1892 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER. 
79 
Notes  from  the  Rural  Grounds. 
Potato  Experiments  During-  a  Dry  Season 
and  in  a  Variable  Soil. 
* 
Does  the  hig-h -grade  potato  fertilizer  fur¬ 
nish  enough  nitrogen  ? 
* 
Trials  with  Mapes’s,  Bowker’s  and  Brad¬ 
ley’s  mixed  together  as  compared 
with  each  used  separately. 
* 
Moisture  during  a  dry  season  of  more 
value  than  fertilizers. 
* 
SERIES  IV. 
It  is  reasonably  claimed  that  better  crops 
may  be  raised  from  fertilizers  made  up  of 
different  forms  of  each  of  the  three  essen¬ 
tial  kinds  of  plant  food  than  from  those 
made  up  of  one  form  of  each.  That  is  to 
say,  it  is  better  to  give  phosphoric  acid 
both  as  superphosphate  and  phosphate 
than  either  alone.  So,  too,  as  to  nitrogen 
and  potash.  In  this  way,  it  is  assumed, 
an  available  supply  is  more  likely  to  be 
secured  for  the  plant  at  all  stages  of 
growth.  For  example,  if  the  fertilizer  is 
supplied  with  nitrate  of  soda,  sulphate 
of  ammonia  and  blood,  the  roots  will  get 
their  first  nitrogen  from  the  nitrate  of 
soda  and  later  from  the  sulphate  of  am¬ 
monia  and  blood,  these  being  less  soluble 
and  so  serving  to  keep  up  a  ready  diet 
during  the  entire  growing  season.  Now 
each  dealer  (manufacturer)  of  fertilizers 
claims  a  special  value  for  his  own  goods 
owing  to  special  treatment,  combination 
or  methods,  or  the  superiority  of  the  raw 
materials  used.  It  might  be  supposed, 
therefore,  that  a  combination  of  all  these 
excellencies  would  give  larger  crops  than 
the  fertilizer  of  any  single  manufacturer. 
The  following  trials  (96  to  103  inclusive) 
were  designed  to  investigate  this  question. 
Trench  No.  96—440  pounds  of  Mapes,  Bradley  and 
Stockbridge,  1.  e.,  146 )6  pounds  of  each,  mixed  to¬ 
gether. 
Yield,  per  acre,  barge  potatoes .  306.16 
Yield,  per  acre.  Small  potatoes .  62.33 
Total  yield,  per  acre . 368.49 
(Four  rotten,) 
No.  97.— 880  pounds  of  the  three,  293)4  pounds  of  each. 
Yield,  per  acre,  barge  potatoes . .  ..  276.83 
Yield,  per  acre.  Small  potatoes .  84.33 
Total  yield,  per  acre . 361.16 
(Two  rotten.) 
No.  98. — 1,320  pounds  of  the  three,  i.  e.,  440  pounds  of 
each. 
Yield,  per  acre.  Large  potatoes .  283.33 
Yield,  per  acre.  Small  potatoes .  82.50 
Total  yield,  per  acre .  365.83 
No  99.— 440  pounds  of  the  three. 
110  pounds  nitrate  soda. 
Yield,  per  acre.  Large  potatoes .  261.16 
Yield,  per  acre.  Small  potatoes .  51.33 
Total  yield,  per  acre .  ....  302.49 
No.  100.— 880'pounds  of  the  three. 
220  pounds  nitrate  soda. 
Yield,  per  acre.  Large  potatoes .  293.33 
Yield,  per  acre.  Small  potatoes .  44 
Total  yield,  per  acre . 337.33 
No.  101.— 1,320  pounds  of  the  three. 
330  pounds  nitrate  soda. 
Yield,  per  acre.  Large  potatoes .  320.83 
Yield,  per  acre.  Small  potatoes .  42.16 
Total  yield,  per  acre .  362.99 
No.  102.— No  fertilizer. 
Yield,  per  acre.  Large  potatoes .  315.33 
Yield,  per  acre.  Small  potatoes .  38.50 
Total  yield,  per  acre .  353.83 
(Four  rotten.) 
