The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-06-01
LONG DROUGH71N GEORGIA CAUSES
 SOME UNEAS|NESS
Situation Is by No Means Hopeless, However, and Crops May Aver
 age Up We'll
By ROBERT MORAN

Atlanta, May 31.-(Special )-Whie crop situations in Georgia are in rather a de- plorable state as the result of long con ture J. D. Price does not consider them by any means hopeless
 There have been bad seasons in Georgia before, and yet this state has never known such a thing as a crop failure. There have been lean years and fat years, and yet with it all Georgia has always had good average crops.
 Commissioner Price thinks the Georgia crops will respond quickly as soon as there is rain. and this cannot now be long delayed There have been slight local rains In some sections, but not enough to do any real good. What is needed is a general rain all over the state, and it will take good two-day rain to get things in the right shape.
 The department of agriculture deviated little from its usual custom this year in making its spring crop report, which is just out. The deviation consists prin- cipally in emitting cotton from the re- port. Practically nothing is said in it about the cotton crop, and this was done for the reason that the department has
 
 ting out complete and accurate report on this subject.
 Good Reports Made
 The United States department of agri- culture. under its new system, is getting out such complete, fair and accurate re- ports, that it is now considered unnec- cessary for the department to undertake to supply reports on this subject, unless 1t had the funds available for doing the work equally well with the national de- partment.
 state department of agriculture with any funds for the purpose of making crop re- ports, and 1t has to rely upon the volun- tary work of such correspondents as it can secure in the various counties of the. state. It is barely able to get moneT enough to meet the incidental expenses of making these reports.
 The state department haS,fhoua,,.r sa- cured some interesting.-data relative to other Georgia crops which if has inst p,,t ne replies received from 12l ' VI counties indicate that the corn crop has. so far, done comparatively well in all sections. The only complaint is of the corn weevil, which did no damage in north Georgia, but got in quite a bit of bad work in the southern section of the state.
 The question was asked as to what counties will have to buy feedstuffs this year and what will not There were 110 counties replying to the ques- tion, of which 63 will have to buy feeds while AT will not. The percentage of those counties which are making all of their own feedstuffs is growing larger every year.
 Thirty-three counties reported that the general grain crop this year Is ,i,.lt- fa1 fhat f i. npl ly fair, while 65 reported that it is poor and in some cases almost a complete failure, due to the long drouth. Fifty five counties have about the same acreage in grain as last year, while 40 counties show an increase and only nine a decrease. Twenty nine counties sell more or less grain in average years, over and above what they use for them selves; Il sell some occasionally, while so counties sell none at all
 In all counties some pea vine hay IS grown, and in a few it is grown exten- sively. Seventy five counties use all their pea vine hay for farm purposes, 24 sell small quantities and Is sell quite little bit of it. All the hay sold is handled through local merchants or sold directly to neighboring farms. The price received for the hay is from SIP to $50 per ton, the highest price being paid in south Georgia. The only com plaint made about the pea vine hay is that in some instances it seems to be imperfectly cured, but as a general rule the purchasers of 1t seem to be pertty well satifed. Indications are that better marketing facilities would promote haymaking in Georgia.
 Fifty-one counties plant some peas, velvet beans or ground peas in the corn. This practice is approved in most of the counties of the state. Ground peas for hog feed are planted extensive l ly in 27 counties. Forty-fve counties pay considerable attention to hog rais- | ing, 46 raise some and 20 raise very I few. Hog cholera gives considerable trouble in AS counties; peridical trou- ble in 36 and in 34 counties there Is very 1 little of 1t.