Proceedings on the occasion of laying the corner-stone of the New Hall of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, August 18, 1864

PROCEEDINGS

ON THE OCCASION OF

LAYING THE CORNER-STONE

NEW HALL

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AUaUST 18, 1864,

BOSTON:

HENHY W. BUTTON & SON, PRINTERS,
90 AND 92 Washington Street.

1864.

UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS
AT AMHERST

UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

Special Collections & Rare Books

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At an adjourned meeting of the Massachusetts Horticultural
Society, held at their rooms, Saturday, September 3, the follow-
ing votes were unanimously passed :

That the thanks of the Society be tendered to the President,
for his very interesting and fehcitous address delivered at the
laying of the Corner-Stone, and that a copy be requested for
publication.

That the thanks of the Society be presented to the Rev. Dr.
LoTHROP, for his services at the ceremony of laying the Corner-
Stone.

That the Committee of Publication be authorized to publish,
for distribution among the members, the address delivered by
the President, C. M. Hovey, at the laying of the Corner-Stone
of Horticultural Hall, on the 18th of Auo-ust last, too-ether
with a detailed account of the ceremonies on that occasion.

C. M. HOVEY, President.
F. LYMAN WINSHIP, Secretary.

PROCEEDINGS.

The Corner-Stone of the New Hall of the Massachusetts
Horticultural Society was laid on the 18th of August, 1864.

At a Special Meeting of the Society, called on the 13th day
of August, at the Rooms in Amory Hall, the President stated
that the work of building the new Hall had so far progressed
as to be in readiness for laying the Corner-Stone.

He remarked that the magnitude of the building was such,
that it was deemed proper to observe the occasion in a manner
commensurate with the importance of the work ; and, although
it was not the desire of the Building Committee, or he pre-
sumed of the Society, to make any ostentatious display, yet it
was thought some notice should be taken of such an event, and
that the Corner-Stone should be laid with such ceremonies as
were deemed appropriate. It remained for the Society to take
such measures as would render the occasion interesting to the
members and creditable to the association.

On motion of G. W. Pkatt, Esq., it was voted that a Com-
mittee of ten be appointed by the President, with full power
to make all necessary arrangements thought proper for the
occasion, and the following gentlemen were appointed the Com-
mittee :

Geo. W. Pratt,

S. H. GiBIJENS,

W. H. Spooner, Jr.,
William Gray, Jr.,

C. H. B. Breck,

F. Lyman Winsiiir,

J. C. HOVEY,

D. T. Curtis,

E. W. BUSWELL,

R. McCleary Copeland.

Agreeably to the arrangements made by the Committee, the
members of the Society, with Ilis Honor Mayor Lincoln,
the members of various kindred societies, and other invited
guests assembled at the Rooms of the Society, in Amory Hall,
at the corner of West and AYashington Streets, at 9 o'clock,
A. M., on the 18th of August. The meeting was opened by
the President, who stated its objects and requested those present
to form in procession in the Hall, and thence under the marshal-
ship of Samuel Hatch, Esq., proceed to the site of the build-
ing, at the corner of Tremont and Bromfield Streets. The
Order of Procession was as follows :

Detachment of Police.

Chief Marshal.

Brigade Band.

Committee of Arrangements.

President of the Society and Chaplain.

His Honor the Mayor, and Members of the City Government.

Building Committee.
Stewards bearing the Boxes and Documents for deposit beneath

the Stone.

Architects of the Building.

Past Officers of the Society.

Invited Guests.

Members of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanics' Association.

Members of the Natural History Society.

Trustees of Mount Auburn Cemetery.

Members of the Massachusetts Historical Society.

Members of the Institute of Technology.

Trustees of the Public Library.

Members of the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture.

Members of the Boston Numismatic Society.

Members of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society.

The Procession proceeded up West Street, through Tremont
Street Mall and Tremont Street, to the site of the new building,

6

and formed upon the platform, a raised dais being erected for
the President, Chaplain, and invited guests. After Music by
the Band, the following Address was delivered by the President
of the Societv.

ADDRESS.

DELIVERED BY C. M. HOUEY, ESQ., PRESIDENT OF THE SOCIETY.

Gentlemen of the

Massachusetts Horticultural Society:

We are assembled here to-day, agreeably to your direc-
tion, to take the first formal step towards the erection of a
building for the use of the Society, to more effectually
carry out its purposes of " encouraging and improving the
science and practice of Horticulture, promoting the ameli-
oration of the various species of trees, fruits, plants, and
vegetables, and the introduction of new species and varie-
ties."

Such were the original objects of the Society, as named
in the act of incorporation, and such, I am happy to say,
they have always been, and I doubt not, ever will be, as
long as this beautiful edifice you are about to erect shall
endure.

