The Boy and the Farm

The Boy and the Farm

The Vocation and Industries supervisors and counselors of the Y. M. M. I. A., as well as parents, and all who are interested in vocations, will delight to read the following excerpts from a speech delivered by the Hon. Thomas L. Rubey, of Missouri, in the House of Representatives (March 5, 1914.) He was speaking on making appropriations for the Department of Agriculture for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1915, a bill before the House pro- viding for an appropriation of ten million dollars for the direct aid to agriculture in the United States. The year previous Con- gress appropriated fifty thousand dollars to start, in the Depart- ment of Agriculture, a division of markets. This appropriation has now been increased to two hundred thousand, and the division of markets bids fair to become one of the most important functions of the government. When it has been fully organized and put into complete operation, it is expected that it will save hundreds of millions of dollars. Both the producer and the consumer will be benefited by this great saving. As reported in the Record, Mr. Rubey said among other things

Mr. Chairman, I want to discuss some phases of that great calling known and recognized by all men in all ages as the oldest, most hon- orable, as well as the most important vocation ever followed by mortal — man agriculture. [Applause.] We are today in the midst of a great awakening in the study and development of agriculture. Never before in the history of our country has the importance of the farming in- dustry so impressed itself upon the minds of men in every walk of life as at the present time. The banker, merchant, manufacturer, rail- road man have all awakened to its importance. They have at last come to realize that under present conditions it is not only desirable for the success of their own business, but they have concluded that agriculture and the success of agriculture is for the benefit of all, and upon it depends the happiness and prosperity of the entire Nation. [Applause.] Today if you will go with me to the meeting of any banking association, I care not whether it be an association of bankers in their national convention or whether it be an association of bankers in their State convention, you will find upon an examination of their programs that they are devoting a very large part of their time to the discussion of the subject of agriculture. They are striving earn- estly to bring about increased! prosperity among the farmers and to improve the general conditions of rural life. Railway officials are constantly sending out over their lines specially equipped agricultural trains fitted up with exhibits of farm products and modern machinery. These trains are accompanied by the best agricultural lecture talent that can be obtained. Their coming is heralded weeks in advance, stops are made at important stations, and everything possible done to

256 IMPROVEMENT ERA arouse the people to the importance of agricultural development. In almost every city and town of importance in the land commercial'dubs have been organized and earnest efforts are being made by them to secure hearty co-operation between the city and the country. Why this awakening? In the early days of this Republic our population was small, the amount of rich, fertile land available for cultivation was great. The farmers in those days paid little or no attention to methods of cultivation; they cared nothing about rotation of crops; the question of soil fertility did not bother them. When a piece of land, by reason of long use, became less productive, they sim- ply cleared up another to take its place. The rich, virgin soil brought forth abundant harvests, the farmer had plenty and to spare, and his surplus went to feed the people of other lands. Today we are face to face with new conditions. Our population has reached nearly the 100,000,000 mark and is increasing by leaps and bounds. * * * * Within thirty or forty years there will be 200,000,000 people in this country, and the question will then arise, how are they to be fed and clothed? The amount of good land suitable for farming purposes is growing less and less. With the growth of population has come the — development of other industries mining, manufacturing, and com- '

merce. There is an ever-increasing population in the cities and a consequent decreasing population in the rural communities. Produc- tion has not kept pace with the increasing numbers, and how we shall feed and clothe our people will soon become the all-important ques- tinn n6 W *p t^

