Former Fruit Picker
Now Raises Fruit
What does a fruit picker doi
when he settles down?
Well, he starts farming on
hii own if he is like Lester
Igo, a resident of the Phoenix I
area. Les is assisted by his
wife, Ruth, and 11-year-old
ion Tim. The Igos are farm
ing because they like the in
dependent living in the coun
try. In that way they are like
a good many small farmers
and their families who put a
heavier value on the type of
living that goes with farm
ing rather than the cash re
ceived. Les is a tall, rawhide thin
man whose face has been
darkened by picking season
sun as he roamed all up and
down the coast picking fruit
which he now grows on 15
acres. Part of it is located on
the Pioneer rd. and the five
acre piece on South Colum
bus ave.
On his home place, the
Igos raise four acres of apri
cots, fire or six acres of pears
and about 7V4 acres of Talent
alfalfa. The five-acre orchard
is in pears. About 13 acres of
the 40 acre home place is un
der irrigation-Irrigated from
a sump Les dug himself.
Regretfully, like many an
other small farmer, Les is get
ting out of farming-at least
as a full-time job. "I decided
when I bought this farm 10
years ago that I would never
borrow money from last
y e a r's operation for next
year's. That's what I'm gonna
have to do if I keep this
place," he remarked rubbing
the back of his neck.
Until now the lanky farmer
has kept himself thin with
various part-time jobs to
stretch out his farming dol
lars. This included work at
S.O.S. packing house, a fruit
growers' cooperative to which
he belongs, pruning and var-
: ious other odd jobs. However,
now that equipment and ma
terials' costs are mounting
up, plus wages of what part
time labor he hires, he figur
es farming has to be a part
time operation now and other
work his full time occupation.
. In Air Tore
In the Air Force during
World War II Les was one of
the highly skilled technicians
who worked on central fire
control on the power turrets
of the B-29's, Gen. H. H. Ar
nold's pet project. He hopes
to use this mechanical and
highly skilled electrician
training (he graduated near
the top of his service school
class) for a full-time job. We
saw a sheath of Air Force
records and commendations
attesting to his proficiency
When he quits farming full
time we hope with others of
his friends and acquaintances
that Les and his family don't
leave the community. Les, is
an active elder in the Phoenix
Presbyterian church. Highly
religious, but down to earth
on such church 'matters as
budget and building mainte
nance. His wife, Ruth is one of the
hard core of working mem
bers of the local P.T.A. "She's
jus' like a powerful tractor."
Less remarked fondly. "Jus'
"If I were
. . . and planning a family vacation, I'd make doubly sure it was
a vacation. I'd go UP on the Domeliner 'City of Portland.'
I'd give the children room to move around and the thrill of riding
a real train.
I'd think of my husband, too, and free him of the strain of a long
drive on hazardous highways, and know for sure vt'i arrive safe
and sane.
For myself, this is the sort of a vacation I'd reafly enjoy. It
would be fun for all of us. I could relax in my own reserved seat
or in the Dome or Lounge. Most important, UP'i Family Fares
would keep the cost within our means.'
MEALS FOR LESS in the Coffee Shop Lounge. Open all day
and evening for snacks, sandwiches, salad, drinks . . . even full
course dinners ... at economical "coffee-shop" prices.
FAMILY FAKES really save money for group family travel. For
example, a husband and wife with two teen-age children on a
round-trip to Chicago by Coach, eon tmx $118.30 under regular
rail Jam and fiOi-96 under tht lowul airline fartt.
point 'er at the work and
let her go. She gets it done in
fine shape. Don't even have
to crank her up," he chuckled.
Lik.t to Hunt
Eleven-year-old Tim's life
is centered on the farm. His
dad cut down a .25-.35 caliber
Winchester for him. The Igos
don't have to go very far to
get their deer. Tim has taken
his share, too. Last season
Les downed a deer a few
yards from the road. He had
it all skinned out just before
the school bus came. Tim is
proficient with a .410 gauge
shotgun, too. One year he
Killed live quail with one
shot.
