Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1910-07-09

J quarts of these in one season. The
yield was very large, the quality ex-
J cellent. OF the currants found
knights Improved and London Mar
J ket superb. On six rows Of tie first
J named, each eighteen rods long, one
crop was 1920 quarts. Year S;:er
year the yield was nearly as great.
Only two varieties of red raspberries
London and Marlboro, were of much
value. These never failed to yield
immense crops Of first-class berries.
OF gooseberries Downing and Red
Jacket (Josselyn) were highly salts
factory. They paid the best. The
Lucretia Dewberry surpassed all 9TH
ers.
Blackberries, black cap raspber-
ries, and the hybrid raspberries of
1.-THE Columbian type did not usually
produce with me more than half a
crop. l did not, therefore, rate them
as commercial success. The larg-
est crop Of small fruit ever grew
on my nine acres was 10000 quarts,
inu round numbers, and that season
/ paid pickers about $500.
Having accomplished my purpose
sold my land and completely drop
ped the small fruit business. This
was four years ago. do not now
own a small fruit plant of any kind.
In this paper have somewhat
hesitatingly named varieties, be-
cause new and improved sorts are
yearly coming out, and what were
best several years ago may be sur
passed by newer creations now. Prof.
N. 4. Hansen of our State College,
Luther Burbank, and other great
horticulturists, are originating thou
sands OF new varieties, some Of
which will surpass anything now
known.
| have endeavored to picture to
you briefly, the horticultural possi-
bilities of the Black Hills, and you
may be saying to yourselves, "AlI
this seems plausible, but will these
possibilities ever be realized?" In
closing l wish to consider this i'm
portant question for a moment.
There is no doubt that in time
these possibilities will be fully real
lied. But the development promises
to be slow, because Of the scarcity
of scientific farmers and horticultur-
lists competent to do the work. The
day when anybody can succeed on a
farm-a fruit farm, grain farm,
stock farm or any kind of a farm is
fast passing away. Farming is be-
coming a science. 1t is true there
are still so-called farmers who sneer
at those they denominate theorists
and book farmers; but it requires
little observation to discover that
the really successful men of the
farm in these strenuous times are
the earnest, enthusiastic students
who keep in touch with the grand
work OF our experiment stations,
who know what is going on in soil
incubation; in breeding new grains,
grasses, and fruits; in modern for
estry; in dairying and animal hus-
bandry; in reclaiming the arid re-
gions of the earth; in the destruc-
ton of weeds and insect pests; in
the conservation of soil fertility; in
the conservation of human health,
who attend farmers institutes and
take agricultural journals.
1t seems clear to me that the
South Dakota farmer needs to be
more than ordinarily intelligent,
skillful, and scientific. 1 am sure
that this is true west of the Big
Muddy. His success will be certain.
his reward adequate If he under
stands conditions and knows his
business, but not otherwise. Two
thirds or more of the vast stretch of
country in this state west of the
River can by scientific dry farming
methods be made to produce large
crops of drouth. resistant, wheats,
oats, millets, sugar-beets, Kafrir
corn and so on; and to support hun
dreds OF thousand cattles, horses,
and sheep.
If time permitted l could prove
my contention by citing cases of per-
sons who are doing just what 1 have
described, and who practically never
have a failure Of crops. But what
OF the multitude Of people that have
poured into this region within two
years? This is a question 1 shall
not attempt to answer. Suffice It
to say that the time will surely come
when the whole of the vast region
under consideration will be thickly
studded with prosperous and happy
homes. Who will occupy these
homes? Educated people, not neces-
sarily people versed in Latin and
French, algebra and calculus, but
people with a practical education,
consisting largely Of agriculture, do
mestic science, agricultural physics,
chemistry, and botany, field work,
shop work, bookkeeping, typewrit-
ing' composition, letter writing, po-
litical economy, debating and public
speaking, animal husbandry, and the
like. Where should they obtain this
education, so necessary In aucceso