Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1913-09-23
Give the Boy a Chance.

Give the Boy a Chance.
This is in reply to "a First Glass
Farmers Question, What Will / Do
With Ny Boys"
The First Class Farmer" says, "rm
afraid to send him to an agricultural col
lege for two or four-year course be-
cause fear he will be spoiled and take
on high notions and become lazy, thus
losing the qualifications of good prac-
tical farmer"
Just a question or so before we pro-
ceed. Did you ever take an agricultural
course in one of our colleges? would
presume you did not because the boy
who applies himself to his studies in our
agricultural colleges of to-day is In no
sense of the word likely to become lazy.
Are you afraid your young man will
fail where you made good when he is ad
ditionally helped by the most scientific
agriculture Of the times? If so, would
merely suggest that you keep your
doubts to yourself and give him
chance.
When you send boy into any busi-
ness, are you afraid he will learn that
business so we'll that he will no longer
want to do the hard, practical, muscle
called for work? No, you are not, be-
cause you want him to succeed and sue.
cess means the prosperous termination
of an undertaking, be it in relation to
farming or any other industrial enter
prise.
II The boy from the average farm is
sent to the agricultural college, he will
undoubtedly return with many ideas ex-
sctly opposite to those up to this time
practiced on the home farm. When he
does come home with these new ideas,
give him a chance to practice them and
listen to his view, for have not you,
yourself, sent him away and with two or
four years study, depending upon the
course taken, has he not done his part to
learn to the fullest extent the methods
as taught by the agricultural colleges
of to day? | say | think he has,
and 1 think he has simply because
know that the majority of the
agricultural college graduates go back
on the farm. where they practice, often
against heavy odds and many prejudices,
the principles that they have learned,
aud IL is the skepticism and criticism,
together with general lack of help and
encouragement from the farmer an par
eut that often makes the boy wonder If
il is really worth while when he even has
to argue unnecessarily with his home
people, who are the ones who should
help him in his progressive ideas.
There are exceptions to every rule as
we'll as failures in every calling, but as a
general thing the better the training
man receives for his life work the great
or are his chances for success. True 1t
is that some individuals in every walk of
life are termed lazy and hold exalted
opinions OF their own value, and ii you
have any real, fair reason why your boy
is going to be anything of this caliber,
keep him at home and do not allow him to
disgrace the agricultural college, but
otherwise "take chance" but what is
life bur a chance given US to waste or i'm
prove, as within Us lies.
Or course you might say that I'm pref
udice because I'm one of rhose agricul-
tural college graduates of Ohio, and re-
ceive the experiment station bulletins
and those from Washington which to-
gether with the farm paper comprise
highest agriculture.
Now give the boy chsnce.-Her-
bert B. Bates, in Hoard's Dairymsn.