AID-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, September 27, 1997
OPINION
Farmers Are
“Esteemed And Admired”
The results of a new comprehensive opinion survey show that
farmers are “esteemed and admired” by the general American
public. This may be suprising to many people in agriculture
because the negative aspects of farming seem to get the head
lines. But according to the survey, designed and conducted by
Doane Marketing Research for DuPont Agricultural Products,
farming probably enjoys greater credibility and support than
many leading corporations and industries, both here and abroad.
Specifically, the public values and acknowledges farmers in
three compelling dimensions. First, for making strong contribu
tions to society; second, for taking a leadership role as stewards
of the land they live on and manage; and third, for delivering a
safe, abundant supply of quality products to the marketplace at a
fair price.
A sample of 773 adults was drawn to represent the general
public. The survey of the general public finds high levels of admi
ration for the nation’s farmers and strong recognition of the con
tributions they make to U.S. society. The public views farmers as
honest and friendly people who work hard to serve the needs of
society without demanding large profits in return.
Farmers are cited among the top three groups, making impor
tant contributions to society. From the list of eight professions,
the public ranks farmers above scientists and other professionals,
and slightly behind teachers and firefighters.
These results are gratifying. It shows us that all the intentional
negative press farmers receive has not warped the thinking of
consumers as much as we have been led to believe. Yes, farmers
are “esteemed and admired.” The response in the public survey is
clear.
Problem Or Unbroke Horse Clinic
at Second Annual Equine Expo,
Wilson College, Chambers
burg, 10 a.m.-4 pjn.
Harvest Sheep and Wool Festival,
Salem County Fairgrounds,
Woodstown, N.J., 9 a.m.-5
p.m., thru Sept. 28.
“Profit from Grass" Road Show,
Kimberton, Camp Hill Village,
Pughtown Road, 10 a.m.-3:30
p.m.
Bradford County Extension Youth
Farm Safety Day Camp, SPE
Inc., North Towanda, 9 a.m.-3
Horseway’s Paperchase, High
lands, Shcaff Lane, Fort
Washington, 9 a.m.
Solanco Young Fanners’ Family
1997 Keystone International
Livestock Expo, Farm Show
Complex, Harrisburg, thru Oct.
New Holland Farmers’ Fair, New
Holland, thru Oct 4.
Bradford Co. Extension Master
Gardeners Directions Commit
tee, Extension Office, Towan-
Restaurant, Bedford, 8:30
a.m.-3 p.m.
Keystone International Livestock
Expo, Farm Show Complex,
Harrisburg, thru Oct 6.
Bradford County Extension 4-H
Leader Training, Extension
Office, Towanda, 7:15-9:30
❖ Farm Calendar ❖
ffl \ i< >♦
p.m.
Bradford County Extension
Parenting The School-Age
Child, Northeast Bradford
Elementary School, Large
Group Instruction Room,
6:30-8 p.m.
Bradford County Extension
Parenting The Teenager,
Northeast Bradford Elemcntaiy
School, Large Group Instruc
tional Room, 8-9:30 p.m.
New Holland Sheep Show and
Sale, Show Tent on Fulton St., 3
Bradford County Extenstion
Parent Support Group, living
Room, Behavioral Science
Center, RPH, Sayre, 7-8:30
sth Annual Ickcsburg Fire Com
pany Perry County Old Iron
Club Antique Days, Ickcsburg
Fire Company Carnival
Grounds, thru Oct. 5.
Farm Medic Training, Brownsvil-
Pasture Management Meeting,
Pa. Association of Conservation
Districts annual meeting, Mt.
Laurel Resort, White Haven,
thru Oct 8.
Berks Shire Hunt Show, Walnut
Hill Farm, Oley, 9 am.
Pa. Make It Yourself With Wool,
Farm Show Complex,
Harrisburg.
East Central Pa. Two-Cylinder
Club Inc. 3d Annual Antique
Tractor and Implement Collec-
Changing fall temperatures
makes ventilation of bams chal
lenging Tie stall dairy barns can
be ventilated automatically with a
bank of thermostatic controlled
exhaust fans. Glenn Shirk, Lan
caster County Extension Dairy
Agent, recommends these tans be
installed in one of the side walls
near the middle of the barn Long
barns, housing 60 to 80 cows or
more, should have two banks of
exhaust fans Equally important
are adjustable air inlets located
throughout the barn to regulate air
How One of these fans should run
continuously and should move 50
cubic feet per minute (ctm) of air
per 1,000 pounds of body weight.
This helps to keep the air fresh at
all times The remaining fans
should move an additional 150
dm ol air per 1,000 pounds of
body weight Thermostats should
be adjusted so these tans will start
when barn temperatures reach 50
degrees Fahrenheit
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Accoidmg to Robert Anderson,
Lancaster County Extension
Agronomy Agent, Oregon State
University and the Environmental
Protection Agency have set up the
National Pesticide Telecommuni
cations Network (NPTN) They
provide objective, science based
mlormalion about a wide variety
of pesticide iclated topics includ
ing pesticide products, pesticide
poisonings, toxicology and envi
ronmental chemistry. NPTN is
open to questions Irom the public
and piolessionals It is staffed by
highly qualified and trained pesti
cide specialists This is a toll free
information service available
Monday through Friday from
9.30 am to 730 pm Eastern
Time The telephone number is
800-858-7378 and E-mail is
npnt@ace orst edu Their world
wide web address is
http //ace orst edu/mfo/nptn/
Dr Timothy Elkner, Lancaster
County Extension Horticultural
Agent, reminds us this summer's
drought was hard on many lawns.
