246 
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« 
The  Rural  New-Yorker 
THE  BUSINESS  FARMER'S  PAPER 
A  National  Weekly  Journal  tor  Country  and  Suburban  Home 
Established  tsso 
Published  weekly  hy  the  Hfirnl  I'rihltshlnc  Compnny,  8*111  W  est  80th  Street.  New  Vorb 
HERBERT  W.  Coluxgwooi*,  1  Virulent  arid  Editor. 
John  J.  Dii.loS,  Trearuror  and  Oeneral  Manager. 
\Vm.  E.  Dim-on,  Secretary,  MB8.  E.  T.  Roybe,  Associate  Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION:  ONE  IJOLI.AR  A  YEAR 
To  foreign  countries  in  the  Universal  Postal  Union,  $2.04,  equal  to  8s.  6d.,  or 
8I»  marks,  or  10JA  frano*.  Remit  in  money  order,  express 
order,  personal  cheek  or  hank  draft. 
Entered  at  New  York  Post  Otliee  as  Second  Class  Jlattcr, 
Advertising  rates,  Jfi  cents  per  agate  line— 7  words.  References  required  for 
advertisers  unknown  to  us  ;  and  cash  must  accompany  transient  orders. 
“A  SQUARE  DEAD” 
We  believe  that  every  advertisement  in  this  paper  is  backed  by  a  respon¬ 
sible  person.  We  use  every  possible  precaution  and  admit  the  advertising  of 
reliable  bouses  only.  Rut  to  make  doubly  sure,  wo  wilt  make  good  any  loss 
to  pnhl  subrenbere  sustained  by  fruHting  any  itellberute  swindler,  irrwptm- 
uti.  r  advertiser!#  or  misJeo.liug  Advertisements  in.  our  column?  and  any 
sueh'  swindler  will  be  publicly  expo-led.  We  nro  also  often  called  upon 
to  adjust  differences  or  mLst.ikes  between  our  subscribers  and  honest . 
ivepoiirtble  houses.  -whether  ndv.  itiaer-  or  not.  We  vrilltnglv  use  our  good 
ortiin  h  to  this  end,  but  such  eases  should  not  be  confused  with  dishonest, 
Ira  reaction*  We  protect  anbsertbet*  turairirt  rogues-  but  we  will  not  bn 
JVMjamsildu  for  the  debts  of  honest  bAiikcuiito  sanctioned  by  the  courts. 
Notice  of  the  complaint  lrniRt  be  sent  to  us  within  one  month  of  the  time  of 
the  transaction,  and  to  identify  it.  you  should  mention  The  Rrn.u,  New- 
YoHKKR  when  writing  the  advertiser. 
A  RECENT  mail  brought  letters  from  a  well- 
known  Socialist,  a  clergyman,  a  wealthy  hank¬ 
er,  a  worker  in  a  shoe  factory,  a  fisherman,  prac¬ 
tical  farmers  and  would-be  baek-to-tlie-landers,  all 
speaking  in  the  kindest  way  of  the  spirit  and  policy 
of  The  R.  N.-Y.  We  do  not  believe  there  is  an¬ 
other  paper  in  the  country  with  such  a  diversified 
and  cosmopolitan  family  of  subscribers — all  held  to¬ 
gether  by  a  common  purpose! 
* 
WE  understand  that  fruit  growers  in  some  of 
the  peach  belts  are  planning  to  top-work 
some  of  their  trees  this  year.  The  plan  is  to  change 
some  trees  of  the  Elberta  season  into  earlier  or 
later  varieties.  There  seems  a  general  conviction 
that  the  glut  will  most  likely  come  with  these  mid- 
season  varieties.  In  our  horticultural  special  num¬ 
ber  this  year  we  shall  tell  how  this  top-working  of 
j icaches  is  done.  It  is  a  question  whether  sueh  work 
will  pay  with  a  short-lived  tree  like  the  peach. 
