AMERICAN PAR DMEEINS | NS duet Oise 
The American “ farmers’ institute” is an outgrowth of 
farmers’ societies of various kinds, which began to assume 
definite and separate shape early in the seventies, when 
several States undertook to hold farmers’ meetings for the 
purpose of giving popular lectures on agricultural subjects. 
The origin of the itinerant lecture system for the instruction 
of farmers is to be sought, however, long before this time, for 
as early as 1842 or 1843 such lectures were inaugurated by the 
New York State Agricultural Society. In 1859 the Massa-_ 
chusetts State Board of Agriculture appointed a committee 
to consider and report upon the propriety of instituting 
meetings similar to teachers’ institutes; and in 1871 the 
same Board voted that the various agricultural societies of 
the commonwealth be requested to organise an annual 
meeting for lectures and discussions at such time and place 
as may be convenient for each society, these meetings to be 
denominated ‘The Farmers’ Institutes of Massachusetts.” 
In February, 1879, the State Board made it a rule that each 
agricultural society should hold not less than three ‘‘ farmers’ 
institutes ” yearly, and, upon fulfilling this and other require- 
ments of the Board, each society received an annual grant ot 
£125. At the present time in nearly every State and pro- 
vince in the United States institutes or meetings of a similar 
character are held with more or less frequency and regu- 
larity; and in most of the older States the movement has 

* 1.—Farmers’ Institutes, by L. H. Bailey. Bulletin No. 7, U.S. Department of 
Agriculture. 2.—Farmers’ Institutes, by A. C. True and F. H. Hall. Experiment 
Station Record, Vol. vii., U.S. Department of Agriculture. 3.—Report of Ontario 
Agricultural Department. 4.—Report ‘of Department of Agriculture, British 
Columbia. 5.—Report of Secretary for Agriculture, Nova Scotia. 
