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THE ATLANTA SEMT-WEEKLY JOURNAL. ATLANTA, GA., FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 1013.
ricultural
and successful fariung-
w Andrew M.,5oule
This department will cheerfully endeavor to furnish any information.
Letters should be addressed to Dr. Andrew M. Soule, president State Ag
ricultural College, Athens, Ga.
Raising Calves On Separator Milk
Extracts from four letters written by farmers in widely separated sec
tions of the United States. f
BREAD FROM STONES
POORLAND FARM
STORING SWEET
POTATOES
A farmer living in South Dakota
writes:
“M^st farmers now have .a cream sep
arator. If the milk is fed 'to the calves
at once after beir\g separated the tem
perature of the skim milk is much more
difficult. Bright, smooth-haired, thrifty,
good-appearing calves on a farm are
almost conclusive evidence that there
is a ligind separator on the place, and
that, in other ways, they arc well oared
for.”
ALL PLOWING
For the most part the farmers are
now through with the planting of win
ter cereals. The recent rains have
helped to soften the earth which was
otherwise too hard to plow satisfactor
ily, and now should the weather hold
good for a few weeks, rail powing can
be done to great advantage. When this
subject is mentioned it generally brings
on more or less argument as to the aa*
viability of breaking lands to lie fal
low *all winter. Of course there are ob
jections to this practice, theoretically
all ‘land should be broken in the early
autumn and* seeded to a cover crop,
practically it is imposibe to accom
plish this result on many Georgia
farms.
If all the breaking is left until the
spring of the year, several things are
likely to happen. Naturally in a rainy
season the farmer will get very much
behind; as a resut his land is not prop
erly broken or prepared for planting.
The disastrous results of this practice
are too fresh in the minds of the aver
age farmer to need further emphasis.
Secondly, the rush of work which must
be accomplished in a short period of
time results in a complete exhaustion
of the farm labor force and a breaking
d r >wn of his \*ork stock as well. Third
ly. the chances are that part of the
crop which has been planted early will
not be cultivated and cared for during
the early stages of its growth as , it
should be, because of the special effort
being made to break a sufficient area
for planting.
The objections to^fall plowing may be
summed up as follows: First of all on
steep land there is a natural tendency
to erosion, especially where the rain
fall is unusually heavy as it is in most
parts of the state. As a result gulleys
are cut in the field and part of the fin
est and richest of the earth’s surface ia
washed away into the streams and riv
ers. It must not be forgotten, how
ever, that- even where the l*nd is not
plowed there is quite a marked tendency
to wash and while the loss frdm erosion
may be aggravated by fall plowing,
there will be a considerable loss even
though the land be allowed to remain
unbroken through the winter season.
Secondly, -where the land is plowed in
the fall the natural tendency to the
leaching out of the nitrogen compounds
k is accelerated because a loose, porous
soil promotes the escape iof nitrates
through the drainage waters. Further
more in a climate as mild as ours nitri
fication goes on throughout the winter,
thus the insoluble nitrogen compounds
in the soil are transrferred to some ex
tent from a relatively speaking insolu
ble form to a soluble form.
There are some distinct advantages
to fall plowing, however, which proba
bly offset the objections mentioned. As
is well known, the soil can be broken
a greater depth in the autumn with
out danger of puddling the subsoil than
at any other season of the year. The
land has fiad several months in which
to dry out to a considerable depth, and
hence the soil as a rule should be
broken deeply for the first time in the
autumn. The advantages of deep
breaking need not be emphasized to
those who have had experience with the
good results following thorough soil
preparation. It is very important that
most of our lands which have been
broken shallow in the past should be
deepened. To ‘this end they should be
turned over to a depth of ten or twelve
inches. This can be done more effec
tively in the fall for the reason already
cited and because of the cool weather,
which will enable £he work stock to
perform more labor at that season with
less effort than at any other period of
the year. Tlie deepening of the soil
means to bring within the reach of the
roots of the plant a larger variety of
trie essential plant food elements, which
means, of course, to stimulate a more
vigorous growth of the crop next year.
Moreover, a deep, porous soil holds a
greater proportion of the water which
falls as rain. Georgia farm lands need
never suffer from dgouth if we could
only gather and store an adequate pro
portion of the water that now falls on
(•ur lands, but which now largely runs
off over the surface with such damag
ing effects as are witnessed on every
hand. Therefore fall plowing offers one
of the most effective methods of in-
reasing the water supply s o that plants
may receive a normal amount of this
constituent throughout the growing
s/ason. A fine open soil permits the
aii to circulate more freely. It thus
. bathes the roots of the plants in a
, layer of oxygen and promotes growth
thereby. The oxygen is particularly
important, since it aids fermentation in
the soil, thereby transferring otherwise
inert materials of the soil into forms
useful to growing plants.
