Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-02-05
MANY Benefited;
FEW REALIZE IT
Farmers Institutes Doing More
Good Than They Are Given
Credit for.
DISTRICT DIRECTOR SAYS
Roads and Bridges and Dairyins Dis
cussed at Afternoon Session
at Milan.

at Milan.
! Yesterday afternoon at the count.
! farmers institute addresses wer'
given on roads and bridges and OF
: dairying. Prior to the beginning o
the regular program w. II. Ashdowr
: of Port Byron, director of farmers IN
stitutes for this congressional district
spoke briefly. He said thai while the
effect of the institutes is felt by al
they are realized by few. There should
! be more such meetings, one every
month during the winter somewhere
in the county. He invited his hearers
10 attend the state institute which
will be held at Galesburg Feb. II. Is
and 10. Seldom will farmers of this
county have such a good opportunity
to share the benefits of the state
meeting, Galesburg being more con
venient of access than most of the
cities where they are usually held.
a. H. Hunter from the Office of the
state highway engineer gave a gen
eral discussion OF the road and bridge
problem. He described experiments
made by his department with various
types of bridges which resulted in the
adoption of reinforced concrete con-
struction for all where spans are not
more than 60 feet long, and heavy
steel construction with concrete floors
for the longer spans. Creosote treated
wooden floors vii last up to 80 years
where the travel is light
Type Depends on Use.
Various types of hard roads were
described. Concrete, while ideal for
automobile traffic. cuts UP and is too
hard and unyielding for horses.
Macadam, while better for horse
drawn vehicles, is ruined in a short
time by automobiles. An ideal road
crete strip in the center and macadam
or gravel on the sides and this type
has been experimental with lately by
the state engineer. Owing to the COS.
of hard roads, however, there is LS
prospect of permanently improving
more than 10 or 20 percent of the
of the state during the next
decade or two. Therefore the thing
10 do is TO pay mere attention to the
dirt roads
The first consideration is drainage.
Water must be kept off the surface
by keeping a good crown and with
open or tile bitches at the side. The
lrag must be used consistently. Mr..
Hunter said it is up to the highway
for the counties TO
work with the commissioners in the /
ownship and devise a plan for the |
roper use of the drag.
Under the Tice law Rock Island /
county pays $3.50 of the $7,153 which !
s turned over TO the county for a two 1
ear period on condition that the |
ounty appropriate an equal sum for ,
lard roads. Thus the county raises I
1873 of the s14,306 which will he
vailable if the terms are met. This
9.Ss33 is approximately only one cent
or each acre of land in the county, an
tax.
The speaker also described the pro-
ess by which a township may abolish
he three commissioners and substi-
ute single official for them.
Practical Dairyman Heard.
Charles Foss, dairyman at Cedar
lille, a small town near Freeport, was
he speaker who discussed dairying.
lis afternoon address was devoted
argely 20 the performance of indi-
idual animals and the value of breed
lg in building up a herd. The COW,
e said, Is the market to which the
airy sells his farm produce. If she is
OF good COW she causes him loss |
nd II good she brings a profit The {
My way TO tell whether she is good CT !
COR is TO weigh and test the milk. {
ne cannot tell by outward appear
noes. Appearances are often abso- :
tely unreliable and the experienced d
aryman is but little better prepared .
} judge on this ground than the anna
iur.
Experiments have been made by
e state university with herds ali \
Ier the state which show that only a
,out one-fourth of the dairy COWS in ,
e state are actually yielding their
yners sufficient profit to warrant the
vestment and the outlay in feed and },
Dor.
Mr.. Foss tol d of the remarkable sue
SIS he met with in building up his Ii
I'D. A dozen years ago he was pur a
ing Il haphazsrd method common e
nong dairymen. Then he began TO
pertinent and finally to improve. He +
d the cooperation of the state uni
rsity, which used his herd 10 make
rtain tests. and the result was sur =
isinG. In six or eight years he had =
pre- than doubled the average por- ;,
ction OF milk and butter fat from a