Jerry

The wops of Pentagon bears Southey's through Iowa and as it slices through Jones County it begins to build up steam for its final rush to the Mississippi. Literally translated wops opin a kind means white potato river. And there may be a few potatoes along its rugged basin but in Jones County you'll have a better chance of finding corn odes and soybeans. Jones County is old is part of that eastern edge of the state that was included in the black called purchase in 1832 that began the development of Iowa's agricultural heritage. This is not particularly good country for a news feature on rural poverty. Almost half of the residents of Jones County are farmers. Two thirds of whom own and operate their own farms. It is one of the top 10 livestock producing counties in a state that is second only to Texas in the production and first Didn't be feeding. Most of the towns and villages spread across the county there to serve the farming is fairly typical. It's a town of about 800 people. And has a reputation

for a high community spirit. For example a woman refuses to consolidate and maintains its own school system. You know they take care of their own. There is a symmetry here a rhythm not unlike that of the farms that surround the town. People have a working relationship with a Protestant ethic. They're friendly. Once they get to know you and they are white the whole of Jones County in fact lists only 77 blacks in the latest census. The county extension director an animo So will tell you that the only non whites that he knows of are at the reformatory. With that backdrop then we begin the chronicle of a rather unusual week in all. It happened last summer right after one of Iowa's lovely summer breezes passed through and scrambled up a few buildings. Ralston Purina just acknowledge the town prosperity by announcing the opening of a new feed mill and. They had a little parade that day.

The same day that Lloyd Andry his wife Kathleen and their four children had a visitor on their farm is name was Jerry. Jerry Robinson is 11 years old and lives in Cedar Rapids. He's never been on a farm. His mother Virginia was born on wanted Tennessee. But then moved north and eight children. Then Jerry's dad died.

Robinson is now living what people call a nice neighborhood. That means predominantly white. Which is understandable since just a little over 1 percent of Cedar Rapids population is black. Pretty much keep to themselves and so do their neighbors. Last summer the older children tried to find jobs. Well Jerry and his brother Bill attended nutrition classes administered by the Iowa State extension service. Most of the kids come from broken homes and most are from large families. 7 8 up to 13 14 15 family and the mother trying to raise him. She gets paid by payments because of such large families. There's a real need for a

male to love them to show some affection toward him. And I can tell exactly my classes which ones have a father in the family. Actually. Yeah. Are you serious. Yeah. Vincent is a senior and I was state he taught these boys to make cookies broccoli with cream sauce things like that. This summer he took Jerry Robinson and his brother Bill on a weekend jaunt to his hometown in West Branch. When he invited the Robinson brothers to church with his family they taught him a little something.

That first day they laughed at me and I couldn't figure it out. I didn't know what they were trying to tell me by this laughter. And they're cracking jokes in between themselves and I didn't know what was going on. And I could tell they were kind of stalling so I decided well maybe maybe I'd ask maybe you don't want to go to church and this was very evident after I asked them that and they finally came to me and told me that they didn't want to go because Is that hate stares or the stares that people would give them in church as being different and they'd ask me if there are black people go to my church and they're happy. There isn't and so forth and they're also worried about their their clothes. Thank you. JERRY You can tell that he's thinking very deeply

when things hurting one of the first days of my classes summer after the cooking class we sat down we decided cider we play charades and that some of the boys got up and give some you know like act like a carrot. You know if that's possible. Bill kind of hesitated and then I asked Jerry so he just got up there and one of the boys saw the white boy sitting beside me says your hash brown. And I said what. He said hash brown. He said You mean potato. Yeah I said why didn't you say it to you. He says I don't know. Stay.

With. Me. Tomorrow Gerry will leave for the farm. The official name of the program is

farm Youth Exchange. But to an 11 year old it means living for seven days with six strangers on a new planet just forty miles away. Perhaps the only one who really knows Jerry's thoughts is his mother. Do you ever like to meet people. So be it. And he hasn't. Kids are different from the way they do things and they will tell them a little something about you know what it takes to get it right every step every day at least one more day just two more days. He's really thrilled about it. It takes him some time to get. Started you know and you know just like old car just. You know our ride to the pan out just about how you feel when they hear you care Stafford. They were.

Like you don't look like Jerry. We asked a young addict if you decide you'd like to have a little boy constitute a rabbit. Yes. We said Now you may be black you may be white we didn't know when we fill out the application because it didn't make that in making terms to do. He said he'd be a boy. There's to be a lot of things he's never seen probably. And so there'd be a lot of things for him to show him. And he said maybe I'll learn something from him. When we got home we had a lunch. And Sam sat there for quite a while of course use all the wheels are always turning with him. And he looked at his hands and he looked at Jerry's and he said he his hands are pink. And this fascinated him. But that's all that that he mentioned about it just that he noticed this was different. Now if you don't like what you really happens is they different to you. Yeah.

I know. Oh yeah just like you just write direct. Oh yeah I know but you know what. Dick isn't foreach has taken quite an interest. Jeanette owns Tammy and she's a sort of first yearn for H. Little Sam he's a cowboy as a family so this is a little misperception. I was a boy during the 30s. I can kind of remember some of the hard times of the Surtees and I can remember my dad saying we had an old at water camp.

Battery radio and if he was going to ship to Chicago and if he got five cents a pound for those going to buy a new radio. We didn't get a new radio. But. To me there's no place. Like this on race. We lived in town a while a small town. There's just no place like the farm. My father 79 years old. And a pretty active yet. He's out to the farm about every day. Father's around fixes here and fixes their little things it's kind of hard to get down. But he enjoys it. I don't know what he'd do if he didn't have something to do right. Always somebody to step to for advice on its own.

Home Place consists of two hundred seventy two acres and it's primarily a

stocking grain farm. It will be breeding approximately a hundred and ten cows this year as a stock. And finally I mean the shut eye business. Well this year we're down on all those before and 55 aren't here nor down probably aren't hit hogs if you're here on this place we just have 70 acres of corn. Twenty four five acres of world. Government program took 18 1/2 acres in the balances and pasture and hay and I'm running another 200 acres down south of us here about a mile. No beans this year we get. A hundred fifty acres of corn down there. That's primarily the farming set up that we're under. Yes.

You said three. I get a chill day. Wages are. Down. But only for baby ducks to help she will keep their wings clipped what was she going to do with when they get married then either. Do you guys do it when someone here might be began your short straw when you think you can do. Yes. Let them come with me. If you do you are all you want to be yanked and I came out here one down and out.

Don't you know that you are makes my course. Along the way to more than one. Thanks. Thank you thank you. The boy.

Oh wow. No.

One told me. That. As the week unfolds one is tempted to look for a turning point. That moment when the tentative observer begins to get his feet wet up to his neck. It is debatable whether one exists but this scene is as good as any from now on Jerry's interest in the end rays and their livestock becomes a bit more fraternal. They are I don't even know.

What. They are. But. Then. What. A

very funny way. I. Don't. Know. Why. You. Think. That. Time as they say flies when you're having fun. The week is over for Jerry and it seems that one ought to be able to run some lofty social truth from his rally with the end raise like kids can get along if they're left alone or children still have to learn prejudice pretty stale because after all everyone knows that.

Don't pay. The fee.