AGRICUL'nf<Ar. r.Dl-CATION TN SOUTH AFRICA. 205 



most of our children in the i)rimary schoiols now leave school 

 after Standard IV-VJ. the school curriculum should he so 

 arranged as to make the very best use of their short stay at school 

 with the above object in view. Some simple talks and practical 

 demonstrations on agricultural subjects should be introduced at 

 an early stage in every school. It is not merely for the sake of 

 the positive knowledge thus imparted to the pupils that I would 

 like to see this introduced, but also because of the interest 

 in farming it will awaken in the minds even of children who do 

 not come from a fanu. In a sheep area I would commence by 

 giving a demonstration with a sheep, pointing out and naming 

 the different parts of the body, telling my pupils that we eat the 

 meat and use the wool in luaking our woollen blankets and 

 clothes ; further, that the wool helps to keep the body of the sheep 

 warm when sleeping in the open just as woollen clothes help to 

 keep our bodies warm, etc., etc. In a similar manner dilTerent 

 animals and plants of agricultural importance can thus be 

 prominently brought to the notice of young children, and the 

 information given about these can be amplified and varied as the 

 higher classes are reached. Gradually such agricultural opera- 

 tions as irrigation, digging. ])loughing, etc., can be introduced 

 with practical demonstrations, and this will naturally lead to 

 talks about the ditferent classes of soils, which will be followed 

 by talks on the origin of these s(m1s. 



Attached to each school there should be a school garden, 

 where |)upils can cultivate individual small plots and plant seeds, 

 etc. This work should graduall)' lead to the production of salad 

 plants, i)otatoes, etc. The use of farmyard manure should be 

 explained in a simple manner. The advantages of weeding and 

 keeping the soil loose on the surface (2-3 in.) should be demon- 

 strated by actual plots. In this way children can gain a consider- 

 able amount of most useful knowledge whilst still young, and will 

 develop both their powers of observation and a keen interest in 

 Nature. 



In our secondary schools these elements should be carried a 

 little further. Agriculture as a subject should then be taught, and 

 those branches of the subject more particularly dealt with which 

 are practised in the neighbourhood. Under this subject should be 

 included the elements of geology, chemistry, botany, soil manage- 

 ment, and crop production, the rearing of stock and a short 

 description of the common breeds. Such crops and breeds should 

 be so chosen as to represent particularly those most commonly 

 entering the farming practice of the district or neighbouring dis- 

 tricts. The elements of meteorology should be included in the 

 subject of physical geogra])hy. The course in agriculture as out- 

 lined above might seem too ambitious for a secondary school to 

 undertake. This, however, will not be the case if the teacher 

 understands what is aimed at. Thus he should not aim at com- 

 pleteness, but rather select certain outstanding topics and treat 

 these in a very clear and simple manner, going just suffncientlv 



