16 Transactions of the State Jlgricultural Society. [July, 



consideration, inasmuch as it might be said that those educated 

 under the auspices of such an institution would necessarily distri- 

 bute their information wherever they were located, and that the 

 discoveries which might be made, would soon become the pro- 

 perty of the public; and hence the many would be actually bene- 

 fitted, and that it could not be confined to the few. 



In looking at the matter as it seemed to stand in the minds of 

 the committee, we are inclined to believe they are right; for it 

 appears that the committee had a different plan in view, provided 

 it was clearly ascertained that the State could spare funds for an 

 endowment of this kind. In dissenting from the views of the 

 petitioners, the committee deemed it proper that they should 

 bring forward a plan for the diffusion of Agricultural knowledge. 

 This plan as brought forward by the committee, is as follows, 

 and here we shall suffer the committee to speak for themselves. 



" The plan alluded to is to encourage the study of agriculture 

 in the Normal school, and in the academies and local institutions 

 which are already established and endowed in all parts of the 

 State; we would also encourage its study in our best common 

 schools. It is here that the elements of agriculture might be 

 laid; for its foundation may be regarded as being based upon a 

 knowledge of the elements of bodies. Scholars, we believe, of 

 the age of ten or twelve years may begin to learn with profit, the 

 properties of things, or to study the essential characteristics of 

 the common forms of matter, embracing as far as possible the va- 

 ried forms which occur in the great field of nature. The advan- 

 tages of beginning thus early are to create habits of observation 

 and to strengthen the power of discrimination. It would serve to 

 produce this general power or ability to distinguish things, to see 

 their common characteristics, to learn what is essential and what 

 is accidential. While this part of an education may be regarded 

 as peculiarly necessary to the farmer, it is certainly no less so to 

 the citizen as a member of society. These principles lie at the 

 foundation of all correct experiments in agriculture, inasmuch as 

 the correct knowledge of characters and phenomena enable the 

 experimentalist to distinguish the true from the false, the acci- 

 dental from the essential. 



" Lads who have gone thus far may be said to have fairly com- 

 menced the study of agriculture, though they are still in the com- 

 mon school. With this knowledge they may go up to the acade- 

 my in advance. It is to these institutions that most of our young 

 men may resort; that is, they are not shut out for w^ant of means; 

 and we believe that many more would attend our academies were 

 it known that agriculture with its collateral studies constituted a 

 prominent course of education. This we are aware would be a 

 new feature in them. We are about to make a remark which 



