davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
MILE OF MODEL ROAD
EXPERIMENT is TRIED IN BROOK
iNGS COUNTY,
Prot. n. c, Soibere, Professor Mechan
zeal Engineering, at State Col.
Iese at Srookinss. Describes
and Illustrates the Work.

Ever since the first settlement was
made in Brookings county. the ques
ton of public highways across the low
lands known as the Sioux River flats.
have been more or less of a serious
problem to deal with. Serious on
because it required a little more wo
to make a good road there than the ay
erage farmer was willing to put on,
under the old system of road work
Very frequently when IA little work
was attempted, it was one without
any definite plans, and the roads were
left in worse condition after the work,
than they were before, hence. many
preferred no road work whatever.
Just west of the city of Brookings
on the direct line to VOlga, the condi-
ton of the road has been a little worse
than in any other place in Brookings
county. This line of road, while it
should be the main line of travel, east
and west, has been considered so bad
that it has practically been abandoned
for road purposes, and no substantial
efforts nave ever been put forth to
improve it. The main difficulty along
this line was due to the fact that the
land is so nearly level that in cas- of
a flood, the water remained stationary
until it soaked into the ground, which
in wet seasons is a slow process. The
problem of drainage vas solved about
four years ago, when the county COM
missioners put in a drainage ditch
leading to the river. This drainage
ditch is sufficiently large to carry the
flood water away in a reasonably short
limo.
For more than five years the writer
of this article has maintained that a
good road could be constructed across
the river bottoms at a very reasonable
cost per mile, if intelligently done;
but in this he received but very little
support until this summer, when the
Commercial club decided to interest
itself in the movement for better
roads, by appointing a committee on
good roads, of which the writer was
made chairman. The majority of this
committee were members of the facul.
ty of the State college, and they made
application to the office of public roads
department of agriculture, Washing
ton, D. c., for the services of a road
expert to assist and direct the con-
struction of a mile of model road In
this we were successful and secured
the services of Mr., Geo. D. Marshall,
one of the most experienced of road
experts in the government service. It
was also agreed that if a model road
was to be built, in order to be Of the
greatest possible value to the people
at large, it ought to be constructed
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Marketing VEGETABLES.

The successful marketing of vege,
tables. beyond doubt. is the most Sc
rious question of all for commercial
growers. In many instances it is ap-
~parently impossible to make ship
ments to the city and realize a fair
profit, This condition is due to high
freight or express charges, unscrupu-
lous dealers and 700 many middle
men. There is too much difference be-
tween the price received by the pro
Queer and that paid by the
and this is the primary cause OF the
high cost Of living in the large cities.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17

GSxE-=D 1870


Spinach is one of the best things to
grow.
Fifteen to 20 ears of corn will plant
an acre.
Don't use barb wire If you can
avoid it.
Productive soil must contain a large
amount of vegetable matter.
There is no better fertilizer for
grass than farmyard manure.
There is no more convenient place
to haul the manure than to the grass
land.
Small patches of quack grass should
he dug out with forks and the roots
burned.
Putting a small gasoline engine or
the grain or corn binder is a new
wrinkle to save horse flesh.
Those who have not already saved
heir seed corn, however, must do so
from the product as it is husked.
Seed corn must be selected early
enough so that it may have plenty OF
time to dry before cold weather.
Cover crops are divided into two
zig g based upon whether or not
thew add any considerable mount of
food.
Cove crops, when plowed under, i'm
nrove the physical condition of the
soil making it porous and of better
filth.
Farmers operating on a large scale
often keep in telegraphic or %telephon-
II connection with the market to
which their products are consigned.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
INSIST ON DEVIL CHASERS
Gall stones Of Cattle Eagerly 1ur
chased by CAnamen FOR
Good Luck.

Chicago.-The market quotation on
gall stones remains at 500 a pound at
the stock yards here, where the article
is sold as Chinese devil chasers.
A. J. Little. head of the selling de-
partment of one of the large meat
packing firms, said his concern mar
keted about eight or nine pounds a
year from the cattle slaughtered.
Some of them are as big as walnuts,
but most Of them are no bigger thai
peas. They are light and few beeves
nave any.
All of them are bought by japanese,
who won't use them. They ship them
back to Japan to be manufactured for
the Chinese trade. The Chinese, be-
set by devils, carries a piece Of
carved gall stone in his pocket. He
believes no power a withstand the
gall stone once 1t has been fashioned
into a sufficiently terrible shape.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
CottonSeeu Meal.

