Report on the Ageicultueal Exhibit. 221 



the careful study of each of the great number of varietieB sho-wn. 

 Another valuable collection of grasses was contributed by Peter Hend- 

 erson & Co., from their farm m Rockland county. Mention should 

 also be made of the fine collection of samples of maple and sorghum 

 syrups and sugars, illustrating an important interest in several portions 

 of the State. The tobacco growers of the Onondaga district prepared 

 a most creditable display, and the pressed contents of one of their large 

 cases was admirably shown in a glass case constructed specially for the 

 purpose. An interesting exhibit of flax and flax products was made show- 

 ing the complete plant as grown in the field and during every stage of 

 treatment and manufacture up to the beautiful household goods 

 formerly so extensively made in the farm houses of the State. A fine 

 display of hops was made from the central portions of the State. A 

 detailed list of individual exhibits will be found elsewhere, but a special 

 mention should be made of the collection of the soils of the State made 

 by the officers of the Experiment Station at Geneva, whose director. 

 Dr. Peter Collier, in this exhibit and in numerous other ways, added 

 to the value of the State's disjalay. 



The completed exhibit comprised 120 samples of oats, 1Y2 samples 

 of wheat, 113 samples of rye, 114 samples of barley, 208 ears of com, 

 154 samples of shelled barley, 97 samples of beans, 19 samples of peas, 

 12 samples of flax seed, 88 samples of nuts, 108 samples of grasses, 53 

 samples of grass seed in bulk, 8 ginseng roots, 1 sample of teasels, 5 

 samples of broom corn, Y samples of maple sugar, T samples of maple 

 syrup, 6 samples of sorghum syrup, 1 sample of sorghum sugar, 1 

 sample of amber cane, 19 samples of soils. 



There were also shown twelve admirable photographs of lai-ge size, 

 illustrating the cultivation and gathering of hops. Another interesting 

 collection of phothographs showed the buildings and grounds of the 

 Geneva Experiment Station. Every exhibit had plainly placed upon 

 it a clearly printed card giving the full information already mentioned. 



The Wool Exhibit. 



The State's wool exhibit was entirely complete, comprising a fleece 

 of an aged ram and a yearling ram, an aged ewe and a yearling ewe of 

 every pure breed in the State. These fleeces represented all the 

 families of Merinos bred for fineness, for length of staple or weight of 

 fleece, all the Down breeds and all the long wool breeds. It might 

 have been enlarged by duplication, but its value as an exhibit would 

 not have been at all increased thereby. Another interesting and 

 important feature of the exhibit was a complete collection of the wools 

 of the State, arranged in commercial grades. This was prepared by 

 the MacNaughton Company of New York city. 



It was a matter of regret that the cases in which wool was shown 

 were furnished by the Department of Agriculture under a contract, in 

 the making of which exhibitors had no voice. These cases were very 

 poorly adapted to the purpose for which they were used and showed 

 their contents very unsatisfactorily. At the close of the exposition a 

 number of the fleeces were stolen from the cases. This was the only 

 loss of the kind sustained by any department of the State's exhibit. 



