Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-08-17

STUDYING FARM MACHINERY AT AN AaRI-
CULTURAL CoLLEGE.
good many years to bring people to re-
alize that college education is as val
liable for n farmer as for a doctor or
a lawyer. The main difference is that
the law compelS man to get col
lege diploma before he starts to prac-
tice medicine, while he may start
farming with nothing but q team and
plow.
Even at the present time there are
many men both on the farm and in
the cities who doubt the value of
college education for the farmer.
Many a farm boy is squarely con-
fronted with the problem Of choosing
between four years in college or start
ing to farm at once. Four years is a
long time to a young man. Fifteen
hundred to $1,000 is a large sum of
money to him. To spend both for a
college education requires a great deal
Of courage and faith in the future.
The amount of money necessary to
pay four years expenses in college
will enable the young man to Sart
farming on a rented farm. The four
years win, If he is industrious, enable
him to earn enough to make a good
sized payment on a farm of his own.
If he goes to college he will have
nothing at the end of the four years
but the experience and knowledge he
has gained there. Is it worth It?
1 have put this question squarely to
dozens of men in their last year at
an agricultural college. Without ex-
ception they say that it is worth the
outlay. Not one regretted the time
or the money which he had bartered
for his education. Few of them placed
it on a money basis alone, but even
from that standpoint they considered
that the chances were in favor Of the
college man.
The boy who starts farming for him
self without any education will run up
against a good many snags which the
college man will miss. He will learn
by experience many of the things
which the college man learns In
school. In doing so he will pay much
dearer for his knowledge. The old
prejudice against ''book farming is
fast disappearing. People are coming
to realize that book farming is merely
the fused experience Of successful
farmers everywhere, explained and
iIlumined by the light OF science. Prob
ably In no one respect is the advan-
tage of the college man more clearly
apparent than in the case Of soil fer
fifty. Long after the unframed man
has begun to notice and wonder at
the decline of his crop yields the man
who has studied the science Of soil
fertility will be raising undiminished
crops. The art of keeping up the
soil fertility cannot be learned from
the neighbors, for they have not prac-
ticed it 1t cannot be learned from
father or grandfather. for in their
day the fertility Of the soil was con-
sidered inexhaustible.
The success of the agricultural col
lege graduate cannot be measured in
money alone. The agricultural COM
munitie5 Just now need leaders much
more than they need men who can
simply make money on their own
farms. 1t is necessary for the agri-
cultural college graduate to succeed on
bis own farm. of course. His every
move Is closely watched by critical
neighbors. Even the shadow OF q
failure starts chorus of ~ told you
So"
Success on bis own farm is the first
essential to the young man who would
be q leader Given that for backing,
he can do almost anything he wants
to with his community. Farmers have
q vast deal of respect for the man
who can do things. Their prejudice
against college farming is lost in ad-
niration for the results achieved by
the college farmer. If he advises or
ganizing club they are willing TO
join in and help. If he tells them the
school needs recognizing they are
willing to be convinced. They may
even consent to bringing two or three
schools together and using the money
saved to hire better teachers. The in
spiration of one mans success and the
energy impaired by him ia sufficient to
start whole community 10 thinking.
Once you get man to thinking. there
is no need to worry further about him.
He Will take care of himself.
IL an energetic young farmer with |
an agricultural education could be
placed In each township throughout |
the farming sections the results would |
be an enlightened agriculture that |
would be the envy Of the whole |
world. A leading educator recently |
made the statement that three live |
aGEiezs stazzal aaiiasa sxeds4akes yaeHld IN l