Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1898-05-17

BY reason Of the bad roads, but com
paratively few potatoes have been
moved for the last week. This. to-
gether with the beginning of hostilities
between our country and Spain has
caused quite sharp demand with an
advance in prices for best Aroostook
varieties. Prices, nominally, Hebrons
$1.65 to $l.75, Green Mountains 81 to
$2.15
A good many farmers are greatly en-
couraged by the way potatoes are GO
ing out in price. and possibly make the
mistake of assuming that next fall will
take up the potato market where this
spring drops it. They should bear in
mind that every season gives us an en-
tirely new deal, and above all should
not be influenced by the high prices of
this spring to refuse a fair price if of
fered. next fall.-Presque Isle star
Herald.
Mrs. Frank II. McGregor of East
Corinth. has 1lS hens, from which.
during the month of April, she Matched
So chicks, with five hens now setting
The hens laid 264S eggs during the
quarts cracked corn, and six quarts
bran, mixed, for breakfast, and for
supper four and one-half quarts whole
corn.
\ flock of twenty four hens-all but
four are last years pullets-raised and
owned by f. Walter Thaxter If
Machias, during the month of April.
made this handsome record which he
claims to he remarkable: Eggs re-
ceiYed during the month. four hundred
and thirty-four. Matched out three
broods of chickens and has three more
hens sitting, which leaves the average
number of laying hens for the entire
month at about twenty. The entire
flock has been shut indoors and have
not been allowed to run outside but
two days during the month.
The three creameries in Bangor have
paid out during the past year TO the
farmers within a radius of IS miles of
Bangor about $l15.00o and expect TO in
crease this amount to $500. 900 the COM
ing year. 1t is in contemplation to es-
tablish two new creameries in Penoh-
scot county the coming season. The
creamery at Exeter has removed to
Dexter and will do Il business Of $50. 900
the coming year The farmers at Ban
gor received fer their product last year
a little better than 1G cents pound for
butter fat.
Dwight c. GreenlaW of Belfast, paid
$500 for a pair of oxen. in Brooks re-
Gently. which are worth seeing. They
girt Sla feet and weigh 1850 pounds.
Mr.. Greenlaw has not yet decided about
what Will be done with them. but if
not sold they will he converted into
beef. If farmers could command this
price for oxen it would bc an object
for them to raise them. While oxen
bring good prices they are quite scarce
and very few farmers Keep them. doing
their farm work with horses.
Business is increasing al the Belfast
Farms Creamery. They now have IL
patrons and are using the cream from
$50 COWS. and have a demand and the
capacity for handling a great deal
more. They receive the product prin-
cfpany as "deep-setting cream" of
which it takes IL gallons to make
one gallon of what is known as heavy
cream" From April | to April 90 in
elusive they shipped 200o gallons Of
heavy cream. A limited quantity OF
milk is bought. The greater part of
the product of the creamery is sold in
Boston, but cream for the local demand
is furnished To the grocery stores ana
markets. Butter butter-miik ana
skm-milk are retailed at the creamery.
A tempering vat Of $50 gallons capac-
ity, for pasteurizing the cream has
lately been put in.
There is general impression that the
coming season will see an improvement
in prices of farm products, and that
potatoes viii share in the improvement.
1t would seem to be probable that the
cleaning up of the starch market. and
the upward tendency of most other
food products will give the potato in
dustry better chance. Aroostook
farmers are acting strongly in this i'm
preston of a prospect of Improvement.
and the way they are preparing to put
in potatoes. and the way some of them
are nibbling at the phosphate bait is
rather more illustrative of the provelb
that Hope springs eternal etc, than
it is of that more practical and com
monplace truth that the burnt child
breads the fire. "-Presque Isle Star
Herald.
The shipping season for potatoes
from Aroostook over the r.
d A. will practically close about
May Is and the total figures to date
show that from the crop of 1897, 1881
156 bushels were forwarded as against
2.13llt3 bushels from the crop of 1896.
Prices have remained firm throughout
the entire season and have averaged
al least one hundred per cent. higher
than last year. The returns show that
shipments to New England points
have fallen off more than one-half
while those to the southern states have
been nearly three times those of any
previous years. New York city has
taken only a little over one-thrd as
many Aroostook potatoes as last year.
Reports indicate an increased acreage
this year, not only of potatoes. but of
oats and barley. Aroostook found a
steady market for its 1891 crop of
oats, and it is exceedingly doubtful if
some of the farmers have retained
enough for seed for the 1898 crop. The
raising of barley was by no means I'M
profitable last year While oats We're