52 THE COUNTY AGENT'S SERVICES 



results of this pioneer work. They are applying and in-, 

 terpreting i't into action. 



This long and honorable history of the farmers' insti- 

 tutes should be utilized by county agents and committee- 

 men in the modern institute or the community meeting, 

 with such improvements as progress suggests. What the 

 institutes stand for is well known among farmers; plain 

 and useful facts presented by practical men and women; 

 free and democratic discussion of local agricultural and 

 home-making questions ; and the teaching of the best farm- 

 ing and housekeeping and the highest ideals of country 

 life. The county agent should seek to retain the democ- 

 racy, the informality and the devotion to farm and home 

 improvement of this old and tried institution in his own 

 meetings. At the same time modern conditions and prob- 

 lems demand a better prepared lecturer, one trained as 

 well as experienced, and a more complete definite and 

 applied treatment of the subject more teaching and less 

 preaching. 



The community meeting as most county agents know it, 

 is the modern edition of the farmers' institute, sometimes 

 called a farm and home institute. It should be an im- 

 provement over the old-time institute because it is part of 

 a systematic plan of education extending throughout the 

 year, with a closer tie to local problems and conditions 

 through the demonstrations conducted in the locality, and 

 the committeemen through whom it is organized locally. 

 Another improvement is often effected through the pres- 

 ence of the local committeeman or the county agent on the 

 program to discuss the farm bureau's work in that local- 

 ity, thus tying the meeting and the necessarily more gen- 

 eral talk of the outside speaker more closely to local 

 problems. 



The community meeting should have for its main pur- 



