THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
furrow begins on one side of the field, lays out 
a land, “ back furrowing,” plows three rounds, 
turning a furrow as near as he can to twelve 
inches wide and six deep. He then lays out 
another, and after that a third, so that he can 
go from one to the other. A boy follows with 
the potatoes, cut to single eyes, and drops them 
in each third furrow about ono foot apart; the 
next furrow, of conrse, covers them and our 
potatoes are planted. After the field is finished, 
harrow ; when they are just appearing harrow 
again, and keep this up, till the potatoes are six 
inches high. This looks rough, but it agrees 
with the potatoes aud we aro satisfied. These 
barrowings keep the weeds down and the pota¬ 
toes have now such a start that they will choke 
out any woods in the row, and between the 
rows a shovel plow will keep things clear. 
Now, don’t go and try this plau on a piece of 
land '* too poor to grow white beans,” and then 
call us who follow it, humbugs ; but take a good 
piece of sod or good land well manured, and 
plant close in the rows, and you will have no 
cause for complaint. 
We also find the harrow very useful in our 
corn-field. Some think it does more harm than 
good, but it depends largely on the soil. On a 
heavy loam it is a success. Corn-growing is not 
a success w ith ns for about one year out of five ; 
we lose our crop by early frost. 
Who has tried vetches as a soiling crop ? Who 
has tried soiling anyway, and what has been 
his success ? 
We are just having our first spring rain and 
the faces of our lumbermen and farmers begin 
to assume their natural rotundity. The thought 
of a field or two that should have been sown, 
mars one’s rejoicing in a measure, but, to change 
an old saying : “ There'B no groat gain without 
some small loss,” and our loss is small in com¬ 
parison with the gain of the region about ns. 
CAN WE HAVE BETTER FRUIT. 
No. I. 
GEN. W. H. NOBLE, BRIDGEPORT, CT. 
Why not! The ways are known if not well 
trod. Our glorious climato promises bright re¬ 
wards to trial. It matters not that the best are 
due almost as much to chaueo as to any method 
in the selection of their seed. Excellence in a 
chance seedling is notall chance. Culling a choice 
fruit a chance seedling, is only another way of tell¬ 
ing our ignorance of the ancestry aud parentage 
from which its oxcollenco has sprang. All we know 
about the descent of fruits as well as of animals, 
makes it sure that before the birth of any choice 
variety its progenitors struggled through many 
generations of slow development. No one per¬ 
fect thing whoso history we know, has ever 
reached perfection at a leap. Whether left 
to the slow happenings of chance, or patiently 
sought through stud tons trials, it Las taken 
many generations of men and tree growth to 
place a luscious fruit upon our table. 
The Dutcliesse d’Angoulemo and the Seckel, 
are chance seedlings. Many of like or near ex¬ 
cellence have come by chance; were found in 
hedges or outlying lands. But all we know 
about how bettor frnits have followed patient 
trials, tells us that some 
unrecorded excellence has 
fathered the luscious fruit" 
that comes by chance, as 
well as those whose par¬ 
entage we know. 
No old choke pear, self- 
impregnated, ever yielded, 
right from its puokery pnlp, 
a seed from whose planting __ 
spraujj fine fruits. Whether —^ 
planted with method and J - 
a purpose, or by chance, ( _____ - 
snoh come only through 
seed one at toast of whose / y ^ .•/ 
parents boro a choice kind. / 
The way may ho unrovealed ’ ^ ^_ 
by which the choice seed- j, // 
lieg gets that iu its germ f ‘' 
which grows to excellence. /( —- 
Whether p>ollen floating in / // — 
the air, or borne by bird or •- C —" —^ 
boo, or mated with a pur- \ fi—— ~ . 
pose, gained for our choice • \ *■' y 
fruit its Lightest type and ' ' ' 1 
promise, matters not. It’s \ / / V 
enough to know that races / / 
are only lifted to higher \\ ' 
levels by that hotter blood \ ' ( 
which comes as a heritage \ 
through lineal heirship from '\\ 
some ancestral excellence. 
The signal betterment of 
animal aud vegetable kinds, 
which our century boasts, 
has come from faith in that 
heritage and close study of 
Nature’s ways. That study has revealed but two 
methods through which Nature holds the gold 
and helps to better kind. One is by straight, lineal 
family descent, in an unbroken line. The other 
seeks a better progeny through mating the 
ohoicest families in each race, which is cross¬ 
breeding. 
