THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
747 
3tt&u0t’l Societies. 
THE NATIONAL CATTLE GROWERS’ 
CONVENTION. 
The National Cattle Growers’ Association 
has called a delegate convention of the repre¬ 
sentative stockmen of the United States, to 
meet in Chicago on NoveuiVier 17th and 18th, 
for the purpose of considering certain matters 
of the utmost importance to stockmen and 
others throughout the country, which have 
arisen within the past year, and also to afford 
an opportunity for full and intelligent dis¬ 
cussion of other subjects of interest to cattle 
raisers in the United States. That the at¬ 
tendance will be large is au assured fact, but 
it is not desirable to make the convention a 
mass meeting in any sense of the word, be¬ 
cause it is believed that more and better work 
for the benefit of cattle growers may be ac¬ 
complished by a comparatively small number 
of men of intelligence and influence than 
could be expected of a large gathering, where 
much valuable time might be lost in useless 
debate. Notice has already been received of 
the appointment of delegates from every State 
and Territory in the Union, and representa¬ 
tives will be present from State Boards of 
Agriculture, live stock associations, agri¬ 
cultural societies, and periodicals issued in the 
interests of live stock owners and agricultur¬ 
ists. Arrangements have been made with 
the various railraods for reduced rates, and 
special terms will be giveu to delegates and 
representatives by the leading Chicago hotels. 
The Convention is to be held during the an¬ 
nual Fat Stock exhibit, which takes place in 
the Exposition Building, and the Illinois State 
Board of Agriculture will furnish compli¬ 
mentary tickets of admission to those dele¬ 
gates wishing to attet d the show. The second 
official meeting of the National Cattle Grow¬ 
ers’ Association will be held on November 
19ch. The existence of the association dates 
only from November of last year, and but 
few persons outside of the organization have 
a correct idea of the amount and importance 
of the work accomplished. The enactment of 
the law creating the Bureau of Animal 
Industry, which is almost the only useful 
recognition the General Government has ever 
giveu to the live stock interests of this country, 
was secured by the efforts of the association, 
notwithstanding the strong opposition of those 
whose chief, if not only interest iu the cattle 
business lay in the profits to he derived from 
buying or selling in the great cattle markets 
of the country. 
Slje tHtmjmrfo. 
THE COCHIN CHINA GRAPE, 
A CAUTION. 
About two years ago my attention was 
called to an art icle clipped from the San Fran¬ 
cisco Daily Examiner, regarding the so-called 
Cochin China anuual grape vine, describing 
it as a native of Cochin China, where it grew 
at an altitude varying from UK) to 3,000 feet 
above the sea level, and giving a glowing ac¬ 
count of the fine table and wine producing 
qualities of the fruit. 
Learuiug that an Italian gentleman of Sau 
Francisco, Signor Christopher Don^ero, was 
possessed of seeds, T opened correspondence 
with him, and through him obtained ten seeds 
each of the black and red varieties. These 
were small, of rather peculiar form, aud but 
slightly resembled those of our common 
grape. 1 took three of each sort and treated 
them according to directions, but they failed 
to germiuute, aud ns it was stated that it took 
from two to three months for them to start. I 
waited iu expectation until it was too late for 
a second trial the same Beason. Last Spring 
three more seeds of each variety were plauted 
with no better results than before. The re¬ 
maining eight seeds I intend to experiment 
with the coining season, using still more care 
than formerly, aud in due time will make 
knowu the result. 
Having learned that several persons in 
various parta of the country had succeeded in 
obtuiuiug a small quantity of these seeds and 
were charging very high prices for them, I 
concluded to give my experience as above. 
While 1 do uot yet by auy means claim that 
thiB “precious grape” is a fraud, 1 would not 
advise any one to pay an exorbitant price for 
seeds with the expectation that the results 
mentioned in tbp Examiner and other papers 
will be fully realized Evidently the seeds 
have already been well distributed in various 
localities, aud iu due time we shall know the 
results. It Is uot probable, even should the 
vine succeed well iu the South, that it could 
at once be acclimated, and adapted to the 
vigor of .our uor thorn winters, the supposition 
being that it is a native of a more genial 
clime. W. H. RAND. 
Chittenden Co., Vt. 
EXPERIENCE WITH SOME GRAPES. 
