784 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
THE 
RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
K National Journal for Country ami Suburban Ho.ne 
Conducted by 
K. S. CARMAN, 
Editor. 
J. 8. WOODWARD, 
Associate. 
Address 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
No. 84 Park Row, New York. 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22. 1884. 
Rural New- Yorker pout erf are now ready. 
They will he sent to all of our subscribers 
without application. All others who see 
this notice are requested to apply for them, 
at once. 
■ »»♦ — 
Now begins that season of the year 
when people may regret that they have 
no evergreen trees and shrubs sprinkled 
about, their homes to enliven the dreary 
winter aspect. 
Wk have no patience with the some- 
thiog-for-nothing schemes of charlatan 
publishers, and it is sickening that so 
many of them live upon the best class of 
our country—the farmers. 
Now that it it past, we may mention 
that, just 100,000 copies of the Rural of 
Nov. 8 were printed. Nothing was said 
of our intention to send out so large an 
edition,for the simple reason that we did 
not care to crowd its pages with adver¬ 
tisements. 
■ - 1 - - >♦ »» 
We are sorry to see in an advertisement 
of the Marlboro Raspberry the statement 
that it is earlier than the Hansell—earlier 
indeed than any other. This claim can 
do the Marlboro no good, while it reflects 
upon the integrity of the authors of the 
advertisement alluded to. 
Under date of Oct. 29, Sir J. B. Lawes 
writes us that “there are some interest¬ 
ing experiments upon corn, taken at dif¬ 
ferent stages of its growth, in the New 
York Experimental Station report for 
1888. It appears Irom them that a great 
deal of nutritive matter accumulates in 
the crops after the time at which they are 
cut for silage, if Dr. Sturtevant’s exper¬ 
iments arc correct. There can be no 
doubt that a ripe cron of corn would pro¬ 
duce more, meat than the same crop 
placed in a silo.” 
According to a bill just received from 
our seed bag manufacturers, the cost of 
the seed bags alone for the Rural Seed- 
Distribution for 1885, will be over $850. 
When the more important expenses are 
considered, viz., testing so many new va¬ 
rieties of new seed, most of which prove 
worthless, collecting and purchasing the 
seeds used, dividing and puttingthem into 
the small envelopes, (remember we use 
over 100,000 of these) putting these into 
the larger one, folding, riveting, di¬ 
recting, stamping and paying postage 
(which alone will be considerably over 
$1,500), the cost of the entire distribution 
may be imagined. 
“Farmers know of no substitute for 
wheat, and are consequently, most of 
them, preparing to sow nearly the usual 
breadth again,with a full knowledge that 
they will lose money, but in the belief 
that with any other possible crop, they 
would lose more.” *1 hese are the words 
of an agricultural coircspondent of the 
London Times, and the gist of the com¬ 
munications of many others is of the same 
purport. In spite of the unusually good 
harvest which the United Kingdom has 
had this year, the outlook for farmers 
there is by uo means cheering. Although 
rents have been greatly reduced or re¬ 
mitted everywhere, land agents and land¬ 
lords are overwhelmed with notices from 
tenants that they will quit. Wide tracts of 
arable land are being converted into past¬ 
ure; but even in cattle raising there is not 
much encouragement ahead. Beef from 
America and mutton from New Zealand 
and Australia are eutting down the piofils 
of native stock raisers. Cattle are now 
worth from 30 to 40 shillings a head, and 
sheep from 8 to 12 shillings less than at this 
tiine last year; and the stress of foreign 
competition is only commencing. In the 
first five months of 1884 the shipments of 
mutton from Australia amounted to 51,110 
carcasses against 03,733 for the whole of 
last year. In the tiist five months of this 
year, New Zealand shipped nearly as 
much as in the two preceding years. The 
River Platte is a new source of supply 
which is furnishing 20,000 carcasses of 
mutton monthly, on which there is a 
good profit it sold at eight cents a pound. 
Small wonder that the British farmer is 
beginning to clam r for protection against 
foreign competition! 
■ -»♦ »- 
“Why docs not the Rural send out a 
considerable quantity of one kind of seeds 
instead of a dozen different kinds in small 
quantities?” Oh, there are lots of reasons 
why we do not. Suppose we sent out a 
quantity of corn. It might suit our 
readers of the Middle States. But how 
about the rest of the country—tbe South, 
North-west and Canada? It is not to be 
supposed that any one kind of seeds or 
plants will thrive everywhere. But it is 
not the object of the Rural’s Distribu¬ 
tions to send out a quantity of one kind 
of seed alone. We test perhaps 50 differ¬ 
ent new varieties (so called) every season. 