* 
SOME  years  ago  a  company  of  native  Australians 
came  to  this  country  to  give  exhibitions.  They 
gave  performances  with  the  boomerang  which  were 
wonderful.  The  crooked  stick  would  sail  up  in  the 
air,  then  circle  around  and  come  back  to  the  feet 
of  the  thrower.  There  was  a  boastful,  bluffing, 
white  man  who  said  he  could  beat  these  blacks  at 
their  own  game.  So  he  stepped  up,  seized  the  boom¬ 
erang  and  threw  it  As  he  turned  to  boast  of  his 
performance  the  stick  returned,  struck  him  on  the 
back  of  the  head  and  “knocked  him  silly.”  We 
imagine  that  the  “ American  Agriculturist'’  now 
knows  just,  how  this  bluffer  felt  when  that  boomer¬ 
ang  struck  him !  The  letter  on  the  next  page  and 
hundreds  of  others  must  be  instructive.  A  crooked 
story,  like  a  crooked  stick,  always  comes  back  to 
knock  the  head  which  invented  it. 
* 
OI'R  old  friend  E.  G.  Lewis  is  now  working  a 
land  scheme  in  California.  We  judge  from 
reports  that  this  has  even  more  wind  and  guff  in  it 
than  the  old  St.  Louis  bubble.  That  is  certainly 
“going  some,”  but  Lewis  has  considerable  speed  with 
other  people’s  money.  Not  long  ago,  we  are  told, 
Lewis  applied  to  the  California  Commissioner  of 
Corporations  for  permission  to  issue  $2,000,000  of 
bonds.  A  few  days  before  this  application  copies 
of  The  R.  N.-Y.  containing  the  remarks  on  that 
$30,000  libel  verdict  had  reached  the  Commissioner. 
No  doubt  Mr.  Lewis  was  glad  to  see  his  old  friend 
The  R.  N.-Y.,  hut  the  issue  of  bonds  was  not  quite 
in  order  until  the  old  game  in  St.  Louis  was  ex¬ 
plained  !  Lewis  seems  to  he  working  his  old  tricks 
of  putting  up  reputable  people  to  serve  as  stool 
pigeons.  He  seems  to  be  using  Prof.  Wickson  of  the 
California  University  in  an  attempt  to  give  respect¬ 
ability  to  his  scheme.  This  is  the  old  story  of  using 
educated  and  reputable  men  as  “enticers”  when 
they  will  fill  a  far  more  honorable  place  serving 
as  scarecrows!  Well,  if  Lewis  gets  any  money 
out  of  R.  N.-Y.  readers  it  will  not  be  our  fault. 
* 
WE  seem  to  have  stirred  up  a  great  hornet’s 
nest  in  telling  about  the  apple  prizes  won 
by  New  York  growers  at  San  Francisco.  “Be  fair. 
Tell  it  all!"  That  is  the  burden  of  letters  from  the 
Pacific  Coast,  and  we  judge  that,  these  western 
growers  are  hard  losers.  We  intend  to  be  fair,  and 
we  will  tell  the  whole  truth.  Our  New  York  grow¬ 
ers  carried  their  apples  3.000  miles  and  entered 
them  right  in  the  home  of  the  Western  fruit.  They 
were  under  every  disadvantage,  but  the  apples  were 
so  superior  that  even  with  a  cut  of  15  per  cent, 
on  account  of  the  package  the  New  York  fruit  won. 
If  there  is  anything  more  to  tell  what  is  it?  We 
think  this  settles  the  claim  that  New  York  growers 
can  produce  superior  fruit — equal  to  any  in  the 
world.  The  Western  growers  have  the  advantage  in 
organization,  packing  and  advertising.  We  frankly 
agree  that  New  York  as  a  State  cannot  fully  com¬ 
pete  for  the  best  apple  trade  until  a  certain  class  of 
packers  are  shamed  or  scared  out  of  the  miserable 
tricks  of  “loading”  or  “stove-piping"  their  packages. 
If  they  keep  up  this  game  under  the  name  of  “New 
York”  our  Western  friends  need  not  worry,  for  pur¬ 
chasers  do  not  look  for  gold  medals — they  look  for 
rotten  fruit.  The  truth  is  that  this  winning  at  San 
Francisco  gives  New  York  growers  a  most  wonder¬ 
ful  opportunity  to  sell  their  fruit.  If  we  “tell  it 
all”  we  must  say  that  the  poor  packers  can  kill  the 
goose  before  she  can  lay  any  golden  eggs. 
if 
A  LEGAL  case  has  recently  been  decided  in  Colo¬ 
rado  which  involves  a  principle  which  fruit  and 
vegetable  growers  will  recognize.  A  fruit  exchange 
company  was  in  the  habit  of  selling  goods  for  its 
members  f.o.b.  at  the  local  station.  One  of  the 
members  refused  to  pay  certain  charges  and  was 
sued  for*  them.  Among  other  items  was  a  charge 
for  commission  paid  to  a  sub-agent.  The  fruit  ex¬ 
change  evidently  turned  the  goods  over  to  a  dealer 
or  jobber  who  charged  for  selling.  Then  the  ex¬ 
change  charged  the  grower  not  only  the  10  per  cent, 
commission,  but  also  the  sub-agent’s  commission  or 
charge.  The  grower  refused  to  pay  this  on  the 
ground  that  the  usual  10  per  cent,  was  all  he  had 
agreed  to  pay.  The  judge  decided  in  favor  of  the 
grower  and  in  giving  his  opinion  said: 
I  can  find  no  authority  in  law  or  conceive  any  rea¬ 
son  why,  in  the  absence  of  an  express  contract  or  at 
least  in  the  absence  of  a  full  and  complete  understand¬ 
ing  between  consignor  and  factor,  the  factor  should 
employ  a.  sub-agent  at  the  expense  of  the  principal  any 
more  than  an  agent  employed  to  sell  fl  farm,  or  house, 
or  horse,  should  be  at  liberty  to  employ  another  or 
other  agents  to  sell  the  property  and  charge  a  double 
or  treble  commission.  If  a  factor  may  employ  a  sub¬ 
agent  who  makes  a  charge  or  collects  a  commission, 
why  may  not  the  sub-agent  do  likewise,  and  so  on,  ad 
infinitum.  I  am  therefore  of  the  opinion  that  in  the 
absence  of  express  authority  a  factor  cannot  delegate 
his  orders  to  another  or  deliver  the  goods  to  another 
factor  to  be  sold  and  charge  for  both  his  own  and  the 
other  factor’s  commission. 
There  may  be  a  question  whether  this  point  will 
be  sustained  by  a  higher  court,  but  it  is  a  sensible 
view.  When  a  man  makes  a  shipment  of  goods 
with  the  understanding  that  they  will  be  sold  on 
a  certain  commission  he  should  be  protected  against 
extortion,  otherwise  a  dishonest  dealer  might  sell 
the  goods  half  a  dozen  times  to  himself  or  to  his 
relatives  and  expect  the  grower  to  pay  for  it  all. 
* 
You  have  articles  on  the  baek-to-the-land  movement. 
There  is  a  back-to-the-East  movement  here  in  the  corn 
belt;  land  is  worth  $250  an  acre,  and  the  Far  West 
is  a  speculation.  What  chance  has  a  (young)  man 
who  does  not  know  anything  about  fruit  growing  or 
dairying,  but  knows  bow  to  raise  and  feed  cattle  and 
hogs?  It  seems  to  me  at  the  price  of  farms,  if  they 
cau  grow  the  grass,  one  could  grow  stock.  c.  o.  b. 
Henry  Co.,  Ill. 
IT  is  quite  common  for  us  to  receive  such  letters, 
and  we  think  we  understand  how  such  men  feel. 
There  are  opportunities  on  New  York  farms,  and 
we  think  there  will  be  a  slow  but  steady  movement 
from  the  Central  West.  Living  in  this  Eastern  sec¬ 
tion  we  naturally  feel  that  it  is  a  goodly  land,  but 
we  do  not  boil  over  with  enthusiasm  when  strangers 
ask  about  it.  New  York  does  not  want  unhappy  or 
dissatisfied  settlers.  We  would  like  to  have  our 
rural  districts  repopulated  and  built  up,  but  it  is 
no  part  of  wisdom  or  fair  play  to  induce  Western 
people  to  come  East  unless  they  know  just  what  they 
are  doing.  We  believe  that  the  great  dominating 
spot  of  this  country  for  the  next  50  years  is  to  be 
on  the  upper  Atlantic  slope,  and  men  who  come  here 
well  equipped,  choose  their  land  wisely,  and  work 
with  patient  judgment  will  have  a  share  of  pros¬ 
perity.  We  shall  have  no  part,  however,  in  inducing 
people  to  chase  rainbows  in  this  Eastern  section. 
There  is  gold  in  the  soil,  but  it  must  be  worked  out 
by  sweat.  New  York  can  afford  to  wait  better  than 
to  fill  up  with  disappointed  settlers.  One  of  our 
readers,  out  on  the  coast,  sends  this: 
The  19th  of  January  the  Oregon  Journal  had  a  big 
front  page  picture  of  the  Portland  Advertising  Club 
marching  along  the  street  in  Portland  in  their  shirt 
sleeves,  with  palm-leaf  fans,  to  drop  letters  in  a  special 
mail  box  to  friends  in  the  East  to  come  to  Portland, 
etc.,  and  the  movies  are  taking  pictures  of  tills  kind 
every  day  this  week  to  be  shown  in  the  East,  while 
there  are  snowdrifts  from  three  feet  to  eight  feet  deep 
in  this  same  city  and  the  mercury  stood  10  above  in 
early  morning  the  same  day.  The  official  government 
report  showed  IS  above  the  warmest  all  day,  while  in 
other  parts  of  the  .State  it  was  20  below  zero.  Besides 
there  has  been  snow  and  wind  every  day  since  Dec. 
30th,  except  two  days;  so  had  that  the  mail  carrier 
could  not  get  through  until  yesterday  for  several  days, 
and  practically  all  traffic  was  tied  up. 
In  New  York  State  no  one  was  marching  around 
in  shirt  sleeves  on  that  date.  It  was  a  day  for  fur 
coats,  buckwheat  cakes  and  sausage.  The  cold 
crisp  air  is  an  asset — one  of  the  Winter  things  to 
be  thankful  for,  and  anyone  who  thinks  of  coming 
February  12,  1910. 
here  should  remember  that  the  hills  which  are  so 
beautiful  in  June  are  cold  in  Winter.  Still  our 
Eastern  country  is  a  goodly  land — so  good  that  there 
is  no  need  bragging  about  it. 
if 
SEVERAL  New  York  readers  ask  whether  the 
bonding  companies  make  a  business  of  bonding 
milk  dealers  or  receivers.  Under  the  law  such  deal¬ 
ers  are  required  to  take  out  a  license  and  give  a 
bond.  Are  they  considered  good  risks?  The  ques¬ 
tion  was  submitted  to  a  number  of  bonding  or  sure¬ 
ty  companies.  The  following  opinion  is  typical  of 
all: 
Our  company  has  bonded  milk  dealers  and  will  con¬ 
tinue  to  do  so.  These  bonds  are  not  written  promiscu¬ 
ously  for  the  reason  that  the  insurance  company  incurs 
a  monetary  obligation  upon  executing  these  bonds, 
equivalent  to  the  endorsing  of  a  note.  The  bonds, 
therefore,  are  only  written  for  the  milk  dealers  who 
are  financially  responsible,  for  the  reason  that  the 
bond  guarantees  all  bills  incurred  by  these  dealers, 
and  any  farmer  who  has  furnished  milk  to  them  and 
has  not  been  paid  for  same  has  a  claim  upon  the  surety 
company. 
* 
THE  public  educational  and  business  sides  of 
agriculture  in  New  York  State  have  come  to  be 
very  large  enterprises.  They  are  growing  constant¬ 
ly,  and  the  work  they  are  doing  is  of  great  benefit 
to  our  farmers.  The  Department  of  Agriculture, 
the  experiment  stations,  and  the  various  colleges 
and  schools  cost  money,  and  are  all  good  investments 
for  the  public.  They  should  be  liberally  supported 
so  long  as  they  are  conducted  in  a  businesslike  way. 
We  regret  that,  there  is  a  tendency  this  year  to  at¬ 
tempt  a  policy  of  cheeseparing  when  sound  economy 
and  business  suggest  the  very  opposite  policy.  The 
following  figures  show  the  various  appropriations 
for  the  past  two  years  and  the  estimates  in  Governor 
Whitman’s  financial  budget: 
Governor’s 
Budget 
Estimates 
1910-17 
$41(5.112.00 
131.017.43 
42.805.00 
513.925.60 
78.580.00 
42.205.00 
37,183.00 
121,580.00 
90,024.00 
45.100.00 
Branch  of  Service  Appropriations 
1914-15  1915-10 
N.  Y.  State  Dept,  of  Agriculture.  .$499,400  $433,140 
Geneva  Agricultural  Exp.  Station.  134,500  140.300 
Alfred  School  of  Agriculture  .  40,000  44,525 
N.  Y,  State  College  of  Agriculture  825,190  581,753 
N.  Y.  state  Veterinary  College...  05.000  7o,0oo 
Morris  vt  lie  School  of  Agriculture..  38.030  43,030 
St.  Lawrence  School  of  Agriculture  35,000  35,300 
State  Agr.  School  on  Long  Island..  10  000  . 
Syracuse  College!  of  Forestry .  84,040  -  110.820 
State  Agricultural  School  of  Delhi  .  7.050 
As  we  see  the  heaviest  cut  is  made  in  the  estimates 
for  the  College  of  Agriculture.  We  believe  this  cut 
of  over  $07,000  is  not  justified  and  is  of  a  nature 
which  will  injure  the  work  of  the  college.  This  in¬ 
stitution  is  growing  rapidly  and  the  State  of  New 
York  may  well  he  proud  of  its  development.  We 
stand  for  sound  economy  in  public  expenses,  but 
this  cut  is  not  economy  and  every  friend  of  the  col¬ 
lege  should  use  his  influence  to  demand  a  square 
deal.  The  same  thing  is  true  of  the  Experiment  .Sta¬ 
tion.  From  its  very  nature  this  institution  cannot 
gather  about  it  an  active  army  of  graduates  to  fight 
for  its  rights.  None  the  less  the  Station  deserves 
v  fairer  show.  It  has  done  excellent  work  and  every 
farmer  in  New  York  is  under  obligation  to  it.  Give 
it  a  fair  chance.  We  have  not  included  the  Foods 
and  Markets  Department  in  the  above  statement. 
The  Governor’s  budget  merely  suggests  the  small 
appropriation  of  last  year.  Every  strong  farm  or¬ 
ganization  in  the  State  has  demanded  an  adequate 
appropriation  for  this  department,  as  all  are  anx¬ 
ious  to  see  it  fairly  tried  out.  Its  work  is  of  a 
character  which  requires  fair  capital  for  develop¬ 
ment — just  like  a  new  business.  There  is  an  evi¬ 
dent  design  on  the  part  of  some  one  or  some  group 
to  cut  or  cripple  the  agricultural  activities  of  the 
State  and  it  is  up  to  the  fanners  to  see  that  the 
scheme  fails. 
Brevities 
There  are  some  folks  who  live  to  eat, 
Whom  age  is  well  disposed  to  cheat. 
Bat  life  has  better  gifts  to  give 
To  those  who  rather  eat  to  live. 
When  you  boil  eggs  which  have  been  preserved  in 
water  glass  it  is  well  to  prick  the  end  of  the  egg  shell 
before  cooking. 
Strange  it  is,  but  we  have  received  at  least  50  let¬ 
ters  from  people  who  speak  of  mixing  hen  manure  and 
wood  ashes!  Surely  we  have  explained  why  this  should 
not  be  done  1,000  times.  However,  we  cheerfully  re¬ 
peat. 
At  the  Kansas  Experiment  Station  they  are  experi¬ 
menting  to  find  a  suitable  paint  for  the  Kansas  cli¬ 
mate.  For  oils  they  are  trying  linseed,  fish  oil,  Soy 
beau,  corn  oil  and  sunflower.  Nothing  definite  yet,  but 
as  the  name  of  the  State  sunflower  would  be  the  best 
advertisement. 
Even  in  Arizona  the  creamery  promoters  or  cream¬ 
ery  sharks  are  reaping  a  harvest.  Out  in  that  country 
where  Alfalfa  grows  well,  dairying  is  becoming  some¬ 
thing  of  a  business  and  the  creamery  sharks  are  chasing 
after  it.  harder  than  the  farmers  are.  These  people 
want  to  put.  you  up  a  creamery  for  about  twice  what 
you  would  have  to  pay  if  you  dealt  direct  with  a  repu¬ 
table  house.  The  strange  part  of  it  is  that  one  of  these 
promoters  will  go  into  a  neighborhood  and  get  the 
farmers  to  pay  this  high  price  when  a  well-known  citi¬ 
zen  who  had  lived  in  the  community  ail  his  life  could 
not  possibly  get  them  going. 
