Newspapers / The Progressive Farmer (Raleigh, … / Aug. 4, 1886, edition 1 / Page 1
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Vol. 1. OUR FARMERS' CLUBS. What our Farmers are Doing and How the Work of Organizing is Progressing. TRINITY CLUB. Subject Heavy Rains and High Water. July 24th, 1886. W. W. Andrews. We should study the needs of our lands. To make our work successful in controling water we should engineer well. Some places require ditches, some dikes and some dams. If water gets out of its proper channels it should be our aim to keep it as still as possi ble to prevent washing. I have a wonderful confidence in still water. In building dikes or dams use bunch sod. The beaver never makes mis takes. He uses such material. Use no rock. If they are ever to move they are troublesome. Better take rock as far away as possible. Dr. J. Bird. Experience has taught me the need of (straightening our streams. I lost a lot of valuable timothy hay this season by this neg lect. To obviate these losses we should study the needs of all water ways. Never load small ditches with more water than they can carry. Lead them to the main ditch before they are too long. The size of a ditch depends upon the amount of water-shed, or amount of space on which it accumulates. We ought to give water a way to pass on. -Like a norse, give it its own way but guide it as straight as you can. Make sides of ditches at an angle of 45 degrees. Seed them with red top or water oats to, the edge of the wateri Don't like willow on ditches in our small streams. W. 0. Harris. Ditching amounts to but little unless those above and below you fall in line and ditch theirs. On small streams make dams to hold the water in winter and catch the sediment. Let off the water in the spring and cultivate. I believe in water furrowing for hill sides to prevent -washing; make them wide with small slopes at sides. I know nothing about terracing. To construct a water furrow commence at the point where you want it to discharge or where you want it to cross a ravine, then go as the level takes you with 2 inches fall in ten feet. Throw it out with a shovel. Make upper side of furrow lowest in permanant water furrows. Make your meadow where it will never get flooded. Cultivate the land that is subject to overflows. A. Parker. In controling water a man should go at it in a business way. If there be a probability of profit do it thoroughly ; if not let it alone. Like the builder count the cost before you undertake. Small bottoms are good to have of a dry season. Eleven years ago we had a wet season si miliar to the present one. Some say eleven years con stitutes a cycle. For small streams cut ditches that will carry the water at its highest. If rock prevents then build dams to deaden the water and catch the sediment. D. M. - Payne. Bains, when ap parently excessive, if rightly con sidered are blessings. The aerial elements are stored with plant food. The rain in its ascent to arid descent from the clouds becomes charged with this food which is wisely dis tributed over the globe. Man's busi ness is to store it for the plant. He is at fault if he fails to perform this small part of his duty in God's econ omy. Two ways are suggested! by which this may be done. First, water furrowing, second, by terrac ing. The object is to retain the water as near as possible where it falls till these flood properties are imparted to the soil, which is done by filtering. Which of the modes is better is for our consideration. rWe are inclined to thinkthat either, if well done, wilfaccomplish the end desired. By either we impede in some degree the sudden flow and swell of the streams, so destructive to our narrow low grounds, the best part of our lands, made so by the fil THE INDUSTRIAL AND EDUCATIONAL INTERESTS tering indicated above. The present season has been one of unusual rain fall. Those who have neglected th eir duty will be doubly damaged. They suffer the escape of plant food, aud the washing away of a part of the soil. J. J. White. The only plan on many of the larger streams is to ditch and to dike at right angles to the creek. Begin at the creek with a ditch and throw dirt on the lower side and make an embankment to high water mark. If the strip of bottom is a very long one, run several of these ditches and dikes. ' At the upper end the em bankment' should be very substan tially aided by posts and plank if need be to make it secure. I have been getting from my