The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1899-03-09
Charlotte Observer.)


any man in Mecklenburg county who
doubts the ability of the soil of this
section to make family comfortable
living and snug cash income and
profit each year let him Journey TO the
home Of Mr.. J. +. Caldwell, near Da-
wilson College. A few days ago it was
my good fortune to pay visit to Mr..
Caldwells farm. The farm may be
classified as dairy farm, but vari-
ETY. of money crops are grown. Ten
years ago Mr.. Caldwell was a mer-
chant, having been in store since he
was 13 years old. However, his heart
and mind were, from the days of his
bOvhood, on agriculture. Nine years
ago he started out on the work that
he liked and that has proved very
profitable to him as well. He first
bought 80 acres Of land and began
business on a small scale. Not being
a man of much means he had to 90
slow. But to-day his farm is a model
and his systems and methods are the
talk of his fellow farmers. His sue
cess has been wrought by toll and
economy, backed by fine business
sense. His neighbors claim that he
works 365 days in the year.
Here is the way Mr.. Caldwell makes
money farming. The first thing the
writer saw on entering Mr.. Caldwell's
registered Berkshire hogs. They
were fat and healthy. The old hogs
were in pens and the pigs ran at
large about the yard. In the barn
were thirty head of jersey cows. OF
that number but II are milking at
the present. They are well housed
and well kept on peavine hay at this
season Of the year. From this lot of
COWS Mr.. Caldwell sells on the Char
lptte and Wilmington markets 80
pounds of butter every week the year
round at an average OF 224 cents per
pound, netting SlS week or 1886
wear From the barn went to the
dairy. There | saw the milk and then
the butter. There, too, | discovered
the secret of Mr.. Caldwells success
IS producer of such fine butter. Mrs.
Caldwell, his wife, and Miss Tiney
Caldwell. his sister, were there work
ing the milk into butter. Every ves-
sci i'll the building was as clean as
water could make it. There was not
Il negro about the place. The milk
is carried direct from the COWS to the
dairy. 1t is strained three times and
run into DE Laval Baby Separa-
ter and the cream is separated from
the milk. The cream is put in ars
and allowed to stand about n hours
before being churned. The skinned
while warm When the cream is sour
and ready for the churn it is poured
into a ..Reid's Barrel Churn, ten gal
Ions being churned at time. The
butter is taken out as soon as it comes
and is placed in the butter washer.
Every drop of milk is worked out by
that machine and by the use of pad
die the butter is cut and beaten into
roughly shaped cakes. A cake at a
time is put into a printer which
presses it into pound blocks, the
blocks are wrapped in tissue paper
made for the purpose and packed in
boxes for shipment. The box used
is made expressly for butter. Thirty
cakes are packed in around central
box, which contains ice when the
weather is warm. By this thorough
process of separating, churning,
washing and packing the butter is
kept fresh and eatable The machin-
cry in the dairy house cost: The
separator $95; the churn $40; the
washer s.; the printer $40.
For summer use Mr.. Caldwell has q
dairy building over a cellar with ce-
mented walls. The day that l was
in it / saw between $50 and 200 jars OF
various fruits put up by Mrs. and
Miss Caldwell.
Besides making AGO pounds OF
butter last year Mr.. Caldwell grew,
harvested and sold 500 bushels OF
wheat from 20 acres of ground, and
for which he realized 81 per bushel
The land was run in corn and peas
then wheat. After the wheat peas
were sown. From the 90 acres 81
loads of peavines were harvest. And
on other fields Mr.. Caldwell grew 80
loads of peavines and 20 loads o
grasses. On 15 acres he raised l:
bales Of cotton. From II acres he
threshed 210 bushels of oats. He
killed 1000 pounds of meat anc
raised a pair of colts. He raises al
of his work stock. He works two reg
/, ular wage hands and one extra dur
ing the summer.
The cost of producing the 500 bush
els of wheat per acre was: For fer
tiliZers, mixture of cotton seed
meal and kainit, S1.50; preparing the
ground so cents; seed wheat 1925
harvesting so cents; twine for harvest
er 25 cents; drilling in so cents; fol
rolling ground 10 cents-total 81. 60
The straw paid for the threshing.
Mr.. Caldwell is a believer in the
broad tire for wagons. He has low
strongly constructed farm wagon
that has the broad tire. He says it i:
the very thing. 1t will not cut down
Among other farm tools he has ;
grain drill. disc harrow, manure
distributor for broadcasting rough
manure. wheat harvester and bind
er and moving machine and rake
The Caldwell farm contains 21(
acres of land. 1t is cut up in fields
and each field is enclosed by a wire
fence The COWS are turned into the
various fields after the crops are har
vested. Mr.. Caldwell's idea is tc
enrich his lands by rotating his crop:
and broadcasting rough manure
Some of his land produces twice a:
much now as it did three years ago
This is the kind of a man that doe: