Bridgeton pioneer., 1916-12-07

TO FARMERS
News That rlereIy Makes the City
Man Take an Umbrella May Re-
suit in Strenuous Crop Protect
ing Operations on the Farm or
Ranch.

psople reading the weather foreea ats
In their morning papers realize the
Importance warning of rain. snow
frost, or high winds may have for the
farmer. fruit grower, or stock raiser
in the country. The message which
causes the city man merely to debate
whether he shall carry an umbrella
or take his overcoat, when tele-
graphed to country points may be tel
ephoned instantly from farmer to
farmer as news of the greatest agri-
cultural Importance. Such a message
over the phone may cause the entire
countryside to become a scene of in
tensive activity. There is a rush to
nay or grain fields to get in the crop
or, IL the spring, work like beavers
covering young seedlings in the truck
gardens with paper or other protec-
'lon ifom frost, or preparing to build
fires Or light smudges in orchards. On
ranches every available worker NAV
be dispatched to herd in sheep or
stock to protect them from storms. To
them The message, which in the city
may have foretold only light personal
discomfort, carries tidings of condi-
tons which may mean heavy none
tary losses to the unprepared farm or
ranch.
On the other hand forecast pre-
dieting good or hot weather for three
or four days to come may send thou
sands of reapers into the fields to
take advantage of favorable weather.
and, as if by magic, change the land
scape from one of waving grain or
grass into scene of haycocks, or
wheat sheayes
The Z. S. Weather Bureau has per
fected special systems and facilities
for obtaining and disseminating adj
vance weather new adapted to the
protection Of growers of many spe-
cial crops in different sections of the
country. In connection with the
weather reports received from it's 200
stations and from 4,500 other obserya-
ton points, the bureau has estab-
lished large number of special sta
tions for observing crop weather con-
ditions N the corn, wheat, cotton. SUI
gar, rice, and cattle raising districts.
The object of this service is to furnish
the growers of each OF these crops
throughout the summer with informa-.
ton that will enable them to handle
the crops to best advantage. The
corn and wheat region service covers.
for example, the Is principal grain
States, in which it maintains l region
center, l3 district centers, and 174
special stations, from which tele-
grams are received daily, and reports
disseminated. Daily bulletins show
ing the temperature and rainfall at
these stations are published at Is diff
ferent points and distributed to ap-
proximately 2.775 different people.
Similar services dealing with cotton
weather conditions cover the II prin-
cipal cotton States and consist of data
gathered in 13 center through It's
special stations. This service was ex-
tended during the spring of 1916 to
the new cotton-growing district inl
western Texas and other uncovered
fields. The sugar and rice region SER
vice heretofore has supplied weather
information to the rice growers of Tex
as and Louisiana and the sugar grow
ers throughout the Southern States.
1t is expected that a special rice SER
vice will be inaugurated in Arkansas.
The special tobacco service is car
r1ed on in the States of Connecticut
and Wisconsin through centers and
IA stations. Extension is contemplat-
ed to give more complete special
tobacco service in important tobacco
districts in western Kentucky. The
crop weather service is particularly
important, to alfalfa growers in all
the western States and special three
or four-day forecasts are issued
throughout the season to alfalfa har-
vesters Temperature forecasts are
issued in the same way in connection
with the harvesting of alfalfa seed,
which is dependent on weather condi-
tions.
Special Fruit Region Service