Jasper County Democrat, Volume 9, Number 16, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 July 1906 — LETTER FROM THE "OLD MAN” [ARTICLE]

LETTER FROM THE "OLD MAN”

Sojourning in the East, While “The Boys’’ Sweat at Home to Keep Him in Spending Honey. NUMBER TWO. I left you at Binghamton, I believe. Well, at 6:10 p. m. I started via the D. & H. for Worcester, which is 82 miies east of Bimhamton. This road leads to the hard coal fields of Pennsylvania, and is the most crocked road I ever rode over. Sitting in the middle of the train one sees the locomotive twisting off first to the right and then to the left, as it winds along the picturesque Susquehanna valley, following the sinuous route of that beautiful and placid stream. The locomotives—on the passenger trains at least—burn hard coal, and it is well that they do, for the valley is so narrow and the road so winding that the coaches would be filled with smoke if soft coal were used. This is certainly a beautiful valley. Surrounded with hills of irregular shape with fertile and finely improved farms on each side of the river, stretching out to the hillsides where vegetation seems as green and grass, oats and potatoes appears to grow almost as luxuriantly as in the valleys. This is because of the springy condition of the land, the hills being covered with numerous springs, some of which are quite large and from which the purest water of the earth continually flows. Grass, oats and potatoes are the principal crops through this section, while dairying is also followed quite largely. This is a natural potato country and many farmers raise from 500 to 2,000 bushels each year, for which they generally receive very remunerative prices.

Hops, which used to be grown in large quantities throughout Otsego and adjoining counties, are not now generally grown, the prices not having been much of an incentive for several years. An occasional hop yard is still seen, but the growers here can not compete with the Pacific coast growers and are gradually quitting the improfitable business.

This section of the state is confronted with a serious problem in the way of what to do with its “hill farms.” The former settlers here have either died off or grown too old to farm, and the “boys” have gone to the cities to work in the shops or business places. As a result there are scores of farms that are untenanted; The better and more easily farmed land perhaps is worked by some neighboring farmer, while the balance of the land is untilled, These lands with proper cultivation will and do produce as much as they ever did. Of course patent fertilizer is used largely and potatoes and grain crops, and with intelligent rotation of crops good yields are secured. It seems almost incredible, yet I have seen farms of 100 or more acres that used to be considered good farms and worth $3,000 to $4,000 thirty years ago, with very good improvements, need some repairs, perhaps, that have been sold recently or are seeking buyers at from SSOO to SBOO. People will flock to the cities to eke out an existance, working in the shops or factories, who might go on these farms and live comfortably and make some money, but it is bard to sell them, or to get men to go on them and work them on shares. Most of the towns (townships) in Otsego county have lately adopted what is called the “money system” of working the highways, and this township (Worcester) at a special town meeting (election) held last month, adopted the system by the decisive vote of 222 to 34. Under this plan the road tax is paid in cash, the'state paying the same amount as that raised by the township, and the road commissioner employs the labor and does the road work, the supervisor paying the bills. As a result, where adopted, the highways are kept in the best condition I have ever seen them, by far the best, and I believe it is the only proper method of handling road work. It would be an excellent plan for our own state to pass a law of this kind, allowing the townships to vote on the proposition. It would not be long until the system became generally adopted with us as it is here and a great and noticeable improvement would soon be apparent in highways. July 22 two batteries of artillery

from Ft. Ethan Allen, Vermont, will camp at Worcester. These troops are on their way to Mt. Gretna, Penn., to take part in the army maneuvers, and will march to Sidney, several miles down the Susquehanna valley from here, where they will take the train. They are composed of 240 men and 220 horses. Supplies have been ordered for theui here consisting of 2,910 pounds of bay, 2,480 pounds of grain and one cord of hard wood. They will go ’into camp on the flats at the south side of the village of Worcester and spend Sunday. There has been considerable rain here this season, and while farmers were delayed somewhat with their work, they are now harvesting a mighty good hay crop. Oats are rusting a little because of rain. It is said that rain fell nearly every day last month. * I left here Friday on an early train for Albany, where I took the Day Line boat for New York. We passed up the Schoharin valley, where more than 100 years ago the renegade half-breed Brandt led his Indian forces on a pillaging and massacreeing expedition. This is a very productive valley and lies between two ranges of hills extending in an east and west direction. There are extensive quarries of blue limestone east of Cobleskill, where thousands of blocks of large bridge and building stone are lying about, but there doesn’t seem to be “much doing” in the business now and the quarries are closed down. Here we pass Howe’s Cave, probably the largest natural cave in the state, and which used to be a great attraction for visitors. As we go on toward Albany, the capital of New York, the valley broadens out and there are numerous swamps and considerable low land. At Esperance we see large piles of flagstone, used here for sidewalks and street crossings. At Delanson are immense piles of hard coal, hauled from the Pennsylvania fields and dumped off here by carrying cranes mountain high. At Albany we find a typical eastern city. The streets are narrow and the buildings genetally do not reach up' in the air very high. Here is the new capitol building, which stands on an eminence overlooking the Hudson and which has occupied over 30 years in the building, and cost as many millions. If the opportunities for graft continue it will probably take 30 years more to complete the structure. It is not such a tremendously fine building, either.

Of course it is a great pile of stone and is a fine, mammoth building, but when one considers its cost he is not impressed with the idea that the people have got their money’s worth. It stands on an eminence overlooking the Hudson, and can be seen several miles down the river. If it is a warm day it is better for the visitor to take an Albanian’s word for it that it is a great building, rather than to attempt to climb “Capitol Hill” and the numerous flights of stone steps leading to the main entrance and explore the place. Albdny and Troy, I understand, are two quite large cities of the east that show a decrease in population by the recent five year census, nearly all the cities here having grown and the country districts losing. Of trip down the historic Hudson and the sights and impressions of New York I will tell you in my next letter.

F. E. BABCOCK.