Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1910-09-01
THE CANNING FACTORY
RUNNING DAY AND NIGHT
The Farmers Are Bringing In The
Sweet Corn Which Is Of Very
Fine Size And Quality.

The Audubon Canning Factory opened
for business on Monday of last week,
After sufficient help had been secured
the machines were started and the rou'
tine work was commenced. Altogether
a large number are busy in securing and
canning the crop. The man at the head
is r. j, Loveland WHO'S on the job about
as many hours Of the twenty -four
as any man can endure the work
and the strain which comes with
the responsibility. He came here last
winter, made the contracts with the
farmers to plant and furnish about six
hundred acres and then owing to the
uncertain condition of the weather,
waited with much anxiety for the
growth and maturity of the crop. But
it is coming out all right. The corn
seems to be of an extra fine quality and
is making good Yield. Mr.. Chas. Van
Gorder who owns the building and Is
associated with Mr.. Lovelace in the
enterprise is of course much interested
in the outcome and is frequently
watching the work and enjoying the
busy scene.
The farmers are in the fields bright
and early swapping the ears from the
stalks and when the big wagon box is
filled he hurries away to the factory
where he unloads it after the weighing
has been done because the price is fixed
at so much per ton. Aside from the
two husking machines, there are from
fifty to hundred people composed of
men, women and children busy husking
by hand. When husked, the corn is
carried by an elevator to box in the
second story where four girls are busy
feeding it to the machines that cut it
from the cob. Then it passes through
the mixer and thence through revolving
machine where the cans are filled and
carried along by two girls who place
the caps and under soldering machine
which performs that work for ten or u
dozen cans at time. Then another
machine fills the little hole in the center
of the lid at the rate of about sixty q
minute. The cans are filled into big
cylindrical crate which is lowered into
a vat in which the cooking is done,
when it is carried back into the
storage room to cool. The whole pro
cess is one of interest and worth a visit
to see.
We understand that some of the hands
get twenty and twenty-five cents an
hour and the huskers get three cents for
a bushel basketful. And the question
of wages caused little trouble last
Friday morning when the labor was
arraged against capital and the common
people were striking for their rights
against what some politicians are pleased
to call the interests. There seemed
to be pretty strong sentiment on part
of the huskers that four cents instead
of three should be paid for husking one
basket of ears, and it was decided to
strike" with J. w. Ridpath to present
their grievances to the manager Just
what happened we are not advised but
the upshOt of the whole matter was, as
it often happens in romance as well as
real life, the leader was fired and the
others went back to work without an
increase in wages or promise of arbitra-
ton. There is one thing that all should
keep in mind and that is that the men
who are running satisfactory are putting
in big bunch of money to equip the
factory, pay the farmers for the corn,
and pay the hands for their labor; and
that is an outgo without an income.
When the corn is all canned and the
farmersand workmen have theirmoney
for the crop and the labor in their poe
kets, the managers must then wait for a
market to sell the product to get a return
of the investment; and some profits for
their time, labor, capital and anxiety.
The farmers are receiving erom $50. 90
to $50. 90 an acre for their corn and the
stalks which they cut up for feed are
worth $1,000 an acre more. The people
who are doing the work will have a
good many dollars to spend which they
could have earned in no other way.
This community should be thankfufthat
some men are willing to invest labor and
capital in bringing something to
pass.