102 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



But, apart from any considerations of advantage to the State, 

 sucli associations promote the highest social feelings. The 

 farmer is necessarily more or less isolated. His pursuits do 

 not bring those engaged in them into contact with other men^ 

 as many other occupations do. This remark applies with 

 especial force to the smaller and less populous towns where 

 the facilities for social improvement, by means of libraries, 

 lectures, and constant contact of mind with mind, are compara- 

 tively few. The establishment of Farmers' Clubs, therefore, 

 would be doubly advantageous ; it would benefit the State by 

 securing accurate agricultural statistics, and the town or neigh- 

 borhood, by giving opportunities of social intercourse and 

 mental cultivation to those who would gladly profit by them. 



"When the club is once established, and a foundation is laid 

 for a valuable library, it will grow rapidly ; and though there 

 may, at first, be but few leading minds sufficiently interested to 

 work for its success, they will soon be found, and vigor and 

 enthusiasm will be shown in every discussion entered into by 

 the club. When the mind is once deeply interested in any 

 subject, it often exerts powers it was not itself conscious of 

 possessing before, and experience of the good effects of Far- 

 mers' Clubs will show with how much advantage this principle 

 may be applied to agricultural investigations. 



These considerations, I think, justify the conclusion that the 

 importance of such associations can hardly be over-estimated. 



The committee of a Farmers' Club speak of these associ- 

 ations as follows : — 



" In conclusion, allow us to call your attention to the means 

 which, in our opinion, after a practical test of four years, will 

 be found more efficient than any other for elevating the condi- 

 tion of the farmers of Massachusetts. We allude to the forma- 

 tion of Farmers' Clubs, or town associations. The distinguish- 

 ing feature of such organizations is the social meetings for the 

 discussion of subjects connected with agriculture. The great 

 mass of the working farmers of Massachusetts are comparatively 

 ignorant men, and one trait is common to very ignorant and 

 very learned men, viz. : a strong attachment to certain theories 

 or hobbies, which stand ever in the way of impartial investiga- 

 tion; and we think that no plan can be devised which so 



