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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 5, 1909)
THE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: DECEMBER 5, 1909. Men Who Have Brought the Great Corn Show to Its Splendid Success v v. v V. a. W. WATTLES. hi power he has thrown Into this corn ihow. He not only ha looked after execu tive matter, but the minutest details as well. evn down to the hutn!)le service of going out and retting; the money. During Intervening months he traveled extensively over the country, securing concessions for the expoHltlon and spreading Its good will and fame. Rial iAerelt Buckingham. Everett Buckingham is a big man In more ways than one. He will tip the scales ut over 200, but his poers of mind and heart are even bipger than that proportion- ately. Mr. Bucklnitham Is general manager of the t'nlon Stock Yards company ofj south umaiia, but ror ninny years ne was one of the executive offlclnLs of the Union Pacific and later of the Oregon Short Line. What of tills? Nothing, save that It has been one of the best resources at the com mand of the National Corn exposition. A man wfth such experience knows best how to negotiate business relation with rail roads. All the acumen of his splendid rail road mind Mr. Buckingham has freely placed at the disposal of this exposition. He has gone hack and forth personally to and from Chicago and other cities when necessary to make direct solititatlons for railroad patronage and concessions. He has been Indispnnslhle. , Jnmea .1. Hill. Jjincs J. lliil Is preeminently the friend and counsellor of the farmer. He believes that -before the country can enjoy sub stantial and permanent prosperity Its farms and farmers must be prosperous. And he believes that more of the best young men of the day should go back to the soil. Mr. Hill, by building und developing his great railroads, has opened up to high grade set tlement and cultivation 314,000,000 acres of as good land as there Is on the northern hemisphere. This land holds within It mln ersl and vegetable wealth of inestimable moasure. It took years of patient struggle on Mr. Hill's part to place this empire at the disposal g the common people. He ITHOUT the right aort of men T1FI this national exposition could yy I never have become the success ii is. uui 11 uhi naa ins rigm sort of men from the first. Men of peculiar ability and forceful characters were selected and they have worked out wonder for the Institu tion. Some of these men have national and International name and some are pillar of the country8 prosperity. The personnel Of the promoter of the National Corn exposition has been one of It soundest and most valuable assets. The country ha had Its attention arrested, first, be cause men of such serious minds have riven their best efforts to the Institu tion. President Wattles. The president of the National Coin ex position, Gurdon W. Wattles, is also presi dent of the Omaha and Council Bluffs Street Railway company and he has a habit of being; president, possessing ex ecutive abilities to such a marked degree. Mr. Wattle has had little to do, but his influence, which is large, has been with the enterprise and his mean have not been tintingly given. He Is one of the men of large financial Interests back of the exposition and he ha been needed more than once. Moreover, when he ho been needed he ha come to 'he front with the counsel or coin that wa called for. Vice President Belden. C. C. Belden has from the first been one of tha liveliest hustler who ha had any thing to do with the National Corn ex position. He and Tom Bturgess fairly haunted the business men of this city last year when the enterprise was new to Omaha in their vlgllent pursuit of the elusive dollar. Did they get It? Well, take a, glimpse of Mr. Beldon's make-up and decide. A member of the Thompaon-Belden company, one of the largest retail firms of the city, Mr. Belden' personal position wa such as to give tremendous weight and prestige to the exposition, and it was for thl purpose that he was selected as one of the directors and prime movers of the exposition and made vice president. No man has done more persistent pounding for the success of the institution. Charles C. Itosewater. Charles C. Rosewater, general manager of 1)he Bee Publishing company, was one of the prime mover In the National Corn exposition. After the first show of the National Corn association had been held In Chicago the officer were dissatisfied and decided that It would be better to hold the exposition In a city mure centrally located In the corn belt. After studying the xnap and conditions they decided Omaha wa the best. They came to Omaha and first called upon Mr. Rosewater, who called lata consultation T. F. Sturgess, editor of tha Twentieth Century Farmer, published hr Tha Bee Publishing company. These gentlemen then decided to put the proposition before the buklnesa men of Omaha, and several of the leading mer chant and Jobber were Invited to a lunch eta, where the proposition was put bi tuit them. They explained the scope of the show with the result that $10,000 was subscribed for putting on the exposition. That these citizens themselves did not comprehend the great scope of the ex position 1 Men by . this small guarantee. But It wa a beginning. JjCr. KoMwater ha devoted a large part 4 " "-... rf,- : - i ' V 1 ' rf" ' '." ;' :V--' 7 A' J i" & ";'' ' a I ' ' ; v A . ,. s . " . : . . '...- r - A -! 7 : .... . V - -nil i I tmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmaamm I mmiimmmmmmmtmMmmimimmmmmmmmi KENTON L. BUTTERFIELD. T. F. STURGESS. of his time to the work of promoting the exposition and has made extensive trips all over the country. Ho has given adver tising space In The Bco and. the Twentieth Century Farmer without stint, realizing that the exposition meant a great deal mora than simply bringing a few thousand people to Omaha, but rather looked at the brcader side of the exposition In the great good It would do to the west in teaching the farmers how to increase Vho yield of their farms. General Manauer Ntiirne. Thomas F. Sturgcss Is the general man ager of the National Corn exposition, and that's one of the big reasons why it is moving on to such a splendid success. Mr. Sturgess only assumed the title of tho of fice after the show of lust year had been cleared up and plans for the one this year set on foot, but his activity last year In helping to bring tho show to Omaha and conducting it placed him under the burden of the Institution. His training as editor of the Twentieth Century Farmer gave him a good insight Into the details of much that was necessary to make a National Corn exposition. Mr. Sturgess Is nothing If not a student, and next he Is a worker, a persistent, patient worker. All ' ' . 1 had to build 7.000 miles of railroad for one thing and he built those 7,000 miles of road without asking or receiving a cent of government subsidy or lund grant. Mr. Hill is a severely practical man. He be lieves in knowing every detail of his own business and so when he undertook the task of building one of hi great railroads, the Great Northern, he walked every foot of Its length to get the lay of the land and know for himself its possibilities, and the topography of the country In which he wa to expend millions. Hnaene Funk. Believing that Americans should pro duce all those needed agricultural products to which the soil and climate are adapted, and that a farm or given tract of land should at the same time be made to "pay dividends" Just the same as a railroad or manufacturing enterprise pays on Its cap ital stock, Hugene Funk of Shirley, 111., was one of the first men to demonstrate that farming can be reduced to the same basis as any other business. Take tho great Funk farms in Illinois, owned by Mr. Funk and his brothers. They have 23,000 acres and have put the hand ling of these farms on the sain basis as a great manufacturing enterprise. Suppose the land is worth $160 an acre. The Funks said: "It must be made to pay us divi dends, on this valuatlon;Vno difference what the crops are, it must earn, say, 8 per cent net." ' It took some time to get farming on this basis, but in tho last few years the farms have paid dividends on a valuation of $200 per acre. In other words, by Intelli gent work the Funks have pushed the value of their "farm stock" up 50 points or more. To aid in getting other farmers to put their farming on a business basis, Eugene , Funk becanie Instrumental in organizing the National Corn association and Is now Its president. Not only does this organiza tion urge more and better corn, but con duct a campaign, to popularize corn' as a human food. When corn is more generally used for human food, its price will be like wheat more fixed and always higher Thus ' the farmer Is benefited, and Eugene Funk has had an influence in getting corn used i not only in this country but abroad. I The National Corn exposition Is sup-1 ported by the National corn association. and the influence of the organization I more potent than is generally supposed. Every exhibitor who sends samples of grain to Omaha is a member of the organization, while those who arrange the state exhibits are the vice presidents of tha organiza tion. Thus Eugene Funk has put his Influence and that of the organization which he heads behind the National Corn exposi tion, believing the $10,000,000 spent annually by the government and the states In build ing up the science and practice of agri culture can give a greater benefit to the farmers If they can attend a great exposi tion and see what Is being done. The result of the corn show, to Eugene Funk, means a large net Increase In the value of pro ducts per acre and per worker, for Funk is a business man above all else. Secretary James Wilson. While James Wilson, secretary of agri culture and president of the American Breeders' association, will not he In Omaha during the National Corn exposition be cause of the opening of congress, there are fevmen connected with tho exposition whose influence has been more potent to make the latest of western enterprises a success. To James Wilson Omaha owes the fact that the exhibit of the government at Seattle Is coming to the "corn show." By his direction four special baggage cars were loaded at Seattle during the last week and are now on their way to Omaha. Mr. Wilson entered the cabinet under President William McKinley, and at that time those who knew said: "It may be doubted whether there Is another man In the United States who united In Ills own person so many admirable qualifications for the position of secretary of agricul ture." Mr. Wilson has the tact and shrewd com mon sense of his Scotch ancestry, a high conception of his department, ' a remark able appreciation of the manner in w filch theoretical and scientific work can be ap plied directly to farm improvement and plenty of the political sagacity that Is re quisite In a member of the president'r ad visory council. In Tama county, Iowa, Secretary (?llson has a great farm of 1,200 acres, "which bears evidence of his practical skill and scientific nttalnments In agriculture and lock raisins. ii . n ,i n . . I i ' ' - i 1 I i A' , y y .. ' - o I l : J EVERETT BUCKINGHAM. " imiin il milium I n.i i i.i ii , . - ' . ''' ' ::X: -'yX I "( - I C. C. ROSEWATER. For six years Mr. Wilson served in con gress and was a member of the commit tee! on agriculture, also speaker of the house. During his service In congress Mr. Wilson was Instrumental in getting. many measures through which were beneficial to agriculture and assisted In planning the work of the department of which he has been the head for many years. John H. Worst. John