18S1.1 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



i03 



place their property beyond the reach of dan- 

 ger; who are as anxious to liave their lands 

 free from any danger that might be acciden- 

 tally inflicted; who are as anxious to prcsurve 

 the purity of the pure waters of their moun- 

 tain streams ; who are anxious to protect the 

 tinny inhabitants of their rivers and creeks ; 

 who are as anxious for their well-being and 

 for the welfan^ of the community as men gen- 

 erally are, when in tlwir own localities for 

 miles about them the country is overspreiul 

 by a complete net work of pipe lines, should 

 be totally ignorant ol all the evils and mishai)S 

 from pipe lines which have befallen the people 

 of Southern New York and the dangers and 

 -inconveniences from which we are told these 

 people suffer from this one pipe line alone. 



The Standard Oil Company has combined 

 with the railroad corporations and has com- 

 plete control of the oil business. It has 

 amassed an enormous amount of wealth and 

 to-day owns the pipe lines running from the 

 oil regions to Pittsburg, to Cleveland, to Buf- 

 falo and to New York— thus holding in its 

 grip the main avenues through which this 

 staple product of a full dozen counties of our 

 State finds its way to the markets. This pow- 

 erful corporation has to-day a complete mo- 

 noply of the buying, shipping, refining and 

 selling of million of dollars' worth of oil. [s 

 there any wonder that it had its paid lobbyists 

 on the floor of the Pennsylvania Legislature, 

 where it had already done so much in the 

 past to debauch and disgrace the representa- 

 tives of the people? Is there any wonder 

 that tliis tyrannical and grinding monopoly 

 has its salaried agents in the eastern counties 

 of Pennsylvania, there to manufacture a false 

 sentiment by misleading the people and to 

 scare timid legislators from what they all 

 should have seen to be, and what I know 

 nearly all felt to be, their iilaiu and imperative 

 duty. 



The Standard, too, owns rights of way to 

 lay pipe-lines from the oil regions to Balti- 

 more and Philadelphia. These rights of way 

 were bought from the land owners, and the 

 lines can be built whenever they choose. 

 Why should not other citizens of our State en- 

 joy the same privileges? Why should not 

 private individuals, who have their capital 

 invested in this important interest in our 

 State, have the same right as the Standard 

 Oil Company has? It might also be inquired 

 why cannot others too buy rights of way to 

 build pipe-lines to the seaboard? To this I 

 reply that the Standard Oil Company has 

 bought strips of land across the State of which 

 it has the exclusive right of way, and unless 

 by legislation you allow others to build pipe- 

 lines, vesting them with the right of eminent 

 domain so that when they do build and come 

 to a strip of land owned by the Standard 

 they can cross that line upon payment of 

 damages, which they now cannot do, all in- 

 dividual producers are at . the mercy of the 

 Standard monoply. Why should this region 

 of wealth not have a free and unobstructed 

 outlet? Why should its richness to which 

 Pennsylvania can lay a just claim be locked 

 up for the express purpose of feeding and fat- 

 tening a foreign corporation which refuses to 

 pay its share of revenue into the State Treas- 

 ury? Why should there be no encourage- 

 ment given to the investment of Pennsylvania 



I capital in one of its most important indus- 

 tries? Why. we may further ask, should there 

 bono protection given to Pennsylvania capital 

 already invested? The individual oil produ- 

 cers, most of whom arc permanent residents 

 of our own State, cannot successfully compete 

 with this gigantic corporation, composed al- 

 most entirely of outsiders and foreigners. 



IjCt a free pipe-line be enacted into a law, 

 so that this gigantic monopoly will bo defeat- 

 ed, so that Pennsylvania oil producers will 

 be protected; so that Pennsylvania oil con- 

 sumers (and this includes the agricultur.al dis- 

 tricts) will bo shielded from the imposition of 

 paying two prices for their oil instead of one; 

 so that the investment of Pennsylvania cap- 

 ital will be encouraged, so that Pennsylvania 

 refineries may be erected and Pennsylvania 

 workingmeu given omyloyment, instead of 

 robbing Pennsylvania labor of employment 

 to which it can justly lay the strongest claim. 

 I fear the near future will force issues u])on 

 us alongside of which will dwindle into insig- 

 nificance the flimsy considerations of a little 

 trench being dug through a farm, a spot where 

 the air maybe slightly odorized with oil or the 

 particles of oil flowing upon the waters of a 

 few streams. This, I venture the prediction, 

 is merely the beginning of the great issue of 

 the future between the people on the one hand 

 and the grinding monopolies and oppressive 

 corporations on the other. Not an unjust or 

 unreasonable warfare against our corpora- 

 tions, which have done so much to develop 

 our resources and to build up our industries, 

 but an honest determination to teack those 

 soulless powers that they are the mere crea- 

 tures of the Commonwealth instead of master, 

 and that, while the Commonwealth will pro- 

 tect them in the full enjoyment of their cor- 

 porate rights, the Commonwealth, too, has 

 rights which they are bound to respect and 

 laws enacted whicli they must obey. 



