7<J 



this work, capable of imparting information, who have in their own work 

 achieved success, and wlio are altle to sliow the evidences of liaving applied 

 the results of the best agricultural thought and research in their practical every- 

 daj- farm work. The principal reason why this type of lecturers is demanded 

 is that the farmers of New York State are a reading, thinking people, and the 

 majority of them are much better posted than were the leading men a genera- 

 tion ago. The means for spreading information have increased wonderfully, 

 and during the past few years people have been better able to purchase books 

 and papers, the inclination to experiment has gained ground rapidly, and every- 

 where are men who are trying the newer things in agriculture. They are 

 reading everything they can oljtain along the line of their specialties, and 

 when a speaker who knows his subject addresses them he finds them receptive 

 and anxious to obtain information. They are continually reading and tliinking, 

 and each will bring a more cultured l)rain and more accurate knowledge of the 

 principles which underlie their specialties than the year before. The farmers' 

 institute lecturer who undertakes to be received graciously must not only be 

 abreast of the times, but he nmst be in advance of them. 



I do not mean to say that a knowledge of agriculture will make any man a 

 successful farmers' institute worker. One may have studied all branches of 

 agricultural chemistry, soil physics, and be thoroughly posted in many other 

 lines of scientific thought and research and still not be acceptable. The farm- 

 ers are anxious to meet men who are studying in nature's great school, and 

 those who have worked out their problems in the soil with the tree, shrub, or 

 plant are the ones who are best equipped to impart knowledge. 



In a corps of workers it is of the utmost iniportanr-e that the work of the 

 speakers be uniform and that the facts cited by each speaker coincide with 

 all the rest. In order to make the work of our men more uniform and keep 

 them thoroughly up to date, some years ago we inaugurated the system of 

 normal institutes, taking the workers to the State experiment station for three 

 days and to the St:ite college of agriculture for three days, where the instructors 

 and lecturers at these institutions were asked to review the work of the past 

 year in their various lines of scientific research. The institute workers were 

 asked to take notes and, in case anything came up with which they did not 

 thoroughly agree, they were expected to discuss the subject in open meeting, 

 thus arriving at an understanding on disputed points and at the same time 

 getting the latest accepted thought' of the scientific men. Our men are not only 

 benefited from this line of work, but we secure a representative from the office 

 of the conmiissiouer of agriculture, who thoroughly posts us on the agricultural 

 law of the State and on the workings of his department. The national laws 

 relating to pure food, oleomargarine, and kindred subjects are discussed, and 

 our men leave these gatherings with a large fund of information that they did 

 not have before. 



Discussion. 



Mr. Cbeelmax. The first thought that occurs to me is. Where are we going 

 to get the men to train? Then, what are we going to do toward educating 

 him for our particular work? We want the man who can tell what he has 

 done on his farm, laboring under the same conditions as his neighbors. We 

 have two sources from which to get that sort of man. First, the agricultural 

 college graduates or undergraduates on their own farms; second, men who have 

 been successful in their own line of business whether they can talk or not. 

 In Ontario we develop men from those two sources largely. There are draw- 

 backs in each case, as many of us know. We have to go into the backwoods 

 with a man who is pretty well down to backwoods conditions, but he must, above 

 23344— No. 154—05 m 6 



