DEVELOPMENT OF THE FARM DEMONSTRATION AGENCY 



ested working constituencies who may properly send delegates 

 to county meetings of farmers to undertake activities of a gen- 

 eral nature. These county meetings, made up of chosen repre- 

 sentatives of local groups, can take up matters of general 

 interest to the agriculture of the county and home life of all 

 the people. This representative body will be a good promoter 

 of the work of the demonstration agents, as well as other pro- 

 gressive welfare activities. 



When such county organizations are formed, they will 

 make possible a state association of a high order. It will not 

 be self-constituted and it will be free from politics. There 

 is a difference between an organization and an organism. An 

 organism has the principle of life and growth in it. An organ- 

 ization may not. How important, therefore, for the county 

 agent to see that the work he does along this line has the 

 elements of growth in it! This will not be true if organ- 

 izations with indefinite purpose and indeterminate objective 

 are pushed. It is dangerous to push any phase of extension 

 work in an arbitrary, capricious and unpremeditated fashion. 

 This is true to an even greater extent where it is a matter 

 of dealing with the collective human element. It is possible 

 to make a mistake in advice about crops and live stock and 

 overcome it later, but an agent may start more than he can 

 stop when he goes into the general field of organization. 



There are some other types of general organizations among 

 farmers which the agent may encourage without assuming any 

 ofilcial responsibility for their conduct or misconduct. He may 

 join the Grange, the Farmers' Union, the Society of Equity, 

 the Farm Bureau and any other similar society or association 

 and give them the greatest personal endorsement and support 

 without committing the institutions who employ him. In this 

 relation he is more of a co-operator. At least he is exercising 



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