No. 7. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 463 



Wednesday Afternoon, January 25, 1905. 



Meeting was called to order by Vice President Hutchison. * 



MB. RODGERS: Mr. Chairman, I have attended quite a number 

 of meetings where the standing committees have not made written 

 reports. They have made verbal reports. I therefore wish to offer 

 the following resolution: 



Resolved, That hereafter all annual reports of specialists of the 

 Board and chairman of standing committees shall be in writing and 

 shall not occupy more than 15 minutes in reading. 



The resolution was adopted. 



The CHAIR: I see present, Worthy Master Hill of the Pennsyl- 

 vania State Grrange, and if there isn't any business just now, I 

 would call on him to say a word on some subject that may come 

 to his mind. 



MR. HILL: Mr. Chairman, Members of the State Board of Agri- 

 culture: I am very glad to meet at this time the members of the 

 State Board, because we are working, in a great many respects, 

 along lines that are parallel and are similar. At the present 

 session of the Legislature, a number of bills will be presented 

 of. more or less interest to all of us, on which we ought to be 

 united. It occurs to me that the sentiment in our State now 

 affecting agricultural interests is certainly in good shape, and if we 

 manifest to the members of the Legislature an earnest and united 

 desire for the accomplishment of some specific legislation, it can 

 probably be secured at this session of the Legislature. 



As a representative of the Grange, I want to state to you that 

 our organization is especially interested in legislation to give the 

 trolley companies a right to carry freight in this State. There are 

 only one or two states in the Union in which that right is denied, 

 and it seems to me that there is no excuse for our not having it. 

 There will be a bill introduced to give trolley companies the right 

 of eminent domain. I am disposed to think that most of our farmers 

 are disinclined to give trolley companies this right, which would 

 permit them to take land for their tracks whenever they are disposed, 

 and even to use the public highways for their particular benefit. I 

 think the highways of our State should be reserved for the use of 

 the traveling public generally, and not be monopolized by private 

 corporations. 



Then we are interested in enlarging our educational facilities in 

 Pennsylvania. It is true that we have quite a liberal appropria- 

 tion now, some eleven millions of dollars, although that has been 

 diverted to some extent, as Normal schools and township high 

 schools are being maintained from it. This is not anywhere nearly 

 suflScient to meet the needs of these worthy institutions; I say in- 

 stitutions advisedly, because farmers ought to have the privilege 

 and the right to have the higher educational advantages at their 