From the reasons assigned the writer
believes that fall plowing can be fol
lowed to a considerable extent on prac
tically all lands in Georgia with profit,
the losses on the one hand being offset
by the advantages on the other. Even
though some plant food be lost through
leaching and erosion, especially on hilly
lands, the importance of planting the
crop early on a thoroughly prepared
seed bed will as a rule more than offset
them. Where deep plowing is done in
association with a well-laid-oiit system
of terraces, washing need not be a
serious problem. It is, of course, de
sirable that fall plowed land be left in
as rough a condition as possible, since
the freezes of winter pulverize it most
effectively, and the tendency to wash
is greatly reduced. The wise farmer
will make no rtiistake in breaking part
of his land in the fall, provided he exer
cises good judgment in the handling and
management of his land.
* * *
STARTING A MODERN DAIRY.
Mr. J. J. L., of Albany, Ga., writes: I
am interested in putting In a dairy ami
would like to get all thu information you
can give relative to the building of proper
barns, say for 25 cows, and one that can
be enlarged for 50 cows later on, the best
style of siilo, the best cows and how to raise
them, the crops that are best suited to this
soil and climate? What breeds would you
suggest as best for milk and butter?
Your interest in the dairy business i«
to be commended and now that you have
decided to take upi work of this char
acter you are acting wisely in first pre
paring to erect suitable barns for the,
housing of your cattle in an economi
cal and satisfactory manner. You
will find a silo the best investment you
can make on a dairy farm. You can
build one large enough to care for twen
ty-five cows at a cost of anout $35 •.
If you have coarse gravel on your farm
a part of the work can be done by our
laborers and the cost pan probably be
reduced quite considerably. We wouicl
advise the erection of a concrete silo
cr metal lathe. This, we believe, to be
the cheapest and most durable type you
can erect at a moderate cost. We fa
vor this type over others we have ex
perimented with and in the course of
20 years we have had an opportunity
to erect and observe the practical value
of nearly all types of silos which have
eevr been used on American farms.
A barn to house twenty-five cows can
be erected at a cost of $2,500 to $3,000.
For this amount you should secure ce~
mennt floors, and mangers, good drain
age gutters, Mesirable equipment and
other labor saving and sanitary de
vices.
The best crops to use in a silo are
com and sorghum planted in alternat
rows. This gives you the largest yield
per acre. You can count on a yield of
from five to fifteen tons per acre, de
pending on the natural productiveness
of your soil and the skill with which
you cultivate and fertilize it. For sum
mer grazing there is nothing superior
to Bermuda grass in your section of the
state. Japan clover is also good. In
the winter hairy vetch can sometimes
be shown to advantage on Berniuda.
This should be planted in August in
rows running across the pasture field.
The burr clover seed should be scat
tered thereon and It iS important that
you inoculate and fertilize it to give
it a good start.
we should advise that you grow N as
i much oats and corn as possible and
j use these grains together with cotton
Promising youngsters.
The folh/wing interesting experience
regarding skim-milk calves comes from
Nebraska:
“You will hear old ranchers call
calves fed on separator milk ‘knot
heads.’ But I have raised as handsome
calves on separator milk as those that
run the range and when they are wean
ed they never stop growing. It takes
your undivided attention to raise stock'
successfully, both to a profit for your-
sel and purchaser. And if any one is
inclined to hug the stove on stormy
days, saying-, ‘Let them hustle,* he had
better find either employment. To begin
with I feed my calves three times a
day till they are a month old. Not all
they •'an consume at once, but by feed
ing oftener their stomachs do not be
come deranged, causing bowel trouble,
which ts a detriment to the calf. When
all separator milk and eating grain and
hay.
“Now, if you give your calves clean
pails to drink from, with water at noon
with the chill taken off in cold' weather,
plenty of sunlight, yard for \ exercise,
a warm, comfortable place at night 4nd
on stormy days, you will have a calf,
when a year old, that you can take to
the state fair and be reasonably sure
of getting a prize at it.”
A. stock raiser writes from Vermont:
“Calves fed on separator milk de
velop into the best dairy cattle. There
is no doubt about this—for I speak
from experience. If you want fine
calves, try the separator-milk plan. With
watchfulness as to the cleanliness and
comfort of the calf, pens and systematic
care in feeding you will get fine re
sults.”
The following relates to an incident
which occurred in Mississippi:,
“Calves do not seem to be able to
gauge for themselves the proper amount
of milk to drink. They are greedy. If
healthy they do not, as a rule, stop un
til there is no more in the pail. Not
long ago a farmer’s wife, who has
seed meal to provide the necessary con-
1 centrate required in a ration for cows,
j There is no one best breed of dairy
catle. Where one is selling milk we
could sugest the Holstein, but where
one is in the butter business either
the Jersey or the Guernsey would be
feund the best breeds. Some cattle of
one or more standard dairy breeds can
often be kept to advantage where milk
is sold. The Holstein milk sometimes
runs rather law in fat, while the Jer
sey tends to run high in fat.
