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Rural Camp Schools. —The College is also made use of by the Education Department in connection with what is known as rural camp schools. These have been organized in order to bring the city boys out into the country for a short time. The boys are brought out in squads, and camp at the school. The following is a sample syllabus of one day's proceedings at a rural camp school :— The boys assemble at the Principal's office at 8 a.m. They inspect the library, chemical laboratory, lecture-halls, &c. They then visit the orchard, garden, cannery, and vegetablegarden. At 10 o'clock they inspect the power-house and lighting-plant, implement-sheds, and steam laundry. At 11 a.m. a lecture is given them on'nature-study. At 12 noon they go into the gymnasium, and also have lunch. At 1 o'clock there is a lecture in the experimental plots, and at 2 p.m. they visit the dairy, milking sheds and bails, see the milking by hand and machinery, the feeding of the calves, ensilage-pit, butter and cheese making, and milk-testing. On other days the boys are taken round the poultry-yards, and the system of laying-com-petitions is explained while they are inspecting. They see the geese, turkeys, ducks, and various breeds of poultry, ostriches, and the feeding of these, &c. They are also shown the piggeries, and the difference between the various breeds of pigs is- explained. They inspect the stable, and are given brief expositions on saddlery, carpentry, and blacksmithing. In the evening a lantern lecture is given in the College lecture-hall. This is a sample of the work which is done in connection with the rural camp schools at Hawkesbury, and is an attempt by the Government of New South Wales to counteract the tendency of the young men to congregate in the towns. It is an effort to interest the boys of Sydney and other large towns in rural pursuits, and I think I may say thousands of boys are sent out from the cities for a short time in the country, and in the opinion of those who appear to be qualified to judge a large number of youths are thus attracted into country life. The Minister of Education, speaking at Hawkesbury recently, said, "Not only have we sent teachers to learn at the feet of Mr. Potts, but every one of the thousands of boys who has attended at these schools has become a missionary in dispelling the metropolitan ignorance in regard to rural life through the agencies of these rural camp schools, and the essays and discussions that result from a visit of metropolitan schoolboys to the country. We have created a certain amount of interest in the mind of the city boy in connection with the country." Summer Schools for Public-school Teachers. —Provision is also made at Hawkesbury for the instruction of public-school teachers during the Christmas vacation. These courses of instruction commence at the beginning of January and last for a month. The number of students is limited to one hundred, and preference is given to teachers whose schools are situated in agricultural districts, or who have already commenced the teaching of elementary agriculture in their schools. The teachers reside at the College during their visit, and the cost of their accommodation is paid by the Department of Education. The following is a brief outline of the course of their instruction :— Lectures are given by the Principal on the agricultural aspect of primary education; elementary phases associated with dairying; bacteriology in relation to dairy farm and home life, with microscopic and lantern demonstrations; feeding of stock; the laws of breeding; irrigation; and such subjects as agricultural education as practised in other countries, such as England, United States, Canada, and the Continent of Europe. The principal object of this school is to enable teachers to deal with nature-study and the study of plant and animal life in their schools. Outdoor instruction is also given each day by a walk in the country, when lectures are given on country matters. I understand that these classes are very fully attended by teachers, and I consider this undoubtedly one of the most important and far-reaching features connected with Hawkesbury College. I think I have now completed a description of the work at Hawkesbury College, which maybe briefly summed up as (1) the diploma course of practical and theoretical work combined of three years; (2) the alternative courses in minor branches of farming; (3) the dairy school for managers and teachers; (4) the rural camp schools; (5) the farmers' winter schools; and (6) the summer school for public-school teachers. Part ll.—The General System of Agricultural Ehucation in Vorue in New South Wales. The New South Wales Department of Agriculture was started in 1890, when the Minister of Agriculture and Mines was appointed. A Superintendent was appointed to organize the new Department, and it was administered by the first Minister for three years as a separate Department. A comprehensive scheme of agricultural education was arranged by the Government; the Hawkesbury Agricultural College was started; four experimental farms established; a scientific staff organized; and an Agricultural Gazette instituted. In 1893, during a period of retrenchment, the Department was reduced, and the control was handed over to an officer of the Mines Department. This, however, did not prove satisfactory, and in 1908 a special Minister of Agriculture was, appointed by special Act of Parliament. The Ministerial head of the Department is a member of Cabinet, the permanent head is the Undersecretary for Agriculture, while the field-work is controlled by a Superintendent and Chief Inspector. The Department has the administration of a number of Acts of Parliament, such as the Vines and Vegetation Diseases Act, the Commerce Act, Fruit-pests Act, Fertilizers Act, Pastures Protection Act, Stock Acts, and other Acts of a similar character. There are six apprentice farm schools, two farm schools for the higher education of farmers and dairymen, and one College for practical and scientific teaching. Bursaries are given at

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