Every successful business man is constantly vigilant to discover and remedy waste in his business—­waste of materials, time, and effort.  Many of the most valuable products in certain industries are “by-products,”—­that is, products produced as an incident to the main industry and from materials that otherwise would have been wasted.  In the manufacture of gas from coal, for example, important by-products are coke, tar, and ammonia.  There has been great waste in the lumber industry, but now practically every scrap from the tree may be used.  In the Forestry Products Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin, a process has been discovered of producing from 15 to 25 gallons of wood alcohol from a ton of sawdust—­and sawdust has many other uses.  These are only illustrations.  Scientists and inventors, many of them employed by the government, are constantly at work finding uses for waste products.

WASTEFULNESS IN FARMING

Wastefulness is found in great variety in farming activities.  For example: 

Why plant seed only 60 or 70 per cent of which will germinate when, for a few dollars extra and a little work, seed may be procured that will average 90 to 95 per cent in the germination test?  Why purchase or cultivate a worthless crab apple tree or a hybrid when Rome Beauty, Northern Spy, or Grimes Golden, and other standard varieties of apples may be secured for a few additional cents?  Why feed and care for a “scrub” pig, calf, or colt when it will bring at maturity only half or two thirds the price of a thoroughbred? ...  It is not thrift to invest money in second-rate products.

Some farmers are so careless ... that they do not husk their corn in the fall but leave it standing in the field until late winter or early spring.  By this time the fodder is somewhat decayed and unfit for feeding purposes.  Possibly a third of the corn has been eaten by the birds, a third of it has rotted, and a third of it remains in a damp and moldy condition. ...  Many boys could make good wages by going over the corn field at cutting time and collecting the ears lying on the ground. ...  Often a farmer will cut down his hay, paying no attention whatever to the reports of the weather bureau ...  Apples shaken from the trees by the wind decay on the ground ...

The bearings of mowing machines and reapers often suffer excessive wear because the owner neglects to keep them properly oiled.  Often a wheat drill, a mowing machine, a threshing machine, or an engine is left out of doors for a whole year, or for several months after the farmer has ceased to use it.  A good piece of machinery, if judiciously used, properly lubricated, and put away in a dry place, may last from ten to twenty years, while the life of such machinery will only be about half as long without proper care.  If a wooden handle rots loose from its fastenings it is an indication that the handle has not been thoroughly