davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-11-17
BUILD HATCHERY
Government Agent on Ground
at Fairport to Start Clam
Station.
TO COVER so ACRES OF LAND
Will Have Queer Appearance When
Finished, With Many Ponds in
Terrace Formation.

Hector Won Bayer, architect and
engineer for the bureau of fisheries,
has arrived at Fairport and in
tends starting Immediately on the
work of erecting the buildings for
the laboratories for the United States
clam hatchery there. He states that
Professor Cocker, a well known scien-
fist connected with the department of
fisheries, would be the chief of the
Fairport station and that he would
have charge of the scientific work of
the institution.
The government official will have
charge of the erection of the build
ings, pumping stations and labora
tories of the new station. The work
done now will be in a great measure
temporary. The button men of the
city and all over the county have urg-
ed the government to start to work
at once on the clam hatchery as the
beds of shells in the American rivers
are almost exhausted and should be
replenished at once.
To Occupy slipping Pasture.
The station will be queer in ap-
pearance when completed. Com
mencing at the northwest corner of
Fairport a 60 acre tract of land
will be used. The laboratory will be
stationed on the upper side of the
hill above the wagon road. The slOp-
ing pasture land running between the
wagon road and the c., r. 1. & P.
tracks will be utilized in the prop
agation of the clam.
A new word has been coined in
this vicinity-it is a "clam pond"
Clam ponds will be dug to the num-
Der of So or rs in terrace formation
down to the railway. A gasoline
pump will be used on the shore Of the
river to force the water to the top of
the highest pond and from there it
will percolate through the other
ponds until it finds its way back
again to the river. This will give
the running water necessary in the
culture of clans. The plant when
complete will cost nearly 100000,
not all of the money has been ap-
propriated yet but the officials in
tend using what is available.
When complete it is planned to
have the pumping station on the top
of the high hill overlooking the
ponds and allow the water to run
down gradually from reservoir
back in the hills.
Is Well Equipped.
Professor Cocker is q well known
scientist and is we'll versed in the
laboratory work of the department.
He has been spending the summer in
Michigan and has been studying the
habits of the clam. He is expected to
Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-11-17

earlier and causes the plants to grow
very rapidly. At planting time the
ground is narrowed, rolled, planted,
and narrowed once or twice before the
corn comes up and again when the
corn is two or three inches high. Corn
in such field can be cultivated better
and much faster than on ordinary
ground.
The Hunts found that with such cul-
tivation the large Leaning variety of
corn could be ripened in McHenry
county, and they have taken great
pains IN the selection and breeding of
seed corn to get the surest and strong
est growth and large yields. With
these methods they grow 90 to 80 bush
els of corn, with an average of 60 bush
els, year after year. J. H. Turner, an
other McHenry county farmer, has fol-
lowed the same method with similar
results. Is not such an increase worth
any amount of study and effort to rise
above the average? Others can do
what the Hunts have done.
Saving Half the Concrete.
w. H. Rowe of Morgan county found
that he could save more than half the
usual amount of concrete in paving the
lot around his horse barn by using de-
fective vitrified brick which he bought
at the factory at 35 cents per load.
Laying the brick on edge as for pave
ment, and leaving large cracks be-
tween, the concrete was used simply
to fill these cracks and all uneven
places and make a level surface. The
surface was left rough and this pave
ment has proven satisfactory after
much wear.
Cost of Gain on YearIIngs.
s. B. Mason, farmers institute di-
rector of the Seventeenth district, took
pains to weigh his bunch of 10 year
ling steers when he turned them upon
blue grass timber pasture May IA, and
again when he took them off this pas
ture Sept 90, and thus found that they
had made a gain of 1920 pounds, or
220 pounds per head. The grass alone
produced II pounds of gain per day
per steer for 129 days. He figured the
pasture at $1.25 per month for a steer
weighing 1000 pounds, or So cents per
head for his animals which averaged
7O1 pounds. BY this estimate the gain
cost 1.6S cents per pound (S1.6S per
100 weight, but any farmer could fig
ure the gain at the prevailing price of
pasture in his locality
By a little extra weighing Mr.. Ma
son also found that 1900 pounds of
his Big Four oats threshed out 3,S40
pounds. or a busheI of 80 pounds for
every % pounds of straw and chaff.
The loads as they came from the field
We're nearly 521a per cent grain. The
yield of this field was 40 bushels per
acre.
Terms with Tenants.
J. Dwight Funk of Mclean county,
requires that clover be grown in the
rotation with corn and small grain on
all his tenant farms, but as the ten
ants do not have enough live stock to
feed all this clover, by special terms
of the lease NIF. F'unk's foreman takes
charge of all the meadows. withdraw
ing them from the leases clover years,
and puts up the hay for Mr.. Funk
BY the terms of the lease Mr.. Funk
has the use of all stalk fields and stub
BILE fields on the tenant land. and thus
utilities q large amount of valuable feed
that would otherwise go to waste and
prevents damage to the ground by the
tramping of live stock when the fields
are muddy. Hundreds of sheep and
Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-11-17
Is Well Equipped.

Professor Cocker is q well known
scientist and is we'll versed in the
laboratory work of the department.
He has. been spending the summer in
Michigan and has been studying the
habits of the clam. He is expected to
arrive and take charge of the work
shortly.