The  average  yield  of  the  six  fertilizer 
trenches  is  at  the  rate  of  349.71  bushels 
to  the  acre.  The  yield  of  the  unfertilized 
trench'was  353.83,  or  a  difference  in  favor 
of  “no  fertilizers”  of  4.12  bushels  to 
the  acre.  The  average  fertility  of  the 
soil,  as  shown  by  the  ‘ 1  no'  manure  ” 
trenches  of  the  first  series  was  209.91  ;  of 
the  second  series,  263.38;  of  the  third, 
281.72,  and  of  the  fourth  (present),  353.83 
bushels  to  the  acre.  In  the  first  series, 
the  fertilized  trenches  yielded  84.43 
bushels  more  than  the  unfertilized ;  in 
the  second,  63.28  more  than  the  unfertil¬ 
ized  ;  in  the  third  series,  110  bushels  more 
than  the  unfertilized.  And  now  in  the 
fourth  series,  the  unfertilized  trench 
yielded  4.12  bushels  more  than  the  fer¬ 
tilized. 
It  must  be  considered,  in  partial  ex¬ 
planation  of  the  above  showing,  that  the 
natural  soil  fertility  increases  with  every 
series,  viz.  : 
Bushels  per  acre. 
Series  1 . 269.91  » 
Series  2 .  263.38 
Series  3 .  281.72 
Series  4 . 353,83 
It  will  be  seen,  also,  that  the  yield  pel 
acre  from  the  effects  of  the  fertilizers  dimin¬ 
ishes  as  the  natural  soil  fertility  increases. 
The  entire  plot  is  nearly  square,  the 
four  sides  facing  north,  south,  east  and 
west.  The  land  slopes  gently,  almost  im¬ 
perceptibly,  from  east  to  west,  and  from 
northeast  to  southwest.  Series  I.  occu¬ 
pied  the  northernmost  portion,  II.,  III., 
and  IV.  following  in  the  order  given.  It 
was  thought  that  the  soil  of  Series  I.  was 
the  driest,  as  it  was  a  trifle  the  highest. 
A  ditch  on  the  west  was  dug  three  years 
ago  cto  carry  away  the  surface  water, 
which  in  previous  years  was  held  in  a 
shallow  basin,  towards  the  west  and 
southwest. 
VINE  GROWTH. 
As  in  the  first,  second  and  third  series, 
the  conditions  of  the  vines  was  estimated 
by  three  persons,  as  previously  stated, 
on  June  14,  10  denoting  the  maximum, 
and  one  the  minimum  of  size  and  vigor  : 
No.  96 .  756  No.  99 .  7*4  No.  101 . 956 
No.  97 .  No.  100 . 8J6  No.  102 .  4% 
No.  98 .  9)6 
Clothed  in  Paper. 
I  have  worn  paper  clothes  for  the  past 
three  winters,  and  am  now  wearing  them 
and  consider  them  the  warmest  clothing 
I  have  ever  worn.  The  first  vest  I  bought 
I  liked  so  well  that  I  concluded  to  try 
paper  blankets,  which  are  used  between 
woolen  blankets,  and  my  family  find  them 
the  lightest  and  warmest  winter  covering 
we  ever  had.  Rheumatism  troubled  me 
in  the  shoulder  joints  in  the  mornings 
the  first  year  I  wore  a  paper  vest.  This 
was  undoubtedly  owing  to  the  fact  that 
my  arms  were  not  clad  as  warmly  as  the 
rest  of  the  body.  The  following  winter 
(that  of  1890-’91)  I  got  my  wife  to  make 
sleeves  for  the  vest  out  of  part  of  a  paper 
blanket.  The  result  was  that  I  had  no 
rheumatism  that  winter.  The  majority 
of  my  neighbors  and  acquaintances  have 
had  la  grippe,  but  I  have  successfully 
defied  both  Chicago  weather  and  the 
epidemic,  although  I  have  worn  no  over¬ 
coat  this  entire  season. 
This  winter  I  have  carried  out  the 
theory  of  having  all  parts  of  my  body 
equally  well  covered.  My  wife  at  first 
assured  me  drawers  could  not  be  made 
of  paper,  yet  they  have  been  made  and 
are  being  worn  with  much  satisfaction 
and  pleasure. 
