The Washington herald., 1908-08-28
CATECHISING THE FARMERS
By FREDERIC J. HASKIM
By FREDERIC J.. HASKIN.

Despite the fact that the farmers OF
the nation have made rapid strides TO-
ward general Improvement during the
past decade. they have not Yet. in the
opinion OF The President Of the United
States, attained to the industrial eco
nomic. social. and educational standards
that are within their reach. 50 the Pres
fdent has appointed a committee OF I'VE
prominent men 10 catechize the farmers
OF the nation on all matters relative TO
their general condition. This committee
VIII report 10 hira. and the general facts
they VII present will be embodied in
The Presidents next message 20 Congress
The committee recently named by the
President is composed Of I've men who
have done much toward the advancement
of the science Of agriculture. and who
understand the farmer. his trials. his op-
portunities. and his capabilities The
men named are Prof L H Bailey. dean
OF Cornell College Of Agriculture, New
YORK; Henry Wallace. editor Of Wal
lace's Farmer. Des Noines. Iowa; Pres
tdent Kenyon L BUtterheld. OF the Agri-
cultural College Of Massachusetts,; Clifford
Piachot. Forester OF the United States,
and Walter H. Page. editor OF World 5
Work
The plan Of work has been already
roughly blocked out. and great diagram
ornanent5ng the Forester's Office shows
the line along which the general cate
chism VIII proceed There are about 10
go 900 farmers in the United States. and
they with eheir families make a total
agricultural population Of 100000 people.
Many Of these are leaving the farms Al
ready 0ne-Jhir5 OF the couHtry's popUla-
ton has couEegated IN cities OF more
than 500 Inhabitants. Because OF this
constant migration Cityward. which re-
suits IN the congestion o. the cities and
the Abandonment OF good farms, she Pres
ident and his comm lssi0n are asking Of
the 1a1l3.J59 farmers and their families
Are sou, too, goirE2 Why?" Are you
not happy on the f2-u2 Why2' and
again. Why and Why2" Cf many things
The land WIN receive the first attention
at the hands OF the catechists appointed
by -he general committee. What about
the land supply7 Is there enough for aII2
OF the farmer already settled -zcy would
know II the land IS his or has he leased
It. CT IS he g -share-cropper,' what the
rental rates are IN his locality, how much
ere the caEe52 And i he owns the land,
what did he pay for il and what IS Il now
WORTH Having set ali this down they
would know something OF The laws and
JenUres pertaining TO land IN that par
1icula- locality What system IS the far
mer Using-excensive OF inte1sive2 What
Is the character Of his IanG-huuld, arid.
or ripar-an2 II arid. IS he irrigarng Z
CT applying the science Of dry-faruling.
& z is swamp land how much can be re-
claimed and has he reclaimed acy7
They would know what kind Of crops
the farmer raises On each farm They
would know how far It IS 20 a shipping
point and how he sends his produce 70
that point They know already that the
average number OF working DAYS re-
Quired 20 haul the annual crop Of twelve
leading products TO market is 21.zl-.559
and that II takes Sl.3ls.o10 wagon loads &c
get Il all there There must be some svs-
TEN Of Shortening the time. and whether
Il IS 20 be done by having better roads.
better teams. more systematic work on
the farms. OF cooperation among far
-ners and the building Of traction lines
10 lessen the EaUl-Jhac the commission
ers mean 10 fEd out They know that II
some Rocky Mountain communities far
mers make q haul OF wheat OF oats 100
miles and Of wool 155 miles, and thai Ger
tain farmers in the far Southwest have
hauled cotton by wagon 10 miles.
Do these people md that long hauIs
pay2 Can a better system be devised for
them, OF a less expensive CROP What
kind Of roads have these farmers, any
wav2 II they are dirt roads and barely
kept up. the commissioners are likely 20
point out the fact that the land viii con
seguentIy dep-eciate in value. the wagons
and stock be worn out. and the general
condition OF The family have the same ap-
pearanCe Of neglect-for such IS the law
OF roads and roadside dveIlers-
They zould-with all po-Iteless-krow
OF the farmer himself Is he Vel--ouilt- l.
welI-cI1d. weI-fed2 Has he strength.
vir-lirv. and intelligence that argCe well
1C- his advancement iC his chosen v0ca-
JiOn? What about his family, and his
Eelp2 Il he employs o1e man. the con
ven-ioaa- hired man" Of remote New
England places or # he employees his
Lupdre5s Of negroes OF g Southern plan
tatiOl IN the seuli-feUdai style Of his an
ces-crs-the questions Will be proPouuded
Just the same. for the commissioners
would know the type Of lzborer. his hab-
ifs. his wages. his physical and mental
condition
They VIII go toward the house zi-h the
farmer and the catecEiSu win continue,
for the barns. the 0uthouses- the tools.
the cattle. the horses. the poultry. the
hogs the sheep, even the dogs viii come
ln for a polite inspection What breeds
Of these has the farmer tried2 What at
Ieupts has he made 10 improve these
breeds2 Does he know that this variety
Of corn fed 20 his hogs viii produce So.
where the kind he is using VIII only pro-
duCe so? What about the water supply
for himself and his stock? Does he Use
vel, ClS-sr1, or stream water2 How Is
Il distributed on the pIace2 Does he
know Of The relation between certain dis
eases and his water supply?
The questions VIII grow more personal
How are his children cared for. as 70
food, clothing. and education, and how
does ne care fo- the sick Of his house
hold? The indoor life Of the farmer
wife wlu be met with questions which
are expected 70 ultimately bring an avrak-
e1ing 10 her and oIer her a Tightening
Of burdens. a broadening OF ideas. q pro
longing 0s youth and health. Her kitchen
garden and flower garden viii be visited
she VIII be asked how much Of her food
IS hoDe-raised and hone-cooked- and how
7---r =s bought in The rad y--r--7r-o z+ars