davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1911-05-28

dinous children throughout the south,
and he sent his legions of angels in the
form of the agricultural scientists to
fight down the weevil, and planned the
raising of crops which shculd add to or
take the place Of the cotton. The chief
crop was corn. and as result the people
of the south have sprung from being the
poorest to potentially the richest of
been almost all accomplished In the space
OF four or five years and it means hun
dreds OF millions of dollars.
The corn crop of the south during 1910
was one-third OF that of the whole coun-
try. 1t was nearly 1000 millions Of bush
els. and at the low price of 90 cents a
bushel 1t was worth 000.OO0.0OO. 1t ex-
ceeded by many millions the output of
year. and not counting the value Of the
fodder was more than half the value of
the cotton. including both lint and seed
The increase of the corn crop of nine
more than 15sOoo.OOo bushels, or value
OF nearly $sO.OOO.OOO. and this increase
is 45 per cent of the total in
crease in corn for the whole United
We're virginia. North Carolina. South
Carolina, Georgia. Alabama. Mississippi,
Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas. The to-
tai crop. as have said. was almost
LOCO. .OO0, coo bushels.
One billion bushels! As a whole the
figures stagger the mind. but load the
corn upon two-horse wagons at a ton to
the load and let each team take a space
of forty feet on the roadway and the
train of teams would reach almost eight
times around the globe at the equator,
the first wagon being nearly 20O, COO miles
distant by the time the last wagon was
loaded.
Does II not look as though corn might
become king of the south?
But the work Is just at its beginning.
1t was originated and organized by the
But there are already 100000 farms scat
tered over the southern states on which
experiments are being made by boys and
men as to the new ways OF corn cul-
ture, and each of these Is school for
the community where 1t lies. The gov
ernment has $50 travelling agents, who
supervise the work. and each of these
has large number of demonstrators or
teachers who visit the farmers every
week or so and instruct them just how
to go about raising the crop. Where pos
sible they have these experimental plan
tations set out close to the roads SO that
the people can see the results as they go
by on the way to or from town. They
have organized farm clubs in several
thousand communities and have caused
the institution Of hundreds OF county
fairs In the interest OF improved agricuI-
ture.
Not only the government, but the states.
counties and towns are interested In this
movement and are giving to II large
sums OF money. The appropriation OF
Congress last year was $25O. 600. but to
felier fund. and many thousands were
given by the business organizations and
the bankers. merchants and wealthy men
OF the rious communities. In addition
Evening star., 1911-05-28

to the large number Of farms or expert
mental patches on farms under the direct
charge OF the government agents and
their demonstrators, there are more than
loOOO farmers who are receiving instruc-
ton from the Agricultural Department by
letter and are reporting the<fssults. This
makes mighty correAcondence school
which is increasing each wsek The work
is not confined to corn aloh>, but to the
proper cultivation of cotton. oats, COW
peas and hay.
wish I could give you some idea Of
the results that have already been ac-
complished. ] have spent the week at
the Agricultural Department talking with
the agents of the farmers cooperative
demonstrations work who have Just come
in from the fields and who are handling
this enormous mass of correspondence. I
have also talked with Mr.. Knapp. who,
Evening star., 1911-05-28

HREE years ago i
was a bankrupt. l
had borrowed all
the money i could
on my farm and
my credit was SO
bad at the stores
that they would
not trust me for a
plug Of tobacco. I
could not pay my
interest, and I had
decided to give up
Evening star., 1911-05-28

