PROCRESS AND IMPROVEMENT 
FALLACIES OF LIFE INSURANCE, 
are fully comprehended and weighed, the intel¬ 
ligent policy holder will reject, as far as per¬ 
mitted, the insurance which outlasts his obli¬ 
gation to provide for ot hers or forces upon him 
a risk of the company's perpetuity beyond the 
period when the policy itself becomes a worse 
tban useless burden. 
American Khort-llorn Herd-Book.—The writ¬ 
er, Hon. ft. F. Allen, Buffalo, X, V., announces 
that the time has arrived for recording pedi¬ 
grees for Vol. XIV of this work, in order that 
it may be Issued in the spring of 1375. He re¬ 
quests that all pedigrees now ready he imme¬ 
diately forwarded, and others should be sent 
in as early as Dee. 1st. The prospectus con¬ 
tains a new idea which wo hope may be at once 
and extensively acted upon. As a safeguard 
against false pedigrees it Is proposed to estab¬ 
lish a “Mortuary Record " at the end of each 
future volume, giving the date of the death of 
recorded bulls and of cows. The record of cows 
should state, in addition to the page In Herd- 
Hook whore recorded, the date of their death 
and a yearly memorandum of their produce, 
giving the color, sex, name and sire of the calf 
if it lived to brood ; otherwise stating its death ; 
also stat ing the fact if the cow did not breed, 
or produce a living calf. No charge is made for 
recording the deaths of bulls ; for the record of 
cows 50 cents each will be the foe. 
Number XXII 
A RATIONAL ILLUSTRATED 
In selecting a company and a plan of insur¬ 
ing, it should be remembered that the relations 
of insurer and insurant are always and unavoid¬ 
ably reciprocal. They mutually Insure each 
other. The policy holder not only insures him¬ 
self to the extent of his accumulated deposits, 
which w ill make up a part of the sum paid in 
liquidation of his claim when it matures, the 
company paying the remainder out of tlic con¬ 
tributions of other policy holders, but—to the 
extent of his deposits or reserve which he risks 
upon the contingency, lie Insures the company 
against Insolvency. In ease of failure the policy 
holder loses. This risk is inseparable from in¬ 
surance of every kind. In lire insurance, where 
the premium of each year la adjusted to the 
risk of loss, tlie insured assumes a risk that the 
company will not fail within Die year, and that 
it wiH be able to pay his claims If he meets with 
Iosh. Should the company fail, he loses such a 
proportion of the premium as the mi expired 
term bears to the whole term or year. Ho 
does something more for life Insurance. He 
Insures that the company will outlast him. 
His risk Is not only, as In lire Insurance, the 
chances of losing a portion of one annual pre¬ 
mium. but of losing, also, his entire accumula¬ 
tions, which Increase by additional deposits 
and compound Interest from the day he enters 
into the arrangement until his claim matures. 
Tills risk bears rattier more heavily upon the 
policy holder than upon the company, and is 
a risk for which he is sometimes very inade¬ 
quately compensated. 
Tfac company fixes the price or premium for 
its risk of loss, in accordance with certain tallies 
or D atist i< * of mortality, from which it deduces 
the chance" of loss by death. The policy holder 
is called upon to insure the reliability of the 
company’.) data and deductions, as well as 
the wisdom and integrity of a management in 
which ho is permitted to have neither part nor 
lot, and all thU without the assistance of a 
statistical table from which to calculate hi* 
chances of loss. Such a table, showing the 
proport Ion of failures to successes or life insur¬ 
ance ventures, would enable him to calculate 
the company's chances of longevity as closely 
«s Die company calculate Ids individual expec¬ 
tation of life- A lew years since a table would 
have been useless, because unprophetic. and 
such a table, constructed from recent oltierva- 
tlnna, unjust to the meritorious companies, bo¬ 
il would indicate a chance of failure 
com, umm ami family nhwspapek 
RURAL NOTES AND QUERIES 
Koumler and Conducting ffiditor, 
Addresses lo and About Patron*.— During 
the past week rve received a call from Die Hon. 
