Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1895-03-06
barber County all Right.

EDS. INDEX: have just returned from 3
moaths trip 300 miles south and east. While
absent saw great many people travelling in
all directions looking for better country and
an easy job. After careful observation and a
close study Of the situation / must say found
| no place or heard OF none where the people
aredoing any better than righs here in Barber
/ county. This may seem strange to some but
1 when we take into consideration the fact that
we are now living in the second year of drouth
crop failures and q bad government, the cause
Is explained. There is one thing I could find
no where else. We have the best native grass;
the best native shelter and the climate for
feeding stock. and this is stock country in
the truest meaning of the term. You find a
country where it rains, as we feel like we
would be pleased to see 1t do here it is hard
on stock as mud is an objection that feed will
not overcome. A dry country for q stock
country.
have lived in Barber county for ID years
and have never failed to raise feed enough to
| feed 200 head of cattle. l have been little
blue for some months. but a visit to other Sec
tons has given me new courage. One great
trouble with the people of this country is,
| they have depended too much on the wheat
crop. This is a serious mistake. We must
raise less wheat and more cattle. Plant differ
| ent kinds of feed and not be afraid to risk
kaffir corn. If you have a Light crop of wheat,
head it and feed it to your cattle like hay.
Thresh enough for seed. paid one year for
threshing $1,000. Had put that money into
calves and added them to my bunch of cattle
and fed my crop of wheat to them instead of
hauling I. OF to pay interest and taxes would
have had more money COW well cared for
will nav infaroat Now iS ha tirna RI oftnI IN
Barber county. Get a good hold while you
can. Let the people go to the Strip. Arkansas,
Texas or anywhere else, but my advise to
farmers Is to stay with us. / am going on rec
| ord as predicting that the man who stays here
and docs his duty and does It the right way
will win In the end.
We have certainly learned by experience
that we were to blame land not country to a
great extent for being so far behind so far as
| times are concerned. We should not blame the
| country for our Ign FRANCE. This is a liberal
view to take OF the situation. We suffer flnan-
cially by our mistakes as we all know. Grover
| and Sherman haye called us to q show down.
| They hold the trumps. 1t is their deal, our
beg They never give us one in the count. but
| always give us more cards. This we cannot
| avoid in changing our residence. Wherever
| we go Grover is there.
have found in the south they list the
ground as we do, but they plant on top of the
| ridge to prevent it from drowning out. Here
| we plant in the bottom of the furrow to keep
1t from drying out These things all have to
be learned and as we have all learned what to
plant. in my Judgment this county will come
| rapidly to the front. 1 am so thoroughly con.
WINGED Of this fact that expect to make Bar
Der county my home while 1 live. never
found anything unless looked for it where
lost it and never lost anything twice in the
same place. If did it was my fault and not
the fault OF the country.
| In conclusion, want to say to the farmers
and stock raisers of Barber county. raise a
better grade Of cattle and only handle what
you can care for. am safe In giving this ad-
vice by recent observation. A calf should
never be allowed to stop growing. To insure
this 1t requires plenty of feed and good
warm shelter which is so easily made In this
| county, as no cover is necessary. only good
| wind break. The western idea of handing
| cattle will have to play out before We can
make success of it even here. Instead of
| starving our cattle through the winter we
must feed them. We must give more atten.
ton TO weight and less to numbers. Instead of
asking our neighbors how many cattle they
have, we should ask about weight. appeal
to all my friends to stay where they are This
county has done as much in short time as
any other and it win do it again. A change ip
LOCATION will not give you the relief you want
and the relief we oil doubtless need.
CD. SKEEN.
Roundup. Kansas, Feb. 9th, 1885,