7o4 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
October 21 
THE 
Rural New-Yorker 
Cor. Chambers and Pearl Sts., New York. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
ELBERT 8. CARMAN, Editor-In-Chief. 
HERBERT W. COLLINGWOOD. Managing Editor 
ERWIN G. FOWLER, Associate Editor. 
Vopyrighted 1893. 
Address all business communications and make all orders pay¬ 
able to THE RURAL PUBLISHING COMPANY. 
Be sure that the name and address of sender, with name of Post- 
office and State, and what the remittance is for, appear In every letter. 
Money orders and bank drafts on New York are the safest means of 
transmitting money. 
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1893. 
All communications intended for E. S. Carman 
should, from now until spring 1 , be addressed to No. 5 
West 82nd St., New York, N. Y. 
* * 
That is an ingenious scheme our friend (page 703) 
has for keeping white grubs from strawberry plants. 
You see it is in the nature of a cage. The grubs are 
not caged in, but caged out—which is all the same 
thing, so long as they cannot gnaw at the roots. Of 
course the scheme would only pay for the few expen¬ 
sive plants that are bought for breeding stock. Extra 
care pays for them j ust as it does for the high-priced 
bull. * * 
'We have an excellent symposium in preparation on 
the use of ensilage as a summer feed in place of soil¬ 
ing crops. We think our readers will be surprised to 
learn the extent to which this idea has been worked 
out in actual practice. Good, well-matured corn is 
the cheapest fodder plant known. The silo enables 
one to feed it at its best stage of growth, and also to 
utilize all the stalks which are so hard and dry when 
fed cured. # # 
That is a curious proposition made by Mr. Currier 
on page 698. Scab and bugs are good things for him, 
because he can cure them, and the more they are neg¬ 
lected by others, the greater the price he can obtain 
for his crop. Bugs, scab and blight, according to 
this, are the three great regulators of the potato crop. 
To those who sit down and let them spoil the crop 
they bring sorrow and disappointment, but that very 
circumstance is changed to good fortune to those who 
use the means at hand to head off the evils. Mr. Cur¬ 
rier’s experience with the corrosive sublimate solution 
ought to be an eye-opener to other potato growers. 
* * 
IT is a shame that Mr. Goodrich—page 699—must 
wait so long for the payment of his claim. The display 
of red tape in this case is enough lo frighten any 
farmer. “ Slow and expensive I” We should say it 
was. The mills of law and politics seem to be like 
other mills we read about—they grind slowly and so 
exceedingly small that there is mighty little left for 
the farmer. Come, can't the Board of Claims move 
themselves a little in this matter ? A prompt and sat¬ 
isfactory settlement in this case will greatly reduce 
the cost of stamping out tuberculosis, for farmers will 
have confidence to come forward and coSperate with 
the authorities. # # 
In the discussion about milking cows, on page 711, 
there seems to be a unanimity of opinion that a great 
difference exists in different cows, some requiring a 
longer time for milking than others. But nothing is 
said as to the cause of this difference. Is there such 
a thing as educating the cows to be rapid milkers ? 
And can all cows be educated thus ? When a boy, the 
writer worked on a dairy farm the proprietor of which 
had the reputation of being a very rapid milker. He 
broke in a number of heifers each year, and always 
milked these himself. His claim was that it was this 
early training largely that made the difference in the 
time required for milking. His method was simply to 
begin milking as soon as seated, and continue rapidly 
and uninterruptedly until all the milk was drawn 
from the udder, and to do no stripping. The last part 
of the milk was sometimes drawn by pressing from 
the upper part of the udder downward, upon first one 
side of the udder and then the other with one hand, 
drawing the milk from the corresponding teats with 
the other. With some cows, not even this was neces¬ 
sary. He claimed that the habit of giving down milk 
rapidly and completely with no retention of the strip¬ 
pings, was easily formed with heifers if they were 
always milked thus. That if the milker dawdled over 
his work, the cows would get in the habit of giving 
down their milk in the same manner. His cows cer¬ 
tainly supported his claim, and little stripping was 
necessary in his herd. Occasionally a cow was found 
which was a hard milker, and a teat slitter was 
usually employed to render the operation of milking 
easier. Isn’t this part of the suVj ct—the proper 
training of the heifers—worthy of more attention than 
it generally receives ? 
