Page 4 of 20 Sep 1917 Issue of Des Moines Iowa Homestead in Des-Moines, Iowa

Des Moines Iowa Homestead September 20, 1917 Page 4 old newspaper archives

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Des Moines Iowa Homestead (Newspaper) - September 20, 1917, Des Moines, Iowa The Homestead he m e s t e a d poultry Man Gardener and housekeeper. By James m. Pierce James Atkinson editor in chief _ established in 1855 entered at Dei Molnes Postof few As Soond last _ matter. Published Evert thursday wember agricultural pub Lisners association. Member audit Bureau of subscription Sinele subscription 51.00 a year. In clubs of ten 75 Centa n year and an extra copy to better up of club. Sin die subscription three years m Advance is. 50 five us Advance. 52.50 ten years in Advance subscription Price in Canada a year. Remit by draft registered letter Poa Toffice order. In changing address Send both the old and new addresses. In renewing Eire the same name and initials As before or Stati Dotu the old and new names and explain Why you change. In Case of errors or failure to receive the notify tha the Homestead company Des Mollei la. Iowa s interesting Road traffic census. The Iowa state Highway commis Sion has been conducting a Road traffic census of the state this summer. Ames students were stationed along various main travelled highways to in quire the character of the passing tray. Fie its origin destination Etc. Advance information regarding the facts which were developed by this investigation indicate some interesting and Surpris ing results which should have consid Erable bearing on future Good roads legislation in this state. For example at eight stations on roads known As tourist highways Lead ing to Market towns of considerable importance it developed that Only 3 per cent of the traffic could be classed As tourist in spite of the fact that it was at the height of the tourist sea Eon and Only 10 per cent came from farms along these roads. The great bulk of the travel Over these eight principal highways amounting to 87 per cent of their total traffic was of a character that would be called interurban by electric railroads. It was of the kind naturally called Forth by commercial or social Intercourse Between the Resi dents of the various cities and towns. The two principal reasons advanced during the last state Campaign by those who wished to make the Farmer pay for paved Rural highways in Iowa were the Good advertising it would afford for Iowa to tourists passing through and for the Sake of the Farmer going to town. Yet we see that the two together represent Only about one eighth of the traffic on eight leading Iowa highways at a time when our dirt roads were in perfect Condi Tion which Means that they were As Good As any in the country. It shows the injustice of the Condi Tion that would exist if expensive hard surfaced roads were to be built through All the country districts of Iowa As has been urged by the Dea Moines Register the Marshalltown times Republican the greater Iowa association and their following for years and the Farmers were compelled to pay about seventeen eighteenth of the expense while furnishing Only a Small per cent of the traffic. The principle of rate making for most classes of Public service is that the charge should be based on the use made of the service. The same thing should apply to the Cost of Road build ing. If it is the people of the towns and cities that make by far the larg eat use of Market roads As the Iowa Highway census would indicate then it is they who should Bear the heaviest Burden of the expense instead of the Farmers As at present. The census returns to Date indicate that on the average at the eight Iowa stations where observations were made there were eleven motor vehicles to one horse drawn vehicle and that each Road was carrying on an average of 387 vehicles Dally or More than one every two minutes for hours from six in the morning till six in the evening. This is a fair Indica Tion of the Wear and tear which our it he ways must Bear. Another feature which the in veal developed was the rapidly in number of motor driven trucks being used Over country roads. The proportion Between motor driven and horse drawn trucks varied on the eight roads. On one Road there were five horse drawn trucks to four motor driven trucks while the other extreme was represented by 3.3 motor driven trucks to one horse drawn truck. It shows the growing popularity of the motor truck and suggests the wonder Ful Field for further development along this line in the Grain Belt. No state in Union has better roads for a great proportion of the time than Iowa roads which Are prop. Eric graded drained and dragged and it is to be hoped that the new Road patrol Law will do much towards provid ing for these three necessities for Good dirt highways. However Chang ing conditions with the passing years May Lead to the necessity of increased Road expenditures and to the ultimate hard surfacing of the main travelled but always the principle should be borne in mind that it is those who get the most use from such expensive improvements who should Bear the bulk of their Cost instead of putting it practically All upon the Farmers As at present. Developed by the Iowa Road traffic census Wilt be awaited with interest and should contribute much to a