1879. 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



347 



the men who are employed to do the city work, 

 don't know anythinj^ about the work they are 

 called upon to do. Tlie man who manages such 

 city property at a salary of SI, 500 or $3,000 a 

 3'ear, knows no more about it than the broom 

 man he Employs knows about his broom. I 

 have said that any one of these city squares 

 could be broomed all over once a day by an ex- 

 pert broom hand, but not one of the men 

 employed could probably do the work in a 

 week or even in a month — it is not tlieir 

 trade. I believe that this city work is gen- 

 eralh' as honestly conducted as the average 

 of work in private life would be under such 

 a system. Indeed I regard the attacks on the 

 men often unjust, considering how, and in what 

 manner they get into their positions. They work 

 very hard to get into the places and positions 

 they occui)y. It costs the commissioners many a 

 hard day's work, many a sleepless night, and 

 much money. Korean they get these positions 

 without much help from their less fortunate fel- 

 lows. The poorer men go round among their fel- 

 lows and talk for their patrons, and their only re- 

 ward is to get work if their friend gets into the 

 coveted office. I said to one of these city officers 

 notlongsince, woulditnotbe justas well if he em- 

 ployed men who knew something, to do this work? 

 But he explained that he would rather have them 

 if all otlier things were equal, but he '' could not 

 not. go back on his friends." He admitted that 

 he had been anxious to get the position he occu- 

 pied. It was one he said, of honor, and though 

 the salary was but ^1,500 a year, he could put his 

 knowledge of men and things to such good ac- 

 count that he had "made money fast;" but he 

 " would defy any one to show that he had not 

 made every dollar he had honestly." 



It seems to me that the whole matter resolves 

 itself to this, that those who work the hardest 

 for otRces get them ; and. that they then take care 

 of those who help them along. If the man who 

 "understands his business'' happens to be in 

 with this crowd, he has a chance of being the 

 right man in the right place. If not, the wrong 

 man gets there. 



I would like to see the public parks and gar- 

 dens of our country better. It is painful to see 

 them so often in a condition that would disgrace 

 a poverty stricken family in a back alle}^; but it 

 seems to me the remedy lies not in abusing the 

 poor wretches who, by dint of bard work have 

 got into an " office," but we should rather blame 

 that system which makes such a successful result 

 to individual elibrt possible. 



Sorghum and Maize Sugar.— The Commis- 

 sioner of Agriculture, has published a circular 

 letter showing what has been done towards 

 manufacturing sugar from Indian corn and Sor- 

 ghum. Sugar can be ol)taii:ed from a large num- 

 ber of plants, but so far no process has been 

 discovered to make the article cheap enough to 

 compare with ordinary cane sugar. Sorghum 

 has had some success as against ordinary cane 

 molasses, but it barely holds its own. We do 

 not find by this report that the cost of produc- 

 tion has been materially reduced over that of 

 past times. We are told that the total cost of 

 production "should not" exceed two and one- 

 half to three cents per pound, and that there 

 " ought to be " a ton of sugar to the acre of 

 ground, if the instructions issued by the depart- 

 ment be carefully followed. This makes the 

 cost about SGO per acre, At the- present time 

 such sugar can be bought in any wholesale mar- 

 ket at about eight cents per pound. It is the 

 general experience with all farm products that 

 after transportation, commissions and other ex- 

 penses of marketing are paid, only about one- 

 half the market rate comes to the producer. 

 Often he thinks himself well off to get this. It" 

 we allow two cents per pound as the final profit 

 to the producer, it only yields a profit of about 

 $40 per acre, and this is no more than an average 

 crop of corn ought to produce, and much less 

 than the profit when " instructions for good cul- 

 ture are carefully followed." But there is still 

 another point to be considered; eight cents per 

 pound is the rate now. If we double the pro- 

 duct we cheapen the demand, and the price will 

 therefore fall with the increased product. 



The department deserves great praise for its 

 endeavors to have the subject carefully investi- 

 gated. And though we do not see that what 

 has been done has advanced us far, good may 

 come out of it all in time, and the Commissioner 

 has our hearty commendation for his endeavors 

 in this direction. 



Political Economy. — The learned works 

 on the science of political economy, like works 

 on all other sciences have to be re-written from 

 time to time, as new facts come forward to 

 modify old ones. Some curious results have 

 been found to follow in Canada from the import 

 duties on garden produce from the United States. 

 The Canadians at one time produced little of 

 these, because, said they, " where is the use 

 when Americans can raise these things cheaper 

 than we can?" So they enacted import duties, 