When he isn't helping his
dad on the far m. Tim is
tramping around the woods
with his dog. swimming, fish
ing, or is out in the small
house his dad built him of
scrap lumber. "He said he
wanted a house where he'd
be boss, well now he's got
one, Les said.
A proud family possession
is a .44 Remington six-shot
revolver, stamped with the
name Miles City, Montana ter
ritory. The serial number 663
marks it as an authentic an
tique
The Igos used to raise their
own chickens, keep some beef
and a cow. However, they
figure eggs and fryers are
much cheaper at the store
Three milk routes converge
on their home and Les figures
he would lose valuable time
milking a cow-time he should
spend in the orchard. The
family sold the beef animals
they had for needed cash.
So, the Igos like so many
small farm families are being
forced out of a full-time op
eration because of economic
pressure. But, like many such
families they would prefer I
to live on a farm because
they like that kind of life
Froien Out
Igo Isn't complaining, but
the family has been hit by a
series of misfortunes. This
year, for instance, all of his
apricots and pears at the
high elevation on his home
place froze out. It didn't hurt
the trees but it did eliminate
this year's crop. A veteran
farmer of the district said this
is the first time in 30 years
frost has hit the higher ele
vations. Few orchardists heat
on the rolling uplands since
the orchards higher up are
usually warmer.
The Igos say they have al
ways done very well with
home sales of their Perfection
variety apricot which is larg
er than the usual variety. Just
as they were getting ahead
last year Les was in the hos
pital most of the year follow
ing a serious operation. Their
crops made just enough to
pay for the operation and not
much more.
When the Igos bought their
place it consisted of a small
shack-type of house surround
ed by a few acres of farmland.
Then, in 1950, the Talent
project was a long way from
approval. Now the Igos can
irrigate additional land from
that project. j
Of course, the I g o i had
(V&mafr. .
UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD
For intwmmim ami nmnmtm miS:
Turkeys Tricked;
Year-Round Sale
Prospects Helped
Corvallis - Oregon turkey
growers will be able to ship
fresh turkeys to market every
month of the year If research
under way at the Oregon
State college agricultural ex
periment station continues to
be successful.
At present, most fresh tur
keys go to market in the fall,
since turkeys normally lay
their eggs in early spring and
poults hatched from January
to May mature just in time
for holiday markets.
Turkey growers would like
to be able to sell birds all
during the year, however, so
fresh turkey products would
always be available in meat
markets. This would require
a supply of turkey hatching
eggs the year-round, and
J. A. Harper, poultry re
searcher at OSC, thinks he
has a scheme that will trick
turkey hens into providing
this supply.
Light Affects Laying
In past experiments. Harp
er found that the amount of
light a turkey hen sees each
day can affect her egg laying
habits. By restricting the
amount of light the hen sees
each day for a period of time,
and then lengthening the
length of day for the hens, he
has been able to start turkeys
laying almost any time of
the year.
But the best age for the
turkey hens to be put on the
restricted light period, and
how long this period should
last, are questions still un
answered. Now, a grant of
$1000 from the National Tur
key Federation will help
solve these problems.
,. MnI.D fi. i,.n ,, "
At the end of the expen
L:,u i,mo,i ,!,
definite recommendations to
turkey growers. They should
then be able to produce tur
key eggs every month of the
year, and keep fresh turkey
flowing to meat markets over
the nation.
GIRL'S WORLD INVADED
Burlington, Vt. -WO- The
only male nurse in Vermont
says he "wouldn't trade it for
the world." Paul Trauax said.
"The first day was the hard
est. There was a lot of twitter
ing among the 36 girls in the
class." But Truax didn't fare
badly. He's president of the
State Student Nurses's Assn.
plenty of warning . farming
wasn't going to be easy "up
on the mountain." In Febru
ary, 1950, shortly after they
moved in their shell of a
house was surrounded by
snow 16 inches deep. Then
Les could barely make it
down the steep hill with
chains on his truck. Mrs. Igo
had to go to the hospital then.
