The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-10-12
FARMERS ENCOURAGED
Long and Unprecedented Drought
Finally Broken.
RAIN FALLS IN SEVERAL STATES.

Countless Numbers of Farmers Hailed the |
Downpour as Their salvation from Heavy |
Misfortune-Chancef for Getting Some of |
the Fall Flowing Done Now-Cattlemen |
the Only Ones who Have Profted by the |
Long Dry Spell.
Chicago. oct. 12.!The first signs or |
promise in many weeks appeared to the |
farmers Sunday throughout the west |
ern states. general opening of the |
clouds moistened the parched earth just |
enough TO awaken the belief that the |
end of the almost unprecedented drought
is at hand. In nine of the dozen or
more states afflicted by the blighting
dryness showers fell with gentle force
sufficient to soften the hard crust that
has been baking for weeks on the fields
and prairies. That there is still more
rain to fall within the next twenty
four hours is the prophecy of the
weather wise.
A hymn Of thanksgiving mingled with
the falling of the rain in hundreds of
localities. Countless numbers of farm
ers hailed the showers that visited their
acres as their salvation from heavy mis-
fortune. For days and days they have
been waiting for a favorable time TO
put in their winter wheat.
Dust Followed the Plow.
Such ground as would permit plow-
ing at all was so dry that clouds of
| dust followed the plows across the
| fields. The fields that had been planted
early in the beginning of the drought
with winter wheat promised nothing for
| lack of water on the tender sprouts.
I 1t is now believed that much of the
ground can be put i'm cultivation in time,
| taking 1t for granted that the drought
| is broken. Hope is held out by the
weather bureau TO all sections of the
middle and western states Showers are
| predicted for all over the country with
| but little change in the temperature.
| The reports received from the govern
ment signal service showed that rain
has fallen very generally in Colorado,
Nebraska, Kansas Missouri, Iowa, Min
nesota, Wisconsin, upper Michigan and
Illinois. Without being a heavy rain
| it was steady in it's fall, and accompa
MED with signs indicating a continuance
Of several hours Professor Garriott
did not feel justified in predicting for
more than twenty-four hours in ad-
! vance.
In Nebraska and Kansas,
The visitation in Nebraska is the first
! rain of any consequence that has fallen
in that state for six weeks At 10 o'clock
Sunday night it had been falling nearly
thirty-siX hours steadily Suffering
Kansas got her first wetting in two
months Sunday afternoon, when a light
rain began TO fall. with conditions indi-
1
ceived her share Of the rain at the same
time. The clouds brought a slight show
er to Chicago Sunday night as a fore
runner of the soaking in store for Illi-
nois In its effects upon the future
crops the damage wrought by the
drought cannot be estimated for many
days, in the opinion Of experienced OBJ
servers. On regular cultivated soil.
grain men declare the contracted wheat
area merely means a larger corn acre
age next year, but this does not apply
to the vast acres of prairie ground that
have never been touched by a plow.
Much of this virgin prairie sod was to
have been turned over this fall in Ne
braska and Kansas, but the drought has
made it necessary for this work to be
left over.
Too Late for Such Work.
To make such land available for next
years use it must be plowed in the fall
and left to the elements until the next
spring. 1t is too late now for such work
to be carried out to completion. One
consolation has been found i'm the
drought by the stock growers. while
the farmer has found nothing to com
pensate him for the loss of his winter
wheat prospect. The cattlemen declare
the prospects for abundant and fine
| grazing on the ranges have not been so
( good i'm years. The grass has been eX-
tremely well cured by the protracted
dry weather. and this fact is encourage
ing to the men who count their wealth
by the head. Their only anxiety has
been to supply their cattle with water
sufficient to keep them alive. Now that
the rain has begun falling their cup
of joy is full, as they see the ponds and
creeke and wells once more available.