Kennicott Documents

[LETTERHEAD]

OFFICE OF THE AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY

[PRE-PRINTED] Chicago [HANDWRITTEN] Oct. 30 [PRE-PRINTED] 185 [HANDWRITTEN] 8

Jno. A. Kennicott Esq

West Northfield

Ills.

Dr. Sir

Your favor of 29^th is at hand_

Have examined our books but do not find an entry of the Box for M. B. Bateham & Co Columbus Ohio & do not think Mr. Meryl sent it by Express_ Its not having reached its destination up to the 23^d inst is also another infallible evidence that it was not for^d. per Express_

We have no agent at Des Plains, business not having been sufficient heretofore to pay a man for attending to it_ If your business in future is to be considerable or if any suitable man that you could recommend will take an agency then at a commission we will appoint one & furnish him with the necessary books &c. I notice by your circular that you advise shipping by express, for which notice we are obliged to you. Knowing at the

same time that it is for the interest of yourself & patrons to do so in many cases-

In the day of bogus Express Companies it would be well to advise your customers to ship by "American Express"_

I enclose you a circular that we are scattering over the whole western country & Michigan, perhaps the suggestions in it may be of service to yourself-

Yours Respy,

E. Hayden

for the Am. Ex Co

Chicago Ill. March 8th 1858

Dr. J. A Kennicott W Northfield Ill.

Dear Sir, Your favor of the 5th [illegible], has been received. I have been out at my place & my gardner thinks that nearly all the plants may come up & therefore you need not fear my claiming anything, only be sure to sent me in Spring good trees & of the right kind. I would like to get a dozen of your tulip trees, provided you would sell cheap enough.

When I was in Michigan, I bought on the [illegible] lands, "red raspberries," from Beaver Island, "thimbleberries," from North Unity, "sand cherries," from Carp River, "wild gooseberries" from Traverse City "ground cherries" - of the latter I understand they grow also solid in some parts of Illinois, can you let me have some plants of them, & what do you thing of sand cherries? They grow creeping along the shore of Lake Michigan on white sand & shall bear a black sweet cherry similar to black heart.

Please send me also a hundred Asparagus plants. Will the Strawberry tree live in open ground & have you the white blooming? If so send a few.

Very truly yours Julius Crane

Will you favour me with what you think the best selection of Peaches ^{for this neighborhood} from early to late, and price I don't know but that I may be ^wanting some come spring, for to carry out what I now have some intention of Peaches, will be rather an important fruit I will tell you of my proposed plan which is contiⁿgent on my parents determination this winter_ My Father & mother are well up in years, and am myself disqualified physically disqualified for doing farm work, they are about determined to sell a go to England otherwise I propose, as we get many visitors here in summer time, to convert a portion of our grounds into a sort of public summer gardens _ We have already a pretty respectable family Orchard planted at intervals, since we came here four years ago_ with a good sprinkling of high flavoured food vareties, and a garden well plied with small fruits, so we can easily shall only have to go, ^{propogate them} more extensively to put our grounds in as good & ornamental a condition as our small means will admit of to put up a few rustic arbours, and in one year we should be prepared to invest ^{submit our grounds to} the Public Patronage and by making a few gals. of currant wine next sum

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this place will afford them ample chance of comparison and hence a cultivated taste so as to appreciate the superior - Have you the Rostiezer & [Anglolum?] & ^[Desnonnes?] Pears I think I ought to add them to my list what is the price - should like to plant sixty or seventy dwarfs if money was not so shy. believe I must go to Capt. Morris & get some Quinces & work them myself - Excuse my long letter & bad scribble, and

I am, Gentlemen

Yours Respectfully

[illegible] Fare

P. S. Can you inform me when I can obtain a copy of the Transactions of The Northwestern Fruit Growers association at their last session W F

mer we should be able to cater to them ^{the following summer} abundantly of small fruits & cream a bottle of wine occasionally & perhaps some apples, Plums, Cherries, Pears and a few Peaches as many of our trees should bear slight crops by that time, and so would my Grape vines wh I have the Miller's Burgundy, Royal Muscatine, Catawba Isabella & Diana, and hope soon to get the Concord & Delaware- Flowers too must have a plan for attraction, they also can be made at least self supporting by selling boquets to the visitors for say from 12 1/2 to 25 cents each according to selection made and perhaps to complete the whole and observatory some 25 or 30 feet should be erected, the fram ing would do to trellis heavy grapes on. What do you think of the Picture, won't it be more suitable to an invalid and old age, and more remunerative than grain culture. I have solicited the opinion of several of my friends on such a proceeding, they mostly think favourable and say they believe once such an establishment was known, there will be no lack of visitors, many persons would like to make up picknic parties if there was an interesting pace to go to - further Should will it not be a benefit to the public? It is well known to market Cultivators that size and appearance of fruits generally is esteemed more by the masses than quality a large Red

showy apple though so acid & rough as to be unendurable to a cultivated palate will be sought after and appreciated, by the masses, in preference to our most superior fruits this ought not to be. it gives encouragement to cultivate many inferior fruits that ought long ago be consigned to the hades, But how is it to be remedied says some one? Why

by cultivating the palate. taste like other senses need cultivating, which can only be done by comparing the inferior with some standard of excellence, how then will be the place for accquiring a correct taste for I hope to have generally some fruits, in their season, of standard excellence and also some fruit of less merit, and as visitors may obtain any of the fruits grown, excepting immature one, by paying the value of

[Address]

Forwarded

Messrs. Kennicotts Grove Nurseries Northfield, Cook Co. Ills.

[Partial postmark]

[UF?] AN NOV 12 Ill.

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W. Fare Libertyville

Ottawa Ills. November 11, 1858

Dr Kennicott

Dear Sir Enclosed you will find a memorandum of some shrubs & plants which I wish you would send me as soon as [illegible], send me good plants & a [illegible] of the same upon receipt of which I will [illegible] the [illegible] oh [illegible]. Send by Chicago & Rock Island Rail road - some of the plants I desire to set out next week - the remainder in the Spring - Also send [illegible] if you have them, two dozen of some fine Raspberry plants - either one of the following I would like - red [illegible], [illegible] - [illegible] is Red [illegible].

I sent you a small package of grapes; did you get it?

I should have sent for these things much earlier, but sickness in my family has prevented. I suppose it is not too late for [illegible] [illegible] of small set. Shall mend - some other things next spring.

Yours Truly J.H. Nash