davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-04-18
SOILS AND FERTILIZERS.
4 Subject Of Never sCeasing Interost .
Progressive Farmers.

a Subject Of Never Cessing Iaterost q
Progressive Farmers.
The principal constituents of plant
food are nitrogen. potash AMI phos-
phoric acid. Exhaustion of soil may
be brought about either by the with
drawal Of the ash ingredients con-
tanned in the crops that are annually
taken off without any return being
made. or by q washing OF the surface
that gradually robs it Of its plant food.
Complete exhaustion would require
the removal of all the mineral elements
of plant food, which never occurs. As
commonly expressed, q soil is said to
be exhausted when the crops pro-
duced on it cease to be profitable. This
condition may be brought about by the
removal from it of one single neces-
sary mineral element of plant food. al
though all the others may remain in
abundance. In general the essential
constituents above named. phosphoric
acid and potash OF the mineral ele-
ments. and nitrogen of the organic. are
all that will be required to produce re-
munerative returns from worn soils.
providing a judic'ous rotation of crops
is observed by which q liberal amount
of vegetable matter is returned.
If all the vegetation yearly produced
was allowed to remain and decay and
become plant food. the soil would be
constantly improving in fertility. but
to make cultivation profitable aprinci-
pal part of each crop must be annually
removed and used for other purposes.
Hence it becomes necessary to return
to the land mineral substances equiva-
lent to those distracted by the crops.
otherwise the soil will decrease in
fertility. If we had the power to de-
termine exactly what particular ele-
ment Of plant food alone was wanting.
then the use OF a single fertilizer might
be sufficient. This. however. can only
be done by chemical analysis of the
soil or experiments. or both conjoint-
~. and so the attempt to supply sim
gle element usually proves failure.
From this cause it is only safe to use
what are called complete fertilizers. or
such as in their composition contain
all the principal elements OF plant
food. and as nearly as possible in the
same proportions as they exist in the
plant to be produced.
Again. while chemical analysis will
reveal approximately the ingredients
contained in soil, it fails to show how
much of these elements can be used by
the plant in the process of its growth.
One or more of them may exist in such
state as to be wholly unserviceable
until reduced to soluble form by the
slow natural process of disintegration
and decomposition, or the application
of some chemical agent that shall pre-
pare them for more immediate useful
ness. In this way the application of
lime to certain soils often proves sur
prisingly beneficial. although the
article itself is not considered strictly
a manure.-N. Y. World.
Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-04-18
VALUE OF SHEEP.

The Best Agency for tho Renova ton .
Worn-Out Land.
Day by day it is manifest that flock
Of sheep Is Of very great value to q
farm and its occupant A late in
stance is that of q man who owns 120
acres. originally Of medium fertility or
under. A few years ago he changed
from embarrassing to the shcep-busi-
ness. keeping between 100 and 2o0.
His soil gradually improved until It
has reached very high point Last
season he raised over flfty tons Of ex-
cellent clover hay. about BOO bushels
each Of oats and bailey. 1900 bushels
ears OF corn and 1000 bushels Of tur-
nips and beets. His orchard increased
largely in productiveness and quality
of fruit and he gathered several hun
dred barrels of apples. He grows hot
house lambs. and from tho wool and
lambs of 100 ewes he realizes 81 900.
besides the increase Of q considerable
flock Of keeping sheep Last season
he added pig-raising. having as many
as eighty-five on hand at q time. which
he sold to his neighbors or fattened.
He grows only wheat enough for his
own use. keeps three horses, and. Of
bovine kind only two cows
He raises fat turnips on clover cod.
and some of them are nearly as large
around as a dinner plate. Turnip seed
is sown with . grain drill. three
f0urths of pound Of seed being mixed
with one hundred pounds Of CONNER
cial fertilizer. and the drill set TO SOW
one hundred pOunde to the acre.
Sheep are 1T the bottom Of these ex-
cellent results, and he has two neigh
bors farming on about the Same line
and with gratifying success. His
il in the basement of q
barn. where there is pump. root-cut-
Ter. and every desired convent snce for
the sheep with water. roots.
hay and grain. The root cellar opens
into the she1p-fold. without parti-
'ition. and the warmth Of the sheep
Keeps the roots from freezing. Veg
stables designed for family use are
llso stored here. thus obviating all
Tom decaying vegetables in
he dwelling-bouse cellar. The sur
ace Of the farm IL very undulating.
mt the krolls produce q great crops
y the valleys and depressiona-Galen
wilson. in n. Y. Tribune
.
Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-04-18
PUMPKINS FOR COWS.

