The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1910-11-26
GOSSIP AT THE
NATIONS CAPITAL
Especial to the Silver state.)

Because many of them will come back
after the short session beginning in
december and ending on March 4,
fewer members of congress than usual
will bring on their families and enter
into the social activities of the winter.
1t has been suggested that this will
make things dull in Washington, but
as a partial offset there will be more
brilliant season, perhaps, in diplomatic
circles than usual. There have been
several additions to the diplomatic
bow to society this winter, so that in
social circles things will be quite gay
despite the comparative dullness in the
congressional set.
The session itself is likely to be far
from dull. President Taft has let the
word 90 out that he will redouble his
efforts to force through congress leg
islation which was stalled at the last
session, and which he would like to
see enacted while the Republicans are
still in control of the house. In con-
sequence, he will try to keep all of his
congressional adherents in Washing
ton in order to get his various policies
enacted into law.
Democrats or to some of the Insurg-
ents Now that they stand on the
threshold of achievement after stwan-
dering sixteen years in the wilder
ness, - as their doughty leader, Champ
4 Clark, expresses it, they feel disposed
to grumble when a Republican congress
whose policies have been repudiated
by the country at large, settles down
to work with the express purpose of
lenacting a mass, of legislation which
the Democrats assert the nation does
not want The Republicans, on the
other hand, do not concede that the
action of the voters in returning a
majority of SO Democrats to the house
lof representatives really repudiated
the Republican policies. The admin
istration is disposed to believe that
this is merely one of those unaccount-
able spasms which occasionally grippe
the country, and that possibly year
will be enough to make the great
mass of the voters sorry they did it.
However this may be, the Democrats
lare already muttering and suggesting
that they have it in their power
with their half brothers, the Insurg
ents, to help them to be sure to force
an extra session which may last all
summer and play havoc with the care
fully planned program which the Re
publicans have been wears in carrying
out. Whether the Democrats will
conclude that it is better to await the
natural order of events and not take
up their legislative program in earnest
until the winter of 1911 will not be
determined for some time, but it may
be counted as certainty that the
coming short session will be as full of
interest and action as almost any one
could ask.
Dry Farming.
During good report and bad, during
,, political campaigns, and at all other
times. the secretary of agriculture
,, keeps pretty busy saving wood and
working for the agricultural advance
ment of the country. One of the
greatest things which the secretary
, has done has been tie encouragement
of the farmers in the semi-arid sec
tions of the United States where the
rainfall has beenaccounted insufficient
, for agriculture, but where, with sci
, entifc methods, it has been demon
strated that good crops can be raiset
land the boundaries of the Cereal
american QtStTl tdu uc Puohcu DoNA
upon the map until the alleged deser
shrinks up almost TO nothingness.
The United States department o.
agriculture has for several years beer
, carrying on Investigations and accu
mulating data regarding dry lant
agriculture in the great plains, ant
in compliance with the urgent demand
made by settlers, actual and prospect
i've, for information CONCERNING tn
best methods of farming in that sec
: tion, it has issued two bulletins Civ
! ing publicity to facts and figures tina
: have direct bearing on the subject, al
though ii is not claimed thatt suffi
: cient data has been accumulated t.
form basis for final conclusions.
The results announced are, however
of sufficient Importance to deserv
I careful consideration, and thy throw
$ strong light upon the controversies
0 questions of summer tillage, contin
6 luous cropping, and crop rotation, an
y show that in addition to actual rain
e fall the questions of evaporation AM
run-oif have much to do with the sue
cessful production Of crops in thos
:. sections Accurate information regard
ING the precipitation in many section
of the West is now available as the re
suit Of the extended operations o
0 the United States weather bureau
many Of the records are complete TO
L wears, and being of value to tn
l. prospective settler, have been com
G puted in rainfall tables and have bee
g included in the bulletins.
# The bulletins treat to a greater 0
a less degree upon continuous eroppini
a as compared with alternate eropplnl
q, and summer tillage upon crop fota
3 ton compared with continuous crop
ming. and the relative farm value 0
crops of wheat, oats and barley a
produced by the various ratations an
Y continuous cropping. The questio
as TO the relative merit Of disking tn
n corn stubble forspring wheat and oat
IS and summer tillage, and the relativ
h merits Of fall and spring plowing n