The circle banner. [volume] (Circle, Mont.) 1914-1939, 1923-10-26
TWO YOUTHS WHO
HAVE ACHIEVED
STORY OF WHAT INDUSTRY AND
ENERGY WILL ACCOMPLISH
In MONTANA
After Putting in Crop One Worked
in Garage, Other For Neighboring
Farmer; Have Just Harvested and
Sold Nice Crop.
BY e. IA. Cooney


When discussing the raising o
wheat in Montana, and the possible
opportunity of making money in tn
game, consider the Smith boys.
The Smith boys, John, aged 22
and Albert, aged 16, formerly livet
in this section, their father having
ranch 10 miles west of Great Falls
upon the Sun river bench. The fam
lily moved to Glendale, California, be
cause of the fathers health.
This spring, early it was, John and
Albert saddled up their little jitney
filled it with bedding and food, and
driving day and night-for the Smith
boys have no time to waste-arrived
on the ranch west of Great Falls in
six days. John, aged %, hoped on
to a little Fordson tractor, and start
ed to plough the morning after arri-
val, and kept at it from daylight I'M
til very dark until ESQ acres were
ploughed good and deep.
Albert, aged Is, did the cooking,
fed the tractor gas and oil, kept the
nuts tight, sharpened the tools ne
cessary, narrowed, and made him
self generally useful. The $50 acres
were seeded to spring wheat - and
the seeding was finished before some
farmers had started to plough. The
next day John hit for Great Falls,
and the next day he was working as
an auto mechanic at Sc per day, go
ing out to the ranch each night after
his days work and coming in before
starting time each morning. 1t saved
room rent, made eating more econo-
mical, and took away temptation to
spend any of his salary money in UNI
necessary foolishness. Albert, in the
meantime, didn't lose day coming
to Great Falls, but hired out to neigh
boring farmers at So per day and
found, and never lost a day, except
that he and John met at the ranch
Sunday and worked all day at what
might be necessary to the growingI
crop-and in getting things ready for
the harvest.
When the grain ripened John andI
Albert quit their jobs, hired man,
bought cheap team of horses and,
working almost day and night, har-
vested the entire $50 acres, John cut
ting with the tractor and Albert andI
the man stacking the grain from SOL
acres. The other 100 acres was left
in the shock to be threshed from the
field. When nearly finished, Albert
sent a letter by the rural delivery
man to mother in Glendale, Califor-
MIA, to come on the next train-and
mother came few days before the
harvest was completed, and cooked
for the threshing crew when the
threshing followed right on the heels
of the harvest Still doing team
work under pressure the Smith boys
sold their wheat before it was fully
threshed at 92 cents the bushel, and |
the amount threshed ran over $500
bushels, or about 20 bushels to the
acre, meaning over $4,000.
And then John, aged %, and Al
bert, 16, were ready to go back to
Glendale, California, in the tin Lizzie,
taking mother and the $4,000 with
them to show to dad, for they had
made more than enough money at
working out during the summer to
pay for harvesting and threshing and
other expenses, and have a nice little
bunch left for any other purpose.
ST only took vacation from my
Job in California and Albert has to
20 to school, so we have to hurry up
and get back home,' said John.
So it might notbe out of place when
discussing Montana farming by dry
and method, also by method of solid
work and no foolishness, to consider
he Smith boys-John, %, and
Albert, 16.