davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31

the farmer who will do this two re-
suits. He will have the most valuable
lot of roughage he ever fed and will
become as big an Alfalfa Crank" as
am, and my friends declare that l
have to say alfalfa" before l can
say Good morning"
From the Iowa Experiment Station
bulletin, alfalfa in Iowa." / take the
following: Advantages of Alfalfa. l..
1t yields from two to three times as
much as clover and timothy, and is
more valuable hay. 2. 1t is rich in
protein. 3. For hog pasture alfalfa
has no equal. 4. 1t is superior to
any crop for enriching the SOIL s..
Alfalfa fed in connection with corn
will make the most economical grains.
In the May, 1912, issue of Corn"
Professor Evvard of the Experiment
station in an article entitled Corn
and Forage for Big Profits in Pigs"
says: Last year upon an acre of al
falfa we made gains on spring pigs
at a cost of Sass hundred pounds,
ear corn worth SO cents a bushel. The
farsighted hog men will see to it that
alfalfa pasture is provided for next
years hogs"
1t has been demonstrated by vari-
Gus experiment stations that in feed
ing a ton of alfalfa hay is equal to
a ton of bran. Question: With bran
at $25 to $50 per ton, what is an acre
of alfalfa ground worth that will pro-
duce from 4 to tons per acre?
Everybody comedies that alfalfa
is the ideal roughage part of ration
for the dairy COW. while fair trial
would convince our cattle feeders that
corn and alfalfa constitute a perfect
ly balanced ration for the fattening
steer. Personally l can testify that
alfalfa hay given to brood sows as
part of their feed saves much worry
and loss at narrowing time.
When we started our little Jersey
cattle ranch we started alfalfa so
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31

standing that it will be increased as
the department grows.
The offer came unsolicited and was
a surprise to Professor Storm, who did
not know that his name was under
considerable for the position. 1t is a
great compliment. but shows that
Minnesota knows what it wants and
then gets it.
Professor Storm was brought to
Ames by Professor Holden three years
ago to take up the work of education
extension in the Holden department.
So we'll did he succeed in the work
that a department was established a
year ago for agriculture education in
the college paper. Two very success
full summer schools have been held
and the work put on it's feet through
the energies of Professor Storm.
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31

f! Only in case of an accident is hus
band, father, or brother permitted tt
enter the dressing tent used by the
women.
But back behind the glitter in the
big tent. The circus women have un
packed the trunk containing the cos
tunes and makeup. The Other-fol
nearly every circus performer carries
two trunks-contains her personal
wardrobes, frocks, lingerie, writing ma
terials, etc. Her costumes are laid
tout, her street clothes hung against
pole and her practice clothes are
slipped on. These are tights if she
is an equilibrist or acrobat, boomers
and blouse or jersey if she is an
euuestrienne. She has no makeup
table or shelf like the actress in a
theater. Her upper tray holds her
makeup, which she applies with a
mirror tilted against the top OF her
trunk or against her knee.
Off she goes to the big top. Every
thing is hustle, but not confusion. AS
during the performance, so during
practice hours, the ringmaster is in
control Each performer or act is al
lotted certain time, and only one
act is permitted on stage or in a
ring.
TO me- this practice hour was al
ways the best possible proof OF the
generally amiable and kindly nature
of circus performers. The average in
dividual would be irritable and worn
out by the night aboard a car, but
these circus folks are cheerful and
generous in their comments on each
others work. 1t is not unusual to see
woman or man from one riding act,
holding the hoop or cloth streamers
for another equestrienne in the ring.
Acrobats and tumblers vie with each
other in nigh good humor, and there
is apparently little or none of the en-
nifty and envy and professional snob-
berry one sees behind the scenes of
biz dramatic or operate production.
Practice hour past, the circus wo-
man hurries back to her dressing
room to prepare for the parade. No
matter how big her reputation, she
must parade with the humblest ballet
girl who is fairly lost in the big spec
tacle The time she must give to the
parade depends upon the size OF the
town. the length of the route. A short
parade means that she is back early
free to indulge in feminine or do
nestle pursuits. Just about the time
you are putting the last touches on
your dinner, she is figuring on what
she can do with her brief respite. Off
come her parade trappings. On goes
shirt waist and skirt or kimono
There are letters to be written home,
or stitches to be taken. If she has
nothing more pressing, she may in
dulge her love for embroidery. But
if it is a fine, clear day she is just as
apt to wash and iron-yes, right there
in the dressing tent. She knows a
brand of soap that will loosen dirt in
cold water, there are buckets IN
plenty, and before you've rung the
dinner BELL her wash is fluttering on
a line, and she is filling her alcohol
iron. The circus woman does not de-
pend for heat on cook stoves, gas or
electricity. Alcohol is her standby,
AMI she knows her iron will stay not
so long as the alcohol inside CT 1T
burns.
II it rains before her clothes dry,
she rolls them up tightly in rubber
case or hlanket and tucks them away
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31