Paper  clothing  is  cheap  enough  to  enable 
one  to  destroy  it  when  it  has  been  soiled 
through  use,  which  renders  it  hygienic. 
A  sateen  double-lined  vest  costs  $1.50, 
while  an  overcoat  usually  costs  about  $15 
or  more.  A  pair  of  paper  blankets  cost 
$2,  while  woolen  blankets  are  not  of  much 
account  at  the  price  of  $6  per  pair. 
I  would  recommend  The  Rural  readers 
to  try  this  clothing.  Paper  will  be  as 
warm  on  the  person  as  on  the  houses  and 
barns.  Of  course,  a  specially  prepared 
paper  is  used,  although,  for  the  sake  of 
experimenting,  if  a  trial  is  made  of  wrap¬ 
ping  a  newspaper  round  the  body  when 
forced  to  drive  to  town  on  a  cold  day,  an 
idea  will  be  got  of  its  value.  My  vest  is 
worn  over  a  woolen  undershirt,  which 
absorbs  any  perspiration,  and  under  an 
ordinary  white  shirt.  Worn  in  this  man¬ 
ner  it  does  not  interfere  with  working, 
like  an  overcoat,  and  my  experience  has 
been  that  there  is  less  liability  of  catch¬ 
ing  cold.  I  am  now  wearing  the  same 
vest  I  did  last  winter,  and  we  are  using 
our  paper  blankets  the  second  year,  and 
didn’t  have  to  get  them  washed  during 
summer  either.  R.  syde. 
Eye  Winkers. 
Justice  for  the  Cat.— The  rules  and  regulations 
governing  the  exhibits  of  live  stock  for  premiums  at 
the  Columbian  Exposition,  as  issued  by  the  Board  of 
Managers,  say  :  “The  Exposition,  being  of  an  inter¬ 
national  character,  it  is  desirable  that  every  species, 
breed,  variety  and  family  of  animals,  domestic  and 
otherwise,  throughout  the  world,  be  represented 
thereat.”  Yet  cats  are  not  down  in  the  lists  at  all. 
Surely  if  “  a  cat  can  look  at  a  king,”  she  ought  to  be 
permitted  to  look  on  this  exhibition  of  a  “  free  and 
independent  Republic.”  Horses,  cattle,  sheep,  swine, 
goats,  dogs— 12  classes  and  41  breeds  ;  poultry,  14 
classes  ;  pigeons,  24  classes ;  hares  and  rabbits, 
seven  breeds :  guinea  pigs,  prairie  dogs,  ferrets, 
squirrels  and  rats,  all  have  places  provided  for  them, 
and  premiums  offered  for  the  best,  but  there  is  no 
room  for  cats .  No  Tabby,  Tortoise-shell,  Chartreuse 
I  Manx,  or  Angora  cat  classes  appear  on  the  lists  pur¬ 
porting  to  cover  “every  species  and  family  of  animals, 
domestic  or  otherwise,  throughout  the  world.”  Cer¬ 
tainly  the  lack  of  antiquity  of  cats  cannot  be  the 
reason  for  their  exclusion,  since  reference  Is  made  to 
them  In  Sanskrit  writings  2.000  years  old,  and  cat 
mummies  even  older  have  been  found  ;  for  the 
Egyptians  embalmed  their  cats  after  death,  and  built 
temples  to  their  honor  In  life  :  nor  can  the  lack  of 
care  and  affection  bestowed  on  them  by  the  people  of 
many  nations  be  the  cause  of  such  oversight.  Pope 
Pius  IX.,  whose  cat  ate  at  the  table  beside  his  master: 
and  a  late  President  of  these  United  States,  who 
moved  his  cat  to  the  White  House  with  his  other 
necessary  belongings;  and  that  Chlcagoian,  who  dur¬ 
ing  the  great  lire,  bade  the  firemen,  seeking  to  rescue 
his  safe  of  valuable  papers  and  jewels  from  the  flames, 
to  “let  that  go  and  get  out  my  cat besides  all  the 
spinsters  and  witches  who  have  lavished  their  sur¬ 
plus  affections  on  these  creatures,  show  the  import¬ 
ance  attached  to  them  by  many  people.  Their  utility 
as  exterminators  of  vermin  is  too  well-known  to  need 
repeating.  Now  1  think  this  Board  of  Managers  ought 
to  be  called  on  to  “  rise  and  explain”  or  to  erase  from 
their  “  Rules,  Information  and  Premium  List  for  the 
Department  of  Live  Stock  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition,”  that  clause  relating  to  “every  species  of 
animals.”  JUSTICE. 