II ~cottonseed meal costs delivered
$35 a ton. each pound of digestible
protein will cost less than Az cents.
If corn is worth $25 a ton, each pound
Of protein will cost about 16 cents a
pound. In other words, a pound of
protein in corn will cost nearly four
times as much as a pound of protein
in cottonseed meal. This clearly
shows that the dairy farmer will lose
money If he purchases corn to feed
his cows, providing, of course, that
c~ottonseed meal is available. But if
]cottonseed meal is not available other
feeding stuffs can be had. The buyer
of grain feeds should consider his
purchase in this light.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Seed Corn.

Select seed corn that produces
bushels per acre. 1t is not necessar
lily the largest or finest looking cal
that has this desirable characteristic.
The medium ear, well filled out, with
a plump, deep, even, uniform sized
kernel. is generally the best sort. A
well-filled crib of well-matured corn,
which generally means a good yield
per acre, is much more satisfactory
and to be desired than nan first
prizes at the fair. The early careful
selection If the right sort of seed,
when given the right attention., usual
ly means both a prize at the crib and
at the fair.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
MRS. SELBY AND PRIZE BABY

81 have always used Cuticura Soap
and no other for my baby and he has
never had a sore of any kind. He
does not even chafe as most babies
do. feel sure that 1t is all owing to
Cuticura Soap, for he is fine and
healthy, and when five months old,
won a prize in a baby contest. 1t
makes my heart ache to go into so
many homes and see a sweet-faced
baby with the whole top Of its head
a solid mass of scurf, caused by poor
soap. l always recommend Cuticura,
and nine times out of ten the next
time / see the mother she says: oh!
I am so glad you told me Of Cuticura.' y
(Signed) Mrs. G.. A. Selby, Redondo
Beach, California, Jan. Is, 1911.
Although Cuticura Soap and ONT
ment are sold everywhere, a sample
Of each, with 32-page book, will be
mailed free on application to "Cutt-
:ura," Dept. 20 l.. Boston.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Stock Crops.

The farmer makes the most money
who devotes his fields to the growing
of crops to feed stock, making use Of
all the raw products at home, thereby
not only saving much of the cost of
transportation, bpt also maintaining
the fertility of the soil. Taking very
thing into consideration, corn will
probably produce more food per acre
for domestic animals than any other
plant, and there are but few feeds
which can be fed in a greater variety
of ways.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Fig Il. r. c.s olbsS

way is just seven inches from the
middle to the ten-foot line. 1t is the
policy Of the office of public roads that
no highway should be so narrow, or
have the sides so steep, as to be an
gerous to ordinary travel, where it is
| possible to have il otherwise.
# is hoped that a large number of
people in the state as well as the stu
dents of the State college, will avail
themselves Of the opportunity Of exam
ming this road. and that the lessons
derived from it will be put into prac.
teal application in other places. 1t
has been clearly demonstrated by the
construction of this road. that if more
! intelligence was put into road work
less money would be needed to make
a good roa than has been the custom
under the old system Of road building
The Commercial club, and those
that were most actively engaged in
the promotion of this road proposition,
feels that. while it required a great
deal of time to get this work going.
that it was money and energy well ex.
pended. It will mean the beginning
of better roads. which in turn will
mean more pleasure and comfort for
the people. less wear and ga for both
horses and machinery, and higher land
| values.
Too much praise cannot be extended
TO the office of public roads at Wash.
ington, D. c.. and particularly to Nh.
Geo. D Marshall. the courteous and
efficient road expert, for the excellent
services which he has rendered this
community in particular, and the state
Of South Dakota in general in connec.
ton with the movement for better
roads.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17

where the conditions for a good road
were the most difficult Hence, the
mile between sections and in Brook.
ings township previously referred to
was selected On account of a number
of small bitches and other obstruc,
lions along the road, it was Impossible
to use any other kind of machinery
for moving the dirt than ordinary
sCrapers.
Figure one shows the crOss-sec-
ton Of the road bed where the work
was started. AT this end no road work
had ever been attempted. and the cen
ter shows the old road as ii appeared
in the prairie.
The first work consisted in cutting
all the weeds and grass. and raking il
away from the ground. The next work
consisted in stalking out the road bed.
The road proper was made twenty
(20) feet wide. with a ten-fOot cut on
each side, making the roadway forty
(4O) feet from ditch to ditch. The first
blowing was made ten inches deep.
The sod and dirt was placed IN the
road bed, the sod being rather tough.
a sod cutter loaded down with three
hundred pounds extra weight was
used. and the sod was all cut and pull
verified. and then dragged so as to de-
stroy all vegetation, and remove all
Jumps from the road After this was
finished, another blowing. but more
shallow, was done and the dirt moved
in as shown in figure 5 Finally the
road grader, and the split log drag
was used. and the road finished as
shown in Fig. 4.
The ditch on both sides Of the road
was made as nearly uniform as posi-.
Bile, so that it will act as d drainage
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Digestive Properties of Eoqs.

The latest news Of how eggs go in
the stomach is: Two freshest soft
boils, n and three-quarters: two
raws, two and one-quarter hours: hard
boils, three hours; omelette. three
hours. The figures speak for them
selves, but do not tell the whole
truth, for it looks as if soft boils are
are more easily digested than raws,
whereas, raws are SO bland and gentle
as not to excite the flow of the castle
juices-not a single squirm of the
stomach.-New York Press
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
HeadIess, Man Runs Fifty Feet.

Oakland, Cal.-With his head prac-
tically severed from his body, Pros
Der basque, a restaurant employe in
Oakland, ran for a distance of so feet
through the halls of a lodging house,
cropping dead on a real porch Of the
place. The police investigated the
erewsome case and learned that
basque had hacked his head from his
shoulders with a huge carving knife.
He ran through the halls virtually
headless in the agony of death.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Old Cornwall Ceremony.

Dancing is a part OF a semi-relig-
ious ceremony held at ST Ives, Corn
wall, on the day of the feast OF St,
James. The people dance the old Cor
nish Furry" dance and The Girl
Left Behind Me-" and then sing the
old Hundredth.' After that they
have a banquet and small sums of
money are distributed The custom
dates from a century ago, when a fund
was established for the purpose by a
nam named Knll. 1t is known as the
Kniu ceremony
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17

The care of Irish potatoes by those
who want to grow them and save
them for seed at home is not OF the
same kind as that usually given to
the commercial article. The Irish po-
tato, for seed, should lot be allowed
to fully ripen. They grow much more
vigorously If dug before ripening
than If the plants stand until the
time of decay in autumn.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Winter Feed for Geese.

never feed any special green feed
except cabbage to my breeding geese
during the winter. But ] raise field
corn and feed that. allowing the geese
the range except when there is snow
on the ground, says a writer In an ex-
change. | have tried various feeds
but never have found n advantage
over corn. The pasture is, of course
Eest of all for geese, since the birds
will care for themselves.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Winter Clothes for Alfalfa.

Alfalfa from northern grown seed
Is hardy, yet it needs winter protec'
ton. In case there vas not a good
growth left to v it, to catch snow
and to lessen the effect of freezing
and thawfng, it will be helpful to put
on a light covering of straw or man
ure. Some of this will get into the
hay. but the important thing is to
save the stand Of alfalfa.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17

Now is the best time to fence, fer
tilize and prepare the garden and
fruit patches for the next seasons
crops. In making a garden fence, use
woven wire thai is both tight and
strong, the kind that will u both
Shickens and COWS. Use the best
quality Of posts, and set them close
together, bracing and anchoring well.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17

2A inches apart, running from top
to bottom. This make az ideal pig
con hole for each ear. Two cross
wires are I'll through the center
around the lath, as shown, to prevent
them from sagging. Each division can
be numbered so thai individual tests
can be made of every ear.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Worlds Wool Crop.

