Editorial
Logan Herald-Observer November 24, 2010
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Down Home By Sandy Turner Sandy Turner writes a weekly column “Down Home” which is published in several newspapers in the Midwest. She puts a humorous spin on issues that revolve around families and every day life, drawing from her own experiences.
We interrupt this engagement for hunting Planning a wedding that’s going to take place in another country is turning out to be easier than I thought – although getting an engagement photo taken of my daughter and her fiancé is getting a bit complicated. They say opposites attract and it definitely holds true for my prissy, trendy, white-collar daughter who fell in love with a good ole’ boy whose idea of a funfilled day is to sit in a tree and watch for deer. Her wardrobe could easily take up two closets, as he would be happy with a couple pair of jeans, T-shirts and, of course, his Carhartts (coveralls). She began planning her wedding when she was old enough to know that fairytales could come true and envisioned wearing a princess dress alongside a knight in shining armor who’d escort her down the aisle full of rose petals as the trumpets played “here comes the bride.” I know she’s truly in love because compromise doesn’t usually come naturally for her, as she’s been known to have a one-track mind. When they announced the wedding was going to take place in Cancun, on the beach, I began to realize that she had reached a point in her life that she could put another persons’ needs and wants above her own. Between not wanting to wear a tuxedo or standing in front of half the city to take his vows, she came up with a compromise of standing on the beach instead. When he knew he could be outdoors and only have to stand in front of 30 instead of 300, he agreed. When she told him he wouldn’t have to wear a tie, it clinched the deal, and so began the fairytale wedding in a faraway land. Wanting to make him feel comfortable with the engagement photos, she asked if I would do the honors, using the acreage as a backdrop with trees in their peak, for a colorful extravaganza. When I called to let her know we should start planning the photo shoot, she said there was a change of plans. Apparently the fiancé and his friends made a pact not to shave or cut their hair until they get a buck. I’d send him a dollar – but apparently we’re talking deer, not money. Since he’s beginning to look like Grizzly Adams, it’s probably a good call on her part to postpone. So we’ll wait for a good snow. Excited about this prospect of a winter wonderland photo, the fiancé asked if he could wear his Carhartts and include his bow and arrow. “Just like cupid,” she said with a giggle. “Who’s Cupid?” he answered. Isn’t it grand when two people get together who are as different as chalk and cheese but build a life on the strongest bond they have in common – love, sweet love.
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Herald-Observer Editor MARY DARLING mary.darling@heraldobserver.com Sales Coordinator LOYAL FAIRMAN loyal.fairman@heraldobserver.com Advertising ads@heraldobserver.com Production Assistant MARY LOU NONEMAN marylou.noneman@woodbinetwiner.com 107 No. 4th Ave. P.O. Box 148 (mailing address) • Logan, IA 51546 Phone 712-644-2705 • Fax 712-644-2788 Published weekly in Logan, Iowa A Western Iowa Newspaper Group Publication of Midlands Newspaper, Inc. The Official Paper of the City of Logan and the Logan-Magnolia Community School District Periodical Class Postage Paid at Logan, IA 51546 USPS 317-740 Subscription Rates $31.50 per year for Senior Citizens (Age 62 years or older in county) $38.50 per year in Harrison County, Panama, Portsmouth and Moorhead $41.00 per year outside of Harrison County in Iowa and Nebraska $45.00 per year elsewhere in the United States $24.00 college/academic (9 month) The contents of this newspaper are protected by copyright. Other than non-commercial, personal use of a limited nature, no part of this publication may be copied and reproduced in any way without the prior written consent of the publisher.
