so 
'jUatrrag for tjjf ihniug. 
THAT BROTHER OF MINE; 
Or. Horticulture Indoors, Spiced. 
BY MRS. M. L. S. 
"Bliss, can you spell excellency with lour let 
Lera and yet there will he 140 in It?’’ said Will* 
with a look ol surprise at his own ingenuity. 
••Oh! what do I care tor your qutbhlps and 
pilzzes!” replied Bliss; “go get me those sticks 
- nd hoop wires tor making the frame tor the Ivy 
.vhtch has taken root la this pot. - ’ 
•• Well. Miss • busy body,’ look this way;” and 
v ill held up a card with XLNC written upon it 
iu bold capital letters. 
•• oil! yes.’' said Bliss; “ that's as plain as A B C; 
mly four letters, and XL make forty, and C, one 
hundred. Now, that 1 have solved your puzzle,get 
(he things, please, and I'll make you a puzzle.” 
“ Yes. so could a fellow make an eggstaud on the 
end alter it had been cracked a Itttie. Very easy, 
Indeed. But Bliss Is going to make me a puzzle. 
Won’t It be. a stunner : : And suiting the action 10 
the word, he came down so heavily on the table 
with his list that the pot of Ivy rolled to the door. 
Bliss jumped to her foot, exclaiming, “ 1 didn’t 
mean i d make you a puzzle, only a frame tor your 
vine; just look! Go bring me that old umbrella 
frame which you were clapping at the dog yester 
day.” and her face brightened With a new Idea. 
Will, feeling just a little uncomfortable over the 
vccldeat to the plant, scampered off io the garret. 
Bliss was gathering up the plant and earth when 
>Ue heard an affected sniffle, and there was will, 
m a wide expanding crinoline, with a bonnet-frame 
on his head, the umbrella frame hoisted, and 
smelling vigorously at a small brown jug “ liow 
do you like the picture since It has been finished? ' 
said he. simpering. 
Bliss, unable to suppress it, broke into a merry 
laugh as she exclaimed, “ What a clown you arc* 
Will.” 
“oh. no; only a skeletonized itaeel William,” 
said be. as he cut some rare capers, imitating a 
coquette tripping about to show herself to best ad¬ 
vantage. A t last, catching his foot In t he hoop, be 
fell sprawling to the lloor. 
••The sweet. William Is down, too,” said Bliss; 
•< I’ve picked up the Ivy, now let me pick up this 
sweet snwUtrxt William—oh ! 1 mean the smelling 
bottle.” and Bliss fairly choked with laughter as 
he rolled over, all the while getting more tan¬ 
gled up. 
“ I can work the wires and get out of this cage 
I'm not the first fellow caught In such traps,” said 
he, affecting much exhaustion from the struggle. 
“ Here’s your smelling jug. perhaps It will revive 
you, said Bliss, with mock politeness, holding the 
jug to his nose. 
“ Jurj or not, I can make an Oriental Idol to be 
worshipped as much as a fiujtjemaMJ’ said will. 
Bliss brought out her sheet of decalcomanle, 
and commenced cutting out a pagoda. 
“ Dou’L these old Celestials look luuny with 
their toad-stool hats on? s>oe, t have cut out a 
whole row,” said Will, after a time; -you just 
stick the bulge lor a center-piece, and let these 
crank-eyed fellows be approaching it on each 
side.” 
“ Now, here Is an antique vase with a Chinese 
group, and all It needs is some of those grasses In 
yellow, blue, red and green crystals,” said Bliss, 
as she placed It on a bracket. “Now Will, for 
j our old umbrella and hoop skirt.” 
•• You don’t want any more a at to’, do you f" and 
v. lll looked cunning, as if he would like to repeal 
his character of a woman. 
“ no, but hoist the umbrella hair way, and hang 
It up by the Handle,” said bhe, assuming a busi¬ 
ness air as she went to work on the tins whieli 
secured the steel to the tapes. After getting one 
coop off she began at the hub weaving it lu and out 
about the whftlebone ribs of the umbrella, and re¬ 
peated tills till it formed a basket as large as de¬ 
sired, when she UnUhed it with bonnet wire and 
cirrled a string from the end of each rib up to the 
groove in the handle where she secured it. she 
had been so occupied with her work, she had not 
noticed Will's absence. 
