Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1860-04-27
michael sullivant's Illinois Farm.

We have before US a sketch of the farm @
Michael SulIivant, near Homer, Champaign
county Illinois, some portions of which ma,
interest our readers, particular in this vicinity
where Mr.. Sulliyant is so well known.
Mr. Sulliyant has located in Illinois prair,
in very desirable localities Government lanC
warrants to the extent of many thousant
acres, and at one time and another so ncreas
ed the quantity that he now holds, or did las
Fall, over one hundred Thousand acres of land
In the farm at Homer there are 10000 acres
in another, in Livingston county, 10000; and
other smaller plots elsewhere Some of hi:
land Mr.. S. got for ninety cents; great deal
for Government price-$l %; and some
thousand acres were bought of the Illinois
Central Railroad Company at $40 per acre.
From the upper windows of his house or
the Homer farm, Mr.. Sullivant can look out
upon single timothy meadow which contains
800 acres within its boundary fences. Or
this farm there are 5000 acres mewn, the hay
from which was in stacks this winter of 30
tons each, the whole amounting to upward OF
5000 tons, or an average of one ton to the
acre. There were 800 acres of corn raised
last year, and about LOCO of wheat the
greater part of the remainder of the farm was
in meadow and pasture.
! To do the farm work two hundred working
oxen are required, which, with the sixty horses
! are managed by seventy laborers. Five yoke
of cattle are put to each plow for breaking
prairie, but only one is needed for plowing old
1 land. The very harrows on the place would
be suitable for a farmer in Brobdignag, They
are 20 feet wide, made in sections which are
attached to one draft bar, drawn by several
spans of horses The prairie breaking plow
has beam nine feet long, resting on two
wheeled truck in front. AT one side the axle
is extended out, so that the wheel runs much
further from the beam than the other, by
which eontriyance the plow guides itself toler-
ably well without being held by plowman.
A long lever extending from the nose of the
beam to the handles and which may be set by
a pin in holes on an upright piece, enables the
attendant to regulate the depth of work US re-
quired. t-
Twenty plOws are sent out to the field to
work at once and a relay Of ten others, to be
used in case of accident. If any plowman
gets into trouble, he hoists flag on a small
pole as a signal of distress the overseer rides
up if the plow is badly broken, it is sent to
the shop to be mended, but the plowman mere
ly drives his team to the end of the furrow,
and bitches to a fresh plow that stands ready
for him. Mr.. Sullivant breaks prairie in
May and June, plowing, or rather pairing. the
sod, only an inch and half deep, to insure its
being rotted. The next year the ground is
plowed four inches in depth! The cost per
acre is estimated at 80 cents, not counting
anything for oxIabor. No grain is fed to the
work-cattle as the wild prairie is deemed suffi-
cent to keep them in condition. The prairie
hay failing in September, the tame grasses
come on and last until December, after which
time shock corn is drawn to the stock and fed
on the ground, stalks and all, just as it comes
from the feld.
For the requirements of the farm ten now
ing machines are needed, which cut a swath Of
ten feet in width. To an English farmer
these headers would seem perfect abomina-
ton, for they merely harvest the ears of grain
with only foot or so of the straw, and leave
the rest standing on the field to be turned un-
der at next. blowing. The cut heads fall upon
a side travelling endless apron, and are carried
from it up another, set at an angle of about
thirty-five degrees and tumbled into a deep
boxed wagon, which is driven along as fast
as the header travels.
The Homer farm is managed by Mr.. Jo-
seph NJ. SulIivant A book-leeper is employ
ed to keep the farm accounts. A regular
journal is kept of the work of each man, and
a large sum of money is constantly on hand to
pay wages and meet the current expenses,
which it may be readily supposed, are far from
ineonsiderable.
The regulations of labor are as follows =
The men breakfast at 51s A. NJ, Immediately
after which the wagons are driven up to the
lodging house, to take the men to the field if
it should be much as a mile distant. Din
ner is sent to them, and eaten in the field du-
ring the hours intermission at noon. They
quit work at snndown. and ride home. For
breaking prairie the furrows are made a mile
long, and each plowman makes eight 'abouts'
in day. The wages in the winter are Sl2
and $l3, and found in harvest SIS and du-
ring the working of the corn, SI5 The price
fluctuates somewhat with the supply and de-
mand
Last summer Mr. Sullvant made thirty
miles of post and board fence. The posts are
sharpened at one end and driUen to the re-
quired depth by small piledriver, fixed on
wheels for convenience Of removal from place
to place. Cattle are attached to the machine,
and horse goes along with it to draw the
rope which passes over the puleys and hoists
the iron driver. The posts are set in place, the
machine properly adjusted, the weight is hoist
ed and dropped two or three times, and the
post settles through the soft, black loan to
itS Droner dnnth. The work is TINS ranidlv
and cheaply done.-Coiumbus Fact. -i