Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-09-12
Profits of School Farming.


To prove that farming-the right
kind of farming-pays, is one of the
tasks which the rural school has en-
phatically set itself 1t is particularly
essential TO make the school children
realize the money value of agricul-
ture, not as theory, but as practi-
cal fact, and one of the best ways for
demonstrating il has been shown to
be to let the children actually farm a
bit of ground and collect the proceeds.
Recently the United States Commits
sioner of Education had occasion to
welcome a party of southern boys and
girls who were on sightseeing tour
of Washington with money earned in
their own farming.
Real farming did it." said he, in
describing the experiment. 1.-THE
money earned from their individual
garden patches in connection with the
study of up-to-date farming paid the
expenses of those % Virginia school
children. The children came from the
Second congressional district agricul-
tural school at Driver. near Norfolk
The party was in charge of the prin-
cipal of the school, and he was a busy
man indeed during the three days
spent in seeing the sights of the Ma
fiap,c pitaI
Tomatoes and other produce paid
the full cost of the trip--which was
just 1878 for each pupil. This amount
was only a comparatively small part
of their total earnings for the year.
The children came from one of the
best gardening regions in the South,
and their school has a unique place in
that particular community. The school
has an instructor In agriculture, who
teaches three days a week and spends
the other three days in farm demon
stration work, applying on the actual
farms of the district the theory he i'm
parts in school"
Further inquiry showed that this is
not the first time the children have
learned that intelligent farming brings
in cash return. Each student makes
regularly profit of from s25 to 500
on the individual garden patch he Gull
tivates. In addition, the children help
in working a school farm, which after
paying all expenses, including the wa
ges of man who serves both as a
farm hand and school janitor, shows a
profit of about 5000. The principal is
confident that with a 75-acre farm,
which he hopes to have soon. his boys
will be able to earn their own living
entirely while attending school.
The State of Virginia is among the
rapidly increasing number of States
that are beginning to realize the i'm
portance of adequate agricultural ed
ueation, and money has been appro-
priated to aid the school. There have
also been private benefactions. A new
$4,000 building is to be dedicated in
September
The experiment at Driver is only one
of many indications of what the Am
erican rural school can and should do
All over the country efforts are being
made to bring home to the country
districts the significance and value of
agriculture. The rural school is the
essential link in the chain, and the
United States Bureau of Education is
endeavoring to drive this fact home so
deep it will never be forgotten, for the
Bureau maintains that the rural school
must provide the kind of training that
will not only fit boys and girls for
rural life, but will serve to interpret
| life in the country so attractively that
when the children grow to manhood
and womanhood they will be glad to
remain on the farm.