The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-03-02

BURNING w sTuMPs.
Things an Ohio Farmer Learned by
Hard Lifts md Knocks.


Things an Ohio Farmer Learned by
Hard Lifts and knocks.
First, l would not use dynamite or
any other explosive, because it is too
expensive and dangerous. From 10 to
Is cents is too much money to pay to
get rid of a stump. l would not W.
care to have them split SO as to start
the fire in the center of the stump. 1
would take an az and cut a notch in a
spur root where l wanted to start a
fire. l would then take anything that
was handy and start a small fire in
this notch, then keep on renewing
this fire, adding larger chunks as the
stump began7to get hot and a large coal
formed. When the coal IN the stump
becomes good and hot, put one stick on
at a time. Go around among your
stumps often enough TO keep the fires
from going out until they are well
| started, and then once OF twice a day
is sufficient.
! never kept al account of the cost
or time that it took to burn out a
stump or any given number of them,
but if | We're taking a job to clear land
as we used to dol would be glad to get
even 5 cents extra each to burn out the
stumps. In fact, l see no reason why
it should cos a p%erceptible amount
more to do so than not to burn them.
| since. once the fire is started. there is
no way to get rid of a log so easily as
to put it against the stump or partly
burned large log and let it burn with
the rest. From my experience l would
think. where two or more hands and
teams are used on a farm winter and
summer, that to take out. say. 100 oak
stumps running from three to six feet
across the stump. say four feet from
the ground, need not be over from So
to $40, while in doing SO every old
stump. old gate or bar post, as well as
every old. unsishtly thing about a
farm that is made of wood, could be
used as fuel. much to the improvement
of the appearance of the farm.
But to get the work lone as cheaply
as | speak OF it would have to be done
systematically and at times when the
hands and teams would otherwise be
idle. To burn stumps out as we sug-
gest patience is required on the start.
But keep on. and in time the stump
will get hot and hold the fire and help
itself in many ways. In my work of
the kind l always carried a rather
light. sharp AK. When | went to a
stump, | struck the burning part of the
stump with the head of the AK so as to
knock the Goals off. Then | would
strike the bit of the ak into the chunks
and logs aid thus lift or roll them
where l wanted them. l had the men
with the teams do the hauling, and l
attended to the fires, using economy
with the fuel the same as l would
have done at the house fire
If / We're taking a job of aeveral hun
dred stumps. | should no, care much
as to whether they We're .9een or dry
unless it should be such as sugar or
beech, which when dry will burn out
with little or no trouble. While | never
kept tab on cost or time of burning
stumps, l would say that from 90 to 80
days would be sufficient to burn out
an oak stump of, say four to six feet
across at the place Of cutting it. If
the stump is old and dry, the spur roots
a be taken out with the AK and used
as fuel to advantage. If the fire is
kept well down to the ground, the top
of the stump can be split off with the
AK and used as fuel. After a good coal
is formed on the stump l would as lief
have green wood, say Il foot in diane
ter, cut four feet long and unsplit. 1T
has cost me many a hard lift and hard
knock to learn the things said in this
letter. | have but one object in writ
ing it, and that is to give others the
benefit of NY experience, says an Ohio
Farmer writer.