Farming as a Career, 1938

From the Charlotte Observer, Feb. 11, 1938

F.H. Jeter, news editor of the State Extension bureau, addressed some 150 Mecklenburg 4-H club members at their annual banquet last night on “Learning to Serve.”

… “Pick an occupation in which you can be efficient and in which you can best serve humanity,” he said. “High school and college students frequently fail to get adequate information about the vocation they plan to enter. Because a young fellow gets tired of milking cows on the farm, he gets an idea that law would be a fine profession for him. But the chances are his best opportunity for success would be back on the farm.”

Mr. Jeter said that the farm offers one of the rosiest outlooks today of any vocation. He said it offered a great challenge to 4-H members because of the many changes that will take place in agriculture in the coming years.

Mr. Jeter urged the club members to own property. “Owning property carries a stimulant that makes for good citizenship,” he said. “Owning a farm is worth every bit of the hardships and heartaches entailed in the procedure.”

Members of the 4-H club were urged to take up where their parents left off in breeding and raising better varieties of corn, grains, and legumes and carry on by breeding better livestock and raising finer crops.

Other guests present were L.B. Altman and Mrs. Estelle Willis, both district agents of Raleigh; L.R. Harrill, State 4-H Club Leader of Raleigh; Oscar Phillips, county agent; Mrs. Pauline W. Taylor, demonstration agent; Max W. Culp, assistant farm agent; and demonstration agents and club members from Union and Anson counties.

Eugene Berryhill, president of the County Service Club, 4-H Club alumni organization, was toastmaster. The banquet was held in the new Extension building across the street from the courthouse.

The 4-H Quartet composed of Betty Welch, Catherine Hayes, John Brown Neel, and Harold Garrison, and and a Professor Quiz contest was conducted by R.D. James Jr.

Start Your Garden Now, 1937

“Gardens Should Be Started” by Jane S. McKimmon, State Agent and Assistant Director, North Carolina Extension Service, N.C. State College, Raleigh, as published in the February, 1937 issue of the Carolina Co-Operator

With the advent of the warm sunny days and the colorful seed catalogues, the impulse to get out with “green things agrowing” is irresistible.

It is the little garden behind the house that enables the woman to get away from indoor worries and makes her think of her garden as a “lovesome spot.”

If she is to do the cultivating, her garden should be anchored where only a step or two is necessary when plants are needing attention or when the time is just right for sowing seed or for gathering the daily supply of vegetables.

With the man it is different. If ploughing, planting, and cultivation are turned over to him, he usually finds it more convenient to plant a row or two of tomatoes, beans, corn, or cabbage out in the cotton or tobacco patch where he can plough or cultivate them when he cultivates his crops and this type of gardening is very efficient.

If every farmer in North Carolina would do just this and be sure that he added the turnips, collards, kale, or onions for green things in the fall and winter, he would be growing the vegetables that would protect his family from many diseases caused by lack of variety in the food they eat.

Greens Give Red Blood

Turnip salad, collards, cabbage, tomatoes, and all the pods, tubers, and roots such as peas, beans, beets, potatoes, and carrots do many wonderful things for our bodies. They furnish iron and phosphorus for good red blood, lime, and other things for bones and teeth, starch for fat and energy, and protein for muscle building.

Neither can we be in good condition without the various vitamins which green vegetables contain, and the roughage and laxative juices of green leaves and tubers aid greatly in the prevention of constipation. Even the cow knows that green things are good for her, and it is well for us that she browses on sprouts, buds, shoots, and the grasses of the pasture and turns over to us the vitamins and minerals she thus stores away in her milk.

If every person who has the land would grow a garden and learn how to prepare and serve the vegetables they grow, our doctors’ bills would be cut in half and we would be able to boast of the brawn of our men as well as the acreage of our crops.

Gardens Pay Good Returns

Gardens make bigger returns for the money invested than any other farm operation. Oh no, all the returns are not in money. Far from it. Most of them are in health returns for the family. A Negro farmer in Alamance County said:

“My family has had more to eat this year than we have had since we have been housekeeping, and we have lived better than ever. We raised the vegetables and chickens for the family, and the cow furnished the milk. We have had plenty of everything except money, but we know now that when you have a plenty of everything around you, it doesn’t take much money.”