The decrease in the number of cattle, sheep, and hogs year by year threatens our meat supply, and the decreased production of grain threatens to take from us our daily bread. These are serious condi- tions which confront us. People all over the land have come to realize the gravity of the situation, and this accounts for the increased activities in behalf of better farming and for improved conditions of country life. How to make the farm more productive, obtain a better quality of products, conserve the fertility of the soil, bring the farmer better returns for his labors, make country life more attractive, keep upon the farm those who are already there, and induce still others to take up this noble calling. These are the questions which confront not only us but the people everywhere throughout the length and breadth of the land. It is a deplorable fact, and one to be greatly regretted, that in this country of ours thousands upon thousands of bright, intelligent coun- try boys and girls leave the farm every year to engage in other voca- tions. How can this great exodus be stopped? These boys and girls constitute the most important factor of farm life, and if they can be kept on the farm the future success of agriculture will be solved. How can it be done? Let us consider this question for a moment. The boy should be made to feel that he is an important factor in the de- velopment of the farm. He should be taken into partnership and should have an interest in' the grain, live stock, and, where possible, in the farm itself. He should be encouraged to study agriculture and to familiarize himself with improved methods of farming. A little more than a year ago I stood in a great assembly hall in the historic city of Columbia, S. C. All around me were hundreds of boys and girls, representative of the flower of the youth of that fair land. They were the winners of the boys' corn clubs and the girls' canning and tomato clubs. As I looked into the bright, upturned faces of those boys and girls my mind went beyond them; I saw in my imagination the great army of boys and girls, numbering thou- sands, who had contested with them for the prizes, and I said to my-

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self, here indeed is an illustration of what can be done to arouse the enthusiasm of the youth of the land. These boys and girls will not leave the farm to fight their way in unknown and untried vocations. They will stay where they are, and in the future years they will be the men and women who will stand for better agriculture and advanced farm life throughout all that great Southland. [Applause.] What has been done in the South is being done in other parts of this coun- try. We have clubs in the North, East, and West, and they are doing wonderful work to encourage boys and girls to remain on the farm. Corn clubs, poultry clubs, pig clubs, canning clubs, tomato clubs, potato clubs, organized among the boys and girls in every community will instill into them a love of agriculture and will solve the question of keeping them upon the farm. Last summer more than 200,000 boys engaged in the corn-club contests. All could not win a prize, but the efforts put forth by each one of them will not be lost. Let us see what has been accomplished. The world's record was won by a fourteen-year-old boy from Ala- bama, who produced 232.7 bushels of corn on one acre. The average production of corn for the whole United States is about thirty bushels to the acre. In the corn clubs of the North and West the average production was nearly 114 bushels, while in those of the South the average production was 154 bushels to the acre. Fortune did not favor all. The drought struck the crops of a boy in my own State, and when he was asked by the agent of the Depart- ment of Agriculture to report the results of his efforts he penned his reply in poetry, as follows:

MY CORN No use for a boy to look forlorn When it's too dry in the Ozarks to raise good corn. He can feed the fodder to the goats And throw the nubbins to the shoats. I did the best that I know how 1 used the harrow, then the plow. I plowed it deep and close at first, Then plowed it shallow to quench its thirst; But it remained dry as dry could be. I looked and looked and looked in vain If I do not succeed, I'll try again.

Improved roads, improved schools, especially the consolidation of districtsand the organization of country high schools, will do much to make country life more attractive and keep the boys and girls at home. How many well-to-do farmers with large families have you known, who felt compelled to move to town to educate their children? The farmer who moves to town for the purpose of educating his chil- dren weans the boys and girls away from the farm; they become en- amored with city life, and rarely, if ever, return to the farm. We have in almost every city and town a number of farmers who have retired from farm life and with their families have moved to town. The farmer who thus retires from farm life and takes the boys and girls to the city strikes a deadly blow at the great industry which he has so long pursued. The best place on earth to raise a boy is upon the farm. High schools should be established in the country. We should take the high school out to the boys and girls in the country rather than bring the boys and girls to the high school in the city. [Applause.] Keep them upon the farm, educate them upon the farm; if necessary, in

