Profitable Farming de¬ 
pends as much on sell¬ 
ing as on producing. 
THE RURAL 
NEW-YORKER’S 
A crop which is well 
grown is only half 
way to market. 
MARKET, CROP AND NEWS SPECIAL. 
AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 
Oregonians were planting trees and 
preparing the soil for their gardens, Jan¬ 
uary 10. 
The Serage & Reynolds Pump Company, 
Florence, Ala., will erect additional build¬ 
ings to its works. 
The New York State Grange meets at 
Elmir a February 3, and continues in session 
during most of the week. 
A factory for the manufacture of the 
Whitman tobacco hanger will be estab¬ 
lished at Reidsville, N. C. 
A company with $60,000 capital stock has 
been organized at Spartanburg, S. C., to 
establish a fertilizer factory. 
A French inventor is manufacturing a 
superior article of paper from hop vines, 
which have hitherto been of no commercial 
value. 
The sheep butchers at the Chicago stock 
yards, about 200 in number, have struck 
and the sheep killing business has come to 
a standstill. 
The Prosperity Harrow Company has 
been organized at Prosperity, S. C., with a 
capital stock of $100,000 to manufacture ad¬ 
justable harrows. 
The eleventh annual meeting of the 
National Farmers’ Alliance convened at 
Omaha, Neb., last Tuesday. About 150 dele¬ 
gates were present. 
The Consolidated Land Company at 
Charlottesville, Va., is negotiating for the 
establishment in that place of an agricul¬ 
tural implement factory. 
The Wilcox & Gibbs Guano Company 
has added new machinery to its fertilizer 
factory at Charleston, S. C., and has also 
enlarged its storage building. 
Mitchell Brothers, of Salem, Ohio, are 
reported to have made a proposition to 
the citizens of Waco, Texas, looking to 
the establishment of a plow factory at that 
place. 
The Linseed-Oil Trust met in this city 
last week to devise measures for meeting 
the opposition of the Western linseed-oil 
producers, who are hostile to the trust. 
Nothing definite was decided on. 
The Fort Payne Package and Basket 
Company, at Fort Payne, Ala., will add to 
its present business the manufacture of 
hickory split baskets. The present capa¬ 
city of the plant is to be doubled. 
The Nickerson Fertilizer Company, with 
$100,000 capital stock, has been organized at 
Easton, Md., to enlarge and operate the 
Point Fertilizer factory. R. B. Dickson is 
president, and C. R. Wooters, secretary. 
Potatoes treated with acids make a sub¬ 
stance as hard, dense and workable as cel¬ 
luloid or ivory, and large quantities of 
buttons and knick-knacks are now made 
out of the material. Another market for 
“ murphies.” 
The Farmers’ Institute of Delaware, in 
session last week, appointed committees to 
draft laws for taxing mortgages, bonds and 
other investments, and to extend the Peach 
Yellows Act, now restricted to the southern 
half, to the whole State. 
Imports of butter and margarine into 
Great Britain for the week ending January 
17, 37,000 hundredweights, and 25,000 hun- 
. dredweights, respectively, against 42,500 
hundredweights, and 19,500 hundred¬ 
weights, same time last year. 
Near Winnipeg Lake, Manitoba, a large 
herd of famishing wolves attacked a party 
of Indians and killed a number of them. 
This is a new solution of the Indian ques¬ 
tion, though rather hard on the Indians, 
and the Canadian Indians have been far 
more peaceable than the American. 
Axteli’s first produce since his purchase 
by a syndicate, has been foaled. It is a 
lusty bay colt, out of Marguerite (full sister 
to Gray light, 2:16), by Kentucky Prince. 
Among the great mares to be bred to Axtell 
this season are Pixley, 2:16K; Houri, 2:17; 
Miss Russell, the “great mother of trot¬ 
ters,” and Russia, 2:39, full sister to 
Maud S. 
