davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08
lie Ate His Ell.

"A Ioral clergyman is telling joke on
himself. He went to Chicago on bust.
ness and was asked by family in his
church to call on married daughter
there. The pastor called and received
hospitable welcome. They urged him
to come to dinner, but he had an en-
gagement Then they remarked, "Well,
will you not eat little luncheonp"
The hostess pointed as she spoke to q
small table on which were small dish
of salad, some bread and fruit. "WelI,
don't care if do, . replied the caller,
who drew up chair and began an on
slaught on the provisions He fancied
they had been arranged expressly for
him, and it was only after he had got
through that he noticed the blank looks
of the family. In fact, he had devoured
the entire luncheon which all had ex-
pected to eat.
Madam, what must you think Of
me?" he exclaimed to the hostess.
"But let me beg ofsyou not to judge all
Kentuckians by me-. l am the cole
stupid one in our state"
He was equal to the lady whose
hostess showed her a dish of water cress
at a side table just before dinner was
served. Thinking it had just been pur-
chased, she stuck her hand in the dish
and took handful of it only to find it
dressed with French salad dressing and
prepared to accompany the birds at the
meal. Times.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08
Sanitation.

Was 1t Lord Beaconsfield who. as
Mr.. Disraeli, was once twitted with
being the exponent Of a ..policy Of
sewage?" According to Sir William
Preece. no loftier subject can occupy
the attention of man. and according to
him also. an ancestor of the great pre-
mier-Moses, to wit-was 1.-THE greatest
sanitary engineer the world had ever
known" and the book of Leviticus
was "a treatise on hygiene"
The Jew was the healthiest and long
est lived type of humanity, and the
doctrines of Moses could be summed
up as the objects of sanitation today
namely. (D pure air, ~ pure water. (3)
pure food, ~ pure soil, (5) pure dwell
ings and g, pure bodies. Pure air, he
said. was to be found in lunatic asy-
lums. jails and warehouses;. but not in
our churches, theaters. railway car
riages or dining rooms-even the din
Ing room of your dearest friend
Chambers Journal.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08
THE COUNTRY G1RL.

To the Girl In the Country-As you
get glimpses of the great and busy
old world lying out and beyond the
cottonwood groves, the fields of grain
and the great cornfelds which bound
the horizon of the old home in the
country and read of woman's success
In fields Of art, music, literature, fash
lon and professional life, yoti gaze long
and wistfully, like Joan Of Arc. as she
listened for the voices, hoping that a
call might come for you to make name
and place in the great world beyond
And the life that is yours seems more
and more prosy and humdrum and pos
sibly useless, its duties a never ending
round Of iteration. it's pleasures tame
and unsatisfying, and you dream Of
bright Jewels, elegant dresses, the
opera, the drama, the worlds applause
and devotion, and would that your
prince would some day appear and
bear you away from the fields and the
country home to the Elysian land Of
your day dreams. Now. little girl, lis
ten, and we who are older than you
will tell you the truth-the world that
you so long for is disappointment, an
Illusion. a mirage. 1t is not what you
think 1t is. 1t is not what the books
You read say it is. 1t is no place for
you. 1t is. while brilliant, hard heart
ed and cruel. wrecking and disappoint-
ing hundred girls who are tempted
by its lures where it grants success
and honor to one. The most pitiful
work done by woman is that done by
country girls who fight the battle of
life in our large cities. The competi-
ton is SO merciless. the temptations so
great, the lack Of sympathy SO mani
fest. Learn to be content where you
are In the old home. Borrow from the
world beyond whatever Of knowledge,
grace and culture you can. and there
with sweeten. enlarge and beautify
your country home life. Look for your
prince among the waving cornfields. or
see him caressing the pets of his herd.
and do you, cheerfully and sensibly ac-
cepting the limitations of your sphere
SO train and qualify yourself that some
sweet day you shall be called to minis
ter to and preside over that most i'm
perial Of homes-the home of the intel
ligent American farmer.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08
THE slLo.

