Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1881-09-15
stories Of Amateur Farmers.

struck his fancy, and he seemed dis
posed 10 buy it; but friend who was
with him persuaded him that the rake
would answer his purpose. After the
customer and his friend had gone out
the merchant IN agricultural imple-
ments said: THAT young man has re-
Gently bought a very pretty country
place N New Jersey. His land is a
quarter of an acre Of sloping lawn.
II. is puzzle to some folks" the
dealer went on, "how such stores rs
this. situated remotely from the farm
Ing districts. do profitable business,
especially since there are in all such dis
tricts centers in which agricultural i'm
plements are retaiicd to the farmers.
But il we depended on farmers for our
custom we would starye. l made my
first business venture with the late
Prof. Mapes, who was then interested
in the best-appointed agricultural i'm
plement warehouse in the country, and
/ cannot call TO mind that we had
among our many customers bona hide
farmer. We had plenty of market gar
deners and lots of amateurs. but the
bulk Of our trade was with gentlemen
who hae places out Of town. and the
mania they had for labor-saving and
improved implements was astonishing.
They would call daily on their way
home TO see if we had anything new,
and if we had they would buy it. even
if it was Of no more use to them than a
trombone.
The professor had among his friends
a large number OF prominent actors.
many OF whom were experimental
farmers. Among the most enthusiastic
were Burton, Blake. j. W. Wallack,
jefferson, Chanfrau, Adams and Harry
Placide. They were as innocent as
children, and when one of them came
into the store he would act like q little
boy in toy shop. and want to buy ev-
erything we had. from a sausage-stuffer
to tiour-mill. We were cautioned not
TO sell them ANYTHING without submit
ting it TO the judgment of the professor.
Wallack was particularly irascible when
his Judgment was questioned. He
once threatened to throw us overheard
because We advised him against pur-
chasing an eight-horse power threshing
machine, which he could never, by any
possible chance have the slightest use for.
brought in SAMPLES of soil TO be ana
lived. and asked for advice as to the
kind of crops it was adapted to bear.
l remember Mr.. Blake brought in
very small sample one time, and the
professor asked him why he didn' bring
more. He replied that that was all he
could spare, and believed him.
Zone day when the statesmen were at
lunch and | was alone. an Old gentle
man came in. He told me that the lot
back of his barn held moisture for
weeks after rain. and asked me what
he had better do. i advised subsoiling.
and showed him plows for the pur-
pose. They were of various sizes, from
No. s to No. S--from one-horse TO
eight-oxen. He said they were just
the thing. but we differed as to the
size. He insisted upon a No. s. While
positively argued that No. 6 would
answer his purpose. In rebuttal he
made the argument that one couldnt
have too much of a good thing. He
decided, however, on No. 6, and then
told me that he had considerable diff
Guilty in having his grass sown evenly;
that in some places it would come out
in tufts. and in others would show bare
spots. recommended a patent seed
sewer, and showed him how it worked.
His ewes sparSled with delight He
told ME To ship the plow. but the seed
sower he would carry home, because,
he said, when its merits were fully eX-
planned there would be such devil OF
a run on them that they couldn't be had
anywhere for love or money.
When the Professor returned and
looked over the sales, saw thai he was
startled.
Tom said he. did you sell these
things To Blaisdell?n
- Yes. SIR said |. J.
- lie bought a subsoil pillow, i find"
"'ies, sir: he wanted 10 subsoil