Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-01-10

:
Why should one so to the expense Of
srbsoiling mechanically and fertilizing
his land artihcially when clover will do
both at minimum of cost?
When q fire starts on the steppes or
prairies Of Russia, all the people are
required by law to turn out and fight
the fire without compensation.
Replying to an inquiry, we say that
there is no cholera proof breed of hogs.
AT one time 1t was thought there might
be, but we all know better now
Good apples retail in the London
market for from 10 to Is cents per
pound. Here farmer puts FIVE or six
barrels of good apples in his cellar and
tells his kids to so in.
A writer in one Of our poultry papers
Claims that the eggs of .nure blooded
fowls are better favored tsan those Of
common stock. This is not so. 1t is
the food and not the breed which deter
Two or three counties in the state Of
Illinois raise $4,000 tons of the 10000
tons of broom corn used annually in
this country. The men who have been
engaged in producing this crop the past
two years CA start banks and live in
brownstone fronts.
In the year 1896 church situated in
northwestern Iowa bought 1000 bush
els of corn for 8 cents a busheI to use
MS fuel to warm the edifice through the
winter. Pound for pound it made as
much heat as soft coal and cost one
third less. This will never occur again.
We know of few men who have
saved few acres of the original tim
Der grown on their farms and are doing
some forestry work on sensible plan.
These timber tracts are carefully thin
ned. and trimmed each year, and these
natural groves are the most attractive
things to be seen on their farms.
We saw a lot of nice e-year-old apple
trees the other day which the rabbits
had finished up by barking the trunks
from the ground up to point as high
as they could reach. The owner of the
trees was blaming his bad luck, when
III he had twisted rope of hay and
wound it round the trunks of the trees
the, rabbits would not have touched
them.
n The Russian apples very clearly have
great field Of utility in all that far
northern territory where apples of the
American type will not grow. We have
good reports of these Russian apples
from Manitoba and believe that their
introduction has extended the apple
growing territory of the country 200 or
300 miles north of where it was sup.
posed to end.
When man can turn out a steer calf
and not only have it grow to maturity,
but fit itself to sell as choice beef in the
stock markets without feeding it
mouthful Of hay or grain, as Is done in
Montana, such beef producer has ali
immense advantage over his brother Of
the corn states who must put $50
worth of food and care into $50 steer
to fit him for market.
& We have been eating lately Wealthy
apples held in cold storage, and, COM
pairing them with King apples grown
In New York, the Wealthy is the better
apple. Inasmuch as the Wealthy can
be raised In unlimited quantity all
through southern Minnesota and north
eSn Iowa 1t would seem as though the
problem of winter fruit for that sec
tlon was happily solved
The washing and leakage from the
barnyard should be utilized. instead
of letting it run to waste to befoul the
waters Of the creek plan to divert 1t on
to the garden and small fruit and then
Just see things grow. They used to do
Just as you are doing so years ago
down east and now they are obliged
to pay $40 ton for some stimulant to
ginger up any sort of a crop.
i The older the sow becomes in the ma
ternity business the better work she
will do. A pig from 6-year-old sow is
worth one-half more than one from
year old SOW. Never mind if the ma
iron does get to weigh 500 or 600
pounds. II she will raise you two lit
tiers Of ten pigs a year. she is the most
profitable breeding animal you have on
the farm. Never figure up what she
will bring you to sell for pork.
i We confess that we do not under
stand the value Of a government crop
report such as that for November, 1900,
which credits Vermont, Wisconsin and
Minnesota with an average crop of
corn for the year of 40 bushels per
acre and quality of crop of 81. 4
and l96 respectively. when it credits
i1oyva the rreatnst corn state in the