Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-11-28
How Government Crop
Reports Are Made

The time is 2:14 p. M; the place,
the United States department. of agri-
Observation-Disclosures, DC. In an an
te-room several men. are standing
around "a table, each with one hand
upon It holding q large sheet of pa
per- The quarter hour strikes. There
Is race for&the door. A moment
more, and telegraph wires into vir-
ctually every city and town in the Unit
ed States are singing, with the mes
sage of estimated crop conditions,
At the lastsmeetipg of the general
assembly OF the international institute
of. agriculture at Rome, made up q
delegates from the principal countries
of the world, it vas freely conceded
that the U. S. department of agricul-
ture has developed the most complete
and accurate system of agricultural
statistics eve devised. The work Of
s~afeguarded that M one in or out Of
the department. can know what a
given crop report will be until the es-
innate is completed a few minutes be-
fore its release, n in that short in
terval locked doors n ~disconnect-
ed telephones prevent anyone from
obtaining advance information.
Reports Come From Every Town.
There are approximately 1900 900
voluntary crop reports located in all
parts Of the United States. A trained
statistician or field agent is also placed
in each state or group of similar states
and ~supervises the work of gathering
statistics in the territory under his
charge. At the end of each month
each field agent t%ahulates the crop
information received from his repor-
ters, averages and summarizes tho
data and ranNrfS tho result tn the
department of agriculture at Washing
ton.
Local reporters in every township,
or other small civil unit in every
county in the United States, report
direct to the department every month
crop conditions under their observas
tion. Each county, also, Is represent
ed by a county reporter who reports
his personal observations, the reports
of ne,ghbors> and others, and infor-
nation received by interview and over
the telephone.
The monthly reports cover acreage,
condition, yield, total production
stocks on farms, progress Of farm
! work, wages, supply or deficiency OF
farm labor, fertilizers and seeds
These reports are made for about &C
crops which represent about IS pei
cent of the total agricultural ppoduc.
ton in the United States.
The reports of field agents on the
speculative crops are mailed direct
to the secretary of agriculture in spe.
cial envelopes. These are separated
from other mail III the Washington
p~ostofice and are delivered by mes.
senger t the secretary or his first as.
ksistant, who places them, with the
seals ~unbroken, in u safe, to which he
:, alone has the key. The reports remain
locked in the safe until the morning
OF crop report day. The returns or
! speculative crops from the voluntary
reporters came direct to the bureau
of markets and crop estimates anc
are tabulated on separate sheets fol
each crop.
Strict Precautions.
On the evening before crop repor
day all telephones are disconnected
The e morning all doors are locked
and guards are obtained at the QUITE
doors to prevent any one entering o,
leaving when the crop reportin,
board is in session. The sealed re
ports Of field agents and crop spe
cialistS in the custody of. the secre
ttary are turned over to the chief o
the bureau, and the crop, reporting
board begins it's work. The board j
composed of the association chief o
the bureau of markets n crop est
mates, three of his most experience,
assistants, and usually one or NOR
field agents.
u Each member of the board is sup