Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1903-12-28
MANY TAKE PART
Five Thousand Illinois Boys
Compete in Raising
Corn.
SEED FROM STATE INSTITUTE
Great Work in Encouraging the
Raising of Pure Bred
Grain.

Five thousand farmers boys through
out the state of Illinois have grown
corn this summer which they hope to
see at the Louisiana Purchase eXposi-
ton next summer. Seed was furnish
ed in a prize contest by the Illinois
farmers institute, and the winners
besides having their display rewarded
with handsome prizes, will have the
| best samples displayed at the big fair.
| The contest was one of the best ever
originated in the same line of effort.
Secretary Hostetter says of the con-
test:
For the purpose of interesting the
boys of the state in growing pure
bred seed corn, and also for having
them attend the county farmers in
stitute of their home county, sample
packages of pure bred seed corn were
sent from this office to all boys who
applied and enclosed cents to pay
postage on the corn. the number of
boys thus supplied with corn from
the Illinois farmers institute Office,
1881. In addition to these, seven
counties preferred to supply their own
boys and sent out the samples of corn,
some of them giving corn enough to
plant an acre. | did not receive the
names of the boys from those seven
counties. but there are enough of
them to swell the number Of boys ell
gagged i'm this corn-growing expert
ment to Il grand total of over 5000
boys. Part of the credit of reaching
so many boys is due to the notice Civ
en- by the papers to the project. The
papers also made us some trouble for
received over 800 applications for
corn from boys outside of Illinois,
representing some 81 states from
Maine to Texas and as far west as
Washington.
Liberal Premiums offered.
Very liberal and numerous premi-
ums are being offered for these corn
exhibits and many of the counties are
inviting Frank H. Hall and your sec
rotary to attend their meeting and to-
talk especially tn the boys who may
be present. All this has involved some
expenditure on the part of the insti-
tute and greatly increased the work
of the secretary's office, but if any
considerable number of boys and
their fathers have been taught the val
the means of interesting young peo-
pie in the work of the farmers in
stitute; if il secures, as il has done in
Il few cases, the cooperation of the
county superintendent of schools in
farm experimental work for the
school boys and the organization of
boys clubs; if it should arouse even
little enthusiasm in the country
school teacher for education on agri-
cultural lines; if il should be the
means of later lining up some of these
boys in the ranks of the college of
agriculture students; if it will ac-
complish in part, any or all these
things, then surely the corn distribu-
tion has been worth many times the
expenditure Of money and effort given
to il, and should be continued again
another year. / recommend and urge
that the directors and the institute
speakers when they attend an insti--
tute meeting this season, get into per-
sonal touch with as, many of these
boys as possible. to the end that they
may become an interested part of the
institute audiences and be stimulated
and encouraged to further effort in
experimental and practical farm
work"