3
THE PROGRESSIVE FARMER.
tThursday, July 23, 1903.
Every Farming County Should Have a Model Farm
A Demonstration Farm in Every County Would Bring Scientific Methods Nearer to the Farmers and
Would Greatly Decrease Interest and-Success in Farmings And It Would Pay Its .Own Way,
Messrs. Editors: In a number of
States, especially in Iowa, the super
visors of the counties are setting
aside a portion of the county farm
for experimental purposes. This
idea is new, but has proved so satis
factory, and the results of such
valna fTiat It Viaa attvnntaA the attPTl-
tion of people everywhere in the
United States. -
Experimental Work Must be Ex
tended. .
One Experiment Station in a State
cannot meet the demands of the
farmers for the whole State. Mis
sissippi is now realizing that, for it
has established three branch stations
in different sections of the State,
These three stations help a great
.deal, but much more good "would be
accomplished by having one in every
county. It was a great step in the
advancement of agriculture, when
the United States . established an Ex
periment Station in each State; and
we have now reached a stage in our
agricultural development when we
must. vjrt.PTif1 thft e-merimental work.
especially with the crops and soil, to
the different sections of the State.
The wide variation Jn soil, climate
and needs of different parts of the
State are so great that the results
obtained in one locality may be of
little value to other, sections indeed,
they are often misleading.
Oounty Stations Would Arouse Strong
Personal Diterest.
In the case of the county Experi
ment Stations, the experiments are
carried along the lines of most value
to the people of the county. Every
one in the county is deeply interest
ed in these local experiments. The
results are published in the county
papers, and become the topic of dis
cussion. To make the farmers more
interested in the station work, they
have been induced to contribute seed
for planting and experimental work
on the county farm, or have helped
in the planting and harvesting of
the crops. In this way the people
have come' to have a strong personal
interest in the work. The . results
should be carefully tabulated and
published in bulletin form and dis
tributed to every farmer in the coun
ty. This is made possible by the co
operation of the county supervisors
with the State Experiment Station.
In such reports the reader will find
not only the results of the experi
ments in his own county, but also of
every other county having a County
Experiment Station.
Annual Picnic Excursion to the
; -.' ; . - Farm. .
But another and more important
factor has entered into ; this work in
most cases, bringing its importance
and practical value home to every
one in a still more effectual" way.
This is what is known, as the County
Experiment Station Dicnlc or excur
sion. Thousands of people in every
county where these educational meet
ings are held have visited the Coun
ty Experiment Station and seen with
their own eyes the work being done
The branch station at McNeill, Miss,
has the annual excursion and picnic
No one who has attended these Ex
periment Station excursions can help
being greatly impressed with the
fact that these experiments appea
to the people more strongly than
those conducted under other condi
tions a hundred or more miles away
and which they have never seen and
in which they had no personal inter
est. . .; .. ; : - '
Co-operation Between State and
Oounty Stations.
Of course all-the boards of super
visors of the different counties will
not run the County Experiment
Farms the same, but the rules can
be ge'neral for all farms. The super
visors authorize the steward or man
ager of the County Farm to set aside
a portion of the farm for certain
lines of experiments . and to co-oper-:
ate with the State Experiment Sta-
ion in planning and carrying out
he work. They also appropriate
money to cover, the extra expense of
carrying out the work. In some
cases the supervisors authorize the
tention directed to the farm. Since
the farm steward will spend some
time repairing fences, building roads,
mowing weeds, and other things for
improvement for the excursion, the
farm will not drop down to a low
level very soon, as is too often the
case of a neglected County Farm;
and then this eventful day will be a
stimulus to better work throughout
the entire year. . The County Farm,
instead of being a burden and an
eye-sore, can be made a source of
pleasure and profit to the people of
the county. And why not?
Popular Wherever Tried.
Where these County Experiment
Farms have existed in the corn sec
tions of the United States, they have
Farm would be a paying thing, in
stead of a burden to the county. The
Department of Agriculture would-be
drawn closer to the farmers and
would be . more able to helt th
Why cannot every agricultural coun
ty in the South have one of these
County Farms?
LLOYD G. PRENTICE.
What James J. Hill Thinks of the County Farm Idea.
. The Government should establish a small model farm on its
own land in every rural Congressional District, later perhaps in
every county in the agricultural States. Let. the Department of
Agriculture show exactly what can be done on a small tract of
land by proper cultivation, moderate fertilizing and due rotation
of crops. The sight of the fields and their contrast with oth
ers, the knowledge of yields secured and profits possible, would
be worth more than all the pamphlets poured ont from the Gov
ernment Printing Office in years. The Government ought not to
hesitate before the comparatively small expense -and labor in
volved , in such a practical encouragement of what is the most
important industry of our present and the stay and promise of
our future.- From address by James J. Hill at Minnesota State
Fair, September 3, 1900.
carrying out of the work and simply
audit and pay any bills incident to
the work in the regular way without
appropriating any definite amount.
However, it is generally understood
that the expenditures . shall not ex
ceed certain limits.
