River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1907-10-03
GETTING IN THE CROPS.
The Importance of Safe Shelter En-.
phasized by E. L. Vincent.


I am never really happy till all my
farm crops are safely under cover.
In fact do not know that have any
crops that will bring me anything
until all have been slowed away out
Of the reach Of storm and weather.
The next thing to this IS threshing
out of doors just as soon as the grain
is dry enough; and ofteu we are not
able to do this because we cannot
get thresher when we want him.
/ know it costs to provide buildings
for large farm. The first expense OF
building in these days is high, for
lumber and building material of all
kinds are high in price. 1t is also
fact that the farmer who has many
buildings must set aside no small
sum every year to pay for repairs and
insurance.
And yet, stop and think that the
loss of one crop through storm or
other adverse circumstances would
offset all this aid more, too for
good many years. Take a wheat crop
of so acres, for example Say that it
would yield IS bushels to the
acre, which, by the way, is the report
from one of the first crops threshed In
Illinois this year That would mean a
yield of 900 bushels, worth at fair
estimate dollar bushel.
There have been years when we
have lost about one-half the value of
our crop by reason of storm. We could
not thresh when we should and the
grain we did get was not worth as
much as it would have been could it
have been put in the bins in good or
der. What does this mean? What
but that we have sustained a money
loss of $3.50 in that one years crop.
That would keep the buildings up in
good repair for great many years.
But wheat is not the only crop most
farmers of to-day harvest. There is
hay one of the best crops we have,
bringing at the present writing in
some parts of the country from $40 to
$25 ton. Also oats, another fine
crop. The value Of these depends
largely on the condition at marketing
or feeding. Stacking is always a
risky business. Not one man out of a
dozen can st" ok grain or hay so that
it will keep ~ length of time.
Nothing adds to the looks or the
worth of farm more than good barns
or sheds for storing grain. Prospec-
tive buyers always notice the condi-
ton of these buildings, and if there
are none to notice they are very apt
to pass on until they find farm which
are thus furnished.
Still another point in favor of plenty
of barn room is the stabling OF
stock. The day is fast going by when
any farmer viii feel easy in body or
mind while a lot Of his stock is out
in tho storm. Just think OF the ter
rible losses every winter from stock
exposure in the west! Leaving the
humane part of it out of the question
just now from an economical stand
point alone not a single farmer in all
this country can afford to stand still
and let a considerable part of his herd
die in the winds and the SHOWS of our
northern winters.
Shall a man incur a debt to build
farm barns? / hate debt as much as
anyone on the face Of the earth; but
really | would rather go with poor
clothes for years and years and econo-
mize in other ways rather than to
go without barns. They will soon pay
for themselves. They are the right
thing for every up-to-date farmer
Farmers Review.