i89i 
8o5 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
Business. 
THAT ONE HORSE JERSEY FARM. 
Eggs and Strawberries for Profit. 
Last spring—see page 262— The R. N. Y., told about a 
little New Jersey farm of 18 acres from which the owner 
sold, in 1890, $4,137.62 worth of produce. We were careful 
to verify the figures and are satisfied that they are cor¬ 
rect. Last week we visited the littie farm again to see 
what preparations were being made for winter. For the 
benefit of newer readers we state that the owner of this 
farm, Mr. A. Johnson, was a jeweler by trade. His eyes 
gave out and he was forced to quit work in the city and go 
to an 1& acre place at Lincoln Park, N. J., which he had 
bought some years before at a very high price—paying 
more than it was worth and giving a mortgage for about 
all the purchase price. “ The neighbors” all prophesied 
failure for him because he was not a farmer by practice 
and his soil was too wet to grow potatoes and covered 
with weeds and briers. After seeing the way these 
neighbors farmed, Mr. Johnson decided that he must 
fail if he did as they did. He decided to sell water —that 
is, the crops that are largely made up of water and 
which take the least fertility from his soil. He therefore 
selected strawberries and eggs for his chief crops, with 
potatoes, cabbages, etc., for extras. He plowed the ground 
in “ lands” that are highest in the center and slope both 
ways, thus giving ample drainage in open furrows or 
ditches between the lands. 
We repeat here the figures given last spring showing 
the produce sold. 
Potatoes. Sit 15 
Strawberries.2,6in 2 1 
chickens. 25 00 
Onions. 90 00 
Pears and other fruits. 99 96 
Milk . 1 k7 24 
Rye and straw. 76 40 
Cow. 47 00 
$4,i37 62 
These products were sold in Newark and Paterson—all 
except the milk which is sold to neighbors. Mr. John¬ 
son keeps only two cows, but they are good ones—so good 
that dairymen all want the heifer calves 1 He works but 
one horse, which is also a‘‘good one”—as good a farm 
horse as we have ever seen. That horse has a reputation 
for strength and endurance that is about equal to its 
owner’s reputation for thrift and care. Mr. Johnson has 
no use for an inferior animal or tool. He is doing high- 
pressure farming and can’t afford to carry any dead timber. 
Taken as a whole, the crops will net this year about the 
same as last. The strawberries will net less money than 
in 1890 because of the drought. Mr. Johnson grows the 
Great American almost entirely. This suits his damp 
soil exactly, but in a dry season, when water is lacking 
after the plants blossom, the fruit will not fill as it should. 
This loss has set Mr. Johnson to thinking seriously about 
irrigation. He is now making estimates of the cost of 
a windmill, tank and pipes for watering four or five acres. 
He has studied the matter out carefully and believes 
that the outfit would have paid for itself entirely this past 
season. The hens will pay a little better this season than 
last, the potatoes perhaps not quite so well, while he has 
nearly $400 worth of fine hay to sell. The growth on his 
rich, damp soil was enormous; so that the total sales will 
not fall short of $4,000, while the expenses are less than 
ever before. 
Mr. Johnson believes in the Leghorn hen. He has tried 
both Whites and Browns and prefers the latter. He thinks 
they lay more eggs, though the eggs are not quite so large 
as those from the Whites. Many of his old birds this 
year are the result of a cross of Brown Leghorn roosters 
on White hens. These birds, while excellent layers, came 
in all sorts of colors, spotted, “ Dominique,” buff, etc. 
There were a dozen or more coal-black birds—pure Leg¬ 
horn—as no other stock has been on the place for years. 
