SEPT 22 
626 
Burnt topics. 
HOW TO OBTAIN A FARM. 
BY JOHN M. STAHL. 
That hits you all in aheap, doesn’t it, young 
man? I knew it did. for I know you. There 
are several of you You are pretty numerous. 
You area decidedly good sort of a fellow, or 
I would not write this article for your especial 
benefit. You are father’s own liny. He owns 
a farm, but you do not. You don’t want to 
wait for the paternal acres. The Census taker 
had more work than you afforded when he in¬ 
terviewed your family, and you will get only 
a small slice of land when the time comes. 
You are your own man. You have been work¬ 
ing on somebody else’s farm for about sixteen 
dollars a month and hoard, getting your wash¬ 
ing done at home hv those sisters who call you 
a big. rough bear, but who would die for you 
much more quickly than kiss you, and they 
would do both any day. Your clothes cost 
you something. They always do, except in 
very warm climates, the Isthmus of Panama, 
for Instance. You help to support, the parson, 
and remember the heathen in his blindness. 
You go to the great, unriva led show just to see 
the animals, to be stire It is wonderful how 
you get interested in zoology about show time. 
The girls must be rememhered, too. You 
don’t propose to let Bill Jones in ahead of you. 
niris eat ice cream. It is horrid, but a fact. 
Your mustache has commenced to sprout ; you 
can feel it when your finger nails are long. 
There is a feeling, verv acute, in your nails 
when searching around the place where a 
mustache should grow. There is a girl down 
the road that vou are sweet on. You need 
not tell me that is not so. You can't fool me. 
I am too old for that, and “was there” a good 
manv years ago. Yon have been to see that 
girl every Sunday night for a year, and once 
in a while and sometimes twice in a while yon 
have gone there through the week. You want 
to marry her. There is nothing had about 
that; you needn't be ashamed of it. Choke 
that blush, young man. One year of married 
life will cure all that, though. But .you have 
no farm, no home, and you do not propose to 
marry that girl till you have a home to take 
her to. That is right. Never take a mate till 
you have a twig for a nest. She is a good girl. 
True. All girls are better than they are given 
credit for. She is pretty, cute, industrious, 
economical, a good house-keeper, good-temp¬ 
ered—yon may stop with that; T am perfectly 
willing to acknowledge that she is the pink of 
perfection. You want the girl but you want 
the farm first. 
Hand is high at home. At your present rate 
of gain it will take you iust 176 years to get a 
farm where you are. You have made that 
calculation a thousand times. You have 
thought about it at night. Young man. let 
me tell you how you can get that farm in a 
short time. But first you must answer some 
questions. For the sake of the girl and the 
farm are you willing to work like a govern¬ 
ment mule? to wear old clothes? to cook coarse 
food and eat it? to live iu a dug-out or cabin ? 
to smoko not a single cigar? to live by your¬ 
self. ftet lonely, and not swear at the mails? to 
l>e yourself and your wife? in short, to he a 
pioneer, a settler, a homesteader, a pre-eniptor? 
If you answer in the affirmative, give me your 
hand; let mo look into your honest eyes—my 
plan is half revealed. 
A land of farms is a land of homes, cheerful 
and sunny; of plenty, of contentment, of hap¬ 
piness, of growth, of security; a people of 
farmers is a people intelligent, patriotic, fit to 
govern. Ood-fearing, progressive, honored 
abroad, happy at homo. Uncle 8am knows 
this and offers a farm of virgin soil to all who 
come. You can homestead and hv living on 
160 acres of good land for five years you get it 
all your own and no purchase money and no 
taxes are required. Or you can “timber- 
claim:” that. is. you make vour claim for 160 
acres of laud; the first year plow five acres; 
the next year farm that and plow five acres 
more; the third year plant the first, five acres 
in trees and farm the second five acres; the 
fourth vear plant, that in trees, and if at the 
end of the fifth vear you have a certain num- 
ber of trees to the acre you get the laud, trees 
and all, and there are but a very few dollars 
to pay. Or again, you con pre-empt 160acres 
for 61.25 per aere and in one year got n title 
to your land. You ean timber-claim and pre¬ 
empt.; or timber-claim and homestead; but 
you can not do all three if you respect the laws 
nnd your own good honor. Thus yon can get 
820 acres of land, enough for any man, nnd it 
will cost you only a few dollars. Waiting 
nnd working are all that, are required. And all 
the time the land will yield good crops and in¬ 
crease very fast in value. You will he rich 
before you are old. 
