1474 
IShe  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
The  Rural  New-Yorker 
THE  BO  SIR  ESS  FARMER'S  TAPER 
A  National  Weekly  Journal  for  Country  nml  {suburban  Home* 
EstaMffihett  ittso 
rnhllnhed  weekly  hy  the  Rural  Ptibliahlnr  Company,  8S8  Went  30tli  Street,  hew  Vork 
Herbert  W  Collwowoob,  President  and  Editor 
J OIL''  J.  Dillon,  Treasurer  and  General  Matuarer 
Wjl  F.  DlJXOK,  Secretary  Wra  E.  T  ttovt.t..  Associate  Editor, 
SUBSCRIPTION  :  ONE  DOLLAR  A  YEAR 
To  foreign  count  ries  In  the  Untvwsa.1  Postal  Union,  $2.01,  equal  to  8s.  fid.  or 
S!b  marks,  orlOU  francs.  Remit  in  money  order,  express 
order,  personal  cheek  or  bank  draft. 
Entered  at  New  York"  I’ust  Office  its  Second  Class  Matter. 
Advertising  rates,  75  cents  per  agate  line — 7  words.  References  required  for 
advertisers  unknown  to  us  ;  and  cash  must,  accompany  transient- orders. 
"A  SQUARE  DEAL" 
tVe  believe  that  every  advertisement  in  this  paper  P  backed  hy  a  respon¬ 
sible  person.  We  use  every  possible  precaution  and  admit  tbe  advertising  of 
reliable  bouses  only.  But  to  make  doubly  sure,  we  will  make  good  any  loss 
to  tm  Id  an  late  ribent  sustained  hy  trust  lug  any  deliberate  swindler,  irrespon¬ 
sible  advertisers  or  misleading  advertisement*.;  In  our  columns,  and  any 
such  swindler  will  be  publicly  exposed.  We  are  also  often  called  upon 
to  adjust  dilToronceS  or  mistakes  between  our  subscribers  and  honest, 
resttoiodblo  bon  sea,  whether  advertisers  or  not.  We  willingly  u«e  our  good 
Offices  to  ibis  en<1,  bur  midi  eases  should  not  lie  confused  with  dishonest, 
tismsaetions.  Wo  protect,  suliscrihein  against  rogues,  blit  We  will  not  bo 
responsible  for  tbe  debts  or  honest  hank  roots  sanctioned  hy  the  courts, 
Notice  of  the  complaint  must,  he  sent  to  us  within  one  mont  h  or  the  time  of 
the  transaction,  and  to  identify  it,  you  should  mention  The  Rural  New- 
Yorker  when  wilting  the  advertiser. 
Good  Friends  Who  Stick 
No.  0. 
E  try  to  give  our  readers  a  broad  and  fair 
view  of  farm  matter’s  so  that  everyone — the 
college  man  as  well  as  the  hired  man — may  find 
common  ground  in  it.  Here  is  the  college  man. 
I  subscribed  to  your  paper  as  a  part  of  a  farm  ad¬ 
ministration  course  last  year,  and  have  read  it  regular¬ 
ly  ever  since.  I  learn  as  much  from  it  as  from  my 
courses  here.  w.  I.  M. 
rollcge  and  professional  men  are  reading  The 
It.  N.-Y.  because  they  say  they  cannot  get  the  true 
feeling  of  practical  farmers  in  any  other  way.  At 
the  same  time  thousands  of  practical  farmers  study 
The  lh  N.-Y,  because  it  gives  them  a  broader  view 
of  life. 
* 
THE  Agricultural  Department  is  out  with  a 
warning  against  the  “veneered”  bale  of  hay: 
Veneering  consists  in  feeding  to  the  baling  machine 
an  occasional  forkful  of  hay  that  is  of  higher  grade 
than  the  bulk  of  the  lot  being  baled  and  manipulating 
the  forkful  in  such  a  way  that  the  high  grade  hay  cov¬ 
ers  the  outside  of  the  bale,  making  the  bale  appear  to 
contain  better  hay  than  it  actually  does  contain. 
