234 



STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



Membership County Institute Societies. — Coacluded. 



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 



In closing our four years of Institute work we desire once for all to 

 acknowledge the eflScient and self-sacrificing services of the great ma- 

 jority of presidents and secretaries of County Institute Societies. With- 

 out their energy, intelligence and interest no system of Institute work 

 could be made a success in Michigan. Most of them served without price 

 — their only reward the consciousness of work well done. It has been 

 A genuine pleasure to become acquainted with this large baud of intelli- 

 gent farmers, and it has proved one of the items that have made the work 

 interesting. 



Nor is it out of place to speak a word of praise for our State speakers. 

 When the Institute work began, there was hardly a man in the State, 

 outside of the Agricultural College, who had had experience in addressing 

 Farmers' Institutes. Today we have a corps of workers that will com- 

 pare with those of any State in the country. The work they have done 

 for Michigan agriculture cannot be calculated in dollars and cents They 

 have left in their wake not only valuable information, but inspiration, 

 kind words, and the impression that always comes from contact with 

 strong men and Avoraen. We are proud to have been co-laborers mth 

 them. 



As is well known, the financial end of the work has been largely re- 

 lieved by the hearty co-operation of the railroads of the State in grant- 

 ing half rates to our workers. Hotel proprietors, also, have almost uni- 

 formly assisted in the same manner. Newspapers of the State have al- 

 ways been apparently eager and glad to assist in their respective counties. 



While undoubtedly the Institute system which has been built up in 

 Michigan during the past four years has its weaknesses, we believe it is 

 a system organized on right principles, ndapted to the needs of Michigan, 

 and capable of large expansion of service v.ithout greatly increased ex- 

 penditure of money. We believe the work it has done forMichigan agri- 



