270 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Jan. 



of you appreciated it. No one could listen to it without 

 appreciating it. Its truths were timely and wise, and the 

 form and manner of its presentation were so finished and 

 perfect that it sent those truths home to our hearts, and I am 

 sure that good will come from it. Its thought ran somewhat 

 in the same lines of my own in preparing this paper, so that 

 it serves in some measure as an introduction to what I have 

 to say, and I am glad of it for that reason ; but, on another 

 account, it places in strong contrast the comparative rudeness 

 and imperfection of my own work. I trust, however, you will 

 pardon me. I am glad that, if the audience of this morning 

 had to make their selection between Mrs. Chase's essay and 

 my own, they chose hers, for they chose wisely in so doing. 



THE USES OF ASSOCIATION BY AND AMONG 

 AGRICULTURISTS. 



BY J. M. HUBBARD OF MIDDLETOWN, CONN. 



Association is a means to an end. It does not create force, 

 but it concentrates, directs and makes efiective the force which 

 would otherwise be wasted. It is to individual power what 

 the enclosing walls and directing machinery of the boiler and 

 engine are to the expansive force of a single drop of water 

 converted into steam. 



Gathering many drops together, holding them firmly, di- 

 recting their force wisely, great and good works are accom- 

 plished. Left without concentration and control, the same 

 force is dissipated and lost. 



The importance of this principle must have commanded 

 recognition at a very early period in the history of the human 

 race. Indeed, such recognition seems to have been instinc- 

 tive. Not only is there no record on parchment or monument 

 which hints of a time when association among men for the 

 security of life and of its desirable possessions was not prac- 

 ticed, but among the lower forms of life as well, there seems 

 a clear perception of the benefits of association. Birds flock 

 together for their long migrations, wolves hunt in packs, and 

 the grazing animals roam in herds for society and mutual 

 protection. 



But, while association is a recognized necessity of rude 

 conditions and low forms of life, it is not characteristic of 