Let me give you a few hints:—Keep near 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
the railroads. There your land will mos 
rapidly increase in value; you will have good 
markets, and opportunities for knowledge and 
advancement which you will not have else¬ 
where. Get as near the comity-seat as you 
can. It will always build up first and land 
will be most valuable near it. Be sure that 
you get good land. Examine it well before 
you locate. Take your time, keep your eyas 
open, don’t, listen to other people (they are 
just looking for you to take you in), but judge 
for yourself. 
But where shall you go ? I must not partic¬ 
ularize here. I can give yon only general di¬ 
rections. Go to some of the places T indicate 
and explore the laud for yourself. Before you 
do this you must decide upon what particular 
branch of farming you expect to engage in. 
Different, localities are suited for different ag¬ 
ricultural industries. A region well adapted 
to stock raising may not he suitable for grain 
farming. Common sense will teach you this. 
For grain raising exclusively Dakota Terri¬ 
tory offers the most advantages. It is a great 
wheat-producing region. But I ean tell you 
that the advantages of Dakota have been rep¬ 
resented greater than they are by interested 
parties. Wealth cannot, he gained there in a 
day. Dollars are earned only by hard, earn¬ 
est work The crops are not so good as gen¬ 
erally reported. There has been a great rush 
thither, and land has advanced rapidly and will 
yet. advance, but more slowly. The cold 
weather is a drawback to the comfort of the 
settler. Good markets for grain can always 
he depended upon, for now railroads are go¬ 
ing everywhere, and settlers are rushing in bv 
the thousands; nevertheless, the country does 
not offer the inducements afforded hv the 
States and Territories farther south. Stock- 
raising in Dakota will alwavs be so hazardous 
and expensive that. I doubt if it can ever be 
made profitable. The climate is too severe 
for this industry. Neither large nor small 
fruits ean be raised to any appreciable extent; 
and remember, young man, that your family 
may some day number more than two, and 
that children crave for and delight in fruit 
aDd grow as rosy and plump upon it as the 
fruit itself. Wyoming. Colorado and Ne¬ 
braska are well adapted to stock-raising, espe. 
cially upon a large scale. The absence of 
fences, occasioned by the lack of timher. 
makes herding a necessity, save where the 
farmer can fence with wire. Shelters cost 
twice as much as in the Eastern States, nnd 
when cattle are allowed to range out during 
the Winter many succumb to the severe- 
weather. Over the greater part of this terri¬ 
tory grain can he largely raised by irrigation, 
and the markets are good. In some localities, 
particularly m Nebinska, the laud is well 
adapted to mixed fanning, nnd grain can be 
raised without irrigation. [ never saw better 
crops than I saw a few weeks ago in some 
parts of Nebraska where irrigation is un¬ 
thought of- Western Kansas is too dry for 
farmmg except along the river banks where 
irrigation can be resorted to. Eastern Kansas 
is better adapted to farming, but often suffers 
severely from drought. Stock do well and 
can be raised cheaply, but should be sheltered 
iu Winter. Now Mexico has a delightful cli¬ 
mate and here stock can range throughout the 
year without shelter. But irrigation is neces¬ 
sary to the production of grain, fruits and 
vegetables. A large portion of the Territory 
is land “condemned” by the government and 
valued at twenty-five cents per acre. When 
irrigated it produces wonderfully. Farm pro 
ducts are high and good markets are alwavs 
afforded bv the mining towns, A man in the 
Rio Grande Valley has cleared *10,000 a year 
for several veai-s off a vineyard of eighteen 
acres Washington Territory affords, perhaps, 
the best, opening of all to the young settler. 
The only objection to it is that to a person 
east of the Mississippi it seems to be beyond 
bounds. But this is more apparent than 
real; railroads and ocean steamers annihilate 
space. 
In some of these localities land cannot be 
homesteaded, pre-empted, or timber-claimed, 
but it can be bought cheap. Iu the other hv 
calit.ies homestead titles ran lie purchased for 
from two to five dollars per acre. A good 
part of these homesteaders are roving charac¬ 
ters. and as soon as they can sell are ready to 
do so aud to move on to newer and wilder re¬ 
gions. 
As soon as you select and claim your laud 
go to work to put up a shelter on it, to make it 
a farm and a home, plain, humble, ugly, per¬ 
haps, certainly pioneer-like. You tnay not 
feel disposed to wait two or five or ten vein’s 
longer before you consummate vour earthly 
bliss by marrying that girl. It will not be at 
all strange if about a year after you locate 
you come back to the old neighborhood and 
ask that girl to go bark with you. You need 
not be ashamed of it if you do. If she is the 
right kind of a girl, worthy of a pioneer’s 
love aud to bo a pioneer’s wife, she will go 
willingly and gladly with you, though your 
house is a dug-out and your world yourselves 
and the wilderness. For it is to be her farm 
and her home, too: and a woman’s hand, a 
woman’s head, a woman’s heart make home 
for those she loves wherever they are. Alone 
with each other, the ties that bind you as one 
will strengthen as they will not among the 
crowd. The angels of peace and happiness 
brood most tenderly over new homes in the 
solitude. 
