I 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
Juno 17, 1922 
790 L 
“What about the United States Agricultural De¬ 
partment and this fraud?" 
"The matter lias frequently been called to their 
attention. Under the pure food law it is a violation 
to ship in closed packages, going into interstate 
trade, any food misbranded as to grade and contents. 
1 understand that the Federal Bureau will try to 
stamp out this fraudulent practice. We can work 
with-them to shut off the business." 
"What can our people do for you?" 
"They can do a lot by sending us prompt and 
accurate information about such frauds. Whenever 
they buy a barrel of New York apples which prove 
to be misbranded in size or quality let them write 
at once to the New York Department of Farms and 
Markets at Albany. (Jive an exact statement of the 
facts, send a few samples of the apples and. if pos¬ 
sible, the head of the barrel giving the name and 
address of the shipper." 
“How will that help?” 
"It will give the evidence needed to make up a 
case™ We might not get it otherwise. It is practi¬ 
cally impossible for the New York Department to 
make inspections outside the State; and that is 
where most of the trouble is done. Such reports 
will enable us to make a list of crooked or suspected 
shippers. We can then give information to the Fed¬ 
eral authorities, and they can watch and inspect 
where we could not." 
“That sounds reasonable. Our folks will help.” 
' "They can accomplish great things by doing so. It 
is like carrying mil your slogan “11V must do it our¬ 
selves ." As you see. the department cannot work 
alone outside of New York State, but with such in¬ 
formal ion we can spot the mishandlors and work 
with the Federal inspectors to brand them. The 
business of every honest and progressive apple 
grower and dealer is being injured by these rascals. 
They are not entitled to any sympathy, and every 
honest hand should be against them." 
i4 J 
Hay Making West of the Missouri 
Part II. 
LEVELING THE STACK.—Now comes the only 
hand work that we do in haying. After the load 
falls on the stack the two men waiting there proceed 
to level it down so as to form a stack of tlie size and 
shape desired. If the hay is long and coarse, this 
is not heavy work. However, the hay stays in place 
extremely well, so it. is possible to build the sides 
of the stack straight up, or even to bulge them out 
as much as desired. A low pyramid-shaped top is 
often iait on the stacks of the first crop. This is 
considered sufficient, to protect the stack during the 
SO days that must pass before the next crop is 
ready. By that time the stack has settled from (» 
♦o 10 ft. Then I la* next crop is simply put right on 
top and the stack properly shaped up to stand till 
Winter. Sometimes a cap or top of Sudan grass or 
of prairie hay is put on to turn off the rains better. 
Newly stacked Alfalfa hay takes rains very easily. 
i 
i 
A One-pole Stacker. Fig. 326 
I have known a heavy rain to soak through 15 ft 
of it in places in less than an hour. Sometimes 
canvas covers or patent galvanized iron covers are 
put over the stacks. They arc practical, but pretry 
expensive, and considerable of a nuisance to put. on 
securely. Slacking Alfalfa is expensive, anyway, 
for the loss in spoiled hay in the stacks would build 
a barn in four or live years if saved. 
LATER CROPS.—The three or four crops follow¬ 
ing the lirst. come at intervals of from 2S to .".0 days, 
so a small acreage produces a large amount of hay 
in a single season. In Colorado the so-called Mor¬ 
mon stacker is used a great deal. It is sort of a 
low tower with a broad base mounted on skids, for 
moving from stack to stack. A revolving pole pro¬ 
jects from the top of the tower. A cross arm fitted 
Another Tgp< of Pole Stocker. Fig. 327 
with a pulley at its outer end is fastened near the 
top of the pole. With this stacker the load is raised 
straight up and then swung over the stack and 
dropped. I have seen the hay brought to these 
stackers on long sleds which were loaded by band 
That careful handling was to save the leaves and 
have fine bay. Cable stackers are used a great deal, 
too. all through the Middle West. A cable stacker 
is simply a long steel cable carrying a pulley, 
stretched across two pairs of 20-ft. poles set from 
30 to 50 ft. apart. They are very practical and 
cheap. 
SUDAN GRASS AND SORGHUM. — Besides 
Alfalfa, a great deal of Sudan grass and many of 
the sorghums are grown for bay for borne feeding, 
especially in Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado. Sudan 
grass is cut twice each season when in bloom. It is 
splendid hay, but rather hard to cure and handle, 
as the juice dries out very slowly from the stalks. 
