Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-03-15
Edrtttttg Chat

People have queer ideas of the
work that the State is doing to help
them and there are stories being told
this week about the State Capitol
which indicate that the sole concep-
ton of some folks, especially in the
rural districts, is to get something for
nothing. The States farm advisers
tell interesting anecdotes of their
tours about the country and they
demonstrate the singular, results of
the old policy of giving a man some
thing that does not cost him any
thing, tbut for which the State paws
the bill, such as the distribution of
mining report to q farmer who is
interested in growing wheat ION n
rocky soil or a Smuli's handbook to
railroad man who hardly gets op-
portunity because of the demands of
work to read his daily newspaper.
The free distribution of seeds is ap-
parently another choice breeder of
the git Idea when man connected
with the Government comes around.
The farm advisers get together this
week preparatory to starting out on
thelr rounds and one man told how
When he went to keep an appoint
ment made for him by a farmer who
wanted to know how to drain land
ne found q. good hefty spade and n
STOUT pick ready as tools with which
ne was to advise" Another expert.
who has national fame, was asked
10 visit poultry raiser to advise him
as TO the means of improving his
| stock. When he reached the place
the owner asked him to please ca
! ponlze 500 ROSTERS and whitewash
the chicken coop in a scientific way
Ahother farmer was miffed when a
fruit tree expert, who is noted for
| settlnS results by using his brains.
declined to get up on a shaky ladder
| ana saw off some limbs so decayed
| that their presence on q tree was evil
| dence that the OWNER was not even
employing common senser in running
! ms plant. Complaints have come
about men who have made life
studies of some particular branch and
whose advice which the State fur
nlshes for nothing, would cost $50 or
SiOo IN private work. When these
Kicks had been ciphered down
! they showed that the ruralite thought
that he was going to get some good
Intelligent labor for nothing The
greatest trouble the State demon
strator runs against is the idea that
there should be something tangible
| ''iiN ASC anu Ollen duNlCe tnat Is
worth gold dollars is taken with bad
| grace because the State man will not
do the actual work
Not long ago the Governor was
! asked by man to kindly send him
the deeds for a farm and the writer
| thouShuully specified the part of the
! state in which he desired to settle
J ana marry and the size of the farm.
II is nothing unusual for requests TO
De made to the State for live stock
with which to establish "a farm with
the ultimate object of furnishing
| more toodstuffs to the world and, in
cidentally grub stake" for the re-
quester. The State gets more requests
Tor tree seeds than a congressman
from farming constituency and the
writers are not modest by any means
Some of them ask for choice. grad
ca varieties of seeds of rare plants
ana vegetables and few are frankly
deslrous of making some experiments
winch they say would cause them to
pay out hard earned money and
winch they think should be financed
by the Commonwealth because of the
great good to the public which must
follow. The high price of potatoes
mas caused a number of men to dis
patch glowing offers to seed farms
with that crop if Mr. Pennsylvania
\ Will please furnish the seed potatoes
The State has no means with which
to furnish the materials mentioned
ana 1t is noticed that not once in
l,eOO times does the man who desires
pupllc aid in some agricultural or
horticultural undertaking offer to go
"hfty-fffty' with the Commonwealth
Occasionally a man will offer i'm re-
turn Tor some seeds or materials to
give the State data on the develop
ment or the working out, provided it
Is is, not to interfere with his daily work.
The average request for assistance
made TO the Department of Agricul-
ture is eminently practical. They are
almost invariably one-sided. The
state, unfortunately, can not even
give help in the worthy cases
Some interesting experiments in
giving are being conducted by the
State Department OF Forestry lust
now. 1t is donating thousands of
seeding trees to people throughout
the State in an effort to get reforested
large areas of ground which will con-
serve the water supply. The offer
distinctly sets forth that trees will
not be furnished for ornamental or
shade purposes and yet the number
OIL persons who have written for
trees with which to plant their yards
would supply interesting reading if it
could be obtained. The \State gives
these trees only for districts about
which 1t gets information and which
VIII help water supply, the larger the
area to be refurnished with trees the
better. 1t also plans to give trees,
later on, to line the State highways
with shade trees, and even fruit
trees, as is done in other States, but
the idea of getting something free.
even tree. sticks out in many of the
requests which come in the Capitol
Hill mail bag
Farmer" w. T. Greasy. who was
here yesterday, in talking about farm
ing conditions said that what was
needed generally was a pair OF will
ing hands"
WELL KNOWN PEOPLE