Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-12-19

Poverty with man and sterility with
woman incline them to dogs. The man
wants something to boss, and the wom-
an accepts the dog as poor substitute
for baby.
The fact that man works on a
farm is no excuse for his going around
looking like tramp. The standing Of
man is bound to depend somewhat
on his personal appearance, otherwise
he would have been made like mon
key.
With the exceedingly low price at
which most Of the best periodicals can
be secured, no farm home can afford to
be without them. There is no one thing
which enters so far into the making Of
an educated and broad minded person
as the ready access to and use of good
reading matter.
During tho period OF twenty-five
years when the present perfected farm
machinery was being developed there
might have been some excuse for
throwing aside machine half worn
out for new and better machine, but
today it is hardly possible to further
improve farm machinery, and better
care should be given to 1t to secure
longer life Of usefulness for it.
Corn and alfalfa make the best COM
bination of any ration produced in any
country. Heretofore 1t has been as
sumed that only in very limited area
Of the country could these two crops
be grown on the same farm, but it is
being discovered that over quite large
section Of the corn belt the alfalfa may
be grown If right methods are pursued.
The combination makes an almost per-
fectly balanced ration; hence It's great
value.
It will often be found that tile drain
age will be almost as much benefit to
some Of the billy farms as the fiat and
wet ones. it being popularity Of the
rolling land that the water will be
found close to the surface In many
places in seeps where the crop will suf-
fer from wet feet just as much as on
the low land. During a recent trip Of
hundred miles we found hardly
single farm upon which more or less
tile draining could not be done to great
profit and advantage.
Now that the crop season Of 1905 Is
over it will be good idea to look over
the years experiences and see where
the mistakes were made. Perhaps it
will be found not enough care was tax
en- to secure good seed corn, and the
cornf1eld shows only go per cent stand
when it should show up 81 or 90. Per
haps the sod land upon which it was
planted was not plowed at the right
time and the cutworms thlnned out
the crop. Perhaps it was corn after
corn for too many years and the root
worm got in Its work. Perhaps 1t was
cutting the clover hay crop too late and
so losing In two ways-getting poor
quality Of hay and spelling second crop.
Perhaps it was in trying to work too
many acres; more likely to be this than
anything else. Anyhow, 1t will not be
hard to look back and see where one
might have done better. The wise man
will do this and profit by his mistakes.
The English farmer fares rather
hardly in many ways compared to his
American brother, for he is held up for
some tax or other at every turn. He
must consult the excise officers to get
permission to keep sheep dog. II he
has a gun he must put up $3.50
license, and If perchance he desires to
trap a rabbit OF a weasel which is eat
ing up his chickens he must put up
$3.76 more for trap license. II he
keeps gasoline engine or traction en-
CINE to do his work he must pay
license Of $50, and If he wants to kill
pheasant or partridge which he has
raised on his farm he must pay tax
of SIS for game license. The selling
Of milk to town patrons calls for
further tax, and the killing Of critter
on his place makes necessary slaugh-
ter house license. This and much more
is your English farmer subjected to, SO
bear it In mind and do not kick on
nominal road tax.
With the Introduction Of modern
labor saving machinery, such as the
riding pillow, the complicated self
binder, the separator, the gasoline
engine. ETC., the old conception of the
farmer as simple tiller Of the soil,
such as is SO eloquently pictured by our
poets and authors, must pass away, for
the successful farmer of this age is
anything but simple In his ideas. He
must be mechanic Of no small ability
and a farsighted manager. With the
modern system Of marketing stock and
grain must come clear grasp Of bust
ness methods and an intelligent knowl-
edge Of current events. In short, farm
Ing as profession has passed entirely
from that stage where It's followers can
be recruited from the ranks Of those
who have failed in a dozen other call