394 
00P.E’3 BUBAL NEW-YOBKER. 
afield 
CORN CULTURE IN THE WEST. 
An Eastern Farmer Among the Corn Culti¬ 
vators of Illinois and Wisconsin. 
Editor Moore’s Rural New-Yorker:— It. 
may interest some of your readers to hear 
from a New York farmer who 1ms been 
visiting friends in tins prairie country, and 
at the same time viewing the improvements 
w -**‘ have been made in t he opening up of 
farms on «.w» a re at prairies of Northern Illi¬ 
nois and Southern ▼^•u^on'-in since a former 
visit marie some years sin-. q-] Ul writer 
left Rome, N. Y., the 18th of May, t () j >e 
in time, for the cuttle sales of C. C. Parks ot 
Waukegan the 30th; also that of Mr. Kino, 
at Dexter Park, Chicago, the 21st, both of 
which sales were attended, us intended when 
leaving home, and both of which proved 
very satisfactory to the owners thereof. 
The prospect for fruit is very good. Acres 
of the Early Richmond cherry are growing 
within marketing distance of Chicago, and 
were covered with blossoms when your cor¬ 
respondent arrived here; and now the cher¬ 
ries are as large as peas and the trees loaded 
full. Last week and this, so far, have been 
spent in riding over the country in Northern 
Illinois aud Southern Wisconsin, in a car¬ 
riage; also from Rockford north on Rock 
river and its vicinity; and what strikes the 
eye of a person who went over the same 
ground in the early years of the settlement 
of this part of the country h the contrast of 
wide, extensive prairies then aud cultivated 
farms now, with abundance of shade trees 
about the dwellings, as also fruit trees, small 
fruits, &c.; with Helds of wheat, oats and 
corn that would cover whole farms at the 
East, each of them. The tillage also is very 
different from Eastern farms. The first 
course is, after tiie corn is planted, to roll 
the ground to press the soil to the seed; 
then, either just before or very soon after 
the corn is up, a pair of horses and man 
with harrow go over the field; this tears 
up and destroys the small weeds by the mil¬ 
lion; then a team and man or boy, as the 
case may be, goes over the field with a sulky 
cultivator, on which the driver rides; Uie 
team goes astride the row; also the eultiva- 
vator blades working both sides of the row 
at the same time, and working close to the 
corn, that being protected from injury by a 
wing of sheet iron each side of the Dili, wide 
enough and long enough to keep the dirt 
from being thrown upon the corn by the cul 
tivator teeth, which ure in the form of a 
small shovel plow, working the dirt from 
the corn the first working, and up to the 
row after that, if bo desired by the operator, 
the depth being regulated by lever? working 
in cogs each side of the driver, and lifted out 
of the ground altogether at the ends to facil¬ 
itate the turning; also to prevent the tear¬ 
ing up the end hills of corn. The wings that 
protect t he corn, as also the cultivator teet h, I 
are so hung to the frame at the part that | 
supports the wheels that the rider, with ids 
feet on each foot piece, can vary them so 
that t hey can readily be kept off the row in 
case the team should, by any neglect of the 
driver or other cause, vary their course so 
that the cultivator teeth would, if stationary , 
in a frame, cut or tear up the corn. . 
Now Imagine one, two, or three such two- j 
horse teams and cultivators.at work in the j 
same field, aud in many cases a dozen or two I 
of such teams in sight on the different farms j 
in view, when the fields will vary in size i 
from ten to forty acres each, and in many | 
cases fifty to eighty acres in a field, and not t 
ft stone or stump to interfere w itli the oulti- i 
vat.ion, and you have as much of the reality f 
as imagination can picture without the > 
scenery before you. Soon after the field has f 
been gone over in one direct ion, the team or 
teams are set going in the opposite direc- t 
t,ion, then cultivating both wavs very close f 
to the hill, and if the cultivating hoe been 
well done and the soil dry, the fields will be r 
vary clean; but, on the contrary, if the early l 
cull ivation has been neglected, or the season * 
is wet, the weeds get the start, and it is f 
very difficult to eradicate them. At this r 
writing the season is dry and. the corn fields | 
generally look quite clean. Most of them ), 
have been harrowed; very many of them on v 
Rock river have been worked with ihe eulti- f , 
vator, and the prospect of a good crop is ]j 
very encouraging. t 
Wheat and oats also are looking well, v 
while winter rye is not as a whole looking ns u 
well as usual; only a few field? present that o 
well set and well grown appearance so de- a 
sirable to the eye of the farmer w ho expects li 
to harvest a full crop. Flax is also cultivated 
considerably in the section passed over, most¬ 
ly for the seed. It was up and looking very 
well. There is also quite a breadth of potatoes 
planted, but the pest in form of the potato 
beetle is unusually plenty, so the farmers tell 
me, and they were the first your correspond¬ 
ent ever haw; they appear 80 worthless that 
I hope they will not trouble the Eastern 
farmers with their company; but no doubt 
they will, as they are working eastward. 