This is the second time that you have, in the course of
your organization, erected a building for the Society. It \
will be just twenty years, on the 14th of September next, '
since the Corner-Stone of Horticultural Hall in School
Street, erected on the site of the old Latin school-house,
was laid by your late President, the Hon. Marshall P.

8

Wilder, now prevented from uniting in these ceremonies
by long continued illness. It was the only important act
of the Society since its foundation in which I have not
been present or taken a part; but absence abroad prevent-
ed me from witnessing the services on that interesting
occasion; and T esteem it a source of the highest gratifi-
cation that, through your continued kindness and great
confidence, I have now the honor not only to be present
with you, but to take so prominent a part in laying the
corner-stone of another and more magnificent structure,
which will undoubtedly be the home of the Society long
after we and many succeeding generations have passed
away.

The Massachusetts Horticultural Society was organized
February 24th and incorporated June 12th, 1829, and it
is highly gratifying to me, and I doubt not to every mem-
ber, to recognize among those who are assembled here to-
day, gentlemen whose names are borne upon the charter,
and many others who were prominent and active members
the first year of its organization. Though thirty-five
years have glided away, and age may have lessened their
active labors, it has not checked their enthusiasm, dimin-
ished their zeal, or lessened their devotion to the interests
of a pursuit which, in their younger days, was a source of
instructive occupation and pleasure, and which now amuses
and solaces their declining years.

It would scarcely be possible, should I make the at-
tempt, in these brief remarks, to recount the progress of

the Society, from its small beginning in State Street, up to
that period when the old hall in School Street was erected,
since which time its history is more familiar; but I should
be recreant to duty did I not, standing on these solid foun-
dations, refer to one who did more than all others to place
the society in its present flourishing condition, and enable
it now to undertake the building of an edifice of such
magnitude and architectural beauty. Need I say I refer to
the late General Deaebokn ? Without detracting in the
least from the labors of a band of intelHgent and distin-
guished men, who were pioneers in the enterprise, it is not
too much to say that to him are we indebted for that
"sacred garden of the dead," Mount Auburn Cemetery,
and the consequent results from his plan of an experi-
mental garden. His enlarged knowledge, liberal views,
accomplished mind, practical skill, and elevated character,
alone carried the project through. His pen was never idle
in gathering facts and writing reports to show the under-
taking a safe one, and the objects to be attained worthy
the consideration of the whole community. By the happy
combination of an experimental garden and cemetery, hor-
ticulture was to be recognized as an art and science, and
the dead removed to secluded and shady groves, away from
the busy marts of crowded cities ; and though a combina-
tion of circumstances changed a part of his favorite
scheme, it is undoubtedly owing to its failure that we are
indebted for the means to erect this Temple, no less calcu-
lated "to foster and extend a taste for the pleasant, useful,

/

10

and refined art of gardening." We love and revere the
name of such a noble man : we shall never forget his un-
selfish labors, and, when our edifice is completed, it will, I
am sure, be the hope that his statue may have a prominent
place within it. But whether statue or bust shall ever
grace our hall, this building will be the enduring memo-
rial of his genius and services, and his name will be held
in grateful remembrance by a thousand generations.
' But it is since the completion of the former hall that
the progress of the Society has been more rapid, and its
influence felt throughout the entire country. New life and
fresh vitality were infused into the Society. It had the
sympathy, as it had the substantial aid, of the pubhc. It
was appreciated as its founders intended it should be. Its
objects seemed all at once to become apparent. / It encour-
aged and promoted the science and practice of horticult-
ure ; — it stimulated the production and introduction of
new flowers, fruits, trees, and plants; — it rewarded the
cultivator for the best specimens of his skill ; — it gathered
together, for the use of the members, a library of the
most celebrated English and French works on garden-
ing;— it made known through its weekly and annual exhi-
bitions all the choicer productions of the garden, the
orchard, and the greenhouse; — it awakened a taste for
ornamental and landscape art, and it disseminated through
its annual reports a vast fund of information upon every
branch of horticulture.

11

Who does not see, in whatever direction he may turn,
the results of the influence which has gone out from the
Massachusetts Horticultural Society ? Beautiful villas en-
rich and embellish all parts of the country ; suburban gar-
dens of greater or less extent give a cheerful and pictu-
resque aspect to our towns and villages; and even the little
gardens and city lots denote some unseen influence which
has changed these weedy and neglected places into verdant
and fertile spots. Who will compare the rural aspect of
the country thirty-five years ago with its present appear-
ance, and say the Massachusetts Horticultural Society has
wasted the resources with which a liberal public have in
part endowed it, for objects so beneficent, and for purposes
which confer both individual comfort and happiness upon
the people.