THE  following  “suggestion”  comes  from  Connecti¬ 
cut:  “What  wo  want  in  this  section  is  information  that 
is  practical  and  will  enable  us  to  make  $10  with 
no  more  labor  than  we  now  expend  to  get  $5.  If  The 
Rurai,  can  tell  how  to  do  this  on  each  page,  I  think 
it  can  double  Its  subscription  list.”  This  is  the 
knowledge  we  are  all  seeking  for.  The  trouble  is 
that  most  of  us  never  “know  a  good  thing  when  wo 
see  It.” 
The  London  Live  Stock  Journal  relates  how,  in  1874, 
supplies  for  a  company  of  troops  were  carried  over 
a  pass  in  the  great  Himalaya  range  of  mountains 
on  the  backs  of  sheep.  Each  sheep  carried  a  load  of 
20  pounds  for  20  miles  a  day,  over  rough  and  stony 
paths.  One  man  handled  30  sheep.  In  this  country 
and  England  sheep  have  rarely  been  worked  except 
an  occasional  round  in  a  “  dog  power,”  people  being 
satisfied  with  a  double  product  of  wool  and  mutton. 
Fattening  a  Boar.— In  an  old  English  book 
printed  in  1727.  we  are  told  how  to  fatten  a  boar  to 
make  brawn  :  “  We  should  choose  an  old  boar;  for 
the  older  he  is  the  more  horny  will  be  the  brawn.  We 
must  provide  a  Frank,  as  the  farmers  call  It;  and 
this  must  be  very  strong  to  keep  the  boar  safe.  It  is 
something  like  a  dog  kennel,  a  little  longer  than  the 
boar,  and  with  the  sides  so  close  that  he  cannot  turn 
round.  The  back  must  have  a  sliding  panel  to  take 
away  the  dung,  which  must  be  done  every  day. 
When  all  Is  very  secure,  put  in  your  boar;  and  let 
him  be  so  placed  that  he  can  never  see,  nor  even 
hear,  any  other  hogs.  He  must  have  as  many  peas 
and  ‘  flat ’  milk  as  is  necessary:  and  there  must  be 
always  meat  by  him.  When  he  decllnos  his  meat  the 
peas  must  be  left  off;  and  he  must  have  paste  of  bar¬ 
ley  meat  made  into  balls,  as  big  as  hen’s  eggs,  and 
the  skim-milk.”  Our  forefathers  thus  put  themselves 
on  record  as  opposed  to  “  exercise  for  fattening  ani¬ 
mals.” 
Any  one  of  these. 
Horticulturist’s  Rule  Book. 
Original  edition,  price,  $1. 
Horse  and  Cattle  Doctor. 
Price,  $1.50. 
Every  Man  His  Own  Lawyer. 
Price,  $1.50. 
Mrs.  Parker’s  Complete  Housekeeper. 
Price,  $1.50. 
The  Business  Hen. 
Price,  75  cents. 
The  New  Potato  Culture. 
Price,  75  cents. 
Everybody’s  Paint  Book. 
Price.  $1. 
Azalea  Culture. 
Price,  $2. 
Camellia  Culture. 
Price,  $2. 
Every  Woman  Her  Own  Flower 
Gardener.  Price,  $1. 
The  attention  of  manufacturers  is 
invited  to  the  following  : 
The  Escola  Agronomica  is  newly  es¬ 
tablished  on  a  fazenda  of  500  acres  in 
the  State  of  Sao  Paulo — the  richest  agri¬ 
cultural  region  of  Brazil.  It  is  organized 
in  the  interest  of  progressive  agricul¬ 
ture,  provides  a  scientific  course  of  four 
years  with  daily  labor  for  students,  and 
sets  apart  the  first  Saturday  of  evcr]i  month 
for  the  entertainment  of  visitors.  It  is  the 
first  college  of  the  kind  in  South  America, 
is  endowed  by  wealthy  and  influential 
citizens,  and  is  attracting  widespread 
attention. 
