AN EARLY START
IN PAPER BOXES
Convenience Available in Various
Sizes; Can Be Unfolded
Away From Roots. |
THE PLANT NOT DISTURBED
Arrangement of Container Saves In
jury to Growth; Can Be Placed in
Ground Under the Meet Fa
vorable Conditions.
No greater gardening convenience
lias been devised In many years than
the paper flower pots now available
In various sizes which can be unfolded
away from the roots of the plaut when
It comes time to transplant. By the
use of these puper pots which are
fairly durable, plenty lasting enough
to raise seedlings to sufficient size, great
adviii '_'es can be secured in growing
such ctables as peppers, egg plants
and cucumbers and melons for an early
start. One or two seeds to a pot of -
the two-inch size may be planted and t
the stronger of the two seedlings re- <
talned to grow along. t
For plants which canuot be trans- i
planted readily If the roots are dis- t
turbed in the operation these paper >
pots are ideal. If cucumbers can be *
given two or three weeks start by this i
method, they are in much better shape i
r
i
F*-*
SEEDLING
CROWN IN
PAPER. POT
PAPER POT UNFOLDED AND
SEEDLING READY FOR.
TRANSPLANTING
to withstand the ravages of the early
lines which annually take heavy toll
of the seeding plants in the open j
ground and make it necessary to plant ,
mere seeds to the hill than could be (
grown should they all survive.
In the larger-sized paper pots, gladi
olus bulbs as well as tuberoses may
sprouted and placed In the ground
•Nth an advantage of a month's |
growth ovi-r the earliest date It would
be possible to plant them In the open.
T^e pots are so cheap In price that
they can be thrown away after using
W**>h no real loss.
One precaution is necessary In us
ing these pots. They should not be
rUowed to stand in water or the bot
toms will rot out while the sides re
rqain intact. It is necessary to provide
drainage In all but the smallest sizes
Witli pieces of broken earthen tlower
(Hits, crockery or a few pebbles.
Castor beans may be given a line
start with these paper pots which will
bring them to majestic proportions
much earlier that if planted in the
open. Planting the seeds in these
little pots saves ilie work of trans
planting which will become imperative
If the seed is planted In the usual way
In a seed box indoors or in rows in u ,
hotbed or cold frame.—National Gar- j
den Bureau.
ART OF GROWING RADISHES
One of the Earliest Products of the
Home Garden Ie On* of Easiest
to Grew.
The radish patch usually is the lirst
to be [dnnted by the majority of home j
gardeners. The product in most in
stances is the lirst to grace the fam
lly table. The United States Depart
mem of Agriculture tells bow:
For the home garden, radish seed
should be sown In the open ground as
soon as the soil is moderately warm.
Blunt In drills 12 to IS inches apart,
and as soon as the plants ;. « up thin \
them slightly In order to prevent
crowding. Badishes require to he
grown on n quick, rich soil, and some
of the earlier sorts can be matured in
two or three weeks after planting. If
the radishes grow slowly they will
have a pungent flavor and will not !,e
flt for table use. For a constant sup
ply successive plantings should 1«>
made every two weeks, as the i'00'1'
lose (heir crispness and delicate flavor
If allowed to remain long in the J
ground. As n rule a large gercent
ngt of radish seed will grow, ami it is .
often possible by careful sow mg to
avoid the necessity thinnln^ th«
first radishes being pulled as soon
they are sufficient size for t®-‘ e 1 '*•
thus making room for those that wdl
UMVtuie lat —
; HOW TO GROW PEPPERS i
! Seeds of peppers should be ?
• sown in a hotbed or lu a box in s
I the house about 8 weeks before j
; Uie time for setting the plants In %
; Uie garden. The plants are ten- J
; tier and should not be trans- j
j planted until the ground is warm j
; and all danger of frost is past. }
•Set the plants 15 to 18 inches $
apart in rows 2% to 3 feet apart. J
The cultivation and treatment of 2
peppers should be the same as j
for tomatoes and eggplants, j
There are a large number of t
varieties of peppers, including ?
the sweet kinds and the hot pep- J
pers. . |
PLAN FOR FRUIT
iN HOME GARDEN
Frees and Bearing Bushes
Should Be Raised in Addition
to the Vegetables.
