THE RUBAI. WEW-VOPKER. 
THE 
RURAU NEW-YORKER, 
ANatlonal Journal for Country and Suburban Homes, 
Conducted by 
ELBERT S. CARMAN. 
Address 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
No. 34 Park Row, New York. 
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 1887. 
Any of our readers who would wish 
to represent "The Rural New-Yorker” 
at the Fairs—North, South, East or 
West—and obtain subscriptions, either 
yearly or for a short term, will please 
communicate with this office at once. 
Liberal terms will be offered. 
Rural readers who have tried the 
variety will kindly inform us w r hat they 
think of the Taylor Prolific Blackberry. 
Most of the farmers about us have set¬ 
tled to the idea that potatoes will be much 
higuer than usual before next spring. 
There will be more potatoes held over 
winter than ever before. The main rea¬ 
sons given for this be ief in higher prices 
are the severe drought in some parts of 
the West and the high prices now current 
in many Western cities. It is expected 
that shipments will be made from the 
East, so that any surplus which might 
exist here will be more than overcome. 
We are inclined to thiuk that where far¬ 
mers can get a fair price for potatoes 
when they are dug, they had better let 
them go. As a rule there is too much 
risk in storing unless one has every con¬ 
venience. 
•» * * 
New and Old Methods.— Last week 
a farmer called our attention to what he 
termed a new nuthod of making mauure. 
He keeps h;s hens in yards about 30 feet 
square. On tbe bottom of each yard he 
puts several loads of rich loam and dried 
muck. The hens scratch in this and 
walk over it, aud several times during 
the season It is spaded over. In the 
spring it is thrown into a cart and carried 
to the field where, as the farmer says, it 
“ acts as well as a fertilizer.” Another 
coating of rich loam and muck goes into 
the yards to be woiked over by the hens 
and catch and retain their droppings. 
The plan is a good one, but it is not new. 
Nearly 150 years ago public record was 
made of a similar practice by an English 
farmer. lie selected a piece of rich soil 
for his cattle yard. This was deeply 
plowed and the cattle were turned into 
the inclosure every night. The soil 
was kept well opened, and at last the en¬ 
tire surface, to a depth of a foot or more, 
was carted out and spread upon the 
cultivated fields. Either new soil or muck 
was thrown into the yard or a new place 
was selected. There is nothing to be 
ashamed of in thus reviving a good old 
practice. There are plenty more that 
might be used in this generation, with 
profit to all. 
Is a beef famine approaching ? The 
latest reports from the West answer affir¬ 
matively. It is estimated that the de¬ 
struction of cattle in the Norih west during 
the past winter amounted to 400,000 head 
in Montana, 100,000 in Idaho, 300,000 in 
Wyoming, and 50,000 in Coloiado—a 
total of 850,000 head. Owing to the ex¬ 
cessive drought during the summer It is 
estimated that the losses in the great beef- 
producing States and Territories, such as 
Ohio, Illinois, Minnesota, Dakota, Iowa, 
Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, New Mexico 
and Texas, will be 650,000 head, swelling 
the whole loss to 1,500,000! This is cer¬ 
tainly considerably higher than all previ¬ 
ous estimates indicated. It is said, more¬ 
over, that owing to climatic aud other 
conditions from 50 to 75 per cent, fewer 
calves than usual were dropped this 
spring, and an unusually large number of 
heifers have been spayed on the ranges, 
and this must have a serious effect, in 
time. True, there are 28,000,000 beeves 
and 13,000,000 milch cows in the coun¬ 
try; but, then, these, for the most part, 
enter into local use and consumption. 
There is little doubt that, while this is an 
excellent time to get rid of poor stock in 
view of the scarcity of food in most sec¬ 
tions, those who are able to hold good 
beasts, even if they have to purchase 
them at the present low figures, will find 
a fair profit in the future. 
■ - ■ - ■ - 
Manual training is the latest hobby 
among city educators. The scheme is to 
make the education in our city schools 
more pract cal. Workshops are to be 
connected with the schools and the boys 
are to learn in them the elements of vari¬ 
ous trades, while the girls are to be 
taught sewing, dressmaking, or house¬ 
keeping. Tbe idea is a good ouo if it 
can be carried out. Our present system 
of education succeeds most admirably in 
teaching boys to pick out some occupa¬ 
tion wherein they can keep their hands 
clean. Labor organizations will be apt 
to oppose this “manual training.” They 
want a monopoly of such things, the 
while they violently oppose other forms 
of monopoly. But if this is good for city 
boys and girls, why is it not good for 
country scholars ? Most farm children 
get “manual training” enough at home. 
