Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1915-01-28
ICoMMUNIcATE.l

After reading Of late the letters OF
the tobacco growers and attending the
meeting OF growers &C Morganza, and
hearing In both ways about the cost
OF growing the crop, leads me 20 be-
lieye that the growers must put on
their thinking caps 70 see IL they can
not get away from few Of their grand
fathers antidated methods and rufs
and make new but shorter roads 20 the
making and marketing the crop.
The business men OF the cities are
ever ready to take up any new idea
that they think viii cut the cost OF
running his business. Will one plant
er out of ten even try five rows In his
field TO see IL q new idea advanced
him will shorten his work. thereby
cutting the costY do not hesitate 70
say no! am confident that any plant
er Gag cut the cost of production from
hfty cents TO ONE dollar q thousand
plants, and possibly more by making
more pounds 70 the acre. How much
will that save your III you are inter-
ested and would like to know q few of
the ways, read what follows:
Our grahdfathers had TO rely on the
hoe alone, after the land was scratched
by their crude plows, to mark the spot
where it was desired TO set the plant
so had 10 make q hill to be observed
after rain. Then came our one
horse plows and they had the good
sense 10 know they could be used for
throwing up the hills, then dragged OF
and patted with the hoe, which was
certainly quite an advance in cutting
the cost. That was q good many
years ago and / want 20 ask you
why you have not shown that you are
as smart as your grandfathers? You
ask howg Why, by using the imple-
ment you have that Is twice as fast as
the pillow. Are you interested enough
70 know what IL lisp It Is Just the plain
cultivator that we all use on the farm.
There Is an implement on the market
that has big wing hoes that throws up
a ridge at one going. / have one
but never use it any more since found
the ordinary cultivator gave me a bet
ter row, because narrow and Ratter.
Now / hear you ssstand-patters'' cry
aloud that the cultivator does not
make hill enough. Have you proven
with one row by another that anything
on the farm actually needs q hillY ]
once had to plant q few rows in the
open furrow, and there was actually
no difference In the growth OF the to-
bacco. But / hear you say it Is so
low IL Is hard to plant. Forget IL, as
it makes you sore either way. BY
your low and narrow hills you may be
able TO cut out wedding nine seasons
out of ten, for you have saved lust
time enough getting the hills ready 10
run twice in the row with the cultivator
which leaves only narrow strip un-
stirred III you drill and II you check,
which / think is an advantage. YOU
leave none with two workings for the
grass to get o foot-hold.
Do l hear you say wedding Is the
best working IL gets? Forget that,
too, for h Is not based on sound facts.
A few up-to-date farmers have quit
wedding for good; and so should you,
for IL Is hard, costly and unnecessary
work.
Now have nothing TO offer till the
plant Is cut, ready for the spearer, but
will now ask you IL you or your helper
stands TO the pile in such q way that
you can get the plant to the spear with
the least lost motionS Lost motion.
gentlemen, is what cost us the good
coin OF the realm. Have you expert
mented TO see Just how many plants
you dare put on stick and cure rightp
1 think you will find that Il will carry
one-fourth to one-third more than Won
thought, and in large tobacco You
will be limited to your strength TO
handle IL. Seven times you handle
that stick from spearer 70 stripper
and wnen you handle one-fourth to
one-third more each time 1t cuts the
cost you can readily see.
No doubt you feel a little doubtful
about accepting the above statement,
and do not blame you-nor do / ad-
wise you to try your, whole crop,
though ! do; but do try ten or twenty
sticks in the middle of q full barn
leaving il wider between the sticks and
note the results. At first filing you
have no more plants in barn as you
have 70 leave the sticks wider apart,
but Ii gives you one-fourth TO one.
third more room after slowing.
Tobacco growing Is man work all
the way through, for there Is no ma
chine to hasten our efforts to shorten
the labor, therefore, / ask you have
you tried in anyway to shorten your
grandfather's methods In stripping
and handling in the bundleS / end
that even our intelligent planters have
dreams that certain methods of hand
ling the bundles gives Ii an extra I'm.
ished look when it Is sampled, thereby
increasing their labor and adding 10
the cost without actually getting any
thing for their dream. Have you tried
any method that will cut the time 4
takes TO strip given number of stalks
and tie up the same into bundlesY n
you have not advise you TO get busy
&C the next stripping 90 see IL you are
not smart enough TO pull from two Ia
dozen leaves OF at q time, and h
wrap the tie as quick as q wink by
rolling them In your hands. You old
f0gies hold up your hands in horror
1t the idea because it leaves an I'm.
even head. but my advice TO you ia 10
forget that, too, for neither the sales.
man nor buyer makes any objection.
III you have any doubts about the diff.
ference In time by the above method
over the old one just strip ten stalks
20 geethe hang of it, then take twenty.
i've uniform plants and then anothex
twenty-five similar ones and strip the
first lot the new method and put the
time on yourself; then time the second
lot. You viii find the new will beaI
the old and you viii likely catch your.
self pulling at more than one leaf on
the old method pile.
The planters that can do so will End
short cut In sticking the bundles as
they make them, regardless of VIVA,
you or your neighbors may think, thai
IL will-not have q pretty face wher
sampled. just try some that way and
when you are ready 20 bulk take q
a f3nxar, hur,1lae NJ each xz>o<l.<.1 49,