Thanks to the generous men of Boston, that after they
had witnessed our good stewardship, they reposed every
confidence in us, and came forward hberally with their aid,
determined that no loss should come from an enterprise
then deemed hazardous for our means. Yes, gentlemen,
we were the owners of a new hall, but beyond that we had
but little to accomplish the great objects in view, namely,
to create a laudable competition by the offer and distribu-
tion of liberal prizes, and thus attract the people to see
the superior specimens which the skill of our cultivators
could produce. We had not, fortunately, any occasion to
wait; and I deem this a most fitting opportunity to allude
to their liberal acts. Few of the large number of mem-

12

bers, who have recently joined us, know by what means
we have reached our present prosperity, and, if they did,
we should be ungrateful were we to forget those among
the dead, or those among the living, to whom we are
indebted for aid to more effectually carry forward the great
objects of our association.

This building, it is true, is erected by the funds of the
Society principally received from our interest in Mount
Auburn Cemetery. This beautiful location, however, was
only secured by the most persevering efforts of the com-
mittee appointed for that purpose, who beheved it pos-
sessed all the facilities the Society required, and was just
within the means of the Society to purchase. Two years
have your committee assiduously labored to bring the work
to its present state. We hope and believe the Society will
never have cause to regret what they have done.

And we have established funds, the income of which is
distributed yearly in premiums. This has been the life of
the Society; and, the larger the amount at our disposal,
the more rapidly will the art of Horticulture be promoted,
and a genuine taste for gardening be encouraged.

And now let me name, because first, and just at the
right time, just as we had expended our funds in the build-
ing of the old hall, came the liberal donation of the vener-
able merchant, Samuel Appleton, whose many benefac-
tions to various public institutions will render his name
honorable, and cause his memory ever to be cherished.

13

Next, we have the same generous gift from the puhhc
spirited and well-known gentleman, the son of one who
presided at the first formal call to organize the Society, and
whose name is intimately associated with everything con-
nected with the early improvements in horticulture around
Boston. Need I name John A. Lowell? "Not being
able," as he says in his letter to the Society, "to actively
cooperate with you, but wishing to contribute in a moderate
way, I send you one thousand dollars." May he long be
spared to witness the good results of his timely aid.

And now, standing conspicuously in the group of our
many benefactors, we have another name, not only associ-
ated with horticulture and agriculture, but with the finer
art of landscape gardening. Who does not remember the
once and yet elegant demesne at Waltham, where, years
gone by, the beautiful deer might be seen bounding o'er
the lawn, or gently reposing beneath some graceful elm ?
Need I name Theodore Lyman, Jr. ? who bequeathed to
us the munificent sum of $10,000, having during his life
made the same generous gift as those already named.
His memory will be ever dear to us and our successors.

And yet we have the aid of that kind-hearted and liberal
merchant, Josiah Bradlee, whose aim it was to see the
effects of his liberality during his own hfe. Not only was
his donation of one thousand dollars most gratefully re-
ceived, but his many acts of friendship towards the Society,
in its time of need, are indelibly recorded in our memory.

14

Then we have the legacy of one who was among the
earliest friends of the Society, always an active and honor-
able member, and for many years one of its Vice Presi-
dents; whose special and successful culture of one of our
most valuable fruits has been of great service to pomologi-
cal progress. The appropriation of the income of the
Feench fund to the encouragement of one particular fruity
has already been highly beneficial, and the yearly exhibition
of superior specimens of apples will always remind us of
his early and later participations in the prominent acts of
the Society.

Others among those who have gone from us, and whose
ashes repose beneath the fragrant turf, or lie beneath the
shady groves of Mount Auburn, have made us partici-
pators of their bounty. Each and all will be remembered
by every member of our association.

But, gentlemen, there is one at least among the living
who has given us recently and so liberally, — encouraging
us by his sympathy and devotion to our interests, — that I
think I shall not be transgressing the bounds of friendship
to mention. I refer to H. Hollis Hunne"\vell, whose
beautiful country residence at Wellesley so many of you
have seen and admired, and which displays so much taste
in its arrangement and keeping. His generous gift of
$2500, just now that we wish to increase rather than
curtail our premiums, is most opportune. Mr. Hunnewell
is now absent in Europe; and from these foundations we

15

waft across the broad Atlantic our best wishes fur his
health and prosperity, and a safe return to his home.

Of other donors it would be a pleasure to speak, but 1
am not permitted to do so.

But the most colossal edifice which associated wealtli
could erect, though it might be a perpetual monument of
architectural taste and skill, would be of little avail without
the aid of a zealous and cooperative association ; and whik^
we recount with pride these many benefactions, we ought
not to forget that to a host of intelligent amateurs and cul-
tivators— to Cook, Downer, Lowell, Manning, Kenrick,
WiNSHip, Perkins, Prince, Phinney, Gushing, Yose,
Walker, Lovett, Harris, Teschemacher, Haggerston,
Williams, and many others — not to enumerate the liv-
incy — are we indebted for the invaluable services and un-
flagging zeal which have given to the Society a renown
second to no other horticultural association in the world.

