THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
May  28 
358 
Decoration  Day  on  the 
Farm. 
At  a  gathering  of  old  soldiers  in  Chi¬ 
cago  last  winter,  J.  Whitcomb  Riley,  in 
a  speech  on  the  Volunteer  Soldier,  gave 
the  following  word  picture  : 
“  The  scene  is  set  upon  the  farm — the 
old  home  place  where  a  race  of  patriots 
has  been  reared.  There  is  the  old  an¬ 
cestral  roof,  with  the  old  locusts  looming 
all  about  it,  w  ith  the  old  sweet  blossoms 
on  them,  and  the  old  bees  droning  there  ; 
the  old  door  yard  ;  the  old  porch,  and  the 
old  dog  sleeping  in  the  sun  ;  the  old  well- 
sweep,  the  little  garden  patch,  and  the 
old  orchard  just  beyond,  made  sacred  as 
the  family  burial  ground.  The  old  house 
is  very  full  of  quiet  now.  Sometimes  an 
old  man  comes  out  and  sits  upon  the 
porch  and  looks  wistfully  across  the 
fields  to  where  the  road  to  town  goes  by. 
Sometimes  an  old  woman  comes  out  and 
sits  there  with  him,  saint-like  and 
silent.  They  see  sometimes  a  neighbor 
driving  by,  and  know  him  by  his  horses  ; 
sometimes  they  see  goby— in  early  morn¬ 
ing  generally— two,  three,  five,  some¬ 
times  as  many  as  a  dozen  different 
wagons,  and  then  they  know  there  is  “a 
big  day”  in  town — maybe  an  old  settlers 
meeting,  a  political  rally,  or  Decoration 
Day.  Vague  rumors  reach  them  of  these 
alien  affairs  ;  but  they  are  always  inter¬ 
ested  to  hear  of  them— especially  of  Deco¬ 
ration  Day — the  more  so  since  it  seems 
this  old  home-keeping  couple  have 
never  yet  attended  this  annual  decora¬ 
tion  service  made  so  much  of  by  the  peo¬ 
ple  of  the  town.  Their  Decoration  Day 
experiences  the  old  man  might  sum  up 
like  this : 
It's  lonesome— sorto’  lonesome— It’s  a  Sund’y-day, 
to  me.  ,  , 
It  ’pears  like— more'n  any  day  I  nearly  ever  see! 
Yit.  with  the  Stars  and  Stripes  above,  a  flutterin’  In 
the  air,  _ 
On  ev’ry  soldier’s  grave  I’d  love  to  lay  a  lily  there. 
They  say.  though,  Decoration  Day  is  generally  ob- 
Most  every  whores— especially  by  soldier-boys  that's 
served — 
Hut  me  and  mother’s  never  went— we  seldom  git 
away—  .  .... 
In  pint  o'  fact,  we're  alius  home  on  Decoration  Day. 
They  sav  the  old  boys  marches  through  the  streets  In 
COlum’S  grand.  ,  ,  ,  .. 
A-follerin' the  old  war-tunes  they  re  playin  on  the 
band—  ,  .  , 
And  citizens  all  jlnln’  tn— and  little  chlldern.  too— 
All  machln’,  under  shelter  of  the  old  Red.  White  and 
Blue— 
With  roses!  roses!  roses!— ev’rybody  in  the  town  !— 
And  crowds  o'  girls  in  white,  jest  fairly  loaded 
down  ! — 
O!  don’t  the  boys  know  it,  from  their  camp  across 
the  hill? 
Don’t  they  see  their  com’ards  coming  and  the  old 
flag  wavin’  still  ? 
01  can’t  they  hear  the  bugle  and  the  rattle  of  the 
drum? —  ..... 
Ain’t  they  no  way  under  heaven  they  can  rickollect  us 
some  ?  ,  ..  , 
Ain’t  they  no  way  we  can  coax  em,  through  the 
roses,  jest  to  say  . 
