The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1883-11-03
Letter from Missouri.
Correspondence of the Democratic Advocated
MIpp1Erowx. October %. 1888.

MIDDLETowN, October %, 1888.
MEssRs EDITORS Harvesting and thresh-
ing are things of the past, and farmers are
engaged in hauling their grain away before
the roads get bad, as we have some distance
to haul. We haul our grain in open beds,
and it does not take long to load or unload.
To load we take a large scoop shovel and
soon load so or so bushels-sooner than you
can measure and sack it. To unload we have
to drive up a gangway into the elevator and
on certain plank, then take out the end
gate, pull a certain lever, and the wagon is
thrown into such position that the grain
runs out sooner than you would think but
you cannot use q wagon with a stiff tongue,
for if you do, when the wagon is dumped you
either break your harness or make your horses
stand on their hind legs. When we are
through we build rail pen, put rails or boards
in the bottom, put some straw on rails, If we
use rails, for the bottom, line the sides with
sheaf oats or wheat, and put our grain in
Il have seen over six hundred bushels put in
one of these pens) cover mostly with straw,
though we sometimes use boards, and leave
until we are ready to sell. You see very few
granaries here, as the grain is stored in rail
pens. As for cutting corn, that is something
that is not dreaded here, as very few cut much
off. If some have 40 or 80 shocks, they think
that is plenty. How do we gather our corn
crop? may be asked by some. WE'LL we wait
until the corn is well cured, hitch to our
CONS, drive to our field and take five rows at
a time, pull the corn off. husk and all, stow
it away in rail pens, and leave until ready to
sell; load up, husk and all, and away we go
to market, where they have shelters that will
shell it husked or unhusked. When we wish
to sell we call on three or four of our neigh
bors, who help us haul to the railroad, and
when they are ready we return their favor.
They do some loose farming here. | will
lust mention the mode which one of my neigh
bors pursues in farming as a sample. Last
year he raised over l, 400 bushels of oats. He
stacked his straw on the manure from the year
before, so that it would not be in his way.
This year his crop of oats was over 1000
bushels: his wheat over 200 bushels. He
stacked his straw on top of that of last year,
which was pretty well rotted up, I'll because
he did not want to haul the manure out of the
way. / could say good deal more, but | am
afraid this letter will become tiresome to you
and your many readers. | want to say, be-
fore / close, that am sorry | wrote about
that Marylander getting butted by that ram,
which helped him over the rail pile. | have
two reasons for believing that it was not so.
First and best reason is, | received q letter
from him in which he denied its being so.
Second, it was not so; because if it was what
was the use for him to rub his shins when he
got home with liniment (may be fish kicked
him as he was fishing that evening"? How
ever, we'll raise our clothes lines little
higher, and all Maryland can come right
along, for the old ram is dead and eaten and
forgotten. Success to your ticket and to the
ADVOCATE. SERGEANT CHARLES,