Some of us, I know, are going to be only lettuce and radish gardeners, the kind who get enthusiastic in the cool days of spring and plant the seed that show quickest results. The first hot day usually sees this gardener’s hand plough and hoe laid aside, but the man who will stick to his job and grow plenty of summer vegetables will not only have them for daily use but will be able to can a big part of his food supply for winter.

New Use for Old Furniture in Chatham County

In the general clearing out of rubbish and unused things in Chatham kitchens and barns, many beautiful pieces of old furniture were brought to light.

As one scorer said, “We found a corner cabinet over a hundred years old and a carved day bed you would give your eyeballs for.”

But these valuable things are not going out of those families to which they belong. The refinished day bed will have the place of honor in the living room and will be covered with an old blue hand-woven coverlet made many years ago by members of the family. Old mantels, wide old floor boards and other things of beauty and memory will abide in their old setting we hope. Perhaps something of what has been contributed by all the people who have used these furnishings and have lived in these homes will abide there also.

Who Is the Well-Dressed Woman?

The well-dressed woman knows her possibilities. She knows her good points and her bad ones, and she has learned to cover up her defects and to bring out her good points.

She looks well to her lines if she is to make the most of every inch of her height, and she must know what to do to minimize her too generous flesh if she keeps up with her stream-lined sisters.

The farm woman along with her town contemporary is learning what a good appearance will do for her and she is putting what she learned into effect.

The home agent in McDowell County says:

“I hear this from interested women everywhere: ‘I am glad that I know how to make my old dress and hat into a 1937 model and that a fresh collar and a new scarf will do wonders toward bringing me up to date.’ Women call it pepping up the old clothes.

“Chicken or pigeon feathers which have been dipped in shellac and used on hats rival in smartness the best store accessories and it was good to see how a feather on the hat brings a smile to the face of the wearer.”

What It Took to Get and Keep a Job in 1937

Jane McKimmon didn’t address one of her usual a farm or home issues in the following article. Instead, she gave advice for the young woman seeking a business career. Here’s what the Roy H. Park, editor of the Carolina Co-Operator had to say about the need for this article in the magazine.

“Perhaps no other person in the State is turned to more for advice as often as Dr. McKimmon. Hundreds of farm girls who have secured or plan to secure training and want to take up business as a career have asked her advice for getting ahead. This article is being printed with the hope that it will be of value to farm girls and farm women who either by choice or necessity are entering the business world.—R.H.P.”

“Going Forward in Business” by Jane S. McKimmon, State Agent and Assistant Director, North Carolina Extension Service, N.C. State College, Raleigh, as published in the February, 1937 issue of the Carolina Co-Operator

Just the other day I heard a man from the West say how much he was impressed by the type of women who served as stenographers in North Carolina. He spoke of their dignity and self-respect and said good breeding was evident in the way they conducted themselves and in the standards maintained to their social relations.

Training means much, but it is not all. A woman does not get far unless she has the tools which her work demands and a good stenographer must be able to take dictation easily and record what her employer says understandingly.

Speed? Well, speed may be desirable, but the number of words a stenographer types per minute is of far less importance than her ability to use those words in their proper sense and to be careful that she records them correctly. Here is an occurrence which may illustrate something of what I mean:

Accuracy—A manufacturer of toilet goods received a most puzzling letter from a firm who whom he had written and whose patronage he was most desirous of securing.

“Dear sir,” said the letter, “We appreciate your remarkable frankness regarding your product and of course shall not give you the order.”

When the manufacturer reread the letter he had dictated to find out what “remarkable frankness” referred, this is what his stenographer had made him say: “Frankly, we have made a study of the best powders and creams, and perfumes manufactured in Europe until we are able to fake them perfectly.”

Of course he meant to say “make” them perfectly. The stenographer struck an “f” for “m”—a little thing!—but it was carelessness that cost her employer a much desired customer.

Attitude—The attitude of a stenographer or secretary in a business man’s office is a factor in maintaining the good will of his callers and goes far towards determining the attitude of possible clients. It also has a noticeable influence on the atmosphere of the whole office. Good manners and courteous and fair treatment of all associates is essential if the morale of the office is to be high.

Sometimes I think it would be a good thing for any business man to pay well for a pleasant mannered person to answer his telephone. You can’t help judging the office by the kind of voice that comes over the phone or by the manner in which civil questions are answered.

Being Discreet—There is, too, the matter of discretion. An office woman who can “keep quotable,” who watches her words and furnishes no leakage of what her employer has said in confidence is more to be desired than gold.

