t
C 3 soooooooooooooooooooooo:
Sflie Government's
8 Great Work for
tH8 Farmer3-
Py Henry I noinU NeUnn. f
ooooocoooocoocoocoooooooo
It K no;, tunny year since (In De
partment of Agriculture n n vers
mall concern, but now It I In fact
no In name n great nnd htIim i tin
most ;loful department of I lie gov
ernment, wi'llo nt II n head I n mom
Ijt of the cabinet.
What do thl department 1o for
tlio fanner' Working In nn unfro
ltloiiloi;.iirt of Washington, or out In
thp country In Maryland, or nt the
various pxpcrlmcnnt station which
lire usually connected with nurlcnl
turn! college, nro nhnnl Iinno people.
Of tlio 2IHHI In Washington nboiil imp-
MAIN 111 U.IUNtr OF
hnlf nro sell titlllc men. Thorp nro
two largo liuiviiuM, twenty two divis
ion, olllccs, or surveys. Of these
cvon nro ndtiiiulntrntlvc. eight tech
nical, nn seven nro purely Kolontlllo.
To thoKO miiKt ho ndded tin UtllcPH of
the Wenther lluronn, whlrh Include
154 observer ttntlotiM, nml (ll'ty-two
etntlons nlong the eoiixt nml on the
Crent Lnke. Vhe llurenu of Anl
mnl IndiiHiry lulu l.V.' tcclmlcnl
tntlons pih'iiki'iI In nieiit lnsiectloii
nml (luiiniiitlne work, nml three lnli
oratorio whero the illMeime of mil
mnl nml tlielr enuscH nro Invcutl
gnted. This nrtielo would lip imlntorcKlInt:
and therefore worthlen If I hould
THB HVDnOCTAVIO OAS TIIEATMENT.
undortnue t3 describe tochnlonlly the
work doLe liy tlio department. I shnll
try to glvo tlio render a Renornl lilon
t whnt those practleal mid scleutltlc
mou ore doing for tlio country, bo
iulo after n visit to tho bureau lu
Viljlugion I -ras led to rend n good
nt Ita 1ltntfltl1.n (inil tn 1i-nL- In.
T"to too Bulijoct, nnd it struck mo that
the work I not only in every way
worthy, but that It real rnluo Is not
widely understood, has boon laughed,
or smiled Into oblivion, porhnp on
account of the Jukes nliout the seed
and tho "farmers' who distribute nud
receive them.
In the first plnoe the department
provide nn opportunity to make
wiMoi rsoK urc.
M In the nature
Lilly be. It does
Jie farmer who
full knowledge
Lhl art, of the
conditions of tlio Roll nnd cllmnto of
hi neighborhood, nml of the crop
wlili'li tuny lio most prolltnbly grown
on lil fnrin. Tin; department mnko
I TI1B BOTANICAL OAtlDRV.
tlio ini'onry experiment for tlio
farmer, saving lilm liolh (lino nml
money, nml putting lilm tlint fur
abend In tin irnme which liln fnthor
liml to h'.Tii nil nliout for himself. A
uistlngulshcd economist tulil lm Hot
THE DKl'AUTMKNT OF AUItlCl'l.TUIlK,
long n ro that it was hnrdly possible
to overestimate the good that tho ex
periment millions had . orked lu tho
busbies of funning. It waH this
statement that put mo on my In
quiry. These experiment stations, by
t he-way, reeoho money from tho
Slates-n little more than lmlf ns
much ns they reclvo from tho gou
enil (iovei'iinieiit. As Is to be expect
ed, tho farmers nt first entertained a
very rout iMiipt nous Idea of the Helen
list In chni'KO of tho stations, but
they tire now coming to depend upon
them, nnd to go to them for ndvleo.
Tlielr oonlldeneo was first gained by
the prelection which they obtained
from tho stations ngalnst frauds nml
imposltloiu In commercial fertilizers,
nml now the Htatloiis look after tho
farmers' Interests lu respect of nur
sery stock, dairy products, nnd food-hiK-stun",
nml aid them materially lu
lighting Injurious Insects. In ndtll
tlon to these police duties tho men nt
tho station nro or gaged lu making
original Investigations In agricultural
problems, nnd tlio results nro pub
lished In farmers' bulletins nud lu
tho form of pamphlet.
