1896 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



233 



teud to small orders with perhaps less expense than 

 if we had to hire a big sti'ODg- man to do the work 

 himself. But where we give these very h)w prices- 

 prices, indeed, so close there is no margin left to 

 throw in a few cents for postage, in order that we 

 may contimie to give you tlii>se close prices will you 

 not be careful to include the lew cents needed to 

 pay for postage and packing- ? 



SWEET CLOVER. 



Once more tliere is being so much sweet clover 

 ordeied that it not only surprises me but it arouses 

 curiosity. Another thing-, the orders are coming- 

 from those who ordered large quantities last year. 

 Now, friends, will you please tell us what you do 

 with it — how you sow it, how you prepare the 

 ground, how much seed per acie, and anything else 

 of interest? Do yovi sow it for honey alone, or do 

 you find it valuable for stock? Please answer, a 

 great lot of you, that we may have your replies 

 published. 



SEED SWEET POTATOES. 



As there seems to be much inquiry in regard to 

 seed sweet potatoes for bedding, and as it will soon 

 be time to put them out, we offer them as follows: 

 By mail, 1 lb,. Yellow Jersey, 20 cts. ; 3 lbs , 50 cts. ; 

 by express or freight, V2 peck, .50 cts. ; peck, 90 cts. ; 

 X bushel. $1.3.5. The vinelcss yam or buncli sweet 

 potato. 1 lb., by mail, 2.") cts. ; 3 lbs., fiO cts. ; V2 peck, 

 by freight or express, 6 ) cts. ; peck, $1.00: % l:)ushel, 

 SI. 50. For Ijushel and barrel lots, see advertisement 

 of L. H, Mahan, Terre Haute, Ind., in this issue. 



GOVERNMENT BULLETINS OF VALUE TO THE FARM- 

 ER AND GARDENER. 



First we have Bulletin No. 35, entitled "Potato 

 Culture," from Washington, D. C. This covers the 

 ground completely— that is, as completely as pos- 

 siijle in a pamphlet of about tweiitj' pages. The 

 concluding summary is exceedingly valuable. Of 

 course, its teachings are not directly all in line with 

 those of our potato book by T. B. Terry. But the 

 fact is, the average farmer will not follow T. B. 

 Terry; but this bulletin gives sound sensilile advice 

 in regard to the plan he is already working on, and 

 probably will work on. In fact, it makes it an easy- 

 step belore taking- Terry's system. 



The other bulletin that pleases me is from the 

 University of Minnesoca, and is entitled "Insects 

 Injurious in 1895." It mentions all the troublesome 

 insects, cut^worms, etc., that have bothered us the 

 past season : and its suggestions for combatting 

 these pests are about as sensible and plain as any 

 thing that has ever appeared in print, and I have 

 reviewed almost all the books and pamphlets on 

 this subject. Address Agricultural Experiment 

 Station, St. Anthony Park, Ramsey Co., Minn. It is 

 mailed free to all residents of Minnesota, and they 

 will probably tell you under what conditions people 

 from other States can get it. It is illustrated witli 

 numerous wood-cuts, and in the back i)ait are some 

 most beautiful half-tone pictures of the plants. In- 

 sects, and machinery. 



BLUE VITRIOL AND PARIS GREEN. 



As it is now time to begin to think about spraying 

 our trees, it occurred to me our friends might like 

 to know wliat they ought to pay for the above arti- 

 cles, good quality. Blue vitriol (sulphate of copper) 

 is wortli by the barrel about 4 cts. per lb., wholesale. 

 With the steady demand there is for it, your drug- 

 gist should not charge j'ou more than 7 or 8 cts. for 

 it by the single pound; and you ought to get 4 lbs. 

 for about an even 25 cts. A good quality of Paris 

 green is worth 15>^ cts. at wholesale. It should 

 retail at from 20 to 25 cts. for a single pound, or 6 

 lbs. for $100. If your druggist will not put it up 

 for you at the above figures we shall be glad to do 

 so. For larger lots than 4 or 5 lbs. we will make a 

 special low rate. 



J. S. SMITH, OF PADEIiFOBD'S, N. Y. 



This man, whose advertisement has already ap- 

 peared in Gleanings, offers an "early thoiough- 

 bred " potato, which is all right— that is, there is 

 nothing so very wrong in naming his potato after 

 Wm. Henry Maule's Early Thoroughbred. (In his 

 circular he spells Mr. Maule's name JM<(it'?e.) But 

 when he uses T. B. Terry's name and mine to pufC 

 it, without the knowledge or consent of either of 

 us, it is a rather serious matter. Mr. Smitli says he 

 raised these potatoes last year, and that they gave 

 "a yield rating over 300 bushels jier acre." The po- 

 tato that he calls "thoroughbred." and offers for a 

 third the price of the genuine article, may be a good 

 potato. I hope it is; but neither Tiny nor I ever 

 knew or heard of it. I liiive written to him repeat- 

 edly, and have protested in regard to the course he 

 has taken; but as I can get from him only evasive 

 and ambiguous answeis, I finally told him I should 

 publish him unless he stopped using my name. 