Among  other  things,  the  institution 
aims  to  introduce  better  implements  for 
the  cultivation  of  the  soil — especially  the 
tenacious  red  clays  of  the  rolling  lands — 
and  for  harvesting  and  handing  crops ; 
but  it  desires  first  to  ascertain  what  are 
best  suited  to  the  conditions  that  prevail. 
To  this  end  the  college  makes  the  fol¬ 
lowing  offer  to  the  manufacturer  of  any 
farming  tools  likely  to  succeed  :  If  you 
will  donate  the  sample  or  samples — made 
precisely  like  those  for  the  regular  trade 
— we  will  pay  all  cost  of  transportation, 
and  afford  every  facility  for  trial  and  ex¬ 
hibition,  the  tools  to  remain  the  property 
of  the  college. 
Shall  not  the  United  States  secure  her 
share  of  the  trade  sure  to  follow  this 
stimulus  to  the  introduction  of  improved 
machinery  ?  The  college  knows  of  no 
better  way  than  this  to  enable  her  to  do 
so  nor  to  give  all  an  equal  chance  to  dis¬ 
play  the  excellence  of  their  goods. 
Any  manufactui*ers  accepting,  please 
mark  goods  “  For  Escola  Agronomica, 
Piracicaba,  S.  P.  Brazil,  care  Sr.  Louiz 
Queiros,”  and  ship  to  the  Thompson  & 
Houston  Electrical  Company,  115  Broad¬ 
way,  New  York,  who  will  receive,  pay 
freight  and  forward.  Also  please  advise 
the  subscriber  by  letter  of  such  ship¬ 
ment,  and  of  terms  on  which  orders  will 
be  received. 
EUGENE  DAVENPORT,  Director. 
Any  two  of  these. 
Price,  25  to  40  cents  each. 
Chemicals  and  Clover. 
How  to  Plant  a  Place. 
Rats  and  Other  Pests  ;  how  to  destroy. 
Fisher’s  Grain  Tables. 
Scribner’s  Lumber  and  Log  Book. 
My  Handkerchief  Garden. 
The  New  Botany. 
Tuberous  Begonias. 
Modification  of  Plants  by  Climate. 
A  B  C  of  Strawberry  Culture. 
Grape  Culture. 
Art  of  Propagation. 
Cabbages  ;  How  to  Grow  Them. 
Bulb  Culture. 
Silos  and  Silage. 
Horses  and  Cattle. 
The  ordinarv  retail  price  of  the  three  books,  in  most  cases,  would 
be  quite  $2.  All  are  good  hooks,  full  of  practical  valuable  informa¬ 
tion  on  the  subjects  treated. 
To  recapitulate :  We  send  you  three  books,  worth  $2,  and  also  to 
your  neighbor  a  year’s  issue  of  The  R.  N.-Y.  worth  $2.  In  return, 
you  send  us  only  one  $2,  your  address  for  the  hooks,  and  your 
neighbor’s  address  for  The  Rural. 
We  want  and  must  have  that  100,000  Subscribers  for 
The  Rural  New-Yorker. 
vw*  IS  THIS  A  LIBERAL  OFFER? 
IS 
THIS 
LIBERAL? 
For  30  days  from  this  date,  i.  e.,  to  March  1,  we  will  give  all 
subscribers  to  The  Rural  New-Yorker  an  opportunity  to  get  two 
or  three  good  books  in  return  for  a  very  little  effort.  Here  it  is  :  To 
any  subscriber  whose  own  subscription  shall  then  be  paid  for  1 892, 
who  will  send  us  ONE  other  but  strictly  NEW  subscription  to  The 
Rural  New-Yorker  and  $2,  we  will  send  his  choice  of  any  one  book 
in  the  the  left-hand  column,  and  also  of  any  two  books  in  the  right- 
hand  column  ;  that  is,  three  books  in  all  ;  all  sent  prepaid. 
