RELATION OF EXTENSION AGENCIES TO FARM PRACTICE. 



21 



Government agencies. The number of farm libraries in each of the 

 different sections of the territory covered was as follows: North 

 Atlantic States, 35: Southern States, 23; North-Central States, 51; 

 and West-Central States, 46. 



With reference to agricultural societies the data secured from the 

 different sections are as follows: 



Table IV. — Farmer* belonging to agricultural satieties. 



Table IV shows that agricultural societies are quite numerous in 

 the North Atlantic States, but much less so in the other sections 

 studied. The Grange is the most important society in the North 

 Atlantic section. Out of a total of 368 farmers interviewed belong- 

 ing to any organization in the North Atlantic States, 337 belonged to 

 the Grange. In the other sections various other societies predomi- 

 nate. These are somewhat similar to the Grange in purpose and or- 

 ganization. Of the 96 farmers belonging to agricultural organiza- 

 tions in the South, 93 belong to the Farmers 1 Union. 



Fire insurance and cooperative buying and selling are the chief 

 interests of the larger agricultural organizations encountered. That 

 they exert only a minor influence on agricultural practice is shown 

 by the fact that in the case of the Grange only 1 out of the 337 

 grangers visited in New York placed the Grange first in the list of 

 helpful farm agencies. 



AGENCY MOST EFFECTIVE IN INFLUENCING FARM PRACTICE. 



In framing the list of questions asked in the survey it was desired 

 to get the farmer's own estimate of the relative value of each of the 

 more usual agricultural educational agencies, such as the agricultural 

 bulletins and reports, the farmers' 1 institute, farm papers, agricultural 

 books, and demonstration agents. A goodly number gave no prefer- 

 ence, stating that all were equally valuable. Others, while expressing 

 a preference, were careful to state that they also secured much help 

 from the other agencies and would not want to be deprived of any of 

 them. The rather surprising fact brought out in this connection was 

 that 1,616 farmers out of the 3,698 visited claimed that none of the 



[Cir. 117] 



