EXTENSION DIVISION. 203 



R. E. Cheney, County Club Leader. 



John M. Kuder, County Club Leader. 



Floyd S^mth, County Club Leader. 



Margaret Justm, Asst. Leader of Home Demonstration Agents: Red 

 Cross. 



E. C. Lindemaii, State Leader, Boys' and Girls' Clubs: War Canij) Com- 

 nninity Service. 



KEPORT OF FARM BUREAU AND COUNTY AGRICULTURAL 

 AGENT WORK IN MICHIGAN FOR THE YEAR ENDING 



JUNE 30, '19. 



BY EBEN MUMFORD, STATE LEADER. 



The Farm Bureau movement, like the work of many other organizations, 

 was greatly accelerated by the war. The interest of the people in larger 

 and more economical production, in more efficient distribution and in 

 greater conservation of food products, was much intensified. The move- 

 ment toward organized efforts for the solution of agricultural problems 

 was also greatly stimulated. Within about one year after the United 

 States entered the war, forty-four counties organized farm bureaus and 

 forty-one agents and seven assistants were employed as leaders of the 

 work, making a total of sixty-eight counties having farm bureaus and em- 

 ploying agricultural agents. 



The program of work of the farm bureau during the war was based 

 primarily upon food needs and the time of the county agricultural agents, 

 as the representatives of the nation, the state, the covmty and the various 

 communities was largely devoted to assisting in carrying out this program. 



In addition to war work done as agents of farm bureaus, the county 

 agent was also recognized by the other war agencies as one of the county 

 leaders in collecting and disseminating information in regard to war 

 activities and in planning and executing plans relative to the war pro- 

 grams. The county agent cooperated in making food and labor surveys 

 and carrying out the plans of the Food Qdministration, the Federal Labor 

 Bureau the Local and District Draft Boards and the Boys' Working Re- 

 serve. They assisted the Department of Agriculture in the distribution 

 of nitrates, the Food Administration in the inspection of threshing ma- 

 chines and the State War Board in the distribution of tractors; they also 

 helped in Liberty Loan, Red Cross and War Savings Stamp Campaigns. 



As the work of the county agents centered around war activities during 

 the period of the war, so with the close of the war their time and attention 

 is being taken to a large degree by reconstruction activities as related to 

 agriculture. The agricultural needs and opportunities following the war 

 are many, and are potent forces in shaping the policies and programs of 

 the farm bureaus. Habits of team work started by the demands of the 

 war are continuing in the reconstruction period and the spirit of coopera- 

 tion intensified by the war is being carried into the efforts to solve the 

 problems that now have to be met. 



In the chronological statement of the development of the farm bureau 

 work as given below, the rapid growth after the United States entered 

 the war is apparent; this statement of the development of the work also 

 gives^the counties having farm bureaus and the list of agents who have 

 been, or are now employed in the different counties. 