A Old-Time Food Witch 10 - valuah1o
To-Day ~ It Ever Was.
am surprised so little Is said about
pumpkins as an article of food for
dairy cows Perhaps our familiarity
with this old-time food leads to it,
neglect, just a. q farmers son goes
past the homespun beauty Of . neigh
boris daughter for the more dashing
attractions Of some city-bred miss.
only to see his error when it is too
late Your correspondents tell u
about ensilage. hay. corn fodder. bran.
oats. corn. etc.-sometimes they even
mention roots-but never q word
about pumpkins; and yet this old-tiu.e
food is one Of great consequence.
1t is easy of production. producing
immense returns both for the ground
occupied and for the labor expended.
It is relished by all kinds of neat
stock and by hogs. It is nourishing
and health full for them at all seasons.
but more especially so during the
early winter months. when they first
come on to dry food. Mich cows in
particular are greatly benefited BY at
least one mess daily. 1t is laxative
and antisorbutive = just the thing
needed when otherwise dry food alone
is available. Stored in q cool place
that does not freeze very hard. they
can be kept in good condition till Feb
quarry.
My cows have had one good mess
daily till about that time Sometimes
this is varied for variety by packing
barrel full Of pieces of pumpkin and
thrustiug q steam hose to the bottom.
turning on the steam and boiling till
soft They will then be quite sloppy.
and enough bran or corn meal is then
stirred in to take up the water. and it
Is left over night or till cool enough
to feed. This is a very rich and whole
some mess. and one that will soon
make its presence felt in the cream
can. Most people plant their pump
kius with their corn. and sometimes !
get a very fair CROP. but it is quite un.
certain. and l doubt II it is the best
way. usually plant one or two
acres Of dwarf was beans, which use
In my canning factory. These are
planted in drills with q common two
horse corn planter. the rows being |
three feet nine inches apart. and they |
are very thick in the row. After
planting the beans 60 crosswise OF
the rows. and with hoe plant pump
kin seed in about every third row. and |
these rows say ten feet apart In at
tending the beans the pumpkins are
also we'll taken care of. As the beans |
are of the ground by the time the
begin to run, and therefore
they can have their own way. they
give a full crop. More pumpkins for
your cows. brother dairymen. and
they will ''rise up and call you
blessed. "A l. Potter, in Dairy
World.
Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-04-18
cHINcH-sUG DISEASES.

The Destruction Of the Pest BY the Dis
tribution Of Disease Germs.
Mr.. C. P. Gillette treats this subject
In an interesting manner in Bulletin
No. 8 of the Iowa Agricu't ural College
Experiment Station. After referring
to the comparatively recent date at
which 1t became known that chinch-
bugs were subject to disease, Mr..
Gillette refers briefly to DR.. Sinners
observations on an epidemic in 1867
which carried of the bugs so COM
pletely that it was impossible to find
specimens for his collection the fol.
lowing year. Then came the observa-
tons of Prof Forbes on a similar
epidemic in Illinois in 1883. This was
truly contagious disease. and Is con-
Quoted from bug to bug by microscopic
germs. as smallpox or yellow-fever is
conducted from man to man. These
are probably the only reports on
chinch-bug diseases before the present
season.
In his observations in Iowa the
present season Mr.. Gillette details the
manner in which the disease works,
Iand the deadly effect which it has upon
the bugs His observation began Au-
gust 8, when the bugs were quite
abundant. and by the middle of October
almost no bugs were to be found: Ex.
periments were made to determine tho
possibility of making practical use
Of tho disease-germs BY exposing APP
parently healthy bugs to them. and. q
was expected. the disease soon up.
peared and destroyed most, Of them
mo one who knows the nature OF
the disease" said Mr.. Gillette. ''wirl
doubt tho possibility Of Introducing L
into localities where It has not pro.
viously occurred, but Is 1t has pyoba-
bly, beeu in most places where tho
bugs have long been present II II ex-
tremely doubtful whether the promis-
cuous scattering Of the germs would
be Of any use II the germs Of the
disease are already present. It would !
b Of no use. and il the proper atmos-
pheric conditions are not present, the
germs will not grow. no matter how
numerous they sre. II. however. the
bugs have continued FREQ from the dis
ease in any locality In the State where
they have been numerous the past sea-
Don, and where tho necessary atmos.
pheric conditions have bsen present.
these places may Be greatly benefited
b. the introduction Of the disease
whsu tho bugs arc again numerouA I"
Journal
Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-04-18
MILK AND CREAM.

