No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 153 



Northumberland county has credentials but has only recently re- 

 ceived them, and they not being before the Committee, we could not 

 act on them. I would move that Mr. Eschbach be allowed a seat with 

 us, and to act with us during this meeting. 



Motion seconded by Secretary Critchfield. 



The CHAIR: Would it not be well to amend that to this extent, 

 providing his credentials are in due form. 



The motion of Mr. Heir was agreed to. 



SECRETARY CRITCHFIELD: Mr. Chairman and Members of 

 the Board: It will be remembered that the Secretary was requested 

 at our last meeting to appoint committees on fruit and vegetables. 

 This of course is an unseasonable time for the exhibition of fruit, yet 

 we do not know but what some member of the Board may have 

 brought some fruit here that was kept in cold storage, and I do not 

 know of anything more pleasant to look upon. I wish to announce 

 that I have appointed, with the consent of the parties, Messrs. J. H. 

 Funk of Berks county, J. H. Ledy of Franklin county, two of the 

 leading fruit growers of our State, and the Chairman, Mr. Hutchison, 

 and Mr. Stout of Schuylkill county, and Mr. Miller of Somerset 

 county, to act as a committee on vegetables. 



I want to say further, that Mr. Temple assures me that ample 

 arrangements have been made for receiving and displaying any fruit 

 or vegetables that may be brought in during our session so that if 

 any of you have samples to bring, you can bring them in. 



The CHAIR: I see in the audience some Chester county people, 

 among them my good friend, Mr. Downing, who has been associated 

 with us for many years. I hope he will have a word to say to us. 



MR. DOWNING: Mr. Chairman, I am very much gratified to meet 

 the members of the State Board again and especially so in my home — 

 near to iny home. There are some yet remaining in the Board that 

 I remember with a good deal of affection, although the members are 

 now mostly strangers to me. At the same time I will say that it 

 is with great pleasure that I welcome you all to Chester county. 

 Chester county people are like other people. I find when I travel 

 that the people all over the country are good people on the average. 

 It is so all over the country. I find among the young people in street 

 cars both courtesy and kindness. If you go into a bank or into 

 the homes of the people in the United States and get a little in touch 

 with them, they will be interested in you at once. We are just like 

 all our people, good-hearted and all that. 



I hope really you will enjoy yourselves while you are here and I 

 hope that I may have the pleasure of meeting yon all again. 

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