* * •
TREATHENT OF A SICK HOG
Mr. MV-XJ. >V., Red Oak, Ga., writes: I
have a hdg that has been, sick for about
two weeks and it has had a high fever.
About a week ago its fever went to 105%
degrees The doctor says it is constipation
of the bowels. The hog will not drink sk/p,
but will eat bread or apples. Its bowels
are clogged and will not. pass without the
use of a syringe. Will you please tell me
what is the trouble with my hog and a
remedy ?
All ready for skim-milk.
they arc ten days or two weeks old T
begin with a tablespoonful of cooked,
corn, rye or bran in the milk. When
they are four weeks old I begin to feed
one-fourth separator milk and keep in
creasing this till 1 have them drinking
Wild Boar Fights Tigers
And Eats Snakes
New England Farmers Have
Bred Wild Boar Into Stock
Hogs to Prevent Cholera 1
The wild boar is the ancestor of the
common hog. Experienced animal
keepers would rather Have any other
animal in the zoo get loose than the
wild boar. No animal is more vicious;
hunters , assert that even when the
animal is run through with a spear it
will endeavor to force itself along the
shaft of the spear to reach the holder
of it. The natives of India say that
a wild boar will drink at a stream be
tween two tigers; it does not know'
what fear is. It will cat anything—
even poisonous snakes.
The farmers of New England some
time ago were persuaded to breed the
wild boar into their stock hogs to
counteract the prevalence of cholera.
Xo “scrubs” in this group.
raised some fine calves, but who was
trying the experiment of bringing up
some calves on separator milk, told the
writer that she fed her calves much
more than she did the lot she raised
last year, but these did not do so well
and she couldn’t understand why this
was. Itr so happened that these calves
were fed just previous to our conversa
tion, and the calves in the yard were
ample evidence of their unthrifty con
dition. The paunch was the part of
the* calf most evidence. Each of
the calves looked for all the world like
a balloon ready for ascension, with one
side more welled or puffed out than
the ottlier. They were slowly walking
around the yard with their mouths par
tially open and froth hanging around
their mouths. There was* no sign of
thriftiness to be seen anywhere about
those calves. % They were in \nisery for
they had been allowed to stuff them
selves. Perhaps, by the time the calves
get ready to enjoy life a little bit, feed
ing time would again be near. I explain
ed to the woman the mistake she was
making and she changed her plan of
feeding with the result that the calves
she has raised since that time have
been as fine a,s anyone could desire.”
A Man Can Hold an
Alligator's Mouth Shut
lAligator Closes Eyes and
Nose and Eats Prey Under
Water
All over the country men are tearing
off wood, prepared paper, tin and galvan
ized roofs. Nailing on “Tightcote”
S-T-E-E-L. For only “Tightcote” STEEL
can be rot-proof, fire-proof and rust-proof.
It had to come, for this is the Age of Steel.
Cheaper, Too!
Curiously enough, Steel shingles, as we
sell them, direct from factory to user, are
now cheaper than wood.
And easier put on. Instead of nailing
one at a time, these shingles go on in big
clusters—100 or more at once. No extras
needed. No soecial tools. No expert work
men. No painting required. Yet practically
no wear-cut to an Edwards Steel Roof..
How Rust Was Done Away W.iih
Ordinary metal roofing rnsta. This doesn’t. For
wo invented a method which, applied to Open
Hearth Steel, absolutely prevents rust from get
ting started. Called The “Edwards Tight cote
Process.” It, does the work like magic, as 125,000
users are glad to testify.
Frlutl'irrJe’ fSffop Wo not only sell direct, but pay
CUWdrUb VllCI the freight. No such roofing bar-
rain -?ver offered before. Just send Postal for Roof Book
Wo.12363 Then sea if yon ever before saw such prices
and such quality. Please give size of root, if you can.
THE EDWARDS MFG. COMPANY
12353 Look St. CINCINNATI, OHIO
T
If you have had a competent veterin
arian in charge of your sick hog and be
has been unable to prescribe for him
successfully it is not likely that you
can hope to secure much assistance by
mail. The man who is on the ground
and able to diagnose the case at rrst
hand should certainly be able to serve
you tc better advantage than one who
must of necessity generalize because of
the meagerness of the information pro
vided in your letter and lacK of famili
arity with thf feed being used and ihe
conditions surrounding the sick animal.
It may be that you have confined this
hog in a small pen and that you are
feeding corn alone. If so, turn him out
where he may have the freedom of a
pasture and an abundance of pure wa
ter and be provided with a varied diet.
Feed some digester tankage with the
corn, say five to nine pounds of corn.
