River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1916-08-31
OPPORTUNITIES
in AGRICULTURE
By III. L. Russell, College of AgricuI-
ture, University of Wisconsin.

Many young man who has finish
ed high school is now considering the
question whether he will spend addi-
tional time in educational training to
fit him for his life work Perhaps the
boy has not yet fully made up his mind
just what line he will follow. In fact
most of us who are already engrossed
with the problems of life did not con-
sciously prepare in the most advan-
tageOus way for the particular niche
we may now be filling.
While the opportunity to learn is
always before US, no matter how old
we are or the conditions under which
we may labor, yet the years of con-
scious training and preparation come
to the great majority during youth.
1t we do not take advantage of the
opportunity then, the chance slips by
and too frequently the regrets of aft
er years are unavailing.
In the field of agriculture the cp-
portunity for useful effort is unrival-.(
ed for there is no limit to the chance
which the well trained young man has
in this field. In the earlier years nat
urally large majority of the gradu-
ates of our agricultural colleges were
needed to fill the professional posi-
tons which were then open, but COM
petition is now much keener for these
positions, as in all other branches of
the teaching field.
In the practical field, however, there
is no need for the trained man to
fear competition. The business side
of agriculture like any other business,
is held down and encountered with the
multitude who are unwilling to apply
the results of modern science or in
different to it's value. Just so long as
they are content to move along in the
same rut, to ignore the findings of
modern science and the tested expe-
rience of others, to let we'll enough
alone and drift rather than to push,
just so long will the returns of the
average farm be absurdly low.
Why do the corn fields year after
year of the members of the Wiscon-
sin Experiment association run from
10 to 20 bushels above the average
yield of the state? Why is the av-
erage yield of corn in Wisconsin from
SO to 40 bushels per acre, while that
of the entire United States runs about
&c? Simply because Wisconsin farm
ers are more progressive than the av-
erage. They have learned the lesson
of good seed and good culture and
reap the profits thereby. The man
who is able to apply these lessons GER
tainly is able to compete advantage
ously with the average.
No good farmer should keep herd
of milking cows and not know to a
certainty whether the labor and feed
he expends on each animal returns an
actual profit or not. The average
yield of many Wisconsin herd is 300
pounds per year, while the average of
the state is only ITS pounds of butter,
just about enough to pay the cost of
keep.
Food products are on the rise in
value and will continue to increase
so long as consumers multiply more
rapidly than production. For this
reason the product Of the farm, as
we'll as the land itself, is very unlike
ly to bring less returns than the aver
age values now received. Neither
does the farmer have to write off
large sums for depreciation on his
farm like the manufacturer on his
factory or plant.
These facts are worth careful con-
sideration by the boy who stands at
the threshold Of his opportunity and
now has chance to train his mind to
think straight, as we'll as to learn how
to handle effectively and efficiently his
time and his talents.