And now, gentlemen, as we are to place beneath this
granite block the records of what we have already accom-
phshed, with the object of transmitting them to distant gen-
erations, let us hope that, whenever, at some very remote
day, when these walls may crumble and decay, — for decay,
though slow, is the destiny of all earthly things,— and
these memorials shall come to light, they will at least serve
to show that the objects of the Society were solely to pro-
mote all those pursuits which bring pleasure and happiness
to the social and domestic life ; to enrich and embelhsh
our homes and country; to create a refined taste, and to

16

open new and exhaustless sources of instruction and
wealth.

With the increased means with which the liberality of
the public have in part endowed us, — the resources from
the investment now believed to be so judiciously made, —
and the greater facilities afforded by this edifice, we shall
be called upon for fresh exertion, greater activity, and the
same persistent zeal which have thus far given us a name
and reputation at home and abroad.

We feel the responsibility of the task, but an appreciat-
ing and enhghtened public will cheer us on ; and as those
who have been so prominent in our councils are soon to
pass away, and the " places which know them shall know
them no more," may our successors, animated with their
zeal, stimulated by their example, roused by their energy,
and enlightened by their knowledge, not only preserve the
Society in its present flourishing state, but extend its use-
fulness, increase its* popularity, and give it an imperishable
renown.

At the close of the Address, the Corner-Stone was laid by
the President, who was presented with an elegantly burnished
steel trowel for the occasion.

An appropriate prayer was then oiFered by the Eev. Dr.
LoTHROP, Chaplain.

The whole audience then joined in singing Old Hundred,
after which, the ceremonies were concluded with a Benediction.

APPEKDIX,

APPENDIX.

DESCRIPTIOX OF THE BOX, PLATE, AND OTHER ARTICLES, DE-
POSITED UXDER THE CORXER-STOXE OF THE XEW HALL.

The box Is made of zinc, and twelve inches lonji, ten wide,
and four deej^. In the box the annexed list of articles are
enclosed :

1. A Silver Plate, measuring eight inches long and six
wide, upon which the following is engraved :

THIS EDIFICE IS ERECTED

IHassafUusdts funiiniltutal ^oridy,

For the purpose of encouraging and improving the
Science and Practice of Horticulture,

And this Corner-Stone laid, August 18, 1864,

BY THE PRESIDENT,

CHARLES M. HOVEY.

Bu ilding Com m ittee :

C. M. HOVET,

JosiAH Stickney,
M. P. Wilder,
C. O. Whitmore,
W. li. AUSTIX.

h. h. hunnewell,
Joseph S. Cabot,
J. F. C. Hyde,
L. Wetherell.

Architects :
Gridley J. F. Bryant and Arthur Oilman.

To this Society the community are indebted for the foundation
and consecration of Mount Auburn Cemetery.

20

Massachusetts Horticultural Society,

Incorporated the 12 day of June, A. D. 1829.

Present number of members, six hundred eighty.

President,
CHARLES M. HOVEY.

Vice Presidents,

J. F. C. Hyde, C. O. Whitmore,

H. HOLLIS HUXNEA\ ELL, W. C. StRONG.

Treasurer,

William R. Austin.

Corresponding Secretary, Recording Secretary,

Eben. Wight. F. Lyman Winship.

2. Proceedings of the Society, from 1843 to 1864.

3. Publications of the Society, containing its History, &c.,
by Gen. Dearborn.

4. Boston Almanac for 1864.

5. Catalogue of Proprietors of Mount Auburn Cemetery.

6. Copies of Hovey's Magazine of Horticulture for 1864,
containing Reports of Building Committee.

7. Copy of Fruits of America.

8. Boston newspapers of August 18.

9. Silver Medal of the Society.

10. Bronze Medal.

11. Appleton Bronze INIedal.

12. Coins of the United States, dollar, half dollar, and smal-
ler, of the date of 1864.

Beneath the box was placed the box, with its contents entire,
which was taken from beneath the Corner-Stone of the old Hall
in School Street.

Both boxes were placed in a cavity in the first vermiculated
stone, at the north-west corner of the building, on Tremont
Street and Montgomery Place.

21

REPORT OF THE BUILDING COMMITTEE.

At a quarterly meeting of the Society, held January 2, 1864,
on motion of C. O. Whitmore, a Committee of Nine, of which
the President should be Chairman, was appointed to consider
the expediency of erecting a building on the Montgomery
House estate, and report the probable cost of the same.