They have the true Leghorn shape with fine combs and 
yellow legs. Mr. Johnson bought some Black Minorca 
roosters and bred them to these Black Leghorns. He has 
now over 200 coal-black pullets—a little larger than the 
Leghorns and with black legs. He proposes to put 50 of 
them in a house by themselves and give them a fair trial 
against 50 Brown Leghorns cared for in exactly the same 
way. He thinks the Blacks will outlay the others, but pro¬ 
poses to make sure. The pullets are now running by 
themselves in a large enclosure under fruit trees with an 
open shed for shelter. They pick up most of their own 
living and are fed but little grain. They are not hungry 
now. About Thanksgiving time they will be put in the 
houses and not permitted to run out at all until next 
April. They will be forced for eggs. Before the hens are 
put up, the houses will be kerosened and whitewashed. 
If any lice are found on the hens, sulphur will be dusted 
all through the feathers. Carbolic acid is used plentifully 
about the roosts, and the nests are carefully examined 
for insects. For 50 hens a house 12x24 feet is considered 
large enough, provided it is kept well cleaned. Mr. John¬ 
son likes a cement floor best. This is kept covered with cut 
marsh hay in which the hens may scratch and play 
This hay should be changed every week. As to ventila. 
tion in winter, Mr. Johnson says that P. H. Jacobs is cor¬ 
rect in saying that the trouble is to keep air out rather 
than to find how to let it in. Since he closed his houses 
up as tight as possible and stopped all draughts he has 
had little or no roup in his flocks. Of all the roup reme¬ 
dies, “ spongia,” the latest, suits him best. He believes 
in a judicious use of the “ Douglas Mixture” whenever 
the hens appear out of sorts. Corn soaked in kerosene has 
been recommended as a cure for cholera. This will spoil 
the eggs and make it almost impossible to sell them. Hens 
will eat this kerosened corn only when starved to it. Mr. 
Johnson says that 500 hens are all one man should try to 
handle. They can be made to pay $1.50 each if the best 
of judgment is used in caring for them. Green food and 
meat are both very necessary for winter hen food. Cab¬ 
bage leaves and clover hay (steamed) are excellent for 
green food. Mr. Johnson is able to buy lean meat scraps in 
Paterson. But for this he thinks it would pay him to 
buy a bone cutter. In other articles we have told how 
the dried hen manure is mixed with potash and dissolved 
bone to form a potato fertilizer. Fewer potatoes than 
usual were grown this year and the surplus hen manure 
was spread on the grass and strawberries. 
Mr. Johnson runs his little farm on a rotation. He 
seeds with rye to obtain as strong a stand of grass as 
possible. This sod will be plowed in the fall and worked 
up fine for potatoes the following spring—with plenty of 
the home-made fertilizer. The following spring this piece 
will be set in berries with a piece of the old berry ground 
plowed up and sowed to grain and grass, or planted to 
cabbage. Four acres are kept in berries each year. This 
is enough. About half the farm will be worked into pear 
and apple orchards. The farm is now in such condition 
that Mr. Johnson can take things easier and with his 
berries, hay, fruits and chickens sell about $4,000 worth 
of produce each year and lay aside a fair share of the 
amount as profit. Mr. JohDson deserves his success, for 
he has worked carefully and hard under adverse circum¬ 
stances to gain it. 
BUSINESS BITS. 
A Chance to Trade Apples for Oranges.— In a 
recent Rural producers were advised to treat di¬ 
rectly with consumers. How are the parties to become 
acquainted with each other? This year I have not enough 
oranges to ship, but would like to exchange some of what 
I have with some reader of The Rural for a lot of good 
eating apples for winter use. I should prefer the party to 
be living at some place where the express rates would not 
be too high—the fruit to be shipped in good condition, free 
from specks. r. a. t. 
Hampton, Florida. 
R. N.-Y.—Those who wish to try this exchange may com¬ 
municate with us for the address. 
A Grazing Muzzle.— At Fig. 287 is a picture of a re¬ 
cent patent. There has been quite a large demand 
for a device that will prevent horses or other animals 
from grazing on trees or shrubs while not interfering with 
their eating grass from the ground. The one we picture 
contains the essential principle found in most of them. A 
stout, elastic band fastens under the throat. When the 
head is held up the nozzle covers the mouth; when held 
down, the little roller strikes the ground and pushes the 
nozzle up so that the animal can feed. 
