The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1918-10-15
HOGS IN IDAHO
BY T., j. IddingS


cussion among live stock men and IL
the agricultural press in regard tt
the actual live stock supplies of thu
United States. This is a matter O
vital importance. The meat supplies
of the allied peoples must com,
largely from America, and we there
fore need to know, as nearly as pos
| sible, the exact facts in regard tx
numbers of live stock.
Many well-informed live stock mer
have felt for some time that agricul
tural statistics should be gathered
| in such way as to make thin more
exact and less in the form of esti
mates. The writer has shared thai
feeling. There is no question in.
volved as to the faithful work and
sincerity of the field agents Of the
United States department Of agricul.
ture. The only question is as to
whether or not the machinery for
collecting data should not be made
more comprehensive, in order that
greater accuracy might be attained
in estimates and reports.
Some time ago the writer took oc-
casion, thru the columns of The
Idaho Farmer to point to certain fea-
lures of recent live stock repots that
did not seem to agree with data
from certain other sources. At that
time there was suggested the advis-
ability of organizing more compre-
hensive system for gathering live
stock information, and the county
agents and the farm bureaus were
suggested as possible agencies for Sc
curing the desired end.
Recently the whole question was
discussed with Julius H. Jacobson Of
Blackfoot, Idaho, field agent of the
bureau of crop estimates. Mr.. Jacob
son feels that the federal figures for
Idaho agree reasonably closely with
such data as is available from other
sources. The average decrease in
swine for the period of 1857, as
shown by the summarized reports Of
the five irrigation districts mentioned
is ga per cent. The federal fig
ures for the same period for the
whole state show Sc per cent de-
crease. In footnOte Mr.. Jacobson
points out that certain of these dis
tricts in the report of 1917 took their
figures at such a time that they
might be expected to show less to-
tai number of hogs as compared with
federal figures.
The bureau of crop estimates for
1917 compared with 1916, shows a
decrease of Is per cent; average of
Minidoka, Boise and Idaho irrigation
project, 1917, compared with 1916,
shows decrease of % per cent; en-
Urgency food survey, January 1918,
557 reports, show a decrease of 26
per cent.
The county assessors survey, made
in April and May, 1918, compared
with the spring of 1917, shows de-
crease of 8 per cent; state extension
survey, made in April and May, 1918,
17,137 farms reporting compared
with the spring of 1917, shows an
increase of II per cent; Twin Falls
irrigation project survey, made in
April and May, 1918, compared with
the spring of 1917, shows an increase
of 36 per cent.
Minidoka, Boise and Idaho irriga-
ton projects make their surveys late
in the fall, while the bureaus esti-
mates are two months later, January
1.
The Twin Falls projects make
their survey in the spring, about
April. Therefore the number re-
ported by them in April, 1917, for
Instance, does not include all the
spring and none of the fall litter
dropped in the calander year 1917.
The Idaho Farmer.