changes. And at last the day is over
The gay costumes are folded in the
trunks. Men almost snatch the trunk
from her hand as she locks them. Sec
onds count in moving circus. The
circus lady now sets her jaunty tail
ored hat on her well-groomed head
| never saw mussy couture all the
time l wandered among the circus
women-makes sure that every button
on her trim suit is fastened, slips her
hand through the arm of her waiting
husband, and is off for the car on the
distant siding.
Did you keep track of the changes
she made? No? Then let me tell
you that, starting with donning her XII
mono in the car she dressed and I'M
dressed precisely thirteen times in
fifteen hours. That in itself is siren
uous work, yet she is no more tired
than the woman who has done the
housework for family OF four or five.
Perhaps she is not so tired, because
you, see, she has been outdoors, or
in a well-ventilated tent, and eXercis-
ing in a way to keep her blood in per-
feet circulation.
domestic or social life!" Why not?
Didn't she cook her husbands break
fast? Didn't she wash his linen and
hers? She didn't have to do either.
The cook tent would supply the break
fast A laundryman was waiting for
her on the lot, promising to bring
back her work finished at night. But
she did both because-she is wo-
man, and the home-loving, home-mak-
ing instinct is as strong in the circus
tent as in bungalow, villa, farmhouse
or city fiat.
She has sewed, too. Many of the
most effective costumes you see are
made by the performers, every stitch
of them And she must have three
distinct sets of costumes, one for clear,
sparkling days, another for breath
lessly hot and dusty days and still a
third for rainy weather. If there is
no such prosaic sewing to be done,
she has bed and table linen to hem,
embroider and monogram. That
dainty, doll-like rider. Victoria Daven-
port, is in private life the wife of
Orrin Davenport. Back in Chicago
they have a beautiful home, presided
over by his mother. There too, you
would find a stalwart four-year-old,
who some day may be rider too.
They do not raise many children I'M
der the big tents now. One reason
is that grown-ups have learned the
dangers of storms. A performer may
be able to save himself, but not to
reach his child under such circum-
stances. Then. too, the modern cir
Gus couple are we'll to do. They can
afford to maintain home twelve
months in the year for their children.
And so the circus mother braves the
separation for the good of the child
and stitches happily on tiny garments
or household linen.
And their social life? Can you not
understand that friendships are form
ed, little cliques or circles created,
among more than thousand people
travelling together nine months in the
year? Just as you are drawn to con-
genial. companionable persons in your
city or village, so these circus per-
formers are attracted by similar tastes
and interests. And the social life of
these people, their relations are so
clean that the average village may
l. 4. >nysSc
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31

| Scandals seldom arise in circus life.
1t has been said that this is largely
due to the fact that couples are bound
together by professional interests. To
quarrel means to break up the team
or troupe, and reorganize. But l be-
| lleve the reason OF their clean lives
lies deeper than this. They are
healthy, normal, wholesome lot of
men and women, proud OF their good
names. Young girls are not permitted
to travel among them unchaperoned II
mothers canOnt come with the girls,
they must be under the care of faith
ers, older married sisters or relatives
who are responsible and strict. A
performer who pays court to young
girl is expected to announce his lin
|tentiOns" in short order Otherwise
he will be Ostracized.
| Social lines are drawn as clearly
among performers under the big tent
as in your town. The aristOcracy is
made up of performers who have
descended from circus people or who
have married into old circus families.
When the spectacle of Cleopatra was
| first introduced into this circus, the
dismay of the old performers was
comical to witness. 1t brought among
them a new element, unchaperoned
ballet girls. In the end, it was almost
necessary to use as ballet girls, wives
or women relatives of performers or
attendants.
AS usual among girls Of this stamp,
there arose jealousies and quarrels in
the dressing rooms. One day when
Mrs. Bert Wallace, wife of the super
intendent, and herself an experienced
wardrobe woman, came upon a turbu-
lent scene, there was talk worth
hearing. 1t was in Madison Square
Garden at the start of the long tour.
Girls she said sternly, you're with
a circus, not hall show" (The cir
Gus people call any form of indoor
amusement hall show 1--WE don't
quarrel and talk like this We're
used to travelling together in peace
and good manners nine months of the
year. If any of you think you can't
do the same, you'd best hand in your
notice before we leave New York.
We're ladies and gentlemen among
ourselves and you've got to be as we
are
The circus woman who is fond of
music generally finds kindred souls
among the performers. You'll find
group here playing cards, another
playing chess. In towns where the
sights are worth seeing, like Wash
lington, Colorado Springs, Niagara
Falls, you will find them making up
small parties and hiring a sight-see-
ing car.
Circus women are great readers.
The dany papers come first. Then each
woman has her favOrite family mag
azine Next comes popular fiction in
novels or magazine form, plenty of
action, romance. good, sound whole
some love. The problem novel, par
ticularly the sex problem, interests
them not at all. Neither do they care
for undertaking. Of votes for women
they seem to know little or nothing,
and, if possible, to care less. They
are happy because they are clean of
body, mind and soul, primitive in their
passions and pleasures, and are never
idle.
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31
Illinois Criminals The Illinois