Varying reports say that there are from 
500 to 7,000 boomers ready to enter the 
Cherokee Strip, and 1,000 soldiers trying to 
keep them out. Not many months ago a 
similar farce was enacted in Oklahama, 
and later still in the old Sioux Reservation 
in Dakota, and now there are hundreds, 
nay, thousands in both places who wish 
they had been kept out. 
The Iowa Supreme Court has just decided 
what was known as the Jones County calf 
case, by affirming the decision of the lower 
courts, giving the plaintiff $1,000. The 
value of the calves when the case started, 
20 years ago, was $15; the costs have been 
between $15,000 and $20,000, and everybody 
connected with the case, except the law¬ 
yers, has been bankrupted. 
At the meeting of the New Jersey State 
Board of Agriculture, a paper was read on 
Road Improvement, advocating the build¬ 
ing of two State roads at a cost of $3,000,000. 
Resolutions were adopted deprecating 
legislation to make eight hours a legal day’s 
work, and asking that the Ballot Reform 
Law be amended so as to prevent the dis¬ 
tribution of ballots before election day. 
At a meeting of Burlington County, N. 
J., farmers at Moorestown last week, to 
close a contract with the representatives of 
a New York canning firm for tomatoes the 
coming season, the farmers were told that 
last year’s figures, $7 per ton, could not be 
paid this year, because the McKinley Tariff 
had so increased the price of tin used in the 
cans. The farmers would sign no contracts 
at that rate, declaring that there was no 
profit in the crop. 
It is reported from San Francisco that 
with one exception all the fruit canneries 
In California have formed a combination, 
with $5,000,000 capital stock, to last 50 
years. All of the canneries will be pur¬ 
chased for two-thirds cash and one-third 
stock. They will then be under control of 
a corporation, which will be known as the 
California Fruit Canneries, Limited. The 
company has $2,000,000 in the bank, with 
which to purchase the canneries, and 15,000 
shares of stock have been subscribed for. 
A company is being organized in North 
Carolina to plant 50,000 peach trees and 
thousands of grape vines and other small 
fruits in Moore County, of that State. Mr. 
J. Van Leniley, president of the State 
Fruit Growers’ Association, and a leading 
horticulturist of North Carolina, gives it 
as his opinion that the high, sandy ridge 
along the Raleigh and Augusta Air-line, in 
Moore County, is perhaps better adapted 
to growing fine peaches and grapes, than 
any other portion of that State. He is a 
large stockholder in this new company. 
An old project for a line of steamships 
from England direct to Chicago via the 
St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes, has 
been revived since the depth of the Cana¬ 
dian canals has been increased sufficiently 
to accommodate ocean steamers. An agent 
of this syndicate is now on a visit to the 
different lake cities, making contracts for 
freight by the new line and so far he has 
met with sufficient success to satisfy him 
that the undertaking will be a success. 
The capital stock of the company will be 
$5,000,000 and there will be 10 steamships 
built to begin with. These steamships will 
cost from $125,000 to $150,000 each and will 
form a weekly line with two trips running 
wild. 
The stock-raisers of Northern Mexico 
held a meeting at Nogales last month to 
consider the measures they should adopt 
to protect their interests in view of the 
McKinley Tariff, which has deprived them 
of a market in the United States. They 
resolved to memorialize the Governor of 
Sonora, petitioning him to use his influ¬ 
ence with the Federal Government to 
obtain an increase of the duties on Amer¬ 
ican stock. They urge that while the 
United States duties are prohibitive, the 
inconsiderable tax of the Mexican tariff 
permits heavy importations of American 
stock into Mexico, so that the stock- 
raisers of that country can sell their cattle 
neither at home nor abroad. 
The National Dairy and Food Associa¬ 
tion recently met in annual session at 
Washington, D. C. The following officers 
were elected: President, H. C. Thom, of 
Madison, Wis. ; vice-president, Lovejoy 
Johnson, of Stillman Valley, Ill.; secre¬ 
tary, Geox-ge N. McGuire, of Trenton, 
N. J. ; treasurer, L. S. Coffin, of Fort 
Dodge, la; directors, J. C. Caranue, St. 
