Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1910-01-07

is added to the which the
whole world car utilize.
Like those invaluable staples -
maize and the potato-the peanut
originated in America, a native wild
vine Of Brazil. For years and years
after some few Of the pods were
brought north as vegetable curiosities
it held its place as a humble garden
vine, p~erpetuated only because some
few of the earlier generations happen
ed to have a taste for them, as you
nave to be born to olives. America,
the birthplace of the peanut, really
fingered behind all he rest Of the
world in It's exploitation.
Until the Civil War 1t was grown
In some Of the gardens of the south,
harvested, as now, just prior to the
danger of frost, and laid away for a
few months, to be hailed eagerly by
the children as a Christmas dainty.
Now it occupies a permanent position
among the nations food staples for
man, beast, bird and fowl.
Every living thing likes peanuts"
the Virginia planters declare. and
they prove it, all the way from the
elephants ut the circus to the turkeys
on the farm. The greatest single
market is at Suffolk. Va, where
4,00O, 900 bushels are handled annu-
ally and eight big factories are in
operation. The labor is largely ne
gro. The whole area Of the South
Atlantic States Is dotted with peanut
acreages and tho spread has gone
At the harvest the vines are plow-
ed from the ground and, with pods
attached. are stacked around poles for
drying. Late If the fall the fields are
occupied by whole families Of negroes.
who pick the pods from the dried
vines by hand. Machine picking Is
practicable, but, unlike machine
planting and digging, the results are
an inferior grade because Of indis-
crimInate collection Of prime and de
fective pods. Farmers haul their
wagonloads Of pods to the nearest
factory. where the weight is credited
to the growers. The whole cleaning
and grading process which follows
works by gravity. for the pods are
raised from the farmers wagons to
the top floor Of the factory, and ev
cry process ensuing runs them down
to a lower floor. Sorted, cleaned and
certain selected grades polished, they
are finally bagged by the same auto
matte process and are ready for dis
persal. r.,'. T..
The farmer Is far from having ex
hausted his profits when he disposes
of his crop to the factory. There are
the big piles of culls, which he has
left, to feed to his poultry and pigs
There are the vines. which, properly
cured, make the finest kind Of hay
for his COWS and there is all the nitro
gen which the growth of the vine has
left In the soil, fixed in its root nod
ules.
an acre Of first-class peanuts, cal
culating a ton of vines at SIS to $40
and so bushels OF peas at $40 to $50
gives an income of between S4S and
S76. The cost of growing such an
acre Of peanuts, including seed and
fertilizers, is variously estimated at
from S12 to S25. There is a net re
turn of from s36 to S45 on the crop
per acre, an amount of money sufi
cient to pay plenty Of farmers well
The farmer Is, however, only the
beginning of this immensely profit
able national enterprise. Three-fourths
OF the annual crop, some 5000, 00C
bushels. ultimately sell at 5 cents q
pint. More than SIS, 0 900 comes in
nickies and dimes from tho pockets
OF the people for the peanuts sold
that way, The 100000 bushels 70