The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1877-11-01
Letter from Iowa.


DEAR JOURNAL The beautiful Indian summer
days of autumn rapidly taking their departure
and are on the lookout for heavy frosts and
colder weather The fall flowers are still blooming
in the gardens while the madeira vine over the
window is green as in summer, the long white
racemes showing no sign of the frost kings with
ering touch The meadow and prairie look brown
and dry, the great yellow blossoms of the
Spanish needles or the flame of the golden rod in
some neglected corner; farther away from town the
pink and purple frost flowers are blooming about
double the SIZE found in Maine. Everything tells
us to be preparing for winter; not the snowy, icy
winter Of the east, but the rainy muddy winter of
the west During last winter there not snow
enough at one time to make good sleighing, though
the Youngsters did get out their sleds and try to
sleighride on bare ground. And instead Of ice.
mud reigns supreme; or if it is frozen. rough
ground renders travelling nearly impossible
1t is hardly time yet to gather corn, bnt there is
enough to do. The sorghum must DC attended to
before frost, frost spells the juice for molasses
1t is cut at the ground the leaves stripped OIL and
then it is ready for the mill The mill is only
cruSher, for extracting the Juice. and IA boiler for
- iAN-'
cane begins to grow it exactly resembles corn. and
the difference is only apparent when the corn
tt4sses and the seed begins to form on the top Of
the cane. The two receive the same culture. Scr
ghum moasses is OF course Inferior to the import
ed but yet it is very good substitute, besides be
ing cheaper When nicely boiled and skinned it
is as clear as syrup and PARTICLES Of sugar may be
seen floating through the heavy liquid Expert
meuts have been made with it in Maine but am
ignorant as to how they resulted.
Oats and wheat have been thrcshed two or three
weeks as the stacks Of straw in the corner Of the
meadow bear witness At the time Of cutting, the
grain is hauled to some convenient corner Of the
meadow and stacked for the thrcshers. The power
for the machine is ten horses which 20 around i'll
the grass making complete circle. and at each
revolution stepping over a rod which carries the
power to the threshing machine proper. III day
from four to six hundred bushels of wheat or oats
can be threshed forty bushels Of timothy seed.
The threshers will agree to work for certain mum
Der of bushels per day OF ask slX cents per bushel
for oats or wheat, twenty for timothy seed. Oats
grow splendidly in this part Of Iowa, but ii is not
extra country for wheat, on account of the late
SS'oi t'l4i
bread no family need starve, they only have
wheat bread once in while Western eating is
very palaable, after gets used to it. When one
has company it is easy enough to catch chicken,
wiring its neck scald off It's feathers and get it ready
for cooking And then il is fried in lard or butter
and with jelly and gravy, and fine donS" makes
a dinner fit for king. There is so much wild
fruit in the timber be had for the picking, that
ellies, jams, preserves, &c, may be made very
cheapy
Blackberres, grapes, wild crab apples and plums
grow in profnsion, The crab apples are sour and
bitter until made into Jelly or butter when they
have an excellent flavor There pmms
this year as the trees produce only every other
| year. When fully grown and perfectly ripe they
are as delicious for eating cooking any com
! mon plum found in the market There is one
thing always found on the farmers table and that
is coffee, strong. muddy coffee, to be taken without
| sugar | do not wonder many of the women
| look sallow and poor. | believe most any body
would lose their freshness from such cause. Bat
there is one article Of diet not found every day.
yes two.-good brown bread and baked beans
| Since the pork is all smoked there is no picked
| pork To be found ut Il grocery and they have a
standing joke that they can always recognize
Yankee because he calls for salt pork. OF course
How can a man raised" to have baked beans every
Sunday when he comes home from church. torcgo
the habit quickly tbs enough to make him
homesick and talk about " back east. until he
cant get Il listener. And then the salt water fish
are mon est" out here There plenty of fish
in the market from the Mississippi but they are
perfectly ttSteess, compared with those from the
salt water. But. dear me, had better stop or I'll
be getting homesck myself MAE.