132 
AMERICAN POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 
courses on agriculture in many of the states, to which no entrance examina- 
tion has been required, and while such courses have accomplished much 
good, yet every educator of experience knows that such a course must be very 
superficial and unsatisfactory. 
Besides these short lecture courses on general agriculture, special dairy 
schools have been formed in many of the northern states within the last 
six years. These have generally been well managed, have been helpful, and 
have been a tremendous stimulus to the dairy industry of the country. The 
course in these schools is purely techincal, generally runs for a term of from 
four to six weeks, and the work being done by them is improving from year to 
year as more uniform preparation is being required of those who attend, and 
as the instructors become more familiar with their work., 
Minnesota was the first state to establish a graded agricultural high school 
that should lead up to the college of agriculture in the state university, but 
which would be as complete in itself as the common high schools. This 
school has been in operation for eleven years, and the results seem to show 
its wonderful adapatation to the needs of our rural classes. It was estab- 
lished after the agricultural college course in the state university had proved 
a failure. It has been a success from the start, and has been improved as the 
needs of the student body showed an opportunity to make advantageous 
changes. In its management little attention has been paid to precedents, 
but every effort has been directed toward making it most useful to the student 
body. This is one of the few schools in this country which has been started 
in order to educate farmers’ sons to be better farmers and to make better 
horticulturists and more of them. 
The course here is comprised in three school years of six months each, com- 
mencing about the first of October and continuing until about the first of April. 
It is open to those of both sexes who have completed a common school course 
in English grammar, arithmetic, history of the United States and geography 
as prescribed by the state department of public instruction. All students 
must take the agricultural studies. As laid out it includes a high-school edu- 
cation in the common English branches. The subjects taught are agriculture, 
dairying, dairy husbandry, fruit growing, vegetable-gardening, study of 
breeds, handling grain and farm machinery, veterinary science, dressing and 
curing meats, plant propagation, forestry, soils and fertilizers, feeding, breed- 
ing, agricultural, dairy and domestic chemistry, botany, physics, zoology and 
entomology poultry keeping, farm blacksmitking, farm carpentry, drawing, 
sewing, cooking, laundering, social culture, home management, farm book- 
keeping physical culture, vocal music, plane geometry, civics, algebra, Eng- 
lish, military drill and domestic hygiene. Sewing, cooking, home manage- 
ment, laundering and ' social culture are taken by the girls instead of black- 
smithing and carpentry. Physical culture is required of all students. Be- 
fore graduation each student must have had a practical experience in field- 
work for at least one season. Special advanced work is often given to mature 
students in horticultural and other subjects. 
On looking over the list of subjects taught there will be found several that 
are quite new and which indicate a departure from ordinary educational 
lines. For instance, the subject of cutting and curing meats was started on 
account of the general lack of information among farmers as to the proper 
way to dress the meat needed for home use, and to encourage neighborhood 
cooperation in raising and using home-grown meats. This division also pre- 
pares the meat for the school dining hall. Every effort is made to teach the 