They  know  that  every  day  on  earth  s  their  Decora- 
’  tion  Day 
We've  tried  that— me  and  mother— whore  Elias  takes 
his  rest  ,  .  .  . 
in  the  orchard— in  his  uniform,  and  hands  acrost  his 
breast,  „  , , 
And  the  flag  he  died  fer  smilin’  and  a-ripplin  in  the 
breeze  •  ,  ,  .  .. 
Above  his  grave— and,  over  that— the  robin  in  the 
trees ! 
And  yet  It’s  lonesome  lonesome!— It’s  a  Sund’y-day 
to  me,  , 
It  ’pears  like— more’n  any  day  1  nearly  ever  see!— 
Ylt,  with  the  Stars  and  Stripes  above,  a-flutterin  In 
the  air, 
On  ev’ry  soldier’s  grave  I’d  love  to  lay  a  lily  there. 
Farming  Corporations. 
Wilbur  Aldrich  has  written  a  book 
with  the  above  title,  which  we  think  is 
worthy  of  careful  study  by  farmers  and 
laboring  men  generally.  Nothing  but 
the  merest  outline  of  the  purpose  of  such 
a  book  can  be  given  here  ;  it  is  a  volume 
to  be  studied  and  thought  over.  Few, 
we  think,  will  disagree  with  the  general 
truth  of  the  propositions  advanced  by 
Mr.  Aldrich— the  trouble  will  come  in 
inducing  farmers  to  throw  off  their  nat¬ 
ural  conservatism  and  distrust,  which 
they  must  do,  to  a  certain  extent,  in 
order  to  form  a  useful  corporation. 
Mr.  Aldrich  concludes  that  farmers  as 
a  class  have  met  with  comparatively 
poor  success  as  money-makers  and  finan¬ 
ciers,  very  largely  because  they  have  not 
enjoyed  the  benefits  of  organization  and 
close  business  economy.  Farming  has 
been  an  occupation  rather  than  a  busi¬ 
ness.  While  other  branches  of  industry 
have  combined  all  available  forces  and 
squeezed  out  wastes  and  useless  agents 
of  labor,  the  farmers  work  without  con¬ 
cert  of  action,  and  as  a  consequence  are 
at  the  mercy  of  a  horde  of  middlemen 
whose  commissions,  wages  and  profits 
make  such  a  wide  difference  between  the 
retail  and  the  wholesale  price  of  farm 
products  that  both  producer  and  con¬ 
sumer  suffer.  Other  industries  largely 
avoid  paying  this  tribute  to  middlemen 
because  they  can  control  their  products 
and  also  the  agents  who  do  the  handling. 
To  remedy  this  state  of  affairs,  Mr. 
Aldrich  proposes  to  establish  what  he 
calls  industrial  associations,  and  the  book 
goes  on  to  give  a  detailed  account  of  the 
establishment  and  growth  of  such  an 
association  and  the  effect  upon  the  busi¬ 
ness  and  society  of  the  country.  The 
place  selected  for  the  association  de¬ 
scribed  in  the  book  is  in  Androscoggin 
County,  Maine.  We  are  taken  step  by  step 
through  the  processes  necessary  for 
placing  the  business  on  a  sound  founda¬ 
tion. 