How CAre1ess DA rymen Can Increase tn,
Income Of Their Farms.
One of the. papers at the farmers
convention held at Madison, Wis. wa.
read by Prof. s. NJ. Babcock. of the
State University. In his paper the
professor maintained that there were
In Wisconsin q hundred thousand farm
ers who owned two or more COWS. and
that there were not one hundred Of
them that knew which COW paid profit
and which made him no profit or IN
actual loss. The remedy urged for
this want of knowledge was to test the
milk of individual cows. to ascertain
the amount of butter fat produced by
each. The question: (Which is the
best cow" is usually answered: THE
one which gives the most butter from
the churn." This is not really the
truth. II the milk contained more
butter than you get out of it. you do
not know how good the milk is, with
out testing. After you have found the
amount of butter fat contained in a
given cows milk. you want to so manip-
ulate that milk that you get the largest
possible portion of that butter out If
you do not do this it is not the cows
fault. but yours. A great many men
say all they wish to know is how much
butter they get. That is not enough
to know. if you are going to get the
best results from your cows. You want
to know whether you are getting the
butter your COW is giving. Test your
milk to find out
A COW should give ono pound Of but
ter day when at her best. No COW 10
profitable that can not do this.
Allowing the salt and water in the
butter to make up for what butter fat
Is lost in churning. you should get q
pound Of butter fat in your milk.
Tho fact is. fifty per cent is the COM
mon yield. that is half a pound q day.
Such COWS should be discard I'd or q
change made in the manner of manipu-
lation.
If you are using the deep-setting
mode Of Dreaming your milk. the milk
should be set in the cold water as soon
- drawn from the COW. After skim
ming keep the cream in . warm place
until the acid il formed. This NAV be
FASTENED by adding . little of the
iormer setting. It IL detrimental to
0hurn sweet cream.
To sum up. test your COWS to find out
how much butter fat their milk con-
tains. then SEQ what you churn from It.
II not ~ much. change your manner of
caring for the milk. or the care Of the
cream. or the churning. or all of them.
Do these ana you VIII make more from
the dairy.-Farm. Field and Stockman.
Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-04-18

tended for discharging the offices OF
government And II they should urge
that no government Is just except
what springs from the govern
ed. and that none is complete except
that which calls into action all the
varied powers of the race, how would
it please them to be answered: This
may be. but some of you drink and
others gamble. some would lirense sa-
looms and others would license brothels.
many of you are impractible and believe
that opening your doors to foreign COM
petition would make " rich. and some
OF you are 80 visionary that you think
taxation of land values only would
equalize the burdens OF government;
while most of you act as though you
think an election is an auction, and q
town meeting is a Donnybrook fair; so
on the whole we are afraid of you.
afraid you will belong to the wrong
party. and. right or wrong. We think
we will keep you outT Gentlemen.
how would you feel to be confronted
with such a condition and such a
theory? It is difficult to treat the de-
generacy of the opposition with any
sort of seriousness. and some of them
must be.in to realize that the ridicule
with which they assailed this cause in
its early days is in danger of returning
to plague the inventors"
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-08-07
ATrillion Kisses.

