INTRODUCTION. 



To the Honorable Senate 



and House of Representatives: 



I have the honor to transmit herewith, the Annual Report of 

 the Maine Board of Agriculture for the year 1876. 



The annual meeting' was held at Lemont Hall, in Brunswick, 

 February 8th, 9th and 10th, 18T6, at which the following officers 

 were duly elected : President, J. E. Shaw of Hampden ; Vice 

 President, Ira E. Getchell of Vassalboro' ; Secretary, Samuel L. 

 Boardman of Augusta. The usual committees for the year were 

 appointed, the new members qualified and took their places at the 

 Board ; after which an eloquent and appropriately worded address 

 of welcome was given by Hon. Charles T. Oilman of Brunswick. 

 The public exercises then opened with the reading of a paper by 

 the Secretary, on the place which the horse should occupy at our 

 agricultural exhibitions. This paper was prepared in accordance 

 with the instructions of the Board, and will be found in full at 

 page 120 of this volume. After its reading, a general discussion 

 of the same was engaged in, which occupied the entire forenoon. 

 With a few exceptions, the speakei-s endorsed the views presented 

 in the essay. So far as breeding was concerned, it was believed 

 it should be the aim of our farmers to breed a good moving, stylish, 

 well proportioned, kind, serviceable class of horses, of good 

 size, good for the road, the farm, the heavy load — with good speed 

 added to other desirable qualities — and not waste so much effort 

 in the endeavor to raise a two-thirty horse from material that will 

 hardly produce a three-minute one. Concerning the matter of 

 speed, there was little diversity of opinion, and in the main the 

 position taken in the paper was supported. Mr. Gilbert said it 

 was much easier to find fault with than to correct the handling of 

 horses at exhibitions. He said that at the present time we could 

 not have horse trots without some evils ; and he thought agricul- 

 tural exhibitions should be conducted without horse racing; sup- 



