54 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



farmers from the section of the State liaving as nearly as possible the 

 same cliiuiitic and soil conditions as those existin*;' in the connty wliere 

 the institute is licld. W'lien men ^o to a distant i>arl of tlie Slate they can 

 hardly adjnst their experiences to the conditions existing near the 

 institute. It is necessary also that the speakers shall be farmers, both 

 successful financially and accustomed to practicing the best systems of 

 agriculiurc. 



Sixty-four two-day institutes were held in as many counties. Of one- 

 day meetings there were eighty-two. The attendance averaged 100 per 

 session as against 158 the year }>revious. The one-day work is being 

 carrit'd faither and fai-ther back from the large villages and the attempt 

 is made to interest farmers who have few advantages in the way of 

 meeting their fellows or studying from a scientific standpoint the prob- 

 lems with which they are confronted. Naturally, in these so-called 

 back districts, large audiences are impossible, and the size of the audi- 

 ence is no measure of the value of the meeting to the i^rogress of the 

 community. Owing to the high price of lumber the farmers went early 

 into the woods in the fall of 18!J'J, and the attendance at the meetings in 

 the northern part of the lower peninsula was small. 



The weather was not bad on the dates of most of the meetings and 

 the attendance throughout southern Michigan was eminently satisfac- 

 tory where the advertising had been projjerly done. There is a marked 

 tendency toAvard specializing on the j)art of farmers and a call for better 

 and more thorough discussion of special tojncs by the workers. This 

 tendency is one to be encouraged. It has, however, increased the diffi- 

 culty of getting workers sufficiently trained. In fruit sections, methods 

 of fighting insects and fungus enemies have taken the place fo.i-merly 

 occupied by general discussions of the relative advantages of the various 

 kinds of fruits. Where mixed farming prevails there are calls for 

 specialists along lines of live stock or special crops. 



Institutes were jjlanned in all counties in the State except Baraga, 

 Delta, Dickinson, Gogebic, Houghton, Kalamazoo, Keweenaw, Leelanau, 

 Mackinac, Marquette, Missaukee, Montmorency, Ontonagon, Presqua 

 Isle, Koscommou and Schoolcraft, in none of which an institute society 

 was organized. 



Four one-day meetings were held in Alcona, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, 

 Eaton, Huron, Ingham, Isabella and Oakland counties; three one-day 

 meetings in Charlevoix, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Livingston, Manistee, Mason, 

 Montcalm and St. Clair counties; two one-day meetings in Barry, Bay, 

 Grand Traverse. Jackson, Kalkaska, Xewago and Van Buren counties; 

 finally the following counties had but one-day meetings each: Alger, 

 Cass, Delta, Iosco, Emmet, Genesee, Luce, Midland, Muskegon and 

 Ottawa. One-dav meetings were therefore held in thirtv-four counties. 



The State Board of Agriculture accepted the invitation of the Wash- 

 tenaw County Society to hold the sixth annual State Round-up Institute 

 at Ann Arbor, beginning February 27 and ending March 2, 1900. Unfor- 

 tunately, a violent snow storm set in at the beginning of the second day, 

 rendering both the railroads and highways impassable. The railroads 

 gave a rate of one fare for the round trip. The people of Ann Arbor 

 and the President and other officers of the University made ample prep- 

 aration for the care of visiting delegates and the welfare of the institute 

 in general. Convenient, commodious and well-lighted halls were pro- 

 vided. 