Jonathan Talcott. 
Chicago, June 2,187-1. 
ADVENTURES OUT WEST. 
8nMK time ago, a certain man took if into 
’■ liis head to chance liis situation and, in con¬ 
sequence of an advertisement, corresponded 
with a man who said he owned 7,000 acres 
of land, 700 of which he. lived on and was 
anxioiiK to rent on shares. The advertiser 
who headed his advertisement “ Farming 
■ Manager,” and signed it “ Overseer,” did riot 
! wish to farm on shares, whereupon t he land- 
owner asked on what terms the farm mana¬ 
ger would work for him one year with the 
view of renting the second. These terms 
were stated, and the owner of lands made a 
distinct offer of a certain sum in money per 
month and privileges of “a good, comfort¬ 
able house, fuel, cows enough for family 
use, vegetables, a lot to fatten hogs, stock, 
poultry of any kind except, geese and game 
chickens for the half, and pasture for one 
horse.” After this the advertiser was ad¬ 
vised to sell his furniture and buy on arri¬ 
val and to take a particular route, &c. 
The advertiser replied by accepting the 
offer, stating that his time being up on tA6 
last day of the month, and being but a few 
days left, he would immediately get oa auc¬ 
tioneer to sell hie effects so us to g-t clear 
and start on the 1st of the. ensuing month, 
Which he did, and traveled with his family 
per rail at a cost of between and ?200. 
Judge of i he surprise when the contracting 
party refused to abide by hi* own proposi¬ 
tion, and wife and children were homeless. 
There was a general indignation on the part 
of the inhabitants of the nearest village, and 
like true Samaritans, the family wore lodged 
in a house fortunately antenanted, aud chairs, 
tables, bedsteads, pails, cooking stove and 
utensils of every necessary kind were lent, 
so that in a few hours there was a. borne for 
the strangers. 
Plow hupp) the kind, sympathizing hearts 
ol' the villagers were on feeling the comfort 
they had all contributed to bestow, and the 
great Goa above will bless them for their 
timely assistance, for there was no hotel to 
take the family in. But while these Christ¬ 
ians arc smiled on by heaven, how will it 
fare with the wrong-doer ( Time will show. 
Moral ,—Lot every man go himself and see 
the standing of parties before contracting or 
going West with a family, or obtain refer¬ 
ences which leave no doubt of honesty and 
unencumbered means. a. w. f. 
■-♦♦ *- 
FARM LABOR AGAIN. 
T see “ Berry Briar” criticises my article 
on “Farm Labor,” published April 25. She 
seems to think that 1 have Hot had any ex¬ 
perience as a farm laborer. Twenty-six years 
ago T started out to work on a farm. Tile 
first, man 1 ever worked for was an intem¬ 
perate man ; lie scarcely ever worked in fair 
weather ; but on a dirty, rainy day, he would 
be sure to be out looking up some jobs for me 
to do, and would be sure to keep to work 
until my clothes were wet through. J worked 
for this man four months. The next man 1 
worked for two years. Ho was a good man 
as far as work w as concerned, but here is 
where i first t aw a distinction made between 
the hired man and the family. A friend 
from the East was there with them, und - 
after supper they would repair to a sitting 
room and tukc all the lights with them and 
leave me by the kitchen fire, without saying, 
“ Jim, won’t you enme in and sit with us ?” 
Well, 1 went to the village and bought some 
candles and a candlestick, and drew some 
books from the town library, and the next 
night they left me L lighted my candle and 
went to reading, it was not long before one 
of the children came in and said, “I would 
like to borrow your candle for a few minutes 
to go up stairs,” or “ In the pantry,” and 
would keep me waiting from five to 20 min¬ 
utes. This was practiced almost as often us j 
once or twice an evening during the winter, - 
and yet they knew that I furnished my own i 
lights. 
