49 
The chair expressed tin' gratification ami interest of the ktioo 
in the address they had listened t<>. 
The Section on Agriculture and Chemistry then called up the third 
of its topics, "The Attitude of the Agricultural Colleges toward Ini- 
:v Extension." In the absence of Messi 9. I. .ma. of [ndiana, and 
Emery, of Montana. Mr. Voorhees, of New Jersey . presented t in- subject : 
Mr. Voorheks. t oome before you anprepared to give any special Information in 
reference to the attitude of the agricultural colleges toward university extension, 
but rather to give yon some results of our experience in New Jersey with agricul- 
tural extensiou work, it began with us in 1891 and has continued with increasing 
usefulness up to the present time, the courses for the present winter nol having been 
yet determined. In a general way tin- work is regarded as extremely successful, 
meeting a class of agricultural workers who arc anxious i'<»r Information on certain 
topics that can nol be reached by the college in an) other way. The chief difficulty 
we find in - extension work is to get it in Bucfa a form as to mee! specific 
requirements on the part of farmers. It was recognized at firat that agricultural 
instruction in extension methods must differ materially from instruction in college. 
At the felt that there were certain specific principles in the work 
which could be presented in such a way as to have important practical results. In 
teaching agriculture we <li\ ided tin- work into sections, or courses, of leotures cov- 
ering specific points. We gave first lectures on soils m<l crops which would give 
the tanners in any one community sufficient information of the character of soils as 
kble them to benefit in dollars and cents from the information. The main idea 
in every lecture was to bring the farmer or young man to see the relation of that 
principle to the dollars he expected to get into his pocket. That, of course, was a 
little different from the method we might use iii college, yet the work was presented 
in .just ;w scientific a manner as we present it to students in Coll< 
The second course was ,,n feeding plants, with specific reference to fertilizing 
materials ami fertilisers, exhibiting the methods of using and buying matters of 
that kind, and the whole question was covered, so far as we could do it in -i\ led nits, 
s«» that the farmer, alter hearing the six lectures, would he enabled not onl\ to 
purchase intelligently hut to use intelligently. 
I'll.- third course included animal nutrition, with especial reference to the prepara- 
tion of ration^, the economical DSC of farm products, and the handling of dairy 
products. These lectures covered the whole ground, so tar as we could in lectures 
of that sort, without u r, »inu into details. 
■ result, of conrae ferine] ren t he opt ion id' taking any one id" the 
three con: ,ch. iutimating in any case that tkej should he taken 
in the order in which they ware prepared, as, first, -oil and crop, then fertilizer, then 
Utilization op; and in mosl cases the lecturi in that order, 
though in many cases they were directly interested in the question of plant food and 
could clearly the principle.- which governed in that direction than in any 
other direction. 
Tin j ted all the time with the idea that this work meant money 
to them. At the same time it was intended that they should he educated. It the \ 
it would be to greatlj in< n ase then Interest In matters purely 
The lecture hour was given up entirely to the lecture, 
hut - d an opportunity of asking < tirely 
<nd his if and made jns( 
• OUld the pi it: 
hour in which the students had 
questions of t '. ■ of finding oo t from 
I the point and w h< I 
L703 24 1 