•• Good morning, itle es,” said a pinched voice at 
i,he door, ancl looking round she beheld an old 
woman with what seemed a green velvet bonnet 
bristling with green plumes, ou her head. “Old 
lady!” said she, " walk In and give me your bon¬ 
net.” This bonnet proved to be a line mat of moss 
and ferns, and she Immediately turned it up Into 
her basket and began drawing the fronds through 
the openings between the wire. 
■•You came very iltucly, old lady; for I was 
just ready for the moss, and now let me see if you 
nave some dirt In that pan under your red shawl.’’ 
- I brought this imbrlll to keep jer Ivy dry,’ 
said the crone, tor Will had been Coo often scolded 
for spilling wat.or when helping to water the 
basket. 
Bliss took the pan of leaf mould, and Will held 
the Ivy while she put the soil around It In the 
newly made basket. They thm dipped It In a 
tub of water and when done dripping., hung It In 
the window where the light struggled through the 
tracery of ferns. “Now the stick. Will,” said 
Bliss, “ wnile we have the hoops out.” 
“Oh! the sit /said Will. “Paddle your own 
canoe,” and he fled.—To be continued. 
-♦-*-♦- 
LETTERS FROM THE COUSINS. 
Dear Uncle Mark:—1 thought I would give a 
dual report of my summer and fall work. The 
beans aid not yield as much Olds year as they did 
last, on account ol the very dry weather we had 
all summer. The yield from one-third of an acre 
this year was four bushels, thus lacking one-half 
bushel of last year’s crop. 
My Dolly Dutton corn met with several draw- 
THE BUBAL HEW-¥©BKER. 
JAM.I7j 
backs. At first the season was too dry for It, then 
It grew finely for a while, and Sept. 3rd the ears 
were full grown and just right for eating, which 
was eight weeks from the time of planting. A 
week later live stray calves got Into the patch and 
destroyed nearly all of It. breaking off and leaving 
on the ground a few ears; I bad these cooked and 
they were especially sweet and delicious 
In the latter part of September the calves came 
again and tore off one good ear which 1 ripened in 
the house. I had still left two very small ears, and 
they ripened naturally Oct. 7 ; so altogether I shall 
have enough to start me again next year. 
The White Tailed radishes never made flower- 
sterns, but just kept on growing MU frost, at which 
time some ol i he roots were still edible. They are 
most remarkable radishes. 
My pop-corn was dried by the drouth so that it 
was almost good lor nothing. 1 got one peek this 
year where 1 got- five pecks two years ago. 
1 have had a queer change take place lu some 
Tulip bulbs bought of vick, In 1873. I ordered three 
single early Tulips, and the first year they all dow¬ 
ered and produced single Powers; the next year 
I had an Increase of two or three bulbs that flower¬ 
ed with the first lot. Out one produced double 
flowers, and has continued to do so since, and to 
produce more bulbs, which also have double flow¬ 
ers. They have increased very rapidly, i have 
now over ninety flowering bums. Can you explain 
this change? Last fall I bought another lot ol 
bulbs, one double and several '--ingle 'lias Is the 
first double Tulip I have ordered. 
1 receLved the grape seed a long time ago, plant¬ 
ed them as you directed, and am waiting for them 
to sprout. Yours truly, 
Bodge Co., Neb. Wm. J. Mason. 
1 This, on the whole, Is a very good repoit. It 
shows industry and some sagacity on the part of 
the cultivator. The most 1 ntere stl »g point is, per¬ 
haps, his observation lu legard to the Tulips, and 
I hope other members of the club will try their 
skill In producing double flowers. It would be well 
to observe If the double flowers are of the same 
size as the single ones, and it they still retain the 
same shade of color us the mother bulbs had. The 
soil will Influence the color of some flowers, a* of 
the Bydrangia, for lnstauee, which will change 
from a pinkish to a bluish shade when the plants 
grow In a soil containing Iron, and It might be 
that a change from single to double might have a 
similar effect on the Tulip. To give the reason for 
this change from single to double is no easy mat¬ 
ter. We only' know that cultivated plants fre¬ 
quently do this, and sometimes, when the plants 
that thus change grow uuder peculiar circum¬ 
stances, as m a dry soil, or a poor soil, etc, people 
arc very apt to say that th»se circumstances are , 
the cause of the change, but this may not always 
be true.—Uncle YLark.J 
Dear Uncle Mark ani> Rural Cousins: Some 
lime ago Lenora Wire spoke of an orange tree. I 
have an orange tree that is two years old a 111 it 
bear trull without grafting tu this mui-ata? 
