328 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



gram were taken not only by teachers from the Agricultural College, who have 

 made their subjects a life study and observation in this and other states, but also 

 by representative farmers who till their own fields and have wrung succeas 

 from the soil by their own efforts. The city people who were not interested in the . 

 proceedings could hardly have failed to catch some of the spirit and enthusiasm 

 for the farm had they been a spectator of the eager cross questioning which fol- 

 lowed each address made. There was something so practical about it, and whether 

 it was horticulture, stock raising, or farm grains, there was something in it all 

 which as vitally concerned them as a banker his securities or a clothier his number 

 of sales. One significant fact developed which is full of suggestiveness for the near 

 future. It was clearly and strongly manifest in the address of Governor Rich on 

 the opening evening, when he felt called upon to reply to the question, "Is the 

 State government worth what it costs?" and was still further emphasized on the 

 closing evening by Prof. Hedrick outlining an entire new tax system. It is not 

 impossible that Prof. Hedrick's plan is a good one. At the recent large tax con- 

 vention which was held in Chicago, the Pennsylvania plan of taxation was eulo- 

 gized without stint, and this was the plan Prof. Hedrick proposed. He would sup- 

 port the State government by specific taxes on corporations, inheritance taxes and 

 taxes on natural monopolies. He would support county and township organiza- 

 tions by taxes assessed on real and personal property, either by appointed officers 

 or at least by those elected to spread the taxes on an entire county, doing away 

 entirely with township assessors. Such a system would vastly simplify tax gath- 

 ering, and, as he urged, avoid the present temptation to undervalue some town- 

 ships and overvalue others. The residents of one county could then say what they 

 were willing to pay for local government without consulting the State or aiding it 

 directly. They would be to blame for their own high or low taxes. The Institute 

 was an unqualified success, and the local managers, as well as Mr. Butterfield of 

 the College, deserve great credit. The $5,000 contributed towards these sixty-eight 

 Institutes by the legislature was wisely spent. — Grand Rapids Herald, Feb. 16, 1896. 



END OF THE "ROUND-UP. 



With the felicitous speech of ex-Governor Luce last evening, the proceedings of 

 the "Round-up" Institute of the farmers ended. The record of the meeting will 

 go down in the farmers' history of Michigan as the most successful affair of the 

 kind ever known. The subjects discussed embraced a large share of all that 

 directly or indirectly interests a farmer, while the method of conducting the pro- 

 gram can be defined in the single word "successful." The proceedings were opened 

 by Gov. Rich and closed by ex-Governor Luce, while the other gentlemen on 

 the program are men, who, in their respective lines, have attained the highest 

 degree of success. They were selected for the purpose of telling their coworkers 

 the secrets of their own success; and the clear, concise, and able manner in which 

 they did this speaks well for the farmers of Michigan from an intellectual and 

 educational point of view. During the convention experienced men discussed the 

 proper soils for different crops, the rotation of crops, the preparation of the soil 

 to receive the seed and its cultivation in time of growth. Successful cattlemen 

 were there to explain the specific qualities of the different breeds of animals and 

 tell from experience how to procure the best beef and butter at the least expense. 

 Dairymen were there to instruct in the process of butter making. Fruit growers 

 were present whose success in their line has reached the boundaries of many 

 states. They told, in their own plain way, how to trim a tree, how to cultivate it, 

 how to pick the fruit, how to pack it, and how to ship it. Then, as each fruit and 

 vegetable and tree and grain is subject to attack and destruction by germs, worms, 

 flies and other agencies and diseases, the best means for detecting the presence 

 of danger and of destroying its elements were discussed — so that for the destruc- 

 tion of some pests, more than half a dozen good remedies were suggested. Alto- 

 gether nobody, however efiicient and successful he might be in farming, could 

 attend such an Institute as the one just closed without gleaning at least a little 

 information on some points.— Grand Rapids Democrat, February 15, 1896. 



