Part I.] REPORT OF SECRETARY. 61 



livered at the public winter meeting. Of the first part 1,500 

 copies were printed, and of the second, 0,000, as it was felt 

 that reports of a routine nature were not of as much interest to 

 the general public as the papers and essays which form the 

 substance of the second part of the report. That this is true 

 has been borne out by the comparative public demand for the 

 two parts, and this method of printing the report has resulted 

 in a saving of $1,400. 



Mr. Forbush published two more of his very popular eco- 

 nomic biology bulletins during the year, No. 2 being entitled 

 "The Domestic Cat," and No. 3, "The Natural Enemies of 

 Birds." The cat bulletin was published under the auspices of 

 the Board and distributed from its office, but as it was paid 

 for by private subscription it does not appear in the tabulated 

 list of publications. The demand for both these publications 

 has been large, and bespeaks the growing interest in bird life 

 and its relation to man. 



The Board also published during the year a large edition of 

 a leaflet on the white pine blister rust. This leaflet described 

 in a non-technical manner the rust and methods of combating 

 it, and contained a colored plate showing different stages of the 

 disease. The plate was furnished by the Massachusetts For- 

 estry Association. An edition of 14,500 of these leaflets was 

 published, and practically all of these have been distributed. 



During the year the agricultural laws of the Commonwealth 

 have been compiled and a "Manual of Agricultural Laws" 

 published, which has just come from the press. This pamphlet 

 contains both the statutes relating to agriculture and digests 

 from the principal court decisions thereon. To avoid duplica- 

 tion, however, certain laws affecting agriculture which are con- 

 tained in other State compilations have been omitted. This 

 is the first time the agricultural laws have been compiled with 

 any degree of completeness, and it is believed that this book 

 will prove useful to many of our citizens. 



The by-laws of the Board, which were last published complete 

 in 1894, are in need of codification, and this work will be under- 

 taken during the coming winter. 



"With reference to the future policy of the Board concerning 

 publications, it seems to the secretary that from now on more 

 of our work should be devoted to such subjects as where, when 



