Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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FROM THE HARVEST FIELDS OF KANSAS Laarons n?y Writes Intercstluglj <??' ll\s ?xi>orlPiic?8 und ?userva? lion -(?reut l'ouiltry. The following Interesting lotter wu? written for The Advertiser by Mr. Chas. T. Simpson who, as noted boiiio weeks ago. Is Bpendlug the suinuior in Kansas in the harvest,Wolds of that treat State: .lust a few lines t<f lei yon know how lour Southern boys tthroo South Carolinians and one Virginian) uro Spending their summer vacation in the west. In planning our trip wo had in mind seeing as much of the West, as possible in a way that would enable us to derive the greatest possible beu ?tit, all things considered. With this in mind, we planned to strike the wheat harvest about the li id of July, following it for some live or six weeks Keeing us much of the couutry, etc., as possible, in the meantime. There after We planned to take a trip of as great an extent .is our work in the wheat fields would allow. Oil)- [dans brought us first to the wheat Heids ol Kansas. Two weeks stay in Kansas, seeing the country as wo have started out to do. has taught us much of the cus toms of the people, their standard of life, their characteristics, the crops they raise, (heir Industries, and the peculnrllies of the country. Wo arrived in Smith Centre, Kan.. Oil the night of June 30th over the Kock Island line from St. Louis. The next day we began work in the wheat Melds with a rather well-to-do farmer who plant? some four or live hundred acres in wheat and about the same number in Corn. As to the work, it is by no means easy. It is very steady and the Kansas sun is pretty warm, although a line broox.c blows practical-j Jv all day over the prairie laud?woro it not for this, it would be extremely hot. We remained around Smith Centre till July 0th coming thence to Norton, Kas., some sixty-live miles west, and here we expect to tu- lor some two or three weeks yet. Thence our plan is to meet the harvest again somewhere around Aberdeen, South Dakota, work ing there some ten days. By this time we expect to have fully experienced the work we came to do. The wheat harvest is some eight or ten days earlier this year than usual owing to the hot weather during the latter two weeks of June, which caus ed the wheat to ripen sooner. Ab a general rule, they do not do much cut ting ol* the wheat until July Ith: this Is the day by which they reckon the beginning of the harvest. The harvest season is a very busy one with the farmers, as the Wheat must be cut as toon as it ripens, lor the head being very heavy for the stalk at this time.) is very easily knocked down by the wind and rain. The farmers cut their wheat in two ways. Some cut with a hinder, which cuts the wheat ami hinds It into bun dles which are scattered along the route of the machine. These bundles . re then shocked.thnt is they are '.tacked in a pile of some twelve to fifteen bundles each. This wheat is then ready for threshing. It is a beau tiful sight to look over a wheat field of some two or three huudred acres after it has been shocked, in fact, a decidedly more beautiful sight than that of an unshocked Held when you know you have the shocking to do. The other way of cutting the wheat is by using a header instead of bind ing the wheat, the header feeds the <uoso wheat direct int^o \vl^ is known a* a barge?a wagon arrangement? whence ,T Is stacke,i |n great stuck?. --OF rpkeP) PS {he*/ arc known, when stacked lengthwise. Much les sof the stalk is cut by this method. As yet they have found no use for the wheat straw; at any rate the demand is so small for it that the price one can get for it would not justify the shipping expense. However, T would say that it is only a question of time as these people keep their eyes open and ears cocked for any money sources. Cutting wheat With a header-barge, as it is Commonly known, is the moro ex pensive method as it requires moro labor. Five or six men are necessary to rtin a header-barge, while one to run the binder End two shockers fol lowing are sufficient where a binder is used. "Wheat and corn are the principal crops out here, in fact practically the only ones. The farmers alternate be tween corn and wheat on a given piece of land. Wheat seems to be very try ing on the land