the seed: but that, under certain conditions the 
wheat will turn to chess. A good friend once 
told me that his wheat, whenever it was 
winter killed, had turned to chess. I said to 
him, “Some of my wheat w as winter-killed 
also; how is it that there is not one single 
grain of chess in it, and has notbeenforlO 
years? I will tell you: I have got the seed 
all out of my soil, and have been careful not 
to sow one single grain.’’ This argument that 
chess will not grow from the seed, is simply 
an excuse for sliiftlessnesa. The season may 
be such that it will not grow; but if there is 
noseed in the soil there will be no foul growth 
in the wheat. 
Farmers around here are paying out a good 
deal of money for fertilizers for wheat. 
With clover grown once in three years, and 
what stable manure I can make, I have no 
use for them; in fact I have never been able 
to see one particle of benefit from their use, 
either to wheat, clover or potatoes. But this 
proves nothing, only that the farmer should 
experiment and know whether they pay him 
on his farm or not. If they pay, use them. 
On a farm only l 1 ^ mile from mine the 
farmer used phosphate on his wheat last fall— 
I thiuk he told me $2.30 worth per acre. He 
passed through the field once without letting 
any run out of the drill, aud once he started 
and went a few rods before bethought to turn 
ou the phosphate. 1 passed by his field almost 
daily from sowing time until harvest. The 
phosphated part would probably yield 'JO to Jo 
bushels per acre. It was good, fair wheat ail 
through. Where there was no fertilizer the 
wheat was much smaller in the fall: and was 
absolutely all winter-killed. The strip was 
like a lane clear through the loug field: $2.30 
au acre saved the crop. Farmers, experiment. 
Do uot do a thing because some oue else does it. 
It may be very wise or very foolish for you to 
buy fertilizers. You ought to know which. 
There are many other points I would like to 
speak of, but my letter is getting too long al¬ 
ready. Just one word about seeding to grass. 
The best time to sow Timothy is undoubtedly 
when the wheat is sown, for the good of the 
grass. But when our wheat gets somewhat 
winter-killed, ttio Timothy takes the start in 
the spring and keeps it, aud it is no unusual 
sight to see fields where the wheat is nearly 
all smothered out by the great growth of 
Timothy. Una dairy farm it may not make 
very much difference, ns the hay may be 
worth about as much as the wheat: but with 
me, when I sow wheat T want to harvest 
wheat, and a crop that I need nut be ashamed 
of. I first tried sowing the Timothy later 
than the wheat—say about Oct 1st—but iu 
late years I have giveu up sowing in the fall 
entirely and sow it with the clover seed in the 
spring, about the first of March. I say “with 
the clover seed,” but each kind is sown separ¬ 
ately. There is not us much Timothy in the 
hay as formerly, but it catches wherever the 
clover fails or is thin, aud that is all I care for. 
We get far more roweu iu the fall after wheat 
now-, also, as Timothy aud clover having au 
even start, the race is mostly to the clover 
which is more inclined to make a large fall 
grow'th. 
Summit Co., Ohio. 
BUCEPHALUS BROWN’S NOTIONS AND 
IDEAS. 
The Ruhal’s article aud notes ou hand¬ 
ling the potato crop, m its issue of August 6, 
was timely aud instructive. Iu regard to 
potato diggers I do not see how they can be 
found fault with because they do not work 
well among largo weeds. There is uo crop 
more injured by such wees Is thau potatoes, 
aud a farmer who is fool enough to let a po¬ 
tato field become thus weedy ought to dig his 
potatoes by hand. The loss iu the crop aud 
the loss iucurred by band labor inconsequence 
of weeds, are a great deal more than enough to 
pay for the labor of keeping the crop clean. 
The secret (if it is a secret) of a clean 
potato field is deep planting, straight and eveu 
rows, broadcast tillage, just as the crop is 
breaking t hrough, frequent cultivation (shal¬ 
low) between the rows, and thorough hand- 
weeding of the rows before the crop is laid 
by. There is far less work aud a good deal 
more money iu a woll-huudlod potato field of 
10 ucres than in a 20-aere field that yields no 
more bushels. The weeds alone will make all 
the difference. 
Perhaps some may dispute these state¬ 
ments, but figures will sustain them. The av¬ 
erage potato yield of the State I live in, at the 
last census, was about 110 bushels. There is no 
couuty in the State iu which this average 
cannot be easily doubled by clean culture 
aloue. The average price, per bushel in the 
State, delivered to the cars, has been about 
40 cents. The crop for the State is given at 
nearly four and a hulf millions of bushels. 