An ;der. of tho work dono by tho
wholo department nnd of It vnluo
for It work I well done may bo ob
tained by nn enumeration of soino of
tho subjects which hnvo boon inves
tigated and ou .which publications
have been Issued. The division of
vcgetablo physiology nml pathology
ha studied the til sen so of
shado nud ornamental treo.
nnd has Instructed those who
plant nnd care for such tree in tho
causes of nnd remedies for tho dis
eases. It ha taught fruit grower
how to care for nnd Improve tho or
ange, pineapple nnd other fruit. It
ha discovered tho secret of propagat
ing tho Dg. It has found remedies for
jcoticLLiso or raciTi axo tkoctablks.
diseases of truck crops, cottou, wheat,
corn aud other cereals. A good deal
of work Is doue In Investigating the
character aud conditions, Including
the proper habitat, of plants that are
not usually grown here. It lin tints
boon found Hint Jntp rnn profltnlily Im
raised In tlio Hnutli, nml Mux on Pngot
Hound. The department furnishes
fnrnioi' villi liiforinntlon n to tlio
diameter of wood i'iit liy them for
Idctit mention, nml It Issue wnrii'ngs
to Htnto experiment tntloti nml to
local niitliorltli' of tin prosoneo of
dangerous wood In tliolr localities. It
nl ho make tost of seodR nml pub
lishes the Inforumtloii gained liy tlio
experiment. It Rprcnd iilirnnil In
formation n to grnsscs, grain, pels
nnoii plnnlH, root nml fruit. It
miikp thorough examination of oll
fcir agricultural purpose, ascertains
their toxiiitp, ninl Issue n luilloiiti
showing graphically tin difference
In Importntit typo of Intnl. Tlio nmo
liullollil "show Hint niot of our ng
rlciillurnl rrom nro mlnploil In oll
of certain texture, illfforltiK greatly
for tlio vnrloii crop." ttiillotln nro
also Issued showing tlio uiolKturo
iiinliiliiliiril hy these rropn, nml tlio
WAHHlNtlTON, I). C.
dllTerotiee between adjacent soils.
The department tell the farmer the
character of his land, tlio kind of crop
best adapted to It nnd to the cllimilo,
Is constantly experimenting to dis
cover new crops for him, furnishes
lilm with seeds, tells him the nature
of the enemies that will attack his
crops, warn him of their actual
presence, nml Instruct htm n to tho
remedies to bo applied. It nlso separ
ates hi diseased cattle from Ids
healthy cattle; stamp tho latter so
that they bring n higher price abroad
than competing cattle bring; Inform
him of tho chiirnctor of the foreign
demand for farm products, nnd advises
him n to tlio best manner of pncklng
TUB SriUYIXO-MACWNK.
his fruit for Bhlpment. Tho value of
tho work of the forestry division enn
uot be overestimated. It has dono
much to stlmultito u widespread In
terest lu tho subject of forest preser
vation, nud has accomplished nu ml
mirnhlo work In decreasing tt mini
ber of forest lire. Tho department
also Instruct tho former lu tho art
of making good roads, nud excites n
desire for them by spreading nbrond
a knowledge of their groat economic
vnluo to nil who linve henvy londu to
haul to market or the railway station.
This work I doue by the Govern
ment for tlio beuetlt of those
who nnnually provide from
sixty-five to seventy per cent,
of tlio materials for our export trade,
nnd us if to emphasize the fact that
the expenditure of tho $:j,0u,000 Is
partly In nld of commerce, the
Weather Bureau, whoso warnings of
the upproach of coast storms hnve
saved millions of dollars' worth of
property nnd thousands of lives, Is
attached to the Department of Agri
culture. Thoro 1 no doubt that the
American farmer Is the most Intelli
gent farmer lu the world. Stntlstles
of farm mortgages nud farm holdings
show that ho is tlio most prosperous,
nnd his Uovcrumcut does more than
nuy other Uovernmeut to help Its tig
riculturlst to sNllful, wise, aud prof
itable cultivation, and to point OJt to
lilm the most advantageous methods
of distribution.
For all the work which this depart
ment has dono the government bns
thus far extended less than 32,0OO
000. The first appropriation for tho
agricultural department was of $1000,
aud was wade In 1830. Three year
nffprwnnl thr r wit nnothrr nppnv
prlntloii of n llltn amount. Two years
after that Congress appropriated,
fjmtn. Ity lsr.7 tho minimi expemtl
turo had reached $7.",ikhi, but It fell
again nml thou rose, but It did not
exceed l.-)(H),(HMI until INS.", nnd t lift
occasion of tlio Increase for that your
wa the establishment of the Iturcnil
of Animal Industry. In 1SMH the ap
propriation exeeeded l,(MHI,0IK), but
In that yenr the Wenther lliirenii wn
transferred from the Signal Corp to
the department. Tho lloveriimeiit
I now spending nliout f.'l,
ihhi.immi r jRir on It farm
er, but Included III Ihl sum I
nliout tjtJ,lNNl.iNN for the Wenther
llnrenil, the Iturcnil of Animal In
dustry, nml tho experiment stations.
