The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1910-11-08
tate. Minnesota and Nebraska have

state. Minnesota and Nebraska have
schools OF agriculture fn connection
with their agricultural colleges. These
are doing good work, but they are
reaching only a small proportion Of
the farm boys and girls. One such /
school to state is not enough.
The ideal secondary school il located |
away from the heart Of the city. II
has liberal piece of land In connec-
ton with it To be successful 1t must
be surrounded by enough Of farm
to give 1t rural flavor. As rule
these secondary schools are doing
their work WELL They have ruth
lessly cut out the classics and the dead
languages. They have substituted
studies that help to fit the boys and
girls for life on the farm. A large
share of the study Of books is done
away with and the study of living
things substituted The schools are
well equipped with laboratories. The
student works with corn, scoring,
placing and testing. Judging corn is
as fascinating a game as ever boy
Il Ill.
the stock judging.
Few of the schools can afford to
keep a complete line of live stock,
/ but neighboring farmers are always
ready to supply the deficiency. Then
| there are the machinery laboratories,
where the boys learn some of the
simpler principles of mechanics as ap-
piled to farm machinery. 1t puts
boy on his mettle to be turned loose
on a pile of castings and. told to put
them together to form binder. The
intricacies Of a gasoline engine keep
him working after hours. The study
of the growth of plants takes the place
Of the study Of classified botany. The
boy learns the names of the different
weeds and how to tell their seeds
apart. He learns their habits and the
best ways of combating them. He
makes a collection of insects and
learns which ones are harmful and
which innocent.
He is dealing with life, the kind of
life that he has known ever since he
was old enough to know anything.
AT last he is learning the answers to
that big "why'' that has bothered him
ever since he could walk. He has
found the education that is suited tc
his needs and his inclinations. 1t is
an education in the ways of nature
rather than in the ways of man. 1t is
an education that is fitting him to live
best the life that he knows mos
about.
He may not care much about col
lege. His mind may falter at geo
metrical propositions and quadrat1
equations. But he can understand tn
proposition of soil fertility and GRO
: rotation. He can work out the equa
ton of profit and loss in raising calves
The greatest mission of any form o
e education is to teach people how t
0 live. Not only must it teach them hoy
e to live well, but 1t will be successful
directly in proportion to the number
' reaches The professional colleges hav
. had to encompass themselves with 81
) we're restrictions in order that thei
professions might not become owe
: crowded With agricultural educatio
: there is no such fear
The danger is not in getting to
: much. The problem is to get enouT'
) Secondary agricultural edu alton b.
:, been phenomenally successful becauS
). it teaches people the things they war
: to know. They do not take such edt
!, cation on the general theory that
is good for them. They can see fc
= themselves that it is good. They ca
see it in the increased corn yield
grown by the boys who have bee
" graduated from such a school to til
!, farm. They can see it from the ii
: proved stock that takes the place I
:, the bony specimens with which /
: once would have been satisfied. Th
: can see ii in the pride with which I
keeps up his fences and yards
; The girl is given almost as large
: place in the secondary school as Il
: boy. She is taught the art and I'll
: science of homemaking. She gets