s. The former
won for itself the name of "The Bloody Ninth;" the latter was that
regiment, which, under Colonel Miller at Lundy's Lane, gained undying
fame in a gallant struggle for the enemy's cannon.

[Illustration: RESIDENCE OF E.S. FRANCIS.]

The history of the Berkshire Agricultural Society may be traced back to
its origin in 1807, when Elkanah Watson, who had recently become an
inhabitant of the town, exhibited two fine merinoes, a ram and a ewe, on
the green under the Old Elm. Great interest was aroused, and the
importation of the best foreign breeds of cattle and sheep was
encouraged and carried on by public-spirited and enterprising citizens.
One farmer came into possession of a cow, in which he felt so much pride
that it formed the subject of his conversation at all times and places,
until his friends feared to meet him. At last it gave birth to a calf,
but minus a tail, and the wrathful owner carried the calf, with his axe,
to the back pasture. The Society was organized in 1811. New features
were added from time to time; standing crops were inspected; women were
interested to compete for premiums. The plowing match became a part of
the Pittsfield show in 1818, when a quarter of an acre of green sward
was plowed in thirty-five minutes by the winner. Dr. Holmes, in 1849,
Chairman of the committee, read his poem, "The Ploughman." Many years
before, William Cullen Bryant, then a lawyer in Great Barrington, wrote
an ode for the cattle show. Improved agricultural implements and better
methods of cultivation were some of the material benefits produced by
the fairs. The fame and influence of the Society have reached all parts
of the country. In 1855, exhibition grounds, thirty acres in extent,
were purchased in Pittsfield.

The Berkshire Jubilee of 1844 merits at least a brief mention. It was a
gathering from far and near of those emigrants from the county, who
still held their early home in loving memory. Of the thousands that were
present, many were men of national reputation. Among the exercises, a
sermon of welcome was delivered by the Rev. Mark Hopkins, a prayer was
offered by Rev. David Dudley Field, an address was given by Governor
Briggs, and a poem was read by Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes.

[Illustration: CENTRAL BLOCK.]

Governor Briggs had become a citizen of Pittsfield two years before. He
was born at North Adams in 1796. When seventeen years of age, after
having spent three years in learning the hatter