Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-08-29
He IS PROGRESSIVE
The Farmer Is Catching Up" With
His City Cousin.
is USING THE TELEPHONE MUCH
The Advantages of the Telephone and
of the Rural Free Delivery Are Max
ing the Farmer and the City Resi-.
dent Even.

The farmer is being given so much |
with which to keep in communication
with the outside world that he will
soon be as up-to-date as his brothers
of the towns and cities, and in addi-
ton will have the advantages of the
farm, which. as everyone knows who
was ever a farmer, are great:
Rural Mail Delivery.
Rural delivery of mail is system
that did more toward bringing the
farmer in touch with the world than
anything else has or had ever done.
The rustic who went to town once in
a week or maybe only once in two
weeks, now gets his news from the
outside world every day. He can al
so register letters with the carrier
and carry on business as if they were
on opposite sides of brass grating
in the postoffice.
The Telephone.
But the rural delivery is no greater
an advantage than the telephone be-
tween farms and from farms to cities
The lack of rapid communication be-
tween the farmers is their greatest
drawback. With some means quicker
than that of riding on a horse, much
could be accomplished that goes I'M
done. Lives might even be saved
when they are lost. The telephone
makes it possible to be in instant COM
munication with places at any distance
and the farmers are beginning to I'M
derstand the great benefit of the sys-
TEN.
Drawbacks.
The cost of poles is one of the great
est drawbacks to the success of the
country telephone line. Suitable
poles must be shipped from a distance
and then hauled to the places where
they are to be used. All this takes
money and the farmer is no man to
jump at chance to spend money on
new plan. However, the cost de-
creases when the number of sub
scribers increases, and the system can
be installed without draining any
pocket books.
Bloomfield Man Progressive.
w. J. Steckel, of Bloomfield, who
has farms in almost every part of Dav-
|
ephone from his residence to the near
est farm and on around the line The
scheme will cost a good deal of mon
ey, but Mr.. Steckel thinks that the re-
suits will justify the expenditure.
| In other counties than Wapello i'll
| this state there are several telephone
/ lines used by farmers and owned by
companies. These lines have their
| benefits, but do not satisfy quite as
well as the Independent system. Their
greatest benefit, however, is that they
allow communication over the lines
of the telephone company in the near
est town, which is not granted by the
companies to the independent lines
| In Missouri and Kansas there is a
system of pushing the sales of tele-
phones among the farmers which is
sure to benefit the farmer and the
salesman. Alonzo Burt, manager CT
1 the Missouri and Kansas Telephone
company, looks forward with conf.
dence to the time when every farmer
living near town or city will have a
telephone in his home, and will use
it as frequently and advantageously
as the busiest man in the largest city
The Missouri and Kansas farmers
take hold of the scheme with interest
as is shown by the statements of Mr.
Burt in an interview with a newspaper
reporter:
Many Country Subscribers.
About fifty farmers living neal
Smithville, in Clay county, now have
phones. About twenty living neal
Lees Summit have been "connectef
up" and good exchange, most of the
, subscribers to which are farmers, has
been put in at Harrisonville. The
farmers of Kansas, always up to date
whether in the matter of telephones
, telegraphs or steam plows, are keep
, ing up with the procession. The Mis-
souri, and Kansas company has estab
lished party lines out of Newton
Strong City, Bonner Springs, Cotton
wood Falls, Derby, Mulvane and hal
dozen other points. 1t also has part,
lines out of Ponca City and few 9th
er places in the Indian Territory an,
Oklahoma, by which ranchmen kee
themselves connected with each othe
and the outside world.
Another place in Missouri where tn
farmers are literally patronizing tn
company is Greenwood, Cass county
There are 100 phones in the Pleasan
Hill exchange, a large proportion O
which are in the homes of farmers
Twenty-Five farmers living aroun
!, Montrose, in Henry county, are sim
= larly equipped.
Nose Harvey has a large shee
: ranch near Leavenworth, Kas., and j
: interested in the live stock bushes
: in Kansas City. He lives on tn
ranch, and directs his business in Kan
! sas City by telephone. DR.. ]. w. Pc
= kins, who has fine stock farm nea
: Parllville, Mo-, reverses the process
: !. He lives in Kansas City, and uses tn
telephone to direct the daily oper;
I tons on his farm.
With Independent Companies.
. Farmers in northwest Missouri hay
not been slow to grasp the telephone
advantages. Independent companie
control large part of the business
that section. David Rankin, the mi
lionaire farmer at Tarkio. Atchiso
county, owns large interest in one {
them. He has LOO acres of land
Atchison county, which is divided I'M
fourteen ranches. Formerly "Unc
lJlovavD rnaa oil day 1ouer in hfc hung