3R0W CROPS BETWEEN TREES
itrawberries, Raspberries, Blackber
ries, Gooseberries, Currants and
Others May Occupy Same
Space and Do Weil.
The more general planting of both
tuudard and small fruits iu addition
o the home vegetable garden would
■ontribute materially to the health
ud pleusuie of the average fuuilly
nd furnish a supply of very desirable
ruit aud fruit products at relatively
mall cost. In many localities It Is
xtreinely difficult to secure a contia
ious supply of fruits iu pleasing va
lety by purchasing on the market,
ud one of the most Important ten
ures of the plun for the home fruit
limitation Is the selection of kinds
if fruits and varieties of those kinds
vhich will do well in the given local
ly and which will serve best the pur
iose for which they are desired.
The home fruit plot will necessarily
,e planned from the standpoint of the
.vailahle space, the soil aud climatic
imitations, and the reeds of the fam
Jy throughout the year. In tunny
uses it may be feasible to grow all
he fruit needed, but only that which
an he most readily produced. Among
he fruits that may be grown through
>ut the greater part of the country
re apples, pears, peaches, plums, i
trawherries, blackberries and dew
lerries. Raspberries, currants, ciler
ies, quinces, apricots, tigs and citrus
ruits are more or less restricted to
pedal localities. In colder sections
be winters are too severe for peaches ;
md all the fruits requiring a warm ;
limate, while In the warmer sections, j
ipples, currants, gooseberries, rasp- >
lerries and certain varieties of several ;
if the other fruits fail because they
•annot withstand the long hot sum
ners and winters.
The plan of the home fruit garden,
\ill, therefore, depend largely upon
he kind of fruits adapted to the lo- I
allty. On the whole, however, the
Strawberries, First Fruit of Season, j
ylantiug.s should be so arranged that
he larger growing trees such us apple,
|i<>Hch iiiul pour will Interfere the least
,vith the cultivation of the smaller
fruits or the vegetable garden. In
some of the most successful home
rult gardens the larger trees are head
■d rather high, that is. 5 or 0 feet to
he lower branches, and a row of small
fruits are grown directly in the row
jf fruit tiees. Between the rows of
rruit trees, raspberries, blackberries,
lew berries ami strawberries are plant
ed in rows which are about 8 or l» feci
.jpurt. The vegetables are then grown
in the space between these rows m'ber
ries. Bench trees are. as a rule, plant
i-U ns tillers between apple and pear
trees. Where the area Is extremely
limited the semi-dwarf varieties of ap
ples art* sometimes recommended,
t are .should be taken, however, to
provide plenty of distance between Hie
large-growing trees, say 40 to 48 feet
for apples and 20 to 30 feet for peach
es, pears and cherries.
Apples, pears, cherries and plums
may be planted as combination fruit
and shade trees, and by beading them
- ;o 7 feet above the ground, a lawn
,„:iy be maintained underneath them,
plum trees are particularly adapted
to planting In a poultry yard, but must
be beaded reasonably high and the
trunks protected by wire netting until
the trees arc lour or the years old
CONSIDERABLE CARE NEEDED IN
SELECTING CLOVER FOR SEEDING
i
Simple Tester for Small Seeds.
tPr«pareJ by th# United State* Department
of Agriculture.)
Red clover has been styled the cor
ner stone of agriculture in the North
Central and Eastern states.
Many farmers begin laying the cor
ner stone us early as February, when
It 1* customary iu mauy sections to
sow red clover on the surface of the
snow, so that It will sink Into the soil
with the first thaw in the spring. Red
Clover is hardy, and Is not Injured by
ordinary cold; and the fne: that it can
be sown at u season when work on the
farm is comparatively light adds to the
economy of Its cultivation.
