The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1911-02-25
HMSRCHS HO5I
ECONOWI4I (ORTGhDKfR
1/EN HSTPD
1 LOLU5/RfE


standard unit of organization-and there
county clubs in about GOO different counties
Circulars of instruction, prepared by pr ;. A.
Knapp, the government expert. who is the Sol
of this ment, are prepared ana
sent several times during the year to each In
dividual boy who is enrolled in this work.
Seed selection and the preparation OF the
soil taken up first in these courses OF In
struction by mail supplemented by the advice
OF the field workers of the department VINO
are continually travelling about to supervise
and give practical Instruction. All the boys
who won the biggest prizes paid very careful
attention the instructions on this score and
poWed their from eight to sixteen inches
deep and thoroughly pulverized their seed beds
Even more careful advice is given the boys on
the very vital subject of fertilization and one rea
why many of these lads have at the first
go of gotten better corn crops than their fathers
have ever been able to produce with all their eX
perience back of them is that the youngsters
have none of the contempt of the old fogies for
new-fanged ideas and have been not only willing
but eager to master general knowledge of nitro
gen, potash phosphorus, etc, as agricultural aids
and the effect of leaves, wood mold. barnyard
manure etc.
The whole plan of computing and comparing
yields in this country wide corn growing competi-
ton is done in the most systematic and business
like manner. With swarms of keenly interested
boys watching each others crops like hawks
there is not much opportunity for deception Of
any kind but in addition to this insurance Of pub
ltCity of methods and Yields the department OF
agriculture has its officers in the field all
the while and they rgidly investigate any
picious reports just the field workers of the
United States have been probing into the
enumeration in any town city that seemed to
show undue increase in population since the
last Be ii said to the credit OF the boy
growers that almost none OF them have
fallen under suspicion any score
In making up the records of the young corn
growers and awarding the prizes that are offered
the government officials take into consideration
OF OF cultivation and every other factor.
Indeed, in making awards there are considered
in addition yield. the cost per bushel, the best
ten ears of corn raised and the written history
of the crop prepared by the boy who raised 1t.
Not all the boys who the big prizes and were
personally congratulated by President Taft in the
White House at Washington made the largest
yields in their states. The economical side
anyways taken into consideration in giving out
the prizes and in apportionng the diplomas OF
merit which Secretary Wilson personally pre-
sented to the boys who called him at Wash
ington
The boys who have won rank as Uncle Sams
champion corn growers in every instance made
good" by exhibiting their prize products at their
respective county fairs where their neghbors
could see with their own eyes what they accom-
plished by the new method Of tilling the soil. In
many counties the distribution of the county
prizes for corn growing was made q red-letter
event this past autumn and as many as 1000 to
1900 persons have assembled At = county seat