The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1921-05-16
MADE MONEY IN HERBS.
Abandoned Farm in Maine Made to Bios
som with Plants of Medicinal Value.

The raising, curing and selling of
herbs and roots is likely to become quite
an industry in Maine during the next
few years In years past considerable
money has been made by men and women
who gathered herbs that grew i'll woods
and pastures and took them to the Ban
gor market, where they found a ready
salea
During the World war period. when
herbs Jumped to skyrocket prices, with
the demand not equal to the supply, the
men and women of the Pine Tree State
who realized the opportunity to make
money out of the wild herbs that were
going to waste. Went to work, harvested
and dried the wild herbs and sent or took
them to market, realizing enough money
to keep the wolf from the door for long
period, even in the war days when hE-
ing was high.
There has been and is a good market
and some of the Maine farmers have
made more out of their catnip patches
than they did out of their other crops.
The catnip crop is easy to grow, and the
plants yield bountifully. The catnip plot
can be smelled n mile and cats from far
and near often flock to she patches where
blossom and when in full bloom the gar
den resembles an Old-fashiOned flower
garden.
Cats are crazy over the catnip and
when they eat too much of the herb they
acquire a catnip jag, acting much the
same as a human when he has swilled
down too much home brew.
One of the pioneers in the herb trade
hereabOutS was William X. Burgess, who
won a small fortune from an abandoned
farm that was Uttered with rocks and
stones and infected with weeds of every
kind known to Maine bOtanistS. He
acquired this farm. and while he worked
like a dog to raise crops the soil was
barren. and he could not make a good
living. 1t was not his fault for he toiled
from sunup till after shutdown. He tried
raising hay. making butter and selling
cord wood, but as he was some way from
the Bangor market, he was not able to
market either wood. hay or butter with
much profit. Besides, his farm was
rocky.
When he was ready to quit he rcmem-
beTed that often when he was peddling
products of the farm in Bangor the
| housewives had inquired if he raised any
sage, catnip. thoroughwOrt or summer sa-
worry. Frequently he would have q call
! for fresh peppermint, while one man
wanted horehound for "A hacking cough.
another wormwOOd for n tonic. while old
maids were asking if he could bring any
catnip for their cats.
! He suddenly came to realization that
opportunity was knocking ut his door.
I and instead of being an agriculturist he
was doomed to be an herbist During
the winter months he made his plans for
Icutivating and gathering herbs, and
when spring came he was so eager and
enthusiastic that he could hardly wait
until the frost was out of the ground
! so he could begin operations.
/ Beginning in 4 small way the business
of growing and curing fragrant herbs
grew until the farm each year was pro-
ducing a ton of catnip, a ton of dried
sage leaves and many pounds of penny
royal. saffron, camomile hoarhound.
wintergreen, lungwort, gold thread. bal
sam, white pine bark, parsley, crosses
and other plants that are familiar to
pharmacists.
He was making money much more than
he had ever dreamed of making by farm
ing. In addition to raising drugs he
made a cough syrup that contains 90
plants, all of which were cure-alls in We
olden days before drug stores were as
plenty as at present. In the days after
the pioneers came to the Pine Tree State
mothers c0ncOcted their own cough rem
edies, using the cure-all to be found in
the woods and pastures, and he availed
himself of these.
! These Old-time remedies are still used
in many farming districts and will cure
a cold quicker than the remedies sold in
drug stores, if the testimony of the coun-
try boys and girls can be relied upon
Portland Press.