No. 6. DEPARTMENT OP AGRICULTURE. 331 



The highest degree of success in any farm community will not come 

 through a knowledge of agriculture alone. This knowledge may re- 

 sult in the making of money, and when the money has been made the 

 farmer moves to the city and a tenant comes upon the farm. The 

 trouble here is that the social life of the community has not been de- 

 veloped and the farmer has not been trained so that he can see the 

 beauty and opportunity and the advantages of the open country 

 life. He looks upon the farm as a place to make money and so it 

 is, but there should also be an opportunity for the enjoyment of that 

 money to its fullest extent without moving from the farm. 



One boy in my class in Eural Economics offered as an objection 

 to farm life the fact that the best girls do not wish to marry a fellow 

 who is going to live on a farm. Of course, the other fellows of the 

 class immediately asked him how he knew. But if that objection is 

 really true then the subject is worthy of the most careful investiga- 

 tion to find out why it is true. I believe if the young man who is 

 living on the farm possesses that degree of culture, of training and 

 of mastery of his business which is possessed by the most successful 

 man in other walks of life that the best girls will not object to life 

 on the farm. If on the other hand the farmer is lacking in training 

 and in general culture and he sees in his farm and in farm life only 

 an opportunity for making money, then Avho would blame the best 

 girls for objecting to marrying a farmer. Improvement in the farm 

 life in any community must come from sources acting within that 

 community and not from Avithout. These centers of crystallization 

 from which will radiate the elevating influence will be the farms of 

 those who have received the most thorough training in our schools or 

 colleges of agriculture. 



Much valuable printer's ink has been used in recent times in dis- 

 cussing methods for the uplifting of the farmer. In my section of 

 New England we have a native dweller upon the soil by the name of 

 "Harvey." In our local discussions with reference to methods of 

 improving farm life one of my colleagues has always replied to my 

 propositions, "Go try it on Harvey" If you can uplift him then 

 there is some value in your proposition," It seems to me the problem 

 of country life in every section is how we are going to reach the 

 "Harveys." In the first place they do not care to be reached ; in the 

 second place we liave no point of contact with them. The one way 

 that I can see to reach them is through the location in every com- 

 munity of men whose farms will become model farms ; who will take 

 an active interest in the improvement of church, schools and roads 

 and all of the social conditions which make for the advancement of 

 that community. Just as in city life the community settlement has 

 been found to be one of the most potent factors towards improving 

 conditions so the community settlement in country life will be found 

 one of the most powerful factors towards improving local fon- 

 ditions. 



The farm boys and girls are entitled to an opportunity for securing 

 just as good an education as is within reach of the city boy or girl. 

 At the present time this opportunity is not available. There will be 

 no satisfactory solution of the country life problem until this condi- 

 tion is remedied. Twenty years ago if anyone had said that the far- 

 mer in nearly every section of our country would have his mail deliv- 



