V^*. ^ ,n% «^:^^^ ^- ,0^ w IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 7 / O .// y 1.0 I.I 1.25 f^llll^ 12.5 Silib 1.4 1.6 p^-.. 4^->_^..^_ a J DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. BULLETTN (Special). THE TEAaniNG OF AGRICULTURK IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. BY C. C. JAMES, M.A., DEPUTY MINISTER OF AORICULTUUE. DECEMBER, 1892. PUBLISHED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF AOBICUZTUME AT THE REQUEST OF THE PROVINCIAL SCHOOL TRUSTEES ASSOCIATION, BEFORE WHICH IT WAS DELIVERED. TORONTO PRINTED BY WARWICK & SONS MINISTER OF AQRIODLTURB Hon. John Dryden, Toronto. Ontario Agricultural College and Experimental Farm, Guelph, under control of the Minister of Agriculture. Jamks M1LL8, M.A. Thomas Shaw A. E. Shdttleworth, B.A T. H0YE8 Panton, M.A., F F. C. GllKNSIDK, V.S. H. H. Dean, B.S.A. E. Lawrknok Hunt, B.A. Captain Walter Clarke C. A. Zavitz, BS.A.. H. B. Sharman, B.S.A. A. MoCallum, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . President. Professor of Agriculture and Farm Superintendent. Sc. . . . . . . . . Professor of Chemistry, .G.S. Professor of Natural History and Geology. Professor of Veterinary Science. Professor of Dairy Husbandry. Assistant Resident and Mathematical Master. Instructor in Drill and Gymnastics. . . . . Experimentalist. Assistant Chemist. Bursar. ADVISORY BOARD. O. C. James, M, A., Secretary John I. Hobson, Chairmcm Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Toronto. Mosborough, County of Welliugtoo. ■!.i^-3i Jk^ THE TEACHING OF AGRICULTURE IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. BY C. C. JAMES, M.A., DEPUTY MINISTER OF AORICULTURE. It seems at first thought impossible to believe that before the nineteenth century dawned Agricultural Science was to even the most advanced scientific workers and explorers a " dark continent." In 1804 De Saussure published a work entitled *' Recherches sur la Vegetation," in which he gave the analyses of the ashes of many plants, and contended that they were absolutely essential to the growth of the plant, that they . must be derived from the soil, and that probably these ash or mineral constituents that the plant de- rived from the soil were the source of those found in the animals which fed upon the plants. From 1802 to 1812 Sir Humphrey Davy delivered several series of lectures which he published in 1813 under the title *' Elements of Agricultual Chemistry.' To him is due the credit of making the first attempt to reduce agricultural know- ledge and investigation to a scientific basis. The work of these two men, together with that of Thaer, Sprengei and Boussingault, pre- pared the way for the magnificent work of Liebig, whose publications appeared in 1840 and 1842, since which time many of the brightest minds in Europe and America have been investigating the composi- tion of soil, plant and animal, and their relation to one another. Davy said : " Discoveries made in the cultivation of the earth are not merely for the time and country in which they are developed but they may be considered as extending to future ages, and as ulti- mately tending to benefit the whole race, as affording subsistence for generations to come ; as multiplying life ; and not only multiplying life, but likewise providing for its enjoyment." Liebig in one of his productions wrote ; " I shall be happy if I succeed in attracting the attention of men of science to subjects which so well merit to engage their talents and energies. Perfect agricul- ture is the true foundation of trade and industry — it is the founda- tion of the riches of states." Without further introduction T shall proceed to discuss the subject under the following heads : I. Should Agriculture he tauqlit in our Public Schools ? II, Can Agric/ilture be taught in our Public Schools ? , III. How can Agriculture be taught in our Public Schools? 4 I. Should Aoriculture be Taught ? (1) It should, because of the number of people enj?aged in and dependent upon it. Two-thirds of the people of Canada are either residing in the country and obtaining tlieir living directly from the soil, or are so intimately associated with the rural districts (living in small villages) that they may be termed rural. Sixty per cent of the assessed population reside in the townships and 69 per cent, of the Public School population belong to the rural districts, as will be seen from the following statements : • •n 1-1- o u 1 lonn Total Bchool Pupils Average Public Schools, 1890. opulation. registered, attendance. Townships and villages 424.H57 347,7«3 161,620 Cities and towns 193,199 148,682 88,689 Total 617,856 496,465 250.307 Assessed population. 1882. 1890. Townships 1,120,574 1,120,106 Cities, towns and villages 675,912 799,299 In connection with this study of the rural population we must also consider a movement which is now causing a very marked change in the social and political life of many nations. We are all familiar with the great movements of population city- wards, the congestion of national life blood which has created disease in the body politic of European countries. The farmers' sons and daughters are drawn or impelled towards the great commercial centres at an ever increasing rate. Tennyson has referred to this impulse in " Lockesly Hall " : " Yearning for the large excitement that the coming years would yield ; Eager-hearced as a boy when tifdt he leaves his father's field." The introduction of labor-saving machinery, the greater oppor- tunities of the cities for the acquisition of wealth, social pleasures, public oflSces and political preferments — all these have been advanced as reasons. Others have put it down to education ; in which case the educational systems of the entire civiliz-d world must be more or less at fault. The systems of education may not be the direct cause, but perhaps something niay bo done through them to check the great movement to the cities. How has Canada fared in this regard I Bulletin No. 1 of the Census of Canada. 1891, gave on page 5 a comparison of the urban populition with that of 1881, and com- ments were made upon the city growth of Canada in the decade. In this consideration of our subject, however, the rural population is concerned, and I have therefore used the figures given in that Census Bulletin, and worked out the following statements as to the changes that have taken place in the rural population of Canada since 1881 : Statement of Urban and Rural Population^ 1881 and 1891. 