The Oklahoma City times. [volume] (Oklahoma City, Okla.) 1908-1984, 1915-02-23
TOP ROOM ON THE FARM

be more top room the farm than any other bust
ness in the land today According to the many
reports Of agencies working 10 ascertain Just what
aik the country they find farm life Just full OF op
portunities and suffering for the want Of efficient
farm management and the lack Of organization for
business. The average earning capacity OF farms
as a whole Is low Not one farm In fifty Is making
n net income uf five percent ON It's total valuation
according to their findings lneftcicncy In this
case Is taken o mean any one or more OF n nun
drcd different things which are being neglected or
poorly handled and failing TO see opportunities
which lie open before us on every hand. 1t seems
TO bC all top on most Ot our firms when We
read the reports of the Bureau Of Enrm Manage
ment and comments from other commissions which
have been hunting for the key to country cOnd
tOns But the real KEY they have either failed or re-
fused to find. the right Kind Of schools for coun
try children. There Is no top room TO the mum who
ram not see H. So In reality this top room ON the
farm IL there only tO the man whose mental eye
sight has been trained 10 see It, | have been out
with folks who had some unfavorable comment to
make about every fNrm home We passed. lhCy
were continually wondering why this or that had
not been done ON farm Ike that In nearly every
case the suggestion was good and would have hnd
"A practical value in raising the earning capacity
Of the farm Very likely II the farmer were Qucs-
toned he would ngrcc and be mighty glad 10 see
II come true. Eut he simply had not seen 1t. You
could not call II Il fault Of his. The chances are
that II the truth wns known about this man ana his
farm that he had made quite stretch Of progress
compared with what he had grown up with he had
covered ms much ground Hs some who get their
names In the papers as bowling successes. II IS
almost certain that he had made and occupied quite
lot Of top room" IN his time on that farm. This
Is especially true Of the hOmcsteadcr In the west
He was supposed to be n man who had never owned
n farm before or nj least did not own one nt That
time This very inct carried with It. In ninety per.
cent OF the cases, very little education and prar-
ti'Hly 10 previous training ~ the renl manage
mont Of "A furm il "A TUp those luuOpU with
very little m1ary. Their chief capital consisted
NJ practical courage aud enforced economy. They
have worked and saved and won home. Yet the
farm management expert comes along md calls him
failure unl figures It ont To him and proves II.
They take the cost " his improvements the ynlur
OF his equipment ana the value ~ his farm and
comparing 1t with highest money income show him
beyond dunlt that he Is actually losing money
every year. This furmcr may have good tenms and
tools, be out NJ debit md have reared large fam.
ily aud housed them better than he wns ana sent
them to n better school than he ever attended yet
when judged b. standard which town people have
set up for him be- Is not only nOnprogrCsSiyc but Is
considered business failure | know II Is not true
| have had Some experience with such life and
! know tlnrr Is progress IN It. Such farmer and
thousands OF others Of the same kind are the renl
foundations fOr irOress It's all right to have more
top room pointed out to us but 1t is both unkind
and uufuir to advertise ~ as poor managers ana
soil robbers and also blame NJ because business iS
not good I'm town But 10 take everything In the
good way I'm which II IL intended and be honest
with ourselves there undoubtedly II lots OF top
room on the farm-On all of our farms-and there
will continue to he for many years vet to come. As
soon what can Is occupied, more Will ar
pear. | am sure that opportunities as big as our
abilities are lying all round us on the farm. Just
TO the extent which we improve the small Opportun
ties which can now see Will our abilities grow
TO and to handle the bigger opportunities which
will surely come This TX the history OF individual
progress on the farm anywhere you can find It.
Let's look for the top room on our own farm. II iS
there See what would best nj I'm to I'LL H. II may
he a place especially prepared for some OF this live
stock On the farm that We have been hearing so
much about Maybe II is Just the place where farm
dalryng will pay. There may be room for a pure
bred livestock farm Maybe It's hogs, maybe It's
beef cattle There may be more room for home
garden for chickens. DO not thiuk that the top
can only be filled with big things We are
all given 10 the habit OF beginning and ending
with things which can reach but few farms. | am
satisfied that many man In the cotton belt can
find his opportunity and his ability fairly well
matched for this year at least In doing all he can
to make his farm feed his family The Farm Jour.
nal offers this slogan for everybody to remember
and make use Of Make Oklahoma farms feed Ok
lahOma folks"
BOYS AND GIRLS Clubs
There Is no movement which may mean more
TO Oklahoma farm life than the good which may
grow out Of the boys and girls club work
under the supervision Of the extension department
Of the oklahoma A. & NJ College. The corn, kafir
cotton and pig clubs for the boys and the canning,
better bread and poultry clubs for the girls II is
an effort to do for these school children what the
rural school thus far has refused and still fails 10
do. Outside " the places where the man or woman
agent working In the county comes In contact with
the boy or girl the whole thing IL done after the
fashion of correspondence school But II II edu-
CatiOnal In the most practical sense. II tends to
take the production " crops aud the feeding OF pigs
out Of the regular routine NJ duh daily labors rs
the average fnrm boy has heretofore regarded II,
and mnke VI II an interesting problem for him to
watch and work out as the season progresses II
helps the girl TO become n real working and useful
pnrt ~ farm home machinery. Members In any Of
the clubs call for the following OF details the
keeping ~ dates and expense accounts and In watch
ing for results and seeing just what they are
whether they fulfl expectations not Many com
parsOns are made and reasons sought 10 Justify
this or that difference At the end Of u year any
active club member will be seeing things worth
while where before they had not been seeing any-
thing.
GROwNUPS CAN AFFORD TO HELP
Any hoy or girl who enters one " these contests
aud palnstnklngly performs the work reading the
instructions aud other things he will have read aud
learned because Of being In the contest; will IN
reality be- taking n short course In the study Of
the business of farming and hompife II develops
the very faculty which years Of history and geog
ruphy In the school room have failed 10 do-lndi
vdual effort toward definite purpose For n
certain period " time they given q definite pur
pOsc-a problem all their own. To think II over
and work II out creates In the child the first step
I'm success, the sense of individual responsibility
doubt II there Is any one thing which viii help
YOU SO much 10 see the real stuff "A hoy or girl N
made Of MS TO watch one ~ them as he lives faith
fully ny 10 the rules OF one Of these contests Not