Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-07-01
Hon. John Cownie Says Seventy
Five Per Cent Crop Is Best
That Can Be Obtained
DUE TO POOR QUALITY OF SEED
Thinks the State Will Lose Three Mil
lion Acres Of Corn as Result of Light
stand-state Institutions Putting
Up Fruit For the Winter-crops at
Mt. Pleasant.

| Des Moines, July Hon. John
! Cownie estimates the Iowa corn crop
at rs per cent. "The stand will not
exceed &c per cent he said yesterday.
returning from a tour Of the southern
part of the state. IF we have the
most favorable possible weather con-
ditions from now on we cannot gain
to exceed three-fourths of crop.
| There are too many single stalk hills
to permit us to enjoy a full crop II
every other condition from now on
proved absolutely perfect.
There are about 100000 acres of
corn in Iowa this year. We will lose
100000 acres because of the fact that
third Of the stand is lacking. In
stead of three stalk hills, we have two
stalk one stalk and blanks.
This is the nubbin of the difficulty
with the corn this year 1t is not SO
much in the cold weather that we
have had: it is in the poor seed and
the slack stand.
While l was away I saw a farmer
who had a beautiful eighty acres Of
corn. / called his attention to the fact
that not much of it was three stalks
to the hill; he agreed. l mentioned
that there seemed to be lot of two
stalk hills; he said it was impossible 20
get the best seed last year. l EXPRESS
ed establishment that one stalk hills
We're seen occasionally; he made the
same complaint But the blanks
said l. Yes said he. there are a
number of them; the poor seed And
the stalks that we saw in that eighty
acre field would better have been con-
fined to forty; in other words, he lost
half his crop.
The state institution crops are not
that way We have three and half
stalks to the hin, on the average. That
is true at Mt. Pleasant. That Is the
result of selecting good seed"
Are Canning Fruit.
The state institutions are putting up
their fruit for the winter. AT Mt.
Pleasant Mr.. Cownie, wre returned
from the institutions yesterday, said
that 700 quarts of strawberries are be-
ing picked daily by the inmates. Three
hundred inmates are engaged in the
work. When ! got to Clarinda and
told them about that 700 quarts day
business. / noticed that they rather
laughed quietly, but did not understand
it; supposed, indeed, that they Were
laughing because they doubted the size
OF the story" said Mr.. Cownie yester-
day Then they told me that 700
quarts didn't amount to much. They
were picking alta quarts day at Cla-
rinda. The picking lasted for week.
The work OF putting up the fruit is now
practically finished, but they are put
ting up cherries in great quantities"
Plumbing is Costly.
The statement has been made that
the plumbing of the new building at
the school for the deaf and dumb at
Council Bluffs will cost $4,000 and
that the board has put $4,000 left to
do the work.
This is an intimation that the board
expects to let a contract in excess Of
the appropriation for specific pur-'
pose. The law is strict on that SUBJ
ject," said Mr.. Cownie yesterday, and
the board follows the letter of the law
strictly. The plumbing will not cost
$5O.oo0, but we have estimates that It
can be done under the available $780,
cess of the appropriations. The esti-
mates must come within the appro-
priations. That is the case at Council
Bluffs
Crops at Mt. Pleasant.
The Mt. Pleasant insane hospital IS
one of the principal farmers Of the
state of Iowa.
While there this week Mr.. Cownie Of
the state board Of health sold for the
institution 1913 head of hogs. They
weighed an average OF 265 pounds and
were sold to the Morrell Packing Com
pany of Ottumwa for cents on board
cars at Mt. Pleasant. The receipts
from this bunch, added to former re-
ceipts. make a total of $4,000 this
month gained for the support fund of
the institution, without a cent extra
expenditure. The institution yet has
$50 head on feed and which will be
ready to be turned off in a short time
and 900 head yet in the pens.
This is one of the institutions
where it was thought that hogs could
not be raised profltably," said Mr..