HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
9
Home and Farm Magazine Section Editorial Page
Suggestions From Our Associate Editors, Allowing for an Interchange of Views, Written by Men of Experience on Topics With
Which They Are Fully Acquainted Hints Along lines of Progressive Farm Thought.
. LOOK UP THE ABSTRACTS.
BECAUSE of their inability to
present abstracts of titles to
; . their lands, twenty -seven farm
ers in Gilliam county are in danger
of losing loans made upon farms
by the Oregon Stale Land Board
from the state school fund.
: The state authorities should bs
In no hurry.
The chances are the loans are up
on good security.
The county assessor in Gilliam
county can easily advise the State
Lund Board if the loans are safe.
Just now is a poor time to fore
close loans.
' . The main trouble nowadays in
stimulating agriculture and encour
aging the farmer is the high inter
- est rate.
The funds available for loans to
the farmer should be increased.
The interest rate and the ex
penses attached to making loans
should be cut down.
Here is the proper procedure to
10 followed in making loans of
state funds to farmers:
First, an appraisal of the farm
er's land by the county assessor.
Second, passing on the farmer's
title by the county attorney.
Third, passing on the loan by the
State Board.
No expense for making such a
loan should be borne by the farm
er, except recording the mortgage.
Political pull and the system of
maintaining state loan agents who
receive fees should be eliminated.
The interest Tate, now Bix per
cent, or more, should be reduced
to five.
' ' The thing to do is to enlarge the
loan fund to farmers.
' At present the farmer pays from
9 to 12 per cent interest for his
. loans.
On his gilt-edged security he is
entitled to money for less.
"GOOD FOB THE FARMERS."
THE Evening Telegram of Port
land has an editorial under the
' above title. It is worth re
I printing. The editor says:
"Just "as a little aside utterance
' from the Treasury Department we
have the assurance that the farmers
' of the country have sufficient
money to move their crops. We
' assume that the Treasury Depart
ment knows what it is talking
about, whereupon there is occasion
to say: Good for the farmers. I
."Also may we say that it is good
for. the rest of the country, and
rather a jolt to the pessimists. If
the farmers have money with which
to move their crops that in itself
is tho best evidence that the farm
ers have been prosperous during
i the past year. And if the farmers
' have been prosperous there is little
to foar so far as the rest of the
country is concerned.
That there is depression in busi
ness it would be Billy to deny, but
concerning the cause of that de
pression there Is good ground for
difference of opinion. Whether
it has come about without the aid
of groups of men poworful in in
dustry and commorce, and how
much of it is duo to the pendency
Of the anti trust legislation and the
poor-mouth urgency of the rail
roads for an increase of rates are
considerations to be pondered.
Whatever one may conclude re
specting these matters, it must be
eonccdod that this prosperity of the
farmers is fundamental and assur-
in."
i The point is this:
' How everyone watches to Bee if
tho farmer is prosperous.
'. If he is, tho whole country puts
on full steam.
I The prosperity of tho farmer
: means tho prosperity of the coun
try. . One -of tho hopeful signs in this
country is the realization of this
fact.
Rural telephones and rural froe
delivery have helped tho farmer.
Whou he gots lower interest rates
and a better marketing system, the
whole country will get the benefit.
When this is realized, these re
forms will come quickly.
SPORTSMEN'S AID SOUGHT
AGAINST FOREST FIRES.
BECAUSE of the fact that many
forest fires are set through the
carelessness of hunters, camp
ers and others who go into the
woods for recreation, the forest
service has taken up with manu
facturers of firearms and ammuni
tion the question of a cooperative
arrangement through which pur-t
chasers and users of guns and cart
ridges shall be reminded of the fire
danger.
It has been pointed out that in
the lumber regions of the northwest
for example, .manufacturers and
other business men have been hav
ing printed or stamped on their sta
tionery and pay eheks various
crisp, catchy statements about the
loss which the public suffers
through the decreased demand for
labor and decreased money in circu
lation if timber, which is the source
of many of the northwest's indus
tries, is burned up.