H. Worst, president of the North Dakota College of Agriculture at Fargo, might be called the author or inventor of a system to Avoid, "agricultural bank ruptcy," and naturally he Is one of the men "behind the Corn Show." In North Dakota new settlers have been pouring In until the movement is called a second coming of pioneers. To get these new settlers started on claims, to show them how to make a living the first year on a wild tract of land, is one of the problems which President Worst has con fronted. The problem hus been solved to a large measure. Flax is one of the crop planted the first year, and the new set tler makes a profit. Many of them come from states where flax Is not known as a farm crop. The colleRe In North Dakota has been of great assistance lo the new comers. Then President Worst realizes the neces sity of getting crops for the farmers to use in rotation. North Dakota is advertised as a wheat state. Farmers go Into it to grow wheat and they keen growing it as long as the land will produce a wheat straw. Retaining the fertility of the soil is a far-sighted policy of John H. Worst. He Insists on crop rotation on the plant ing of a crop now and then which will put back In the soil elements of plant food taken from It by continuous wheat crop ping. Something of the way In which this man has been called to labor among new set tlers may be realized from the fact that In the off.ee of W. C. Gilbrtath, commis sioner of agriculture for North Dakota, t.tfiO mailing cards' of the Postofflce frpart- Ilirill limy u rccn uu inc.. iiv-do vmuw give notice to the commissioner of changes of address. He has been sending bulletins to farmers all over the United States. In four years 6.200 have changed their ad dress from other stats, to North Dakota. John H. Worst has work to do, but he Is coming to Omaha to deliver an address at the National Corn exposition. Kenya- V. Batterfleld. Kenyon L. Btterfleld, president of the Massachusetts College of Agriculture, Is one of the big men interested in the Na tional Corn exposition at Omaha and his Interest has mad good exhibits possible from tha New England state. President ButUrfleld wa a member of the Roosevelt Country Life commission and visited the exposition In Omaha last year. This commission may yet become a permanent organisation a congressional oonunlaslon rather than a president's com culsslon and thus com to do much In be half of American country life. The New England people, after looking over the plans of the National Corn expo sition, decided that New England should give a corn show, and next year a big show will be held in the states on the north Atlantic and the prize winners brought to the National Corn exposition. This la a Butterfleld Idea. He has been aware for some time that Now England was buying altogether too much food products from the west and middle west. The New England states have soils which will produce all the corn they can consume If the farmers will get seed adapted to the short seasons and cold soils. It grows In northern Wisconsin and matures. Why can we not grow corn In New England, says Butterfleld, and he has put his work erg on tha task. New England will still buy corn in the west, but In smaller quan tities each year. That President Butterfleld appreciates the National Corn exposition and realizes Its worth to the farmer, Is shown by the fact that New England Is nw to have such an exposition. RACE TO SAVE BABY'S LIFE Snrsreona Cut n Hole In Its Throat for Air and Ilemore a Peanut. Mary, tho baby duughter of Mrs. Bertha Flngerhut of 312 East Twenty-first street. New York, was saved froth death by chok ing through the quick work of two sur geons In performing an operation of trach eotomy. The mother was breaking peanuts into fine pieces with her own teeth and feeding them to the baby, when the latter, unob served, seized a whole kernel and tried to swallow It. She began to choke, and when slapped on the back failed to dislodge tha peanut. Mrs. Flngerhut hurried with tha child to fc. drug store at the corner of First avenue. The druggist said he could do nothing and urged her to hurry the baby to Bellevue hospital. Mr. Flngerhut was almost frantio and commenced to run up. First avenue In the middle of the street, orylng loudly. Behind them was a Board of Health am bulance driven by Albert McNeil. lie turned to Dr. Earl H. Welcome, a United States army surgeon attached to the WU lard Parker hospital, who was also on the ambulance, and suggested that tha baby might have been run over. Dr. Welcome Jumped from the ambulance and asked Mrs. Flngerhut what the mat ter was. She was so excited that she could say nothing but that the child must be hurried to the hospital. Dr. Welcome snatched the baby from her. Jumped to the seat beside McNeil and told him to drive with all speed , possible. The ambulance reached Twenty-sixth street In quick time and went Into the hospital yard at a rate that made the gatekeeper stare. Dr. "Welcome rushed Into the ' reception room of Bellevue, where he was met by Dr. Hooker. f "The baby la choking," said Dr. Wei- come. The other physician looked at the child, isvho was unconscious, and said: "I m airaiu you ro iuu mie, uuuiur, uie uau dead." "No, she Isn't," said Dr. Welcome. "Her pulse Is fluttering. Get your instruments." They hurried the child Into another room. In scarcely a longer time than It takes to tell It one of the surgeons had made an Incision In the baby's throat and Inserted a tube for her to breathe through, while tlte other thrust a forcepi down her throat and withdrew the peanut. They then sewed up the Incision and bandaged It. The baby was revived with stimulants, and when her mother arrived Mary was in condition to bo taken homaNew York Pre, - -... t .v. - . 'A ... ; .... j . i , t ' v i .' " -&- V I - H-r-' v , C. I CURTIS. JOHN IL WORST. EUGENE D. FUNK.