Bemocr Wadpnn Bellefonte, Pa., December 4, 1981. I like to trust the men I know— No matter where I chance to go— The men who look me in the eye, 1 choose to think, cheat not, nor lie. And though at times I get a bump Which makes my old heart throb and jump, Although I, for the moment, grieve In mankind I would still believe, 1 would not go along life's way Suspecting men from day to day, 1 would not stop each time they speak To find some link which shows up weak And though at times they prove untrue And fail in what they say they'll do— E'en though some men betray, deceive— In mankind I would still believe, What though I learn are frail— We must expect the weak will fail The chain of life is not more strong And so, while frequently I'll lose, I'll bind my wounds and nurse each bruise. Tho' false grieve— In mankind I would still believe. some men friends cause my heart to HOW SANTA CLAUS CAME TO SIMPSON’'S BAR The first of three great Christmas stories which will be published in the Watchman, It had been raining in the valley of the Sacramento. The North Fork had overflowed its banks and Rattlesnake Creek was impassable. The few boulders that marked the summer ford at Simpson's Bar were obliterated by a vast sheet of wa- ter stretching to the foothills. The stage had stopped. The mail was abandoned, the rider swimming for his life. Nor was the weather any better in the foothills. The mud lay deep on the mountain road. Wagons that had neither physical force nor moral obligation to move from the evil ways into which they had fal- len encumbered the track. The way to Simpson's Bar was marked with broken down teams and hard swearing. Cut off and inaccessible, rained upon and bedraggled, smit- ten by high winds and threatened by high water, on the eve of Christ- mas, 1862, Simpson's Bar clung like a swallow's nest to Table Mountain and shook in the blast. As night shut in, lights gleamed through the mist from the cabins on either side of the road. Most of the population were gathered at Thompson's store, clustered around a red hot stove at which they silent. ly spat in some accepted sense of social communion that rendered con- versation unnecessary. Most meth- ods of diversion had long been ex- hausted. High water suspended the regular occupations on gulch and river and a consequent lack of money and whisky had taken the zest from most recreation. A familiar figure in the group was “The Old Man,” a man of per- haps 50, grizzled, scant of hair with a face full of ready sympathy. “Dismal weather, ain't it?” he asked. “And tomorrow's Christ- mas." There was a movement among the men at this announcement, whether of satisfaction or of disgust was not plain. “Yes, and tonight's Christmas eve,” ne aaded. “you see, boys, 1 kinda thought that is I soita had an idee, just passin’ you know— that mayove youd all iike Lo come over Lo ny house tonight and have a kinda tear round. But I sup- pose you wouldn't? Don't feel like it maybe?" he added, uncertainly. “Well, I don't know,” responded Tom Flynn with some cheerfulness. “P'raps we may. But how about your wife? What does she say?” The Old Man laughed. His con- jugal experience had not been a happy one. His first wife, a deli- cate, pretty woman had suffered keenly from the jealous suspicions of her husband. One day he in- vited the whole Bar to his house to expose his wife's infidelity. On ar- riving, the party found the pretty creature busily engaged in house- hold duties. The sensitive woman did not easily recover from the shock of this extraordinary outrage. With difficulty she recovered suffi- ciently to release her lover from the closet where he was concealed and escaped with him. The Old Man's present wife had been his cook. She was large, loyal and ag- gressive. The men discussed pro and con whether to accept the Old Man's in- vitation. It was about decided they should go when Dick Bullen spoke up. “How's your boy Johnny getting on?" he asked the Old Man. “He didn’t look so peart last time I seed him on the bluff heavin' rocks at Chinamen. Didn't seem to take much interest in it.” The father hastened to assure him that Johnny was better and that “a little fun might liven's him | up.” Whereupon Dick rose, shook himself and said: “I'm ready. Lead the way, Man. Here 2oes.” He led the way himself. With a leap, a character. istic howl, he darted into the night. As he passed through the outer room he caught up a blazing brand from the hearth. This action was old | | Close to his home the Old Man | stopped them. | “P'raps I'd better go in and see things is right,” he suggested from feeling. For he feared his i ‘men became uneasy and | suggestions one to another. i she's caved in his head, “Reckon ‘the first lick.” “Decoyed him and barred him u i» : Pi Got him down and sittin’ on him.” Just then a voice said: “Come in out of the wet.” The voice was neither the Old Man's nor his wife's. It was the voice of a small boy. The weak tremble was