Delaware Valley College - Cornucopia Yearbook (Doylestown, PA)

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Qleanet 0101 ri rio:-rioioi ring vi 1 nzoinioioioi 5111 vii 1 21311 fini 1 1020 Ealehinturp HAROLD PESKIN R. CHAIRMAN, Members of the Board and Faculty, Friends, and Fellow-Students: We are gathered here this day to participate in the com- mencement exercises of the Class of 1926. We of this class consider ourselves fortunate to be graduating from the school at this time. The combined conditions of an increasing urban and a decreasing rural population are gradually showing their effect. In a few years the sur- plus of products which the farmer now produces shall have turned into a scarcity. Prices in agriculture will rise accordingly, and the impor- tance of the farmer will be brought forcibly before the attention of the nation. The present depression in agriculture may be considered as good rather than evil. It has the effect of forcing the incompetent farmer to turn to some other form of endeavor for a livelihood. The trouble with agriculture in the past has been that it contained too much of the old-fashioned farmer, the kind that did not consider the farm as a business enterprise, but rather as a means of livelihood which he had inherited with birth. The splendid work of our agricultural institu- tions is doing away with these fallacious ideas. The farmer who planted potatoes by the light of the new moon and poured turpentine into the horns of the cow when she refused to eat is a myth of the past. Science is rapidly supplanting superstition. Dr. Krauskopf, a man of clear vision and broad understanding, observed the changes that were taking place in agriculture. He fore- saw that the successful farmer of the future would have to possess a scientific, as well as a practical knowledge of the subject. With this in mind he formulated a plan for an institution in which city boys, especially, could be given an education in agriculture. The plan was then presented to the people at large for their approval and financial support, and it required all of his stamina and perseverance to convince them of its practicability. Today, in this splendid institution, we see the result of his labor. Graduates that have preceded us, by their accomplishments in the outside world, have shown that the work of Dr. Krauskopf has not been in vain. Fellow-Classmates, we part from our Alma Mater with grave responsibilities. It is our duty to uphold the name of our school and to demonstrate that its purpose is being accomplished. We can only do this by achieving success in our chosen profession. This task should be easier for us than it has been for our predecessors, for the educa- tional advantages afforded us during our stay here were far greater than any previous class has ever enjoyed. Many things have happened during our stay here. When we first took up our studies at this institution we were beset by numerous dif- ticulties and hardships. Some of our number were forced to withdraw, but the remainder of us, with a clear conception of our goal, kept steadily at our tasks until today we stand before that goal. The Farm fConcluded on page 307 v3o1w.1.1 1 11.111 2031.1 1 11 1:11 1:1 1 1 1 1 112.11311 3011, PAGE SIX 9:4 rioioioiojoie 1101014 2010101014 njcnj1r14nj014x1o1nio10:o1o1,'j4 uininrjoioioioioicrif v 0.01

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Gleaner 1411311 3 1 101 1 11+ in 11111111.11 zo: 1 1:11 ix ii 1ffi',:1i:-:- Rresentatiun of the lane IRWIN KLEIN RIENDS, Relatives, Board of Directors, Faculty and Undergraduates: Here is a hoe. It is the National Farm School symbol. It has been selected for this momentous function firstly, because it has been one of the farmer's most valued implements since the tilling of the soil has been known, and secondly, through generation after generation it has found employment and still, in this advanced age of industry, is wholly indispensable. A more appropriate or more suitable object for a symbol could not be had. Since 1901 the Hoe has been used by the graduation class to be passed down unto its successor. As a member of the departing class I present this Hoe to you, Mr. Powell, and in doing so I wish to emphasize its chief signiiicance-leadership, co-operation, and justice. Withoiit leaders we are like a ship at sea without a rudder. The ship will not reach port unless guided by a skillful hand. It is the same in life. A few of us are subject to live by the guidance of others. In every group, in every class, and so in your class, there are men who possess this ability to lead. Develop it to the utmost, for unto your class falls the responsibility of guiding the less experienced under- classmen. Do not permit personal glory to divert or estrange you from the paths of righteousness. Overlook your personal selnsh desires. Co- operate one with the other. In our school we have seen the necessity of co-operation and we cannot pass it by. Remember, you are as strong as your weakest link. Above all, let justice prevail. Permit no man to say he has not been given a fair chance. Show no partiality. Treat each and every man alike. You have a Senate elected by yourselves, a jury composed of students from each class-let them be your judges. Give them your unswerving support. Have the Freshmen and Juniors like you for what you are and not for what you might be. With the deliverance of this Hoe, our administration as students of the National Farm School ceases, but as graduates we will ever cherish its achievements. Accept our best wishes and ardent hopes that the coming year may yield fruit rich in fulillment. ,101 popup :iq Q.: 1- Q ququq -up Q qu.. 14- 4-up qu..-Q. 1,10-U-. P A G l' F I X

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Qleaner Glu the Qllass nf 1926 BERNHARD OSTROLENK gg HY do you wish to come to the National Farm School? is the query put to every candidate for admission to the School. To become a farmer, is the answer that is mostly given. It is a clear-cut question and a clear-cut answer. To- gether, they best define the object of the school. It is hoped that if the same ques- tion were asked the graduating class, ex- cept placed in the past tense, for ex- ample, Why did you come to the Na- tional Farm School? the answer today would be as clear cut, and even of fuller conviction, than it was three years ago. Nearness to and better knowledge of a subject has the trick of beclouding an issue, of putting a great many ifs in the proposition, of weakening the con- victions. Only he, who originally ar- rived with the conviction that he wanted to be a farmer, is likely to be confirmed after thorough preparation in his chosen field. Weaker men have discovered weaknesses in their work and are be- ginning to magnify them. The stronger men properly appraise the obstacles, but clearly see the goal. And what is the goal? To be a farmer is no small goal to set for one's self. To be sure, it does not glitter as much as the hazy imagery of the conquering hero in industry or politicsg a dream goal, formless of path or final achieve- ment. To be a farmer demands a den- nite path towards an attainable end. On the path discipline in thrift, and train- ing for management are the outstand- ing demands. Thrift, savings, accumulation of some capital are primary shibboleths to be admitted to the group who may try at all. A Farm School graduate can not hope to attain his goal of owning a farm without some capital. He must start his savings account the day he leaves the school. He graduates from the appren- tice-farmer stage to the farm-owner stage when he can show a respectable saving account to justify the extensions of credit to him that make a farm pur- chase possible. This savings account, while an index of a man's discipline, is attainable by the average Farm School graduate. A three or four-year appren- ticeship as a herdsman or poultryman or farm assistant on some farm, accom- panied by a systematic savings, is likely to bring the graduate within visible means of a farm. Needless to say, the three-year apprenticeship should also prove an excellent preliminary training for managership. It is to be hoped that on the day of graduation the class sees the goal of becoming a farmer with the enthusiasm that caused them to embark on this career. The independence, the perma- nence, the variety of work, the respon- sibility of decision, the life out of doors, a home and its rewards, both cash and otherwise, are stimuli that have formerly sent Farm School graduates into the world to their chosen goal, singing. To perceive and achieve this goal is the parting wish of the Director to the Class of 1926. g PAGE SEVEN