Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1915-08-11
FARMERS INSTITUTE.
Annual Institute Held at Brun-
son School. Good Attend
ance. Instructive Ad-
dresses.

, The Cleora community deserves
to rank as one of the most progress
, sive communities in the county. The
, farmers Of Cleora have caught the
quick-step of progress and have
forged ahead of many sections. Re-
J alizing last year that great benefit
, would be derived from holding q
. farmers institute, through the
efforts of small number of far
mers, with the cooperation of Coun-
ty Demonstration Agent P. N.
Lott, an institute was held at
Erunson school house. The practi-
cal addresses that were made by
men who have made a study of
, different phases of agriculture were
!, very helpful to many in the commu-
:. nifty who were eager for new ideas
and new methods.
Encouraged by the success of the
first institute, those who took the
initiative in holding the institute a
year ago decided to make 1t an an
nual occasion. The second annual
farmers institute of Cleora was
held at the Brunson school. house
last Thursday. Mr.. P. N. Lett pre-
sided.
The first speaker presented was
Prof. w. A. Barton of Clemson
college who was present last year
and who has also addressed farmers
at Edgefeld several times. He be-
gan by setting forth the advantages
to be gained through cooperation
on the part of farmers. particularly
in buying and selling. Prof. Barton
said farmers should not have much
to buy and that what they do buy
} should be purchased in large guam
titles at practically wholesale cost.
He stated that the producers receive
only about so or 55 cents for every
dollars worth of farm products. The
balance of the dollar goes into the
pockets of themidd dleSfIsn.
Prof. Barton stated that farmers
are now availing themselves of the
advantages of cooperation along
some lines, but do not real
ize it. He used the public school
to illustrate the advantages : of
cooperation. Parents would not
be able to emp oy teacher for their
children at home, making as many
teachers in a given community as
there are homes. But they can send
all of the children in the communl-
ty to one school and pay the expen-
ses of the school from common
fund. The same principle of COM
bining their interests can be ap-
piled by farmers in making their
purchases and in selling their prod
ucts. Prof. Barton said the people
J IF the South have not accomplished
, as much as the people of the West,
: as the farmers of the latter section
have been forced on account of un-
favorable climate to seize upon
every advantage that can be gained.
They have been benefited tremen-
dously through cooperative mar.
keting. He also stated that the peo-
pie of the North are more ingenious
than southern people. The record
shows that there are 600 inventors
in the North to every one in the
South. Necessity forces them to
adopt new ideas.
Prof. Barton referred at some
length to the enormous fertilizer
burden that cotton growers have
taken upon themselves. Ten Years
ago the farmers of South Carolina
used S6,OOO,OOo worth of fertilizers,
and in 1914 they used $31, ,oOo,0 900,
which shows that our soil has grown
less and less productive, the def
cheney being supplied by CONNER
cial fertilizers. When we take
more from the soil in any crop than
we return in some form of plant
food we are making an overdraft,
robbing nature, and sooner or later
the penalty will have to be paid.
The speaker said we can never
produce too much cotton. There
are yet uncivilized nations that are
naked and must ultimately be clad.
The cheapest clothing to be had is
made from cotton goods. The
trouble with our people is not that
thev make too much cotton, but
that they produce too little of the
other crops.
He referred to the two classes of
plants, the soil robbers and the soil
builders. ALI of the ordinary crops,
such as corn, cotton, wheat and
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