The President,

JosiAH Stickney,

C. O. Whitmore,

M. P. Wilder,

J. S. Cabot,

W. R. Austin,

H. H. Hunnewell,

J. F. C. Hyde, and

L. Wetherell,
were nominated and unanimously chosen.

At the meeting of the Society, February 6th, the Building
Committee made the following Report :

The Committee to whom was referred the subject of the ex-
pediency of erecting a building on the Montgomery House
estate, recently purchased by the Society, and the probable
expense of the same, have attended to that duty, and submit
the following Report :

Your Committee consider the subject referred to them of
very great importance to the Society, and they have endeavored
to give it the thorough deliberation and investigation its impor-
tance demands. A portion of the Committee having previously
examined the subject and made a general report, they were
desirous that other gentlemen, fresh from the Society, should
cooperate with them, and carefully examine the whole question
of building, and give such an opinion as Avould enable every
member to cast a satisfactory vote when brought before the
Society.

22

Your Committee believe it is for the permanent interest of
the Society to proceed with the erection of a building, if it can
be done within its means, or with safety as an investment of its
funds. The question of time is one which they have given
much attention, and looking at it in all its aspects, they feel
assured, with such a plan as they have had prepared, should it
meet the wishes and approval of the Society, a building can be
erected at a reasonably enhanced price, without detriment to its
present interests or future welfare, afford a good income upon
the outlay, and, what is of most importance, place the Society
in the possession of a hall of its own, where it can accommodate
all the exhibitions, weekly or annual — a building that shall be
an ornament to our city, "a fitting testimonial of our liberal-
ity"— and one which Avill enable us to carry forward the great
objects of its founders, viz.: "Encouraging and improving the
science of horticulture."

At an early stage of the action of the Society, a committee
of five was chosen to purchase a suitable site within certain
limits ; and that committee, desirous of serving the interests
and forwarding the objects of the Society, which they believed
to be to secure a handsome and appropriate building, selected
the Montgomery House estate, and had plans and estimates
prepared by G. J. F. Bryant, Esq., placed before them and the
Society. This plan has been taken as the basis of another, now
about to be submitted for your consideration. No vote Avas
taken upon it by the old Committee, and its internal arrange-
ments were not especially criticised or debated, as the time had
not then arrived for such action. It was simply an idea of the
style of building, in its architectural proportions and general
beauty. Estimates were, however, made, showing that it could
have been erected in 1862 for $85,000.

This plan has been materially and essentially altered in its
interior arrangements, while its exterior character has been pre-
served, and, it is confidently hoped, its architectural proportions
improved, its fitness augmented, and its beauty of design much
enhanced. It is now jn-esented, with the full belief that, afler
much study, it comes as near as possible to the wants and

23

requirements of the Soelety, both as regards its own uses
and that equally important one of income. It has liad tlie long
attention and deliberation of some of the Committee, and is
offered with tlie hope and expectation that it will be satisfactory
to all.

The plan herewith presented contains a larger and smaller
hall ; the former suited to the Opening, Eose, and Annual Ex-
hibitions, or any exhibitions the Society may wish to make ;
and the latter admirably adapted to its weekly and ordinary
shows. On the second floor, the meeting room, library room,
and committee rooms connect with the smaller hall, with a rear
entrance from Montgomery Place for exhibitors, and a conveni-
ent room for preparing plants and fruits for exhibition. The
large hall occupies the third floor, and the space of the entire
building, accessible by two broad flights of stairs, from the
rotunda, and also a rear entrance from Montgomery Place, and
the same accommodations for exhibitors as the hall beneath. It
will be a lofty and magnificent hall, with a gallery at one end
and a stao-e at the other, and will be liohted from the sides and
top. Its area will be about 4000 feet. The street floor contains
two larire stores on Tremont Street and four on Bromfield
Street, with three basement stores beneath.

Your Committee do not think it necessary to enter into any
particular description of the exterior design of the building.
The various drawings of the front and side facades, as well as
the perspective view, now placed before you for your inspection
and approval, relieve them of that duty. The style is that now
generally adopted in modern Europe, for most of the public
edifices of this character, and from its graceftd proportions, har-
monious expression, and adaptability to general use, appears best
suited to the requirements of the Society, while it affords the
best evidence of our appreciation of architectural beauty.

The material selected by your Committee is the Concord
white granite, which, for its tone of color and durability, pre-
eminently fit it for the style and purpose of such a structure.
The best example of this material, of recent erection, is the new
City Hall, and one of much earlier date, the house of David

S4

Sears, Esq., on Beacon Street, the latter best illustrating its
wear and appearance after the lapse of nearly half a century.

The entire cost of the erection of the buildino-, according^ to
the estimates of Mr. Bryant, made to your Committee and pro-
cured from responsible parties, and since revised, will not ex-
ceed 'f 102,500, and when the offers are open to competition he
believes it will be reduced. When your Committee take into
consideration the greatly enhanced value of its stocks, over that
of 1862, this excess over the estimates of the first plan is far
more favorable than they were led to anticipate.

