February, 1910.] 



141 



Miscellan 



arithmetic should then be the bulwarks 

 of his elementary education. Obviously 

 it will, and should, go further. The 

 moder n " side, i.e. , the " science " course, 

 as opposed to a classical curriculum, 

 will be found to be most serviceabe for 

 a boy whose future career is to be that 

 of a farmer. A crucial stage in the lad's 

 career is now arrived at. In the case of 

 a son of a farmer the programme is 

 simplified, but in the case of the town- 

 bred youth the procedure requires more 

 careful consideration. No hard and fast 

 rules can be laid down as applicable to 

 the several cases ; much will depend 

 upon the particular circumstances, 

 family, and private considerations, the 

 length of character of the lad, and so 

 forth. 



The requirements may be stated as 

 follows, in the order in which under 

 ordinary circumstances they should be 

 dealt with :— 



After school. — 



(1) Farm life ; 



(2) Commercial training ; 



(3) Course at an agricultural school 



or college ; 



(4) Further experience of farming, 



(1) Farm Life. 



In the case of a farmer's son (1) and (4) 

 can be omitted, unless it is arranged that 

 the son takes up a style of farming not 

 represented on his father's holding, in 

 which case some practical experience 

 should be acquired after leaving the 

 agricultural school or college. In the 

 other case, a "town-bred" lad who 

 desires to become a farmer should, im- 

 mediately after leaving school, spend six 

 to twelve months actively employed on a 

 good farm. This " period of grace " and 

 experience will probably assist the lad 

 in definitely determining whether he 

 really cares for a farmer's pursuit. In 

 some cases it will be found that a change 

 of front has taken place, and that the 

 lad finds that farming does not provide 

 the life of ease which he may have 

 anticipated. Such individuals are better 

 eliminated from the field at the outset 

 before time and money are spent on 

 a fruitless education. Through such 

 experience, though short, he will be in 

 a position to make better use of the 

 morning spent at an agricultural college 

 at a later date. Furthermore, his mind 

 will have begun to discern and to 

 appreciate the things which concern the 

 country life, 



(2) Commercial Training. 



The fact that farmers as a class are 

 not good "business" men cannot be 

 disguised. The chief reason for this 



deficiency may be found in the fact that 

 in but few cases have "would-be" 

 farmers the opportunity of becoming 

 acquainted with business methods. The 

 matter can in a fair way be solved 

 by placing the lad for about a year 

 in a bank or suitable commercial house. 

 Such a training will cause him to be- 

 come conversant with commercial phra- 

 seology, correspondence, and procedure, 

 and will teach him to be exact and 

 methodical. The commercial experience 

 can be under taken at the end of the 

 full course of training. By placing it 

 at the beginning a change of opinion 

 on the part of the lad is safeguarded 

 against. 



(3) The Agricultural School or College. 



Relatively, a training at such an in- 

 stitution is the most important in the 

 career indicated. A properly equipped 

 and staffed establishment of this des- 

 cription provides an education which 

 cannot be secured by any other means. 

 It may be argued that many highly 

 successful farmers all over the world, and 

 particularly in the older countries, have 

 never received such a training. This 

 is quite true, but that is not sufficient 

 reason why it should be denied to the 

 farmer of the future. These same suc- 

 cessful men would probably be the first 

 to admit that it would be greatly to 

 their advantage if they had obtained 

 such a training. Year by year farming 

 is becoming more complicated and 

 specialised, and under rapidly changing 

 conditions systems have to be altered 

 from time to time, probably several 

 times during the life of an individual 

 farmer, in order to cope with changes 

 brought about by external conditions. 

 The man who starts equipped with a 

 wide and general knowledge of agri- 

 culture in its broadest sense is the one 

 who will be able, when circumstances 

 demand it, to fall into line and adapt 

 his methods to suit the altered condi- 

 tions. 



An agricultural college education is 

 the best means to accomplish this pur- 

 pose. Such a training, e.g., in agriculture, 

 stock-breeding and management, chemis- 

 try, biology, veterinary science, book- 

 keeping and surveying, and farm en- 

 gineering, building construction, car- 

 pentry, blacksmithy, dairying, poultry- 

 keeping, and horticulture, is in itself 

 a good general education. It quickens 

 the intellegence, broadens the mind, 

 and equips the farmer in such a way 

 that he thoroughly understands the 

 ''why" and "wherefore" of his calling ; 

 and when occasion arises he is in the 

 position to make practical use of the 

 discoveries of science, and the results 



