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Show I COUNTY AGENT WORK I BRIEFLY REVIEWED BY I DR. ROBERT J. EVANS I New County Farm Bureau to Cooperate With College Extension Division in promoting Agricultural H Interests of the State. PJ Dr. Robert J. Evans, of tho Exten-BjT Exten-BjT slon DWUlon of the Utah Agricultural Agricultur-al al College, state leader of county VW agents, reviews briefly the ihlstory H of the county agent movement In Utah as follows, In a report of tho year's work recently Issued: County agent work was begun In Utah January 1, 1913, when tho present state leader waB appointed to take charge, representing tho Extension Ex-tension Division of tho Utah Agricultural Agri-cultural College and the offlce of Farm Management of tho U. S. Department De-partment of Agriculture. No funds wero available for placing plac-ing agents in the field at the time but wero appropriated by tho State Legislature In 1013. It mado available avail-able 6,000 for uso in 1913 beginning begin-ning July 1st, this amount to bo Increased In-creased by 2500 annually until a total of $26,000 was reached. On July 1st tho two cooperating Institutions obtained tho additional cooperation of several counties, and agents wero placed In the following districts: It. II. Stewart in Carbon and Emery counties, J. P. Welch in Millard County, W. J. Glenn In tho Uinta Basin, David Sharp, Jr. In Iron county, and Miss Amy Lyman in Sanpete county, as a homo ngont. On August 1, 1913, Sevier county was ndded to tho list with Lorin A. R Merrill as agent. In 1914 II. J. Webb was appointed appoint-ed In Salt Lako county on July 1st, A. B. Ballantyno In Utah county July 13th, and H. A. Christiansen In Beaver county on August 15, with W. P. Thomas as agent. In December, 1913, W. J. Glenn resigned his position In the Uinta Basin and M. L. Harris was appoint ed to take his place June J5, 1914. David Sharp resigned from Iron county In 1916 and Alma Esplln was appointed July 1, 1916. Tho Utah county agent resigned In April and C. W. Lindsay was appointed ap-pointed In Juno, 1916. The Sevier county position was left vacant by tho transfer of Lorin A. Merrill to tho office, and W. W. Owons was appointed ap-pointed In June 1916. B. W. Stewart was transferred from Carbon-Emory counties to Box Elder and Wallace Sullivan was appointed ap-pointed to succeed him. From a system of miscellaneous farm visits and promiscuous meetings meet-ings resembling that of a farm doctor, doc-tor, tho work has evolved into a thoroughly organized system of county agent work, Intensified by a chain of County Farm Bureau or ganizations enlisted In tho same-great same-great cause. Tills lino of work was a voTy uphill proposition in tho early stages but It has slowly forged forg-ed ahead, breaking down all prejudice pre-judice and opposition, until it has now becomo extremely healthy In most of our counties. County agent work In Utah has been more thoroughly organized during dur-ing th'o year and placed on a really consistent follow-up basis. "Getting mcasurablo results," has been tho keynote of success. During tho year Iron county has been, placed on an eight months basis and local financial aid has been obtained. Box Elder county has been added to our list, making twol-vo twol-vo counties now being worked by ten county agents. An assistant Btato leader hns been appointed to devote part of his tlmo.to county agent I work. 1 1 Two agents resigned during tho I year, two others wero transferred, I and four new men appointed to fill I tho vacancies. I Very much closer cooperation has I been brought about between the I county agents and tho spccallsts, I largely through tho reorganization, by which both forces now operate In the same department. County projects pro-jects this year aro bolng oxecutod jointly by tho county agent and the specialist through the medium of tho County Farm Bureau. The County Farm Bureau is a membership organization of farmors and others Interested in agricultural development. Its primary purpose is to cooperate with tho Agricultural Collcgo and the U. S. Department of Agriculture in supporting county agent work to tho end that tho farming farm-ing Industries of tho county may roach tho high standard of development develop-ment they deserve. It works to Increase In-crease the production from tho farm, to standardize theso products, to ro-colvo ro-colvo a Just reward for them, and generally assist In tho improvement of home, school and social conditions Through Its local branches It reaches reach-es every farmer in tho county. There has doveloped a real spirit of progress In most of theso organizations organ-izations and they now reallzo their real mission of importance. Tho membership has materially Increased with every littlo effort on tho part of tho officers. Thoro aro now six counties fully organized, and all others aro In tho process of formation. forma-tion. Utah county has led out with the publication of a monthly "Farm Bureau News," devoted ontlroly to local needs and practices. Salt Lako and Weber counties aro to follow in tho samo work. So Important havo theso county Farm Bureau organizations becomo to tho county agent that wo aro led to bcllevo very strongly that no county agent should bo placed In tho field until an effectlvo working organization or-ganization Is formed to support him. Tho work of tho past year has demonstrated de-monstrated conclusively that tho agent ag-ent without such an organization is so seriously handicapped that ho should bo required to plan and execute ex-ecute his work in tho futuro tbrou- Bh it. Any other plan Is inefficient l and conseaucntly should not bo tol- j orated. Every county ngont, then, should bo a real leader of organized farmers ns well as a man of technical techni-cal and practical training. Our present pre-sent agents aro almost a unit In this belief. Under this plan of organization tho Bureau directors assist tho county coun-ty agent in choosing n general program pro-gram of work for tho year and In designating n fow of tho most do-serving do-serving linos of work upon which special effort Is to bo centered. Theso aro outlined In detail by tho agent, giving tho methods to bo adopted ad-opted In their execution, and approved ap-proved by tho Bureau. All cooperating cooper-ating forces then unlto in a determined deter-mined effort to get tho work dono. During tho present fiscal joar ending Juno 30, 1917, tho not in-croaso in-croaso In crop production duo to tho county agents' efforts, considering only tho results obtained from do-flnlto do-flnlto demonstrations upon which caroful records wero kept, amounted to $100,282. in addition to this, doublo tho number of ncres wero cared car-ed for undor tho Immedlato direction direc-tion of tho agents in which tho samo methods wero used but upon which no check plats wero kept. Assuming that tho increano was only on-ly G por cent of tho othor farms, tho not Increaso amountii to $108,000, making a total of $217,282 added to tho stato's Income This Is but a small portion of tho real results bo-causo bo-causo tho vast majority of work done could not bo practically measured. meas-ured. The abovo figures Include, rosults from only 080 farms while- tho ngonts nssisted 1C22 additional farmers far-mers by personal visits. An avor- ' ago of thrco visits wero mado to each farm during tho year to aid with J their farm probloms. Moro than 1 1 20,000 porsons woro reached through farmers' meetings. Tho abovo mentioned figures aro glvon merely to indlcato tho real elilcloncy of tho county agent system. sys-tem. It ombodles tho mobilization of all sclontlflo and practical forces In a combined effort to lncorporato I tho best known from nil Bourcos Into our present system of agriculture It Is united offort to harness tho i forces of naturo and direct them for f tho good of humanity. |