neighbors above me cheat, cockle, onions, &c, for years and I have decided to set traps for the cream of their soil, if they are determined to let it wash away. I believe water furrows do more harm than good. "For up land on Jong slopes terrace on a level. Begin near the highest point in the field with a two-horse plow and throw two furrows together just so they will meet and continue to plow on this unbroken strip until you have a good terrace. Go down hill three feet and throw up another terrace and so continue until the field is ter raced. u Dr. Parker. -We have had ample opportunity of late to see and feel the great importance of this subject as land owners and farmers. Many of us have' very valuable bottom lands and they would be tert-fold more valuable if we could control the high water. Can it be done? Yes. Is it worth doing? With many portions of our large creeks and rivers where the bottoms are narrow and rocky, I do not think it will pay. But with many parts of these same streams and most all of our ordinary creeks and bottoms, it will pay big money to canal, ditch, dike and otherwise prevent such terrible damages as we have wit nessed this season even on the small streams. We can't afford this waste and this uncertainty about the crops on our best lands. Cut ditches as straight as possible, xcide enough and deep enough to carry all the water of the heaviest rains. Slope the sides and set in grass. Watch these ditches and see if any breaks show in the, banks fill in with heavy rock and stick in among them willow switches to take root among them. This will make it secure. Never give, hold right on and you will succeed I). M. Payne, Secretary. ORGANIZING IN SURRY. A number of farmers of Union Grove, Pilot township, Surry county, met Saturday, July 24th, and organ ized a farmers' club. A great deal of interest was , manifested and the indications are that the club will in crease rapidly in numbers. The meet ings for the present will be held monthly, the next meeting being the 21st inst. The editor of The Pro gressive Farmer acknowledges a pressing invitation to be present. The following are tho officers: President, David Denney; ; Vice-President, Martin King ; Secretary, J. E. Whitt; Treasurer, J. F. Whi taker. Fourteen members enrolled. . We expect a large meeting on the 21st. - kernersville club. We met this evening according to appointment. The house was called to order by the temporary chairman and moves made to elect permanent officers. The names of several were suggested, out of which Mr. G. W. Elliot was elected President, Joseph Crews Vice-President, F. C. Hasten Secretary and W. C.Lassiter Treas urer., The President, after 'being elected, gave a very interesting talk, showing the benefit that may be de rived from such an organization, etc. Not a great deal of time was used in discussing questions as we had too much other business to attend to. OF OUR PEOPLE PARAMOUNT TO WINSTON, N. C, AUGUST 4, We will be represented on the 7th day of August in the county con vention at Winston. F. C. Hasten, Sec'y. A NEW CLUB IN CATAWBA. TJie Lisle's Creek Farmer's Club was organized at Miller's School House, four miles east of Hickory, on the 24th inst., Mr. J. W. Robinson being present and assisting. The following are the officers elected for the ensuing year: President, P. M. Miller. Secretary, M Wagner. Marshal, M. A. Sigmon. The meetings are appointed to be held on Saturday before the 4th Sunday in each month. The next meeting will be held on the 21st of August. The subject for discussion then will be, "The best method of prepari ng land for wheat. Piedmont Press. A GOOD TIME AT CEDAR GROV Cedar Grove, K. C, ) August 2nd, '86. j Mr. Editor ; Saturday, July 31st, has been looked to with many joy ous anticipations by the people of this neighborhood. The Cedar Grove Farmers' Club had extended a gen eral invitation to the farmers of this community to pic-nic with them on that day at Bevel's Mill. About 9 o'clock the farmers began coming in, some on foot, carrying baskets on their arms, some in buggies and wagons, all accompanied by their wives and children and all bringing well filled -baskets. In due time the Jonestown1 String Band 1 appeared with colors waving, in Joseph A. Nifong's band wagon, drawn by four spanking bays, Mr. James Alspaugh holding the reins. v The crowd, which numbered about 300, was then called to the stand by President Bevel, who introduced Col. L. L. Polk, who responded in a