AiO-Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, February 3.1996
OPINION
Winter-Machine Addicts
The problems for fanners caused by weather-induced circum
stances have been reported extensively during the blizzard of ’96.
Many dairymen had to dump milk because rural roads and farm
lanes were filled with drifting snow. Milk and feed tracks could
not make their rounds either.
Floods also washed out fields and fences. Frozen water pipes,
power outages, and stranded cars, tracks, and cattle all added to
the increased‘workload of winter around the farm.
One nuisance of winter on the farm that often does not receive
attention is the intrusion of snowmobiles on private farmlands.
Intoxicated with speed and the seemingly boundless open space
created by the deep cover of snow causes many otherwise law
abiding good neighbors to lose their decency.
Zooming around farm buildings, through front yards, over ten
der alfalfa plants and summer tree seedlings, these stupefied
winter-machine addicts frighten livestock, endanger the farm
family and destroy crops with their frantic sharp-turn snow
donuts and field crisscrosses.
Not only are fanners faced with property and production loss
or bodily harm to the farm family, the liability factor is always
present Suppose the snowmobile invader hits a concealed tree
stump or drives his machine into the farm pond or manure pit and
is hospitalized, or worse?
We think those who want to nm snowmobiles should treat their
farm hosts as they would want to be treated at home or at their
place of employment. They should ask permission. And they
should be careful to not damage property or cause any reduction
in income from crops or livestock since this is the fanner’s home
and this is how the farmer makes a living.
Saturd.n. K hru.ii \ 3
Ephrata Area Young Fanners
annual banquet, Mt. Airy Fire
Hall, 6:45 p.m.
Management Workshop,
Adams County, Extension
Office, Gettysburg, 10 a.m.
Beef Production Seminar, Wesley
Grange, 7 p.m. Also Feb. 12.
Southeast Pa. Grazing Conference.
Lancaster Host Expo Center,
Lncaster, thru Feb. 6.
Octorara Young Farmers’ Associ
ation Pesticide Meeting, Ag Ed
Room, 7:30 p.m.
Tulpehocken Adult Young Far
mers educational session for
a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Pa. Young Fanners State Conven
tion, Somerset Ramada Inn,
thm Feb. 8.
Cattle Feeder Day, Farm and
Home Center. Lancaster.
Maryland/Delaware Peach
School, Wye Research and
Education Center, Queen
stown, MD, 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Dairy-MAP Finance Module,
Adams/Yoik farmers at Cross
Keys Inn, also Feb. 13.
Beef Herd Management and Mark
eting In the ’9os And Beyond,
Part n. Holiday Inn, Belle
Vernon.
Southwest Pa. Hay Auction, West
moreland Fairgrounds, 11 a.m.
Also Feb. 20.
Westmoreland Dairy Day, Alwinc
Civic Center, 10:30 a.m.-2:30
p.m.
Butler County Crops Day. Butler.
Clarion County Farm Records
Made Easy Workshop, Exten
sion Office, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
Virginia/Mid-Atlantic Direct
Marketing Conference and
Trade Show, Shannon Inn, Fre-
dericksburg, Va., thru Feb. 10.
Franklin, Adams, and Cumberland
(Turn to P*o« *3O)
Editor:
During the last several months a
few Members of Congress and.
some farm organizations have
devised some of the most irres
ponsible dairy legislation that we
have ever witnessed. The barrage
started out with Congressmen
Robert’s and Gunderson’s Free
dom to Farm Act, then got
changed to the “Deregulation of
the Dairy Industry.”
Then various joint dairy reform
packages were introduced. Fol
lowing the introduction of draft #5
of the dairy reform package, the
sponsors decided to change the
name to the current title of Con
sensus Dairy Reform Package.
The continued changing of the
proposed dairy legislation
reminds me of my younger days
when we used to play musical
chairs at Grange Meetings. Those
games were fun. However, the
games these people in Washington
To Monitor
Stored Grain
Weather conditions this year
may cause an increase in the
amount of mold that com growers
will find in stored com, according
to Robert Anderson, extension
agronomy agent
Some of these molds, especially
aflatoxin, may cause problems
when fed to livestock and poultry.
Warm weather and swings in
temperatures from warm to cold
will increase problems with stored
com. Grain in storage needs to be
under constant monitoring to
insure its quality.
Implementing an effective pest
control program and properly
moving air through the grain bin
will help to reduce the incidence of
mold.
To Keep
Calves Growing
Glenn Shirk, extension dairy
agent, reminds us that getting
young calves off to a good start is
very important for the health of the
calf and for future profits.
As soon as the calf is bom, a race
takes place in the calf's digestive
tract to see who can get to the calf's
intestines first and be absorbed
into the bloodstream infectious
bacteria and other organisms or
antibodies that protect calves from
these invading oiganisms.
Thus, it is very important to
separate the calf from its dam as
soon as it is bom so it does not con
sume any infectious organisms.
are playing are going to have a
devastating effect on the destiny
of many of our dairy farmers.
The current proposed dairy
package calls for the possibility of
dairy farmers to pay for the pro
cessing cost to manufacture but
ter, powder and cheese from milk.
Part of the proposed bill grants
certain administrative authority to
the U.S.D.A. One of the reforms
reads:
■ To establish purchase prices
for milk used to produce cheese,
nonfat dry milk, whole dry mill?,
and butter based on national pro
duct prices minus a cost of pro
cessing (the “make allowance”).
Earlier in the bill they establish
the make allowance on cheese of
$l.BO cwt and $1,65 cwt on butter/
powder using California yields.
