Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-05-03
LOOKER.ON in IOWA !

Garner, May 3.-One of our Iowa
doctors with a large country practice,
takes exceptions to some press criti-
cisms concerning the reports that the
doctors fail to make record" Of births
occurring in their vicinity. He says
that the reason why the reported
deaths in Iowa exceed in number
those of births, is that at least one
third of the cases Of childbirth occur
where no doctor is called, and in case
of the employment of a midwife or
nurses at such time, not one in dozen
knows that they are required to re-
port such births the same as a regular
physician. Again he says that the
state board Of health failed to send out
the blank reports till Sept. !, 1904, and
that also had much to do with the fig
ures shown. So we can rest easy. Race
suicide has not got SO strong a hold in
Iowa as the figures show. We have
a lot of big strong babies in Iowa, that
neither the state board of health nor
the press "carping critics" has heard
about.
In Emmetsburg the other day the
writer saw some seed corn enterprise
worth mentioning. -Four large land
owners have hired an empty store, and
had a number of men engaged in work
ing the Holden process. Not all know
how this Is done. Low tables are plac-
ed the length of the room. On each Is
spread dampened saw dust say three
inches thinck. Over this is placed
thin muslin cloth also wet. This cloth
is marked into small numbered
squares. Then the operator takes an
ear of corn and picks out six kernels,
taken from the ends and middle OF the
cob, and places them on numbered
square, after which this ear Of
Of corn is placed on rack with
corresponding number. After the
squares on the cloth are filled, then
another wet cloth is placed over the
kernels of corn, and over that more
dampened sawdust. A big stove in
the room keeps the heat up to 70 or
so degrees, and the result Is quick
sprouting. At the proper time the
upper cloth and sawdust is removed,
and an examination made of each
numbered six kernels. If less than five
kernels have sprouted the numbered
ear Of corn is removed from the rack
and not used for seed purposes. Fur
therinore, each kernel is required to
grow both ways; that is, to show
ghealthy roots and healthy stalks. 1t
is astonishing, so the gentleman in
charge Of the room told the newspaper
man, Of the number of kernels, thai
sproud good roots, but fail to go into
the stalk business, nature not having
furnished vitality enough for both.
This explains why so many farmers
examining their fields, find the seed
corn sprouted, but fail to see the stalk
come thru the ground at the proper
time and then proceed to give as the
cause of "the poor stand they have
this year. to dry weather, wet weather
or cold weather, when the real trouble
is poor seed. They've planted seed
that starts roots, but has not vitality
enough to grow stalks. Another thing
that has impressed this expert work
ing daily at this business, is the
large number of ears that he
handles, that are degenerates. He
is now trying to get good seed
for a certain kind Of corn that
is adapted for growth in our northern
tier of counties. Getting it from corn
grown there last year, but hundreds
of ears are of another variety. Not