1881. 1891. Decrease. Increase. Per cent. Urban. Ontario 512,549 331,756 75,323 59,092 14,338 9,070 7,985 705,065 436,693 97,261 62.662 14,257 41,762 32,783 3,876 192,516 104,937 21,938 3,470 37.56 Quebec 31.63 Nova Scotia 29.13 New Brunswick . 5.87 P. E. Island 81 0.57 British Columbia .... 32,692 24,798 3,876 360.4 Manitoba 310.4 N. W. T., etc. Total Urban 1,010,113 1,414,373 1,027,271 365,249 262,141 94,553 40,389 54,275 56,444 1,394,269 1,407,924 1,051,893 353,262 258,732 94,831 51,005 121,669 95,846 384,146 38.10 Rural. Ontario 6,449 " 11,987" 3,409 0.46 Ouebec .... 24,622 2.39 Nova Scotia 3.28 New Brunswick 1.30 P. E. [sland 278 10,616 67,384 39,400 0.29 British Columbia .... Manitoba 26.28 124.15 N. W. T.. etc 69.80 Total Rural Grand Total 3,314,697 4,324,810 3,435,152 4,829,411 120,455 504,601 3.63 11.66 In the preceding table I have given the rural population every advantage, and have considered the case in the same manner as was done in the Census Bulletin cited, which says : " The urban popu- lation of Canada is now 1,394,259 — an increase of 384,146 souls, equal to an increase of 38.1 per cent." Every place over 1,500 is included in the urban in 1891, and all of the same places are in the urban in 1881, no matter how small. In 1881, of these towns and villages there were 31 having less than 1,500 and a total of 36,551, which in reality were then in the rural but are here included in the urban; in Ontario there were 15 of less than 1,500 each and having a total of 18,162 included in the urban of 1881. The increase of 6,449 in Ontario is therefore the least that can be given. Leaving aside the question of natural increase, the following 6 statement will show the wonderful movement which has set in from country and villages and small towns to the larger cities : 2 cities have increased by 146,437 13 cities have incrnased by 108,400 147 towns have increased by 134,297 21 towns have dccreancd by 4,988 The rural parts have increased by 120,455 The Dominion has increased by 504,601 According to the Ontario Immigration Report 1891, there werfr settled in Ontario from 1881 to 181)0 persons to the number of 271,- 562, as follows : through the agencies at Ottawa, Kingston, Toronto, Hamilton and London, 186,640 ; reported by Customs, 84,913. If we include their natural increase the number added in the decade by this means will be about 292,000. It is fair to assume that 150,000 at least of these should belong to the rural population. The rural population, therefore, should have been made up as follows in 1891 : • . Rural population of 1881 1,414,373 Natural increase (15 per cent) 212,156 Immigration 150,000 1,776,529 Census return, 1891 1,407,924 Lof 8 in Ontario rural population. . 368,605 In England and Wales the percentage of the rural population^ has been as follows : 37.7 in 1861, 35.2 in 1871, 33.4 in 1881, and 28.3 in 1891. Scotland had a total increase from 1881 to 1891, of 297,530, made up as follows : 178,338 increase in the principal town districts; 79,736 increase in the large town districts; 49,492 in the small town districts ; 5,592 decrease in the Midland rural districts, and 4,444 decrease in the insular rural districts. In France, according to the Statesman's Year Book, the rural population decreased from 75.58 percent, in 1846 to 64.05 per cent, in 1886. " In 1881 of the total increase of 766,260, more than two-thirds, or 561,869, belonged to the 47 towns of more than 30,000 inhabitants." Mulhall gives the number of agricultural hands employed as follows : 6,950,000 in 1840 and 6,450,000 in 1887, with the production per hand as £39 and <£71 in the two periods. In Sweden the rural population dropped from 89.9 per cent, ia 1850 to 81.9 per cent, in 1888. A report of U. S. Consul Ryder, dated Copenhagen, November 9, 1890, gives further information on this point. After stating that in Denmark the rural population decreased from 79 7 per cent, in 1840, to 77.6 in 1860, to 73.8 in 1880, and to 69.5 in 1890, he says : " In the last ten years 137,000 inhabitants have taken their depar- •I ture from the rural districts, 64,000 of whom have been received by the towns, the remaining 73,000 having emigrated to foreign lands." Further on he says: "In France, where the population has for some years been nearly stationary, the towns have been lar^^ely increasing their numbers at the expense of the country. In Ger- many during the five years 1880-85 the rural population has been decreased by 150,000, while the towns have met with an increase of 1,500,000 inhabitants In towns over 2,000 inhabitants, according to the last census returns, in the Netherlands there were dwelling 80 per cent, of the population ; in Belgium, 04 per cent. ; in Great Britain and Ireland, 45 per cent. : in Spain and Italy, 43 per cent. : in Germany, 40 per cent. ; in France, 30 per cent. A transition from country to town life, as substantiated by these figures, must natur- ally affect the social physiognomy of a nation. It is a transition from regular and healthful labor under tranquil conditions to the special- ties of factory life, with its crises, strikes, etc., and the attendant restlessness of town life. The hands who direct their steps toward the towns are also, for the most part, individuals in the most robust and energetic stage of life, it being found that the class from twenty to forty years of age is much more numerous in the towns than in the rural districts, where, on the other hand, the predominating classes are those of the earliest and latest stages of life.'' Further we might add that the British Census of 1890 shows that in towns and cities thoae of rural birth are to be found in the well-to-do sections, while the majority of paupers are of city birth. In the United States the urban population includes all psrsonn in towns and cities over 8,000. On that basis the rural population has formed the following percentage of the total population : 96.65 percent, in 1790; 95.07 in 1820; 93.28 in 1830; 91.48 in 1840; 87.51 in 1850 ; 83.87 in 1860 / 79.07 in 1870 ; 77.43 in 1880; and 70.88 in 1890. Taking the same