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Show 1 PRISON TRUCK FARN IJofforson City, Mo. Warden Matt , W. Hall, of tho Missouri penitentiary, Is a gardener on qulto an extonslvo 1 Bcalo. This year ho has dovotod n i, Hf part of tho state farm, located Just J cast of tho prison, to "gardon truck," and Is Just beginning to realize Homo of tho results that follow careful and t Intelligent tilling of tho soil, In tho 1 6 way of palatable and healthy nddl- 1 tlous to tho prison menu, nnd at n 1 1 minimum of expanse to the state, jj I Tho farm Is in chnrgo of John 1 1 Hrunur, who works Bovoral convlctB 1 1 jn curing for the place. Just now tho J "snap bean" crop Is lu full bearing. Tho bean patch covers Bovoral acres of ground, and tho crop on tho state farm Is unuauully prolific. Tho soil on top of tho hill Booms to bo especially adapted to tho bean, nnd thoro will bo soyornl "mossoa" for ull hands In the wardon's family of 2,800 persons, 1 Soino ideu of what It takos to go , round In tho prison is gained whon It Is known that It requires 75 busholB of snap benns for ono meal. Hocently I Hint amount of beans was turned ovor i to tho prison kitchen, nnd It required nil of It to glvo ench convict nil tho beans he could oat. Several hundrod pounds of bacon wero required to cook thorn proporly and glvo tho right 1 Havor. ItndlBheB woro grown in great qttnn-titles qttnn-titles earlier lu tho Benson, nnd onions liuvw been aorveil sovornl tlmos from i tho farm. Thnro Is a groat quantity of tho onions Btlll In the ground. This healthful, if somowhat odorlfor-ous, odorlfor-ous, vogotnblo Is eagerly wolconiod by tho convicts ub, in fact, Is all the IW-den IW-den truck. John," sold Mr, Hall, to nrunor, ihn 1 man in charge of tho farm, "wo mim A have n llttlo slaw for tho Fourth of mlk July dlnnor. How many hoadB of cub- M bnRo c,in yo" Iot i,(,won navo for tlmt It "About 1.400 or 1.500 heads," was tho reply. Theso cabbages will nvor-ago nvor-ago perhaps two pounds to the hoad, so it will bo obsorved that several thousand pounds of raw material en-tors en-tors Into tho problem of providing tho prison population with tho ono Item of a llttlo cold slaw for their holiday dinner. Tho cnbbiigo patch on tho state farm lncludps 18,000 growing plants, nnd tho crop is flourishing, but big ns tho patch Is a fow rounds of "cold eluw" will mnko hoavy Inroads on it. Tlioro nro several acres of potatoes, n roasting enr patch of two or threo acres, hut tho crowning glory of tho big garden Is tho tomnto Hold, whore thoro aro 13,000 or 14,000 flourishing plnnts growing thnt glvo promlso of a great yield of this most dollghUul of all vegetables. Somo of tho vines nro loaded with tomatoes that will bo rendy for uso In a fow weeks, while othors hnvo Just reached tho blooming stage. If noth ing happens to injuro tho vines there will bo nn nbundnnco of this crop, for tho vines will contlnuo to produco until un-til froHt kills them. Wardon Hall and Mr. nrunor flguro that nftor tho season la ovor tloy will hnvo unrlpo tomatoes enough on hand whon tho frost comes to muko Beverol hogsheads of chochow. It Is worth u trip to tho atato farm to boo the gardonlng on a largo Hcalu that Wnrdon Hall hns Inaugurated. His theory la thnt wholovor oxpenaa Is involved In growing tho vogotnbloa for uso of tho convicts Is moro than offset by tho diminution of tho sick list. Tho land hnH detorlornted Bomowhnt during the Inst fow yoara, whon It was leased by tho stato to prlvato Individuals, In-dividuals, and Mr. Hall will by systematic sys-tematic effort seek to build It up and restoro It to n high degreo of productiveness. produc-tiveness. To thla end much of It will bo sown In cowpenB thla summer, and this will bo turned under early in tho fall. |