Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1914-10-16
RURAL EDUCATION.
Importance of the Boys and Girls
Agricultural Clubs.
Extracts From an Address by Profess
sor F. w. Howe, Director of the Di-
vision of Agriculture at Syracuse
University-Benefi Summarized.


vision Of Agriculture at Syracuse
Unversity-Benefits Summarized.
Public attention is being much
directed to the magnitude and impOr-
lance of certain lines of club work for
the benefit of boys and girls. While
nearly all of this club work might be
described as definitely or broadly agri-
cultural, it takes a great variety Of
forms in the different states. Thus we
find corn growing clubs. cotton grow
ing clubs, potato growing clubs, fruit
growing clubs. garden clubs, poultry
clubs live stock clubs, bird study clubs,
domestic art clubs and high school and
village improvement clubs. AS a rule
these clubs have an informal organ
ization, and each elects a president,
vice president, secretary-treasurer and
sometimes patron or patroness among
the adults of the school district. Prizes
are frequently offered through the en-
terprise of individual citizens or local
merchants who desire to show their
interest in the educational betterment
of the boys and girls in the community.
This kind of school extension work
for boys and girls should be distin-
guished sharply from what is ordina-
rily known as school garden work
School gardens, as rule, can be work
ed only with hand implements and fail
entirely to give experience in the use
of teams and improved tools to expe-
dite farm work The term of school
closes just after the s. hool garden gets
nicely started and the work is often
abandoned. The school garden as usu-
ally managed fails to teach any love of
the soil or to give any profits that
might stimulate the boys economic in
terest in agriculture as vocation.
The most important benefits of boys
agricultural club work may be sum-
married. as follows:
First.-Individually the members of
such clubs have been led to observe
more closely, to recognize good and
bad qualities in the products they have
grown and in the insects. fungi and
other various conditions affecting their
work; they have met and learned to
solve some problems in the improve
ment Of plants, fruits and animals and
hOusewOrk they have learned that i'm
prOvement In one direction Is not al
ways or even usually accompanied by
improvement In all directions; they
/ have learned something of the value Of
labor. the cost of production and the
keeping of simple accounts with differ
ent farm and household affairs; they
4
erature and have learned some of the
sources of good agricultural literature;
/ their views have been broadened by
contact with others and by visiting in
stitutions of learning, highly developed
/ farms and other places OF interest, and
finally the power of taking the initia-
/ tive has in many cases been strongly
developed in them as individual and
responsible members OF the community.
Second.-Collectively they have learn
ed the value of organized effort, of Co
/ operation and of compromise. and the
social instinct has been developed In
them, n matter Of great importance in
rural districts, where the isolated con-
dition of the people has long been n
great hindrance TO progress.
Third.-The influence upon the com
munities at large, the parents as well
as the children, has been wholesome.
Beginning with an awakening interest
In one thing-better seed corn, for ex-
ample-communities have rapidly ex-
tended their interest TO other features
Of rural Improvement, with the result
that in the regions affected by the agri-
cultural club movement there has come
about a general upward trend In the
thoughts and activities of the people.