basis of division the change in Canada would be from 86.7 p. c. in 1881 to 81.0 p. c. in 1891. We see, therefore, that Canada in common with other countries has not been gaining in her rural population as she has in her urban. This is a subject for serious consideration in a new country with boundless fertile lands, to which immigration is directed, and which is first and foremost an agricultural country. ' (2) Instruction in agriculture should be given because of the large amount of capital invested in it, the wealth annually produced by it and the large share it contributes The assessment of real estate in towns shows largely in favor of the time it should be remembered that city and town property is likely to be assessed at a higher percentage of its real value than is rural property. The value of farm property for 1887 was $975,292,21 4 to our trade and commerce. townships and in cities and rural districts. At the same 8 I I according to the Bureau of Industries. I next give the figures returned by the municipalities as the assessment of their real estate : Heal estate asBesBments. 1864. 1887. TownHhips $195,477,677 $428,614,636 Cities and towns 43,686,389 223,853,879 Census Bulletin No. 10, June 1892, deals with manufactures, and states the capital invested in such in Canada to be $353,836,817, the number of employees 367,865, the value of products $475,- 445,705. According to the investigation of the Bureau of Indus- tries the capital invested in agriculture in Ontario — in lands, build- ings, implements and stock — is $971,886,068, in round numbers, one thousand niillion dollars, or five and a half times the capital invested in manufactures in Ontario, and three times the capital invested in manufactures in the whole Dominion. Let us compare ti. agricultural industry of Ontario with the manufacturing industries of Canada and of Ontario : Manufactureb. Agriculture, Canada. Ontario. Ontario. 'Capital invested . . Number of employees '. . Wages paid $353,836,817 367,865 99,762,441 255,983,219 475,445,705 $176,603,339 165,326 49,207,710 128,201,318 240,100,267 $971,886,068 300,000 95,000,000 Cost of raw materials Value of products 80,000,000 260,000,000 The manufactures of Canada are greatly dependent upon agri- culture both for a market and for sources of supply. From the list of manufacturing establishments in Ontario most directly connected with agriculture I take the following (Census Bulletin No. 8) : Industry. Agricultural implements Blacksmithin^ Carriage makmg Harness and saddlery Cooperage Woollen mills Meat curing Creameries Cheese factories Flour and grist mills Other vegetable food manufactures . . . Breweries and distilleries, malting. . . . Tanneries, tallow, glue, soap factories . Saw, planing, paper mills Total manufactures of Ontario Value of machinery and tools. 790,285 582,894 637,081 136,582 148,712 2,189,705 125,401 33,347 485,523 4,451,024 600,167 880,605 357,129 6,608,046 $18,026,501 38,295,158 Number of employees. 3,373 5,321 5,096 1,850 1,660 5,174 947 132 1,922 3,442 5,959 1,470 1,922 26,527 64,795 165,335 9 The more carefully we study the above figures and the statistics given in the Census bulletins on manufactures, the more will we be convinced that success in agriculture underlies success in manufac- ture, in trade and couiraeroe. The agricultural classes supply a large portion of the raw material for manufactures, and the same classes are Urge purchasers of the output of these same manufacturing establishments. The farm products of Ontario, agj^regating $260,- 000,000, are made up as follows : Field products, $150,000,000 ; live stock increase, $35,000,000 ; dairy products, $:J5,000,000 ; orchard and garden products, $12,000,000; farm woodland products, $20,- 000,000; pasture, $4,500,000; eggs, wool, honey, sugar, hops, flax, tobacco, etc., $3,500,000. The total agricultural produce of Canada may be roughly estimated at $500,000,000. With this contrast the mineral production of Canada, which is aV)out $20,000,000, and the fisheries production amounting to about $19,000,000. Reference has sometimes been made to the statement that the output of the manufactures of Canada equals the total produce of our agricult'ire, and, therefore, the inference is drawn that our manufactures are as important as our agriculture ; but a care- ful consideration will show that the inference is not fairly drawn. ThH total product of our manufactures represents the same raw material counted in twice, three times, and in some cases four times, and in many cases the product of the agriculturist is the raw material of the manufacturer. The farmer produces say $1,000 w6rth of wheat, which the miller turns into $1,200 worth of flour, and the baker into $1,400 worth of bread. The farmer has added to the wealth of the country almost the entire $1,000 ; whereas the miller and baker combined have added, not $2,600, but only $400, If we compared total products we would compare the $1,00 J worth of wheat with the $2,600 worth of flour and bread. The wool which the farmer produces reappears in the product of the woollen mill, the tweed manufactory and the tailor shop ; the load of oak logs may go through the saw mill, the planing mill, the cabinet shop; the load of basswood may pass through the paper mill and the printing establish- ment. Taking the vakue of the raw materials from the total pro- duct we find the following to be the amounts of wealth added yearly: By the manufactures of Canada, $220,000,000 ; by the manufactures of Ontario, $110,000,000 ; by the agriculture of Ontario, $180,000,- 000. That agriculture is not so remunerative as it should be, in comparison with other work, is seen at once, from the fact that while there is nearly six times as much capital invested in it as in manu- factures in Ontario, and it pays double the wages, it does not add to the wealth of the province double that added by manufactures. Some might say that the profits of agriculture are not large enough. 10 'i!