had to replant May 90 After that the
corn was cultivated again and again
with hoe and cultivator, all the suckers
being pulled from the hills. When he
laid the corn by, he planted COW peas
between the rows to increase the fertility
OF the land for the next year. The corn
was harvested. sheIled and weighed. and
at fifty-sx pounds to the bushel IL meas
ured 1898 bushels.
But this yield would not have given
Stephen the prize. There were many boys
who raised more. There were 100 who be-
longed to the corn clubs OF the south
who made an average OF 1887 bushels
per acre in 1910. There were Ave who
grew more than COO bushels and quite a
number who grew 1J0
No, Stephen got the prize because he
raised the most corn at the lowest cost.
Jerry Moore's 22S bushels cost him 43
cents. and Morris Olgers OF Virginia
raised 16S bushels at 40 cents or the ma
tfonal prize winners who came to Wash
ington. Ira Smith OF Arkansas raised l19
bushels at a cost Of cents per bushel,
while Floyd Gayer of Oklahoma produced
80 bushels on an acre at the same cost.
Stephen. like every other boy OF these
whole $1,000 who are now working, had
to keep account of every cent spent on his
acre. He had to charge himself IS for
the rent of the land, and put down 10
cents per hour for every hour he any
other boy worked upon II. He charged
himself cents per hour for the time OF
each horse and 81 for each two-horse load
OF stable manure. as well as the market
prices for any commercial fertilizers used.
By adding up his accounts and dividing
by the number of bushels of shelled corn
in the crop. he got the exact cost per
bushel to raise ii.
The boys corn clubs of the south have
almost doubled this year. and they will
probably double again the year following
The boys belonging to them are from ten
to eighteen years old. and some of the big
prize winners are only twelve. That is
the age of Joe Stone Of Georgia, who was
so small that his father came with him
during his free trip to Washington. New
ertheless. he produced more than l02
bushels of corn on an acre.
The rules OF this work provide that ea~h
boy must plant his own crop and do his
own work. He must present the results
to the county superintendent OF educa-
tion. He must gather the corn and weigh
Ii, and the land and corn must be care
fully measured in the presence of al leas.
two disinterested witnesses, who have to
sign a certificate.
The boys must study the instructions
given them and follow directions. Each
has to write the history of his crop and
how he made IL. and the prizes are
awarded not only on the number of bush
els produced but on the profit and the
choice the yield per acre counts 30 per
cent, the best ten ears % per cent, the
best history of the crop 20 per cent, and
the highest profit 30 per cent. When IL is
remembered that all these things are
tested by the heads of the schools and
committee of farm experts. some idea
may be had of the educational and agri-
cultural value of this mighty work of Tn
Gle Sam, patriarch.
Evening star., 1911-05-28

much different. In strong contrast to
the orphaned camel was the happy little
kangaroo. as it nestled in its mothers
pouch, as warmly as though winter pre-
vailed. and nibbled at the food she SO
cheerfully placed within its reach. 1t is
really old enough to feed itself, but
prefers to stay in the f1eshy nest. APP
parently the fond parent has no mis-
sion" In life higher than to see that it
is contented and gets all it wants to eat.
and does not get too cold.
With all the meat-eating animals the
food remains the same in nature through
out the year. but not SO much is given
them in warm weather The food is Sc
lected according to the known preferences
of the animals. and they watch for choice
bits as eagerly as spoiled epicure for
the piece de resistance at q banquet.
Snakes gorge themselves and lie
stretched prone on their tree limbs or
sandy floors, spineless, nerveless, SEEM
ingly dead. yet ever ready to spring.
Summer heat has a most enlivening
effect upon them. With nearly all the
other animals. except the bear, the high
temperature creates a drowsiness They
object to much exercise, and prefer to
doze away the sunlit hours. But the
reptiles are most mentally alert. Their
long sleep Of the winter is over and the
venom runs strong in their fangs. The
man who has in week taught the hip
popotamus OF know his call appreciates
this to his sorrow-appreciateS it because
OF the loss Of finger by rattlesnake bite.
X
The hotter the day the happier the al
ligator. Through their thick skins the
rays Of the sun can only feebly penetrate.
And they have multiplied and increased
until their cage Is literally lined with
them. They make the most crowded OF
cage inmates, sleeping crisscross and
Evening star., 1911-05-28

CNFEER weather
has come to the
Zoo with such
rapidity that, al
though the entire
force has been
working for weeks,
there are still odds
and ends to be ac-
conplished for the
greater comfort Of
the animals.
Everything pos
Evening star., 1911-05-28
Nw bAet
LIKES EvERxTltrNQ Hot
EwN HIS borTLL