The first important point to be ob
served is the selection of good seed,
at/ specialists of the United States De
partment of Agriculture. Considerable
care should be used in thiss respect well
in advance of the time of seeding. This
is particularly true at present, when
a lurge proportion of the red clover
seed used iu the United States comes
from abroad. If poor seed is used
the expected crop may be a partial
or total failure.
Good Seed Is Plump.
Good red clover seed is plump or
well filled, bright with u slight luster,
the color of individual seeds ranging
from violet to light yellow. The in
dividual seeds should be at least
medium sized and fairly uniform, free
of adulterants of any kind and from
seeds of noxious weeds.
Home-grown seed is desirable, es
pecially in tlie North, because it is al
most certain to be adapted to local
conditions. If it is not available,
samples should be obtained from re
liable dealers. These should he ex
amined for adulterants, weed seeds,
and shriveled seeds. They should also
be tested for germination before pur
chasing iu quantity.
In the absence of more accurate
methods an estimate should be made of
tilt* proportion of true red clover seed
and of weed seeds and other impurities.
From the red clover seed separated
from all impurities, a counted number,
as 100, should be taken Just as they
come. These seeds should be placed
between layers of moistened cloth or
paper or merely covered In a bed of
sand or light soil. A dinner plate,
covered with another, is a suitable
germinating receptacle. It can be kept
in the living room, at a temperature
between 05 and S5 degrees. Between
the third and sixth days the sprouting
ability of the seeds should bo shown.
It should be borne iu mind that the
sowing value of the seed is represented
by the amount of true clover which will
germinate with reasonable promptness.
Thus, If l'our-tlfths of a sample is pure
CURE PEA-SICK LAND
BY PROPER ROTATION
Root Rot Is Present in All of
Larger Areas.
Disease Lives in Soil and Becomes
Mere Destructive Each Season—
Varieties Resistant to Ail
ment Being Grown.
(Prepared t>y th» t'nuail State* Department
of Agriculture )
Where the crop of peas grown for
canning or truck market purposes the
past season lots shown root rot. the
United States Department of Agricul
ture advises planning for a long rota
tion of other crops, beginning with the
next season, to rid the soil ot the
disease. A four-year rotation is some
times effective, hut cases have been
met, both in the Mast and iti the U’en
tral states, where even a longer rota
tlon lias proved insufficient.
investigations by the department
during the past three years have
shown that root rot of peas is present
in all of the larger pea-growing areas
east of the Mississippi, and to smile ex
tent in Montana ami Utah. The dis
ease lives in ttie soil and becomes
more destructive each year that peas
are grown on infested land, soon re
ducing the crop to such an extent as
to make It unprofitable. It is dis
tributed by the custom prevalent in
some sections of transferring soil from
old fields to new ones to carry the nod
ule b: rter'.n and by wind and other
mean'
clover, and only four-fifths will
sprout, then only three-fifths, or 60
per cent, of the original seed as offered
will grow. Thus, the geriuinuting test
has an important bearing on the worth
of seed offered to the fanner.
Protects American Farmers.
A seed-testing service is maintained
by the United States Department of
Agriculture, where 119,038 samples of
various seeds were examined and
tested in the last fiscal year—10,143
in Washington and 13,190 in the five
branch seed-testing stations. Simitar
service is offered by the vurious state
experiment stations. The department
also exercises u strict inspection serv
ice over lield seeds brought from for
eign countries, and last year 3,000.000
pounds of various seeds were rejected
or held for cleaning before being al
lowed to be offered to American farm
ers.
Nevertheless, the closest scrutiny is
necessury on the part of the farmer
who desires a good stand of clover,
either us a forage crop or to turn
under for the improvement of his soil.
