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"Farm and Peasant Life, as seen in short tour in Austria 

 and Germany," but her non-appearance caused the subject 

 to be changed to "Flowers," on which Prof. John Robinson 

 of Salem and Mrs. Maria II. Bray of West Gloucester 

 opened the meeting and were followed by others inter- 

 ested in Horticulture, which made the afternoon meeting 

 a pleasant and profitable one. 



The 44th Institute was held April 21, 1886, on the 

 farm of Hon. George B. Loring of Salem, "for the exhi- 

 bition and trial of implements used in the cultivation of 

 crops." Exhibitors of ploughs could use their own team 

 and driver if they chose and plough as they pleased, but 

 not less than seven inches deep ; teams being provided on 

 the grounds for those who desired them. It was a perfect 

 day, and brought together several hundred from all parts 

 of the county. The judges of the merits of the machines 

 were each man for himself to form his own opinion of 

 which excelled. The display of implements was quite 

 large, J. L. Colcord of West Peabody and Whitcomb & 

 Carter of Beverly being the largest contributors, others 

 being Parker & Wood of Boston, George G. Creamer of 

 Hamilton, C. W. Mann of Methuen, E. E. Lummus of 

 Beverly (or Boston), C. L. Huse of Newburyport, C. H. 

 Thompson & Co. of Boston, Joseph Breck & Son of Bos- 

 ton and J. R. Whittemore of Chicopee Falls, and com- 

 prised implements of the best kinds for every purpose 

 used in the cultivation of crops. 



Many of those present improved the opportunity to ex- 

 amine the horses and cattle in the well-ordered barns of 

 Dr. Loring. 



Thus ended a season of successful Farmers' Institutes, 

 notwithstanding the inclement weather experienced at sev- 

 eral of them. We were fortunate in nearly all places in hav- 

 ing good dinners at the usual price served to us by ladies 



