The McCook tribune., 1897-08-13
ORLEANS TO ATWOOD.
Descriptive Narrative of Beaver Valley
and Adjacent Crops, Resources
and Prospects.


Especial to THE McCooK TRIBUNE)-
The general rain OF the 5th of August OF
six or eight hours duration thoroughly
soaking every part of the Orleans and st.
Francis country and adjacent territory,
has painted the fields once more in bright
bues and robed the verdure and foliage
with a freshness akin to spring. The
scorching heat and withering winds that
blew from the Southland bringing III its
path the dream of brown fields, blasted
hopes and ruined prospects touched not
the fertile valleys and fields of this rich
country as il did the counties OF Southern
and Southeastern Kansas and left them
withered waste Although this belt
was slightly damaged i'll isolated spots
the general outcome is the greatest gen
eral crop that this section has ever wit
messed, barring not the year OF golden
prosperity, 1891. The Beaver valley,
Atwood east, is a garden OF agricultural
beauty unsurpassed, and the year of 1897
is the year of golden laurels for the Or
leans and ST. Francis branch OF the Bur
lington. This is no creation OF the brain,
no vivid imagery but facts upheld by llv-
ing witnesses in the products OF the soil
seen everywhere for 100 miles west OF
Orleans. Innumerable wheat stacks loom
up on the distant divide, purpling alfalfa
on the bottoms, and rank corn that Will
soon bend its amber treasure and pro-
claim that Corn is still King.
From Orleans to Cedar Bluffs is the
alfalfa belt. and although much OF the
Queen of the Meadow is raised success
fully as far west as Blakeman, Kansas,
the bulk of this luxurious and profitable
clover is seen east of Cedar Bluffs or near
the line of Nebraska and Kansas. 1t IS
natural to this locality and does better
here than any part of the West, not bar
ring the valleys of California and Colo
RADIO A gentleman who has taken the
trouble to study the question finds that
alfalfa in the valley of the Beaver is not
surpassed any where in the United
>. y
one field near Hendley went 40 bushels
per acre; go bushels per acre is heard
near Traer, Kansas. A farmer near
Cedar Bluffs will have 10 car loads. Mr..
Bliss field, 8 miles west of Atwood yield
ed 80 bushels per acre; another field near
that place measured 80 bushels per acre.
Rawlins county can boast of the largest
fields of wheat; Mr.. Hasting, near Blake
man, has 600 acres; another farmer goo
acres, and one 100 acres. 200 to 400 IS
a common thing. Rawlins county has
~, 200 acres of Winter wheat and about
$4,000 acres of Spring wheat and $4,000
acres of corn. A farmer near Atwood
sowed 10 bushels of oats and threshed
500 bushels from the field sown with the
10 bushels. Decatur county has $4,000
acres of corn in splendid condition, and
with another good rain will have at least
1900, 900 bushels of corn. The corn and
wheat in Red Willow, Furnas and Harlan
counties are first-class; these counties are
threshing the greatest wheat crop in their
history, and the corn is destined to be
the best ever gathered. At Wilson
vile, Beaver City, Hendley, Stamford,
Danbury, Lebanon, Orleans, Alma and
Republican City comes the daily narra-
tive of great yields of wheat gathered
from farmers while they are unloading
the plump, golden berry of superior
wheat that generally grades No 2. This
wear has been a record-breaker for alfal-
ia; it is so plentiful that it brings only 81
to s. per ton. This is an ideal stock
country, with plenty of corn in sight, al
falfa in abundance, and pure water. 1t
is no wonder that all eyes are turned TO
the Beaver valley af long trains of fat
beeves and porkers phil into Orleans,
/ Nebraska, and the remark is often made,
wonder where they come FROM. A
firm from South Omaha is going to ship
no car loads of cattle to be fed in the
Beaver valley. By what we can learn the
valley will be vast feeding ground this
season for local and eastern shippers.
One thing is noticeable along this line.
and it is an omen of better times, and
that is the new cribs and granaries that
are being built by the farmers, and it has
not been seen for years. In the language
of the trainmen, the ps west of Or
leans are sort of lrackajack". and
any one who believes that this is an ex-
travagant picture, let him come and see
or write.
Hendley. Nebraska, shipped the other
day car loads of wheat and the train all
told had ~ car loads, and still threshing
r has hardly commenced. 1t is feared that
( there will be car famine this season.
All the empty cars have been hauled to
Nebraska points. Business is good both
east and west between Orleans and At