The Somerset reporter., 1909-05-06

ing and hunting which are To he mad.
Large game is not as abundant as 1t
used to be. but small game Is still
plentiful, and the clear, cold mountain
streams are stocked with several spe-
cies of trout and other game fish.
In view of the existence of condi-
tions which make possible the bulling
of the wheat market by one individual
grain speculator from 81 to S1.25 per
bushel and the resulting increase of
the price Of bread from to cents
a loaf, 1t would seem to be high time
for our national Legislators to get into
action and put this poor mans staple
food supply on the free list, so that 1t
cannot be corLered and manipulated
with such ease. Common justice and
decency and not party considerations
should determine the lineup on this
bread tax proposition.
a couple Of peddlers were comparing
notes not long since In the office of the
hotel where they were stopping and
seemed to get good deal Of sport out
of the fact that during the day they
had succeeded in palming off on
number of their unsophisticated rural
patrons packages Of a medium quality
Of tea at 08 cents per pound when the
same or better article could be got
of their home grocer at so cents. When
peddlers Of this kind come along and
offer such bargains" as these 1t would
be a good idea for the prospective
buyer to step to the phone and call up
the home merchant and at least make
the peddler give him as good terms as
the merchant offers.
The purple martin, both during Its
northern and southern sojourns, Is one
of the most valuable birds from the
standpoint Of the service which 1t rem
ders the farmer and gardener. During
the winter in Its southern home 1t
wages war on great variety of inju-
rious insects. including the big cotton
boil weevil beetle, which works such
havoc on the cotton plantations. On its
arrival in the northern states In the
latter part of April or early May the
martin continues its beneficent work
Of insect destruction. 1t is an inoffen-
sive bird, Of most interesting habits
and on every account should be pro-
vided with nesting places and pro
tected in every possible way.
The live officials Of national bank
in a progressive western town are this
season Offering a series Of cash prizes
to the landowners living within a ra-
dius of fifteen or twenty miles for the
stretches of road of mile or more in
length leading to the town which are
kept In the best condition during the
season. Judges who have been ap
pointed are to inspect the roads at In
tervals, and at the end Of the period
prescribed the awards will be made.
The best piece of highway will fetch
Its owner 500 and the second and
third best smaller but substantial
amounts. In towns where there Is no
bank whose officials are disposed to be
thus alert 1t would result In dollars for
the municipality IL the city councils
would offer such prizes.
Further study into the habits Of
view that If there is any one who
ought to be their firm friend 1t Is the
farmer and gardener, who Is especially
indebted to them for keeping in rea-
sonable check the myriad insect enc
mics of his growing crops. On this ac-
count he should arrange to reserve
somewhere about the place, along the
road In front Of the house or In the
corner of the pasture or wood lot.
plum or shpub thicket where the birds
may nest and make headquarters for
the season. Many farm does not
have as many birds about as II might
simply through lack of convenient
nesting places. This bird business Is
coming to be dollars and cents prop
osition, and every husbandman can
well afford to give it serious thought.
Professor Bolley of the North Da
kota Agricultural college has been
conducting extensive experiments in
he use of spray of iros sulphato
for destroying mustard in grainfields
Such good results have been had with
this new weed exterminator that one
firm at Fargo, N. D., has put in a
stock of thousand tons of iron sui
phate, while many farmers who have
tried it buy the chemical in ton lots.
Some Of the larger farmers are spray
ing thousands of acres for mustard
and, In addition to destroying the
weeds, have secured, an increase in
wheat yield of as high as five bushels
per acre. While this method of weed
destruction was developed primarily to
destroy the yellow mustard, 1t has
been found very effective In killing
many other varieties. including false
fax, wormseed, mustard. shepherds
purse, ball mustard, corn cookie,
chickweed. dapdelion, Canada thistle,
bindweed, plantain, rough pigweed,
ragweed and cocklebur.