Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1915-04-30


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YWaMY> ASHINGToN.-For nearly two years
X there has been attempt the
AMl part Of the agricultural department
~ TO spread useful agricultural and
@W W \ household information among the
M people through the medium OF the
press of the country The attempt
has been highly successful as per
haps the readers OF newspapers do
not need to be told. for the interesting and and at
times compelling writings of the service men have
been before them from day to day
In the department of agriculture there is an OF.
nee OF Information which was created in June, 1913
Before its establishment there had been no active
effort to give directly to the people the results OF
the departments work. Walter H. Page at pres
ent the American ambassador to Great Britain said
on this subject OF getting agricultural information
TO the people that the department Had been reser
voiring an enormous mass of information collected
with the peoples money and which the people were
entitled to get"
In the past there were issued at frequent inter.
walls publications largely in bulletin form but with
the exception Of more or less perfunctory notices OF
their appearances comparatively little was done to
make the public aware that they were at its dis.
posal One OF the first things that the Office OF IN.
formation did. therefore was to devotion a svstem
Dy which absolutely accurate newspaper stories
based on the material contained in these buIletins
could be sent out to such newspaper which n
seemed reasonable to expect from the nature of the
various subjects. would be interested In publishing
them for the sake Of their readers This work sim
forms large part of the activities of the office
Some time ago there a criticism of what Vere
called the publicity efforts OF the department of agr
culture The critics did not understand AZ All the
nature of the work which was being done Tbov
seemed to think that press agency had been 60
tabiished simply for the purpose of booming tba
activities of the agricultural department with vavr
perhaps, as some of the critics may have tbouybt
OF saying something kindly occasionally abont tha
ohlciais OF government concerned in the work
criticism passed quickly for congress was told IN
letter to Speaker Champ Clark of the house NJ ron
resentatives Of Just what the information work I,
the department consisted. and a sharp line yos
drawn between the nature Of the information which
was being sent out and the usual stun which IL
turned out by publicity bureau which Ia not %
all necessarily an information bureau
In the letter to the speaker of the house the sao
rotary Of agriculture said this.
The nation is spending through the depart.
ment many millions Of dollars in acquiring agri
cultural information II would be little short of
criminal to spend millions OF dollars to acquire
information and not to use every possible eff
cient agency available for placing II at the dis
posal OF the people promptly as possible 1t
Is the purpose of the office 1.-THE office of informa
toni, with as little delay as possible through
every proper medium, to give the knowledge
which the department possesses as the result OF
investigations and field work to all the people
who desire 1t or should have it. The Office un.
dertakes to deal solely with facts, with sugges
lions of remedies. and of methods of applying
them in every field Of agriculture"
Prior to the time that the office Of information
was created nearly all the printed matter con-
veying information in the form of bulletins
and circulars and the issues were not very vol.
luminous. Frequently a great deal of time was
required finally to prepare the bulletin. to print
1t and to distribute it. 1t was Inevitable for
many reasons that these bulletins could not
reach the great mass of the people who would
be Interested in them. Many farmers did not
know that the service was at their disposal
They knew nothing about the bulletins or which
ones of them would be helpful to them, nor did
the know how to secure them. Moreover the
publications. largely were technical, diff
hctlt to interpret. to understand and to apply
enc of the particular duties of the depart
melt office of information is to put the matter
which comes from the different bureaus in tech
meal or scientific form into language which lay
resders can understand. II seemed easier and
better to the department officials that the office
of information should choose the matter OF spe.
cai value to particular districts sections of
the Union and to have II distributed to such sec.
tioAs quickly 1t had been found that delay In
isaIing the official printed bulletins and In mall
ing them often defeated the ends OF real service
In case of the appearance in some district of an
insect plague or Of disease that menaced the
stock quick action, of course IL was realized,
wa necessary to accomplish results
the inauguration OF the service OF information
as IT Is at present carried out necessitated most
efficient mailing system which would enable the
ONCE 10 circulate Ms material among those
classes of publications and in those sections of
this country which could derive benefit from IT,
and at the same time avoid distribution that
void be expensive to the government and use
less to the newspapers and. II they should pub
lisi IT, to their readers.
Now there is mailing system Installed and
unger operation by the division Of publication
ana by means of IT the publications of the coun-
try are classified geographically and by their
character. Now IL IL possible to transmit a
/ n all the in he
to all the newspapers In any city or group Of
cities to all the farm publications in the country
or in any state. emitting the general newspapers
! to the trade papers of any one or all OF the
trades, to daily newspapers In big cities alone
or to those in small county seats alOne-in short
practically any desired combination of publica-
tions is possible.