The Dickinson press., 1917-06-23

townspeople gathered at the Dickin-
son su%b-station Monday for the big
"better acquaintance" picnic held
there during the morning and after
noon. A social time was enjoyed
throughout the morning, and work
being accomplished at the local ex-
pertinent farm was viewed, consensus
of opinion of the visitors being that
a work of vast benefit to the farm
ers of the community is being carried
on under the direction of J. G.. Thy
sell.
After the get-acquainted session of
the morning, bountiful dinners We're
enjoyed from the well-filled baskets
which had been brought for the &C.
~casion, and then the visitors as
sembled for the fine series of ad-
dresses which composed the after
noon program.
Superintendent Thysell. gave the
address of welcome, emphasizing the
fact that the experiment station is
for the benefit of the farmers and
inviting them to call there whenever
possible, view the work that is being
accomplished and "swap" views and
interchange information which will be
Of value to the agriculturist.
Cooper Praises Work.
Thomas B. Cooper, Who described
himself as a pinch hitter for other
speakers who had been unable to fill
their speaking dates at the picnic,
was next introduced. Mr.. Cooper ex-
tolled accomplishments at the farm,
dwelling in particular on the success
of alfalfa culture there, experiments
demonstrating that this crop can be
raised successfully in North Da-
kota. He explained that, while many
farmers think the work at the sta
ton is not practical, because of the
small plots devoted to the different
crops, the work really is practical,
each plot being the same as a farm
on a small scale, and that what is
successful on the small scale will be
increasingly so OF a larger scale.
He declared that it is not necessary
that all the experiments be success
full, stating that negative results often
demonstrate the method to avoid in
farming and thus save many failures
which might otherwise result, with no
precedent to follow.
He also dwelt briefly on the expert
ments being conducted in raising of
hemp, in an effort to procure cheaper
Irvine; culture of winter wheat and
various grasses, including Sudan
grass and feterina. He made special
mention of the tree culture at the
station, also.
R. ". Smith, cereal expert at the
station, followed with a talk devoted
mainly to cereal crops, showing their
a%daptability to conditions existing in
the state, and describing experiments
in that line.
The Rev. FIR. Dignam was intro
duced and spoke a Short time on Red
Cross work; stating the object of the
present drive for funds and members.
Alfred Wenz, alfalfa AL" was
next presented. Mr.. Wenz, who is
connected with the Dakota Farmer
staff, gave an interesting talk on
Indian corn. He gave North Dakota
credit for being the ~northernmost
state where corn culture is encour-
aged. Mr.. Wenz cited examples of
corn grown on the Berthold reserva-
tion by the Indians several hundred
years ago. His talk was interesting
ana nSCTucClVe.
Shepard on Livestock.
J. H. Shepard, of the Fargo ex-
pertinent station, was the last speaker,
general theme being livestock i'm
provement. He pleaded for co-opera-
tion of all in raising more and bet
ter livestock. AS a special instance
of what can be done in this state
with. livestock, he cited the work ac-
complished by the New Salem Hol-
stein Breeding Circuit. Mr.. Shepard
is one of the foremost speakers in
the county on livestock topics and his
address was full of information for
the stock raiser.
Messrs. Chamberlain and Critch-
field of the Dakota Farmer were I'M
able to be present and deliver ad-
dresses, as expected. They had
planned to make the trip from Will
iston by car, but an accident delayed
them. Both gentlemen, accompanied
by Mr.. Greeley, also of the Dakota
Farmer, arrived in the city Wednes-
day morning from Sentinel Butte,
where a picnic was held on Tuesday.
They remained in the city a short
time, and went from here to New
Salem, where they delivered addresses
at a big picnic Wednesday. A num-
Der of farmers of this community also
1911 l. --A~- ~HHx<vy fNyYYN RI