JAN. 28 
least half destroyed I harvested three quarts 
of Washington Oats. I had four eyes of 
White Elephant Potatoes and raised throe 
pounds of nice tubers. My pinks were very 
fine. Tho sorghum grew finely, but as it was 
put in late it did not ripen. M. a. p. 
Hartwick, Otsego Co., Jan. 4.—Our White 
Elephant Potato was cut into 11 pieces and 
planted in as many hills. It did not do any¬ 
thing extra. I hoed them twiee; yield, 13 
pounds. The Rural Branch¬ 
ing Sorghum did not ma¬ 
ture. The Washington Oats 
did not do as well with me 
as some others have re¬ 
ported on account of smut; 
harvested about two quarts 
of good clean grain. As¬ 
paragus did well. The 
flower seeds I gave away; 
the pinks were thought 
very nice. a. e. s. 
Ohio. 
Fredericksb’g, Wayne 
Co., Jan. 7.—The Rural 
Branching Sorghum was 
slow to start, but stood the 
drought well and branched 
remarkably. The small 
potato I cut into 11 pieces 
and planted them in 11 
hills. I dug 76 tubers, 50 
of which were large and 
nice. The oats did well, 
but smutted somewhat. 
The pinks I turned over tq 
my sister and she had quite 
a show of flowers in their 
season. The asparagus did 
not do well. G. \v. f. 
Ionia, Chickasaw Co., 
Jan. 2.—I cut my White 
Elephant into 24 pieces, 
one eye in a piece; some 
at the seed end were not 
larger than peas. They 
were planted in a bed on 
April 25; all grew nicely. 
When about two inches 
high I transplanted them 
into a row; manured it very lightly with barn¬ 
yard manure’; hoed it twice, and about the 
middle of August dug 01 pounds of nice tubers. 
I planted the Branching Sorghum on May 14; 
the seed all grew and tho'plants did well until 
about two inches high, when they turned red 
and grew no more for nearly three weeks, 
and nearly three-fourths of the leaves dried 
up. On examining them I found swarms of 
chinch bugs around the roots. I put a table¬ 
spoonful of air-slaked lime on and around 
each hill, which cleared out the bugs. The 
plants took a new start and grew vigorously 
about 11 feet high; seeds did not mature. The 
sorghum is all the Rural 
claims for it. The aspara¬ 
gus did nicely. The flow¬ 
ers were really splendid. 
I would not be without the 
Rural for twice the sub¬ 
scription price. j. n. 
Pennsylvania. 
^*Hartrkgig, Mercer Co., 
Jan., 14.—The Washington 
Oats yielded three pounds 
and did not smut. I got a 
few White Elephant Pota¬ 
toes in spite of tho drought, 
worms and beetles. I hope 
to do better next year. 
The pinks were perfect 
beauties ; expect to have 
carnations and pieotees in 
bloom next season. Raised 
lJ'.j bushel of Mold’s En¬ 
nobled Oats from two 
quarts of seed of last year’s 
Distribution — weight 72 
pounds. 8. M. 
Litchfield, Bradford 
Co., Dec. 10. — I obtained 
pounds of White Ele¬ 
phant Potatoes—good for 
the season. The Washing¬ 
ton Oats did very well; as 
I am not used to planting 
oats I got them too thick; 
I shall get some one to sow 
them next Spring. The 
asparagus did weli, as did 
also the Rural Branching 
Sorghum. The pinks came 
up and blossomed well. 
All the seeds did well con 
sidering the season, which was the driest ever 
known hereabouts—but little rain from the 
last of June until the 2d of October. j. m. 
North East, Erie Co., Jan. 4.—I planted 
the White Elephant Potato on April 25, cut to 
14’piecas with one eye in each. All came up. 
They got no extra care, but on September 1 
I’harvested pounds of nice tubers. Am 
much pleased with them. The oats did well, 
but my neighbor’s cows broke into them and 
destroyed about half of them. I harvested the 
lest and had 12.!£ pounds of as plume, nice 
oats as I even- saw. The asparagus made but 
a feeble growth on account of dry weather. 
Five dollars would not buy my \ otatoes and 
oats. a. w. B. 
Vermont. 
East Randolph, Orange Co., Jan. 6.— My 
plant the Washington Oats—had no room. g.d. 
Wisconsin. 
Mauston, Juneau Co., Wis., Jan. 6.—The 
Rural has been a regular weekly visitor to 
my family for the past 30 years, and its ap¬ 
pearance once a week has become necessary 
to our comfort. My White Elephant Potato 
weighed leas than two ounces; but it was cut 
up to make eight hills, one of which was dug 
up by mistake, leaving seven, which yielded 
COFPEE-HULLINQ MACHINE. 
Fig. 30. 