It is important that the testing of
seed be done early enough that a suf
ficient supply of pure seed can be pur
chased in time for use: and if seed is
to be sent to one of the government
or state testing laboratories, at least
two weeks should be allowed.
PRODUCE MOHAIR PROFITABLY
Breeders Are Gradually Increasing
Qualities of Their Animals and
Improving Hair.
Although the Angora gout is not very
well known generally in this country,
in spite ol’ its popularity in certain re
gions in the West, one of its products,
mohair, is used in the manufacture of
many fabrics uud is known to nearly
everyone. The production of moliuir
lias increased rapidly, und the annual
clip is now about 0.000.000 pounds. Ap
proximately an equul quantity is Im
ported each year, but it is the opinion
of the United States Department of
Agriculture that with millions of
acres adapted to goat raising, and
vv 1 th breeders gradually increasing the
shearing qualities of their animals and
improving the hulr. American farmers
can profitably produce all the mohair
needed by our manufacturers. There
tins been a constant increase iu the
use of mohair for suit linings und for
cloth for summer suits for men. It is
still used to about the same extent as
heretofore for car upholstering, por
tiere, robes, rugs, braids and artificial
furs.
The area of pea-sick land is widen
ing each year. It Is particularly im
portant that the large seed-growing
regions of the West, which have re
mained free of the disease up to the
present time, be protected from it by
tlie practice of proper rotation.
The department is breeding varieties
of peas resistant to root rot, bul .some
time must elapse before there can be
any assurance that the commercial
growers' problem can be solved in this
way.
WORK PLANS ARE IMPORTANT
Farmer Should Know Deforehand
What H: Is Going to Do and
What He Is Doing It With.
Method in (Joins farm work is very
important. The funner who knows ex
actly what lie is going to do in tlie
morning when in* arises, how lie is to
do it. and wlmt lie is to do it with, will
always accomplish something worth
while that flay. The worker who has
“lauy” ideas, indefinite plans and un
decided steps will never do much.
Kverythlng undertaken in farming
should have serious attempts. Men
and women who farm or keep the
home in order must mean business, be
businesslike and work in a methodical
way. Half-heurted work injures the
worker and ruins his character.
I’lans arc important. They should
he made before the task is attempted.
The worker must know what lie Is to
do and then feel that he can do it
well, even before tin* Job is begun.
Leave off the work lhat you dread
till such time us you feel like doing
It. Wien von like It, dispatch it
promptly unU w«U.
Where Your Taxes Go
How Uncle Sam Spends Your Money
in Conducting Your Business
By EDWARD G. LOWRY
Author "Wishington Close-Ups,'* "Bank* and Financial Systems," ate. Contributor
Political and Economic Articles to Leading Periodicals and a Writer of Recognised
Authority on the National Government's Business Methods.
Copyright, Western Newspaper Union
VII.
WHY GOOD MEN DODGE
The government service must look
largely to the graduates from colleges
aud universities iu recruiting for its
technical work. Replies to an inquiry
addressed to some forty of the leading
colleges and universities of the coun
try to discover what class of men took
civil service examinations, whether
the number is decreasing uud, if so,
the reasons, disclose vividly what the
training schools of technical and scien
tific meu think about the government
us an employer. They warn their
graduates against government service,
aud the graduates heed the warning.
Carnegie Institute of Technology
at Pittsburgh, reports:
It !■ certainly true that the best of our
graduates are not interested in govern
ment employment because they feel that,
first of all, it Uoe9 not pay adequate eal
ar ee, nor does it offer opportunity for
advancement that private enterprise does
This spring I interviewed all the mem
bers vf the graduating class, except the
women, and none of them would consider
government employment, although there
were many positions open. . . . There
are now about 1,500 male graduates of the
institute, and 1 will venture to state that
not more than ten are employed by the
gov eminent.
Replies of similar tenor and Import
were received from the University of
Chicago, Lelaud Stanford university,
Massachusetts Insiltute of Technology,
Princeton university, Indianu univer
sity, uud the University of Wisconsin.
