Iron County news. [volume] (Hurley, Wis.) 1913-1950, 1915-09-11
SETTLING ON CUT-OVER LAND.
Northern Wisconsin Filling with Far.
mers from Many States.
From Orange Jud Farmer.

| out WHAT are lJS pOS5l Dllltlts anu blC
general conditions involved in work
ing out home on it. | tramped
through lot of brush and swamps
and drove good many miles to talk
to settlers. So what / am going to tell
| in this article and some others later,
is the result of personal investigation.
This Wisconsin cUt-oYer country,
purchasable at $40 to $50 an acre, is
pre-eminently adapted to the sincere
homemaker. don't know any way
that a man can go there and make a
fortune quickly, but if he has reason
able Judgment he isn't likely to lose
either. Men have started there un-
der almost every conceivable condi-
tion and by persistent work have de-
yelOped good homes. Some bring
practically no money and no equip
ment. The average bring from $500
to $500 and some household equip
ment, and maybe little stock A
few bring more. Not all of them sue
coed, but the sober and industrious
usually do.
If this northern Wisconsin region
were swept clean of trees it would
somewhat resemble any rolling prai-
rie, except that the undulations are
deeper and it is considerably cut up
by rapid flowing creeks and rivers,
which guarantee good drainage. Incl
dentally, this abundance of streams
makes the average size of fields small
Ter than in the prairie region. On the
other hand the streams are a consi-
derable advantage in that they fur
nish an abundance of good water for
stock. There are some hills of piled
up stone and soil, and some lakes
where the hills were scOoped out
This whole region was the playground
of the great glaciers that covered
North America, and the soils, the
hills and the valleys were left in con
siderable disorder when the ice mel
ted.
In the fact that there are all sorts
of soils is IA warning. There is some
exceedingly poor land in northern
Wisconsin which is not suitable for
farming There is plenty of good
land, and it pays to take time look
ing for it. There are several kinds of
soil, ranging from stiff clay to a
very light sand. The lightest of the
sand is not adapted to farming Prob
ably the most typical soil is a clay
loan or silt loan which is very val
liable, and well adapted to a wide va
riety of crops. All of the soils except
the lightest sand are well supplied
with mineral fertility and respond
readily TO good farming methods.
The tremendous growth of timber that
they have produced is sufficient evil
dence of that.
There are quite large areas now
classified as swamps which are level
and undrained. Practically all of
these swamps are capable of drainage
but they are not in condition for i'm
mediate farming.
Some areas have considerable stone
on the surface which is not trouble
some after it is once cleared off. In
"A few portions there is sufficient
stone to offer serious difficulty to
farming On the greater portion of
the region, however, there is little or
no stone. There is no rule for tel
ling about this except the buyers
good Judgment and observation.
This cut-oyer land is cursed and
blessed with stumps. There are mil
lions of them. Settlers blast them
out to make roads, aud creep through
them to Stretchf fences. Cattle learn
to dodge between them in the past
ures. In the yards about the settlers
houses the old dry pine stumps are al
most ineXhaustible sources of kind
ling. These stumps play very inn
/ portant part in the development of
the country, They are a source of ex-
pense in clearing land. yet they en-
/ force moderation on the settler. They
force him to work deliberately, and
prevent him from "skinning" the
land. And they scare away all would
be farmers who are not the right sort
TO stick and develop homes.
\ tremendous growth of white pine
has been cut off most of this land and
in recent years much hardwood also
is being removed. The big pine
stumps measuring from rs inches up
and having wide spreading surface
I roots. rot slowly. Settlers have
taken them out in variety of ways.
They are burned, dynamited or pull
led with one of numerous varieties of
stump pullers A man having lit