Possibly half-a-dozen give promise of 
superior value. These (if we can get seeds 
in sufficient quantity) are all included in 
our next Seed-Distribution. It is plain, 
therefore, that, our subscribers receive the 
benefit of our 50 tests,since the 44 worth¬ 
less kinds are rejected and only the supe¬ 
rior kinds sent to them. Tt has never 
been a part, of our plan to send out large 
quantities of seeds or plants, but merely 
test quantities. If next Summer Rural 
readers find the Sorghum lialapense what 
we fancy it is very likely to prove—viz., 
a drought-resisting, hardy perennial for¬ 
age plant,—then our friends, lrom the 
seeds which will mature from our trial- 
packet, will be enabled to sow t perhaps a 
half'acre the next year. Of the peas, we 
shall be able to send probably 60 ol each 
-certainly enough to test them fully— 
and so of the tomatoes, Evergreen Flage 
olet Beans, Cross-bred Corn, etc. The 
gist of it is that Rural subscribers re¬ 
ceive the benefit of all the tests at the 
Rural Ex. Grounds without the trouble 
and expense of conducting them, 
■ -»♦» 
A telegram from Ottawa, Canada, 
tells us that, “by an order-in-Council the 
further quarantining of American cattle 
at Point Edward, Ontario, is suspended.” 
There may be some misconception with 
regard to the meaning of this notice. The 
order-in-Council of April, 1880 absolutely 
prohibited the importation of neat cattle 
and swine from this country into the Do¬ 
minion. By an order-in-Council in Feb¬ 
ruary, 1882, the regulations as to prohibi¬ 
tion were relaxed, so that cattle for breed¬ 
ing purposes could be imported at Point 
Edward under strict quarantine arrange¬ 
ments which would prevent the possibil¬ 
ity of the introduction of disease among 
Canadian cattle. We never thought 
there was any danger of the introduction 
of contagious diseases into the Dominion 
by the importation of Western cattle until 
the outbreak of contagious pleuro pneu¬ 
monia in some of the trans-Alleghany 
States; but inasmuch as Kansas and some 
other States have prohibited the importa¬ 
tion of cat tle from Illinois and several oth¬ 
er infected States, we expected the Can¬ 
adian authorities w’ould follow this ex¬ 
ample. The suspension of the quarantine 
at Point Edward justifies this expectation, 
for it is merely a return to the policy of 
total prohibition in force prior to the 
order-in-Council of February, 1882. We 
notice that txvo of our city papers and 
also a prominent Canadian paper suppose 
the suspension of the quarantine will per¬ 
mit the free admission of American cattle 
at Point Edward, and the Canadian paper 
goes so far as to charge that Mr. Pope, 
Minister of Agriculture of the Dominion, 
or his friends, must have cattle in the 
Northwest which are to be brought. East 
to winter: as before stated, however, the 
suspension of the quarantine is equivalent 
to an absolute prohibition of importations 
of cattle and swine from the United 
States into Canada. 
OF INTEREST TO OLD SUBSCRIBERS. 
Lest those friends ■whose subscriptions 
expire about Dec. 31 may feel that when 
we made the offer of the Rural from now 
to January 1st. 1880 for the price of a 
single year they were not being quite 
fairly treated; we make them the fol¬ 
lowing very fair proposition: Any sub¬ 
scriber on our list whose subscription 
expires on or before January 1st, 1885, 
may renew at once for 1885, and may 
order the Rural for his uuexpired 
term to be sent to any friend he may des¬ 
ignate. For instance, suppose your time 
is out Jan’y 1st next, you may send the 
$2.00 now, and we will put your name at 
once on the list for 1885, sending 
you all the remaining numbers for this 
year, and if you will send us the name 
and post-office address of any friend, we 
will send to him all the remaining num¬ 
bers to which your old subscription en¬ 
titles you. Is not this fair? This gives 
you as much as others, and at the 
6ame time it enables you to kindly re¬ 
member any relative or friend you may 
choose, and the Rural may so please him 
that before his time expires, he will sub¬ 
scribe for another year; in this way you 
will be the means ot benefiting both him 
and us by making us friends. Kind 
friends, is not this worth your while? 
TO SUBSCIBERS. 
