The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1873-05-30
FARM NOTES.
Does Farming Pay in Kansas

Moon CREEK, Pike Tp., May Il.
EDITOR NEWS: AS L notice you
encourage correspondence from differ
ent sections of our county, thou ght
would write few lines relative to
this portion of Pike township, as to
what we are doing along the beautiful
valley of the Cottonwood. That with
us as with large portion of the west
this spring, the season is some three
or four weeks later than usual, is
fact - well known to be dwelt upon
here. Notwithstanding this discour-
agement, our farmers are fully up to
the situation, and the most OF the
planting is already done.
The recent fine rains added to the
favorable change of temperature have
caused vegetation to come forward
very rapidly within the last few days.
The newly planted corn is just shoot
ing up its green spires; the charming
prairie is spreading out its green car
pet, adorned with thousands of flow
ers, while the trees along the river
bottom are rapidly clothing themselves
In the erdant robe of summer. Eve
rything, in fact, looking towards a
prosperous season begins to put on an
encouraging aspect, but nothing more
so, perhaps, than the fall wheat, which
is now beginning to assume proper
tions of interest as well as Beauty.
Many pieces have noticed look ex-
ceedingly well, but some pieces in
particular look most promising in
deed. One piece belonging to p. Man
ming, bids fair, if nothing unfavorabIe
intervenes, to yield forty bushels to
the acre; and another lager piece,
of some fifteen or twenty acres, be-
longing to j. V. Carter, looks equally
promising. The plant beds of j. V.
Carter, though retarded somewhat by
the several untimely visitations of
Frosty Jack" during the month of
April, are now almost grooming under
their weight of vigorous plants, grace
fully bowling their green heads before
the passing breeze as though they
would invitingly say, "Ho, all We who
are in want of sweet potato and other
plants, now is your time. Walk up,
gentlemen, and pass in your orders"
In conversation with n young gen.
tleman recently from Canada, lie in
formed me the opinion prevails there,
among intelligent people, too, that
fall wheat in Kansas is not only 4
failure, but that farming generally is
not success. Being but a new COM
er in Kansas myself, this remark led
me to investigate somewhat in that
direction, and j. V. Carter, of this
neighborhood, has kindly favored me
with the following statement relative
to his own operations in farming the
past year, which, with his permission,
l lay before your readers:
Number of acres in cultivation.
Income from said farm in round
numbers:
Sweet potato plants sold, $ 5000
Onions 6O.OO
Onion sets 90 1000
zsoUO Oh. corn, 2Uc per bu. 10000
200 25c per bu. 5000
l,OO0 bu. oats, 1Sc 10000
200 g potatoes, at harvest 35c
per bu., 1000
200 bu. potatoes during winter,
75c per bu., 10000
Feeding cattle for other parties, 1890
$1,542.O0
Expense to cultivate sand farm, aside
from own labor of self and team:
l hand, II mo-, sls per mo-, 2IG.oo
i 6 Is 5000
Harvest wages and extra help, 1900
For threshing grain, 34.00
Potatoes and onions for seed, 5000
$415.00
Balance in favor of farm, S1,I27
The above statement speaks for it
self relative to what may be raised on
an nrflinariIry ooOd for,, -, 49,