130 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



MEETING OF THE MASSACHUSETTS 

 BOARD OP AGRICULTURE. 



AFTERNOON SESSION. 



The Board met at half-past three in the Repre- 

 sentatives' Hall, Mr. Wilder, President, in the 

 Chair. 



The President submitted a letter from Dr. Lee, 

 who stands at the head of the Agricultural De- 

 partment at Washington, approving of the pro- 

 position for holding a National Convention for the 

 promotion of Agriculture. He recommends that 

 it should he held at Washington, in the month of 

 June next. He was sure it would be attended by 

 delegates from nearly or quite every State in the 

 Union. 



The President also submitted a translation of a 

 French publication, giving an account of the Na- 

 tional Agricultural Institution of Versailles, France, 

 which had been forwarded to him by Abbott Law- 

 rence, our Minister at the Court of St. James. 



The thanks of the Board were voted to Mr. 

 Lawrence on motion of John W. Proctor, of Dan- 

 vers, and the document itself was referred to the 

 Executive Committee. 



Mr. Wilder then, in behalf of the Committe to 

 whom was referred the subject of Agricultural Ed- 

 ucation, submitted a preamble and set of resolu- 

 tions. We can only find room for the two resolu- 

 tions expressive of the opinion of the Board in re- 

 lation to action by the State. 



Resolved, That Massachusetts, by an enlightened 

 policy and wise legislation, has rendered her system 

 of education worthy of her exalted reputation, and 

 that this Board most earnestly desire her to complete 

 that system by providing kindred institutions for the 

 scientific education of the farmer, upon whom is 

 levied so large a share of the taxes for the support of 

 Government and philanthropic objects. 



Resolved, That it is the duty, as well as the inter- 

 est of the State, to aid in furnishing the means for 

 such an education, and that for the want of this edu- 

 cation, millions of dollars and a vast amount of time, 

 energy and money are annually lost to the Common- 

 wealth by the misapplication of labor and capital in 

 husbandry; and resolved further, that this loss is 

 mainly to be attributed to the want of a proper sys- 

 tem for the acquisition and diffusion of correct in- 

 formation, as to the most approved arts of cultiva- 

 tion, and the best means of perfecting this unfailing 

 source of independence and happiness. 



Mr. Wilder, in submitting these resolutions, 

 remarked that it was a most extraordinary fact, 

 that while the aid of science has been invoked to 

 all other callings, and while it has been extendecbto 

 the other interests of the State and country by the 

 National or State governments, to this clay not a 

 dollar has been contributed by our national gov- 

 ernment to aid this most important interest of ag 

 riculture. What we want now is an institution to 

 educate young farmers for the calling. He closed 

 by reading an extract from Dr. Lee's letter, in fa- 

 vor of some such means as is proposed by the 

 Board, for the promotion of a thorough and sci 

 entitle agricultural education. 



t. 



Maj. Wheeler, of Framingham, spoke of the 

 low ideas which existed in his younger days in re- 

 gard to the education of the farmer. It was 

 thought if a boy learned to read, write, cipher 

 and spell, he would make an excellent farmer. 

 Too much of this want of education exists at the 

 present day, and farmers are too willing to go on 

 in the old way of their fathers. He showed, by 

 alluding to Belgium and other European countries, 

 that Massachusetts, under a similar system of sci- 

 entific agricultural practice, might be made to pro- 

 duce a much larger amount of breadstuff's than she 

 now does. He was decidedly in favor of encour- 

 agement to agricultural education. 



Rev. Mr. Putnam, of Roxbury, was next called 

 upon. He said he came to the meeting as a mem- 

 ber of the Legislature, to learn what the wishes 

 of the farmers of the State are in regard to this 

 subject, in order that he might act more under- 

 standing^ when called upon to act in another ca- 

 pacity. 



Mr. Dodge, of Hamilton, discussed the appli- 

 cation of science to agriculture, showing that this 

 application is practicable. Alluding to agricultu- 

 ral science as developed in Europe, he contended 

 that the same great principles are applicable in 

 this country. The question is, then, why is not 

 this science shown to our farmers? The great rea- 

 son is, that there are not men enough here to teach 

 ft. There are a few men qualified for this duty, 

 such as Dr. Lee, Professor Norton, and some few 

 others, but they cannot be expected to experi- 

 ment, uncompensated, for the benefit of others. 

 Here, then, is seen the need of aid from the State, 

 to extend the science of agriculture to the farm- 

 ing community. He hoped the day was not far 

 distant when Massachusetts would contribute at 

 least a pittance to carry out this object ; when 

 agriculture would come up and present her claim 

 to the National government for recognition and 

 aid, and that that claim would be met and al- 

 lowed But he would not wait for this. The 

 States should go on and establish agricultural Bu- 

 reaus for themselves, in order that they may col- 

 lect statistics to be forwarded to the national Bu- 

 reau when that is established. He hoped that 

 the friends of this movement would persevere in 

 their work until their claim is allowed. 



Mr. Gorham, delegate from the Hampden, 

 Hampshire and Franklin Society, next spoke. He 

 said he saw in the community a prevalent apathy 

 in regard to this subject, in the continuance of 

 which he foresaw great evils to the State if not to 

 the race. The dependence of all other interests 

 upon agriculture he dwelt upon, and said that when 

 it suffers all others suffer ; when it fails, all others 

 fail. And yet the position of this cause, in a na- 

 tional point of view, is most sad and humiliating. 

 It was useless to say that this cause would take 

 care of itself. It would not. The calling has to 