This  is  as  had  as  the  stove-piped  apple  barrel,  the 
sawdust  sausage  and  the  basswood  ham.  Their  hu¬ 
man  imitation  is  the  pious  and  “benevolent”  old 
rascal  who  tries  to  sell  you  a  gold  brick.  Watch 
them  all. 
j): 
One  of  our  neighbors  told  of  reading  in  some  farm 
paper  that  silage  was  just  as  good  feed  and  required 
no  more  grain  if  the  ears  were  taken  off  before  filling 
silo.  1  would  like  to  know  if  this  has  been  tested  thor¬ 
oughly.  It  does  not  seem  to  me  it  can  be  possible. 
C.  E.  C. 
HERE  was  evidently  a  case  of  careless  reading 
or  senseless  writing.  You  can  find  plenty  of 
both.  A  little  thought  should  convince  anyone  that 
a  corn  plant  with  the  ears  removed  cannot  be  as 
valuable  as  the  entire  plant.  About  two-thirds  of 
the  actual  feeding  value  will  be  found  in  tbe  ear. 
Again,  who  can  imagine  that  the  fresh  cut  stalk 
with  its  natural  juices  is  not  more  valuable  than 
the  dried  stalk  with  plain  water  added?  This  thing 
of  making  good  silage  out  of  dried  stalks  and  water 
may  read  well,  but  the  stock  that  have  to  eat  it 
know  better. 
tjr 
ON  page  1460  is  the  story  of  a  Virginia  fruit 
grower  who  was  held  up  for  a  $50  license  when 
trying  to  sell  apples  from  the  car  at  Rocky  Mount, 
N.  C.  The  city  clerk  of  Rocky  Mount  says  that  this 
license  is  required  of  all  non-residents  and  sends 
this  copy  of  the  section  from  the  city  code: 
No.  17.  Every  itinerant  merchant  or  salesman  who 
shall  expose  for  sale  on  the  public  streets  or  alleys, 
or  in  any  building,  enclosure  or  other  place,  rented  or 
occupied,  temporarily,  for  such  purpose,  any  goods, 
wares,  jewelry,  merchandise,  med'eincs  or  other  arti¬ 
cles  of  value  shall  pay  an  annual  license  tax  of  $50. 
We  do  not  believe  this  would  stand  the  test  of 
law  where  goods  like  apples  were  sold  direct  from 
the  car.  The  trouble  is  that  when  a  man  starts  out 
with  perishable  goods  and  is  confronted  with  these 
local  regulations  he  cannot  go  through  some  long 
legal  process.  It  is  like  putting  a  pistol  at  his  head 
and  ordering,  “Stand  and  deliver!” 
sjt 
THE  State  of  Florida  lias  suffered  greatly  from 
land  sharks  and  fertilizer  frauds.  The  soil  is 
light  and  quick,  there  is  not  much  livestock  to  pro¬ 
vide  manure,  and  fertilizers  are  necessary.  For  a 
time  all  the  fakes  and  frauds  who  unite  a  bad  smell 
with  a  high-sounding  name  and  call  it  plant  food 
reaped  a  rich  harvest  in  Florida.  The  State  is 
controlled  by  farmers  and,  driven  by  necessity,  they 
have  finally  obtained  the  strongest  fertilizer  laws 
in  the  country.  No  fertilizer  can  be  sold  except 
under  oath  hy  the  manufacturer  with  a  full  guar¬ 
antee.  When  goods  are  not  thus  guaranteed  or 
tagged  thev  are  subject  to  seizure  and  sale  by  tbe 
sheriff.  These  laws  are  respected  and  when  fakes 
like  “stone  meal’  oi  “minora*  plant  food”  get  into 
Florida  they  get  into  trouble  Florida  also  pro 
\ides  for  the  analysis  ot  fertilizer  substances  like 
muck,  ashes  oi  wastes  free  ot  charge.  Why  not? 
