The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1912-06-10
SEE SUGAR BEET
LIVING COST KEY
Agriculture Experts Investigation
Abroad Basis for Prediction
New Era is Near

:
revolution that will be of vast benc
fit to consumers as well as the pro
ducers of food products, is the pre-
diction of Truman G. Palmer of thin
city who has spent the past ten year,
in the investigation Of agricultural,
methods in Europe and America
From Statistics which he has com
piled in the course of an investiga-
ton just concluded, showing results
achieved in the increase in crop pro-
duction on both sides OF the Atlantic
| Mr.. Palmer is convinced that an en-
tirely practicable means has been
| found of greatly increasing the out
put of all the staple crops OF the
| country In this conclusion he is
supported by DR. Harvey w. Wiley,
| Henry A Wallace of Iowa, Secretary
Wilson Of the Department of Agricul-
ture, and other experts who have
followed his work or have conducted
Investigations on this subject
There can be no question, says
creasing the yield of American acres
| is one OF the most important, ii not
the most important. before the coun-
Try today 1t is only necessary 70
observe the rate at which consump,
| ton is outstripping production aud
to note the steadily rising prices of
practically all food products to real
| ize that this is the case While this
question is only beginning to assume
serious proportions with us Europe
| has been forced 10 struggle with II
| for generations Although it would
be going too far 10 say that any
European country has disposed ri
the problem it is true that the more
northerly countries of the continent
have gone a long way in this direc
ton as the result OF a principle &C.
eidently discovered nearly century
ago | believe that the intelligent
application of this principle will do
as much for the people OF this cour-
try in enabling them to provide an
adequate food supply as 1t already
has done. say for Germany | refer
to scientific crop rotation IN conuec-
ton with the culture of the sugar
beet.
For years past practically all tho
countries of continental Europe tina
are able to grow sugar beets have
been encouraging the extension OF
this industry in all possible ways,
by the imposition OF heavy tariffs
on imported sugar, by direct bouu-
ties, by experiments to improve the
quality Of the beets and the seed
They have done this pa~tly because
sugar is a valuable crop for its d.
rect returns but chiefly because OF
its indirect benefits in increasing
the yield of all other crops grown in
rotation with 1t. AS result nf this
policy the WORKOUT soils Of
Europe are today producing twice a.
much per acre as are the compare
lively virgin lands of our own west
ern states
'In the past twenty-five years Ger
many by the persistent use Of the
sugar beet in rotation with othec
| crops has increased the average yield
Of her principal cereal crops by more
| than thirty-one bushels an acre, o"
more than the toal average produc-
| ton of the same crops in the United
States In the same period the
growth in the yie'd per acre Of the
principal crops of the United State
was as bushels per acre o. about
one-seyenth that achieved by tho
German farmer on soil that has been
cultivated for hundreds of years
we would be a poor-spirited peo-
pie If we were to admit that we are
unable to obtain as good results a
the German can, especially since
they have shown MS how, As mat
ter Of fact we are already accom-
plishing similar results on a small
scale and in a few sections Of the
from hundreds OF farmers through
out the states where the sugar beet
industry is already established show
| ing the results they have obtained
in the yield OF their other crops as .
| consequence OF beet growing. The
figures are startling they indicate
| that if all American farmers follow
ed the lead of their beet-rasing
brethren, the production of our fields
| would be increased over 100 per
cent Our crops in the five staples
would show an increased value Of
nearly $4,000, 100000 annually.
This stupendous sum may arouse
skepticism, but it is simply a deduc-
ton from cold figures
THE farmers who kept reports en-
abling them to furnish the required
information were all high-class med
else they would not have kept rec
ords of their crops Even before thee
cultivated sugar beets, their felfs
were producing yearly 30 per GER.
more wheat per acre than those ol
the average farmer, so per cent NOR
corn, , per cent more oats, 60 per
cent more barley and so per cent
more potatoes.
THE sugar beet IL in itself a val.
liable crop, in addition to its aid L
the productivity of the farm gener
lally MANY beet farmers rpDort