Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-05-20

sion at Augusta, fTloay, may ~, at
10 A. M.
Next Meeting of Governor and Execu-
tive Council, Monday, May 81, at 10
A. Nj.
Next Meeting of Commissioners OF
Pharmacy at Bangor, Wednesday,
June 8.
State Assessors Will Hold Hearings as
Follows: South Paris, May rs;
Rurford Fails, May II; Pennington,
May 81; Skowhesan, Juno 8; Dover,
JuEe 10.
Conditions at this time throughout
Maine are in marked contrast to what
they were Il year ago. Then the gen.
eral complaint was of the drouth, to-
day it is of the wet condition of the
ground. a year ago the farmers were
telling us that without a prolonged
rain the crops would be utterly ruined.
if they had not already been. Now
they are complaining because there
has been 50 much rain that they cam
not plant. This simply brings out
more sharply the marked contrast be-
tween the two years. At the same time
it calls strongly to ones mind the fact
that it is an impossible proposition to
get weather conditions which will salts
~ all.
The spring of 1903 was an early one,
sleighing being a thing of the past
early III March, farmers were able to
get their crops into the ground by the
early part of April. The result was
that every one was counting upon Il
successful year fer the farmers, the
acreage which was planted was the
greatest that the State had known.
What were the results? April began
with Il drouth and the condition held
throughout the month and continued
through May and until June 9 when it
was broken; n frost came and n major
part OF the crops Were ruined. The
corn crop WAS of no consequence and
the same can be said of the pea crop,
speaking of the State as n whole. In
the majority of cases when the farmers
had good crops of peas they secured
them by planting a second time. In
short about the only crop which was
PLANTED early and resulted good was
the Aroostook potatoes. The farmers
Of that section early in the drOuth be-
gan taking measures to conserve the
ilOtSltAit llit 5IOullu, Dlo-
tecting the crop. They ran their culti-
vators through the fields and buried
the potatoes deeper under the earth
and in this way saved them. Yet, the
day that the drouth broke, the leading
IIoulton potato man told the writer
that unless there came a good rain
within three days it was a fair chance
that the crop would prove a loss.
I.ut the rain came.
Another result of the drouth was the
damage which resulted from the great.
forest fires which ragged throughout
the State from the middle of May to
the ninth day of June, particularly
during the first days of June. destroy
ing thousands of acres Of timberland
worth hundreds OF thousands of dollars.
The present spring has been back
ward and as yet the farmers have no.
where near concluded planting for the
year. Il condition which is due to the
amount of rain which has fallen during
the past two months. Last week,
however. it was estimated that there
had been 10000 acres OF potatoes plant
, ed in Aroostock this year, which indi-
Gates that up there, at least, the rain Is
not holding them back 50 much as 1t
might have. Now, taking the present
spring and comparing it with that of a
year ago, keeping in mind the fact
that last year most crops had to be
planted second time in June, it is not
at all unreasonab BILE to feel that, the rest
Of the season being on an average with
previous years. this must be better
year for farmers than was 1908.
And now q few words of comparison
of the rainfall this spring with that of
previous years will not be amiss. The
| figures here presented We're furnished
| the Journal by Chas. d. Woods, direc-
! tor of the Experiment Station at
| Orono, and are from observations made
there. In the month of April past there
was Il fall of 2.3O inches, against LII
inches in April. 1903. The average fall
for the month of April for So years
past has been 2.S7 inches, SO that the
amount of precipitation in April was
81 of an inch less than the average. In
the first 16 days of the present month
| there had been a total rainfall of 3.O1
inches, against O.73 inches in May, 1908.
The average for May for So years has
been S.4J inches. so that prior to the
rain of yesterday the fall for the
| month WIS NlltllH VI Gil liiIu VI liiC
average.
There is yet another side of the
proposition. Last years drouth was
=, injurious to farmer and lumberman
alike. Not only did it make crops
poor. to n great extent. help to destroy
millions of feet of valuable standing
timber. by making forest fires possible,
but it was responsible for a lack of
water in streams and rivers which
made driving costly business in all
cases and in many rendered it impossi-
bic. This year the rain has made 1t
bad for the planting but, as above in
Dictated. this may not prove very
serious handicap. On the other hand.
it is giving the drivers a sufficient
supply of water and has kept the loss
by forest fires down to practically
nothing to the present time.
On Thursday morning petition was
received at the railroad commissioners
office from the municipal officers pray
;r,r Gov tho ,i,rl,t tp CROSS the tracks NJ