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CIRCULAR NO. 117, BUREAU OP PLANT INDUSTRY. 



agencies enumerated was of any benefit and that only experience in 

 farm work counted. The preference shown for each of the agencies 

 is shown in Table V: 



Table V. — Number of farmers stating agency most helpful in their farming. 



The table as it stands shows that about 6.3 per cent of the farmers 

 visited placed the agricultural bulletins and reports first on the list 

 of helpful agricultural agencies, 3.6 per cent placed the farmers' in- 

 stitute first, 40.3 per cent favored the farm papers, 4.5 per cent re- 

 garded all agencies as equally valuable, and 43.7 per cent stated that 

 none was helpful. The farmers who had come in contact with dem- 

 onstration agents were too few to warrant attaching any significance 

 to the percentage for this item. 



The noteworthy matters are the large number who placed the farm 

 papers first and the still larger number who placed no value whatever 

 on any of the agencies. As a matter of fact, however, the man who 

 neither receives the bulletins, takes a farm paper, nor attends the 

 farmers' institutes is not in a position to judge of the value of such 

 agencies. Many of the 1,616 farmers who denied the worth of these 

 agencies fall within this class. Some, however, attended the insti- 

 tutes, took farm papers, and received the bulletins, and still said they 

 were not helped in their farming by any of these agencies. This 

 large percentage, however, shows a marked conservatism toward 

 agricultural extension agencies and undoubtedly indicates the cause of 

 the reluctance of farmers in some sections to support in any marked 

 degree the present country-wide movement looking to the location 

 of trained agriculturists in counties to advise with farmers in the 

 improvement of their agriculture, a movement strongly supported 

 everywhere by both business and commercial interests. 



In order that there may be a fair comparison as to the merits of 

 different agencies it is essential that the one making the comparison 

 be in touch with each agency compared. There were 469 farmers who 

 not only received the bulletins, but also attended farmers' 1 institutes 

 and took farm papers, thus being acquainted with all three agencies. 

 [Cir. 117] 