speech of one hour and ten minutes. Of this speech I feel inclined. to say much, but knowing, Mr. Editor,that you will refuse to publish any com plimentary remarks on the speech, I must be content with saying that notwithstanding the intense heat I never saw so large a crowd held to such a point of attentiveness as was this crowd by Col. Polk. During the speech the entire crowd was served with ice cold lemonade,which helped much to overcome the op pressive heat. After the speaking the good wives called for their bask ets to be brought and the table fairly groaned under the weight of such viands as would tempt an epicure. All did eat and were filled and many fragments were taken up. Everything passed off well with; the best of order, and the best of good feeling prevailed. I have heard but one sentiment expressed and that is, let this occasion be followed by many more like it. J. MJ. : - FARMERS' NATIONAL CONGRESS The Farmers' National Congress will be held at St. Paul, Minnesota, from the 25th to 27th of August. On an invitation to appoint dele gates from this State, Gov. Scales has appointed the following, dele gates and alternates : : First district, W. S. Carter, Fai field, Hyde county ; alternate, Frank Wood, Edenton. 2d. Elias Carr, Old Sparta; W. A. Darden; Snow Hill. 3d. Jonathan Evans,1 Fayetteville ; E. J. Hill, Warsaw. Uth. R; H. Lewis, Raleigh ; T. P Brasswell, Battlebbro. 5th. H. T. Bah n son, Sa lem ; Thomas Carter, Madison, Rock ingham county. 6th. J. M. Wads worth, Charlotte; S. B. Carpenter, Cedar Hill, Anson county, v 7 th. J. F. Armfield, Statesville ; A. C. Tom lhi, Olin. 8th. S. D. McD. Tate, Morganton. 9th. W. W. Rollins, Marshal; Ji! M.;Fagg, Asheville. Delegates at large: S. B. Alexander, Charlotte; B. P. Williamson, Ral eigh; alternates, John W. Cunning ham, Cunningham's Store; Fred. Kidder, Wilmington. ALL OTHER CONSIDERATIONS OF 1886. RECIPES WANTED AND A RE CIPE GIVEN. Editor Progressive Farmer I wish you would give me through your paper a perfect recipe for mak ing' SAUER KRAUT. I want to make the genuine Dutch article. Have tried several recipes but have not made a success of any of them. I don't care about a re cipe based upon theory, but would be glad to have one from some one who actually makes kraut. SASSAFRAS. Will some one of your readers who has had experience and been suc cessful, tell me how to destroy how to exterminate sassafras bushes from old fields overgrown by them ? CATERPILLARS. One of your correspondents has aid, to destroy these from fruit trees, rap rags around the end of pole, li.'.l . 1 1 1 saturate the raers with kerosene on. fira them and singe them off. This wilivnot do. It will injure the trees. Here, is a perfect and practical meth od to rid fruit, or any other trees from this plague: Take your shot gun, load it with powder alone, put ting ho wad on the powder. Hold the muscle of the gun within a few feet of the 'ipaterpillar nest," say three to ten pet, and shoot them off. This will utterly destroy the cater pillars ayid do no damage to the smallest jtwigs of the tree. i Abram Gainey. Sherwood, NVC., July 1886. A n sice ft Krd ut . Our correspond ent can pave -kraut, l the' genuine Dutch arjticle," by following these directions, procured from one of long and successful experience : The proper ime to make it is after the first fros s and before freezing wea ther. Srip off all damaged or out side leaves from, the cabbage head. See that the heads are clean and sound. IWith a sharp knife, or sin-gle-bladpd feed cutter, cut the heads very fine (cutting across the leaves!) Havingf first provided an oaken bar rel, we jl scrubbed and scalded, and which imust be water tight, sprin kle a light handful of salt in the bar rel and pour in a bushel of the loose chopped cabbage, mixing with it a large! tablespoonful of salt. Now, with jn light smooth-end maul pound down until it is very compact. Re peat this process until the barrel is fuhyor as full as you want it. Spread a clean cloth on it, place on f he cloth a layer of nice clean cabbage leaves, and on these place a cover made of oak boards, (the detached barrel tiead, trimmed, is good,) and on this jcover place some heavy stones, so f as to weight it down well. The oak cover should be so made as to go down with the shrinkage of the kraut. It will be ready for use from three to six weeks, according to the temperature of the weather. Keep it in a cool place. Should mould or scum appear on the covering take