei more interest in it, and to take more
PAINS and more labor to develop it to a
nIgher and more remunerative indus-
try? We can promise them that it will
repay them in money, in health and in
cheerfulness and happiness. But the
main difficulty seems to be in the snnar.
ent paradox that owing to our genial eli.
mate and fertile soil it requires so little
ehort to raise fruits and flowers and veg
etables that it does not require, and con
sequently does not deserve, much alter.
tlon nor pains nor skill to succeed. If
we had a sterile soil and an inhospital
climate like Massachusetts we would
doubtless have more intelligence and
more skilled labor engaged in horticul
ture, and consequently better fruit. Just
as people of Massachusetts, have succeed
ed In overcoming all Of their difficulties
ana building up an accurate system of
horticulture, and attained almost perfec
ton under their circumstances Of climate
and soil in producing the finest fruits and
flowers, we may with less then half of
their trouble, in fact by taking the ex
Perlence OF their labOrs in Fart as guide,
build up as perfect system and produce
as excellent fruit as God permits on his
footstool to grow.
There is in the pursuit of horticulture,
both as to the requirement of knowledge
and the exercise of industry necessary
to succeed, less of self.aggrandizement,
t!attery and vain show, and more of sub
stantial happiness and contentment than
n any occupation at all. At time when
everything is counted and valued by
dollars and cents We claim that there is
more money to be made by intelligent la
Dor in the orchard and in the vineyard
than in the cotton and the corn field.
But this is not all the human mind, the
soul, the family altar canuot be measured
by gold. There is something continually
whispering to us in the toll and sweat of
the days labor that there is something
higher that We live for than the mere
worldly drop of gold and silver-peace,
happiness and comfort of
the home and the freside. This makes
up the inner life and whatever adds 10
filling UP this gap is one of Gods richest
blessings; and If know one thing Of
and of the true teachings of
its philosophy it is that there is pleas
ure in industry, peculiar pleasure in
the innocent care and culture of fruits
and flowers, which increases just in pro-
portion as taste and refinement direct our
labors instead of bare utility.
A gentleman went to my friend, Mr..
Gillespie, the accommodating superinten-
dent OF the Southern Express Company,
and said that lie contemplated going into
fruit. raising fer shipping to New York,
and before doing so he wanted to get spe-
cial rates. The superintendent, during
the conversation, asked him how much
he expected to realize from his crates of
peaches. He said IS. This upon an av-
erage good fruit year would amount in
his expectations to about 81 500 per acre.
1t is to correct erroneous ideas of this
kind that we should attempt to dissent
nate accurate know!sdge and data from
our society. But who is to do it? 1t is
q plain, plodding. painstaking effort to
kaop up such society. 7. hes its pleas.
ures, both in social way and in more
rewards ofample remuneration
for the labor bestowed but the merit and
the objects of the society do not commend
themselves to great many, and discour-
agements, such as bad crop year, over
stocked markets, loss from insects and
drought discourage great many, and it
is left to the few who really have the
matter very much at heart to keep it alive
and progressing.
I have attended, as regularly as could,
since 1870 the biennial sessions Of the
American Pathological Society. There
We have representatives from all parts
IF the continent, but the interest is kept
I'D by dozen or twenty men. But
hey are men of large views, such as
Downing, Rerckmans, Meehan,
Warder, Elliot, Thurber, &c. | have
,lse attended, as often as possible, the
3eorgia State horticultural Society, and
t is controlled, managed and kept alive
,y dozen or fifteen men. But the good