June, 1909.] 



567 



Miscellaneous 



based, and of the principles which 

 should govern any attempts to improve 

 indigenous methods. Provision is made 

 for the entry every year of twenty stu- 

 dents, thus, usually, the students will be 

 divided into three classes according to 

 thuir year. 



The main building contains the neces- 

 sary accommodation for the work of 

 the Government Botanist and Agricul- 

 tural Chemist, as well as class-rooms and 

 laboratories for the instruction of the 

 students in Chemistry, Biology, Physics, 

 Agricultural Engineering, and the 

 principles of Agriculture together with 

 a library and reading-room for their use. 



The students will undergo instruction 

 not only theoretical but also prac- 

 tical in all the subjects of the course 

 which includes a certain amount of 

 Veterinary science sufficient for the 

 treatment of ordinary cattle ailments. 

 In Agriculture they will take part in all 

 the ordinary farm operations such as 

 ploughing, sowing, weeding, etc., and 

 in their second and third years will 

 each cultivate a plot of land themselves. 

 It must be borne in mind, however, 

 that agricultural practice is very 

 largely determined by climatic condi- 

 tions, therefore the practical agricul- 

 ture followed will be that suited to 

 Coimbatore, and operations carried 

 out in a certain way at Coimbatore 

 may require a considerable niodifica- 

 t ion if introduced into another district. 

 The object of the introduction given in 

 the college is to enable men who 

 have profited by it, to so modify their 

 practices as to suit the conditions 

 of any region to which they may go ; in 

 short, it should enable them to think 

 out their own particular difficulties. 

 The character of the soil again deter- 

 mines very largely the kinds of imple- 

 ment which can be advantageously used, 

 and during their course at the college 

 students will have the opportunity of 

 working, and of seeing worked, various 

 implements designed to do certain work 

 either more quickly or more efficiently 

 than those in use at present, but they 

 will not be expected to believe that 

 because an implement is either a success 

 or a failure here, it must necessarily 

 be so on their own lands ; they must 

 be prepared to make the experiments 

 themselves if they see it is likely to 

 succeed, and they should be enabled to 

 suggest and put into practice modifica- 

 tions which will render the implement 

 suitable to their own conditions in case 

 it is a failure. 



The college session begins on or about 

 June 7th and ends on March 31st. There 

 are three terms ending respectively on 



or about September 30th (Dasara) ; 

 December 20th (Christmas) ; and March 

 31st. At present no fees are charged, 

 but students provide their own board 

 and cook. There are hostels attached 

 to the college lor the accommodation 

 of students, arranged in blocks of six, 

 each block having a separate kitchen and 

 dinniug-room, thus, students of differ- 

 ent castes can be provided for. It will 

 be found most economical for all the 

 students of any one caste to join to- 

 gether and have a cook in common. The 

 cost of living will, of course, vary with 

 the different, tastes of different students 

 and with the price of food-grains ; it may, 

 however, be taken as being about Rs. 10 

 per month for vegetarians. An Athletic 

 Club is attached to the college to which 

 all students must belong. The sub- 

 scription has been fixed at the lowest 

 possible, viz., 4 annas per month. A 

 leading- room has also been started by 

 the students themselves for the purchase 

 of papers, etc., to which the subscrip- 

 tion has been fixed by the members at 

 4 annas per month. 



The question may arise : what is the 

 use of attending the college, and what 

 are the prospects of men who have 

 passed through the course ? To these 

 questions it may be answered (1) as to 

 prospects. Those who enquire about the 

 prospects are, generally speaking, those 

 who have not enough land themselves 

 to enable them to make a sufficient 

 living, and for such there are various 

 openings as managers of farms under 

 zaminders aud other large proprietors, 

 and a large farm like any other business 

 always pays for good management. 

 Several enquiries for men capable of 

 managing such farms have been received 

 at the college during the past year. 

 As, however, the college is established 

 for the benefit of Indian Agriculture, 

 it is supposed that students will join in 

 order to obtain knowledge to improve 

 the yield of their own lands, and not 

 merely in order to qualify for a post 

 under Government or a zaminder. This 

 leads to the answer to the other half of 

 the question as to the use of attending. 

 In every large business, manufacturing 

 or otherwise, there are usually two 

 classes of men : the workers or labourers 

 and the foremen or managers. The 

 first of these classes is required to do 

 the heavy and more or less mechanical 

 work ; they are in many cases not requir- 

 ed to be men of any great mental capa- 

 city. The second class is composed of 

 men who have braius and know how to 

 use them for the benefit of the business, 

 they guide the energies of the workers 

 in the path which will lead to the best 

 results. It is the latter class that wil 



