Warren sheaf., 1920-12-29
Farm Bureau News
b. r. Houser, County Agent.
Farm Bureau q Constructive Move.
ment.
(Continued from last week \

tCOntinued from last week.
In last weeks column the first two
steps in the organization of the Farm
Bureau, were briefly discussed. viz,
that the U. S. Department Of Agricul-
ture and the colleges were enabled to
get closer to real farming conditions
than ever before by placing in each
county a farm specialist or County
Agent. and secondly that skilled farm
ers who had acquired facts and skill
not generally applied to the community,
but which were worthy Of much wider
application were called into counsel and
cooperation with this specialist,
1t was then discovered that if any
thing was going to be accomplished in
the way OF improving agriculture and
rural conditions, not only must the
County Agent and the farmers counsel
together, but they must formulate
fundamental and continuing policy of
work and development in the county,
not only for one season but for whole
year or period Of years That was the
third big idea in the Farm Bureau
movement, viz, the sitting in counsel
of the trained agents of, the govern
ment with trained farmers entirely
familiar with local problems, and both
contributing to the working out of such
a long time program; cooperation be-
tween farmers and agents of the gov
ernment III the closest and most init
mate way. 49,, - .'@f:-
1t soon developed that there was not
sufficient Federal and State Funds
s,vy ilt, h1n To- a Ro~
the employment Of a full time" man in
every county, of the United States, and
since the work done in the county was
in the interest of the entire county it
seemed only logical to ask the county
and the farmers to help the Federal
government and State Colleges of Agri-
culture, TO finance the work: The work
therefore, became essentially a public
work. financed for the most part from
the public funds, and where this did
not suffice, the farmers were so thor
oughly convinced of it's value that they
went down in their own pockets and
contributed toward the support of this
work which had been authorized and
in part financed by the National and
State government
A1AO T dA III Duh eau, lASAS1OiS, HS t1uS'
developed, is practically public in
stitution, developed at the direct sug-
gestion of agents of the government
for the purpose of creating channel
through which the practical results of
research work Of government might
with certainty reach the people for
whom it was intended.
One might wonder why the govern
ment did not cooperate in extension
work directly with the grange in coun-
ties where the grange is strong, or
with Farmers Union in counties where
the Union is strong or with the Equity
where the Equity is strong. The rea-
son is simple enough, practically all of
these are more or less secret or ex-
elusive organizations and since the
work of the Federal and State govern.
ment is financed by all the people and
in the interest of all the people, these
institutions felt the necessity of de-
veloping a non-class, nOn-secret, non.
commercial and permanent institution
open to all the farmers in the county
through which all could find expires.
sion and deal directly and in an or
,ganized way with the State Colleges
and Department of Agriculture.
Besides none of these farmers or
,,ganizatiOns with which the govern.
ment was acquainted had been devel.
oped with the idea of extension work
in mind, and the agents of the govern
ment hesitated to take up work with
them, or propose work to them which
Ewould necessarily involve redirection
of their organization, to say nothing OF
the jealousies which might have been
created by apparent favoritism In the
selection Of one organization In pre-
ference to another. .-.a
The County Farm Bureau, therefore
was created as and has become essen
TALLY public institution very much
like college of agriculture. A name
which better describes its function
would be County Extension Institute
or County Agricultural Extension
School,, since the Farm Bureau IS es
sentia1ly an educational and teachinf