week. We have in Southern Iowa a great
deal of land well adapted for this industry, and I assure you that the
Iowa Horticultural Society is very much interested in the spreading of
the gospel.

THE PRESIDENT: We appreciate the invitation that Professor
Herrick has given us. One of the inspiring factors in my interest in nut
culture came to me some years ago when I came to the Iowa State College
to take graduate work. I went to Des Moines with Professor Maney to see
the exhibit staged by Mr. Snyder. Our first paper this morning is by Mr.
Snyder, "Nuts and Nut Growers of the Middle West."

MR. SNYDER: I will confine my remarks to the newer things that
you haven't heard of. I will first note a shagbark hickory that stands
in my own neighborhood, an outstanding variety we call Hand. This is
very much like the Vest in shape and size and cracking quality.
According to my tests, this variety cracks out 50% meat, and since it is
a local variety and I know it is hardy and fruitful, I am placing it
ahead of the Vest for the Middle West. It is certainly equal to it in
every way and hardy and fruitful. While the Vest hasn't yet matured nuts
I am rather doubtful whether it will prove of any value here.

There is one nut that I have been drawing attention to in the past few
years, called Hagen, that I have frequently said was the best nut
growing in Iowa. I have found one we call the Elliott that appears to be
just as good, so nearly like it that it is hard to separate them when
they are mixed up. The Elliott stands near Oxford, a little south of
here.

The best cracker I have found in Iowa is one called Sande. This stands
in Story County, about 20 miles north of Ames. I found this on the
tables at our state fair and the superintendent of the nut exhibit
called my attention to it in particular. Said it had been appearing
there for a couple of years back, and that he thought it was very well
worth our attention. I took up correspondence with the parties who were
bringing it to the fair and they agreed to give me such information as I
wanted about it, so I drove up there. When I got there I found they
didn't own the tree. They had been stealing the nuts, putting them on
exhibit and getting the premiums. They wouldn't take me to the tree
because they didn't own it. They did tell me who owned it and I went to
see him. I told him the circumstances. He just got red-headed at once.
The idea of someone stealing the nuts and getting the