and. as one told me, they plant corn only because they can not nfTorrt to plant wheat year after year on the same piece of land. Their corn crop is by no means a mean one however, hut they consider wheat the principal product. The land, 1 suppose, Is as rich as you ordinarily find anywhere. They do not know what It means to use fertilizer on the land. Practically the only drawback Is the hot, dry weather they experience. Last year, a hot, dry spell came just about .harvesting time I and practically ruined the corn crop. There seems ? bo plenty of rain this year however, for the. corn, and the prospects are good for a large corn crop. The wheat crop seems to be not quite so good this year on ac count of lack of tain when it was needed, A yield of some thirty to forty bushels of COIMI per acre seems to be the Qveruge and from eighteen to twenty-live bushels of wheat per acre The price of farming land ranges anywhere from $M to $100, the aver age being, I should say, between $.">? and $?'?'? por acre. A very striking Ihlng to )?? noticed Is the relatively large acreage culti vated by one man as compared to the number of acres per man in the South. I would say that in the South, about twenty-live acres to the man and horse is the general acreage; however, it Is ? mile common here to lind farmers cultivating anywhere from OHO hun dred and llfty to three hundred and fifty acres with no outside help. In tact, we came across a fanner on Thursday last who is cultivating three hundred and sixty acres by himself. To do this, it is necessary of course for them to have the most improved farming implements; this you will find lo he the case on all the farms. The scarcity of labor in Ibis country forces the farmer to get bis help from the most Improved implements and were it not for such implements, etc., the farmers could not cultivate as ex tensively as they do. Of course, the ex pense of such machinery is very great but in tin; end the farmer saves money, and in my opinion, is in a much belter condition than we, with our labor problem etc., are. The State of Kansas is as system atically laid off as possible. The whole State is divided into v.'lions, which is a square mile. There are thirty six sections to the township, and twenty-live townships to the coun ty, making eacli county a perfect square. All public roads run north and south, and east and west. All places are reckoned in so many miles north, south etc. There is no such a thing as a crooked public road here ?oven the railroads run duo east and west; in this vicinity, there is no way of getting north or south on a rail road, exc ept by first going either east or west. Too. the streams seem to have "caught the habit" and practical ly all of them run due south. This coupled with the fact that each house has a wind-mill and positively no pi azzas, makes the country very monot onous. .Most of the people in the State of Kansas are immigrants. We have met with very few natives of the State. Kansas has only been settled some thirty-five years. The people come here to make money and there are evidences on all sides that this is what they live for?everything we lind' to be just as expensive here as in South Carolina, with the possible ex ception of milk and eggs?the former of which they have positively mm eed for. feeding all of it to the pigs, us lllg only the cream, this habit of theirs j we South Carolinians are fast check I lag, at every opportunity. On the whole Kansas is a very thrifty State, the people do not mind working, in fact, they are forced to do it as labor Is very scarce, thus forcing them to do all their own work, of all kinds. 1 must say that they think of little else outside of money making; they seem to measure everything in dollars and cents. In this respect how ever, they ore not so very different from the other sections of the country. Kansas is to, be congratulated on her sanitary lawV. Among these might be mentioned a law prohibiting the' use of the public drinking cups; there are others, but she is to be especially I congratulated on this one. One striking difference in the farms hero and "at home" is the absense of the "muie.negro" combination. We, haven't seen a negro since our arrival, and with a few exceptions possibly, all the farmers use horses on their farms, There is one thing we have noticed in our