126 



NEW ENGLAND EAliMER. 



March 



last season, although their winged seeds will float 

 m the air grf at distances ; and plants are to be 

 found during one season where none could be 

 found the preceding. Seeds will also lie dormant 

 in the soil for many years — sometimes at very 

 small distances from the surface — until peculiar- 

 ly favorable circumstance call their dormant vital 

 energies into activity. 



Insects, of species injurious to vegetation, ap- 

 pear to be governed by analogous laws. Occa- 

 sionally, for one season, a moth, butterfly, beetle, 

 or other insect, is to be seen in countless num- 

 bers, and almost entirely disappears the next. — 

 Sometimes a species becomes gradually abund- 

 ant, and then in a few years is equally scarce. 

 The rose bug, (Macrodactylus suhsyinosa,) is a 

 good example of this ; and we hope that the wheat 

 fly, (Cecidomyia tritici,) may, at no distant day, 

 follow the preceding species in its decrease. This 

 great increase does not depend entirely upon the 

 presence of a large amount of food, nor the de- 

 crease upon the absence of sufficient aliment, for 

 the food of the rose bug was as plentiful in 1856 

 as it was in 1853 ; but a certain amoimt of heat 

 and moisture, with a greater or less prevalence of 

 insects that make such species their food, along 

 with the thinning out by birds and other animals, 

 exerts a very great influence. Other causes ex- 

 ist, in all probability, as yet unknown to us, that 

 exert a controling power over the increase and 

 decrease of animals and plants, and these present 

 a wide field for investigation by the philosopher 

 and student of nature. All discoveries of tliis 

 kind are really beneficial to man, often putting 

 into his hands the power of prevention or multi- 

 plication of forms injurious or otherwise to his 

 interests. — OJiio Farmer, 



LEGISLATIVE AGEICULTUBAL 



MEETING. 



The first Legislative Agricultural meeting of 

 the present season was held on Tuesday evening 

 in the hall of the House of Representatives, in 

 this city. We are indebted to the Journal for the 

 following report of its proceedings : 



About fifty persons were present. The meet- 

 ing was called to order by Hon. Mr. Felton, 

 Senator from Worcester county, Avho called for a 

 nomination of officers to act at the future meet- 

 ings. 



W. J. BucKMINSTER, of the Plongliman, and 

 Mr. Bennett, of Leominster, were appointed to 

 act as Secretaries, and the following gentlemen 

 to serve as the Executive committee. 



Amasa Walker, of North Brookfield, C. L. 

 Flint, Secretary of the Board of Agriculture, Mr. 

 Bushnell, of Templeton, Mr. Morrill, of Fall 

 lliver, and Mr. Felton, of Brookfield. 



Mr. Felton then stated that His Excellency, 

 Governor Banks, who was present, had consent- 

 ed to preside at this meeting, and would now 

 take the Chair. 



Li assuming the chair, Gov. Banks said he did 

 so without a perfect acquaintance with the busi- 

 ness of the evening. He understood that this 

 was initiatory of a series of meetings to be held 

 during the session of the Legislature, to consider 

 the highly important subject of agriculture in its 

 local and national aspects. The contingency of 



actually standing in need of the staff of life by 

 av) considerable portion of our people, had only 

 within a short time been admitted. But the 

 experience of the past year shoAved that there 

 had been a more general disregard of agriculture 

 than was well for our country and people. It 

 showed that speculative pursuits do not afford 

 the surest means of industrial prosperity ; that 

 every innovation was not an improvement, and 

 the original calling of man was the nearest allied 

 to the prosperity and happiness of the people. 



In conclusion, Gov. Banks said he doubted not 

 that the proposed series of meetings would prove 

 advantageous to those participating in them, and 

 to the Commonwealth. He pledged his personal 

 aid to this end. 



Mr. Flint, the Secretary of the Board of Ag- 

 riculture, being called on to suggest some topic 

 to engage the attention of the present meeting 

 suggested : "The duty and importance of the 

 General Government to encourage and develop 

 the agricultural and industrial resources of the 

 country." Mr. Flint alluded to appropriations 

 which had been made by this and several Euro- 

 pean governments for this purpose. 



Mr. Brooks, of Princeton, being invited to 

 give his views with reference to the subject sug- 

 gested by Mr. Flint, said he knew no better way 

 of disposing of a portion of the national domain, 

 than in appropriating it to the encouragement of 

 agriculture in the way of premiums, awards, &c. 



Mr. Temple, of Framingham, thought it would 

 be wise for the State to select each year some 

 half dozen localities in the State, and offer pre- 

 miums for the cultivation of particular crops in 

 particular places. 



Mr. Tower, of Lanesboro', said that farmers 

 needed more educated men to lead them into the 

 field of agriculture as a matter of science. The 

 barrenness of our State presented an admirable 

 field for experiment. 



Mr. Brooks, of Princeton, granted that our 

 land was poor ; but we could make more from 

 an acre of it than could be made from the same 

 amount in Illinois. This was true Avith respect 

 to the corn crop, on which we make five dollars 

 more to the acre than the Illinoisans. Our su- 

 perior markets rendered Massachusetts farmers 

 able to make more, also, in the raising of pork. 

 In short, the speaker could make more at farm- 

 ing in Massachusetts than in Illinois. 



Dr. DuRFEE, of Fall River, advocated horti- 

 culture as an elementary process to awaken an 

 interest in the minds of the young. There was 

 no State in the Union which had carried this 

 branch to the same extent of perfection as Mas- 

 sachusetts. The speaker agreed Avith Mr. Brooks 

 in his estimate of the fertility of Massachusetts 

 soil. Even Nantucket, if properly cultivated, 

 was no exception. Some of the very best lands 

 of our State Avere yet untouched, and those 

 stumpy and stony sections Avere the very lands 

 for Massachusetts farmers to take hold of. The 

 speaker himself had redeemed an acre of land 

 that was formerly supposed to be incapable of 

 supporting a goat. 



Hon. Mr. Neavell spoke of the need of in- 

 creased knoAvledge on the part of farmers, and 

 of the proper time to cut the Chinese Sugar Cane 

 so as to secure the greatest amount of saccharine 

 matter. 