He got back, after leaving the
boy with relatives, in time to
feed the stock and chickens
and thaw out every pipe in
the house. And 30 days later
there was another snow storm
and Mrs. Igo had to go back
to the hospital.
2
O
W
Jackson County 4-H
Members Top Show
C - nrau-la nf lnnn
gate, Richard Anderson of ;
Eagle Point and Joan Smith,
of Grants Pass were the topi
individual 4-H club members
at the annual Rogue River j
Jersey Cattle Club Junior i
Dairy shnw held Saturday atj
Grants Pass, according to i
Glenn Klein, 4-H club exlen-'
sion agent.
Miss Brewster was selected
as the Jersey cattle princess
to reign over dairy activities
in the Jackson - Josephine
county area. Selection was
based on beauty, poise and
dairy knowledge.
Young Anderson repeated
as the champion dairy show
man and will receive the ro
tating cup presented by the
Jersey Cattle club. In winning
the trophy he topped over a
hundred Junior Showmen
from the two counties.
Joan Smith of the Roving
Herdsmen club in Grants Pass
was the top individual judge
and will receive the plaque
for that honor.
The Roving Herdsman 4-1 1
club received the pitch fork
presented by Cliff Moore of
Eagle Point for the club with
the most club members par
ticipating in the show.
Jackson County 4-Hers re
ceived their share of honors
at the show, as noted in the
Judging Contest results and
Showmanship placings listed
below:
Judging Contest - Joan
Smith, Grants Pass, 382.4;
Candy Gail, Rogue River,
367.4; Mary Ann Cantrall,
Ruch, 362.6; Clara Lou Mar
tin, Rogue River, 361.8; Dave
Strickland, Rogue River,
360.5; Ronald Thames, Ruch,
360.1.
Kathy Larson, Ruch, 353.8;
Susan Head. Applegate, 351.2;
Adrianne Brion, Applegate,
348.2; Mary Herriott, Apple-
gate, 343.8.
Showmanship Contest
Champion, Richard Ander
son, Eagle Point.
Senior Division "A"-First,
Lanny Parsons. Rogue River;
second, Joyce Rogers, Grants
Pass; third. Tom Case, Grants
Pass; fourth, Russell Ogle,
Grants Pass; fifth, Marilyn
Deckelman, Rogue River;
sixth, Dave Strickland, Rogue
River; seventh, Sandy Brew
ster, Applegate; eighth, Mary
Herriott, Applegate.
Senior Division "B" - First,
Ernest Lathrop, Grants Pass;
second. Georgia Hubbard,
Eagle Point; third, Kay Stev
enson, Eagle Point; fourth,
Karen Jossy, Eagle Point;
fifth, Ron Greb, Eagle Point;
sixth, Diane Barton, Eagle
Point; seventh, George Mar
tin, Cave Junction; eighth,
Ruby Whitaker, Cave Junc
tion; ninth, Julie Bird, Grants
Pass.
Intermediate Division "A"
First, Jerry Sorenson, Grants
Pass; second, Diane Brewster,
Applegate; third, Karen Fos
ter, Grants Pass; fourth, Dave
Strickland, Rogue River;
fifth, Rita Parrish, Grants
Pass; sixth, Duke Jansen, Ap
plegate; seventh, R o d n cy
Ogle, Grants Pass; eighth, Tim
Hofmann, Grants Pass.
L. J. Ziesmer, General Traffic Aftnt
1307 Watt Main
Medford, Owjjpn, SP 3-53K-
Intermediate Division "B"-
First, Richard Anderson,
Eagle Point; second. Richard
Bottgcr. Ruch; third, Jerry
Moore, Eagle Point; fourth,
Bobby Hubbard, Eagle Point;
fifth, Kathy Larson, Ruch;
sixth, Judy Prother, Grants
Pass; seventh, Karen Wan
gcrin, Cave Junction; eighth,
Mary Ann Cantrall. Ruch.
