Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1885-12-11
THE LAND OF CORN.
How Corn and Hogs are Raised in Kansas
"A Land without Barns.

CHRISTOPHER, Kansas, Nov. 81, 1885,
To the Editor of the Free Press and Times
Grasshopper town upon Grasshopper
river. But there is no appearance of these
pests here now. They would hardly dare
tackle such fields of corn. Eighty acres,
one hundred and fifty acres, four hun
dred acres, yes one whole section planted
to corn, six hundred and forty acres, eX-
cept small reserve for the buildings, Il
one story house lSX20, and corn crib
with no roof except the blue sky. "Oh
the rain don't hurt the corn" Barn there
is none. The cattle and horses run among
the corn stalks all winter, and help them
selves ut the stacks of hay when they
want change of fodder. Six hundred
and forty acres planted to corn No, not
pidHtld, but "iiStCd." To list or not
to list" that is the question mOOted i'll
the streets and in the market places, and
wherever farmers meet, and the most of
| them decide to list except the ground be
very wet. The ground is not plOwed
but II man goes over last years corniield,
and riding upon his lister" drawn 10y
two horses, puts in ten acres of corn a
day. The lister plows furrOW, pulVerizeS
the earth. and drills in Il row of corn, GOV
ering it at a good depth When the corn
is up two horses draw Il CutiVatOr that
4
Il time. They harvest by picking off the ears
and throwing them into high box wagons.
/ Sixty bushels is Il fair days work, but
Tommy DeVenS son of an Englshman,
picked one hundred bushels in one day
and one hundred and ten in another day
For feeding, the corn is picked without
husking. They say the cattle DO better
because they eat it slower, and the hogs
will strip off the huskS in Il twlnkling
The latter make very good bedding. The
corn that is not fed out, is shoveled into
cars, Il few stray husks hanging, and sold
by weight seventy pounds for II bushel
1t goes to the nearest elevator, where 1t Is
shelled and put back into the cars for the
eastern market. 1t costs about one cent
Il buShel for Smelling.
Some men in this section do build barns
They are about the size and style of ar
chitecture of a Vermont ice house. y
few poles covered over with Il heap o.
prairie grass makes Il shed which some OF
the farmers indulge in. a wealthy far
mer from Chicago has actually built I
barn-a first class barn with basement
but it is more for ornament than use. Th,
boys might make their beds Ill the base
ment but they prefer the large clover
yard, and to bore out nests under Il hay
stack or make themselves into Il stack
black heap of Il dozen pOrkers all Wedget
in together. The cattle and horses roam
the fields and this Sll0O barn is practical
ly without use.
One man said he had planted corn upol
the same land twenty eight years and hat
last year Us good yield as ever. But it il
evident that the soil is being exhausted
and that corn and hogs" cannot Away
be the staple product of Kansas. SOM
of the farmers are beginning to seed dowl
the land to timothy, herds grass ant
clover, and keep more cattle and les
hogs. The hog cholera sweeps off larg
herds. Some are coming to see that tn
farmers of Kansas must build barns kee
cattle, and make manure to fertilize tn
land. OF course, corn will be king
Think of it In one county-twenty-fou
miles square-they raised eight million
bushels More than was raised in all thu
New England States
Coming from Atkinson there was a
old man on the train who had been rot
bed of $1,000. The robbers followed hir
from Illinois, and going through Missi>
souri,, while he was on the platform, be
tween two cars, two of them held him b
the collar while third took his none
out of his pocket, and then they jumpe
from the train, while it was going at moo
crate speed, and disappeared.
q. w X.