St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1908-05-16

Permit me to suggest that you get in touch with
Mr.. Leake and arrange for the continuation of
their prospecting tour to your town.
Yours truly,
J. c. BARROW,
Secretary
This is most important matter, and we trust
the citizens of Covington will see that it is to
our interest to take the matter up
We also suggest to the Citizens League of
Abita Springs and to every real estate agent in
both CoVington and Abita that if this exclusion
is permitted to terminate within few miles of
our door they will lose an opportunity that may
not again be soon presented.
Another matter that is important to our agri-
cultural interests is the establishment in this
parish of cooperative farms, under the instruc-
tion of experts from the United States Bureau
of Agriculture, Washington, D. c. w. G. Ev-
ans, parish superintendent of public schools, has
been investigating the matter and from apear-
ances it looks probable that something might be
accomplished in this direction with proper effort
on the part of our citizens. The following letter
regarding the matter was received by Mr. Ev-
ans in answer to his letter Of inquiry:
United States department of Agriculture
| bureau O1 INDUSTRY,
Washington, D. c., April 80, 1908.
Mr.. w. G. Evans,
4 Covington La:
Dear Sir-Your favor of the 9th instant, ad-
dressed to DR.. S. A. Knapp is at hand, enclos-
ing clipping from the ''Picayune,' and wish
to assure you that it is with great pleasure that
we see letter from you once more.
/ DR.. Knapp is at present looking over the
Farmers Cooperative Demonstration Work in
Texas and will not return to the office before
about the fifteenth Of May. I am requesting
that a copy of our Bulletin No. 319, entitled,
Demonstration Work in Cooperation With
Southern Farmers, = be mailed to your address,
SO that you will see the extent of the work, and
a small account of some of the things it is &C.
complishing We have had the Demonstration
| Farms in the northwestern part of Louisiana for
two years, and Congressman Watkins made the
statement before the Committee on Agriculture
i that it is the most successful method of combat
ting the boil weevil which had been tried in his
district and outside of that that it is doing the
farmers an immense amount of good
i | do not know just how much we will be able
to increase the work in Louisiana the coming
fall, but | am sure that DR.. Knapp would be
glad to put some work in the vicinity of Gov
ington, if it is possible. wish you would write
to us about the first of September as we would
be then looking at plans for another year, and
will know better the extent Of the boil Weevil
and the territory he has covered during this
season. Very truly,
S. ARTHUR KNAPP,
Assistant in Charge Administration.
This Demonstration Farm Work is of char
acter that is objective in it's lessons and practi-
cal in it's demonstrations of what can be accom-
plished by proper methods. Such an opportunity
would mean great deal to the farmers in our
parish. The bulletin spoken of has this to say
j In the South nearly all the merchants, bankers
and lawyers in the towns and smaller cities own
farms and are intensely interested in agricul-
ture. They form an effective center of influence,
easily convinced of the value of the cooperative
demonstration plan by reason of their high in
lteHigence. The agricultural colleges and
agricultural experiment stations give hearty CO
Operation. Thus, general interest is aroused in
| these demonstrations, which leads to careful
observation and study on the part of the farm
ers and of the community. Public meetings
are held for the discussion Of these plans. In
the cotton-producing States the first instructions
include cotton as the main cash crop, corn as
the standard food for work animals and the ba-
sis for more stock the farm, coWpeas for food
and for the renovation of the soil, oats or wheat
as winter cover crop, and the meadow and the
pasture as the most economical source of food
for farm stock When the farmer has mastered
these crops he is ready for diversifcation in any
/ desired direction.
The term demonstration farm is used
to designate portion of land on farm that is
worked strictly according to our instructions,
but a Department agent visits him only in ex-
ceptional cases.
During the ensuing year there will be en-
ployed in the cooperative demonstration work
fifty mine agents paid from Government appro-
priations, and in the extension work eighty
four agents paid by the General Education Board
i With this force about $4,000 demonstration
farms had been established up to February l.
1908, and 1000 farmers had agreed to cooper
ate and make reports as to results.
That all these kinds of matter may be looked
into there should be some sort of committee
/ to which they could be referred or which has
immediate power of action without reference