Show From Page One 12A Saturday Juty 31 1999 Hoppers From 1A The worst areas seem to be the farming valleys around Howell and west of Snowville he said If a farmer can count eight grasshoppers in a square yard of land it is considered an infestation and Holmgren said he is counting 20 or 30 per yard easy Douglas raises alfalfa to feed his cattle and wheat to sell His ranch is in the middle of the infestation around HowelL To show how bad it is he stopped his truck by a line of decorative trees a neighbor has planted along a fence line At first glance they just look dry and thin but a closer look reveals grasshoppers lined up on the denuded branches like boxcars in a train yard He counted 22 on one branch As he w alked into a field of alfalfa the hoppers flew up in a wave spreading and bellowing out about five feet w ide and a yard deep in front of him He stopped and pulled up a stalk of the alfalfa that had been stripped of its leaves and flowers “It's just like those trees” he said "You can see they work from the bottom to the top” This particular field still had a lot of usable alfalfa on it because Douglas sprayed it about a week before Utah has a program to pay ranchers up to SI 000 in matching funds for spraying and he said that has been a valuable help The problem is that the spray ing doesn't last long The grasshoppers were bade again Thursday eating the fresh alfalfa leaves and ignoring the thousands of bodies of dead grasshoppers on the ground The grasshoppers have come at a particularly bad time because farm prices are low this year he said “It w ouldn't be so bad if we were receiving parity prices but I'm getting a dollar bushel less than my father did for wheat” and that's going back more than 50 years Holmgren said the field of barley he looked at which is owned by a neighbor of Douglas is a good study of the economics the farmers face Normally he said the field should yield between 75 and 80 bushels per acre Because of the damage from the grasshoppers it may only yield 25 or 30 The barley depending on its weight will bring about SI 50 a bushel which means the crop is only worth about $40 an acre But he said it will cost up to S25 per acre to run a combine through the field to harvest the barley That leaves just S 1 5 profit “That field just might not be worth cutting” he said and swatted at another grasshopper that flew past his head “Economically they’re winning the battle” Douglas said financial help is about the only thing that will help farmers now Spraying the grasshoppers only has a temporary effect because they either hatch anew or spread from the surrounding unsprayed grazing Doctor now-deceas- over-medicat- lands But he said the usual federal help low interest loans isn't much help either SALE PRIG ELECTRONICSj John “Speaking as a farmer in debt the last thing I need is a low interest loan” he said What he needs is cash to pay the debts he has now That means higher prices for crops Douglas said he’s toyed with the idea of trying to get farmers organized to protest low prices maybe call the TV stations and bum a few fields of grain “but that’s a bit extreme” everyday ELECTRONICS 1 ARAS D FURNITURE rsi Still he said burning a field that won’t pay is “cheaper than running a $150000 combine through it” Holmgren said the real extent of the damage won’t be known until November That’s when farmers will have everything harvested and sold and they can tally up their gains or losses Until then he said there’s little farmers can do Mir 3 im mjm eome talre atiuaneage off huge summer sailings on our Sitievjolli Sale! He took another step in the field of barley The cloud of grasshoppers spread again buzzing and clattering “It’s like trying to stop a wildfire with a shovel in a wind” he said 6 months No Interest! 30-mi- le 4i30 Contact reporter Charles F 2 Trentelman at or ctrentelman (a standardnet BaS£B5EBL° 625-423- Weitzel’s suit claims that no action was taken on the sexual exploitation charges following earlier investigations by the hospital and the licensing division “We allege that the allegations are false” said Peter Stirba Weitzel’s attorney “A hospital investigation found no wrongdoing A Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing investigation found no wrongdoing Lo and behold three years later the division has brought the allegations back to the surface knowing full well they are false” Kim Morris spokesman for the licensing division declined to comment on the lawsuit which names him as a defendant regarding disposition of controlled substances and demonstrating incompetence or negligence The division alleged that Weitzel disrobed a female patient and fondled her breasts while practicing at Brigham City Community Hospital in 1993 and I FROM NORTHERN UTAH'S NURSERY OF CHOICE The lawsuit alleges the division acted with malice and disregard for common decency by publishing reports that were defamatory to Weitzel The suit also alleges that statements de- prived the doctor of his constitutional right to due pro- cess to a fair licensing trial Currently Weitzel is practicing in Texas but continues to have ties and a medical license in Utah Prosecutors said they hope to file charges against Weitzel by the end of next week You can reach reporter Jacob 1 Santini at or 776-495- is currently upgrading the cable system all YOUR CHOICE to fiber optics use PEAR TREES QUALITY n BASKETS GREAT SELECTION! itrsiticmosifflOM PRICED $29S8-$899- PRICED 3 $1999-$249- 8 and better reception & TTsk !h ANNUALS "A TERRIFIC SELECTION" increased signal reliabilty 5L 0 ASSORTED FLOWERING Fiber optic cable brings more channels & variety HW er 1996 From 1A performed autopsies on Weitzel's patients who may with have been morphine shortly after they were admitted to the Davis Hospital's psychiatric unit between December 1995 and January 1996 In all three deaths doctors who previously treated the elderly women told prosecutors the patients had not been admitted to conthe unit with ditions Although Layton Police have received the medical examiner’s report investigators are remainabout the finding tight-lippe- d ings However Majors said that preliminary reports have found some amounts of morphine in the exhumed bodies The professional licensing division filed charges in April against Weitzel’s license in the sexual exploitation of a patient prescribing controlled substances in excess of necessary amounts failing to keep required records TC Standard-Examin- Present coupon OHome it Him ol purchase Good thru Not valid with any other special oilers While supplies last Q Present coupon 3BS ft 1 at time it partitas! Not valid Good thru with any other special oilers While supplies last Present coupon A at time el purchase Good thru Not valid with any other special otters While supplies last Watch for the construction maps on the first Saturday of EACH MONTH Maps are located on the inside page of the TV PREVIEW INSERT For up tm ALL FLATS IN STOCK i GROUND COVEN to date information affecting your neighborhood call our construction hotlines V01-26- V81-9- 22 E Salt Lake County and 6Q 5 Present Davis County coupon Lfn§ Thank You at time of purchase Not valid Good thru with any other special otters supplies last 29 UWiSftM ?o mb |