4 —Lancaster Farming, Friday, May 17, 1957 ■!? Lancaster County’s Own Farm Weekly Newspaper Established November 4, 1955 Published every Friday by OCTORARO NEWSPAPERS Quarryville, Pa. Phone STerling 6-2132 Lancaster Phone EXpress 4-3047 Alfred C. Alspach Robert E. Best... Robert G. Campbell Robert J. Wiggins Subscription itates; $2.00 Per Year Three Years $5.00; 50 Per Copy Entered as Second-Class matter at the Post Office, Quarryville, Pa., under Act of March 3, 1879 The Farm Income Situation There is considerable optimism in Washington on the farm income situation Figures show that in 1956 farmers enjoyed a four per cent rise in net farm income over the proceeding year. Economists in the Department of Agriculture pre dict that 1957 should show a like gain. Prices being received by farmers are averaging about three per cent higher than a year ago and the gen eral price picture appears steady for the foreseeable fu ture. Crop prices probably will be lower this year, ac cording to Nathan M. Koffsky, chief. Farm Income Branch, Agrictultural Marketing Service, but this probably will be offset by higher prices paid for cattle and hogs In general, he expects the volume of marketings of all farm commodities to be smaller this year Also coming into the farm income picture strongly this year for the first time is the Soil Bank Although sev eral million acres were in the acreage reserve last season, the act was approved and put into effect well after the planting season in many areas of the United States. This year, the full potential of the act will be felt , In the long range picture, a constant rise in pro duction is to be expected. American farmers have shown that despite reduced acreages, they can still keep boost ing production each year.. But offsetting this is the fact that stocks of agricul tural commodities are being reduced through domestic consumption and through srfles abroad. When the excess stocks are moved out, the price should rise apppreciably - It is this last item, the huge' stocks of farm surplus food, that has the economists and the Secretary of Agricul ture worried. The economists say that gains in farm income gain ed can be maintained, but no real change can come until the stock level is down and not depressing the market. At his news conference Monday, Sec. Benson said that the rigid formula of price supports will have to be re moved before the excess stocks can be reduced. Under the present laws, according to the Secretary, as stocks are reduced, the price supports must go up, thus tending to increase production into storage, thus again depressing the market. » But one item that no one seems to be able to con trol, support or parity, is the constantly rising cost of farm production. In 1939 the total farm production expense in the nation was $4,394 million. The costs hit a peak in 1952 when total costs amounted to $22,476 million. In 1953 the figure dropped to $21,246, million. However, since that time, costs have risen steadily until last years total costs amounted to $22,143 million, or about $3OO million under the all time high. Where does all this leave the farmer? It leaves him trying every way to cut the costs of production. Fertilizer sales figures show that farmers have been buying plant food at a decreasing rate the last few years. Some observ ers believe that this year fertilizer sales may take a set back for the first time. Farm machinery and feed dealers have felt the pinch of farm belt tightening for quite a while. This year, the farm machinery manufacturers expect a sizeable sales rise for the first time in several years. Rains in the clrouth areas, however, are responsible for most of this optimism. Looking at the farm income picture as a- whole in dicates more clearly that while money can be made farm ing, efficient low cost production will be the key. STAFF Advertising Director Circulation Director by jack reichard 50 YEARS AGO (1907) A sudden and violent hail storm caused great damage across the coutryside lying north of Oxford, Pa, May 19, 1907. The communities of Russellville and Faggs Manor -were the worst sufferers. Hailstones the size of walnuts fell so thick and fast that they could be shoveled up the following morning. Nearly every window in Russellville was broken. Over 100 glass panes were broken from windows in the town hall and several dwell ings had over 80 panes smashed. The Faggs Manor Church did not escape; its windows were la terally riddled with hailstones. The storm was the most severe in the memory of oldest living re sidents in the area. Publisher Editor On the farm of Edward Broom ell a turkey was killed instantly when struck by a hailstone. Shad Makes News In