What we need in our district schools is 
the introduction of text books that will 
open the way to a course at the agricul¬ 
tural college. The city schools fit 
boys for the literary colleges—that is 
about the best they can do. In the same 
way why should not our district schools 
fit boys for the agricultural colleges by 
making use of a series of easy text books 
on agriculture ? We need the text books, 
and we need teachers who can handle 
them intelligently. Prof. Gulley’s little 
book is the pioneer in this department. 
Prof. Cook oueht to follow it with a 
synopsis of his lectures on physiology. 
Others will follow, and district school 
boards will quickly see the wisdom of 
substituting such books for some of those 
at present in use. This idea should be 
kept before the public. 
THE RURAL AND THE FAIRS. 
There is no other journal that has 
more persistently fought the sale of in- 
toxicatii g liquors and the toleration of 
all gambling or rowdy shows at agricul¬ 
tural fairs than the R. N.-Y. Its vigor¬ 
ous opposition was begun 10 years ago, 
and we may be pardoned for arrogating a 
full share of tbe angry opposition winch 
is now shown to such matters by the larm 
press in general, well supported by the 
earnest sentiment of every good, thinking 
farmer. It is the sacred duty, as we view 
it, of every farmer—a duty he owes to 
himself, his family and his occupation— 
not only to k> ep away from fairs ostensi¬ 
bly agricultural, hut which, in reality, 
parade as their chief attractions allure¬ 
ments well calculated to familiarize both 
young and old with vice in many forms, 
but also to use his influence to keep oth¬ 
ers away. We want farmers to support 
agricultural fairs. They are helpful and 
beneficent in many ways. But why call a 
fair “agricultural ” wdich, aecordiug to 
the statements of its officers, can not be 
made successful if beer and whiskey-sell¬ 
ing, horse racing and all sorts of loiv, de¬ 
grading side shows are prohibited? Why 
call a show “agricultural" if its existence 
depends upon pandering to vicious tastes 
and demoralizing influences! If such 
things should be tolerated—yes, enjoyed 
—then why not add them to camp meet¬ 
ings and church fairs? Or is agriculture 
such a groveling pursuit that it must 
needs sell its body and soul to the devil 
in order to enjoy the fun once a year of 
frisking its tad? 
If so little real interest attaches to ag¬ 
riculture that true agricultural fairs can¬ 
not be made to command the interest of 
farmers, then why not give them up? If 
farmers cannot learn enough by looking 
over theexhibits and by talking with each 
other at farm fairs to induce them to at¬ 
tend, they hud bttter remain at home. 
We are advocates of rendering such 
fairs as attractive as possible by all means 
which are not demoralizing. Music, vo¬ 
cal and instrumental; all innocent games 
and the like may be made to serve a most 
useful purpose as diversions. We would 
show agriculture in its holiday, its most 
captivating dress, to the end that instruc¬ 
tion and innocent pleasure might go baud 
in hand, Wc would have both young 
and old return from the fair with the 
feeling that they had passed a most in¬ 
structive aud delightful day, and with 
the inclination t,o turn what they hud 
learnt to a good account in the future of 
their home lives—a state of things not 
very likely to happen if the day has been 
spent among the fakirs, the beer stands 
and about the race tracks. Take your 
choice, farmers. You make the agricul¬ 
tural fair just what it is, and you alone 
are responsible. You may reply, “I am 
satisfied; let it go on as it, is, I am not 
obliged to drink beer or to gamble or to 
watcb the races. These are evils only to 
those who make them so, and who would 
gel into mischief wherever they happened 
to be. People must see life, aud if they 
don’t at oue time they will at another. 
We must be liberal-minded in such mat¬ 
ters. M 
Aside from the manifest fact that coun¬ 
try fairs should exert only pure and ele¬ 
vating influences upon all who attend 
them, there is absolutely no excuse for 
farmers who deliberately place tempta¬ 
tions before their sons, and our easy-go¬ 
ing, “liberal-minded” friends, when they 
find that it happens t,o bo their own sons 
whose dissolute lives began with the first 
glass of beer drank at the fair, may with 
heavy hearts reproach themselves that 
they might have prevented it had they 
chosen. 
Our first page picture shows what we 
thiuk the farmer can do towards purify¬ 
ing the fairgrounds. The giant is pitch- 
forking the objectionable characters off 
the grouuds. They appreciate Ins power. 
