Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-07-13
DEPARTMENT. OF AeR1cuLruRE

DEPARTMENT VI Abhti bLa thh'
When the Department Of Agriculture
was created and for a number OF years
after Il was regarded by many as a
useless addition 10 the executive branch
OF the government not likely ever to
be OF any practical value TO the agri-
cultural interest Of the country. This
has been shown 90 have been q mis-
taken view and there are few II any
now who will assert that this depart
ment has not been of benefit to the
farmers OF the country. Especially I'M
der its present head Il has been Of very
decided usefulness. In his last annual
message President Roosevelt said that
the department has grown into an edu-
cational institution with faculty OF
1000 specialists making research into
all the sciences OF production. Its work
reaches every state and territory In the
union. Cooperation Is had with the
state experiment stations and with
many other institutions and individuals.
The world is carefully searched for new
varieties of grain, fruits, grasses, vege-
tables, trees and shrubs suitable to va
rlous localities in our country, and
marked benefit to our producers has re.
suited. During the last seven years the
department has given facilities for post
graduate work 10 800 young men from
state agricultural colleges, preparing
them for advanced lines of work in the
department and in the state institutions.
There are other valuable services being
performed by the Department of Agri-
culture.
For the first time in its history that
department IL subjected TO reproach
through the misconduct of some of its
officials. Discredit is cast upon one Of
It's most important functions, that of
crop reporting, because OF the disclosure
that one or more persons employed in
the bureau OF statistics have been giving
out TO spectators advance information
on cotton and other crop statistics. As
'''o"dy noted movement has been
in New York looking to a dis
'ce OF the government crop re-
pv. probably determined effort
will b, made TO induce congress to cut
Off the appropriation for these reports.
There is no question that great wrong
has been done the government in the
leakage of crop information that has
been discovered, but ms we have before
remarked this does not give warrant for
a sweeping condemnation Of the depart
ment or for utterly discreditlng its sta
tistical bureau. Because one or several
men betray the trust reposed in them is
not a sufficient reason for dlstrustlng an
entire department or even the bureau in
which the betrayal occurred.
Meanwhile the question is ms to what
can be done with those who shall be
found TO have betrayed their trust, An
nouncement Is made that there is 10 be
thorough investigation, This is what
was to have been expected. Secretary
Wilson ia not the sort OF man to let a
matter OF this kind go without probing
II to the very bottom. He promptly dis
missed the assistant statistician upon
whom an offense was fixed and II there
are others who have been giving out in
formation to spectators or Juggling tig-
ures the secretary. II is not TO be
doubted, will be found as eager RS any.
body to discover them This is only
a fair and Just conclusion from the
course he Is pursuing.