J n  a  state  like  Florida  where  all  wealth  must  come 
directly  out  of  the  soil,  it  is  an  act  ot  necessity  to 
make  that  soil  as  rich  and  strong  as  possible.  I'lius 
many  substances  which  might  otherwise  he  thrown 
away  are  freely  analyzed,  found  useful  and  saved. 
New  York  and  New  Jersey  need  just  such  a  pro¬ 
vision  for  free  analyses 
*3e 
WE  have  had  several  complaints  from  iarmers 
who  say  the  rural  mail  carrier  refuses  to 
lock  or  unlock  the  mail  box.  There  are  often  val¬ 
uable  letters  or  packages  left  in  a  hox  which  is  out 
of  sight  of  the  house.  The  mail  carrier  says  ne  is 
not  obliged  to  protect  them  by  locking  the  box  In 
order  to  learn  the  exact  rights  ot  farmers  in  this 
regard  we  wrote  the  Fourth  Assistant  Postmaster 
General.  He  settles  it  as  follows* 
In  reply  1  have  to  state  that,  while  the  use  ot  locks 
ou  boxes  is  not  required,  it  is  eousiderd  advisable  as 
a  measure  of  protection,  and  it  patrons  provide  locks 
carriers  are  required  to  accept  keys  and  lock  and  un¬ 
lock  boxes  when  serving  them.  Rural  mail  boxes  and 
their  contents  are  protected  by  Federal  statute  from 
malicious  damage  nr  depredation,  and  persons  who  un¬ 
lawfully  tamper  with  such  boxes  or  their  contents  are 
liable  to  prosecution.  j  k.  mckett 
A 8  a  little  contribution  to  the  phosphate  discus¬ 
sion  the  following  from  the  Ohio  Experiment 
Station  is  good.  They  advise  the  use  of  phosphate 
with  manure  because  the  latter  is  lacking  in  this 
element. 
Acid  phosphate  is  more  generally  recommended,  be¬ 
cause  under  average  conditions  it  is  more  effective  and 
more  economical  than  the  raw  rock.  Acid  phosphate 
has  returned  more  than  throe  times  its  cost  in  crop 
yields  in  many  tests  at  the  Experiment  Station,  even 
when  used  in  Connection  with  manure.  It  is  ordin¬ 
arily  used  at  the  rate  of  40  pounds  per  ton  of  manure. 
The  phosphate  may  be  spread  over  the  manure  in  the 
shed  or  yard  or  mixed  with  it  at  the  time  of  hauling. 
We  think  that  accords  with  most  scientific  and 
practical  experiment.  The  latest  suggestion  is  to 
use  ground  raw  phosphate,  mixed  with  sulphur,  in 
the  manure  or  compost  heap  The  sulphur  will  he 
made  into  sulphuric  acid,  and  this  will  change  the 
raw  phosphate  into  a  superphosphate.  At  any  rate 
we  believe  that  the  soluble  phosphate  is  more  eco¬ 
nomical  for  this  work  than  the  raw  phosphate,  and 
we  think  this  use  of  sulphur  will  be  worked  out  in 
a  practical  manner. 
* 
BOTH  Kansas  and  Michigan  announce  through 
their  experiment  stations  the  development  of 
superior  varieties  of  wheat.  The  Michigan  variety 
is  known  as  Red  Rock,  and  it  has  been  tested  thor¬ 
oughly  and  is  apparently  a  very  satisfactory  va¬ 
riety,  which  Michigan  farmers  surely  ought  to  try. 
The  Kansas  variety  represents  a  strain  of  the  Tin- 
key  type,  and  was  produced  hy  the  head  selection 
from  the  Crimean  variety.  It  has  already  been 
tested  and  uniformly  gives  from  four  to  six 
bushels  more  per  acre  than  the  common  strain  of 
Turkey  wheat.  Tl  is  thought  to  be  hardier  than  the 
Turkey  and  has  other  points  of  superiority.  Un¬ 
questionably  this  wheat  promises  well  for  the  Kan¬ 
sas  country.  Next  year  there  will  be  a  considerable 
amount  received  for  distribution,  but  before  it  goes 
out  definitely  a  suitable  name  is  wanted.  The  Kan¬ 
sas  farmers  and  wheat  growers  generally  are  re¬ 
quested  to  suggest  suitable  names  for  this  new 
variety.  This  is  a  popular  way  of  interesting  the 
farmers,  and  those  who  want  to  Help  in  this  mat¬ 
ter  may  write  to  Prof.  L.  E.  Call  of  Manhattan, 
Kansas. 
