L6 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



Massachusetts recognizes in agriculture not only her 

 earliest industry, but one most important and necessary 

 for her people, and one most closely interwoven with her 

 u hole life. From the very earliest days, when her children 

 here in the midst of the wilderness first planted her soil, and 

 while they struggled hard for a living, and with wonder- 

 ful foresight and sacrifice founded her greatest and her 

 most glorious institutions ; from that time down through 

 the later generations, when her agricultural community 

 stood forth to defend her and her institutions and to 

 struggle for her independence ; and later still, within 

 the recollection of many of us, in the days when from 

 her fields and workshops went forth her children to fight 

 for her as she fought for the nation and to stand with 

 her for liberty and union, — down through all these periods 

 Massachusetts has found in all her children, but especially 

 in her farmers, loyalty and devotion to her institutions, and 

 a courage and willingness to suffer and to fight for her and 

 for them. So she recalls, too, that among her agricultural 

 communities there is found simplicity of life, sturdiness of 

 character, strength of purpose, and the many virtues that have 

 clone so much for her prosperity. She recalls that education 

 and liberty, established and maintained through the church, 

 the school-house and the town-meeting, have always marked 

 the daily life among the farmers of this State. She knows 

 that these are the virtues that have made a sturdy citizen- 

 ship, and that in the strength and the character of that citizen- 

 ship have been found her own strength and her own glory. 

 Notwithstanding the magnitude of the many interests with 

 which our Commonwealth deals, she always has exercised 

 a fostering care of agriculture. She recognizes in this care 

 not only the great value of agriculture to the State, but she 

 expresses by it her gratitude for all that agriculture has done 

 for her ; not merely for her material prosperity, but for that 

 greater prosperity, not measured by dollars and cents, but 

 by character, and strong, loyal and law-abiding citizenship ; 

 that prosperity which has come from the work, from the 

 virtues and the life especially of her agricultural people. 

 So, with a desire to fos'er agriculture, she has created this 

 great Board of Agriculture which meets here to-day. She 



