184 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
On motion of Mr. Packard, the Executive Committee was in- 
structed to plan with the Superintendent of Grounds a proper or- 
ganization for the work during the State Fair, to the end that the 
force may be allotted to the several departments in the way of car- 
penters, electricians, and carts or wagons to remove the excrement, 
and the cleaning of the grounds; and that the committee report to 
the meeting of the fair managing board to be held at the fair 
grounds in August. 
Hon. W. B. Seeley and Hon. B. F. Felt appeared before the 
Board at this time in behalf of the State Association of Short 
Courses. They asked that the Board consider the question of estab- 
lishing a model kitchen at the next State Fair, and if possible, the 
erection of a model farm house for a meeting place for those inter- 
ested in short course work. It was suggested by members of the 
Board that this possibly could be arranged for at the building for- 
merly occupied as the ladies' rest cottage and which was to be used 
the coming year as an exhibits and lecture building for the Iowa 
State College of Agriculture. 
The following report was submitted by the Secretary : 
SECRETARY'S REPORT TO THE BOARD. 
To the State Board of Agriculture: 
Gentlemen: Before taking up the new work for the year I desire to 
call your attention to certain suggestions and recommendations offered 
in our report and read before the Agricultural Convention of Wednesday. 
We believe the Board should take some action in this meeting asking 
for legislation authorizing the publication and distribution of such bulle- 
tins as would tend to promote agricultural production and agricultural 
education within our state. They should also seek to secure a change 
in the present law with reference to the collection of statistics on farm 
crops and live stock. These reports are now made biennially by the 
assessors to the secretary of state for publication in the official register. 
In our opinion this law should be changed requiring the statistics to be 
collected annually and returned to this office upon blanks sent out by the 
secretary, to be published in bulletin form first, and afterwards in the 
Year Book of Agriculture. If authority for the publication of bulletins 
is given, then the time for the publication of the Year Book should be 
changed to biennially. It would also be necessary to have a support fund 
for the employment of a bulletin editor, as the state fair fund should not 
be drawn upon to pay expenses incurred in work of this nature. 
We would call your attention to our recommendation for a change in 
the law with reference to the filing of reports by the farmers' institutes. 
As the law now reads they are required to file the report of their ex- 
pense account with the county auditor in order to secure the state aid. 
While it is true some of them now file reports in this office, it is not 
