190 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



Aud now, Mr. President, having witnessed the past, and ventured to look forward to a hope- 

 ful i'uture, I beg to saj' that it is with pleasure and pride that I now behold, not the nucleus of 

 the new and sparsely settled colony, whei'e the germ of civilization is just beginning to biid, not 

 merely the center of a rude population of ten or trfteeu years' growth, but the apparent ceiiter 

 of an empire — the center of a great and flourishing State, having all the signs of wealth, com- 

 merce, and a vigorous and cultivated growth, displaying almost every product whieli industry 

 can earn or refinement enjoy ; not regressive or stationary, but in a state of healthy and per- 

 maneiit advancement. And to what siiall we ascribe the causes of all this change? What has 

 ■changed tlie tumultuous scenes of 1S49 — the gaihbling hells, that made night hideous in almost 

 ever}^ town or public place — from a moral chaos to order, the abode of virtue, refinement, and 

 civilization ? Certainly not the temporary multitude who rushed in by hundreds of thousands 

 to grasp our gold treasures and go away, but to the permanent citizens, the Tamilies, the pres- 

 ence of lovely women, and the arts and sciences and institutions which these have caused to bo 

 established here. 



And finally, Mr. President, of all your institutions, none has greater claim-s for usefulness 

 and on the gratitude of the people, and none portray with more certainty the energ}', the 

 genius, the skill, the industry, and the intelligence of your people, than this noble temple 

 erected to the genius of agriculture. Its founders and those v»-iio sustain and perpetuate it 

 demand no j^raise from me. To them these fruits and flowers, this golden grain, these works of 

 art aud skill, these stately walls, and this bannered eanojjy are a more glorious monument. 



George F. Nourse read the annual poem. It was a lively, witty, 

 and historical sketch of the country, and its pastoral progress since 

 J849, in rhyme. 



The amount of premiums awarded in 1860 was $9,254. 



The eighth annual meeting of the Society was held at the Pavilion 

 on the 13th day of January, 1861. The first business tra'nsacted was 

 the adoption of the amendment to the Constitution spread upon the 

 minutes at the last annual meeting, providing that " the Society shall 

 hold an annual fair at the City of Sacramento." This amendment 

 was adopted by a unanimous vote. 



Dr. John F. Morse stated to the meeting that some gentlemen in 

 Sacramento, in view of the fact that Sacramento w^as to be the perma- 

 nent location of the State Fairs, had subscribed money and purchased 

 six blocks of land with a view of presenting it to the State Agricul- 

 tural Society in order to have good stock grounds. The ground was 

 located on E and H and Twentieth and Twent^^-second Streets in this 

 city, and if the County Supervisors acted as it was thought they 

 would and took in the streets betw^een these different blocks, the 

 whole ground would make an area of twenty acres which would be 

 donated to the Society to use it for the purposes for which it was" pro- 

 posed to grant it. The land was perhaps the most exhaustless rich 

 soil in this vicinity. The Society by vote indicated its willingness to 

 accept the donation, and passed a vote of thanks to the donors. 



•The following named gentlemen were elected as officers of the 

 Society for the ensuing term: 



Jerome C. Davis, of Yolo County, President; and Vice-Presidents, 

 Abel Stearns, Los Angeles; Pablo de la Guerra, Santa Barbara; F. F. 

 Fargo, Alameda; M. D. Boruck, San Francisco; E. S. Holden, San 

 Joaquin; A. P. Smith, Sacramento; A. Haraszthy, Sonoma; J. F. 

 Ryan, Humboldt; J. P. Haynes, Del Norte; C. Justis, Sutter; J. R. 

 Crandall, Placer; J. A. Banks, San Francisco; Samuel A. Merritt, 

 Mariposa; A. Delano, Nevada; R. J. Walsh, Colusa; A. Haywood, 

 Amador; John Thompson, Plumas. Additional Managers, Peter 

 Donahue, San Francisco; Thomas Hansbrow, Sacramento; W. W. 

 Light, Sacramento. Corresponding Secretary, O. C. Wheeler, Sacra- 

 mento. Recording Secretary, N. A. PI. Ball, Sacramento. Treasurer, 

 A. K. Grim, Sacramento. 



The new Board, upon its organization, took immediate steps for 

 completing arrangements for acceptance and occupation of the land 



