1306 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
November 4 , 1022 
particularly. This is a virtue which any breed of 
chickens can well emulate. Picture with me several 
hundred of these shiny black hens. big. strong and 
attractive, roaming over the grass of the orchard. 
It was a pretty sight. And what is all-important, 
it was a concrete proof of the stable, durable place 
which this relatively new breed of American poultry 
has made, purely on its merits, for itself. 
USING THE GIANT ON THE FARM.—Judging 
from actual observations, made as our car moved 
along down through that rich farming section, the 
Jersey Black Giant is a breed for use. Its very 
existence is in response to a demand. Its present 
usefulness may be taken as key to the possibilities 
that lie before the breed wherever it may be adopted 
throughout the country. There is probably little 
doubt but that among its foremost uses is its capacity 
for poultry meat production. On one farm at which 
a stop was made just before the shades of evening 
were falling, and the farmer’s wife was interrupted 
iu the preparation of her supper by our call, we were 
informed that last February she had sold nearly 200 
Giant capons, averaging from N to 10 lbs., and many 
going over that weight. With capons bringing in 
the neighborhood of 00 cents per pound, it is not 
hard to estimate that the lady’s check rivaled any 
that her husband produced in any other branch of 
the farm. 
CAPONS.—We found that the farmers have made 
a practice of eapouizing their Giant cockerels along 
in June, or early July, each season, pasturing them 
for the remainder of the season, and feeding for 
size and frame development, largely on, grains, such 
as corn and wheat, with enough dry mash to bal¬ 
ance the ration. It would seem that middle or late 
June is the most practical time in which to caponize. 
This means that the Giant chicks should be hatched 
in March, so that the young cockerels will weigh 
approximately 1*4 lbs. in June. On many of the 
farms the Giants have been hatched too late, largely 
because many of the farmers still depend upon 
natural means for incubation, and therefore their 
hatching depends upon the inclination of the hens 
involved. This fact several farmers’ wives told us. 
If the capons are to reach full development and 
large size by the height of the capon season, from 
the holidays on until some time in February, as a 
rule, the chicks should be hatched early and the 
eapouizing done while the weather is still moderate. 
If the operation is deferred until the very hot days 
of midsummer there is greater loss, aud less rapid 
recovery from the effects of the operation. Capon- 
izing results in more efficient growth and use of 
food materials, more docile and easily handled 
males, higher quality of meat, and greater profits. 
GENERAL PURPOSE USE.—The Jersey Black 
Giant will find great usefulness as a general farm 
fowl, for Winter eggs, occasional Sunday dinner, 
and the general purposes for which thousands of 
farm poultry flocks are maintained. Many a poul¬ 
try lover, whose interests tend toward the exhibition 
of fowls, will find in this solidly built breed a new 
possibility. The greater shows during the later 
years have indeed had very creditable classes of 
Jersey Black Giants entered. 
TIIE FUTURE—A great, day has dawned for the 
Jersey Black Giant. They have emerged from the 
confines of their native farms, and have made a 
bid for a place on farms, or poultry plants, in every 
section of the land. They ask not to crowd out any 
established breed, but they ask for a chance at fair 
competition. To many of us whose personal choice 
among the various breeds of fowls has been well 
fixed through several years, this new breed makes 
an appeal. The recognition of the Jersey Black 
Giant as a standard purebred will do much to en¬ 
courage it. as well as to centralize all breeders’ 
efforts with the Giants along similar lines. 
WILLARD C. THOMPSON. 
especially to Germany. Much of the export is made 
from skim-milk powder. Average milk price at cou- 
denseries is $1.75 per 1U0 lbs. Consumers still pay 
10 to IS cents per quart. 
FRUITS AND VEGETABLES.—Potatoes show 
the largest crop since 1917. but less than four 
bushels per capita, because of increased population. 
Considerable damage from blight and dry weather 
is reported from East and North, The estimate of 
October 9 shows at 433,000.000 bushels, quite a de¬ 
crease during September. The Western crop in¬ 
cludes much poor, rough stock. The price may pick 
tip after digging time, but it. appears safe policy to 
take advantage of any good raise in November 
rather than to risk storage. Do not ship anything 
but U. S. No. 1 grade, and push the local markets 
for all they are worth. Apples are a large crop 
still, according to the October estimate, but not so 
large as in 1920, especially the standard late kinds. 
Make a Cone of Earth Around the Base of the Roses 
Fig. 566 
Northwestern box apples run small size and wormy, 
and will not crowd the Eastern crop so hard as 
seemed likely at first. The Government report for 
October shows some further decrease for early fig¬ 
ures. If business is good the country will need all 
the Winter apples. Prices in producing sections are 
only about $3 per barrel. Export demand is not 
expected to be heavy, because Europe has a large 
home crop and the rate of exchange is such that they 
can draw supplies from one another for less than 
they can import from this country. It is likely to 
Protecting Tender Shrubs With Pine Boughs. Fig. 567 
A Fair View of the Farmer’s Position 
Part II. 
1 YE STOCK PROSPECTS.—All lines of live 
stock have been showing some increases in 
supply, compared with a year ago, and prices, except 
for calves, are a little lower than at that time. Milk 
is low compared with cost of production, and is in 
oversupply in some sections. Freight, and dealers’ 
margins continue high. The market needs close 
attention on the part of the marketing organizations. 
Butter is doing leather well compared with most 
lines, but is a little lower than a year ago, and pro¬ 
duction is good except where hit by dry weather. 
