NovemBer 15, 1918] 
its meaning and how to pronounce it. Yet, 
in spite of this supposed immaturity of the 
minds and the vocal organs of his pupils, this 
same author manages in his book to treat of 
all living things of importance on the farm, 
from the bacterium to the horse, and all the 
operations, from preparing the soil for the 
crops to the marketing of their products; nor 
does he stop at that, but devotes much space 
to rural sociology. 
Another author who feels “that there is a 
need and a demand for a book that will stand- 
ardize seventh and eighth grade agriculture” 
has produced one in which the “ arrangements 
of chapters follow as closely as possible the 
farmer’s seasonal occupations.” In his pref- 
ace, this author says: 
Such topies as the origin, history and import- 
ance of farm crops and animals are about agricul- 
ture, but such topics as how to produce larger 
yields, use more prolific varieties, the use of high 
grade and pure bred stock, how to feed well and 
economically, how to improve the soil, how to com- 
bat enemies and how to choose, plan and manage 
a farm, are topics that deal with making our agri- 
culture productive. This is not primarily a book 
about agriculture; but on productive agriculture. 
If a book dealing with the various natural 
laws and principles underlying agriculture is a 
book about agriculture, the author is correct in 
stating that his book is not about agriculture, 
nor is it a text-book on agriculture, but a 
manual giving forth in a dry and matter of 
fact way directions for the performance of the 
numerous operations required in the manage- 
ment of afarm. The cost in labor and money, 
and the profits direct and indirect are, of 
course, the principle lessons to be inculeated 
by such teaching. 
More attention to the principles of plant 
and animal life would have added interest and 
animation to the subject, and more care in the 
statements concerning facts in plant life 
would have avoided some obvious blunders. 
For example, in the table giving the mini- 
mum, optimum and maximum degrees, Fahr- 
enheit of the germinating temperature of the 
seeds of various farm crops, that for the red 
clover is given as 88°—99° min., 99°-111° 
SCIENCE 
485 
optim., 111°-122° maxim.,—Any girl or boy 
old enough to have begun the study of pri- 
mary geography, will know that such a pecul- 
iarity would banish the red clover from the 
temperate zone. This book is not the only 
text-book on agriculture written for the public 
schools that is encyclopedie in its scope and 
character, since a great number have been 
constructed on the same plan. 
One author makes the following confession 
in the preface to his book: 
Agriculture is too complex for all the details to 
be mastered by one person. The expert in crops 
or soils does not possess more than a general 
knowledge of live stock, fruit growing and dairy- 
ing. In the subject of crops, there are those who 
have specialized in grains, forage crops or 
grasses. In animal husbandry, there are the spe- 
cialists in beef cattle or dairy cattle, specialists in 
draft horses or light horses, and specialists in 
sheep and swine. If a man attempts to speak out 
of his own knowledge on all the phases of agricul- 
ture, covered by a school text, the treatment of 
many of the subjects would be inaccurate and 
misleading, or else so general as to be of little 
value. To insure for each branch of the subject 
an expert, who is responsible for a large part of 
the material in the field of his specialty, the au- 
thor has organized this material into a logical, 
teachable work on agricultural science and prac- 
tise. 
The author of this book has by the help of 
his experts, whose list of names and special- 
ties covers a solid page of his preface, com- 
posed a work that is as impossible to teaeh 
from, for one teacher, as it was impossible for 
the author unaided to write it all from his own 
knowledge. There is no necessity for com- 
menting on the difficulty that would confront 
the pupils in attempting to master such a text. 
Briefly, it may be said that, in the greater 
number of these “text-books on agriculture 
for the public schools,” the pupils are expected 
to cover more agricultural subjects, frequently 
crowded together in an incoherent way and 
stripped of all philosophical connective tissue, 
than any student in the state agricultural 
colleges, where he has a four year’s course 
with specialists for teachers, supplied with all 
the equipments for demonstration. As a men- 