illinois Criminals The Illinois
general assembly at it's last session
created the bureau of criminal stat
istics and attached it to the state
charities commission. Illinois is the
first state in the union to take this
advanced step. The new law contem-
plates the compilation of statistics
which will show whether crime is
actually increasing or decreasing in
this state, and whether the reformat-
DRY laws of recent years have been
what their proponents
claimed they would accomplish. The
bureau hopes to be able to show
more clearly how close is the rela-
between crime and poverty,
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31
W. F. Carpenter, Of Manning, Tells Of
His Experience in Raising
This Great Feed.
THREE CUTTINGS IN A SEASON
Farmer Who Starts An Alfalfa Field
Becomes an "AIfaIfa Crank"
In a Short While.
Editor Monitor, Manning, Iowa.

Editor Monitor, Manning, Iowa.
Dear Sir:-Having promised that
some day l would say few words
about alfalfa, take this particular
time to do so. l use this particular
time" because right now is the time
for prospective alfalfa Iaisers to "get
busy"
have heard you remark many
times that it seemed strange more
alfalfa was not raised about here.
The explanation is easy. The word
alfalfa" stands for something's mys-
FERROUS with a large majority of the
farmers.
incubation, hard to get started,
are the stereotyped phrases handed
to one when growing alfalfa is sug-
gested. have outlived all these bug
bears and have only found one thing
to worry me, get too much hay from
a small piece of land.
have satisfied myself that,
though incubation is beneficial, it is
not necessary; that alfalfa is easier
to get started than clover, in less dan
ger of being winter killed and is less
trouble to cure.
I sowed my first alfalfa in August,
1907, had two cuttings in the sum-
mer of 1908, and in 1909 cut it three
times. l did not have large yield
either year, not having more than one
half of a good stand, simply because
I did not properly prepare the ground.
no properly seed.
Snow fell in the fall of 1909 and
covered the alfalfa while the ground
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31

in corner OF her trunk. The sui
will shine at the next stand!
All this gives her fine appetite
| for lunch, served in the huge cook
tent by the culinary staff of the cir
Gus. The service might not appeal to
the truly fastidious, but everything is
clean and wholesome. Soup is fol
lowed by three kinds of meat or fish,
anu two meats, vegetables, relishes
fresh salads, desert, coffee and tea.
At this meal one gets the best view
of the performers massed together.
Even when breakfast is served in the
cook tent, many performers prefer
coffee and rolls in the car. At night,
some of them Stroll into town for a
bite at restaurant, or foreign
performer may cook some typically
native dish for members of her fam
lily or troupe. Between the lunch
hour and the grand entry, the circus
woman has breathing SPELL You'll
generally find her in the dressing tent
sewing, reading, writing or, perhaps,
enjoying the same sort of siesta
which the tired housewife allows her
self after doing up the midday dishes.
This is interrupted by bugle call
the same call that floats out to you
in the menagerie or the side shows,
and sends you SQUIRTING into the eX-
hibition tent. 1t brings the circus
woman to her feet. Now, it's off with
her suit or kimono and on with tights
and spangles. The rabbits foot and
the powder puff touch her face here
and there. A few dark lines appear
around her eyes, swift, light shower
and the trick is turned.
Another bugle call and she is off,
flashing to her waiting horse or char
lot, to the howdah of an elephant, the
swaying back of a camel. She bows
and smiles as you applaud, but she is
measuring with a keen eye the dis
tance to the curtained entrance. Her
horse runs past the men holding back
the draperies. The circus woman
bounds lightly to the ground-her
horse is led away by helper-and
she is in the dressing tent stripping
off the trappings for the first pageant,
and reaching out for spangled tights
or carleton skirts or shimmering rid
ing habit. Perhaps she may appear
III lNO VI lAC O1S pAOSA ant
Very good-then she undresses and
dresses once more before the show is
over. So it is five o'clock before she
has removed the last trace of make
up and has shed the last glittering
spangle in favor of her street suit.
Your fun is over. Her pleasure hour
is just at hand. Between now and din
ner time-call the meal what you will
she is off with her husband or a
few friends to see such sights as your
town may boast. The circus woman
is an intelligent tourist. Unlike the
average actress, she makes her trav-
cling count for culture. 1t is her edu-
cation In her desire to make the
most of these opportunities she puts
the average tourist of leisure to shame.
She may never see the inside of your
smart cafe, she may never receive
a mash note, or dodge your stage
door Johnnies, but she will get a
glimpse of the new statue in your city
park and learn the history of the deed
it commentaries, or she will see your
new library, and send home picture
postals, to renew acquaintance with
them during her vacation.
After supper she hurries once more
~ tho droSSjnp tent for three more
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31