the covering all out, wash the cloth and cover anoLreplace the cabbage eaves with fresh ones. It may be iiade in warm weather, if these gen- al rules be observed, but the cov- ring will need attention oftener, say very six or eight days. To Destroy Sassafras. We trust some of our readers who have been successful in destroying sassafras will tell our correspondent through The Progressive Farmer how to do it. ; We have been told that grub bing it up thoroughly in the month of August' would destroy it, but oth ers claim that nothing short of pro longed pasturage of sheep or goats on it will destroy it. We have had no experience .with it. Let us have it through our paper, and thus bene fit hundreds of our readers. .. . Our correspondent is correct as to the caterpillar pest. His is the best way we have ever found. It takes but little time to do it it is easily and cheaply done, and does not dam age the tree. - Veto is a little word but it takes lots of pluck sometimes to say it. f ' STATE POLICY. No. 26. tate Ktcms. Several farmers in New Salem are raising small crops of tobacco, which are looking .well. Monroe Enquirer. One of our citizens who rode 25 miles through Davidson county yes terday says that the tobacco crop in that section is the poorest ho ever saw in some places the grass is higher than the tobacco. High Point Enterprise. The farmers are harvesting oats ; the crop is very good, much better than last year.- It is a deep rooted fact now that the Cape Fear k Yad kin Valley Railroad will be extended on from Mt. Airy to Wytheville, Va. Last Thursday the two-year-old child of John Hackney, of Chatham county, was found dead in a spring. The child had wandered away from the house. The foundation for the Centenary M. E. Church, in South Greensboro, has been dug out and the brick masons are laying brick for dear life. Mr. Ireland in forms us that the building will be completed by the first of October if possible. Dirt has been broken for the foundation of the new Bap tist church at this place, on Wash ington street. It will be built of brick, 51 feet front, 77 feet deep, with a Sunday school room to be thrown open by closing doors. Height from street 36 feet, with a tower 10 feet square, and the spire reaching 69 feet in mid air, making in all from the ground to the top 105 feet. Greens boro Patriot. f ' - . Mr. Isaac Ratledge, of Calahan tgwnship, made last year on one acre, 122 bushels of corn, and , says that the same acre, this year, will not produce forty bushels. Davie Times. A VALUABLE SUGGESTION. Much of the tobacco brought to market these days is damaged by being smoked, in the effort to keep it from moulding, and has conse quently brought very low ; prices, when otherwise it would have brought a fair price. To guard against this, Watson Bros., and Wommack of Reidsville, have issued a circular containing the following: "Feeling an unusual interest in your welfare, now that tobacco is low, and appreciating the fact that you can neither afford to let your tobacco damage nor smoke it by drying it out with wood, we -would advise those of you who are not ready to market your tobacco to clean out your barns and sprinkle every week or ten days on the floor about two gallons of lime. It will prevent moisture from rising, keep the barn dry and thus prevent the moulding. We know the experi ment to be a success; it is very cheap, and we are sure it is wortn your attention." A GOOD FARMER. A friend who was sympathizing with Capt. Buck Draughon last week over the losses by rain in his crop, was told that even with one half gone now, he would J be able to supply the neighborhood, and that if all this year's crop now remaining was to be ruined, he still : has old corn enough to do him and his neigh bors. 1 Few hereabouts do it. Eay etteville vKews. . r'"l ' ?t ' It gives us great pleasure to record and reprod uce such paragraph s as the above. It is just such men' as Capt. Draughon who will eventually bring the South to the front in agri culture, where she ought to be, by the example he sets to' his fellow farmers. He don't raise cotton and buy grass from Pennsylvania . arid Eork from Illinois. 3Iay ho anil' his ind increase and multiply until they take possession of the land. President Cleveland is four years older than his mother-in-law. 5
The Progressive Farmer (Raleigh, N.C.)
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Aug. 4, 1886, edition 1
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