"How much^^dyiiamite did it take?" asked one. 



"A half a pound," was the replj', "and time enough to affix the cap and charge the stump." 



"Are you going to clear No. 2 the same way, Mr. Fullerton?" asked one guest. 



"Ten acres are cleared, the dynamite has just come over from there," he replied. 



"How many acres have you in that piece?" 



"Eighty. It was the smallest we could buy. Ten of it will be market-garden and for the 70 we 

 are considering a plan to reforest and grow railroad timber. A 30 foot fire strip to check the annual 

 bum-over permitted by thoughtless or careless owners, will be cleared all round it and there we will 

 grow corn and such crops to pay for the clearing. Then all good specimens of oak and chestnuts and 

 enough pines and underbrush to give forest environment will be left. We think of planting European 

 larch, and will blow a hole to plant them in. Of course these trees want a protection of undergrovrth 

 just as all forest trees require, so we will do no clearing," said the farmer. 



"What do j'ou mean by blowing a hole, Mr. Fullerton?" 



"Why it struck me one day it would be a good sight easier and cheaper to blow a hole with a charge 

 of dynamite than try to dig one in that mess of undergrowth and roots, so Charlie and I went over into 

 the woods yonder and inserted a quarter of a pound at a 4.5 degree angle about 2 feet below the surface. 

 She tore up a hole ly^ to 3 feet in diameter, leaving perfectly pulverized soil fully 2 feet deep in which to 

 plant a tree. By putting the charge in a little flatter we secured even better results. With a helper 

 Kissam can make 250 holes a day at a cost of $12.12. We think Black Judson powder would do just as 

 welland would reduce the cost to $10.88 per 250 holes." 



"Great head!" was the reply. 



Returning from the dairy we go south along the division fence where we can see the cowpeas 

 making a brave struggle among the sprouts and ferns of an uncleared section. The sugar beets and 

 mangels are making fine growth, while the sweet pototoes dehght the hearts of Southerners and West- 

 erners. Sun-flowers, two long rows of them, which John and Mike had planted quickly one day, mak- 

 ing a dent with the heel, dropping the seed and pressing the earth over with the toe, were thriving 

 well. Astonishment at them was exhibited until we spoke of the use of the seed as poultry food, when 

 it was thoroughly understood. 



Now we come to the pride of our hearts, our own cauliflower, sprouts and cabbage seedlings, fields 

 as fair as man can look upon, plants stocky and vigorous enough to make one feel certain of "big returns." 



Squash and cucumbers in profusion, while corn just bearing, and limas filhng rapidly, brings us 

 to the orchard with its luxuriant tree growth and tomato vines laden with fruit and every inch of spare 

 space covered with crimson clover to be plowed under in the spring for green manure; berry vines, 

 asparagus, rhubarb, red carrots from China tasted as a rare treat and found as sweet as a parsnip, and 

 we are again back to the east of the house, where the tiny ever-blooming roses are making a good headway. 



Down into the cellar we usher our guests, where the transverse section of the soil calls forth fresh 

 exclamations of delight and wonder, and the bushels of vegetables prove that this is a market-garden 

 competing with and forcing recognition from the world at large. 



A drive through the beautiful old village of Wading River and up to the depot, where the farmer 

 accompanied his guests a portion of the way back to the city's turmoil, ended for these gentlemen what 

 I am sure was a unique day. 



Returning at eventide the Senior Partner brought with him a doubtful one, a Congressman of good 

 Quaker descent and a thorough believer in and earnest worker for Long Island, but "Fullerton's farm 

 stories are too big to believe," he said. 



"Seeing is believeing," and his tour of the farm drew from him a frank and delighted acknowledg- 

 ment that we had "produced the goods," and, like our visitor of a few hours earlier, he pronounced the 

 alfalfa, "the finest I have ever seen and I raise it in Kansas myself." 



The early potatoes having been dug, Mike spread some lime upon the patch, harrowing it in and 

 preparing it after our usual manner, ready to receive spinach. Though August is early for planting this 

 crop, we felt the irrigation plant would give us good aid. 



For the 8th the diary says: "Packed 2 crates fancy tomatoes, 2 home hampers, 2 bushels of lima 

 beans, 10 dozen ears of corn, and 2 barrels of cabbage." 



That may sound simple to the uninitiated, but in reality it means sorting the tomatoes, rejecting 

 all that are not perfect either in shape or otherwise, polishing the good ones, packing them in "4-quart" 

 baskets, 6 baskets to a crate. The hampers called for early potatoes sorted and washed, beets washed 

 and the tops slightly trimmed, beans packed with paraffined paper to prevent spilling, cabbage trimmed 

 and thoroughly washed, tomatoes polished, carrots and onions cleansed and trimmed. Beans are slow 

 to pick and like peas deserve to bring a high price in the markets. Corn was sorted and packed in a 

 crate, while all cabbages were thoroughly sprayed. Such was the packing required of No. 1 for the 

 label that goes on our packages we wish synonymous with "the best that can be produced." 



As an illustration of what a man can do in a day, the following from the 9th is fair: "Mike bor- 

 deauxed and paris greened all melons, sprouts, early cauliflower and cabbage, also cultivated nearly all 

 of acres eight and nine." Mike also had entire care of the horses and was our chief help in the packing. 



For days the weather had been overcast, hot and moist, true hothouse weather. The morning of 

 the 10th it seemed as though our entire hopes were to be blasted. I think I can give you nothing more 

 vivid than the report the over-wrought Senior Partner sent that day to Mr. Peters: 



General Conditions on Experiment Station No. 1, August 10, 1905. 

 "Mr. Ralph Peters, Pres., Long Island City. 



"Dear Sir: — The weather conditions prevailing throughout this the first year of the Long Island 

 Railroad Experimental Station No. 1 have certainly been abnormal and lately the astounding change 

 in vegetable growth, showing in a most marked manner probably because of one day's absence caused 

 by hospital visit on account of my ball and socket joint knee, made me feel that details should be re- 

 corded for your log book of No. 1. 



"The blight imported with celeriac from big commercial plant growers has extended to fine, healthy 



48 



