250 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



tural cliemist. This large milling concern has found that it pays 

 them in dollars and cents as I stated a few minutes ago, to hire that 

 man at a good-sized salarj'^ for the purpose of examining into the 

 methods that they employ in that big mill, and the thought occurred 

 to me as it has occurred to me many times since, that if these various 

 lines of industry — and they are only small phases, you might say, of 

 industry — could afford to hire specialists whose business it is to carry 

 on a daily examination of that business, a daily critical self-examina- 

 tion, you might call it, because these men are employed by the busi- 

 ness itself — if it pays them in dollars and cents to hire such men, it 

 seems to me that the great business of farming can atford to carry 

 on the same critical, self-examination. 



In a group of people of this nature — it is not necessary for me to 

 say anything about the importance of farming — we all know that 

 every living person in this country depends upon the man who pro- 

 duces the food and the clothing for all of us — it is not necessary for 

 me to emphasize that point whatever, but I do believe that it is 

 worth while to say in passing, that this business is big enough, 

 is fundamental enough, is of sufficient imj)ortance to all of the 

 people of the United States as well as to the men themselves who are 

 engaged in this business, to carry on a daily, critical self-examination 

 of the business, and the only reason I make that comment 

 is that here and there we still tind someone who thinks they know 

 all there is to be known about the business of farming just because 

 we have had handed down to us customs and traditions from the 

 past. I say the business of farming is big enough and complex 

 3nough to make it pay us in dollars and cents to carry on this same 

 critical self-examination that has resulted in such great profit to the 

 automobile industry. I could mention a hundred and one illus- 

 trations; I could point to the development of transportation which 

 has been the result of critical, daily and hourly investigation into 

 the methods that were in use for the purpose of finding better meth- 

 ods, finding better materials, for the purpose of bringing about in- 

 creased efficiency, and the business of farming can stand, yea, it 

 needs that same critical self-examination. 



Now the agricultural leaders of half a century ago, yes of a hun- 

 dred years ago, realized there was need of this critical examination. 

 George Washington pointed out in his time that it was necessary 

 for us to make a study of tlie soil. Benjamin Franklin pointed out 

 the fact that you could produce more on an acre of ground that 

 was properly cared for, fertilized, than you could on an acre that 

 was not, so what we know about fertilizers is not altogether of re- 

 cent origin. Thomas Jefferson pointed out the fact that many im- 

 provements could be made upon the plow. Some of his suggestions 

 were taken up by practical men and put into operation, resulting in 

 some definite improvements to the plow. The first agricultural so- 

 ciety in this country was organized in Philadelphia in 177G, I think 

 it was, and Benjamin Franklin and George Washington were both 

 members of that agricultural society. Half a century ago, the ag- 

 ricultural leaders — and they were more numerous by that time, real- 

 ized full well that there was a great need for more definite informa- 

 tion about the scientific facts underlying the common farm practices 

 with which everyone who lived on a farm in the open country was 

 more or less familiar. What was the result? We had established 



