CHAPTER III. 



THE EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 



THE original idea of the Agricultural College included 

 an experimental form, usually with the collateral idea 

 tliat students might earn part of their support by work- 

 ing upon the farm, and that the farm would be some source 

 of income None of these things were found practical. In 

 the first place, it is not possible to endure the strain of securing 

 a modern education and at the same time to do any consider- 

 able amount of physical labor. At least it is possible only to 

 persons of far more than ordinary strength. An old-fashioned 

 education such as answered very well a half century since 

 could be obtained while performing a good deal of physical 

 labor, provided the student had ordinary strength. So much, 

 however, is now required to equip students to compete with 

 others that the strength of the strongest is fully taxed. In 

 fact, no good student can begin to do what he sees he needs to 

 do, and it is only a question of what he shall neglect least 

 or most. Students so engaged certainly need exercise and 

 change, but hoeing potatoes is not found to answer tlie pur- 

 pose It distinctly lacks the element of recreation which all 

 young (and old) people desire and require, and, besides, the 

 potatoes must be hoed when they need it, especially if there 

 is a rain coming up, and the farm necessities were found 

 to continually clash with the requirements of the class-room. 

 The work done under such circumstances had no heart in it, 

 and so was not well done; a portion only of the students 

 engaged in it, and these could not keep pace with the others 

 in the classes; and the practice has been abandoned nearly 

 everywhere. 



Besides the student difficulties there was the trouble with 

 the instructors who were supposed to supervise the operations. 

 It was discovered that there were first-rate professors of agri- 

 cultural science who were horrible farmers. An accomplished 



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