To me the above language is a
clear indication that dairy fanners
could very well be chaiged the
(Turn to Pago A3l)
Also, dip its navel cord in tinc
ture of iodine and to force feed the
calf at least two quarts of high
quality colostrum milk as soon as
possible and another two quarts
several hours latter.
Place the calf in an isolated pen
and preserve its body temperature
by drying it off and giving it a dry,
clean, well-ventilated, and draft
free place to lie down. Feed the calf
10 percent of its weight in milk or
high quality milk replacer per day
(about four quarts per day for a
90-pound calf).
Also, provide water and calf
starter pellets. When temperatures
drop to 30 degrees F., increase
energy intake by 10 percent and
continue to increase energy intake
by an additional 10 percent for
each Additional 10 degree drop in
temperature.
To Install ROPS
Tractor overturns continue to be
BY LAWRENCE W. ALTHOUSE
'dBIBIUK
sn
WHEN GOD SAYS *GOI”
February 4,1996
WHEN GOD SAYS “GO!"
February 4, 1996
Background Scripture:
Jonah 1 through 2
Devotional Reading:
Jonah 2:2-9
Looking at it one way, we
might say that Jonah scored SO out
of a possible 100 in responding to
God’s call. “Arise, go to Nine
veh,” said God and Jonah did
“arise” and “go.” Unfortunately,
he went in the wrong direction!
He didn’t want to go to Nineveh
and prophesy, so instead he fled to
Joppa and booked passage on a
ship sailing to Tarshish. Twice in
one verse the writer of the book
points out that Jonah was attempt
ing to flee “the presence of the
Lord.” From the safety of our own
perspective we can smirk at Jon
ah’s naivete to think that he
could get away from God! yet,
don’t we sometimes do the same
thing when God calls us? God
says “Arise and go!” and we do—
in the wrong direction.
Jonah probably assumed that
this something was strictly be
tween himself and the Lord. But it
wasn’t While the ship is sailing to
Tarshish. God causes a great
storm and the ship is in danger of
being swamped and sunk. Tetri
fled and finding nothing else to
save them, they cast lots to deter
mine which of them is responsible
for the wrath of God. And the lot
falls upon Jonah. “What is this
you have done?” they exclaim.
For the men knew that he was
fleeing from the presence of the
Lord, because he had told them.
GO/NOGO
Jonah discovered quickly that
his disobedience also affected
others, in this case the mariners on
the ship. Later, he realized that the
people of Nineveh were also af
fected. When God says "Go” and
we say “No." others are sure to be
affected besides ourselves. I have
come to the conclusion that,
whenever there is someone in
need, it is not because God has
failed to send someone to help, but
because he calls us and we fail to
respond.
It is interesting that, when the
one of the leading causes of
farming-related deaths. It is esti
mated about two million tractors in
use in North America still do not
have a rollover protective structure
(ROPS) and seatbelt
Several major tractor manufac
turers are offering and promoting
low cost ROPS and seat belt retro
fit kits for older tractors. Now
would be a could time to visit your
local equipment dealer and purch
ase and install ROPS and seat belt
on all your tractors.
Most companies are selling the
retrofit kits at cost and are not mak
ing any profits on them. By taking
time now to purchase and install
ROPS and seatbelt on your tractors
could prevent a very serious injury
or death to yourself, family mem
ber. or employee.
Let's work together to make
farming a safer occupation!
Feather Prof.’s Footnote: “A
leader listens, not just hears."
itonn first arose, the mariners did
two things: they prayed and they
threw the wares that were in the
ship into the sea, to lighten it for
them. But, no matter how much
they threw into the sea, they could
not lighten it enough. The dis
obedience of Jonah was heavier
than all their wares.
Jonah, for all of his faults, was a
man of some conscience. When
the mariners ask him, “What shall
we do to you, that the sea may
quiet down for us?” he replies,
‘Take me up and throw me into
the sea; then the sea will quiet
down for you; for I know it is be
cause of me that this great tempest
has come upon you.** If Jonah had
lived in our own time, he probably
would have made excuses or tried
to pass the blame to someone else.
But he owned up to his responsi
bility. We and our world need a
good dose of that willingness to
accept responsibility for our own
behavior.
GIVE JONAH CREDIT
We need also to give Jonah
credit for realizing that he needed
God to rescue him from the belly
of the great fish. What’s so smart
about that you may ask. The fact is
that lots of us, even when we have
been brought low by our own fol
ly. would rather blunder on than
admit we need help. If you don’t
believe that: have you ever driven
in a car with someone who was
lost but unwilling to stop and ask
for directions? There's a perver
sity in human nature that makes it
so painful to say: “I was wrong!”
So Jonah asks for God’s help.
The roles have been reversed: the
ask-ee is now the ask-er. God had
asked something of Jonah and he
fled. Now, Jonah is asking some
thing of God. Suppose God were
to respond as Jonah did! Suppose
he were to respond to us as we re
spond to him?
When God says “Go!" what do
you say?
Mr. and Mrs. Allhouse will lead
a group to the Holy Land, Oct. 9
to Nov. 2,1996. For information,
write him at 4412 Shenandoah
Ave., Dallas, TX 75205. Space is
limited.
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955
Published Every Saturday
Ephrate Review Building
IE. Mein St
Ephrate, PA 17522
-by
Lancaster Panning, Inc.
A SMnman Entarprisa
Retort (LCampM Omni Manager
iwwaaNawewengar ManagfeieCdnor
Copyright 1996 by Lancutar Farming