Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-11-20
A POTATO YEAR.
Brunswick Farmers Tell
| Of a Big Yield.
Topsham People Have Also
Gathered Many Bushels.
Cumberland Seed Potato Company
Is Organized in Brunswick.

loads o. potatoes brought into Bruins
wick in order TO supply the local de-
rand To-day 1a5 car loads could be
SHIPPED out OF town and then there
would j1~ more than enough left to go
o1.4.
Tta:l, so acres We're planted in
IL e t.Jo towns this year and if the
Ia e - the farmers are carried out
IL" q loa-" nest yral will be at least
e :,.,.j ossii ~ 1900 acres.
va. announced yesterday that the
,'ln.4 {. land seed Potato company had
.jt,r termed with d capital stock of
Sic jJ5 all OF which haI Lreii ,ubscrib-
ed This is the first stock company to
be orea nized here. It's officers arc Ben
Johnson, president; Samuc! l.. For-
saith, secretary and treasurer. Carl NJ.
Day, Herbert l.. Robertson, Ben johns
son, Samuel l.. rorsaith and Ellery G.
Dav, directors. This company has all
IrcadN leased % acres of land ard has il
nearly all plowed. 1t also has secured
options on two pieces OF land on one of
which 10000 bushel potato house will
be erected in the spring. .he company
VIII purchase IT. oN IL IpittIllct, SltEdNeT,
cultivator digger and horses.
While this is the first stock company
| it is tho third potato company to be or
ganiZed in Brunswick. The movement
| to raise potatoes in Brunswick was
started in 1908 by Il company of Bruins
! wick business men, who organizing I'M
der the name Of the Brunswick 800
company started out to show the farms
ers that potatoes could be raised in
| Brunswick at a profit
At first the Cu Dany was looked upon
as joke. bit ui.c: 10 acres of land had
been rlowed and ianted people became
Interested. The company owned no
| land or farmin" iDp'cments and was
obliged to hire all t.lr york done. The
ten acres We're di"iGcd into two pieces
and when the crop was dug 1909 BUSH
| els of NorcrOSS potatoes were secured
oft seven acre piece and 765 bushels
OF New Queens off three acre piece
When sold the crop netted the men,
oers of the company about 81 per cent.
as a dividend.
| An abstract was published from the
| treasurer's books which showed that
| the total cost of seed, fertilizer, spray
| ing mixture and labor was S722.74 or a
cost per bushel of 321a cents.
| The members of the company are
| Harvey j. Given. chairman of the
board of sclectment Judge Frank F.
! Roberts of the municipal court; Senator
Edward f. Wheeler; Charles |. Givcen,
cashier of the Pejepscot National
f'mk: Herman l.. slower. treasurer of
the Topsham and Brunswick % Cent
Saving Bank; Charles L. Bowker, SUI
| n"riatrnGt MT of the Brunswick and
! Topsha'n Water District; Stephen
lit"hfield, a civil engineer: John A.
! Reals, a commission merchant: War
| ron :. Morrill,. a real estate agent who
| Was IN" originator of the plan to 4,>.--~
| potatoes and Charles |. Prince a farm.
| Cr.
Their success caused a tremendous
, mount OF talk and as a result Bruins
wick and Topsham farmers went into
potato raising on a large, scale this year.
AS result some interesting facts have
| been learned. When a company orper-
son hires all the work done it will cost
about S75 per acre, which means that
at least 80 bushels an acre Will have
to be raised to come out whole On the
| other hand the farmers say that they
can make good with 100 bushels to the
here
i, y. Earhl"v Of Topsham who raised
| 80" bushels kept Il careful account of
| flS expenditures. counting his time and
! the l'me of his teams at regular prices.
| W hch his POTATOES We're in the cellar
ne l"und they had cost him 81 cents
| per Hush"l On those acres where. lie
raised i5o bushels the cost was . cents
per nushol and on those acres whore
2'o or more bushels were raised the
cost was 81 cents.
w. I. Curtlii of T0pshanl who raised
the largest amount found that his no
tatoes ran from 125 to 10 bushels per
acre.
Herbert l.. Libby who used = con,rnst
dressing on his aero and y half raised
$50 bushels
r. p. Miller with 60 bushels off ono
eighth of an acre raised the largest
amount on that size land
Hem Y F'ridank raised 1OO0 i,,,~,o1c IN
our acres. nut on the same fam only
secured 80 bushels off six acre piece.
Miss cecil Houghton. the da,,..hter of
Pref. William 4. Houghton OF V?owdoin
""ll"Gc. raised 80 bushels Which she
sold for - cents bushel Next wear
she is planning to raise 100 bushels
Henry w. Wescott, a Brunswick far
mer, has installed a system of irriga-
u0n and as a result secured f6 bushels
OF early potatoes off q quarter acre
which he dug August ! and sold for
S64. lie then set cabbages out on the
same piece of land and secured 1000
orme head.
The Journal correspondent made an
ehort to secure correct figures of the
Weld and acreage in the two towns. In
all 67,o51 bushels were accounted for,
which were raised on 500 acres. Allow
ing an additional $1,000, which is con-
sidered conservative for those raising
less than 100 bushels and for those
raising over that amount which We're
missed. makes a total of approximately |
$4,000.
OF the $1,000, 42.247 bushels were
raised in Brunswick on $50 acres, an |
average of 166 bushels to the acre. 25.A
1o4 bushels were raised in Topsham on I
As acres; an average of 173 bushels to 4
he acre. The average yield per acre
or the two towns is 167 bushels.
TNl4n fn+ 80