196 ANNUAL REPORT 



the next time than we have the amount asked for now. He had 

 seen institutes where the first day farmers would come to the 

 door and look in; the next season a few would come in and sit 

 down; before the meeting was closed, the hall was not large 

 enough to hold the people. 



Capt. Blakeley. The question is, whether there is more pleas- 

 ure to cheat than to be cheated. Legislation of a stringent 

 nature would prevent these fraudulent transactions of tree 

 peddlers in the State; consequently you would be doing your- 

 selves no injury and would be doing the State a great service if 

 you could have an act passed that would abolish these fraudulent 

 practices. 



On motion the meeting adjourned till 7 o'clock p. M. 



EVENING SESSION. 



Wednesday, January 19, 1887. 



The evening session was held in the hall of the House of Repre- 

 sentatives and the meeting was called to order by the president. 



ADDRESS ON FAIRS. 



Mr. O. C. Gregg, of Minneapolis, was introduced and i^roceeded 

 to address the Society. He said: 



Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen: 



I have been requested to address you briefly upon the fairs of 

 our State. 



It came in the order of my duty during the season last past to 

 visit a goodly number of the county fairs in the state of Minne- 

 sota, and those visits made a deep impression on my mind and I 

 am glad to have an opportunity to bring before you some of 

 those imi)ressions and submit them to your candid judgment, 

 for approval or disapproval. I wish to say in advance that I do 

 not wish to criticise or allege aught against the fair managers 

 of the state and county fairs, for I have found them almost with- 

 out exception to be men well advanced in the line of i^rogressive 

 agriculture. 



Our fairs as conducted are open to criticism and my first ob- 

 jection is the lack of the educational element. 