York County Lovers of Susquehanna River shad were interested in the re port that over 100 of the species were taken fromuthe waters of York County’s Conowago dam, 50 years ago this week Thirty five were caught in a single hauli The point where the shad were taken was between four and five miles from the Susquehanna, considered a rare occurrence by experienced shad fishermen. The only reason given for the migra tion so far inland from the river was thought due to an unusual, large run of shad in 1907. Town Fathers Erect Monument To Thief The town trustees of Sheldon, Vt, has solved the problem of legally disposing of $l2O found on the body of a burglar who was shot dead by erecting a monu ment in their village with the following in scripture “To the unknown man who. was shot in Messrs. Genhison & Gallop’s Store while attempting to burgle the safe on the night of October 13, 1906 Rats Devour Pigs Rats in. Pans and Bourbon counties, Kentucky, were caus ing farmers great concern. Wil iam Layson had two litters of nine pigs each devoured by rats in an old straw rick. Edward Conway, a neighbor, killed 97 rats while cleaning a stable James Humphrey reported kill ing 85 on his farm. On a Pennsylvania farm, near Cochranville, Mrs. Thomas Neal lost a cow in a very unusual manner. The animal was pushed into a large watering trough by the other cows, with its feet straight up in air. The cow’s body so completely filled the trough that she was unable to turn and drowned in less than 10 inches of water. Charles Brady, a Lancaster farmer residing in Conestoga Township suffered painful in jury when caught under the rear wheel of a four-horse team wag on. Brady was hauling sand from his farm that day,-and while de scending a hill the brake unlock ed He managed to stop the team, but came, out of the mis hap with a crushed, ankle. A Popular Teenagers’ Game Have you ever played lame fox and chickens? Well, it was a very popular game among teen agers in yesteryears. One of the players has to be the lame fox, and all the others are chickens. The fox has his “den” in the center of the ground or room in which the game is played, and the four corners are the chick ens’ “pens”. The chickens keep running from corner to corner, and the fox, hopping on one' leg, has to catch them. If he pints his foot down when a player is caught the catch doesn’t count. His foot can only be put down while standing in his den. t * t ♦ Week' er Farming The chickens who remain un caught longest wins the game. As long as ithe chickens are in any |- corner pens the fox must not 1 touch them. » • * * > ' \ 25 Years Ago Dr. A. Caswell Ellis of West ern Reserve University told dele gates to the American Associa tion of Adult Education in Buf falo, N. Y., that “events in re cent years have proved that the leaders of education, and schools that developed them have failed utterly” tp tram students for the responsibilites dj citizenship. He stated it was the general understanding that the primary justification of our expensive public school system, and to a great extent for the numerous kinds of schools and colleges, has been that they educated our citizens for the responsibilities of citizenship. “It is well recalled that in the older days faculty members were not only specialists in their own subject but also dedicated to the vital mission of developing char acter in their students. Has the essential mission been entrusted to others or has it been lost in the shuffle of developing bril liant minds at the expense of human hearts 7 ” Dr. Ellis chal lenged, 25 years ago Background Scripturei Genesis 13; 18*1—19 29 berottonal Reading; Luke 11:1-13. In a Bad World Lesson for May 19,1957 THIS world we’re In may be a bad one, but it never gets so bad we can’t pray. The worse it is, the more reason to pray. There is a story in the Bible which shows a good man at prayer in an evil world. There are many such stories in the Bible, to be sure. The one which has been s study is that of Abraham plead mg~for the cities of Sodom and Go morrah. No man of his time was better than Abra ham. No. city of those times was worse than Sodom and Gomorrah. Vetthisgoodman Foreman prayed for those wicked cities. There have always been puzzlers in this story, but they are not the main point That point has nothing to do with such questions as “How can God eat hot' bread and veal roast?” or “How could Abraham see God if it is true (see John 1; 18) that no man has seen God at any time? The point of the story, for us, is the kind of prayer a good man can offer, in and for an evil world. Realistic First of all, Abraham’s prayer shows that he had no illusions about Sodom and Gomorrah. They were cities which he