HAMPSHIRE COUNTY FARMERS' MONTHLY 



FARMERS' MONTHLY 



PUBLISHED BY THE I 



Hampshire County Trustees for Aid to 

 Agriculture 



OPPORTUNITY 



STAFF 



Roland A. Tayne, County Agent 

 Mildred \V. Iloiee, 



Home Demonstration Agent 

 Norman i-\ Wliippen, County Clul* Agent 

 Mary Diinond, Clerk 

 Mary Sullivan, AMst. Clerk 



Office First National Bank Building 



Northampton, Mass. 

 Entered as second class matter Nov. 9, 

 1915. at the Post Office at Northampton, 

 Massachusetts, under the Act of March 

 8, 1879. 



"Notice of Entry" 

 "Acceptance for m.iiling at special rate 

 of postage provided for in section 1103, 

 Act of October 3, 1917. Authorized Oc- 

 tober 31, 1917. 



l*rioe, r»0 eeiits a year 



Officers of the Trustees 



Edwin B. Clapp, President 

 Charles E. Clark, Vice-President 

 Warren M. King, Treasurer 

 Koland A. Payne, Secretary 



Trustees for County Aid to Agriculture 

 Edwin B. Clapp, Easthampton 

 Charles E. Clark, Leeds 

 Clarence E. Hodgkins, Northampton 

 Milton S. Howes, Cunimington 

 Mrs. Clifton .Johnson, Hadley 

 Warren M. King, Northampton 

 John A. Sullivan, Northampton 

 Charles W. Wade, Hatfield 

 W. H. Atkins, Amherst 



COUNTY NOTES 



Guessing Does Not Pay 



We recently tested a sample of .soil 

 in a field where alfalfa had winterkilled 

 badly. The test showed the soil to be 

 sti'ongly acid although a ton of limestone 

 had been applied last spring. If the test 

 had been made last spring, this man 

 would have known how much lime to have 

 used. As it is, he has lost the seed which 

 cost .$10 for the acre. Instead of having 

 alfalfa crop this year, he has to refit the 

 field. We may be able to save you some 

 money if you will send in your soil 

 samples from fields which you expect to 

 seed. 



Take samples of soil from five or si.x 

 places in the field. Mix these together 

 and send only a teacupfu! to the County 

 Agent, 59 Main Street, Northampton. 

 We will send you an actual lime prescrip- 

 tion suited to youi- needs. A half hour 

 .spent in taking and mailing the sample 

 may save you money. 



Co-operative Purchase of Lime 



The cooperative purchase of lime ofi'ers 

 an opportunity for farmers to save sev- 



"I knock unbidden once at every gate ! 

 If sleeping, wake — if fea.sting rise before 

 I turn away. It is the hour of fate. 

 And they who follow me reach every state 

 Mortals desire, and conquer every foe 

 Save death ; but those doubt or hesitate. 

 Condemned to failure, penury and woe, 

 Seek me in vain, and uselessly implore, 

 I answer not. and I return no more." 



— John J. InyalU. 

 This is the popular version regarding Opportunity. To those who believe 

 that opportunity has already knocked, it offers no encouragement for the future. 

 It seems to express the views of too many farmers in this county at the present 

 time. Tho.se who hold this viewpoint are no different than the people who "enjoy 

 poor health." In the past, this seemed to be quite the fashion. To-day it is not 

 considered an asset. 



There are undoubtedly many farmers who feel that they have reached the 

 point where their business is 100 per cent efficient. These men will not be the 

 leaders of tomorrow. It is the everlasting struggle, the survival of the fittest, 

 that makes for human progress. 



In the past, farming has been described as a mode of living. To-day farming^ 

 is a busines.s. The men who try to stay in the business of farming with poor 

 producing cows, low yields of crops and low production per man have two courses 

 open to them. The first, and easiest, is to continue as in the past. If their farms 

 are free from debt, they can probably keep on. It will mean years of drudgery 

 and privation for their families. The second, and harder, is to copy the methods 

 of the best farmers in the community. 



This fact should be kept in mind: "Improved methods are not Patented." In 

 many cases these methods are not expensive. It costs nothing but effort to put 

 crops in at the proper time, yet it pays. It costs money to start clover and alfalfa, 

 yet these legumes more than pay in the reduction that can be made in the grain 

 bill. A bull calf whose breeding is such that you have every reason to believe 

 that his daughters will be better than their dams can be obtained for a compara- 

 tively small sum. If a man has not abused his credit, bankers in this county are 

 willing to help finance productive enterprises. They will not loan money on "dead 

 horses." 



In place of the verse at the beginning, we feel farmers will make more 

 progress if they will believe and carry out the thoughts expressed, by .John Malone 

 in his poem on Opportunity. 



"They do me wi'ong w'ho say I come no more 



When once I knock and fail to find you in; 

 For every day I stand outside your door 



And bid you wake, and rise to fight and win. 



Though deep in mire, wring not your hands and weep ; 



I lend my arm to all who say 'I can!' 

 No shamefaced outcast ever sank so deep 



But yet might rise and be again a man!" 



eral dollars per ton. Dealers as a rule 

 do not like to handle this commodity. 

 Farmers can best perform this service 

 for themselves. Fine ground limestone 

 and agricultural lime can be bought at 

 prices ranging from $6.50 to $9.00 pei' 

 ton F. 0. B. your station. The County 

 Agent cannot sell lime or any other com- 

 modity but he can show you how to buy 

 it. S. R. Parker of Amherst and H. T. 

 Brockway of South Hadley have already 

 handled carloads. You can render a 

 service to your neighbors and help your- 

 self in this matter. Write to the County 

 Agent if interested. 



Good Brooder Mouses 



At Extension Schools, plans were given 

 for building portable brooder houses. 

 Th€se plans called for a house 10 feet I 

 front by 12 feet deep without any glass. 



The skids are placed the long way of 

 the house. This house is not so apt to 

 be racked in moving as the common type 

 of 8 by 12 house as the weight is more 

 evenly distributed on the skids. The 

 lack of glass has two advantages: (1) 

 There are no lightspots on the floor to 

 draw the chicks away from the stove 

 when they want to get warm; (2) Ample 

 ventilation, so often neglected in houses 

 with glass, is assured. Atherton Parsons 

 and S. Deptula, both of Southampton,, 

 have built houses on this plan. 



Successful horse Auction 



The Hampshire County Farm Bureau- 

 cooperating with the North Dakota Farm 

 Bureau, held a successful horse auction 

 in Northampton, March 18. Credit for 

 the smoothness of the sale is due Josiah 

 Continuod on pagre 8, column 1 



