412 AGRICULTURAL, APPROPRL\TIOX BILL, 1924. 



are 30,000 live-stock correspondents. This is a new work that is 

 bein^ developed this year, and we expect eventually to build the 

 number up to 60,000 live-stock correspondents. This does not 

 include the 300.000 farmers who are roportino: through the rural 

 carriers of the Post Oflico Department. Then we have 50,000 other 

 correspondents whom wo call individual farm correspondents. They 

 report to Washington for their own farms only, covering acreage, 

 production, and matters of that kind. We have another 50,000 

 farmers who report in the same way to the field men. 



This duplicate system is used so that one may be used as a check 

 upon the other. There are 6,300 s])ecial cotton correspondents, 

 3,800 honey bee correspondents. 7,500 .special data correspondents, 

 2,000 maple-sugar correspondents, 13.000 truck crop correspondents, 

 also 2,500 canners' associations correspondents who report everv year 

 the total amount of fruits and vegetables canned. Practically all 

 canners are on this list. During the present year. 3,000,000 schedules 

 were sent out from Washington, and at least 3,000,000 more from our 

 field offices. From these returns, during 1922, about 48,000 separate 

 and distinct estimates were made on various factors relating to the 

 crops and live stock. 



Six thousand of these estimates related to live stock, and 12,000 to 

 prices; the balance related to acreage, condition of crops, and yields. 

 The truck-crop work in the field is carried on b}" two truck-crop 

 specialists. Tne work on truck crop in Washington fits in with the 

 other crop work, and is done by the same people, so that the cost of 

 it here in Washington is relatively small. Nearly half a million 

 truck schedules were sent out this last year, and 79 separate and dis- 

 tinct reports were made on truck crops. 



COOPERATION' WITH THE ST.\TES. 



All of the work of the division, wherever possible, is done in coopera- 

 tion with the States. We already have arrangements with 28 States. 

 The States are Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, 

 Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, all of the New England States, 

 Maryland. Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, 

 Michigan, New York, North Carolina. Oliio. Oklahoma, Utah, Vir- 

 ginia, and Wisconsin. Tlie States are i)utting into this crop reporting 

 work somewhere between S75.00() and §100,000 a year. That is an 

 estimate, of course. Some of the work is mixed in with other State 

 work, so that it is hard to tell how much tlie States are putting in. 

 These cooperative arrangements are extremely beneficial in two ways: 

 First, they have eliminated duplicate reports in many of the States 

 and the single report that is now made has been stivngthened. It 

 lias been j)ossible to merge the clerical help, the reporters, ami the 

 furi(l>. In practically everv State where these cooj)erative relations 

 are in effect the work is gomg along in a very satisfactory way, and 

 we are able to get much niore detailed information concerning each 

 individual State than was possible before these cooperative arranj'e- 

 iiients were made. vSecond, it has kept down the expen.so to tlie 

 Fe«leral (iovenunent of doing the crop-reporting work. 