These last perform ns valuable service-perhaps
the most valuable ser
vice rendered to agriculture by tho
department.
The nbovo Interesting article nud
(bp cut which accompany It nro re
produced from Harper's Weekly.
CHICACO HA3 TWO WILD DOCS.
ftnlil to lid Urn Only lliwi Jt This Cantl
lintNntl;rs of Auntrntlft,
Cautiously creeping from their
darkened kennel to snatch n bit of
food from tho floor of the Iron cnge
when no one Is near, nml darling buck
like n Hash nt every strange tiulso nnd
sight, two dingo dogs, or wild dog of
Austral In, have begun the dally
routine of their career behind bar In
the Lincoln Park Zoo. They nro the
only two dingo dog on the American
continent, mid were shipped directly
from Australia.
Naturalists term tho dingo the king
of tho dog family. While no larger
than n mcdlum-slzcd shepherd they
nro tlio terror of Australia .possess
ing fur more cunning than tho fox
ami being more destructive than tho
wolf. They have been considered In
capable of domest leal Ion, but of late
years several Inilances are known
where they have been tamed. Until
recently the dingo was thought to bo
a domestl. dog returned to tlio savage
slate, but In tho latest researches of
McCoy mid Nehrlng fossil remains of
the canine have been found In tho
pliocene nml ipiarternary strain of
Victoria, which prove the nnlmiil to
bo it genuine wolf. lie Immigrated
to Australia through tho country
uniting Australia nnd southeastern
Asia nt n certain period of the plio
cene epoch.
Tho dingo Inhabits the plain nml
the dense forest of Australia. I.llio
the fox, tie hides lu the daytime nml
prowls nt night, threatening nil Aus
tralian quadrupeds. Ho attacks every,
DINGO, On WILD DOOS OP AUSTRALIA
animal Indigenous to Australia; hi
favorite prey being sheep nnd kan
garoos. I'rof. C. W. McCurreii, head
nnlmnl keeper, prizes tho dog us
mining tho most valuable possession
of tho zoo. Chicago Itccord.
lluflnlnn MarrlngA Cuntoirt,
When tt Itiif'shiu I'rlnces marries,
nfter the wedding dinner nnd ball it
I the privilege of the marshals nnd
ministers to see the couple to the nup
tial chamlH'r. Aud nfter n becoming
Interval It Is the duly of tho prince to
come out nud distribute precious mor
sels of hi partner's garters to tho
haughty nnd excluslvo crowd who
have been waiting. Knch little lilt
boars the royal crown nnd tho prin
cess' Initial in embroidery.
llrae For llorry-PIitlcim.
When n small boy complains that
his buck aches hi elder lire apt to
remark that little boy do not have
back, but Kdgur C. Meudenliall,
seems to have come to the conclusion
that even grown people have backs
APPLIANCE TO STRENOTHEN TUB BACK,
to ache when compelled to ninlutalu
a stooping position for several hourt
ut a time. In tho Illustration w
show hi uew back brace for tho us
of cotton-pickers, berry-pickers, etc.
Tho entire device I light lu construc
tion nud responds oulcklv to the dif.
fereut movements of tho body, aud
does not produce nu uncomfortable
sensation when applied to or tend to
beat the body.
A complete set of Mafcklns aloes
postage stamns has been sold nt a l.im.
don auction for $180 aud two sets ol
uatcklug paper money for f 110.
vWstC'- 5 - .v
TfJS E13IT
New York City. No outer garment
I inorp popular for winter wear than
the blouse Klein that can bo worn
open or closed ns occasion requires.
T,A 1)1 Its' nLOPH KTON.
Cloth of nil sorts, cheviot mid tho
rough surface zlhcllncfl are nil used,
nnd velvet costume nro promised In
tmusiinl numbers. The smart May
Mnntoit design Illustrated I suited to
nil mnlerlnls nnd I especially be
coming to nil slight nml moderate
figure. It I n mistake to suppose
that only slender women look well In
n garment of tho sort, for It line
nro tapering nnd its slight fulness
tend to conceal nny fault ratJier
than to Intensify them. A Illustrat
ed, the i:iou I of satin-faced cloth lu
A soft pastel tan mid make part of
a costume, tlio skirt of which 1 clr-
culnr. The trimming I made of
LADIEH'
stitched bands of cloth nnd the rover
nnd cuffs nre faced with heavy corded
White silk. Uenenth the Jacket Is
worn a peasant wulst, with n Jnbot of
white eh I (Ton nud stock collar of lace.
