The Glenwood post., 1907-05-18
100000 COMING
SETTLERS POURING INTO EAST.
ERN COLORADO DAILY.
ARID LANDS BLOOM AS ROSE
But the Tread Of Grazing Cattle to
Be Stirred by the Plow.
By Alvin T. Steinel.


Like a mighty army, settlers are
pouring into eastern Colorado from the
Canadian border on the north to the
Gulf of Mexico on the south, from
every state as far east as Indiana, de-
serting the humid regions of the Mis-
sissippi valley, buying ranches or filing
on homestead land in the semi-arid
counties that are now being titled ana
made fruitful under the dry soil cui-
ture system.
At Denver's back door there has
been an influx of population estimated
by the most conservative citizens at
10000 in the past twelve months
There is room for 10000 more. Every
train is bringing its quota of home
seekers who become home-fnders and
establish farms where once the cattle
kings held undisputed sway.
A generation ago there was Just
such a movement. flank of the west
wardbound army going into Colorado.
But it was made up of vastly different
hhtelldl. mere were SCHOOL LCaCn-
ers, invalids, Adventures and fugitives
from justice, hundreds of whom came
to secure shoestring titles to hom>
steads on which to borrow money.
They got the money and left the coun-
try. Those who remained were too
poor in cash or experience to tackle
the raw prairie hundreds of miles from
established settlements. They gave
up the struggle after the first year Of
drouth and returned to the settle
ments with tales of woe that have
scarcely been lived down by Colorado
in twenty-five years
Ninety cents an acre used to lie the
price of land along the Union Pacific
from Denver to Cheyenne Wells-and
nobody wanted it at that. The Union
Pacific owned every other section for
twenty miles back on both sides of
the track-an enormous grant given
by the government as a subsidy. But
even the shrewd men at the lead of
the great railroad system did not real
ize the value of the land. 1t was Just
so much waste-a veritable white ele-
phant on the hands of the mana cement
that finally was disposed of at from 81
to $3.50 an acre-good riddance at that.
1t was due to the railroad officials
themselves that Fasteners began to
get interested in eastern Colorado
lands. The railroad men said It was
good buy" But they really didn't be-
| lieve it was. The tale was 80 oft re-
| peated that the railroad company's
land agents began themselves to be-
lieve. This selfhypnotism having been
accomplished. it was comparatively
| easy to convince the land-hungry farm
ers of Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota and
| farther east, that their opportunity laid
in Colorado. Homeseekers' excursion
| rates furnished the opportunitt for a
visit and they came-from Pike county
and Podunk. Oshkosh and Kalamazoo.
| And they bought-first at So ana s5 an
| acre and. as the demand grew, from Sc
| to SO and sl2. Buying stimulated
| homesteading and now the tide is at
| food, homeseekers and purchasers OF
| decided land pouring into every town.
| village and hamlet from the Arkansas
| basin to the valley of the Platte and
from the eastern boundary of the state
to the foothills, filling a vast empire.
| heretofore devoted almost wholly to
grazing with population of expert
enced American farmers. from the best
| agricultural sections of the Mississippi
valley
A bulletin by Professor Olin gives
| the fundamentals of soil culture IS fol
| lows:
After the SHOWS of winter have
melted, plow the ground at least seven
or eight inches deep. With disc har-
row, corrugated roller, imperial puiver-
izer or packer. level and firm this
ground as soon after plowing as pos
| sible. al least not later than each half
| day, and follow up with smoothing har-
row to establish the earth mulch TO
check evaporation. This mulch must
| not be too fine. as the winds of the
plain tend to rift the soil or blow the
earth mulch entirely away. If possible.
stir the surface soil with good spike
| tooth or acme harrow several times
| through the summer from two to four
| inches deep. Follow every summer
rain with good narrowing of this
summer cultured ground. preventing
the formation of a crust at the sur
| face. Keep this ground clean-free
| from weeds.
Ground that has been well cult
waited for several years will produce
| two crops in succession and can be
given summer culture. In this way
1t is possible to grow two crops in
| three years on well-tilled soil. II a
| farmer expects to cultivate eighty
acres. he should divide it into two crop
misunderstanding forty acres the
| first year and giving summer culture
to the other forty acres. This gives
him a crop on one-half his land each
year while he is storing up moisture
in the soil reservoir Of the other half
to make the next years crop.
"A farmer on the nOn-irrigated lands
In Weld county last season. after seed
ing his spring crop. at once prepared
his fall wheat seed bed-160 acres.
The writer visited his field early in
July, and found his seed bed In fine.
mellow, moist condition for seeding.
Just a few miles from this careful