852 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
DEC 5 
THE 
Rural New-Yorker, 
TIME8 BUILDING. NEW YORK. 
^ Watlonal Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Home*. 
ELBERT 8. CARMAN, 
HERBERT W. COLLINGWOOD, 
• EDITORS. 
Rural Publishing Company: 
LAWSON VALENTINE, Pr«*ident. 
EDGAR H. LIBBY, Manage. 
RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
THE AMERICAN GARDEN, 
OUT-DOOR BOOKS. 
Copyright, 1891, by the Rural Publishing Company. 
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1891. 
When Need has to bargain with Greed, is there 
any limit to what the latter will demand or the for¬ 
mer yield? 
In two weeks will appear a combination Christ¬ 
mas World’s Fair number of The JR. N.-Y. Its re¬ 
view of 400 years of American agriculture will be 
an interesting souvenir of the Columbian quadri- 
centennial. With that issue also the paper will 
come out in a brand new dress of handsome type. 
Some years ago, when grafting the grape was 
first advocated as a means of protecting certain 
varieties against the phylloxera, The R. N.-Y. tried 
many experiments as to the best methods. Details 
were given at the time. We may now say that but 
one method proved practicable, viz., cleft-grafting 
in early spring below the surface and heaping the 
earth about the stock, after they had been firmly 
bound together without the use of wax. 
The general conclusion forced on the impartial ob¬ 
server by the action and discussions at all the con¬ 
ventions is that those who prophesy the disintegra¬ 
tion of the farmers’ movement are egregiously mis¬ 
taken. There may be changes of fortune and 
opinions in this agricultural organization or that, 
but combmation among farmers has come to stay 
and grow. 
The great horse show at Madison Square Garden, 
this city, came to a brilliant close last Saturday 
night. It was worth at least $150,000 clear profit to 
the magagers ; but it was worth little or nothing to 
the people of the city, the State or the country at 
large. It was essentially English, not American. 
The names of the principal prize winners, like Roy¬ 
alist, Lord Roseberry, Her Majesty, etc., tell the 
story of horses imported expressly for the show, to 
be afterwards taken back to England with the 
money they had won. The importation of choice 
foreign horses for breeding purposes is an enterprise 
The Rural has always encouraged ; but of what 
conceivable use to the country is the importation of 
English horses for a few days to gratify a lot of 
un-American Anglomaniacs ? But the show was 
more a society function than anything else. Crowds 
of beautiful women in elegant and costly robes 
were on exhibition rather than horses. Some who 
believe that the improvement of our various breeds 
of horses should 6e the primary object of such 
affairs insist that the charter of the association 
should be so amended as to compel the managers to 
limit their show and prizes to American bred 
horses and those imported for breeding purposes ; 
but since McAllister’s Four Hundred are willing to 
pay liberally for a grand display of fashionable 
beauty and horse flesh, wealth and wardrobes, why 
wish to interfere with their purse proud ostenta¬ 
tion ? Have the “classes” no rights which the 
“ masses ” are bound to respect ? 
A Kansas man, annoyed by losses by burglars, 
set a spring-gun in his store and thus killed a man 
who had entered to rob. Is he guilty of murder or 
a lesser crime ? Spring guns were once quite gen¬ 
erally used to defend property against wild animals 
and when loaded with salt are still used to some ex¬ 
tent to protect vineyards, orchards, etc., from 
human marauders. The best legal advice, accord¬ 
ing to the New York Sun, is that it depends upon 
the motive of the person entering the premises as 
to what the crime shall be. If it is a burglar who 
would naturally fight and perhaps kill rather than 
be captured, the owner of the spring gun is not 
liable. If it is a common sneak thief who would run 
rather than fight, that is killed or maimed, the 
owner of the spring gun is liable for damages or ser¬ 
ious punishment. Salt is safer than shot in a spring 
gun intended for human beings. 
The national conventions of the various farmers’ 
organizations, which have been numerous during the 
past few weeks, have clearly enunciated the various 
and often antagonistic opinions held by farmers in 
different parts of the country on the chief political 
and economic questions which at present interest 
the agricultural community. The National Grange 
in its 25 th annual session, which opened at Spring- 
field, Ohio, on November 11, reported a large in¬ 
crease in membership during the year, and m its 
resolutions practically arrayed itself against the 
Farmers’ Alliance, particularly as regards the Sub- 
Treasury Scheme and the government control of 
the railroads, to both of which projects the organi¬ 
zation is strenuously opposed. It passed a long 
series of resolutions, mostly moderate in their 
nature; yet the passage of any three of them in a 
single year would be a phenomenal godsend. At 
Sedalia, Mo., November 10, 200 delegates from 30 
States represented the Farmers’ National Congress. 
The chief measures advocated were the elections 
of President, Vice President and United States Sen¬ 
ators by the direct vote of the people; the free coin¬ 
age of silver; cession of the arid lands to the several 
States, and State irrigation of them; State control 
of the live stock exchanges, and Federal prohibition 
of gambling in food products. Secretary Rusk’s 
good work was enthusiastically indorsed, espec¬ 
ially in checking Texas fever and opening foreign 
markets to our live stock products. The Farmers’ 
Alliance and several kindred organizations met in 
annual convention at Indianapolis, Ind., on Novem¬ 
ber 17. The Alliance meeting was tempestuous. 
