The act of 1830 provided a grant of L100 for a society in each district, upon condition that the members subscribed and paid in at least L50, and in the case of a society being organized in each county the amount was to be equally divided among the societies. The condition of making the grant was set forth in the act as follows: 'When any Agricultural Society, for the purpose of importing valuable live stock, grain, grass seeds, useful implements or whatever else might conduce to the improvement of agriculture in this Province,' etc. As a result of this substantial assistance by the government, agricultural societies increased in number, and their influence, in assisting in the improvement of the live stock and the bringing of new implements to the attention of farmers, was most marked. Horses, sheep and milch cows increased rapidly. Purebred cattle now began to receive some attention. The first record of importation is the bringing of a Shorthorn bull and a cow from New York State in 1831 by Robert Arnold of St Catharines. In 1833 Rowland Wingfield, an Englishman farming near Guelph, brought a small herd of choice animals across the ocean, landed them at Montreal, took them to Hamilton by way of the Ottawa River, the Rideau Canal, and Lake Ontario, and then drove them on foot to Wellington County. The Hon. Adam Fergusson of Woodhill followed two or three years later with a similar importation. The first Ayrshire cattle can be traced back to the Scottish settlers who arrived during this period. These emigrants had provided their own food for the voyage to Canada, and in some cases brought a good milch cow to provide fresh milk on the voyage. She would be disposed of on landing, at Montreal or in the eastern part of Upper Canada. This accounts for the early predominance of Ayrshires in Eastern Ontario. Thus to the period 1830-45 belongs the first foundation of the pure-bred stock industry. It was in this period also that the first signs appear of improved farm implements and labour-saving machinery. Ploughs of improved pattern, lighter and more effective, were being made. Land rollers and harrows made in the factory began to take the place of the home-made articles. Crude threshing machines, clover-seed cleaners, root-cutters, and a simple but heavy form of hay-rake came into use. The mowing machine and the reaper were making their appearance in Great Britain and the United States, but they had not yet reached Upper Canada.