ducks and geese. The former can be
safely placed out at their pond just as
soon as there Is no further probability of
the water freezing over. A particularly
picturesque bit Of water has been given
over to them. With its fringe Of dropping
trees and foliage it looks almost tropical.
but is one OF the most delightfully."- cool
spots at the Zoo during the summer.
Here the pelicans dive for fish thrown
to them by the attendants at meal time,
and are equally content whether they go
This bit of deceit gives the birds as much
sport and FUN as 1t does the amateur
fisherman who angles all day long, then
buys catch" on his way home at
evening.
Japanese monkeys are exceedingly
hardy. and can stay out all winter.
Yet that very superiority causes, them
to be restfve and uncomfortable when
above their accustomed Temperature.
Ihey come from part Of the howery
kingdom where cold weather prevails.
In summer here they have an airy
the darkness for greater coolness or
the moro ventilated section for better
air. These missing links have such
quota OF common sense that their
avoid extremes.
In sharp contrast are the South
African monkeys. No amount Of heat
Is too great for them. They shiver all
ton dog day" will shake with what
visitors imagine is a too highly strung
nervous organisation. but is really cold
From the sitting river valleys Of the
Amazon comes tho jaguar to exult IN
the hottest days the Zoo can provide.
No special preparations have to be
made for its comfort. So long as it
Is warm 1t Is satisfied.
Woods retaining a semblance Of Wild
ness arc provided for the roaming"
animals. Elk. deer and such are IN
ured to cold. and cannot stand any ex-
cessive heat. They seek the dark cool
ness Of the underbrush. and remain
there Such feeding as they require
must be done without bringing them
from the shadier portions Of the park.
and 1t is difficult to accomplish this at
times. since they break" for the re-
moter sections at the slightest sound
Of unfamiliar steps.
The water buck Is not Of their kind.
He inhabits q warm section OF the map,
and is impervious to any heat that
comes Zooward.
The fur seal. beautiful little animal.
Evening star., 1911-05-28

behind some woods on another part Of
my farm. and cultivated 1t just the same
way. My acre near the road, which the
man watched and told me just how to
handle. grew SO that everybody stopped
to look at 1T, and to make a long story
short. we husked sixty bushels of shelled
corn from that acre. When the corn was
ripe the agricultural agent asked me
whether thought he had made good.
replied that he had. but that had other
corn on the place that was worth looking
at. / then took him through the woods
to my other forty acres, which was Just
as fine as that on the road. You'd ought
to seen him look. Well. got 1900 bush
els off of that forty acres. and 1 now do
all my farming that way"
MY next human document comes from
colored man. He writes from Misssis-
sippi to the head of the farmers CO.
operative demonstration work in the
south. After years Of poverty and de-
spair, he has started raising cotton under
the letter Is as 1t is written. The pen
manship / cannot reproduce:
"sir: ~
Il rite you a few lines In the CARDS of
farming agricultur. ! do sey that your
advice has Ben Folard. and your direck-
sion have Ben o Bald. an find that 1 am
successful in Life. Sey. Mr.. Knapp, 1
do know that there Is gooder men as you
an as fair as you, But O that keen eye
ov yourse that watches ever crook in
farming. that can tell ever men which,
ever way to Gro to be successful In Life.
On last Yer folerd your advice, an also
on yer Befor last. On 1908 made IA
Balls of cotton. and in 1909 II Balls.
startid with one mule an now / own 3
head ov the great worthless. Thanks to
you for your advice a Long that Line,
an Great success in your occupation to
you.
.'Sey Mr.. Knapp I am a culered man.
Live near Graysport, Mississippi. Corn
a plenty, also make a plenty Of Sweet
Potatoes. But 1 read your advice about
them. Will close. Yourse,
(SigneO 'WM. WASHINGTON"
The above bits Of evidence are mere
straws to show how the wind blows.
Uncle Sam has a mighty stack Of them
In his Department Of Agriculture and his
mail Is loaded with similar letters each
day. He is teaching the south how to
raise cotton and corn and Is creating a
revolution which has already added hum
dreds OF millions to our national wealth.
He has now something like $1,000 men
and almost an equal number Of boys who
are raising corn under government dt-
rectlon. and the result Is the creation OF
new Industrial empire.
Until within the last decade cotton was
the money king Of the south It was the
cash crop and II paid all the bills. The
farmers imported the feed for their stock.
and the corn lands OF the north furnish
ed the hog and the hominy. Then the
boil weevif came in and with It's snout-
like nose began to eat into King Cot
Herod the Great. and King Cotton seemed
like to give up the ghost. Uncle Sam.
patriarch. saw the wrinkles Of ruin
springing up on the faces of his multitu-
Evening star., 1911-05-28