One section represented by delegates mainly from 
Missouri and Mississippi, insisted on the repudiation 
of the Sub-Treasury plan and the proposed govern¬ 
ment control of railroads, and having been over¬ 
whelmingly defeated, withdrew with a threat to or¬ 
ganize an antagonistic Anti Sub-Treasury Alliance, 
with branches in all the States. A vigorous effort 
to commit the organization to the support of the 
Third party also failed, the Big Five—Polk, Macune, 
Livingston, Tillman and Terrell—being solidly op¬ 
posed to it, though the members may individually 
uphold it. The Alliance still claims 3,000,000 white 
members and to be able to control the support of 
the 1,300,000 members of the Colored Alliance. The 
three Ts—Trust, Tariff and Transportation—the Alli¬ 
ance antagonizes with the three Cs—Crush, Change 
and Control—crush trusts, change the tariff, con¬ 
trol transportation. Cooperation in buying and 
selling was heartily supported by all the organiza¬ 
tions, mostly on the Rochdale plan, which contem¬ 
plates the management of affairs at association 
stores and the division of profits among the patrons. 
In the Dakotas and parts of Minnesota a consid¬ 
erable amount of wheat is still in the fields owing to 
the inability of the owners to harvest and thrash it 
in proper season. Thrashers have been disastrously 
scarce in that section during the past few months. 
The evil would have been much more serious, how¬ 
ever, were it not for the timely action of the mer¬ 
chants of St. Paul. Foreseeing the calamity that 
threatened the farmers of the region, early in the 
season they prepared to render assistance. They 
published an address, stating the demand for 
thrashers and crews, promising transportation to 
the waiting fields at the lowest rates, and guaran¬ 
teeing employment until the end of the season. This 
they circulated all through the territory where 
thrashing operations were about to close, and thus 
they secured a force of 214 machines, with ample 
crews, available for work in the Northwest. The 
railroad companies cooperated, transporting the 
machines from St. Paul to their destination for the 
bare cost of moving the cars, while the men were 
allowed free transportation. With a daily capacity 
of 1,000 bushels to a machine, the farmers were thus 
enabled to thrash 214,000 bushels a day of grain that 
would otherwise have been ruined beneath the 
snows of winter. Thus owing to a little provident 
foresight, a large number of thrashers have found 
profitable employment, thousands of attendant 
workingmen have secured good wages, and mill¬ 
ions of bushels of wheat have been saved, to the 
profit of the farmers of the Northwest and the ad¬ 
vantage of the starving people of Europe. 
The Czar’s long expected ukase against the expor¬ 
tation of Russian wheat went into effect last Mon¬ 
day, only a few days after it was issued. As it had 
been discounted in the grain markets of the world, 
its effects were less noticeable than they otherwise 
would have been ; still American railroad stocks 
advanced considerably and wheat went up in the 
markets of this and other countries. In anticipa¬ 
tion of its issue, exportations of wheat from Russia 
have been unprecedentedly active during the past 
year, having amounted to 81,488,563 bushels be¬ 
tween January 1 and October 12. The crop year in 
Russia begins August 1, and our latest available 
statistics do not come down beyond October 12, but 
between these two dates the wheat clearances from 
Russian ports had aggregated 26,904,652 bushels, 
and as it is the shortage of this year’s crop that has 
caused the recent edicts against exports of cereals, 
and the anticipation of the latest ukase has been 
strongest within the last month, the exports of 
wheat have been extraordinarily heavy within that 
period ; still an extra exportation of about 100,000,- 
000 bushels from the surplus-producing countries, 
and chiefly from America, will be required to make 
up the deficiency in the Russian exports in supply - 
ing the needs of the rest of Europe. It has just 
been announced that Russia herself also will need 
at least 2,000,000 tons of foreign grain to keep the 
people from starvation. One country’s loss is 
another’s gain under Nature’s system of compensa¬ 
tion. 
The officers of the Tax Reform Association, whose 
letter and platform are printed on another page, 
assure us that they desire the closest possible criti¬ 
cism of their scheme of tax reform. There is, ap¬ 
parently little difference between their scheme and 
Henry George’s plan, except that they name “real 
estate” as the best taxable property, while Mr. 
George favors “land.” It does not seem possible 
that these tax reformers can have made any real 
study of the condition under which farm property 
is held. The great majority of farmers have a very 
large proportion of their property and their profits 
invested in real estate and improvements, which, 
under the new scheme, would be taxable, Because 
the holders of personal property are now the ones 
that most easily dodge taxation, is no reason why 
life should be made easier for them, but rather a 
reason why they should be forced to pay their 
share. We notice that Senator Peffer, in his new 
book, is inclined to favor an exemption from taxa 
tion. His scheme is to provide money that cannot 
be bought and sold or rented like other merchan¬ 
dise. At present, however, money, or its repre¬ 
sentatives in the form of stocks, lands or goods that 
can be almost instantly converted into cash, is a far 
more profitable investment than ordinary real es¬ 
tate, which is slow of sale and pays interest only 
after the hardest sort of labor; while money works 
itself and draws interest easily. The case of the 
young man mentioned by our correspondent “ Jer- 
seyman”is typical of many others. We want a 
fuller explanation of plank three of that platform, 
and will give space to any tax reformer who can 
make it clearer and show how farmers will be more 
fairly treated under its provisions. 