- It is diflBcult to determine accurately the value of agricultural products in Ontario, but the above will be found to be not very far astray. The following may be U(*ed as a basis of estimate : Farm Lands oi Ontario 1891. acres. Pa&ture lands 2,721,281 Staple field crops 7,834,213 Orchard, garden, etc 446,993 Buildings, la..e8, etc 800,000 Total cleared 11,802,4G7 '• wo-^dland 8,376,762 swamp and waste 2,366,734 Total assessed 22,535,983 In dairying alone, i.e.. in the productioA of milk, butter and cheese, there is invested in Ontario at least $175,000,000, or as much as in all the manufactures of the province. The figures show conclusively that according to the number of persons engaged in and directly dependent upon agriculture, the capital invested in it and the wealth added to the country every year, agriculture stand:j away above every other industry in importance, and any- thing done to develop agriculture, to help those now engaged in it, or those who are soon to engage in it, should receive every encour- agement. There certainly is a possibility of enormous development in various lines of crop production, as a comparison with many old countries such as England, France and Germany will prove. The domestic exports of Oanada represent the surplus production of the country. For 1891 they ware as follows from Canada and also from the United States : Canada. United Sta';es. Produce of the mine *' *' fisheries ♦• " forest Timber, planks, boards, etc . Other manufactures 8 5,782,424 9,715,*401 5,434,912 19,932,874 5,212,197 25,967,741 ) 13,666,858 f 45,337 p. c. 6.8 11.3 6.3 . 23.3 6.0 46.2 0.1 8 22,J54,970 6,208,577 29,473,024 5,987,322 ) 162,939,903 f 177,517.383 1 465,233,961 f 3,612,364 P.O. 2.53 0.71 3.2» 19.37 Animals and their products . . Farm produce, gram, etc Other Droducts 73.69 0.41 Total FoDulation , 885,575,744 4,829,411 8872,270,283 62,622,250 Omitting, therefore, all the timber and lumber which has come from the woodland of the farms, we find that over 46 per cent, of the surplus proc'uce of Canada comes from the farm. In total 11 19.37 73.69 0.41 exports Canada compares well with the U. S. ; for every inhabitant the U. S. export $14 v-^orth of produce, while Canad", exports $17 worth ; but while the U. S. export $10 worth of farm produce for every inhabitant Canada exports only $8 worth. To show how ^ha development of one industry has been brought about by special encouragement we may here notice that in 1891 cheese was exported from the United States to the value of $",405,376, from Canada to the value of $9,508,800, whereas in 1881 the United States exported $16,- 380,248 and Canada $5,510,443 worth of the same article. The necessity of imparting instruction in butter making will be seenatonce, from the fact that in 1881 cur Canadian butter exports amounted *^o $3,573,034, but fell ofFsteadi / until in 1889 they reached only $331,- 958. They are now moving up again, and in 1891 amounted to $602,175. Particular attention has been paid during the past year to giving instruction and in spreading information in regard to but- ter making. Among other agencies the three Travelling Dairies, under the Ontario Department of Agriculture, may be specially mentioned, also the Provincial Dairy Associations. The following statement of Canadian exports may be interesting in this connection : 1872-1881. 1882-1891. Total domestic exports $7 16,608, 314 $835, 235,717 Agricultural exports 333,503,729 406,698,163 Let US now turn to one very important item in our productions and exports, viz., wheat. Canada is generally considered a great wheat producing country. The opening up of Manitoba and the Territories and Districts of the North-west will in the future pro- bably justify the claim, but the history of Ontario at least would lead to the conclusion that we have not held our own. Robert Gour- lay, in his "Statistics of Upper Canada," gathered in 1817, ga,ve the average wheat production of Ontario as 21 bushels per acre, with the average of the London district as 23 1 bushels per acre. The price in 1817 was 6s. per bushel, in 1820 3s. per bushel. Major Strickland a few years after records a production on his farm of 40 bushels per acre. Picken, in his work on the Oanadas, 1832, quotes a report as fellows : " We were told that from 25 to 30 bushels was the average produce of wheat per aero. A man upon Lake Simcoe assured me that he had 371 bushels from 7 acres." In the reports of fifty years ago frequent reference is found to productions of 25 and 30 bushels per acre, and occasionally to 40 and over. The fall wheat crop of 1891 — 25.7 bushels per acre — reminded farmers of olden times; but the sprmg wheat t)f 1892 — 12.7 bushels per acre — and the average of 1882-92 of 15.4 bushels per acre, show a great falling off. Taking both spring and fall wheat into consideration 12 I the average production of 1882 to 1892 has been about 18 bushels per acre. In Ontario, therefore, instead of increasing the yield per acre we have decreased it. A pamphlet descriptive of Western New York, " The Genesee Country," published in 1804, says of that region: "It is uncom- monly favorable for wheat, of which from twenty to twenty-five bushels are generally raised to an acre ; but it has been known to yield forty and frequently thirty bushels an acre, and the grain is generally large and of a good quality." At that time the best im- proved land to the west of the Genesee river sold from one and a-half to two dollars an acre, and wheat from 62 cents to $1 per bushel. In 1891 New York produced 10,633,000 bushels of wheat upon €40,450 acres, or 17 bushels per acre. Great Britain's wheat crop averaged 26.89 bushels per acre in 1886, 31.97 in 1887, 27.97 in 1888, 29.89 in 1889 and 30.74 in 1890. France increased her aver- age from 9.4 bushels in 1815 to 16.0 in 1875, and to 17.8 in 1884. The following statement will show that our surplus production of wheat in Canada has not been so large as many believe. The table gives the imports for home consumption and the exports of domestic produce. In the twenty-two years, from 1870 to June 30th, .1891, our total surplus is shown to have been only 33,500,000 bushels : 1870. 1871. 1872. 1873. 1874. 1875, 1876. 1877. 1878. 1879. 1880. 1881. 1882. 1883. 1884. 1885 1886. 1887. 1888. 1889. 1890. 