St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1911-11-08
PRESS COMMENT.
Encouraging Signs.

were last year when the census was
taken. Allowing that the smaller
concerns have not suffered loss,
which is scarcely likely under these
conditions in the chief industries, St.
Johnsbury village must be making
great strides in population, as fair
proportion of the $50 workmen must
be newcomers in town.-Barre
Times.
There is encouragement in every
such item that comes to the YER
monter's notice. If lost ground is to
Re recovered it will be by degrees.
1t is hardly likely that Vermont's
population will be increased by leaps
and bounds-in the comparatively
rural communities.
AS for the cities, they have had in
spring examples of what systema
tic boosting may accomplish in the
west in the hands of practical men
who understand the business-for
business is what it has become in
recent years.
With these examples and the mi
tiative that may always be looked
for locally, there is no reason why
Vermont may not recover her normal
increase in population. 1t requires
work, single-mindedness, infeXibIe
imperviousness to loose criticism,
but these are all elements which
abound in Vermont
There is little to be gained by scat
tering powder, however. Concerted
effort by organized bodies in towns
and cities is what will count. The
Vermont press, ever ready to lend its
influence and assistance, may be
counted on to do its full share. Bus
mess men, large and small, corpora
lions, Industrial and fiscal, profess
sional men, artisans, laborers and
farmers-all should unite in the
movement when the time comes
[Rutland Herald.
Agriculture as a Science.
Isaac F. Marcosson, writing for
the November issue of Munsey's
magazine, takes occasion to say,
among other things: 1.-THE depart
ment of agriculture has figured out
that the product of an acre of corn
ten years ago was worth 1.8 bar
rels of flour; at the present time it
is worth 2.04 barrels of flour. Ten
years ago the same acreage would
buy 1882 yards of muslin; now it
would purchase 169 yards. How
has it all been accomplished? Simp-
1y because farming has ceased to
be haphazard and unintelligent
habit, and has become a science. -
Many are the farmers who will
readily agree with Mr.. Marcosson in
this conclusion. He tells what has
taken place in one short decade. If
he would go back as far again-2Q
years-he would find some farmers
earnestly and sincerely holding in
derision what they termed "book
farming" or the attempt to convey
through literary channels the. results
of experiments carefully made and
noted, and thus to instruct the read
er in the points covered by those ex-
periments. Farmers of that class
stoutly maintained that ''the only
way to farm was to farm" and that
men who undertook to teach farm
ing by the book were bound to be
mere theorists at best, whose ideas
were far more expensive than
profitable; evidently overlooking
the fact that these theorists were
actually farming, and were care
fully jotting down their discoveries
as a doctor keeps the history of an
especially interesting case. What do
we find today? The agricultural ex-
pertinent stations are nothing more
nor less than farms-scientific
farms, if you will, but farms never
theIess. Their method of procedure
is as practical as that on any farm
in the land. AS it is now, so it was
then, with the exception that
tremendous progress has been made.
The result is that farmers who 20
years ago might have contented
themselves with the old-time fertil-
izer; who might have paid only the
most ordinary attention to their Or
chards, and who deemed it sufficient
that they fed their stock enough;
without special regard to the fat or
muscle-producing properties of the
food, are now fastidiously selecting
this or that fertilizer with reference
to this or that soil and the crop it
is desired to produce; are carefully
spraying their orchards, and are
choosing stock food in accordance
with the results desired. Truly,
farming has become a. science. Let
him who doubts this attempt to con-
duct a farm with profit according to
the old methods and in competition
with the enterprising farmer of to-
day Manchester Union.
Good Growth in st. Johnsbury.
The ST. Johnsbury Caledonian
finds that there are one hundred and
fifty more men employed in the lead
ing industries of it's town at the
present time than there were last
year when the census was taken. AL
lowing that the smaller concerns
have not suffered loss which is
scarcely likely under these condi-
lions in the chief industries, st.
Johnsbury village must be making
great strides in population, as fair
proportion of the one hundred and
fifty workmen must be newcomers
in town. Barre Times.
Be Calm.
There is no sense in getting ex-
cited over the governments attempt
to dissolve the big steel corporation.
1t is the duty of the executive de-
parment to enforce the law as it
l.