SECOND year's WORK, LAKE CITY WOMAN'S IMPR. CLUB. 223 



know that I can give the words exactly, but it ran something Hke 

 this: 



"We are springing to the call 



From the east and from the west, 

 To fill the vacant ranks with a million freemen more." 

 That is a good addition to what the lady has said. 



Mrs. Underwood : Is there anyone in the room who knows of any 

 work of this kind going on in his home town? 



Mr. C. C. Dike: There is some work of that kind going on at 

 White Bear. There is a prize given for the best kept front yard 

 and things of that kind. 



Rev. S. C. Harrison, (Neb.) : In Nebraska great efforts are 

 being made in the interest of children, the boys and girls. A year 

 ago there was a large gathering at Lincoln. Seven hundred children 

 came there and took possession of the town, and a sumptuous banquet 

 was provided for them. I notice there is also an intense interest in 

 park improvement, and the good work is growing. It is like a tidal 

 wave sweeping over the land, and we should help it along all in our 

 power. 



Mr. J. M. Underwood: I see we have with us this afternoon 

 Superintendent O. C. Gregg, of the farmers' institute. We know 

 what a grand work the farmers' institute has been doing in this 

 state for many years. We know before these farmers' institutes 

 were held we could hardly buy a pound of butter at any grocery 

 store in the state that was fit to eat. In the town where I lived we 

 paid right along 25 cents for butter that was not fit to eat, but it was 

 the best butter we could buy. Now we can go to any town in the 

 state and buy the choicest butter for 25 cents a pound. We are pay- 

 ing 20 cents a pound for as good butter as any one could wish for. 

 I am willing to say that the credit is due almost entirely to the 

 farmers' institute. I have known considerable of the work they 

 have done in the past years here in Minnesota and of the work that 

 the agricultural school is doing in teaching people how to make 

 good butter. They have taught the farmers of the state how to 

 raise fine hogs, the best of sheep and the choicest cattle, and while 

 the animal industry has been given attention, and for that reason 

 has made wonderful progress, the fact remains that there are 

 hardly five percent of the homes in the state of Minnesota that are 

 in any way adequately protected from the coW blasts of winter or the 

 hot winds of summer. Schoolhouses stand all over the state without 

 a tree about them, not a flower garden in sight, and nothing that 

 is inviting or pleasing to the eyes of the child about the school- 

 house. Now, I want to beg of Mr. Gregg that this winter as they 

 go about the state holding farmers' institutes that they leave out 

 some of the instruction they have been giving in regard to raising 

 cattle, hogs and horses, and put in one winter in teaching people the 

 importance of taking care of their homes, surrounding their homes 

 with windbreaks and shade trees, and then take up this work with 

 the children in school, this nature study that has been talked about 

 liere today, and see if the results that will follow such a course will 



