farmers' institutes in the united states. 333 



men. The leading features in the work this year were domestic 

 science and dair3dng. An expert poultryman was also on the lecture 

 force for almost the entire period. 



MAINE. 



Institute director. — A. W. Gilman, commissioner of agriculture, Augusta. 



During the past year the University of Maine, the State board of 

 agriculture, the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad, and the ISfaine Cen- 

 tral Railroad Company, working in conjunction, ran two special 

 trains. The trip over the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad occupied 

 eleven days, 31 meetings being held, with an attendance of about 

 20,000 persons. The other trip over the Bangor and Maine Railroad 

 occupied fifteen days, with 45 meetings and an attendance of 35,000. 



The trains consisted of three baggage cars, in which were placed by 

 the college of agriculture and the experiment station exhibits showing 

 appliances for dairy work, poultry rearing, orcharding, gardening, 

 seed testing, and educational displays of fertilizers, feeds, a veterinary 

 exliibit, and forestry and paper mill exhibits. 



At least two hours were spent at each stop, during which time two 

 or three lectures were given from the station platform or in the cars, 

 and the people were shown the practical use of the appliances on the 

 train. 



In addition to this special train service, there were 50 one-day 

 institutes held, consisting of 102 sessions, with a total attendance of 

 6,967 persons. The amount appropriated for institute purposes, 

 including the salary of the superintendent, was $5,000. Two insti- 

 tutes were held in each county as required by law, and the remainder 

 were apportioned among the counties according to the extent of 

 their agricultural interests. 



There were 10 independent institutes held with an average esti- 

 mated attendance of 125. A summary of the proceedings and a few 

 selected papers that had been read before the institutes were pub- 

 lished in the annual report of the department, of which 6,000 copies 

 were printed. About 40 local speakers addressed the institutes, 

 besides 17 lecturers employed by the State director. Two members 

 of the faculty of the University of Maine contributed twenty days of 



service as lecturers. 



MARYLAND. 



Institute director. — W. L. Amoss, director of farmers' institutes, Benson. 



Institute work in Maryland the past year was Cjuite diversified in 

 character. A railroad corn special, a strawberry special, a sweet 

 potato special, a tobacco special, a milk special, and a steamboat 

 special were sent out at various times in the interest of the several 

 products indicated by these names. The diverse character of the 