If you are in position to feed some
skim milk with the corn It will take the
place of digester tankage. Wholesome
slops are valuable. They should, how
ever-, not contain broken glass or be po-
luted with some of the lye soaps or
seme of the other cleansing materials
now *so largely used in our kitchens.
Green feed will help to overcome the
difficulty described in your letter and
I regulate the bowels. The fact that the
; hog prefers certain kinds of food would
| indicate that he is suffering from its
I being withheld. Animals are requently
' wiser in their generation than we are
jcurselves. A handful of Epsom salts
I given in the slop for several days will
I tend to correct the difficulty in ques
tion. Tonic treatment and a change of
food should affect a cure unless the
trouble has now become of a chronic
character or is due to some organic de
rangement. If you have other animals
it is important that you keep the sick
ones carefully isolated.
* * *
SEEDING ALFALFA IN SOUTH
GEORGIA.
Mf. T. A. S., Sylvester, Ga., writes: I
want to plant one and a half acres in al
falfa and would be glad for you to write
me how to plant It and right time to plant.
This is description of my land: I would
like to know what you think about it. It is
a low flat place. I am having it ditched
and all stumps taken off. Am digging
a ditch around so It will allow all the rain
water to run off. Th e soil Is rich for all
the washing of the field Is on this one
and a half acres and the made soil is some
thing like five or six inches thick. As soon
as stumps are removed I aui going to plow
it with a two-horse plow and drain It.
When is the best time to plant?
FIVE MEN DIE IN FIRE
IN SALVATION ARMY HOME
CINCINNATI, Dec. 18.—Two men are
known to have perished In a fire—de
clared to have been of incendiary ori
gin—-that destroyed the Salvation
Army’s home for men last night. Oth
ers are reported missing. Until the
building is thoroughly searched the ex
act life loss cannot be \ determined.
^ Of the several persons injured While
fleeing from the flames eight are said
tc be in a serious condition. The fire
loss will be about $100,000.
The manager of the home, ,Arthur
Sandell, of Bangor, Maine, is one of
the known dead.
The blaze was discovered by Wallio
Mayer, a member of the Chicago Ameri
can league baseball club and formerly
star catcher of the Birmingham South
ern league club, who risked his life in
saving eight children in a smoke-filled
tenement house next door, to which the
flames had communicated.
Alfalfa will give its best results on a
well drained soil. Any area of land
which is naturq$y rich and has a good
Although a warm-blooded reptile, the
alligator is perfectly at home in w r ater.
By means of muscles which close the
eyes, ears, nose and throat, it can
dive and capture and eat its prey be
neath the surface. The alligator propels
itself in the water by means of its
powerful tail.
The muscles which control its enor
mous mouth, strong enough to crush a
dog or bite a plank in two, are practi
cally all used to close it, so, that a man
can easily hold the jaws closed merely
by the pressure of his hands.
The alligator is the American repre
sentative of the African crocodile fam
ily. The American reptile has shorter
legs, which makes it less active when
out of the water.
CHARGED WITH VIOLATING
QUARANTINE ON CATTLE
(Special Dispatch to The Journal.)
ROME, Ga v Dec. 18.—W. L. Bowen, of
Walker county, and W. H. Clarkston, of
Chattooga county, were arraigned be
fore United States Commissioner John
C. Printup charged with violation of
the cattle quarantine law. Bowen was
plaoed under $200 bond for his appear
ance at the next term of federal court.
Clarkston was discharged.
The men, it is alleged, brought cattle
from Alabama into Georgia without first
having “dipped” them to prevent the
spread of the cattle tick. The case was
prosecuted by W. K. Lewis, of Atlanta,
an agent of the bureau of animal hus
bandry of the United States department
ot agriculture.
BY CYRIL c. KOPXXNS,
Chief in Agronomy and Chemistry, Uni-
vorsiy of Illinois.
In November, 1903, 1 purchased a
Sfarm in southern Illinois at a cost of
less than $20 an acre. It comprised
about 300 acres of poor gray prairie
land (the * commonest type of soil in
about twenty counties in that part of
the state) and a few acres of timber
land- It was christened “Poorland
Farm” by others who knew of its im
poverished condition, and I finally*
adopted this as the farm name.
In 1913 a forty-acre field of this farm
produced 1,320 bushels of wheat, and
because of numerous requests for infor
mation regarding the treatment that
has been given the land, this is writ
ten.
This particular forty acres was
bought at $15 an acre. It had been ag
riculturally abandoned for five years
prior to 1903, and was covered with a
scant growth of red sorrel, poverty
grass and weeds.
During the ten years, this field has
been cropped with a six-year rotation
including one year each of corn, oats
(or cowpeas), and wheat, and three
years of meadow and pasture with clo
ver and timothy.
