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In most instances they have neglected
to lay down or trim the hedges, so they
have grown to an inconvenient height
and width, and have become a positive
nuisance, as they shade the land and
draw the moisture from the adjoining
crop for several yards each side. I heard
one farmer say he thought they would
all be glad if they could exterminate the
hedges and substitute wire fences. They
do protect the young orchards but
another plan is to plant a strip around
the orchard thickly with peach trees,
which make a good wind break and bear
some fruit. The peach trees looked
healthy and are not subject to the diseases
that make them so short lived
here. The fruit trees are never trimmed,
the object being to protect the
bodies from sunburning.

I had often heard of "Sunny Kansas,"
but had never realized the full meaning
of the term. Imagine incessant, unmitigated
sunshine, the murcury from
105° to 112° every day for two weeks, a
dry hot wind blowing until the ground
was full of great cracks, and you have a
picture of what Kansas can be in July.
But the strange part is that the nights
are generally cool; no one seems to suffer
from sunstroke, in fact, there was
very little sickness of any sort. Very
few have reached the luxury of an ice
house, and cistern water is used for
drinking and all domestic purposes. The
well water is generally hard, either lime
or alkaline, but the stock learn to like
the mineral water and thrive on it.

If the sister who suggested this subject
has any idea of going to Kansas, it
would be well for her to know what
farmers' wives get for their small articles
of trafic. Butter during the summer
brings five cents per pound, eggs
seven cents per dozen, chickens $1.25 a
dozen, and turkeys 50c apiece. Domestic
labor is very hard to obtain at any
price; a few men work by the year, but
they very naturally prefer taking up
land for themselves, as it soon increases
in value; so the farmers, when the work
requires it, help each other. The most
successful among them have made their
money by grazing. To protect the cattle
from the possible storms, they provide
shelters, using the lofts for the
prairie hay, which can be cut in the fall
after the crops are secured.

Soft coal is generally used for fuel as,
it is abundant and costs only $3 per ton.

Improved land sells from $20 to $40
per acre, according to location and improvements.
Wheat brings from 80c
to $1, oats 30c, and corn, when there is a
full crop brings, from 25 to 30c; but in
one respect they have the advantage of
us, they use no fertilizer; and as it may
happen when there are three or four
successive favorable seasons, a man who
has gone there with little or no means,
finds himself in possession of a comfortable
home.

Last, but not least, the educational
advantages are most excellent. The
public schools are all graded, and the
standard for teachers is so very high
they must be well qualified if they pass
the extended and rigid examinations.
The school houses are among the best
buildings and are furnished with all of
the modern appliances. The mothers
use their privilege of voting at the annual
school meetings, and for several
years the superintendent of public instruction
for Labeth County, has been a
woman. Do you wonder that the children
are inspired with an interest in
their studies?

As a sample of the way a Kansas boy
makes his pocket money, I was looking
at the herd of young cattle one day
when the young son pointed out one
which he called encyclopedia. In explanation
of his name he said I got him
with my Christmas money and when
school commences he will sell for
enough to buy my encyclopedia, so I
can answer the questions our teachers
give us." I did not hear anything
about archery or tennis, nor yet whist
or progressive euchre, but I did see
young ladies who could drive a reaper
or play on a piano as was needed, and I
heard them. In the winter a debating society
was sustained by the boys and
young men.

In conclusion, if you have a family
of boys who want farms, Kansas is a
good place to go to, but it is a question
worth considering, whether the same
industry and economy that the pioneer
must practice would not bring as good
results here, and whether the dreaded
fertilizer bills are not overbalanced by
our lower rates of interest and better
prices for all that our farms produce.

Hon. A. B. Davis` Address.

The following is the address of Hon.
A. B. Davis at the dedication of the
new hall of Brighton Grange, No. 60, on
September 15th:

I have requested by the chairman
of committee, Brother Hartshorne,
to address you a few words of advice
and encouragement. Advice, I deem it
presumptuous to offer; but words of
encouragement I may well speak, seeing
the improvement which has been
made, and the intelligence, enterprise
and success which mark your farming
and domestic operations.

Contrast the plows, the harrows, the
drills, the harvesters, the threshers, and,
I may add, the mills where the patent
steel roller is fast superceding the
French stone burr, with those of even
50 years ago, and what a mighty change!
Also in our style of living and home
comforts and conveniences! There is
scarcely a house, however humble, in
which you will not find something to
dispense with the drudgery of former
days.