Show by ELMO SCOTT WATSON NCE upon a time a sons writer bat him down and composed a bong about the difficulty of keeping em down on the farm after seen caree although it Is probable that this particular writer had no more accurate conception of real farm ufa than the average resident of new yorks famous ala pan alley his song did reflect certain condition in our national life which has been causing concern for a number of years that Is the steady drift of population from the rural sections to urban centers and economists have been painting dark pictures of what will result if this movement from the farm to the city Is not checked A somewhat brighter picture howver has recently been painted by man whose position puts him in close touch with conditions throughout the country he Is merlin H aylesworth president of the national broadcasting company one of the two big systems which la providing dally entertainment tain ment and instruction for millions of americans and in view of the importance of the farm to alty migration problem there Is considerable significance to the statement which be makes he says the old retrain hoare you coln to keep em down on the farmr was written before the advent of radio for even a decade ago the then aj now the center of education entertainment and iollar influences that contribute to the satisfaction and enjoyment of life kept their favors well confined within their own boundaries the ou who craved them had to go to the city to enjoy them or do without today however thanks to radio li changed the beat that the city baa in and the drama in art and literature in entertainment and information 1 available to the farm family as quickly and a fully aa it Is to the city dweller the greatest grea teat opera and concert atari the jazziest jazz iest jaax the stars of the vaudeville and statecraft tate craft all peak or sing or perform for the resident of the farm or the country village aa directly they do for their metropolitan audience one result of this la noted in recent census statistics covering the shift in population as between cities and farms since the advent of radio it Is noted that not only has the movement of population from the country to the clotea been checked but that a from the cities toward the farms Is gaining impetus in 1927 for instance 1 persons moved from our cities to the country in the same year the drift from farm to city was reduced by about as compared with 1321 and 1626 but this in my judgment Is only a beginning what radio has done in the past toward relieving the isolation and monotony of farm life Is only an index of greater things to be done in the fu ture improved conditions of life on the farm are not of course due to radio alone automobiles telephones and to SL very large and an degree the extension of electric facilities into agricultural territory have each played important parts they have provided the faun dweller with comforts and conveniences equal to those enjoyed in the elty and have definitely improved his economic opportunities and outlook but in maintaining morale on the farms in keeping the young folks eat in establishing contact between country and city in terra of well a material no tingle factor na played 0 o important A part radio it has been estimated that there are now in use radio receiving seta which cene between tind listeners just what percentage of these sets are in farm homes Is unknown but a surrey made two or three years ago showed that one of every five farm homes in the united states has a radio beet considering the amazing growth of the radio industry which baa increased by leaps and bounds ev cry year it Is reasonable to suppose that that ratio has held its own if not actually increased BO that it would not be a bad guess to assert that one in every four or perhaps een one in every three farm homes now has a radio set the results of the survey referred to made by the national farm ilailo council revealed some interesting facts in regard to the importance of the radio to the farmer its am in changing the marketing methods of entire groups of farmers was reflected in reports from 43 states more than per cent of the replies to the questionnaire sent out gave specific examples of cash savings effected by the use of radio and practically every report indicated the importance and value to the farmer of having market reports from 24 to 48 hours earlier than they are obtainable tai through any other source or medium typical of hundreds of reports of the farmers use of radio in market ing Is this one from a farmer living near ilailo report ed hogs due to drop in two days shipped at once saved in same week put off haying because of storm warning this prevented heavy loss of hay in conducting this nation wide radio survey the national farm radio council gathered and tabulated individual expressions the survey was conducted by the council in cooperation with 15 farm publications aso county agents boys and girls club leaders aw home demonstration agents the national grange the american farm bureau federation several hundred teachers of al agriculture deans of 37 colleges and several radio stations ninety five per cent of farmer radio owners the council aalde think of their radios as a utility as well as an amusement device they think of s J it as a utility because it brines to them market reports from 24 to 48 hours earlier than obtainable in any other way these enable the farmer to market his produce to the greatest advantage it Is however as an amusement rather than a utility device that the radio Is playing an important role in satisfying the desire of the farm youth for entertainment and helping to answer the question of II you going to keep cm etc thanks to radio the farm boy today sits la the great national sporting events he attends by proxy the worlds series games the great gridiron classics national bouts of all sorts he thrills at a reception to lendbergh at an address by the president from washington lie not only knows what Is happening when it happens but he Is enabled to feel a real sense of participation in the event the voices of grand opera stars the masterpieces of music both vocal and instrumental the latest dance tunes or vaudeville jokes are as familiar to the farm family today as they are to city folks farm life in deed has entered a new era of corn tort convenience and satisfaction for in a very true sense and to a tar greater extent than the government a census figures yet show th city Is moving to the country that Is the factors that made the city at are rapidly becoming equally available on the farms and in this evolution radio Is playing a major role this Is due to a greater extent in america than elsewhere by reason of the lines along which our radio broadcasting has developed through the association of stations into na alon wide network it Is possible to give radio listeners throughout the country the very finest programs that talent and ingenuity can produce without the operation cooperation co of these stations remote parts of the country would still be dented the pleasure of hearing mapy of eur finest artists since these artists tor the most part are etall city minded and congregate in those centers of population where rich concert and theatrical contracts are to he found but while the artist stays in the city his voice and his aill stry are broadcast by radio to every comer of the land so are the latest news and the views of informed men radio in a very definite wicy has carried the city to the farm so when today the question Is asked biow re you coln to keep em down on the the answer Is obvious says sir aylesworth the dont have to be kept stay ing from choice uncle sams census brov it most con |