* 
WE  have  had  many  letters  about  the  farm  bu¬ 
reaus  and  their  work.  There  are  so  many 
that  we  cannot  begin  to  print  them  all,  but  they 
cover  all  sides  of  the  subject.  The  conclusion  seems 
to  be  quite  clear.  The  bureau  is  evidently  the  last 
effort  to  put  in  a  close  connection  between  the  col¬ 
lege,  the  station  and  other  institutions  and  the  plain, 
practical  farmer.  After  50  years  and  more  of  agri¬ 
cultural  education  we  must  all  admit  that  this  edu¬ 
cation  has  not  reached  down  to  tbe  plainer  farmers 
as  it  should  have  done,  Tt  has  been  of  chief  bene¬ 
fit  to  the  well-to-do  or  naturally  quick  and  strong. 
This  education  has  developed  a  great  army  of  offi¬ 
cials  whose  chief  business  must  be  doing  for  the 
farmer  many  things  which  in  former  years  he  did 
for  himself.  It  may  fairly  he  said  that  one  result 
of  farm  education  is  to  train  a  class  of  farmers  who 
are  less  self-reliant  than  their  fathers,  and  far  more 
inclined  to  lean  upon  “the  government”  for  help! 
Now  the  farm  bureau  may  be  said  to  wire  the 
colleges  to  the  ground,  hut  it  will  depend  upon  the 
November  25.  i9l. 
wiring.  One  ot  two  things  will  tianpen.  Eitnei  to- 
influence  ot  the  college  or  rhe  influence  oi  the  xarm 
ers  will  dominate.  Jt  the  college  influence  prove* 
tin  strongei  the  n resent  educational  spirit  wil'  grow 
and  in  our  judgment  the  tanner  will  lose  more  inn 
more  oi  his  individuality  quit  selt-reiianr  spirit 
•t  the.  tanners  influence  prove  strongei  we  oeiieve 
it  will,  in  time,  work  up  into  the  colleges,  and  make 
those  institutions  more  practical  ana  in  closer  nu 
man  harmony  with  the  common  farmers!  Rrlefij 
stated  that  seems  to  he  the  problem.  The  tanner;- 
imv*:  a  chance  through  these  bureaus,  to  get  noic 
ot  the  colleges  and  shape  them  more  to  their  needs 
We  think  the  farmers  should  make  good  use  ot  this 
agency,  and  dominate  it 
;*• 
THE  U„  S.  Geological  Survey  has  found  hickory 
nuts  perfectly  preserved,  in  shape  in  deposits  oi 
clay.  These  deposits  are  considered  not  less  than 
one  million  years  old.  This  means  that  they  are 
at  least  100  times  as  old  as  the  pyramids  ot  Egypt 
Thus  these  hiekorynuts  are  100  times  as  old  as  tlm 
wheat  found  in  the  pyramids.  Jt  does  not  make 
great  difference  to  most  ot  us  just  how  old  these 
deposits  are,  but  reasoning  by  comparison  it  is  evi 
dent  that  the  hickory  is  an  old  citizen,  and  what 
might  he  called  a  veteran  among  nuts,  it  is  not 
only  an  old  citizen,  but  a  useful  one,  for  the  time 
is  surely  coming  in  the  future  when  the  meat  sup 
ply  will  become  so  scanty  that  a  diet  ot  nuts  must 
be  resorted  to  in  order  to  provide  the  needed  muscle 
makers  to  sustain  the  human  body  The  coming 
man  will  be  obliged  to  pick  his  beefsteak  anti  roast- 
pork  off  a  nut  tree. 
