The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1869-08-13
AGRICuLTURAL EDUCATION.

President A. d. White, of Cornell
University, delivered an address before
the New York State Agricultural Soci-
ETY., from which we make an extract:
TRUE SCHOOLS FOR PRIMARY EDUcA-
TION.-The true schools for the primary
! usual instruction in the mechanic arts,
and for learning any special trade, are
the workshops of the country. They
are the most accessible-the most SIM
pie I'oes'a young man really wish TO
learn to handle a saw, or chisel or plane
these are the practical schools, these are
| the practical teachers. They are all
| about hin-just where they are wanted
lin every city, in every hamlet. For
that primary work-the learning tire
usual uses of the usual tools-no other
schools can compare with them. Null
tipiy your present endowments by
thousands, and you can not supersede
the work of these primary industrial
schools almost within stones throw
Of the hearth of every man. If YOU
attempt to do it, you viii fritter away
your educational resources, and add
probably, one poor workshop to the
millions of good ones.
PRIMARY AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION.
FOR instruction in the simple funda-
mental processes of farming, the schools
| are the farms. They are spread all over
our country. They are ready TO receive
all young men who seriously wish pri-
mary training i'll agriculture. Even
though the farm be poor-even though
the processes be rude-that is the nee
essary preliminary school. 1t is access
iblc; il enables the young man to pay
his way ii enables him to get time, If
he be thoroughly i'll earnest, to profit
by the common school, the book, and
the newspaper. Rudimentary instruc-
ton as TO implements and processes,
can be got no where else SO well. None
other can supply the demand.
Multiply your endowments for Agri-
cultural education by millions, and you
| can not meet this demand. You can
| not supersede these myriad farm schools
| III every valley and on every hillside.
Attempt to do it, and YOU frittcr away
your endowment, and simply add one
poor farm to the myriads OF good ones.
WHAT AGRICULTURAL COLLEGES
SHOULD Do.-Ihey should take young
men where the farm, the workshop, the
common school leaves them-yOun9
| men who have already received good
sound knowledge and experience in the
simple, usual processes of agriculture,
and on that they should build, making
them master farmers thoroughly based
III tlOse sciences bearing on agriculture
thoroughly trained in the arts bearing
on agriculture; trained by studies OF
| nature to use their powers Of Observa-
ton trained by the studies of science
to use their powers of practical reason
| trained both by study of sciences and
arts to bring these powers OF observa-
ton and reasoning TO bear Oh important
practical questions. Having learned
much of the processes in farm work,
| they should be made to investigate new
processes to find the facts or fallacies in
them. They should be made to study
not merely the pillow and blowing, as
they could easily study it without stir
ring from their fathers farms, but the
very best theory and practice of plows
and blowing, of enrichment of soils, OF
drainage of lands, of rotation of crops
of construction of buildings, of breed
ing of animals, and the like.