preferred to stay away from, cities notorious for wickedness unashamed We do not know how many thousand persons there may have been in Sodom, but Abraham ventures to think that in the whole city there may perhaps be 50 righteous persons. Abraham’s senes of prayers in which he begs the Lord to spare the city for the sake of fifty—then 45—40—30—20 — 10 good people, is often taken as a sign of Abraham's growing faith in God But it can just as well stand for Abraliam's decreasing faith m Sodom. At the end, he would not dare ask God to spare the city for “twenty’s sake,”—it is plain that he was very doubt f hat there might be even th6t of good- Pickpockets At Teachers’ College While attending the baccalau reate services of the Millersville State Teachers’ College held m the campus chapel Sunday morn ing May 22, 1932, Chester Mon teith, Lancaster, was robbed of a wallet containing $25 in cash; Norman Christ, bojough assessor of Millersville, lost his wallet and $l3 in cash; S. R. Killian, of Rohrerstown, had his purse and $75 taken, and John W. Harra, ice manufacturer, of Engleside, was robbed of $3O in cash. Lancaster State Police were notified and investigated, but the only conclusion they had reached was that the robberies were ex ecuted by professional pick pockets, to which the victims agreed. “ Elsewhere police and detec itives of three states were trying to trap four gunmen who had killed a State Highway Patrol man and robbed a bank messeng er of $23,000 at New Castle, Pa. After scattering roofing nails over eighteen miles of highway, the robbers fled toward the mountains fn West Virginia. - Clarence Campbell, the patrol 'man, was killed with a sawed-off shotgun. Twenty-five years ago this week, a'large gathering of Lan caster countians took place m the Ephrata area on the High School campus to witness the an nual May Day pageant under the direction of-Miss Lois Hauck, m which (the student body par ticipated. Miss Mildred Cress man, supervisor of music for the borough schools, was in charge of the musical arrangements. citizens. Children may piay as it there were no evil in the world, but giown men even in their prayers must realize what kind of world 1 they live in Our Lord’s Prayeri mentions temptation and evil as, real and dangerous, even for good] men. Generous Abraham’s prayer ~ is not only realistic, it is genei ous. Readers of the Bible will remember Jesus’ story of the Pharisee who in his prayer recalled the publican—na model citizen But tojthe Pharisee the publican was not a man to be prayed for, only a man to be de spised, Now Abraham was far bet- ' ter than the citizens of Sodom, it they were good at all, which seems doubtful; and he was better too than his relative, Lot, for \»hose 'sake he was chiefly praying. he prays for them all the same. His prayer is of the highest sort —not for himself at all, but for others. The reader can test his religion by the kind of prayer he offers. One can ask oneself: How often do I pray "for myself and how often for others? When I do'pray for others, is it for good people only? Are my prayers an expression of selfish ness, or can I offer generous pray ers? How long has it been since, I prayed for any one I didn’t really like? Daring Abraham’s prayer Is humble; but It Is also daring. Most of our'pray' ers are safe; Abraham realizes that his is risky. It almost involves throwing a challenge to, God: Shall not the judge of all the earth do right? This man realizes that he may actually be praying against God’s Will. He may be praying for the wrong thing entirely. But that does not stop him. He dares to be lieve that God was interested in a very small minority of good people.) He dares to pray beyond his hopesj-' beyond his knowledge ... but not' .beyond God- The God in whom. Ab raham believed, the God Abraham knew, was not like men. He did not —and he does not—share man’s prejudices, man’s pride. A man, even a good man, prides himself on not helpmg the unworthy; but God's mercy is untainted by con ceit. Do we dare believe that God is Just? Do we dare believe hd will do the fair thing, or do we try to argue him into doing what we want even if it is not quite fair? Do we dare believe that God is merciful? or to. pray for those who will not themselves? Do we pray only for sure things, or do we dare go so far as to pray even when we fear that we may be asking too much? Can we stand and take God’s No (as Abraham had to) and still hold our faith in Him? (BMtd. oo outlines copy rip hted by tbs Division of Christisn Education, N«, tlonsl Connell of tbs Chutobes of Cbrlai in tbo U. S. A. Released by Community Frees Ssrvlse.) 1
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers