C>5«?  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
911 
College  Education  and  Young  Men 
False  Standards  Among  Students 
AFTER  reading  This  It.  N.-Y.  for  30  years  I  do 
not  think  you  have  touched  a  more  vital  sub¬ 
ject  than  that  of  educating  the  hoy  or  girl.  I  agree 
with  all  you  have  recently  published  on  the  subject. 
There  is  no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  conditions  have 
changed  in  many  of  our  endowed  colleges  and  uni¬ 
versities  very  materially  from  what  they  were  2.1 
years  ago.  Of  course  we  expect  changes,  hut  in 
raising  the  standard  and  broadening  the  scope,  per¬ 
sonal  touch  with  the  student  by  the  teacher  is  be¬ 
ing  neglected  to  the  detriment  of  the  hoy.  Consc- 
<|Uently  he  spends  his  father's  money,  too  often,  on 
‘■frills  and  furbelows,"  goes  wild  on  athletics  and  fin¬ 
ally  drops  out  with  no  credit  to  himself  or  the  in¬ 
stitution.  The  hoy  has  been  hurt 
in  such  cases  by  his  attendance. 
This  idea  of  sending  a  boy  to  col¬ 
lege  because  “so-and-so’’  went  is  all 
bosh.  I  think  you  are  correct  in 
stating  a  hoy  should  not  bo  xo»l  to 
college  unless  lie  is  thoroughly  im¬ 
pressed  with  the  importance  of  work¬ 
ing  hard  for  bis  mental  training. 
In  my  observation  both  as  stu¬ 
dent  and  teacher,  tin1  large  major¬ 
ity  of  men  who  make  leaders  are 
those  who  had  but  little  money  to 
spend  at  college.  Many  pay  their 
own  way.  Some  of  them  do  not 
‘"stand  high”  among  their  associates 
while  at  College  because  they  have 
to  work,  and  this  is  trying  to  a 
young  man's  temper  and  spirit,  but 
in  after  years,  oftentimes  llielr  as¬ 
sociates  would  gladly  lie  recog¬ 
nized  by  these  men. 
How  to  teach  a  boy  to  get  the 
full  value  of  a  dollar  is  one  of  my 
greatest  problems.  There  is  scarce¬ 
ly  any  problem  more  dillicult  for  the 
boy  to  solve.  I  iis  ruin  usually  begins 
with  bis  spending  money.  A  boy’s 
standing  among  his  associates  at  col¬ 
lege  is  too  often  based  on  the  amount 
of  money  he  spends.  This  feature  is 
tolerated  too  much  in  some  of  our 
endowed  institutions.  It  seems  to 
me  the  best  way  for  the  boy  to  get 
bis  education  is  St.  Paul’s:  be  stu¬ 
died  at  the  feet  of  Gamaliel:  per¬ 
sonal  touch  of  instructor  with  stu¬ 
dent.  R.  II.  PRICE. 
Virginia. 
it.  N.-Y. — We  have  had  some¬ 
thing  over  10  comments  regarding 
this  matter  of  srntlinft  children  to 
college.  All  but  two  have  fully  en¬ 
dorsed  our  position.  Two  young 
men  who  arc  now  students  object 
chiefly  on  the  ground  that  we  do 
not  understand  present  college  life. 
We  are  sure  that  most  sensible 
parents  will  agree  with  Prof.  Price. 
We  must  admit,  however,  that  some 
parents  are  not  sensible  when  it 
comes  to  considering  the  welfare  of 
their  own  children.  As  for  spend¬ 
ing,  or  “pocket”  money,  our  own 
children  have  nothing  of  the  sort 
except  what  they  work  for  and 
ea  rn. 
plowing.  jSwcet  clover  is  more,  succulent  .than  Al¬ 
falfa.  and  is  thus  more  difficult  to  cure  for  bay 
than  the  latter.  Ctimarin  is  found  in  Sweet  clover, 
but  does  not  occur  in  Alfalfa.  Alfalfa  is  a  perennial 
in  duration  while  Sweet  clover  is  only  a  biennial. 
Sweet  clover  superior  to  Alfalfa  -Easier  to  get  stand: 
fits  better  into  rotations;  belter  for  cattle,  sheep,  and 
bee  pasture;  rarely  causes  bloat;  furnishes  earlier 
Spring  pasture;  roots  decay  more  rapidly;  will  grow 
on  poorer  soils;  will  resist  extreme  drought  better; 
will  grow  on  soils  too  wet  for  Alfalfa,  will  grow  on 
soils  too  hard  for  Alfalfa;  will  grow  later  in  the  Fall; 
practically  free  from  insect  pests  and  plant  diseases: 
produces  less  washing  effect  on  animals,  and  is  a  better 
green  manure  crop. 
