86 CHAPTERS IN RURAL PROGRESS 



experiment stations and United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture. Their work may be 

 likened to the plowing of the field. They strive 

 to know how nature works, and how man can 

 make use of her laws in the growing of plant and 

 animal. 



The next thing is to teach. The farmer too 

 must know. Knowledge confined to the scien- 

 tist has little practical use. It is the farmer who 

 can use it. Moreover, new teachers must be 

 trained, new experimenters equipped, and 

 leaders in every direction prepared. So we have 

 agricultural colleges and schools. If experi- 

 ment is to be likened to plowing, the work of 

 the schools may be compared to sowing and 

 cultivating. 



Agricultural colleges have been in existence in 

 America almost fifty years. Their careers have 

 been both inspiring and disappointing. They 

 have had to train their own teachers, create a 

 body of knowledge, break down the bars of edu- 

 cational prejudice. This work has taken time. 

 The results justify the time and effort. For 

 today agricultural education is becoming organ- 

 ized, the subjects of study are well planned, and 

 competent men are teaching and experimenting. 

 The disappointment is twofold. They have not 



