New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-03-05
DEPARTMENT or AGRICULTURE.
4 SECRETARY WHO HAS THE INTERESTS
OF THrFARMERS AT HEART

There may bc those who have brought cishonor 10
the calling of agriculture. but that calling never
brought d>hOnor di~crcdit to any one ana u Hc'ci
will, 30 spoke Secretary Ru,k in an address de-
livered at the 1t. Joseph (No) Fair last fa ana MS
administration of his high Office during the past twelve
months shows that these words were the expression
Of the speakers earnest conviction.
No man could be more sincerely impressed with the
importance of the role which the farmers a. class
are destined 10 play in further development Of TINS
country than secretary Rusk. His first report l." the
President expresses these convictions in every me
4 farmer himself thrice elected to Congress as the
representative of agricultural constituency uric"
elected 10 the Governors char IN an Agricultural"
state and in an orical the leader Of what NAV
be termed the Intellectual movement among the farm
cr, of Wisconsin, he ha- not bccd the wisdom Of th'
choice which assigned 70 him tho Department Of AgrI
culture and which made him the highest Official repro
sentative Of the farming class in the country
4 the outset Of his administration. the Secretary
was confronted with numerous difficulties. Assam
ing Office twenty six dal, after the approval OF the
law creating the once Of secretary Of Asi' uue. lie
found himself the head Of Department which was
practically nothing than bureau Of the Govern
,nent the law having been passed without any pro
vision whatever for reorganization on the new basis.
For the current fiscal year, Of which nearly ionr
month, were to run after General Risk assumed
Office appropriations were almost all exhausted, and
his hands were therefore practically tied at the very
beginning Of his administration. IS an instance OF
the iliberality Of Congress dominated 10y the party
which the country had refused any longer 10 sup
port II was found last fall when preparations for
the annual report begun, that the usual pro
vision for ill., publication had not been made.
Under circumstances 50 diScouragine. the Secretary
nevertheless proceeded TO prepare his plans for re-
organization and his practical mind after careful
review Of the forces at hi, command. was soon
t.d futt,~
the good results were speedily apparent. Discard
ING the common Official tradition which often assigns
10 the Assistant sccret y-the officer crcatei under
the law-duiics Of purely executive character, >ccrc
ary Rusk concluded assign t. that officer the super
vision and control Of those division, Of the work
which are. strictly speaking scientific; such as the
CHRONOLOGICAL chemical. botanical. forestry, orni-
biological and other analogous divisions including
the Office Of experiment stations while he reserved
70 himself the exclusive control Of the Division Of
statistics, Of the Bureau Of Animal Industry and some
Others Of more generally administrative character,
with all that involves questions Of administrative
policy in every division.
Having thus defined the duties Of the Office 10
be filed he sought man capable Of efficiently per
forming them. lie found him in Edwin Willis,
president Of the Michigan Agricultural College.
VALUABLE STATISTICS MADE AVAILABLE
one Of the most important divisions Of The work
which called for the sccrctary's pcca! attention
the Division Of statisrs and 81 this division. in
all Others the secretary has extended its usefulness
h bringing il into closer relation nip The farmers
The plan adopted for this purpose IS the preparation
Of an extended summary Of each monthly report in
advance Of its regular circulation large edition Of
which il printed for transmission 10 agricultural and
other weekly papers. postmastcrs, farmers and any
others who may desire u receive 1t. Another feature
81 the work which engaged the Sccrctarys attention
was simple and cficacons method Of frcSc ting in
tclcsting statistical information regarding the ogrl-
culture. Of the country III the form Of charts Illus
| traons These charts. prepared by the
statistical Division and exhibited last sum
| mcr al the PARIS EApositlon won for
| the Department the cncOmiums Of European stats
,cians and from the managers Of the Exposition a
grand gold medal In this division, too, the Secretary
was qnck to grave injustice in the distribu
on Of state agents. the result Of purely political in
finances exercised during the last Administration and
| demanding a prompt remedy. OF the forty seven
states and Territories the United States only twenty
three were represented by State agents. in the six
teen states Of the original slave holding territory there
were but two vacancies, but twenty three vacancies
existed In the remaining thiry-onc states and Terri
| tories only one agent found north Of Maryland
and east of Ohio and only between the Missouri
Valley and the Pacific Coast while the great West had
INT scvcn Immediate measures were taken by the
secretary 10 rccty this sectional inequality in which
the Agricultural interests had been sacrificed 10 purely
political Influences
The next thing to engage the Sccretary's attention
r.e the notifications Of the Department. The re
,ic,d rrntiug fund resulting In wholly inadequate
editions Of the Department publications, made 1t de
sratlc that the manner Of distribution should be 50
rcqulated that each bulletin should reach those only
having a special for 1t. Tho bulletins were
classified those necessarily scientific beng restricted
| i'm number in order 10 allow OF greater hbeiahV III
the publication Of those more general In their character
and all matter however scientific, was adapted, In some
form 10 a poplyYar standard. This made the bulletins
| of value TO the practical working farmer.
CHECKING DISEASE.
In the work Of the Bureau Of Animal INDUSTRY
the sccretary's practical mind has found congcnla
field Early in his administration he issued the first
order restricting and regulating the traffic III catt'
from the area infected by Texas fever \ comparison
| In the losses 10 Northern stock growers from TINS
during the last with the losses OF previous
| years proved the wisdom Of these regulations.
| The work Of stamping out disease among cattle has
| been prosecuted vigorously ard SUCCESSFULLY The
| past twelve months have the pleuro- pneumonia
enectually bahished from American soil with the
| cepuon Of few localities In two counties of Now
York aud in portions Of New-Jcrscy. But while
cattle from disease, the economic and international
side Of the question has net escaped tho Secretary