which Christian education should endeavor to make in China is 

 that all education may be made Christian in purpose. Moreover 

 it must be clearly understood that agricultural education, defined 

 in any full sense, is far more than technical in content and 

 application. It is essentially humanitarian, and it may be 

 wholly Christian. 



But the case for agricultural missions must be much more 

 strongly buttressed than by meeting possible objections. Unless 

 there are powerful positive reasons for its inclusion in the 

 scheme of Christian education it had best be omitted. It is 

 believed that there are at least two fundamentally valid reasons 

 for its inclusion. The first reason lies in the vital connection 

 between the growth and power of the Christian Church and the 

 occupation of the rural field and the improvement of the rural 

 people. .The second reason is the really Christian desire to 

 help China develop an essentially democratic and sound rural 

 civilization. The first reason should appeal to those who 

 conceive the work of missions to be mainly that of erecting a 

 strong church; the second should convince those who desire that 

 the missions shall serve China at her places of greatest apparent 

 social need. Both reasons should at least stir the mind and 

 heart of all who sense the fact that the farming people of China 

 constitute the largest and in some respects the most significant 

 phase of the Christian enterprise in this country. Let us, 

 therefore, develop these two considerations at greater length. 



IV. Agricultural Education and the Chinese Church 



The question suggested by this title is whether the relation- 

 ship between the development of a strong Christian Church in 

 China and the service of a system of agricultural education 

 managed by the Church, is of sufficient significance to warrant 

 such a system. First of all, we must see just how important 

 this rural field is. 



It is usually stated that 80 per cent, of the people of China 

 are farmers. Recent estimates made with great care indicate 

 that about six per cent, of the people of China live in cities of 

 50,000 and above and another six per cent, in places of 10,000 

 to 50,000 population; leaving 88 per cent, in towns of 10,000 or 

 less and in rural communities. Doubtless many residents of 

 the smaller towns and even of the farm villages are not farmers; 

 doubtless also there are many farmers living within the popula- 

 tion areas of small cities and even of large cities. Probably 80 