Your lot will appear to you to be a bard 
one. But remembgr that you are a pioneer 
and do Dot forget the pioneers that have gone 
before yon. Your father was, perhaps, a 
pioneer. Keep a brave heart as they kept 
brave hearts. And as thev found, so shall 
you find, that labor unlocks the bounteous 
storehouse of nature: that time will bring 
full granaries and larger herds; that the same 
sun lisrhts the slopes of Nebraska that gilds 
the hills of Pennsylvania; that, the same moon 
floods with light the snows of Dakota that 
crowns with silver the rocks of New Hamp¬ 
shire: that the breezes stir as softly and the 
birds sing as sweetly in Kansas as in New 
York; that love and contentment, and joys 
nntold are the lot of the pioneer, and that to 
him and his God is kind and verv good. 
Socutits. 
OHIO STATE FAIR. 
The thirty-fourth annual fair of the State 
Board of Agriculture was held at Columbus, 
Sept. 8d to 7th. The weather was all that 
could be desired and the fair a grand financial 
success. The attendance was very large—over 
40.1X10 people were present, on Thursday and the 
receipts for the week will run over *36,000. A 
very large number of the visitors never look 
at anything in the fair, as they come for the 
horse trot only. The posters announcing the 
fair of the society spoke of *25,000 in prem¬ 
iums and then put the speed classes and races 
in such a way that thev forget to mention this 
was an agricultural fair. A large amount of 
the above premiums ($3,300) went to the so- 
called agricultural horse trots, where old 
rounders under the whip made their mile in 
2.40 to 3.00 minutes. If these trots had been 
abolished and the above amount added to the 
horse and cattle breeders’ premiums it would 
have brought out a much finer display in these 
departments and added greatly to the exhibi¬ 
tion. As it is, a breeder of fine stock for ag¬ 
ricultural purposes labors under great disad¬ 
vantages. A horseman with an old “plug” 
that costs him about *50. gets from *128 to *350 
for winning a so-called horse trot, while a fine 
breeder who is working for the general good 
of the farmer and breeding only fine stock for 
agricultural purposes, enters a fine stalliou, 
bull, or cow that cost him or is worth over 
*1,000, and what does he get ? From *25 to *40 
if he obtains the first, premium. I have heard 
members of the Ohio Board say money is what 
they are after, and that trotting and racing 
bring the crowd, perfectly regardless of the 
disreputable class of people that a race always 
brings together to prey upon the respectable 
classes. Exhibitors grumble, but then while 
without exhibitors there would be no fair, 
there is no money to be made out of them. 
The society will find this out when manufac¬ 
turers refuse to show at horse trots and stock 
breeders stop exhibiting where they have to 
play second fiddle to scrub trotting horses. 
Another bad feature was the side-shows and 
cheap catch penny exhibits for which privi¬ 
leges were sold. They are an unmitigated 
nuisance on a fair ground both to regular ex¬ 
hibitors and to visitors. 
The Cattle Show as far as Short-horns were 
concerned, was very fine. Of Jerseys, Holsteius 
and Devons there were fine herds,but the favor¬ 
itism shown to the Short-horns in the way of 
premiums in this State drives the dairy cattle 
breeders away. Tu the single classes the Short¬ 
horns received $406, as against *177 each for 
Jerseys, Ayrsliires and Holsteius, while in the 
herd premiums they class the Holsteius and 
Ayrshires together, giving the Jerseys a sepa¬ 
rate class. This had the effect of driving the 
Ayrshires away from the fair, there not being 
a single entry of this breed in the class. 
Auother year the society say that they will put 
all breeds on an equal footing as far as prem¬ 
iums are concerned. Of Short-horns there 
were about 150 head, including many of the 
finest herds in the State. The animals were in 
prime condition and looked well. The exhibit 
showed that the first aim of breeders in this 
class is beef, and that no matter how much 
they may praise up the Short horns for the 
dairy, they d» not exhibit milking Short-horns 
at the fairs. 
Holsteius made a fair showing, there being 
about 60 head on exhibition E. Huiderkooper, 
of Pennsylvania, carried off the herd premium 
with his fiue herd headed by “Billy Bolyn.” 