A friend asks us: what about a
silo? Will 1t pay man living on an
80 a,.fe farm in the corn belt who
keeps a dairy of - cows, to build one?"
A little on the silo question may in
terest others as well as our friend. AS
might be expected, the silo has gained
the firmest foothold in localities spe-
cially devoted to dairying and in other
parts Of the country where it was i'm
perative to utilize the whole of the
corn crop to the fullest extent, a
and in a more economical manner
than any other known process. 1t has
been demonstrated beyond doubt
that we'll prepared silage Is cheap,
healthful, nutritious and most palata-
BILE food for all kinds of stock and Of
especial value as the staple ration for
herd of dairy cows. In fact the silo
has become as much of a necessity
In all eastern dairy enterprises and in
q large per cent of those in the west
as is the barn which shelters the cows.
The silo represents advanced and, sci
entiflc agriculture and the economic
handling and feeding Of farm products.
1t is not far from the truth to say that
ten acres of corn converted INFO silage
will go as far as 20 acres as usually
gathered and fed in the west. where
the corn is picked when ripe and the
stalks are left to go to waste. When
man has become sufficiently regener-
ated in an agricultural way so that he
wants to get out of old ruts. it will
pay him to look up the silo. 1t is true
that not few men have put money
into silos and made failure, but that
was not the fault of the silo. but be-
cause they did not understand the
process and went at it in the wrong
way. Answering the query of our
friend in a direct manner. we should
say most emphatically, Yes; it will
pay and pay WELL" Now, the first
thing to be done is for him to thor
oughly post himself on the theory of
the silo, which he can do by reading
works which are devoted to the sub
ject. Then he wants to go and spend
few days visiting men who are using
them successfully. and after that he
will be in shape to build one. Knowing
what we do as to the value of the silo,
we would not try to run dairy farm
without one.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08
The Story Of
An African Farm.
Continued from Page 9.

foot. The evening before last, when 1t
was just sunset, was little footsore
and thirsty and went out of the road to
look for water. went down into q
deep little 'kloof.' Some trees ran along
the bottom, and thought should find
water there. The sun had quite set
when l got to the bottom Of it. 1t was
very still. Not leaf was stirring
anywhere. In the bed of the noun
tain torrent thought might find wa
ter. l came to the bank and leaped
down into the dry bed. The floor on
| which stood was of fine white sand,
and the banks rose on every side like
the walls Of room. Above there was
precipice of rocks, and tiny stream
of water oozed from them and fell
slowly on to the fat stone below. Each
drop you could hear fall like little
silver bell. There was one among the
| trees on the bank that stood cut out
against the white sky. All the other
trees were silent. but this one shook
and trembled against the sky. Every
thing else was still. but those leaves
were quivering, quivering. i stood on
the sand. could not go away. When
1t was quite dark and the stars had
come, crept out. Does it seem strange
to you that it should have made me so
| happy? 1t is because l cannot tell
you how near / felt to things that we
cannot see, but we always feel. To-
| night has been wild. stormy night
have been walking across the plain for
| 1,o,, to-, =
wind, because l have seemed forcing
my way through to you. | knew you
were not here, but / would hear Of
you. When l used to sit on the trans
| port wagon half sleeping, used to
start awake because your hands were
on me. In my lodgings many nights
have blown the light out and sat in
the dark that l might see your face
start out more distinctly. Sometimes
it was the little girls face who used
to come to me behind the 'kopje' when
| minded sheep and sit by me in her
blue pinafore. Sometimes 1t was the
elder. love both. am very help
less. l shall never do anything, but
you will work, and l will take your
work for mine. Sometimes such
| sudden gladness seizes me when re-
member that somewhere in the world
/ you are living and working. You are
my very own. Nothing else is my own
30. When have finished. am going
to look at your room door
| He wrote, and the wind, which had
spent its fury, moaned round and
round the house. most like tired child
weary with crying.
EN- woke up and sat before the fire,
rubbing her eyes and listening as it
| sobbed about the gables and wandered
away over the long stone walls.
you have many letters to write.''
she said.
NO" he answered. ut is only one
to Lyndall"
She turned away and stood long be-
fore the fire looking into it. II you
have deadly fruit to give, it will not
grow sweeter by keeping.
Waldo. DEAR" she said. putting hef
hand on his, leave off writing"
He threw back the dark hair from
his forehead and looked at her.
1T is no use writing any more" she
said.
"Why not?" he asked.
| She put her hand over the papers he
had written.
Waldo" she said. 'Lyndall is dead"
| (To be continually
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

