Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1903-01-23
THEY MET and
DISCUSSED MATTERS.
Farmers of Gratiot County Held
a Very Profitable Institute.
GOOD ATTENDANCE BOTH DAYS.
Sugar Beet Growing and Good Roads
Subjects Claimed the Largest
Amount of Attention.
GOOD ATTENDANCE BOTH DAYS,

Once each year the farmers of Gratiot |
county, as we'll as those in other counties |
in the state, hold what is called a state |
farmers institute, and on Friday ard |
Saturday of last week the one for this |
year was held in Alma as had been pre-
viously advertised. These institutes
prove of considerable interest each year
aud are we'll attended. The one this
year proved to be no exception 10 the
general rule in attendance or the amount
o. interest manifested in the various
topics. Considerable discussion was in
dulged in and questions were freely
asked by those who went there to learn.
The benefit derived from these Institutes
depends entirely upon the practical use
that is made Of the knowledge obtained
from personal contact with each other
and the ideas that are absorbed from the
papers that are read.
The first subject on the program Fri
day morning was Erich Land and How
to Keep 1t So" This was taken care Of
by O. p, Goodrich of Ft. Atkinson, Wis.
the conductor of the institute, who told
of the best methods of dealing with that
phase of farm life. The discussion of
the subject was led by Geo. Abbott, who
was followed by several others.
The next subject to be taken up was
Farm Organization, which was very
generally covered by Glenn NJ. Du Bois
of ST Louis. The discussion of this sub
ject was general. This closed the fore.
noon session.
At one O'Clock the institute was open
ed with questions from the Question
Box" and answers by Mr.. Goodrich and
others. This was followed by paper
by w H. Gilbert Of Bay City on Crops
for the Dairy Farm" Mr.. Gilbert
thought that corn in the silo and clean
clover hay bring the best results.
Grains should be grown on the land,
following corn with rye. Peas, oats,
and rye he considered the best crops to
rotate with corn. Dairy farmers must
look to two things-quantity and quail.
ity. Geo. Coleman was on the program
to lead the discussion of this subject,
but as he was not present, Mr.. Burns,
the president of the society, called upon
Jotham Allen. He said that too many
farmers in Gratiot county raised their
hay and grain for the market instead of
feeding it to stock or dairy cows. Such
farmers can always be relied upon to
complain that farming does not pay.
G.. @. Gerber also gave a short talk on
this subject, as did G. p. Goodrich, who
stated that in his estimation the most
profitable crop to grow on the dairy farm
is alfalfa, but that he thought it could
not be grown in this county. n. J.
Baker said that in the south part OF tie
county he knew that it was being grown
and that the indications were that it
would be profitable crop.
"The Cow that Pays the Best for Her
Feed" was the topic next on the pro.
gram, which was handled in very able
manner by O. p. Goodrich. A chart
was used by Mr.. Goodrich to illustrate
this subject more clearly and he demon
sIated to the satisfaction of all who
were present that it was not always the
cow that is the best looking or gives the
profitable. Small and well formed cows
are the ones that pay best. He stated
that he had conducted experiments with
Jerseys, Holsteins, Guernseys, and
others, but the three Damed proved to
be the best breeds and nearly equal.
Mixed breeds are not profitable from any
point of view. The discussion of this
topic was led by o. @. Gerber.
Mrs. Carrie Ives Saunders Of Saginaw
took for her subject, History and
Mystery OF Common Things" this be-
ing talk on what nature has pro-
vided for us TO eat and use and how lit
tie we know how to make use of what
nature has provided. She stated that in
her opinion domestic science will soon
be one of the branches of Importance
taught in our common schools, and that
teachers teaching this branch will COM
mand high salaries. The balance Of her
talk was taken up with the different
vegetables and fruits, and their value for
nourishment and medicinal purposes to
the human system. Mrs. Saunders is
very entertaining speaker and her talk
was from actual experience and study.
which has given her familiarity with
the subject that could not be otherwise |
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