Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-07-22
A BURNING QUESTION
Director Sage Talks on Weather
and Crops-.-Praises Times.
Republican.
Past Week Hottest Ever Known
in Iowa...National 6. A. r.
Encampment.
Ants Making a Desperate Fight
in Iowa County-.-Harriman's
Chances.

Special to Thes- Republican.
Des Moines. July 22-,'There," said
DIR. j. r.. Sage, of the state weather and
crop bureau, as he picked up copy of
Saturdays Republican, there is
confirmation of what have been saying
about crops. l have been criticised for
taking the optimistic view of the stua-
ton. The Times Republican has had
the enterprise to get from ninety coun-
ties Of the state direct reports on the
condition of the corn crop These re-
PORTS are from bankers, and they are a
in direct touch with the farming com
munity. and as a result l read that the
corn crop has not yet been injured to
exceed ~ per cent and only about one
third of the counties report injury. Thu.
is in direct line With what / have been
saying all along. OF course l am not
denying that the crops have been in
jured. Everybody knows great damage
has been done. But the tendency OF
everybody is to exaggerate and make il
worse than ii is. The board Of trade fell
lows are on the bull side of the mar
ket all the time and the newspapers, as
a rule, want the worst reports because
they think it Will make a better news
story But the corn crop is not YET
ruined. recall how in 1891, when W.
bad the great drouth and hot weather.
the. f.riparc hepa,y1,4 ,,av,ix :.
reports Went from person to person they
became exaggerated and farmers almost
gave away calves and young stock in
the belief that they would have no fod-
der II took the state several years to
recover from the mistakes of the farm
ssrs- They found before fall that they
could have saved their stock The next
year We had a bumper crop ana nothing
to feed it TO. Farmers have been telling
about this experience and lamentimg ii
ever siree. ] have heard references to il
at many OF the farmers institutes
hope they viii not repeat the mistake
this year There is no cause Tor them Il
become panic stricken.
We are at thu critical stage ia the
corn crop. continued In. weather mar.
The corn is beginning 10 tass4l out and
the pollen is ready to fan. AL this
stage that not Winds can do i5nmense
damage Wataron the roots of the com
viii do bat little good so long as this
aridity continus The little bits Of pol
len are separate thing from the plant
at the time ttey are ready 10 fall upsR
the silk and fertilize the latter. No
matter how mitch water go.s up into ths
plant thru the roots the pollen will not
must depend upon the atmospheric con
ditions. II the pollsn IS all dried up as
Il falls or the silks the ears wlli not fill
cut This is the reason that the few
heavy rains had in the state last week
are doing but little good. for the air has
continued as dry as before and the pal-
len can not do its work This condition
that of extreme not weather with very
dry atmosphere--will soon do much
more damage to the corn than the DRY.
hot weather Of carly in the month Tho
wet weather which may come would
rake fodder and this the farmers may
utilize. am still hopeful however. for
the corr crop Of 1owa and wish to re-
mind ,hs Iowa people Of the history of
other tlrotth wears when everybody was
sure the state was 70 he ruined bur ii
wasn't It paws The farmers least of all
10 yield to that paniclsy feelins"
The records will show that on the
whole the past week was the hottest
ever known in Iowa. The Thermometer
did not register as high in Des Moines
as an the previous week. but elsewhere
in the state there was greater heat The
average maximum temperature tor pes
Moines the past thirty days has been
above %. Saturday the machine regis
tered 103S ard Yesterday il Went 20 lN4
ard remained there two hours. Yester-
day was a harder day on crops than
Saturday. On Saturday there was some
moisture in the air. but before the day
was over 1t had all been dissipated and
sent to the upper regions. Yesterday
morning the Thermometer started out at
81 at Z o'clock n. m. and with this high
temperature was Very dry and hot
wind. The greatest heat appears to
rave been in northeastern Iowa the past
week. The government thermometer at
Elkader showed an average for the
week of 1886 ar maximum. The cool
est day was the Eth. when the ther-
n,ometera got up 70 only 49, owing to a
local rain The day before 1T had regis
tered lO7 and on Saturday last it was
back to lOs. This beats all records in
central Iowa.
Adjt Gen. Newman, of the Iowa de-
yartment. G. n II, has just received the
first bulletin issued by the local commit
tees at Cleveland With reference to the
rational encampment there. The bulle-
tin gives some preliminary information
of general character 1t is evident they
have organized their committees and are
prepared 10 get 10 work. James II.
Blood is chairman of the general COM
mittee on public comfort and has estab-
lished headquarters at the city hall,
where inquiries may be sent. Announce
,nent is made that the Central Passen-
ger Association has made 1-cent-a-
mile round trip rate. and that presuma-
bly, other associations will make low
rates. AS the Central Passenger Asso-
citation covers comparatively limited
area of the country, this is not very en-
couraging. 1t has jurisdiction no fur
ther west than Chicago. A preliminary
program has been arranged. Monday,
Co., ,.,;n ~, 1oyofad IN =,