676 PROCEEDINGS OF SECTION K. 



A. The Importance of Agricultural Education. 

 Agricultural education is to-day occupying world-wide attention. 

 The social, economic, and political welfare of the people of the 

 Commonwealth will be profoundly affected by the success or failure 

 of its agricultural education. 



The spirit of the movement has been brought about by social 

 legislation; the great economic changes due to easy transport of 

 products by sea and land making competition world-wide, and 

 increased taxation and cost of labour making it necessary that the 

 land be more productive and the cost of production relatively 

 lower. 



The Australian farmers need to be more conversant with the 

 influences, both within and without the Commonwealth, that affect 

 them commercially or otherwise. They must know more of what is 

 being done in other countries with a view of extending their com- 

 mercial enterprise. This very fact will necessitate the training of 

 men fitted as outposts of commerce, and agriculturists must have 

 representation. 



In the Year-books of the States and the Commonwealth Vv'e have 

 valuable data regarding the production and distribution of agricul- 

 tural products, and the interpretation of these is of much moment 

 to the citizens as a whole. Thus it is wise to impress on every agri- 

 culturist the fact that an understanding of statistical returns con- 

 cerning his business is a necessity to his prosperity. 



The determinating of a common denominator in State education 

 that will satisfy all classes and all sects is an elusive problem the 

 State is expected to solve, in order that the people will have a basis 

 of national interests in common, and at least will give to those 

 who draw a blank at birth an apportunity of acquiring a mastery 

 over their future occupation. 



It is simply from the impossibility of governing the vagaries of 

 human nature when class interests are affected by external forces of 

 a social or political nature that the purely scientific and technical 

 sides of the education of the agriculturist are primarily dealt with 

 at the Universities and Agricultural Colleges. Still it appears that 

 instruction on the political, economic, and social status of the agri- 

 culturist should be more considered, since the successful settling of 

 the people on the land is intimately associated with these matters. 



We are still in the pioneering stage, and owing to the isolation 

 of the farmer the resultant disadvantages he is under are apparent. 

 Thus, politically, there is a lack of cohesion. Economically, he 

 buys and sells as an individual, and pays more and receives less 

 than he would if there were more co-operative effort; whilst the 

 lack of social life tends to drive the young people off the land. 



