SEED IMPROVEMENT MEETING. 213 



desirable to lay before you my ideas for the coming year, and 

 to receive here and now your approval or disapproval, than to 

 spend my timfe in telling you what we have already done, a 

 thing that most of you know. 



Some of the following points I have worked out in part and 

 others are still unsolved. 



First, — By use of the post cards which most of you have 

 received, I plan to make as complete a list as possible of all of 

 the seed for sale by the different members. I will send one of 

 these lists to each Grange; it will then be up to you if you sel! 

 your seed or not. 



Second, — I am planning to run germination tests on as much 

 seed as is sent to me for that purpose. The germination test 

 will tell you if it is worth while or not to plant that seed the 

 coming spring. The germination percentage is a very good 

 point to mention in advertising your seed. With a high germi- 

 nation percentage you can ask a higher price. The result of 

 this work depends on you. If you send the seed in, T will test 

 it. If you don't send it in I can not test it. I will do this test- 

 ing in January and February. 



Third, — I hope to send out to as large a number of farmers 

 as advisable, plans for seed improvement. Whether these plans 

 will be of any value or not depends on two things ; first, on my 

 ability to make the plans hit each individual, and second, on the 

 following out of those plans by you. 



Fourth, — I hope to be able to obtain a small amount of money 

 so that I can buy good seed from reliable houses. I plan now 

 to buy only the small grains, as oats, barley, etc. Then to any 

 man that seems worthy (1 will judge his worth by the work he 

 has already done and the interest he has taken), I will send 

 as much seed of any one (but only one) kind as he wants for his 

 own use next spring. In return I shall demand that he sign a 

 regular contract to return to the field agent or department next 

 fall the same amount of seed as I gave him in the spring 

 and one-half as much more. The seed that he returns must be 

 cleaned in a fanning mill and free from all weed seeds. To 

 illustrate, — if I give John Smith ten bushels of oats this spring, 

 I shall expect him to return to the field agent next fall fifteen 

 bushels of clean seed. 



