DECEMBER MEETING. 215 



Thomas Wild, Berlin. — 1 have had a good deal of experience in raising straw- 

 berries, and am satisfied that a single full cro[) of berries is all that a piece of 

 land will })rolitably grow, witiiout a period of respite. By tiiis I do not mean 

 entire rest from all croi)S, but let there be a i)eriod of several years in which 

 the soil is employed in growing other crops. I prefer to get the land after 

 strawberries into clover as soon as practicable, and there is nothing that will 

 bring land into shape for a second crop of strawberries lilie a soil used for pas- 

 ture, and finally turned under with a good growtli above and below ground to 

 be used as a fertilizer. Strawberries are very exhaustive and wheat after them 

 will be a meagre crop generally. 



Mr. Ilanford. — I am in favor of a rotation of crops not only in farming but 

 in small fruit growing, but I am not in favor of this sort of management to the 

 exclusion of abundant manuring. The fact of the business is, if the rotation 

 be never so skillfully arran2,'ed and there is a continuous takins: awav with no 

 return, it is a pretty hollow affair, and no matter how many years intervene 

 between the same crop as grown upon a piece of land, the soil will be very little 

 better fitted for it than if it followed closely with no rotation. The motto for 

 us all is: Manure in abundance in return for tliat which we take from 

 the soil. 



The President then announced the following committees : 



On Fruits — Messrs. Stearn.«, A. G. Giilley, and J. W. Humphrey. 



On Plants and Floioers — Messrs. Geo. Taj-lor, K. Haigh, Jr., and Mrs. Chapman. 



On Besohitions — Hon. J. G. Ramsdell, Prof. W. J. Beal, and C. A. Dutton. 



A recess was taken until evening. 



MEETING OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE DEC. 4Tn, 1877. 



The committee was called to order by President Lyon. Members present, — 

 Messrs. Chilson, Keynolds, Parmelee, and Garfield. 



The Secretary called up the matter of a joint exhibition Avith the State Agri- 

 cultural Society for 18 T8. 



On motion, it was decided to again exhibit Mith the State Agricultural Soci- 

 ety, provided terms similar to those of 1877 could be agreed upon. 



It was thonglit best, however, to add by some means about $300 to the jjre- 

 mium list. 



President Lyon and Secretary Garfield were selected to meet with the execu- 

 tive committee of the State Agricultural Society, and all matters of negotiation 

 were put in their hands with power to act. 



On motion, the Secretary was instructed to immediately look after a place in 

 the new capitol in which to jireserve our books and I'ecords, and to take meas- 

 ures immediately to put the reports on hand where they will be safe. 



A resolution of gratitude to Prof. Prescott, of the State University, Byron 

 D. llalsted, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Prof. Prentiss, of Cornell \5m- 

 versity, for articles written for our report of 1877, was unanimously passed. . 



Mr. Chilson offered the following resolution, which was adopted : 



Besolved, That all money in the treasury after paying all demands against 

 the society up to January 1, 1877, be invested in plates, clasps, and cards for 

 the use of the society at its annual expositions, provided that a sum not less 

 than $50 remain in the hands of the Treasurer for contingent expenses. 