* 
Alfalfa  superior — Better  hay;  better  pasture  for 
hogs;  more  palatable  at  first;  does  not  become  so  coarse 
and  woody;  is  a  perennial;  has  less  hard  seed,  and  is 
less  difficult  to  cure  for  hay. 
Public  Market  at  West  Newton,  Mass.  Fie;.  352 
Direct  From  Producer  to  Consumer.  Fig.  353 
Sweet  Clover  Compared 
With  Alfalfa 
SWEET  clover  and  Alfalfa  are 
very  similar  plants  when 
young,  and  at  this  time  they  are 
difficult  to  determine  from  each  another  unless  one 
is  familiar  with  their  distinguishing  characteristics. 
Sweet  clover  is  bitter  to  the  taste,  while  Alfalfa  is 
not:  the  leaves  of  Sweet  clover  are  broader  thru 
those  of  Alfalfa  and  are  smooth  on  the  tinder  surface, 
while  (lie  leaves  of  Alfalfa  are  hairy  on  the  under 
surface.  After  Mourning  Sweet  clover  is  readily 
distinguished  from  Alfalfa  by  the  white  or  yellow 
flowers  of  the  former  in  contrast  to  the  purplish 
colored  (lowers  of  Alfalfa. 
Sweet  Mover  usually  grows  more  dense  than  Al¬ 
falfa.  and  is  coarser.  It  will  thrive  on  soils  where 
Alfalfa  will  not.  and  has  a  a  wider  range  of  cli- 
e.iatic  adaptation.  Sweet  clover  roots  do  not  ns  a 
rule  penetrate  as  deep  into  the  underground  as 
Alfalfa  roots,  but  the  root  development  of  the 
former  is  much  greater,  and  these  large  succulent 
roots  decay  more  rapidly  and  give  less  trouble  in 
Hay  Caps  Lessen  Damage  in  Uncertain  Weather.  Fig.  354 
Nutritive 
composition 
of  Alfalfa  and  Sweet 
clover 
compared  on 
moisture  fre 
e  basis ; 
1 
Crude 
Carbohydrates 
Sweet  Hover 
Asti 
protein 
libn: 
N.  free 
Fat 
Fresh  . 
extract 
10.0 
31.5 
37.0 
3.0 
■  .av . 
11)  J) 
IP. 11 
31. s 
•>‘  >  (  | 
n 
Alfalfa 
Fresh  . 
. !>.<; 
17.0 
20.2 
43.0 
3.0 
Ilay  . 
. 11.4 
10.1 
.*55.7 
34. P 
1.6 
The  protein  analysis 
of  the 
fresh 
forages 
shows 
Value  of  Standing  Grass 
How  Shall  We  Get  At  It? 
What  is  the  price  of  hay.  standing?  It  is  plaiu 
stock  hay,  mostly  June  grass,  and  cuts  about  as  the 
average  hay  does  which  has  not  been  reseeded.  I  wish 
to  sell  it  standing  by  the  acre,  or  any  standard  wav  of 
doing  it.  but  lm\e  no  idea  of  the  price.  M.  O.  W. 
Connecticut. 
WE  have  had  a  great  many  similar  questions 
this  year.  R  seems  that  a  large  number  of 
back-to-the-hinders  and  proxy  fanners  want  to  sell 
their  grass  standing  litis  year  rather  than  go  to  the 
expense  of  cutting  it  and  putting  it  under  cover. 
They  do  not  know  what  to  charge  for  it.  It  is  much 
like  estimating  the  price,  of  silage  in  the  silo.  Any 
figure  made  about  such  a  product  must  be  com¬ 
parative:  that  is.  based  on  the  price  of  the  most 
ordinary  fodder  in  that  neighbor¬ 
hood.  Naturally  this  fodder  will  be 
bay,  and  about  the  only  way  to  fig¬ 
ure  reasonably  on  the  price  of  sil¬ 
age  or  standing  grass  is  to  find 
what  bay  is  worth  in  the  mow  or 
stack,  and  then  agree  upon  a  fair 
proportion  which  should  be  paid 
for  the  grass  or  silage.  Generally 
silage  in  the  silo  i<  considered 
worth  from  30  G  to  31%  of  the  price 
of  hay  in  t  lie  I  tarn  where  tile  silo 
is  located. 