Double this, aud the gaiu to the State on this 
crop aloue would considerably more thau pay 
for all the hired labor on all our farms for u 
year. There is nothing so wasteful as weed¬ 
growing, and no man can plant more potatoes 
than he can keep clean, without losing money. 
Stick a pin t here. 
What a gap there is betwixt this average 
of 110 bushels and the Rural Farm’s 1,110 Bush¬ 
els,or at that rate in rich garden soil. Of course 
no farmer expects to approach that by ordi¬ 
nary methods, practicable on a large scale. 
The Rural has not claimed that. But I call 
attention to the difference in order to stir up 
thought on the subject. There is a wide 
chance for discussion between the advocates 
of intensive and extensive farming—but most 
of our farming Ls properly neither—that is, 
the prhwiplrs of neither are adhered to, no 
matter which is nomiunlly followed, by the 
average farmer. 
Growing potatoes ou the extensive plan 
admits Oft the moderate use only of fertilizers 
—admits of their entire exclusion, even, un¬ 
der some circumstances. It admits of exclus¬ 
ive machine tillage and digging, and the loss 
of some potatoes left on the ground. It admits 
of rapid handling, of sales to the starch fac¬ 
tory iu place of shipping—but it does not ad¬ 
mit of weeds. And by the extensive system, 
in well-chosen land, in a wise rotation, pota¬ 
toes can be- made to yield, in a fair seasou, 
quite up to 301) bushels per acre over a large 
field, kept clean. But otherwise the crop is 
more likely to be less than 100. Wilkins Mi- 
cawber could easily demonstrate that ruin 
surely follows. 
Suppose a mau has but a small farm, what 
may intensive cultivation of the potato do— 
deep pulverization of the soil, liberal fertiliza¬ 
tion, careful planting and garden culture? 
Well, I know what it has many times done for 
me, on land that my predecessor could uot get 
his crop up to 100 bushels on. It has exceeded 
400 bushels twice aud has never fallen below 
340. This year the crop on two acres has al¬ 
ready (August 12) gone to market, and netted 
au average price, delivered, of a little over 90 
cents per bushel. 
It does not seem to uie that there can be any 
circumstances in which the waste of the small 
potatoes is profitable, unless it is absolutely im¬ 
possible to obtain help. Chill labor or female 
labor is well utilized in this work, but at the 
lowest valuation, compared with other feed, 
and allowiug for the necessity of some succu¬ 
lent food for cattle aud swine, it will pay to 
hire a man to gather them up, rather than to 
allow them to be wasted. There are possible 
exceptions in the far West, but they must be 
few. 
To what exteut is the belief true that pota¬ 
toes greatly impoverish the soil? Well, I am 
growing them every other year alternately 
with corn, cabbage or onions, on the same 
laud for a long time, without any falling off 
in any way. As 1 tmve said, I get large crops, 
yet the entire cost of fertilizing the laud does 
not exceed $25 per acre, one year with another, 
using chiefly ground raw bone, bone ash aud 
wood ashes. Most of the crop is dug, always 
by hand, while the tops are green; and the 
tops of each hill are carefully buried in the 
preceding hill dug. Nothing of fertility is 
lost, except what is taken off iu the tubers. 
The land has kept improving right along with 
this treatment, but if I should omit the 40 
bushels of unleached hard wood ashes per acre, 
that go ou each year, once, it would take 
three years to bring the crop back to 
where it was. Once iu every three or four 
years this land gets 40 two-horse loads of dung 
to the acre, extra. 
ONION CULTURE. 
C. E. PARNELL. 
Of all the methods employed to secure a 
crop of onions for market or home use, sowing 
the seed for the main crop is the simplest and 
best. But as it is not only very desirable but 
absolutely necessary iu amateur gardening to 
obtain onions as early iu the seasou as possi¬ 
ble, sets must be used, aud these must lie 
pluutcd as early in the spring as possible; in 
fact, as soon as the ground can be properly 
prepared. If this is done, the onions will be 
ready for use in the green state by June, and 
iu July the crop eau be gathered and stored 
in any dry, airy situation, aud the ground 
can be prepared for another crop. A deep, 
rich, loamy soil is the most suitable for thus 
crop, and it should receive a good dressing of 
well decayed stable manure, which should be 
as thoroughly incorporated with the soil as 
possible, aud then a thorough harrowing 
should be giveu to level it off us nicely as 
possible, when it should be marked off in 
rows about sixteen inches apart and two 
inches iu depth. 