the farm for the debt and go back to
renting. Then one of Uncle Sans DEM
onstrators got me to plant corn and cot
tom and to work it after the plans OF
the Agricultural Department. 1 thought
him a fool, but I was desperate and l
followed his rules. The result has been
that the merchants are now chasing me
for my custom. have paid eff my
mortgages and l have money in the
bank
The man who spoke thus lives in Ala
bama.
II had always laughed at book
farmers" 1t is a Georgia man who is
speaking. Il was brought up in
the cotton fields and corn fields.
and / thought knew all about
my land and what 1t would raise.
didn't want no white-shirted man
from Washington coming round to tell
me how to manage my farm. l was
raising from 100 to 200 pounds of cotton
TO the acre. and when my crop of corn
was over fifteen bushels | thought i did
well. Then one OF these demonstrators
OF the Agricultural Department came
along and asked me to set out an acre
and cultivate il his way. EIe told me
could double my crop. and that l might
raise forty, fifty. sixty. and. even eighty
bushels of corn on the same ground
where I had been raising twelve or fif-
teen. I laughed a. him, and told him he
did not know what he was talking about.
This land, said 1. is just naturally poo,
and il won't raise corn anyhow l amt
going to waste my time for nothing.
"well at that Mary came out. Mary's
my wife, and a mighty good wife she Is.
too She leaned beside me over the fence
and we talked to the agricultural man
who was out in the road. Mary begged
me to try it. and the man begged He
was a powerful nice man. and so to oblige
the two j said l would do II.
II put out that corn. He made me take
my old mule team and the heaviest plow
and throw up the ground to a depth of
ten inches Then he made me harrow II.
/ never heard OF narrowing for corn. We
did this in the fall. and the next spring
we plowed deep and narrowed and har-
rowed again. / got the best seed could
find and cultivated the corn as he said.
EAT the same time ] concluded there
might be something in ii. and that il one
acre was good. forty acres was better.
So ] took a field OF forty acres away of
Evening star., 1911-05-28
The WArE.R Buck
THINKS This .W.ATHF Del IcHTF,,1.

because its mamma shelters 1T from the
sun and makes 1t mind and stay indoors
1t Is in a cage with half Of 1t inclosed
to form giant kennel. When q visiting
party approached the mother proved her
self regular Charles G. D. Roberts sort
moning her young hopeful and marshal
Ing 1t proudly forth for inspection.
The poor little camel looks like nothing
SO much as a measuring worm on stilts.
1t was roaming about it's spacious front
yard when the representative OF the press
got around to see it take its bottle. Lit
tie Selinn's mother-all camels are named
Selim. just as all walters are named
George : had a habit of kicking and
cutting him all over the lot. SO he has
admittedly not thing Of beauty, but
neither is his fashionable parent, who
halls from central Asia, and who was
unquestionably built for endurance rather
position and submits to his reception with
q gentleness that has endeared him to
his custodians.
So far as summer conditions are con-
cerned Selim rather has the joke on
his family. They are down In hillside
hollow. while he has a place Of vantage
on its crest, with shade trees and plenty
OF nice grass. But 1t is feared he does
not appreciate such advantages for which
a slum child would yearn. His feet de-
sire the soft slipping holiness Of sand
beneath them.
In his bottle he takes warm milk. No
cooling drinks for Selim. He doesn't care
how hot 1t is. and guzz1es 1t down with
intense satisfaction. even when the hold
er of the bottle thinks maybe 1t has been
overheated.
With the kangaroos tho situation was
Evening star., 1911-05-28

sible is done to render them happy and
content during the hot season. While
very many come from tropic or semi
tropic regions. they have had q dry, high
Temperature rather than the Irritating
heat OF Washington. So with them, as
with the cold-weather beasts. 1t Is neces-
sary to make changes in their quarters
and provide every available protection
against sunstroke and nervousness.
Because Of the variety Of new life that
has come to the Zoo during the past win
ter. by birth, gift and purchase, 1t was
necessary to enlarge many OF the open
air cages. construct additional ones, and
In nearly every instance make some
slight change or improvement In the
permanent ones.
Carpenters are busily constructing
fences around the Enclosures to protect
IN over-confiding public from too in
quisitive member Of the animal world,
and erecting new Sheds the better to
shield those animals that find the sum-
mer months difficult to endure. For
nearly five weeks the animals have been
moving out, until now most of them are
settled for the summer.
Naturally, these go according to the
degrees Of heat they need. First to go
were those birds which do not require a
very warm climae. then the pelicans and
Evening star., 1911-05-28