Buying  standing  grass  is  very 
much  of  a  gamble,  except  to  an  old- 
tiuie  farmer  of  long  experience, 
who  has  a  good  eye  for  estimating 
the  thickness  of  the  grass.  It 
many  parts  of  the  country  grass  R 
cut  on  shares.  In  such  a  on  so  tit  * 
owner  of  tin*  grass  does  nothing. 
The  man  who  buys  it  comes  with 
bis  mower  and  haying  tools,  cuts 
the  grass  and  cures  it  into  bay.  R 
is  then  raked  up  evenly  and  put 
into  cocks  or  windrows  of  uniform 
size.  Then  the  field  is  divided  into 
halves,  and  the  farmer  wlm  cuts 
the  grass  is  expected  to  put  half 
tin*  crop  into  bis  own  barn  and  the 
other  half  into  such  a  place  as  the 
owner  of  the  land  specifies.  This 
half  and  half  share. is  considered 
fair  in  most  localities.  When  it 
comes  to  Inlying  grass  standing  the 
general  proposition  is  to  pay  itt 
cash  about  one-third  of  the  neigh¬ 
borhood  price  for  hay.  If  hay  is 
worth  $20  a  ton  in  tin*  neighbor¬ 
hood.  the  buyer  would  examine  rk  j 
grass  and  figure  .as  closely  as  he 
could  about  how  many  tons  the 
piece  would  yield,  and  he  would 
pay  ahoul  $0.50  for  a  ton  of  the 
dried  grass.  That  is  probably  a 
fair  basis  for  figuring,  but  ir  re¬ 
quires  good  judgment  to  get  any¬ 
where  near  the  real  yield  from  a 
piece  of  ground. 
Another  plan  sometimes  followed 
is  to  cut  and  cure  the  grass.  Then 
weigh  accurately  one  fair-sized  load 
of  the  hay,  and  pay  for  this  hay 
30%  of  the  retail  price  in  rite  neigh¬ 
borhood.  Such  hay  taken  front  the 
field  will  ecu  tain  more  moisture 
than  the  well-cured  hay.  and  the 
buyer  of  course  would  want  to  let 
it  cure  as  long  as  possible,  so  as  to 
buy  less  wafer.  One  of  these  plans 
is  about  the  only  way  to  get  at  the 
matter  accurately.  It  would  not  do 
to  figure  at  a  stated  price  for  an 
at  re.  been  use  some  pieces  of  grass 
"ill  give  twice  as  much  liny  its  others  will. 
in  favor  of  Sweet  clover,  Iml  it  contains  a  smaller 
percentage  of  all  the  other  nutrients.  In  ease  of 
the  hay  the  analysis  shows  that  Sweet  clover  pos¬ 
sesses  ;i  higher  per  cent,  of  protein  and  fat.  while 
Alfalfa  contains  slightly  more  ash  and  carbohy¬ 
drates.  According  then  to  the  nutritive  coefficients 
Sweet  clover  hay  surpasses  Alfalfa  hay.  and  fresh 
Sweet  clover  excels  fresh  Alfalfa  in  protein  content. 
Iowa  Experiment  Station.  w.  e.  bowers. 
Good  Work  for  the  Farm  Bureau 
I  believe  the  Farm  Bureau  is-  doing  a  good  work  for 
ami  with  the  farmers.  Coming  from  the  farmers  them¬ 
selves  it  is  in  a  tniieh  better  position  t<>  get  in  touch 
with  the  farmer  and  gite  any  needed  advice  and  help. 
The  manager  not  only  should  he  a  practical  man.  hav¬ 
ing  had  experience,  lair  he  should  he  in  close  touch  with 
all  the  experiment  stations  ami  our  College  of  Agricul¬ 
ture.  He  also  should  tie  able  to  gather  from  our  most 
successful  farmers  their  methods  and  pass  them  at  to 
those  less  fortunate. 
1  know  very  little  of  the  workings  of  any  ,  it  her  Farm 
Bureau,  hut  I  do  know  that  the  Farm  Bureau  of 
Grange  Comity  is  doing  a  good  work  in  helping  the 
farmers  along  many  lines.  Through  th>*  manager’s 
efforts  largely  the  farmers  are  taking  better  care  of 
their  orchards,  and  are  taking  more  interest  in  raising 
good  fruit,  are  studying  tlieir  soils,  and  through  the 
efforts  of  our  manager  local  limestone  plants  are  being 
operated.  More  people  are  testing  their  cows  than 
ever,  several  cow-testing  associations  are  being  cou- 
