The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1911-07-25


horses to do the farm work chickens,
vegetables and small fruits to supply
the family table all this In one
year on northern stump land. The
farm consists of $40 acres, for which
he paid $685., 20O7for 16O acres
with partial improvements tconsist-
ing of 20 acres OF cleared land, small
house and outbuildings) ana $3.50
for 80 acres of unimproved land. The
expense of clearing and breaking the
land, together with the original
price, brings the cost Of the land MP
to about $25 and acre.. At that, it
is cheap farm, and this low cost of
improved land in Northern Mime
sofa is one of the features that
should be noted.
Rapid Improvement
"Mr. Schroeder's farm was ORIGIN
ally covered with heavy growth of
Jack pine and was cut over eight
years ago. On purchasing the farm
in April, 1910, the first considers
ton was to clear up the land. The
soil being very light and sandy, as is
customary with Jack pine land, and
particularly in the neighbprhood of
Bemidji, the work of clearing it up
was not as difficult as in some other
sections of Northern Minnesota. II
was accomplished by first going over
the land with an ak and scythe to cut
the underbrush, which was piled up
and burned, the cost of this opera
tion, where needed, amounting to
about 81 per acre. Contracts were
then let to stump and break the land,
at cost of $12 per acre. The
stumping was performed with a
stump puller, employing two men
and one horse and 200 feet of cable.
This was followed with dynamite for
the anchor stumps and any others
that the puller could not handle. A
little grubbing was also necessary on
occasions. After the stumps were
burned, three-horse, 14-inch break
ing plow brought the land into avail
able condition; The total cost for
clearing and breaking averaged from
$40 to SIG per acre. Mr.. Schroeder
states that there are two periods in
which stumps can be most easily re-
moved; one is between two and three
years after cutting the timber, at
which time the bark of the roots
tends to slip and great deal of re-
sistance is thereby eliminated; the
other is three or four years later,
the roots have bossn weakened
by decay. When removed at the ear
lier period, there is saving in the
cost of cutting the second growth,
which on his farm, as stated, amount
ed to about 81 per acre"
cat the present time the land in
crop consists of IS acres of oats seed
ed to clover, Is acres of fodder corn,
" dCIcS VI AC1u CO1 ola AL CS VI QO>
tatoes, five acres of winter wheat,
two acres of alfalfa, two acres of tim
othy and clover, two acres of garden
vegetables and small fruits, and about
Is acres of native meadow.
"A contract has been let to brush,
grub, stump and break rs acres of
new land at $13 per acre. The con-
tractor is now at it with two stump
pullers, one brush breaker and five
teams. He expects to complete the
work before the end of July. This
land will be sown to winter wheat
and rye the last of August. 1t will
receive the same treatment as was
given to the oat field.
The Dairy Herd.
''The dairy herd on Mr.. Schroeder's
farm is composed of common grade
cows with a pure-bred Holstein bull
of excellent breeding at the head.
These cows, Of which he now has A,
were purchased in the neighborhood
90 81