This intermediate school was established in central Wisconsin in 1899. It was located in the primeval forest in a sparsely settled section of country, away from cities and towns. This institution has been abundantly blessed and prospered of the Lord, and has demonstrated that the movement in establishing intermediate schools may be successful, and a source of great blessing to our people. This school has readily met all running expenses, is free from debt, and has been blessed with a goodly number of students, and with success in their training. During the first year, which was a six months' session, there were ninety students enrolled; the second year there were one hundred and sixty, and the last year one hundred and seventy-six were enrolled. Thus far during the present year, two hundred and ten students have been enrolled.
The students have not been attracted by an extensive course of study, but simply by the opportunity to become proficient in the common branches, get a beginning in industrial education, and study the Word of God. We have been greatly encouraged by the excellent spirit prevailing in the school, and the regular report of the teachers regarding most of the students is that they are having a growing Christian experience. Many of our students are looking forward to the time when they shall be students in the Emmanuel Missionary College, and then labor in the Lord's vineyard. Over twenty expect to become teachers. Results of the work of the school are already seen in a number of workers who have gone to the training schools, and from there into active service in the field. Numerous letters from missionaries in distant lands addressed to the students in the school have aroused a deep interest in the work in regions beyond, and several students not of our denomination have felt called by these appeals to consecrate themselves to the missionary work.18
Industrial Education
The school has been blessed with a harmonious faculty, who have given special study during the past two years to the matter of industrial education in agriculture, carpentry, and domestic arts. There has not only been earnest study, but advance steps have been taken in this new and difficult work. There is a spirit of willingness to balance literary and industrial work, and we are encouraged at the prospect of our soon reaching the end we are seeking, when each member of the faculty will be teaching literary and industrial classes, and directing manual labor, thus setting the example of equal taxation of the mental and physical powers. All work connected with the school is done by students and teachers, and, in addition to this, industrial classes are conducted daily on the same basis as other classes, and by the same teachers. During the past two years, classes have been conducted in agriculture, horticulture, floriculture, carpentry, sewing, dressmaking, cooking, and nursing. Most of the instruction in class has been put into practice in the work connected with the school.
BETHEL INDUSTRIAL ACADEMY, BETHEL, WISCONSIN
Since the establishment of the school, the wood from sixty acres of land has been cut off, and about forty acres placed under cultivation. Eight or ten acres have been set out to such fruit as apples, plums, cherries, grapes, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, etc. The returns from our fruit began last year with over four hundred crates of strawberries, and it has demonstrated that the development of our resources in the soil is to be a great blessing to the school. This year the fruit will much exceed that of last year. Most of the vegetables used at the school are grown on our land, and our bees produced last year thirty-five hundred pounds of honey.
In addition to the academy building, there have been erected two cottages of ten and twelve rooms, a carpenter shop, boiler house, poultry house, and barn. These buildings have been erected by the class in carpentry, and have been well constructed. All students take industrial studies, and all home students spend several hours each day in manual labor. We have seen no baseball, football, or similar games, as students are engaged during most of their time outside of class in remunerative work. This is a great blessing in the training of the youth. Besides gaining valuable instruction from their work on the farm, with the fruit and bees, and in erecting buildings, the students have earned on the average during the winter one third of their school expense, and during the summer their entire expense.
We are endeavoring to heed the instruction that "study in agricultural lines should be the A, B, and C of the education given in our schools;" that those who "do not appreciate the value of agricultural work" "should not plan for our schools, for they will hold everything from advancing in right lines;" that the "teachers in our schools take their students with them into the gardens and fields, and teach them how to work the soil in the very best manner;" and that "much depends upon laying our plans according to the Word of the Lord, and with persevering energy carrying them out." To follow this instruction we feel that we must develop our agricultural resources, and plan to make our strong term of school coincide with the agricultural season. Our students are beginning to see the value of this, and are saying, what we have long felt, that the parents must be educated to see the value of having their children in school during the spring, summer, and fall. The coming summer term will be one of special advantages.
Providential Leading
While in planning and carrying forward our work in the way of industrial education we have been only following the instruction of the Testimonies, we have found that the Lord has been leading just in advance of a general movement in the establishment of similar schools in the public school system of Wisconsin. This movement consists in the establishment of schools intermediate between district and high schools, giving instruction in the common branches and in agriculture, domestic economy, and manual training. Two such schools are just being started this year, and a wide-spread interest is arising, and calls are being made for the establishment of similar schools in various parts of the State. The Lord is giving his people an opportunity to be the "head, and not the tail," "above only, and not beneath," in this line of education. Many problems confronting these other schools are some on which the Lord has given us special light, and if we as a people are faithful, we shall have an unusual opportunity of calling the attention of many intelligent people to the last message of mercy through the excellence of the work done in our schools. While this movement is beginning in Wisconsin, it is also attracting much attention in other States. I quote from the recent report of the secretary of agriculture:—
"We are, without doubt, in this country just on the edge of a great popular movement for the improvement of the conditions of rural life through the improvement of the rural schools. As one phase of this movement, there will come the broadening of the instruction in the principles of agriculture, so that in addition to the college courses we shall have secondary courses in ordinary and special high schools, and even some elementary education in the common schools."
We feel that the Lord is giving our people throughout the field an opportunity to step out in advance of this "great popular movement" by the establishment of intermediate industrial schools. Our chief difficulty at present is due to the fact that we have very few teachers qualified to teach agriculture, carpentry, and domestic economy as well as literary studies.
We earnestly hope soon to see those prepared in our training schools who shall be qualified to conduct the intermediate schools which are already in demand.
