Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1903-08-19

be seriously invaded The litera ture
put cut by Superintendent McKerrow
of the farmers institute work is full
OF interest. Our farmer friends and
the women, too, have good times at
these meetings. l was interested in
looking over a recent volume. 1t is
prefaced by saying of Daniel Web
ster: LET us never forget that the
cultivation of the earth is the most
important labor of man" There is a
picture of model barn and yards, and
pictures of the dead of the industry
show the honor paid leaders of the
great industry. The addresses and dis
cussions are often in unvarnished talk,
but full Of good sense. One farmer
asks an expert on chickens: would
you recommend putting eggs into
warm water to make it easier for the
chicks to break the shells" Answer
ga hen left to herself will get off her
nest very early in the morning when
the air is COOL She has her eggs
heated up to 103 degrees or 104 de-
grees. She gets off the nest and the
warm eggs causes the moisture to pre-
cipitate without any additional mois-
ture." Did you know that before?
tbusiastic Over Alfalfa.
Wisconsin farmers who are raising
alfalfa are much pleased. One writes
Of his experience in planting it with
oats. He cut the oats for hay July %.
At that time the alfalfa plants were
very feeble and in spots where the
oats had lodged, there seemed to be
none left alive. 1t grew rapidly,
however, and was knee high by the
middle Of September. It came through
the winter all right, and was ready to
cut the 9Th of June. 81 had three large
two-horse wagon loads of beautiful
hay, from the acre and quarter and
just six weeks from the first cutting
l cut it again. The second crop yield
ed nearly the same as the first, at
least three tons, secured without a
drop Of rain and no Il IS of leaves.
Should l SOW any more, as doubtless
shall, I think 1 would sow the alfalfa
alone"
King Still Writing.
Another stirring frontier narrative
has been added by General Charles
King, the author, to IN already long
list of delightful western stories. This
latest dripping from his pen is IAN
Apache Princess" The scene is laid
in Arizona and the plot has a military
touch throughout. General King is &
Milwaukee man, prominent not alone
in the army world, but as writer Of
pleasing tales of military life on the
great western border. From his pen
Lave come ga Daughter of the Sioux"
"The Colonel's Daughter" Fort
Frayne," and can Army Wife" Gen
eral King is a West Pointer and, like
many OF the graduates from that inst-
tuition has proved himself a writer as
we'll as a fighter.
Working for Ship Subsidies.
Wisconsin is a tough soil for ship
subsidy companies. The big profits of
Mr.. Carnegie and the giant consolida-
tons make the people shy of anything
that looks like favors to influential and
rich folks Nevertheless a good deal
of literature is being sent into the state
at this time. Everybody knows the
American merchant marine has de-
clined until only 10 per cent. of Amer
lean trade is done in vessels built in
this country. In 1861 the United
States had three times as large a ton
mage engaged in ocean transportation
as we now have. The New York board
has a committee at work While the
merchants of the big city are subsidy
men as rule, the campaign of the
board Of trade is an honest attempt to
get the matter discussed in a non-par-
tisan way. Even the opponents of
shipping admit the figures are some
thing surprising. Here are some: The
tonnage in 1910 was 9S1 900. 1t is now,
in 1903, $4,000, and worse still, it
showed an actual decrease Of 5000
tons from the year before. In 1910
American ships carried 91.5 per cent.
of their country's ocean trade, and,
moreover, a great share Of that Of Eu
IODc. LII 1JO1, lIlOUSH e IltIO diLCeiuJ
lost our Atlantic steam lines and our
was falling off, we still
carried $50 per cent. of our own trade
and some of the trade of other nations.
American ships last year conveyed
only S.8 per cent. of our imports and
exports. TwO-thirds of our once great
and powerful deep-sea fleet has van
ished-and not one new keel for a
deep-sea ship is being laid on either
our Atlantic or Pacific coastline. The
United States pays to these foreign
vessels for carrying our freights and
passengers upward of $1,000,0 100000 a
year Probably Senator Spooner had
as much to do with killing the subsidy
bill two years ago as any body. He
was upheld by Wisconsin people.
Students Use Their Hands.
A boy graduate of the Stout manual
training school at MenOmonie tells me
that the institution is important be-
cause it teaches a student to use his
oil h