Let there be no misunderstanding as to 
our presents to subscribers These are not 
offered for a certain number of subscrip¬ 
tions, but for any number that may hap¬ 
pen to be the largest. Thus, the one 
sending the greatest number, will receive 
the most valuable article. Now it matters 
not if the largest club be but five, the 
sender will have earned the highest gift, 
and will receive it. It would be our loss, 
not theirs, should this magnificent list of 
presents utterly fail to secure us a great 
number of subscribers. The object of 
these presents is to pay our friends for any 
work they may be kindly pleased to do 
in extending the circulation of the R. N.- 
Y. There are 321 different presents of 
the aggregate valuation of $2,816, and we 
shall be more than grateful if an equal 
number of our good friends can find time 
and will fe’el so generously inclined as to 
engage in the good work. 
OUR FREE-SEED DISTRIBUTIONS. 
We began these Seed-Distributions 
years ago, merely because we were testing 
all sorts of novefties and desired to bene¬ 
fit our friends by sending them small 
quantities of those which seemed to be 
improvements over older kinds generally 
grown. Wc little dreamed that, in a few 
years the Seed-Distribution would reach 
such proportions, requiring the employ¬ 
ment of so many hands and superintend¬ 
ents through such a considerable portion 
of the year. The seeds have, however, 
never in any sense been offered as premi¬ 
ums. We send what, we choose, when we 
choose, and to all our subscribers who ap¬ 
ply, even paving nearly the entire postage 
ourselves. I’he seeds are sent as freely 
and gladly to those on our lists at. the 
time who do not intend to renew, as to 
those who do. We would gladly send 
them to every good farmer in America, 
could we afford the expense. Do these 
seed-distributions pay us in a pecuniary 
sense? No, far from it. Wc have no 
doubt that the same amount of mon¬ 
ey invested in advertising the Rural, 
would bring us in ten subscribers where 
the seed-distribution brings one. They 
may and doubtless do serve to bind 
our old friends more closely to the 
Rural, because they deem the distribu- 
bution a practical evidence of our desire 
to help farm interests in every way we 
can. But “free seeds” to the stranger’s 
eye presents by no means an enticing 
aspect. Again, American seedsmen are 
benefited by the Rural’s distributions. 
Our seeds, first tested at the Rural 
Grounds, are again tested by a great num¬ 
ber of good people everywhere; their re¬ 
ports are printed, and seed men are thus 
enabled to judge of the actual worth of 
the goods. Thus a great impetus is given 
to the sale of worthy varieties. We think 
that it is for this reason, in part, that our 
estimate of novelties is generally accepted 
as trustworthy. We are really solicitous 
that the Rur al’s Seed-Distr ibutions, which 
were conceived, as were its Experiment 
Grounds, in a liberal spirit, should not be 
mixed up or confounded with the cheap 
schemes of upstart farm journals for se¬ 
curing a 6hort-lived circulation among 
credulous people. 
STOCK-RAISERS’ CONVENTIONS. 
The second annual session of the Na¬ 
tional Association of Stockmen began at 
Chicago last Thursday. Upwards of 200 
prominent stockmen were present, repre¬ 
senting Texas, Arizona, Colorado, Wyo¬ 
ming, Idaho, Montana, Dakota, Nebras¬ 
ka, Kansas, Missouri, Wisconsin, Minne¬ 
sota, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ken¬ 
tucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, 
and Massachusetts. The great Fat-Stock 
Show, now being held at the Lake City, 
attracted a large number of stockmen: 
but it appears probable that the Cattle¬ 
men’s Convention, which opens at St. 
Louis on Monday next, will be still more 
numerously attended. A telegram just 
received tells us that the report of the 
delegations shows that about 1,000 cattle¬ 
men will be present. These will be main¬ 
ly delegates from the States and Territo¬ 
ries west of the Mississippi, with a few 
from Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, and 
Ohio. The capital invested in the stock 
and ranches in the West amounts to 
about $3,000,000,000 and of this vast in¬ 
terest about $1,000,000,000 is expected to 
be represented at the Convention. The 
States to be most largely represented will 
be Texas, Kansas, Wyoming and Missou¬ 
ri, which will have 400 delegates present, 
representing the wealthiest stockmen in 
the world. The deliberations of such a 
convention of men deeply interested in 
the cattle-raising industry of the West, 
and thoroughly acquainted with its re- 
quiiements, should be highly instructive, 
and their recommendations should have 
weight in State and National legislation 
so far as the prevention and suppression 
of contagious diseases are concerned ; but 
is it possible the cattle kings of the 
Plains will at all refer to the enormous 
crimes of which many of them have been 
guilty in the way of dishonestly appro¬ 
priating the public domain and outrage¬ 
ously oppressing the poor settlers who 
dared to homestead or preempt land in ac¬ 
cordance with the laws of their country ? 