Louis, Mo., Robert S. Walker, Mississippi, 
and Dr. C. W. Chancellor, executive officer 
of the Maryland State Board of Health, 
Maryland. Among the subjects discussed 
by the convention was the Paddock Food 
Bill, the Hiscock Bill, the standard x)t milk, 
cheese and its manufacture, preserved 
goods in tin cans, adulterated foods and 
adulterated drugs. 
A decision was recently rendered for the 
defendant in the United States District 
Court at Cincinnati in a suit brought by 
the Foos Manufacturing Company, of 
Springfield, Ohio, against the O. S. Kelly 
Company, for infringement of patent of a 
feed grinder. Both parties had patents 
upon the invention. The court held that 
the plaintiff’s patent was invalid for the 
reason that it did not contain a patentable 
novelty, that is, there was no invention in 
It. The court also held that even if the 
plaintiff’s claim was novel and valid, still 
the defendant’s mill would not be an in¬ 
fringement because of certain peculiarities 
which were embodied in it. These pe¬ 
culiarities are the subject matter of letters 
patent which are owned by the O. S. 
Kelly Company. 
January 27.—Reliable reports about the 
barbed wire pool say that $400,000 has been 
pledged to buy the Washburn-Moen pat¬ 
ents. January 28.—The barbed wire manu¬ 
facturers have decided to form a Columbia 
Patent Company, to handle the patents 
after they have been purchased from Wash¬ 
burn & Moen for $300,000. January 29.— 
Authoritative statement that no pool has 
been formed and no patents purchased. 
Negotiations pending, but $1,000,000, the 
price demanded by Washburn & Moen, 
deemed too high. January 31.—The Wash¬ 
burn & Moen Company offered to sell its 
patents some time ago to these companies. 
The offer has not yet been accepted and it 
has not been refused. This is definite. A 
week from tomorrow, and most likely be¬ 
fore that time, a conclusive answer will be 
made. Only three signatures are needed 
to complete the deal. Variety is the spice 
of news. We aim at variety. 
From Madrid comes the report that 
Spain has accepted the proposal of the 
United States government for the negotia¬ 
tion at Washington of a reciprocity treaty 
relative to American trade with Cuba. In 
political circles it is said that the only 
serious difficulty in the way of formulating 
and adopting such a treaty appears to be 
the Americans’ inflexibility on the tobacco 
question. The Foreign Minister informed 
the Cabinet Council that the American 
government has forwarded a note embody¬ 
ing a basis for a treaty with Spain and the 
Spanish West Indies, including the ex¬ 
emption from duties of Spanish sugars, 
molasses, coffee and skins, provided Spain 
reciprocates by the exemption of imports 
from America. Spain, however, has treaties 
with England, France, and some other 
countries which contain “most favored 
nation” clauses giving them the same 
privileges conceded to any other country 
during the terms of the treaties, so that 
whatever concessions she might make to 
the United States, she would have to make 
to the others also. All her commercial 
treaties expire, however, during 1892, and 
until then it’s not likely that she will make 
any reciprocity treaty with this country. 
The Interstate Commerce Commission, 
in an opinion by Commissioner Veazey, has 
announced Its decision of the case of the 
Boston Fruit and Produce Exchange 
against the New York and New England 
Railroad Company, the Central Railroad 
Company of New Jersey, the Lehigh Valley 
Railroad Company and the Pennsylvania 
Railroad Company, In favor of the com¬ 
plainant. The case involves the reasonable¬ 
ness of the rate on peaches in car loads, 
which is now $220 per car-load of 30,000 
pounds from Wyoming, Del., to Boston, 
and the decision is that the rate is $10 80 
greater than it should be. Other points of 
the decision relate to the construction of 
the first section of the Inter-State Commerce 
law and the meaning of the words “ com¬ 
mon control, management or arrange¬ 
ment.” The principle is also laid down 
that contracts and tariffs, filed with the 
Commission, as required by law, may be 
considered in a case although not speci¬ 
fically introduced In evidence in the hear¬ 
ing. It is also held that commercial bodies, 
like the Boston Fruit and Produce Ex¬ 
change, may maintain complaints before 
the Commission, although having no 
pecuniary interest as an association In the 
result of the proceedings. 
