SEVENTH ANNUAL REPORT 



OF THE 



SECRETARY 



OF THE 



STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



To the Senate and House of Representatives of the Common- 

 wealth of Massachusetts : — 



The contract between the State Board of Agriculture and the 

 Trustees of the State Reform School, by which the farm con- 

 nected with the institution at Westborough was placed in charge 

 of the former, having expired by limitation on the first of 

 April, 1859, the labors of the Board there ceased on that date. 

 The details of the management of the farm up to November 30, 

 1858, were given in my last Annual Report to the legislature, 

 and as the operations from that time up to the expiration of 

 the contract were naturally limited during the winter to the 

 ordinary care of the stock, it seems unnecessary to dwell any 

 farther upon them than to state that the closing up of the 

 accounts of the farm will be found in the Appendix, to which 

 reference is respectfully made. 



The attention of the Board, during the past year, has been 

 occupied chiefly in the collection of statistical and other infor- 

 mation upon various subjects relating to agriculture, and the 

 results of its investigations are embodied in the Reports of 

 the committees to which special topics were assigned, which 

 were presented and accepted at the annual meeting held at the 

 State House, on the third of January, 1860. 



