for all grades of wheat has been estimated in one computation at 85 cents, and with the price for "No. 1 Northern' hovering about a dollar, as was the case during those four months, this average may be considered fairly representative. The price of oats held fairly steady between 35 and 40 cents, and, if allowance be made for low grades and freight rates, the average return to the farmer may be placed at not less than 27 cents per bushel. Barley held up in price throughout the season and has been valued at the rate of 40 cents per bushel.

Manitoba is not merely a wheat growing and exporting country. Every branch of farming has made rapid strides of late years. The products include oats, barley, flax, rye and peas; the Manitoba root crop alone amounts to 8,568,386 bushels and the dairy products to 3,918,568 lbs. of the value of $10,604.31.

The development of the live stock trade has been very great. This is shown by the increase in the stock marketed. The past year was an excellent one for the rearing and shipping of live stock, the receipts at the Winnipeg stock yard were nearly double those of any similar period. Not only is there much improvement in the number of cattle marketed, but also in their quality. The total receipts at Winnipeg for 1908, were 170,088 head, and of these about 91,045 cattle were suitable for export. The remainder were sold as ''stockers" and "feeders."

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Many farmers now ship their own cattle and do their own selling on the market. This fact has made the competition much keener between buyers than it previously. However, most of the arrivals of butchers' and feeders' stock are sold by farmers to buyers in the country, who again sell to dealers in Winnipeg. The prices for average export cattle have been about $47 per head at the shipping point. For butchers' stock

the average price to the farmers has been about three cents per pound. This price is small but is accounted for very largely by the fact that the Winnipeg market for butchers was glutted during most of the past season. A number of "butchers" and "feeders' were taken East to Toronto and Montreal, and others, South to St. Paul and Chicago. The Winnipeg market, however, provided for nearly 64,000 head, a number slightly out of proportion to actual requirements. Each year a greater number of these cattle are being "fitted" before being marketted, and, as this process becomes more general, the price will improve.

The average weight of the "butchers' and ''feeders'' at Winnipeg, was 1,061 pounds, in 1908, and the average price $3.53, giving a total value of $2,966,483 for one year. The total amount paid out for cattle at the yards was $7,245,589.

It is believed that the West will become a great hograising country. In the year 1908, there was an increase of 63,640 as compared with the previous year, the total receipts at Winnipeg numbering 145,269. The yearly packing capacity of Winnipeg, is 450,000. The Winnipeg market price for hogs is very largely controlled by the price for which bacon can be brought in from the United States. Hogs, like butchers' cattle, are mainly bought in Winnipeg through middlemen, but the prices vary less than for cattle. The average price paid last season was $5.70 per cwt. at Winnipeg, and, to the farmers at their own station, about 5 cents per pound. The sheep industry is not yet very extensive. The mutton receipts show each year but slight increase, as Winnipeg still continues to bring frozen mutton from Eastern Canada during the past year; as much as eight cents per pound was paid on the hoof for lambs off cars at Winnipeg. The live stock industry in Western Canada is still in its infancy, but there are already indications

of a considerable increase in a very short time. Farmers are beginning to realize that the fertility of the soil must be retained, and that this is best done by the rearing and feeding of live stock.

AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION

The Province of Manitoba is so young that most of its industries are still in the making. The first and paramount of these is farming, but even this is only in its infancy. Extensive" rather than "intensive'methods have been followed. The farmers reaped crop after crop of wheat until they found that their land would not continue for many years to respond to this treatment. To-day in Manitoba, conditions are such as to demand the employment of more scientific methods of agriculture. To disseminate a knowledge of these is the function of our system of agricultural education.

Until within the last few years, agricultural education has been carried on by the Experimental Farms, the Agricultural Societies, the Breeders' Association, and the Agricultural Press. The first Experimental Farm was founded by Lord Selkirk, in 1816, at Hayfield, and was carried on until 1822. In 1837, the Hudson's Bay Company founded an Experimental Farm a short distance from Fort Garry, on the Assiniboine River. This farm also had only a short career of some ten or eleven years. In 1888, the Dominion Government called upon Dr. William Saunders and Professor S. A. Bedford, to choose sites for two farms in the West. These are situated at Brandon and Indian Head. The farm at Brandon was ably managed by Mr. Bedford, for over eighteen years. During this time good work was done for the West in introducing early-ripening varieties of wheat, by experiments in raising and feeding stock, and in the

testing of fruit and forest trees, as well as grasses and fodder plants.

The Provincial Department of Agriculture has been active, also, in educational work, and has always been. generous in making grants of money to the Agricultural Societies, Farmers' Institutes, Dairy Association, Breedres' Association, and Horticultural Society, and in other ways. Farmers' Institute meetings have been held in Manitoba ever since 1890, and Agricultural Fairs since 1892. Reports show that 56 Agricultural Fairs and 122 Institute meetings were held in Manitoba during the year 1908. In the winter of 1907-1908, the Provincial Government offered $50 to each of ten Agricultural Societies if they would subscribe equal amounts in order to hold Seed-Grain Fairs. This experiment proved so satisfactory that the offer has been made general, with the result that some thirty fairs were held during the past winter. The summer of 1908, was the first in which farming competitions were held, although previous to this, prizes had been offered for the best fields of standing grain. Special mention should be made of the judging-schools, which have been held since 1902, under the auspices of the Live Stock Association, whose meetings were formerly held in Winnipeg but are now held in Brandon during March, in each year. In 1906, a seed-grain special train carrying a corps of Institute speakers, travelled through the provinces. and called at all the important towns, and in 1907, a special dairy train, suitably equipped, visited the leading dairy sections of the province.

The magazines giving space to agriculture in Manitoba, are the Nor'-West Farmer, the Farmers' Advocate, The Canadian Thresherman, Farm Crops, and the weekly editions of the Free Press, Telegram, and Tribune. The value of such periodicals in disseminating agricultural information cannot be over estimated. In the

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schools, agriculture has been a subject of the curriculum since 1896. The work prescribed is, however, rather "nature study' than systematic agriculture. For the High Schools and Collegiates, a short course in agriculture is outlined, to be taken by pupils pursuing the Third-Class Teachers' Course. This covers a brief study of plants in their relation to water, soil and air; the origin, drainage and improvement of the soil; the different crops; and the live-stock of the farm. Experiments are performed in elementary physics and chemistry, bearing upon agriculture. During the past summer, a further step has been taken in elementary agricultural education. All second and first-class teachers are required, while taking their professional training at the Normal School, to spend one month at the Provincial Agricultural College.

In 1906, the Manitoba Agricultural College was opened and 85 students registered in the general course. The next session 143 were enrolled, while during the past session 170 were in regular attendance. A special dairy. course is held for those who wish to prepare themselves to manage and operate cheese factories and creameries in the province. In 1908, a short course in Engineering was begun to meet the demand for instruction in working steam and gasoline engines, which are so much used in modern farming.

"Farmers' Week' at the college has now become an important factor in agricultural education. The Agricultural Societies, Dairy Association and Horticultural Society hold their annual conventions at this time, and, in order to make the gathering of greater interest to the hundreds of farmers who attend, the regular classes, are suspended, and short courses are given in stockjudging, grain-judging and engineering, for their special benefit.

Over half a million dollars have been spent in the