The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-12-27

Cedar Rapids, Linn ........ 81 81
Iowa City, Johnson ......... 10 ~
, Burlington, Des Moines 1855. II "a
Oskaloosa, Mahaska ......... II
Valley Junction, Polk ........
AGRICULTURAL coMMIs sloNERs.
While in Davenport last week &C
! quainting himself with the work done
by the Short Course there, Prof P. G.
r Holden, Iowa's corn king and expon-
ent of scientific farming, predicted
7 that within the next few years there
will be a commissioner of agriculture
in practically every county in iowa.
This, he added, will be great thing,
both in an educational and a financial
way, and the county will profit any,
where from $4,000 to 100000 in corn
: alone, in addition to having the COM
ing generation educated to the value
of scientific farming. AS to the duties
!, OF such an official Professor Holden
thus expressed himself:
This commissioner would be kept
+ busy in the county during both the
summer and the winter months. In
5 the winter he would hold, say, ten
short courses in different parts of the
}. Icounty and the average at each would
be 100 There you would have 1000
men reached by these courses and
these men would spread the gospel to
Others. In tie summer this commits
sioner-or whatever you want to call
), Iim-would run two or three expert
ment stations to show the people that
his teachings are founded on fact.
Along about Feb. 20 he would go
II through the county to get the farmers
to select their seed corn, and then.
G along about the latter part of March
he would. through the cooperation of
II the county superintendent of schools,
get the school children to test their
= seed corn along with the teachers,
y working at this, perhaps, half day
al time for two weeks-or as long
~ as 1t requires to make these germina-
ton tests
it Along about September the com.
missioner would go out and jog up tie
in farmers to make their seed selections
Now suppose these tests, were car
ried on as | outlined it, what would
happen? With an increase of one
lbusheI to the acre in Scott county the
profit to the county would be $50, 900
1t For ten bushels, it would be $500, 900
One bushel is not good increase ir
the yield: neither is ten. Some day
- Scott county will produce an average
" of sixty-five bushels to the acre, ant
that would be an increase of THIRTY
bushels to the acreage yield, or /;
70. profit of s1,50000e. Is that wortl
&c working for?
lai Scott county's average up to las
,at year was thirty-five bushels to tn
81 acre and last year it was about forty
four But last year was an exception
ally good one II you keep pace witt
last years yield you have an increas
,es of ten bushels
he But this will not come about in
on year. The inertia of things require
,ht a longer time People become az
a. customed to one thing and they are
long time in prying themselves away
even if they do recognize the fac
that another method is better That
,m- perhaps a condition in humanity-an
gel it may be good for humanity that 1t
ma So but sometimes | wish we coul
~ move a little faster.
Il have spoken only of corn. "
I'M would not be so stupid as to stud
/ corn alone. Other agricultural prot
ucts would be studied along the sam
Of lines and there would be the resul
10 ant effect in each undertaking.
ala. THE matter OF progress might Il
;ar- principally in the school boys VIII
-. took two weeks to test seed cor
isn They would go home and insist thu
an their fathers select and test the
OUT seed corn.
over on the Funk farm in Illino
we raised over fifty bushels to Il
90, acre the last year | was there. That
why | came to Iowa ! thought thi
" there were much better prospects
the whole state than there would be {
and 25, 900 acres, such as that farm was
pro- In the same interview Profess
S a Holden predicted financial panic
and 1913. He said we have been on Il
eek high wave of prosperity and Will
len down into the trough OF the way
OF just as does ship on the high see
men People think they have become wi
age and can get around panic by bett
'ent legislation and banking laws, but Pr
the lessor Holden declared that this
ten not the natural sequence of things
to what would bring on panic,
said:
ARE "If one member of family ov
look draws his bank account-if he liy
T. beyond his means-and the 9th
pub members OF the family are econon
, an and keep putting money back in the
!. @ is sufficient money returned to II
- bank to keep up the account. But
"a Ae more than half that family live
nom yond its income there is going to
kon, n shortage and a crash will follow
IF the American people taken
state whole spend more money than TIL
ostle earn there will be the same effe
Pro- and although it takes time for it
arge come around, it comes at regular
elief tervals, as history proves.
ONE I'VE have heen prosperous. 7
lsive Young men of today are thinking
have lot about their automobiles and d
pol ing working hours are waiting for
iopportunitv when they can get