Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-10-02

1t was only a few years ago that
the Department Of Agriculture was the
| baby Of the executive departments. It
| was housed in a small brick building
and had a relatively insignificant APP
preparation. Today 1t has grown to
such magnitude that 1t employs 10000
persons, only 1000 of whom are
located at Washington. The others
| make up the field service, which is
far flung. Two executive departments
have been created since the organic
act Of the Department of Agriculture
was passed-the Department OF Com.
merce and the Department Of Labor
but neither compares in size with the
Department Of Agriculture.
The department Is mine Of scien-
| tific talent. Among its employees are
| many noted scientists working for
| low salaries but carrying on their work
| for the love Of 1t when they could
draw several times what the Govern
| ment pays them IL they went into
commercial life.
The department might be called a
! dumping ground for duties which Con
gress cannot classify. II some new
| service requires expert attention, Con
| gress blithely puts 1t under the De.
partment Of Agriculture. Changes. re-
| classiflcations are made from time to
| time, but still the department has
| many duties which only by a stretch
Of the imagination can be called
agricultural. 1t Is now housed in an
uncompleted but vast marble building
| and a great number Of rented
| buildings.
The department has grown so rap.
| idly that 1t has been compelled to rent
all manner. Of buildings-old resi-.
dences, old warehouses, stores. garages
until there Is a saying in Washing
| ton that if one runs into a doorway
| to seek shelter from a sudden rain he
will find himself In the Department of
Agriculture. This Is slight exaggera.
ton. There are scores Of buildings
| under lease to the department and, if
| one includes the structures used in
other places than Washington, the to-
| tai mounts up into the hundreds.
The departments scientists spend
only part of their time at Washing.
ton. In pursuit of new plants which
can be made useful in American hus
bandry they comb the world. At all
| times the department has experts pur-
suing the most hazardous adventures
in far places. The jungles of Brazil
know their camping places. Darkest
| Africa has been explored by them.
The most distant and lonely reaches
Of China have yielded up to them
their secrets. They gather specimens
and study the climatic conditions un.
der which those specimens are pro.
duced and then bring them back to
| the United States and instruct Ameri.
can farmers how to make use of them.
Varied Activities.
| The department has charge Of the
Federal aid road act and itself con-
| structs roads to show county or city
authorities how the job should be
done, how much it should cost, how
kept in repair and a. hundred and one
other things. To show the versatility
Of this branch of the Government, it
also Is in charge of experimental
work in connection with dust explO.
sions. Many industries perform work
which fills the air with tiny particles.
| Principal among them are grain ele.
vators and Touring mills. These small
bits have the faculty Of igniting .spon.
taneously and causing terrific damage
with concomitant loss of life and prop
erty.
The department has a vast number
| Of field agents who send in data on
crop production which, after they have
been collated, are given out to the
public and are depended upon by the
| New Orleans Cotton Exchange. the
| Chicago Board of Trade and such
organizations to govern the prices or
important commodities. It furnishes
this same information not only to the
markets and the press, but transmits
it by radio to the farmers themselves
to the end that they may be informed
concerning the relation between pro.
duction and price. No farmer can
lose money by selling his produce too
eheaply because Of lack of information.
Every day the department informs
him as to the current price Of cotton,
| wheat hay, hogs, steers, wool, sheep
and everything else he raises.
The Weather Bureau, too, comes
under the Department Of Agriculture.
The bureau keeps the farmer informed
concerning the changes in the weather
and also warns mariners of storms at
sea. Fruit farmers are told in ad.
vance when to take precautions
against frost.
The American people enjoy the
privilege Of having good and pure
meat because the department counts
among its duties the inspection Of all
packing plants. No piece of meat Is
allowed to go on the market from a
packing plant unless it Is inspected
: and pronounced good by the meat In
spection division of the Department
OF Agriculture. Each piece Of meat
must show the official stamp of the
division before 1t Is allowed to enter
the marts Of commerce.
Departmental Publications.
All manner Of statistics are gathered
and published by the department and
the material gathered Is made avail.
!. able to the public. The department