New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-05-17
POLITICAL AGRICULTURE.
LETTER FROM THE HON. GEORGE GEDDES
A PLEA FOR The ABOLITION OF THE DEPARrxEs1

| THE INDIVIDUAL STATES.
TO the EdttoroJ The TrfbsnA
SIR: A newspaper slip gives list OF appropria-
tons already made for the Agricultural Department.
at Washington amounting to $4,000, and In.
| forms Us that the House Committee on Agrculturc
have just completed bill. $l06 100 less than was
asked for by the Commissioner, but amounting "a
| $396,sS0. These two aggregates give $685., $50 Al
the years expenses, besides cost Of printing IN.
volume Of Annual Reports So / understand tina
matter; if have made any error am ready 10 ba
corrected. What is TO be done with this money,
| Before asking this question IL might be better In
| ask, what good has this Department ever dons
| the agricultural interests of the country in
| the many years it has been spending lara
sums Of money! Lot HIM who can
answer this question not in "gittering gener.
aties," but giving particulars. II the reports sent
out to the public of the prospects Of growing crops
be stated Of benefit 10 anybody, let the name Of
one, at least Of the great dealers in grain be given
who has ever bought sold one bushel on the faith
of the accuracy of these reports. Let the " side
walk farmers who wish to turn the Commissioning
of Agriculture INTO Cabinet officer, tell Of the
good done by any Of the long line-of men who have
tried to make something of this Department that
would benefit agriculture, before their advice is
| followed
1
dred thousand from this Department do not rebound
to its credit. Ii would be hard TO find a complete
sec in any library, except perhaps some one sus-
tanned ct public expense. Any private citizen
who has room on his book-shelves for set Of
| these reports would be found TO be
man fond of strange things. Compare these
reports with the Transactions Of the New-York
State Agricultural Society,"" Complete sets of these
volumes will be found in farmers houses carefully
kept and often referred to- Some years since the
secretary of the New-York Wool Growers Associa-
ton was in the receipt officially of many copies Of
the Reports of the National Department Of Agrcul-
ture and was unable to give them away to suitable
persons, and they remained in the way until pa
per-rag buyer came along one day during the abb
scnce of the ofclal-keeper of these reports and
bought them by the pound. tried in vain some
years since to have these books put sale at tho
bookstores, at very low prices to test the estimate
the farmers put upon them. We have many ably
conducted agricultural newspa 2ers-any one Of
them of much more value than the average of these
volumes which there is real demand for, except
by Members Of Congress- to use as compliments 10
that great body of their constituents who read but
little and buy books only when strongly solicited
by pedlers.
What is to be done with this 1855, $50 which
Congress gives the Department for next years usa
and which is $1O6,1O less than is asked fort
Eighty thousand dollars is for the purchase, prop
agation and distribution of seeds" Some days
since received, as did many of my neighbour
package of seeds from this Department, and soon
came printed official card informing US Of the OBJ
iect the Department had in view. Iquote from the
card "The object of this distribution is the pro-
motion of the interests ofagrculture by introducing
INTO the various sections of the country such new
| and valuable products as may be adapted to the
| soil and climate of eachp New and valuable"
seeds are desirable, and may be worth testing and
reporting upon, as required in the card, to tho De-
| partment. | took package OF these seeds seven
varieties put up nicely in small papers, to leading
seed-store in Syracuse, and found that six of thess
varieties of seeds there and then on sale, and
their erits well known and proven for many years
The seventh, Kankakee watermelon, had an I'M
known name. 1t may BIO new and valuable
variety, but more likely is one of the half-scorc
wel-known and fully-tested varieties on sale, I'M
der another name. Assuming this Department
watermelon to be of the average value of those on
sale. the whole seven papers of seeds were worth al
retail lust 20 cents. Can the Commissioner believe
that he is promoting the interests of agriculture by
sending ont these seeds, giving them away TO no
manifest injury of the regular dealers In garden
seeds Eighty thousand dollars year in little
brides of quarter of dollar each to make this De-
partment popular New and valuable products;
sx-sevenths certainly. on sale in every great seed
store.
The public. think. has very unjustly supposed
the Commissioners who have been at the head OF
this Department in the past to be imbecles In re-
atty they undertaking the impossible. and the
man who has lately ass umed direction viii in dua
time take his place with all that has gone before
The United states cover too much territory, TOO
great variety of soil and climate, to have any one
office overlook the diversified wants of a matter 50
great as their agricultural interests. Each
State should have full organizations, look.
ing at every agricultural want of Its people
The State of New-York gives good illustration oil
the value of separate State action. First, 1t has s
State Agricultural Society It's county aud town So
| tieties and its many active farmers clubs whose
discussions of the local well general interests
of the members are spread by the newspapers before
the public and read by all classes with interest,"
Besides these instrumen talties of acquiring prac-
| teal knowledge of agricultural matters, the lana
given this State by the Nation is building up an m
cultural college, to teach the sciences connected
with agriculture that is taking rank with the moss
| famous like institutions of all the world But thls
is not all This State has just established an Agrr
cultural Experiment station, which Is 10 De scS
tanned from the State Treasury All these ih'
strumentaties working In harmony
with each other and with like lnstituuons
In other States and at cost so small,
compared with the National prodigality. as to
demonstrate the folly Of the waste of public money
in attempting at Washington what should be done
by the States. If the vast sum spent by mo
National Department were proportionally DIVIDED
among the States to be used judicialy as IS tho
money appropriated to the interests OF agriculture
by New York, its beneficial influence would De ie'
in every part Of the whole Nation ~.
At Washington but little can be known u .
particular wants of each part of our vsst cou""
and the practices of European eoun'rle' ,oo
no value as examples Those coun''e %