Cheese prices are about the same as a year ago. 
There is plenty of hay, some of it poor quality 
where there was too much rain. Store feeds are 
high. There is a big export trade in milk powder, 
be a quiet apple year, without any fancy apple 
prices. Onions are a large crop. Quality is poor 
in the East, but good in the Middle West. Lai*ge 
yields per acre will do something to offset low prices. 
There is no great encouragement to store onions. 
Storage seldom pays, except in a short crop year, 
which this is not. Cabbage is also a heavy crop, 
although somewhat checked by dry weather in some 
districts. It brings $12 per ton in Western New 
York. $<! to $s per ton in the North and about half 
that in Colorado. Things sometimes happen late in 
tin 1 season to change the outlook for cabbage, which 
now seems likely to sell low. Sweet potatoes are 
yielding heavily and selling in producing sections 
about as low as white stock sells in the North. 
Hundreds of new storehouses will help prolong the 
season, but profit, if any, from stored stock goes 
mostly to dealers. The crop of 105,000,000 bushels 
is about one-fourth that of white potatoes, but only 
a tenth of the sweets come North. Peaches were a 
large crop, but paid little not to the rank and file 
of Northern shipper’s. Too much of the crop was 
small size and poor in appearance. Grapes are one 
of the bright spots of the market. Car shortage 
checks shipments from California somewhat, but 
Eastern grapes find buyers at shipping points, and 
run $75 per ton in Michigan and $90 to $95 in New 
York State. Honey depends somewhat on the course 
of the sugar market, and sugar is expected to stay 
high until Europe goes back to raising beet sugar in 
full volume. Honey producers are making great 
progress in selling cans of strained honey by mail. 
ONE WAY' /)UT.—“Do not go with the crowd” is 
good advice when the crowd goes without thinking. 
In another sense it is all right when one picks the 
right crowd—a group that thinks and pulls together. 
Local co-operation working with a small, intelligent 
“crowd" has often proved a remedy for troubles 
caused by following a big flock of human sheep. 
Every year of low prices and no profit has started 
a new wave of co-operation among farmers. We 
are so independent that the word "co-operation" 
makes some men shy like a colt at the first touch of 
a harness, but farmers have a full share of good 
sense, and when in a tight place they look for a 
path that will take them out. To learn the art of 
pulling together, like the farmers of Denmark, for 
example, is considered by some to be the greatest 
need of American farmers. The way to it is full 
of storms and stumps, as anyone knows who is ti’y- 
ing to join with half a dozen others planning opera¬ 
tions for buying supplies or marketing milk, apples, 
potatoes or truck. 
THE BRIGHTEST SPOTS in the farming coun¬ 
try are those where growers have built up a repu¬ 
tation for a product and handle it together. Shin¬ 
ing examples are the cranberry farmers of Cape 
Cod, the apple gi'owers of the Northwest, the potato 
farmers of the Eastern Shore, and the orauge or- 
chaiTlists of California: but there are hundreds of 
little groups that are able to hold up their heads 
even in a bad year, because they get all that con¬ 
ditions will allow. Their big advantages are that 
they cut cost of supplies, swap ideas on cultivation, 
put up reliable and uniform stuff that will establish 
a reputation. They save freight by shipping in ear- 
lots, and when their standing is known they find 
the buyers glad to do business with little need of 
numerous middlemen. o. b. f. 
The Story of a Barber’s Wife 
I T was with interest I read the request of E. P. 
of Gary, Ind., on page 1119, to have a few words 
from a barber who gave up his occupation and made 
good as a pouitryman. I am the widow of a barber 
who left bis shop 11 years ago. and moved onto a 
farm for no other purpose than to make a living 
with Single Comb White Leghorns. We had money 
enough to pay cash for our farm, but we found we 
had so little left as working capital that we put a 
mortgage of about $1,000 on the farm, and started 
out to try for table eggs. .i 
We neither one knew a Leghorn hen from any 
other breed, so when we bought our first 20 S. C. 
White Leghorn liens we did not know till long after- 
wards what inferior culls the breeder had sold us. 
That was in (be Autumn of 1911. Iu the Spring of 
1912 we bought eggs for hatching from reputable 
breedei’S, and with two new incubators began opera¬ 
tions. When the following Fall caxue we had about 
200 nice large well-raised pullets, but we made the 
mistake of overcrowding them, so did not get eggs 
till Spring. We made many costly mistakes and 
paid dearly for our experience^ for the farm papers 
and poultry journals did not have page after page 
of useful, simple methods of feeding and curing for 
chicks, growing stock and hens, as they do now: 
neither were the markets full of excellent brooder 
equipment and all useful things for the care of poul¬ 
try, as can be found now iu almost any town. 
Our hens lifted our mortgage, provided means for 
building, for bousing 1,200 layers and 2.500 baby 
chicks, besides buying incubator capacity enough for 
6,500 eggs at one sitting, brooder stoves, a modern 
farm electric lighting plant, and, in fact, all we had. 
for we had no other source of income. 
Two years ago. on October 1. my husband crossed 
the “divide” and left me all alone, save for a man I 
employ to help me carry on. lie was 63 years old 
at bis death, so you see he was no young man when 
he pulled up stakes and moved from the city. 
If one will work, use common sense and exercise 
patience and care. I see no reason why one should 
not he able to make a good living and a surplus 
besides with good hens. m. j. m. 
Ohio. 