To Prevent Interfering.— Fig. 288 shows a device that 
has just been patented. It is a combination boot and 
roller to keep horses’ feet from striking. A thick leather 
strap with two felt cushions, fits about the horse’s leg. 
To this is attached, as shown, a small rubber roller which 
revolves when struck by the horse’s other foot Instead of 
brushing or tearing against it. 
Electric Devices. —The French seem to lead the 
world in the application of electricity to simple house¬ 
hold conveniences. Two new devices are described as 
follows: An insect killer is formed by a cover of wire 
gauze, which is placed over a lighted candle. The gauze 
is in an electric circuit, and when insects touch it they are 
killed. Another is a system of ventilation. An electric 
fan furnishes the current of air, which can be cooled by 
means of ice or other cooling agent. If hotair is required, 
electricity is sent through a series of meshes of wire, whose 
high resistance causes it to become hot, and the air passing 
through these is given the heat required. 
Keeping Potatoes. -The North Carolina Experiment 
Station in a recent bulletin describes a process for keeping 
potatoes. It has been adopted by the French Government 
for preserving potatoes for the army and has kept them in 
an edible condition for one year and a half. “ 1. The 
method of preservation consists in plunging the tubers, 
before storing them away, for 10 hours into a two per 
cent solution of commercial sulphuric acid in water : two 
parts of acid to 100 parts of water. 2. The acid penetrates 
the eyes to the depth of about one fortieth inch (two milli¬ 
meters), which serves to destroy their sprouting power ; it 
does not have any appreciable effect upon the skin of the 
potatoes. 3. After remaining in the liquid 10 hours’the 
tubers must be thoroughly dried before storing away. 4. 
The same liquid may be used any number of times with 
equally good results. 5. A barrel or tank of any kind will 
do for the treatment. The acid is so dilute it does not 
affect the wood. 6 Chemical analysis shows that pota¬ 
toes treated by this process are as nutritious and health¬ 
ful after 18 months as when freshly dug. 7. Potatoes thus 
treated are of course worthless for planting.” 
A Lawn Sweeper.— The “ F. & N.” Lawn Mower Co. 
of Richmond, Ind., has devised a little machine for sweep¬ 
ing lawns. It works something on the plan of a carpet 
sweeper, and takes up dead grass, leaves, twigs, small 
stones, cones, nuts, etc., with ease. Many lawns are spoiled 
in appearance during the fall because of the rubbish that 
gathers on them. With ordinary tools it is next to impos¬ 
sible to clean them without a great deal of work. This 
little sweeper will prove a great help. 
Wool Prices.— There has been much discussion regard¬ 
ing the prices of Australian wools. The English Econo¬ 
mist gives the following flgnres to show the prices real¬ 
ized at colonial wool sales : 
Dec., 18S9. 
Per lb. 
8 . ( 1 . 
Me'bourne fleece. 1 7 
Sydney greasy. 0 10«^ 
New Zealand. 0 10 
Crossbred greasy. 0 11 
Cape greasy. 0 8 
Dec., 1890. 
Per lb. 
s d. 
1 4 
9 9 
0 9WS 
0 Hl^j 
0 7 
Oct., 1891. 
Per lb. 
s. d. 
1 8 
0 8 
0 8 
0 914 
0 6 
Perhaps some of our nurserymen and florists don’t 
think the public are interested in the fight The R N.- 
Y is making against frauds in seeds and plants. They 
will learn later. Here is a sample of dozens of letters: ‘‘I 
deal with a nursery concern and told It that everything I 
got must be true to name, but I have found out that some 
were not. This is very disagreeable when one has sold 
the stock to others. I am replacing everything free to 
them—my disappointed customers—but they have lost 
two ye We shall keep the fight up. Others may join 
us by r d by -just in time to claim the credit. 
