The bulletin. (Irwinton, Wilkinson County, Ga.) 191?-19??, August 24, 1917, Image 8

The bulletin., August 24, 1917, Image 8

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Newspaper Page TextHO AEWS' BREAKS 'AT THE DEPARTMENT 9^AGRICULTURE z^QMECN z^'INSIDE' F THE person who defined a gen tleman farmer as one who never raised anything except his hat re ferred to our Uncle Samuel of the United States department of agri culture, all I can say Is that said person is a comedian who can’t comede. Pardon the assumption, but I can prove this. In fact, I would bet one of Samuel’s per- • fectly good beaver hats on It. The other day I took dinner at the Doughnut Cabinet in the New Willard hotel, in our capital city, and had a talk with Uncle Sam and a few of his congressmen. Oh, no, this Dough nut Cabinet has nothing to do with a kitchen cabi net, nor that tasty breakfast morsel—lt’s the room which some of your Uncle Sam’s servants are said to seek when they want to “talk it over” and dine a bit at the same time. I simply took notes as I talked with Uncle Sam and his servants. One congressman was in a particularly loquacious mood and his thoughts turned toward agriculture. "You know,” said the congressman. “I was back home a while before election and I met Farmer Smith whom I knew as a boy. Naturally I was glad to see him, but I couldn’t help pulling njy time worn offer on him, the formula for which runs like this: ‘My dear Smith, I have at my disposal a long list of bulletins published by the department of agriculture at Washington ; I also have a few pack ages of seeds selected for me by the department’s scientists. It would afford me great pleasure, my old friend, to send to you either the goods or some of the bulletins. What will It be, Smith?’ "Now, Smith has no moss growing on his dome, even if he did take off his cap and scratch his head before he made his decision. He had received both bulletins and seeds from me many times before. ‘Well,’ said Smith, ‘I think I would rather have a bulletin with a live thought in it than a seed with a dead germ.’ ” “Apparently Farmer Smith appreciates my bulle tin’s,” exclaimed Uncle Sam. “I’m glad to hear that, for I’m making every effort to put into them the practical knowledge dug out. by my scientists and investigators. Last year I distributed through you congressmen and the department of agriculture upward of 14,000,000 copies of Farmers’ Bulletins, the subjects of which covered in some respects the entire gamut of the widely varied activities of the department. But it is impossible for me to supply even the six million farm families with all of the bulletins Issued. Consequently the bulletins of the department are regarded as a foundation work upon which the superstructure is built. ‘To supplement these bulletins I decided about three years ago to have a regular service bureau such as is provided by some of the large business enterprises, only mine was ‘to tap a reservoir so great and so deep as to contain an inexhaustible fund of unbiased, scientific Information. I chris tened this innovation ‘office of information,’ and it has lived up to Its name. “In order to start the office of information on the right basis from the standpoint of the newspapers and other periodicals, I scouted about for some time and finally secured the services of two old New York newspaper and advertising men and put them Into the office with Instructions to get their facts right by referring the stories to the scientists for a final O. K., but to write or edit them so the periodicals would publish them and the people would read them. It was a difficult task, but it has been accomplished, as evidenced by the miles of clippings of stories sent to me by the various clip ping bureaus. This convinced me that I was get ting more of the department’s Information before the people—supplementing the bulletin service. “You wouldn’t believe it, but some people con fused this maiden effort and thought I had started a publicity campaign. Far from It! They did not realize the difference between the giving out of in formation of a purely educational character, based upon facts for which the people already had paid their money, and the usual publicity matter. The office of information performs the service of mak ing available to newspapers and other^perlodicals, in the form with which they are familiar, the practical knowledge dug out by the department’s scientists In field and laboratory investigations. These men, trained In their specialties, are neces sarily not newspaper or advertising men and, there fore, do not know the periodicals want their ar ticles prepared. “Only occasionally does a scientist possess a ‘nose for news’ and even less frequently can lie ex press his news in away that would escape the vigilant eye and active blue pencil of an editor. Only the other day I heard a congressman say: ‘An investigator is a man who has found out what ev erybody already knows and tells about it in lan guage which nobody can understand.’ “The statement about the language used by many scientists certainly is true, but I have to pay my respects to them as investigators. Their dif ficult lingo is necessary to them, although to the layman it may not always be advisable to de scribe common rainfall as ‘falling meteoric water,’ or to write about the elimination and toxicity of caffein in nephrectamized rabbits —whatever that means. The scientist, however, insists on It for ac curacy’s sake, and accuracy is his middle name. “You might as well try to pump the ocean dry,” continued Samuel with emphasis, “as to exhaust the Information of my scientists along their special lines. Much to the delight of ‘the boys’ in the office, however, it Is not always necessary to ‘pump* this knowledge. Scientists frequently are very susceptible to attack by the Bacillus scrlbendi. The manuscripts resulting from the work of this scribbling bacillus are put into news shape by the office of Information. But, for one reason or an other, this germ at times becomes encysted and It is necessary to Inoculate In a new spot. This the office does by interviewing scientists who are busy chasing microorganisms, which the newspaper man can’t do, or are exhausted from telling the people about a bug they have already captured and hog tied. “Making available in news form the interviews and contributions, and extracting from scientific treaties thoughts of real value, but which would be lost In the mass of circumstantial evidence, con stitute a large portion of the work of the office. Many of these articles, or ‘stories’ as ‘the boys’ call them, go to the public through the Weekly News Letter. This is sent to the newspapers, which are urged to reprint freely with or without credit, th crop correspondents, and to some others of the department’s co-operators. “But by far the greatest service is the mimeo graphed articles sent to the press of the country. The office thus affords a vehicle for quick action — a sort of rapid-fire gun quickly unlimbered while the 42-centimeter ammunition, in the form of bul letins, is being prepared. It takes a pot-shot from the hip at insect or disease plagues and thus quiets or greatly retards the outbreaks. It quickly issues warnings of frauds or of pestilence, or decisions and announcements connected with the enforce ment of the meat-inspection law, the food and drugs act, and the other 29 regulatory laws which are administered by the department. During the last year about 170 of these special items were sent the papers interested. And, while lam on this subject, I want to say that many a fake has been exposed by such treatment. Through its various classified lists of the publications of the country it *can reach them all on short notice, or it can reach any group of city, farm or trade papers—ln short, any desired combination of publications is possible, the distribution being governed by the range of ap plicability of the information to be sent out. "Now, gentlemen,” continued Sam, “you eat your meal or it will be -cold. Don’t mind about me; I would rather any day tell you about getting facts to my people than eat a Thanksgiving dinner. You all know that editors and reporters are busy men these days and they welcome articles which re quire the minimum of editing to suit their particu lar paper. Many of the editors are too busy to make a digest of bulletins, and their facilities for getting special ‘stories’ out of the department are meager. "During one month last summer a test reading of 175 agricultural papers showed that during the month 150, or 86 per cent, contained material sent by the department. The material so published, some 600 or more articles averaging a column in length, reached directly a very large number of my farmers. Before the European war news occu pied so much newspaper space, material furnished by Information appeared in one month on about 300,000,000 printed pages. “You all remember that hot fight against foot and-mouth disease, how it got a start in 22 states, and here in the District, and how it finally was stamped out in February, 1916. Those days were strenuous for Information as well as the whole department. The office supplied to papers in the regions affected exact and immediate information of the outbreak of the disease, and to the press of the section In danger information as to the best measures for combating the disease and preventing its spread. Dally the regions affected and all other sections having traffic with quarantine areas were kept informed of each modification of,the quaran tine, with the object of encouraging as free move ment of live stock as was consistent with the safety of the general or local cattle industry. Over 100 mimeographed statements in addition to the department’s formal publications on the subject, conveying news and directions and recommending precautionary measures were issued.’ Besides these, the press associations and correspondents here in the city were informed daily by telephone. “But it doesn’t take an epoch-making event like foot-and-mouth disease to cause the office to get out a series of articles. Possibly this past year you have read by installments of the control of the Hessian fly, the army worm, the Gypsy moth, the white grub, the Southern cattle tick, hog cholera, and other pests, as well as conservation of food supplies, hints for gardeners, live stock problems, cultural methods with plants, harvesting, market ing, and so ad infinitum.” “But what about these stories? Do they play up the personnel of the department?” interrupted the congressman, “Ah! I have been expecting that, son,” replied Sam with a satisfied smile. “Quite to the con trary, the names of individuals rarely are men tioned unless essential to the story. The depart ment Is mentioned, as the authority, for it is back of the statements, but you won’t find among its stories any pipe dreams as to what the depart ment hopes to accomplish, statements about half baked experiments, freakish write-ups, or articles written to Influence legislation. “ ‘The boys’ showed me a year or so ago that there were certain fundamentals in agricultural practice which were not being regarded by many of my farmers and which stood out like the buttons on my coat. “‘Why not posterize the facts?’ argued Informa tion. “ ‘Your uncle Is willing, as long as you stick closely to the facts. You know I wouldn’t be wearing this gaudy outfit if I didn’t believe in at tracting attention myself!’ “I had been fighting the Texas fever tick for some years and had made good headway, but as I was planning to throw that work into high gear I needed to get before Southern farmers who live in tick-ridden district the information about the toll which the tick takes on Southern agriculture. And when I got her Into high I wanted to ‘step on her tail and nail it down.’ Consequently, a, new edu cational campaign was launched with a large pos ter, and the gist of what it said was, ‘Dip that tick!’ “This was followed by a whole brood of smaller posters, folders, primers, and news stories. Until comparatively recently there had been much an tagonism to the work of eradicating the tick; In THE BULLETIN, IRWINTON, GEORGIA. fact, they tell me that not a few of my inspectors have been dipped Instead of the cattle, and what’s worse, those people who did not believe in my tick-eradication measures blew up some of my dipping vats. But sentiment has now changed until the department finds it difficult, with the force available for the work, to keep up with the demands. This change of front, of course, Is not entirely due to the department’s activities. Infor mation also has been spread by the state col leges, railroads, chambers of commerce, county agents and others, but many of them, nevertheless, used the published matter furnished by Informa tion.” “Yes, I saw that poster and some of the pamph lets, and I wondered how the conservative govern ment ever happened to use red ink,” declared the congressman. “The government has as much right to use red ink and make its publications attractive as I have to wear red stripes on these trousers,” retorted Uncle Sam. “But I saw that some of the papers reprinted the poster and pamphlets without giving credit to the department of agriculture as author,” urged the congressman. “Our department of agriculture is not looking for credit, not if I have anything to say about it,” ejaculated Uncle Sam, growing rather warm under the collar. “When a pamphlet, mimeographed ar ticle, poster or anything else is released it can be used by any periodical with or without credit and without cost. I have noticed the ideas of many of the articles furnished to the press are played up according to the notions of the editor and the space at his command. This is exactly in accord with my ideas of the service which Infor mation can furnish. When the department finds out a good thing, son, I want the people to know it, and the press is one of the best agencies. “I want to tell you of one of the latest posters Information has published,” he continued. “It deals with the boll weevil —that little Insect which has caused millions of dollars of loss to the South ern cotton planter. This persistent pest advances its battle line practically every year and the scien tists and demonstrators in the trenches have not been able to win a really decisive victory. No one can say, however, where the weevil would have been by this date if the shell fire had not been kept up, new methods of control devised and knowledge of them spread broadcast. “You know familiarity sometimes breeds con tempt. The majority of Southern planters have been on intimate speaking terms with this weevil for some years. They recognize his work at every turn and have been forced more or less to ‘live with him,’ but they really don’t know this dinky inhabitant of the cotton plant, for he secrets himself in the bolls and squares. However, they will have no excuse for not knowing what he looks like after inspecting my new poster, for it pictures and describes him so that ‘he who rune may read.' And it is well that the reading matter is in large type, for if ‘colored pussons’ should see by moonlight that picture of a monster weevil they would immediately either choose the city pavements and cause a dearth of perfectly good cotton pickers, or mistake him for an opossum and call on the dogs. Once seen in the daylight, I'll bet my last year’s beaver hat to the hole in that doughnut the picture will recur often in the minds of the farmers and with it the accompany ing selling argument. If they don’t carry away some worth-while ideas, then it’s about time for me to join the old ladies’ knitting circle.” “You must be very sure of your facts when you put them before the public in such a manner,” in terrupted the congressman.’ "Are you positive that'what these scientists say Is correct?” “Well,” replied Sam, “as a rule, scientists are careful men and don’t talk until they think they have the proof, was painfully brought to my notice only the other day while I was riding with one through a very beautiful and interesting country. I talked about everything I saw or could think of, but I couldn’t get a ‘rise’ out of my careful companion. Upon passing a flock of sheep In a field I called them to my friend’s at tention and asked what breed he thought they were. The scientist would not hazard a guess. At last I became impatient at his conservatism and exclaimed: ‘You can at least see that the sheep are sheared and you would say that they are sheared, wouldn’t you?’ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘I would say that they appear to be sheared on this side.’ “Now what scintillating idea, by the great horn spoon, would you expect to get out of such a man that you would be able to posterize? Wouldn't you be better off to seek a good shady place and Fletcherize? You might feel like rumi nating a bit, but that is not the job of the office of information. It pumps the facts from the scientist and presents them to the public in easily digested form. Doubtless you have seen the pos ter giving directions for getting high grades for your com or how to handle that dreaded plague hog cholera. If you are interested in that food which Is found the world around —hen’s eggs— perchance you have been directed to the depart ment’s egg candling and chilling car by one of these posters, or have studied the one which shows the bane of the egg marketing business — the fertile egg kept in a room where it can start Incubation and quickly spoil. If you believe In bird sanctuaries, and that the singing laborer is worthy of his hire, Mr. Congressman, it would do your eyes good to stop reading figures which run Into the millions and learn how and why you should feed the birds this winter. If you will read that poster I’ll agree to shave off my chin whiskers in case you don’t take more Interest in the protection of birds —an inexpensive and de lightful recreation. Yes, there are lots of other posters, pamphlets, and folders appropriate to the varied activities of the department; so many, 1» fact, I can't remember them all.” OPPOSED TO THE TOP SOIL PLAN United States Government Want Perma nent Highways If Federal Aid Is Given To Build Roads * TO BE PASSED UPON SOON No Information As To Whether Depart ment Os Agriculture Approves The Project Atlanta— Judge T. E. Patterson, chairman of the state highway commission, has return ed from Washington, where he went to present the final data upon the com mission’s Atlanta-to-Macon highway project, and he stated that the entire question of whether or not Georgia is to get federal aid for her roads is now up to the secretary of agriculture. "The secretary of agriculture, how ever,” says Judge Patterson, “is out of Washington at present, and it may be some time yet before the project is finally passed upon. “Chairman Wise, Senator Bankhead and myself started to the office of Sec retary Houston,” said Judge Patterson, “to take up the matter with him, but were informed that he had just left the city.” Judge Patterson stated that Solici tor Williams of the United States de partment of agriculture, has passed the whole matter to the secretary of agri culture for his final decision. Solicitor Williams would venture no opinion as to whether the project would be ap proved or not, Judge Patterson said. W. Tom Winn, president of the Geor gia State Automobile association, at the regular weekly luncheon of the At lanta Motor club, stated that his infor mation which he had obtained directly from Logan W. Page, director of the United Statese ofgce of good roads, and from Assistant Director Pennypack er, was that the reason the department has been delaying action on the At lanta-to-Macon highway project is be cause the commission proposes to make this a top-soil road, and the de partment does not believe that the federal government should put its money into so temporary an improve ment. The view of the office of roads, according to Mr. Winn, is that if the top-soil project is passed favorably upon, the federal government will have set a precedent for federal aid for roads that are not of permanent con struction, and that the office of roads is much opposed to such a policy. "Mr. Pennyp'ficker told me,” said Mr. Winn, “that the Atlanta-to-Macon highway has been represented to him as the most important project in Geor gia, the road bearing the heaviest traf fic of any road, and as a road of im portance as a military highway. Under these conditions, it does seem that the road should be of permanent con struction, Mr. Pennypacker said.” Judge Patterson stated that when in Washington he received no intimation as to whether or not the department of agriculture might approve the proj ect. To House Soldiers Os Three States Camp Gordon, now being constructed near Chamblee, will house troops of the new national army from three states. These states are Georgia, Ala bama and Tennessee. The troops from North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida will be trained at Camp Jack son, Columbia, South Carolina. The designations of the camps for the troops of each state together with the quota to be furnished by each state is set forth in a distribution sheet just issued by the provort marshal general at Washington, D. C. The total number of soldiers to be located at Camp Gordon in the very near future, according to the sheet, is 38,461. Os this number Alabama will furnish 5,596; Tennessee, 14,528, and Georgia, 18,337. It will thus be seen that Georgia will furnish nearly half of the total number stationed at the cantonment. It is said that more than forty thousand men will be at Camp Gordon within sixty days. These soldiers are now being select ed by the various exemption boards and the first quota of them will report at the cantonment about September 5, to be followed at short intervals by the rest of the forces designated for serv ice under the first call. Will Be Manager Os School System Prof. L. M. Landrum, former super intendent, will soon be busines man ager of the Atlanta public school sys tem, city council passing an ordinance at a meeting creating this position to be effective until September, 1918. Mr. Landrum had already been elected to this place, but, after the board had named him, council had for a number of weeks, refused to authorize the new position. The ordinance creating the place will be held in abeyance for two weeks. Patriotic Addresses Mark “Anti” Meet A mass meeting held in Decatur, a suburb of Atlanta, to protest against the operation of the selective service law, developed into a near-patriotic