No. 123.] REPORT OF COMMISSIONER. 19 



mation, Soil Survey and Fairs, and such other divisions as he 

 may from time to time determine. With the approval of the 

 Governor and Council, the Division of Agricultural Information 

 was established soon after the reorganization went into effect. 

 By section 38 (as amended by chapter 206, Acts of 1921) the 

 powers of the Department are prescribed as follows: — 



Section' 38. The department of agriculture through its proper divi- 

 sions shall have power to : 



(fl) Execute and carry into effect the laws of the commonwealth relative 

 to dairy products, animal breeding, apple grading, plant pest control 

 with the exception of the gypsy and brown tail moth, ornithology, apiary 

 inspection, and the production, storage, marketing and distribution of 

 agricultural products. 



(b) Aid in the promotion and development of the agricultural resources 

 of the commonwealth and the improvement of the conditions of rural life, 

 the settlement of farms and the distribution of the supply of farm labor. 



(c) Investigate the cost of the production and marketing in all its 

 phases, and the sources of supply, of agricultural products, and the pro- 

 duction, transportation, storage, marketing and distribution of agricultural 

 products sold, offered for sale, stored or held within the commonwealth. 



(d) Collect and disseminate data and statistics as to the food produced, 

 stored or held within the commonwealth, with the quantities available 

 from time to time and the location thereof. 



(e) Investigate and aid improved methods of co-operative production, 

 marketing and distribution of agricultural products within the common- 

 wealth. 



(/) Offer prizes for and conduct exhibits of flowers, fruit, vegetables, 

 grasses, grains or other farm crops, dairy products, honey, horses, cattle, 

 sheep, swine, poultry, poultry products, rabbits, hares, farm operations, 

 and canned and dried fruits and vegetables. 



The important features of this reorganization were the cen- 

 tralization of authority in the Commissioner, the establishment 

 of a definite organization by divisions, and a specific definition of 

 the Department's powers and duties. In the codification of the 

 General Laws, completed in 1920, the provisions governing the 

 organization of the Department were included in chapter 20, 

 and the provisions prescribing its powers and duties were to 

 a large extent included in chapter 128. 



Conclusion and Recommendations. 



In the foregoing I do not wish to overlook the fact that 

 the farmers do have serious problems to face, nor to give the 

 impression that everything with them is prosperous and needs 