258 IMPROVEMENT ERA order to educate them, send them from the farm to the near-by city school. What if the boy does have to walk two or three miles to school; it is good for him; will make him sturdy, robust, and healthy. The happiest days of my life were those when as a boy I walked two and a half miles from the farm to the city school. [Applause. But, Mr. Chairman, what is being done in the States to encourage the boys and girls upon the farm? My friend from South Carolina, Mr. Lever, can tell you what they are doing in his state. My good friend Mr. Candler, of Mississippi, can tell you what they are doing in his state. Let me tell you briefly what is doing in Missouri to encourage the poor boys who live out upon the farms. A few weeks ago one of our great daily papers, the St. Louis Republic, began the task of rasing money with which to send twelve poor boys from the fnrms to the State agricultural college. It was proposed to pay the entire expenses of each boy at the college for one year. Money came ill rapidly, subscriptions came from bankers, merchants, lawyers, and men in every vocation of life,, and in a very short time they raised enough to send twelve boys to the agricultural college. But the work did not stop there. It was taken up by the country press all over the State, and country editors are today raising money with which to send one poor boy from each county to the State agricultural college. The result will be that when the agricultural college opens next Sep- tember there will be from 100 to 200 poor farmer boys there to receive the advantages of a year's study in agriculture. When their work has been completed and they have returned to the farms each one of them will not only be better prepared for the work himself, but he will spread information and increase the enthusiasm for advanced agricul- ture in the community in which he resides. Right here, Mr. Chairman, I want to emphasize one thing, lest we forget: We must not neglect the man upon the small farm. The man away out yonder at the head of the hollow, with forty acres of land, striving earnestly and manfully to earn a livelihood for himself and family, is entitled to our consideration and our encouragement. [Ap- plause.] We want to remember that man as well as the man who lives upon the thousand-acre farm. [Applause.] The small farmer should be encouraged and helped by both State and Nation. Take care of the small farmer and the large one will take care of himself. It is far more important in this great country of ours that we should have a large number of small farms, well cultivated, than a fewer number of large farms. [Applause.] The tenant should be encour- aged to become a landowner; we should in every way possible dis- courage farming by proxy and encourage the man to own # the land which he cultivates. [Applause.]

The Era is informed, by Prof. J. C. Hogenson, of the Agricul- tural College, that the sweepstakes champion in boys' club work for the State of Utah, 1914, is Howard Dalton, of Willard. He was given the prize for raising the best half-acre of potatoes in Utah, and will be given a free trip to the Panama-Pacific Expo- sition at San Francisco. Mr. Dalton joined the Boys' Club of the Willard school, early last spring, entering the potato contest, which was started in Box Elder county in January, 1914. Mr. Dalton's work, in every phase, has been done thoroughly and carefully,and in accordance with the instructions of those in charge. Cultivation was the big feature in his work, the crop

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being matured with but two applications of irrigation water, ts far as could be determined, the plants were free from dis- ease. The crop was harvested about the third week in Sep- tember, and a selection was made by Mr. Dalton and sent to the state fair. A careful measurement of the product showed a yield of seven hun- dred and twenty bushels per acre. Dalton's score was 84.8, and his nearest competitor's, 82.9. The judges were Prof. Henry Peterson, principal of the Jordan High School Prof. ;

Junius Andres, Ogden High School Prof. H. P. Barrows, ;

of the University of Utah. The general opinion was that HOWARD DALTON young Dalton did a splendid Sweepstakes Champion of Utah in piece of work. Boys' Club Work

CASSIA STAKE CLASS IN M. I. A. LEADERSHIP The class in the three-days' course in leadership at Oakley, Idaho, for the Cassia stake closed on November 11th with a grand ball in honor of Oscar A. Kirkham and Emily C. Adams, members of the General Boards M. I. A. The class attendance was close to 150, two being from Boise stake. The enthusiasm increased each day. "The wisdom of this class of instruction," writes Stake President Wm. T. Jack, "to the young folks will be more and more apparent as the years come and %o. It is another witness of the inspiration of our leaders in Israel. May the Lord bless them."