The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1937-04-08
COMMUNICATED

The evils resulting from the con-
templated change in the adminiStra-
ton of the county agricultural extern
sion department are many and isidious
and these have never been brought to
the fore and the good to be derived
Cf there is any is very visionary.
Many activities are being carried on
by the st. Louis County Club and
Farm Bureau at the present time out
side of the regular agricultural extern
sion program. All of these would be
dropped, or if they were carried on,
they would have to be paid for by
high membership fees in the farm
bureau, which in some counties in the
State of Minnesota has been as high
as $1,000 per member. No longer would
there be group or club membership such
as there is at the present time with a
fee of $1,000 per year for the entire
membership.
The entire membership of the County
Club at the present time is being
served with the farm bureau news
paper and there are about 1000 names
on the mailing list. This is monthly
publication put out by the Minnesota
Farm Bureau and is sent to our people
free of charge.
The new set-up calls for board of
five farmers, the county superinten-
dent of schools and the chairman Of
the county board. There would be no
ha 1.1Yf
the farm operator is usually mani
Women'S activities in st. Louis County
are very important and without repre-
sentation on the board, that valuable
service would not be recognized. The
present board has five farmers-the
new board would not have any more.
The present board also is representa-
tive of business. The new board would
be minus this representation.
In St. Louis County business is still
more important than agriculture and to
divorce the two, only agriculture would
suffer. This would only be one more
burden to the many that agriculture in
this county already has. In fact, min
uteS of board sessions will reval that
agriculture in st. Louis County has
Jared better under the direction Of the
present democratic board, than it pos
sibly could under a purely agricultural
board. This is easy to understand.
Agriculture has been helped by in
duStry time and time again and can
take credit to large extent for the
present state of agricultural develop
ment. Without the market created by
industry in st. Louis County and also
the agricultural pay roll, our farmers
would be small indeed and smaller in
number.
No more democratic method of elect
ing directors to the board of the County
Club can be devised. Each member
organization is entitled to three votes
and each organization selects it's own
representatives. In order to stimulate
complete representation, the County
Club has gone so far as to pay round
trip transportation to all qualified dele
gates. This could not be done under
the contemplated set-up The new or
der would be an entire political Set-up
with roots in the township elections.
What is more, many Of our northern
townships are not organized and thus
would be deprived of franchise, which
In itself appears to be unconstitutional.
The Biwabik potato show, the best
stimulus that the potato industry has
had in st. Louis County, would suffer
to the extent of elimination, because
the County Club is its greatest con-
tributor. This would not be done in
the new set-up unless through an ex-
horbitant fee.
AT the present time many of the Al
club winners are enjoying trips the ex-
pense Of which is borne by the County
Club. These trips are to the State
Fair, International Live Stock Shcw,
National Dairy Congress, and others.
This would not be done in the future
and If the trips are taken the expense
would be taken care of by the All
club winners, who, in many cases are
not able to afford the expense, which
would result in sending second and
third raters as representatives of St
Louis County, topping this county
from the leadership position it has had
during these many years.
The annual meeting of the County
Club, one of the high lights of the
present organization, would not main
tain its present prestige, because it is
now being financed by the county club
which could not be done in the future
Delegates would have to pay their own
expenses because they could not be
paid with extension funds.
These are just few of the benefits
that would no longer accrue to the
residents of st. Louis County The
matter of the agricultural extension
program is an oft-mooted question AT
the present time the program is
planned by the farmers themselves
Last fall each farm club in the county
was asked to send representatives to
a program planning meeting at the
new All club building. There were
about rs in attendance. These people
planned the years program and made
suggestions to the extension agents as
to how the program should be put into
operation. Is there any way by which
this can be improved? Certainly not
in the new plan.
1t seems strange that the local pro-
ponents Of the bill are the county
superintendent of schools and his CO.
horts and staff, many of whom are
Smith-Hughes men and are paid by
government funds. These men are thus
deliberately violating federal rulings by