Litchfield enquirer., 1859-01-20
Whole No. I755,
CONNECTICUT STATE AGRICULTu.
 RAJ SOCIETY.

RAJ SOCIETY.
 SIXTH ANNUAL MEETING AT NEW HAVEN.
 Reported for the Hartford Courantl
 WEDNESDAY, Jan. l2. 1859.
 The meeting was called to order by Hon. \. $. Smith of Woodbury, President. Tho report ot the Recording Secretary was called TOT, read and accepted, after being objected to oy Gen Pratt. if it included the approval of oolon Robinsou's address, The Treasurers report was then called for ; after the reading ot winch Mir. Bill of Lyme called for a speci. hcatlon of the item of incidentals, amounting to ?oSo-which was given by the Treasurer. Mir. b'l was satisfied with the result. Gen Pratt exprt ssed his dissatis factiom at the expepai. ture of S26 by the Chief Marshal on the ground that he (Pratt) never received one cent rom the Society while holding the office of Chlef Marshal, which it was his honor once to do, and " he hoped to God he nersr shouid." He thought that iu the city in which the Fair should be held, any number of gentlemen might be found who would gratuitousy perform the duties of that office. Mir. Byingtou of Nor walk remarked that Gen. Pratt appeared to lllm to cast an insiruaton discreditable to ina Chief Marshal. Gen. Pratt waived his obiec- u,
 Ihe report of the Executive Committee was then read The report was one of Mr. Dver's cear able statements of the Societv for the past year. He spoke of the last exhibition held at Hartford as beng the largest and hest ever held in this State, and perheps tho hest exhibition of cattle ever held in the United States. He advocated the establishment of :, committee to investigate and decide upon the HuthnntIpitV V Of tbo
 al tue Fairs Of this Society, und this committee to eAerclse supervisory control over the awards Of premiums, thus removing many grounds for complaint and attempts at decep- ton on the part oi exhibitors The display of horses was tlne, exceeding that of any previous year, as was the case with most of the other branches of the exhibition. He deprecated the iaea winch had in some way possessed the n Is of some, that the Society did net pro. duce goed results to the agricultural interests Of the County Societies, and truly said that he indeed would be bold nan, who, by the use Of this idea, should endeavor to damage or, re- tard the progress of the Society. He said it was lmperatvcly demanded that greater atten- ton be paid the selection of such judges as would render thtir decisions free from any im- putatlon Of partialty. He alluded to the de- ticency stated by the Treasurer to be $500, aside from the amount of premiums awarded on field crops. This was accounted for by MT. Dyer by the unfortunate state of the weather on Wednesday, which was such as to render the receipts nearly nothing whereas, had tue day been pleasant the Society would have re- ceved $4OOO and had they received this. they would have had a surplus in the treasury.
 The motion to accept the report was made by MT. David Clark of Hartford.
 Gen. Pratt said that he had not acted with the Executive Committee, the past year. on the ground Of personal difficulties with the Cor responding Secretary. He had stated official ly to the President that he would resign the ofiice of President of the Hartford County So- cicty, as the holdag of that rendered him ex- ofiico member of the State Society's Execu- tive Committee. He said he would be one of twenty-one who should stand ready to pay tle debts of the Society pro rata. And should twenty Of them refuse to do anything. he l (Pratt) would pay the whole himself.
 Mir. Dyer stated that for the past three years the finance committee had been accused. ] both publicly and privately, of being lavishly extravagant, and that by Gen Pratt He 1 (Dycr) challenged him to prove this charge.
 and state the items wherein there had been this alleged extravaganza. He thought twas due to the Executive Committee that this should be-and he insisted that Pratt should make his expose. l Gen. Pratt rose and said that he did not shrink from any such challenge He accused Dyer of having slandered him by saying thar he (Pratt) was not friend to the interest Of the Society. He felt that Dyers salary was great deal too large that ne (Pratt) was one ot the original getters up of the Society and strenuously urged the holding of fairs from the first of its organization. And at the first for. matlon of the Society no one had any idea that 1 there were to be any salaried officers save that of treasurer. He felt that man could be found who would serve the Society in the ea. pacity of Secretary for the sum of 400 or $500. And that there were people in the room who would serve on those terms, were in not for competition with MT. Dyer. He thought the Executive Committee should get their business done without expense as to salary to the socic- ty. ll,'
 MT: Dyer said he did not wish to interrogate uen. fratt, but he Pratt) had made state neht ana ne deemed it his duty to challenge tne proof of the alleged extravagance. He leit that Pratt had labored under a mistake as to the duties of the Corresponding Secret,,- ry Ii he supposed that any man could perform | the duties of the office in one montA, including the publishing of the Society's transaction l Mir Clark of Hartford moved that the meet.
 ing adjourn, and that thereby Gen. Pratt
 would have afforded him some time to naLe
 up his derelcpment as to the lacish expendi. l lures. This motion was being acted upon.
 when the General very magnanimobsly waived the privilege so kindly extended to him. and moved the acceptance of Mr. Dyer's report, 1 which was carried AFTERNOON SESSION. as'
 The meeting convened pursuant to adjourn. ment. Report of the Finance Committee hy Mr R. B. Chamberlin of Coventry, who said