Of these, the first is especially known on the 
and forgotten the older diggings of Van Mons, 
and his methods of work. 
Now Van Mons’ theory and plan were these: he 
held that stalwart wood-growth and fine fruits 
were not congenial; that to repressed tree- 
growth came the better fruitage; that the pro¬ 
geny of old established sorts tended tho m st 
readily towards primeval crudeness; that rapid 
THE WEALTHY APPLE. 
(urf and in the stock-yard as breeding in-and- 
in. This, as near as you can breed in-and-in 
through tho seed germs aud growth of trees, 
was the method in Van Mous great experiment 
after better fruits, at the gardons of Louvain. 
Some fifty years have gone by since the great 
Belgian gavo us its results iu many of our lluest 
fruits. The story of his trial is a wondrous 
chapter in tho history of the garden. Such 
profound knowledge of fruit-tree life, such 
heroic patience in toil and trials, such a trium¬ 
phant harvest of luscious fruits, and then after 
a special term of generations for each kind from 
seed to fruitage, their failnro to reward his 
method with better sorts, make np a rare record 
in human and plant life. His calm and philo¬ 
sophic register of that failure, the lucid story of 
the theory aud phases of his trial, and tho real 
wonders which ho wrought, have won for Van 
Mons the hornRge and lasting memory of all to 
whom tho garden is a pleasure and a pride. 
It is true that cross-breeding alone insures 
both to auimals and plants lasting and higher 
grades of excellence. Yet neither its more endu¬ 
ring results, nor the failure of Van Mons to fulfill 
tho earlier promise of his method, should dim 
his glorious mime among men. His gains upon 
the rudo ancestry of his rapid generations record 
a wonderful feat. The failure in the lift toward 
higher and higher grades of tree and fruit only 
warns against his practice as aeontiuuous method. 
It should not dishearten hopeful trust and search 
for special helps along the pathway of his trials. 
The glorions fruitage that crowned his work 
proves that somewhere besido Mb tireless foot¬ 
steps there lurks a secret promise of brighter 
results. Tho cross-breeders glorying in the rich 
returns of their placers, have mostly passed l.y 
reproduction, therefore, from seedlings just 
taking to a better fruitage, would soonor return 
us luscious fruits. 
So he began away back with seeds of healthy 
trees a little advanced from their aboriginal es¬ 
tate. The seed of ttiis fruitage he planted right 
along in one unbroken line of strict family 
descent. By every means known to those skilled 
in the garden, ho checked their wood growth 
aud hurried up their fruitage. After several 
such hastened generations, varying with each 
kind, luscious fruits crowned Ms patient work. 
But after the number at which each variety 
reached its highest grade, both in tree and fruit-, 
all promise of a better future failod. 
Van Mons doubtless erred in many things. 
No -jmcial plan grasps all Nature’s ways iu aui- 
mal or plant development. Yet starting without 
pioneer or guide, the brief yeara of his experi¬ 
ment out-stripped all that chance or skill had 
won through all the generations gone before. 
To few among men has snob a triumph beeu 
vouchsafed, in any line of human effort. He 
deserves a high place among the benefactors of 
our race. Snch are not, more than greatness, 
always to be measured by success. The world 
in every lino of life owes more to the earnest 
straggles of the many whose failures have broken 
the way, than to the few who out of the dangers 
and toils of others, “ have plucked tho floweret of 
success.” Besides, wo often sadly err, both in 
our praiso and estimate of men and of their 
work, l ame’s wreath is ever ready for tho 
triumphs of our baser nature. History makes 
much of wars and warriors, of state-craft and 
iutrigue, of provinces overran and people 
crushed out by rough riders. Not but that 
deeds of arms and heroic daring iu dofeuce of 
home and oountry and human liberty, merit 
praise ; yet there are less boastful and noiseless 
hnman triumphs equally deserving tho plaudits 
of men. Thus fruitage and flowers, the garden 
and gardenesque, are given small place among 
the forces lifting our raao to higher levels of 
civilization. Yet when Hneh factors get their true 
moasure as motors toward hnman betterment, 
those like Van Mons will be rendered their right¬ 
ful place iu the hearts and ranks of men.—[To 
be continued. 
-♦-*--♦- 
APPLES. 
