292 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



sion of the topics presented. The local officers of the association were 

 very energetic and to their effort was due much of the success of the 

 Institute. The good people of the city made everyone welcome, and 

 when the Institute closed, warmly pressed all interested in this good 

 work to "come again." 



BAY COUNTY — BAY CITY. 



The Institute at Bay City was a good one, though fewer farmers were 

 present than we expected to see. The hall was never comfortably 

 warmed, and perhaps this prevented some from attending the meetings. 

 It is the common experience of Institutes in Michigan that if we want 

 to get near the farmers and call them out and interest them, we must 

 seek them, not in cities, but in the small villages or in the country. 



BENZIE COUNTY FRANKFORT. 



The Institute held in Frankfort was considered a success. The chair- 

 man, Mr. P. G. Holden, was awake to the interests of the occasion and 

 kept matters moving along briskly and to the point. The local talent 

 was well represented and did its part commendably. Music, one of the 

 greatest aids to the interests of an Institute, was furnished by the Ben- 

 zonia band. Music was good and there was plenty of it. The hall was 

 not well calculated for such an occasion, but the patience of the audience 

 was good, and though each session was crowded the order was excellent 

 and the people good natured. We would suggest that the citizens of 

 any town where an Institute is held should show their interest by a good 

 attendance of the business men and women. Agriculture and trade in 

 towns are intimately connected, and both should take an interest in that 

 which will prove of interest to both town and country people. There is 

 no doubt that much good will result from the work done in this Institute. 



BERRIEN COUNTY — ST. JOSEPH. 



At St. Joseph the conditions were much like those at Hart, but being 

 at one side of the county the attendance was largely local. Another 

 reason for this was that the southern and eastern portions of the county 

 are largely devoted to general farming, while the program was for the 

 most part made up of fruit topics, particularly adapted to the needs 

 of the people in the vicinity of St. Joseph. As might be expected the 

 subjects of peach and plum culture, and the related topics of cultivation, 

 irrigation, and spraying, brought out the largest number of questions, 

 but the papers relating to taxation and currency led to animated discus- 

 sions. The attendence was good, especially at the afternoon sessions. 



BRANCH COUNTY — COLDTVATER, 



A question box had been placed at the entrance door of the church 

 parlors where the Institute audience assembled, but it was found to be a 

 useless piece of furniture, for every listener was a question box himself 



