Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1879-03-17
Agrifnlinral Department.
WHAT AGRICULTURAL EDUCA-
TON OUGHT TO DO FOR THE
FARMER.


FARMER.
Prof. Tanner, of the Royal Agricult
ural College England, in a recent address
says: 1.-THE sooner it is admitted that
farming cannot be taught in colleges
and schools, the sooner we shall accept |
a truth which must at some time or other |
be forced upon each and all of u.s."
And he further adds, "but while colleges |
and schools cannot teach farming, there |
is great and important work which
cannot be done elsewhere, and that work |
is the cultivation of the mind for the
more perfect understanding of the every
day operations of the farm and the prin-
ciples upon which these are based"
The defect in our present system Of
teaching at the agricultural colleges is
that enough practice is not combined
with theoretical teaching. The student
at the law school has his moot court,
where he learns to address the jury and
argue to the court, and for which he
prepares his points and briefs; and the
medical student has the practice of the
dissecting-roOm, and work in hospitals.
The agricultural student should have
the opportunity of following the plough
and harrow, and of seeing, handling and
understanding all the improved instru-
ments of tillage; should not only work
in the laboratory. and be taught to CON-
pound and analyze fertilizers, but be al
lowed to apply them and witness the
results upon the crop. The complaint
comes not only from the supervising
farming communities, but from the grad
yates and students themselves of and in
our eastern colleges, that there is too
little manual labor required of the pu-
pills, insufficient instruction in the man.
ipulation of instruments, and that they
are not allowed to take part in the ex-
periments which are, or should be, going
forward on the grounds and in the lab
oratory of these institutions continually.
The government has done much 1; perhaps
it will do more by erecting department
of agriculture with a capable head, who
can direct and compel associated and
thorough efforts in the right direction in
all the agricultural colleges, and the
several States cannot do better service
than in granting such aid to these insti-
tutions as will render them capable of
afording instruction at almost nominal
cost to the sons of the farmers and others
who seek to enter their portals. But
our farmers must drop their prejudices,
assist their sons to an education in the
line of their calling, realize that without
it their pOsterity will dwindle into mere
hewers of wood and drawers of water,
and that no class of men need culture
more than the sons Of working farmers.
We all know-why not say it?-that
the majority Of young men hired on the
farms are not only wanting in that re-
6nemcnt which cultivation bestows, but
are addicted to coarse and vulgar habits
An association with other youths, even
for a short period, in the republic of let
tiers will humanize them just as it does
the rough cubs who attend medical and
law lectures and who get clicked into al
least Outwardly appearing gentlemen
during their course of studies. There i:
no better or as good material in the
world to make thoroughly educated far
mers of than the young men of this
country growing upon and assisting il
the cultivation of their fathers farms
and it is to be hoped that they will moi
be deprived of the furtherancc and ale
offered by the institutions endowed fo
their uses.-R. Goodman ~ the Coma
try Gentleman.