The Mena weekly star., 1913-01-09

He who plants tree plants hope"
 But he did not say how much more of hope if it was a fruit tree.
 Did you ever notice the bright eye, the cheerful face of the man who is planting his own orchard how lovingly he picks up the tree, trims back the branches, trims of the bruised and dead ends of the roots, turns it around until the heaviest branches are on the south side; how he hunts around until he finds the incest loamy top soil for around the roots, gives it a loving pat and goes to the next? This he repeats until all are plant ed. He is tired but does not feel it, for all day he has seen a won derful sight-he has looked a few years into the future, has seen his orchard in full bearing, seen him. self a little older, not quite so strong as now, but he is content, for then his orchard will help him to enjoy little more leisure, to which he has been a stranger since | boyhood, for wasn't it a struggle to get the plot of ground he now owns, and wasn't it hard to spare the money to buy trees, especially as he paid more to get the best?
 Time passes. He protects the trees in winter, sprays and trims in the most approved way and in due time he is rewarded with a won derful crop of the finest fruit. His crop proves that he selected the avrieties adapted to the soil and climate and the quality proves that he gave them the proper care but what is wrong-why that hopeless look? Ask him and he will tell you he had not studied his market orchards 300 and zoo miles nearer market already had sup piled the demand, and the packing and transportation charges would consume the returns from his crop.
 Brother, this is a tragedy, and it is being enacted all around us right nowl
 | Just because a variety does well in your locality is no sign 1t IS a money-maker. Let me give you a few illustrations that came under my observation this year; The most successful grower 1 know of raises the finest fruit, gets premiums wherever he shows, sells what he can fresh; dries, cans, works economically and hard, but he just makes a living.
 A neighbor, Frenchman, months ago sold his entire crop, and IS now taking a winter tour of the West Indies on part of his profits. His crop it is apples have reference | to now-netted him S2.S0 per bushel. Whether he planted the orchard, I don't know. Whether the selection was design or hap py accident, 1 don't know. But l do know he drew his money many months ago for his apples, and we are still selling ours.
 In the old orchard of perhaps 100 apple trees on my place, there are but few money getters. All are tag ged, and I have their record Two bring $250 per bushel, four bring S200 per bushel, two bring Si.50, five bring Si. Then a long list of delicious, beautiful apples, but no profitable market at their time of lripening. Then eight trees, by keeping their apples until Christ mas, bring from $i.50 to S2 per bushel, and there is a big shrinkage in these from they time they are picked until sold.
 This orchard yields from seven to eight bushels per tree. It would be worth something if the trees were all the S2.50 per bushel kind. Keep this in mind when planting any kind of fruit for market and you will find it will bring your land to S200 an acre quicker than any other way. Get a few neighbors to plant the same variety, so you can ship together. Remember, the growers on the Pacific slope can put box of fruit in your market cheaper by car lot than vou can local yours in just few hundred miles. It isn't hard to sell some thing the market demands, but it lis hard to raise crop and mar ket too.
 Keep this in mind Don't plant haphazard Remember what that other great man has said "Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these-'Im stung