ral ly when speeches were made by United States District Attorney Hooper Alex ander and other citizens, calling on those present to support the law,, the government and the flag. The meetinfl was called by handbills which were dis tributed through the county last week. The bills, unsigned, invited the public to a meeting to elect delegates to , a convention in Macon. TRAINING COURSE OUTLINED FOR DRAFTED ARMY MEN Trench Warfare And Open Warfare Will Be Considered Os Equal Importance At Camps Atlanta— General orders No. 9, just issued from the headquarters of the depart ment of the southeast, contain the in structions which are to government the training and discipline of the men who are to be trained at Camp Gor don and other similar camps in this department, pending the issue of or ders by the war department. The object to be attained in this training, according to this order, is to prepare the troops for overseas service at the earliest practicable date. While thorough training in trench warfare is vital, it must be kept in mind that the gains made by assaults on an entrenched line will always be comparatively small and in decisive unless the troops are so train ed as to be able to take up promptly open warfare are interdependent and will be considered of equal importance in the conduct of training. The present organization of units which do not differ sufficiently from the British and French armies greatly, will be maintained for the present. The training will be divided into three classes, preliminary, field and special, and will cover a period of four months. It is expected that the prelim inary phase of the training will occu py about six weeks. Special attention will also be paid to the physical train ing of the men. War Board Asked To Solve Problem With the Georgia Railway and Pow er « company still declining to build a double-track electric line to Camp Gor don and the Southern railway refusing to put on a shuttle train service to take care of passenger traffic pending the completion of the electric line, the public safety committee of the Atlanta chamber of commerce, in session, found itself face to face with the most serious traffic problem in the history of the city of Atlanta. In view of this situation the commit- ■ tee, in the adoption of resolutions, set 5 itself to the tasking of lending a solu tion to the problem by instructing Chairman Mell R. Wilkinson to lay be fore the responsible heads of the! Georgia Railway and. Power company I and the Southern railway company the urgency of conditions; authorizing the] appointment of a subcommittee to take the matter up with the national rail road war board, of which Fairfax Har-I rison is chairman, and calling upon the] Atlanta Retail Merchants’ association, I the Presidents’ club and all other civic I bodies of Atlanta to lend their co-op- 1 eration to the work of the committee. I The committee was unanimously of the] opinion that a double-track electric] trolley line from Atlanta to Camp Yir| don is absolutely essential. ' j Both Preston Arkwright, president of] the Georgia Railway and Power com-] pany, and Henry W. Miller, assistant] to the president of the Southern rail-] way, were present at the meeting and] took the position that their companies] could positively do nothing further] than what has already been planned] to relieve the situation. ] Mr. Arkwright stated that the Geor I gia Railway and Power company would! build but a single track from Buck] head to Camp Gordon, because thfl company could not foresee how long! the camp might be in existence anti that an early abandonment of thfl camp for any reason whatever woukl make the investment of the companjl practically a total loss. | Government Officers Inspect Granittl Lieutenant H. C. Taylor of the Unit! ed States navy, who has been assign! ed to paval construction work, anil O. G. Mechlin, government supervis! ing architect, are in Atlanta for thfl purpose of inspecting the granite ol Stone Mountain quarries with a viei| to using it as construction material il new buildings soon to be erected al the United States naval academy, B These new buildings are to be erecl ed as annexes to the main buildings cl the academy, the latter being coil structed of marble quarried in Maiml It is thought that the Georgia stonl will most nearly match up to the colcl and texture of that of Maine, and, il case this should prove true, the gol ernment will probably use it in tbl naval annexes. | The inspection of the Stone Mowl tain granite is in a large measure dvM to the influence and activity of CoB gressman William Schley Howard, wIK has interested government construß tion officers in the Georgia stone. ■ Ambulance Companies In TrainirH Official announcement has becß made by Lieut. Col. Robert E. Noblß of the surgeon general's office, thß ambulance companies Nos. 20 and 20 organized in Atlanta and officered iB Georgia men, will be ordered inß training^t once at Fort McPhersoß Formal Orders to this effect will B put at once. Ambulance companiß Nos. 20 and 29 may be ordered to dB part at almost any day after thcß concentration. K Commission To Pass On Financß While the legislature, in its rece® sessioii, did not act. directly upon t l ® suggestion of the governor that an >® ficiency commission be created to 108 after the financial .welfare of the sta ® a long step in this direction was tak B in the adoption of the senate amer® ment to the general appropriatio® bill, which provides for the creati® of a vacation commission to go oV® the state’s financial condition and r B ommend something in the nature of® budget, at the next session of the gi® eral assembly.