A fairly good stand of volunteer clo
ver appeared with the oats in 1911 and
this was allowed to produce a crop of
glover hay in 1912, wheat being seeded
in the fall of that year -for the 1913
crop mentioned above.
During the ten years about four tons
per acre of ground limestone and tw r o
tons per acre of fine-ground raw rock
phosphate have fteen applied to thirty-
/Seven acres of this^field. Two applica
tions have ueen made of each material;
the phosphate was plowed down for the
corn 'crops of 1904 and 1910, and the
limestone was applied in the fall and
winter of 1904-’05 and after the ground
was plowed for wheat in the fall of
1912. r
The entire lorty-acre field was cov
ered with one uniform application of
six loads per acre of farm manure with
a fifty-bushel spreader.
A six-rod strip entirely across j the
field* (80 rods) received the same ap
plication of manure and the same rota
tion Of crops as the remaining 37 acres,
but no phosphate was applied to this
strip, and no limestone was applied to
it until the fall of 1912. when the reg
ular application (about two tons per
acre) \was applied to one-half (three
rods), of the six-rod strip.
Only thirty-nine acres of this field
were seeded to wheat in the fall of
1912, a lane having been fenced off on
one* side; and the 1,320 bushels were
produced on the thirty-nine acres.
The actual yields were as follows:
One and one-half acres with farm
manure alone produced 11 1-2 bushels
per acre. V
One and one-half acres with farm ma
nure and the one application of ground
limestone produced fifteen bushels per
acre.
Thirty-six . acres with farm .manure
and two applications of ground lime
stone and two of fine-ground phosphate
produced 35 1-2 bushels per acre.
The cost of two tons of limestone
delivered at my railroad station is
$2.25, and raw rock phosphate has aver
aged about $6.75 per ton. making $9
per acre the cost for each six years.
To this must be added the expense
of hauling these materials two miles
from the station t and spreading them
on the land, which I estimate at 50
cents per ton. This makes the average
annual cost $1.75 per acre for the 15me-
st6ne and phosphate spread on the field,
and this average annual investment re
sulted in the increase of twenty-four
bushels of wheat per acre in 1913.
Thus-we may say that the previous
applications of these two natural stones
brought about the production in 1913
of 864 bushels of wheat, sufficient to
furnish a year’s supply of bread for
more than a hundred people. No high-
priced or artificial commercial fertiliz
ers are used on this farm.
As a rule the check strips across each
of the six forty-acre fields iri the rota
tion are not harvested separately from
the rest of the fields. The limestone
and phosphate have produced even more
marked differences in clover than in
wheat; and where the . first application
of limestone was made to the three-
rod check strip, as well as to the thir
ty-seven acres receiving rock phosphate,
the superiority of the phosphate and
the limestone together over the lime
stone alone has been exceedingly mark
ed on both clover and wheat; and, of
course, the wheat and other grain crops
are benefited not only by the limestone
and phosphate but also by the previous
increased growth of clover on the well-
treated land, especially where this is
pastured or plowed under.
Poorland Farm is in no sense an ex
periment station, and neither is it a
“show” farm. It is operated Solely from
the economic standpoint, and with the
fuli understanding from the beginning
that general farming is not a highly
profitable business and that it is
highly unprofitable on poor land. On
the other hand it is equally well known
that intelligent permanent soil improve
ment on land that must be or will fc/e
farmed is both the safest and the most
profitable investment open to the farmer
and land owner. But both the diffi
culties and the methods of building up
run-clown soil have been repeatedly dis
cussed by the writer, in public addresses
and in published articles, bulletins and
books, and there is no necessity of re
peating them here.
Foorland Farm is usually inspected
each year by my class of university
students in soil fertility, about 100 of
whom saw the fields of wheat and closer
in Jirne, 1913.
It is for the benefit of such as these,
who desire to know* the truth regard
ing economic systems of permanent soil
improvement, that this brief statement
is issued. The farm is a purely private
enterprise operated by Hopkins Broth
ers. and, while interested visitors are
welcome, they are not invited, not met
at the train with automobiles, and are
not entertained,. There is no desire to
advertise this farm, but, on the other
hand, any light it sheds need not be
hidden.
If sweet potatoes are kept until Feb
ruary and March they will bring a much
better price than in November or De
cember. The uncertainty of being able
tc- keep the sweet potatoes during the
winter reduces the area planted. But
sweet potatoes can be preserved quite
satisfactorily if close attention 1s given
u i
m
&
FARM LIFE COMMISSION
TO WAGE WEEVIL WAR
Experts Meet at Capitol and
Form New Body to Better
Farming Conditions
Rural life, farm credits, boll weevils,
diversified crops, co-operation between
farmers and men of commerce—these
were the subjects of a conference .it
the state capitol Tuesday, which result
ed in the organization of the Georgia
farm life eommision. The conference
was attended by representatives of fh<
! state chamber of commerce, state ag
; ricutural colleges and representatives
j of the farmers.