Selections. 



TOBACCO CULTURE. 

 How to Grow the Coming Crop. 



Cultivation of the tobacco field should be- 

 gin as soon as the young plants have taken 

 root and begun to grow. This is from eight 

 to fourteen days after setting out, depending 

 much upon the weather, and may easily be 

 told from the changed appearance put on by 

 the plant. The care or carelessness with 

 wliich they are set out also has much to do 

 with their early start. When planted with- 

 out due attention being given to placing the 

 roots in their natural position, the plant is 

 frequently set back for weeks, much to the 

 surprise of the farmer, who can't understand 

 why some plants are so thrifty and others so 

 backward. Most frequently careless plant- 

 ing is the cause why some plants remain small 

 and sickly-looking the entire season through. 

 Early Culture Necessary. 



But in return, early cultivation is import- 

 ant. No matter whether the (ield is grassy 

 or not, nothing brings the plants along faster 

 than early and thorough cultivation. The 

 ground has bex;orae more or less hardened and 

 must be loosened up. It is not necessary to 

 go deep, however, only the surface soil should 

 be stirred; the sub-soil must be left intact. 



Almost any implement tliat does the work ef- 

 fectually may be used. A cultivator is most 

 commonly employed for this purpose. The 

 preference in the South is often given to the 

 turning plow, especially when tlie fields are 

 grassy. The fact is, it matterslittle what the 

 name of the implement is, so that it stirs the 

 soil thoroughly and effectually destroys or 

 keeps down the grass and weeds. Old land 

 generally requires more cultivation than new, 

 but the careful farming practiced in Lancas- 

 ter county, as a rule, renders the grass and 

 weeds easy of extirpation. 



Use of the Hoe. 

 The hoe is a most important implement in 

 the tobacco field. The cultivator does effectual 

 work between the rowsj but cannot be allowed 

 to approach the plants too nearly, lest the 

 tender rootlets should be torn or disturbed. 

 The earth around the plant cakes, and must 

 be loosened to permit both sun-light and mois- 

 ture to produce their best effects. To do this 

 the hoe is called into requisition.. All grass 

 that grows close to the plant must be removed 

 by hand in order not to endanger the latter 

 through a careless blow with the hoe. In 

 loosening up the earth around the plants care 

 must be taken to carefully replace as much as 

 may have been drawn away during the opera- 

 tion. All dirt that may have been thrown 

 upon any of the leaves must be carefully re- 

 moved. The ridges must also be hoed down 

 and the surface made level. Level cultiva- 

 tion looks much more workman-like and pleas- 

 ant to the eye. Wlien the hoe is employed 

 for the first time it is not necessary to stir the 

 soil much around the plants, but this must 

 be more freely done during the suljsequent 

 hoeing. About two weeks after the first cul- 

 tivation, when the leaves are ten to twelve 

 inches long, the cultivator and hoe must again 

 be sent into the fields and the operfttions 

 already described be repeated. Sometimes no 

 other cultivation is necessary, but we advise 

 no one to rest here, even though liis field looks 

 clean. The more foul the field the oftener it 

 must be gone over. In fact, it may be laid 

 down as a rule that yon cannot cultivate too 

 often or too much. It is better for the ground 

 and better for the tobacco. Well pulverized 

 soil is one of the most important items that 

 enter into a profitable tobacco crop. As the 

 plants grow larger, it is well to employ a 

 shorter singletree in order that they may sus- 

 tain no harm from that cause, and in this way 

 the process of cultivation may go on until it 

 becomes impossible longer to pass through the 

 rows with a horse. This careful cultivation 

 also brings into notice any diseased or imper- 

 fect plants. All such ought to be removed, 

 and their places supplied with large, vigorous 

 plants held in reserve for this purpose. Such 

 as have the centre bud destroyed, either by 

 insects or accidents, will be likely to throw 

 out a number of suckers instead; all such must 

 be at once replaced-. In short, there must 

 be no vacant hills, and. none with imperfect 

 plants on them. A few hundred missing 

 plants in a small field, or more in a large one, 

 make a large hole in the farmer's profits at the 

 end of the season. Should any vegetation 

 si)ring up after the tobacco ha.s reached its full 

 growth, it is not necessary to remove it, as it 

 is no longer able to harm the crop, and may 

 even V)e beneficial in keeping the lower leaves 



