The Sentinel=record., 1912-09-15
EXTEND TEACHING
 IN AGRICULTURE
SETTER METHODS SHOULD BE GIVEN WIDE PUBLICITY IN
 THE SOUTH.
Experimental Farms Are Proving Their Worth In Showing the Soil
 Worker How to Get Results.

campaign or agflcdltural euucatlon and what has been accomplished al. ready. were discussed today by An drew M Soule, president of the Georgia State College of Agriculture. Mir. Soule's address in part follows;
 The subject matter considered un- der this caption may be divided into four sections; First, is there neei of extension teaching in agriculture? Second, what should extension teach ing include? Third, suggestions for the organization of the work along ef- ficient lines. Fourth. some data with reference to the progress and results attained by this method of instruc- tion.
 "The present condition of our az riculture is unsatisfactory. It is ev- ident to the most casual observer that a great depletion in soil fertility has taken place in recent years; nor has the malpractice in this direction been arrested. The yields per acre of our farm crops have fallen to an. alarm ing degree and this in spite of the sporadic efforts male here and there to maintain or increase yields on the part of the farmer by the use of various soil amendments. The situa- tion is therefore one of national con cern, and the importance of the case cannot. easily be overstated.
 There is mucn talk at the present time of the movement back ot the land. The great need Is to point out to the land owner, an dto the boy and girl living in the country the possibilities of farming where scientific policies are inaugurated and when this is done the urban movement will have been checkmated.
 Farmers obviously need help in many directions, and it Is essential that 1t be brought to them as quickly as possible and in the most accept able and easily understood manner
 The oft-repeated suggestion that an agricultural revolution may be brought about is one of the facts now as well demonstrated as mans mastery of
 electricity; but little has ever been
 done to put the knowledge which is to
 bring about this desirable result in an acceptable form within the reach of those who must possess it if the end sought is to be attained. Intelligent consideration calls for definition of what extension teaching may properly include. Generally speaking, it may | be regarded as method of dissem mating information on all topics relat ed to agriculture in the broadest sense of the word
 Under systematic instruction may be included what is known as the extension school, which undertakes as
 its name shows to carry on definite instructions along certain lines into a given community for a period of three days to mouth. This is probably one of the most efficient forms of extension teaching which can be inaug- urated in any state.
 'The experimental farm or definite soil test area will follow next in i'm portance Correspondence courses would be found helpful. The lecture and reading course will also be found helpful in many communities. In oth- CT instances study clubs may be form ed, and last but not least under this division would be ranked the work of the boys and girls clubs.
 Under the head of informal teach ing probably the most efficient agency is tn efarmers' institutes Then would come the farmers week generally ar. ranged for at the agricultural college conferences of one kid and another may be arranged either at the college or in various local centers. The oc- casional lecture would come under this head
 Under object lesson teaching may be grouped the farm demonstration work, the special train, the fair exhib- 1t, the educational excursion and pub lications. These should include the press bulletins sent out weekly or monthly, the leafiet or agricultural pc. riodical, series of popular bulletins, and travelling agricultural libraries.
 "The work must be carefully organ ized and efficiently manned where ef- fectiye service is contemplated. The men chosen for this line of work must be experts in fact and reality. In the administration of the work 1t will be we'll to have an executive secre- tary or director of the extension service with staff of men and clerks under his control. This constitutes the nucleus for the organization and direc- tion of the work. The experts needed in agronomy, horticulture. animal hus- bandry, agricultural chemistry, etc, will be delegated from the members of the specialized staffs of these depart ments by the heads of the same on request of the extension director.
 Tn organizing extension work with in the confines of any state. the col lege should of course, undertake to establish satisfactory relationship with all other agencies at work there in. These agencies may include the Experiment Station, the State Depart ment of Agriculture. farmers insti ute organizations, normal schools, district agricultural schools and the United States Department of Agricul- ture. A cooperative plan of work can generally be arrived at which will be satisfactory and enable all to work together in harmony and with greater success than if they endeavored to op- crate independently. The number Of agencies to consider and the relation ship which they shall bear to each o,ner, and the nature and extent Of the work undertaken by each can only be properly determined by knowl- edge of the existing local conditions.
 While the public has not yet real f~nd fI.r al t.,x..