The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1903-04-09
SECRETARY THOBURN
PREDICTS BIG CROP
Present Year in Oklahoma
Will SurpaSS Previous
Records

L MS year crop is going TO be
hummer" said Secretary ]. 3. Tho
burn of the board of agriculture to-
day and unless the unexpected hap
pens Oklahoma will have an abundant I
supply of god fruit that will be a
credit to any territory or state Of our /
present size. The peach, apple. pear
and other luscious fruits are going TO
be abundant and if the orchards and I
young trees are, properly taken care
of, Oklahoma will surprise the world
this year"
The territory's first secretary of the
agricultural board was installed In
the Office formerly occupied by Oil
Inspector Dillon, this week and al
ready the office is beginning to look
like a business one. The new office
is one Of the most important of terri
torial offices. Devolved upon the sec
retary is the gathering of all statistics
regarding the productiveness Of Okla
homa, the estimates of the yearly
crop, the average planted, etc, and in
fact the office is a statistical bureau
of the very best kind Oklahomans
can feel that the work will be done in
a satisfactory manner while ]. B. Tho
burn is in the office and when the first
year is completed that office will have
complied all information necessary
for the world wide advertising the
territory is continually receiving.
The law creating the Office passed
the legis'1'---s i,-ero,. s, 1901. On No
vember IS. 1902, Governor Ferguson
issued call for e convention OF repre-
sentative agricalturalists which met
in Guthrie on December IS and elected
the following officers:
President-~;1wers White, Shawnee
Vice President-A H. Seamans.
Roger Mills county.
Secretary. b. Thoburn, Oklahoma
City.
Treasurer. A. Thomas. ronkoWa.
r. Kliner, Oklahoma county and E.
j. Murphy. Custer county. are the re-
naming members of the board. The
call was not issued until November is
due TO the delay in the organization of
the requisite number of county farm
ers' Institutes and during the three
months that followed the organization
in December little has been done be-
cause of the legislature being in ses-
sioB and because of no appropriation
TO carry on the work. The law now
places $500 in the secretary's hands
for contingent expenses. However.
the secretary has not been idle and
during that time has answered much
correspondence with what information
he had on hand
The law abolishing the Office OF
county assessor will make the work
much harder for Secretary Thoburn
inasmuch as their positions greatly en-
rlched the bureau Of statistics by the
reports they made each year. thus Civ
ing to the agricultural board the in
formation necessary for the work
Other means will now have to be EN-
ployed to bring the statistics before
the public. Secretary Thoburn be
lieves this to be the greatest field fol-
the work aud hopes TO rival Secretary
Coburn of Kansas. in the amount o
Information he will continually give tC
the public The present law requires
the secretary to attend each county in
stitute of which there are about Is a
the present time. but he hopes to bo
able to also attend the farmers meet
ngs as much as possible and thus en-
courage the work. Before the presen
season ends Secretary Thoburn's OF
fee will be like unto a veritable booti
at a county fair and already he hal
promised a royal treat to the press rep
resentatives when the samples o
fruit begin to pour in. The agricul
tural exhibition Oklahoma will max,
at the Worlds Fair will be no small
one unless the present hopes of thu
board fail.
Secretary Thoburn has slready gain
ed the friendship of the press gang
and being a former member Of thl
fraternity knows how 20 unravel
story that is of interest 20 the reading
public. He brings to the office year
of practical experience in the work
the qualifications Of successful SEE
retaryship. Born in the noted Buck
eye and agricultural state of Ohio II
August. 1896, he is in the prime o
life today and Is full OF energy an
progressiveness. With his parents h
moved to Kansas in 1871, settling ol
farm in Marion county He follow
ed the plow until 1890 when he enter
ed the Kansas agricultural college a
Manhattan graduating from that IN