clearer understanding of the Road situation in Iowa and an equitable settlement of its great prob lems. National Swine show will eclipse 1916 record. According to information received from the officials of the National bume show the event this year will be even More successful than the first t1le Date of the october should fit in Well with the hwt3.ll the attendance. The Corn will not be ready to Husk and most of the Winter wheat will be seeded so that the show virtually comes during a breathing spell in farm work. Omaha demonstrated last year her fitness to take proper care of every department of the show and with one year s experience it May reasonably be expected that visitors and exhibitors alike will find the 1917 show handled even bet Ter than the one last year. In this connection attention might be called to the fact that All pens will be plainly placarded this year and the age of every animal will be Given and also the official weight. When the premiums Are won the exhibitor will be obliged to place the ribbons Over the pens so that visitors at a glance can compare the relative merits of Ani Mals that were rated differently by the judges. An event of this kind should not a peal merely to the men who Are Rais ing pure bred hogs As even the owner of Grade hogs would find Many things of interest at the National Swine show. While the entries at this show May not exceed those made at some of the state fairs it is a Well known fact that the Cream of the Best herds Only will be taken to Omaha and those who win premiums at this show will find that the winning has brought to them the most valuable kind of advertising. It May he expected that a consider Able number of visitors who attend an event of this kind will be induced to enter the ranks of pure bred breeders and every Man who proposes to do this can Well afford to study industriously the winning Type of hogs it goes without saying that the individuals that carry off ribbons at the National Swine show will have Type size and Quality and we cannot imagine How it would be possible to spend a Day or two in any other Way that would bring to a breeder so much valuable information As would come to those who observe the careful work of the judges As it will be carried on during the week of this great show. The Homestead will Endeavor to re port the National Swine show in de Tail and we will present to our readers True illustrations of Many of the win ners in the principal classes. Com ment will be made on the outstanding animals of All Breeds so that those who cant possibly attend will be Given full information about the event our desire however is to encourage in every possible Way Swine breeders to attend this show. What the inter National live Stock exposition Means to the cattle and horse Industry of the continent so should the National Swine show serve in a like manner this same important purpose asap plied to Swine. Farmers Union growing rapidly in Iowa. The Farmers Union is making rapid strides in Iowa these Days preparatory to the big gathering for the purpose of forming a state organization in Des Moines on october 4th, 5th and 6th. State organizer George Mckelvey of Columbus Junction and his assistants have had greater demands put upon their time and efforts than they could respond to. Within the last few Days a local Branch was organized in Jeffer son county which started off with fifty charter members. Two locals were also organized in Henry county and there Are Calls from Twenty three different counties All wanting organizations formed. On september 1st the Louisa county organization had their meeting with Over a Hundred delegates and Mem Bers present every one of whom was enthusiastic Over the work of the Farmers Union and the results which the Farmers Union Exchange at co Lumbus Junction has accomplished in less than five months. The local branches of the Des Moines county Union held a picnic last week at which Over prominent Farmers and their families were pres ent. Saturday the Henry county locals sent delegates to a meeting at it pleasant to take Steps towards the raising of in Stock subscriptions for a cooperative warehouse and packing Plant. The present plans for the big round up in Des Moines the first week in october include a special train to Start from Burlington on the morning of october 3d and to run via West Liberty and Iowa City. Among the prominent speakers which it is hoped to have appear on the program at Des Moines Are governor Harding c s Barrett president of the National Farmers Union Union City Georgia a. C. Davis Secretary treasurer of the september 20, ground is made More friable by timely if the Laud is slowed when it is and works up Lumpy this Means that the surface will be left in a rough condition during Winter months and this is exceedingly favourable for catching Snow. Such a soil usually works Down into an Ideal seed bed in the Spring. If the soil is a Clay or Clay Loam it will not run together so badly As if it is slowed late and thus turns Over smoothly. All things considered we behave that the plow should be started just As soon As possible Over the stub ble land because there is every reasonable Assurance that the extra time required to do the work on account of the ground being hard will be paid for and More than paid for in an increased crop next