They are glad to escape. The giant is 
but a type of the power which intelligent 
organization among the farmers of any 
community can bring about. Drive the 
rascals from the fair grounds, farmers I 
They have fattened on you long euough. 
THE MANITOBA EMBROGLIO. 
The Dominion Government, first estab¬ 
lished only twenty years ago, is still an 
experiment. Its constitution was modeled 
on that of the United States ; but there 
are several important differences. Those 
who framed it had the idea that secession 
m this country was caused by want of 
power in the Central Government, and 
therefore they gave more power to the 
Central Government of the new confeder¬ 
ation than was given in the American 
Constitution. They provided a Domin¬ 
ion Parliament, or Cougrcss, and local 
Legislatures for the various Provinces 
or States *, but in this National Parlia¬ 
ment tbe upper house was uot made 
elective, but was to consist of salaried life 
members appointed by the Prime Minis¬ 
ter. Criminal law was assigned to the 
Dominion Parliament, and civil law to 
the local Legislatures. The Prime Min¬ 
ister appoints the judges, local as well as 
federal. Instead of electing State Govern- 
nors, as we do, the Prime Minister ap¬ 
points a Lieutenant-Governor for each 
Province. The Prime Minister, the re¬ 
sponsible head of the Government,, is 
elected, not by the people, but by the 
majority of Parliament. The most con¬ 
spicuous difference in the present condi¬ 
tion of affairs, however, is that the Dom¬ 
inion Parliament lias the prerogative of 
vetoing or disallowing any act passed by 
the Provincial Legislatures. The present 
trouble in Manitoba is flue to this fuuda- 
mental principle of the Dominion Consti¬ 
tution. 
While Manitoba was little more than a 
geographical expression, and Winnipeg, 
its capital, a mere trading post, the pres¬ 
ent Government took up the gigantic 
scheme of joining the two oceans by a 
transcontinental railroad line. Canada 
hadn’t money enough to carry out the 
project; but by liberal grants of land 
and tbe concession of a monopoly of all 
side or branch roads, in the western part 
of the route, for a number of years, Eng¬ 
lish capital was induced to construct the 
road, for most, of the way through a nearly 
uninhabited wilderness, and about u year 
ago it was compl ted. Since its construc¬ 
tion began, population has rapidly flowed 
into the fine country it opened up. Towns 
have sprung up by the hundreds along its 
route; Winnipeg has become an important 
city, and Manitoba a populous aud fast¬ 
growing Province. The population is al¬ 
most exclusively agricultural, and finds 
an intolerable grievance iu the heavy 
freight charges exacted by the Canadian 
Pacific on its products on the way to mar¬ 
ket and on the manufactured goods it gets 
in return. The road, having a conceded 
monopoly of transportation, aud running 
for hundreds of miles through a nearly un¬ 
inhabited country in which no money 
can be made, makes its rates 
exceedingly oppressive. It compels 
the people to sell their products 
and buy their goods in the dis¬ 
tant markets of the Eastern Provinces, 
with heavy freight charges both ways, 
while better markets and cheaper rates 
are at their borders across the line in 
Minnesota. 
The people, therefore, want a road 
from Winnipeg along the Red River Val¬ 
ley to the boundary line, where it will 
meet a branch of the Northern Pacific, 
and open to them a cheap route to the 
nearest markets for their produce and 
their most convenient purcnasing base. 
They are indignant that while the Mari¬ 
time Provinces have railway connections 
with New England; aud Quebec aud Ou- 
tario with Maine, New York aud Michi¬ 
gan, they should be forbidden by the 
Dominion Government access to the 
American State lying nearest to them. 
For years they have been discontented 
with the General Government, and their 
discontent has been intensified into re¬ 
sentment by this obstructive poli¬ 
cy. The Provincial Legislature has 
authorized the construction of the 
road, and despite federal disallowance and 
the vigorous opposition of the Northern 
Pacific, it is being pushed rapidly to com¬ 
pletion. To bar its progress the latter lias 
secured from the courts two injunctions 
agaiust the c nstruction of the line across 
the property of a couple of landowners 
whom it has purchased, but the c intrac¬ 
tors pay uo regard to the injunctions, but 
push ahead. The Ottawa authorities 
threaten to send militia from the Eastern 
Provinces and even British regulars to 
stop the work; but the Manitoban people 
and Government are one in their determin¬ 
ation to secure the coveted outlet at all 
hazards, and 5,000 volunteers are ready 
to combat all opposi ion. 