Inequality of compensation Is one
of the chief reason* that deter scien
tific meu from going into the govern
ment service. Congress fixes the sal
aries of most of the government em
ployees. 1 can give a concrete illus
tration of how it determines the sal
aries of scientific meu.
Dr. 1.eland O. Howard and Dr. Kd
wasd W. Nelson ure two scientists iu
the employ of the government who
have national reputations.
The appropriation bill for the De
partment of Agriculture was under
consideration In the house on Junuury
30th, 11)30. The secretary of agricul
ture had been recommending for five
or six years that Doctor Howard’s
salary he increased from $4,500 to
000. He proposed it again in that
year’s bill. When the item was reached
in the discussion ou the floor, this col
loquy ensued :
Mr. Stafford—Mister Chairman, I r«
serve a point of order on the paragraph,
la the entomologist whose salary you
propose to increase the same person rec
ommended for an increase Last year?
Mr. 1.ever—Yes; he lias been in the gov
ernment service many, many years.
The Chairman—1 make the point of or
der.
Mr. L#v«r— I concede it.
Mr. McLaughlin of Michigan—Wiil the
gentleman reeerve hU point of order?
Mr. Stafford—I will reserve It.
Mr Mct-AugtiUn— The committee made
the i •commendation to increaee the sal
ary $;«.*/. took testimony on it and con
stdered it very carefully. In our Jud£
ment the Increase in salary ought to be
made for an official vrhe has been in Use
department, as the chairman says, for a
long time at the head of this bureau. Us
has performed able and faithful services.
The salary is less than that paid to the
heads of other bureaus. We felt, after
listening to all that was said, and with a
knowledge of the work he has been doing
and has done, the salary proposed Is not
too large
Mr. Stafford—How long has he been
there?
Mr. L«v«r—He has been there forty-two
years.
Mr Stafford—What is his age?
Mr I .ever—Over sixty, perhaps nearer
seventy, but ha is still vigorous and ablo
to do good work. He la one of tbo
greatest entomologists in the world.
The Chairman—The point of order la
sustained.
hive minutes later the matter of
Doctor Nelson’s salary was reached.
The secretary of agriculture recom
iwended an Increase of his pay from
$3,.r>00 to $4,(XX). This happened:
Mr. Stafford—Mister Chairman, I re
serve the point of order on the para
graph. Will the chairman of the uam
rnlttee Inform the house as to how long
this biologist has been in the service
of the government and how long he ban
been receiving the present salary of *3.509.
on which you recommend an increase of
thou 7
Mr. Le>er-Mister Chairman, thia gen
tleman, whose name la Nelson, has been
In the service of the department sine*
November, 1890. He has served as chief
field naturalist from 11(07 to 1912. and was
assistant In charge of the biological In
vestigation. from 1913 to 1914. On August
C. 1914, he was appointed assistant chief
of the bureau, and on December 1, 1*1*.
was made chief of the bureau. He took
the place of Doctor Henshaw.
Mr. Stafford—And the salary lias beeu
*3.500 since 191«?
Mr. 1, ever—Yes
Mr. Stafford—What is hie age?
Mr. Le\«r—1 should think that Dorter
Nelson Is round fifty years of age.
Mr. Stafford—He Is not superannuated.
Mr. Lever—Oh, no; he is a very vigor
ous man,
Mr. Stafford-Mister Chairman, I with
draw the point of order.
Doctor Howard was refused his in
ert-use of pay because he was too ol6,
"over sixty, perhaps nearer seventy.’’
Doctor Nelson was allowed his in
crease because he was not superan
nuated but In bis prime, "round fifty
years of age.”
Now, as a matter of fact. Doctor
Howard is more than two years young
er than Doctor Nelson. Is It any won
der that scientific men of any attain
ments are reluctant to enter a service
where the measure of the value of
their services is set down in any suck
haphazard and casual way?
