The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1914-01-28
COOPERATE SAYS
SECRETARY HOUSTON
Agricultural Head Tells Farmers
How To Get More Money For Their
Crops Urges Staple Products
BILL FOR STEEL MAIL CARS
Pending Appropriation Measure Calls
For 5000, 1000 To Be Used For FIX
periments-Life Habit OF Eels

periments-Life Habit Of Eels
From Congressman c.. Fl. Tavenner.
Washington, January 28-For
farmers: how to get more money for
your crops: Cooperate, standardize,
advertise.
That, in a nut shell, is the advise
of Secretary of Agriculture Hous-
ton, and is the result of ten months
of study on the part Of the newly
organized Bureau of Markets.
The government investigators
have received many valuable point
ers from the cooperative marketing
efforts of the fruit growers of south
ern California and elsewhere, and
the experts now believe that what
California has done with oranges,
and what Washington and Oregon
have done with apples, other sections
of the country can do with potatoes,
hams, and in, fact all standard farm
products. Every community has one
product which reaches perfection in
that locality. by intelligent CO.
operation among all the farmers of
the community that product can be-
come source of profit to all in the
opinion Of Secretary Houston.
'"The farmers must be induced in
particular communities to develop
staple products" said Mr.. Houston,
'to standardze, them, to prepare
them properly for market, to study
what market to reach at given
time, and the best and most econo-
mic method of shipping. Nothing
less than concerted action will suf-
flee. The individual farmer cannot
solve the problem.' He cannot suf-
ficiently control the problem of pro-
duction, or the machinery for mar
keting, or the transportation facil-
ities'
Steel Mail Cars.
Government owned steel railway
mail cars are in the way of becoming
an actually. The pending post Of
flee appropriation bill contains an
item of 100000 for building steel
mail cars for an experiment. This
sum will build about 1 5 cars AS it
is now the government pays SO much
rent to the railroads for the use of
cars often built Of wood that as a
business proposition it could we'll af-
ford to build for itself all the steel
cars needed for the service.
Life Habits of Eels
United States Fish Commissioner
Hugo M. Smith has been making a
study of the life habits Of the COM
mon eel. and in an article prepared
for the National Geographic Society
he shows that the eel is one Of the
strangest Of all fishes. Although cells
are found in inland streams some
times thousands of miles from salt
water, yet they were all spawned IN
the oceans, probably in the dark and
coundless depths of midocean, and in
reaching the fresh water sources
they have travelled thousands of
miles.
1t is probably according to Mr..
young larval eel is less than 1-25 of
spawn in water less than a mile deep.
The eggs at once rise to the surface
Of the ocean where they hatch The
young larval cells is less than 1-25 Of
an inch long when Matched. 1t floats
about the surface for year, in which
time it becomes a ribbon-like fish
three inches long, yet in that time
it eats nothing whatever. How it
lives and grows is a mystery.
In this larval period the young cells
drift 1000 miles or so. eventually
reaching the coasts and fresh water
They make their way upstream over
dams and other obstacles, and on
reaching headwaters remain until
full grown, when they begin their
journey to the sea again.