i6o Agricultural Instruction in the Public High Schools 



strict sense be scientifically taught before such topics be taken 

 up. One thinks they would be a good substitute for much of 

 the plant analysis work where the course runs throughout the 

 year. (The tendency in his state, is strongly against allowing 

 more than half a year to botany.) Another would " not be 

 willing to accept corn judging, seed testing, . . . etc., as 

 botany " although " all this would be very good if properly 

 treated." He does not think that plant diseases and their treat- 

 ment, and experimentation with fertilizers can be treated " in 

 any other than an empirical manner in the high schools." 



The attitude of two other state universities of the upper 

 Mississippi Valley, as ascertained through their high school in- 

 spectors, was to the effect that " botanical work given with an 

 emphasis on the plant life common to farm life would be ac- 

 cepted provided it were done as scientifically as any other type 

 of botanical work." 



It will be seen that the botanists are generally agreed on these 

 propositions: (i) The rural applications of botany are more or 

 less commendable after the pure science has been presented ; 

 (2) They should form a minor part of the course. The views 

 of several, and the policy of their institutions are to favor the 

 segregation of agricultural work instead of its inclusion with 

 botany. A note of dissent was uttered as to whether the topics 

 suggested could be taught scientifically, i. e., according to the 

 usual procedure of experimentation. Two of the writers objected 

 to the idea that a high school should give any vocational train- 

 ing, even when resting on a foundation of science, going so 

 far as to suggest that instruction in agriculture was as much 

 out of place as instruction in forestry or pharmacy. 



It will be noted that Professor Coulter is possibly the only 

 one who would be willing to sanction the idea that the agricul- 

 tural applications should form an integral and essential part 

 of each topic of the course in botany, where such an application 

 is possible. Most of the others express opinions that would not 

 be consistent with the idea that the home environment of high- 

 school students in rural communities should furnish the im- 

 pelling motive for the study, a motive that should be consciously 

 recognized by the student as furnishing the reason for botany's 



