BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 2S5 



Betokt on Topic No. 8. 



TliG committee charged -with the consideration of the bill at the 

 close of the Appendix to the Secretary's Report, beg leave to submit 

 the following : 



That, while the plan proposed, of endowing an Agricultural Pro- 

 fessorship in each of our Colleges, possesses undoubted merits, and 

 would greatly aid in laying broad and deep the foundations for future 

 advancement, we yet believe, from an examination of the subject, and 

 conference with gentlemen connected with our Colleges, that in the 

 form proposed, it is open to practical objections of a serious nature. 



Your committee further report that they deem the Normal school a 

 more urgent necessity of the State at this time, than the educational 

 movement proposed in the bill ; and they believe that in connection 

 wdth a Normal school, whenever put in operation, there can be estab- 

 lished (and at much less expense to the State,) a Professorship of 

 Agricultural Chemistry, w^hich will answer our aim equally Avell, 

 together Avith the farther advantage of training our teachers to impart 

 irstruction in this department, in the common schools. We therefore 

 recommend no further action of this Board in regard to the bill, than 

 the submission of the views of the Board to the appropriate commit- 

 tees of the Legislature. 



S. L. GOODALE, "J 



CjIAftLES J. GiLMAX, | 



Darius Forbes, )• Committee. 



Aldex Jackson, j 



Nathan Pattangall, j 



Report on Topic No. 9. 



The committee to whom -vvas referred the inquiry whether it be ad- 

 visable to recommend legislative action to encourage the underdrain- 

 ing of lands in this State, beg leave to report as follows : 



That while they are convinced, by observation and experience, that 

 undcrdraining, judiciously practiced, (upon lands which suffer from a 

 sftrplus of water on or beneath the surface, and so need to be relieved 

 of the presence of an element, indispensable and invaluable in itself, 

 yet noxious from position and excess,) would result in a higher degree 

 of fertility and of profit, than can be obtained without it, they yet see no 

 reason why legislative action should be invoked in favor of one mode 

 of improvement rather than of another, or indeed of any ; they believe 

 that such action v/ould be more legitimately employed in diffusing 

 knowledge throughout the community upon this and other feasible 

 modes of improvement, trusting alone to the pecuniary interest and 