Those present were Agricultural Com
missioner J. D. Price, Dr. Andrew M.
Soule, Prof. E. C. Branson, J. Phil
Campbell, Marlin Calvin, C. D. McKin
ney and E. Lee Worsham. Charles S.
Barrett, of the Farmers’ union^ was un
avoidably absent.
After discussing ways and means
for making happier rural life in Geor
gia and agreeing upon the organization
of a farm life commission, the confer
ence resolved itself into a board of
strategy to combat the advance march
of the boll weevil, which is headed to
ward Georgia.
It was decided to devote the month
of January to an educational campaign
among the farmers of the state, with
a view to advising them as to tht
best method to check the pesky weevil.
The state will be placarded with warn
ings of the eenmy’s approach, and in
stitutes will be held in every county to
Instruct the farmers concerning scien
tific means for stamping out the in
sect. The state chamber of commerce
will co-operate heartily in this move
ment.
The conference agreed also to urge
upon the farmers the advantages of
diversified crops, and representatives of
the state chamber of commerce pledged
themselves to aid a movement to fa
cilitate and make it easier for the farm
ers to market their crops and finance
themselves. The state chamber, as an
organization devoted primarily to the
industrial and commercial development
of Georgia, recognizes that the pros
perity of the state rests in large part
upon the prosperity of the farmers,
that the farm is the source of all wealth
in Georgia, and that if the chamber
of commerce is to succeed in its un
dertaking, every facility and encour
agement must be afforded for the suc
cess of the farmers.
to the subject. Those who are provide-*,
with suitable quarters for storage pur
poses and give attention to the details
of digging and drying the tubers are
well paid for their extra work.
The sweet potato has a thin skin
which is easily, bruised. Bruised po
tatoes are very susceptible to decay.
When the potatoes cannot be subjected
to artificial heat to dry they should be
thoroughly dried in the sun. The tem
perature at which they seem to keep
best is between 50 and 65 degrees F.
In some localities the common meth
od of storage is to place the sweet po
tatoes in a cone-shaped pile containing
from 1,000 to 2,000 pounds. The pile is
then covered with *a layer of dry, fine
hay or straw, followed by a layer *of
corn stalks, and on top of all this two
or three inches of sand or dirt is placed.
Others make piles like an oblong pyra
mid three feet high and four by ten
feet at the J>ase. This is covered over
by a frame properly built for the pur
pose, two or three incses of earth being
placed over the frame. Stratifying the
sweet potatoes in sand has also given
satisfactory results.
pfejv,
* 1 ■ ft; ■
depth will suit this crop. Alfalfa is a
tap-rooted plant, the roots striking into
the soil for several feet where the con
ditions are favorable. Therefore the
sub-soil should not be so compact as to
prevent atrophy of the lower roots. Al
falfa likes plenty of moisture but its
roots must not be kept permanently
wet. Therefore, you should be sure
that your soil drains well to a depth of
about thirty-six inches. Removing the
surface water is an essential policy.
You should also take the stumps out
and plow the soil thoroughly. Now is a
good time to do the work. A two-horse
plow should be used. Leave the land in
a rough condition and in the spring
seed It to cowpeas. Turn these under
in late August, then apply at least r ne
ton of puverized lime rock. Test your
land for acidity with litmus paper, and
if it is strongly aelu use tWv, tons.
Harrow the lime into the soil. Two
weeks later plant your alfalfa. In your
section October 1 wou?5 be a good time
to sow. Cross seed, using twenty to
twenty-five pounds of the best seed you
can find and see that it is properly in
oculated with an artificial culture which
you can secure free of cost from the
bureau of plant industry, United States
department of agriculture, Washington,
D. C. Apply at the time of seeding a
fertilizer containing 2 per cent of nitro
gen, 10 per cent of phosphoric* acid and
6 to 7 per cent of potash. A minimum
application would be 500 pounds. Seed
ing alfalfa in the spring will result in
failure in many instances on account of
crab grass choking it out before it be
comes well established.
* * *
SWEET POTATOES AS A MONEY
CROP.
Mr. J. W., of Thomson. Ga writes: What
do you think of the ix>ssibilities of a sweet
potato crop for a money crop next year?
It has never been tried to any large ex
tent In tbisL section. Is there a ready mar
ket for sweet potatoes? What kind of
preparation and fertllzer would be necessarv
for a sandy land such I have for use? Could
Irish potatoes be vgrown as profitably in
this section as sweet potatoes?
