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The President, in his opening remarks, alluded to 

 previous visits to this place, the tirst in April, 1834. The 

 meeting was held in the Topsfield hotel, which stood on 

 the Newburyport turnpike and was of considerable im- 

 portance in the days of the old stage coach. On this 

 occasion the organization of the Natural History Society, 

 the parent society of the Institute, was completed, and 

 may thus date the commencement of its active duties. 

 The second in June, 185G, in the Topsfield Academy, 

 and this suggests the propriety of having an historical 

 account of this institution prepared and printed in the 

 publications of the Institute. Is there not some one who 

 will undertake this work? The third in 1860 and the 

 fourth in 1868 in the church in which we are now assem- 

 bled.. In coming to Topsfield we therefore come under 

 peculiar relations, somewhat as a graduate from one of 

 our educational institutions returns to his alma mater. 



In mentioning the recent donations to the museum, 

 several having an historic interest, he also suggested the 

 importance of collecting all relics which illustrate the 

 characteristics of earlier times, and particularly pamphlets 

 and manuscripts. 



Rev. James II. Fitts, of Topsfield, was then called 

 upon, and read some extracts from a paper which he had 

 prepared, and which will be presented to the Institute, 

 giving an account of "Robert- B. Thomas, the maker of 

 the Farmer's Almanac." 



Mr. Fitts was formerly a resident of West Boylston, 

 the home of Mr. Thomas, and the paper gave many inter- 

 esting incidents of the Thomas family and of the profes- 

 sion of almanac making. He alluded to the competition 

 existing between the publishers of Isaiah Thomas's New 

 England Almanac and R. B. Thomas's Old Farmer's, 



