Hutchinson gazette., 1898-04-21

Massachusetts.
Plenty of rain is reported in Morris
county this spring, but the crops are
somewhat backward, due to the late
spring.
Conditions are reported favorable in
Riley county for crops. The fruit is
coming out finely with the exception
of peaches.
Glen Skinner, of Howard, passed a
rafting good examination before the
military board for admission to West
Point, and then was let out because he
was too fat
A Kansas farmer says that the pre-
sent is good time to burn all the old
grass, stubble, ETC., around the fields,
as it will prove an Knockout blow to
the chinch bugs.
In Labette county many oat fields
will be planted to corn. Some pieces
of wheat have been badly damaged by
hail; outlook is bad for oats, garden
truck and peaches
In Lyon county severe frosts nipped
the early peach and apricot buds, but
abundant rains have soaked and pack
ed the ground for the warm winds to
hurry vegetation.
Part of the early sowed oats have
been killed by freezing in Marshall
county, but that sown later seems to
be all right. Wheat is doing fine and
peaches promise fair crop.
At a German picnic near Colby the
other day five buns were tied to five
strings and suspended in the air. Each
of five boys had his hands tied and
then they all sailed in, the boy eating
up whole bun first winning the con-
test.
Wheat in the eastern division Of the
state is in fine condition and coming
well forward, but the cold, wet ground
has materially injured oats sown be-
fore March 90, necessitating much re-
sowing, Pastures are coming out slow
ly. Some peaches and many apricots
destroyed; other fruits not injured.
1t is about time to plant alfalfa, and
there is hardly better crop for Kansas
in its line. All the critters will eat it
green or dry. Hogs, cattle or horses
devour it with avidity, and good
stand of alfalfa is one of the most de-
sirable crops to have on the farm. 1t
is on this crop that the first bottom
farm scores.
Reports from Coffey county show
that farm work has been retarded by
the cold, wet spring Wheat is doing
well, but oats are injured some by
freezing; no fax sown yet; some corn
planted March 9th is sprouting now;
fruit safe yet, except apricots, some of
which were killed; ground still too
wet to work.
c. B. Daughters, the well known
Lincoln attorney, is something of a
farmer himself. At the Lincoln coun-
ty intitute he read a paper on Thor
oughbred and Scrubs" and showed
how there was no excuse for the pro-
gressive farmer to keep his yards lum-
bered up with scrubby cattle. Daugh-
ters trots in the thoroughbred class.
With the exception of few good
producers that were shut down for re-
pairs, all the diggings at Galena are
running full time, each one determined
upon raising as much ore as possible.
During the last week the result has
been that nearly 100000 pounds of
zinc ore was put into the various bins,
3,O75, $50 of which was sold and ship
ped. The average price paid was sees
per ton for zinc and s91.5O per thou
sand for lead.
Two Mormon preachers have been
making house to house canvass of
Mcpherson county with view of Sc
curing converts to their religion. They
began last August and completed their
work few days ago. They carry no
money with them and depend on char
ity for subsistence. Although they
claim to have visited every family in
the county they have not made single
convert. They belong to a company of
Mormon missionaries sent into Kansas
and working in pairs, two to coun-
ty.
Superintendent Stryker has prepared
a lecture which he means to make use
of at school meetings throughout the
state in which he draws comparison
in the expenditure of funds for taking
care of the criminal classes and in edu-
eating the children Of the state. He
says that the cost to county for the
transportation of a prisoner to the pen
itentiary is from one to three times
greater than the average monthly sal
airy of the Kansas school teacher, and
that in the majority of cases the con-