The case Of the Florida man who had
his love letters produced and read in
court should teach other lovers mOdera-
ton IN the making Of osculatory con-
tracts.
In single postscript the Florida man
undertook to deliver to the lady Of his
choice no less than l,O00,OOO,O 900, 900 kiss
es. And as such contracts are not infre-
quently made in love letters it may be
well to give thought to the magnitude
of the undertaking.
Whoever will take the trouble to fig
ure it out will find that even if this anna
rous Southerner should give the lady l5.-
900 kisses a minute land We affirm that
no person could hope to do more than
that, and even if he could keep up this
rate of osculation twenty-four homs =
day, never pausing 10 eat, sleep or take
breath, working 365 days every year, it
weG!d take him more than 100 years TO
complete the contract. And by that time
it is painful to reflect, the ardor Of his
love may have cooled. Even at the end
of 100 years, counting $4,000 kisses u
minute, there would remain an undeliv-
cred balance of more than 200,OO0,o Geo.
900, number which in itself might well
appali the Inost industrious
We therefore feel constrained 20 advise
writers Of love letters not to undertake.
contracts of the magnitude of'that re-
ported from Florida Boston Giojs.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-08-07
He Heard About His Crave.


DO you know my grave was dug in
this town during the gar f)r me to be
buried in said a gentleman in cur
office last Thursday.
no, sir; We never met you before
Well, it was Ny maine is Crane,
and WAS sergeant in company G., One
Hundred and Twenty -fourth Indiana
regiment / was sick nigh unto death
in a hospital in Marietta, and heard the
doctor say 10 a man who entered the
room How many graves are you hay
ing dug?" Three, was the response.
well dig one a5ou, foot longer
than the usual length, for thar tall ser
geant will be dead by morning. and the
instructions were carried out, but you see
] did not fill the grave"
No. you don't look like a resurrected
corpse"
> The reason l didn't die was got bet
ter the next morning and ate raspberry
jam, determined not to oil grave that
was dug before l died--Ngrietsi (Ga.)
Journal
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-08-07
The lcelandic Church.

Il will surprise most people to learn
that the Icelanders are numerous enough
in this country and Canada to maintain
a distinct and vigorous religious organiza-
ton Of their own. 1t is called the lee
landic Lutheran Church Of America, con
sists Of twenty-five congregations and has
Just held its fifth annual conference at
Argyle, in Manitoba
In 1850 the whole number Of emigrants
from Denmark to the United states was
only a little over 64,000, including lee
landers but since then the total has
been about doubled, and among the new
settlers are many Icelanders also, though
their most numerous colony is in Mani
tOba. Earl Dufferin succeeded in bring
ing them TO Canada by strong induce
ments, and on our side an effort was
made in 1873 TO direct a stream Of i'm
migration from Iceland 20 Alaska, though
without success. But. under leaders of
their own, they have established a col
ony in Dakota. one in Southwestern Min
nesOta and there is a settlement at Green
Bay Altogether they number as yet
only few thousands IN 10th this coun
try and Canada, with the prospect, how
ever. Of a considerable increase, though
it can never be very great, since the
population Of Iceland itself is barely p
Geo. The spint Of emigration has been
stirred up among them during the last
twenty years only. Before that time
and from the days Of Eric the Red, the
father of Left Ericsson, who landed on
the shores Of New Englan FIVE hundred
years before that Of Columbia, the Ice
landers had been remarkable among the
Scandinavian people for their home low
ing disposition.
These immigrants from Iceland come
from a region where they never have
seen a real tree, Il road or plough, and
vet it Is remarkable how soon they adapt
themselves TO their new Surroundings.
They are Of much intelligence, and there
are no people among whom education Is
more generally difIused, 1.-THE humblest be-
ing able t. read and write and being
thoroughly conversant with the sages
and the history and laws Of their eoun-
trv
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-08-07
Strategy and Tactics.

