The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1916-06-30

& Won HARTEN
Offices over Palace Drug Store1 n
FARMERS HELP TO
GATHER STATISTICS
Agriculture and Stock Raising Meth
DDS Vastly Improved Thru
Aid of Science
WASHINGTON, d. C. - Nearly
10000 persons, largely successful
farmers, are now aiding the United
States department of agriculture by
furnishing information, demonstrate
ing the local usefulness of new meth
DDS, testing out theories, experiment
ing and reporting on conditions in
their districts-by helping, in short,
in almost every conceivable way to
increase the knowledge of the de-
partment and to place that know
ledge at the service of the people.
This army of volunteers receives no
pay from the government. Many Of
these co-operators are actuated sole
lily by wish to be of service to
their neighbors Others take part
in this work because of their own
keen interest in testing new methods,
or in trying out for themselves crops
either new to their own sections, or
imported from foreign countries thru
the departments plant explorers.
1t is estimated that at least one
farm out of every 20 is working in
some way with the department of
agriculture and thus has become a
center Of advanced agricultural in
! formation for it's community. In adj
dition to the farmers who work di-
rectly with the department of az
riculture, there are thousands OF
! others who render a similar valuable
service to the scientist and field work
fers of the state agricultural colleges
! and experiment stations.
Shows Change of Sentiment
With such large number of farm
ers willing to work with the depart.
ment and the colleges and test out
their recommendations, it is clear
! that significant change has taker
place from the day when the average
farmer was decided skeptical about
scientific agriculture and slow or un
willing to give attention to the rec
concentrations Of what many used tt
designate as "book farmers"
| The wide use made by the depart
ment of this large number of practi
cal farmers indicates clearly how er
roneous was the once prevalent ides
that agricultural scientists hell
themselves aloof and that the de
partment of agriculture consisted
mainly of college-trained men, whit
were far more at home in their of
fees or laboratories than on actua
farms. AS a matter of fact thu
scientific agriculturist today does no
attempt to evolve theories in the Sc
clusion of government building
1t is true he may develop ideas il
his laboratory, but before he Is read.
to advise farmers to adopt them h
tries them out in actual practice OF
/
large number of successful practi
cal farmers to give these ideas al
Independent test on some of thei
own acres.
! Farmers Advise Scientists
In many other cases the scientis
lgoes to the farmer both for hi
theory and practice. He studies ant
Ianalyzes the practice of hundreds o
thousands of successful farmers II
an endeavor to find the scientifi
basis or underlying principle of farm
ing methods which have, thru loni
years of practical experience, beel
found to be most successful for thei
farms and neighborhoods. Ere
quently the scientist finds in on
community certain farmers who ar
successful and others who are un
successful. He searches for the rea
sons for the success and failure o
the two groups, and then endeavor
tn make clear to the successful one
the scientific reason for their sue
Icess and to develop sound rule
which will enable the unsuccessful
) to apply to their own farms tn
methods employed by their prosper
Gus neighbors. In many cases, there
fore, the scientists recommendation
represents the consensus of opinio
of large number of successful graf
growers, truck raisers, dairymen o
other classes of farm managers.
OF the 100000 co-operators tn
Igreat majority are men who farm TO
a living A wide variety of other OF
equations is represented in the list
however, from the masters of mel
! chant vessels who take meteorolog
cal observations for the weathe
bureau to the college presidents VIII
aid in the educational extension wor
of the department or the pig clu
boys who supply their neighbor
with object lessons in the profitabl
raising of hogs.
Boys and Girls Clubs
: In the second class Of co-operatoI
are the thousands of farmers WHIT
under the supervision Of departmeI
specialists, are working out on thei
, own farms the methods Recommend