ington's birthday and the pirates gold,
Iodine seized his club and made war
upon the hogs. His work done, he
threw himself into his messy nest and
wept and vented upon the hogs all
the abusive words his tongue could
frame. In no other way could he re-
lieve his conscience and the fearful APP
prehension Of what would take place
after Velvet returned.
When the sun had gone half way
down the western sky. he saw Velvet
and Blissful and the children return
ing. His heart almost stopped beat
ing, and he could not Danish from his
thoughts the big black strap which
hung upon the cabin wall. AS his ia
Their and mother came up the lane 10.
dine ran out to meet them, with tears
streaming from his eyes.
ooh, pappy," he cried, ode hawgs
dun got in de gooba patch, n dey ct
up mos all de hills. cou' n hope 1t.
pappy, cou' n hope it. But dun
foun de pitts money. Yo' ain go'n t.
whoop me, is yo'. pappy?'
Velvet looked into the field, and
storm of wrath swept over his face.
"Yo' trifin rapscallion" he shouted.
"Wha' fur yo' dun go diggin roun fur
PITTS money n le' dem hawgs eat up
my goobas? Go in de house dis in
stumps. I'll show yo' how t. dig fur
money wi my rahza strop."
The irate father strobe into the cab
in, unmoved by Iodine's tears and en-
treaties. Blissful fingered by the pea
nut field. Her heart bled for the little
truant. Hearing no outcry. she soon
began to wonder if the strap could
have been lost. Presently Velvet APP
peared in the cabin door and shouted:
"Blissful. Blissful! Cum heah. hon
ey! Yos free. Yo's free! Fdine dun
foun de PITTS money. sho' huff! Cum
in heah, chllum. n gil down on yo'
knees n frank de Lo'd fo' his mussiful
probidenshulums!"
Blissful rushed into the cabin, close.
ly followed by the children. They felt
Of the money and held it up in hand
fuls and poured it back upon the bed in
heaps Of freedom and comfort and
Joy' nGi SoiS ai0uh III Iue SouuuS
of its sliding and rolling and clinking
as they would have drunk in music
from the harps of paradise
Old Bricky led the herd again
through the brush fence. and they
rooted and smacked their jaws over
the feast of nuts but they were all I'M
needed, for to the Brown family the
day Of jubilee had come.
In short time black procession
was on the march from the cabin to
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

the mansion. At the rear was Boots,
preceded by Tadgum. Lucifer, Marine
and Blissful. In the lead was Velvet,
wheeling barrow in which were piled
the silver and gold and the kettles,
while browning the heap sat Iodine.
with sparkling eyes of living jet and a
row of white teeth visible from ear to
ear.
The amount of money taken from the
ground by Iodine was little more
than $4,000, a great fortune to this
humble family. Blissful and the chill
dren were purchased from the old mas
ter, good roomy house was built and
more land added to the farm. Good,
stout fences were built about the place,
and Old Bricky needed watching no
more.
A red letter day-greater than Wash
ington's birthday or the Fourth of
July, a day to be marked by the Brown
family with white stone-was that
upon which the old master drove to
Savannah in his finest carriage ac-
companied by little Iodine, whose
bosom swelled with pride as be
thought of his Importance and con-
templated his beautiful suit of store
clothes. They drove to bank. and
there the master invested $4,000 in
government bonds and deposited them
to the credit of Iodine and his guar.
dian.
On the banks Of the Ogeechee, near
Eden. lives a prosperous colored man,
the owner of large farm and the ia
Their of a bright family Of girls and
boys. Among his most treasured pos
sessions is an old kettle, on which the
following words have been painted,
Neutrality-suspicious."
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

