The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-03-05
Experts Emphazized Need at
Meeting of County
Association
COOPERATION SURE
TO BRING RESULTS
Government Representative Urges
Standardization of Products - Work
Of County Agent Sweeton Commended
Outside Labor Needed.

I
Outside Labor Needed.
The afternoon session of the meeting
Of the Windham County Agricultural
association in the Brooks House par
Tors Yesterday was productive of some
highly entertaining and very instruc-
/ tive discussion Of the farm problems
Of Vermont by L. g. Dodge of Wash
lngton. assistant in the office Of farm
management of the Department of
I Agriculturc; L. 5. Brigham of St. Al
bans commissioner Of agriculture of
Nermont. and President John VI.
/ Thomas Of Middlebury college.
4 It developed Turing the two hours of
( dIseusSion Of the agricultural problem
that IN the opinion Of the exparts the
/ things necessary to meet this problem
are an increase n education along agri-
cultural lines. more practical employ
fHent of this education, which will in-
clnde Il moro economical administration
| OF farm affairs. and sending outside the
state for suitable labor to work the
farms under system of good pay with
possible share in the profits of the
4 farm and always with the chance of
/ becoming themselves farmers That
Vermont under certain conditions
which are up TO the farmers, is capable
of feeding its inhabitants and then ex-
porting 80 millions Of agricultural pro-
duets was the publicly expressed opin-
ion Of Commissioner Brigham.
Government Expert Speaks.
Chairman A. y Dunklee spoke at
some length. in calling the afternoon
session TO order, and introduced l.. G.
Dodge as the first of the speakers. Mr.
Dodge discussed at some length +La
general economic conditions of the
country and declared that the economic
mlsbalance that had prevailed for so
years or more is gradually being over
come and that the farmer, in some in
stances is now getting from the farms
GAY wages and the interest on his
investment. Illustrating this point. he
saId that rs dairy farms in New
: Hampshire were made the subjects of
a searching inquiry and the average
showed that each farmer was receiving
about $366 annually as wages for his
own personal labor above ; per cent on
has investment. The best farmer of
TINS LOT was averaging $4,000 a wear.
but the loo poorest of the 42S were not
getting enough from their farms and
, labor 70 pay the interest on their in
yestments
Producing economically. he said. is
turning ont a product at the lowest
possible cost per unit, and to do this
the plant and energy of machinery. ami
mails and human labor must be utilized
All OF the time il costs inst as much
/ to carry horses and men who are EN-
Ployed only 100 davs in wear as il
does 70 carry them when they work
/ antageously 800 days each wear. To
( accomplish this latter requires that the
! farm work and crops should be so ar
G ranged that there is always some sort
: Of work in season for men and teams
The local problem is TO select such
crops and arrange work in such manner
that the labor may be kept employed
the year round.
Merchants Should Not Worry.
{ Business men should have no reason
70 worry because farmers are getting
together for their own betterment. 1t
n means, II they purchase comparatively
5 a few Of the raw materials. that thev
Y have saved some money that will be
5 promptly spent with the local mer-
e chants for articles they never other
Is wise would have purchased. In this
:. connection he pointed out that much
:. ot this cooperative buying might be
4 done on commission by local merchant
= WHO for very small margin would be
{. glad 70 purchase if, knowing that a
( sight draft was in the bank awaiting
the delivery of a commodity he would
not have to handle
(. He urged in the matter of farmers
seeking a market for some special PRO
g. duet, such as maple sugar, that they
4 get together and standardize the pro
. duet and have IL inspected in order
II that il might be more valuable by rea-
10 son Of the assurance to the purchaser
n that i would be always of a certain
10 quality.
4 Agent Sweetons Good Work
The slumberng knowledge that
: Brattleboro may sometime have fed
erat building was awakened with a
start when Mr.. Dodge said that his de
Dartment would recommend that the
county agent be provided in such Z
building with two suitable rooms and
r IN this connection suggested that il
IL the meantime the association would finC
r II advantageous to provide him will
eT more suitable quarters than he now has
ne in the office of the town clerk.
st He said that County Agent SweetoI
II in the eight and one-third months h,
ne had been with the association had hi
: q bigger pace with his farm calls thar
h any other agent in the state with on,
as execution and that exception had