was frozen, but little. if any, and re-
manned practically all winter.
In the spring of 1910 l found that
about one-half of the plants had been
killed, not by frost, but had smothered
by the early fall of snow thus re-
ducing my prospects to about one
fourth of good stand. This did not
look good to me, so l solved the prob
lem by using the plow to wipe off the
slate and took a fresh start.
l planted half the ground to corn,
which yielded IS bushels to the acre.
and sowed alfalfa on the other half,
adding to it about as much more new
ground.
In the spring of 1911 l sowed the
corn ground to alfalfa, making about
six acres in all. At present writing l
have two cuttings in the barn, amount
ing to 20 tons, and the same rain that
stopped the firemen's tournament has
given the third cutting fine start.
(The firemen's loss is my gain.)
Any farmer in this locality can put
at least two good cuttings of alfalfa
in his barn next summer, if he will
simply do a little extra work right
now.
Take four or five acres of best land
(not a little corner that is too poor
to raise anything) that has raised a
crop of small grain this year, remove
the crop as soon as possible and
spread eight or ten loads of manure
to the acre, disc it thoroughly and
pillow, then about the first of August
harrow and disc and disc and harrow
until it is like an onion bed, harrow
again and SOW about August 10th, not
later than the 18th, using from Is to
20 pounds to the acre, sowing both
ways one-half of the seed at a time.
1t is not possible to put the manure
on now, do the rest and spread the
manure next winter. Manure and
thorough cultivation will take the
place of incubation. will promise
The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1912-07-31

Square Garden, New York, the circus
woman sleeps by night on railWa!
car, and works and plays, eats and
rests by day on the circus lot. The
car is built like the ordinary sleeper
1t holds fifty people. Each section is
fitted out to suit the fancy of the
couple occupying it the long season
| through. Sometimes this couple are
husband and wife, again they may be
mother and daughter, or sisters, or
father and son. You will find much
individuality expressed in the fittings
and decorations, from crOcheted or
embroidered counterpanes to ere.
tonne wall pockets and photographs.
Every inch not needed for actual car
equipment is given over to some form
of decoration suggesting the feminine
touch and the instinct of hOme-mak-
ing.
The circus woman may have in this
car only such luggage as can be kept
in a suit case under the berth. This
is more apt to consist of cooking
utensils and staple groceries than
frocks and frills The circus lady is
a practical person. She has passed
through all sorts of travel delays,
from washouts to hot boxes, so she
keeps close at hand the supplies which
go so far in making delays endurable
and husbands amiable. Every after
noon she knows the hour at which the
car will be sidetracked at the next
stand or town where the circus is
billed.
Nine O'Clock, Ell? That means lit
tie enough time for breakfast in the
cook tent, so while the night audience
is vending it's way home, the circus
wife is stopping on her way to the car
to pick up some rolls or loaf of
bread, bit of butter, perhaps tiny
can of condensed cream, even an egg.
Let delays come now if they will, she
tucks her fresh supplies under the
berth and sleeps the sleep OF the ef-
ficient housewife.
Next morning, when your town is
up early, with all eyes and thoughts
directed to the CIRCUS lot, the circus
housewife is stirring, too. While the
porter makes up her berth, she breWs
coffee and boils egg on the alcohol
lamp in the Mushroom. Paper nap
kins, a couple of light enameledware
plates and cups pop into sight. and
there they are, husband and wife, as
cosy as you please, having breakfast
with you and the circus lot still miles
away.
Dishwashing done, her kimono ex-
changed for tailored suit and hat, she
hops off the car and makes her way
toward the circus lot, looking as trig
as woman of leisure bent on her
mornings marketing or days shop
ping. Perhaps her walk to the lot is
only a few blocks, perhaps it is a
mile or more. 1t is all one to the cir
Gus woman and good for her health!
What she does next depends en-
tirely upon the hour of arrival. II
they have pulled into the town at a
very early hour, she stops in the COOK
tent for her breakfast. After that
comes practice hour in the tent tc
remove any stiffness due to the long
ride in the car.
At this stage of the program. hus-
band and wife separate. No matter
how high their standing as perform
ers, they are not supplied with indi-
vidual or joint dressing-rooms. All
the women performers dress in one
huge tent; all the men in another.