Briefly  stated,  a  number  of  farm¬ 
ers,  business  men,  farm  and  city  laborers 
and  others  form  a  corporation,  putting 
in  land,  tools,  stock,  fixtures  and  cash, 
receiving  in  exchange  certificates  of 
stock.  A  miller,  storekeeper,  carpenters 
and  others  enter  on  equal  terms  with 
farmers.  The  w  hole  thing  is  to  be  run 
as  a  manufacturing  or  business  corpora¬ 
tion  would  be  run — with  president,  man¬ 
ager,  board  of  directors,  etc.  All  mem¬ 
bers,  farmers,  storekeeper,  carpenter, 
etc.,  are  to  be  paid  regular  salaries,  and 
in  addition  receive  a  proportionate  share 
of  the  profits.  For  example,  a  farmer 
turns  over  farm  and  stock  worth  .55,000 
and  receives  50  shares  at  5100  each.  He 
grows  the  crops  decided  upon  and  receives 
a  salary,  say,  of  5500,  besides  the  board 
for  his  family.  At  the  end  of  the  year, 
if  there  is  profit  enough  to  pay  four  per 
cent  interest,  he  also  receives  5200  more — 
the  interest  on  his  stock.  Such  a  farmer 
is  expected  to  work  as  the  directors  of 
the  association  suggest.  In  case  he  is 
dissatisfied  lie  has  the  right  to  give  up 
his  stock  and  take  back  his  farm,  paying 
for  all  improvements  the  association  may 
have,  made  on  it.  An  association  of  50 
farmers  will  make  more  profit  than  50 
farmers  working  as  individuals,  because 
it  will  save  the  charges  that  now  go  to 
middlemen.  For  example,  the  miller, 
blacksmith,  storekeeper  and  carpenter 
al  I  work  for  a  fair  salary.  The  profits  of 
former  years  all  go  to  the  general  fund 
from  which  all  will  draw  their  fair  pro¬ 
portion.  A  canning  factory,  cold  storage 
house,  creamery  and  other  necessities 
can  be  started  with  an  assurance  of  a 
full  business.  All  the  difference  between 
wholesale  and  retail  trade  or  labor  can 
be  saved.  Fertilizers,  seeds,  tools,  coal, 
food,  etc.,  can  be  bought  at  the  lowest 
prices  for  50  families  and  make  trade 
enough  for  a  large  store.  Gangs  of  men 
can  be  sent  about  from  farm  to  farm  to 
finish  up  haying,  seeding,  potato  digging 
or  corn  cutting  at  one  job,  using  all  the 
improved,  labor-saving  tools.  All  this 
cheapens  the  cost  while  the  abundance  and 
uniformity  of  the  product  will  enable 
the  managers  to  sell  to  much  better  ad¬ 
vantage. 
Hired  men  are  to  be  invited  to  join.  It 
is  thus  expected  to  obtain  better  service 
and  to  encourage  worthy  young  men  and 
women  to  invest  their  savings  in  a  profit¬ 
able  and  helpful  enterprise.  City  people 
are  also  wanted.  They  will  help  in  two 
ways.  They  would  provide  the  needed 
cash,  while  the  farmers  and  others  pro¬ 
vide  the  land  and  tools,  and  they  would 
also  provide  the  nucleus  for  a  city  trade 
in  the  products  of  the  association  ;  for  the 
scheme  contemplates  the  establishment 
of  a  city  store  where  the  association  may 
save  the  expenses  of  selling  its  goods.  It 
is  assumed  that  city  members  of  the  asso¬ 
ciation  wrould  patronize  their  own  store, 
since  the  more  business  it  did,  the  greater 
would  be  their  profits. 
These  plans  are  described  with  much 
detail  by  Mr.  Aldrich.  Any  farmer  who 
believes  in  the  benefits  of  organized  and 
systematic  labor  will  find  the  book  sug¬ 
gestive  and  helpful.  Mr.  Aldrich  also 
discusses  the  probable  effect  upon  the 
country’s  commerce  and  the  new  distri¬ 
bution  of  population  resulting  from  an 
extension  of  this  system.  We  reserve 
comment  on  this  feature  of  the  scheme 
for  another  article.* 
Odds  and  Ends. 
A  Novel  Potato  Dish. — In  a  report  on 
the  agriculture  of  South  America  issued 
by  the  United  States  Department  of  Agri¬ 
culture,  Almont  Barnes  has  the  follow¬ 
ing  : 
In  the  higher  Andes  it  freezes  every  night  in  the 
year,  and  as  the  natives  have  no  means  of  preserving 
their  potatoes  from  the  frost  they  are  often  obliged 
to  eat  them  In  a  frozen  state  or  not  at  all.  Therefore, 
instead  of  allowing  them  to  freeze  naturally,  they 
freeze  them  in  such  a  way  that  no  portion  is  left 
unfrozen,  after  which  they  dry  them  thoroughly.  The 
chufio  thus  made  may  be  kept  indefinitely  without 
losing  any  of  its  nutritive  qualities,  and  is  even  said 
to  be  thus  rendered  more  digestible.  The  taste  of  the 
potato  is  completely  altered,  yet  without  having  been 
made  disagreeable. 