Cousins, 1 must tell you of our duck. My brother 
was working near the lake one day, and he caught 
a young gray duck, and 1 brought It to the house 
aud put It in a pen where it lived till it, was nearly 
full grown. It became quite tame, it would walk 
around with the other fowls, but one night my 
brother took It out of the pen to show It to some 
frieuds, he set It down on the ground, it walked a 
few steps, went quack quack, Happed its wings 
aud flew away in the dark. We thought we should 
never see little duckey again, but the next, day I 
was over to the lake, and there was duckey with a 
large flock of companions, as happy as could bo; 
at sight of me they flew to another and larger lake, 
one ovenlug last fall, just before an UWIUI thunder 
suower, little duckey came and alighted in our 
door yard as though It was afraid oi the storm, 
but on trying to catch it. It flew away to the lakes 
again. The next day my brother went over to the 
lake aud got It ; it stayed with us two or three days 
then wandered off again aud we have not seen it 
since. Uncle Mark, please don't scold at this long 
letter. Wild Tom. 
Chelsea, Michigan. 
[Oh, no, Tommy, I never scold anybody for 
writing long letters, In fact 1 like long letters, p ru- 
iildfd they are well written and ttprnjMly; but I 
luve one objection to make and that is in regard 
to your adopted name. “ Wild Tom,” Is not u hand¬ 
some name, and I feel also safe in saying that It is 
not expressive of your character, lor a really wild 
boy would care nothing for gardening. I would 
suggest that the cousins select handsome noins de 
plume when they do not wish to sign their own 
names, sometimes the name alone will cause 
people to be prejudiced agalasl or In favor of a 
person of whom they otherwise know nothing.— 
Uncle Mark.] 
Dear Uncle Mark:—I see so many joining the 
Horticultural Club that 1 thought l would join 
too, If there is still room. I had no vegetable gar¬ 
den last summer, but I had a flower garden and a 
small bed oi Ground Cherries. I have a lew house 
plants of which I will tell the names. They are : 
Fuchsias. Geraniums, Jerusalem cherries and a 
Callii-ltty. My Lather Is In the nursery business 
on the Yaqulna Bay. My mother has a Tallow Tree 
that does not bloom, it Is not very old. Does it 
require any special treatment? I would also like 
to know how u> raise FuchsLaa from seed. I guess 
1 have written a long enough letter lor this time 
so good-bye. Ella Briggs. 
Benton Co., Oregon. 
[The Tallow Tree (StUlengla seblfera) is a Chi¬ 
nese tree, which, however, has been naturalized in 
Florida and ocher southern States, ana does not 
require any special treatment except to have pro¬ 
tection. in cold weather. In China it grows from 
ta to 4(1 feet high; it has long flexible branches 
and long sulked leaves much resembling those of 
the Poplar. The flowers appear in dense spikes at 
the ends of the branches, it is called the Tallow 
Tree because of a uiiow like coating which en¬ 
velops the seeds. This is used for candies by the 
Chinese.—U. M.J 
Dear Uncle Mark Fearing you will think 
that I have deserted you, I will write you again 
and tell you how I am enjoying myself. I am so 
sorry the flowers are aU gone, l miss them very 
much. My bed looks so bleak and cheerless when 
there are no plants lu It. But winter also has its 
pleasures; I find It very cheerful. 1 have nice 
books, and read nearly all day. I received a good 
many Christmas presents, but of all 1 pitze my 
books the most: for you know 1 am a great reader, 
and if i could not have bonks to read, i do not 
know what f would do. Last faU some girls gave 
me boinc seeds which L will save for my garden for 
next year I am going to make some linprove- 
menis in mygirdcit next, summer, and l hope 
I shall succeed lu making It look pretty. But. I 
must close, as I have already written a long letter. 