The back of the lOtoii I seamless
nud fits smoothly mnl snugly. The
full fronts pouch slightly mid nre
stitched from shoulder to wulst, but
tho garment Is lilted by menu of
shoulder nud uuder-artn scams ouly.
Tho collar, which Is a feature, I
slightly pointed nt tho back nnd flares
becomingly ugnlust the face. Togeth
er with the front it is faced with
white silk nnd rolls over to form
rover. At tho wulst Is a belt of ma
terlul, nlso stitched. The sleeves nre
two-senuiod mid snug, but not over
tight, nnd nre finished with flare cuffs,
headed by a stitched band. The clos
ing I accomplished by mcnn of
loops of braid and lmndsome buttons.
To cut the blouse Eton for a woman
ojT medium size' four yards of material
two'lily-oTio lucliTs wide, two and one
fourth yards forty-four inches wide,
or two yard fifty Inches wide, will
bo required, with one and three
eighth yards or silk to fueo revere,
collar aud cuffs.
I.illo' Fancy Slilrt WaUt.
Simple, useful waist of flannel,
cashmere, Henrietta nnd soft taffeta
hnvo become it necessity. Many
women seek some vurlatlou from tlio
severe shirt wulst, yet will tolerate
nothing fussy, ns It must lie worn
beneath n Jacket that requires to be
slipped on and off with ease. At the
moment embroidered woolen good
nre much In demand, nud soft pastel
shades predominate, although vivid
red holds a conspicuous place. The
smart model illustrated by May
Mauton In tho largo engraving is
chic nt tho sumo time that it Is em
inently practicable. As shown, tho
material Is cashmere lu a pastel res
eda embroidered in white, with rov
ers and chemlsotto nnd bolt of stitched
black taffeta, and buttons and belt
clasp of cut steel.
Tho foundation for the waist Is a
llulug fitted with sluitlo dnrts and
shoulder and under arm Renins. On
this nre nrrnnged the ' slightly full
buck and the pouched front. The
lining closes at the centre front, the
left front proper extends to the cen
tre ouly, but the right extend over
j'l'jritv.rarfci
(-.!
Of pSH.ON.
the left nnd I buttoned diagonally
Into place. The liny clietnlsetlo nnd
slock collar nre permanently attached
In the right lining front, nnd hook
over Into tlio left. Tho nock of the
waist I finished with n shnpod col
lar that greatly mid to fhn effect.
The sleeve lire cut In one piece each,
the outer Renin extending to the el
bows only, and flare becomingly over
the ha nils.
To cut Ihl waist for n woman of
medium size four yard of material
twenly-oiio Inches wide, three nnd
one half yard twenty-seven Inches
wide, three yards thirty-two Incho
wide, or two nnd one fourth yard
forty-four Inches wide, will bo re
quired. Jtw rirltirrn(tin RImti.
Of the milking of now picturesque
sleeves there seem to be no end this
season. Special designs nro con
stantly appearing ou fancy waist,
tea gowns, afternoon toilet, simple
morning dresses, negligee, nnd dain
ty little opeti frocked Jackets. The
designing of novel effect 1n sleeves,
both long, short, nnd elbow-length,
ha reached tho dignity of n fine nrl
In Paris, mnl n number of ntellcri
make this busbies n specialty.
Ilrcninliig In Mill (llrls.
Long cm In nro almost universally
becoming to little girls In addition to
providing them with the warmth es
sential to cold wenther, health nnd
comfort. The box model I a favorite
one of the season, nud I never more
appropriate or stylish than when
worn by children. A n rule, tho
materials nro cheviot, melton nml
broadcloth, mid the color brown or
Inn; black, nil bough much liked for
their elders, Is held too gloomy nud
HIIIHT WATHT.
old for children's wear. The May
Mauton model Illustrated include all
the latest features and Is made from
tan colored melton, with collars and
cuffs of brown velvet, mid handsome
smoked pearl buttons down the front.
The coat I cut In three piece nnd
I fitted with shoulder and under
arm seam, the latter lining left open
for a slight distance nt the bottom
nud the stitching carried round. The
little shoulder capo Is circular nnd
curve up ut the buck. Tho fronts nre
fnced with cloth, the collar with velvet-to
nn Inch from the edge, to which
point cloth is applied, and tho two
roll back nud form rovers. The
sleeves nro two-seamed nnd well fit
ted, nnd nre finished with roll-over
cuff curved nud flaring nt the outer
edge nnd faced with velvet to mutch
the collar.
To cut tills coat fo n girl of two
0IM.8' LOKO BOX COAT.
years of age, two and oue-elghtij
yards of material fifty lucbea wide
will be required, with, oue-fourtb
yard of velvet for collar and cuff.