The Portland daily press., 1881-05-30
How Agriculture Should BE Tai, oht.

Now Agriculture" must be taught: not
as an emperical procedure, for such would
not differentiate modern progress and mod
ern conditions from those which governed
the agriculture of the ancients, whereby in
places deserts were produced, and in other
regions steady depreciation in quantity of
yield; but according to modern methods,
grounded upon that modern science which
is founded upon principles derived from the
tracing out of causes through carefully OBJ
served and verified facts, it must be treated
as "a modern pursuit, and the most modern
methods must be employed in its teachings.
AS the age of authority is weakened, and is
still sensibly weakening. so must we case.
as far as may be, from teaching young stu
dents in the Il say so' manner, and must
endeavor through experiment and illustra-
ton, to convince the student personally OF
the facts, and gradually lead him through
correct deduction into general principles.
and thus into the means of profitable appli-
cations. The teaching of agriculture must
in our opinion, be from the classroom to
the field. and from the field again to the
classroom statements must be shown and
deduction must be verified as far as NAV be.
and apparent discrepancies disclosed and
explained. The student should be convinced
through his senses and his reason not by
the statements of the books alone This
method implies the use of the farm, the gar
den, the glass-house, of trees and plants. of
tools and implements, of illustrations of
failures as well as successes, and taxes the
resources of the college curriculum. 1t inn
plies the best ana most talented as well as
skilful teachers and demonstrators These
remarks cover the study of "agricuture' as
the word is used in college catalogues. but
be it clearly apprehended, it does not cover
the term agricultural college" as a means
of educating the agriculturist.
Object teaching is not science; accumula-
ton of facts is not science. Science comes
through the connecting of causes and eff
fects through observed and verifiable facts
a, d phenomena. Its line is linear, aad
each new discovery, each fact observed and
connected with preceding facts. carries pro-
gress forward and extends its line. Its laws
offer data for success, data for prophecy As
agricultural pursuits are carried on in ac-
cordance with scientific laws, agricultural
science becomes possible, and each success
opens up the road for further success: each
conquest from the mystery of natural law
opens up vista of possibilities waiting to be
grasped, and each for our benefit. To at
tain this position of science for agriculture
requires educated workers, and many of
them, and the agricultural education ground
ed upon scientific methods, not only is emf
nently desirable for the purposes of profita-
BILE farming, but is also to be sought for in
the interest of progressive farming.
To sum up the educational scheme, agri-
cultural education must be founded upon
the rudimentary and general education of
the common school. 1t must develop the
thinking man. 1t must teach the princioles
which appertain to agriculture and the pur-
suit of farming as it exists. 1t must show
the application of these principles. Its
methods must be through teachings of the
outlines OF the sciences and of the general
laws OF thought. so as to give the student
control over his own faculties; object lessons
wherein the students shall be directed to the
explanation of the causes and effects of the
phenomena to be met with in the farming
pursuit; practical lessons which shall teach
the putting into practice of what is appre-
hended by the mind; verifcation lessons,
which shall test to the student his own
knowledge, how much or how little it NAV
be, and its practical value.-From DR.. E.
Lewis Sturtevant's Thoughts ON Agricul-
tural Education.