94 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



in the near future ? The fluid which followed the string of 

 Franklin's kite to the earth has restored to us the age of mir- 

 acles ; and somewhere in the process of evolution there is a 

 great man coming forward who will supplement these disco\- 

 eries, and cause them to subserve the interest of the husband- 

 man. He will drain the water from the clouds, and keep at 

 bay the late and early frost. He will increase the produc- 

 tiveness of the soil by a simple, inexpensive process, and 

 hasten or retard the maturity of fruits and flowers ; the com- 

 plete extermination of all noxious insects, the cause of so 

 much labor and blighted hopes, shall be but a morning's pas- 

 time ; and here the rays of our prophetic candle are lost in 

 the dawn of a brighter day. 



The Chairman. I find the following question in the Ques- 

 tion Box : ' ' Would not the agriculture of the country in 

 general, and of Massachusetts in particular, be promoted by 

 the establishment of Experiment Stations in the several 

 States, by appropriations made by Congress?" 



I will ask Mr. Ware of Maiblehead to answer that question. 



Mr. Ware. I suppose no person who has received the 

 Monthly Bulletins from our Experiment Station, studied 

 them, and profited by the lessons thereby given, would fail 

 to answer this question in the affirmative. While we have in 

 Massachusetts various means of education in agricultural di- 

 rections ; while we have the Farmers' Clubs and the Grangers 

 for the education of the farmers' families, and the Annual 

 Fairs of our Agricultural Societies for object lessons to be 

 presented to our farmers, for comparing the productions of 

 one locality with another, and thereby enabling us to improve 

 our stock and productions ; while we have the Agricultural 

 College for the education of our young men in agricultural 

 directions, and while the graduates are bringing to us from 

 time to time the results of the education they obtain there in 

 the line of agriculture, and taking a position among us as edu- 

 cated men, — we have also the Experiment Station of Massa- 

 chusetts, for the education of fanners on the questions so con- 

 tinually coming up, requiring careful and thorough investi- 

 tion, which they are unable with their own means and ability 

 to make ; but by sending in our questions to the Experiment 