SYSTEM IS ALL WRONG
The great difficulty that stands In
the way of discussing Unde Sam as
an employer is that there is uo such
person. The men who stand in the
relation of employer to their subordi
nates are nothing but employees them
selves, ami temporary ones at that,
with a very fleeting tenure of office.
Cabinet officers and members of con
gress, to whom the rank and tile of
employees look for guidance for a
solution of their problems, are simply
fleeting figures that come and go, with
their own interests to serve. They
testily freely enough us to conditions
..f government employment. Senator
Carter Class, recently secretary of the
treasury, for example:
"The largely multiplied business of
tiie government cannot be conducted
with efficiency and economy unless
there be attracted to and retained in
the public service a group of highly
trained, well-paid and permanent offi
cials of supervisory grades. Uncer
tainty of tenure in some instances and
Inadequacy of compensation have
closed tlie public service to many men
of tlie best type or forced them out of
government employ at the moment of
their greatest usefulness.
‘■'Ibe war lias Increased the public
debt more titan twenty-five fold and
has augmented tlie functions and ac
tivities of the government in many
ways. The duties are greater and the
responsibilities are lurger than those
of other days, to tlie standards of
which it is not to be expected that
the government will ever return. The
conditions are such that failure to take
the necessary action to invite and
hold In tlie public service men of ex
ceptional ability and of reul distinc
tion in their fields can result only in
grave burdens to tlie taxpayers of the
country and in possible disaster.
"Already the transaction of tlie
business of tlie government Is ham
pered by deficiencies of personnel due
to the return to private life of many
men of large capacity who during the
period of active warfare were willing
and glad to serve their country at
great personal sacrifice. 1 have come
to learn that there are heroes in tlie
civil establishments as well us In the
military services, self-sacrificing pa
triots w bo toil year in and year out for
a Imre pittance when they could com
mand salaries double or treble tlie
amounts they receive from tlie govern
ment. but who, for the love of their
country and for tlie love of their
t»or». likvc lejvoieu ailiuing v»»ci* »a
the field of private enterprise. They
were too fine and too patriotic to leave
their posts.
"Under the compelling force of pa*
triotisui they made willing sacrifices
during the war, but with the return of
peace the government cannot expect
to retain these employees Indefinitely,
because in Justice to themselves and
their families they will sooner or latdr
accept the larger opportunities that aro
open to them in the world of business
and industry unless the government
proposes to pay them salaries that at
least reasonably approach the value of
their services.
"Only prompt action by the congress
to build tip u permanent and dignified
civil service which will Include men
of great ability and high attainments
can prevent mistakes and failures In
the transaction of the public business,
the consequences of which may he
calamitous."
Ux-Representative Good, who was
chairman of the appropriations com
mittee of the house, is equally frank:
“Today duplication in the govern
ment service abounds on every hand.
For example, eight different depart
ments of the government, with large
overhead organizations, are engaged
in engineering work. In navigation, ir
rigation and drainage; eleven different
bureaus are engaged in engineering
research; twelve different organiza
tions are engaged In road con
struction, while twelve, with largo
overhead organizations, are engaged
in hydraulic construction and sixteen
are engaged In surveying and map
ping. Sixteen different bureuus exer
cise jurisdiction over water-power de
velopment. Nine different organiza
tions are collecting information on the
consumption of coal. Forty-two differ
ent organizations, with overhead ex
penses, are dealing with the question
of public health.
"The Treasury department, the War
department, the Interior department
and the Labor department each has a
bureau deallug with the question of
general education. These departments
operate independently ; Instances of co
operation between them are excep
tional. Each of these departments Is
manned at all times with an organisa
tion prepared to carry the peak of the
load and maintains an expensive
ready-to-serve personnel. A lack of
co-operation In the executive depart
ments necessarily leads to gross ex
travagance. The system is wroug, and
• v.oii«iCM alone cun change ll»« a/alMfe1*