Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1910-01-27
BETTER FARMING.
Must Be More Intensive and Less
Extensive Read, Read.
Here is a curious situation ::

Missouri, Kansas, and the states
generally are falling behind in
food supply. Yet the country is
running along on a half capacity
production, and only recently has
anybody here and there began to
care.
1t is imperative that the av-
erage yield to the acre be increas-
ed if the land is to support the
growing population. This fact is
becoming recognized.
Better use of the land, more
bushels to the acre, improved
quality, and increased quality
these are some of the notices that
are receiving more and more at
tention from farmers and from
men who are interested in the
improvement of agricultural meth
DDS.
James j. Hill, the Northwestern
railroad builder, has frequently
called attention to the need of ii
forward movement on the farms
and few days ago b. C. Brown,
president of the New York Cen
tral Railroad Company, made sew
eral speeches in the East, calling
attention to the relatively poor
showing which is made by Ameri-
can farmers as compared with
those of some foreign countries.
Topeka, Jan. 18.-"I am won
derfully pleased that there is
promise of public attention being
fixed upon the fact that our lands.
not in Kansas alone, but in other
states as well, are being farmed "A
a way so shiftless and unscientifi,. :.
and so mistreated that their av.
erage yields per acre are as a rule
not half what they should be, AMI
in too many instances not more
than a third of what they are
capable Of" said F. D. Coburn,
secretary of the state
agriculture, in discussing crop
yields.
"In truth, considering the
knowledge within reach of every
farmer who wishes or is even will
ing to treat his land and crops in
telligently the yields of nearly all
our staple crops, taking the
country over, are diSgracefully
small. This is due to various
causes. Partly to ignorance and
partly, in fact, most largely-to
too extensive rather than inten-
sive farming; to the farmers
spreading their operations ont
over too much land, tilling it
specifically, and neglecting a
proper rotation while at the same
time ignoring the Importance 0i
fertilizing, even when he has ON
the farm, under foot, in his way,
and going to waste, tons upon tons
of the best fertilizer known, in the
form of stable and barnyard
manure.
"But the tendency Of the day
is away from that sort of thing
this account of a larger intelli-
gence, the enhanced values of lan1
and the larger population which
will compel in the near future
smaller individual holdings. Om
agricultural colleges, experiment
stations. farmers institutes anj
other educational influences
actively at work everywhere, are
pointing out the injustifable ex
travagance of present methods
the causes that have unconsciously
brought them into vogue, and the
} saving remedies.
"The movement is of inesti
, mable Importance, and so long a'
t farms produce but thirty bushels
|, of corn on ground that should
yield seventy-fve to 100 bushels
fifteen bushels of wheat wher,
j forty should be harvested, ant
/ other crops in like ratio, ther,
l should be constant agitation, an'
III alolI ba .,Iad 10 ha In thi