* * 
See how simple that rye and corn fodder rotation 
described on page 702 is? Take a field near your 
own barn and sow it now to rye. It is a little late, 
perhaps, but try it anyway. If the soil is poor use 
some manure or fertilizer. Cut the rye next spring 
for green feed in the barn, and then plow it under 
and sow corn, just as our friend describes. You can 
keep that up year after year—getting two good crops 
of cow feed off the field every year. Whether you 
use the corn in a silo or not, it will make more milk 
or butter than any other crop you can grow, and as it 
is bulky and heavy, the advantage of a short haul 
from a nearby field is quite apparent, Try this short 
rotation. Don’t go to the outer fields for heavy fodder 
crops. , , 
New York State is supposed to have a Department 
of Agriculture with a Commissioner or head to lead it 
into paths of usefulness. We seldom hear of this 
Department; it does little or nothing to attract atten¬ 
tion and the fact seems to be that it is chiefly a com¬ 
fortable nest for politicians. Now this is all wrong. 
New York State ought to have a strong agricultural 
department with a commissioner at its head who 
would be forced by public sentiment to look out for 
the interests of agriculture. One trouble in this State 
is jthat the commissioner is appointed. He ought to 
be elected by the people. Make this an elective office 
the same as Governor or Secretary of State. Why 
not? Ohio did this several years ago, and to-day 
regular candidates for Dairy and Food Commissioner 
are presented by the different parties. That is what 
we want in New York State and the next legislature 
should so amend the present law that the office of 
Agricultural Commissioner should be an elective one. 
* * 
The two chief points of advantage claimed for Mr. 
Colcord’s system of ensilage are that the product is 
uniform and that there is practically no waste. It is 
easy to see that these claims can be made good if by 
means of the silo governor heat and fermentation can 
be prevented. The R. N.-Y. has sampled this ensilage 
several times and found it perfectly sweet. We have 
eaten a portion of an apple that was put in with the 
corn in September and taken out in February. It was 
still firm and solid—not rotten. The simple question 
is: Is it worth the increased cost of this system to 
have a perfectly sweet and uniform product? No 
other stock food that we have varies so in composition 
as ordinary ensilage. In 32 samples of corn ensilage 
Dr. Goessman found a difference of 13 to 37% per cent 
of water while in the dry matter there were differ¬ 
ences of 6 to 12 per cent of protein and 1% to 6 per 
cent of fat. Another point is the waste, which all 
agree is considerable at the top and sides of the ordi¬ 
nary silo. This waste is greater some years than in 
others. Let us say that one housewife has a plan that 
enables her to guarantee every can of fruit she puts 
up. Another expects to lose over 10 per cent of her 
cans, but thinks it cheaper than to spend more on the 
other system. That is about the state of the case as to 
ensilage. * # 
There has been a great scarcity of granulated sugar 
throughout the country, amounting to a famine in 
many places. Hundreds of grocers have been unable 
to buy any sugar for a long time. Still there seems to 
have been no general advance in price. Yet it is only 
a little while ago that the American Refining Com¬ 
pany, better known as the Sugar Trust, claimed to 
have immense quantities of refined sugar on hand, so 
much that the refineries were partly shut down. 
Whether this was true or not, the sugar cannot now 
be procured. A member of an extensive importing 
firm gives this as the explanation of the shortage : 
The close money market prevented jobbers and retail¬ 
ers buying the usual quantities during the summer. 
This caused an accumulation of refined sugar, and 
this, in turn reduced the demand for raw sugar, and 
the market was so dull that importations of the latter 
were greatly curtailed. Then the heavy fruit crop 
came on, a great demand for sugar sprung up, grocers, 
both wholesale and retail, were caught with short 
stocks, and the orders for sugar for immediate delivery 
came pouring in from all quarters. The result was 
that the stocks on hand were so:n exhausted, and 
orders could not be filled. It is stated that the re¬ 
fineries are running to their full regular capacity, 
that the Trust will not advance prices or make any 
effort to throw any extra large amount on the market, 
but will pursue the even tenor of its way, putting out 
the usual q lantity, and thus relieve the shortage 
gradually, without disturbing the equilibrium of the 
market. Certain it is that sugar is scarce. There 
may be cases where retailers, or even wholesalers, 
have taken advantage of the scarcity to advance prices, 
but the jobber’s prices have changed but little; no 
more than the usual fluctuations of the market. 
» * 
While the great Irrigation Congress in California 
has attracted public attention, another smaller con¬ 
vention that recently met at Salina, Kan., well deserves 
mention. This was a convention of farmers who must 
irrigate, if at all, by means of pumps. The larger con¬ 
vention dealt with vast schemes and enterprises—the 
turning of the waters of rivers upon desert lands. The 
farmers in the Kansas convention are mostly removed 
from rivers, and must obtain the water that stands in 
the ground beneath them. Their work is to find a 
power that will raise this water so that it will flow 
back upon the surface of the ground where the plant 
roots need it. This sort of irrigation appeals to nine 
out of every ten farmers in the country from Colorado 
to Maine. The cheap yet powerful engines now per¬ 
fected to run with gas, kerosene or ordinary fuel, will 
enter largely into the farming of the future, and it is 
by no means unlikely that the rivers that flow through 
our farms will supply the electric power needed to 
raise their own water for irrigation. 
