St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-09-21
But They Are Disappointed
Owing to a Business En-
gagement.
How Fruit Growing Flour
ishes in a Central Mime
sofa County.
A Remarkable Exhibit From
the Fruit Farm Of Mrs.
Staggers.
Special to the Globe.

was up to its best dOingS, the attend
ance was away ahead of any other day,
and the Stearns county yeomanry who
had turned out to see and hear Democ-
racy' sfayorite son were sorely disap-
pointed when they learned that his
business engagements were so pressing
as to keep him away. If Judge Wilson
had been able to attend, he would have
found reception that would have
warmed his heart, and that would have
been in brilliant contrast to the uncom-
fortably wet time Gov. Merriam had of
it on the preceding day.
Still the crowd madeathe most of it,
and went i'll for a jolly time. The Fac
ing was good, balloon ascension a sue
cess, the fakirs worked vigorously, the
hobby horse man put in an extra stroke,
the local candidates interviewed the
constituency, the fair association ex-
chequer Swelled until the balance got
OH the right side; so that altogether Fri
day was tip top day, and everybody
went home from the fair in a good
humrr.
| have not referred particularly to the
exhibit here, because there Is usually so
little difference i'll fair exhibits that a
person who has seen one fair has seen
them all. There was onesdisplay, how
ever, which arrested my attention, and
of which | propose to speak, because of
its possible value in encouraging Mime
sofa fruit growing. 1t was the exhibit
from Mrs. Staggers' fruit farm at Sank
Rapids, and is a display that would do
credit to a California fruit grower. /
saw here the first peaches that were
grown and ripened i'll the open air in
Minnesota, and they were beauties.
Delaware couldn't beat them. and Cali
fOrnia couldn't approach them. Mrs.
StaggerS, who has been in the fruit
growing business at Sank Rapids for
the last six or seven years. explained to
me how she made success with her
peach-grOwing experiment. She Sc
lected hardy variety from nursery in
New York state. Instead of planting
the tree perpendicular, as is the usual
custom in setting out trees, she inclined
it with the top toward the north. aid
then trained the branches so as to pro-
tect the body of the tree from the scorch-
ing sun. Her theory is that the hot sun
is as destructive to fruit trees as the
winter blizzard. She kept the top
trimmed down SO that the tree did not
grow beyond her control. When winter
approaches she lays a broad oak
plank on top of the branches,
which bears them down to the
earth. but owing to the inclined
position of the tree does not break. She
then spreads cotton canvas over the
tree and covers that with straw. When
the snow falls the tree has warm shell
ter all the winter and is thoroughly pro-
tected from all danger of freezing. This
spring when she removed the covering
the peach tree was i'll tuil bloom and
q Of I'm
She uses the canvas covering with all
of her smaller fruits, and has never
failed to have bountiful yield. Her
cherry crop this year was exceptionally
fine. 1t occurred to me that Mrs. Stag
gers is doing good missionary work in
fruit culture, and if our Minnesota
farmers would study her methods we
would have no occasion to send to Mich
igan for apples or to Delaware and
Oregon for peaches. There is no more
productive soilin the world than here i'll
Minnesota. and if human ingenuity
was exerted little more to outwit the
rigOrS of our winters Minnesota would
be the best all-the-vear-round country
of Minnesota soil at the reform
atOry grounds yesterday. AS late
as last May there was four-acre patch
OF bowling wilderness in the Enclosure.
Supt. Myers went to work and broke it
up as best he could, blowing away
stumpS and roots until it looked to be a
waste of time. He planted it with gar
den seed, thinking that by attentive
cultivation he might get enough vege-
tables to supply the convicts during the
summer. As result of the productive
quality of the soil. aided by good
season, the 100 cOnvictS have not only
had enough to supply their wants, but
there are enough vegetables left over.
and of the finest quality. to supply the
st. Cloud market for two months.
1t is not the soil only up this way that
is rich, but the rocks are wealth. The
hills are filled with granite which is
fast gaining celebrity all over the
country. Granite quarrying has be-
come an important industry here, and
is giving employment to large num-
Der of working people. The ST. Cloud
granite is susceptible of very fine fin
ish. 1t is harder rock, and conse-
Quently much harder to polish than the
New England granite, but it is hand
Somer when polished.
The establishment of the Great North
ern car shops at this point is giving a
stimulus to st. Cloud business enter
prise. The city is looking up. and away
up. There is an air of cheerful hopeful
ness everywhere which indicates that
the people realize that the boom period
is at hand. Jim Hill gets a good deal
of cursing from the people of this sec
ton, and, for all | know, may deserve a
good deal of it. Yet they ought to real
iZe that jim Hill has done great deal
for this county. One cannot follow the
Great NortheIn's network of lines
through Northwestern Minnesota with
out being impressed with the magnifi-
cent results that have been achieved by
building these roads. The country is
done in the way of opening up the finest
agricultural region of the Northwest.
The towns and the villages aud the
varied industries are all here, where
there would have been nothing but the
primeval forest and the virgin prairie if
the railroads had not come. Mr.. Hill
may have done good thing for him
self, yet he has been doing something
for other people. His accumulated mill
ions and his high freight tariffs do not
obscure the fact that the people of
Northern Minnesota owe him debt of
gratitude. With all his faults he is
none the less public Genefactor
st. Cloud has model street railway.
pie don't patronize the street cars, and
| am told that, although the street rail
way line has been in operation for sew
eral years, it hasn't made any money.
But it keeps right on with its business
with prOmptneSS and regularity that
would be a revelation to Tom Lowry.
There hasn't been a car to miss the
schedule time in three years. Would
that st. Paul had such street railway
record.
Among other enterprises worthy of
mention is daily newspaper. Mr. Nc
Donald, who is an aggressive Democrat.
has housed the Times in splendid new
building, which speaks well for the
progressiveness of the Stearns county
Democracy. Mr.. Mitchell. who repre-
SCENTS the brains Of the Republican mi
nority. continues to make the Journal
Press first-clasS weekly. Good news
papers, good hotels and good theaters
are what advertise town. st. Cloud is
well provided with the two first named,
but needs al opera house. g. H. NJ.