sojourn in the west which grates on our South Carolina pride? and it is the way the westerners, in variably pronounce the word "Caro lina". They pronounce It as if it were spelled "South Callny". This, more! than any other one thing 1*.A3 "gone, against our grain." and we do not let. a single opportunity slip by without I letting them know how we feel on this point. We are enjoying every minute of our stay out here, and expect to return home much benefited in every way by our experience. However, we have all about decided that we were put In this world to live, in the South, among Southern people, "Down where the cotton blossoms grow," and al though we are not all of the Predes tinarlan type, those of us who are not, are willing to accept it this time with out any desire to have it otherwise. With me are Jno. T. Sloan of Co lumbia, now of the University of Vir ginia: Irvine V. Reiser of Columbia, and Den S. llrooker of the Plains, Va., who graduated with me this year at Carolina. Ohas. T. Simpson. Norton, Kan., Thursday, July 11. < ROWS From HahhtoHii. Babbtown, July 2."?.? Last Saturday afternoon the fine team of this lom munity crossed liats with Merna team anil- played 11 to I in favor of the home boys, Mr. and Mrs. Haskell B?rdet! were visiting Mr .1. T. Willis and family Snturduy night. Mr. and Mrs. Wright Martin of Eden spent Sunday with Mr. and Mrs. Willis Putnam. Miss lOula Uolshiro accompanied by her mother la here iron! Atlanta for a foW weeks. Misses Cornelia and Sallie Woods 8 pen I Saturday night in lama com munity with the Misses Knight. .Mrs. Mary Woods ami daughter, Mrs. Rill ilia llabb Of I'elzer spent a par! of last week in Laurens. Mrs. Sampson lt;ilil> has been quite sick for tin.' past week. Miss Ida Harton of Laurens is spending a while with Miss Grace Peden. Mr. and Mrs. Victor Woods have re turned to their home in Greenville al ter a week s visit with their klnspeo pie. Miss Nellie Thompson of Laurens is visiting Misses Annie and Bessie Owens. Miss Nannie B?rdet! visited Misses Daisy and Kill a Stone Saturday night. Ladies and (w ills Tailoring. Mr. I). IsnCOff has opened a tailor shop in the liarksdale building next to Gray's hotel and will be pleased to show to customers a stylish line of fall and wintei samples. KILL THE GERMS. That's tii<> Oul) Wnj to Cur?- Dandruff, and Parisian Sage (lie Onl\ Killer. Parisian Sage soaks into the scalp, and when it reaches the roots of the hair it not only kills every dandruff get in, but it supplies the hair with just the right kind of nourishment to put vigor and strength into it and innae it grow. Parisian Sage is the most delightful! hair dressing In (lie world and is not sticky or greasy. Use it one week and you will never give it up. Parisian Sage is guaranteed by The Laurens Drug Co. to stop tailing hair; to cure dandruff; keep hair from fad ing: to stop Itching of the scalp, or money back. Price GO cents a large bottle. The girl with the Auburn hau ls on every bottle. ONEY is always ready to earn you more money when given the opportunity. We furnish the opportunity. Perhaps you had better ask us about it. t????t?t?*????? rJ ????J 11 m. BAN LAURENS LA?RENS, S.C The Bank for Your Savings. Let the Watch word of Laurens County be "SOLOMON" Anything pertaining to Watches, Clocks, and Jewelry you will find my advice of great value to you. My long experience is at your service If you are thinking of buy ing a watch see me first. Watches sold by me are absolutely guaranteed. You will find at my store all re liable Makes of Watches. / Also a complete line of t Jewelry of standard quality and la test styles. William Solomon, Jeweler an Optician. Laurens, - South Carolina 1 W IKjJI ' t WHEN YOU START OUT TO BUY YOUR Furniture and House-Furnishings START FOR fl. & E. H. Wilkes & Co. If s The Best Start You Can Possibly Make The Wilkes Store is a mighty Safe Store and one upon which von can ABSOLUTELY DEPEND THREE GOOD VALUES And we have hundreds of others just as stood that we want you to see T5C Solid Oak Chair, full size, beautiful golden finished, cane or cobbler seat, brace arms. Regular Dollar Value. Chase Leather Couch Upholstered on very best springs, full size, finely tufted. A Fifteen Dollar Value. Solid Oak Rocker, highly polished golden oak, leather seat, Bc-aitiful embossed car vings. A Three Dollar Value.