broken by a hoarseness that only vagabondage and a habit of premature self-assertion can give. The face that looked up might have been pretty and refined, but it was darkened by evil knowiedge from within and by dirt without. He had a blanket on his shoulders. He had just risen from bed. “Come in and don't make any noise. Let me be,” he added quer- ulously to Dick Bullen, who had caught him up as though to toss him into the fire. “Let me go, you old fool. D'ye hear me?" When Dick lowered Johnny to the floor, he gravely proceeded to a cup- board and brought out several arti- cles which he deposited on the table. “Thar's whisky. And crackers. And red herons. And cheese.” He took a bite of the later on his way to the table. “And sugar.” He scooped up a mouthful with a dirty little hand. “And terbacker. There's dried apples on the shelf. But I don't admire them. Now wade in and don't be afeared. I don't mind the old woman. She don't belong to me.” He stepped to the threshold of a small room, a recess only big enough for one bed. “Hello, Johnny! You ain't goin’ to turn in again, are ye? "asked Dick. “Yes. I are. I'm sick. Il got a fever and chilblains. And rumatiz. He vanished within. After a mo- ment’'s pause he added from under the bedclothes—*"“And biles! The men looked at each other, uncertainly. Then came up the voice of the Old Man incautiosuly lifted. “Certainly. Thet's so. A gang of lazy drunken loafers. That's all they are. Didn't have no more sabe than to come yar with sick- ness in the house and no provision. That's wot you would expect o' such trash as lays round the Bar.” A burst of laughter followed this unfortunate exposure. Suddenly a door slammed with violence. The Old Man reappeared, happily uncon- scious of the cause of his late hi- larious outburst. He smiled bland- ly. “The old woman thought she would run over to Mrs. McFaddens for a sociable call,” he explained with {aunty indifference. Oddly enough, it needed this incident to relieve the embarrassment. The natural audacity returned. Jt was nearly midnight when the festivities were interrupted. “Hush,” said Dick Bullen, holding up his hand. “Dad,” came the voice of Johnny from the closet. The Old Man rose hurriedly and disappeared. “His rheumatiz is coming on again,” he explained. “He wants vubbing.” He took the demijohn of whisky from the table and shook it. t was empty. Dick put down his tin cup with an embarrassed laugh. The Old Man examined the contents of all the cups and said hopefully: “Reckon that's enough. Hedon't need much. You hold on a spell. I'll be back.” The door closed but conversation still could be heard imperfectly. “Now, sonny, where does it ache the most?” “Sometimes over yar and some- times over yer.” Silence. A brisk rubbing, Then— “Tomorrow's Christmas. Ain't it?” “Yes, sonny. How does she feel now ?" “Better. Rub a little furder down. Wot's Crismiss, anyway? What's it all about?” “Oh, it's a day.” “Mar sez that everywhere else but yer everybody gives things to every- pody Chrismiss. Then she just waded inter you. She sez thar's a man Sandy Claws, not a white man but a kind of Chinaman, comes down the chimbley night afore Chrismiss and gives things to chil- dren, boys like me. tried to play upon me. Easy, Pop, whar are you rubbin’' to--that's a mile from the place—Why, dad!” In the great quiet that fell upon the house the sigh of the pines and the drip of leaves without was very distinct. Johnny's voice was low- ered as he went on. “Don't you take on, now, fur I'm gettin’ all right fast. Wot's the boys doing out thar?” The Old Man opened the door and peered out. His guests were get- ting on sociably enough. There were a few silver coins and a buck- skin purse on the table. “Bettin’ on suthin’-— some little game or ‘'nother,” he replied and recommenced his rubbing. “I'd like to take a hand and win some money,” said Johnny reflec- | tively. “Why do they call it Chrismiss?” the child went %n again. The Old Man continued rubbing. The house took on an uwonted That's wot she p I'm 'Thar's them, now | There was a low tap on the door. goin’ in a jiffy. Outside “Can I make it—it's miles, the round trip. mare?” nigh on 50 Whar's the the , “Let them hold her a minute longer.” house. The Old Man had fallen asleep. Beside him lay Johnny. Dick parted his huge mustaches with both hands and stooped over the sleeping boy. mischievous blast rekindled the hearth with light. Dick fled in bashful terror. His companions were waiting for him at the c¢ . They were struggling with some mishaped bulk, which as Dick came nearer bore the resemblance of a horse. “Stand clear of the heels, boys,” someone called. “Don’t miss your first holt of her mane. Mind yer get your stirrup, quick. Ready!” There was a wild leap, a scram- bling struggle, a bound and a retreat of the crowd. A circle of flying hoofs, two springless leaps that jar- red the earth, a rapid play and jingle of spurs, a plunge. “Don’t take the lower