Perhaps there is no one thing more disastrous to a well conducted business than an indiscreet confidential clerk, and it is good to see such a large number of Southern women measuring up in filling acceptable positions of trust.

If I were choosing a clerk or stenographer, coming right along first with technical training would be dependability and right attitude, and perhaps in these I would include cheerfulness. A person spends one-half of his waking hours at his business, and life is not worth living if, day by day, one must struggle with a grouchy, disagreeable person, or tread lightly for fear of hurting her feelings. Isn’t it good to be greeted by a cheerful, efficient assistant who brightens the whole office by her cheery smile and eases your responsibility by her self-confident manner in attacking her work.

Good English—Next to dependability and right attitudes comes the use of good English.

In hurried dictation any employer may be careless of his diction or may make useless repetitions. A good stenographer will not let these pass and here is where a knowledge of English will stand her in good stead.

A woman is well equipped who has had the advantage of a good education with emphasis on rhetoric and who has not neglected the study of spelling. Fortunate indeed is she who comes from a family whose every-day English has a background of the proper usage of words.

I would advise much time spent in English courses for the girls who wishes to become proficient in her profession. When one is writing to the president of a university regarding qualifications of a possible entrant, it is not pleasant to be made to say, “She did beautiful,” no matter how contrite the unlearned stenographer is when charged with misunderstanding what was dictated.

Dressing the Part—The North Carolina business woman’s standard of dress, I think, is high. It is a pleasure to walk through the Capitol Square in the morning and see the neatly dressed, well groomed girls on their way to work. Even the shoe heels have come down generally and are more fitted for standing than they used to be. I notice also that there is very little old finery worn to the office.

It is part of a business woman’s stock in trade to look the part. Not only must her dress please by its evident fitness for the job she must do, but it must hold its freshness through the long hours of the day it is worn before a change can be made. Flimsy, elaborate clothing will not do this and business women have discovered this.

Perhaps more emphasis might be laid on dressing for health, and the girl behind the counter could keep a pair of sport shoes for standing even if she changes before she goes out on the street. There is, too, the question of looking after shoe heels to prevent that run-down untidy appearance. Frequent visits to the shoemaker for leveling will prevent this.

Wake County Women Build HD Club House; Catawba County HD Women Host Free Chicken Supper, 1936

“Timely News Items” by Jane S. McKimmon, N.C. State College, as published in the February, 1936, issue of the Carolina Co-Operator

Wake Club House

Oakwood Home Demonstration Club House in Wake County was completed in 1935 at a cash expenditure to the community of $484.17. B.W. Weeks, the husband of one club member, donated the land. Charlie Balentine allowed the timber from his land to be cut and sawed for the building and he also gave a wicker chair which he won at a fair to be used in furnishing. Some 20 other men in the community met and helped with the carpentry work and the building was completed in November. It has an assembly room 22 by 34 feet and a kitchen at the rear, 10 by 16 feet in size and is used for all types of community gatherings.

Mrs. Maude McInnes, the home demonstration agent, says the home demonstration club in Oakwood community is a stronger organization because all the neighborhood worked together for the club house.

Chicken Supper

It is interesting to note how people will turn out for food, fun, and frolic. Mrs. Marie Matheson, Catawba Home Demonstration Agent, reports farm families of the county gave a Chicken Pot Pie Supper in the American Legion and Auxiliary hut which that organization offered free of charge.

A supper committee planned for 250 people including the Legion. In spite of the fact that it had been raining all day long, 200 places were filled at the tables.

Someone was sent outside to see how many there were and reported “more on the outside than on the inside—in fact, it looks like Balls Creek Camp Meeting.” Outside and in, 500 people were served, and the home agent reports that there was “plenty left over,” and that servings were great big “country servings.” She further states, “The building was too crowded for the complete program to be carried out, but everyone had a good time. No one got off in a corner alone because all the corners were filled.”

There Is a Place for You, 1986

By Judith Austin, Tar Heel Homemakers, January-March 1986 issue

 “I challenge each young homemaker to become involved in the Extension program. There is a place for each of you. You can go just as far as you want to--there are no limits! The reward you receive from your service will live with you forever.

Working on the state level was a new experience for me. Each of you was so supportive and I will always remember your kindness. A sincere thank you to several special Extension Homemakers who took me under their wings and treated me like a daughter.”

