The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1905-03-24
CORN GOSPEL TRAIN.
ANOTHER WA IDEA
THAT PROMISES TO
DOUBLE THE CROP.
Gained S25, 900, 900 in 1904
Secret Of Making Yellow
Tasseled Fields Rival Gold
Mines is Revealed From Rear
Platforms by a College Pro
fessor.

An Omaha, Nebraska, special
to the Philadelphia Record says:
Never before in the history of
agriculture has such interest
and zeal been shown in the plant
ing of crop as is manifested this
spring in the preparation for corn
sowing.
In the State of Iowa alone
there was an increase of 40.
600. 000'buShels. worth $40, 900, 600
in the yield of the cOrnfieldS for
1904. The increase in this cereal
for the whole corn belt is eSti-
mated ny the United States De
partment Of Agriculture to be
100, O00,O bushels. or $25,
600, 900 A showing of this kind
of itself would he sufficient to
arouse the interest of people di
rectly concerned in the crop, but
this spring there is even a further
incentive.
The secret of how to compel
the corn fields to yield millions
of dollars in new profits has been
discovered and the workers of all
classes in the corn belt are Striv
ing to beat last years record of a
S25, O00,0 0. The Department of
Agriculture says that they can
do it.
This secret of making the
con fields produce wealth sur,
passing the gold mines is in the
breeding and selection of the
seed for planting An enter
prising young scientist who holds
a professorsbip in land culture at
the Iowa State College of Agri.
culture, P. G. Holden by name,
has been teaching the farmers that
if they subject seed corn to
severe test. throwing away that
part of it that does not terminate
vigorously, that they will be able
ia compel acres which have yield
ed but SO bushels of corn to pro-
duce so.
SECRET OE GREAT CORN CROP.
1t is a simple idea. but the
experts in agriculture employed
by Uncle Sam credit the greatest
corn crop in the history of this
century TO this idea of Professor
Holden's, and these experts
know. And, furthermore. they
say that this simple idea is going
to revOlutiOnize farming as far
as the profits are concerned.
They say tlat in few years the
principles of careful breaking and
careful seed selection everywhere
applied will bring about an in
crease of 80 per cent. over the
present value of crops and herds.
Iu the spring of 1904 was
trip by the first "COrn Gospel
train. Professor Holden lectuIed
the farmers from the rear plat
form and In the cars between
stations. His audiences were
usually about 100 in number. In
the fall of the same year the
''Corn Gospel" special trains
were resumed. In the meantime
the farmer had commenced to see
that the predictions of the Scien.
lists came true. They crowded
to the lectures. This spring the
corn growing region has been
thoroughly covered BY these
"COrn Gospel trains, and every,
where the farmers turn out in
crowds two times as large, to
receive the instruction in seed
selection.
The last "Seed Special" fin
ished its trip at Burlington re-
Gently. 1t covered about 1,500
miles, visited about 40 towns aud
carried instruction to 100, 900
farmers representing an acreage of
L, 100000. These trains have been
run over all the lines of the Bur
lington in Iowa, Nebraska, Mis-
souri, and Kansas. They have
been over many of the branches
! at the Rock Island and Illinois
Central. The railroads have come
to realize that the spread of this
kind Of instruction means an
immense traffic, not only in crops
but in the form OF live stock fat
tened on the grain and of manu-
featured commodities purchased
by farmers of the corn belt with
profits from the crops.
HOW HOLDEN BEGAN WORK.
"When l first became inter.
ested in the possibilities of agri.
culture | was teaching school up
in Michigan" said Professor Hol.
den during chat aboard the
"COrn Gospel" train in Southern
Iowa. Il believed that it is a
mistake to teach Greek and Latin
in the schools and not teach agri-
culture, when farming is the big
gest business in the country and
one on which half of the people
depend for living. 1t is an am
I bition of mine to hasten the day