Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-05-22
TN the South are twelve
L thousand boys who
Last ,-ear farrned an acre

of corn each under the direction OF men who
know most of the culture of this great crop.
They brought to bear on their small fields that
combination of practical ComnonsenSe and
science which is intended to get the best possible
returns. The result was that they produced four
times much on their acre as did their fathers
on any of the acres adjoining The anticipated
ultimate result will be that twelve thousand OF
these boys being graduated ar tally will event
ually revolutionize farming the South and
bring it to prosperity it has never before known.
These boys. all under the age of eighteen, are
bound together in organization of Boys
Corn Clubs. having its head in the Department
of Agriculture at Washington and its branches in
a great number of communities throughout the
South. There is farm demonstration division
in the department. with DR.. S. A. Knapp. one of
the greatest farmers the country has ever
known. as its head The work of this division is
in ten Southern States, and its object is to go to
the people on the land and show them how they
can increase their output. The Boys Corn Clubs
only of the practical ways uses to arouse
the people on the land to its possibilities.
The who know most of farming are
aware OF the profits that may be derived from
doing it thoroughly and from the viewpoint of
complete understanding. The difficulty lies in
getting farmers to appreciate this and to employ
better methods. Throughout the South there
local agents. district agents, State agents. of
the department. whose business is to acquaint
individuals with this kind of farming. They
take hold of farms and direct the planting and
cultivation of crops with the idea of showing the
best results obtainable. They have found that
where the boys can be interested each makes
himself a demonstrator of the great possibilities.
These scattered agents of the Government
interest superintendent of education, leading
citizens. teachers in schools and ultimately the
boys. A teacher organizes the boys OF the
school into a club. The Government
agents interest merchants, lawyers, politicians.
in these clubs and prizes Offered for the
best corn raised. The boys are organized into
a class to study the methods of getting big
crops and through them the prizes. They are
instructed by Government agents in the
methods of preparing their land, the value OF
deep blowing. the proper and economical use
of fertilizer the proper selection of seed corn,
the manner of cultivating the crops, and OF
harvesting and of marketing them.
Showing the Fathers
NOTHING is SO plentiful in the South as land.
Each farmer gladly turns over to his son an
acre on which to experiment. He does not take
the matter seriously. but upon the theory that
boys must have something to play with. He
pays little attention to the putterng about of
the boy; for he is busy farming his own land in
the same way his father did. When the crops
are half grown, however, he begins to take
notice; for the boys acre stands head and
shoulders above the other crops grown on adjoin-
ing land. When harvest comes there is a rev.
elation The boy has grown such a crop
was never seen before in the community.
Last year in South Carolina boy raised one
hundred and ffty-two bushels on single acre,
while the grown men roundabout produced
fifteen bushels. In Mississippi score of boys
grew crops that went above hundred bushels
to the acre. All the States in the South did
likewise. Thousands of boys grew crops that
ranged from fifty to a hundred bushels. These
were the rule rather than the exception In
Virginia the average was around seventy-hve
bushels on soil that had been abandoned be-
cause for generation it had produced only
eight bushels and allowed profit whatever
to the farmer. Yet the average crop for the
entire South is below fifteen bushels an acre.
When the crops were harvested friends and
directors of the corn clubs in each community
arranged a meeting for the judging. The boys
brought their reports as to acreage and their
prize ears of corn. They had been required to
keep books on their expenditure, and business
like reports of the crop were awarded prizes. as
well as best corn. The judging and awarding
of prizes was the great occasion of the year for
the boys, and the lads who were not members
of corn clubs found themselves sadly out of the
running.
Saddles. ponies plows. harrows, shotguns, all
manner of things, were given as prizes. One of
the greatest rewards that fell to any of the boys
was trip to Washington with all expenses
paid which was offered in number of States.
Great Reward of the Future
PUT these immediate rewards are unmportant
when compared with the ultimate end for
which the men back OF the movement are striv-