Why You Should Join Extension Homemakers, 1974

Why were women joining Extension Homemakers Clubs in the 1970s? Here’s a brochure designed by Ms. Denise Beigbeder, Guilford County Extension Home Economist, and Mrs. Polly Farlow, Extension Homemaker, in 1974. It was called “So What’s NEW? Neighborhood Education for Women.”

Short on cash? Not if you are an Extension Homemaker. You have learned to conserve food by the newest and best methods and how to spend wisely those dollars for clothing, furniture, and housing.

Nothing to do? Not if you belong to an Extension Homemaker Club in Guilford County. There are sewing classes, crafts workshops, cooking demonstrations and interior design classes as well as other special interest meetings to fill those blue Mondays.

Fighting the battle of the bulge? Extension Homemakers learn about low-calorie meals, diet hints, meal planning and wise eating habits for the whole family. With your trim new figure, you might find yourself showing a handsome dress you just made for the N.E.W. fashion reviews.

Family squbbles at your house? Not if you attend EHC meetings on teenage problems, teaching toys for grandchildren or estate planning. Extension Homemaker Clubs also work hand-in-hand with 4-H and other youth leader groups on many projects.

A prisoner in your own home? Not on your life. Extension Homemakers leqarn how to refinish furniture, make drapes, buy new carpet, plan color schemes and arrange room settings. Then they learn to landscape ghe grounds. Their home becomes their castle.

With the training you will receive as a member of the Extension Homemakers, you’ll never have cold feet. Leader training is available for all holding local, district and state offices and for those presenting programs to the other club members. Self-confidence and poise are only two steps toward personal satisfaction.

Just an added asset is the fun you will have as you meet and work with Extension Homemakers from your own community, your district, your state, and the other states. The opportunity is yours.

If you are interested in your family, health, home, safety, citizenship, cultural arts, education, international affairs—If you are eager to learn in a relaxed atmosphere—Then consider joining an Extension Homemaker Club today.

If you believe that “Today’s home builds tomorrow’s world,” EHC is for you. Talk to a club member. You’ll find a believer.

The brochure was printed by the Guilford County Agricultural Extension Service, February, 1974.

"Carolina Oddities" from Feb., 1939, issue of Carolina Co-operator

“Carolina Oddities” from the February, 1939, issue of Carolina Co-operator

WHITEVILLE--Mouths of people whose appetites call for pigs’ feet might well water over this story. E.H. Buffkin, who lives on Route 4 out of Whiteville, is the owner of a month old pig with a total of 20 toes. The pig’s back feet boast 12 toes while the front pair struggles along with a mere eight digits. Normal and health in every other respect, the animal was one of a litter of seven, with six perfectly normal brothers and sisters.

ELIZABETH CITY—Folks around Elizabeth City are talking about Jordan Warren’s January sweet potato crop. Jordan, a Negro gardener and painter, now has slips more than an inch in diameter and up to 11 inches long. “I cut the vines and set them out in August,” he explains, “and let the grass grow along with the vines. When frost came the vines continued to grow under the shelter of the grass and are still growing.” Jordan’s last horticultural feat was a watermelon, grown similarly, plucked on Christmas eve several years ago, eaten the following day.

RALEIGH--Sympathetic fellow-officers of Raleigh Police Sergeant Ralph Hargrove are starting a fund to put the sergeant back in the chicken and egg business. Keeping abreast of the times, Hargrove one day last month installed an oil heater device in his chicken house, roosting place for his selected stock of 60 hens. On the morning after the first cold night, he found not a hen alive. Reason: Carbon monoxide gas had asphyxiated the entire flock.

EDENTON--One of Edenton’s rural mail carriers is richer by one cent. Opening a rural mail box one day last month he found a letter, two cents, and a hen’s egg. Around the egg this note was wrapped: “Here is two pennies. I hain’t got no more but here is a hen egg for the other pennie.” Thrifty by nature, the mail carrier stopped on his route, sold the egg to a storekeeper for two cents, stamped the letter, and pocketed his profit.

DUNN—Barley McNeill was up again in the Dunn recorder’s court last month. Checking over Barley’s past record, Recorder W.B. Ivey was mildly shocked. “How many times have you been tried,” he asked.

“Three times,” said the defendant. “Once for being drunk, once for breaking tombstones in a graveyard, and once for stealing beans.” For his second public drunkenness charge, Barley McNeill got 30 days on the roads.