The Kennewick courier. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1905-1914, 1912-12-06
| I p A Y s
Why the Work Of Educating the Farmer Being Taken up by
the Railroads and Other Great Corporations Written for the
Courier by A. c. HART.

It is surprising to note how often
we come across in the news columns
OF our papers items concerning aid
extended toward "educating' the
farmer by the the railroads, great
interstate business enterprises and
even by commercial bodies in our
large cities.
During the last week or so have
noted the following instances:
The Oregon Washington Railroad
& Navigation Company, through its
traffic department, has arranged to
run dairy and hog demonstration
train through the Yakima and Walla
Walla counties during the week be-
ginning Dec. 16. The proper de-
velopment of stock in these lines
will be demonstrated by experts
from the State College at Pullman
and elsewhere.
Stops will be made at dozen or
more points including Kennewick
and a chance given to the farmers
and stock raisers to gain much val
liable instruction.
The International Harvester Com
pany has established a Service Bu-
reau for the aid and instruction of
the farmer. Their latest acquisi-
tion is Professor Perry G.. Holden,
father and promoter of the idea of
the demonstration train, whose work
in Iowa as the head of the extern
sion department of the State College
of Iowa, Senator Cummings says,
has increased the wealth of the state
$50, 100000. Now his work instead
of being limited by the bounds of a
state will be nation wide, perhaps
international.
A farm department consisting of
a force of thirty agricultural experts
with headquarters at Atlanta has
been established by the Southern
Railroad. This force will work in
connection with the U. S. Agricul-
tural department, the farm schools,
agricultural colleges and state agri-
cultural departments, and bring to
the farmers the expert instruction
and aid he needs to make his work
more intelligent and increase his
product greatly in quantity and
quality. It is wonderful what
change the introduction of the dem
onstration farm has already wrought
in the south.
The Pennsylvania Railroad has
been working along the same lines
for some years and recently an in
terurban line out of Pittsburg has
an agricultural advisor
for the farmers along the route.
Railroads in the eastern Canadian
provinces have interested themselves
in the education of the farmer in
dairying and fruit farming. The re-
suit has been that they have doubled
the amount of freight handled in
that territory, the cheese exports
totaling nearly 100000, 900 from
Ontario alone.
The Chamber of Commerce of an
eastern city in connection with one
of the railroads is helping the farmers
of it's vicinity as well as the con-
sumers Of farm produce. They en-
ploy as an agricultural advisor, a
young man, bred and raised on a
farm, a graduate of Cornell, plain
practical fellow who easily makes
himself at home among the farmers
and who, when they ask it, gives
them sane practical advice, real
farm sense. He tramps over the
fields with them and in the most
effectual way, by actual study of
the problems on the ground, helps
to solve the questions On which his
advice is asked and incidentally
many other questions also.
These are only a few instances of
what is being done by other than
governmental agencies. Messrs De-
Sellem and Grassland are working
on a scheme for Benton county in
which it is proposed to unite all the