Yours Lizzie E. Blair. 
p. s.—What. is the matter with the old members 
of the Horticultural Club, and all the cousins, 
since they don’t write? I send my regards to 
them aU; and l want them to write and tell us 
how they spent Christmas and how they eDjoy 
the winter. K - B - 
New Y’ork City._ 
Dear Uncle Mark: — I have been thinking of 
joining the Club for a long time. 1 live up In the 
northern parr, or Michigan where the winters are 
long and the snow gets very deep, i am only 
seven years old and six years of my life l have 
spent here on my papa's homestead, 1 don't go to 
school but mama has been teaching me to write, 
but 1 can’t write good enough yet to write this 
letter, so papa Ls writing It for me. 
I had a little garden last summer, hut it did uot 
do well. I hope to have a better one next sum¬ 
mer and wish you to please send me some flower 
seeds suited to this northern climate, that will 
blossom next summer. I have a Geranium and a 
Pink which blossomed this year, that I am win¬ 
tering In the house. I have twin sisters three 
years old and a brother five years old. Please put 
my name on your list. Bertha E. Smith. 
otsego Co., Mich. 
RURAL NEW-YORKER 
For 1880. 
SHOW IT TO YOUR NEIGHBORS, 
SEND FOR SPECIMEN COPIES, 
They will be forwarded free. Premium 
Supplement (Illustrated) will also be 
forwarded free to applicants. Our Seed 
and Plant Supplement will also be for¬ 
warded free to applicants. 
A Remarkable increase of Circu¬ 
lation up to date. 
A General Recognition of the 
Rural New-Yorker’s Ser¬ 
vices to the Country 
during 1879. 
the reward of downrigh 
HONEST, EARNEST WORK. 
Special numbers devoted to Wheat, Veg¬ 
etables, Small Fruits, Crop Pros¬ 
pects, <fec., &c., to be presented 
during the year 1880. 
HIDDEN DEINKS. 
1. Tobacco coagulated. 
2 . on the Khlne, Wiuerred died. 
’Twas a cub Horn a caught. 
4 . I do but term “ilk” a synonym for “just so.” 
5. Is ginger popular as a flavoring extract ? 
6. Yon are too flippant. 
7. He was sailing ou the bay. 
8. I saw a mummy. 
9. It was Philip Ulque. 
10. The pouy bit Tersle. 
n. Let onle be Ernestine. 
12. 1 saw Taka yesterday. 
13 . Believe me, the glinting Is over. 
H. I had the cabs In the order specified. 
15 . For that a flat had gone forth. 
id. Titer had tine music at Awba’s party.,. 
17. You made Ira very angry, 
is. Madam! alms, eyes can see, are here needed. 
19. Lemarlseh In open air ls old, sallow, and 
thin. ‘ 
20. Do give that cur a coat or paint ? 
21. Oh, pshaw, Heyward 1 
22 . Too bad, rakes plant at Jon,—Bitter sball 
they rue It. 
•23. Lepos set down his Glass. 
•24. For a French sou ciioug teased his wife. 
•25. My augel, 1 care only' tor you. 
E ; ff— Answer In two weeks. Little One. 
A MALTESE CROSS. 
•for.—The noise of a pig. An animal. A vowel. 
Kigut.—A sort of candy. Not on. A vowel. 
Bottom.—A tire-stir. Noise. A consonant. 
Lei-t.—A man’s name. A tliiug tor carrying mor¬ 
tar. A consonant. 
Center.— Top—Part of the human body. 
“ Itlght—Three consonants. 
“ Bottom—A river of Spain. 
•• Lett—A city of Iceland. 
Across the centrals form mountains of Russian 
America, and downward they form a city of Green¬ 
land. 
S3f ~Answer in two weeks. l. o. 
DEOP LETTEE PUZZLE. 
K-u-y-u-h-a-t-ii-u t-o-r-a-m-n-s-n-t-r-u-t-t-e- 
o^U-o-r-o-l-r-e-s-r-e-o-s -n-m-r-i-u-s-o t-a-g r-n- 
0 -g_e_t_e-l-d-e-s-n-r-p-u-h-l-o-t-e-v-l. FiU the 
blanks and And a text of Scripture. 
