60 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



setts Society for Promoting Agriculture, which I have the 

 honor to represent on this Board. This circular relates to 

 the offering of prizes aggregating $1,000 for the four best- 

 managed farms in the State, owned and worked by farmers 

 as their only business and means of support. I hope that 

 any one interested in this matter will come to me later for 

 copies of this circular, that the information may be spread 

 as widely as possilile throughout the State. 



[Circular to the farmers of Massachusetts read.] 



The lecture for the afternoon is "The profitable dairy 

 cow," by Prof. Charles S. Plumb, a graduate of the Massa- 

 chusetts Agricultural College, and now professor of animal 

 husbandry in the Ohio State University. It gives me the 

 greatest pleasure to present to you Professor Plumb. 



Professor Plumb. I can assure you that it was with con- 

 siderable pleasure that I received an invitation to appear 

 before this State Board of Agriculture . I left Massachusetts 

 over twenty-two years ago, and it has never been my 

 pleasure to come before a gathering of your farmers, and 

 consequently I anticipated the privilege of making your ac- 

 quaintance. I was born, raised and educated in this State. 

 I own some land here that I take a great deal of interest 

 in, and my sympathies have always been in close touch with 

 Massachusetts, so much so that I have often felt that the 

 time might arrive when I might spend the rest of my days 

 in this State. 



In presenting the subject to you to-day which I do, I shall 

 perhaps treat it in rather an nnusual fashion, not as addresses 

 are ordinarily delivered before agricultural organizations ; and 

 I trust that my manner of presentation will not in any way 

 affect your interest in bringing out the discussion following 

 my remarks. 



