SECRETARY'S REPORT. 7 



two Boards are unanimous in their views, and an arrange- 

 ment is contemplated by which the Trustees of the Reform 

 School will, at a stipulated price, furnish boys to work upon 

 the farm, and to a much greater extent than it has been 

 heretofore found expedient or profitable to employ them in 

 agricultural labor ; and the Board of Agriculture will supply 

 the institution with milk, vegetables, and other needed pro- 

 ducts of the farm, do the cartage of coal, &g. Thus the labor 

 of the boys and the products of the farm will be applied for 

 the benefit of the State substantially, as heretofore, only under 

 different directions. The bulk of the farm will undoubtedly 

 continue to be carried on under the usual improved modes of 

 cultivation, while a small portion will be devoted to experi- 

 . ments of which we have spoken." 



The result was, that an Act was passed by the Legislatnre of 

 1854, authorizing the transfer, in accordance with the petition. 

 A contract was duly made expressing the wishes and intentions 

 both of the Trustees and the Board of Agriculture, and in 

 accordance with the law, and since the first of April, 1854, the 

 farm has been under the charge of the Board of Agriculture. 



It will be obvious, on a moment's reflection, that the farm is 

 a necessary adjunct to the Reform School ; on account of the 

 paramount importance of the school itself, the farm must be 

 cultivated and carried on in the manner most useful and bene- 

 ficial to that institution — its own interests being of secondary 

 importance. In all the operations of the Board therefore, in 

 all crops cultivated and all labor employed on the farm, regard 

 must first be had to the wants of the school. 



Under such circumstances it would evidently be impossible 

 to make what is technically called a " model farm," or, indeed, 

 an experimental farm, in any proper sense of- that term. The 

 true course must be simply to cultivate the larger part of the 

 land in a plain, practical, farmer4ike manner, after the most 

 approved methods now known, and to subject only a small part 

 of it to experiments, such as have been suggested above. This 

 plan has been adopted, and it has thus far been' carried out, as 

 it is believed, to the satisfaction both of the Trustees and of 

 the Board. 



With reference to the experiments to be instituted, it was not, 

 and ought not to be expected that the anticipated results would 