There should be very good money
in planting sweet potatoes as a money
crop where one secures a reasonable
yield. The crop, as you know, is not
difficult to plant, is comparatively
easy to cultivate and does well in the
average season on favorable soils. That
is, those that contain a fair amount of
sand and have vegetable matter sup-
plieod in moderate amount, say the pre
vious year. This crop 1 of course re
quires liberal lertilization. We would
advise the use of 150 pounds of high
grade sulphate or muriate of potash,
250 pounds of acid phosphate and 350
pounds of nitrate of soda is very
suitable for this crop. Where nitrate
of soda is used only a part of should
be mixed with the above formula at the
time of planting. We think you would
secure equally good results from the
other carriers of nitrate mentioned
which you can incorporate with the soil
at the time of planting the crop. If
tlie soil is in a fair state of cultivation
and well fertilized one should raise
200 bushels of sweet potatoes per acre.
The average for the United States is
only 100 bushels but under favorable
management 500 bushels have been
grown per acre. The market for sweet
potatoes varies somewhat and one
should either get them out as early
as possible or late in the >eason, which
requires their storing and the "prob
ability of erecting a suitable house for
this purpose. A potato storage house
need not be an expensive structure,
however, to answer every requirement
at the present time. Sweet "potatoes
can be grown to advantage and this is
being practiced with success in some
sections of the state.
We think the Irish potato as an earl3*
crop can be grown to advantage in your
section. They should be planted in
January or February if seasonal con
ditions are at all favorable. You should
secure about the same yield from Irish
potatoes as from sweet potatoes. The
Irish> potato loves a loamier, richer
soil than the sweet potato and should
be fertilized more liberally. The formu
la suggested will answer very well for
this crop hut from 700 to 1,000 pounds
of fertilizer should be used per acre.
It will be a great pleasure to us to
have you attend our short courses. 1
believh you will enjoy the work and
secure information which you will
find very helpful in the operation of
your farm. >.
FARM SETTLEMENT
Qn34QOctcresin5.W.Georqia
'Selectedand approved bYAgr. Dept.
CENTRAL°- r GE0RGIA RY
The Central of Georgia Ry. has con
tracted with the owner of the best
available tract along its lines to sub
divide and sell at reasonable prices
on terms of one-third cash, balance
in 3 years at 6%. Most of the farms
have half or more cleared land.
Farms sold only to white farmers in
Farms of 25
to 200 Acres)
f At $15 to $35 Per Acre.j
If you want a Southern farm home, this
is your opportunity. Write today for
descriptive pamphlet, and book ‘ Ala
bama and Georgia, the Home-Seekers*
I Opportunity That Was Overlooked.”
J. F. JACKSON, Agricultural Agt.
Central of Ga, Ry.
[277 Vi. Broad St. Savannah, Ga.
MITCHEL WANTS A CHIEF
WHO WON’T BE KNOCKED
Mayor-Elect Asks All Sides to
Get Together on Successor
to Waldo
NEW YORK, Dec. 18.—Leader! of po
litical organizations that participated in
the fusion municipal campaign have been
asked by Mayor-elect John Purroy
Mtchel to attend a conference next week
to discuss the appointment "'of a suc
cessor to Rhinelander Waldo, police
commisioner.
This course was adopted by Mr.
Mitchel, it is said, because of the re
fusal of his close friends and advisers
to suggest the name of a man Vor police
commissioner, although indorsements
for other places have been numerous.
. Neither the Republican nor Progres
sive leaders will submit a candidate, al
though both are reported to be willing
tc do so if legislation giving tlie police
commissioner a longer term and in
creased power is passed.
Mr. Mitchel is said to be willing- to
make a fight for both of these things
after his inauguration on January 1, if
it is necessary to get a man for the
place who shall be unembarrassed by
hostile criticism from any source during
the early part of the new administra
tion.
KORES-MUELLER
WaTvted
Farmer or Farmers!
with rig in every County to intro- «Soiv£
duce and sell Family and Veteri
nary Remedies, Extracts and Spices. Fine pay.
One maa made $90 one week. We mean busi«
r.ess and want a man in your County. Write us.
Shores-Moeller Co.,Dept.3S> Cedar Rapids,Iowa
6t Pair 9/Pillow
We again make our unparalleled oKerof free pil l
lows with your order enclosing $1)0 for our ia-\
moua 36-lb. feather bed. All made of new
sanitary feathers; bcsA licking and
equipped with jjpoitary ven
tilators. Frei wt prepaid.
Delivery guarfi** e *d- 5ion-
ey back ( flat satisfied.
Agents makll't money.
Turner & iCornwe’!
Dept. B, afcraphls.
\ Tenn., or Pept. u., I
cushlotteW- <’■
Queer Tales From
Animal Kingdom
y.
The elephant has three sets of teeth,
four in each jaw, but only eight of the
teeth are in action at one time. The
other two sets are reserved, only com
ing into use when the first ones are
worn out.
