The Monitor-register., 1897-05-21
Agricultural Reformer.

WHAT ii INTELLECTUAL FARMER HAD
BEEN TEACHING H YOUNG MAN.
II don't deny it," said the extensively
dressed young man. ''I'm like all the
rest. want an appointment. I've come
to claim my reward for the services l
rendered in the election"
ibid you help much ?" inquired the
mar at the door of the Agricultural
Department, in a doubtful tone.
81 contributed several dollars to the
campaign fund. 1 had been rejected by
three or four clubs previously, and
when a man came around and offered to
propose me for the Mckinley Club |
gave him the 81 and told him to 90
ahead. That is how l came to be in
politics."
II suppose what you want is a place
in the diplomatic service"
"No. l never studied up on diplomacy
much. 1 think I shall go into the Agri.
cultural Department. Iknov all s,.,t
farming. l have prepared myself
especially for that branch OF the Govern
ment SERVICE"
you don't look it."
"When 1 made up my mind that l
would come here and get an off % l went
straight to see a practical farmer whom
L met during ny vacation last summer
lie is a man of exceptional intelligence,
and seemed to take great pleasure in
giving me information. l asked him to
tell me all about farming, ard he stopped
in the middle of his work and took an
hour and a half explaining it to me-. He
made me tell him what l wanted the
knowledge for, and be made me some
very valuable suggestions"
$50 you're all prepared to start in to
reform the department, are you ?"'
MOT all at once. But one of the first
things l will have to do is to call the at.
%tention of the Secretary of Agriculture to
a mistake that he made. He said that
the farmer of this country is raising too
much corn. As a matter of fact, corn
raising is still one of our coming indus
tries, for the reason that smokers are be-
ginning to get some idea of how to get
the most enjoyment from the weed, and
the manufacture of corn,cob pipes is
inevitably destined to be one of the
greatest industries of our continent"
"You have a good memory, haven't
you ?" said his auditor, admiringly.
Il seldom forget anything that is
really useful" was the response in a tone
of pride. Zone of the gre at faults of the
Agricultural Department, as previously
conducted, is That it neglected to er-
courage the culture of egg plants for the
use of poultry farmers, and it was the
most short sighted indifference which
now causes the bivalves in the Chesa-
peake to be starving for the lack of a few
oyster plants.'
Your friend in the country didn't call
yonr attention to the fact that a good
way to mend WORKOUT land is to sow a
patch of rag-weed on it, did hep" queried
the Waterman.
mo; but that's a good suggestion, and
In make a note of it. He laid great
stress on the fact that, with all these new
electric railroads coming into use, farm
ers are SO lacking in entt rprise as to
totally neglect the cultivation of wire.
grass. You have, of course, observed
how often the farmer is depicted as go.
ing around with one or both of his sus-
penders lose. What is the reason of
that +? The simple circumstance that he
has never been aroused to the importance
of raising button-wood trees. What he
wants is al administration that will stir
him up to a realization that patience and
precaution must be shown in agricnl-
ture, the same as in any other business.
The day when a man could stick a few
seeds in the ground and go away IN a
visit to his relatives while they grew is
past. The threatened disappearance of our
forests is a warning that as civilization
advances the area in which things grew
wild decreases, and they must be tended.
The American farmer can never hope to
succeed if he goes on negleoting t.
raise chick-weed for the chickens, milk.
weed for the COWS and burdock for the
birds Washington Star.