year. J Chi National Farmers Union of Gravette Arkansas c. H. Gustafson president Nebraska state Union Meade Nebraska George Mckelvey Iowa state organizer Columbus Junction Iowa and others. It is hoped that o. F. Dornblaser National organizer of Burn Texas who has been confined at Home As the result of injuries received in a Railroad wreck a few Days ago will also be Able to appear on the pro Gram. The Iowa Homestead believes that the Farmers Union is founded on right principles and that it is the kind of an organization that will attract the sup port of the Best Type of Farmers in this state. We Hope to be Able to fur Nish More detailed information of the Des Moines gathering in our next is sue and want to urge All the members who can possibly do so and All our readers who Are interested in the Progress of cooperative movements of this character among the Farmers to plan to attend the sessions in Iowa s capital City on october 3d, 4th and 5th. Blowing dry hard stubble ground. A Homestead subscriber who lives in a locality that has escaped the fall Rains asks for information concerning the advisability of blowing stubble land now while it requires a great Deal of Power or in turn would it be bet Ter to wait for the fall Rains. It seems that he has plenty of horse Power to do the work but does not like to undertake the difficult task of blowing this hard ground if just As Good re sults will be obtained next year from later blowing. There Are a number of advantages that might be enumerated favourable to the practice of blowing stubble land Early even though it is hard and dry. In the first place it will prevent the maturity of certain Weed seeds and this in itself is an important matter. Furthermore blowing the Corn when it is dry works havoc to perennial weeds and so the Best Farmers Are generally those who favor the prac Tice of Early blowing regardless of whether the ground is dry or not. Of course it requires a great Deal of Power and the work is not As agree Able As it will be later on when the phosphatic fertilizer on Winter wheat. Experiments conducted at the Ohio station have resulted in the accumulation of data that indicate that it is a paying proposition to apply acid phosphate to land seeded to Winter wheat in Wayne county Ohio an application of 160 pounds of acid phosphate increased the yield eight Bush Els per acre while in three other counties the increase ran from five to six and one half bushels per acre the result of Twenty years of Experiment ing at the Ohio station indicates that an application of 160 pounds of acid phosphate May be expected to increase the yield of wheat anywhere from five to eight bushels. Even the application of 100 pounds of acid phosphate to wheat shows an average increase of four and one half bushels per acre and this would mean an increased in come of with wheat at a Bushel As the result of applying one ton of acid phosphate on Twenty acres. There has been a heavy demand for fertilizers during the present growing season and at times the Supply was not equal to the demand. Acid phosphate costs at the present time approximate to per Hundred pounds Laid Down at the farms of the Corn Belt. It May run As High As per Hundred and in that Case 200 pounds per acre would mean an expenditure of an in crease of one and a Quarter bushels of wheat would pay the fertilizer Bill and there is every possible reason to be Lieve that if 200 pounds per acre Are added there will be a margin ranging anywhere from four to seven bushels per acre of wheat Over and above the amount required to pay for the fertilizer. Of course judgment is called for when it comes to the matter of apply ing commercial fertilizers. Soils that have been Well rotated and manured will not be As much benefited As those that have been heavily Farmed. There Are thousands of cases in the Corn Belt where rotations have been interfered with on account of the Clover killing out two or three years a Suc cession with the result that Grain crops of one kind or another have been grown continuously. Under those conditions we have no hesitation in saying that an application of acid phosphate will prove to be a highly paying proposition. In some instances where land has not been covered for Many years a mixture of phosphate and ammonia might be still better of course it will be higher in Price but in matters of this kind it is not so much what a fertilizer costs As what it will do when applied to the land. There will be instances where men will be deterred from applying fertilizer to the wheat for fear the wheat might be Winter killed in the Case of a bad Winter or a hard Spring. However the fertilizer will not be wasted and it will be in the soil to produce just As Good results if the land is put in Corn or Oats next year As would have been the Case with wheat. Rye for Spring pasture. One of our subscribers or. John Dohrman asks for information concerning the practicability of sowing Rye in Corn with the idea in mind of using it for Early Spring pasture. Unfortunately in this Case the Corn is somewhat lodged so that it will be very difficult to properly cover the seed. Apart from the Corn being lodged the ground is in Good condition being Well drained and free from every veed. Of. Course it is unfortunate that the

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