Copyright. 1911. by Frank C. Carpenter.)
Evening star., 1911-05-28

This lone seal can fold its widespread
Ing fms Just as a lady folds her fan and
go serenely to sleep on the surface Of the
The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-07-26
PUBLIC OPINION

To the Editor of The Farmer: Sir: The ballot ,Or secret voting is & very old institution. In America the em- pioyment of the ballot in elections dates back to early colonial times.
 By the proper use of, and the proper kind of ballot, i've can form a more perfect union,7 esta blish jus tlce Insure domestic tranquility, pro- vide for the common defense, pro- mote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity''
 Connecticut has but recently adopt ed the Australian form of ballot; now a certain faction of our legislature is agitating to establish the simple form of ballot. The advantages of the iously used in this state is obvious The Australian ballot reduces fraud
 With the development of the party system the simple form of ballot first used became an instrument of ffaud and Intimidation. Purchase of votes provided corrupt voters with printed pallets that were easily identified; 1; employers who wished to influence the votes of their employees used the same method, and device, to ascer- tain how the latter had cast their votes.
 the Australian ballot; by this system the voter is furnished with an offfc- tally printed ballot, which he is re. quired to mark in a specified man ner, and to deposit in a ballot box without permitting xamination by any other person.
 The Australian ballot has far reaching effect on the political part ties in the minority; it reduces their campaign expenses; it allows votes ro be cast for them, that would be lost if the simple ballot system were in use.
 The Australian ballot is of great advantage to the voters of Connecti- cut. Write your Senator and Repre- sentative. giving them your opinion Of the Australian ballot and voting machine; and ask them why this sud- den change2
 J. w. STOLIKER, 29 Parallel street
The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-07-26
tFACTS FOR SWIMMERS AND LANDLUBBERS.

In an article on swimming in the August Woman's Home Companion,
 the author records a great deal of tinformation that is just as interesting I to landlubbers as it is helpful to lyoung swimmers. Following is a brief extract:
 Tt may surprise some new swim mers td know that one can both see land hear under the water. Seeing ' is not difficult, when once you have the idea firmly planted in your mind Ithat water will not hurt your eyes. Particularly is this true of sea-water, the salt in which is soothing, rather Efhan irritating. But never open your eyes to see under water before you
 are under water; never dive with the 1 eyes open, or go from surface to underneath. or vice versa, with the eyes open. The water at it's surface seems to have an actual edge, which stings the eye. Learn to sw,n. with
 three limbs, to dispene, ~,-I either , arm Or either leg. You may need an , arm to bring ashore someone who
 needs help, you may have cramp some time and have to do without
 one of your 'propellers.' The trick
 is easy, it is merely more tiresome
 to swim without one arm or one leg but not much harder than to swim . with all.
 'As the very strongest man in the
 world Is a weakling in the grasp of
 
 ! be outwitted, not out wrestled. And,
 to be at home in the breakers, even beyond your depth, it is only neces-
 Eary to know what a wave really is
 and where it is weak. Many people believe their eyes and are sure that a wave travels. The water moves
 up and down, and the motion moves tforward, but the water doesn't travel lConeequently, if you get beyond the
 breakers the waves will go up and
 down and tcarry you with them, but
 won't sweep you forward.
 Near the shore the waves behave differently; they curl over and break and there the water. as we'll as the 1notion travels. Ana, II you are just
 at the curling-point, the water will pick you up and sweep you in, and ican literally ride the waves, than twhich there is no finer sport in the sea But woe unto you if you get a bit ahead of the curling wave-front, for then you will be turned over and twisted around and flung to the bot tom.
 Hence, it is wise to experiment with little waves first and learn just
 where they do break and just where they actually commence to exert a forward movement on your body be- fore testing your swimming powers in the surf"