22 



COLORADO. 



The secretary of the State board of a,i,n-iculture of ('olora<lo, under date of March 1, 

 "1905, .states that "it is impos.si])k- to furnisli any kind of a liistory of the farmers' 

 institute movement in this State." 



The data, therefore, given in the following account of the institute work in Colorado, 

 are taken from a paper by A. C. True and F. H. Hall, printed in 1890, « and from a 

 history of farmers' institutes prepared by L. H. Bailey, pul:)lished in February, 1900.6 



In the paper by True and Hall this item appears: "In 1879 Colorado joined in the 

 movement (institute) with a meeting held at Fort Collins, November 26, in the man- 

 agement of which the local organization and the State board of agriculture cooperated." 



Professor Bailey, writing in February, 1900, states that — 



No direct appropriations were made by the general assembly during this year (1891) 

 for the purpose of supporting and conducting farmers' institutes. The State board 

 of agriculture set aside a certain sum to be used for the purpose of defraying the ex- 

 penses of professors attending such institutes held in different parts of the State. 

 Since the year 1888 a record had lieen kept of the amount expended for tliis purpose, 

 which is as follows: For the year 1888. $99.55; for the year 1889, §56.60; for the year 

 1890, $121.80; for the year 1891, $90; for the year 1892, the sum of $500 had been 

 appropriated for said purposes. 



The farmers' institutes in Colorado are held under the auspices of the State agricul- 

 tural college. There is no definite number held each year; they have varied from 

 about six to twenty. The meetings are not regularly distributed over the State. 

 They are held entirely in the irrigated districts, and at least one-third of them are held 

 in connection with meetings of local Pomona granges. There are also several local 

 organizations which apply to the college for speakers to hold and conduct the meet- 

 ings. There is no definite sum available for the institutes; each locality is expected 

 t(j' pay the expenses of the room in which the meeting is held, of printing programs, 

 and other local expenses. The railroads furnish free transportation and the college 

 pays the rest of the traveling expenses; also the hotel expenses, if there are any, altho 

 the local people are very likely to take care of the speakers while they are in town. 

 On the average there has been less than $150 a year spent by the college on these 

 institutes. There is no State department of agriculture. There is a co-called State 

 board of agriculture, but this is merely the legal title for the trustees of the State 

 agricultural college. ^ 



From the report of the institute director for the year ended June 30, 1904, the fol- 

 lowing statistics are taken: 



The funds with which to carry on the work are contril)Uled by the State agricul- 

 tural college. The total expenses last year (1903-4) were $517. Fifteen institutes 

 were held, made up of 36 sessions, and the total attendance was 1,660. The lecture 

 force was provided from the faculty of the agricultural college and experiment station 

 staff. Twelve persons were sent out on this service, contributing in the aggregate 

 forty-eight days of time. 



The legislature at its session of 1905 appropriated the sum of $4,000 annually for 

 the purpose of organizing and conducting farmers' institutes each year in each agri- 

 cultural county of the State and made it the duty of the State board of agriculture, 

 thru its officers and those of the State agricultural college, to organize and conduct 

 these institutes. ^ 



CONNECTICUT. 



The late Doctor Bushnell, of Hartford, in an address liefore the Hartford County 

 Agricultural Society about fifty years ago, speaking of the deserted and feeble churches 

 in the country districts said: "It would seem to me that as a remedy, rather than 

 sitting in conferences to discuss the question, we should form farmers' clubs to revive 

 the agricultural life in these communities." 



a Experiment Station Record, vol. 7 (1896), p. 638. 



b V. S. Dept. Agr., Office of Experiment Stations Bui. 79, p. 10. 



c U. S. Dept. Agr., Office of Experiment Stations Bui. 135 (Revised), p. 10. 



