248 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES. 



[Adopted at the Annual Meeting, Jan. 10, 1899.] 



The committee on agricultural societies held a special 

 meeting at Amherst, on Monday, December 5, to consider 

 the reports of inspectors of fairs. All these reports showed 

 a more careful consideration on the part of the societies of 

 the various recommendations and regulations of the Board 

 of Agriculture. 



Certain points are always to be in mind : first, needful 

 sanitary conveniences and care, where large numbers of 

 people are to gather for even a short time ; second, careful 

 sifting of applications of various fakirs, who, by one con- 

 trivance or another, gather a considerable harvest from the 

 pockets of those who attend the fairs, with very little return ; 

 third, careful economy in expenditures, avoiding, as far as 

 possible, risk of large deficit. 



The interest of the locality must be depended on to insure 

 the prosperity of any fair, and any attempt to draw from a 

 large circle attendance to meet increased expense is unwise. 



During the year but one application for approval of mort- 

 gage has been received. This was approved. Your com- 

 mittee believes that, in most cases, deficit should be made 

 good by contributions among the members of the society, 

 rather than by giving security on the property of the society, 

 and it recommends every society to make all reasonable 

 efforts to raise any sum required. 



In a single instance among the reports was severe criticism 

 passed upon the efforts of a society to hold a creditable and 

 successful fair ; and in one other instance attention was called, 

 though not by the inspector, to unnecessary and undesirable 

 overloading and straining in trial of draft animals. 



