REPORTS OF COMMITTEES. 131 



that department, and most of them performed the allotted task 

 of drawing and backing a heavy load upon a steep hill admi- 

 rably. Indeed, the display of cattle, taken as a whole, was one 

 of the finest I ever witnessed for its extent. 



The exhibition of fruit, butter, cheese, &c., claimed my 

 attention as the next object of interest. It was a matter of 

 surprise to me to find vegetables almost excluded from the 

 hall, the only specimens consisting of one small lot of cab- 

 bages and squashes. The importance of many varieties of 

 vegetables for feeding stock would, I should suppose, have led 

 the trustees to offer premiums in this department, and I have 

 no doubt if this were done, the beauty of the exhibition, at 

 least, would be very much increased. 



Residing in a county where fruit culture has received great 

 attention, and where very beautiful specimens abound upon the 

 tables at all public exhibitions, I was extremely disappointed 

 upon inspecting the fruit offered at the show at Sturbridge. 

 The number of varieties was large, and these were for the most 

 part valuable in kind, but very many of the specimens were 

 inferior and indicated a want of careful cultivation. A great 

 improvement, too, might be made in the mode of exhibiting, and 

 I have no doubt that more care in arranging the tables would 

 have added much to the beauty of the exhibition. If, instead 

 of a single specimen placed upon the bare table, the varieties 

 being crowded into a small space, each competitor was required 

 to exhibit at least eight specimens, and those specimens were 

 carefully selected, placed upon as many separate dishes, the 

 exhibition of fruit would be much more creditable in every 

 way to the society. It was, however, very gratifying to me to 

 witness the beautiful specimens offered by the dairy women of 

 Worcester South of the products of their labor and care, in 

 the form of butter and cheese which were abundant and of fine 

 quality, and I think no person could examine them, in connec- 

 tion with the bread made from the products of their own farms, 

 without being deeply impressed with the feeling that as regards 

 the care of the inner man, the farmer has a large source of 

 profit which the wealth of the merchant must often fail to pro- 

 cure in the markets of our cities. Indeed, I could not avoid 

 entertaining the wish that I could serve upon the bread and 

 butter committee, as the dinner was postponed until the late, 



