Inquiries and Answers 237 



that instead of giving scientific information 

 about eggs, you tell him how to make his hens 

 lay better when eggs are scarce. It is very 

 easy to ask how to make hens lay in October 

 and November; it is quite another thing to 

 answer the question. Such a question cannot 

 be answered out of hand. A man must first 

 learn something about breeding, and feeding, 

 and care, and other things. In other words, a 

 man must have enough fundamental knowledge 

 to know the reasons why, and this knowledge 

 is necessarily scientific. It is utterly impossible 

 to try to answer the greater part of our agri- 

 cultural questions until the questioner has some 

 really underlying understanding of the condi- 

 tions, and processes, and principles involved. 

 The lack of this understanding is one reason 

 why farmers are so backward in utilizing 

 advice, and also why they are unable to use the 

 experiment station bulletins. 



But even if you could tell your patron how 

 to make hens lay in October, that would not 

 settle or simplify your teaching. You must 

 lead your pupils to go beyond an isolated fact 