1891. Imports. bush. 6,034,708 6,165,877 6,052,039 7,215,550 9,845,896 7,444,088 7,736,226 7,334,366 7,208,011 5,775,605 619,171 1,064,557 1, 208,494 1,368,877 2,954,600 3,073,641 1,072,719 870,685 324,452 1,179,825 953,344 406,222 Exports. bush. 5,467,986 3,280,912 5,258,919 6,750,751 9,282,802 5,896,937 8,147,913 3,736,180 6,775,690 9,485,594 7,813,460 4,722,313 6,193,730 8,312,688 1,732,471 2,959,841 5,349,663 8,232,791 3,914,329 1,081,219 940,219 3,443,744 Surplus. bush. 411,687 3,709,969 7,294,289 3,657,756 4,985,236 6,943,811 4,266,944 7,362,106 3,599,877 3,037,522 Deficiency. bush. 566,722 2,384,965 793,120 464,799 563,094 1,547,161 3,598,186 432,321 1,222,129 113,800 98,606 13,125 It is asserted by many that Ontario produces her 27,000,000 bushels of wheat at a loss, when wheat sells at less than $1 per 13 bushel. If so, the remedy is to increase the yield per acre or to de- crease the acreage. Every bushel per acre of increase would mean a total increase of 1,500,000 bushels. This surely is worth striving for, and the way to obtain success lies as follows : Improvement of the land by drainage and thorough cultivation, cleaning from weeds, / increased fertilizing, and improved varieties of seed Instruction in these various branches should help on the good cause. i have thus far dealt with the 6rst question, should agriculture be taught in our Public Schools 1 I have shown that the large majority of the people are intimately associated with rural work ; and further, that the tendency to remove from this work and its sur- roundings is proceeding at too rapid a pace in this young agricultural country, and further, that the wealth and commerce of the country are greatly dependent upon agriculture. These points should con- clusively prove that agriculture should be taught if it can, II. Can Agriculture be Taught in our Public Schools?' What has been done can be done. The various progressive coun- tries of Europe are endeavoring to answer this question, each under- taking it according to the conditions of the people and the peculiari- ties of their situation. To France, however, we ^nay turn as the most progressive and advanced of all civilized countries in the mat- ter of agricultural education. France has a population of 38,095,156 ; her farms are the best cultivated in Europe, and her produce per head has increased by one-half in the past quarter of a century. " The capital represented by agriculture is at present double what it was in the year 18l5, and nearly 40 percent, of the wealth of the nation." (Mulhall.) The Budget of the Minister of Agriculture for 1891-2 provided $850,000 for special agricultural instruction in institutions devoted to agriculture alone. First there is at Paris the Institut Agronomique, the Agricultural University, famous the. world over for its investigations ; then come three National Schools of Agriculture, one of Horticulture, one of Dairying, three of Veter- inary Science, two of Forestry and two Shepherds' Schools. To tha above |48 1,000 was granted. In addition a Professor of Agricu^ ture for each of the 86 Departments of France, Farm Schools Apprentice Schools, Experimental Stations, Fields and Colonies, andl Agricultural Orphanages subsidized to the extent of $369,000. The public school work of France may be summarized as follows : The Infant Schools, 5158 in number, situated principally in, the towns, are for children under seven years of a^e. The Elementary Primary Schools for pupils from seven to thirteen years, 80,000 in number, are scattered through the 36,000 communes* Above these are 483 Superior Primary Schools, corresponding to our High Schools, for pupils from thirteen to fifteen years, having 14 28,000 in attendance. In addition there are 265 Uours Comple- mentaires, attended by 14,000 pupils. The total enrolment for the Primary Schools is over 5,500,000, and the number of teach- ers is 141,000. The teachers for the Primary Schools are trained in Normal Schools, which number 160, and have an attendance of 9,000 teachers in training. The total cost of the elementary education to State, Departments and Communes in 1890 was $40,000,000. In 1850 Agriculture was made optional in public schools, and until 1879 instruction was dependent largely upon the encourage- ment of agricultural societies and private benefactors. In 1879, however, a law was passed compelling every Normal College with- in six years to provide agricultural instruction for the teachers-in tr lining, and further requiring the primary schools within three years thereafter to make Agriculture a compulsory subject in their course of instruction. The introduction of agriculture, therefore, began with the train- ing of the teachsrs — a step certainly worthy of imitation. The instruction in that subject is given by the Professors of Agricul- ture, one of whom is placed by the Government over each of the 86 Departments of France. Their salaries are paid one-half by the Minister of Education and one-half by the Min- ister of Agriculture. Their duties are three-fold to give instruc- tion to the teachers-in-training, to hold conferences with the farm- ers, and to carry out any investigations suggested by the Govern- ment. Gardens are attached to these Xormal Schools. The following is laid down for the general guidance of the teacher of the Primary School, but the teacher is free to adapt it to his own taste and the agricultural nature of the locality. Infant Section. (5 to 7 years.) Object lessons and drawing. Elementary Course. (7 to 9 years.) Lessons in the school garden. Middle Course (9 to 11 years.) Instruction in connection with reading, object lessons and excursions, on the principal kinds of manures, agricultural work, and instruments of husbandry. Suj)erior Course. (II to 13 years.) More methodical informa- tion on agricultural operations ; the implements of husbandry, drainage ; natural and artificial manures ; seed sowing, harvesting ; domestic animals ; farm accounts ; {)rincipal processes of propagat- ing the most useful vegetables grown in the district ; tree culti- vation ; the most important graftings. Many of the schools have small gardens attached, and have agricultural museums. The teacher is encouraged in many Depart- ments by prizes offered by the agricultural societies, and the work is supplemented by visits to first-class farms, dairies and establish- ments where agricultural products are being handled. Compl^- nent for of teach- I trained tendance mentary 890 was lols, and courage- n 1879, 'ge with- chers-in n three in their e train- .n. The Agricul- ^er each ire paid le Min- instruc- he farm- Goyern- 3 of the adapt ality. 