BREVITIES. 
What have I to live for now ? 
Why the world Is bltf and wide' 
And 1 welcome strife in the morn of life 
When my stren«th is all untried. 
There’s not a wrinkle on hope’s pure brow, 
I’ve a world to live for now ! 
What have I to live for now ? 
I have found my first gray hair. 
It is life’s noonday—I have lost my way 
Climbing Fortune’s rainbow stair, 
Though toll’s killed youth and the shoulders bow, 
For my loved ones I live now ! 
What have I to live for now ? 
I am weary, gray and old, 
And the dreams of youth that seemed so like truth 
• Are forgotten now and cold. 
But hopeful still as in youth’s best vow, 
I have death to live for now. 
The more walk the less pork. 
A BALANCE of cash will make the farmer brash ! 
Just now, the furthest from a dreg In market Is a new 
laid egg. 
You prove yourself both mean and cruel to let your wife 
run out of fuel. 
To plant potatoes In hills in England is to plant them on 
the “ lazy-bed system I ” 
A little salt is a good thing for hens In spite of the old- 
time stories that it will kill them. 
The day Is coming, my friend, when you will have value 
received for every good deed yon have done. 
There may be profit In a long-tailed horse, but there Is 
none in a long-taled man. Short story makes glory. 
The greatest, or at least a great need of the People’s 
party seems to be a lubricant for its financial machinery. 
When you feel that you must scold, take a walk out to 
the barn, where the solitude and cold may your hole-ly 
temper dam. 
When a bird learns how to open a paper bag and eat 
grapes on the vine she doesn't lose the information. Can 
she teach it to her children f 
More potash, more clover; more clover, more nitrogen ; 
more nitrogen, more grain. That seems like a fair state¬ 
ment of Vielle’s latest treatise on fertilizers. 
Why is It that when some one Insists upon doing some 
important service for nothing, when we are able to pay 
and know the service costs something, we instinctively 
think he has some “axe to grind f” 
Mr. Woodward’s argument that fattening steers tied 
by the head in a warm stable will obtain all the exercise 
they need without being once untied, may make lots of 
people look solemn—but the practice pays. 
When your cow steps in the milk pall she steps in the 
butter plate; you may not like to think so, but it’s true; 
for you cannot take the taste out though you work from 
morn till late, no matter what good tools you run it 
through. 
Bagging grapes is recommended by one of the stations 
as a preventive of the depredations of the rose bug. It 
happens with The R. N.-Y., that the greatest damage done 
by these pests is upon the flowers and even upon the buds 
It is then too early to bag grapes. 
In the year ending June 30, 1891, as compared with the 
previous year, there was a falling off of 649,183 pounds in 
the exports of oleomargarine and a gain of 12 012 937 
pounds in the exports of the oil. They prefer to nibke it 
abroad. We prefer to have them. 
In that Hereford steer fed at the Michigan Agricultural 
College, it only needed a heart weighing pounds to 
handle the blood needed in a 1,300-pound animal. Perhaps 
you have noticed before now that It Isn’t size as much as 
quality that makes things move! 
Great is knowledge! The reporter of a city paper tells 
Its readers that new maple syrup is now in market which 
is much superior to that made in spring because It is made 
from sap which was heated and canned in spring, and 
kept until now before boiling down. Ever hear of it be¬ 
fore ? 
Jethro Tull, writing in 1752, concluded that man 
learned how to plow from hogs, “bristled animals 
which broke up the ground because they used to find 
their food there by digging.” While people lived on 
acorns, he said, they had no need of swords oecanse their 
food was not worth fighting for 1 
The Consolidated Black Cat Company is a promis¬ 
ing enterprise on Puget Sound. It proposes to breed black 
cats extensively on an island in the Sound, feeding them 
mainly on fish, which are superabundant all around 1 
Why ? For their fur, of course, though as Chinamen are 
numerous thereabouts, theie may also be a market for 
their flesh. 
Farmer A. puts all the profit he can>ake or scrape into 
the bank or into bond and mortgage where it will collect 
interest. Farmer B. puts a good share of his profit Into 
help for his wife in the kitchen, books and magazines 
music, a good system for heating his house, and otner com¬ 
forting devices. His bank balance is a mighty small thing 
compared with his neighbor’s, but do you mean to tell us 
that he is not just as rich ? 
In the German Reichstag the other day much favor was 
accorded to a motion demanding that the Bourses or Ex¬ 
changes of the Empire should be placed under control of 
the State so as to make gambling in futures, especially in 
the necessaries of life, liable to criminal prosecution On 
this side of the water, similar legislation would shut up 
every Exchange in the country or force a radical reforma¬ 
tion in their business methods. 
