The Devils Lake world. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1911-1911, 1911-04-07
81 MONUMENTAL BLUNDER''
MADE BY JOHN BURKE
Prof. Thomas Shaw Says This State
Has Eeeu Inundated by Being De-
prived of It's Farm Institutes.


noted agricultural experts in the north.
west, man who knows the needs and
conditions in North Dakota, as per.
haps 10 other man knows them, has
made public the following statement:
I notice that the governor Of North
Dakota has vetoed all of the increased
appropriation granted by the legisla-
ture for farmers institute work for the
biennial period of 1911 and 1912. The
fund thus cut off amounts to $4,000
that is, $4,000 for each year. He has
also cancelled the increased appropria-
ton for the work so ably conducted
by Prof. Porter in connection with the
work Of the demonstration farms. The
fund thus cut off amounts to $4,000
for the biennial period as given above.
When read Of this action on the
part of the governor I could scarcely
believe that read correctly. I could
not conceive how man with the or
binary good judgment shown by Gov
ernor Burke should have allowed him
self to make so monumental blundcr.
Then recalled the fact that in 1909
the same governor had vetoed the a.
600 allowed by the legislature to be
expended in publishing the institute
ANNALS in 1909 and 1910. It is all the
of 1909 should have been repeated in
aggravated form in 1911. Thn: such
action was in both instances huge
mistake. will be apparent from what is
said below. 100 .. r
What are the .factsF In the winter
Of 1867, hecaase of Che depth of the
snow and the stormy characterize Of the
weather, the institutes were called o4
There was but little call for ms .lcut.s
in those days. The annual printed at
that time cost the state but little, as
the advertising solicited about paid
for the book. The institute board de-
cided, and wisely, to discontinue such
solicitation. The result was, that the
institute fund accumulated until it
amounted to $4,000.
Since those days things have entirely
changed. The demand for institutes
in the state has gone up by leaps and
bounds. To meet the need ofsthe appli
cations for institutes now oni1 would
take two full years with our corps OF
workers, to say nothing of the appli
cations that will come in during those
two years. ANIMALS are now publish.
ed which are a credit to the state, and
of inestimable value to the farmers
To meet the need, the board authorized
an increase in the number of meetings
during recent years. It authorized TIE
work in connection with the better
farming train of last summer. Thees
additional expenditures so exhausted
the fund, that when November came in
1910, there were no funds with which
to begin institute work. Meantime the
farmers, impelled by crop failures,
were pleading for Institutes. To meet
the need Superintendent Hoverstad
with the approval Of the board, ad
vanced more than $4,000 of his own
money. The result is that when the
institutes Of the past season are paid
for and all accounts are squared. there
will be left in the treasury, I am cred
IDLY informed about $4,000 for the hi
ennial period of 19l1.12 to conduct
institutes, to defray the expenses Of thu
superintendent. This means that thu
great state of North Dakota must prac
tically 60 without Institutes for thu
years 1911 and 1912, unless funds ar.
raised from private sources.
Such is the predicament of North Da
kota. The sad thing about it is. tina
it is predicament for which the Cover
nor would alone seem to be RESPONSE
BILE. The legislature was a unir i
authorizing the increase. The COVE 10
was unit in cutting it off. No doub
his intentions were good, no doubt the.
were patriotic. But good and patriotic
intentions are not sufficient in them
selves to save men from monumental
blunders. Does the governor of Nortl
Dakota not know that it was lack O
knowledge on the part of the farmer
that led to the crop failure of 1910
Does he not know that the only mean
of enlightening those actively engage,
in farming outside of books and period
icals is the farmers instituted An,
yet, by one stroke of the pen he ha
said to the people Of this great state
that so far as his influence goes, the
will not have any farmers institute
for the next two years.
!; Well, farmers and business men 0
! North Dakota, what are you going t
do about it, Is the state going to d
, without institutes for two yearss The
never were wantei m ha11v as, nnu