OCR Text |
Show biUer to electrical power than to any other. For an example: The milk-1 ... 1 lr.g macmne, tue Water pump, require that even, steady power that the ele-j ctric motor so easily and cheaply sup plies. The seasonable ta.-ks like en-j silage cutting etc., requires an abund ant and certain power. Thus we eau see the limitless opportunity that opens before us. The home is the heart of the farm; interfere with the rural home, lower its standards and you deal a blow to American farm life. If Oriental standards of European Euro-pean peasant standards should ever come into our homes we would destroy de-stroy a great potentinal purchasing power; we would injure the Republic Repub-lic and still the heart that warms, blesses, and brightens the open country." coun-try." Speaking as chairman of the Rural Electric Service Committee, G. C. Neff recommended that electric elec-tric light and power companies develop de-velop sound, comprehensive plans for stimulating agricultural development, develop-ment, especially urging on- this industry in-dustry the necessity of employing men who understand agriculture and who are sympathic to agriculture. Mr. Neff strongly recommended that utilities starting on rural electrification electrifica-tion programs, the importance of creating a rural department which "would specialize on this work. Dr. E. A. White, Director of the Committee on the relation of electricity elec-tricity to agriculture, brought out the magnatitude . bf this undertaking which he showed to make electric service effective on less than 25 per cent of the farms of the Nation, it would require a capital investment of one billion five hundred million dollars; four times the amount, of money required to construct the Panama Pa-nama Canal. He urged to insure expenditure of this capital and avoid exploitation of the farmer, that the research work on the application of electricity to agriculture now being undertaken by seventeen states, be vigorously prose cuted. Colorado has abandoned the direct primary methods of making political nominations. Colorado hopes to get a better class of candidates and pro- , ably will. Toledo Blade. Sec. JaJdine Speaks ;0n Power Problem! W. M. Jardine, Secretary of Agriculture, Agri-culture, and L. J. Taber, Master af j the National Grange, before the 3rd i general session of the National Electric Ele-ctric Light Association in San Francisco, Fran-cisco, June ISth, made rural electri-cation electri-cation one of the outstanding features fea-tures of the -13 annual convention. The desirability of the electric light ami power service for improving improv-ing conditions, reducink production costs, and bringing to agriculture other benefits which enevitably follow fol-low the copper wires as outlined by these two great leaders in agriculture agricul-ture fields, was echoed and re-echoed throughout the Convention program pro-gram but such leaders of the electric iight and power industry as Franklin T. Griffith, president of the association, associa-tion, Martin Insull, chairman of the Public Policy Committee, and G. C. Noff, chairman of the Rural Electric Service Committee. Secretary Jardine pictured power as one of the dominating forces in agriculture development since 1850; reviewing briefly man power, animal power, steam gas power areas. He showed that from 1890 to 1924 the primary horse power on farms doubl ?d, while the area of farm crops only increased 50 per cent and pictured electricity as the next great source of energy to make its contribution to agriculture development. He stated "that the electric light and power companies of the United States devel op more electricity than do all the other nations of the world combined. More than one million nine hundred thousand new customers were added to the lines of the electric light and power companies during 1924. A recent re-cent statement by the United States Bureau ipf Labor statistics, Ishows hat the average cost of electricity is 8.6 per cent less than before the war, while the cost of all other items in the family budget has increased on an average of 65 per" cent. It will be seen that under regulation with increased cost of materials labor the electric light and power industry has been able to keep the cost of electricity elec-tricity below the pre-war cost." Secretary Sec-retary Jardine further said: "that the most serious difficulty connected with the distribution of electric energy en-ergy to rural communities seems to e to get the average customer to 'rse sufficient current to give the central' cen-tral' stations a reasonable return on their investment without making an unreasonably high charge per unit of energy consumed. In most cases when a rural line has been erected, the farmers have availed themselves of it for supplying lights to their houses and barns and perhaps for the operation of a few small machines" machi-nes" requiring little current, but they have not extended its use further. Obviously the central service stations sta-tions cannot be expected to invest money in rural service extension unless un-less they receive a reasonable return on their investment. On the ' other hand it must be recognized that agriculture ag-riculture cannot utilize electrical energy en-ergy extensively unless its costs and the returns from its use are such as to make the practice profitable. The farmer has a keen understanding of relative power costs as they apply to his conditions, and he employs only on-ly those practices that yield a large profit." 6 Mr. Taber took the subject of Electrical Ele-ctrical Sunshine for Agriculture; pay mg particular attention which this subject afforded for improving living conditions upon the farm. Particularly Particular-ly he emphasized the need of equipment equip-ment adapted to farm use in the following fol-lowing manner: "A most important point that must be made clear to both the power companies and the manufacturers manu-facturers is, that the experimenting and investigating- must take place before be-fore sales are made to the farmer. Should the power companies and the equipment manufacturers . load the farmer with material unsuited to his needs fend that Oater will become junk, they have not only injured agriculture ag-riculture but have injured the industry. indust-ry. Tiue in the end the users of electricity ele-ctricity will be compelled to pay for this investigation but it will be more efficient and more economically accomplished ac-complished if it takes place before sales are made to the farmers, rather than after. The farmers is likely to complain little of the costs of current but much about the cost of equipment and mechanical appliances to make the current serve him. The manufacturing manufac-turing group have not as yet fully sensed the great possibilities that are ! before them." Continuing Mr Ta-: ber said: "The Electrical 'sunshine" j or rather, the power, light and heat that electrical energy so easily furnishes, fur-nishes, means more to agriculture than to almost any other industry. The bright lights of the city that attract at-tract our youth; the oil lamp and the dangerous lantern at the barn, have h depressing- effect on rural life. The drudgery of household cares are al-? al-? heavy in the farm home and yet there is not a household task but that electricity can lighten or brighten.' Much of the farm work will yield |