The income of the building, according to the best judgment
of your Committee, and obtained by careful enquiry of the
income of property in the immediate vicinity, will be fully equal
to six per centum per annum on the entire cost of the invest-
ment.

To meet the cost of the erection of the building, your Com-
mittee herewith annex a statement of the assets of the Society
available for that purpose, very carefully and accurately pre-
pared by your Treasurer, and believed to be correct, amounting
to 1100,054 on the 23d January last.

To meet the payment of the mortgages upon the estate, pay-
able in twenty years from September 1, 1863, it is proposed by
your Committee to recommend to the Society, immediately
upon the completion of the building, the creation of a sinking
fund, which shall meet its liabilities in 1883. This proposition
is to lay aside every year ^3500 from the income of Mount
Auburn, Avhich will, with interest, amount in sixteen years to
198,745.

The deep interest which will be created by the erection of a
new building, it is believed by your Committee, will greatly
increase the number of members ; and the income fi'om this
source and its exhibitions will probably be sufficient to pay the
ordinary expenses of the Society ; and should this hope be real-
ized, a larger sum can be added to the sinking flmd, should the
Society so direct, which will enable it, should the opportunity
offer, which it is thought possible it may, to pay off some of the
mortgages (being made to six parties) before the period of their

25

expiration, or leave to tlie Society a much larger sum to en-
courage the objects to which it is especially devoted.

Your Committee cannot here omit to contrast the present
condition of the Society with its condition in 1843, when it
decided to purchase the old Latin Schoolhouse in School Street,
for the sum of 118,000. With only 115,000 of available fiinds
for the purpose, it then almost unanimously voted to erect a
building upon the site, which, with the land, would cost about
$10,000. If the attempt to build now can be termed a hazard-
ous enterprise, with its increased means, much larger number of
members, and the far greater general public taste for horticult-
ure and rural art, what must the action of the Society have
been deemed in 1843 ? Its prospective income could not then be
considered, at the outside, at more than $2500, and the income
from the building less than five per centum ; and to carry for-
ward the work it was necessary to execute a mortgage for^
$15,000, besides the use of all the income from Mt. Auburn
for four years. Yet it went on prosperously, meeting all its lia-
bilities promptly, distributing very liberally of its means for the
encouragement of Horticulture and Pomological Science, and,
thanks t'^o those who labored so faithfrdly, we are now receiving
the benefits of the sound judgment and foresight, united with
the zeal and energy of those who laid the foundation of our
success, and gave to the Society extended influence and the
means of fiir greater usefulness.

In conclusion, your Conmiittee would advise the immediate
erection of a building worthy of that art and science which is
henceforth to be its home, and spread therefrom its benign influ-
ence throughout the land.

Who that treads the shady paths and winding avenues, or
reclines beneath the sacred groves of that garden of graves, the
inception of the founders of the Society— or surveys the broad
expanse of cultivated country now reaching to the Pacific,
teeming with rich fruits and beautiful flowers, would wish, with
the means at our command, and the known public spirit, to
erect a lesser monument to the triumphs of civilization.

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How consoling tlie reflection that, when we have finished our
earthly work, and our ashes repose beneath the green turf and
leafy bowers of Mt. Auburn, this elegant building shall be the
enduring memento of the intelligence and wisdom which formed
that sacred garden of the dead, aAvay from the busy haunts of
the living. In this temple, dedicated to the elegant art of hor-
ticulture we shall transmit to our successors a record of our
earnest labors to accomplish the two-fold task of decorating and
beautifying our homes while living, and of adorning and conse-
crating; our homes in death.

Entertaining these views your Committee would recommend
the passage of the following Resolutions :

Resolved^ That the present Committee be constituted a Build-
ing Committee, and that they be, and are hereby authorized
and directed to proceed with the erection of a building on the
Montgomery House estate, recently purchased by the Society,
according to the plans, specifications, and estimates, prepared
by Gridley J. F. Bryant, Esq., approved by the Committee,
and now submitted to the Society, and that they have full
power to enter into and make all contracts and agreements, in
the name of the Society, necessary for the erection and comple-
tion of said building.

Resolved, That the Committee now having in charge the
Montgomery House estate be authorized and directed to termi-
nate the present lease on the first of May next.

C. M. HOVEY,

JosiAii Stickxey,
Marshall P. Wilder,

C. O. WlIITMORE,

Wm. R. Austin,
h. ii. hunxewell,
James F. C. Hyde,
Leander Wetherell,
JosERii S. Cabot,

Committee on Building.
Boston, Feb. 6th, 1864.

