Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-11-28

We never know any craze to subsidc
more quietly and completely than the
late Belgian hare craze. The enthusi-
asts who put $3.50 into pedigreed ru-
fous brown Belgian buck hare year
or so ago are keeping very quiet. BY
the way, was there ever any demand
for hare meat at 25 cents pound?
There seems to be a chance of saw
ing portion of the forests of CaIifor-
MIA by reason of the general use Of oil
for railway and furnace work. The
shelters In just one county in that
state have been using 100000 cords Of
wood annually and are hereafter to be
supplied with fuel oil in place of wood.
Ii we were a young man Just start
ing In the stock business. either dairy
Ing or beef production. we would rath-
er have 500 invested In one thorough
bred COW than three scrubs at S33
each. 1t would take little longer to
get started, perhaps, but when once
started it would be on the right road
to success.
A recent invention which makes pos
sible the utilization Of the straw pro-
duced on the treeless plains of the
northwest as q fuel for domestic use
Is attracting some attention. The proc
ess involves the boiling and naceration
of the straw and the pressing of the
product into suitable shape for use,
this straw fuel having. it is claimed.
an equal value with wood when so
treated.
We have mentioned 1t before and will
clio 1t again-if a sure, certain stand of
clover or alfalfa is wanted 1t must be
sown without nurse crop. If a wet
nurse did for the infant intrnsted to
her care what the so called nurse crop
usually does for the clover crop, she
would have nothing to show when fall
comes but little, starved, skinny
piece of humanity, which should be a
nice, fat baby.
Apple orchards in Nebraska seeded
down with alfalfa show remarkable
thrift, vigor and productiveness COM
pared with apple trees on the same
soil and under the same local condi-
lions simply cultivated and kept clean.
The alfalfa fertilizes, subsoils and
shades and cools the earth around the
trees. Where alfalfa will not grow
clover comes the nearest to doing the
same good work.
The weather prophets are now being
heard from as to the sort of winter
weather in store. Just pay no atten-
ton to their predictions, for there is no
one who knows anything about the
weather ten days ahead. Just fix up
everything snug and warm and get in
for hard winter; then, IL
we should have mild one, there's no
harm done. North of latitude 40 it is
SAFE to expect snug winter as gem
eral thing.
When an average of three kernels of
corn is dropped in each hill, how many
barren stalks will there be when husk-
ing time comes? Well, patient inyes-
t1gator counted the barren stalks in
such field and found 80 per cent
sterile. which would seem to indicate
that an average Of three stalks OF corn
In a hill is too many by one-third. We
have long believed that corn is usually
planted too thick to obtain the best re-
suits and propose to carry out care
full test the coming season to see if
two in hill are not nearer right than
three.
A very sensible and economical meth
cd Of fish distribution is being used by
the state fish commission Of Iowa and
also by the United States fish commits
sioner in supplying the rivers and
lakes of Iowa. Wisconsin and Mime
sofa with young fish. The bayous of
the Mississippi river form ideal spawn
Ing grounds for bass, pike and crop
pies, and as the waters recede in mid
these young fish are left en-
tirely protected from their natural enc
mics, the larger fish. In the fall these
bayous are seined and the young fish
by the million. They are then
transported in specially constructed
fish cars to any point on the lines of
railway. The supply from this source
Is practically inexhaustible.
We noted pretty level headed farm
er, in general way, taking out to his
farm to place at the head of his herd
Of brood sows little eighty pound
boar pig. when nothing is more certain
about the probable cause of hog chol-
era than this thing of breeding from
immature parents. The aged boar is
not pleasant animal to have around
On farm, but he is absolutely indis-
IL healthy and thrifty pigs |
are expected. The Poland China hog
Of the standard type of the country
should under no circumstances be per-
nitted to reproduce its kind until they,
10th GIRO opd dam ora ot loo,+ o,,o e,,,I |