Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1911-01-07
SHORT COURSES
FOR EACH COUNTY
OTTUMWA BANKS URGED TO AID
IN GETTING LEGISLATURES TO
MAKE APPROPRIATION.
BIGGER CROPS IN IOWA
Bankers Club Of Des Moines Starting
Cam1afsn For Larger Farm
Yields in State-Send Out
Letters.
BIGGER CROPS IN IOWA

A short course for every county in
( the state is urged by the Bankers club
of Des Moines and Ottumwa banks are
in receipt of letters from T. H. CraW-
ford chairman of the clu., asking their
assistance and urging them to use
their influence in getting their legis-
! lators to vote for 100000 appropria-
| ton which would secure the short
courses. The letters urges the bankers
of Ottumwa to spread ~. seed corn
gospel in this section and to increase
the farm rops of Wapello county and
the state
= Chairman Crawford's Letter. &
Chairman Crawfords letters to the
local banks follows:
The recent Corn Growers conven-
ton held in Des Moines. aroused much
interest among our business men and
created 2 strong desire for wider agri-
cultural educational advantages. This
led our clearing house association and
the bankers club to take some action
looking toward interesting the bankers
of Iowa in the question. We, there
fore, address you. knowing you to be in
favor of any movement that. will in
crease the yield and improve the
quality of the agricultural products of
Iowa. The possibilities are so great,
and progress along these lines of such
vast Importance to all classes of bust
ness, that every effort should be made
to stimulate interest in, and develope
to higher plale, the principal industry
of our state, and to bring about more
scientific methods of treating soils,
improving quality of seeds, and raising
the grade of live stock.
Preach Better Seed Corn Gospel.
prof. Holden has pointed out, that
by proper selection of seed corn and
treatment of SOIL the yield can be in
creased at least ten bushels per acre,
meaning to every county in the state
which plants on an average 100000
acres, 900, 900 bushels increase, which
at forty cents bushel would be $780,
600 per county. or $4O,000,000 extra for
the state This extra money from the
corn crop alone can be had for your
county by using wei tested seed and
proper cultivation OF the soil-no more
land, machinery or labor except for
harvesting-simyly planting live in
ste;.d of dead Seed at the right time,
and intelligent selection and cultiva-
ton of ground. This example illus
trates the extra income that can be
derived from other crops and live stock
by the application Of methods demon
strated to be proper and effective by
experiments and research made by the
Agricultural colleges.
will hn
the country school, but the quick and
effective way to educate the farmer
of today is through the short course,
as given by the state agricultural col
lege and. county poor farm expert
mental stations.
"To illustrate one Of the many bene-
fits derived rom the short course in
structions, boy after a week of
short course at Ames, succeeded in
cutting down the feed for his dairy
herd s1.0O each month per head, and
at the same time increased the yield
of butter-fat $500 a month per head
thereby increasing the annual profit
$4,000 per cow.
More Short Courses.
"The agricultural college had appli-
cations this year for ninety-three short
courses, but could fill only twenty-five.
This condition shows the need of pro-
viding additional facilities for giving
short course instruction. To supply
this need. movement has been
started to urge the next legislature to
appropriate $1,000 per county-s1OO,-
900 for the state-for the short course
instructions and agricultural college
extension and experimental work.
Such an appropriation would be good
investment for the state, and would
pay large returns
"The railways are showing much in
terest in this work. as indicated by the |
running of their seed corn and dairy |
special trains. A weeks short course
school of instruction in every county |
of the state would result in adding
many millions of dollars to our in
come from the soil. The amount OF
the appropriation asked is not large.
other states are spending much more
along these lines. Illinois spends more !
on her soil department alone than
Iowa spends on her short course and |
college extension work.