The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-05-12
The Norfolk and Western
Railway Booming Vir-
GINA Practically.
EXPERIMENTS ARE
DEMONSTRATING
Farm Near Ivor, il, surry County,
Is a Farming High School
That Is Teaching Old Vir-
ginia and Bringing
in New
Folks.

Especial From staff correspondent.1
I 1VOR, VA. May 1.-THE Norfolk
and Western Railway Company Is. so
far as The Times-Dispatch IS inform &
ed. the pioneer In Southern railroads
In the matter Of introducing now ideas
in farming. It is the first railroad in
the South, and the only one thus far
to adopt the system which was set
on foot ten or more years ago by two q
prominent Western railroads In estab-#9
listing experimental farms of their
own. When the old Norfolk and Peters,
burg Railroad was built, way. yonder
before the war. its officers wisely pur-8
chased, at nominal figure, q large
tract Of land in Surry county, near
what is now 1vor Station. It's only
object in purchasing this land was
to secure the pine, cypress and oale
trees on 1t to be cut down and used
as fuel in the old-time ood-burning
engines, The company Is now putting
this land to the best purpose, perhaps,
any Virginia land has ever yet been
devoted. In other words, 1t has estab-
lished there an experimental farm, and &
1t is n unique establishment In the
South. The farm Is under the general
management of Mr.. f. H. LaBaume.
agricultural and industrial agent Of
the road. While the tract contains some
/, 200 acres, only 800 are devoted strlct-88
ly to this experimental farms pur-
poses.
It,is proper to, say in the beginning
that the Norfolk and Westerns ideas &
in establishing and operating this
farm We're to improve tile stock. In this
section of Virginia. to demonstrates
that good CATTLE better horses. better
hogs, higher class Of chickens, ETC..
| etc. would be in the long run very
| profitable to- the farmer. Another less
| son, the farm Is intended to teach by
actual demonstration is that tho Vir-S
! Elnia farmer, especially he of the pea
hut growing section of the State, can
land must diversity his crops, and the
/ farm is already demonstrating to the
i5peopi. that they car raise something
more than peanuts; that citation IN
crops and a general diversity of pro-
/ ducts are necessary to avoid a string
ency and hard times when one crop
falls. To put it pointedly, the Norfolk
1 and Western experimental farm q t.
this place Is teaching the old, old les-S
1 son that 1t Is bad policy to put all
| your eggs In one basket. The Norfolk
| and Western has spent great deal
of money in putting this farm in
shape and equipping itawitl the neces-5
sary paraphernalia to demonstrate Mr.
! LaBaume's advanced ideas, and 1t has
not nearly completed this work yet. y
Visible Results.
However, much has been accomplish
4 ed, and there Is now upon the place q
4 splendid farmhouse, completed last De-
cember. which contains fourteen rooms
supplied with hot and cold water, the
IWater being pumped from an .artesian3
j we'll ESQ feet deep, and conveyed
4 through the farmhouse and all Of the
/ outbuildlngs by thes pneumatic pres
3 S11 ayyS Str ic no M 110I 40 TN
Richmond, or In airy Virginia city
4 that e more comfortably or more con-
Ivenently arranged than this farm
house, which Is q demonstration of it,
! self that Will make the farming COM
i munity open wide its eyes, and teach
great many tillers OF the soil IN
Surry and adjoining counties that 1t
j is just as easy for the farmer to-
make himself comfortable in his sur
!, roundings as 1t is for the city man
to do so; in fact, 1t is a great deal
3 easier for him to do just that thing,
!. for the farmer has all the forces or
nature to aid him.
4 The Cost Of 1t.
t 1t Is easy enough for somebody to
| say: But the Norfolk and Western
i has plenty of money to provide these
5 unusual and apparently unnatural COM
| forts In farmhouse" True enough.
I but the actual expense account shown
!, to mo to-day by Mr.. LaI3aume will,
prove that. perhaps. with. the exception
r OF the arteslan we'll, which, OF course,
is costly, and with one or two other
3 exceptions of q minor character this
( farmhouse has cost the company not
n cent more, II as much. as the average
n farmhouse in any part OF Virginia has
: cost the farmer who built 1t, AS q
matter of course. Mr.. LaBnume has
, taken a great deal OF pride In fur
y n!shlng the farmhouse somewhat elab-'
i orately, and IN that way has perhaps
! invested more money than the aver
q age farmer would put in Il single
a house. but that Is not to be counted
!, when you come to enumerate the actual
. necessary expense.
y Improved Outbuildings.
The next largest building on the
place is combination cattle and horse
barn. This OF itself Is a lesson the
! Virginia farmers can travel miles to
learn. 1t Is q splendid farm building
= with heavy cement floors. supplied
: with cutters and other arrangements
!, , for saving both LIQUID and solid ma
. nures, these cutters leading to a ce-
ment-llned pit for LIQUID. and COW
: cred pit for solid manures. This Is
enough to explain to the average
>, reader that this farm has been laid
, out with an idea ofssaving everything,
: and putting it to, it's proper use. In
: tho course OF time tho farm VIII have
: its own fertilizer factory The barn
4 Is a model establishment, the stalls
!, being so arranged that tho horses on
one side and the cattle on the other
|. are at all seasons Of the year as CONF
: fortnby housed as the people In the
!, model farmhouse
!, In Lieu of Grass.
9 Mr. I4aBaume Is now having erected
: a lO0-tah siio TO preserve green feed3
flor cattle, II is q well-known fast