The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1893-03-16
HON. R. 7. NESBTT1'S
ADDRESS BEFORE THE STATE AG-
RICULTURAL SOCIETY
Work of the Agricultural Depart
ment-- Necessity of Agri-
cultural Education.

OuAGuI Oh EUuCdLlOu.
;. The following address, which was de-
Hvered before the State Agricultural
society. treats of two important sub
1ects The Department of Agriculture
ana Its relations to the farmers, and the
necessity of particular education relat-
ing to agriculture. The object and
aims OF the Department are set out. and
the Commissioner is anxious that those
who desire to render the Department
more useful may be able to cooperate
with him in the work. The introduc
ZION into our school system of studies
that would be of particular advantage
TO those who intend to engage in farm
ing ana which would invite others to
investigate and induce them to make the
farm their home, and upbuild our agri-
culture, is subject of great interest. and
Which has been but little agitated in the
State. Few men can succeed at any oc-
cupatlon without possessing natural
qualification or being fitted by educa-
tlon: Complete success on the farm is
no exception to the -1le. embodving as
u does IN Its entirety IL -;e and varied
knowledge of scientific and business af-
1alrs. The farmer of the teltlre. with
increasing population. will have TO ask
and require more of the soil. and must be
titted to obtain these results. The cues
lonlnvolves fireplace our children raised
on the farm, who shall become farmers,
shall take in the advancement of agri-
culture in the future. We trust that
all who see these reports will read with
care and thought what is SAID on this
subject.
The Work of the Department..
Mr.. President and Gentlemen of the
Agricultural Conventions:
In making this, my yearly report, be-
fore your society, there are two sub
Jects of utmost importance to which I
would like to call your attention, and
will do so as briefly as possible. The
first is The Relations of the Agricult-
ural Department and the Importance of
its Work to the People of Georgia" and
the second is THE Relations of Agri-
culture to the Youth of our Land and
the Importance of its Being Taught in
Our Public Schools"
In order to arrive at better under
ttandlng of the first, | will outline the
principal work Of the Department since
It's organization, seventeen years ago.
leaving 1t to The minds of my hearers to
feed on the details, and then explain its
DGuGuUS
which our State agriculture receives
from its work. Before opening this
subject, will state that there is a wide
spread prejudice in the minds of aver
age farmers against the department
arising most often from want of infor-
nation as to the aims and the
manner in which those aims are
carried out-and it is in part to combat
those prejudices and give the needed in
formation that the present paper has
been prepared.
About seventeen years ago, owing to
the rapidly increasing use of commercial
fertilizers, there was popular demand
for some more thorough and effective
means of protecting the consumer
against fraud in the purchase of these
goods. and at the same time promoting
the sale of goods suitable to our lands
and to the needs of the crops under Gull
tlvatlon. We all remember the beauti-
FULLY prepared Peruvian guano, costing
from $50 to 500 per ton, according to
the distance from market; the tremen-
dous llfe-giving principles it possessed
causing our crops to spring forward as
If by magic, but we also remember that
at gathering time the results were most
disappointing. After this came the era
OF cheaper goods. which in MANY cases
possessed no merit, and were prepared
often with no other object than to swim
die the pure laser. The results from
their use were not as represented or
expected. and the farmers were natural
ly disappointed and disgusted Then
followed gar ed reports of these results
made by designing statesmen to mislead
and entrap unsuspecting farmers. AS a
sequel suspicion crystallized into GER
talnty of fraud, and caused our courts
to be crowded with litigation, the duped
buyers seeking by law to right their
wrongs.
Our lands were deteriorating and ex-
hausting from years of mistaken agri-
cultural treatment, and with the conse-
quent spirit Of unrest and dissatisfaction
arose the demand for an Agricultural
Department, whose duties were defined
as protective and educational. In all
countries, as the population becomes
more dense and the natural products of
the farm fail to meet the increasing
demands, commercial fertilizers play
their part in solving the problem and
with their aid comes the demand for
more enlightened agricultural methods.
and thus follow agricultural schools
agricultural colleges and departments
of agriculture
1t was under this pressure, and to
throw aroun1 the farmer the protection
of which he s.ood so much in need, that
our legislature in 1876 established our
Department of Agriculture. New and
untried, it met with much adverse crit
icism even from those for whose benefit
and promotion it was created. All
through its history it has had to com
bat prejudic', sometimes denunciation,
and often its life has trembled in the
balance. Doubtless there have been
mistakes, but these are so far outnum-
bered by its advantages that we should
pardon them FOR the sake of the great
work it has accomplished in securing
the farmers against fraud, if nothing
else
The most important prot !ctive duties
with which the department is charged
are the inspection and analysis of the
tremendous amount Of commercial fer
tilizers which annually cover hundreds
of thousand of tons, and the sampling
and testing of the enormous bulk of
illuminating oils offered for sale in this
state Millit Is are annually Spent for