County agent work started in 1907

Mr. Ike Lainer, now of Texarkana, held the first County appointment of the U. S. Department of Agriculture in 1907 and the work has .since grown and is known as County Agent Work. The work now as compared to those early days is chiefly characterized by the fact that in the early days, reports went direct to Washington, D. C. and the State Colleges had nothing to do with them. Now the State College runs them as an extension service in Agriculture, cooperating with the United States Department of Agriculture. The County Agent now is an employee of Texas A. and M. College, but at the same time, is an educational agent and local land use planning coordinator for the U. S. Department of Agriculture.

Four County Agents represented the early days in Cass County, starting with Mr. Lanier and ending with R. H. Early. After these days, the county agent work reported and was controlled by A. and M. College. Mr. J. M. Martin continued the same type of work, in saving soil and moisture by terracing, fruit tree introduction, better seed, seed treating, chicken husbandry, community gatherings. Mr. Martin took over right after the war and was succeeded by Lee Littlepage, who did much the same type of work. Cass County stood second in all of Texas in percent of improvement in farm work in a contest one year during the stay of Mr. Littlepage. Mac Jaynes who succeeded him organized and started the AAA crop surplus programs from 1933 and in turn was succeeded by Mr. Roy King, who continued that type of work in addition to his regular duties. Mr. King was succeeded by R. L. White who inaugurated the last phase of extension work. The crop control work was removed from the Extension Service and administered by the Washington officials through the county and local committees, and the county agent, after the Mt. Weather agreement, between the land grant colleges and the Department of Agriculture gave the county agent the most yet placed on him. The county agent now acts as coordinator and educational center for the Department of Agriculture and still teaches agriculture through group meetings and the important assignment demonstration.

Perhaps the newest work is to point out a new direction for farmlands in the county. In the new turn is to Bermu part of county-agent Cass County, the new turn is to Bermuda and carpet grass, plus summer and winter clover, to fruit trees, to timber, and livestock. The setting up and visiting these demonstrations is the principal method of education of adult farmers now employed.