There  are  two  varieties  of  crufio  made  from  pota¬ 
toes,  the  black  and  the  white.  To  make  the  first  var¬ 
iety  the  potatoes  are  spread  in  the  open  air  upon  a 
thin  bed  of  straw,  and  then  slightly  sprinkled  with 
water  and  exposed  to  the  cold  for  three  consecutive 
nights.  By  subsequent  thawing  in  the  sunlight  they 
become  of  a  spongy  consistency,  and  are  then  rubbed, 
generally  by  the  bare  feet,  in  order  to  remove  the 
skins  and  to  express  the  juice;  they  are  then  thor¬ 
oughly  dried  In  the  open  air,  becoming  of  a  dark 
brown  color. 
To  prepare  white  chufio  the  potatoes  after  freezing 
must  be  macerated  for  a  fortnight  in  running  water. 
To  do  this  slight  hollows  are  made  in  the  bed  of  a 
stream  and  filled  with  freshly  frozen  potatoes  in  such 
a  way  that  the  water  can  flow  freely  over  them ;  upon 
subsequent  drying,  the  chufio  is  perfectly  white.  The 
taste  of  the  white  chufio  is  less  pronounced  than  that 
of  the  black,  yet  although  it  is  the  most  delicate,  the 
black  variety  is  the  one  most  generally  preferred 
The  latter  has  one  inconvenience,  however,  i.  e.,  that 
it  must  be  soaked  in  water  for  six  or  eight  days  before 
using,  whereas  the  white  chufio  needs  but  3(5  hours  of 
such  soaking  in  order  to  soften  it. 
Missing  F.  and  K. — A  single  letter 
may  not  amount  to  much  by  itself,  but 
when  it  is  knocked  out  of  combination 
with  others  there  is  a  curious  result  as 
this  extract  from  a  Colorado  paper 
shows  : 
We  begin  the  publication  ov  The  Rocky  Mountain 
Cyclone  with  some  phew  dlphiculties  in  the  way. 
The  type  phounder  phrom  whom  we  bought  the  out- 
phit  pher  this  printing  ophls  phailed  to  supply  any 
ephs  or  cays,  and  it  will  be  phore  or  phive  weex  be- 
phore  we  can  get  any.  We  have  ordered  the  missing 
letters  and  will  have  to  wait  until  they  come.  We 
don’t  llquo  the  idea  ov  this  variety  ov  spelling  any 
better  than  our  readers,  but  rnistax  will  happen  in 
the  best  ov  regulated  phamilles  and  iph  the  cs  and 
exes  and  qus  hold  out  we  shall  ceep  (sound  the  c 
hard)  the  Cyclone  whirling  aphter  a  phashlon  till  the 
sorts  arrive.  It  is  no  joque  to  us;  it  is  a  serious 
aphair. 
Insanity  from  Mosquito  Bites. — 
Henry  Stewart  tells  Insect  Life  that, 
while  exploring  on  the  north  side  of  Lake 
Superior,  25  years  ago,  several  men  were 
seriously  affected  by  mosquito  bites  : 
One  man  was  badly  bitten  and  seemed  to  suffer 
more  than  others  of  the  company.  He  became  vio¬ 
lently  insane,  and  ran  off  in  the  woods,  and,  in  spite  of 
all  efforts,  eluded  pursuit  and  was  never  found.  An¬ 
other,  on  a  different  occasion,  was  affected  in  a  simi¬ 
lar  manner,  and  was  captured  with  difficulty  after  a 
long  chase,  in  which  he  exhibited  the  utmost  terror, 
but,  after  a  few  days’  close  confinement  in  the  camp, 
he  regained  his  reason.  Afterwards  he  was  so  seri¬ 
ously  affected  by  the  poison  that  he  had  to  be  sent 
home.  I  have  noticed  that  the  poison  affected  per¬ 
sons  differently,  causing  Bovere  swellings  In  some, 
fevers  in  others,  pains  in  the  limbs  in  others,  while 
some  were  but  slightly  annoyed.  I  was  myself  very 
little  troubled  by  these  pests  or  the  black  flies,  and 
found  a  wabh  of  ammonia  relieved  all  the  injury  to 
the  skin. 
