Session of 1885. From Charles N. Garfield, Secretary, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

This comes to us with a singularly fresh odor. In former times, essays written especially for it have been given to the press, and the general public was quite familiar with everything before the volume appeared. This was as well when it took nearly a year before the volume appeared; now we have the fresh matter, and the volume itself fresh before the embers of the fire that prepared it have scarce grown cold.

The worthy President Wilder could not be present at the meeting, but the vitality manifested in the matter, and manner of the appearance of this volume must be very gratifying to him.

The committee seem to have acted with commendable conservatism. Notwithstanding the legions of new fruits "brought out" since the last meeting, the committees have thought but few worthy of record. The chairman on Native Fruits names only two of apples, two of cherries-three of grapes, one peach, one pear, and eight strawberries. The chairman of the Foreign Fruit Committee reported that of the large number of foreign varieties produced, not merely since last meeting, but during the last six or eight years, not one was worth naming. It would really seem as if perfection had been reached, and there was nothing for the new seedling man to strive for.

The essays and discussions are far above the average, and we do not wonder that our Western friends claim that the meeting at Grand Rapids was one of the most successful ever held.