Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-05-21

The predictions of any man thirty
Gays ahead on the weather are abso-
lutely valueless.
1t is rare that a man plants tree
and does not take real pleasure in
watching its growth and development.
The gopher which pulls up your corn
puts in good part of his time digging
the cutworms out of that which he
leaves.
If you want fine and tender lettuce
set some young plants out in rich
and mellow soil and let them grow and
head up like cabbage.
A friend tells us that If the ground
under a plum tree is given a good coat
ing of hen manure the curculio will
let the tree alone. We will give this
a trial and report.
Cold storage eggs have gone into the
coolers this year at 161a cents, and the
demand for this purpose has been so
sharp that the producers have received
the best prices in years.
The dry May makes the light hay
crop. There is one thing about the
light crop Of hay-what is secured is
worth a third more than the rank,
mushy growth Of wet season.
We wonder if the boys and girls ever
noticed that when a dove drinks it
drinks just like a horse and never
takes a sip of water and throws up it's
head like most birds. You watch one
drink and see.
Poultry raisers bring in a justiflable
indictment against the crow. This
black pest will make wretched work
with little chicks and is far more to be
feared than any Of our hawks. The
house cat also and the barn rat have
to be watched.
Where extra horses have to be kept in
reserve for emergencies in farm work
they should always be well bred draft
mares which can bring their owner a
good colt each year. The unused geld
ing is very improbable animal to
have on the farm.
The handsome prize of $4,000 Is Of
fered for process which will utilize
California grapes containing over 20
per cent of saccharine matter in the
production Of tartaric acid. This prop
csition has so far baff1ed the expert
chemists Of the country.
Because the high wheeled wagon
runs easier than the one with low
wheels it does not follow that the disk
harrow with eighteen inch disks runs
easier than the one with disks Of four
teen inches, the latter being Of much
lighter draft than the former, doing
the same work.
The state of Florida promises $780,
600 boxes of fine oranges for the next
crop. Inasmuch as this Florida fruit
is able to secure water transportation
instead Of the long and expensive rail
way haul from the coast, it goes with
out saying that the Florida orange
grower has the advantage of his Cali
fornia brother.
There will be flush times in Cubs
soon. There is the distribution Of thu
$35,OO0,OO0 war loan which goes to pa.
the Cuban soldiers, coupled with ;
balance Of trade in favor of the island
growing out Of its splendid crops o
sugar and tobacco, estimated at $5S,
100000, and it is easy to see hoV
things will boom there.
Just SO far as your wife or daughter
feel like working in the garden en-
courage them in it. 1t will save yo1
some work. and then it is good TO
their health. If American womel
could exchange fretting and worryin
over pink teas and the cut OF thei
clothing for outdoor work and fresl
air, fewer babies would have to b
brought up on bottle.
We notice that man in Illinois VIII
had nice orchard of 100 four-year-ol
apple trees lost every tree by mic
glrdling them during the winter, an,
another case where these same fell
mice worked their way into a packin
cellar of one Of our large nurseries an
destroyed several hundred dollars
worth Of trees which were stored there
in for spring delivery. This is one Q
the penalties we have to pay for xii
| ing of all the hawks and owls.
The black gumbo soils, whether the
are located in Minnesota, Iowa or Ill
nois, must be tile drained in order t
secure the best results from them. l
| dry seasons they will produce grea