PROGRESS IN AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION. 289 



As a result of sending out about 750 of these letters, the Office 

 received a considerable number of historical pamphlets or clippings, 

 early prospectuses and catalogues of existing agricultural institutions 

 as well as of some early schools of agriculture which have been dis- 

 continued, copies of legislative acts, reports of investigating com- 

 mittees, memorials to legislatures, first editions of text-books, ref- 

 erences to historical literature in various libraries, and some manu- 

 scripts. 



At the request of the committee the specialist in agricultural educa- 

 tion of the Office of Experiment Stations visited Dr. W. H. Brewer 

 of New Haven, Conn., and secured from him copies of several early 

 lectures dealing with agricultural associations and containing numer- 

 ous references to literature concerning these organizations, some notes 

 concerning men who were prominent in the early development of 

 agricultural education in this country, and copies of letters compris- 

 ing about 100 pages of typewritten manuscript, written in 1894 to 

 Prof. W. T. HeAvett of Cornell University, and detiling with the rise 

 of agricultural schools in the State of New York, the men who were 

 prominent in this movement, as well as in the movement for national 

 aid to agricultural education, and incidentally Avith the origin and 

 purpose of the land-grant act of 1862, This manuscript contains 

 many references to reports, acts of Congress, aiid acts of state legisla- 

 tures, which will be of great value to the committee. 



Among the papers contributed by Professor Brewer was a copy of 

 the prospectus of Oakwood Institute, which was opened at Lancaster, 

 X. Y., in Aj^ril, 1851, " for the reception of pupils of the age of 

 12 years and upward," who " will be carefully instructed in agricul- 

 tural chemistry, the analysis of soils, etc., by a pupil of Mr. Norton, 

 professor of scientific agriculture in Yale College.'' The school also 

 announced a course of instruction especially designed for practical 

 farmers and young men from the country, to commence about the 

 1st of January and continue three months. This apparently was one 

 of the earliest announcements of a short winter course for farmers, 

 but the course was never given. A fire which destroyed the property 

 of two of the chief promotors of the school caused it to be closed 

 just before the short course was announced to begin. Professor 

 Brewer has also contributed a copy of a manuscript prepared by him 

 some time between 1888 and 1892 on "The Intent of the ^lorrill 

 Land Grant." 



A visit was also made to Mr. Bronson ^Murray, of New York City, 

 who was a farmer in central Illinois from 1843 to 1868 and was 

 closely associated with Prof. J. B. Turner, of Illinois College, Jack- 

 sonville, 111., with whom he became acquainted in 1852, and with 

 him was instrumental in organizing the Industrial League of Illi- 

 nois, the object of which was to influence legislation to aid instruction 

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