4—Lancaster Farming. Saturday. February 18. 1967
From Where We Stand...
Strength of Amcrico"
“AGRICULTURE
That’s the fitting theme chosen for
National Future Farmers of America
Week which begins today. The truth of
that slogan is becoming increasingly evi
dent with each passing day As Winston
Churchill said nearly a generation a°p
in describing the valiant defensive ef
forts ot the Royal Air Force during the
Battle of Britain, “Never before have
so many owed so much to so few”, or
woids to that effect.
1 hat Americans eat and live as well
as they do better than any other
nation on earth can, for the most
part, be traced to the efforts, of the
ever-decreasing farmer. Because Ameri
can farmers have been willing to use
all available know-how to build and ex
pand their businesses, a vast agribusi
ness complex has been able to develop
and prosper in serving the industrious
farmer.
But where will tomorrow’s farmers
and agricultural industry workers come
from ? Fewer and fewer will come
directly from the farms, because there
won’t be enough farms to fill the need
for experienced people. Hundreds of
thousands will come through tlie voca
tional agriculture departments of our
high schools, that is, if the high school
administrators and taxpayers are wise
enough to keep vo-ag in the curriculum
We have recently seen an example in
one Lancaster County community where
the school board and administration
wanted to drop the vo-ag program be
cause the number of farmers in the area
was decreasing.
In fact, it has been shown that the
To Service Lawn Mower
Even though some folks may not realize
Gingench recommended that >outh committee” He also le- other®two month!, filter
the board consider his co- poited that Pennsylvania is and the lawn mower will soon be needeif
workei m the Penn Manoi agn- leading the nation m organized Before the glass is icady to cut, it is suggest
cultuie department, Richard youth piograms ed that the mower be serviced and put into
Ilackenbergei, as a replace c __ good condition If this is to be done by com
ment for the year Directois iwLiiiiiNG on mercial concerns, then delaying until spring
unanimously approved both ol Funk announced that he, may mean fuither delay in having the mow-
Gingench’s icquests Stauffer, and county conseiva- needed By all means have the
tionist Oival A Bass would *> lades 01 knives sharpened before starting
1 n NAL ME ETING pai ticipate in a community con- 0 use T r p , - .
_ report “rnr c r s , i r, im - ™ —enc
Duectois heard repoits from tndopendent School on e d the Easter maiket as one of the best SMITH
Lancaster FARMING chaiiman Amos H Funk and aich 1 The pi '° Biam on< r times to sell eaily spring times to establish contour
boaster county-, own Far.. Aaron Z Stauffer who attended ni e ehn-s S Toino prese U n?ed° n a lambs Heavier weights may he strips or straight strips on Land'
- i.,i.t/. Pa 17-, vi lhe Clonal Assn of Soil Con fuf ° in& piesented at realized b* feeding the lambs that is subject to both water
22 r. .Mam h, serration Districts convention . extra gram aftei a few weeks and soil eiosion When the
Phone J:''.;::,.! 1 :-; m‘/<m or S 16Cently 111 Cmcinjlatl - iuiLrplanMTfor^hf ™al 0f Tt L ° ca ! P loducei ; s am Slopes aie altemated with row
Piiit/ G2G-2101 Ull]o ctntp pnt ! = . ; P f moLf ul « ed to adopt this practice at crops and close-giowmg croraa
Don Timimms, Editor At (he national event, which lare ? on ,? e !?‘ u ' 0n disliictrneet- eto get a gl . e , a t er re turn the water is retained and tha
P,ol, 'll, i implicit, Adicrti'-mg wa _ nf ) pnf | pn hv mmp Qfmn d.c jn § Which the county Will host , , 1S re : a , ne “ ana
Du.noi was attenaea by some dOOO dis rext Novpmhpl . from the lambs at Easter time soil is not eroded The exitm
Bui,-, npiion puce $2 p.r uar m tuct diiectors fiom 50 states, J A creep is a small pen con- bother in farming the smaller
EsV.'h'iMu-T < .\oTemi,tr 1 4^ 'Vott* Pl, ® r ° R ic ° and the Virgin Is- Ten new cooperator agree- stiucted to admit 'the lambs strips will be returned in great*
Piihii-h,d f\.r\ s.atmda\ hj Jan ds atautrer said he was par- ments totaling 1369 acres were but not the ewes _ - er crop yields and the con>-
■sV’Vlln'd T’n l -r'i4' ,t t,culaily “impressed with the unanimously accepted by the To Conserve Soil And Water semn g of the topsoil.
Liuu. Pa 17343 ° effoit being put foith by the directors Spring i P one of the best
• SWCD
(Continued from Page 1)
ing July 1 of this yeai He
and his tamily will tiavel to
Veia Ciuz, Mexico, wheie he
■will seive as an agncultuial
missionaiy undei a ventuie
sponsoied jointly by the Evan
gelical United Biethren anci
PiesDvtenan Chinches
P O Ro\ 2fill
on i« ♦
need for agriculturally trained people
in the agribusiness field is increasing
at a far greater rate than the number of
farmers is decreasing. The vo-ag pro-
grams should actually be enlarged
rather than dropped, according to the
evidence
It is no accident that American
agriculture is the envy of the world.