YELLOW BELIEFIEUR. PAGE 278. 
That this is a popular apple the markets of the 
large cities will testify during its season. The 
tree likes a light soil, for wMch reason perhaps 
we have never been able to do anything with it 
in tho Rural Grounds which are rather clayey. 
The young trees se6m to exhaust themselves in 
blossoming. No fruit has ever set aud very little 
new wood formed. The apple is pale yellow. 
Klesb tender, fine, juicy, agreeably acid aud ex¬ 
cellent. Tba American Pom. Society gives two 
stars to the following : Nova Scotia, California, 
ami one star to Vermont, Mass , Conn., Mich., 
Oregon, Penn., Md , Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, 
Kentucky, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Utah, Ala., 
Louisiana. 
THE TITOFSKY APPLE- PAGE 278. 
This Russian apple haB proved itself a valuable 
market sort. Emit is of medium size, oblate, 
conic or sometimes quite round, yellow striped 
with rod. Flesh white, sprightly, juicy, aro¬ 
matic and sgreeablo. Ripens in August and 
succeeds well iu Iowa and most of the north¬ 
western states, and also in Louisiana. 
WEALTHY. 
Of medium size as onr engraving shows, the 
Wealthy apple has white, fine-grained flesh 
which is tender and possesses a sprightly, sub- 
acid flavor. The tree is very hardy, originating 
in Minnesota. The fruit growers of Minnesota 
speak in Mgh terms of praise of this apple. It 
is very showy and of good quality. 
CANADA REINETTE. 
A winter apple of medium size. It is a green¬ 
ish-yellow color — flesh white growing tender, 
juicy and possessing a sub-acid, lively flavor. It 
has been found to do well in New York, Ontario, 
Michigan, Ohio, Alabama aud Louisiana. 
RAWLE’S JANET. 
(HctwleS Jenneting, JTeverfaft.) 
TMs for certain parts of the country, as will l e 
seen below, is a valuable apple. The tree is of 
slow growth, but a groat bearer though usually 
a part is under-size aud knotty. Medium size, 
striped red and yellow. Flesh flue, juicy, crisp, 
rather acid. It is a winter apple aud keeps well. 
The Am. Pom. So. gives two stars to tho follow¬ 
ing: Maryland and JD. C., Virginia, Kentucky, 
Iowa, Missouri, Kansas. 
-♦ ♦ » ■ — 
PROFITABLE PEARS. 
Yesterday I asked a neighbor, who ha 3 
grown several acres of pears for years, what 
variety he had found most profitable. His pear 
orchard consists mainly of four varieties; 
Bartlett, Sockel, Winter Nelis and Lawrence. 
It would have yielded thus far twice as much 
clear profit if all the trees had been Bartletta. 
Now, however, this variety is blighting badly, 
while some other kinds are coming in its place. 
The Lawrence is a poor 
bearer while young, but is 
healthy and more productive 
as the trees get old. My 
friend has not bad such 
good success as he should 
in disposing of Winter 
v Nelis, a late pear which 
fegk needs to be sent to Boston, 
KBKi New York, or Philadelphia 
to secure a g o o d mar- 
ket. Excepting the 
Bartlett, the Seckel is 
probably the best pear for 
profitable marketing. Tho 
tree is mostly free from 
and the fruit, though 
lii i small, is always iu demand. 
There is tMs tq be said in 
MHU Sm favor of the Bartlett that 
IIW (fl™ SOM I bough it has blighted 
vliJirai Hi A Xffiil IU badly of late, the trees have 
'iSflffl 1 SI II paid for themselves before 
ii-WWfflU nuf HI III- l be others began to bear 
liPBi H if ff| much. For quick returns 
■Mmivt I I II' there is no bettor variety. 
i ieu, r0 Clttirgeau is a coarse, 
WmWMmmll Bj poor pear; but so riuo-lcHsk- 
‘ » l, g that it always sells well. 
Flemish Beauty, on thecon- 
trary, though equally tine- 
vfmjlrf looking, is more apt to glut 
the market- than any other. 
H$jl Wwjr Much of the profit in or- 
'Y chardiug depends on judi- 
Hl Y cions selection of varieties. 
Other sections may need 
^ other favorites, b u t for 
Western New York the 
above Mnts will be of value. 
w. j. v. 
Monroe Co., N. Y. 
