DAIRY AND SEED IMPROVEMENT MEETINGS. I4I 



and Company ; they were invited into the meeting to give their 

 views as to how this increased freight tariff would affect the 

 dairy industry of New England. Also, representatives of the 

 Boston and Maine and Maine Central Railroads, and John 

 Orcutt of the Boston Chamber of Commerce, were present. 

 After listening to these gentlemen, the committee went into 

 executive session and the matter was thoroughly discussed. It 

 was thought best to organize a permanent committee consisting 

 of one member from each of the New England States: 

 Richard Pattee of New Hampshire, Willis Bartlett of Massa- 

 chusetts, Mr. Smith of Vermont, and the Commissioner of 

 Agriculture (Mr. Guptill) of Maine, were chosen as the mem- 

 bers of this committee. On account of other business, Mr. 

 Guptill declined to serve, and I was substituted as the member 

 from Maine. 



The committee then adjourned to meet in Boston on February 

 16. 



At the meeting on February i6, Richard Pattee was elected 

 chairman of the committee and the executive officers, and it 

 was voted that Mr. Pattee should give his whole time to the 

 matter until the end of the hearing. Willis Bartlett was elected 

 treasurer. 



The committee adjourned, to meet at the call of the chair- 

 man, and each member of the committee was instructed to 

 solicit funds in their several states for the use of the com- 

 mittee at the hearing ; as far as I know, Maine and New 

 Hampshire were the only states that responded — from Maine, 

 the State Grange and the Dairymen's Association each con- 

 tributed one hundred dollars ; from the New Hampshire State 

 Grange, were contributed one hundred dollars and from the 

 New Hampshire Dairymen's Association, three hundred dollars. 

 It seems that Vermont thought best to go it alone, under the 

 leadership of their Commissioner of Agriculture, Mr. Brigham, 

 and they certainly put up a good fight. Massachusetts went 

 Quaker meeting style ; whenever the spirit moved, someone 

 would be heard. 



We met again in Boston on the day of the opening of the 

 hearing, and I think there were nearly fifty dift'erent parties 

 entered for appearance. Among those from Maine were the 

 Dairymen's Association and the State Grange. R. L. Cum- 