A Convenient Gate. —In riding through the fine farm¬ 
ing country near Camillus, Onondaga County, N. Y., re¬ 
cently, ray attention was called to a farm gate which ap¬ 
peared to have many merits. It was built in two sections 
which closed in the center. The gates were each, probably, 
about eight feet wide, leaving ample room to admit a 
binder. A socket on the ground in the center of the drive¬ 
way received the posts of the gate when closed and pre- ’ 
vented sagging. The advantages of such a gate are 
obvious. It can be built of short lumber, and as the 
weight Is divided, the wear on each section is less than 
where the gate Is in one piece. It is far more convenient 
to open a small gate than a large one when much width is 
not required. The double gate is neat and attractive and 
Its construction is so simple that any one “ handy” with 
tools can construct one with ease. s. A. little. 
Seneca Co., N. Y. 
Hartman Wire Fence.— The Hartman Manufacturing 
Company, of Beaver Falls, Pa., send two beautiful little 
“booklets” describing and illustrating their fences, tree 
guards, pickets, mats, etc. We have seen nothing hand¬ 
somer in this line. It is a pleasure to deal with such a 
firm. 
Galloway Hides.— E. R. Hardy, Abingdon, Ill, is a 
breeder of Galloway cattle and buys many Galloway and 
Red Polled hides which he makes into robes, gloves, over¬ 
coats, etc. A cow’s coat would keep you warm this 
winter. 
Disston’s Saws.— Any man who has tried to cut wood 
with a poor saw knows what it is to lose time and money. 
What a foolish piece of business it is to try to do profitable 
work with an Inferior tool. A poor saw works harder, cuts 
less timber and needs more filing and care than a good one. 
Sawing Is slow work anyway, and the only way to hurry 
it up at all is to get a good tool. The “ Disston’s” saw 
made by Henry Disston & Sons, Philadelphia, Pa., is the 
best on the market. The No. 43 buck saw is what you need 
to make your wood pile complete. Send for circulars and 
catalogue. 
I cut my bushes in winter or early spring, and pasture 
my sheep in the field; they pick every leaf and kill every 
bush in one summer. GEORGE WIGHT. 
Genesee Co., N. Y. 
Manure Lifters. —The other day I was watching the 
operation of one of the powerful steam dredges at work 
deepening the water beside one of our city docks. The 
huge shovel descended to the bottom, the chains rattled, 
the engine puffed, and the shovel was again brought to 
the surface with a load of dibris large enough to fill a good- 
sized cart. This was raised to the proper height, swung 
around over the attendant scow by means of a swinging 
crane and dumped by the simple motion of a lever. It was 
all, oh, bo easy, but it represented brain work back of it 
all. As I watched, my thoughts reverted to that old barn¬ 
yard where I had labored and sweated so many days load¬ 
ing the long, strawy and stalky manure by hand, and 
wondered why some fertile brain couldn’t devise an ar¬ 
rangement for doing this work by means of steam or horse 
power. Why couldn’t the same rope and tackle that car¬ 
ries the grain and hay into the peak of the highest barn 
with so much ease, be utilized to save the weary backs of 
the farmer t Not all of the loading could be done in this 
way, but on many farms it seems as though a large part of 
it—and the hardest part at that—might be. Who will be 
the first to solve the problem ? the scrub farmer. 
Engines and Mills.— An excellent firm to deal with is 
A. W. Stevens & Son, Auburn, N. Y. Their specialties 
are thrashers, engines, French buhr mills and spring- 
tooth harrows. Hundreds of farmers have decided to buy 
a mill this winter, because they know it will save them 
feed, toll and hauling. Others want engines. All such 
parties should consult Stevens & Son’s catalogue before 
they buy. They will find this.flrm fully reliable. 
