Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1873-03-28
A Good Letter from Jefferson
SUNNY SIDE, March Is, t3

SUNNY SIDE. March Is, 't3.
ED. BuLLETIN:-fTOmc correspondence
forms an interesting column in your pa
per, and thinking perhaps few thoughts
from old Jefferson Township might be
interesting to others, I send you the fol
lowing:
Spring, with its rains and mud, has
come. and come rather earlier than was
looked for. Some of our farmers were
caught unprepared while others were
ready and waiting. On Monday, March
18th, | noticed several secders bnsily at
work, several teams blowing and few
farmers running to blacksmith shops to
get clcvices, harrows, chains, etc, fixed.
We are going to SOW, and hope for better
crops and prices.
Jefferson seems to have more than her
share of petty lawsuits. We have had no
less than four. in a very short time; dogs
in every case have been the exciting
cause Owing to the difficulty in idenli
flying the dogs that did the mischief, three
of the above cases were decided in favor
of the owners OF the dogs. When will
our Legislature learn to enact laws that
will reduce this pest Of society fully one
half, and bring upon them the same fate
that once belel herd of swine? Until
then, our horses and cattle will be logged
and chased Off their lawful range, our
calves killed in their pastures and our
pigs killed in their pens. We believe it
a good plan for the farmer to keep few
dog pills in his house to give to suspicious
looking dogs.
Some time since notice, was given out
that there would be Il meeting, in Bran
don, of the producing and laboring elias
ses of Jefferson township. to discuss and
determine on the propriety of organizing
either Farmers Club, or grange of
Patrons of Husbandry. There was u
general turn.o out, and the schoo! house
was crowded After some discussion, it
WAS decided to determine by vote which
of the above named societies was prcfera
BILE But one or two voted for Club,
while some twenty five of our best farm
ers voted in favor of organizing a Grange.
Consequently steps were taken looking to
that end.
There are quite number of farmers
in this corner Of the county who are
beginning to talk cheese factory in Bran
don There is probably no better situa-
ton in this part of the State for factory
than Brandon, and we are satisfied from
what we have heard that there could be
200 cows put on the first year 1t is evi-
dent we mpst adopt some other method
than that of raising wheat and corn for
living. If cheese making in the east pays
at 12i5 cents per pound, on land worth
from sis TO 500 per acre, we see nc
good reason why it win not pay here on
cheap land and about the same price per
pound for cheese If we We're to seed
down one half of our land and stock it
with good cows we could make double
the money from it than by any other way.
Besides this, instead Of our land deteriora
ting as it is doing under the old system
of grain raising. it would he increasing in
value and prnductiveness. j noticed in
your last issue a short sketch from Mr..
B, on the workings of the factory in his
neigbborhOOd. There must be screw
loose somewhere, or his cows woul
bring him in more than S25 per head in
five months That screw may be in the
wintcring, the pasture, water or The quail
ity of tue cows In Ohio, on what is
called the Western Reserve, cows bring in
from $50 to $50 per head. In Illinois
and Wisconsin, from $50 to $40. This
difference may be in the better adapta-
ton of the soil on the Reserve to grazing
than that of Illinois or Wisconsin The
soil is as good in Eastern Iowa for gra-
ling purposes as that Of Wisconsin or
Illinois; hence with the same care, COWS
ought to bring in as much here rs they do
there
see that Independence and vicinity is
brought to point in her history when
she mast answer yes or no in regard to
that long looked for and much needed
1t is certainly Il big job to at
tempt to raise $4,000 by subscription,
in these times, when the mer
chant is put to his wits end, the farmer
can scarcely pay his taxes, and the labor
ing man can hardly keep want from his
door; and when there is snch deep and
wide spread feeling Of dissatisfaction
the west in regard 10 rail
road combination and cXtortion. Yet
every man ought TO lay prejudice aside
and look at it in the light Of dollars and
cents. Every interest in your city, and
also the county, will oe enhanced by the
completion of another road. During the
past winter your grain buyers were buy
ing wheat on Il ten cent margin from the
fact that they could no get cars to ship
it, and hence were afraid Of decline -
Nothing will put more eflectual veto on
this than competition with the Illinois
Central We believe <ifshe citizens who
are interested will think twice before they
speak, they will not commit an act that
possibly they may regret. The dispose
ton Of railroad companies is such that if
they get their backs up against locality
they will give il wide berth.
A. MCGowEN.