* 
1  have  just  read  the  article  by  Francis  F.  Lincoln 
in  this  week’s  issue  about  poultry  raising,  and  I  want 
to  thank  both  him  and  yon  for  the  first  truthful  ar¬ 
ticle  on  the  subject  (that  is,  this  phase  of  it)  that  I 
ever  read.  It  certainly  accords  right  to  the  notch  with 
my  experience  of  the  last  four  continuous  years  of 
trying  to  improve  a  flock  of  Barred  Rocks  and  one  of 
S.  C.  W.  Leghorns,  and  it  has  been  a  mighty  discour¬ 
aging  and  uphill  business,  but  this  article  of  Lincoln’s 
lias  given  me  a. mental  boost.  mark  b.  bacon. 
Pennsylvania. 
HE  hen  is  the  most  honest  and  independent 
member  of  the  barnyard  family,  yet  her  boost¬ 
ers  have,  for  some  reason,  made  her  out  the  great¬ 
est  bluffer  and  Mar  among  all  farm  stock.  More 
back-to-the-landers  have  been  Jed  astray  and  left  on 
the  dump  heap  through  gilded  lies  about  the  chick¬ 
en  business  than  through  any  other  inducement.  Yet 
a  truthful  story  can  be  told  about  the  hen,  for  she 
may  become  the  best  friend  any  farmer  can  have 
on  his  farm.  The  bluffers  have  had  their  day,  and 
we  think  a  fairer  show  for  our  feathered  friend  is 
in  sight,  If  some  of  these  human  orowei*s  could 
have  won  the  honors  which  have  come  to  Mr.  Lin¬ 
coln  in  the  egg-laying  contest  there  would  be  no 
living  within  a  mile  of  them — and  what  fairy  tales 
they  would  be  telling!  Yet  you  could  not  pull  them 
within  gunshot  of  an  egg-laying  contest — with  a 
steam  engine! 
* 
"Tin  Lady  From  Montana!" 
T  has  come — long  before  most  of  us  thought  it 
would  be  possible.  At  the  recent  election  Miss 
Jeannette  Rankin  was  elected  to  Congress  from 
Montana.  Miss  Rankin  is  a  Republican,  and 
the  same  voters  who  elected  her  turned  around 
and  gave  President  Wilson  a  majority.  Miss 
Rankin  is  au  educated  woman.  She  worked 
and  studied  right  along  with  her  brothers. 
She  is  better  qualified  in  mentality  and  char¬ 
acter  to  serve  in  Congress  than  SO  per  cent,  of  the 
men  who  will  serve  xvith  her.  Congress  is  the  great 
public  legislative  laundry.  Man  has  ever  wanted  to 
throw  the  dirty  clothes  into  a  corner  and  Jiide  them 
under  the  tub.  Woman’s  instinct  is  to  put  the 
clothes  into  the  tub  and  scrub  them  clean.  Some 
of  our  ultra-conservative  citizens  will  see  in  this 
“Lady  from  Montana”  further  evidence  of  the  de¬ 
cay  and  ruin  of  our  Republic.  They  need  not 
worry.  If  they  were  wise  they  would  see  in  it  still 
further  evidence  that  the  Western  people  have  a 
broader  and  clearer  vision  of  what  a  true  democ¬ 
racy  ought  to  be 
Brevities 
Wiio  will  undertake  to  tell  us  that  during  the  recent 
milk  contest  tbe  work  done  by  women  was  not  as  neces¬ 
sary  and  effective  as  that  of  the  men? 
We  have  now  had  that  dog-training  article.  Are  we 
right  in  saying  that  some  people  will  spend  more  time 
and  patience  over  the  pup  than  they  will  with  the 
child? 
Tiie  man  who  owns  a  rapid  car  may  crank  her  up 
and  travel  far — perhaps  for  full  three  score  of  miles — 
yet  in  the  barn  old  Dobbin  smiles,  for  well  he  knows 
his  master  got  out  of  that  slow  and  solid  trot,  far  more 
of  life  and  friendliness  and  happy  memories  to  bless, 
thau  all  this  rush  along  the  way,  with  never  time  to 
stop  and  play. 
