1895 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
6o3 
FARMERS’ CLUB DISCUSSION. 
(CONTINUED.) 
The Farmer's Account Book. 
B. R., Meshoppen, Pa. —In The R. 
N.-Y. of August 10, page 585, Chas. W. 
Smith says that, to be successful, the 
farmer must keep accounts. I agree 
with him that keeping accounts enables 
the farmer to see how he is disposing of 
his money ; but no system of bookkeep¬ 
ing is adapted to farm crops before they 
are x-aised. The farmer's pi-ofit is con¬ 
trolled by what he raises, and by his soil 
and the weather—wet or dry. The 
farmer may figure and keep account of 
the outlay required to put his soil in the 
best order ; but he has to depend on the 
weather to a great extent. What might 
figure a profit some seasons, would be a 
failure in others with unfavorable con¬ 
ditions, but with the same soil and the 
same amount of tillage. Bookkeeping 
may afford pleasux-e and profit; but the 
main thing in farming is the soil, how it 
is tilled, and the amount of moistui-e. 
The farmer should select ei-ops that pay 
the most dollars to the aei-e, instead of 
working so many acres that pay only a 
small amount of cash. This would be 
woi-king in the right direction for profit. 
Best Size for Western Farms. 
J. W. H., Humboldt, Kan. —With our 
present methods of farming, 1 think 
about 300 acres would be the most eco¬ 
nomical. If farmers would make any¬ 
thing, they must have something to sell. 
On a fai-m of this size, it would be neces- 
sax-y to keep three teams, and they 
would be kept employed more steadily 
throughout the year than, perhaps, on a 
larger or smaller farm. The crops grown 
would be about as follows : 90 acres of 
coi-n, 60 acres of wheat, and 40 aci-es of 
oats. There should be 40 acres of pas¬ 
ture for cattle, and the same of meadow. 
There should be 10 acres sown to wheat 
or rye for winter pasture for hogs, and 
it shoxxld be plowed under as soon as 
grass starts in spring, and planted to 
sweet corn and sugar cane, so that the 
hogs may be turned into it, about 
August, when the clover pasture is about 
consumed. There should be about 10 
acres of the latter. On a farm of this 
size, from 30 to 40 head of cattle could 
be kept, and about 100 head of hogs 
should be grown annually. Five acres 
should be devoted to potatoes, garden, 
berries, etc. I have no regular x-otation, 
but grow flax, broom coi’n, millet, kaffir 
corn, and the regular crops mentioned 
above, on the same land, year after year, 
without seeding to clover ; but this will 
have to be changed some of these times. 
An Ex-Miner Talks. 
G. II., Wellington, III.—Last year, 
Fred Grundy gave us a lively ai-ticle on 
“Shall it Be Ex-Farm Hand,” in which 
he advised young men to go to work in 
the mines rather than engage as fai-m 
hands. In farming, as in every other 
branch of business, those that make the 
greatest success, are those that start at 
the bottom of the ladder and work up. 
If a farm hand has no higher aspiration 
in life than that of being a farm hand, 
his time must sui-ely drag heavily on his, 
as well as his employei-’s, hands. Mr. 
Grundy said in his article, “A steady, 
sober, frugal young coal miner, can lay 
up more money in one year than a farm, 
hand can in three.” At the time I went 
into the mines, I was young, steady, 
sober, and I had to be frugal as I was 
only getting $1 per day. if I had paid 
the customary $4 per week for boai-d, 
worked half time as the miners generally 
do, you can just imagine the size of my 
shekel pile at the end of the year. 
I would like to have Mr. Grundy tell 
what those miners that are accumulat¬ 
ing such vast fortunes, do with their 
money. Of the hxxndreds that I knew, I 
do not recall one that had property to 
the value of $1,000, and fully 75 per cent 
live in rented houses. A visit to a min¬ 
ing town during the past summer, would 
convince almost any one that coal min¬ 
ing was about the poorest business on 
top of, or under the earth. That $2.20 
per day that Mr. Grixndy tells about, 
sounds rich on paper, but during the 10 
years that I was in and around the 
mines, no such wages came to my no¬ 
tice. In regard to the dangers of coal 
mining, I think that if statistics coxxld 
be had, accidents of the mines outnum¬ 
ber those of the farm 10 to 1. 
Of that beautiful, even temperature 
that he tells about, I never foxxnd any of 
its health-giving qualities in a dungeon 
filled with damp, foul air and powder 
smoke. He says that a coal miner may 
become a member of the Young Men’s 
Christian Association, attend Sunday- 
school and chui’ch. Is there anything 
that debax’S a farm hand from the same 
privilege ? Asa general thing, saloons 
flourish better than do Y. M. C. A.’s in a 
mining town. No one disputes the fact 
that a quiet, sober, industrious man is 
as highly respected in the mines as in 
any other calling in the world. It is not 
my desire to see every male child born 
into the woi-ld. molded into a farmer; 
but to the farm should be given the 
credit of i-aising more men, who started 
empty-handed, to good, comfortable 
homes, than any other business in the 
world. My advice to those that are look¬ 
ing for employment is to steer clear of 
the mines. 
