SPEECH OF HON. JUSTIN S. MORRILL. 125 



expects to own land at some period of his life, and it could cer- 

 tainly do him no harm to be taught how to manage landed prop- 

 erty. If made a part of the regular course of studies, an opportu- 

 nity would be given to acquire information that might in the 

 changing circumstances of the world prove of the highest value in 

 practical life. But these professorships, as important as they are 

 admitted to be, would not satisfy the whole demand. The present 

 institutions are hardly more than equal to the task of supplying the 

 learned professions so called, with their annual reinforcements, 

 while others are wanted where the idea of labor shall be uppermost 

 and where the esprit du corps of those instructed will seek highest 

 honor in no other direction. 



It is true, nearly all the more modern sciences, are, more or less 

 related to agriculture or the mechanic arts, and they arc liberally 

 recognized by professorships in most of our institutions of learning 

 but, as generally taught, there is little special application to agri- 

 culture or the arts. It is too far removed from any expectation of 

 practical use, and, as with some merely ornamental branches, only 

 so much of technical knowledge is given as might be unpardon- 

 able for a gentleman to be without. 



The prejudice against educated farmers arises from the fact that, 

 while those usually styled such may be truly educated in some 

 sense, they have no real agriciiltural education, and are no more 

 fitted for their duties in that sphere than the aeronaut is fitted for 

 a railroad engineer. When we have a race of educated farmers, 

 men who have parted with their conceit for absolute knowledge, 

 practically illustrating their education by their works, they will 

 not turn out sailors on horseback, as it may be admitted, some of 

 the so called book farmers have done. Merely practical men have 

 looked at science as though it were a goddess in the clouds, to be 

 worshipped only by fanatics and afar off, when it is really a hand- 

 maid, beautiful and busy everywhere at saving labor and capital. 



Men who are not fdrmers often by choice or chance have estates 

 come into their charge, and then find themselves entirely unequip- 

 ped, having had little theory and no practice, to manage them suc- 

 cessfully. Such estates must be disposed of for the most any 

 neighbor chooses to give, or the owner will have an outlay and 

 not an income while it remains in such hands. This mortification 

 could not happen if only general ideas of farming economy were 

 more'widely taught. That man only is independent who feels able 

 to support himself and family by the plow when other avocations 