* * 
BREVITIES. 
Ye Senatorial windbags who talk and talk and TALK 1 
And do your best, without a rest, the people's will to balk. 
The trouble Is, you fellows just represent the State 
And not the common people; It’s getting very late 
For you to try reforming—old dogs don’t like new tricks, 
And each old fogy notion or “courtesy ” still sticks. 
Come down and serve the people—not rings or Trusts—get through 
With serving corporations, or we’ll get through with you. 
Across the broad Atlantic, the English House of Lords 
Has earned a newer title—the English House of Frauds ! 
For played-out blood and peerage are out of place to-day, 
The honest English yeomen will sweep the Lords away. 
Ye Senatorial windbags! ycur turn Is coming next. 
“ I represent the people! ” that, sirs, must be the text 
For honest legislators. Come, liven up your heels, 
Or there will be no Senate to block the country’s wheels 1 
The negro Is a hue man. 
Some Kelffers are worth eating. 
Every man must cut his own figure. 
Are you standing up for your wrongs? 
Disc harrow for road scraper—page099. 
To repeal a squeal substitute m for squ. 
Find your own business and then mind It. 
The worst thing to abuse—one’s confidence I 
Roofing felt- a shingle in a mother's hand. 
Good plum culture needs a plumb level bead. 
Who can sell corn-stalks for their feeding value? 
IT seems to be tough woik to make a new legal tender. 
Have you any rye growing for next spring’s green bite? 
Don’t leave a hOie In the silo while the dry stalks hold out. 
Pray that the cunning baby may not make a “ cunning ” man. 
It's often the lack of a little taste that turns an economy Into a 
waste. 
Another talk with the deacon about that electric poultry yard 
next week. 
See what progress they are making with the new buildings at Ellers- 
lle Stock Farm? prge 711. 
To cure an idle man, treat him like an Idle horse—cut down his food 
supply till he goes to work. 
WE hear of a 12-year-old Poland China boar still In service. Who 
can show an older veteran? 
The R. N.-Y. regrets to learn of the death of David Bundy, origi¬ 
nator of the Coleraln grape. 
Here’s a tip for our butcher readers. Get a green bone mill and 
cut bones to sell to poultrymen. 
What is your estimate as to the difference In value of a bushel of 
corn In a sack or on a pig's back ? 
ON the whole, that Brooklyn carpenter had better stick to his 
bench until he leaves It for good. 
The It. N.-Y. saved Mr. Currier money enough to pay for 15 years’ 
reading matter. So much for an Idea. 
Notice Mr. Bassier’s method of feeding poultry. A small amount 
of grain to work over before the morning mash, gives them exercise. 
The beer wagon Is, unfortunately. getting to be as familiar on some 
of our country roads as the baker’s or butcher's carts. It Is a shame, 
too. 
The “spirit level” Is a true and useful device and the " level head' ’ 
is the great evener of life, but no one can keep a head level with 
spirits. 
“ Yotniglbes at anarchy are contemptible 1“ says our friend on page 
702. There may be also those who say the same of our gibes at lazi¬ 
ness and scrub farming. 
Our Wisconsin friend’s story of grasshoppers and deer, page 703, 
will show some of us who have simply Insect enemies to contend 
with, that others are worse off than we are. 
The 8cotoh Farming World tells of a farmer in Scotland who sent 
35 tons of potatoes to the London market and received, alter paying 
freight and commission, $3 08 for the entire lot! 
Notice how horse power applied to a cutter run under bean vines 
saves the labor of three or four men? It is the application of labor, 
you see, that gives a money value to one's time. 
The latest hay-making device Is a mower and tedder combined. 
Suitable gearing at the back of the mower works four forks which 
kick up the swath on the previous round while the mower is cutting 
another. 
Think of that Pennsylvania sow (page 703). She cost $3, lived largely 
on waste and has earned $108 for her owner. That sow Is as good as a 
Babcock test for swill. She shows the value of what would ordinarily 
have been wasted. 
IS the price of cord-wood higher than It was 25 years ago ? In other 
words, as the wood area decreases, do other fuels prevent wood from 
Increasing in price ? Given two acres—one well timbered and the 
other well cleared—which brings the higher price ? 
Cut bonk Is now qu.te a common article wt'.h poultrymen. Does It 
pay to feed It raw? Should it not be cooked after cutting? Do you 
know of Its being fed to other animals like dogs or hogs? Mixed with 
meal or cheap Hour and baked, It ougnt to make good dog food. 
