8 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



holding this, the annual country meeting of the State Board 

 of Agriculture, is highly appreciated, not only by those imme- 

 diately interested in agriculture, but by all intelligent citizens 

 of this cit}^ and of the surrounding towns, engaged in the 

 various pursuits of life ; and in their behalf I extend to you 

 their thanks. 



Fitchburg was incorporated as a town in 1764, and here, as 

 well as elsewhere in Massachusetts, agriculture was the chief 

 occupation of its inhabitants, and their entire support was 

 derived from the products of the soil. 



Nature has not been lavish in her agricultural gifts ; on the 

 contrary, the contour of this region of country was uneven, 

 rough, and even rugged, presenting serious obstacles to the 

 growth and prosperity of the town. 



Add to this what was, in the earlier years of its settlement, 

 considered an almost insuperable objection — the north branch 

 of the Nashua River, passing through the entire length of the 

 town, with its various tributaries, sensitive in the extreme to 

 the rains, showers and melting snows, on account of the 

 abruptness of its many hills, causing the frequent destruction 

 of the roads and bridges, and it is not surprising that her early 

 growth was slow. 



Worcester North is preeminently a manufacturing region. 

 The dividing line of the waters flowing to the Atlantic on the 

 east and to the Connecticut on the west passes through its 

 centre from north to south, and, what seemed to be so detri- 

 mental to the interests of its people early in the present cen- 

 tury, has proved, under their enterprise, energy and intelli- 

 gence, the principal source of its present prosperity. The 

 waters of the Nashua on the east, and those of Miller's River 

 on the west, in their respective courses turn the thousand 

 wheels located on the numerous sites, around which tlie thriv- 

 ing towns and villages with their thousands of busy inhabit- 

 ants cluster. Notwithstanding manufacturing is so large an 

 interest in this locality, underlying and cooperating with, and 

 sustaining it to a great degree, is agriculture. In passing 

 through the halls of the New York State Agricultural Society 

 at Albany, recently, I observed prominently posted the fol- 

 lowing : "Agriculture feeds us, to a great extent it clothes 

 us ; without it we could not have manufactures, wc should not 



