The Oklahoma City times. [volume] (Oklahoma City, Okla.) 1908-1984, 1915-07-14
ONIONS, DOLLARS
AND VACANT LOT
There's a Combination Which Can
Mean Key TO Puzzle
Of Poverty
EXPERIENCE OF TWO SCHOOL BOYS

This Is just Il plain, ungarnished
story Of II little onion patch The on
Ion, plain and unnsSuming though It
be-, has a perfect right to receive cred
II when credit is due. exactly the same
rs Its more popular and prerOtscssing
ncighbors of the garden patch. True,
certain drawbacks are attendant up
ON the assimilation " the onion as
mn article NJ diet which are not pos
scsScd by its milder and more gentle
contemporaries, but who IL perfect, for
that matter;
Away last spring, before school was
out, Perry Hanson and Lawrence
Bradshaw. living on West Twenty
ninth street, began to wonder II there
wasn't some easier way to make mo
ney than to cut weeds all summer long
Consultations were held, aud numcr-
GUS plans considered Perry lives at
l2OL und Lawrence HIVES at 1927. Be
tween the two houses there ARE a cou-
pie " vacant lots. Weeds grew thick
~ and luNurinntly upon these lots. II
weeds would grow, why wouldn't
something else So reasoned the
two Youngsters facing the perpetual
money problem, and accordingly their
minds We're made mp.
$3.50 Cost Of Planting
The onion WHs the product Of ma
turc picked out with which to reap a
profit, and two bushels OF onion sets
wore hpuyIt ut ut n,tIu,. - ~ IA,
school Nns dismissed about this time,
ana the onions were set out hy hand
at odd moments. The little pntch OF
ground had To be- plowrd. and this
cost II dollar. Then the heavy rnlus
came, aud the weeds cnmc up 80 fnst
the onions could not be- seen. More
help was necessary, so n contract to
remove the weeds was awarded to al
work hunting stranger for another dol |
lar. That WIS all the expense. five
dollars and Il half
Last week the Youthful farmers dug
up the onions from their little 30 by
lao foot patch, and when all the shiny
yellow roots we're measured. they
showed that Just sixty bushels had
been produccd from the ground where
nothing hut weeds had crown before
Pnrr OF the onions were sold at the
public market Saturday nt two and n
hhlt cents Il pound. There are 30
pounds Of onions IN u hushel This
makes the amount realized By the lads
about SI5. But they have not sold all
their crop, for seed men have told
them that II they wait Il few months
they may get five cents a pound.
The Real Moral Of the Tale
Now here comes the real moral "
thls little story. Real estate men of
oklahoma City estimate that there ara
2,0Oo acres Of land at present living
lule within the corporate limits Of the
city This land Is just as good for
onions ~ the lots on Twenty. ninth
street Now, suppose the city author
lilies should see M to plant onion sets
on THIS land next spring. An acre "
land, Judging by the 80 bushel crop
mentioned, should produce 800 bushels
OF onions. allowing a wide margin for
loss. This would make the astonish
lux total NJ 100 600 bushels NJ onions
representing land now worthless OK
cept weeds. This crop could be- sold
Tor y cents a pound at the lowest g..
Innate, thus making the round sum Tor
the seasons planting S75OOOO. Say
mn eighth 0f this IL the actual cx,
pense involved, aud YOU stlll have a
~ profit In excess NJ half II million
dollars. This would feed all the Door
people In Oklahoma county for sew
eral decades.
Follow Up With Turnlps
But Perry and Lawrence are rcnl
farmers and haven't stopped At onions
The ground Is Just getting In proper
shape for full turnlps now II they
can rUIsc turnipS, why shouldn't 9th
crst TuruipS will bring at least 20
cents n huShel The land I'm Okla
homa city win prclucc 20O bushels
Of tnrnlps 10 the mere Tint makes
booooe bushes u turuips. worth tl25.
coo with proper management, SlOO
900 " this should he profit Added
to the union profit, this makes the
sum reach the grand total " nenrly
SSOOOOO.
Now why. YOU may ask, isn't this
doneY Well. Tor several reasons. In
the first place there aren't many poor
people In oklahoma county In the
second place. there aren't enough I'M.
employed mel here at present to
handle the labor part " the proposi.
tion In the third place the real cs
: tntc mcn say thut new houses VIII
cover most u the vacant lots next
I spring
Mayor 0verhOlser Interested
Rut listen II a hard year should
strike Oklahoma, and many peopl,
would he without necessary food, thnl
is exactly what Mayor O%vcrholscl
would do. do The mayor ha'
viewed the plan NJ municipal farm
Ing In all lts lights. mud should n rca.
hard year come the onion sets will
certainly Ne set ont, II not by the city
then by the land owners acting In co
operation with the city. The mayor
" Detroit a few years ago supported
thousands " destitute people al
Il t.. l.A. hurN vylAN.y IA. NtuI