Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1922-12-21
GRANDFATHER AT BANNER ELK

When the idea was conceived to
start the Grandfather, Crphanage |
near Banner Elk there was only one
dwelling on the farm on which the
orphanage is now located, and when |
Mr. and Mrs. ]. w. Holoomb took |
charge there was room for only eight |
or "''i'dren, and when applications
began to- come in for the admittance |
of more children, work began to en-
large the dwelling so as to accommo-
date others; an dnow there is DOR
mitory for the girls, dormitory for !!
the boys, the "Baby Cottage" for !
very young children, a school build |
ing and a mechanic shop, and be- !
lieve that there are So children in
this institution at this time.
Four teachers are employed at the
orphanage' 'and the children attend
school during the fall and spring, and
assist in making gardens and crops
during the spring and summer months
Mr.. and Mrs. Holcomb teach the
children to be Industrious, and in or
der to give them a balanced ration
they prepare all kinds of canned fruit
during the summer: the small child
rem pick a sufficient quantity Of
blackberries to put up 1000 cans or
more each year, and while the smaller
children are picking blackberries the
larger boys are preparing wood for
tie winter, or doing some kind of
work on the farm. A sufficient guam
tity Of potatoes, beans, onions and
other varieties of vegetables are pro-
duced for the entire year, and hay,
corn, rye, buckwheat and other farm
crops are produced and the boys do
this with but little other help.
| A number of milch cows are kept
on the farm and few beef ca..le
are kept so that the children can
have fresh meat, but there is not
enough pasture land to keep many
through The summer and have mead
ow to make hay to feed through the
winter. But Mr.. Holcomb is trying
an experiment on about 130 acres
of cut over land. This boundary
was heavily timbered land a few
years ago and when the timber was
, cut and removed a quantity of tree
laps, brush and other inflammable
matter was left, and when the fire
caught into this almost every tree
and shrub was killed and the land
, left bare, and soon the briers, bushes
| and weeds spyang up, it became to
be almost jungle. As the second
growth of young trees is of such a
5 character that it would never re-
forest with valuable timber trees,
and the land being useless in it's
2 present condition and being expen-
1 sive and hard to clear, Messrs. Tufts
e and Holcomb concluded to inc!ose
s the boundary with a woven wire
: fence and put herd Of goats OH it,
+ so they put up 600 rods of wire
D fence and about a years ago they
II purchased herd of Is goats, and
= after killing three goats for mutton
9 they have a herd of Al goats and the
a.; greater number Of these are ALgcra
" roats.
: ThG;2 was such an accumalatior
3. q. shrubs, briers AID wcrd; n such
c cdnG@"y and .hr nGG!baf IF goats
.. 0einT rye edDG!;I. the effect oI
.ao ANIMALS upon the thickets j!
ii 70. 50 p"eceptible as it vii! Ne whl
o lo herd is greatly Increased il mum
Is oor, and in many places it will b
found that the goats have eaten tn
G tender shoots Of the briers, and whc,
it TIE Old talks die there will be NJ
G young shoots to replace them.
n 1t is only mater OF time unit
Is the goats will clear this cut-ove
s. boundary Of filth and grass will com
ia its stead and then there will b.
lie more pasture for sheep and cattle
? 1t should be remembered that goat
d consume very little grass if they ca
N get to briers, shrubs and diffcren
D. varieties of weeds, and they wi
D. strip the bark from many kinds 0
L. sapiings during the winter month
re and thus they kill a number of sma
in trees in this way, and they seem t
as take delight in stripping the bar
I'd from apple trees, but care should b
ed taken TO exclude goats from orchards
r. This herd of goats should prov
ch to be profitable for many reasons
r. first, they will assist in the clearin
lie of the cut-over land with very littl
e. expense; secondly, those not desi
ed able to be kept may be slaughtere
OF and fur:,sh most excellent qualit
er of fresh meat occasionally; thirdl,
lel the hides may be nicely dressed an
ut sold for rugs at from $4.00 to $50
rit each and the expense Of dressing tt
I'd hides would not be exceeding Sic
sr- each; fourthly, it will be seen fro
le- the ratio of increase from Is to
ID. in one year, when it is to be COZ
to sidered that it requires so little fee
ing even during the winter month
res and in Enclosures where goats ha7
ne been kept for two or three year
ws not ali elder, Canada thistle II