The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1904-08-05
The Farmer or the SEASON.


The late DIR. Sturtevant. one of the,
most noted of the recent agricultural
writer's, in preparing a volume 70 his
essays for publication wrote on one
of the bacl: leaves the following: The
season is much. the farmer more.
Crops follow judgment more than
weather"
There is something in this for he
farmer to think about. 1t is not posi-
BILE by any human Skill to get the
maximum crop from a farm or a field
in an unfavorable season. 1t Is pos
sible, however, provided he is the
right kind of a farmer, a farmer who
has good judgment and has his farm
operations thoroughly in hand to pro-
cure a crop that will surprise the
%neighbors. Corn, for example, is short
and late this year over lmost the en-
latitude OF Des Moines the best corn
should be waist high the Fourth Of
July. Very little of it will be much
over knee high II much of 1t not
knee high on the Fourth; and yet any,
person who travels the road. whether
fields side by side, one OF which Is
knee high as we write dune 22) and
the other not more than half knee,
high; one with a fairly good stand.
averaging two n one-half stalks to
the hill. the other q poor stand, from
one and one-half to two stocks.
Whatever difference there Is, is,
attributable not to the LAND or the,
season. but to the farmer. The owner.
or the farmer of the II may have
had the foresight years ago to adopt
a rotation and stick to it so far as cir
cumstances and seasons would permit.
He has kept his land in good heart not
merely by rotation but by providing
manure by keeping live stock and con-
scientiously hauling it out. The
farmer is entitled for the credit OF
this.
On one field the farmer has been
very careful of his seed. He has
tested his corn thoroughly, perhaps
tested every ear, II therefore has a
good stand, if he has not made the
mistake of planting it too early and
too deep, which is the cause of much
good seed this year failing to grow.
The other perhaps bought seed from
a distance, shelled, did not test it, de-
pending on his own judgment on what
corn to grow without testing Ga weak
ness, by the way, of a good many farm
ers), and as a result he has no stand.
This wa7 not due to the season. bur
his own fault.
The seed bed on one field has been
properly prepared, the cultivation has
been thorough and complete, the farm
err not undertaking more than he could
reasonably expect to get through with.
In the other perhaps the ground was
ploWed too wet, the harrow did not
Immediately follow the pillow, if the
ground was heavy, especially if it was
gummy, clods formed in three or four
hours if the day happened to be dry
and a south wind blowing. which could
noe be pulverized until soaked up by
rain, and sometimes not then. Thus
IN the one case a thorough seed bed
was prepared. while in the other the
farmer is really using only from one
half to two-thirds of his land, because
of a deficient seed bed. This, again,
was not due to the season but to the
farmer.
Given the right kind of a farmer on
land Of which he has had control for
three or four years, no matter what
the season may be, he will produce a
fairly good crop OF corn, wheat, or
anything else; while the farmer who
IS not July qualified for his work., not
efficient in his business, will fail to
make a first.class crop ever on the best
of land and in the best Of seasons
The seasons are ordered by an
Almighty Power. He gives us raw
material in the shape of heat and
moisture and electric currents: and
the difference between the good farmer
and the Indifferent one is simply that
the former makes full use OF. this raw
material, whether 1t be supplied in
abundance or not. while the mar who
Is not thoroughly up to his business
fails to make full use of it, no matter
how abundant 1t may be. Therefore.
let US not lay the fault of bad crops
altogether to bad reasons. The man
VINO Is thoroughly master Of his work
Will not fall down in any season.. He
may nave less or more, depending upon
the season, except rScases where the
crop is destroyed by hail or blown
down by wind or overflowed from
some stream. or destroyed by hot
winds or some new or newly dis
covered insect. No man, however in
telligent, can guard against calamit}es
OF this kind; but, speaking generally.
DR.. Sturtevant was right when he said:
The season is much. tie farmer more,
Crops follow Judgment rather thar