Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-12-14
5 LOOKER-ON in IOWA.
For theTimes- Republican.

u
Tor theTimes- Republican.
Luverne, Dec. 13.-One hundred dol
! lars for three loads of corn is what
an Iowa farmer received here one day
this week. There is good crop around
here, one buyer c. f. Phillips, is now
taking in 80 to 60 loads of corn day.
AT the same time if another farmer
wanted Il little Christmas spending
money, he could put on extra side
boards and haul in a load of oats and
get S25 to $50 for it, Fifty six cents
bushel for corn and 46 cents for oats
beats the experience of the oldest in
habitant. The writer can not help him
self in mentioning that one day last
July he was riding thru this county
with Poweshiek county farmer. who.
looking out of the car windows. said
all of this corn that is now tasseied
out will not produce bushels to the
ACRE"
| These prices and the good crops
around here have simply driven men
land crazy. This is the way of figuring
by the purchaser. This land has pro-
duced this year 90 bushels of corn to
hundred and sixty acres raises 5000
bushels. worth in round numbers $4,000
Such land is worth 500 per acre and
pays big interest on the investment.
True logic--good business sense in
1901. But it was not five years ago
when the writer saw good sound oats
sell for cents per bushel at Buffalo
Center, and not very sound corn at Is
cents per bushel. And such crops that
year and such prices sent many a
renter to the wall, and many an owner
did not get 500 for his years rent of
the property. 1t can not be disputed
that these sos an acre farms will raise
no more bushels of grain to the acre
than the same farms worth $35 an
acre five years ago. Equally true is it
that per cent interest on $50 an acre
Is just twice what it is on $50 an
acre. All this is known but not real.
lied by many young men and some
older ones who are buying these Iowa
farms at $50 to SO an acre. paying
down $4,000 to $1,000 and mortgaging
the balance at 6 per cent interest.
It's another thing If a rich farmer
who has sold out his farm In Illinois
for 500 an acre and comes out here
and buys 100 acres for $4,000 or $4,000
and pays spot cash. He gets q good
home. He buys windmills, drain TIL
ing. good wells, big barn, feeding
lots, miles of fences and a big up-to-
date farm house with all modern inn
provements. Deduct all of these things
from his $50 an acre investment, and
he gets the land cheap enough. Gets 1t
at price that will pay interest on the
investment in the land, per Sc. This
buyer becomes manufacturer, invest
ing capital In a plant to raise cattle
or hogs. Buys place to keep lot of
butter and cheese. Buys place to set
and sell them at SIS per barrel to our
English cousins. who think they are
getting something nice.
One gets an idea Of the building that
Ia going on In Iowa by seeing in all OF
cur towns the unfinished store build
ing now in process of erection. Literally
hundreds OF brick blocks will be with
out roofs when our regular winter
weather comes Hardly a town visited
for the past month but what has from
two to six or eight big stone buildings
that ito enclose" will require four weeks
more of nice weather. This open win
ter ESQ far) has been worth thousands
of dollars to mechanics who $50 far)
have not lost a day since April /. Farm
crs figure this weather into tens of
thousands of dollars in the saving Of
high priced feeds. Cattle all over this
part Of the state are still browsing on
the dead grass, some of the wild grasses
actually yet supporting large herds Of
cattle. The railroad companies also fig
ure the dollars saved. No bucking Of
snow $50 far) in 1901. Teams and grad
ers are still at work in the cuts.
Every enterprising town that builds
a nice school house, puts in good sys-
TEN Of water works or sewerage, puts in
stone crossings or paves, or builds an
opera house, has right to boast. And
the town of Marathon, with popula-
ton Of 800. takes the cake" on opera
houses. The Odd Fellows of that tows
have Just finished a $4,000 opera house
that would be a credit to any city in the
state. 1t is all opera house and society
rooms-no stores under it, The ground
floor big entrance on Main street, Is
used as the auditorium, while the whole
second story is for the use OF the lodge.
The reader should remember that all
this is in little Iowa town of 500 in
habitants. But one can expect such
things in Marathon It's way they
have.
az Wy1.e7z~A<