Jasper County Democrat, Volume 14, Number 49, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 September 1911 — Crop Conditions In Kansas. [ARTICLE]

Crop Conditions In Kansas.

Ed’tor Democrat:—George Iliff and I took the 6 o’clock Santa Fe train from Chicago Sept. '5, for Little River, Kan., and when it became light enough to see we noticed the corn crop, from there to our destination it was poor, and will yield from nothing to 15 bushels to the acre. The most of it was green, but when we came back a week later it was almost all dry from chinch bugs and drought, especially in Kansas, about onehalf of it being cut up, all of it more or less chaffy. In Kansas alfalfa was being cut the second time, when good it is four feet high, but the cutting this time was less than a foot and a half, and on the higher land it was >lmost all killed. On the low or drain land this is one of their paying crops. Wheat went about five bushels to the acre and was shriveled and light. Oats were almost an entire failure, some being mowed for feed, then thrashed. There was quite a lot of cane, but it was sown for feed; and kaffir corn, which has a life like the proverbial cat, in a drought year is tolerably good. The wild hay crop is almost a failure, some of it not more than six inches tall. Almost all the ground was broken for wheat; some sowing. There are no apples, nor any peaches. The apple orchards don’t appear to be in a healthy condition, many of them being about one-third dead or dying. One orchard pulled up. The? big pastures were almost empty. There had been a rain part of the way out and the grass was about an inch high, but within 100 miles of Little River it was quite parched. As one fellow put the situation: “It is the leanest prospect we have had in Kansas for twefity-seven years.” —--- < The majority, of the Sunflower state are for Senator Stubbs and Bristow. They are against Taft and LaFollette. Stubbs is trying for the Senate. The interests are against him, but with the primary it kr>ks like he would win. Foster Dunnning’s wife is in poor health, but Foster looks and acts very much like he used to. Martin Timmons’ wife is also in poor health, yet Timmons is fleshy and a jolly good fellow. He is a bank cashier.. We met William Irwin and Barkley. He goes on crutches and is a live one. W. H. RITCHEY.