Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-05-30

III,
The west furnished no less than &c.
100000 worth of horses and mules for
the prosecution of the late Boer war.
q A pair of sparrows will build nest
and have an egg In it inside of "a hours
from the time that the site for the nest
Is selected.
We know of a man who lives in Da-
kota who is trying to raise his fourth
crop of wheat on the same field with
out blowing it.
The heated term during the first
week of May throughout the north
west put the foliage on the trees a
long way ahead Of the corn planters in
the field.
If the grated top Of young tree
seems to be outgrowing the mother
trunk, draw a sharp knife down the
trunk, splitting the bark any time in
late May or June.
We had specimen of the famous
Lawson carnation few days since. 1t
was almost twice the size of any car
nation which we have ever before seen,
almost as much like a peony as pink.
For southern Minnesota and northern
Iowa and kindred ATTITUDES in other
western states the Scotch pine will be
found to be one of the very best trees
for use in planting an evergreen wind
break.
= 1t never pays to keep dairy COW
which is n natural born kicker. No
return which may be obtained from
such COW is any compensation for
the provocation incurred to break the
commandment
4 A good, stout hitching post with a
chain and snap attached Is u conven-
ience which every distant caller at
your home will appreciate. 1t removes
every excuse for hitching horses to
your shade trees. 3
We have friend who always wipes
off and oils his hoe blade when he Is
through using it. 1t is of no use to ask
him to lend that hoe. because he would
refuse even his best friend; then he has
not any boys either.
The desire to own farm is common
to both the native American and the
foreigner. but while the former is ready
to sell as soon as he gets an offer the
latter will hold on to his land for the
purpose of making a home.
The asparagus bed is now generous
~ rewarding the man who had enter
prise enough to set it out and will fur
nish daily dish of most delicious and
healthful green food up to the time
when the first peas are fit to pick.
Complaint is made that some of the
graveled highways caved in, SO to
speak. during the prolonged wet wealth
er of the late spring. The truth is that
under such weather conditions nothing
short of macadam or paving is mud
proof.
One of our most successful rose
growers gets the soil in which to grow
them from a brickyard - clay taken
from depth of eight feet under the
surface of the ground. This he fer
tilizes with COW manure, and his roses
are well nigh perfect.
Our German friends have got on to
new method of making brick by COM
bining 81 parts of sand and 6 parts of
lime and subjecting the bricks nodded
stherefrom to a steam pressure of 100
pounds. giving product as hard and
indestructible as any stone.
A very few years ago we saw farm
er sell so bushels of oats for $3.50.
Last week we noted an advertisements
where farmer had lost check for
$1,000 and $500 in cash from his pock-
ct while going from the field to his
home. Times have changed.
A short hay crop has no longer any
terrors for the man who lives in the
corn belt, for he knows that he is grow
ing his forage crop when he is cultivat-
ing his corn crop. From this on the
hay and the corn crop will be raised in
the same field and on the same land.
The most active thing in search of
food which we ever saw was nut
hatch exploring the bark of tree for
bugs. The eye could hardly follow it's
motions. so rapid were they. 1t seem.
ed as though 1t could make thorough
search Of a, good sized tree in less than
three minutes.
A lady reader Of these notes writes
that she has found an effective remedy
for the plantains and daIdelions which
sinfest SO many lawns by cutting the
plant OF below the ground and drop
ping a pinch OF salt on the root. A
few drops of gasoline will also effect
abe same result.