Co-operation with the . State Ex
periment Station is essential to the
best results. If the work is to be re
liable and to have the confidence of
the people of the county, it must be
planned and carried out carefully
and accurately; and to this end the
State Stations generally, send one or
more persons familiar with the work,
to help the steward in selecting and
laying out the ground, in planting
the crops, and in harvesting testing,
and weighing of the crops. Some
times this man remains through the
cultivation season to look after the
work, and then returns again to the
County Farm to 1 look after the har
vesting. All the County Experiment
Stations should have some one who
is familiar with the work and who
can look after all the details of. the
work, especially at the time of. plant
ing and harvesting.
The County Farm Would Grow Into
a Source of Pleasure and Profit.
In starting this county co-operative
experiment work, we should
not begin on too large a scale, but
take it easy and increase by experi
ence and meet the demands of the
farmers. As the good work pro
gresses and the farmers go on the
annual excursion to see the farm and
have a fine time, they will see the
farm cleaned up in fine shape, for
the steward will take more pride in
the place and spend more time in
cleaning It up and getting it ready
for the excursion. Then the people
will ask their supervisors for more
appropriation and more aid and at-
shown that the farmers have been
raising poor corn, much below what
they can raise in their counties.
There are hundreds of farmers in
every county who do not pay any at
tention to seed selection. By the aid
of the County Experiment Farms this
has been shown to farmers and they
have learned to profit by the experi
ments. As I have said before, the
nature of the experiments conducted
should depend upon the particular
interest of the county.- Some coun
ties are interested more in one crop
than some other county: so. exneri
ments should be made with reference
to the crops of greatest interest. This
is being done on the well conducted
County Farms! Where a county is
making a success with the farm and
the farming interest is increasing
many Implement manufacturing com
panies will supply the farm with
tools to carry on the work. By so
doing their farm machinery Is ad
vertised.
There Is no question that the rap
id growth of these institutions
throughout the States is assured
Wherever these Stations have been
at work the people are anxious to
have them continued and are urging
their supervisor, through County In
stitutes and Farmers' Meetings, to
increase appropriations In order to
enlarge the scope of the work. This
active co-operation between the far
mers and the supervisors is resulting
in a substantial growth In the move
ment, which will grow- in the years
to follow.
- If every county in all the States
had an Experiment Station, there is
no question that farming would be
made more scientific. The scientific
knowledge of the world's agriculture
would be drawn closer to all the
farmers, and would Increase the
products of the farmers. The County
Waterworks, Backhands, Steel Col
lars.'
Messrs: Editors: I was surprised
that in your article on farm water
works you did not mention the sys
tem of forcing water into an i
tank and having it carried from the
tank through pipes by air pressure,
up into the building. Is not that sys
tem practical? -.
I notice that Mr. E. J. Beale, of
Tchula, Miss., advocates plowing
witnout DacKDanas. now, I have done
that several times in emergency, and
could not keep the horse from step
ping with his front feet out of the
trace chains, at the ends of the rows.
I would like for Mr. Beale to state
how he managed that.
I' will give my experience with
steel collars; and at the end of next
year Mr. French (I infer that he
bought his first this spring) will
write you the same experience they
will do all the manufacturers and
Mr. French claim for them, for about
two seasons. Then the galvanizing
will wear off, and the steel will rust
and you will have the worst kind of
a collar imaginable, and will have to
have a pad.
V A. R. KILLINGSWORTH.
"
Editorial Answer: It is understood
that the gentleman who wrote about
farm water-works wrote only of his
own experience; and presumably he
had had none with a tank to hold
water under pressure caused by
pumping water into the bottom of a
tank and thus compressing the water
in the upper part of the tank, so the
compressed air would force the wa
ter out when a cock is turned for
that purpose. Both systems are
good. The compressed air system has
3 X . 1 A. ' A
one aa vantage m coia cumaxes, mai
does not hold good to any great ex
tent in the lower South, viz., the tank
kept in a cellar does not let the wa
ter freeze. The tank would keep
the water cool 4 in hot weather,,
though, which Is worth thinking
about.
Mr. Beale will do a favor by an
swering the question put to him; but
it may be added now that some use
backhands in plowing, but have them
long. They are let out so long that
no weight comes on them while a
plow or harrow in being pulled, but
the traces are kept from dropping
too low when no pulling is being
done. If one does his own work and
uses care, this plan is not bad, but
if backhands are allowed for use by
careless help, one need not be sur
prised to find that the backhands
have been shortened up so that the
man behind the plow can work in a
lazy way by throwing weight on the
backs of the horses that should not
be thrown there.
Vocational study must be the
backbone of the high school of the
future manual training and house
hold arts and business practice.
Educators and school boards in their
zeal to "produce wise men should
not forget that one of the chief func
tions of the public school should be
to give the child increased, capacity
for making a living. Supt. Cooley,
Chicago Schools.
Cement gutters can be kept clean
easily. They do not leak and have
a smooth surface, which is appreci
ated when cleaning up.