study of which is never exhausted, and the 

 earlier one commences seriously upon erudition, 

 the greater are the chances for the most absolute 

 success in the pursuit. The ideals of intelligent 

 farming cannot be infused at too early an age, 

 nor the young idea set too early with his feet in 

 the right paths. 



And so boys and girls in Western Canada are 

 being taught in their early years how to farm so 

 as to obtain the utmost from the earth and yet 

 maintain it in all the richness of its virgin state, 

 and how to rear the best type of animal, dis- 

 covering for themselves the fallacy of bringing 

 to maturity the scrub animal. Instead of viewing 

 farming through the drudgery of chores, in which 

 they see little romance, they become imbued 

 with the nobility of the agricultural profession, 

 and are keen to adopt the pursuit as their life 

 work. 



Chores Become Pleasant 



This object is best achieved by giving the 

 child his own plot of soil to cultivate or his own 

 calf or lamb to raise, playing upon the natural 

 instinct of love in possession, and the inherent 

 desire of creating. To further encourage the 

 young idea, special classes are arranged for at 

 provincial exhibitions, at which the youngsters 

 can exhibit the grain and cattle for whose pro- 

 duction and growth they are responsible, and 

 compete with other boys and girls of the West, 

 receiving all the benefits of competitive criticism. 

 The competitions cover many classes of farm 

 endeavor, and there are equal chances for the 

 youngsters of both sexes in the awards. Though 

 girls, in many cases, are just as interested in 

 grain and live-stock entries as their brothers, 

 there are many classes in which they shine 

 alone, all of whicff have relation to the multi- 

 farious duties of the Western farmer's wife. 



No one can doubt the success of this system 

 of education who is present at one of these 

 exhibitions and senses the animation which 

 pervades the atmosphere of the judging events. 

 Excitement waxes high as exhibit after exhibit 

 is eliminated, and reaches its pitch in the cul- 

 minating selection of grand champions. And in 

 regions which are producing grain and cattle 

 which carry off world honors, it can readily be 

 understood that these winners are most credit- 

 able examples of their kind. 



But the most valuable feature of the work is 

 the love of good farming for itself, which is 

 fostered in the minds of the young generation, 

 and the inspiration to raise more and better 

 produce to their own and the national gain. 



The Scandinavian Immigrant 



Nearly all authorities on Canadian immigra- 

 tion concur in the opinion that the very best 

 immigrants that have come to Canada from 

 foreign countries are those from Iceland, Sweden, 



Norway, and Denmark, and it is a gratifying 

 feature of the tide finding its way to Canada that 

 it still contains a substantial proportion of these 

 peoples, whilst a handsome contribution of this 

 same fine stock is annually donated by the 

 United States. 



Physically of a sturdy, handsome type, the 

 Scandinavian peoples are found, almost without 

 exception, to be cleanly, industrious, and pro- 

 gressive in every respect, making the most desir- 

 able class of citizens, and being numbered among 

 the most successful and prosperous farmers the 

 Dominion possesses. Education is widespread in 

 their native countries, and they come to Canada 

 imbued with the same high ideals of learning 

 and culture. There is no language problem with 

 them, as they are eager to master English, and 

 to develop all the requisites of complete and 

 successful citizenship. They employ the new 

 tongue without embarrassment and learn rapidly. 



The Scandinavian races are the most readily 

 assimilable of Canada's immigrants, mixing 

 freely and readily with the Anglo-Saxons, inter- 

 marrying, and avoiding the handicap which 

 colony settlement gives to the progress of 

 foreign people. They are deeply religious, 

 adherents of the Lutheran faith for the most 

 part, and churches spring up wherever settlement 

 takes place with social life centering there. A 

 deeply sociable people, they have their own 

 social and political organizations wherever settle- 

 ment warrants, and their own papers are circu- 

 lated throughout Western Canada. From their 

 first days in Canada they take a deep interest in 

 Dominion politics, turning readily to matters of 

 government. Several, indeed, have attained the 

 honors of the provincial legislatures, whilst men 

 of the Scandinavian race are to be found occupy- 

 ing many public offices in the West. They are 

 deep and earnest students, and their achieve- 

 ments in learning are remarkable when their 

 handicap is considered. Several Rhodes scholars 

 from Manitoba have been Scandinavians. 



First Settlement in 1872 



The first settlers came to Canada from Ice- 

 land in 1872, but the real movement began in 

 1874, when some five hundred left their native 

 shores for the new continent. More than fifteen 

 hundred new settlers came in 1876, settling in 

 Manitoba and North Dakota. Since 1680, they 

 have come to Canada in a more or less uninter- 

 rupted stream from their northern homes, whilst 

 the Dominion has received a substantial number 

 of those who first settled in various parts of the 

 Western United States. At the time of the 1911 

 census there were 49,194 Canadian citizens who 

 had been born in Norway and Sweden; 7,109 in 

 Iceland; and 4,397 in Denmark. From 1900 to 

 1919, there were admitted to Canada, 6,546 

 citizens of Denmark; 4,501 from Iceland; 20,618 

 from Norway; and 28,337 from Sweden. Of the 



96 