road unless you are hard pushed for time,” someone called. “We'll be at the ford at five.” A splash, a spark struck from the road. A clatter in the rocky cut beyond and Dick was gone. At one o'clock Dick had only gained Rattlesnake Hill. For by that time the mare, Jovita had re- hearsed all her imperfections and had practiced all her vices. Twice she had reared and fell backwards. Twice had the artful Dick, unharm- ed regained his seat before she found her legs again. A mile beyond them, at the foot of a long hill was Rattlesnake Creek, the crucial test of the night. Dick set his teeth, put his knees well un- der the mare's flanks and changed his defensive tactics to those of brisk aggression. Bullied and maddened, Jovita made the descent of the hill. The time made in the descent is written in the chronicles of Simp- son's Bar. To Dick it seemed a single moment until the mare was splashing in the overflowed banks of the Creek. Beyond the road was tolerably level. Hollows, ditches, patches of fresh grass all flew beneath the rat- tling hoofs. There was no abate- ment in strength and speed. At two o'clock Red Mountain was pass- ed. Ten minutes later, the driver of the stage coach was overtaken by “a man on a pinto horse,” an event sufficiently notable for remark. At half past two, Dick rose in his oar rups with 4 great shout. rs were glittering through the rifted clouds and beyond him rose two Spires, a flagstaff and a line of black objects. He jingled his spurs and bounded forwards. In another mo- ment they swept into Tutlesville to the wooden plaza of the Hotel of All Nations. Jovita was handed over to a sleepy hostler while Dick and the bar keeper sallied out for a tour of the sleeping town. Lights gleamed from a few saloons. But avoiding these they stopped before the closed shops and by judicious tapping and persistent outcry they aroused the proprietors from their sleep. Some- times they were met with curses but oftenest with concern for their needs. The interview was invari- ably concluded with a drink. It was three o'clock before this was over. With a small water proof bag, Dick returned to the hotel. Dick sprang to his saddle and dashed down the lonely street and into the lonelier plain. The lights, the black line of houses, the spires and the and were lost in the distance. To avoid the rising grade Dick 'had chosen a longer road, mud Jovita sank fetlock deep at every bound. But Jovita took it with her usual blind unreasoning fury and half an hour later reached the level that led to Rattlesnake Creek. Suddenly Jovita shied with a bound that would have unseated a less practiced rider. Up rose a shadowy horse and rider. “Throw up your hands.” The mare trembled and apparent- ly sank under him. But Dick was repared. “Stand aside Jack Simpson, and let me pass, you d-—d thief.” He did not finish the sentence. Jovita rose straight into the air i | his eyes. Simpson's Bar, the sleeping boy. He ‘opened his eyes, cast off his boots, . coat, pistol and saddle. He bound his precious pack tightly to his shoulders as he grasped the bare flanks of Jovita with his bare knees. With a shout he dashed into the yellow water. A cry rose from the opposite bank as the head of man and horse struggled against the battling current and then were swept away amid the rooted trees ‘and whirling driftwood. “Bill and Jack are holding her at Dick crept softly into the But as he did a The Old Man started and awoke. The fire was dead. The candlein the outer room flickered in its sock- et. Somebody rapped on the door. He opened it. A dripping half naked figure reeled against the door post. “Dick.” “Hush! Is he awake?” “No but—" “Shut up you old fool. Give me some whisky. Quick" Dick stag- gered, caught ho'd of the handle of the door and motioned to the Old Man.” “Thar’s suthin’ in my pack for your Johnny. Take it off. I can't. The Old Man unstrapped the pack and laid it on the table. “Open it, quick--" He did so with trembling fingers. It contained only a few cheap toys —bright and barbaric in paint and tinsel. One of them was broken. Another was ruined by water. A third bore a cruel spot. “It doesn't look like much. That's a fact,” Dick said ruefully. “But it's the best we could do. Take them, Old Man. Put them in his stocking and tell him—tell him, you know--hold me, Old Man.” The Old Man caught the sinking figure. “Tell him,” said Dick with a laugh, “Tell him Sandy Claus has come.” And even so, bedraggled, ragged, unshaven, with one arm hanging helplessly at his side, Santa Claus came to Simpson's Bar and fell fainting on the first threshold. The Christmas dawn touched the re- moter peaks with rosy warmth. It looked so tenderly on Simpson's Bar that the whole mountain, as if caught in a generous action, blush- ed to the skies.