T. A. THOMPSON of Minnesota, the popular 
Lecturer for the National f,range, Patrons of 
Husbandry, who has recently returned from a 
lecturing tour in Nort h Carolina and Pennsyl¬ 
vania. Mr. T. spoke some thirty times In each 
of the States named, and reports that the Order 
in whose behalf and for whose upbuilding he Is 
laboring 1 b progressing finely In the regions lie 
has lately visited. As an instance he mention¬ 
ed that the Corry (Pa.) Orange recently Ini¬ 
tiated forty-three members at one meeting— 
twenty-three women and twenty men. Mr. 
Thompson will soon commence a series of lec¬ 
tures In this State, and proposes to visit and 
speak in some thirty different counties, ills 
first address will be at. Elmira on the 25th Inst.; 
if the weather la pleasant, ho will speak in the 
afternoon at Eldredge Park - otherwise at a 
public hail in the evening. Among other prom¬ 
inent points he will lecture In the following 
places In the order named Penn You, Oneida, 
Watertown, Oswego, Newark, Albion, Lock- 
port, MnyviJIe, Hat avia, Hath, Kirkwood, Delhi, 
Albany, White Plains, (or some other place in 
Westchester County.) Goshen, ami in two or 
three towns on Long island, Mr. Thompson 
is evidently a fluent speaker, and certainly well 
informed in regard to the Order whose princi¬ 
ples lie advocates w ith earnestness and enthu¬ 
siasm, We advise all Patrons, as well as t hose 
who desire to learn about Die Order, to hear 
Mr. T. whenever an opportunity for doing so is 
presented. 
CflAS. D. BRAliDON, ANDREW S, FULLER, 
Aesoointe KUilori*. 
HENRY S. RANDALL LL, D., Cortland Village, *. ¥., 
Editor or *«■ D*r*nTM«NT or Siirki- Ilu»B*KD»nr. 
X. A. WILLARD, A. M., Little Falls, N. Y„ 
Editor or TMK Dkt, in m ur Dairy Husbandry. 
TERMS, IN ADVANCE: 
Subscription,—Single Copy, $2.50 per Year. To 
Clubs:—Five Copter, and one copy free to Agent or 
getter up of Club, fur $12.50; Seven Copies, imd one 
free, for 119; Ten Copies, and one free, 820— onTy VI 
per copy. As we are obliged to pre-jaiy t he American 
postage on papers mailed to foreign countries. Twenty 
Cents should be added h> above rubes for eueli yearly 
copy mailed to Canada, and One Hollar per copy to 
Kuiope. Drafts, Post-OflleeMoney Orders and Regis¬ 
tered Letters may be mailed at our risk. S3f~ Liberal 
Proiniuins to all Club Agents who do not take free 
copies. Specimen Numbers. Show-Hills, Ac., sent free, 
Pri/.c Essay on Butter Production. At the 
late Convention of dairymen and dealers at 
Indianapolis more than fifty essays were sent 
in to compete for the premiums offered by Rev. 
C. W. Dake, The Buffalo Courier says that 
Mr. X. A. Willard of the Rural New- 
Yorker will probably be the successful com¬ 
petitor. This essay was publicly read, and in 
It, according to the Courier, ho “estimated 
the present annual production of flutter in the 
United States at no less than 700.000,000 pounds, 
ft 1850 it was a little over 318,000,000 pounds. 
Ten years later it. had reached nearly 500,000,- 
000 pounds, the annual increase being about 
20,000,000 pounds. In 1880^if our population in¬ 
creases at the same ratio as during the last 
decade, we shall need 900,000,000 pounds to sup¬ 
ply the demand in the United States alone.’’ 
ADVERTISING RATES: 
Inside, nth and liith pages (Agate space),|!0c. per line 
'• 18th page.70 " 
Outside or last page.1.U0 
Fifty per cent, extra for unusual display. 
Special Notices, leaded, by count. ..1.25 “ 
Business “ 1.50 “ 
Heading “ 2.00 “ 
Discount on 4 Insertions. 10 per et.; 8 ins., 15 per ct.; 
13 ins.. 20 por ot.; 20 ins., 25 per ct.; 52 ins., 33hi per ct. 
