APPENDIX. xiii 



WORCESTER NORTH. 



As delegate from the State Board of Agriculture, and in accordance 

 with the directions of said Board, I wended my way to Fitchburg, to 

 attend the annual exhibition and cattle show of the "Worcester North 

 Agricultural Society, at Fitchburg, on Tuesday, Sept, 26th. When I 

 arrived, I learned that only the preliminary arrangements were to be 

 made on that day, and that the show was to be held on Wednesday. 

 From the preparations in the hall, it became evident that nothing was 

 to be left undone by the members of this society, to make their show 

 both interesting and profitable. 



From the long continued drought, it was not to be expected that the 

 exhibition of fruit and vegetables would compare favorably with former 

 years ; and, indeed, the quantity and quality of apples was inferior ; 

 although I was surprised to find as many, and of as good quality as were 

 exhibited. There were some fine specimens of peaches, presented by 

 H. A. Blood, L. Nichols, A. Crocker, and Mrs. Lewis, of Fitchburg. 

 The show of pears and grapes was very fine, and it was remarked by 

 gentlemen present, who are familiar with these varieties of fruit, that 

 they had never seen a finer display. Dr. Fisher, of Fitchburg, exhib- 

 ited specimens of the Concord grape, from his vineyard of two acres, 

 from which it was estimated that the product would amount to four 

 tons, and that they would, probably, bring in market, twenty cents per 

 pound, making a nice little income of $1,G00. 



Mr. Merriam exhibited specimens from his three acre field, of onions, 

 squashes, tomatoes and cabbages, to which the attention of your delegate 

 was directed. The principal product of the field was onions. They 

 were raised on land, part of which was ploughed at the " fair " the 

 previous year. At a distance of about forty feet, the small pieces 

 of turf were raked in ridges, and on these ridges was grown the 

 squashes, tomatoes, and cabbages. From what had been sold from 

 the field pi-evious to the fair, it was estimated that the product of the 

 field would amount to from ten to twelve hundred dollars, showing, also, 

 a nice little income from a small amount of land. I was not able to 

 learn the net profit, but presume it must have been satisfactory. The 

 show of flowers added to the beauty of the exhibition. The many fancy 

 articles showed the skill and handiwork of the ladies. Also, various 

 mechanical implements, which showed great skill in their construction. 



Wednesday, the regular day of the show, was a beautiful day, except 

 the dust, from the long continued dry weather. At an early hour, 

 crowds of people were seen coming in from the various directions, show- 

 ing their interest in the exhibition. First on the programme was the 

 ploughing match. The improvement in ploughs, and the manner of using 