—By Bret Harte - in Pittsburgh Press. — FREE FUEL OFFERED FROM STATE FORESTS Free fuelwood from the State for- ests of Pennsylvania is available for the relief of distress among the un- employed, according to a statement issued by Lewis E. Staley, Secretary of the Department of Forests and Waters. State Forest officers have been authorized to issue free cut- ting permits in the State forests to the needy who cannot afford to buy their winter fuel. Welfare and charitable organiza- tions engaged in helping families d the present unemployment “crisis can supply the homes of the needy by getting in touch with local district foresters and arranging for fuelwood cutting by qualified per- sons. The Department already has made free wood available at the site of the Pymatuning dam where consid- erable clearing work is under pro- gress. The present system will af- fect all localities where there are State forests. Forestry officials estimated that in the one and one-half million acres of Pennsylvania State Forests there are 50,000 cords of wood available in the form of dead and fallen tim- bers, and, if this amount is insuffi- cient to supply the homes of the needy with fuel, 50,000 additional cords can be released with no detri- ment to the remaining timber stand. Secretary Staley announced that wood to be provided for fuel under this plan consists of blight-killed ‘chestnut and diseased and fire killed flagstaff vanished behind 28' in whose | timber. This material includes both standing and fallen, dead and dam- ed trees, which will make excel- lent fuel. Special areas, easily ac- cessible for transporting the cord- wood, will be set aside in the State Forests where cutting will be done under the supervision of State For- est officers. No cutting may be done without a permit, and the sale or exchange of fuelwood for services or com. modities will be prohibited. Fuel- wood may not be cut for use in commercial enterprises, such as stores, hotels, and roadside stands. The quantity of material removed must be limited to the amount ac- tually required by a family or fam- ilies to whom permits are issued. The action of the Department of Forests and Waters insures sufficient cordwood to take care of 10,000 Pennsylvania homes during the pres- with a teriffic bound, threw the fig- | ure from her bit with a single shake of her vicious head and charged with deadly malevolence down on the impediment before her. But the good right arm of her rider, shattered by a bullet, dropped help- | lesaly at his side. thout slackening speed he shift- ed the reins to the left hand. He had to stop to tighten the saddle girths. This in his crippled condi- (tion took some time. e was not |afrald of pursuit, but a deadly ter- ‘ror clutched his heart when he saw | the eastern stars were paling in the y. During the last few rods there |was a roaring in his ears, caused | by exhaustion from loss of blood. | Dazed and giddy, he swept down the (hill. He did not recognize his sur- reneated by the rest of the party stillness. The Old Man got up roundings. Had he taken the wrong and before the was aware of the intention of his guests thev had departed. The night was pitchy uk. In the first gust of wind t.eir tem- porary torches were extinguished and onlv the red brands dancing and flitting in the wfoom like drunk- en will.o-the-wisps indicated their whereabouts. doing. To his surprise the house | was dark and deserted. A flare {from a smoldering log revealed the frame of Dick Bullen. | “Whar's the boys?” asked the Old | Man. | “Gome up the canon. They're |coming back in a minute. Don’t mind manners. You just stay where astonished grocer again to see what his guests were road or was this Rattlesnake Creek ? | It was. But the bawling creek ent winter. PROF. GARDNER OF STATE, SIGNALLY HONORED. Professor F. D. Gardner, head of the department of agronomy at the Pennsylvania State College since 1908, was signally honored Novem. ‘ber 19, by election as a fellow in | meeting the American Society of Agronomy, in Chicago. By coinci- dence, the day of the election was thea nniversary of Professor Gard- iner's birth. ‘sistant agriculturist. 1908 he was scientist and soils ex-! Graduated from the University of Illinois in 1891, Professor Gardner served there for four years as as- From 1895 t. pert in the bureau of soils, United (States Department or Agriculture. | During that time he was in charge ‘of the Porto Rico Experiment Sta- 'he had swam a few hours earlier’ |had more than doubled its volume | [ia now rolled a swift and restless | river between him and Rattlesnake | Hill. For the first time that night his heart sank within him. ‘The { river, the mountain, the quickening | east swam before him. i tion for three years. Professor Gardner is author of, “Successful Farming;” “Farm Crops, their Cultivation and Management;” and “Soils and Soil Management.” |He also has written many bulletins | containing He shut the reswts of ments he has conducted. In that interval there FOR AND ABOUT WOMEN. came back to him the little room at DAILY THOUGHT Absence may make Hearts grow fonder— | Of what they garner | As they wander! i —Ruth Lambert Jones. !