Our farmers have the background, the
will, and the way. If they can ever ,^ ir . Ulld Scri|llur . IIA , , 5
manage to get the federal government D.«.i..n.i p-i.m.i;
out of their business, they can probably It is commonly called "the
even manage to feed a world which Parable of the Prodigal Son, ’ but
agriculture secretary Orville Freeman
says will be starving by the year 2000. pro digal.
As vocational agriculture train- "Prodigal,” my dictionary de
ing is vital to our future supply of fines as "Wastcfully or recklessly
“agriculturalists”, FFA activities are yield
vital to the vo-ag program itself. mg profusely,
Composed of high school vo-ag stu- lavish,.The
dents, FFA activities are designed to fuUy "extrTva
help develop rural leadership and good gant m" the
citizenship. Nationally, FFA has appro- squandering of
ximately 450,000 members and 9000 |} is wealth m the
local chapters in 50 states. Lancaster |^ s . n
County has its share of these totals with Rev. Althouse was nothing
nine chapters and about 400 members, compared with the lavish love
Our FFA standing in the state is num- his father spent upon him.
ber one, as it is in most other agricul- T ? man, the love of God can
tural pursuits. Th.s is evidenced by the h a ?S “ntoi
fact that county boys generally make up do seem to inn e limits beyond
nearly 15 percent of the state’s Key- which their lo\e cannot or will
stone Farmer Degree recipients, and S°, T * ieie are soaie people
provide a substanfal share of the state iS
FFA officers each year that make kne appear nn-
So, when we say that Agriculture possible for men.
Isn t this what makes Chnsh
is the strength of America, let s also am ty unique 9 Ask the Hebrew
realize that a good part of the strength about God and he will speak of
of American agriculture has come, and covenant law Ask the .Moslem
will continue to come, from the ranks and be will descube a God who
of the Future Farmers of America.
★ ★ ★ ★ speak in the abstract terms of
omnipotence, omniscience, and
omnipresence. Ask the Deist and
he will describe a disinterested
Mobile cosnjic Ether who
watches his (or more correctly
its) creation from afar off. But
look at Jesus Christ and wdial
kind of God do we see revealed
in him: the loving father whose
prodigious grace is greater than
our wilfull sin. Christianity has
plumbed the depths of reality in
this universe and tound at the
bottom of it all there is di\ me,
self-giving Love.
The Prodigal Father
Lesson for February 19. 1967
For Full Market Reports
Read Lancaster Farming
Now Is The Time ...
By Max Smith, Lancaster County Agent
Marked “Personal"
Furthermore, it is a personal
message. It is not in the nature of
a general proclamation tacked to
all the world’s telephone poles
and billboards, nor even one of
those envelopes that arrives in
the mail addressed: "Occupant,
19 South Main Street.” Mo, the
divine communication comes w itb
my name on it, marked "per
sonal.” He is not merely the
divinity who loves mankind from
afar, but the Lord who comes
near to me and love ME! There
is nothing of the "To whom it
may concern ...” about it, but
the relationship of father and son.
What endurance we find mthal
prodigious love! The son does
not wander away from his
father’s house. He wilfully decides
to leave, arrogantly asking in
advance for his share of the estate
his father will leave at death. The
broken relationship is all of the
son’s making. So it is with us: it
is not that we do not realize what
we are doing, but that we dot
Yet, when we have gone to the
far country and squandered ou<
free inheritance in desperate re
bellion, when at last we have hil
rock-bottom, then it is that fre
quently we "come to ourselves."
We suddenly remen l her the betted
life in the fathe* ouse and
realize what we h. cn up.
Long Road Home
So we start back, no longer as
sons, for we have forsaken al(
right to call him "Father.” W|
return as servants, claiming nof
the love we spurned, but asking
mercy. Yet, as the homeland
comes into view, a familiar figurl
comes running down the roa4
He has been standing at the gat|
and scanning the road and hi
comes to greet us, not as servant!
as we deserve, but as son( t
Ignoring the utter illogic of it all
he wraps us extravagantly in thj
priceless mantle of his love and
we are welcomed once more tothl
Father’s house.
It is we who must "come t<|
ourselves” and begin the lon#
road home, but it is only th|
Prodigal Father whose love keep!
him scanning the horizon for ui
that makes it possible for us ttj
return as sons. .
(l«swl an iuHints rtpyrijMeJ liy (he Divhiaft*
at Christian EJuratian. Nalianat C.uncil'af lb*'
Churches at Chricl in tiia U. 5* A. Kalaasad
Cammumty fr«» Sarviea)
Go To Church
Sunday