No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 355 



pi-ogress made in everything it is easily seen that an equal progres* 

 in the education of books is made. Tlierefore parents should not 

 neglect to give their children such an education as can best be sup- 

 ported by their means. A few farmers are only guilty of the pre- 

 ceding crime. ^lany of the farmers go to the other extreme and 

 give their children the best education tliat can be obtained. 



A century ago most of the educated peojjle were rich people, and 

 the farmers stood a very poor chance in holding any public office. 

 But now in this prosperous nation many, and the higliest offices, are 

 held by men that were once poor boys and the sons of farmers at that. 

 It does not take rich men alone to make a nation, but industrious 

 men that help to lift a iiation such as are found among farmers. 



Many of the rich men of this era neglect to obtain employment 

 when they are young, because they think they have enough money 

 to last them all their lives, and so they are during their youth tempted 

 to such degrading gambling places, where as if they had had work 

 when young they would never have found time to ruin themselves in 

 such places. 



True manhood and womanhood should be cultivated in youth, and 

 if it is neglected in youth it coincides closely with the proverb "A& 

 the twig is bent the tree's inclined." If such young men are friends 

 of those places in youth, when they have readied a riper age they 

 will still be found laboring under the same cause. As a general thing 

 many such men are found among city people, and a smaller number 

 among farmers. On the other hand a farmer's son has all the em- 

 ployment necessary, and so finds no time to spend in saloons and 

 places of different nature. When he attains old age he can then see 

 how- many were mislead. 



In the first case we had a young man whose parents w^ere very 

 rich and the conclusion was that too manv of those men are ruined 

 because they w^ere not taught to depend on themselves. In the last 

 case we saw that most of the young men of farmers are kept away 

 from those ruining places by constant work. 



In many cases a farmer^s son makes greater progress than a rich 

 merchant's son. Send two boys to an institution of learning, both 

 being of the same age and having made the same averages in public 

 school, but one being the son of a farmer, while the other is a rich 

 merchant's son. It can then be readily seen which one makes most 

 progress. The farmer knowing the value of money by having 

 earned it with the sweat of his brow, will give his son very little 

 money to be spent foolishly. The rich man having more money and 

 having earned it chiefly by speculation will be likely to give his son 

 several checks to be used at his liberty. Both boys enter the same 

 class, the former with the intention of gaining knowledge, while the 

 latter is thinking only of having a good time. 