\ battle does not consist, rs many i'm
agine, in grand advance Of victorious
lines of attack, sweeping everything be-
fore them, or the helter-skelter fight Of
the unfortunate defeated The historian
must so present it in his descriptions, the
artist in his paintings. Even the writer
of an official account must Limit himself
to the presentation of such moments as
demand special treatment, or to such ep-
isodes as involve important and inFiruct-
i've tactical movements All those events
which are less striking, which pass more
quietly, but which, nevertheless. CON
tribute to the final result, cannot be re-
produced without too much expansion
Those incidents which no account Of the
battle, official or unoficiai, takes any
note ef the thous md and oaeevents OBJ
served only by the participants, the in
Vulnerable cases in which the direction
and control Of aiIlirs glide out Of the
hands of the oifi"ers-these are the little
drops Of water that make the mighty
ocean of battle and determine victory or
defeat.
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-08-07
Good Horses For Farmers.

II more Of the farmers and business
men throughout the country knew the
value Of and the advantage Of having
first-class driving horses there would be
more Of this kind found in the hands Of
those who till the soil for living. The
unallOyed pleasure Of being able to pull
the reins over horse that is well trained
and well adapted TO road purposes ought
to be incentive enough 10 make farmers
want 70 possess something fine in this
line, but the pleasure aHJrded in this
connection is but small part Of the con-
sideration In cities and business CEN
tres the distance from one point 70 anoth-
er is often designated by the number Of
minutes il takes 10 travel it, Thus res
idence Is from three TO i've minutes from
a railroad station or a street car line,
meaning that it takes 80 many minutes
to walk to the station or street ears. II
farmers reckoned the distance they live
from their market, postOi!i,es, churches,
etc, they then might appreciate more
nearly the value of horses that travel
well. A horse that will travel ten miles
while another travels ia. six, will place
his owner Just as near bis objective
points, reckoning in this way, a. the
owner Of the slower nag, although there
may be a difference OF four miles be-
tween them. This being true the All
vantage Of having the better class Of
horses is apparent.--Louisr'le C0urier
Journal
The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1889-08-07
WHOLE NO. 1885.

utes, but it seemed to me 70 be hours
before / at last reached the Messy
white mark, which showed me | had
come 10 the edge Of the qnicksand. It
was only as crossed it and scrambled
down to the shore below that l dared to
see if my worst fears mad been realized.
How can | describe the reyulsion OF
feeling when, as my feet touched the
sand, I heard Ceiia's laugh, and looking
up saw her on the ewe-kneeked mare
within a yard OF me
a Why, you silly boy she exclaimed,
what ever made you came that way2 1
have been waiting here for the last three
minutes, expecting every second to see
you come tumbling down. You ought
to take better care of yourself, now you
are a steady married man."
could say nothing. staggered like
drunken man. For three minutes she
had been standing there within n few
yards Of certain destruction II made
me dizzy and faint to think Of the mar
rowness Of her escape.
At last managed to say hoarsely, "a I
took her horses head and turned ithome-
wards
How did you come here ~
Why, can't you see she said, puz-
zled at my manner and my white, scared
face. When YOU left me in that very un-
gallant way this morning, had 10 End
some amusement for myself, 50 ! had the
mare saddled and came out for a little
ride on the sands"
~Oh may darling my darling can
yon ever forgive rne7" cried. br0kenly-
And then. by degrses, told her Of the
horrible danger that hsd threatened her.
Of my agony, and Of my almost despair
ing climb along the cliff
Her face paled- ~ Ny poor Dick " she
said, as she laid Der hand on my shout
der. And to think how cross was 10
you"
Gross" exclaimed. No wonder.
when -" Bur she stopped me gent
ly'
"Don't let Us talk Of it any more, Dick
And vet, after all She said, a. she wip-
Ell away a few tears, " il was really y
proyidential quarrel, for if we had not
had quarreiIed, We should have gone out
riding together. and should both Of Us
have got into the quicksands."
"Well,r ! returned, the next quarrel
might not be 80 providential. We won't
repeat il; will W., dear2"
And, in spite Of the Blundell tenn
per-" We never have.