White Elephant Potato was cut into 14 pieces 
and planted one piece in a hill about the mid¬ 
dle of May. Every piece grew, one stalk to a 
hill. The ground wus rich and the tops were 
very large. These were struck with rust and 
died the last week in August. The potatoes 
were dug Sept. 0 and yielded 01 pounds. The 
largest weighed two pounds. The quality 
appeare good. I noticed one peculiarity, and 
would inquire if the habit obtains everywhere 
where planted; it is this: The White Elephant 
bloomed almost at the same time as did the 
Early Rose and continued in blossom every 
day until the tops died the last of August. 
58 pounds of the finest potatoes you ever 
saw. N. H. D. 
(Jl)C (Oiu vbt. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name 
and address of the writer to Insure attention.] 
“TRUCK” FARMING ON LIMITED MEANS. 
J. C., N. Y. City, having $1,500 and wish¬ 
ing to live in the country, asks whether a man 
COFFEE-ROASTING. 
Fig. 31. 
[This is generally the case.— Eds.] This is 
the only kind that did so among nine different 
varieties planted. Rural Branching Sorghum 
made a large growth—some nine feet high. 
It was in blossom when the terrible freeze of 
Oct <5 came upon us. In my opinion it is 
re lly a valuable plant. The flower seeds in 
time made the yard very beautiful. Did not 
with a small family could make a good, com¬ 
fortable living on five acres of laud by grow¬ 
ing berries and other fruit, potatoes, garden 
“ truck,” etc., for sale in the nearest market ; 
also how much it would cost to build a house 
16x20 feet with a wing 12x15 feet the main 
building to bo a story and a-half high so as to 
give room for sleeping apartments upstairs. 
He has lived eight years in Albany County ; 
but doesn’t say what experience he has had 
in fanning, gardening or fruit raising. 
Ans. —We do not wish oo say one word to 
discourage a man from going to the country 
to buy or to earn a home for himself and 
family. Our cities are overcrowded with la¬ 
borers, and the country needs them. It is a 
question of means, however, whether a man 
shall go there to work for himself or for others, 
A man with a small capi 
tal should not go to the 
country indulging in ro¬ 
mantic dreams, but make 
up his mind that he has 
got to work, and work 
pretty hard, too, at the 
start; but it will be healthy 
work, and do him good. 
There are parts of the 
country where a man with 
$1,500 and a practical 
knowledge of farming and 
gardening can purchase 
land and make a start with 
a reasonable hope of a 
comfortable living. It 
may be doubted, however, 
whether this can be done 
with $1.500 near our largo 
cities without running 
largely in debt ; and this 
we do not advise. Let J, 
C. buy five acres of land 
suitable for fruit and veg¬ 
etable gardening, pay for 
it, and then count over 
what he has left. He may 
have a thousand; though 
wo doubt it. He will be 
very fortunate if he can 
build a house of the size he 
names, with under cellar, 
etc., for $800 ; but say he 
spends $000 on it, and he 
will then have 400 left with 
which to build a stable, 
shed, etc., and buy ahorse, 
(and perhaps a cow,) wag¬ 
on, harness, manure, plow, 
harrow, spades, rakes, aud what not, besides 
plants, and seeds for a beginning. What re¬ 
mains i Too many rush into the country with¬ 
out counting the cost, and without having that 
business tact and practical knowledge of farm¬ 
ing or gardening which are indispensable to 
success, and their lives for years are simply a 
struggle to live. If J. C. wishes to remain 
at the East, he can pursue one of two courses 
with his limited capital: buy a place near 
a thriving village, build a small cottage, 
buy sashes for hot-beds, glaze them him¬ 
self, and grow vegetables, strawberries, 
raspberries, etc., to be sold, in the village. 
Or, by patient waiting, he 
may find such a place as 
he wants offered for sale 
on easy terms, with build - 
ings already on it, aud he 
would then have a large 
part of his money for work¬ 
ing capital, but with some¬ 
thing of a drawback in a 
mortgage, which he might 
be fortunate enough to 
pay off in a few years. 
A good workman in the 
country, who owns a little 
place of his own, will al¬ 
ways be aide to find occa¬ 
sional work among the 
neighboring farmers, and 
this will help to make 
" both ends meet.” Near 
large cities J, C. would 
find too much competition 
amoug large growers with 
an abundance of means. 
If he knew how to do it, 
and had the money to 
build a glass house, he 
could add to his income by 
growing “ cut flowers,” 
such as roses, carnations, 
etc., which are always in 
demand in the Winter. 
There are other ways of 
adding somewhat to the 
income, which J. C. will 
learn by experience, but 
which we have no room 
for here. If J, C. and oth¬ 
ers seeking information 
would state what they 
know about farming, etc., 
it would help very much to a satisfactory 
answer. 
FRUIT QUERIES. 
W. B. H., address mislaid, 1, having more 
three and four-year-old Transcendent Crabs 
than he needs, would like to graft upon them 
Wealthy and Scott’s Winter apples, and he 
asks whether it can be done with good results 
