NINTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART IV 149 
governor was defeated and the complexion of the legislature almost 
changed. The farmers in my state, and I suspect it is true in this state, 
pay one-half of the taxes. Why shouldn't they have their share of the 
distribution? After that election they woke up and discovered that they 
were like the lighting bug. You know someone has said: 
"The lightning bug is a brilliant thing, 
But the insect has no mind, 
So it goes on stumbling through the world 
With its headlight on behind." 
That about is what happens to the men who fail to give full credence 
to agriculture. There is no other occupation that means so much to the 
welfare of this nation as agriculture. Gibbons said "Agriculture is the 
foundation of commerce." George Washington said, "Agriculture is the 
most useful, the most importaijt of all occupations." What was true then 
Is true now, Andrew Jackson said, "Agriculture is connected with every 
other interest of the country and is superior in importance to them all." 
And so the historian, the scholar, and the statesman have given the credit 
that belongs to agriculture. Did you ever go to Washington and visit the 
great Congressional Library building? You will be astonished at the 
magnificence and magnitude. As you go inside, the beauty and magni- 
tude dawns upon you and you unconsciously take off your hat, and the 
respect grows into reverence. All that man could do to make the build- 
ing splendid and wonderful has been done. As you go up one of the 
spacious stairways you see one of the most wonderful and remarkable 
pictures on the wall known as the "Mosaic Minerva." The remarkable 
thing about it is that it is made all of little blocl?s of marble; every fea- 
ture, eyes, nose, mouth, etc., are worked out in these little blocks of 
marble. IMinerva, Goddess of Wisdom. She is holding in the left hand 
a scroll on which is inscribed the names of the arts, professions and 
occupations — law, theology, medicine — but above all, and first of all, is 
the one word "Agriculture"; it leads all the rest; the second just below is 
"Education." My friends, it seems to me that this great artist must have 
had the true conception of v.'hat it takes to build up a commonwealth. 
Agriculture and education are indeed necessary. 
As I said, I feel timid about coming out to this state where you are 
doing such great work and have so many eminent men. When I come 
in my weak way I feel just a little like one of the men in a story told 
by Mr. Hoar of the United States Senate: One was a very large man and 
the other a very small man. The quarrel between them became so in- 
tense that finally the large man challenged the little man to fight a duel. 
That gave the little man the choice of weapons, and he chose guns. This 
gave the little man an advantage because he would have a larger mark 
to shoot at. They finally compromised by having the little man stand 
up in front of the large man and a friend marked off his size and shape 
on the big man; then he was to shoot inside that mark, nothing outside 
was to count. So if what I say does not come up to your expectations, 
don't count it; it is outside of the chalk. 
I believe the mission of the state fair is to encourage better agricul- 
ture. I believe it will induce men to mix brains with their work and 