The Jefferson Grape fruited with me 
the second time this season. All things con, 
sidered, I think it is the finest grape that ever 
ripened in the open air in Indiana. The clus¬ 
ters were large—weighing a pound or more— 
uniformly double shouldered and the berry 
was of such superior quality as to commend 
the grape to all who sampled it. The vines 
and fruit were free from mildew and rot, 
while almost all others on my premises suc¬ 
cumbed to the humid atmosphere iu June, and 
were more or less injured. 
The Lady Washington grew and ripened 
a fine lot of fruit this season. The clusters 
were large, and the fruit excellent in quality. 
I prefer to bag this grape, to protect it from 
rot and preserve its fine bloom. Its season is 
two weeks later than that of the Concord, 
and therefore I doubt its ultimate success. 
The Naomi rotted badly, although freely 
“sulphured” and bagged. 
The Pocklington— four years old—had one 
sickly cluster and that will not ripen unless I 
can carry it over until next season. It ripens 
its wood well, and I have faith that from its 
slow growth, it will improve with age. 
The Concord, Isabella, Never-Fail, 
and other varieties did well, and the crop 
was large all over the county, but the fruit 
brought the discouragingly low price of three 
cents per pound. j. l. mcd. 
East Germantown, Indiana. 
£l) t' ^IpmriatL 
IS BEE-KEEPING PROFITABLE? 
G. M. DOOLITTLE. 
PERSONAL REMINISCENCES. 
As many questions are being asked at the 
present time regarding the profit arising from 
apiculture, perhaps a few words ou this sub¬ 
ject may not be uninteresting to the many 
readers of the Rural, who are, perhaps, look¬ 
ing toward apiculture, either as a specialty or 
as an adjunct to their other business. The 
tendency of nearly till who start in bee keep¬ 
ing is to go into it with a rush from hearing 
only the “bees-work-for-nothing aud-board- 
themselves” side of the question, and this is the 
cause of so many failures. To be successful in 
anything, a man must “grow up” into it by 
years of patient toil and study, till be becomes 
master of the business, and then in 99 cases 
out of 100, he will succeed. I was brought up 
as a farmer, so that were I to make a change 
in my present occupation of bee-keeping, it 
would be to that of farming, unless I could 
have time to study up some other business 
more to my liking. 
embarking in the business. 
Iu the Winter of 1868-09, I became inter¬ 
ested in bees, by reading a bee-keepers’ text 
book, which chanced to fall into my hands. 
Next I subscribed for a bee paper, read 
Quinby's and LaDgtroth's books, and in March 
bought two colonies of bees and the hives I 
needed for two years, for $30. The year 1869 
being a poor one, I had only one swarm from 
the two, and bad to get $5 worth of sugar to 
carry them through the Winter. In 1870 
I received enough from them to buy all 
the fixtures I wished for 1871, and a 
little to help on my other expenses on the 
furrn. So I kept on, making the bues pay 
their way, a? J had resolved, at the outset, 
that after paying the first $35, 1 would lay out 
no more mouey on them thau they brought 
in, believing that if I could not. make two 
colonies pay, I could do no better with 300. 
In the Fall of 1873 I found I had obtained 
from each colouy I had iu the Spring an 
average yield of 80 pounds of comb honey, 
which netted mo $559, free of all expense in¬ 
curred on account of the bees. I also bought 
a honey extractor that season. 
As 1 was determined to give my bees the 
care they needed, knowing that they required 
most uUetitiou in ha>ing time, I hired a man 
to take my place in the hay-field. It so hap¬ 
pened that he commenced work ou the day 
basswood blossoms opened. Previously I had 
hived a single swarm in an empty hive, and 
concluded to devote this to extracted honey. 
The man worked 16 days at $1,75 per day, and 
1 extracted, during those 10 days, honey 
euough from the swarm to pay him for his 
work, besides caring for ail the rest of the 
apiary. 1 state this to show that one uew 
swarm of bees paid for a substitute for my¬ 
self in the hay-field for 16 days, yet how many 
keeping 30 to 50 colonies of bees, leave them 
to go into the hay or harvest field, and then 
tell us bee-keepiug does uot pay! You can 
hire a man to take your place iu the field, but 
if you expect to become master of the bee 
business, so as to make it pay, you cannot 
hire a roan to take your place in the apiary 
during the honey season. 
