WISCONSIN STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
It is one of the most obvious truths of political economy, that 
virtue and intelligence are essential requisites in founding and 
perpetuating a republic. But history shows that a republic has 
never existed, except in name, wherever the system of large 
estates has prevailed ; while on the other hand, as a general rule, 
wherever the subdivision has been quite small, there, even with¬ 
out any special form of government, may be found the privileges 
of free institutions, in proof of which we cite, among many, Swit¬ 
zerland, The Netherlands and our own New England Colonies. 
But if the possession of a home, surrounded by the adornments of 
natural objects, by fruitful fields and the ministrations of the sea¬ 
sons, with the consciousness of security in enjoying the fruit of 
his labor, and bequeathing them to his children, affect most favor¬ 
ably the virtue and manliness of their possessor, the greater the 
number of such small freeholders in any state, the nearer will it 
attain to the highest and most enduring prosperity. 
It needs but a moment’s reflection to convince an unbiased in¬ 
quirer that the highest and most potent educational force is the 
reflex action of our own doings—we do not mean habit as it gen¬ 
erally is understood, but a certain independence essential to vir¬ 
tue. Let a scholar apply to his teacher for help in solving a 
problem in mathematics; in one case the work is done for him, in 
the other by suggestions and encouragement to more rigorous ap¬ 
plication, he is put in the way of solving it himself—the latter is 
educated forward, the former backward—so that he works his own 
estate, makes his own plans, manages his own affairs, and by the 
stress of necessity solves the thousand and one problems of life out 
of his own resources, and by the common interests in which his 
whole family by common labor are involved with him, trains them 
also to self-helpfulness, receives an education of far more vaiue to 
him and them than can be given by any institution of mere learn¬ 
ing. 
On the other hand, the mere day laborer, dependent on others 
to plan, arrange and direct for him, becomes a public burden when 
not in employ, and is often a vicious or criminal member of so¬ 
ciety. But when the day laborer is a tenant subject to ejectment 
on the first failure to pay his rent; and his trade, if he has one, is 
already overstocked with employment, we have a condition of 