About o%ne-third Of the wool crop
Of the entire world is produced in
Australasia, which includes New Zeal
and and Tasmania. Last years crop
exceeding 5000 900 pounds. The
focks of this section contain nearly
twice as many sheep as those Of the
United States.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Stretching Wire.

or knobs, slanting the nails downward
Lang the wire over them. In the low
places drive them into the post up,
ward, and hook the wire under them
Then stretch the wire as tight as de"
sired. One man can stretch nearly as
much wire this way as two car with
out the use of the nails.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Children Of Fourteen Are Married.

Orange, N. 1.-THE romantic plans
of Arthur Edward James and Ruth
lane Day, fourteen, who eloped from
South Orange, were crowned with
success through the capitulation Of
their parents. Hunger and homesick-
ness compelled them to return, but
their parents consented to their union,
which was accomplished In orthodox
fashion.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
ODD FARM BUILDING
Queer Structure Constructed by
Kansas Farmer.
1t Resembles an Ocean-Goins Steamer
and Contains Bathrooms, BeehiVes
and the "Den" of the Farms
Owner.

Topeka, Kan.-Visitors to the farm
of George S. Bennett. a wealthy
farmer who lives near Halls Summit
In Coffey county, this state, are hrst
impressed with what appears 10 be
the outline of an ocean-going steamer
1t is just such a caprice as might ap-
peal to a retired sea captain. but Mr..
Bennett never followed the sea-, and its
resemblance to a steamship is acci-
dental.
The structure tands a short dis
lance fvom the Bennett farm home.
which is one of the finest In the coun-
ty. 1t is equipped with galleries.
which resemble decks, and which run
entirely around It, n on the ground
foor and another about fifteen feet
higher up. From the top of the second
deck rise two large tanks which re-
semble smokestacks, but which really
supply water to the bathrooms be-
low. In the second deck, also, Mr..
Bennett has fitted up a den in which
he spends much Of his time. This
gallery. or deck, is screened, n
makes an ideal place to spend summer
days and evenings and to sleep.
Between the upper deck and the
ceiling of the lower there Is a space
separated by a partition of Portland
cement, and this Mr.. Bennett has d.
vided into sections for bees. About
thirty swarms are housed there.
The Bennett farm house is the larg-
est in the county and is the scene OF
many unusual experiments. There Is
a farm water plant and the farm home
is equipped with every water con-
v~enience.
He started to build an immense
barn and had men working for nearly
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17

county ditch, which runs at right an.
| giles to the road on the west end Of
this mile.
When the road work was started
there were six culvertS or small
bridges on this mile of rOa The first
three from the east were removed, and
filed up, as the side bitches were low
enough to take care OF the water. At
the west end is the county ditch, and a
short distance east Of that a large
slough which neCeSsitated two fair
sized C%ulverts. and still farther east Il
smaller one In as much as this was
to be a model road, it was thought best
TO put in the culverts OF modern con
struCtion Hence, it was decided to
put in two siX-foot, and II three-fOot
Culvert of reinforced concrete con.
Struction with concrete bottom or
foOr over all The detail plans of
these culverts were prepared by the
writer and approved by Mr. Marshall.
The concrete work was done by Mr..
John Dokken of this city. Mr.. Mar
shall being on the ground all the time
and directing the work of construction.
The steel reinforcement in these cul.
verts were made extra heavy so they
will easily carry a twenty-ton load.
4, The cost of constructing this mile OF
road, while at the time of writing this
it is not quite completed, will approx
mately be as follows:
TOWN. ......'... ..,...,...S 4O w
Moving dirt $50 90
Sod Cutt' : n narrowing. 20 90
Final DIRE sing .............. 35 90
Total cost of grading .... S425 90
Considering the bitches, sloughs,
and depressions that had to be filled,
and that nearly four thousand (4,000)
cubic yards Of dirt was moved, and a
large part of that being tough sod, it
certainly demonstrates that a magnifi-
! cent road can be built, at a very mod
eerate cost, where proper intelligence
is used. The entire york of grading
was done by day labor, and was in full
charge Of Mr.. VIII Poole Of this city.
The rate of pay being $500 per day OF
ten hours for man and team.
1t is intended to cover the surface of
this rOad bed with gravel, but that
work will be carried on in sections as
an experiment to determine just how
much gravel is necessary to max a
good road surface with this kind of
I soil.
One of the principal lessons derived
from the construction of this model
road. and one which every road over
seer in South Dakota ought to know, is
the remarkable Improvement to be
gained by the complete cutting and
pulverizing of the sod, as well as the
small cost involved in doing it. BY
cutting and pulverizing the sod the
road packs even from the beginning
and eliminates the formation of high
ridges and hollows. that are the curse
of every road bed.
Another feature worthy of note is
the gentle slope to the sides, as shown
in Fig 4, making it perfectly safe to
drive a load on the sides clear to the
ditch without danger of overturning.
The browning Of the twenty-foot drive.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17