A friend who lives in the latitude Of
northern Missouri was telling us that
for four years he had been unable to
raise enough potatoes for his owl use.
We told him to get his seed from north
ern Minnesota, when he said, THAT is
just what did last year, and had a
good crop for the first time in five
years." There is C point here worth
remembering-the potato is out of it's
natural home in the latitude referred
to; it belongs to cooler country far
Their north. Thus it rapidly deterio-
rates, and the only safe way is to use
northern grown seed. This rule ap-
plies to many other things besides po-
tatoes. AS a general rule to go by, 1t is
safe to say that seed should always be
sought from the north, both Of grains
and roots, and We would include fruit
trees also.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

Ten years ago this country had a
splendid trade in cheese with England
With the advent of the separator came
the. temptation to make the filed
cheese. and American cheesemakers
did not have the moral courage or the
business sense to resist it. So they
went to making filled cheese and pass
ing it off on John Bull as full cream.
with the result that the export cheese
trade Of this country with England,
our best customer, has been utterly
ruined and Canada now enjoys it. This
once again illustrates that honesty is
the best policy.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

We passed by two newly erected
farmhouses lately in northern Iowa.
one Of which cost $1,000 and the other
$4,000. In both cases we happen to
know the money which built these fine
homes was made on the farms upon
which they were erected. Both homes
were equipped with every modern con-
venience. and the owners had each
driven OK teams as they went to mar
ket 40 years ago and lived in old log
houses, through the roofs Of which the
winter blizzard would sift a half inch
of fine snow OIL the. bed where they
slept. Blame these men for building
such fine homes? Not much. The best
is none too good for men whose pa
thence and perseverance have wrought
out the maryels of the western civili-
cation.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

There is one encouraging feature in
connection with the destruction of the
vast forests on the Pacific coast-cl-
matte conditions there are such that no
sooner is the larger timber cut off
than forest Of young evergreens Of
the same variety springs up to take its
place. This rule does not obtain with
reference to the forests of Wisconsin.
Michigan and Minnesota. The pine
once cut there is gone forever. and a
growth of deciduous trees takes it's
place.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

The best reason yet given for the ex-
istence Of the modern trust is as fol-
lows: ut gives the command of the
necessary capital, extension Of the linn
it's of and increase in the number of
the persons interested in the business,
economy in management. improve
ments and economies derived from
knowledge of many interested persons
of wide experience, power to give the
public improved products at lower
prices and still make a profit for the
stockholders and the providing of per-
manent work and good wages for the
workingmen''
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

Iodine Brown sat in big nest of
gray moss which he had made in a
fence corner outside the peanut field,
and he muttered and mumbled and
scolded. Occasionally he would argue
with an imaginary opponent, using all
the gestures with which he had seen
Elder Berry deliver his sermon on
"'Rasslin Wild de Sperrir."
''Now, yo' knows well huff" said
iodine to his adversary, "dat yo' ain
a-treatin O. me right. done drib dem
hawgs out'n de fep mos eber sense de
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

The south is more prosperous now
than it has been for 80 years. The
secret Of larger and continuing pros
perity for that section is said to lie in
growing less cotton. more food crops
and the avoidance of debt by the farm
ers. Ever since the war the farmers
of the south have been a year behind,
eating up this year the crops which
they expect to raise next year, paying
ruinous rates of interest, importing
nearly all their food supplies and de-
pending almost wholly on cotton. And
this. too, with climate and soil which
permitted a greater Investigation Of
crop products than any other section of
the Union.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

trip he made, often saying, snow we
en- buy nanny, now we en- buy NAM
my I'm ole mauss" until he had all the
gold and silver piled in heap upon
the bed. A big yellow piece tumbled
from the pile, and Iodine struck it
back and said, "Gr back dar, Ole
Bricky." And then he thought of the
peanut field and the old red razorback
and the shotes. and he rushed out Of
the house and around to the hog pas
ture.. Faint and sick at heart he saw
the hogs in the ruined field.
Casting aside all thought of Wash
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