In these rows or drills the sets are placed 
about three inches apart, each set or bulb 
being pressed down firmly, so that it will keep 
its place, aud when all are planted the row or 
drill should be filled in with the rake so as to 
cover the sets or bulbs completely. As soon 
as the rows can be distinguished, the crops 
should be thoroughly hoed and the hoeing 
should be repeated as often as necessary, until 
about the middle of June, when it will com¬ 
mence to mature, and about the first week in 
July it will be fully matured, when the onions 
can be gathered and the ground prepared for 
another fall crop. But it should be under¬ 
stood that the onious can be used as soon as 
they are half growu or large enough for use. 
When gathered they should he spread out 
thinly in a dry, airy situation until wanted 
for use. To procure the sets or small bulbs, 
the seed should be sown in a nicely prepared, 
but rot enriched border as early in the spring 
as possible. Sow iu drills about 10 feet in 
length, one foot apart and about an inch in 
depth. Sow thickly, covering the seed to 
about half an inch in depth, and keep the 
young plauts well cultivated and free from 
weeds until the tops begin to decay, when the 
small bulbs should be taken up and stored as 
advised for large bulbs. The bulbs used for 
sets should never exeeed half an inchin diame¬ 
ter. If larger they are apt to run to seed. 
Those that are about the size of a pea are the 
most suitable, as they produce the finest bulbs- 
The variety principally grown for this pur¬ 
pose is the Yellow Dutch, although the Large 
Red Wethersfield aud White Portugal are 
grown to a limited extent; but the sets of the 
latter are considered rather difficult to keep 
over winter. 
Queens, N. Y. 
Enrol (Topics. 
NOTES ON THE RURAL OF AUGUST 
6TH. 
WALDO F. BROWN. 
Hygiene on the Farm.—I commend 
the plan of accumulated evidence which 
the Rural gives us in the August 6th 
number. First, we Lave the striking car¬ 
toon on tne first page, followed up by the 
sound and sensible articles by Drs. Hoskins 
and Stewart and Prof. Cook. Possibly there 
is no subject connected with the hygiene of 
the family of greater importance than the lo¬ 
cation and arrangement of the privy, and no 
source of danger so great as this. Another 
strange thing about it is, that so many intel¬ 
ligent people seem to be either ignorant of or 
careless as to the matter. Iu May last I visited 
a young married couple who are just improv¬ 
ing a farm which is to be their future home. 
They have abundant means, are intelligent 
(he beiug a graduate of college aud she a min¬ 
ister’s daughter and a graduate of one of the 
best seminaries of Ohio), and are starting iu 
life with unusual promise of happiness. His 
farm is located near a creek aud is all second 
bottom with a porous soil. He has built a 
large, finely-furnished pi ivy, with a vault 10 
feet deep under it, and it is located within 60 
feet of his well. I remonstrated with him 
about it, and for fear he has not been suffi¬ 
ciently impressed by vvhat I said, I shall mail 
him my copy of the Rural, which contains 
the bony hand reaching to the chamber where 
the loved ones sleep. 
Handling Potatoes— Several good points 
are made by the various correspondents on 
handling the potato crop; but I will add two 
others, which I have fouud helpful in handling 
a large crop. First, if the potatoes are to 
be shipped in bulk in a oar, or put directly 
into the cellar, the cheapest way to handle 
them is iu sacks. Scatter the sacks along so 
they will be convenient, and pick the potatoes 
up into small baskets so that you can hold 
the sack aud empty the potatoes into it with¬ 
out help. Then put only a bushel in a sack ; 
one man can easily throw this into the wagon 
without help, and there will be no need of 
tying a sack ouiy half full. With one man in 
the wagou to place the sacks, aud two to 
hand them up, it is the work of a very few 
moments to load, and the unloading can be 
done as rapidly. 
Second, if the potatoes must be stored in 
the field a while alter digging, do uot put 
them iu pits covered with vines, as recom¬ 
mended by Alfred Rose, as this involves pick¬ 
ing them all up by hand, aud a heavy rain is 
sore to wet through aud make them disagree¬ 
able to haudle and also hurt their appear¬ 
ance. Five or six hundred feet of lumber, 
and two or three hours’ work, will build a 
shed with a board floor so that the potatoes 
will be thoroughly protected and can be 
shoveled up at the rate of two or three bushels 
a minute, thus saving time aud disagreeable 
work. The lumber for such a shed cau be 
stored and used for a number of years. Iu 
handling the potatoes use a coal shovel with 
a blade fourteen inches wide, aud you cau do 
the work rapidly and will not out them at all, 
while the scoop shovel with its sides turned 
up, is liable to cut them. 
