Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1886-06-25

y
would cover the inception of all of them.
About 1916 celebrated chemist in
Germany suggested the usefulness
of chemistry Ts in agricultural Gp
big resulted in the establishment of over
forty colleges within twenty-five years,
and the result has been that Germany has
more than doubled her agricultural prod.
ucts A similar course of agricultural
education, supported by the Government
of France, has resulted in the fact that
there is not an acre OF waste or barren
land in France.
In 1886 the suggestion of an agricultural
education had first come from virginia.
1t was taken up by the North, and Virginia
has now sent IA company of gentlemen to
our college to ascertain what portion of
our system can be utilized in the "Old
! Dominion
The speaker gave history of the estab-
lishment of our own agricultural college,
and the impetus given TO agricultural edu-
cation in this country by the work of Mr..
| Coleman, also the action of the general
government in that direction, as well rs
that of the state, drawing comparison
between the net results obtained from the
government grants 10y the University and
the agricultural college, and asking why it
was that the lands of the college only
brought - per acre, while those of the
| university yielded SIP
After the Aron quartette had rendered
a selection Levi J.. Barbour of Detroit
Charities, - which abounded in interesting
material and valuable suggestions, but the
audience, which had listened patiently,
''broOk loose" at this point, rendering it
almost impossible for the gentleman TO he
heard and materially marring its effect.
He took up the history of the state
prison, and asserted that with IA few UNI
important changes the discipline is the
same as when first established A similar
lack of system also marked the admins
traton of the other prisons of the state.
The state has never performed its duties to-
wards discharged convicts They should
be placed under surveillance, and the
( state could not do n more sensible thing
than TO appoint an agent, who, with the
assistance of county agents, should pro-
/ cure labor for discharged cOnvicts and see
that they obey the laws and are not idle.
When the state passes II law for the in
Fiction of indeterminate sentences with
tickets-of-leave, and the jury has only to
determine the guilt of the prisoners crime
will largely decrease.
Brief reference was made TO the various
schools and juvenile reformatories and to
the several state boards, and also the i'm
position practiced upon the state by the
Importation of foreign paupers. especially
that of pauper children from other states.
Also to the lack of institutions for feeble
minded, and he expressed the hope that the
state would soon take active measures for
the care of these "babes of Cod
The leader Of the Cassopolis band rem
dered a coronet solo, after which j. NJ. r.
Sill OF Detroit, by request read an exceed
ingly interesting paper on Mechanics
| written by James W. Bartlett for the oc
casion. The writer drew a comparison
between the labor of human muscles and
the power of steam. and his argument was
principally directed to showing the great
influence of steam in the promotion of
civilization by the impetus which it has
given to trade manufactures and COM
| mercc.
10 t,Nre t1 IN,
promoting transportation the writer
touched upon the science as applied 10
agriculture. the household and mechanical
arts, drawing vivid and often humorous
pictures of pioneer life. which were listen
ed 10 with sharp attention by the audi
ence, which was composed largely of farm
ers and their families
The topics of bread-raising, the work
ing of metals, etc, were also taken up and
treated 10y the author in the same felici-
tious stylc-a rare combination of fun,
statistics, and general scientific informa-
ton. The exercises closed with an over
ture by the band and the audience dis
persed.
TIE SENATE CHAMBER ADDRESSES AND MUSIC
rhe evening meeting III thc Senate
Chamber was opened with selection from
The Puritan's Daughter 10y the h. L.
band OF Lansing.
The President, Hon. Henry Fralck of
Grand Rapids. called the meeting TO order,
was sung by Mrs. Tilden and the Arion
Quartette in manner which called forth
round after round of applause.
Mr.. r. Gates Rice of the Arions, follow
ed with base solo entitled The Warrior
Bold which was received with such en-
thusiaSm as TO demand an encore. which
was gracefully yielded 10y Mr.. Rice.
President Fralicl then introduced Maj.
WHY'S {. Ransom, deputy railroad COM
missioner, who addressed the meeting up
/ on the subject of 'RallrOaQS.f
Michigan was admitted to the Union up
on tho threshold OF the railroad age. The
first experiments in the drawing of cars
10y means OF steam. New York was just
awakening TO the subject of internal
means of transportation, and Michigan
received its early population largely from
that state
Nine mouths after the first successful ex-
perimcntS with the little Rocket an act
was passed 10y the legislature of Michigan
for the construction of the Detroit and
/ Pontiac railroad. The speaker spoke of the
terms of this enactment, as evincing the
fact that there were no franchises granted
to Il 'sOnlless corporation"
He traced the history OF the early rail-
roads OF the state among which were the
Erie a kalamazoo, the pioneers road OF
Michigan, running from Adrian to Toledo,
and now constituting part of one of the
principal roads of the commonwealth.
The paper was largely statistical, but pre-
relative to the railroad system of Michi-
gan with which the public are not gen
orally acquainted.
Mr.. Ransom closed his article with an
exhaustive recapitulation of the extent of
Michigans railroad system of to-day, and
averred that the almost unprecedented
p growth of Michigan i'll fifty years was
largely due to the rapid development of
her natural resources through wise pol
icy in the construction of railroads.
At the close of this paper n solo was
sung 10y Mr. John q. Adams of the Arions,
entitled THE Lay of the Imprisoned
Huntsman, from the Lady Of the Lake. In
response TO an imperative demand the
gentleman sang an encore, I'VE Were
SLipmates, Jim and ~
Prof. j. VI. 3. Sill superin-
tendent of the Detroit schools,
was then introduced, and presented his
torical sketch of the schools of the state,
normal and common. The paper was full
of interest, containing valuable informa-
ton and suggestions, but was much
mnrred by the fact that lack of time pre-
vented its being given entire, the subject
of normal schools being wholly suppressed
and only few detached thoughts given
on the topic Of common schools.