The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1913-02-19
Believes It Best to Secure Fair
Grades, a First Glass Bull and
Build Up Through Offspring
BOOSTS FOR "GET-T0-G ETHERs"
Enthusiasm and Inspiration Which
Come From These Meetings are
The Important Things.

"A. I. AS1ISA1O, VI CAAo ivy, ID dA
exponent of the fact that a profess
sional man can go back to the farm
and make good. Up to two years
ago, Mr.. Richie was teacher by
profession and at the time he started
his farm, had just finished long
term as superintendent of the Be-
midi schools.
In the fall of 1910 Mr.. Richie
purchased 1856 acres of jack pine
land about three miles out from the
center of the city and located on the
bank of the Mississippi river. OF
this 1876 acres, eight were cleared.
Today the farm has sixty-five acres
under cultivation and forty acres
more cut over and used for pasture.
He is milking twenty head Of cattle
and supplies a large proportion of
the Bemidji retail trade.
When Mr.. Richie moved onto the
farm, a small house was the only
building on it. Having the neces-
sary capital but proceeding with
caution, Mr.. Richie enlarged the
house, built horse barn, milk
house, and other outbuildings and
finally constructed on of the largest
barns in this part of the county and
erected silo to one side of it.
He had decided that dairying was
the best way in which to get his
money out of his land so he began
to look for COWS. At Carlton he To-
Gated the farm of e. Barnard and
from her he bought eleven head of
grade Holsteins. From her he also
bought registered Holstein bull calf
that had been dropped on the Stew
ems dairy farm in Wisconsin.
The bull, which will be four years
old March 81, is a grandson of Hen
gerveld de kol, the record bull of the
world. Ritchie's bull is called Belle
Massey Sir Hengerveld, and has been
the head of the herd since coming
into his powers. Sir Hengerveld's
first heifer calf will come fresh this
spring and by her it will be known
if he has inherited any of the power
of his grand SIRE.
Mr.. Richie bought other grade
Holsteins until he is now milking a
herd of twenty head. The produce
ton of the herd averages forty gal
Ions a day for the year around. His
net investment is about $4,000
and with the increase in the value of
the land mainly due to the clearing,
he believes his farm is now worth
about $4,000. -.
IT realize that forty gallons day
is not good for twenty cows" said
Mr. Richie yesterday. "But the
point is here-it is impossible to buy
first class COWS at reasonable price.
They are simply not on the market.
Even pure bred calves are worth
more when they are born than the
average farmer can afford to pay.
"The only way, then, that I, or
any other farmer, can get a dairy
herd is by buying fair females, get
ting first class bull and breeding
up. MY bulls first heifer. will come
fresh this spring and I will then be
able to make an estimate of his value
as a dairy sire. l have sold several
bull calves which he has sired from
grade cows and they have brought
good prices. 49,. =. .S.~.
i. CAS- soon as am able, am going
to buy one or two registered heifers
and as soon as they reach breeding
age, I will have foundation for 9
herd of registered Holsteins. A far
,mer can breed his herd up, but never
can register his animals if they
have any grade blood on either side.
/ expect to see my milk production
take big jump every year"
Mr.. Richie said that he believed
the farmers meetings which have
been held in Bemidji, at the district
school houses and farmers homes this
winter, are largely valuable in the
enthusiasm and inspiration which
they give the individual. Mr.. Richie
was secretary Of the Beltrami County
Fair association up to this year. Els
work team Of grays took first prize
in their class at the 1912 county
lContinusd % last pago).