It has also pointed out that in the
east particularly many forest fires
are started by the carelessness of
hunters, who drop burning matches,
cigar or cigarette stumps, or pipe
coals in the woods, or perhaps build
a fire which is left burning when
the hunter goes on. Forest fires of
course greatly injure the interests
of sportsmen by robbing the birds
of their proper cover. They also
impair the food supply of both
birds and big game, through the de
struction of the underirrowth which
furnishes browse, berries and other
food.
The eastern woods are exposed to
danger from fires principally in the
spring and fall, when most of the
trees are bare and tho leaves on the
ground are dry. The spring fires,
many of which nre duo to trout
fishermen, may destroy the eggs of
game birds and even the young
birds themselves. Since trout fish
ermen are likely to hunt in the fall,
the same - individuals, if careless,
may be a source of danger at both
seasons.
It is suggested that the manufact
urers of arms and ammunition ought
to be sufficiently interested in the
matter of perpetuation to be will
ing to help in the campaign against
forest fires. This help may come
through the printing of some brief
fire warning on cartridge boxes or
some slip to go with any hunting or
camping supplies which are furn
ished. Several manuiacturers have
already expressed their interest in
the matter and their willingness to
help.
BUILD UP THE NORTHWEST.
C TABLES COOPEY is a careful
observer. Here is an editorial
- by him in fhe Chamber of
Commerce Bulletin, which is worth
reading and heeding:
Do you want the Pacific Coast to
build upt
California and Washington nro
developing factories along this lino.
Do you want to find employment
for the people we have here and
that are comingf
California and Washington are
preparing to find work for the peo
ple coming to them throngh the
Canal.
If you do, then buy homo-made
goods. This will develop factories. '
These factories will also find em
ployment for your boys and girls
and enable them to get an honest
living. Teach them legitimate
trades and make honorablo citi
zens of them, for if wo aro goinp to
succeed in developing the Tacifie
Coast some of us must take up the
occupation of "putting into tho
barrel." If we are all taking out
we shall soon reach the bottom.
As an instance, tho amount paid
for labor in the making of men's
special order clothing that the West
buys from the East annually would
find employment for many thous
ands of people at a good living
wage.
These few figures only have ref
erence to one branch of our indus
try men's special order clothes.
Add to this the women's special or
der clothes, the ready-to-wear cloth
ing for men, women and children,
and the various articles we buy
from the East, and the total should
convince any person why money is
at times scarce with us.
For the sake of our self-preservation,
these conditions must be
changed. We must make goods to
supply our every-day needs and
find work not only for ourselves
but all people that come to live
among us that are willing to work.
REMEMBER, if it is only a shoe
lace you are buying, the making of
the shoe lace finds work for some
one. Do you want that someone to
be living in Oregon or Washington
or some far away city where wages
are very low and you can buy them
cheapert
We must help change these condi
tions and give the coast merchant
a chance to have his special orders
made at home, thus finding work
for our people and keeping vast
sums of money at home that is now
being sent East. The merchant
claims he is not to blame for not
buying his goods at home, for up
- until now there has been no place
Teady to supply him and we hope in
the near future to see several fac
tories making the different kinds
of garments that are needed.
LANE AND THE WEST.
SECRETARY LANE, according
to Collier's, is the ablest mem
ber of the Cabinet.
ITe has prepared the following
programme of constructive legisla
tion, which, if it passed Congress,
would release the West from the
strangle-hold of theoretical conser
vationists. Here is his programme:
Alaskan coal-leasing bill, which
is needed to make the government
railway a success. Why build a
railroad if Alaska coal is to be kept
bottled upt
General leasing bill for coal, oil,
and phosphates. This provides for
the opening of rich, natural re
sources which now lie latent in the
public domain. t
Water power bill, which provides
that the title to water powers shall
be vested in the Nation, but at tho
same time allows leasing and de
veloping of these water powers for
definite terms of years. What use
is this locked up water power to
anyoncT
Irrigated lands bill, which allows
the settler on government irriga
tion projects to pay off his water
right lien in twenty years instead
of ten years.