| —Christmas is the one season when the kitcheh must be on dress parade. As the heart of the home, it is the center for all the jolly in- dustry which results in puddings and pies, sugar and spice and every- thing nice from the delicious sea- food cocktail to the plum pudding of the holiday dinner. But it must be in readiness. It can't produce de- lectable things unless its knives are sharp, its cutters keen, its bowls many, its scale accurate. . So here is some advice about a dozen sundry items which help the kitchen give its best to holiday cooking. And, moreover, most of these convenient and helpful tools would make excellent presents for the housewife's own stocking. Why not give simple and inexpensive “Christ- ‘mas Gifts that Save Labor” instead ‘of bonbons or books? It is surprising how long the giv- er of a handy little kitchen knick- nack will be remembered with pleas- ure all year through. Often these items are novelties which the house- wife would like to buy for herself, but feels perhaps they are a little bit of an extravagance. And that's what every real gift should be—a luxury, a more than ordinary object, s0 much more pleasurable than a common necessity! No holiday dinner, of course, could be evolved without a chopper, a grater and a mixer. So here are three new ones. First, there is the chopper, which has a triple blade and which does as much chopping at a single stroke as it usually would take three maids with three choppers to do! But it is all in one and of stainless steel, no hope for onions, parsley, nuts or mincemeat when this chopper slices onward. Then there is the stationary grat- er, which every kitchen should have all the time. It is much like a meat chopper except that instead of having different blades, one may speedily interchange its metal cyl- inders, each one of which does a different job well, such as grating cheese, grinding crumbs for stuffing, slicing apples and root vegetables. Dull knives will not cut thinly sliced meat nor attractive cake, nor will they charmingly dismember the holiday bird, whether that be turkey or goose. So a knife sharpener is an inalienable adjunct of every kitchen. This one consists of a couple of wheels on a stand and all you do is draw the blade across sev- eral times when said blade will re- new its keen zest and cutting skill. If there are children in the fam- dy, then the new sieve for baby's food is another gift which every young mother would delight in. It has a glass dish and cover and in the top fits a stainless steel per- forated disk. To use it push a small stiff spatula up and down over the vegetable pulp, and, of course, only the strained portion will fall in- to the glass dish beneath. Strange somebody didn't think of this thing long ago. For example, there is a new and very clever zeppelin mold, shaped just like the famous dirigible. How smart it would make a quivering cranberry jelly! Or what about a turkey mold for the ice or cream? Or a curved fish mold for the en- tree? Simple dishes look sophisti- cated if given fancy shapes. Then, coming a little nearer the utility viewpoint, there is the sauce- pan bar which mother would sure- ly welcome. Here we have six sliding hooks on a heavy bar of aluminum. Fasten the bar to the wall or the shelf ana hang the six pans on it. There they are, clean, visible and easy to grasp. Better, give mother two racks and thus take care of all the pots in the pantry. If you are thinking of the house for a gift, here are some more sug- gestions; radiator covers, and radia- tor moisteners; a new kind of coat tree which collapses and folds into umbrella space, and which is the best ever to have on hand when you are planning to have a party and must take care of extra guest cloth- ing; a boot wiper that is so good looking that you are almost tempt- ed to pick it up by its long handle ‘and walk off with it. It has a ‘handle of brass, at the base of which is a circular thick bristle brush. Of course it will stand any- where and let feet, little or big, ‘brush the mud off on its sturdy bristles. Last, don’t forget cleaning cioths as jolly stuffers for the house wife's stocking. Slide several of these down among the nuts and oranges, or under the tree. What are they? Why, specially impregnated cloths which will clean silver, brass or copper without the use of additional powders or liquids. But I shall have to stop right here, only saying again that the small counter is a good bet from which to choose Christmas gifts. —American women become su- preme in the air when the Interna- tional Aeronautics Federation ac- cepted as the women's world straight- line distance record the 1,976-mile flight of Miss Ruth Nichols of Rye, YY, from Ookland, Cal., to Louis- v. on Oct. 24-25, 1931. A.. “ican women now hold six of ‘the se, 1 recognized world's air rec- ords——speed, altitude, distance and useful loads. | The latest record gives Miss Nich- ols