The twice-a-week Twin Falls times. (Twin Falls, Idaho) 1916-1918, 1917-05-08
REGULAR WORK IMPOSED ON ALL
WHO ARE FIGHTING ON THE
FRONT AGAINST GERMANS.
THOSE ON FURLOUGH MUST ALSO
DO A BIT"
English and Belgian Troops sect tie
the Habit" and Are Helping Raise
Spuds as Well as Gain on the Bat
tie Line.

WITH THE FRENCH ARMIES, May |
S.-The service of agriculture is now
one of the regular branches of the |
French army.
1t is just as much an integral part
of the French military machines as
a whole as is the infantry, the cavalry. /
the artillery, the engineers or the avia-
ton.
Military agriculture is one of the
latest developments of modern ware
fare along with such things as gas
makes, the rehearsing of battles be
fore they are fought and aerial tor
pedoes. While the present European !
conflict has demonstrated that war
must ever be destructive, and pos
sibly more destructive than ever be
fore, yet the constructive, conserva
tive basis on which the French seek
to conduct il has developed numerous
possibilities for lessening and repair
ing the destructiveness.
In a general way the object of this
service of agriculture is to keep the
farming in the entire war zone and
especially in the immediate vicinity of
the front lines up to its normal and
maximum productiveness. 1t is now as
much the duty of every soldier in the
French army to help in these agri-
cultural labors, as it is to fight, while
the army as a whole contributes not
only the farm laborers but also the
horses and even part of the impie-
ments necessary.
The agricultural work to be done
in the war zone divides itself into
three general classes. First of all
the extending of enough help to She
farmers still living in the zone to en-
able them to plant and harvest their
l fro
where the civil population has been
obliged to flee entirely and where the
farms are completely abandoned, the
army must take over all this ground
and cultivate it itself in precisely the
same manner as though the farmers
themselves were still there. Thirdly,
/ as fast as French soil is won back
from the Germans the agricultural
Service must undertake the restoring
of this ground to a state of fertility
and the planting of it in crops at the
earliest possible moment
Every general commanding on the
French front is required to divide his
portion of the war zone into sectors
each one comprising on an average
twenty to twenty-five villages or farm
ing communities. In addition to tho
general officers that are designated
for the administration of the agricui-
tural service an under officer, who is
chosen because of his agricultural fit
ness is assigned to each sector and
remains permanently in charge of the
agricultural work there, regardless Of
where his regiment may be moved
afterwards.
In the meantime the project of each
department in the war zone is re-
Quired to make out a list of all agri-
cultural work that needs to be done
together with the degree of urgency
! and place it at the disposition of the
military officer in charge of eact
sector. The project must also provide
the tools and the grain and seed fol
! sowing.
Entirely regardless of whether tn,
troops stationed in a given sector
are there for repOse or whether the,
are there for fighting, they must per
q form the agricultural labor that il
waiting to be done Likewise whel
\ troops are on the march. if the.
step in any sector, even for only TIVE
4 or three days they must participate il
farm labor under way.
\ When the troops move on they leav
4 a report with the permanent military
agricultural officer in charge showing
Il just what they have done so tina
when the next troops come along the
n can take up the work where the Oth
ers left off
y One and only one iron clad rule ha
been adopted by the military authori
II ties and that is that under no circum
s stances whatever must a militar
n troop. whatever its size may be, pass
b ing through a given sector wher
u there is agricultural work to be don'
81 leave that sector without the wor
being further advanced than when
81 came in.
u The army must furnish horses
n either from the cavalry. the artilleT
v or the supply trains whenever horse
q are needed. The mechanics attache
u to the army are also required to ASST.
"a the farmers in the shoeing of the
" horses and in the repairing OF the
= agricultural implements.
81 Not the least interesting phase
N this service is that it has been inco
n porated into the English and Belgia
n armies now fighting on French 50
~ in precisely the same manner. Ems
q lish TOmmies back of the SOmme al
81 now cultivating French fields wit
4 precisely the same ardOr as they al
~ fighting the "Boches'' few miles IA
II Their in advance. At the few poin
"a where Belgian contingents are station
"A ed on French soil the same syste
~ is in progress and as a consequen,
8 there is no place in all France I,
~ day where more men are being en-
~ ployed in agricultural pursuits tha
~ in that precise strip of territory with
" both the roar and the rage of the b