The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1925-08-18
REMARKABLE QUERIES
ARE RECEIVED DAILY
HUMOROUS AS WELL AS SERI-
OUR QUESTIONS ASKED AG-
RICULTURAL DEPARTMENT.
POUR IN BY THE THOUSANDS
Package of "Seedless Tomato Seed"
Is Requested, and Information on
Making Good Moonshine" Is De-
sired. Some Want. Wives.

WASHINGTON, D. C.-What are
the questions asked and the services
requested in the thousands upon thous-
ands of letters that pour into the in
formation section of the United States
Department of Agriculture?
The inquiries have humorous side
as we'll as the serious. A New Jersey
man, evidently not farmer, asks the
department to "Send me a package of
seedless tomato seed" A New York
correspondent desires the experts to
please decide the following ques-
ton: Which is the mother of the
chick, the hen that lays the egg or
the hen that hatchessit?" From out in
Oregon came a request for informa-
ton that a good many persons would
like to have, if current reports may
be relied upon. This Oregonian writes:
IF you have any bulletins on how to
tell good moonshine from bad send it
along, also how to make some for
medicinal purposes in the household"
AS matrimonial bureau the de-
partment could build up quite bust
ness. A surprising number of letters
along that line come IN. One man
wrote a ten-page letter asking for
practically every kind of farm infor-
nation, gave his family history for
two generations and finally wound up
by asking the department to put him
in touch with a good woman not
over 40 for whom he could make
good home. For this service he prom
ised to give the department a fine
present"
The department answers these in
quiries in most cases by sending one
or more of the large number of bulle-
tins specially prepared for this pur-
pose. Often, however, it is necessary
to write personal replies.
A vast number of inquiries on poul-
try raising come in. What is the best
breed to raiser" probably is the most
frequently asked question. The an
swer is given For general purposes
Wyandottes, Plymouth Rocks and
Rhode Island Reds. Leghorns are
best for laying.
Another common inquiry is: rs it
best to have a rooster in the fiock?'
The answer is "No" if eggs for mark
ct are wanted and Eyes" if eggs are
wanted for Matching.
Different Answers Required.
These questions of breeds and man.
agement are asked concerning every
class Of live stock, and, Of course, re-
quire modified answers to suit each
case.
In the bureau of soils the oft-repeat-
ed question is, what kind of fertili-
ger do / need?' This query usually
accompanies a soil sample and re-
quest for a soil analysis. These sam
pies range in size from teaspoonful
to bushel In reply to letters OF this
kind the bureau writes asking many
questions about what is being grown
on the ground, its location and the
history of its treatment. In most cases
no chemical analysis of soils is made;
this is an expensive and time-consum-
ing Job, and seldom gives real basis
on which to prescribe a course OF soil
treatment
The various state experiment sta
tions usually are in better position to
give advice on soil treatment than is
the department at Washington. In
those cases where, a soil analysis IS
desirable careful instructions must be
followed in taking the sample. A hand
full of dirt scooped up in the field is
entirely worthless as a sample. 1t will
be seen, therefore, that it usually is
waste of effort and money to send in
soil samples. The local county agricul-
tural agent usually can give better adj
vice on soil and crop matters than any
person at a distance, no matter how
expert this latter individual may be.
Baking in Home" Popular.
One Of Uncle Sans bulletins has
proved a real best seller" This bull
letin is called Baking in the Home"
1t was first printed in july 1917.
Since that time il has run through one
edition after another until more than
2,125,000 copies have been sent out.
1t is free for the asking -Four editions
of group of bulletins dealing with
the small vegetable garden have total
ed more than 100000 copies. A bull
letin listing and discussing the game
laws each year has proved popular,
total of more than 1,825,000 copies
having been sent out