Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-07
TAKING A FAMILY
BACK TO THB SOIL
Being the Experiences of Gov
eminent Clerk Who Sets Out
to Lower the High Cost OF
Living.

thing after another Last week my
barn burned. This week along came
torrential rain, accompanied by cS-
cIonic wind. and my fields look like
the wrock of the Hesperus.
Remember how l Dragged not long
ago about how tall my corn had grown
fourteen feet or Whereabouts? mat
tall corn made u splendid target ior
last Tuesday nights wind. It's lying
fiat today criss-crossed and tangled
beyond recall. Some of the stalks are
broken square off. Others are torn out
By the roots. Still others, including
the heavy ears they bore. are nan
buried in the soil. washed up by the
rain after the wind had blown down
the corn / may have half a crop OF
the grain and not more than half the
quantity of fodder I had counted on.
Loss of the fodder, coming on top OF
destruction by fire of all my nay,
makes the prospect for WINTER t Oh
and horse feed look slim, indeed oh'
YES the life of a farmer is just oiie
grand, sweet song
But do you know. this second DO"
has hardly feazed me? / don't KNOW
whether the burning of the barh ieI !
INV faculties so benumbed that L
haven't come to an appreciation or tne
storm loss: or whether, like the SOL
diers in the trenches, L am settins
used to it. Whatever the explanation'
got up Wednesday morning aha Nie ~.
ed the scene of devastation with the Ut
most composure. For all the emotion
I felt, 1t might have been some oeher
mans ruined fields / was looking upon.
Jane, too. accepted the SITUATION PM
osonhicallv | think she was so thank
full the house hadn't been carried away
that she had no disposition to lind
fault with whatever toll the storm
had taken otherwise. l know that we
Law awake well into the morning, Won
dering at every blast whether the old
shebang would stick to her founda,
lions or go cavorting away over niil
and valley into the next county. Inc
whole house shook, doors slammed. VIII
dows ratified and the limbs of trees
swept down and beat against the
Misunderstanding. The children were
awakened and became frightened. ana,
altogether we had merry time OF IT,
lane and 1 divided our time between
worrying for fear the house would pc
blown away and wondering how the
horse and cows were faring. l had not
had time, since the barn burned, 10
put up shed to afford them temporary
shelter. and they had simply to stand
out in the field and take things as they
came | don't know how much they
minded it. but the morning dldnt ms
close that they were any the worse
for the experience.
Chickens Get Soaking.
We never gave thought to the
chickens, assuming that they were
safely sheltered. If we heard the noise
when half the roof of the big chicken
house was blown off it was lost in the
general racket and confusion. 1t was
q mighty miserable looking bunch of
hens we found next morning. They
ND nod 0Ol
as IL they might have been blown on
their perches and buffeted about by the
wind. None of them was dead, but all
looked as if they would as lief be.
gave us a few minutes of anxiety as
to the safety Of the young chickens,
which were in small colony houses out
in the corn field. Their shelters were
intact, however. and the chickens dry
and comfortable, though some OF the
houses were almost buried under the
broken down corn.
Even more serious than destruction
of the corn is the damage to fruit trees,
for we can grow another crop OF corn
next year and the getting Of fruit
trees into bearing is matter Of years
One cherry and two pear trees were
broken down outright, snapped on
near the ground, and most Of the other
trees suffered the loss Of branches One
kiefer pear tree. which was loaded
with fruit, had every branch but one
broken off. All the pear trees were
practically stripped of fruit, and the
winter apples didn't fare much better
Two trees of summer apples had been
SO loaded that their limbs had to be
proped up, but Jane had these apples
picked Monday and Tuesday, so they
front yard was blown down. but it was
not tree we cared for and l bad
been intending to cut 1t. so the wind
merely saved me work.
Sought Refuge in Kitchen.
got up early Wednesday morning.
but not SO early that I didn't ind Lee
Gusts and Mandy in the kitchen with
a fire going in the stove. They both
were soaking wet, and as it had not
been raining since daylight I was a good
deal puzzled. After considerable aues-
tioning they reluctantly admitted that
they had gotten up in the middle of the
night and come from their own house to
the kitchen. Their own house is new
and low and well built. and I would
have much preferred taking my chances
there. but they evidently felt they would
be safer near the family. Mandy in
sisted that they had come over to be
sure 1--WE air were all right, but I don't
think she had any idea / would believe
that story.
We can't tell yet what proportion Of
our corn Is going to be lost. but we shall
save every Dit OF II We can II we hA0
a silo we could save all. Of 1t, but lacking
one, the best We can do Is to cure the
broken and uprooted stalks for fodder.
The most serious loss will come from
corn lying fiat on the ground Had the
storm come earlier in the season, before
the ears were 80 heavy. this corn largely
would have righted itself, but the weight
of the ears now will hold It down. Ears
on the ground. of course, will rot, and
a good deal Of corn is 80 covered with
soil that IL couldn't be fed even AZ fod-
der. As soon as the corn ripens Wen
60 through the field and cut out what
Is worth cutting, and then turn in the
hogs. They'll harvest lot that couldn't
be harvested otherwise and reduce the
less to the lowest possible point
Shelter for the Stock.
Though It Is unlikely We soon again
win have a storm like that Of Tuesday
night. 1t impresses upon me the necessity
of providing some sort of shelter for the
stock without further delay. AS I have
no hay, 1 don't need a hay loft. and
have been wondering II I couldn't put
ND some sort OF cheap shed that would
do this winter and next summer. PLAN
ming to have barn built before the COM
ing of a second winter. Ordinarily our
winters are not severe, and II tho shed
kept out wind and rain and snow the
stock ought to be reasonably comforta-
BILE 1 would put up another shed. a
perma nent one, for the wagons and i'm
Elements, so that 1 would not have to
give up room to them in the new barn.
would prefer to do this because