Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1898-03-08
Practical Application Of Institute
influence.
BY It. J. HARDY

1t has been said by writer's of all
ages. that man, no matter how
humble or lowly his calling may be,
exerts certain influence for good
or evil over his associates. That in
huence is felt more when number of
men meet for the advancement of
single cause, as we meet here for the
advancement of agriculture. We
make practical application of Insti.
tute influence when we grow two
blades of grass where but one grew
before, or to make twp pounds of
butter where we made b 1T one before,
or grow two pounds of meat where
we grew but one before.
A friend said to me the other day,
how can you farmers expect to sue
coed, when you can't agree over the
best methods of raising a calf, refer
ring to a discussion in our late Cresco
institute. Now that proves nothing.
Look at the men in their different
professions. Two doctors will quarrel
for a lifetime over the properties of Il
single drug, aud our worthy divines
(of whom it is said of some, the Bible
comes luended from their tongues)
disagreelng for centuries over tech
nical point in the scriptures.
Yet, who can say the world is not
better than it ever was before, or that
we have not better class of physi-
clans and surgeons.
l believe that farming today in
northern Iowa is fast becoming a
science The methods that were in
vogue twenty years ago, if put in
practice today, would mean ultimate
disaster
A man to succeed in farming today
must be a broad minded man: not
welded to Il single method or a blind
follower of u single teacher: a man
that will sit in this institute with an
unprecedented mind listening to the
discussion of different methods, hold
ing fast unto these things that are
best adapted to him in his circum-
| stances.
Seven or eight years ago the Farm
er's Institute was an experiment.
Today it is held in every state and
nearly every county in the union, if
we could call upon the influence that
has gone out in the last eight years,
from the institute, there would come
from the pasture, where grazes. the
thorough bred or we'll graded cattle,
and from the modern barn with its
we'll ventilated interior, aud from the
public highway with its we'll graded
roadhed and neatly mown border, an
echoing response. Aud from the
farmers we'll laden table with its
variety of vegetables and gilt edged
butter, you can say of this butter as
it is said of some people, to know
them Is but to love them; to know it
is but to love it. Now do not claim
Or the lstitute all the credit, bat
think it can claim part of the honor.
think ii can partake in the salts
faction of knowing that 1t is prime
factor in bringing about the many
reforms. Now it may be said of some
} farmers as it Is said of some other
men, that having eyes, see not; ears,
and hear not those things that mostly
lconcern them.
| 1t is no unusual thing while riding
along the road in late summer OF
early fall to see one side of the road
neatly mown while on the other side
the weeds grow tall and rank. Nov
this nan of the weeds has no caugh
this spirit of enterprise that
prompted his neighbor to destroy
the weeds. Now as you look upon
the tall weeds and rank thistle nod.
ding in the fence corner, you t hink OF
the words of that wise man, when he
said: II went by the field of the sloth
full and by him that was void Of
understanding, and 10, it was grown
over with weeds.n | think if there il
any one thing, that will give a
stranger bad impression of a
country or neighborhood, 1t is to see
the weeds growing up on either side
of the road.
: While we have been making rapid
strides on the road to progress, there
are some things we have made nc
progress in. For example. the manner
of judging our live stock at oul
: county fairs. Now while those judges
judge to the best of their knowledge
they admitted their knowledge was
limited and that they were not quail
fled to act as stock judges. Now what
we want is judges that are qualified
and if our college at Ames can give
: us such judge, we should have one
Armed with a tape measure and 6
yard stick, let him tell wherein one
: animal is superior to another, OF
; scores greater number of points
therein helping to make our fair like
our institute, educational as we'll q.
7 entertaining.