Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1859-03-18
Poison.


since with worthy and hospitable farmer
not far from this city. The conversation
turned upon the Independence and comfort
of the farmer generally, and the very pleas
ant and agreeable situation of our host par
ticularly lie repeated to us the familiar
maxim, that the farmer can be the most indie
pendent and comfortable man in society. and
he added that he could see no reason why the
farmer should not live at the top of the heap
and cat the best the country could afford
That was his sentiment and practice on this
point. We commended it very warmly, and
agreed with him decidedly. We took the
liberty, however, of mentioning one or two
little things which we had observed in our
travels through the country, which rather
conilicted with the prevalent notion about
farmers living on the fat of the land. We
alluded to the black, mouldy, rank poisonous
stuff they are now using for -four and calling
by that name.
After making observations in different
parts of the country we have come to the
serious and deliberate conclusion on that
subject, that there will be no crops this next
season, from the want Of farmers, they being
poisoned by their own flour. This is our
own conclusion, and We do not ask any one
else to adopt it, bu. we do submit one fact
to our readers, and leave them to their own
conclusions. That is this: that Of all the mean,
unpalatable, poisonous stuff ever made out of
any grain ever grown, that known at the
present time by the name Of flour in the
interior of Iowa, is by several degrees the
meancst. The bread made out of it is abso-,
lutte poison, and we are willing to leave
the question to the decision Of a board of
physicians, and will agree, if they decide
against us, to eat "a small piece of the bread.
As to whose fault it is, we are disposed to
divide it equally between the weather and the
growers. We would attribute it all to the
first.named cause, had we not observed that
in the most favorable seasons VIC have had
the same kind of -four, though not, perhaps,
so great quantity. The real truth about
the matter is that a great deal too much care
lessness and neglect prevails among our far
mers in the care Of their crops. AT one place
which we remember seeing in this State last
summer the wheat intended for the mill was
lying ON the open barn floor, while litter of
pigs were engaged in discussing its proper
ties. This we mention, not as solitary
instance, but as sample of the prevailing
lack of care and cleanliness of a number of
farmers with regard to their grain. And
want of care in one respect is proof of the
same want in others; and We have no doubt
that one half of the poor, musty, growing
wheat that is brought to our markets is the
result of carelessness rather than bad weather.
As another instance Of wastefulness and
bad management in the care of crops, every
one who has travelled through the State
remembers the piles of corn thrown into rail
pens and left there exposed to the weather
for a year, two years, and in fact until they
have entirely decayed, the farmers, in the
meanwhile, feeding their stock with it las long
as they can make them eat it, And this
occurs not only where poverty and
scarcity of material rendered the proper out
buildings almost impossible, but where the
owners have erected spacious board palaces,
and sport their carriages and other appli-
ances of wealth and luxury. These things
should not be so. If our farmers do not take
better care of their grain, their wheat sspe-
cially, instead of being able to sell it at high
prices here and elsewhere, they will soon find
themselves under the necessity OF Importing
wheat from trier nIvro UuruIul nvigfIbors Of
Illinois and Missouri, to supply their own
families. .-
The SIcKLEs AFFAIR.-The St. Louis Re-
pu1lican's Washington correspondent, re-
marking upon the probable issue of the COM
ing trial of Mr.. Sickles, says:
The opinion prevails that Judge Crawford,
who presides over the Criminal Court, will
throw all his influence against the prisoner,
which, together with the influence of Chief
Justice fancy, (uncle of the deceased) and
Keys personal friends in this city, may Sc
cure the conviction of Sickles yet the latter
has warm, personal friend in the President
of the United States, who holds the pardon
ing power, and whose sympathies are alto
gether with the accused. Not only this, but
the Cabinet, with the exception of a single
member, endorses the course Sickles pursued,
as the only one left him under the painful
circumstances of the case. Therefore, it is
safe to predict that Sickles will not be pun
ished, whatever may be the result of the
| trial he is to undergo.