Soon after I left this place I got a chance - 
> to lenm the carpenter's trade and get the 
V same per month the first year as I had had 
s on a farm the first year; a third more the 
o next, and so on until the fourth year I re- 
11 ceived double what a farm hand got, . For 
[- eight years I worked for farmers, construct- 
t ing buildings ; and the last 15 years 1 have 
n owned land and have worked on that part 
t of the time and part of the time building or 
repairing for farmers. 1 have worked for, 
perhaps, 50 different farmers, and most of 
them had month handsin their serv ice when 
- I was at work for them ; and whereof I have 
asserted have been actual facts as t hey t ran¬ 
spired. 
My object in writing the article published 
- April 25, was to show fanners the reason 
why they could not lure a. better class of 
men. “ Berry” speaking of drones wanting 
o as much as anybody ; they generally want 
more. 1 intended to show the farmer it was 
d sometimes the farmers’ fault ; and that if 
» they have good help, it is import ant to show 
s them that they appreciate their services, 
r “ Berry” says that slow pay in bettor for the 
i* help than to pay along as they want it. This 
t may be ; but we do not see what is best far 
us always. Suppose the young man Bis a 
widowed mother, depending on him far sup- 
e port, and ho is turned off with an order on 
s the store, where he has got to pay 25 or 50 
i percent more than if lie had h*d the money 
r and gone elsewhere ; and then a year or two 
r after finds the said farmer had money de- 
f posited with the merchant, at the time, suf¬ 
ficient- to do all his business, and the tncr- 
> chant was paying Km tt premium on ull the 
8 trade he could get his men to take. 
“ Berry” says, “ Let those who do not like 
- the»r laborer theirpay, seek something more 
congenial to their tastes.” Here is the point! 
, 1 intended to show farmers how they might 
have better help and save thoiisiluls from 
going to the cities and suffering, as many did 
last whiter. She says, “ But there must al¬ 
ways be hewers of wood and drawers of 
water.” 1 will answer in the language of 
Robert Burns : 
*'> 11 Ihn designed your lordllng’s cluvc 
By Nature'll law designed— 
Why was an Independent wish 
E’er planted in my iniiul? 
If not, why am I subject to 
His cruelty or scorn? 
Or why has man i he will ami power 
To make his follow mourn ?” 
Calhoun Co., Mich. A Subscriber. 
-♦♦♦- 
“THE ONLY DIFFERENCE.” 
Bovs are naturally and very properly in¬ 
terested in the good name of their parents, 
and f irmer boys especially like to have it 
understood that their fathers arc the best 
farmers in town or country, as the. case may 
be. "Where this is unfortunately not the 
fact., filial loyalty suffers a shock, and va¬ 
rious expedients and excuses are resorted 
to for the sake of keeping up appearances. 
Some of these are often vastly amusing, as, 
for example, the following report of an actual 
convei nation of two boys, one in defense of 
of his father- a well known farmer-politi¬ 
cian, and much more of the latter than the 
former. One of the most successful, energetic 
and wide-awake farmers in the neighbor¬ 
hood had been justly pra'sed, when the filial 
love of these politicians' sons could hold in 
no longer. “I say,” said one, with some 
energy, “it isn’t fair to be always cracking 
up Mr.-’» farming. He isn’t any better 
farmer than a great many others—isn't any 
better than father is. The only difference is 
that-always keeps everything done up 
prompt anti in good order on his farm. Tlis 
crops are always got in early and got in first- 
rat e, too. You see he can do this because he. 
has his land underdrained, which gives him 
a great, advantage. Now father knows how 
to run a farm better than anybody else in 
town ; but you see he is so lazy—that he had 
rather let things take their Own course t han 
be at. so much trouble. Beside, father has t o 
spend so much time and money’tending to 
politics, that you see he really can’t ’tend to 
the farm as he had ought to.” And with 
this final novel “clincher” in his argument 
for “Father,” Young America rested his 
case, proudly satisfied that his vindication of 
“ Father” was complete. * 
---- 
Keeping over oi.d Hay.—(P. F.)—Whether 
it is advisable for you to keep over your old 
hay, or sell it, must depend upon the market i 
price of hay in your locality and the pros¬ 
pects for a hay crop iu 1874 adequate to meet i 
your wants. If hay is saleable at £20 per ton 
we should doubt the propriety of keeping it J 
over. The fact is, if it is worth keeping over 
at that, price, it would have been worth more ( 
to you to buy stock and feed it out the pad | 
winter, i 
JUNE 20 
te Avorseman. 
SHOULD HORSES WEAR BLINDERS! 