But to return: In 1884 my honey was sold so 
as to bring me <970 free of all expense. At 
this time I began to think of giving up the 
farm; but finally concluded to hold on to it 
one year more, to make sure that I could 
make 
bee-keeping as a specialty 
pay. After deducting the expenses of the bees 
from the sales.I found that T had.the next year, 
(18751 $1,431, and hesitated no longer: but gave 
up farming and embarked in the bee business, 
with nothing else as a source of revenue. Tn 
1876 mv net Income from the bees was $774; 
iu 1877. $3,266? In 1878. $773; in 1879. <537; in 
1880, $781; in 1881. $1,078: in 1883. <832; in 
1883, $1,021: in 1884, $530;in 1885, the present 
season, $759. making a total of $13,300 during 
the past 13 years. The average number of 
colonies in the Spring of each year, worked to 
produce this result, was about 46. Had it 
not been for circumstances which forced me 
to keep such a limited number of colonies, I 
believe I could have taken care of 100 (spring 
count), and secured nearly double the profit. 
In the above showing, all expenses have been 
deducted except my time, so that the result 
has given me a salary of a little over $946 a 
year, 
But what about the first four years, during 
which I was experimenting, reading and 
thinking about bees all my waking hours, 
many of them hours when I ought to have 
been asleep, giving the subject as much or 
more study than any lawyer ever gave to 
his profession. To be sure, the bees paid their 
way; but where shall I look for my pay? To 
be just T must divide mv $13,300 by 17 years, 
which gives me about $734 a year as the real 
pay I have received for my labor. Is this 
enough for the work preformed? Well, many 
would not be satisfied with it, and multitudes 
would be glad to Ket such a salary. P. H. 
Elwood (one of the largest honey producers 
of our State), once said to me, “A man who 
is capable of manaeing 100 colonies of bees 
would command $1,000 salary a year in any 
business.” If we accent this statement as a 
fact, then I should be better off in this world’s 
goods, if I had never kept bees. But when I 
turn mv eyes to the thousands who do not get 
one half <724 a year, working in factories, in 
the shop, on the farm, and doing drudgery of 
all kinds and descriptions, I turn my eyes 
back with pleasure to our fasciuating and 
health giving pursuit, aud say: “It is enough; 
I am satisfied. 
Bo'-odino. N. Y. 
Here is an advertisement clipped from one 
of the great dailies of this city, and we have 
seen similar baits held out to gudeons in some 
of the leading papers of other places also. 
“VVe have tho names of s.iMKI persons who are en¬ 
titled to deposits In savings Banks, but who are sup¬ 
posed to be dead. These deposits may now be re¬ 
claimed. Address, Box—Post Office " 
The list will be forwarded to applicants on 
receipt of a fee. Wbat is easier than to hash 
up from the citv directory or one’s own imagi¬ 
nation a list of 5,00<) or, for that matter, of 10.- 
000 names, and offer them for sale. If the 
purchaser doesn’t find among them a name 
like bis own or that of some relative, he can’t 
grumble, as no promise was made that he 
would: if he does find such a name, it is a 
mere coincidence: but be may be “bled” more 
deeply by the sharpers, as they are alwavs 
ready to give their services to procure the de¬ 
posit. of course for a consideration in advance. 
V ultimately nothing can be got from the 
bank (and this is pretty nearly a certainty), 
well, the dupe cau growl: the sharpers having 
pocketed his money, can afford to langh. 
Here is an advertisement from one of the big 
New York City sensational dailies which ad- 
mitsevery sort of swindle and nostrum into its 
advertising columns, as the bill is always paid 
In advance. 
He p wauled—You can earn from 10c. to soc. an 
hour qntet ly at h onie day time or evening; no pic¬ 
ture pnltiflnv. p-ddllmr or hmubuir: send 10c. for 15 
samples nnd full Instructions that will do to start 
work with at once, wlrbont further expeuse. Ad¬ 
dress Rice MTg Co., Hoboken. N. J. 
The attention of the Chief of Police of 
Hoboken, having been called to this the other 
day, he visited the post-office, and found that 
a box there had been engaged by the Rice 
Manufacturing Company. As it was evi¬ 
dently a swindle, he waited in the corridor, 
in the expectation that some one would soon 
call for the pile of letters that had come iu 
answer to the advertisement. 
Soon two fashionably dressed young men 
came in smiling, took out a heavy mail and 
turned to go. They were arrested, and $100, 
together with a large number of letters, were 
found on their persons: but as they had vio¬ 
lated no law of New Jersey, they were dis¬ 
charged at the station bouse. As thev were 
leaving the building, however, Post-Office In¬ 
spector L. A, Newcomb quietly arrested both 
under section 5, 480 of the United States law, 
which provides punishment for using the 
United States mails with mtpnt to defraud. 
