No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 507 



DR. ROTHROCK: Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen: I did not under- 

 stand that I was expected to speak. I just came in from the moun- 

 tains. I am very glad to be with you again, and very glad to meet 

 you all. I do not come now in an official capacity, but come because 

 I want to see you. 



There was one point that I listened to with a good deal of interest, 

 and that was in regard to alfalfa, or rather, the address on alfalfa; 

 I just came in when you were hearing it. I know a good deal about 

 the difficulty of growing alfalfa. I have made several attempts 

 myself to start alfalfa and unfortunately have been unsuccessful; 

 but a number of years ago I was up in Pike county in this Common- 

 wealth, and in front of one place where I was stopping, a gentleman 

 Jrought a little sprig of something, and I looked at it, and I said, 

 why that is alfalfa. I said, How did it get here? Did you ever sow 

 alfalfa? No, they had never sown alfalfa. It was an old lawn, an 

 old sod which had been in existence probably for fifty or sixty years. 

 I said, 1 want you to mark that sprig of alfalfa and see what becomes 

 of it, and as far as I was able to trace it, that sprig of alfalfa has 

 been growing and increasing its area. I suggested that I thought 

 it might be due to the fact that the seed had been dropped right in 

 the grass, in the soil. I tried that, but I did not get a good result. 

 I tried it at different seasons of the year, but did not get a good 

 result. Evidently that alfalfa was dropped in among the grass. 1 

 know the value of alfalfa. I know it is of great value and that it is 

 a great western crop. It grows down in New Mexico, and in South 

 America it is in common use, and has been for years in Southern 

 Europe, particularly. Now I would like to ask the gentleman who 

 addressed us on alfalfa, if he can give us any explanation of this 

 Pike county phenomenon? I do think that if alfalfa could be started 

 that an immense gain would be had. I know that we need all those 

 things. 



I am not one of those who believe in the Malthusian doctrine that 

 it is necessary for wars to lessen the number of the human race, 

 and sweep away the inhabitants of the earth. I do not believe in 

 that doctrine. 



Just at this point, the Governor of the Commonwealth came in. 



The CHAIRMAN: I am glad to introduce to you the Governor 

 of this Commonwealth, Samuel W. Pennypacker; although it is 

 hardly necessary, as I think you all know him. 



GOVERNOR PENNYPACKER: Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen, I 

 liaive been very busy to-day and have had no time at all for the 

 preparation necessary to meet with you, and it only remains for me 

 to say that it is an exceedingly great pleasure to me to be with you. 



Sometime ago as I was on my way down toward the Perkiomen, 

 I met a man in the station at Reading, and he came to talk to me, 

 and I talked with him, and the matter was dismissed from my mind; 

 but I heard afterwards that he had given a report of the interview 

 and he told his friends, referring to me, that I was the most unas- 

 suming person he had ever met; that I looked just like an old farmer. 

 Now, whether that was more complimentary to me or less compli- 

 mentary to you, I leave you to judge for yourselves. 



It seems to me that in one most important respect, the occupa- 

 tion of a farmer differs from all other avocations of life. You hear 