'ing. garden. on with nds of iforma- bandry, esting ; opagat- culti- have ])epart- e work ablish- 15 The teaching of Agriculture in the superior primary schools is of a more advanced nature, and is more frequently met with. Prof. Teegan thus refers to it : " The course extends over two years. It includes for boys practical ideas of vegetation, the different means of reproduction, the nature of different soils, manures, the principal agricultural machines, planting, transplanting, irrigation, the princi- pal kinds of cultivation followed in France, and particularly the agricultural productions of the district in which the school is situat- ed ; diseases of plants and their prevention ; weeda, vegetables, fruits, flowers, greenhouses, the cultivation of fruit trees ; domestic animals ; book-keeping, etc. The agricultural instruction is based on this general programme, but varied and extended to suit the needs of the locality. The practical illustrations are to be given in the school gardens and experimental fields, and during visits paid to the farms of the surrounding districts. In some of these institutions there is a special agricultural section, under the charge of a special Professor. The number of such schools is, however, small." Fuller information in regard to the educational system of France may be obtained from two valuable works by Prof. T. H. Teegan, of the Board of National Education, Dublin, entitled " Elementary Education in France " and " Technical and Industrial Education in France," 1891, Simpkin, Marshall & Co., London, publishers. . The conclusions arrived at from a study of the above works, also the Reports of the British Board of Agriculture, 1891, are : 1. France has found it advisable to supplement the work of her Agricultural Colleges by introducing Agriculture as a special study into her general school system. 2. The work has been begun by training the teachers first, and while general methods have been prescribed the system is sufficient- ly elastic to meet the varying abilities of teachers and pupils. 3. The work is as yet in only the first stage of development, and although all the rural children of France have not been reached and the end aimed at has not yet been attained, the success achieved is very encouraging, and worthy of imitation by other nations. An interesting article on " Village Life in France and England," by an Englishman, Rev. W. Tuckwell, appeared in the Contempor- ary Review, January, 1892, which showed the great advance which France had made, and how large a place the little school garden plays in the Republic. A few quotations will not be out of place : ** In the French post-office savings banks there are 2,800,000,000 francs ($600,000,000) in 6.500,000 deposits." " Tn these small farms, as in all the other holdings we had seen, the farming was extraordinarily skilful. Not only was the land far clean- er than most farmers' land in England — allotments at home had 16' III accustomed me to that — but we were arrested by the dexterou economy in laying out the crops, the unexpected rotations, the use of chemical manures. This was due, we were told, to the Govern- ment Agricultural Colleges ; and one of these we visited." Then follows a description which ends with this sentence : •' No wonder French holdings, large or small, are scientifically farmed." A short sketch of one of the market gardens near Paris is given. It was 2^ acres in extent, the rental was £35 per acre, 15 men were employed and the yearly statement was as follows : Salps of produce £2,728 ; expenditure, wages, £1,000 ; rent and taxes, £100; interest on capital, £150 ; horses and carts, £100 ; sundries* £50 ; profit, £1.028. Mr. Tuckwell concluded his article with this remarkable state- ment: "In England the owners of estates above one acre in size are about 300,000 ; in France they are 7,000,000. In England the average extent of a single farm is 390 acres; in France 10 acres, 4,000,000 owners holding properties of two acres, while the farms of 200 acres are so few that they can be counted on the fingers. In France there are 8,000,000 acres of common land, the exact amount which has in England been robbed from the lAV)orer3 by successive Enclosure Acts during the last 170 years. In 1890 France exported £27,000,000 worth of food ; England imported £80,000,000 worth. In sixty years 8,500,000 emigrants have left England ; less than 500,000 have left France. In England the rural population is 33 per cent, of the whole ; in France upwards of 75 per cent. In Eng- land, finally, the peasant is miserably housed, underpaid, servile, despairing ; in France he is decent, well-to do, independent, hopeful." It may not be advisable to follow the lead of France in all par- ticulars, but her experience certainly warrants the conclusion that the education of the rural classes in their own work is very beneficial. The imparting of a little agricultural information in public schools would doubtless have a good effect upon the attendance at our Agri- cultural College, and possibly create a necessity for increasing buch facilities. The agricultural colleges 'have in all countries had to do too much begging for students, while at the same time schools of law, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and technolo^'y have been over- crowded. The U. S. schools of Agriculture are also schools for training teachers, and for giving instructions in manual arts and in commercial courses. Many of these institutions, to obtain students for their agricultural departments, have been compelled to rely almost entirely upon '* short courses '' of six weeks or two months. Prof. Lazenby, of Ohio, in The Cidtivator and Country Gentleman for November 17, 1892, has an article upon "Agricultural Education in Ireland." He describes the agricultural college at Glasnevin, near Dublin, and concludes thus : " In many respects it comes nearer to 17 lexterou the use Govern- " Then wonder ia given. 