A writer iu the Webster Times says these 
sensible things “ Wc never could see what 
vice or deformity lay In a horse’s eye, that, 
should make it neceswtry to cover it up, and 
shut out Its owner from at least two-thirds 
of hia rightful vision. The poets say that old 
age looks backward; but we never heard 
such an idiosyncrasy charged upon the horse. 
The theory that a horse is less apt to be 
frightened when shut out from everything 
behind him, we suspect to be a fallacy, else 
saddle-horses ard war-horses would be duly 
blinded. Every lmrse is as familiar with his 
own carriage as with hisown tail, and, as far 
8s his ‘personal’ fortitude is concerned, is 
no more disturbed at being pursued by one 
than by t he ot her. A - for oilier scare-crows 
that come up behind, they are mostly so 
familiar to (lie animal, that, the more fully 
the horse can perceive them, the more quietly 
does he submit to their approach. Then it 
is such a pity to cover up one of the most 
brilliant features of this most brilliant, crea¬ 
ture. The horse has borne such a hand in 
the civilization of this rough-and-tumble 
world, that it seems not so much a cruelty 
us a dire urlesy, us W6ll as a disgrace, to hide 
liis form with embarrassing toggery. No 
wonder we estimate the force in the world 
as horse-power ; uo wonder the Romans and 
the Germans, each in their own language, 
designate their aristocracy as riders; no 
wonder their descendants made chivalry a 
synonym for their highest virtues, t el the 
horse be given his due, and unblinded. The 
check-rein is another nuisance in harness 
wear which has almost cni irely di sappeared 
from England, the. army ha\ iog nt last given 
it up by order of the commander in-chief, 
Sir George Burgoyne.” 
-♦♦♦-- 
BROWN LEATHER FOR REINS. 
Rein leather should be made of the best 
ox or steer hide. Those made by Europeans 
are retanned in a liquor made from equal 
parts of an extract of pine and alder barks, 
to give it the proper color. To make this 
mixture the extract must be put into six 
times its bulk of soft water and allowed to 
stand eight days, shaking it irmrc or less each 
day, to assist it in dissolving. The skins are 
placed in this solution and allowed to remain 
one or two Hours, when they are removed 
and bung up in the shade to dry, It will 
require from four to s;x applications to 
secure a good chestnut, brown ; if washed 
with alum water it will become, n good orange 
brown—a favorite color for reins. 
Much of the foreign rein leather is alum- 
tanned, which they claim is more compact 
than bark-tauued I -.ither. Bussed leather, 
treated with the above solution, is said to 
take a good, rich brown, although not quite 
equal to that obtained if the solution is used 
during t he process of tanning. —Harness and 
Carriage Journal. 
-- 
NOTES FOR HORSEMEN. 
Woodg Warls on a Mult. Cio any reader 
of the. Rural New-Yorker give me a rain 
edy for “Cancer” or Bloody warts ? I have 
a valuable three-year-old mule t hat hus one 
of her fore legs nearly covered with warts 
from her knee to her ptistei n joint. It does 
not lame nor hinder her from work.—w. n. 
Make a paste of powdered sulphur, mixed 
with sulphuric acid, aud apply to the warts 
with a small piece of wood. It will remove 
them, wo think, 
A Man: in Trouble .--1 was reading “ W. 
J. C.’s” letter in the Rural Nkw-Yorkkk of 
May 1<>, and fear that a mare of mine has 
the same disease. About, two weeks ago she 
became a little lame in her right, hind leg. 
She is use.l for a saddle horse mostly ; in 
trotting she goes well enough, but she can¬ 
not gallop at all, 1 hope to see some remedy 
for this disease in your next paper.—0. A. 
M., Itrcicster, N. Y, 
Suraitird Mnrr —(C. J. M.).—If von have 
in your neighborhood a reliable veterinary 
surgeon you can consult-, wo should advise 
you to do so ; but you had better knock the 
animal in the head than have her treated by 
a charlatan. Probably your mare cun be 
helped, but an examination is necessary to 
determine Lfiu matter. 
Jlemoving Warts from Hornes. —A Min¬ 
nesota farmer says he has removed walls 
from a two-year old eolt or from the eyelid 
of u t wo-v ear-old heifer by simply ruubiug 
them well with salt grease. 
Scratches and Heel Cracks are cured by 
the following method :—Wash the feet clean, 
then dry thoroughly, and apply carbolic salve 
at least twice a duv. 
