38 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



investigation of all of the lands carrying the under- 

 flow and resulted in the bringing in of experienced 

 men to study conditions and the subsequent instal- 

 lation of numerous pumping plants that will event- 

 ually revolutionize the system of farming through- 

 out the entire area where water bearing gravel is 

 found. 



Land on which plants have been erected that 

 would not have sold two years ago for over $25.00 

 per acre, produced crops of alfalfa during the season 

 of 1913 that shows a gross value of $105 per acre, 

 over four times the former selling price of the land. 



There wowlcl appear to be a great future ahead 

 for the farmers in Central and Western Kansas and 

 under the new system the term "Bleeding Kansas" 

 will prove a misnonier. There is evidently a splen- 

 did field through this vast region for manufacturers 

 of engines, pumping machinery and farm imple- 

 ments. 



The farmer who can show a net earning of from 

 $80 to $95 per acre each year is in our opinion a 

 good man for the dealers in, and manufacturers 

 of this class of machinery to cultivate. 



Dakota 

 Bankers 

 Assist 

 Farmers 



The Bankers of South Dakota have 

 taken a long step ahead by voting 

 a fund of $7,000, to be used by the 

 Better Farming Association of that 

 State for the purchase of dry land 

 alfalfa seed. 



This seed is purchased from farmers living in 

 the dry part of the State and will be sold at cost 

 to the members of the Cooperative Farmers Asso- 

 ciation. 



This action of the bankers will permit the 

 farmers to get dry land seed at first cost. If bankers 

 in other sections of the West would act along this 

 line it would do much toward educating the farmers 

 in the matter of securing high grade home grown 

 seed. 



The fact that southern grown seed has been 

 purchased by seedsmen and sold to northern 

 farmers, has led to many of the failures encountered 

 by well meaning individuals who have known of 

 the value of alfalfa as a fodder crop, but who have 

 not been sufficiently careful to learn that southern 

 grown seed is much more apt to winter kill than 

 seed raised in the north. This fact has been re- 

 peatedly demonstrated in the dairy sections of Illi- 

 nois, Wisconsin and Iowa, where southern seed has 

 been planted. 



The subject should have been more carefully 

 studied by the seedsmen, as a failure where a hard 

 winter, following the first seeding, has killed entire 

 fields, discouraged the farmers and the result is that 

 many will not make a second attempt. 



Our advice to farmers in these states is to get 

 in touch with some Association, similar to that 

 organized in South Dakota, and secure northern 

 grown seed for a new trial which would be likely 

 to prove successful. 



It may be well to state also that a study of soil 

 conditions is as equally important as the seed, and 

 for information in this direction the farmers should 

 communicate with the Soil Division of the Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture at Washington, or the head of 

 the Agricultural Department of their State Univer- 

 sity. 



During a conversation recently with 

 Save a leading dairyman of Northern Illi- 



Your nois, who has a herd of 65 cows, the 



Heifer subject was discussed of purchasing 



Calves new milch cows to replenish the 



herd, when at a certain season a 

 fair percentage of them "go dry," he stated that 

 the present price for good cows ranges from $100 

 upward and that he frequently paid as high as 

 $125.00 for a good animal. 



This gentleman is conducting his farm of 205 

 acres on the old fashioned plan of leasing on shares, 

 he furnishes the dairy herd, power to run all ma- 

 chinery for shredding, grinding and silo filling, while 

 the tenant supplies all other machinery such as har- 

 vesters, harrows, plows, manure spreaders, also 

 horses, wagons, etc. 



The tenant gets one-half of the net profits from 

 the milk and young stock, the major part of the 

 products of the farm being used for feed. In the 

 contract for a lease it is specified that the tenant is 

 to pay one-half the cost of new cattle to replace 

 those who die or become useless from age, or other 

 causes ; on the other hand he (the tenant) is given 

 a half interest in all the young stock, half of what 

 the calves bring when sold or an undivided one-half 

 of all calves raised to replenish the herd. 



In talking generally on this subject the writer 

 suggested that this heavy outlay for milch cows 

 could be obviated by raising the heifer calves and 

 our informant stated that at the present prices for 

 milk this was a rather expensive plan. He stated 

 further, however, that if the tenant is a man with 

 a good knowledge of dairying and stock raising, 

 that the calves could be given the milk from the 

 cow during the first week or ten days and then 

 switched to some other food, thereby doing away 

 with the loss entailed by feeding milk for a long 

 period. 



Our informant stated that the average tenant 

 who works on a "half the profit plan base," rarely 

 cares to go to the trouble of raising calves as his 

 share of the selling price was a source of ready 



