The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1881-04-28
COUNTY CORRESPONDENTS
Vernon Center.

uine spring days. There is a good
deal of snow left yet, but with con-
tinuatiOn of this weather, seeding
will be commenced next week, while
there are a few small patches that
could be seeded now, and l presume
will be this week. / hear great
deal of inquiry for seed corn this
spring. Not One-fOurth of the farm
ers saved an ear in consequence of
the early winter, and those fortunate
III having seed to spare will find
ready purchasers.
Though the seed grain is still in the
granaries, l notice the Pioneer Press
has commenced to estimate the com.
ing crop, and as usual with that pa
per, the yield is to surpass in quantity
anything ever heard of by Mime
sotians. Had the late legislature
passed law making it misdemeanor
for any newspaper to publish such
trash, it would deserve more thanks
than it will receive for what it did
do. Let farmers cease to assist such
papers by positively refusing to make
crop statement to the assessor.
There is no law whatever to make a
man give it, besides the information
when given is used as a weapon in
the hands of sharpers and wheat
rings to stab those from whom it is
obtained. Just tell the assessor NO
with a big n. Whoever heard of
farmer being benefited in return for
crop statement! We have com.
missioner of statistics whose duty,
among other things, is to compile
farm statistics, but last year, in addi-
ton to his reglar duties, he developed
into the greatest wheat raiser of the
age. California boasts of her i'm
mense wheat ranches and Dakota is
proud of her Oliver Dalrymple with
his "a 900 acre wheat farm, but as
compared to our commissioner of
statistics in wheat raising, they are
as pigmies to giants in size. Let us
see how this was done. After the
commissioner had received all neces-
sary data from the assessors in rela-
ton to the wheat acreage he calmly
sits down to figure up the result which
he finds too small, in his mature judy
ment, by some fifteen or sixteen mil.
lion bushels. He then deliberately
but generously adds twenty per cent.
to make up the shortage and makes
grand total of over 5l,000,000 BUSH
els as the yield for 1880. This was
about twenty millions too high, but
nevertheless it was handsome show.
ing and answered the purposes of
wheat rings just as well. Why not
save the thirty or forty thousand dol
lars which the property statement
costs the tax payers in assessors fees
and let the commissioner do it him.
self! If he can guess at twenty per
cent, why not guess at eighty more
by the same process and make it 100
per cent! When man can sit in his
Office in an easy chair and without any
bodily eXertion save a little mental
exercise, and raise fifteen or sixteen
millions bushels of wheat, is it to be
wondered at that your Danville cor.
respondent has become disguised with
wheat raising and is turning his at
tention to stock! Or shall we dis.
pense with the services of such a
dangerous rival and send him to Con.
eress? GOPHER.
MapletOn.
Farmers are beginning to look up
implements for spring work.
E. A. Berry and Walter Brooks re-
turned from the Normal last week.
Mr.. Nelson's family returned to
Mankato last week. He remains
here.
Miss Ida Dyer, Mrs. Will Hanna,
and Mr.. and Mrs. Bowen are on the
sick list.
Mr.. Leroy Peet and family have re.
turned from their visit to Illinois.
He has commenced building his
house.
The village council have ordered
that a sidewalk be built from Main
street south to the school house and
west to the Lutheran church, on both
sides of the street, said walk to be
six feet wide.
Miss Lena Fritz, niece of Mr..
Munglas, died Sunday, April nth.
She came to this country from Ger
many one year ago last fall was the
only member of her fathers family
in this country; was taken severely
ill with cerebro spinal fever and died
the third day of her illness.
The Methodist society here need
5000 to make their parsonage comfort
able. The elder has done his best to
raise it by means of lectures, but the
weather and the failure to make an
appearance on the part of the speak
ers defeated his plans. Now the la
dies of the society will form a La
dies Aid Society and see if the neces-
sary amount can be raised. The M.
E. society tender their warmest
thanks to Elder Savidge, of Mankato,
who so ably allied Elder Wells agree
ment to lecture, thus saving the PEG.
pie another disappointment.
Medic.
The farmers are beginning to look
cheerful again after the long hard
winter. They are getting out their
drags and seeders ready for business.