The Tupelo journal., 1915-11-26
AN OPEN LETTER.
Tupelo, Miss, November 10th, 1915.


Tupelo, Miss, November 10th, 1915.
Mr.. F. L. Kncannon,
Editor Tupelo Journal, City.
Dear Mr.. Kincannon:
give you below a letter received from Mr.. Bradford Knapp,
Chief of the Office of Extension Work in the South in the United
States Department of Agriculture. The suggestions offered by
him are SO timely for this section at this time that would be glad
indeed if you would give same publication that they may reach the
business men and farmers of this county.
Yours very truly,
S. j. HIGH, Chairman,
Lee County Progressive League.
Washington, Z. c., October T. 1915.
To the Bankers, Business Men and Farmers IN Cotton lerrltory:-
The good results obtained in the South through increased at
tenton to supporting the people upon the land should not o. LOST
all tn Re a ta S1ptE al ae 4 u nSafo Farminp, and a ""Self-Sustain-
ing Agriculture than ever before in the history OF the last forty
With the price of cotton going up. are you, Mr.. Banker, Mr..
Business Man and Mr.. Farmer, going back to the old way? The
history of the agriculture of the South has been a history OF lean
short crops and high prices are almost invariably followed by big
crops and nd l0 %Td Rf1e sSstem II a We c Heen P tSe boat f"f fr 9mn n rocRing e. r
entire agriculture of the cotton belt has been a gamble. There
Gus inning people because of the uncertainty, although cotton is
one o the greatest of cash crops.
or are you going to take a chance? Now is the time to decide, If
you gamble on on the price GS of Of GOTTEN "f t%a you a"ri ta u a Gn fo1ces Il jaS yof fall H01 Vow
will take no chance; Here is the program in a nutshell the title
of which is Safe Farming
First~Produce a home garden for every family on the farm,
the year round, paving special attention to a fPf OF 1 1rish % or . sweet
Where feasible, have a patch OF sorghum or other cane to produce
syrup for the family.
Second-Produce the corn necessary to support all OF the pe0-
pie on the farm and the livestock, with absolute safety.
Third -PrOduce the necessary oats and other small grain to
supplement- the corn as food. Pay attention to winter grazing.
Fourth Produce hay and forage from some forage crop, suf-
fcient to supply all of the livestock on the farm. Use legumes
such as clover, cowpeas, velvet beans, soy beans and alfalfa for
the production of hay and to enrich the soil with nitrogen and
humuS.
Fifth Produce the meat necessary to supply the people, through
increased attention to poultry and hogs, especially. Plan to grad
uaHy increase the number of cattle and other livestock so as to
have a sufficient number to consume the waste products of the
farm and make the waste lands productive.
Sixth-After all of these things have been amply provided for,
produce cotton for the market.
If this course is pursued the farmer will prosper whether cot
ton be Is cents or 6 cents. If cotton is 6 cents the farmer will be
able to live; if tis Is cents there will be more profit in his cotton
crop. in the long run, than there would be f he neglected the living
Mr.. Business Man and Mr.. Farmer, do you want the South to
prosper permanently? If so, lend your influence to this great
problem of FATE Farming A campaign will be carried on in
the various States during the winter and spring centering around
the various lines of this program. Lend your aid and assistance
to us in this campaign as you did last year.
Mr.. Banker and Mr.. Business Man, you want to pursue safe
business methods! Won't you lend your influence to making the
farming method of the South a safe business proposition? The
Extension forces in every State, conducted by cooperation between
your State College of Agriculture and the United States Depart
ment of Agriculture and with County Agents in most counties, are
your help? Write the Extension Division of your Agricultural
College, or this Department, and bulletins will be sent you cover
ing all the subjects mentioned in this letter, and the plan of work
will be explained.
Not Safety First" but Safe Farming Always"
Yours very truly,
BRADFORD KNAPP, Chief,
Office of Extension Work in the South.