The elephant’s trunk, it is asserted
by some scientists, is the most wonder
ful organ in all nature. Cuvier estimat
ed that it contained 40,00fr muscles; and
so great is its mechanism that it can
pick up almost anything from a tooth
pick to a good-sized log.
The elephant is the largest of all ex
tant land animals, and is said to be sec
ond only to the dog in intelligence; but
the dog comes from a thousand genera
tions of domesticated stock. So the
elephant deserves a great deal of credit
for quickness in surpassing almost any
other animal. The ivory of the ele
phant’s tusks is the most resilient sub
stance known. An ivory ball will re
bound higher than a solid rubber one;
that is why the best billiard balls are
made of this substance, and to obtain
it the elephant is ruthlessly hunted and
slain.
Low Fares!
Homeseekers tickets are
sold at grftatly reduced fares
onthe 1 stand 3rdTuesdays
of each month; stopovers
free and 25 days time, via
Cotton Belt Route,—to
Arkansas
and Texas
Winter tourist tickets (round
trip) from southeast points to
many points in Texas, Louisiana
and New Mexico, will be on sale
daily Nov. 1st, 1913 to April 30,
1914; with exceedingly long return
limit of June 1st, 1914. Stopovers.
All year tourist tickets on sale
daily to certain points in Texas
—90 day limit.
The Cotton Belt Route te the
direct line from Memphis toTexas,
through Arkansas—two splendid
trains daily, with electric lighted
equipment of through sleepers,
parlorcars and dining cars. Trains
from all parts of Southeast make
direct connection at Memphis
with Cotton Belt Route trains
to the Southwest.
For full Information sbout Boms-
seekers Fares, Winter Tourist Fsres
or All Year Tourist Tickets, address
the undersigned. Books about farm
ing in Southwest, sent free. Write!
L. P. SMITH, Traveling Pati’r Agent,
Brown-Marx Bldg. Birmingham, Ala.
3S.
AJ
EXAS
$9-50 Clirisfmas Offer
Our Annual Christmas Combination
FEATHER BED, FEATHER PILLOWS.
PAIR OF BLANKETS AND BOLSTER
Greatest bargain ever offered. Feather Bel
weighs 40 ibs.. covered in S oz. A. C. A. ticking:
pair of. G lb. pillows, same grade; Pair full «lze
blankets and large, 6 lb. bolster. This combi
nation would cost you at a retail store $17.50.
AN IDEAL CHRISTMAS GIFT
$10.00—2 Feather Mattresses. 1 Ticking—$10.00
Built for winter and summer use. One aide
a succession of soft, springy sections, snug and
warm. Other side, firm, smooth and oool, for
summer use. ^Weighs 35 lbs. Guaranteed for a
lifetime. Something new.
$3.35 36 LB. FEATHER BED—j—$6.35
No excuse for not having a new, comfortable
ft»atl*er bed. now. AH feather beds, mattresses
pillows made from new, clean, odorless and
dustless feathers. Mattresses, beds and pillow*
ventilated and sanitary. All goods guaranteed
You must be satisfied or money back. Cash most
come with orders. Good territory for Hto agent*.
Catalog free. Write today for your* bed. Refer,
ence: Broadway National Bank.
PURITY BEDDING CO.. Box 244.C, Nashville
Tenn.
\
Tho “King of Birds,” owes much of
Its majestic, fearless mien to its un
blinking eyes. To enable the eagle to
concentrate its vision from aloft with
out interruption nature has provided its
eyes with a second, transparent lid;
though this lid may be moving frequent
ly, it is not apparent to one looking at
the bird. The eagle’s eyes are shaded
by heavy brows to enable it to concen
trate its gaze upon its prey many feet
below it.
FEATHER BED BARGAINS
Send ua $10.00 and wo will abipyon one first-claaanaw
40-pound Feather Bed. one pair 6-pound new Featbar
Pillows ($2.50), one pair full eize Blankets ($3.00), Oi»«
dandy Comfort, full size ($3.00), all for only$10.00. All
new goods and no trash. Biggest Bargain ever offered.
Satisfaction guaranteed. This offer id good for a short
time only to advertise our goods. Mall money order
now or write for Circular nnd order blanks.
SOUTHERN FEATHER & PILLOW CO.
Dspi. 1234 Qreeneboro, N. C.
GOOD COTTOtf SEED
We have a record of 65 bales on 45 acres this
season. Fine lot of pure, clean seeds to sell.
$1.00 the bushel. Buy now nnd get something
good. 1,250 pounds will more than make a 500
pound bale.
Fort Valley Fruit Farm,
Fort Valiev, Ga.
You will be onrprised how fl
easy it ia to net this fancy, I
pRiboased watch and atone set B
lirnf given for selling 20 jew- I
elrjr articles at 10 cents each. I
Write to-day for the jewelry. I
tata WatchCe. Oop't20, Chiesisl