The Jasper news., 1901-09-26
A LETTER FROM MICHIGAN.
Mr.. Page Writes Entertainingiy
From That State.
ELwRLL, Mick, O. l3.l9Ol.

JASPER NEWS;
As we have been here long enough
now to know tho difference between rain
and no rain, corn or no corn, thought
would write you letter and IL might
be thai ,me fyour readers would like.to
know where we are and what kind OF a
place we have struck.
We left there on tho 1912 train Aug
ust 4, and reached here the next night
st o O'Clock. We found everything
green and nice. Corn is good crop
here; wheat was good, hay good and al
so sugar beets. As there is sugar fac
tory here there are seven or eight thou
sand acres of beets and they are choice
crop. Some nre beginning 10 harvest
them. They are drilled in as early in
the spring rs the ground will do to work
up until the first OF June. Mostly with
har d lril's at the rate Of Is pounds o. seed
TO the acre and when the beets are we'll
mp out Genes the hand cultivator and at
the second cultivating the hoe takes its
place in block ing out as the rows are
lrilled sixteen or twenty inches apart
tho beets are thinned to from six to
sight inches apart in the row, So there
is a spot chopped out that long and then
lbout two inches left, then another
chopped out. Then comes the wedding
by hand which has to he done twice and
then later the big weeds that we're hid.
den when the weedcrs were there must
be pulled. When G bects get four
iLches high they bring out the horse
aud cultiyntor and take two rows at
time. When the crop is ready to har-
vest they use what they call beet litter.
1t is made with beam and handles asa
cultiyator but has two heavy iron stand
lrds eight inches apart and eighteen
inches high with wedge shaped feet or
plows so when they are run one each
side Of u row and eight inches deep they
will wedge or raise the beets enough TO
loosen them then they are pulled up and
thrown in rows; then they are all topped
by hand with big knife, enc at time
the factory il they can use them, il not
they are piled in pits three feet wide and
"a long rs you please and covered with
dirt only and when they are wanted
they are drawn in. So you see it takes
lJts of help to grow big acres Of beets.
| will drop the beets now and come
again when l see more Of it. | hope TO
be able TO give you description of ia1-
tory and process Of manufacturing.
have been working most OF the time
since came back but at present am u1-
der the care of a doctor for bad lungs.
When went to Missouri my weight WAS
170; when left, 15i aud l4S with hopes
OF change soon. Mrs. Page and L. j.
are about as when we left there.
l hear that the boys around town
made Mr.. Busby's watermelon patch
call between two days. Well, that was
what expected when planted them
but MIR. Busby was not as free as had
calculated TO be. | had figured on fill.
ing a lard can with powder and burying
in the middle of the patch with fuss
attached and when the bell ratified |
would set the fuse afire. OF course
such fellows would not be mourned long
anyway.
We have no apples here to speak Of.
| wish VIM. st John the hest of success
with his apples this season. Possibly it
may revive some one else to tako up
spraying and don't forget to cultivate
aud prune the trees.
Well, sood by, | will come again and
will look for you once ek. Tell
what tho weather is there. Fine wealth
er here and no signs of any frost yet.
A. PAGE.