C3V" No advertisement inserted for less tban $H. 
RURAL BREVITIES 
The orange crop of Florida is in a flourishing 
condition. 
The melon crop in Florida is said to be very 
profitable this year. 
Vine Valley Is now known as a leading fruit 
section of Western New York. 
California Grangers have started a bank 
with a capital of five millions of dollars. 
The California Grangers have shipped their 
first vessel load of new wheat to Europe. 
California has the big corn-stulk—twenty- 
two feet high, and bearing five good ears. 
A bee-oavk has been discovered in Los An¬ 
geles Co., Cal., containing a ton of honey. 
KKV. W. II. II. .Murray is making a half-mile 
trotting track on his farm at Guilford, C’ouu, 
The grasshoppers have appeared in immense 
numbers near Rock wood, in Roane Co., Tenn. 
A WINEGROWER in California has just com¬ 
pleted a collar capable of storing 78,500 gallons. 
It is reported that t he apple crop of Niagara 
County will be double that of any previous year. 
A great excess of rain has fallen all along 
the Faoiflc coast, north anil south of Panama, 
this year. 
The Cincinnati brewers are buying large 
quantities of tobacco stems, but won’t tell 
what for. 
Francis Imported $80,000,000 worth of wheat 
last year. This year she will have $20,000,000 
worth to sell. 
It Is said that the whortleberry crop is an im¬ 
mense one throughout Michigan during the 
present season. 
Mr. Gustave Make of Ban Mateo, Cal., has 
70,000 vines in his vineyard, and makes 8,000 gal¬ 
lons of wine this year. 
Preparations are being made fora gather¬ 
ing of the Grangers of Erie, Crawford, Warren 
and Chautauqua Counties. 
Harris Lewis, President of the N. Y. State 
Ag. Society, will deliver an address at tlie Cen¬ 
tral New York Fair, Utica, Sept. (5. 
The N. H. Agricultural Society offers seven 
gold medals for the finest babies that will be 
shown at its Stale Fair in October. 
A vineyard near Hammondsport, N. Y., 
owned by a Judy, produced $1,000 worth of 
grapes last year. Cost of raising, $700. 
Dr. Glenn of Colusa Co., Cal., has about 30,- 
000 acres of wheat, lrom which ho expects 25 
bushels to the acre, making a total of 750,000 
bushels. 
Entries for the New England Fair, to be held 
at Providence from Sept. 1st to the 4th, include 
025 cattle, 150 homes, 197 sheep, 101 swine and 
395 poultry; also large entries of agricultural 
implements and miscellaneous articles. 
Mr. GliO. E. Hlakklki: has retired from the 
editorship of the Ohio Farmer, owing to the 
accumulated cares of outside business, lfis 
successor Is Mr. M. E. Williams, for some 
years an editor of the National Agriculturist. 
California peaches and pears were very 
plenty in the New York market last week, and 
street venders had thorn for sale on theirtrucks 
in large quantities. Tlie retail price asked for 
the fruit in lino condition was very reasonable, 
and over-ripe specimens were sold at an unus¬ 
ually low rate. 
Tub Boomer & Boscuert Press Co. of Syra¬ 
cuse, N. Y., advertise, on another page, their 
Cider Press, claiming for it superiority over all 
others. They even go further in saying that 
they stand ready to substantiate such claim. 
By addressing them, a catalogue containing 
valuable information to cider makers can be 
obtained. 
Find Trotting and Racing, “ Punt Tracks,’ 
Ac.- The present season is prolific in devolop- 
| ing the speed of fast horses, both trotters and 
racers. Last week wo briefly chronicled the 
fact that at the initial meeting of the Rochester 
Driving Park Associat ion, Goldsmith Maid trot¬ 
ted a mile in 2:1 1 3 - 1 , the fastest time on rec¬ 
ord. And now wo have to record t hat, at Sara¬ 
toga, on tlie 20th inst., Fellowcrutt, the son of 
Imported Australian and ASrolite, the daughter 
of Lexington, ran a four-mile heat in 7:10 1 - 2 ! 
