Ixxvi General Meeting of Governor's and Members, May 22, 1891. 
Mr. Horace Cox, Mr. Edwin Foden, 
and Mr.l Jonas M. Webb, to act 
as scrutineers of the voting-papers. 
These having been duly collected, and 
the report of the scrutineers thereon 
received, it was announced that the 
twenty-five Members of Council who 
retired by rotation had been duly re- 
elected. 
The Seceetaey having read the 
Eeport of the Council to the Meeting 
(see page x), its adoption was moved 
by Mr. Thomas G. Benn, seconded 
by Mr. G. F. Sheppaed, and carried 
unanimously. 
On the motion of Mr. John 
Teemayne, seconded by Mr. J. 
Heebeet Tayloe, a vote of thanks 
was passed to the auditors (Messrs. 
A. H. Johnson, Francis Shcrborn and 
C. Gay Roberts) for their services 
during the past half-year. 
In response to the usual inquiry 
from the Chair as to whether any 
Governor or Member had any remark 
to make or suggestion to offer that 
might be referred to the Council for 
consideration, 
Mr. Feedeeick King drew atten- 
tion to the question of the educa- 
tion of agricultural labourers. He 
advocated the establishment — by 
means of the funds of the Societj', the 
funds of individual members of the 
Society, and the funds of the County 
Councils — of Model Farms in the 
vicinity of the Metropolis and such 
places as Birmingham, York, or Man- 
chester, where intelligent boys from 
country parishes might undergo a 
system of training by the most emi- 
nent lecturers and teachers ; so that 
after finishing their course they might 
return to their native villages to im- 
part " at the blacksmith's corner " 
some of the information they had 
gained. He said that great efforts had 
been made by Members of the Society 
for the benefit of those who could help 
themselves, and he urged that some- 
thing should be doneto helpthose who 
were incapable of so doing. 
No other Member desiring to offer 
any remarks, Mr. Newz.\m Nichol- 
son moved a vote of thanks to Lord 
llavensworth for his able conduct in 
the Chair, remarking, in regard to 
what had been said by the previous 
speaker, that he had great faith in 
the County Councils ; he thought that 
they would no doubt take energetic 
and useful steps toward the advance- 
ment of the education of agricultural 
labourers. 
Sir William Vincent seconded the 
resolution and remarked that the 
Surrey County Council, of which he 
was a member, were giving attention 
to the question of Technical Educa- 
tion ; and he was very much in hope 
that the better education of the agri- 
cultural labourer would be one of the 
prominent branches of the subject that 
they would take into consideration. 
The \oie of thanks was then put by 
the Seceetaey and carried unani- 
mously. 
The Peesident in replying con- 
gratulated the Society upon its choice 
of a President for the ensuing year. 
He thought they had selected a 
nobleman— a very old friend of his 
own — who would maintain the honour 
and dignity of that great Society as his 
predecessors had always endeavoured 
to do. He was quite sure that Lord 
Feversham, himself a practical far- 
mer, and a most successful competitor 
at the Society's Shows on many 
occasions, took a great interest in the 
Society, and in what he hoped and 
believed was a growing industry in 
this country. The question raised by 
Mr. King would receive the consider- 
ation of the Council, but he did not 
think that it would be within the 
scope of the Society to undertake any 
measures on a large scale for the 
education of the agricultural labourer, 
seeing that enormous sums were voted 
by Parliament towards elementary 
education in this country. After 
adverting to the establishment of 
agricultural sides in rural schools, his 
Lordship drew attention to the 
recently-issued pamphlet of the 
Board of Agriculture on sulphate of 
copper as a means of checking the 
potato disease, and to the increased 
intelligence now required from the 
agricultural labourer in the applica- 
tion of remedies such as these, as well 
as in the other operations of agricul- 
ture. It appeared to him that the 
Board of Agriculture was working 
admirably and most industriously for 
the improvement of the great indus- 
try which it was created to promote. 
In thanking them very cordially for 
the vote of thanks which they had 
passed, he had now only to declare 
the Meeting at an end. 
