Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1908-11-18
AGRICULTURAL SCHOOLS.
General Assembly May Pass Law Es-
tablishing One I'm Each County.
A special from Columbia says:

"A speclal from Columbia says:
Among the very important mea-
sures to be presented to the new
Legislature next spring will be q bill
looking to the establishment in every
county In the State CT a practical
agricultural school, to teach, by ac-
tual work on the farm, modern sci
entific agriculture by State aid, sup
plemented by tax or popular subscrip-
ton from the counties, and supervis-
ed by the Federal department Of ag-
riculture, through It's experts at work
In this territory. 1t Is hoped also to
get four big agricultural high schools
with financial aid from the Federal
government under the Davs bill, now
pending in Congress, and which is
expected to pass this spring; these
schools to be established in widely
separated sections OF the State, so
that any farmer may have access to
one Of them. Their establishment
and maintenance will also call for
State aid.
The principal hackers and promot-
ers Of the proposed scheme appear to
be Congressman Lever, Governor An
sci, State Superintendent Of Educa-
ton Martin, Commissioner Watson,
State Senator Weston. Messrs. Wat
son and Martin will make a strong
recommendation along this line in
their forthcoming annual reports to
ho t.1@ 4
Governor Ansel will back them up in
his message.
A conference between the officials
interested with Ira w. Williams,
State agent of the Federal agricultu-
raj departments farm demonstration
! work here, will be held in few
days with q view to working out the
details of the scheme and putting the
proposed bill into practical and ac-
ceptable shape. Mr.. Williams, who
has had large experience with work
Of this kind, says it will cost not
less than $4,000 apiece to equip
| first-class schools of the kind and
| another $4,000 year to maintain
them and make them carry out the
work for which they are intended.
| The idea is not only to give the
young men Il thorough practical
| Nho" lCuSc vi SClSltlIC ldIHllHS
| through actual work on a farm, but
to give regular lectures and conduct
work along with it to the farmers of
the various counties as we'll as regu-
lar weekly or semi-monthly periods.
Mr.. Williams points to the splendid
work that has been going on for
| some years at Macon, this under a
woman who founded and built up the
institution as an illustration of what
real, lasting, practical benefit can
be accomplished in this direction.
| Georgia tried the county school, but
| had to abandon them as they were
! too expensive.
DR.. Barrow, the new head Of the
| agricultural work at Clemson, ap-
| pears to be anxious for the new dem
onstrative system of teaching farm
| ing at that institution by having the
students go out and do actual work
on the farm. To this end he has
! asked Mr.. Williams to Clemson to
! help him work out the details to be
presented in report to a meeting of
the board Of trustees to be held now
in a short time. DR.. Barrow was
formerly with the Federal depart
ment and has had large experience
| in this line.
Mr.. Williams says the Federal de-
pdIlIneul is spending more money
and doing more work in this State
than in any other in the Union, and
the several heads Of departments who
| have supervised work here are great
ly interested in the progress that has
been made and the ready response
shown by farmers throughout the
State to teaching of new and i'm
proved methods. and their heads are
| personally putting forth every effort
1 at headquarters to extend the work
all along the line. The farm demon
stration department under Dr. Knapp
is now spending $4,000 year in
the State with twenty trained men
constantly at work in the field, and
hopes to- double this amount by ano-
ther ye8r. The farm management
corps under DR.. Spillman is running
DR.. Knapp's department close race.
About $4,000 year is being spent
| on the tea farm at Summerville, and
| about that much more on the medi-
| cal farm at Florence. In addition to
| this expensive experiments are being
conducted in cotton breeding, corn
breeding, tobacco culture, tick eradi-
cation and dairying.