Junior Division "A"-First,
Susan Head. Grants Pass; sec
ond, Barry Brumbach, Grants
Pass; third. Clara Lou Martin,
Cave Junction; fourth, Adri
anne Brion, Applegate; fifth,
Debby Howard, Cave Junc
tion; sixth, Marilyn Winning
ham, Ruch; seventh, Paul Si
monsen. Grants Pass; eighth,
Joan Smith, Grants Pass.
Junior Division "3" - First,
Stephen Strickland, Rogue
River; second. Kenneth
Crouse, Grants Pass; third, La
Queta Stevenson, Eagle Point;
fourth, Dave Calloway. Eagle
Point; fifth, Carol Gillette,
Grants Pass; sixth, Jerra Mor
rison, Cave Junction; seventh,
Dickie Crouse. Grants Pass;
eighth, Kathy Hill, Grants
Pass.
Oregon Poultry,
Hatchery Group
To Meet June 17
Corvallis - Four national
poultry leaders will give their
views and answer questions at
the June 17 annual meeting
of the Oregon Poultry and
Hatchery association, accord
ing to Noel Bennon, exten
tlnn poultryman at Oregon
State college.
The 40th annual meeting of
the association will be held
in Withycombe hall on the
OSC campus, Bennion said.
Registration will start at 8:30
a.m., with the first session
scheduled to open at 9:30 a.m.
Speakers will include Her
man I. Miller, director of thhe
poultry division for U.S. De
partment of Agriculture,
Washington. D C. He will dis
cuss feed additives, egg qual
ity control, and the poultry
stabilization bill now before
Congress.
Ray E. Parmenter, presi
dent of the American Poultry
and Hatchery Federation,
Franklin, Mass., will be an
other out-of-state speaker. He
will report new trends tn the
poultry industry, and tell
about changes taking place in
New England poultry produc
tion. ' Parmenter and his
father developed the Parmen
ter Red strain of chickens.
To Discuss Production
Dr. A. William Jasper of
the American Farm Bureau,
Chicago, will discuss produc
tion controls and K. K. Heide-
man of the Poultry and Egg
National Board, Chicago, will
be luncheon speaker.
Other program features in
clude a special panel that will
report what's new in poultry
processing, egg handling, and
broiler production. And Dr.
E. M. Dickinson, head of the
OSC department of veteri
I
vr W7' if
'x m
Livestock
Health Hints
(Prepared as a public servict
by Iht Oregon Veterinary
Medical Assn.)
BLACKLEG DISEASE
In pioneer times, blackleg
disease killed more young cat
tle than probably any other
single disease.
Today control of this fatal
disease which affects primar
ily calves and, sometimes,
sheep lias been made possible
by veterinary medical re
search discovery of a vaccine
which is nearly 100 per cent
effective.
Blackleg is an infectious
bacterial disease. Susceptible
cattle are mostly 6 to 18
monlhs old. Occasionally ani
mals recover but most die
from 12 to 36 hours after in
fection. Symptoms of the dis
ease include acute lameness.
nary medicine, will discuss
control of respiratory diseases
in poultry.
An evening banquet will
feature a talk by J. W. Schcel.
assistant director of the OSC
extension service. He will re
port how changes in agricul
ture are affecting the role of
field men in the poultry as
well as other agricultural in
dustries. An afternoon lea has been
scheduled for ladies attend
ing the annual meeting, and
a special ladies program is
being prepared by the Cackle
belles, ladies auxiliary of the
association.
6 1 X ASL0WAS
ati ai pi vrpriN Ke PRICE slf ""M
A LAO rLTOKUN pu, , pu, u Uk
CUSHIONAIRE 'hl iwoprtu
tradi-ta uada-m
7.50-14 (White) ,.
6.70-15 (Black) 4
8.20-15 (Whit.) ..,
Tubelets 47.45 $35.60
ATI A "tG PPIC' WCE
fttuns plullii plulUiwilh
GRIP-SAFE fitapait
lida-in bada-ii
6.00-16 (Blick) .,,
6.70-15 (Black) ... ,. .....
