12 Breeding Plants and Animals. 



tions, the people are properly bidding their public 

 agents in the national and state experiment stations to 

 lay out the land, work up the methods of experimenta- 

 tion, and possibly permanently hold a part of the fields 

 of variety and breed improvement. 



25. Varieties and breeds of some species, as of 

 corn and dairy cattle, can best be bred by individual 

 farmers ; others by co-operative associations, as swine ; 

 others by large establishments; and others, as walnut 

 or pine trees, and even wheat and timothy, by experi- 

 ment stations. These public institutions, with the aid of 

 scientific laboratories in universities, can best develop 

 the science of breeding. The profits in the sale of new 

 things will encourage the development of systematic 

 business methods, which in turn will produce the means 

 for the necessary experimenting. 



26. Single valuable germs, or valuable combina- 

 tions of germs which "nick," to use the stockman's 

 term, are found or produced by hybridizing and the 

 work borders on the creative. The fact that here, as in 

 the diamond mine, the real gems are found only after 

 thousands or hundreds of thousands of parts of base 

 soil are handled, only makes them seem the more prec- 

 ious. These germs are wonderful, living, reproducing 

 beings, a part of the world of life, related to the very 

 essence of man. No business is all sordid, but here the 

 compensation in interesting living forms, in scientific 

 development, and in a close insight into living nature is 

 peculiarly varied, rich, lasting and satisfying. 



Plant breeding has been immensely benefited by 

 animal breeding, but at present plant breeding is 

 more than paying back in new theories and new busi- 

 ness methods. Animal breeders should get into the 

 same attitude in which plant breeders find themselves, 

 and recognize that important and helpful changes in 

 methods may occur, if indeed they are not now im- 

 minent. 



