24 THE MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY 



ment cannot better be brought to a close than by 

 quoting the spirited language of President John 

 Lowell in a reply made in 1823 to some current 

 animadversions, which throws light on the then past 

 period, and which, as descriptive of the career of the 

 society, is likewise applicable at the present date: 



If it be asked whether the society did much in its 

 infancy, we answer readily and frankly, no. But with 

 still more confidence we add that it was not their fault. 

 The institution was ahead of the age and of the intelli- 

 gence of the State, and of public opinion. Its tv/o first 

 volumes will show that the trustees were not remiss. 

 Their queries distributed all over the State, prove 

 their zeal, and intelligence, and intimate knowledge of 

 the real wants of agriculture. No society in Europe 

 or America ever issued a more valuable set of queries, 

 and no society could at this day improve them, except 

 by some trifling additions derived from new discover- 

 ies. But neither Europe nor America v>^ere prepared 

 at that time for the improvements and experiments 

 which have since taken place. It is praise enough, that 

 the Massachusetts Agricultural Society vv^as the third 

 in order of time, framed, established, and endowed to 

 promote the cause of agriculture (as we believe), in 

 any part of the world and that it never lost sight of its 

 object, and was always ready to encourage, and re- 

 ward all attempts to improve any one branch of agri- 

 culture, and give publicity to any ingenious suggestions 

 for the promotion of this art. 



The official record of the first meeting of the society, 

 April 19, 1792, states that Samuel Adams was present, 

 and while that point of detail is omitted in the record, 

 it is in the nature of the case that he called the assem- 

 bly to order, and, since nothing is said of any other 

 person as chairman, undoubtedly he presided during 