*  * 
CATALOGUES  of  all  the  best  Farm 
Books  will  be  sent  free  by  the  publisher 
of  this  paper. 
*  * 
There  are  20  well-built  towns  in  Kansas 
without  a  single  inhabitant  to  waken  the 
echoes  of  their  deserted  streets.  Saratoga 
has  a  530,000  opera  house,  a  large  brick 
hotel,  a  520,000  school-house  and  a  num¬ 
ber  of  fine  business-houses,  yet  there  is 
nobody  even  to  claim  a  place  to  sleep. 
At  Fargo  a  520,000  school  house  stands  on 
the  side  of  the  hill,  a  monument  to  the 
bond-voting  craze.  A  herder  and  his 
family  constitute  the  sole  population  of 
what  was  once  an  incorporated  city. — St. 
Louis  Republic. 
And  yet  the  Western  papers  are  preach¬ 
ing  about  the  decline  of  New  England 
because  a  number  of  hill  towns  have  been 
“  abandoned.”  This  “abandonment”  was 
honest  anyway.  The  people  didn’t  steal 
money  under  a  polite  name  of  “  voting 
bonds” — too  many  of  them  sunk  their 
funds  in  these  “  opera  houses”  and  brick 
hotels  off  in  Kansas. 
’The  book,  Farming  Corporations,  will  be  sent  br 
The  Rural  Publishing  Co.,  on  receipt  of  price,  Si, 
IpUsrcUattfoujj  gUmtitfinfl. 
In  writing  to  advertisers  please  always  mention 
The  Rural. 
^HARTSHORN'S 
SELF-ACTING 
SHADE  ROLLERS 
Beware  of  Imitations.  „  J)  ,, 
NOTICE  y,  ™ 
AUTOGRAPH  //  /A* LABEL 
HARTSHORN! 
SEND  10  CENTS  with  your 
waist  measure  for  a  pattern  of  this 
fashionable  skirt  and  a  sample  copy 
of  the  Novelty  Fashion  Gazette. 
Address, 
The  Novelty  Fashion  Gazette, 
j 2 i  Fourth  Avenue,  N.  Y. 
-  WALL  PAPER-' 
AT  WHOLESALE  PRICES 
Handsome  New  Designs,  3c  a  roll. 
Beautifu  1  Gi '  t  Papers ,  lie  a  roll. 
Elegant  Embossed  Gilt  Papers, Be  aroll. 
4  to  9  i  nch  Borders,  Without  Gilt,  lea  yard. 
4  to  IS  I  nch  Borders,  With  Gilt,  2c  and  Sic  a  yard. 
Send  Be  to  pay  postage  on  over  1 OO  samples. 
Address  F.  H.  CADY, 305  High  St.,  Providence,  B.L 
For  Eight  Cents 
We  will  send  you  a  hundred  samples  of  really  artistic 
wall  papers.  The  prices  are  from  5  to  50c.  a  roll. 
A.  L.  DIAMENT  &  CO.,  !2oS  Market  St.,  Phila, 
is  the  title  of  a  little  book-tells  about  NOTOBAC, 
the  harmless  guaranteed  cure  for  the  TOBACCO 
HABIT  In  every  form.  It  costs  but  a  trifle  and  the 
man  who  want*  to  quit  and  CANT  had  better  send 
for  it  to-day.  free.  THE  STERLING  REME¬ 
DY  CO.,  Box  398, Indiana  Mineral  Springs,  Ind. 
A  GOOD  BOOK. 
SILO  AND  SILAGE.— By  A.  J.  Cook. 
