farmers' institutes. 653 



the facts readilj-. The work was organized by the State Board of Agri 

 culture in the early 80"s. Mr. Lockhart, myself, and some otlKn- gentlemen 

 were appointed a committee to orgaui/.e the work, which we did without 

 any funds providing for expenses. During the fall and winter several 

 institutes were held in the -north and northeastern parts of the State, 

 and such e;cpenditures as were required to be made, were provided by the 

 localities where the institutes were held. This work went on for a few 

 years, and when the work began to be better appreciated, tlie State Legis- 

 lature responded to the demands of agriculture with suitable appropria- 

 tion, and then you know the work was transferred to Purdue. This is 

 an outline of the early struggles of the work. Mr. I.oekhart can, no doubt, 

 give you some closer data." 



From Mr. K. M. Lockhart, of Waterloo, Ind.: 



"Replying to your letter of recent date, asking me to give you all the 

 information that I was ii> possession of as to the starting of the farmers' 

 institute work in the State of Indiana. 



•'In order for me to do this it will be necessary for me to make some 

 statements of a personal nature in order to show my own connection with 

 this great work. I was elected a member of the Indiana State Board of 

 Agriculture in January, 1874. At that time there were no farmers' 

 institutes organized in this or anj- other adjoining States. From 1880 to 

 \S8S my attention was called to the organization of this work in the 

 States of Ohio. Michigan and Wisconsin. I called the attention of a 

 number of our best farmers to the importance oT taking up the work in 

 our own State. I was engaged in business with my lirother in Crawfords- 

 ville. Ind. We had business relations with many of the farmers of the 

 • onnty; anujng them .James A. Mount, Jasper N. Davidson. John L. Davis 

 and many others. They were all anxious to engage in the work. Some 

 time in the winter of 1883 we arranged for the holding of a two days' insti- 

 tute at Crawfordsville. I -secured the assistance of the Secretary of our 

 State Board of Agriculture. Alexander Heron, Hon. John B. Conner, one 

 of the editors of the Indiana Farmer, and J. J. W. Billingsley. 



"I am not sure that President Smart, of Purdue, was with us. but my 

 best recollections are that he took a part in the work. With the aid of the 

 home workers we had a very successful institute. * * * Nothing more 

 was done towards the holding of institutes until the annual meeting of 

 the State Board of Agricixlture in January. 188«i. I presented rhe matter 

 in a short address to the Board, urging that the work should be taken 

 up by the State Board, as had been done by the States of Ohio. Michigan. 

 Wisconsin and some other States, and aft»r a lengthy and spirited eliseus- 

 siou in favor f)f. and also opposed to. by sou)p of the njemhera, on the 

 ground that they did not believe the farniers of the State would take 

 interest enough in the work to m.ike it a success. A motion prevailed 

 tJiat a committee of three lie apjjointed to look into the matter and learn 