They at once wilted, and admitted that they 
were the Rice Manufacturing Company. 
They gave their names as William H. Sizer, 
No. 176 West Fonrth Street, and T W. Rice, 
of New Haven. Conn. The attention of In¬ 
spector Newcomb was first directed to the 
swindlers soon after tbev rented the post- 
office box in Hoboken. This was a week ago 
last Friday, and during the first six davs over 
1.000 letters were received for the Rice Manu¬ 
facturing Company, The sudden bulk of 
mail surprised the clerks, and they called the 
Inspector’s attention to the matter. 
Sizer is the well known swindler who has 
been frequently denounced in this department. 
We have given, from time to time, the names 
of at least balf-a dozen swindling companies 
under which he has advertised, tbe latest of 
which were the Bijou Novelty Company of 
Williamsburg, and the Bristol Manufacturing 
Company of this citv. The Rico M’f’g Co., in 
answer to the dopes who sent money, for¬ 
warded a vapid circular and 16 “va'uable 
‘sample’ recipes” for making such things as 
“Lung Medicine,” “Cora Remedy,” “Irish 
or Scotch Whiskv,” etc. It was by using 
these “sample” reoioes that the simpletons 
were to become wealthy! There are always 
fools who answer such advertisements, even 
where the remittance asked is much greater 
than 10 cents. It would he well to bear in 
mind the words of Inspector Newcomb with 
regard to this swindle. Said he: “I hope this 
case will be a warning to a great many other 
similar concerns. They exist all about us: 
not in this city only, butin all tbe large towns 
aDd cities, and in many of tbe little villages 
throughout the country. Most of the man¬ 
agers are shrewd enough to keep within the 
letter of tbe la*, and it is hard to reach them. 
The amounts advertised for are so small that 
no one feels like making a complaint against 
them, and thev know this.” 
Somewhat like several cases lately noted 
here was that in which Samuel Shank, of Gif¬ 
ford. Pa., was a victim the other day. He re¬ 
cently advertised his farm for sale, and in a 
few days a “well-dressed, fine-looking” 
stranger called, and inquired the price of the 
farm. On being told, he said he would return 
next day with bis brother and buy it. Next 
day he came hack with his “brother,” who 
carried avalise which he casually opened to 
take cut a handkerchief, thereby displaying 
several rolls of greenbacks. The would be 
purchaser said that hefore closing the bargain 
he would consult with others and would re¬ 
turn within two days; but the tuen insisted 
that Shank should put $1,200 in the hands 
of a neiehhor as a forfeit if he should change 
his mind. Being anxious to sell, he went 
to the bank accompanied by one of the 
strangers, drew the money and started for 
home. While passing through a piece of 
deep wood, they met the first stranger aud 
another, both of whom drew revolvers and 
ordered Sam to hand over the $1,300. He did 
so. The three then hound and gagged the 
poor simpleton and tied him to a fence post, 
and disappeared. Two hours later Sam was 
found: but the rascals haven’t been heard of 
since. 
To Several Inquirers. We have heard 
of a number of cases which have been bene¬ 
fited by “Compound Qxvgen,” and know of 
several. In some cases, of course, it will be 
of little or no henefit, but in most cases of the 
kind for which it is said to be beneficial, it 
will most likely do good.. .We have not much 
faith in ear drums for serious cases of deaf¬ 
ness; hut in some light cases they are doubt¬ 
less “aids to hearing.”.. We do not at all 
recommend the publications or nostrums 
of “Dr.” E D. Abbey, Buffalo, N. Y.; nor of 
Dr Churchill’s Restorative Remedies, offered 
by Reeves of this city. These nostrums are all 
humbugs for which high prices are charged. 
ftwljitfrittw. 
A CONVENIENT BARN. 
In presenting to our readers, from time to 
time, plans and descriptions of various farm 
buildings, we do not expect that auv of them 
will be followed in detail; but every one of 
them certainly suggest* some advantages 
which might be embodied in any now struc¬ 
ture any of our friends may erect. The haru 
illustrated on page 748, is the property of our 
friend Myron Stuart, of EatouCounty, Mich., 
who tells us it is built against a hill ;the grade 