'jhis is the fastest time recorded in the annals 
of the American turf, and excels Lexington’s 
celebrated speed in 1855—the latter's time being 
7:19 3-4. Felloweraft is 4 years old and carried 
108 lbs., which is 5 lbs. more than his grand¬ 
father, Loxington, was weighted With ninetoen 
years ago. Whereat the sporting Journals arc 
justly jubilant. Another feature of “the sea¬ 
son *' at the various Driving Park Association 
meetings is the development of what are call¬ 
ed “ fast tracks,” some Associations claiming 
superiority in that respect. If the tracks are 
to be credit ed wit h any special advantage, we 
think that of the Rochester Driving Park Asso¬ 
ciation must take the palm,—but as ours is not 
a sporting or turf paper we will not enter into 
particulars. While we would not encourage 
turf sports, we record the above facts as mat¬ 
ter of history. 
SATURDAY', AUG. 29, 1S74 
A DEMORALIZING LITERATURF, 
cause 
which never did and never will menace them. 
The material furnished by the failure or with¬ 
drawal of the American Tontine, Amicable, 
Anchor, Craftsman’s, Empire Mutual, Empire 
State. Excelsior, CominonwealtJr, Haiineruaqtj, 
Hercules, Hope, International. Eclectic, fim- 
erruncut Security, National of New York, Na¬ 
tional of Washington, National Capital, New 
York State, Reserve Mutual, Economical ami 
St,. Louis Mutual,—to say nothing of several 
others that hare discontinued issuing policies, 
— is more than sufficient to void the ancient 
claim of life insurance to infallibility. These 
are all companies that have atone time com¬ 
peted for and obtained the patronage of citi¬ 
zens of New York, and if the ratio of twenty- 
two to seventy (the average number doing busi¬ 
ness in this State) is to be accepted as prog¬ 
nostic of the fate of the remainder, tlie policy 
seeker cannot be too critical lo his inquisition. 
’J’he chances of a failure are not now to be 
measured by the record given above. There 
are perhaps as many as nine companies in vari¬ 
ous stages of the decline which usually pre¬ 
cedes an abandonment of business, but in al¬ 
most every case tlie policy holders are pretty 
well assured of being transferred to other and 
sounder companies. The policy holders will 
lose or gain by the change in proportion to 
their firmness in retaining their old policies 
until replaced by new ones equally advanta¬ 
geous. They arc nearly always liable to lose 
by remlssuess and the temptation to adopt 
some novel plan that finr/nUcs better than the 
old. They do not always know that they have 
a right to retain the old policy until they re¬ 
ceive In exchange a new one of precisely the 
same tenor, and that the company accepting 
the risk shall place Itself in every respect and 
degree in the position of the retiring company. 
No small measure of confidence is needed to 
insure the perpetuity of any company, yet more 
tban nine-tenths of all r,he policies are of the 
sort that binds the holder irrevocably and per¬ 
petually to assume the chances that the com¬ 
pany will exist as long as the insured. Fully 
understood in all its bearings, Die ordinary 
whole-life and the paid-up life policy are the 
earnest of unmeasured faith and trust. Such 
confidence is always in some degree misplaced, 
because, first, it is not necessary to the ends of 
insurance, and, secondly, it takes as unneces¬ 
sarily ali the possible risks that inhere with the 
infallibility of humau judgment. It vouches 
for the honesty and wisdom of unborn mana¬ 
gers as fully as for the possession of these qual¬ 
ities by present incumbents of the office. 