CORN AND COTTON. 
The November returns to the Depart¬ 
ment of Agriculture indicate that the corn 
crop will exceed 1,800,000,000 bushels, 
being even at. these figures the largest 
crop ever raised. Other authorities, how¬ 
ever, estimate the yield all the way from 
1,810,000,000 to 1,900,000,000 bushels. 
The average rate is about 26 bushels per 
acre, and the beat yields are, as in 1883, 
in what used to be known as the “Great 
American Desert.” The “arid regions” in 
the viciniiv of the 100th meridian have 
produced the heaviest crops of maize of 
the best quality, although we have been 
assured over and over again that that 
whole region was fit only for grazing pur¬ 
poses. Now, however, the 100th meri¬ 
dian has ceased to be an absolute limit to 
corn production or general farming. 'I'lie 
rate of yield in Nebraska is 38.5 bushels 
per acre; Kansas, 38; Iowa, 35; Missou¬ 
ri, 34; Minnesota, 33.5; Ohio, 31; Illi¬ 
nois, 30; Indiana, 29; Michigan, 27; 
Wisconsin, 24.5; Kentucky, 28. The Pa¬ 
cific Coast returns a yield of 33 bushels 
per acre in Washington Territory; 30 in 
California, and 28 in Oregon. The South 
reports yields of 28 bushels in Maryland; 
20 in Tennessee; 19 in Arkansas; 16 in 
Virginia; 15 in Texas; 13 in Mississippi 
and Alabama; 12.8 in Louisiana, 11 in 
Georgia, and less in other States. Ilave 
our friends’ crops exceeded the average 
of their respective States? Won’t this 
enormous crop have a great, influence on 
the number, weight and price of bogs, 
and, later on, of cattle also? We start, 
however, with a deficiency in number and 
weight of hogs; the weight may be rap¬ 
idly increased by feeding abundantly and 
longer than usual; but it will be months 
before the numbers are much increased. 
The Department’s returns from the 
“Cotton Belt,” show that the long 
drought has considerably reduced the 
production. The indicated yield per acre 
is lower in neatly every State thau in the 
census year, which was one of average 
production. Now, as then, the lowest 
yields are in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, 
and Texas. The reduction is very marked 
in Louisiana and Arkansas, the region of 
the most productive cotton lands. The 
returns by States indicate the following 
yields per acre: Virginia, 180 pounds; 
North Carolina, 175; South Carolina, 
152; Georgia, 135; Florida, 105; Ala¬ 
bama, 130; Mississippi, 175; Louisiana, 
190; Texas, 143; Arkansas, 200; Tenes- 
see, 160. The indications point to a crop 
somewhat larger than that of last year, 
gathered in an unusually fine condition, 
of good color, unstained by storm, and 
free from trash and dirt. As bales aver¬ 
age about 437 pounds, a yield of one or 
two bales to an acre, which one often 
hears spoken of in the South, must be 
something extraordinary, in view of the 
above figures. Yet the disproportion is 
not so large as between the 11 bushels of 
corn per acre in Georgia and the 38 1-2 in 
Arkansas — to say nothing of the 130 
bushels at the Rural Grounds. 
BREVITIES. 
Tack up the Rural posters—please. 
Sunlight in the sitting rooms; sunlight in 
stables. Warmth is life. 
Do not forget to inclose the yellow label 
having your name on it, when you renew. 
The cheap French dolls now so freely ad¬ 
vertised are simply paper dolls, and no one 
should expect more, for the money asked. 
The Domestic Economy Department of the 
Rural has been conducted by Mrs. Emily 
Maple for 8 years. Every article during that 
time has been original. Mrs Maple has spent 
days and weeks among farm neighbors and 
friends soliciting and copying their choicest 
recipes. We have just this bit of fault to 
tiud, viz.: that our esteemed contemporaries 
copy her articles as if they were written for 
their columns, without any credit whatever. 
It is a mighty mean business, aDd no gentle¬ 
manly or right-minded editor will do it. 