The American people used last year
W pounds of sugar per capita. Our
people also use more meat than any
other people on earth. Sugar makes
energy; meat makes grit and courage.
Maybe this fact explains why nobody
can lick us and Why we can make more
money, undertake. greater enterprises
and do more Business in businesslike
manner than fny other people. Men
cannot be great. hardly good. on ra-
ton Of potat}es or rice.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

The western fruit grower and, for
that matter. the eastern one also. who
thinks that the fruit growers of the
Pacific coast have snap in fruit Gull
ture would be astonished to know of the
vast amount of work and scientific
care that are bestowed on the Califor-
mia and Oregon orchards. A man there
who would set out an orange or peach
orchard and then leave it to shift for
itself would be called a lunatic.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

The manila hemp commerce. most
~ produced in the Philippine Islands.
is the product of tropical plant. or.
rather, tree, of the plantain family, in
appearance like banana plant. 1t
grows to height Of about 10 or u
feet. with stem four inches in dame
ter by the time it is fit to strip. at 8
years old. The fiber is contained on
the outside Of its heart Of pith. and
when the tree is ripe for cutting the
native removes the outer bark and
takes the fiber off in long strips. 1t is
then dried and sold to the dealers, who
bale and prepare it for shipment. 1t
makes the best cordage material in the
world. and the cultivation Of the plants
which produce 1t will become one Of
the greatest industries Of the islands.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

Potash is good for all sorts Of fruits.
Thus the wood ashes should be all
carefully saved and applied to the roots
of the trees of the orchard. The straw
berry bed will be greatly benefited by
liberal sprinkling of ashes also and
will produce larger berries and more
of them when SO treated. The ashes
we refer to are those which are I'M
leached. The leached ashes have but
! little value. Coal ashes have none at
all
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

A northern Minnesota dairyman
makes the following nice showing for
a dairy herd for one year ending Dec.
81, 1899: Thirteen cows of grade Short.
horn and Red Polled breeds; average
butter product per COW. 1878 pounds;
value of butter product as sold to
creamery in cream, per cow. $57.O2.
To this should be added the value of
the calves. at this time and of the
breeds mentioned, worth not less than
$50 per head. This is successful dairy
inc
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08
England raises an average Of 81 bush

England raises an average of 81 BUSH
els per acre of winter wheat. Ameri-
cas- average of winter and spring
wheat combined is ID bushels. Meth
DDS of farming have much to do with
this difference; climate more. The low
mean temperature Of England is just
exactly what wheat needs to attain it's
best Development. The July sun which
makes our corn crop ruins our wheat.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

Turnips and corn are in no sense
mates as field crops. The heat which
makes the corn is fatal to the turnip
and the cool. damp weather which
makes the turnip is fatal to the corn.
Ninety degree weather for corn; sixty
degrees for turnips. This is why Eng
land raises turnips and America corn.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

A valuable feature of the improved
agriculture of the present day is that
inaugurated. in some of the eastern
states in the shape of farmers reading
courses. modelled somewhat after the
Chautauqua plan. The course deals
with the elementary principles of agri-
culture and is proving great success.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

A Is acre silo. by which we mean a
silo having capacity equal to storing
10 acres Of corn. will. If properly filed
each year, add 20 acres to the worka-
BILE area of the farm upon which it is
built,
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

A man does not always reap that
which he sowed. for a good deal de-
ponds on what kind of man worked
the land the year before.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

Inasmuch as a hens teeth are in her
gizzard, it becomes evident that an OPP
Grafton for appendicitis must precede
any dental work for old Biddy.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

Axtell, the famous trotting horse
which G. w. Williams sold for $780,
600, is now 10 years old and has so Of
his colts inside the .2;;3o mark. This is
case where blood q has told in re-
markabIe manner.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

A country town is trying the expert
ment of using cinders for street mate
rial with very gratifying success. Gin
ders make good roadbed where the
traffic is not too heavy.
Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-02-08

Exclusive Of grading. culverts and
bridges. it costs S2,427.27 more to build
a mile. Of railway than in 1899 than it
did in 1898. The difference will be
fully as great. If not greater. for 1900.