406 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



the work that was cut out for us. Last spring a special effort was made 

 along the line of garden work, as you know, and the Volunteer Food 

 Producers' Association was organized with 20,000 members. The food 

 conservation campaign was carried on last summer, which entered every 

 county in the state of Iowa, and paved the way for the recent campaign 

 of the Food Administration in this state, which has resulted in a larger 

 number of signatures, I believe, in accordance with our population, than 

 in any other state of the Union. 



We carried on these activities during the spring and summer with our 

 own funds. Late in August, the government funds appropriated espe- 

 cially for' war purposes (I want to make that point clear, that the enact- 

 ment under which we receive our funds now specifically states that it 

 is an act for the national defense and for the purpose of winning the 

 war with Germany) became available. The government asked us to first 

 organize the state with farm improvement associations. Most of you 

 are familiar with this organization, which provides for a membership 

 of 200 farmers or farm owners in each county, who will raise in the 

 neighborhood of $1,000 thru subscriptions for the support of this work. 

 We have to organize at the present time if we are going to meet the 

 Prussian menace. We can't do it as individuals, we must work as a unit. 

 I am very glad to inform you tonight that practically seventy counties 

 in this state already have farm improvement organizations organized on 

 the basis I have mentioned, and it is our purpose and plan to put this 

 organization up to ninety-nine countlas before spring work opens. 

 Wliether or not we can do that will depend upon the cordial co-opera- 

 iton of the people living in these counties. 



I am not taking any credit for our extension work; we don't de- 

 serve any. AVe are merely trying to be loyal and do our duty. But I 

 do feel that the people of this state deserve a great deal of credit 

 in their respective counties for the way they have taken hold of this 

 work and pushed it forward. There is very little kicking about the 

 proposition at this time. In some localities you will find people who 

 kick. The man who kicks and holds back puts himself in the same 

 class with the fellow who kicks against the Red Cross and the Y. M. 

 C. A. This is a time when we must get back of the government pro- 

 gram and push hard in order to get it thru, and we are very grateful 

 for the whole-hearted support the people are giving this work. 



There is no use in organizing simply for organization's sake, but I 

 want to tell you that the people of Iowa have one of the biggest prob- 

 lems on hand to find sufficient seed corn for next year's planting. 'A 

 strenuous effort will be made thru all of these organizations to ferret 

 out this seed and have sufficient good seed stock for the farmers of 

 this state for next spring. It is a problem that we must work at in- 

 dustriously if we are going to meet it. 



The government has asked for an increase in the production of pork. 

 We had Mr. Cotton out here today to tell you what the Food Admin- 

 istration intends to do in this regard, and I feel myself that the 

 prospects for pork production were never better than they are right 

 now, and I believe the farmers of this state are going to get back to 

 this movement and do their very best. 



