No. 4.] RESPONSE OF J. S. GRINNELL. 13 



of them remain, — enouirh to form an active agricultural 

 society under the patronage of the State. 



The members of the Board have of course the interests of 

 the farmers at heart, and endeavor in every way to promote 

 those interests, by these meetings, by the farmers' institutes, 

 and, what is most im})ortant, by directing and assisting State 

 legislation for their protection and advancement. All the 

 acts of the Legislature in aid of the farmers have been 

 prompted and forwarded by this Board. We believe our 

 action has been appreciated by the farmers, and. that this 

 very successful meeting is an evidence of that appreciation 

 l)y the members of the Spencer Farmers' and Mechanics' 

 Association. 



For some reason Mr. Chees3ian, who was to address us 

 first this morning, has not arrived. Until he comes, Mr. 

 Sessions, the secretary, will take up a different subject for 

 a few moments, one which cannot but mterest you all, — the 

 subject of roads and highways. 



Secretary Sessions. I received a note from the editor of 

 " Good Roads" in New York a few days since, asking me 

 to give my views upon the subject of roads from the stand- 

 point of a farmer. I replied to him, and the points I made 

 are somewhat familiar in my mind, though I may ])e obliged 

 to give them in a desultory manner. 



I have been surprised at some of the propositions put for- 

 ward by many of those in favor of good roads. Their 

 projects seem to be rather chimerical in view of the condi- 

 tion of the rural districts of the Commonwealth. The con- 

 struction of stone roads has been strongly advocated, and 

 their advantages clearly and forcibly presented ; but, when 

 we consider the taxable valuation of small towns, we can see 

 that the building of stone roads is entirely beyond their 

 power. Take, for instance, the town in which I live, — not 

 a poor town by any means. Our valuation is about $400,000. 

 Stone roads cost, according to the quality, from two thou- 

 sand to ten thousand dollars per mile. We have fifty miles 

 of roads in our town. Now, a little computation will show 

 that, even at the rate of $4,000 per mile, which is a cheap 

 rate for stone roads, it would take just one-half the valuation 

 of our town to put in stone roads in place of those we now 