All the useful and needful purposes of life in¬ 
surance may be served by policies which will 
not outlast tlie productive years of life, between 
twenty and seventy. ar»d which limit the wager 
for the company’s existence and prosperity to 
this period. Other plans of insuring may serve 
the purposes and suit the convenience of cer¬ 
tain classes of insurants, hut when the relations 
of the several parties to t-Jbo ipsurapeu .contract 
Any one who has been a discriminating 
reader of the periodicals and books Issued from 
Die American press during the past twenty 
years, cannot, fail to have observed 1 lie vast dif¬ 
ference which has occurred in the moral tone 
of our literature within that comparatively 
brief period. < otild an intelligent,reading lln* 
Van Winkle now awaken from B ten ortwenty 
years’ sleep Lie would be astounded at the 
change for the worse in the moral Influence of 
our hooks and newspapers— more astonished 
indeed, and justly, than was the veritable Rn» 
after his long somnolence. The prurient, cor¬ 
rupting, demoralizing, and even oliecene ten¬ 
dency of tlie press is of late most noteworthy 
and greatly to be deplored. The sensational, 
love-and-Uiorder romances, with pictures to 
match, which have been put forth by many 
periodicals for years post, are naturally leading 
to u pruriency and obscenity of the press that 
can only tend to corrupt and demoralize almost 
every household in the hind. Take, for instance, 
what has been published of late concerning the 
Beecher-Tilton Scandal. Many so-called 
“enterprising” and widely-circulated news¬ 
papers have for weeks devoted columns and 
pages of each issue to the moat vile and cor¬ 
rupting scum on a subject unfit for discussion 
in a public journal—least of all in one intended 
for the family circle. Indeed, the publication 
of the fetid scandals has been n flagrant wrong 
and outrage—for It. has done an 'rrepuruble 
injury to the cause of virtue and religion, and 
more to demoralize and corrupt the young than 
can be counteract ed in a century. 
People talk of tho “power and liberty of the 
press,” but alas, if Its preseni course is contin¬ 
ued hoW long will it be before overy discreet 
parent will be obliged, in self-defense—or, ra¬ 
ther, in defense or for the protection of the 
morals of ids children—to constitute himself a 
censor and carefully examine every book or 
periodical before allowing its perusal in his 
family? The truth is that in this matter, as I 
well as in some others, the American people 
(for tho press is an instrument of thepeoplo), 
are going too fast, and shmiiu “ reform it alto- 
Afroclous Cruelty to Horses.—One night last 
week, some wretch or wretches who ought to 
be bound, MAKEFUA-like, to a wild horse and 
set adrift, in a forest filled with thorns and 
brambles, entered tlie stable of P. Dwyer, foot 
of 49th street and Ea.->t River, New York, and 
stabbed nine fine horses. Six were found dead 
in the morning, while the three others lay 
writhing in agony and were not expected to 
live. Most of tho horses had suffered deep cuts 
In front of the hips, from which the int estines 
protruded, and tho act had apparently been 
committed with tho intention of inflicting as 
much tort ure as possible upon tho poor brutes, 
without immediately endangering their lives. 
Search being made about the premises, a large 
and sharp chisel covered with blood, was found, 
which It is supposed was the instrument used. 
The Society for tlie Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals offers a reward of $100 for suoh infor¬ 
mation as will lead to the arrest and conviction 
of the offenders. We hope the scoundrels will 
be arrested and punished to the fullest extent. 
The frequent abuse of—and indeed wicked 
cruelty to — canal and street car and stage 
horses, is bad enough in all conscience, and 
calls loudly f >r prevention; but this maiming 
and butchery of the noblest of our dumb beasts 
is most atrocious, and should receive the se¬ 
verest penalty. 
Tlie Manufactory of G. \\ entinghouse A Co. 
at Schenectady, N. A’., was destroyed by Are on 
the morning of the 17th inst. This misfortune 
will temporarily interfere with the speedy fill¬ 
ing of their orders for Horse Powers and 
Tu rushers, and, for a short time, with their 
repair department; but the usual energy and 
ability displayed by this firm in the arrange¬ 
ment of their extensive business will probably 
come to their rescue and bring them out 
of the fire, Sphinx-like, better than ever. We 
earnestly hope, and certainly expect, that their 
promise “(o he- in operation in ten dam ” will 
be adhered Lo and fuJly carried out, thus 
placing them again prominently before the 
agricultural ooipnihltity tia pne of the most 
reliable .houses ih Jljfifcr Hue. 
BUSINESS NOTICES 
Do not find fault with your Sowing Maoliines 
until you have tried tho Eureka Machtue Twist. It 
is the best and will give perfect KnU«fa<j(jon, 