15 men Sal PS of !8, £100; ;s. £50; >le state- i size are land the acres, farms of ;er8. In t amount uccpssive exported )0 worth. ess than on i.s 33 In Eng- servile, lopefnl." all par- ion that eneficial. schools nr Agri- ling such ad to do ^hools of en over- ools for s and in students y almost Prof. iman for nation in in, near learer to I. my ideal of an agricultural college than any other institution I have yet seen. It teaches the young men and young women of Ireland — those who expect to live on farms — just what they most need to know. The expense is slight, the benefits great, and yet the number of students is small. Agriculfural education is no more popular in Ireland than it is in the United States." Our success in Ontario has been more marked. The Agricultural College at Guelph teaches nothing but agriculture and the subjects connected with agriculture, and this year it is filled to its utmost capacity ; provision has been further made for an additional short course in dairying during 1892 and the applications are greatly in excess of the accommodation. But although we have surpassed many other countries in this work 110 or 150 students in agriculture are too few to come annually from the 70,000 youths, 15 to 21 years, who are living in the rural parts. Agricultural instruction in public schools might very materially increase the number of those wiio are desirous of thorough agricultural instruction. III. How CAN Agriculture be Taught in the Public Schools 1 Upon this question hangs the whole difficulty. All are now agreed, I believe, that agriculture should be taught if it can, and many who have studied the subject are quite satisfied that it can be taught in some form ; but when we come to the discussion of the point as to how it is to be taught much dilficulty arises from the variety and conflict of opinions. There are a few general statements that I would make in intro- duction to this part : 1. All, or nearly all, depends upon the teacher. To one interested in the progress of agriculture, informed upon the principles of the sciences involved, acquainted with rational methods of teaching, and fully determined to impart agricultural instruction, the entire diffi- culty is easily settled. But in the case of teachers who have been brought up in cities and towns, who are unacquainted with agricul- tural work, who have no bias towards agriculture, and who may be merely making the teaching a convenience for a couple of years whereby to earn a little money, the difficulty may be well nigh insurmountable, and there is absolute necessity that some training and direction be given before the work is undertaken ; otherwise it were better to leave it alone entirely. 2. Trustees desiring agriculture to be taught in their schools must insist upon its being taught, and must be willing to assist in provid- ing whatever means may be necessary. It may even be found advisable to grant a bonus to teachers who are competent to give instructions in this branch, especially if they have to incur increased 2 (S.B.) l.s expense in fitting themselves for such work. Charts may be required ; some agricultural papers may be found helpful, but the entire outlay need not be very large. 3. Too much should not be attempted at first. The work should be introduced gradually, and the understanding at the outset should be very definite that by teaching agriculture in the public schools it is not intended to teach how to plow, how to harvest, or how to feed stock, but rather the why and the wherefore and to arouse an interest in agricultural operations. 4. The principal aim and object of instruction in our public schools should be the creation of a sentiment in favor of agricultural work, the gradual development of a love for the couutry and its healthful life, the arousing of a noble ambition in the young minds to become progressive and successful agriculturists, the spreading abroad of the idea that the industrious, thoughtful, honest farmer is the most valu- able citizen of this Canada of ours — a man to be respected, appre- ciated and honored by every member of the community. Prof. Oalvin Thomas, in Th» Open Court, said in regard to the tendency of bo^s'to leave the farm: "It; begins to be borne in upon him in early boyhood that the life of the farm is a narrow, monotonous life of hard work, small pay, and meagre opportunity for action, enjoyment or improvement. He "goes to the city in search of a better opportunity. Doubtless it would be better for him in most cases to remain upon the farm, but he does not know that until experience has taught him. He knows from books or from hearsay of men who nave left the farm and found fame, money or excitement in the city. He knows nothing of the countless failures that he has not heard of. He feels himself drawn away. The more knowledge you give him, knowledge which tells of an ouitside w<:'rld in which men are doing, studying, finding out all sorts of interesting things, the more you add fuel to the flame. 1 conclude, therefore, that very little can be done by the common schools to check the drift towards the cities. For this we must rely chiefly upon economic forces. Whatever tends to improve the economic atatus of the farm industry and to elevate the plane of the farmer's life will tend to correct the evil. What little the schools can do can best be done, in my opinion, by ethical rather than by scientific instruction. For it is a question of character rather than of knowledge that we are here concerned with, and it is the character building studies which I should wish to see compose the burden of early education." In an article replying to the above Mr. E. P. Powell said : *' I •will not go on to discuss the Professor's interpretation of the German ♦ World-Thirst ' which in his opinion is an instinct drawing boys and Ijirls away from the farm. If such an instinct be in humanity, it 19 IS a has been created like all other instincts and should be counterbal- anced and corrected by education. We have many other drifts of like nature, such as the migratory instinct which antagonizes home- building." To the former's statement that increase of knowledge but adds fuel to the flame, Mr. Powell replies : " We shall both insist on showing the boy a world at home full of interest, of beauty, of thought, of study, of doing." Thus there are two sides to agricultural education In addition to imparting knowledge or teaching the student how to observe and how to think there should be a cultivation of the feeling, the sentiment. Who can tell what results