Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 101, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 April 1912 — Rensselaer Capital Reclaiming Neglected But Fertile Lands. [ARTICLE]

Rensselaer Capital Reclaiming Neglected But Fertile Lands.

The writer bad the good fortune to make an automobile trip into Barkley township Thursday and to observe some of the improvements being made by Rensselaer men who have recently acquired extensive interests in land that formerly belonged to B. J. Gifford and which needed drainage, fencing, new buildings, paint and lots of planning and labor to put into condition to produce according to its native fertility. , . - The trip was made in company with Delos Thompson, Frank Ham and John Eger, who own land there and who are spending a lot of money to improve. Mr. Thompson and Mr. Ham bought 600 acres some time ago and have since sold all but 240 acres. Thi n has been fenced and is now being thoroughly tiled. It is surprising to note b°w much improvement has been made within a few months by the installation Of tile, the clearing of timber, etc. The fall for the purpose of an outlet is sufficient to transform a number of fertile swells that have usually remained full of water all year into fields of waving grain. On this farm there is clay subsoil to a considerable extent and practically the entire tract can be cultivated with the completion of the improvements now under way. Mr. Ham’s brother lives in one of the houses and is in charge of the work. Will Lewis, a ditcher, lives in one of the other houses. Mr. Eger owns about 1,700 acres in the Gifford country and he is also making extensive improvements in the way of drainage, the painting of houses and barns and the building of barn additions.* The houses are being painted a uniform color, all yellow, and the barns are painted a drab with lighter trimmings. The land that hfcs been tiled has disposed of all the water from the recent heavy rains but the untiled land will prove untillable until later in the season unless the tile is installed this spring. It is proving q very difficult matter to get ditching done this year, owing to the late spring and to the present excessive rains, which, of course have seriously retarded all farm work and are going to shorten the oats acreage by almost half the county over. Farms owned by J. H. Ohapman, E. L. Hollingsworth, Dr. F. A. Turfler, S. C, Irwin, J. W. Marlatt and C. S. Chamberlin were pointed out and'each Is being Improved in many ways and the result will be the reclamation of a lot of land that was literally unfit for use before these improvements were undertaken. The credit of much jof this is due to Benjamin J; Gifford, who bought the land when It was all swamp and divided it into farms, built houses and ditches and a railroad and performed the first essentials to making gjUhe country bloom -with wavißg grain. *The Republican does not wish to indicate that the Gifford lands are entirely without fafclt, for that is not the case. There are long ridges of white sand in places that can never be transformed into a very marked degree of fertility, but this forms only a small part of the total acreage and is largely offset by the extreme fertility of the drained pond lands. It must be remembered that this land lies only a few miles, from 2 to 6 of the famous Wall street of Barkley township, where farm lands are valued at SIOO to S2OO per acre and sales have been refused at the latter figure. The reclamation of this land will not only mean the financial gain of the men who have undertaken the great expense of the improvement but will aid in the general improvement of the county and the towns of the county. It means new stone roads and petitions for these are now pending. - One of the best improved farms in Jasper county is that of Ed Oliver, of near Newland and it occupies land that a few years ago was regarded very ordinary but that is now being fertilized for profitable farming of all crops and part of which is raising onion crops With a productive valuation of S2OO or S3OO per acre annually. Jt is very fortunate that the lands in this part of Jasper county have passed into bands able to make the needed improvements sad the future holds in store ample reward for the person that invests in the Gifford country. r"