The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1904-12-27
A FARM OF $4,000 ACRES
a GREAT OKLAHOMA RANCH AND
HOW 1T IS RUN.


Proof Flood Proof-system Of Double
Profts-Novsl Farming Plans.
A ranch Of $1,000 acres is not eonsid-
cred extra large when the land is
stocked with wild long-horned Texas
steers and there are no fences around
it. writes the Wichita (Kan) CORES
pondent OF the Sun. But If $4,000
acres be cut up into fields and fenced
in pastures and the whole placed under
one management. it makes a farm
worth considering among the many big
things Of the Western country.
In Northern Oklahoma there lies a
tract of $1,000 fertile acres. all sur
rounded by one fence and under one
management. 1t is known as the 101
ranch George w Miller & Sons op-
crate the ranch property. the land itself
being owned by the Ponca and Otoe
tribes OF Indians. They pay the In
dians S22.5OO annually for the use OF
this land, $125 an acre for farming
land and % cents an acre for pasture
lands
In the Southwest there are many
large ranches and farms. but none
equals the 1O1 ranch in extent. The
Sherman farm. In Western Kansas,
has under fence about 10000 acres.
and there are pastures in both the
Greek and the Usage Indian nations
covering 10000 or 10000 acres, but as
a strictly farm ranch the 101 outclasses
all of them.
The annual expenses Of the ranch
are $4,000. Two hundred men are
employed during the busiest seasons.
fifty TO seventy being employed the
year round. The fence line of the
ranch is more than $50 miles long. The
profits are $3.50 900 per annum.
The 101 ranch is so large that half
the time the superintendent at head
quarters cannot tell where one-third of
his employees are working. That is.
he could not tell offhand, but by con-
sulting his assistant and using his tele-
phone he would have them located.
The season Of hardest work has just
ended and the men are resting after
the harvest. The ranch harvested 150,-
OCO bushels of wheat and a like amount
of corn this summer There We're 5000
acres in wheat and 5000 acres sown in
corn.
The wheat is sold in the Kansas City |
market at from sixty to sixty-three |
cents a bushel. The profit from wheat |
alone this year has been more than
1000. The profit on corn is quite
as much, while 10000 steers are mar
keted every season.
Joseph Miller, once bank President. |
Is manager Of the business affairs of
the ranch. He employs experts in ey-
cry department The. wheat and corn
fields are managed by an expert farm
er. the cattle are bought and sold by
an expert stock salesman. There is
even an expert bunco buster or two
to attend to the breaking of young
mules brought upon the ranch to do
the farm work
The 101 ranch is conducted so that
nothing goes to waste and every acre
Of ground is utilized. There is a sys-
TEN for the management Of each de-
partment.
The system of wheat producing on
The 101 ranch has been widely copied
throughout the Southwest and has been
the foundation Of excellent yields in
many parts Of Kansas. Oklahoma and
Nebraska. 1t is so effective that the
'anch has produced forty bushes Of
wheat TO the acre, while neighboring
farmers have raised less than fifteen.
The average yield is eighteen bushels
% the acre.
The wheat grown on the ranch comes
rom seed brought from Russia and
australia. Some wheat is also brought
rom Paraguay. This is known as
lay frost proof wheat and late frosts
ave little or no effect upon the grow
ng stems.
The corn seed comes from Paraguay
md is said to be drouth proof. The
ost of sowing wheat and harvesting
t. including the cost of the seed. is
sos an acre, while even the most eco
Iomlcal wheat growers of Kansas ccn-
iot harvest this cereal for less than {
665 an acre.
Land that is to be sown in wheat is
lowed in late July and sown broad
asst in Ka1ir corn. In October. after
he Kafir corn has grown several
inches above the ground. the wheat
; drilled in without any other eultiva-
ion OF the ground.
Cattle are then allowed to run on
be Kafir corn until April. Mean
Thlle the wheat continues to grow, but
annot get high enough above the
round for winter frosts to destroy it.
he cattle keep it eaten of at the top |
( the ground and It earns for the own
rs Of these cattle a good profit in fat
leat when shipping time comes.
The EafEir corn when once eaten of
oes not come up again and thus does
OF interfer with the growing Of the
Theat in the spring. On the other I
and, the dry under stubble crowds
ack the weeds, and gives the threshers
clean field Of grain.
Corn planting begins in April. The
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