The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-06-22
FIRST PROJECT. NEAR HUNTSVILLE PROVES ASUCCESS Electricity Gives Farmers Many Conveniences En-
 joyed In The City AUBURN ASSISTS
 IN 5 PROJECTS Power Company And Farm Bureau Help
 Solve Problems

AUBURN, Ala, June 21.-(By the Associated Press )-0ne of the biggest impediments in the way of getting young farmers to stay on the farms is being removed, it is believed. That one ob- jection most frequently met is that the farm isolates the farmer, and that the farmer does not have the advantage of all modern convenieTces as does the city dweller.
 But now, through plan being work ed out by the Alabama Polytechnic in- stitute, the Alabama Power company and the Alabama Farm Bureau fedora. tion, this great drawback is to be re- moved. Electric service now appears to be a certainty on all farms where farmers may desire it. Sanitation plants and water systems for farms already had been conceived and proven successes, but the problem of an abund- ance of electric power at a nominal cost was still unsolved. Until recently z. the answer of electric service to farms question was in doubt, and the full extent to which farmers will use cleo -s,tricity through central power stations still is undetermined, but cooperative investigation and research work by the power company and Auburn has ad- vaneed to the point where positive con- clusions are in sight.
 The Alabama Power company has for a number of years been directing determined effort toward the prob lem of furnishing the farmers of the aAstate with the conveniences enjoyed by sseity dwellers and the application of cleo f<trie energy as a power for farm uses : its officials say. As early as 1919, the company built it's first rural extension shol mil s group of farmers near Huntsville, of < ficials say.
 sa In a progress report of the co-opera- A tive work, which began early in 1924, Professor M. l.. Nichols and B. c. .yoLester point out the advancement of xythe plan. This first project launched at Huntsville now gives 23 farmers access \ ~s to 12.2 miles of high tension line of zsthe power company. Altogether now, there are more than 20 miles of such rural power lines, serving about 100 customers. The construction of these lines has cost more than $30,000, and return and annual revenue from the territory serviced of $10,000, at rates comparable with city rates.
 Five investigational projects are now in progress in the state, and others are scheduled to begin in the near future, Professor Nichols and Mir. Easter re- ported. Extensive surveys have been made of many rural communities with in reasonable distance of existing lines of the power company, and it is ex- pected that in the near future about 70 additional miles of rural lines will be constructed, costing approximately '$100,000 and serving 750 new customers. .-On these farms and in these homes al- ready being served, electricity has been harnessed to various tasks, each of which is metered and operating costs are being recorded and careful studies made. The study includes the use of electricity for grinding feed, saving wood, pumping water, baling hay, sep arating cream, milching cows, churning, operating tool grinders, corn shelters, slipping machines, feed mixers, grind stones, pea hullers, incubatOrs, spray pumps, breeders, egg candlers, fertili- r y ger mixers, seed graders, seed cleaners, fruit graders limestone crushers, pea nut pickers, ensilage cutters and other farm equipment.
 In farm houses it will be used foY lighting, operating washing machines, vacuum cleaners, sewing machines, meat grinders, for cooking, heating water, and for all other household purposes to which it's application may be successful. -v From a community standpoint cleo tricity is being, and will be, tested for operating those things which will be used in the communities, such as can neries, grist mills, threshers, fruit grad CTS, refrigeration, sawmills, syrup plants, creameries, hatcheries, meat cur ing plants, cotton gins, picture shows and for lighting purposes
 t"'The work in this state is in line with that being conducted in other states, t those backing the projects say. It is being conducted, however, on a more comprehensive scale, it is claimed, talk ing all angles into consideration. A special committee on the relation of electricity to agriculture, with head quarters in Chicago, is correlating the : work in the different states. This com mittee represents the United States de- partment of agriculture, the department of interior, the department of commerce, the American Farm Bureau federation the National Electric Light association the Power Farming association, the American Society of Agricultural En- gineers, and several state agricultural v colleges.
 2. At present farmers are behind in the use of electricity. The census of 1920 shows that about 5.4 per cent of all
 
 . tricity and 1.6 per cent had gas. Rough ly, about one-half of those having cleo tricity has individual or domestic plants, and the other half has central station service.
 - Outside of agriculture, electrical de- velopments during the last half century have been phenomenal, it is shown. In 1880 the entire capital invested in the electric light and power industry was less than $1,OOO,OOO, compared with more than 5000, 100000 at present, Il records show, multiplying itself by 5000 times in 40 years. The annual per g-capita consumption increased from 60 .-- to 800 kilowatt hours during the past M 20 years. More than a million new q customers are being added annually. Electricity now has more than 1S,O00,- az. 900 customers in 14,000 cities and towns in the United States, reports show.