considerable time is not known, but in 1807 there was an association called the Kennebec Agricultural Society. This was largely maintained for many years through the influence of Charles Vaughan and his brother, Benjamin Vaughan, who inherited and managed a large estate at Hallowell, carrying on agriculture and other enterprises on a large scale (183). They had gardens, nurseries, orchards, and farms, distributed stock, seeds, and plants, and conducted correspondence with farmers. The Kennebec Agricultural Society was "a social organization which held no exhibitions for many years after its establishment, but had frequent meetings for the reading of papers contributed by its members and for consultation and discussion" (147). In 1818, through the efforts of the Vaughans and others, the Maine Agricultural Society was formed, and held one or two exhibitions at Hallowell, but, not being able to get sufficient funds for premiums, it ceased operations. Winthrop Agricultural Society was chartered by the Massachusetts Legislature February 21, 1818, and held meetings and exhibitions until 1825, when it became inactive. In 1829 an organization under this name was incorporated by the Maine Legislature, and this in turn was merged into the Kennebec Agricultural Society in 1832. EARLY SOCIETIES IN NEW JERSEY An organization entitled "the New Jersey Society for Promoting Agriculture, Commerce, and Arts" was established as early as 1781, but nothing is known about its work (230). The Burlington Society for the Promotion of Agriculture and Domestic Manufactures was permanently organized February 6, 1790, and was active for at least 10 years. It gave prizes in contests in agricultural production and published numerous essays on agricultural subjects in newspapers: The Morris County Society for Promoting Agriculture and Domestic Manufactures was formed in 1792, but its principal activity was the establishment of a library. The second attempt to establish a State society was made in 1818, but this was not permanently organized until 1855. COLUMBIA COLLEGE AND THE NEW YORK SOCIETY FOR THE PROMOTION OF AGRICULTURE, ARTS, AND MANUFACTURES The original prospectus of King's College (afterwards Columbia College), issued May 31, 1754, included husbandry and commerce among the subjects to be taught there (246). Laws and orders adopted by the governors of the college June 3, 1755, include "agriculture and merchandise" in the course of study. It is not known that any further action was taken at this time. About this time the New York Society for Promoting Arts was organized and in 1766 offered premiums for reports on matters which the society deemed of interest to farmers. The New York Society for the Promotion of Agriculture, Arts, and Manufactures was organized February 26, 1791, with Robert L. Livingston as president, and was incorporated March 12, 1792 (321). When the New York Legislature on April 12, 1792, granted funds to the trustees of Columbia College for additional professorships, a professorship of natural history, chemistry, and agriculture was established, and Samuel Latham Mitchill (1764-1831), a distinguished physician and from 1807 professor in the New York College of Physicians and Surgeons, was appointed to fill this position (268). (Fig. 1.) That year he published an Outline of the Doctrines in Natural History, Chemistry, and Economics included in the courses he was giving. The following topics related to agriculture (270): Under mineralogy: Lime and gypsum as manure. Under botany: 1. Life of plants and vegetation. Farinaceous matter of plants-Wheat, rye, maize, oats, peas, potatoes, etc. Fibrous parts of plants-Hemp, flax, cotton, hops. Saccharine substance of plants-Sugar cane, apples, beets, maple, etc. Manufacture of sugar-Honey. Products of vegetables by fermentation-Wines, vinegars. Under agriculture or cultivation of plants: I. Soils-Sand, clay, loam, mixtures, calcarious, mould, etc. II. Manures-Lime, gypsum, dung, straw, sand, mud, fish, etc. III. Food-Water, earth, phlogiston, hydrogen, salt, oil, etc. IV. Diseases-Vermin, blast, smut, mildew, rust, coalgrain, drought, winter kill-Ginnani delle malattie del grano in Erba. Under zoology: I. Functions of animals. II. Vis motrix in the vital solid. III. Arrangement and classification of animals. IV. Chemical history of different animal substances. 1. Blood. 2. Milk (a) Whey, (b) cream, (c) cheese, (d) butter. 3. Fat-(a) Hog's lard, (b) beef tallow, (c) mutton tallow, etc. Under economics chemistry was taught, including its relation to medicine, agriculture, and other useful arts. In the Transactions of the Society for 1794 the secretary stated that "lectures had been given upon the different parts of the course," which was chiefly attended by students of medicine. Doctor Mitchill was active in promoting the agricultural interests of New York for many years. He contributed articles on grasses, cankerworms, and other subjects to the publications of the State agricultural society and delivered addresses on agricultural subjects in different parts of the State. As Representative and Senator in Congress at different times between 1800 and 1813 he acquired a wide acquaintance with leaders in agricultural affairs and became a member of many agricultural societies. In 1804 the name of the society was changed to the Society for the Promotion of Useful Arts (320). Besides issuing publications, it encouraged the formation of county societies and greatly influenced the establishment of a State board of agriculture in 1819. In 1824 it united