^“Answer in two weeks. t. o. 
--♦♦♦--- 
HALF WOED SQUARE. 
Insolence—Loud sound—Bulk—Employ French 
avtlcle—A consonant. 
xstr Answer lu two weeks. 
--- 
PUZZLEE ANSWERS.—Jan. 3. 
Hidden Grockuiics.—L Silver-saud: 2. Tapers; 3. 
5 oun-Dante; -l Aprilo-L>utter; e, Mmee-ineat; b. Chow- 
S!v “ ». Sausage; a olotnos-ioiw; ID. 
tubs; 11. Wash-boards. 
Diagonal Puzzle: 
I 
a 
w 
A 
(do) 
A 
PriDials form “ Iowa.” 
Diagonals form ” Idea.” 
Pyramid Puzzle: 
C 
C a 
B u f 
Centrals form “ Cat/.” 
Drop Letter Puzzle— Bless them which persecute 
rou; curse uot. 
A N ame Puzzle.— Felicia; Rexetta; Elvira; Dorinda; 
Etienne: KosabeUinda; Lriurte; Cassandra; Antouina. 
Initials form “ Frederica” 
C 
A 
L 
F 
B&T Farmers, Gardeners, Fruit- 
Growers, Dairymen l You 
cannot afford io do with¬ 
out the RURAL XFW- 
YORKKR for this 
Year! ! .jsaff 
IT IS FEARLESS, CONSCIEN¬ 
TIOUS AND ALIVE !! 
Kto SUBSCRIBE ItfOW. ^ 
The following writers—the most dis¬ 
tinguished in the country — will con¬ 
tribute to our columns during this year : 
'rof. S. YV. Johnson, 
“ G. C. Caldwell, 
•• Thomas Meehan, 
iov. Robt. W. Furnas, 
’rof. E. W. Stewart, 
“ Win. J. Beal, 
’res. T. T. Lyon, 
jbarlea Downing. 
J rof. R C. Carpenter, 
Y. E. Salmon, D. V. M, 
?rof. G. E. Morrow, 
“ Elbridge Gale, 
Sec. C. W. Garfield, 
Rev. R. IL Crane, 
D. S. Bliss, 
Prof. A. E. Blount, 
Dr. A. It. Ledoux, 
M. B. Bateham, 
Dr. Jno. A. Warder, 
Lester A. Roberts. 
L. S. Hardin, 
Rev. L. J. Tetnplin, 
W. I. Chamberlain, 
Jonathan Taleot, 
S. B. Peck, 
A. M. Halstead, 
S. Rufus Mason, 
G. Marti, 
Prof. Levi Stockbridge, 
H. L. Wysor, 
T. L. Miller, 
Prof. F. II. Storer, 
“ E M. Sheldou, 
Henry Stewart, 
Prof. L. B. Arnold, 
I Dr. J. B. Lawes, 
Prof I. P. Roberts. 
|Geu. Win, H. Noble, 
Col. F. D. Curtis, 
B. Piekman Mann, 
Samuel B. Parsons, 
Stunuel Parsons, Jr., 
Col. M. C. Weld. 
T. H. Hoskins. M.l)., 
Dr. F. M. Hexainer, 
Prof. A. J. Cook, 
W. J. Fowler, 
|Geo. Such, 
M. Oakey, A. M., 
Prof. S. M. Tracy, 
E. Williams, 
William Falconer, 
Richard Goodmau, 
James Tapliu, 
Juo. T. Lovett, 
Forrest K. Moreland, 
Lorenzo Rouse, 
W. C. L Drew, 
M. B. Prince, 
Nelson Ritter, 
Henry Hales, 
J. B. Armstrong, 
And not loss than 250 Others! 
History of a Poor Farm, Notes from 
the Rural Grounds and Rural 
Farm will be continued. 
SPECIALTIES OF RARE VALUE 
ARE IN PREPARATION. 
Price, Two Dollars per Year. 
T WIL.L SAVE YOU HUNDREDS. 
It will Make you Better and Wiser, 
and your Home Happier. 
THY IT! 
