The Worthington advance., 1882-09-28
A BIG GuL1NOIsFAR1f.


Owner IN tho world
From The st. Louis Republican. .:...
I The "Burr Oaks farm" located mainly
in Ford county. illinois. sixteen miles
east Of the Chicago, Alton and St. Louis
railroad Il said to be the largest farm in
the world, and its owner. Mr.. Hiram
Sibley Of Rochester, New York, il, by
virtue Of the proprietorship of it and
several other extensive plantations,
called tho largest farmer in the
world. It once belonged to NJ. L.
Sullivant, and Was for time
famous - tho ''Sullivant farm" devoted
exclusively to corn and yielding in tie
year 1871. 60,W 600 bushels Of that grain.
But big farmers arc pretty sure 10 hil,
unless they manage their business with
minute system and very close economy
poor crops in succession brought him to
of lO, 600 acres passed into the hands of
Mr.. Sibley Who had loaned nearly $780,
600 on it. He at once began TO change
the character of tho farm aud the meth
obs of conducting it. Instead of hiring
all the work done, he let out sections Of
it, 50 to $40 acres each, to tenants,
aud Rave them share of the crop raised.
He put up . house and barn on each
tract. and there are now l46 farm ten
ants located ON the estate, all of them
doing we'll. The whole domain - eight
miles long by % many wide, and from
one point OF view forty farm houses and
barns, all belonging to it, can be counted.
The soil il black loan, very fertile and
adapted to Ill kinds ofgrain, grass. fruits
and roots. This year there is 500 acres
planted at in corn eSrn' z ss1e 40 IN =, a.x' lax
SO in millet. 2s intpot.toee, 20 in cucum-
bers, $50 in meadow, and 3, 3,730 iu past
ure. There are ninety orchards on the
pss ppesst.bes :ad rSere Is 'esss a5a*a Hoesss
and mules owned by tenants, and 60
others employed by Mr.. Sibley; 100
head of cattle, l.2S0 sheep, and 1885
bocs. The cattle and sheep are kept to-
pether in . 2.6OO acre pasture. Mr.. Sib-
lev has brought from the East 700 young
cows of good breeds, and sold them to
his tenants 1T cost, for the purpose Of
assisting each one to start mich herd.
They have multiplied till there are now
5000 on the place. The products on the
farm last year we're 225,0O bushels Of
corn. 2O.O6O bushels of ilaxseed, 1900
bushels of oats, 800 tons Of bay, 800
head of cattle and co. hogs sent to market,
and five carloads ofmiscellaneous seeds.
A large amount of money has been ex-
pended in equipping the place with
agencies and appliances for the econon1.-
al conduct Of business. There are IS
corn-cribs with capacity OF 250, 900
bushels; an elevator of $1,000 bushels
capacity. with = tifty-horse power steam
engine. in the center Of the domain on
the Wabash. St. Louis and Pacific rail-
road; fax mill feed mills, seed ware
house, school houses, churches and 9
good hotel. Over SlOO,Wo worth OF
machinery and implements have been
placed on the farm Of MIR: Sibley HIM
self, and all farm work is done
on the most approved ana
inclosed with 22O miles of hedge, it has
400 miles of bitches, Q system, OF good
roads, two beautiful lakes and groves.
When Mr.. Sibley took possession OF the
place in 1877 it was supposed TO be worth
SIS to $25 an acre; it is now estimated at
$40 an acre, and the proprietor has re-
fused $50 an acre for a part OF 1t. An
illustration Of the high value set upon
timber in that prairie region IS the tact
that the limited areas covered with trees
are held at 500 an acre. The advance
in value of the lands composing the do
main has, therefore, made the invest
mem an advantageous one to the pro-.
Drietor. rs it is worth now more than It,
originally cost him with the expend'~
tures upOn It added.