The Cass County Republican. [volume] (Dowagiac, Mich.) 18??-1880, 1863-01-15

waters are abundant, and of excellent
strength and quality, and there is eve.
ry reason to believe that they will be
found throughout very extended ter.
ritory. A large amount of capital is
already employed in the manufacture,
and large quantities have been pro.
duced. For the security Of the pur-
chasers, and the credit of manufactur.
ers alike, / think there should be some
system of inspection adopted, and
therefor recommend you to consider
the question.
i The encouragement of the pursuits
OF agriculture has been always cher.
ished object with the people Of Michi.
gan. One of the mandates of the con-
stitution to the Legislature is, that it
"sball encourage the promotion of in.
tellectual, scientific, and agricultural
improvement, and shall, as soon as
practicable, provide for the establish.
nent of an agricultural school" This
duty was undertaken none too soon,
but was not entered upon wisely. The
school itself was set in operation much
too early, and before any adequate
provision had been made for its sup.
port. The result has been a failure
and disappointment. By a strange
oversight the farm was selected and
located in the woods, as if our young
men needed to be taught scientifically
the business of chopping and logging,
thus pnstponing anything like expert
mental farming for years. Having no
endowment upon which to rely, the
College has necessasily always been
solicitor to the Legislature for appro-
priations, and the people have grown
weary of it, to some extent, in conse.
quence. 1t has not been able thus far
to assume that commanding influence
in the agricultural affairs of the State
that it should, and otherwise nigh.
have done. There are many better
farms in the State than the College
Farm-much better stock, and more
scientific farming-and yet l think
there is steady Improvement. The
errors committed in the organization
are being renedied by time and more
judicicious management. We ought
not TO expect too much at first. The
founding of a great institution of learn
ing is the work of time, and more es.
necially so when, as in the present case,
the course of instruction is to a great
extent new. 1t is necessary, first, to
educate teachers who are fitted for the
new pro!essorships, or TO find such as
fully comprehend the scope of the en-
,erprise and The means essential to its
success. The confidence Of the COM
munity has to be obtained, both in the
permanence of the institution and it's
ability TO accomplish what it proposes
BY the legislation of the last regular
session the college was, to some extent,
recognized, its management was
transferred to a new board, called the
State Board of Agriculture, and, as /
think, with good effect. All the ob-
jrcis sought by this legislation have
not yet been attained. The board it.
self was organized III pursuance of the
law, but no permanent Secretary has
yet been chosen, principally for the
reason that adequate funds to pay his
salary and expenses were not within
the control of the board. 1t was tho't
also, that the times were not propitious
for setting on foot the enterprise con
templated in the duties assigned to the
Secretary. The board have made very
considerable improvements, and still
kept well within tho appropriation.
They ask for the same appropriation
as for the last two years-to wit, &c.,
600 for each year-which l recon-
mend. Seventy-two students have
been educated at the College during
the past year, while considerable mum.
bers who contemplated admission have
entered the military service.
By an attof Congress, approved July
. End, 1868, there was "granted TO the
} several States, for the purposes there
matter mentioned, an amount of pub
lie land to be apportioned to each
; State, quantity equal to thirty thou
sand acres for each Senator and Rep
resentative in Congress, to which the
States are respectively entitled by the
apportionment under the census oil
eighteen hundred and sixty, provided
that no mineral lands shall be selected
or purchased under the provisions OF
! this act" Section of the act is as fol-
, lows:
"Sec. 4. And be it further enacted,
, that all moneys derived from the sale
of the lands aforesaid, by the States to
which the lands are apportioned, and
from the sale ofland scrip hereinbefore
, provided for, shall be invested in stocks
: of the United States, or of the States,
or some other safe stocks Yielding moi
5 less than five per centum upon the pal
value of said stocks, and that tht
: moneys so invested shall constitute +:
J, perpetual fund, the capital of which
shall remain for ever undiminished lex
!, cept so far as may be provided in sec
2 ton fifth of this act), and the interes
v of which shall be inviolably appropri
e ated by each State which may take ant
claim the benefit of this act, to the en-
e dowment, support, and maintenance o
e at least one college when the leading
!. object shall be, without excluding 9th
:. er scientific and classical studies, an,
y including military tactics, to teacl
:, such branches of learning as are relate,
n to agriculture and the mechanic art
IS in such manner as the Legislatures G
Al the States may respectively prescribs
J. in order To promote the liberty an