Vol. XIV. 



ROCHESTER, N. T., DECEMBER, 1853. 



No. XII. 



AN ADDRESS 



DELIVERED BEFORE THE AGEICULTUEAL SOCIETY OF FEANKLIN COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS. 



OCT. 7, 1853, 



BY DANIEL LEE, 



D. 



Mr. President and Gentlemen: — You cultivate the soil in Massachusetts; I culti- 

 vate it in the District of Columbia ; and as one farmer talks to another, so shall I speak 

 to you on the present occasion. 



It has given me great pleasure, Mr. President, to witness your exhibition of neat stock, 

 particularly the long lines of well-matched, well-trained working oxen. New England 

 farmers have long excelled in the production of these useful animals ; while your horses 

 show by their action, spirit, and muscular development, that the breeding, rearing, and 

 breaking to the harness and saddle of this favorite quadruped, are pretty well under- 

 stood in Frf-nklin county. In skillful hands, nothing pays better than the production 

 of first rate horses ; for the demand for them considerably exceeds the supply, and it is 

 likely to do so for many years to come. At the last United States census, the six New 

 England States contained 212,274 horses. The State of New York contained 447,014 ; 

 being something more than twice the number in the first-named States. 



You exhibited some excellent milch cows. The dairy business is now more profitable 

 than I h^ve known it for thirty years. It is, however, a branch of husbandry not 

 generally well understood, and therefore one that is susceptible of much improvement 

 in all parts of our extended country. New England farmers reported at the last census 

 618,237 cows ; while the farmers of New York reported 931,324. These figures, copied 

 from official sources, show that New York contains fifty" per cent, more cows than 

 New England ; while the acres of improved land in each are : New England, 11,140,564 ; 

 New York, 12,408,968. 



Sheep husbandry and wool growing are, apparently, on the decline here, as well as in 

 the valley of the Genesee. This whole State contained only 188,651 sheep in June, 

 1850; while in 1845, the two counties of Monroe and Livingston, in Western New 

 York, contained 392,210. In 1850, these counties had reduced their flocks to 259,143 ; 

 and to indicate the rapid decline of this branch of rural industry in five years, I will 

 remark that New York contained 6,443,855 sheep in 1845, and only 3,453,251 in 

 1850— decrease, 2,990,614. This is a greater falling off in five years than the whole 

 number of sheep kept in New England; which was in 1850, 2,163,453. 



In studying the agricultural statistics of Massachusetts and other States with some 

 care, as I have done, I have been most surprised at the small number of swine which 

 you keep. This State had but 81,119 in 1850 ; and all New England but 361,468. In 

 1845, New York had 1,684,344; or more than four times as many as the six New 



ibTTt 