You may be noticing thinned or
even dead areas in your yard. If
you do not get grass to fill these
Hollidaysburg, thru Oct. 9.
Manhcim Farm Show, Manheim,
thru Oct 10.
Berks County Farm Bureau Annu
al Meeting, Ag Center, Lees
port, 7 p.m.
4-H Achievement Night, Dauphin
County Agriculture and Natural
To Adjust Ventilation
Fans
To Locate Pesticide In
formation
To Re-seed Lawns
(Turn to Pag* A 33)
areas before next summer the
weeds will. Fall is the best time
of year to do any work on your
yard. This is because the weather
is cooler and generally a little wet
ter and there is less weed pressure.
There are a few basic steps you
should follow in order to success
fully establish new turf grass in
your yard. First, loosen the soil in
the area you plan to re-seed.
If you are going to seed in an
area where there is grass already
growing, firmly rake the area to
remove any dead grass and expose
the soil below.
Then seed the area with the ap
propriate type of turf grass mix
ture. You should always plant a
turf grass mixture rather than a
THE DAY OP SMALL
THINGS
September 28, 1997
THE DAY OF SMALL
THINGS
September 28, 1997
Background Scripture
Zechariah 4
Devotional Reading:
Zechariah 7:1-10
Edmund Burke spoke of the in
toxication of power and Sir JJE.E.
Dalbcrg in one of his letters pen
ned those words that are quoted
whenever the subject of power is
seriously considered* “Power cor
rupts and absolute power corrupts
absolutely.”
Those of us who do not con
sider ourselves to be among the
powerful know how corrupting
power is to those who are power
ful. Ask any of us and we will
testify to “corruption in high
places.” But. power corrupts not
only the powerful, but also those
of us who consider ourselves to be
the powerless. There is a natural
and persistent human preoccupa
tion with things big and powerful
the biggest, grandest and most
powerful.
Conversely, we are generally
unresponsive to that which is
small. With a few exceptions we
assume that if something is small
it is deficient in power. Big is
powerful; small is not And that is
why we are so contemptuous of
things small they appear to be
lacking in power and power is
what impresses us.
DAUNTING OBSTACLES
In the day of Zechariah
which was roughly the same time
as that of Haggai there were
lots of people who were con
temptuous of the small efforts that
had been put forth to rebuild the
temple. Zerubbabel, the governor
of the returned exiles, had laid the
foundations to the temple, but the
efforts seemed puny and insignifi
cant in light of what would have to
be accomplished. Considering the
obstacles that confronted Zerub
babel and Joshua, the high priest,
these beginnings looked totally in
adequate.
In a sense, we may say that this
was the difference between Zerub
babel and his critics. He kept his
eyes focused on the goal, while
they saw only the obstacles.
Someone has said that obstacles
arc those terrible shadows you see
when you take your eyes off the
goal. Zerubbabel kept his eyes on
the goal and so he was undaunted
by these small, modest begin
nings.
single type of grass. After you
seed the area, rake the seed in or
lightly roll the area, water and
then apply a starter fertilizer at the
recommended rate.
Maintenance of the newly
seeded area in the fall consists of
maintaining proper moisture and
keeping any fallen leaves re
moved. Do not mow the new turf
grass until it reaches three inches
high. Next spring be sure to fertil
ize your lawn using a standard turf
grass fertilizer. You may apply
weed control products in the
spring as well.
Feather Prof, 's Footnote:
"Forget the mistakes of the past
and press on to the greater
achievements of the future "
Eventually, said the prophet Ze
chariah, these scoffers would see
what Zerubbabel already was see
ing. “For whoever has despised
the day of small things shall re
joice, and shall see the plummet in
the hand of the Zerubbabel”
(4:10). The plummet was a plumb
line and the prophet is speaking
metaphorically as using it to mea
sure integrity.) Some things never
change, do they! We still are cyni
cal about “the day of small
things.”
NOT BY MIGHT
It is in the midst of all this cyn
icism about Zerubbabel’s modest
efforts to rebuild the temple that
God sends Zechariah a prophetic
lucid dream. In a semi-awakened
state, an angel said to the prophet:
“What do you see?” “I see,” an
swered Zechariah, “and behold a
lampstand all of gold, with a bowl
on the top of it, and seven lamps
on it... And there are two olive
trees by it, one on the right of the
bowl and the other on its left”
Then Zechariah said to the angel,
“What are these, my Lord?” And
the angel said to him, “This is the
word of the Lord to Zerubbabd
. . . Not by might, nor by power,
but by my Spirit, says the Lord of
hosts.”
Modest human efforts sustained
by the power of God can accomp
lish whatever goal God sets before
us. Without the power of God,
yes, the efforts of Zerubbabel
were laughingly inadequate. The
power of God is just as manifest in
little things as it is big ones. That
is what the world finds so hard to
understand about the Spirit of
God, just as my generation had a
hard time understanding how
enough explosive power to des
troy a whole city could be locked
up into the interior of something
so tiny and seemingly insignifi
cant as the atom.
Atomic scientist Albert Ein
stein once observed that “Gandhi
had demonstrated that a powerful
human following can be assemb
led not only through the cunning
game of the usual political man
euvers and trickeries but through
the cogent example of a morally
superior conduct of life. In our
time of utter moral decadence he
was the only statesman to stand
for a higher human relationship in
the political sphere.”
The power of Gandhi, like the
power of Jesus Christ, was a pow
er bom not of secular things, but
of the Spirit of God.
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main St
Ephrata, PA 17522
- by-
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Steinman Enterprise
Robert G. Campbell General Manager
Everett R. Newawanger Managing Editor
Copyright 1997 by Loncosttr Fanning