Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1886-04-24
AN EXPERT GARDENER.
I1rom tho Plneer Press.

& N81f0 tut n thtts - hNsSt
| Those Who desire to see gardening
done ON small territorial but a
large financial scale, will do well to
visit the old Corral lot, south east
of Martinsburg, opposite the Water
Works. Hearing Mr.. Phillip Show
ers, who owns and gardens this lot,
say that he had spent $3.50 on it
since last August, and the lot being
only three fourths of an acre, doubt
at once sprung up in our mind, and
to destroy or give permanent place
/ to that doubt, we went down TO see
it. The place where we found him
watering his plants, and believing it
to be the place upon which the $3.50
was said to be spent, our doubts
were not yet removed, and we at
once dcspaired Of agood newspaper
subject, However, we we're not
there long before we learned that
the garden spot was elsewhere,
though our doubts still fingered.
But in going to the old Corral lot
from which tons of rock had been
taken and rich soil to the depths of
Is inches added, the walks we'll laid
with saw dust, and large beds beauti-
full to behold with 500 feet of water
pipe under ground connected to, and
from which extend ten spickets. our
doubts left us before we knew it,
and we were wondering how so much
could have beensdone for.suchia.smsll
sum. He paid for the lot $500, cost
ing as it stands, $3.50. He intends
to make this lot produce the Interest
on $4,000 this season. Having
500 bean poles, he intends to plant
in border Is feet wide extending
around the lot in the shape of an L,
as many lima bean hills. He in
tends to raise 1000 stocks of celery
and all kinds of vegetables for sale,
except snap beans and potatoes, in
which he claims there is no money.
One thing Mr.. Showers is going to
experiment with, and that is beets
for the use Of cattle. Our farmers
should be deeply interested in this,
and watch it closely as they are
most excellent for mich cows. If
Mr.. Showers can make this lot pay
for itself in one year, he will make
more money than many farmers do,
from two hundred times the space.
Where we found him watering his
plants, a space less than one six
teenth of an acre, which was plant
ed last year in tomatoes and celery,
cleared him 1920, and to do this, he
forced the season. At this rate an
acre can be made to produce 81. 900.
This proves conclusively that in
small farms well cared for and pro-
perly tended, are fortunes. There
are people who do not believe that
in Belgium, a person raises 100
bushels of wheat to an acre, and yet
it is so. We would say more about
many things we saw, and what Mr..
Showers intends to grow, but as we
shall watch its progress, and say
more from time to time, we shall
wait and see what we shall see.
As the cruelty to the colored PEG
pie, the cotton gin and other MACH
merry which made Negro labor valua-
bic, were causes of his freedom, so
will such outrageous acts as the Car
rollton massacre arouse the sympa-
thy and interest of the world in his
favor and defence. To shoot down
inoffensive men, because they were
freed and demand that which the
Constitution guarantees them,is cruel |
work for the South; and / fear, in
their unmindfulness of retributive JUS
tice, it will continue too long. Ii God |
thought enough of the Negro to free
him, question of no doubt in my
mind, He thinks enough of him to
protect him in his freedom. Ii Abra-
ham Lincoln was not man OF inspi-