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Mr. X. Matthews moved as a su])stitute. In the place of the
Committee's resolutions, the following, which was unanimously
adopted :

That the whole matter of crectinir a hiiildlii''' he retei-rcd to
the Committee, with full }»()wer to make such aheratioiis In the
plans and specifications as may suggest themselves, under the
superintendence of the architect, Mr. G. J. F. Ih-yant, and at a
cost not exceeding the sum of 8105,000.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE BUILDING.

The new Hall of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society
occupies a central and commanding position on Tremont
Street, between Bromfield Street and ^lontgomery Place. A
cellar story, partially finished into apartments as a basement,
covers the wdiole area of the estate, and includes also, all the
area beneath the sidewalks, in front of the several facades of
the building. This story is sub-divided into six apartments,
two of w^hich are cellars beneath, and connected with the two
front stores on Tremont Street. Three others are designed for
stores or mechanical workshops, while the sixth apartment is
appropriated as an engine and boiler room for the heating ap-
paratus, and with ample accommodations for the necessary fuel.
An easy staircase in the north-east corner of this story, com-
municates with the stories above, as well as with the entrance
doorway on that side, from Montgomery Place. Beneath the
sidewalk pavement, on this side, are located the lavatoi-ies,
water closets, and urinals, for the use of the occupants of the
basement, and of the stores above. All the apartments of the
basement are entered from the Bromfield Street front, by flights
of steps, and all are amply lighted by upright w^indows in the
external walls, and by Hyatt lights, to be located in the side-
walks of aU the streets.

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The first, or street story, is sub-divided into tlie same nnmber
of compartments as those above described In the basement, and
consists entirely of shops or stores, two of which front on Tre-
mont Street, with light on the front, and on one side of each
store, while the remaining four all entered from Bromfield
Street, and are lighted both In front and rear of each. The
staircase, commenced in the basement, Is continued up through
this story, and Is accessible from the Montgomery Place side of
the building. The front or main staircase, 10 feet in width, Is
carried uj^ between the two stores on Tremont Street.

The second story contains one of the Exhibition Halls, span-
ning the width of the estate, and lighted by three large w^indows
in each of its two sides. Besides this hall, there are four
apartments to the west of it, receiving light from the three sides
of the building, and communicating with each other, and with
a square lobby, containing three noble flights of stairs. One of
these flights leads up from the principal front entrance on Tre-
mont Street, and the two others are for connection with the
third story, w^hich contains the principal hall of the building.
Of the four apartments on the front of this story, the two which
extend across the whole of the Tremont Street front, are for the
purposes of a Library, and of Superintendent's and Treasurer's
office, and are connected by wide folding doors, so as to be
thrown into one, when necessary. Connected with these two
front rooms, are the two smaller rooms, located between the
front rooms and the Hall, and occupying all the remaining space
of this floor not devoted to lobby and staircases. From one of
these smaller rooms, opens a water-closet and lavatory, Intended
for the use of the officers of the Society. To the east of the
Hall on this second story, and placed between it and the ex-
treme cast wall of the estate, on the Bromfield Street side, there
is an a})artment of suitable size to be used as an ante-room, and
corres]:)onding in area with the staircase hall on the other side,
through w hich runs up the continuation of the staircases of the
two stories beneath, and accessible from Montgomery Place.
Between these two is formed a recess for the stage or platform
at the upper end of the hall, and a passageway in the rear of

29

this recess connects the ante-room witli the private staircase just
described. All the apartments on this story are abundantly
lio-hted, in the three exterior walls, by windows of liljeral di-
mensions and pleasing proportion.

The third or upper story is mainly devoted to a principal
Exhibition Hdl, extending over nearly its whole area, inasmuch
as it not only spans the whole width of the estate, but occupies,
with its lobby entrances and stair landings, the whole length of
the entire property — with the exception of an ante-room, private
staircase, and passageway of communication in the rear, the
same as those already described on the story underneath. On
account of the greater height on this floor, this arrangement
of stairway, passage and ante-room is also duplicated m a
secondary or half story, introduced above the one just named ;
the two occupying together, only the height of the larger Hall.
The lobby entrances and stair landings at the front or west end
of the building, as well as that portion of the area of the large
hall lying between these lobbies, are constructed so as to be ten
feet in height, and over them all is a Gallery of the whole
width of the Hall, and entered from one of the landings by a
flight of Gallery stairs, placed in the south-west corner of the
building.

Each of the two halls, in the second and third stories, con-
tains a stage at its eastern end, accessible from the ante-rooms,
and from the rear or private staircase at that end of the Hall.
The amount of interior area and accommodation afforded by
the several floors of the building, will perhaps be better under-
stood by the following schedule of the number, designation, and
dimensions of the halls, apartments, &c., to wit:

BASEMENT STORY.

