FARMERS' INSTITUTES. 9 



pie to the Department of Agriculture and the various institutions of learn- 

 ing and experimentation were bunched into the first two days. Fortu- 

 liateiy. as the program below Avill show, some of the most distinguished 

 gentlemen interested in the topics, men of national reputation, found it 

 possible to be present. There was thus brought together on one program 

 representatives of the various forces engaged in the education and moral 

 uplift of the citizens of the State. The fact that each force thus repre- 

 sented was but one factor in a grand scheme was made apparent. The 

 jtrogram at the county institutes had prepared the delegates for this joint 

 Dieeting since on nearly all of them the great majority of the topics found 

 on the round-up program had been discussed. 



Not the least important work of the county institutes is to teach the 

 local communities the very patent fact that the school and church, the 

 farmers' organizations and the municipal or township government are 

 separate forces united in one aim. the linancial. intellectual and moral bet- 

 terment of the community. The same idea was kept in mind in the makeup 

 of the program of the joint meeting. The thanks of those who were per- 

 mitted to attend the joint meeting and of all readers of this report are 

 due to Prof. H. C. Adams of the university for his suggestion of the advis- 

 ability of a joint meeting of these tAvo organizations, for his invaluable 

 assistance in making up the program, and. finally, for his service to the 

 State in bringing to the college many of the distinguished speakers which 

 graced the program on this occasion. 



I am glad to report that the attendance at this annual meeting was 

 very large, fully as large as last year. It would be impossible to name 

 the jjarts of the program of most interest and benefit. The audience was 

 very largely composed of farmers sent here as delegates from the county 

 institute societies or from granges or farmers" clubs. These men are 

 primarily citizens of the commonwealth. They listened, therefore, with 

 the greatest interest and enthusiasm to the discussion of economic, educa- 

 tional and forestry questions, as well as to those related to farmers' 

 organizations, the movement of population, the relation of the church 

 to rural communities and the everyday topics concerning methods of 

 managing herds, orchards and fields. 



Your attention is called to the exercises Avhich occupied the morning 

 hours of the institute days before the beginning of the general sessions 

 in the armory. 



All visitors to the college interested in domestic science, whether women 

 or men, were invited to attend the classes in cooking and sewing in the 

 women's building. These classes began at eight o'clock. I am glad to 

 report that a large number of visiting delegates found their way to this 

 building at this seemingly unfavorable hour and were much benefited 

 by the discussions there, in some of which they took an active part. 



In the same way. those interested in horticulture came to the college 

 early in the morning to attend the lectures and demonstrations by Profes- 

 sors L, R. Taft and U. P. Hedrick at the horticultural laboratory. By 

 means of the stereopticon the processes of budding and grafting were 

 described and illustrated in detail. Utilizing the college orchards, and, 

 again, using the stereopticon. the pruning of different classes of fruit 

 trees under different conditions and for different purposes was fully 

 illustrated. On the third morning the subject of spraying, insecticides 

 and fungicides was gone over and the topic brought up to date. 

 2 