JEffMIN5F
IAS4 SKI"
HANDY RACK FOR SEED CORN
Pigeon Hole Is Provide &c for Every
Ear and Is Easy to Wake
Mice Az Kept Off.

A handy type OF rack tor storing
seed corn, which is very simple in
construction, is shown in the illustra-
ton, says the Farm and Home. 1t
may be made any size, but one that is
seven feet high and four feet wide is
very convenient. The frame is made
Of inch boards IL inches wide, and at
intervals of three inches two laths are
placed crosswise and wires are strung
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
LARGE WHEELS ON TRACTOR
largest of Their Kind Manufactured
by English Firm for Expert
mental Purposes.

The largest wheels ever used on an
agricultural traction engine were built
by a firm in Leeds. England. for ex-
perimental purposes, says the Popular
Mechanics. The giant wheels are II
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
German Potash

Potash from Germany was imported
heavily In the first seven months Of
1911, sulphate and muriate together
aggregating 3S2,1O2,9 23 pounds, against
800, S37,511 pounds and 1~SS,291,S7S
pounds, respectively, in the same peri
DDS of 1910 and 1909. Much more
kainit also came in.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Specia TaIent-

the originate"
Not very well. But he can make
ten yards around the left n almost
every time"
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
PLAN FOR STRETCHING WIRE
Method Shown in Illustration Will
Enable One Man to Do as Much
Work as Two.

The following method of stretching
wire over rough ground is a good one.
Get some big nails and drive them
into the posts as illustrated. on top
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Size of EARNS.

Our farms are decreasing in size,
the average number of acres in farms
having decreased from 146 in 1900 to
1873 in 1910.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
SqueIchcd.

Gerald-What do you think OF this
recall idea?
Geraldine-One call will be enough,
thank you.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17

Even the prude has occasional
thoughts that she likes to think
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
Frozen Celery.

Celery will stand a pretty heavy
frost, but it should neve be allowed
t freeze.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
One of Large Wheels.

feet in diameter, with a bearing sur-
face Is inches wide. The wheels were
designed for use on soft soil.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-11-17
How to get a
Mothers Oats
Fireless Cooker
Free

This advertisement is
good for 10 coupons
cut it out and you have
a big start. Then in
every package Of
Matters Oats you will
find a coupon. Save
the coupons and get
the cooker free in a
hurry. Only one aaUe,-
hsenaent 7viX be accepted
from each customer as
10 coupons.
Cooks meat, vegetables,
etc., perfectly and with
a delicious flavor. Re
quires no attention what
ever while meal is
cooking. If you are 60
ing out, place the entire
dinner in the cooker and
it will be ready to serve
when you get home.
Buy a package Of
Mothers Oats today and
send a postal for COM
plete premium book.
Address
|'Mother's Oats"
Chicago
Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1911-11-16

the evil have been blocked by the
courts, under some pretext or other.
1t is the same old story-putting
the dollar before the man. It is
easy to get another man-but to get
another dsllar Is quite q different
matter. FIX
"Ill fares the land, to fastening
Ills a prey, where wealth aecumulates
and men decay"
Charity libraries and hospitals
may abound and wealth may accu-
mulate beyond the dreams OF avar-
ice." but manhood will inevitably
decay wherever the rights Of toiling
men and helpless children are not
safeguarded by the scrupulous en-
forcement Of righteous laws.
G. P. s.