magnitude of the agricultural resources of the State, to extend to the skilful and thorough farmer and mechanic, inventor, designer and laborer the sustaining, fostering hand of encouragement and reward, and nothing has been more calculated to strengthen the purposes of the Society to efforts of greater usefulness than this fact, that in successive years, those placed in offices and places of authority by the will of the people of the State, have been present to witness the success which has followed the labors of the friends of Agriculture.

Upon this occasion, the Society were honored with the attendance of His Excellency, Governor Fish, Lieutenant Gov. Patterson, the Comptroller, Secretary of State, Treasurer, Surveyor General, Mr. Speaker Hadley, and several gentlemen of the Senate and Assembly. There were also in attendance many of the Representatives in Congress from this State, and from other states of the Union.

The public press of this and adjoining states was fully represented, and through the various public journals there have been spread before the people full and detailed accounts of the articles and stock sent for exhibition, and of the incidents characterizing the fair. In every case, so far as it has come to the knowledge of the Executive Committee, the reports, furnished by these valuable vehicles of knowledge and information, have been distinguished by their eulogy upon the fair, as one of the most successful and important which was ever held in this State. The Society made every arrangement to facilitate the labors of the gentlemen connected with the press, as nothing was more desired by them, than that to the people in every part of the State and country should be known the history of the progress of agriculture, as developed in this association of all that is valuable to the field or home of the farmer. The great cities and the rural districts had each the representation of their journals present, and probably in some form a narrative of the events of these interesting and important three days, has been perused by the great mass of the population of the State and of the Union, and it is hoped, read with satisfaction as a record of the advancement of a good and a great

cause.

The grounds selected for the fair were admirably adapted to the purposes of the exhibition. The buildings and fences were substantially made under the directions of Messrs. Burnet and Rust, and the arrangement of the different articles on exhibition constituted much of the good order which characterized the entire proceedings of the fair.

Floral hall, Mechanics', Manufacturers and Dairy halls, were all arrayed with taste, and the spacious tents used for a portion of the exhibition were found most useful, and better calculated for the display of articles than the spacious buildings erected.

The magnitude of the business to be done in preparing for the Fair, and necessary to be done in the proper arrangement of all its procedure and details, after its commencement, it is difficult fully to present in this report, so extensive and diversified the correspondence, so thorough and minute the knowledge necessary of all the branches of farming and mechanics and artistical labor, proper to be encouraged in order to present a proportionate reward-so numerous the calls for information-unremitting the demand for especial attention to this or that part of the great and extended work, that it is one of the most unavoidable of results that some department shall have been overlooked or neglected. That there has been so little of censure, and so much of kind commendation of the labors of the Society in this respect, is a reward indeed. The business was apportioned in proper divisions and the work of preparation systematized. By such an arrangement only, could the necessary duty be faithfully discharged. The business office at the grounds became one of the most animated of exchanges where the incessant interrogatory made and answer furnished, were of themselves the best exponent of the activity of the three days. The care necessary to afford the proper response in each case was well repaid by the satisfaction evinced by the great number who visited this place of unceasing business.

The importance of a large and extended premium list was clearly manifested. Every department of mechanical industry of the farming economy, was in eager competition, and beyond this, the class of discretionary and miscellaneous premiums, was found so large as to call for unremitting attention thoroughly to examine and decide upon. For successive years, the arm of the ingenious and useful laborer, the accuracy of the artist, the faithful vigilance of the hand that sows and reaps, the skill of the dairy-man, the judgment of the breeder, all these have come up to the annual fairs of the Society, quickened to the exercise of their best efforts by the offered reward, and that, not so much by reason of its intrinsic value, as that it was the testimonial of worth, bestowed by those, who examined accurately before a decision was given.