The Holstein Bull “Third Consul,” age six 
years, weight 3,500 ‘pounds, attracted a great 
deal of attention and showed what the Hol- 
steins could do in the way of beef. The Dev¬ 
ons were represented by three small herds of 
very fine cattle. Of Herefordsthere were one 
fine herd aud a few single entries. Jerseys 
were represented by 17 head from the How¬ 
land Stock Farm of Cornelius Eastbope, and 
small herds belonging to Hon. C. Delano and 
the Ohio State University. Mr. Easthope is 
building up a very fine herd. It is headed by 
“King of Ashantee” and “IFeston 1st.” and 
includes such cows as “Daisy of St. Peters 
1st.” “Nancy Lee 2nd,” etc. They carried off 
most of the premiums in this class. Mr. East- 
hope’s herd now numbers 75 hpad. aDd is one 
of the most valuable in the United States. 
Another year, if the society advances their 
premiums as they promise to do, there will be 
a finer show of Jerseys and more competition. 
The Sheep Exhibition was excellent, as 
was naturally to be expected, as Ohio has 
more sheep than any State in the Union. As 
usual, the Marinos were the most numerous. 
There were, however, some very fine Cots- 
wolds,South Downs and Leicester, with quite a 
number of imported Oxford Downs and Shrop¬ 
shire Downs. A. TV. Clapp showed a fine flock 
of imported Oxford Downs headed by the 17- 
month-old ram “Lord Claphara.” T. M. Ben¬ 
nington showed a fine flock of 25 Shropshire 
Downs. 
Swine numbered 4457 head, constituting one 
of the finest exhibits ever seen i n this coun¬ 
try. The black breeds were decidedly in the 
majority, The Poland-Chinas numbered 212, 
the Berksbires about 150, while the rest were 
Yorkshires and Chester-Whites. Breeders feel 
happy over the prices. 
The Horse Show was large and fine. The 
competition between draft stallions was espe- 
ciallv strong, there being 26 competitors in 
this class. The first premium was earned off 
by the imported Clydesdale stallion, “Sir Gar¬ 
net,’’owned by the West Liberty Importing 
Companv. 
Vegetable and Farm Produce Hall 
was well filled with a fine exhibit of grains 
and garden products. The State University 
had a very instructive exhibit of grains, etc., 
from their Experimental Station, a fuller re¬ 
port of which will be made later. Garden 
truck, potatoes, etc., seem to have done wel’ 
all through the State the past season, and far¬ 
mers are takiue sufficient interest in this line 
to fill up this Hall with a more than creditable 
display. They have been well paid for their 
trouble hy the interest taken in their exhihits 
by visitors, thanks to the Rural and other 
papers, which are instructing the agricultural 
puhlic as to the value of new varieties of grains 
and vegetables. There was a verv large show 
of tomatoes, of which the Acme seemed to 
.stand at the head. The Beautv of Hebron 
and White Elephant, first disseminated by the 
RuralNew-Yorkek, still 'hold their position 
among the best of potatoes, and were in nearly 
every exhibit. 
Floral Hall had a small display mostly 
local, though there were some fine designs and 
quite a good display of potted and foliage 
plants. 
Fruit Hall was well filled with apples, 
peaches, pears, etc., the crop of which is al¬ 
most a failure in this State. This is the “off” 
year for apples. Peaches are also a poor 
crop, insects and rot taking two-thirds of the 
crop. There was nothing new on exhibition. 
Grapes rotted badly all through the State. Con¬ 
cords and Catawhns will not average over 
200 to 300 pounds per acre at the Islands and 
along the northern tier, and but little hotter 
in other portions of the State. The Ives with¬ 
stood the rot very wen, and where this varie¬ 
ty is grown there will be au average yield. 
The season is fully two weeks late and the 
show of grapes was very light. Grapes grown 
in the cities are not affected bv the rot or 
blight nearly so badly as those in country 
places. Pears were a fair showing. 
Poultry made a very large and fine display. 
Connected with it was an excellent show of 
pigeons, one feature of which was a flight of 
homing or carrier pigeons on Friday from the 
grand stand. 
The Dairy Show was not large—con¬ 
sisting of only two lots of cheese and a 
few small butter exhibits. It is evident the 
dairymen of this State do not. take the inter¬ 
est they should iu their Stare Fair, or else 
they are discouraged hy the comparatively 
little encouragement given to the exhibition 
of dairy as well as other agricultural products, 
Herrick's full-cream dairy cheese made and 
exhibited by B. B. Herrick, deserves special 
mentiou as au extra fine article. The dairy 
implement men were fairly represented; one 
enterprising manufacturer had a creamery 
making butter on the grounds. 
The Agricultural Implement men were 
out in full force, making as fiue a display as 
was ever seeu iu this State. The larger 
manufacturers have fine buildings of their 
owti in which to display their machines. 
The larger machinery, such as thrashing 