Condensed Correspondence. 
Shawnee County, Kan.— A most re¬ 
markable winter for Kansas. On December 
8 the thermometer registered two degrees 
above zero—the coldest weather thus far. 
On January 1 eight inches of snow fell and 
drifted badly. The extreme range of 
temperature for January to date is from 
6 to 44 degrees above zero. The ground 
is not frozen and public roads are impas¬ 
sable in places on account of snow and mud. 
The prospects for agriculture the coming 
season are good : the condition of the soil 
could not be much better. Acreage of 
wheat is double that of last year; crop 
looks very promising. Wheat in Topeka 
market, 85 cents; corn, 43 ; oats, 40 ; pota¬ 
toes, $1; butter, 25 cents; eggs, 20; fat 
cows and heifers, $2.50 for prime; hogs, 
$2.75 to $3 00; steers, $4 to $4.50; hay, $10 
per ton. Some cattle died in the early part 
of the winter from being overfed in the 
stalk fields. Stock is doing well. In some 
localities cholera is playing sad havoc 
amongst swine, in some instances destroy¬ 
ing entire herds. J. E. M. 
Meade County, Kansas.— Crops of all 
kinds were almost a complete failure here 
owing to the dry weather; but the people 
are not nearly as badly off as they are re¬ 
ported to be. Wheat went into the winter 
In fine shape and a heavy snow on the 
ground now will help it wonderfully. 
N. R. B. 
Polk County, Iowa. — Fine winter 
weather still continues, and we can not 
possibly have much winter this year. The 
mild weather has greatly helped the farm¬ 
ers out on feed for stock and done much to 
reduce our usually heavy fuel bills. All 
kinds of stock are generally In good condi¬ 
tion. Already business has begun to re¬ 
vive, and our farmers are beginning to 
look up seed and implements and are setting 
about for a vigorous spring campaign. 
There will be plenty of good seed corn and 
oats at home; but good spring wheat and 
Timothy and clover seed are scarce, and 
there’s a tendency to advance in prices. 
Southern buyers are here trying to 
buy potatoes, though they are scarce, 
and common varieties are selling at 80 
cents to $1 per bushel. Early varieties are 
nearly out of the market. Our State Hor¬ 
ticultural Society was in session at Des 
Moines three days of the present week. 
There was a good attendance and great in¬ 
terest was shown. The society passed 
strong condemnation on tree tramps and 
nurserymen and seedsmen who use exag¬ 
gerated pictures and misleading descrip¬ 
tions in their catalogues. F. s. w. 
Scott County, Kentucky.— The winter 
has been unfavorable to the growing 
wheat. With rather a poor stand in the 
fall, and the lack of snow to protect it 
from the alternating changes from frost to 
mud, the prospect may be considered rather 
discouraging. The acreage is not so large 
as usual, and, from present indications, 
some will be plowed under in the spring. 
Except for the purpose of getting wheat 
lands set in grass or clover, it would pay 
better to plow up one half of the growing 
crop, and sow to oats or millet. Lands 
that were in corn last year should be under 
clover this year; but where there is an In¬ 
ferior prospect for wheat after tobacco, 
hemp or clover, it would evidently be the 
better policy to plow it under and follow 
with some other crop. As a general thing, 
it is only the crops that were sown after 
corn, wheat or oats, that are noticeably so 
Inferior as to indicate the necessityj^of 