with the Albany Lycaeum of Natural History and formed the Albany Institute, which continued for many years as a scientific society. It was not until 1832 that the New York State Agricultural Society was organized by the combined effort of the county societies. THE MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING AGRICULTURE The Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture was organized May 31, 1792, under a State charter resulting from a petition to the legislature signed by 28 men prominent in the agricultural, business, and political life of the State (186). Its object was to promote "useful improvements in agriculture," and it immediately began to raise money for premiums to stimulate such work. During the first eight years many articles were published in newspapers and pamphlets. In 1801 the publication of a series of papers was begun and from 1813 these were incorporated in the Massachusetts Agricultural Journal, which for a considerable period was issued semiannually. In 1814 the legislature appropriated to the society $1,000 annually for printing and circulating the publications on agriculture, the raising of seeds and plants, and agricultural experiments, and in 1816 gave an additional $500 for premiums at cattle shows. In 1801 the society undertook the establishment of a professorship of natural history and a botanic garden at Harvard College. This was done in 1804-5. The plan for this garden "provided for scientific observation of the growth of vegetation and of the habits of noxious insects, that methods might be devised for their destruction, and a cultivation, for sale and distribution, of the seeds and roots of useful plants." The cooperation of the society and college continued for 25 years, when the annual grant which had been made by the State, in aid of this part of the society's work, ceased (186). The following estimate of the success of this society during its first quarter of a century is made in its centennial volume, page 41: Beginning with conditions of general apathy, of more or less prevalent distrust as to its intentions, and of incredulity that anything important could be gained to the farming interest, it had created a feeling of confidence as to the future of the agricultural industry and excited a spirit of inquiry. It had widely distributed thousands of pages of printed matter, supplying the best information then obtainable relating to the art; given impetus to the formation of numerous coworking societies, and printed the essays and contributed to the premiums of some of the more important among them; it had introduced new seeds and plants and choice breeds of farm animals from foreign lands; brought new modes of farming into acceptance among leading farmers in different parts of the State, thereby exerting an exemplary influence upon others who gave to books and pamphlets no welcome; it had set fairly at work the inventive faculty of the land in devising better farming apparatus; enlisted science to search and experiment in the behest of agriculture; and, by its successful cattle show, had reached the popular heart (which is always responsive in beholding the novel and the extraordinary), thereby entering upon a radically different but most effective method of diffusing agricultural knowledge, the method of “object teaching" (183). ELKANAH WATSON AND THE CATTLE SHOW The idea of the "cattle show" as a distinctively American institution with an educational purpose was suggested to Elkanah Watson (1758-1842) (fig. 2) in 1807 after he had exhibited two Merino sheep "under the great elm tree in the public square in Pittsfield," Mass. (325). He had been a prominent citizen of Albany, N. Y., where he was greatly interested in the promotion of the development of our country to the west by the building of canals, the establishment of stage routes, and the advancement of agriculture (326). In 1807 he had settled on a farm near Pittsfield. He became convinced that agricultural societies should be organized in the several counties on a more democratic basis to include "all the respectable farmers," and that means should be taken to popularize such a movement through cattle shows. On August 1, 1810, he issued "an appeal to the public," signed by himself and 28 other farmers, announcing the Berkshire cattle show, which was successfully held at Pittsfield, October 1, 1810. BERKSHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY The following winter the Berkshire Agricultural Society was formed under the presidency of Watson, "with ample powers-but no funds," and on September 24, 1811, a more elaborate cattle show was held, which was attended by three or four thousand people, and included a picturesque procession of members of the society (325). It then occurred to Watson that women ought to be included in this movement, and he therefore arranged for an exhibit of their handiwork, with premiums, on January 12, 1813. This was successful and the meeting was terminated with a ball at which "many farmers' daughters graced the floor." Returning to live at Albany in 1816, Watson immediately promoted cattle shows in Otsego and Jefferson Counties, N. Y., which excited so much public attention that Governor Clinton recommended the establishment of a State board of agriculture to promote the organization of county agricultural societies. An act for this purpose was passed in 1819 and by the end of that year societies had been formed in all but six of the counties, with the aid of a pamphlet by Watson on the history of the Berkshire Agricultural |