Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-11-23
L0OKER.ON IN IOWA

Il
+ Lo0KER.ON IN IOWA +
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
Gladbrook, Nov. 22.-Regardless Of
the report Of the government on the
corn crop Of the United States, one
thing is sure, the locality where the
| writer has been the past three weeks,
has the best corn crop for years. One
farmer in Hampton store told the
| writer that he is cribbing the big
gest and best crop Of corn he has rails
ed on his farm in Franklin county for
thirty years. In Cerro Gordo county
near Rockwell farmers have filed their
corn cribs and are now obliged to pile
it up on the ground. Lumber men tell
of the sales Of slat lumber to make
more cribs, and Of the wire slat made
for temporary cribs. Reports of husk-
ers putting in the crib, one hundred
to 1875 bushels day. We've got the
stuff this year.
There's going to be considerable feed
ing this year, after all the reports to
the contrary. Near Latimer one man
is feeding eleven hundred head, taking
snapped corn for this purpose. Re-
ports are. that he will use all of the
corn in his vicinity paying 80 cents
for eighty pounds snapped corn Many
of these farms are yielding sixty to
eighty bushels to the acre. The writer
is told where the owner OF a farm,
rented on half shares, has con-
tracted his half at a price that nets
him So an acre for the corn crop
alone Such land is not too high at
500 an acre. Messrs. Gier and Belz,
Of Conrad, report shipping car OF
shelled corn on November 7th 1905,
this years crop which they say is the
earliest date any shelled corn has ever
been shipped from that point.
The cabbage crop around Bristow
makes fine showing again this year.
Thirty-one car loads have already been
shipped from this place, Messrs. Coon
ley and Englefritz having shipped 70
car loads to several of the large cities
and cars were sold on track About
14O acres were planted to cabbage IN
this vicinity but only 100 acres or so
brought good returns. Fifteen acres
brought the owner $1,400. Mr.. Prick
received 5000 for IL acres. Mr.. Neal
got a check for $3.50 for acres. All
Of this cabbage industry is now ma
chine work excepting the cutting OF
the heads which has to be done by
hand. for no machine can be invented
to do this work. The plants are set
out by machine, that not only drops
the plant in the right place, but waters
it at the same time. After that the
ordinary cultivator does the work.
However the cabbage plant needs "a
know how" as much as any other kind
of work or industry. This is shown
by the statement and fact that only
two thirds of the acreage around Bris-
two made any money for the grow
ers.
Nearly every county now has Far
mers' Cooperative Society in opera
ton, but Cerro Gordo county has the
largest number and Rockwell the most
extensive and successful society in ex- /
istence. This concern finding
their present buildings not !
large enough to conveniently
carry on some Of the departments are /
fitting up small store building for
clothing and books and shoes. etc. One
of the employees will be constantly on
the premises to attend to the custom
ers. A new deal in the trade with cor
porative societies comes by report to +
the writer. 1t seems that many of the
wholesale houses will not sell goods to
such concerns, for the reason other
nts refuse to deal with them, If
thew sell to such societies. So Ito whip
the devil around the stump" the trav-
cling man sells the goods which are /
shipped to a retail firm in some nearby
town and then reshipped to these far
mers' cooperative concerns. All OF 7
which shows that there is tricks in all
trades 1t is we'll known that any
of these farmers cooperative
societies, that sells grain to an out
slider. is obliged to hand over to the
society Of which he Is a member one
fourth of one cent per bushel on all
such sales. There is also per cent
dine his society on live stock
sold to the other shippers
than the cooperative society.
n is this drawback, which keeps these
alive and prosperous For
without it they have no advantage, ex-
ceptins of course their large number
of customers, over any other concern
doing business. That is they have the
expenses Of doing business to pay as
we'll as other dealers. So it will be
news to members OF the society as
well as a matter Of rejoicing on the
part of their competitors in the differ
ent towns where they transact bust
ness. to learn that this refunding by
law is not strictly observed in some OF
the new organizations. One manager
Of such a concern told the writer re-
Gently, that he had to leave it to the
honor of the members. and that the
for such failure to report sales
that of expulsion, was rarely en-
forced. One grain Dealer In nearby
town where corporation society does
business, says he has shipped more
cars Of grain than the society has this
year. 1t begins to look as though the
bug bear OF cooperative societies was
not 50 formidable as heretofore re-
puted, and that they win not 'kill''
many towns in Iowa.
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