Now there is no politics in these
bills.
Government Gets New Forest
LITTLE more than 33,000 acres in
f the White mountains have just been
approved for purchase by the gov
ernment at a meeting of tho national
forest reservation commission.
Thcso areas are in two separate tracts
both in Grafton county, New Hamp
shire, the larger containing 31,100
acres on the watershed of tho Pemige
wasset river, a tributary to the Merri
mac. The tract comes within a mile of
North Woodstock on the Boston and
Maine railroad, and several good roads
lead through it. The land is between
700 and 4,300 feet in elovation, and in
the lower valleys are a number of
abandoned farms now grown up to
trees. Most of the conifors have been
cut to make paper pulp, but there are
good stands of beech, birch, and maple
of considerable value. With fire --kept
out there is said to he excellent pro
mise of a new stand of spruce. The
price agreed upon by the government is
$4.C2 aa acre including bet land and
itiabeft.
Secretary Lane is a Democrat
His bills are good.
They should command both Demo
cratic, Republican and Progressive
votes. , . ,
The congressmen from the West
should line up back of these bills
and pass them.
FARM ADVISORS COMING.
IT IS now practically certain that
a county farm adviser and agri
culturist will be employed for
Idaho County, Idaho. Discussing
the farm advisor movement in
general and its relation to Idaho
County in particular, R. B. Coglon,
director of county agriculturists at
the University of Idaho, says:
"The Federal Government re
cently appropriated to each state
and territory the sum of $10,000.
Eo employ an agriculturist for a
year, pay all expenses of travel
over the county, and furnish the
necessary equipment will require
approximately $3000. To assist as
many as possible the present plan,
is to offer $1000 to each county
making an additional appropriation
of $2000, until the government
fund is exhausted."
This movement is gaining force.
Fanners and county officials
should watch it.
We would be glad to have re
ports on it from counties where
farm advisors have been hired.
THE BEASON.
IiO. every man who marries
For love he does that same
And to the hearthstone carries
True love's immortal flame.
Some wed for love of woman
And omc for lore of pelf,
And aome 'tis very human-
For simple lore of self.
Some wed for love of beauty
And some for "love of pride,
Some out of love of duty
Take unto them a bride.
And some whose feet are weary
And who would cease to roam,
Who find the lone road dreary
They wed for love of home.
One common love, though, leads u
Earn one to take a wife
And to the altar speeds us,
Whatever doubts are rife.
With her the grave we'd walk to
And falter not nor balk
To have some one to talk to
Who likes to hear ns talk!
Chicago News.
TO ADVERTISERS.
Advertisers in this locality who
wish to fully cover all sections of
Oregon and Washington and a por
tion of Idaho will apply to local pub
lishers for rates.
General advertisers may address
C. L. Burton, Advertising Manager,
411 Panama Building, Portland,
Oregon, for rates and information.
The publishers will accept busi
ness from no advertiser whose relia
bility can be questioned.
The smaller purchase consists of sev
eral areas lying on the watersheds of
Little River and Gale River, both tn&t
utaries of lie Connecticut. These land
cover 2,000 acres and are eontiguoui
to lands already approved for pure Base;
hence they go far toward giving the
o-nvernment a solid body of land la
this locality. The price for the 2,009
acres, land and timber, is J4.00 an acre.
Thn trnel is in the locality of the note!
Franeonia range and is readily accessi
ble from two railroad stations, Betwe
hem and Twin Mountain. The forest
fca Vienn cut over and consists chiefly
of tho northern hardwoods, though soma
spruce remains from tho original stano.
At the same time that theso White
mountain areas were approved, the com
mission also approved the purchase of
the Pisgah forest in North Carolina,
from the George W. Vanderbut estate.
Those tracts bring the total easier tm
u up u ymfioo