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printed on those subjects to several distinguished characters in foreign and distant 

 countries, I could not think of neglecting an individual so pre-eminently conspicuous 

 as the President of the United States of America. In answer to the first letter I 

 had the honour of addressing to him, I received the communication No. I., dated 

 the 20th day of October, 1792. 



I embraced every opportunity of transmitting, from time to time, the additional 

 papers which were afterwards printed on the subjects of our correspondence, 

 accompanied by letters, of only one of which I have a copy, in which I endeavoured 

 to demonstrate the advantages which might be derived from establishing a Board 



o o o 



of Agriculture in America. Of that letter, I beg leave to subjoin the following 

 extract, as it tends to explain more fully General WASHINGTON S answer of the 6th 

 day of March, 1797, stating the circumstances which at that time prevented the 

 immediate adoption of that measure. 



EXTRACT OF A LETTER FROM SIR JOHN SINCLAIR TO GENERAL WASHINGTON, 

 DATED WHITEHALL, LONDON, IOTH SEPTEMBER, 1796. 



&quot; The people of this country, as well as of America, learn, with infinite regret, 

 that you propose resigning your situation as President of the United States. I 

 shall not enter into the discussion of a question of which I am incompetent to 

 judge; but, if it be so, I hope that you will recommend some Agricultural 

 establishment on a great scale before you quit the reins of government. By that I 

 mean a Board of Agriculture, or some similar institution, at Philadelphia, with 

 Societies of Agriculture in the capital of each state, to correspond with it. Such 

 an establishment would soon enable the farmers of America to acquire agricultural 

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