Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1914-03-17
DAN MURRAY STILL DOING FULL
DAYS WORK IN FIELD AND
DRAWING FULL PAY.
REJECTED AS MEXICAN WAR
SOLDIER az PHYSICIANS
Lung Trouble Fails to Cut Short Life
of Murray and He Has Been a "Hirsd
Man" All His Life-Likes Work and
Grows Sick When Hs stays in Town
-Wilson's Observations.
Special to Times Republican


Alexander, March 17-Somewhere in
the vicinity of the town of Sheffield
there lives farmer considerably past
the period commonly termed middle
life" When a young lad he came to
the then new country and spent sew
eral years herding cattle on the I'M
broken prairies that existed in that
section at the time. He retains dis
tinct recollection Of an elderly man
who worked for different men in the
country as farm hand. In fact there
has been no excuse for falling to re-
member him for the old man is still
alive and well and still working in the
same part Of the country and at the
same kind of job. 1t is said that every
body living between Alexander and
Mason City knows Dan Murray, prob
ably the Oldest real farm hand in the
state of Iowa. Oldest both in age and
length of service. A mighty good IL
lustration Of "the shoemaker sticking
to his last" And according to the
things said about him by some Of his
former employers. Che hasn't many
because he staid long terms of years
with one MANI he was an unusually
good hired man and is yet Dan Muir
ray says he was born in the year 1916.
That makes him nearly SO years old.
When this was mentioned to one for
whom he worked long time, the latter
exclaimed, NO such thing seized
lead pencil and figured awhile and re-
marked meekly, Maybe he was"
Mr.. Murray was old enough to enlist
for service in the Mexican war in 1916
but failed to make the physical exam
Misunderstanding wrong with one
lung. There was some defect, for it
has troubled him more or less ever
since, but what would that doctor
think about it if he could have looked
ahead as far as 1914?
This remarkable old man does not
hire out ito people to chop wood, do
light chores and tend the little folks"
He takes a team and goes into the
fields the same as other men 10 years
or more younger than he. Last fall he
averaged between fifty and sixty BUSH
els of corn thru the husking season and
threshing and haying seasons found
him making a full hand. He has
wife and family at Mason City and
doesn't have to lead the life he is do
ing but an occasional visit is all he will
have Of town or city life. He Is doing
what he likes to 90 and doing 1t well
Re receives Tsges that ten years ago
would have been considered enough for
any farm hand no matter how able
and efficient. a former employer de-
cIares that every time his man" went
home to visit he returned half sick"
solely because Of temporarily discon-
tinuing manual labor and that week
after the return he was always himself
again and ready for a days work. Used
tobacco all his life? Why, of course.
Liquor? Well, a very little. Pitches
GOOD game Of "horseshoe" and doesn't
yield any points" to his opponent I'M
less they are shown by measurement to
have been earned.
Dan Murray is in a class all by him
self and has been there for about ten
or fifteen years; and it might be added
too that those who know him will not
be surprised if he stays there several
years more.
There was corn husking perform
ance on the J. C. Arends farm last fall
that was unusual. This time it was
case Of old horses instead Of old man.
Leslie Reed cribbed 1900 bushels Of
corn in eleven days using team the
average age of the animals being SIX
years greater than that of the lad who
used them. Both the horses the Off
spring Of one mother, were foaled on
| the farm where the work was done,
! one twenty six, the other twenty-seven
years ago.
Bobst Bros, two young sons OF Paul
| Bobst, local farmer, have gone into
| the skunk raising business on their
! fathers farm. They fenced yard l0o
! feet square with woven wire six feet
! high or rather three feet high and
three feet low as half the fence Is un-
| der ground to prevent burrowing un-
! der the Enclosure. There are seven
teen of the inhabitants scattered over
| the yard in little boxes partly hllec
| with hay. One of the animals cost the
present owners the sum of 50. 1t was
! explained that one litter a year is al
| that can be expected Of a mother
| skunk but their fur is becoming sc
valuable that their rearing promises
a good profit to those who conduct the
business properly.
|
Ihe test Oh Tuldi HAL e'ii iei
| faithfulness in the matter of making
his route regularly can not be judgeo
always from a record Of his trips fol
| the manner in which the route is laic
out, condition Of the roads and dispo'
sition Of patrons to help in times OF
| blockade, ETC., very materially AFFECT re-
suits, nevertheless there's smething II
! the record. The Latimer route IL
twenty-six and half miles IT
length. Ed Sawtell Is the carrier ane
Ed sawtell, Jr., his substitute. Ever.
foot of this route has been traverset
| every rural carriers working day io'