The Washington herald., 1911-05-07

:hing. Tell US a lie IL you must, but
let us get a line on the developments
of the postal savings bank system. The
law was enacted way last June. When
do We get chance to save our money
and that of our readers?"
Jesse was there. He rang the
changes on the membership of the spe-
! cial board of trustees. One day he
| would have a line from Attorney Cen
eral Wickersham, who was summering
on Long Island. Next in turn would
come Secretary Of the Treasury Mac
term in Dublin. n. II. Once Jesse
caught the Postmaster General in one
spot for more than twenty-four hours
and got a story from him.
| When all that could be said about
the trustees was said, he turned to the
special committee on method and or
ganization; what they were doing.
| they expected to formulate in the way
Of regulations and rules for the new
| system.
What I know about postal savings
banks by Jesse L. Suter, would be a
volume worth reading. That was all
Jesse had to do for a solid. and a
mighty hot, summer-and he did 1t
we'll
Then along came the projected
| changes in the rate Of postage for
second-class mail matter. The position
taken by Mr.. Hitchcock was rega rded
as an untenable one by members of the
periodical publishing fraternity. The
| newspapers rushed to their aid. All
| through this grueling argument be-
| tween the periodical men and the Post
office department, the utterances Of the
governments side of the controversy
have come from Mr.. Suter. Mr.. Suter
did not think these things, they were
] thought out by somebody higher up,
but from Suter they came. The task
was heavy. but he rose to It and did
the work with a vim.
Give Suter a story for the newspapers
that has what is termed human in
terest" and he rises to 1t like a trout
to fly. The prosecutions for fraud
by the post-office inspectors furnish
hundred different stories Of deep human
interest every year. The stories of how
the cupidity of the crooks plays upon
the cupidity OF the myriad American
citizens who would like to get some
thing for nothing furnish him with q
fund Of real heart-throb news all the
time. Suter likes to mix this with his
daily grist of routine and semi-political
discursive items. The Postmaster Cen
eral gives his press agent free rein on
the human interest stuff He knows
that that IS Suffers relaxation.
News for FarmeFs.
The Department of Agriculture Is full
of press agents. DIR. Wiley set the
fashion over there. He gave the ex-
ample, and to-day, not only in the
Bureau of Chemistry but in every other
bureau and division of this department
there are men who can write q good,
readable story at a moments notice.
II Is this feature OF the makeup of
the Department of Agriculture that has
made its work of such transcendent
Importance to the nation at large. 1t
was the Department OF Agriculture that
published Uncle Sans Cook Book. The
cook book came forth as a series of
ordinary bulletins of the department.,
treating of food production, food
values. methods of preparation. and
methods Of economy in food prepara-
tion. The edition Of the original and
individual bulletins ran away up into
the thousands. Some of them surpassed
the million mark. Then the depart
ment heads. with the help of Congress,
made up their minds to group the
series of bulletins and issue the whole
bundle in the form of the Uncle Sam
Cook Book. The Government Printing
Office is still busy with the edition,
which bids fair to run well into the
millions.
The boss disseminator of news at the
Agricultural Department is Joseph A.
Arnold. who holds the title of editor
and chief of the division of publica-
tions. MIR. Arnold has charge of the
whole literary output Of the depart
ment. He is both editor in chief and
circulation manager as we'll When 1t
is considered that within the past three
years the Department of Agriculture
has issued not less than three bulle
tins the editions of which ran away
over the million line. and some of them
are rapidly nearing the two million
post. Mr.. Arnold may be considered in
the light of a producer, If not Of the
six best sellers" at least of the dozen
best "giveaways' that have ever left
the printers hands. and giveaways is
not used here as a term of opprobrium,
for the bulletins of the Department of
Agriculture have been read and reread
in every home in the land.
DIR. Jay A. BonSteel is another of the
expert boosters OF the Department of
Agriculture. His specially is the use
Of soils. DR.. Bonsteel has made the
most exhaustive study Of the properties
of the various agricultural soils Of the |
United States. He is one OF the mosC
ardent promoters OF the back to the |
farm" idea. originated and propagated
by President w. c. Brown, of the New
York Central Railroad. DIR. Bonsteel |
has written more for the newspapers |
than he has for his own department. |
That is. If one considers the populariz- |
ing of the work of the Bureau of Soils
as not .-~actly for the department. DR.. |
Bonsteel figures it out thus. He is |
hired by Uncle Sam to help teach the |
farmers all about the land they live |
upon, what 1t is for and what 1t can /!
do, and what, beyond all else, it can do |
best. Along this line DIR. Bonsteel has |
been the press agent par excellence |
of the bureau and OF the department. 1
His method is unique. This is 1t:
He is approached by a newspaper |
man.
Doctor, tell me something that will |
interest my people," says the corre-
spondent.
What paper do you represent!' asks l
the smooth spoken and urbane expert.
The Milledgeville Union and Demo-
crat," says the correspondent.
Georgia. huh?' says DR.. Eonsteel. |
Come back in half an hour and TIL
have something for YOU"
When the correspondent returns, there /
1t is. A Ave column story ready for the /
to raise peppers In North
Georgia and where to plan Indian corn |
where, the crows can't scalp It"
Take DR.. Bonsteers tip. II he tells |
you that corn WON'T grow In the soil
Of township -. north range -. west.