Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-08-19
Mrs. Thrasher Sees
Farm Fully Remade
In One Happy Day
by James BirchfieId
BY Jones BirchfieId
Stor Ston Correspondent


Mrs. Nellie v. Thrasher cooked
breakfast this morning and
stepped out on the front porch
of her farm house near this quiet
Frederick County village.
AS the sun rose over the Catoctin
Mountain, Mrs. Thrasher looked out
over new farm-one that had
been remade in single day through
the cooperation of men, machines
and skill.
Mrs. Thrasher has looked out over
her farm from the front porch since
she moved there in 1927. Each year
she watched the gulleys grow deeper
in the sloping fields and the grass
grow thinner on the pastures. She
saw soil erode from crops that were
planted in straight rows in square
fields. And each year the hay crop
was just a little smaller than the
year before.
The farm was losing little each
year-not enough to cause alarm,
until the cumulative results began
to be felt in production.
But things were not the same to-
day. Where gulleys had SCARED the
hillside, there were the marks of
drills that had seeded pasture
grasses. And a white sheen of time
and fertilizer spread out across the
pastures.
Now in Contour Strips.
There were no longer square fields.
but rather contour strips that fol-
lowed the level of the gently rolling
land.
A new 23-coW dairy barn stood up
against the sky to the rear of the
freshly painted house, ready for the
herd, and water was beginning to
seep into a pond that had been
scooped out behind the barn. When
1t is full, the pond will be stocked
with fsh-bass and Dream to pro-
vide sport and food for Mrs Thrash
er, her daughter, Jan, and George
Edward. her 17-year- old son.
And this miracle of transforma-
ton had taken place in the incred-
IDLY short period of between am
and 5 pm. yesterday 1t was &C
complished by 500 volunteers, many
of them Thrasher neighbors, and
more than $50 machines. 1t started
with the blasting of a drainage
ditch and ended when cultipackers
seeded the banks of the farm pond.
Said Mrs. Thrasher, when she was
introduced to the more than $4,000
spectators who thronged over the
farm to watch the demonstrations:
This is the happiest day of my
life. l know this is not for me
alone. but for all of my neighbors
and all who have come here today
to see. I'm going to keep this place
as an example of conservation farm
ing"
Cited as Example.
Kent Leavitt, Millbrook, N Y,
president of the National Associa-
ton of Soil Conservation Districts,
said the demonstration showed what
can be done to conserve the mil
lions of acres of American land
Gov. Lane termed the demonstra-
ton an example of what the spirit
of cooperation can accomplish. and
Secretary of Agriculture Brannan
called attention to the fact that
this country is growing DID, and
must use its resources with care to
provide an adequate diet for her
$4,000 900 people.
President H. c. Byrd of the Uni
versity of Maryland. his white suit
Spattered with red catsup that had
overturned at one of the refresh
ment counters, acted as master of
ceremonies. He said the demonstra-
ton highlighted the work in con-
Servation being carried on in dis
tricts throughout the Free State.
To the thousands of watchers the
demonstration was like multi
ring circus. In every field, and in
every corner of the rolling farm
was something to be seen and
learned 1t probably was one of
the largest displays of farm ma
chinery in action ever staged in this
area
Almost every make of farm ma
chine and implement could be seen
In action. and farmers sWarmed
through the fields to see the differ
ent types of seeders. spreaderS, ter
racers, harrows and tractors at work
The heavy machinery drew more
interest from nonfarmers Crowds
gathered to watch the huge bull
dOZerS SCOOP out the pond and iined