unforeseen might flow from attending to a few improvements in the surroundings. Let the trustees put a neat fence about the little school yard, hang a simple but attractive gate, drain the play-ground, level it, sod or sow to grass, erect out- buildings at least suggestive of humanity, brighten up the interior of the school room with fresh paint. Then let them provide the schools with a few dollars to procure some neat charts and pictures dealing with rural life. In one corner have a cupl;>oard to be filled with Sooks and reports upon agriculture ; fit up a couple of glass museum oases. Now let the teachers encourage the pupils in the setting out of native shruV)8 and trees about the grounds and the growing of a iew plants inside and outside Let the teachers and pupils make a collection of the weeds, the wild flowers, tl ^ grasses, the grains, the soils aiid rocks, and the insects injurious and non-injurious of the section, and arrange them in the cases. If possible, let them secure a few large views of the best farms and farm buildings and farm stock, and the Agricultural College, and hang them upon the walls. Thus one addition would suggest another and the dull, dreary, re- pulsive surroundings of many rural public schools might be changed to bright, cheery attractions that would bind together inseparably the two conceptions — rural life and pleasure. It may be that the condition of the rural school has been the repelling force to send many a boy to the town and city, and may we not expect that the improve- ment of surroundings would have some effect in binding the young men to the life and work of the country ? Apart from the teaching of agriculture as a separate subject there are subjects now included in the curriculum of our public schools that can be given a turn toward or an application to agriculture, and the subject thereby be indirectly introduced. Reading — In 1888 a commission was appointed in France to con- sider the working of their new system, and to suggest methods whereby the teaching of agriculture in French schools might be further developed. One of the most important suggestions that they made was that the literature placed in the hands of the pupils for reading and study should apply more than it had in the past to the country, the 20 descripticn of rural scenery, of rural occupations and ruial life. Prof. Teegan, in the work on Technical Education, previously noticed, refers to this feature in addition to other instruction : • " The vast majority of those whoso school life ends with the primary school are destined to be engaged in some branch or other of productive industry — occupations in which manual skill is of primary importance. And yet we frame for these, to the exclusion of more useful studies, such courses of technical grammar as if their future destination were the senate, and such programmes in geo- graphy as if they were intended to lead exploring expeditions into the centre of Africa ; and the last instruction which it has entered into our heads to give them is that which they will require in their every-day life from the very hour they issue from the school, namely, manual training. Can we uot so adapt the course of the primary school that knowledge of a more practical character — knowledge that will be more directly concerned with the future life of the scholars, may be imparted therein, without interfering with the efficiency of the school in the discheyrging of the primary function of education — namely mental development 1 It will, we think, he pretty readily admitted that the art of reading can be acquired as effectively through the medium of text-books, containing a series of lessons on the cultivation of fruit trees as through a series containing disquisi- tions on the oratory of Burke or the poetry of Homer. And surely the teaching of practical school gardening would be as valuable as setting the scholars to commit to memory the heighcs of the principal peaks of the Rocky Mountains." Arithmetic. — Not a single question need be given in this sub- ject that has not a bearing upon agriculture. We might refer to questions in marketing ; in the measurements of fields and roa^ls ; as to capacity of barns, bins, vsilos, etc. ; as to the cost of production ; as to road-making. Drawing. — The flowers of the field, the weeds by the roadside, the simplest farm implements, the buildings and animals upon the farm surely afford scope for the most advanced artistic development to be found in rural schools. British History. — The development of the agriculture of Britain should torm as prominent a part of her history as does the develop- ment of her other industries. No more interesting chapters are to be found than those dealing with the early holdings of land and the method of working it. The history of the hundred acre farm of the present day from the old systems of ownership would be peculiarly adapted to senior rural pupils. Prof. 0. K. Adams summarized the conditions of ownership four centuries ago in an address to the farmers of New York State thus : " Under the Ai hoi in coil unJ by orij abc wei hell ma| til liv^ tin tha tor we foi- 21 waH was the Anglo-Saxons there seem to have been three general methods of holding land. There was first of all the demesne lord who resided in the centre of the territory, over which he had more or less control. He had a large estate immediately about him that under his definite and positive government. This estate by the Anglo Saxon known as a tun, and that word is origin of our word " town." The town was gradually gathered about this estate. In the second place, at a distance from this, were those who owed allegiance to the demesne lord, but who held the lands by feudal tenure, and paid for the rent of lands by manual services or the services oF cattle. These husbandmen some- times had control, absolute control, of the little land on which they lived, and so long as they fulfilled the conditions their control con- tinued. Then, in the third place, there was the common territory that was used by all of the members of society. This common terri- tory was partly ])a8ture and partly farm lands. The farm lands were cultivated ordinarily in ridges, the land being thus thrown up for better draining. These ridges were nearly uniform in 8i/