Trouble on the Big Ditch The proposed MononaHarrison County drainage ditch was the region’s most inflammatory topic in 1903. While Monona County appeared to benefit most from the ditch, Harrison County opponents muttered about skullduggery plotted by their northern neighbors. Local farmers tried to persuade the Board of Supervisors to oppose the ditch and supporters claimed their efforts had failed. Hal Kerr, editor of the Little Sioux Hustler, angrily retorted that the Board of Supervisors was against the ditch and the project would only benefit “engineers, dredgers and land speculators.” He contemptuously dismissed the project as “Monona County’s artificial river.” Several days later on May 22, 1903, the Hustler reported landowners north of Little Sioux wrote in opposition to the big ditch, citing its cost and the possible harm it might cause. V.C. Atwell, Ozias Walker and James A. Perley were among the signatories. They presented their case to the Harrison County Board of Supervisors, but the board voted to approve the ditch. Contracts were let the following year, and the Ferris-Haskel Construction Company of Idaho was
hired to dig the “artificial river.” More opposition followed and Kerr gleefully noted that W.A. Smith and Company had won a restraining order forbidding the supervisors to take further action because the contract was not let to the proper bidder. The State Supreme Court soon ruled in favor of Ferris-Haskel and the company began to dig the ditch. The third largest dredge in the United States performed much of the work. It resembled a massive house boat and was powered by a 200 horse power gasoline engine, the largest in the United States in 1905. A chain of “great iron baskets” extended from the second story to the floor of the dredge. They scooped up dirt and carried it to near the top of the dredge and dumped it into a hopper. From there, two conveyors, powered by electric motors carried the dirt to both sides of the dredge. A 60-horsepower dynamo powered the motors and an electric light system. A large anchor held the dredge in position, while the buckets extended the ditch bed. A 30-foot cylinder extended through the center of the dredge. It weighed 11 tons and the remaining machinery was 60 tons heavy.
Perley’s Bits & Pieces By Jim Perley Logan Herald-Observer Columnist jperley@iowatelecom.net
On a good day, the dredge dug a 300-foot trench 80-feet wide and 9feet deep. Mechanical and other problems plagued the company and they complained they were sliding into financial insolvency. They asked that their contract be extended, and the district granted an extension. For a time, work proceeded more smoothly. Disaster struck in April, 1908 when a beam holding the conveyor broke and tore a hole in a side of the dredge. It sank in eight to 10 feet of water and work on the ditch temporarily ended. Workers built dams on both sides of the dredge and pumped water away from it. Unfortunately, the pump was too small and the company had to order a larger pump. Then, it rained and delayed the extraction even longer. The dredge was finally freed by May and repairmen waited another two or three weeks
for parts. Construction seemed on track at last, but then it rained again. Heavy thunderstorms swept across the valley for several nights and up-stream water surged south to join what had dropped from the local sky. The new ditch bank collapsed, and the dam at the end of the ditch broke. Water swept south and inundated much of the Missouri River Valley. Angry farmers watched their crops simmer in hot mosquito-ridden water as they vented their spleen on company reps and local newspapers. More thunderhead tops surged toward the stratosphere, and they dumped even more rain on the unfortunate fields. At least the new storms spared farmers the discomfort of watching their crops turn yellow. The renewed flood had submerged even the tops of corn plants.
News from the Extension Service
Fumigation course Nov. 30 Harrison County will host a fumigation continuing instruction course for commercial pesticide applicators on Nov. 30. the program will be shown at locations across Iowa through the Iowa State University Extension Pest Management and the Environment program. The local site for the Nov. 30 CIC is the Harrison County Extension Office, 304 E. Seventh St. in Logan. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. with the session run-
ning from 9 to 11 a.m. The registration fee is $45. To register or to obtain additional information about the CIC contact the Harrison County Extension office by calling 644-2105. The 2010 course will provide continuing instructional credit for commercial pesticide applicators certified in categories 7C (fumigation) and 10 (demonstration and research). The course will cover topics including safe handling and storage of fumigants; pests
Rich Pope Harrison County Extension Program Coordinator
and pest management; laws and regulations and respiratory protection. Additional information and registration forms for
this and other courses offered through the PME program can be accessed at w w w. e x t e n s i o n . iastate.edu/PME.
Answer Line available What’s the best way to thaw a frozen turkey, polish the “good” silverware or remove last year’s Thanksgiving stains from the tablecloth? To get the answers, call Iowa State University Extension’s Answer Line at 800-2623804. “We can answer your holiday meal preparation questions, as well as the
stain removal questions resulting from those holiday meals,” said Answer Line Coordinator Liz Meimann. Professional family and consumer scientists at the toll-free hotline can explain everything from how long to cook the turkey to how far ahead to make the pumpkin pie – or any other holiday dish,
Meimann said. Generally, the hotline answers calls Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. But Meimanns aide, “We will be available 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. on the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksging. We plan to work through the lunch hour for people who need to call at that time.”
In addition, Iowans can get answers to frequently asked questions on the Answer Line web-site, www.estension.iastate.edu /answerline, 24-hours a day, seven days a week. Consumers can search by keyword, browse the keyword index or select a topic area to find answers to their questions, Meimann said.
Logan City Council
Harrison County Landfill
First and third Mondays, 7 p.m.
Second Wednesday, 7 p.m.
Lo-Ma Board of Education
Logan Public Library Board
Second Wednesday, 6:30 p.m.
Second Monday, 4 p.m.