Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1914-08-12

like the banking OF tomorrow or the
next day. and so ARK other lines of
business; but farming is constantly
changing. and of all the vocations
there is none that requires more skill
and brains and that calls for more
| training. IL you are going to become
efficient.
The corn average for this country
for 10 years is 20 and a fraction BUSH
els to the acre-absutdly low. Under
proper training the boys of the farm
will go out and raise three or four
times as much, and do it readily.
The Lever Bill.
| THE Lever bill became a law on
May s of this year. 1t appropriates
| $4,000 year for each of the states
in the Union for farm advisers, and
this is added to by additional annual
appropriations until in a few years II
will amount to SS,00b, 900 per annum
from the federal government, and al
most an equal amount from the sew
eral states who have 10 make state APP
preparations in order to obtain the
benefit of the federal appropriation.
, 1t is the greatest piece of constructive
| legislation that has been enacted by
congress in so years.
THE national department of agri-
culture and the agricultural colleges
OF the states have stored up a vast
fund of scientific information, gather
ed during the last so years by students
and scientists; but it has remained
practically in cold storage all these
vars. The great need Of the nation is
to get this scientific information out
upon the farm and put IL to work.
Paper bulletins have failed to accom-
plish the purpose. The agricultural
interests of the country have paid for
this information in the form of taxes,
and they are entitled to the benefit of
it. The great question has been how
TO get the scientific data from the
| agricultural colleges 10 the farmer. No
way has ever been found so effective
efficient and successful as to get the
man who knows down on the ground
beside the man who wants to know,
and then the problem will be solved.
Organization THREE Years old.
THE National Soil Fertility league
was organized about three years ago
in the offices of John ]. Mitchell. pres
ident of the Illinois Trust & Savings
bank of Chicago, by few of US, in
Guiding Cyrus Mccormick, President
Ripley of the Santa Fe railroad and
others largely interested in the COM
mercial development of the country,
for the purpose of SECURING the legis
lation contained in the Lever bill. The
necessity for it was apparent, but It
required an organized movem ent to-
accomplish results The great COM
mercial enterprises OF the country got
/ hehipd tho Y,nnvaY,aaVf and bnva
tributed to it's success in various ways.
The public is beginning TO see tho
| importance of agriculture to our whole
| life, and II this country is to continue
to grow great and so on in the van
guard of nations, we must reconstruct
our haphazard system of farming and
put agriculture on b scientific basis.
The president of the great steel fac
tories does not undertake to conduct
his business without having at his
hand scientists who are experts in the
processes Of manufacturing steel. Why
should not the farmer have an expert
along his line conveniently located in
/ the community to whom he can go for
advice on the problems he meets on
the farm, whether 1t relates to the
soil. the fruit, or to stock on the farm
The farm adviser does not know it
all, but he is in touch with the agricul-
tural college of the state and with the
department Of agriculture at Wash
ington. anC he can in a very short
time secure for the farmer VINO wants
the information all the scientific data
| bearing on the subject, and show the
farmer how to apply 1t in practical
way to the conditions he seeks to
remedy.
The country that furnishes the food
supply win have the money. and 1t
will be in a position where its voice
can be heard in the council Of nations,
with far more influence than If 1t sim
ply had battleships to support It,"
Needed State Legislation.
Mr.. Gross had just returned from a
trip to the Council mesa orchards. He
said it was the best cared for and fin
est orchard he had ever seen. and he
had been in every state in the Union
but one, and in many foreign coun-
tries, He spoke of needed state leg
islation in order that the state may
receive the full bench of the appro-
priation of the Lever bill. The ad-
dress was most favorably commented
on by those present
Upon the conclusion OF Mr. Gross
address, H. w Hothbaum, farm ad-
wiser for Ada county, spoke briefly on
his work and the advancement of ag-
riculture in the valley. Judge d. w.
Van Hoesen of Cortland, NJ Y, presi-
dent of the Council Mesa Orchard
company, was called upon and spoke
in complimentary way of Idaho and
its climate o. o. Haga acted as
chairman of the meeting.