The St. Louis Republic., 1904-12-04
Professor P. G. Holden Has
Shown Farmers the Real Art
of Raising Grain.
LAST CROP UNPRECEDENTED.
Through Agronomist's Advice
the Yield Has Been Increased
More Than 100,00O,000
Bushels.
REPUBLIC SPECIAL.

REPUBLIC SPECIAL.
Sioux City, Ia, Dec e.-The State OF
Iowa has been paying 5000 year for the
last two years to a man who in the last
twelve months has earned sl0.5o.No. His
name is Professor P. G. Holden. He Is
an agronomist.
Iowa farmers laughed at the idea OF
man with such a title trying to teach
them, the best corn growers In the world,
anything about the art OF raising corn.
But they do not laugh now. Instead they
flock by the hundreds to hear Professor
Holden talk. and they so away and do eH-
actly as he tells them AS result IN
| large part, Of following his advice, they
have raised about 10b.OJo.GO bushels more
corn this year than in any year OF this
century. and they expect to add another
l0o.1D.Go0 bushels to their crop next year.
Professor Holden became an asronomist
that is. an expert in grain raising-by ac-
cident When he taught school in Michi-
gan he. got up a corn-growing contest
among his pupils He induced the boys to
perfect ears from the fields, save them and
plant from them the best and most per-
feet kernels. The result. aided by seien-
boys raised more corn on their little
patches than anybody had ever dreamed
HE BECOMES FAMOUS.
Professor Holden worked on his system
until it was perfected. His fame spread.
and tho Funk brothers, who own a 900
acre farm in Illinois. offered him big
salary to run 1t. He planted 1000 acres OF
corn a year for them, and added to their
yield more than 10o0t0,dq0 bushels the first
year. The State Of Iowa thought he
,.,,1 DaI hi IN no.
cupy the chair of asronomy in the Iowa
Agricultural College, in Ames The chair
was created especially for him..
lieve after a time that he knew more
about corn-raisng than they did. He
travelled all over the State IN special
trains last spring and winter making tail
than any vice-presidentiaT candidate saw
later in the season. He tod the farmers
how to plant and cultivate i, and on what
corn and how to handle it under different
conditions.
Iowa had not. been raising good corn
&c was dangers 81
ing her place as the great corn State, and
realization Of this fact led to the engage
ment OF Professor Holden in the Agri-
Professor Holden invites farmers to 20
to Ames in the winter and attend his
school Of seed-corn selection and germina-
lioii- 1Hey 30 Dy fluIlQGeQs, aIo edCn re-
,5a. turns an n, advoeats OF the Improvement
through the State early in the. spring:
This year he Travelled several thousand
miles. the railroads furnishing him free
trains and advertising his trips.
The results are read In the crop reports
on Ean ss ee oys weld this i hs ;orv
bushels TO the acre. For nine years 1t has
been twenty-seven and one-half bushels.
This years crop will aggregate $50. 300
bushels. about 1250Oo.000 mora than last
years yield. The crop Is worth about S0.-
10000 more than a year ago. and Pro-
third interest in the extra yield.
EVIDENCE OF SUCCESS
Evidence in the professors favor Is
overwhelming. The counties in which he
made speeches did better than the others.
Those in which he had tho largest audi
encee did best OF all. There are feds,
worked under careful application OF bis
methods. which have produced more than
100 bushels to the acre Those with eighty
bushels are frequent. and sixty-f1ve bush
els Is common yield.
Every farmer is reading Holden litera-
ture this fall, selecting his earliest and
best ears Of corn for seed. testing its ger.
minatinS qualities, preparing his soil ac-
oording to Professor Holden's directions
and getting ready to break all records
be 10 per cent increase In the corn aero
age next season, and the farmers propose
to mako II average fifty bushels to the
acre. Great preparations are making for
farmers institutes In every county, which
Will Be addressed. by Professor Holden
when he can attend. and otherwise by
graduates Of the school.