The Cass County Republican. [volume] (Dowagiac, Mich.) 18??-1880, 1863-02-26

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learn of its present prosperous condi.
ton. 1t is to be hoped that under the
lead of the able and accomplished
scholar who, after years of good SER
vice in its faculty, has now been called
to preside over it, and with the aid of
the munificent grant of lands rendered
by Congress to this State for agricul-
tural education, it will enter upon a
new career of prosperity and useful
ness. aseffaza
JIM. GREGORY. Supt.
STATE AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE, MICHIGAN,
December 14th, 1862.
Hon. j. M. Gregory, Supt. Of Public Instruction.
SIR.-If the spirit of section 241s of
the Revised Statutes does not require
report of the condition of the Agri-
cultural College to be made to you, then
l respectfully request the insertion into
your Report, of the following items of
information concerning our College.
By request of the Board of Educa-
ton, granted in an Act of the Legisla-
ture of 1860, the College was placed
in charge of a Special Board having
also control over the publications of the
State and County Agricultural Socie-
ties. A full account of the College, in
all its relations, is to be looked for in
the Report of the Secretary of the
State Board of Agriculture, issued in
dependently of your Office.
The law of Reorganization of the
College, requires four years course
of instruction, at least, comprising not
only the sciences and arts which bear
directly on agriculture, but other such
branches as educated citizens are ex-
pected to be in some degree familiar
with. -
As the law requires us to take the
graduates of the common schools, and
yet requires very extended Course, a
Preparatory Department has been in
stituted, chiefly for the thorough review
of the studies usually pursued before
entering college. The full Course is as
follows ~,
PREPARATORY.
Higher Arithmetic, Mathematical
and Descriptive Geography, English
Grammar, Algebra, Natural Philoso.
ply, Rhetoric.
COLLEGE COURSE.
FIRST YEAR.
Geometry, English Literature Alge.
bra, Trigonometry and Surveying, &C.
ology, History and Book Keeping.
SECOND YEAR.
Physics, Meteology and Vegetable
Physiology, Elementary Chemistry,
Agricultural Chemistry, Botany and
Horticulture, Rhetoric.
THIRD YEAR.
Civil Engineering, Analytical Chem
istry, Animal Physiology, Drawing and
Rural Engineering, Inductive Logic,
Zoology. -
FOURTH YEAR.
Astronomy, Mental Philosophy, En-
tomology, Veterinary Medicine and
Economy of Domestic animals, Moral
Philosophy, Political Economy, Con-
nection of Physical Science, Declama-
ton and Compositions during the
course. Lectures on Practical Agricul-
ture.
Students are also received for less
period than the entire course, with
some liberty to select the studies they
shall pursue.
The labor system continues as here.
tofore. All students. not physically
unable, are required to labor three
hours day. This labor is managed.
so far as possible, SO as to be illustra.
tive of the principles taught in the class
room. 1t is part of the system of
education. 1t also serves to preserve
the health and strength of students,
too apt to fail in the change from hard
manual labor to the quiet of study It
also serves to prevent a growing dis
taste for labor, endangered Of four
years. sedentary life. 49, 9's ~
The peculiarities of the course of in
straction are chiefly the system of labor
for illustrations and the prominence
given to the sciences of Botany, Chem
istry, Zoology, Physiology and their ar-
plications. Botany does not mean the
Distinguishing and preserving OF How
ers. mainly: the classes here in that
study are taught the physiology of the
plant, have practice in grattmg' ood-
ding, pruning. cultivatiogs CO. ID