A Corn Harvester in Iowa. 
4 
C. D. F., Yale, Iowa. —Last season 
was a year of dx-ought in Iowa ; but few 
ears of corn were formed compared to 
the aci’eage, and the point was to save 
the blades and stalks to feed the stock. 
Then I remembered seeing the corn har¬ 
vesters at the World’s Fair, and began 
to search for one. As a result, I pur- 
chased a McCoi-mick corn harvester, used 
it, and think it a grand success. 
I consider this method of harvesting 
corn very profitable, as by it one gets a 
ci-op of com and from the same land at 
the same time, roughage to take the 
place of hay. Corn cut with a harvester, 
may be fed from the shock the same as 
when cut by hand, only it is much more 
conveniently handled, being in bundles. 
The better way to use the stalks is to 
put them through a corn shredder, which 
resembles a thrashing machine, and sep¬ 
arates the ear coi-n (and puts it into a 
wagon) from the stalks and blades, 
which are cax-ried out of the shredder in 
a finely cut, shredded condition ready 
for use, into sheds or stacks, as straw is 
carried from the thrasher. This slix-edded 
fodder is fed with very little waste, 
in mangers or racks, and the little of 
the stalk which is x-efused by stock, 
makes manure more readily than if not 
shredded. It is excellent food for sheep 
and cattle ; my cattle gained flesh on it, 
all winter without grain. It is also good 
winter feed for horses, but 1 prefer hay 
for the working season for them. This 
feed may have been more nutritious last 
year than usual, as few ears were foi’ined, 
and all the sti-ength was in the blades 
and stalks. 
The harvester does the best wox-k when 
the corn is standing- straight, but will 
take up down corn unless lying per¬ 
fectly straig-ht in the rows in the direc¬ 
tion in which the cutter is going. The 
knives should be ground frequently to 
keep them sharp. Corn should be cut 
at the same stage of growth as when 
cut by hand, but may be cut greener 
with safety ; for being tied in bundles, 
allows ventilation through the shocks. 
For this reason, the fodder keeps better 
in the shocks than when set up with¬ 
out being bound. The harvester is being 
improved and made of lighter draft this 
year, but was a decided success, even as 
it was last year. 
Last season, I cut for myself and 
neighbors 197 acres, and the same parties 
are engaging me to cut again this year. 
1 charged $1 per acre. By changing 
teams, beginning early, and having an 
extra man to drive during the dinner 
hour, I cut 10 acres per day. Mine was 
the first harvester used in this part of 
the country, and farmers and others for 
miles around, came to see it in operation, 
and all were surprised and pleased with 
its perfect work. 
ARMSTRONG * McKELW 
Pittsburgh 
ANCHOR, 
Cincinnati. 
ATLANTIC, 
New York. 
LEYMER-BAUMAN, 
Pittsburgh. 
BRADLEY, 
New York. 
BROOKLYN, 
New York. 
COLLIER, 
St. Louis. 
CORNELL, 
Buffalo. 
DAVIS-CHAMBERS, 
Pittsburgh. 
ECKSTEIN, 
Cincinnati. 
FAHNESTOCK, 
Pittsburgh. 
JEWETT, 
New York. 
KENTUCKY, 
Louisville. 
JOHN T.LEWIS & BROS.CO 
Philadelphia. 
M0RLEY, 
Cleveland. 
MISSOURI, 
St. Louis. 
RED SEAL. 
St. Louis. 
SALEM, 
Salem, Mass. 
SHIPMAN. 
Chicago. 
SOUTHERN. 
St. Louis and Chicago. 
ULSTER, 
New York. 
UNION, 
( to od Judgment 
is shown in buying genuine brands of Pure 
White Lead (see list) front responsible deal¬ 
ers, and in having your painting done by 
practical painters. Labor is three-fourths of 
the cost of painting, and satisfactory results 
can only be secured by properly applying 
the best materials — Pure White Lead and 
Pure Linseed Oil. 
Any shade or color is easily made by using National Lead Co.’s 
Pure White Lead tinting colors, especially prepared for this purpose. 
For color-card and pamphlet—sent free — address 
NATIONAL LEAD CO., 
i Broadway, New York. 
KEMP’S MANURE SPREADER 
13 Years on the Market. Improved for 1895. 
Squaktbr of cbntcry old. 
iWATER PROOF.™ Sssr* 
JHEAP1 
STRONG! 
Vo RUHT nor RATTLE. Outlasts tin or iron 
4 Durable Substitute for Planter on walln. 
Water Proof Hheutlilntt of same material, the 
jest and cheapest in the market. Write for Ramples, Ac. 
The FAY MANILLA ROOFING UO., CAMDFN,fu. 
