The Foundation of the Boyal Agricultural Society. 
3 
to the Royal Agricultural Society a career of uninterrupted 
success as a great national undertaking. His lordship specially 
alluded to the Highland Society of Scotland as an example to 
be followed, and was warmly supported in his proposal by the 
next speaker, the Duke of Richmond, who also pointed to the 
Highland Society (of which his Grace was an active and 
honoured member) as one which had been the means of diffusing 
information on agricultural topics throughout the country, and 
had thus been of essential benefit to the farming interests of 
Great Britain. " I cannot " (added the Duke) " see any reason 
why the farmers of England should fail to imitate so excellent 
an example ; and as an individual I feel it my duty to give my 
support to my noble friend in his exertions to institute such a 
Society, because I am convinced that such an institution will 
promote agriculture and confer great and inestimable advan 
tages on eveiy class of the community." 
The proposal made by Earl Spencer was further supported 
in cordial terms by Mr. Henry Handley, M.P. for Lincolnshire, 
who said it was an object which he had long had at heart, and 
that "there was not, in his opinion, a single department of 
farming but was capable of vast improvement ; " and the Earl 
of Scarborough, Lord Maidstone, Lord William Lennox, Mr. R. 
J. Eaton, M.P. for Cambridgeshire, Mr. C. Hillyard, Mr. Wilmot, 
and others, also expressed a desire to co-operate in establishing the 
proposed Society. Indeed, no dissentient voice was heard, and the 
project was fairly launched under unusually favourable auspices. 
The daily newspapers of the period had but little to say on 
the proposal, some ignoring it altogether, whilst others did not 
seem to grasp its full purport ; but the idea was not allowed 
to rest, and encouragement came from various quarters. The 
leading agricultural paper of the day called upon landed pro- 
prietors " to stand forth in aid of an institution, to support 
which they are encouraged not only by the certainty of national 
benefit, but also by the additional stimulus of private interest/' 
and the provincial press contained numerous letters and com- 
ments on the subject, all, in the main, appreciative and hopeful. 
In January, 1838, a long and important letter — subsequently 
published in the form of a pamphlet 1 — was addressed to Earl 
Spencer by Mr. Handley, who reviewed most ably the circum- 
stances of the time and the advantages to be anticipated from 
the formation of " an Institute to promote practical agriculture 
on scientific principles." Premising that his letter would pro- 
1 A Letter to Earl Spencer, President of the Smithfield Club, on the Forma- 
tion of a National Agricultural Institution. By Henry Handley, Esq., M.P. 
London : James Ridgway & Sons, Piccadilly. 1838. 36 pp. 
b 2 