 But he still keeps sending out these circuhirs. 

 Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap; 

 and I think it will be well to let these parties reap 

 the consequences of this manner of doing business. 

 We are pleased to see the recent vigorous steps that 

 are being taken to punish frauds in the food we eat. 

 Shall not similar steps be taken to punish frauds in 

 the seeds we buy to plant ? 



cow PEAS (SOUTHERN STOCK PEA OF THE SOl'TH, 

 ALSO CALLED HONEY PEA). 



These have lieen in our list of honey-plants for 

 manj' years past. With us they make a tremendous 

 amount of foliage and blossoms, but seldom ripen 

 th^ peas fit for seed. There has been so much inter- 

 est manifested in them of late for fodder, and for 

 plowing under, that we have just obtained a special 

 low rate. Postpaid by mail, 15c per lb.; by freight 

 or express, peck, 40c; Y2 Ijushel, 75c; Ijushel, f 1.25. 

 The above is for the varieties called Wonderful and 

 Whippoorwill. We can furnish the clay and mixed 

 peas in bushel lots at $1.00 per b\ishel. In quantities 

 of one bushel or more, tliey will be shipped from 

 Goldsboro, N. C Or if you prefer you can order 

 direct from T. B. Parker, same address, whose ad- 

 vertisement will be found in this issue. 



ELECTRO-MEDICAL, FRAUDS. 



I have not kept still of late in regard to this mat- 

 ter because Electropoise and kindred swindles were 

 killed out, but because I thought it unwise to cum- 

 ber our journal with more in regard to the matter 

 just now. We may feel encoursiged. however, be- 

 cause the greater part of the religious papers have 

 already dropppd Electropoise. In fact, I see it now 

 only ill the Go/i/ot Rule; and the advertising man- 

 ager excuses himself on the ground that the thing 

 is as respectable as of/icr "patent medicines." It 

 seems to me the above is rather "heavy "on the 

 patent-medicine peo])le. In the last numlier of 

 Electricity there is something sodii-ectly tothe point 

 that we copy it below: 



We all remember what shame the maiiafremont of the Elec 

 trioal Department of the World's Fair brougrht upon all true 

 Americ.in eki-tricians in permitting the exhibition of electro- 

 medical frauds side by side with b-Kitiniate apiiarfitns; how 

 the blush was brouprht to Dur cbeek when, on invitation by 

 the head of the deiiai tnient, we attended a collation and 

 found aniongr the ^iie-ts. equ;»lly bonoreil with ourselves, the 

 promoters ot these same liauds. We remember how pleased 

 we were that Rilvanus Thompson had courage enough to 

 openly resent this insult to professional dignity, ami how the 

 flush of shame upon the faces of American electricians 

 heightened when the assistant to the chief arose in defense of 

 the •' electric 1 elt " 



Later, aftei- the Exposition was over. Prof. Elihu Thompson, 

 one of the most iionored of America's electrici.ans. and thrice 

 honored because of these words, said in the Engineering 

 Magazine : 



" The one discordant note In all this great display of genu- 

 ine scientific and engineering work was found in the f.act that 

 in this same lemple of science— in Electricity Building itself— 

 naked imposture, rpiackery in the foim of so called electrical 

 belts, hair-brushes, insoles, and what not, had obtained a foot- 

 ing, and stalked forth mmbashed. No woi ds of condemnation 

 can be too strong to be applied to the parasites who in the 

 guise of healing and benefaction, succeed in extracting per- 

 haps the last money from the sick and suffering for their 

 worthless trumpery " 



The Electrical Enginkkr, in August, ISM. printed a descrip- 

 tion of an electrical hairbrush, aud gave it semi-e<litorial in- 

 dorsement; and the ELRCTRrCAL World, which has done noth- 

 ing to create luiblic sentiment against impositions of this 

 kind, upon learning that an English judge had sentenced an 

 electric belt manufai-turer to five years' venal servitudb, 

 said : " What a blessing it would be if we had such courts and 

 1 1 ws in this country !" 



Will our contemporaries arise and lend a hand in extermi- 

 nating this vermin ! Come, gentlemen, show that you have a 

 little manhood left. Come into the tight, and redeem your- 

 selves— you can not lose advertising by it; you may do good. 



I remember feeling so indignant while in Elec- 

 tricity Building that for a time I wanted to turn 

 round and go home in disgust, with the World's Fair 

 and everything else. Well, you will notice Ijy the 

 above that I was not the only one who felt like 

 "blushing for shame " at the sight of these hypo- 

 critical devices, standing side by side with real hon- 

 est inventions. 