S PREADS any kind of manure in any quantity to 
the acre and docs It better than hand work, oven 
if a man spends ten hours on what the machine will 
do in two minutes. Sent to any responsible party 
subject to approval, that will furnish satisfactory 
references or rating of responsibility. Illustrated 
catalogue free. LarKt-at and oldest itmmifac* 
tureen of manure .preadcr. In the worU. 
KEMl’ & BURPEE MANUFACTURING CO., 
Box No. as. Syracuse. N V 
The great corn crop of 1805 is keeping us busy. We 
are now selling twice as many " Handy Wagons ” or 
-'Hat Cars ” as one farmer calls his, as we ever 
sold. Every man who owns a silo or has 10 acres of 
corn will save the cost of the wagou and then have it 
left to do all his farm work for HO years to come. 
Write at once for descriptive catalogue. It will cost 
you nothing to investigate. 
FARMERS’ HANDY WAGON CO., Saginaw, Mich. 
Get 
our 
logne of 
Sweep Powers, 
hand and power Corn 
Feed Mills, Steel Land Rollers, 
Saws, Engines—3 to 25 Horso Power 
8. 8. MESSINGEIi As SON. 
RED CEDAR TANKS 
FOR ALL USES. 
CYPRESS AND PINE. 
Eureka Windmills. 
SMITH & POMEROY, Mfrs., 
Kalamazoo. Mich. 
SAFE 
DAISY 
CORN HARVESTER 
o 
H 
E 
A 
P 
E 
S 
T 
AND 
It 
E 
S 
T 
The / >aisy No. 0 Complete with Levers. Seats, Front 
and Hear Steel Wheels Light and Durable. Wheels and 
Seats Adjustable. The Only Harvester made having 
Levers to open and close, tfie Cutting Wings. Don’t 
Huy a DANGEHOUS HINGED WING Harvester 
and Kill your Horse. Accidents Unknown with the 
Daisy. Made in 7 different Styles. Write for Circulars 
and Prices to the 
A. W. BUTT IMPL’TCO.,48 Euclid Ave.,Springfield. O 
FRUIT EVAPORATOR 
llTlir (' W 1 NT Rll " For family use. Cheapest in the 
IlIEl uilrllluDIV market. $3, $5 and $8. Circular 
EASTERN MFG. CO., 357 S. 5th St., Phila., Pa 
“Eli” Baling Presses 
38 Styles & Sizes for llorse and Steam Power 
Send for 64 page Illustrated catalogue. 
COLLINS PLOW CO., 1111 Hampshire St., Quincy, III. 
UPfcinDiPV’C Baling Presses. 30 styles and 
tlLrlUnlUN w sizes at hard times prices. Send 
for circular. D. B. HENDRICKS, Kingston, N Y. 
THE KIND YOU WANT 
There are no better 
Drilling Machines 
than ours. For gas oil and water 
Go down from 10 to 2500 feet 9 
sizes. Send for catalogue and 
prices of machines tools, sup¬ 
plies, etc Free 
Star Drilling Machine Co. Akron.O- 
Improved Low-Down Pennsylvania, 
Force Feed, Grain, Grass and 
Phosphate Drill. 
Built either with or without Phosphate Attachment 
Agents wanted In unoccupied territory. 
A. B. FARQUHAR CO., YORK, PA. 
Prices lower than the lowest. 
E 
VAPORATING FRUIT 
Complete rlga for gllt-edgo work aud big profit* 
AMEUIOAN MANUKACTURING CO., 
Box 407, Waynesboro, Pa. 
Cider Machinery.—Send for catalogue to Boomer & 
Bosehert Press Co., 118 West Water St., Syracuse,N.Y. 
Fruit Culture, and the Laying Out 
and Management of a Country Home. 
By W. C. Strong. Illustrated. A guide to the 
culture of fruits suited to the owner of a home 
Considers the choice of location, preparation 
of the soil, how and when to plant, and gives 
a short descriptive list of the popular varie¬ 
ties of each fruit. Instructions in pruning 
and cultivation, descriptions of diseases and 
insect enemies, with remedies, and a chapter 
on propagation, make the book complete for 
the amateur. Cloth, SI, postpaid. 
The Rural New-Yorker, New York. 
BIG FOUR ROUTE 
CLEVELAND, CINCINNATI, CHICAGO AND 
ST. LOUIS RAILWAY 
TO 
WESTERN AND SOUTHERN POINTS. 
Through Sleeping Cars from 
New York to Cincinnati, Indianapolis and 
St. Louis 
VIA 
New York Central to Buffalo, L. S. & M. S. 
Railway to Cleveland, Big Four 
Route to Destination. 
ELEGANT CONNECTIONS 
With all Trunk Lines in New York State, 
Ask for Tickets via BIG FOUR ROUTE. 
E. O. McCORMICK, I>. B. MARTIN, 
Pass. Traffic Manager. Gen’l Pass. & Tkt. Agt 
BIG FOUR ROUTE, CINCINNATI, 0. 
