The Canon City record with which is consolidated the Canon City cannon., 1913-02-20

What Is the growers worst enemy:
The whole round OF the farmers
life is running fight against enemies
seen and unseen. Every sowing.
every planting. is an enlistment for
sharp. active service against a horde
OF hostile forces: every profitable
harvest is a victor's portion Of the
fruits OF conquest
Science has trained the microscope
on some Of the enemies and forced
them into the open. and chemistry has
followed up this coup by finding an
effective firing range on these hostiles
once ambushed in their own invisible
ity. After all. though. the microscope
Of the scientist and the retort Of the
chemist seem to have left this vital
problem still nnsolved- The big ques-
tion-what r. the farmers worst enc
my.-yet remains without a conelus-
I've answer.
Recently put this question to one
of the shrewdest and most successful
fruit-growers In America-and to
draw him out l added.
lis II frost. food or Drought! Is II
weeds, Is 1t animal disease. plan;
disease or insect pests, or. as some
say. is It the oppressive rniddieman.'
NO." he answered after n reflective
pause: 1T Isn't the codiing moth or
the chinchbug. the smut or the cut
worm. the c.ttls tick or hog cholera.
the un;Imsiy frost or the ~lfhcring
drought. or even the middleman that
costs the farmer-at least my kind
OF farmer-the heaviest tolls In un-
realized rewards II isn't any kind Of
bug that can be spotted with a micro
scope or banished with sprayer. The
worst enemy OF the farmers OF Amer
Ica ls the crooked farmer Who puts out
his product under false pretenses and
thinks that his shortsighted tricks are
putting him ahead In the game He
fouls the whole nest for himself and
every man In his particular line OF
production
A Reputation for Qsality.
Next in rank to this man as an
enemy To his kind Is the farmer who
is too ignorant of markets. Of stand
ards and OF up-to-date business prac-
tice TO put up n really honest pack
of anything. Take apple-growing. for
example. There are states in which
this industry ought to be Mt Its best
because OF superior natural advant-
ages, but whore II has been given n
black eye. a knockout blow. by the
crooked and the ignorant practices
OF growers who have been numerous
and persistent enough to foul that
states reputation in the big general
market. Maybe this sounds sensa-
tionai. but you keep your eyes open.
dig down into the situation and see
what you find. know it's much more
popular-sspecialiy ut growers con-
vcntions and farmers institutes-,o
pound the commission merchant and
call them robbers. good many Of
them are. and great many more Of
them are the Victims Of a maiformed
and unstandardixcd selling system
that makes exact honesty mighty
difficult practice. But dishonesty out
side the ranks can never do quite
the harm that crookcdness right in
ones own camp does. I offer this as
plain business observation. not as
a moral text. The grower who puts
up q crooked pack or the one who.
from Ignorance or shitflessness. puts
up = shoddy pack. is more eifectuai
enemy to tho whole body OF growers
than tho dishonest and greedy middle
man. Personally regard these men
a. really tho worst enemies Of the
whole farming fraternity; but don't
take my word for the damage thens
growers do-jnst dig
aho~t : III ana sattssy yeerssak'