Store No. 1 is 18.4 in width by 50.0 in length.
'^ " 2 " 18.4 " " " 50.9 " "
" " 3 " 18.4 " " " 51.2 " "

Cellar " 1 " 25.0 - " " 41.3 " *'
" " 2 " 25.0 '' " " 44.0 " "

Eno-ine and Boiler Room 14.G by 36.8.

30

These stores vary in height, conforming to the grade of
Bromfiekl Street.

FIRST OR STREET STORY.

Store No. 4 is 25.0 in width by 41.9 in length.

" " 6 '' 18.4 " " " 50.6 " "

'^ " 8 " 18.4 " " " 50.3 " "
Room for Storage 15.0 by 36.9.
These stores also vary in height, from 14 feet, least, to 18J
feet, fji'eatest heio-ht, accordino; to the s^rade.

SECOND STORY.

Hall, 51 feet by 57 feet.

Ante-Eoom, 12.0 " '' 13.9 "
Stage Recess, 9.9 " " 23.9 ''

Two Rooms for officers of the Association, 18.6 x 20.6 and
20.9 X 30.6, respectively.

The heio'ht of these rooms is 17 feet in the clear.

THIRD STORY.

Large Hall, 50.6 by 77.9, height 26 feet.

Stage Recess, 9.9 " 23.9

Lobby, 11.0 " 25.0

Ante-room in rear of Hall, 12.0 x 13.9, with another room of
corresponding dimensions in the half story above.

The interior of the two halls is of a style of finish and deco-
ration which accords with the external character of the edifice
in every respect. The lower or smaller hall is finislied with
[)ilaHters of the Ionic order, sustaining beams on the ceiling, by
wliich it is divided into panelled C()ini)artments, — the walls
being decorated also with panelling, disposed in suitable divi-
sions. The upper hall has a graceful coved ceiling, resting on a
deep Ionic cornice with modillions, — the face of the pilasters
carrying the same being enriched with Arabesque festoons,
modelled in higli relief. The Avails are dadoed up as high as

31

the sills of the windows, and the doorways leading to ante-
rooms and staircase are ornamented with rich architraves with
pedimented heads. The panels between the cross-beams on tlu-
ceilings, arc ornamented with bold mcmldings, and with droi)s at
the intersections. The eficct of the whole when completed will
be rich and attractive, and the hall will doubtless be ffreatlv in
request for concerts, lectures, and other public occasions re(piir-
ing a central and convenient locality.

The external style and appearance of the building are of a
dignified and monumental character, and well calculated for
imposing effect. The front extends 55 feet, on Tremont Street,
and is divided into three general divisions, or bays. The centre
of these is decorated with an order of coupled columns, re-
peated in pilasters, behind, and carried through the three
stories — Doric in the lowest, Ionic in the second, and Corinth-
ian in the third or upper story. A rich composed cornice
crowns the whole fii^ade, surmounted by a central attic, as a
pedestal for a superb figure of Ceres, cut in white granite, from
the celebrated antique in the Vatican, as given in the 3Iuseo
Pio Clementino^ p. 27. The angles of the front are decorated
wdth projecting piers, cut with rich, vermiculated quoins, and
forming bases at the top of the entrance story for two other
figures, one of Pomona, and one of Flora, the latter copied from
the renowned Flora Farnese at Naples. These elegant w^orks
of art form, it is believed, the first examples of statuary of a
high order of excellence ever placed in similar positions in this
country.

The style displayed in this costly and elegant design is one
which, it is believed, accords well with the character and
requirements of such a structure. It will at once be recognized
by all those conversant with such matters, as the prevailing
method of modern Europe; a style, which the taste of the
present Emperor of France, in particular, has so largely illus-
trated in most of the modern works of the French capital.
From its great intrinsic beauty, not less than from its extreme
readiness of adaptation to the wants and uses of the present
dav, it has attained, under the general title of the Renaissance,

32

universal popularity in Europe, and in the chief cities of our
,own country. Derived originally from Italian sources, and par-
ticularly from the later edifices of the Venetian Republic, it has
now been so successfully naturalized elsewhere as to have
become the prevailing manner for most of those important pub-
lic edifices, which are destined to be regarded as the best archi-
tectural records of our time, by posterity. A situation so
prominent as that of the Horticultural Hall, certainly demands
a graceful and harmonious style of design, and it is hoped
that the building now in process of erection will stand as a
fair memorial of our present advancement in architectural
knowledge and taste.

Messrs. G. J. F. Bryant and Arthur Oilman, architects, and
superintendents of the erection of the building, are so well
known, as gentlemen of experience and taste, that any commen-
dation would be superfluous. They have made all the internal
arrangements, agreeably to the views and requirements of the
Committee, and the external character of the edifice will show
their taste in harmony of details, beauty of proportion, and
general expression of design.