Setting Cream. — I am surprised that so 
excellent a writer as Henry Stewart, should 
recommend stone-ware milk jars. They are 
heavy and cumbersome to wash and handle, 
and not good conductors, so that the milk 
will be slow to cool in them; then they are 
not nearly so easy to wash and keep sweet as 
tin, aud as they are liable to be broken they 
would cost more in the long run. I am in 
favor of deep setting, and use tin cans eight 
inches iu diameter and 20 inches deep, which 
hold four gallons each. My cans made of 
four-cross tiu, cost 90 cents each 12 years ago, 
and are still in use, although we have had 
new bottoms to some of them. The lid is 
made to shut over the outside so as to prevent 
water from entering the cans when used in 
an ice chest, or if water is poured on them in 
filling the tank. They can be used in an ice 
chest with cakes of ice laid on a slatted floor 
above them, or in a tank with cold well or 
spring water, and as tin is a good conductor 
and they present over 120 square inches of 
cooling surface for each gallon—besides the 
top aud bottom—the temperature can be re¬ 
duced rapidly. With ice water all the cream 
will rise in three hours, and with well water 
which registers a temperature of 50® or less, 
the morning’s milk can be skimmed at noon, 
and the night’s milk in the morning, and you 
will get all the cream. I am not theorizing 
about this, for I have used these cans for 
more than 12 years, aud we have often taken 
four inches of cream from one of them in 
three hours from filling when we had ice 
water to set them in. Four of these only will 
be necessary instead of the 30 stone jars as 
they can always be emptied and washed be¬ 
fore the next milking. 
NEW YORK HAY MARKETS. 
The average value of the hay crop for the 
six years ending 1885 was -<387,771,207, This 
crop was produced on 33.638,247 acres. As 
compared with other crops of the country, hay 
stands as follows, the figures representing 
averages for six years: 
Value. Acres. 
Hay.§387,771,207 33,838,247 
Corn. 681,119,502 68,435,034 
Wheat . 382,820,335 37.098,558 
Rye. 16,6S0,589 2,895,438 
Barley. 31,131,427 2,300,021 
Tobacco . 42,257,177 673,948 
Cotton. 269,989,812 1S,300,S65 
Over 70 per cent, of this crop is fed on the 
farms of the country. The remainder finds 
its way to the cities and towns, where it is fed 
to urban stock. In the East hay is a cash 
product—a good article is always salable. As 
with nearly all products, prices for hay are 
regulated by the prices obtained at New York 
or Boston. If the price m New York is higher 
than in some suburban town, less the cost of 
transportation, the price will soon be ad¬ 
justed. 
HISTORY OF NEW YORK MARKET. 
For many years the supply of hay for use 
iu New York and Brooklyn came almost ex¬ 
clusively from Long Island and adjacent 
counties in New Jersey and New York State. 
It was brought in loosely piled on shelvings 
fitted to the ordinary farm wagon. In this 
way it was brought 30 or 40 miles. After a 
time the hay was loosely baled and brought 
in ou sloops aud barges, but most consumers 
preferred the loose, unbaled hay, because they 
could see just what they were getting. The 
next innovation was the horse-power press, 
with more compact bales, weighing from 260 
to over 300 pounds. This led to the use of the 
hay barges, aud opened up the up-river coun¬ 
ties. Up to this time the price depended upon 
the local supply, and although the price might 
be very much higher in New York than in 
Cleveland or Boston, yet the bulk of the com¬ 
modity prevented its transfer. In the winter 
of 1866 the price of hay was very high and 
an effort was made to import it from the Can¬ 
adian Provinces, chiefly from New Bruns¬ 
wick, but the effort was a failure. So long 
as the stables of New York were modeled af¬ 
ter the barns of the country, the loose hay 
seemed most desirable, but as the dimensions 
of the stables were reduced, more compact 
bales were preferred, until now the prefer¬ 
ence is invariably given the sectional bales 
from the Plunger presses. 
EXTENT OF MARKET. 
In New York City and vicinity there are 
over 650 dealers in hay. The amount handled 
yearly is estimated at not far from 450,000 
tons. Exact statistics are hard to obtain. In¬ 
cluding Brooklyn, Jersey City and Newark, 
it is probable that 900,000 tons are yearly han¬ 
dled. Not all of this vast quantity is needed 