Which are from 5 to S ft. long, it is usually put ill 
rather small stacks by hand, as no one raises any 
ot it for sale. Sorghum is not cut till the seed is 
about ripe. After lying in the swath for a week or 
more it is often simply put into extra big cocks and 
left in tin 1 field till near Winter, and then hauled 
to where it: is to he fed out. It is a very popular 
horse feed through the corn licit and in the dry 
farming regions. Chickens are very fond of the 
seed, too. 
WILD GRASS.—Wild prairie hay is nearly a 
thing of the past, although great quantities of it 
are still harvested along the Elk horn River bottoms 
in Northern Nebraska. The soil there is sandy. 
Avitli water very close to the surface, lienee the land 
Is better fitted for growing this rather low-grade 
lmy than anything else. At least that is what it is 
chiefly used for. Bucks are used for bringing this 
bay to the stacks. The principal business of that 
region in the Winter is baling, hauling and shipping 
the hay crop to market. Newport. Nebraska, is said 
to be the greatest hay-shipping station in the world. 
It is only a little town. Several other towns round 
about nearly equal its shipping record. Sometimes 
where the wild grass that is to be cut is thin and 
short a homemade bay gatherer is attached to the 
mower sickle-bar. This is simply a light flat piece 
ol steel wired close be)dud I lie sickle-bar, and hav¬ 
ing strap irons (1 ft. long fastened to it at intervals 
of about 5 in. These strap irons trail along on the 
ground. Running from each end of the sickle-bar 
to near the back ends of the strap irons is a pen 
made of 1x0 boards. This catches the grass as it 
works back and bolds it till enough is gathered to 
make a good-sized forkful, when the driver raises 
the back part of it by means of a small rope that is 
fastened to if and the mower seat. That leaves the 
cut grass in a bunch. These bunches are later 
gathered by hand and hauled to the stack. In the 
short grass range country, where lmy is very scarce 
and high-priced, we used to think that a man was 
doing well if he got a ton of bay per day in this 
way. Necessity is the mother of invention, you 
know. 
WEIGHTED STACKS.—Nearly all of these dif¬ 
ferent kinds of bay are put into oblong stacks, 
although more and more round stacks are being 
built of late years as their merits are becoming 
bettor known. Wo never put a pole down the center 
of a bay stack as is done in the East, but. we do have 
to bang weights, connected in pairs by twine or wire, 
about evei\\ ('• ft., to keep the wind from blowing the 
tops off during storms. J. h. tubbs. 
Nebraska. 
Improving the Pasture 
'■■jplIE “hidebound" pasture is always with us. In 
J- some cases these pastures have a fair amount 
of plant food, but they are so sour and inert that 
goi d grasses cannot grow. A "hidebound" horse 
gets the currycomb on bis back, a good balanced ra¬ 
tion and some form of "tonic,” and the hidebound 
pasture needs pretty much the same thing. When¬ 
ever possible, it pays to scratch the pasture's back 
with a disk or spike-tooth barrow. A good coat of 
lime is usually needed, above all else. That, sweetens 
the soil and opens it. and you will generally see 
clover coining in where the lime has been spread. 
Phosphorus is the element most needed in such old 
pastures. Many a farmer lias noticed bow tail 
eiunrps of grass grow where manure is dropped in 
the pasture. The stock will rarely eat this rank 
growth, but scatter a little bonemeal or acid phos¬ 
phate over it, and before long you will find it eaten 
dose! The phosphorus gives a finer quality to the 
grass. There are usually fair amounts of potash 
and nitrogen in these old pastures, though often a 
light application of nitrate of soda will start up the 
grass in great shape. Lime and phosphorus are the 
elements most needed, and oftentimes I heir use. wit.'i 
a light scratching with a harrow, will double the 
value of the pasture. In New York State, wutside 
Hip fruit and truck districts, the pastures are often 
the most valuable part of the farm, and usually the 
most neglected. We have heard farmers say that it 
does not pay to bother with them in the present con¬ 
dition of the dairy business. We think many of 
them will pay as well as the cornfields for fair im¬ 
provement. 
Tub Black Jersey Giants are now distinct and use¬ 
ful enough to warrant their acceptance as a new breed. 
They are further along than the R. I. Reds wore when 
that breed was admitted to the “standard.” 
/'hinting Dahlias for Ineiease. Fig. 328 