Tub.dV. .25 14.S5
7.50-14 (Whit.) ....
Tub.l.s. UB.3S J22.70
.00-14 (WhH.) ,,.
tever, followed by character
istic swelling of hip, shoulder, 1
chest, back and neck. I
Usually losses from black
leg occur from early spring to!
autumn and arc caused by a
spore and gas-forming germ in I
pasture soil.
Vaccinations asiiint black-:
leg are inexpensive and are!
advised tor all calves over
three months old.
Often confused with black
leg is another disease, malig
nant edema. Symptoms often
appear the same. The disease
is nearly always fatal and
only laboratory tests can posi
tively distinguish the differ
ence in them.
Unlike blackleg, however,
malicnant edema affects cat
lie of all ages (besides other
animals such as horses and
swine) and, an even more
important difference, it is one
of many animal diseases
which can be transmitted to
man.
As with blackleg, inexpen
sive vaccinations hold the key
to prevention.
(Editor's Note Questions
from readers on subjects of
general animal health inter
est are welcomed. They may
b. addressed to Farm Edi
tor, Mail Tribune, Medford,
Ore.)
CIVIL WAR LINK
I Wcllesley, Mass. -OCT Mrs.
' Frances Huston Audin bc
1 lieves that, at 43. she is one
of the nation's younuesl wom
en now living whose fathers
fought for the Union in the
Civil War. Mrs. Audin's fa
I ther, Charles A. Huston, was
1 72 when she was born. He
was killed by an automobile
I five years later.
V
ff I I T V t I 1 " III w 1 PLUS
Weather Blamed
For Sales Drop
Salem Along with lis
damper on other farm activi
ties, tile weather is charged
willi 27 per cent drop in fer
tilizer sales in the first three
months of this year.
Tonage of fertilizers sold in
Oregon tile first quarter of
this year totaled 44.840; a year
earlier. 61.682 tons.
Sales of agricultural min
erals suflered an even steep
er drop, from 28.751 tons in
the first quarter of 1959 to
2.1)17 tons in the same 1960
period clown about 90 per
Edmund E. Hass
Vice-President ml ft
Sacific Northwest
Sine 1911
SUITE 303, FLUHRER BLDG. PHONE SP 3-7319
S SOUTH CENTRAL AVENUE
Consult With Mr. Hass on
Investment and Retirement Programs
Using tht Securities of .
Utilities Banki Iniuranco
Other offices in Portland, Salem, Eugene, Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma
Aocrdccn, Bclltngham. Yakima, Wenatchce and Walla Walla
Mutual Fund Shares
urn nr
MAIL TKTlUNl Mtato.d, Or.
Tuesday, May 24, 1960
On the other hand, agricul
tural minearls sold at a high
er clip than in January-March
1959: 6,602 vs. 4,939 tons.
These figures w e r com
piled by the state department
of agriculture from inspection
fee reports made by firms
selling these products.
Good weather the second
quarter should take up con
siderable of the drop In fertil
izer sales. The department
says industry attributes the
decline simply to inability to
get farm operations fully un
der way.
Compani Oatfr
nduitrial
TAX
a reeappabl. tratte-ln,
sin 6.70-15 Qrip-Saf.
Mack, tubed-typ.
New low prices! Now, just in time
for vacation travel, prices '
have been cut on all first-line
Atlas Plycron Cushionaircs . . . and
economy Atlas Grip-Safes.
Whitewall or black, tubed or
tubeless, they'll save you money,
give reliable, low-cost mileage. Sizes
for ail passenger cars, including
late models with 14' wheels.
You can depend on Atlas Tires sold
at the sign of the Chevron,
because Standard Stations and
Chevron Dealers know their
business depends on keeping you
well satisfied with their products
and service.
Easy terms ... up to 9 months ...
or buy on your Chevron National
Credit Card.
WE TAKE BETTER
CARE OF YOUR CAR
Stan art Statims, IncClinnM Dmhra