The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1910-10-27


tOber carries this article:
We publish below letter written
by L. P. Bailey in reply to a COM
munication from nephew at Ches-
terhill. Mr.. Bailey has for years
been a prominent figure in state and
national organizations of farmers and
breeders. He has shipped Jersey
cattle to all parts of the country and
two years ago received a gold medal,
the highest award, for market milk
exhibited at the National Dairy Show
In Chicago. He was formerly mem
Der of the state board of agriculture
and for a time its president. He has
the unbounded confidence of the far
nlers of Ohio and his utterances are
sure to carry weight. The letter fol-
lows:
Tacoma, O., Oct. 4, 1910.
Clifford Fawce;t Chesterhill, o.:
My Dear Nephew desire to can thy
attention TO clipping from the Ohio
ate Journal showing Hardings rela-
tin to George 3. Cox l certainly feel
that Cox was forced to go to Harding
in the convention in order to get on the
band wagon and try to get credit TO,
hiTs II | can not think that Harding Is
uVd the influence of Cox or any other
boss. | have a higher opinion of Hard
ius's character and ability l know him
p rsonAlly and many OF his neighbors.
Ali give him a good name at home. Also,
all the bosses were against him at the
b ginning # the convention; the smaller,
unLosSed counties were for him.
TD,t nd M
slider Harding, in both character and
ability, much superior to Harmon.
The state board of agriculture is now,
by Harmon's appointment, boiling pot
CT politics | was i'll the board five
vars under the old law, and during
that time there positively was no politics
IN it's consideration.
For proof of this statement l appeal
to the forty or more farmers institute
speakers employed by the board, repre-
sentng all political parties; also the IA
hundred crop reporters, inspectors and
employees in every department. All, l
believe, will. say no political obligations
were demanded C' them or considered
IN their employment. y
| am proud of the old boards record
IN keeping the State Fair clean-free
from side shows; also Of the old boards s
exposure of frauds in commercial fertil-
izers: but humiliated by the seeming
weakness of the judiciary department
OF the state in not bringing the manu-
facturers of proven fraudulent fertilizers
to justice. | was president of the board
of agriculture when Secretary Calvert
discovered that one of the boards trust
ed clerks WAS employed by a fertilizer
company to switch samples of their
goods before going to the chemist.
was the first man on the board notified.
| A still hunt was Immediately made,
| and it was discovered that the said clerk
| was on a regular salary from the fer
| tiIizer company of $3.50 per month to
empty out samples of fertilizers taken
by or msp ctors and place in packages
| SAMPLES fixed by the company.
Our inSre tors at once took new sam
| PIES of said fertilizers as found In
| agents hands resulting in I'll falling be-
| low the guaranteed analysis-some go
| samples in all. Also, the attorney gen.
eral employed inspectors in his depart
ment to take samples of some goods as
found III agents hands. resulting in
| nearly one hundred samples falling be-
| low the guarantee Of the manufacturers,
| for every one of which the company was
| liable to prosecution
Many suits were filed by both the
| beard of agriculture ard the fertilizer
| company, resulting in the courts declar-
| ing the state board of agriculture not a
| state department, hence nulifying all its
| action.
But the attorney generals depart
ments evidence was untouched and was
| pending IN the courts when Governor
Harmon came into office.
He was promptly informed Of the con
| di ions, studied moment and said,
| riking the desk with his fist: Gentle
| men, this shall not continue l have
practiced law myself some. If the at
torney general will not push this matter
l will go into the court myself The
manufacturer must be punished"
And great was the c0nnotion around
the state house for a few days.
Then all was quieted. The fertilizer
company came into court, said they had
been naughty, were sorry for it and
hereafter would be good.
All suits were dissolved the fertilizer
company went scot free.
| find in a bulletin published by the
department Of agriculture in February
1910, under Governor IIarmon's b-par.
tsln board, eleven samples of fertilizers,
| made by the same company, analyzed,
ten OF which fell below the guarantee.
And yet, at this late date no suits are
entered.
'IONtIHOI Ilhllilpll - pIOcIdlHlltlB III MS
every speech to farmers that he found
the state board Of agriculture corrupted
by politics and their publications and
work repudiated," stating that he had
taken the board entirely out of politics,
made 1t efficient and honest now giving
the farmers reliable publications and
honest fertilizers.
AS TO the honesty and purposes of the
governor in making such statements, I
feel that I need only to ask serious
thought on this matter by the intelligent
farmers of this state.
| again assert that previous to Cover
nor Harmon'S administra tion, under the
old law the boIrd of agriculture of Ohio
was wholly free from political control by
either party. Its work in organizing and
building up a system of farmers insti-
tutes, its ciean educational state fair
and exposition, its general aid to better
agriculture were the comment and admi
ration OF the best agricultural interests
of the land It was sorry day for Ohio
agriculture when Governor Harmon made
the board bipartisan, which In practice
means politics from start to finish, each
party using every means known to Sc
cure political advantage.
The governor in appointing members
Of the board wholly ignored the recon-
H+HuHIJS 81 the state agricultural con-
vention, a representative body from
every county for fifty years standing
for agriculture in which politics was uh-
known.
l write this in defense of Ohio agri-
lulture and not for political effect I am
not a politician, but an Ohio farmer
Heading for better agricuf are and jug
Zee from the state.
Very truly,
l. r. BAILEY.