The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1917-04-12


this morning, Henry P. Robbins,
formerly a country newspaper
editor, but now editorial writer
on the Globe Democrat, declared
that Missouri farming conditions
cannot be greatly changed merely
through the making Of speeches
or the circulation, of literature.
"You may talk with the
tongues Of men and Of angels, !"
said Robbins, "but you cannot
persuade the average farmer to
change the methods he and his
neighbors have long used unless
you show him. You talk Of in
tensive farming and he CONSTITUTES
i it expensive. He thinks it is hot
house farming, costing more than
the products are worth. Not till
he finds John Smith, his neigh
Dor or Johns boy, living on
farm whose record he personally
knows, raising, bigger crops than
were ever raised there before
without material increase Of cost,
will he feel like giving agricultur-
al innovations a trial.
emo matter how much the gov
eminent, the state and the coun-
ty may try to do for better farm
ing, individual interest must be
aroused to make their efforts
count. That is what a live, intel
ligent commercial club can do.
Instead of holding banquets
where the glories of the future
metropolis are pictured by pipe
dreamers or raising bonuses for
imaginary railways or to give ad-
ventures another chance to fail
with factories at expense Of the
town boosters, a small towns
commercial club should strive to
develop the full possibilities Of
the farms around it. This has
been done in many counties in tho
United States. / cite one example
only, Pittsburg county, Okla,
where I once lived. It was the
chief mining county of the state,
but was generally thought worth
less for farming. Inside of five
years after the commercial clubs.
the merchants, the banks, the
school teachers and the newspa-
pers began operating for sagricul-
tural development the county
was capturing farm prizes over
all corners at the state fair and its
yields of all sorts of crops placed
it well up in the rank of counties.
It was a regular revival cam
paign. Good roads, pure seed,
soil study. corn clubs, pig clubs,
garden clubs and canning clubs
were the universal talk. Com
munity fairs were held and COM
munity prizes offered at the coun-
ty fair. Bankers and merchants
made attractive offers of seed.
Pigs were furnished the boys. The
grade Of horses, cattle and poul-
try was raised. A man farm adj
wiser and a woman farm adviser
were employed. Every rural
school was enlisted in the move
ment. Winners Of prizes got their
names and often their pictures in
the papers. Boys and girls dis
covered that they could be some
body on the farm.
"There can be no back to the .
farm movement, but there can
be a stay on the farm movement,
which will work wonders. Make
farm life as pleasant and as re-
as it ought to be, and
the problem is solved. This has
happened in some counties Of
some of the states. With good
roads, telephones; rural free deliv-
cry, consolidated schools, scien-
tific agriculture, silos, improved
livestock, n,oredn kitchens, barns
and diaries, automobiles, proper
and sensible marketing
methods, farm life will be relieved
s it, monotony and drudgery
nd farming will yield larger and
more certain profits.
It p Missouri biggest prob
en- and u can be solved quickly
MY through the riaht Kind ~ Is.