'Third  Edition,  1892. 
Contains  the  latest  and  fullest  information  on  the 
subject.  More  than  20,000  sold  in  less  than  two  years. 
This  work  is  praised  by  such  men  as  John  Gould, 
Colonel  Curtts,  Professor**  Shelton  and  Gulley,  and 
Dr.  C.  E.  Bessey.  The  author  has  proved  the  silo  to  be 
a  very  valuable  aid  on  his  own  farm.  Price.  25  cents. 
SURPLUS  STOCKS 
OF 
BOOKS 
AT  REDUCED  PRICES. 
***Until  the  supply  is  exhausted,  the 
hooks  listed  below  will  he  sold  at  the 
reduced  prices  named,  in  order  that 
we  may  clear  our  shelves.*** 
EVERY  WOMAN  HER  OWN  FLOWER 
GARDENER.  By  Daisy  EYKBRIGHT.  148  pages, 
bound  in  cloth.  A  bandy  manual  of  flower¬ 
gardening  for  ladies.  Price,  75  cents  (reduced 
from  $1.) 
THE  CHRYSANTHEMUM.  By  F.  W 
Buubidge,  curator  of  Trinity  College  Botanical 
Gardens,  Dublin.  140  pages;  illustrated.  Price, 
cloth,  $1  (reduced  from  $1.50). 
CHOICE  STOVE  AND  GREENHOUSE 
PLANTS.  By  B.  S.  Williams.  700  pages;  in  two 
volumes;  illustrated.  Price,  cloth,  $3.50  (reduced 
from  $5.) 
AZALEA  CULTURE.  By  R.  J.  IIalli- 
ii ay.  Illustrated.  Price,  cloth,  $1  (reduced 
from  $2.) 
CAMELLIA  CULTURE.  By  R.  J.  IIal- 
liday.  Illustrated.  Price,  cloth,  $1  (reduced 
from  $2). 
SCRIBNER’S  LUMBER  AND  LOG 
BOOK.  Nearly  a  million  copies  of  this  book  have 
been  sold.  A  partial  table  of  contents  follows  : 
Loading  Logs;  Log  and  Lumber  Measures  of  all 
Kinds;  Table  of  Prices;  Stave  and  Heading  Bolt 
Table;  Wages,  etc.;  Weight  of  Woods:  Speed  of 
Saws  and  Power;  Size  of  Nails;  Cost  of  Fences; 
Hardness  of  Wood;  Strength  of  Ropes;  Shingles; 
Growth  of  Trees;  Cord  Wood  on  an  Acre;  How 
to  Saw  Valuable  Timber;  Splitting  Rails;  Char¬ 
coal:  Felling  Timber;  Cubic  Measure,  Cubic 
Weight,  etc.;  Care  of  Saws,  etc.;  To  Measure 
Hight  of  a  Tree;  Weight  of  Iron;  Strength  and 
Elasticity  of  Timber  and  Shrinkage;  Tables  of 
Distances:  Interest  Tables;  Business  Law,  etc 
Price,  20  cents  (reduced  from  35  cents). 
A  BOOK  OF  GRAIN  TABLES.  This 
book  has  over  20,000  different  calculations  and  is 
in  fact  a  “  ready  reckoner”  of  weights  and  meas¬ 
ures  of  grain,  hay,  produce,  feeding,  wood,  tanks 
and  cisterns,  ropes,  etc.  It  Is  useful  to  every¬ 
body.  Price,  20  cents  (reduced  from  30  cents). 
CALIFORNIA  VIEWS.  Nutting.  A 
series  of  15  finely  colored  plates  illustrative  of 
California  horticulture,  with  complete  descrip¬ 
tions  and  methods  of  culture.  Price,  35  cents 
(reduced  from  50  cents). 
FRUIT  PASTES,  SYRUPS  AND  PRE¬ 
SERVES.  By  Shirley  Dare.  Price,  20  cents 
(reduced  from  25  cents). 
THE  RURAL  PUBLISHING  CO., 
Times  Building,  New  York* 