two palms, for she also holds the world's speed record for women | with her fight at 210 miles an hour. Miss Elinor Smith has one, Mrs. Amelia Earhart Putnam holds two Edna May Cooper share another. upon request, can arrange a demon- stration on saw filing. —Brood sows should be well pro- tected during the winter and provid- ed with clean, dry, comfortable sleeping quarters. They should, shine to keep them healthy. —To clean soiled eggs use a knife or steel wool to remove the greater part of the dirt. Then wipe the eggs clean with a damp cloth. Washed eggs do not keep well, say State College poultry specialists. —During the past two dry years, better yields of corn have been ob- tained on fall-plowed soil than on spring plowed land. Even in wet seasons, fall plowing gives as good or slightly better yields than late spring plowing. Plowing as much land as possbile in the fall saves a great deal of work in the spring. —Poison bait for mouse control may be placed now in the orchards. The bait should be so placed that it is hidden from birds, livestock, or irresponsible persons. Wide-necked bottles and tin cans may be used, or the bait may be placed under Noarats or in the tunnels of the ro- nts. —Good tools kept in condition will make gardening a pleasure next year. Now is the time to clean all tools and cover the metal parts with light grease. Hotbed sash probably need paint. If the hot- bed is cleaned it will be ready for use next February or March. Wheat makes a good feed for dairy cattle in amounts up to one- third of the total grain mixture. It should be rolled or coarsely ground and mixed with bulky feeds, such as bran or oats, in addition to enough protein feed to make a bal- anced ration. —Trees have been dying this year as a result of the severe drouth last year. By harvesting them now, good logs may be saved for lumber or firewood. If these dead trees are allowed to stand through anoth- er summer, many of them will be rendered useless by decay, say Penn State foresters. --Colony or individual hog houses are easy and inexpensive to build. They are warmer and more sanitary than most central farrowing houses. If such houses are not available, they can be built during the winter So they will be ready for farrowing time. --Seed corn which has dried out about as much as corn ordinarily does by May 1, when stored in cribs, can be shelled and stored in sacks or in metal containers, which have a few holes in the top for ventila- tion, until planting time. ~—There are 612 licensed milk dealers in the State of Pennsylvania, whose daily sales are from one to nine quarts, according to figures made public by R. E. Irwin, chief of the bureau milk control, depart- ment of health. This gives some idea of the number of milk produc- ers, on a small scale, who are sell- ing a part of the product from a very few cows, Irwin said. No matter how small is the output sold, each dealer must apply for and re- ceive u permit from the State board of health. More than 310 applicants stated that their sales would run from 10 to 14 quarts per day. The single group—T755 applicants report- ed that they would sell between 100 and 200 quarts daily. The total ‘number of JineanLy for sales per- mits was 3576, and the total num- ber of quarts of raw milk sold daily reaches 306,000. Forty-eight reported sales of more than 500 quarts daily in the raw milk field, while an exactly equal number of applicants stated that their sales would run over 5000 ‘quarts per day in the pasteurized ‘division of the dairy industry. When it comes to totals, the difference in the number of quarts sold daily, is enormous. For instance, 3576 ap- plicants report sales of 306,000 quarts of raw milk daily; while 570 applicants stated that sales in the pasteurized section will reach the .total of 1,639,000 quarts. On this basis it is estimated that more than seven million persons in Penn- sylvania are daily consumers of pasteurized milk. ~The double attack of depression and drought has dealt a blow to the poultry business in Pennsylvania. Economists of the Department of Agriculture have found a larger stock of poultry in the State on January 1 was worth less than 2a smaller flock two years ago. Ac- cording to their figures 20,351 chick- ‘ens last January 1 were worth only $19,944,000, whereas 19,034 on Jan- uary 1, 1929, were valued at $23.- 031,000. In 1920 the figures were 20,181, worth $26,647,000, | The rainless weather of the sum- mer of 1930 sent corn feed to high | prices and consequently caused a res duction in the number of chickens raised. The depressen sent chicken prices to the lowest level in a dozen years. Hens laid 1,766 millions of eggs | during last year, of which 1.476 mil- | lions were sold for domestic pur- poses. The sales orought an in- —Common sense and experience {will raise more chickens to laying jage than the advice of a dozer experi- and Mis: Evelyn Trout and Miss neiehbors. come of $35,719,000. i