42 THE MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY 



that the said society by its premiums for introducing 

 Merino sheep and by encouraging the introduction of 

 new seeds and trees has already been productive of a 

 great public benefit." In 1816 the Legislature 

 granted $500 and a like sum annually thereafter to 

 enlarge the total of premiums given by the society at 

 its annual cattle shows. 



In 1807 a sufficient number of answers to the cir- 

 cular of the society containing the forty-nine questions 

 had been received to warrant publication, the result 

 being a pamphlet of thirty-eight pages. While the 

 number of persons responding was not as great as had 

 been hoped, the committee of publication found some 

 satisfaction in the fact that the towns heard from were 

 separated by considerable distances, making the re- 

 sponse, as a whole, more instructive than if it had 

 come from towns in a particular section of the State. 

 The towns heard from were Barnstable, Brookfield, 

 Brookline, Concord, New Gloucester in the district of 

 Maine, Marlboro, Newbury, Sturbridge and Worces- 

 ter and the several towns represented by the agricul- 

 tural society of western Middlesex. The pamphlet 

 must have been acceptable to readers of that date and 

 is still historically interesting. Two or three points 

 may here be noted as indicative of the then existing 

 condition of agriculture. The Marlboro correspond- 

 ent in touching upon the topic of woodlands saga- 

 ciously remarks: "One half the woodland now re- 

 served would suffice if our farmers paid a little more 

 attention to the finishing of their rooms. In order to 

 save $20 in finishing his house, the farmer often sub- 

 jects himself to an annual expense of half that sum 

 for fuel, which otherwise might be spared, without 

 reflecting that he might as well borrow money at 50 

 per cent, to complete his house." 