There is no doubt that the Dominion 
Government, is acting within its constitu¬ 
tional prerogative in disallowing the Pro¬ 
vincial charter for the road ; but there is no 
doubt also that the people of Manitoba 
arc fighting against a grievous oppres¬ 
sion, and it remains to be seen whether 
the federal authority will attempt forci¬ 
bly to coe ce the people of the Province. 
The crisis will determine where the State 
and federal authority ends, and test the 
strength of the federal bond. 
brevities. 
Empty out the pork barrel this fall. Start 
with new brine, 
J. L. Budd, Professor of Horticulture in the 
Iowa Ag. College, says : “ You are making of 
the Rural New-Yorker my ideal of the in¬ 
dustrial paper.” 
Sweet corn is the steadiest in price of all 
market truck this year. Tomatoes held up 
well at the opeuitig of the season, but are 
now quite low. Melons bring good prices 
but are poor in quality, 
Ellwangkr <fc Barry write us that they 
have what, is claimed to be a cross between 
a plum and a peach. The tree bore quite a 
heavy crop of fruit, but, was so stung with 
cureulios that but few reach maturity. The 
color is a dark purple, almost black , the flesh 
yellow, quality medium. It does uot seem to 
have any value. 
It is high time to think about getting ready 
for winter. The cold weather will soou be 
upon us; the house will need banking:. The 
barn will need mending. Jack Frost will de¬ 
light iu gnawing away the flesh from the 
bones of the stock. Leave n bole for him aud 
he will lie quick to iiud it. Think about it 
now, and, please, don’t take it all out iu think¬ 
ing cither. 
Mortimer Whitehead makes a good point 
in his speeches when lie gives the old argu¬ 
ment of the man swallowing land. Every 
man. he says, who drinks a l()-cent drink puts 
dow n a piece of land 10x13 feet. His 10 cents 
would buy it if he kept them out of his stom¬ 
ach. It won’t luke him long to drink an 
acre. The beer guzzlers who drink np their 
share of Uncle Ham’s domain have no busi¬ 
ness to come to the temperate, honest work¬ 
ers of the land, aud demaud a new division. 
That is what they attempt, however. 
A FARMER near us started a compost heap 
by accident last year. A pile of sods from a 
itruwherry bed bad accumulated in the gar- 
deu, The last of a carload of manure was 
too small for a full load. It was dumped on¬ 
to tbe sods. When the pile got there it was 
an easy matter to throw dish* water uud cham¬ 
ber-slops over it every day. It was not much 
work to fork It over. That manure, ibis year, 
was the best on the place. It is encouraging 
to see that a larger pile than ever has al¬ 
ready been fixed up for this winter. 
Another syndicate which will affect tbe 
agricultural interests of most of the States, 
is in process of formation. The annual pro¬ 
duct of the South Carol mu phosphate mines 
is over half a million tons, /v few years ago 
the crude rock brought #7 to per-Ton; now 
it brings only ?3 50, and as a royalty of $1 a 
ton has to lie paid to tbe State, the price, it is 
said, does not pay expenses. When tbe im¬ 
portance of the business was flr«t recognized, 
companies bought up phosphate lands ut high 
prices and made enormous outlays for machin¬ 
ery; and now that, prices are hardly remuner¬ 
ative, they have to hold on ow ing to the great 
Cost of their plant. For months some of the 
companies have been attempting to form a 
combination to raise iho price and regulate 
the inaikrts, and now all but oue company 
have joined, and that is expected to yield this 
week to the pressure brought upon It. It is 
expected that iu the near future the price of 
rock will lie raised $3 pur ton. 
He loom if ever, have the prices of beef • 
cattle been so low. The producer makes not 
n dollar profit, and is generally fortunate if he 
incurs no loss. Cattle producers have been 
rushing their stock to market at nil unpre¬ 
cedented rale. Iu Chicago alone, over 200,- 
000 head have glutted the market within the 
last So days, the receipts ina single day hav¬ 
ing reached 13,500. Stockmen are in want of 
money, uud prices are regulated by needs of 
the producers. But, while tbo producer gets 
lew than evw for his cattle, the consumer 
pays os much as ever for his beef. Who gets 
the big difference? Stockmen and all whoare iu 
a position to know best, answer: “The (tressed 
beef monopoly.” If. is estimated that this 
makes a clear profit, of at, least $10 per head 
on all the cattle it handles, and as the pro¬ 
ducer makes nothing, the consumer must pay 
the entire profit, together with the heavy 
profits of mi dlemen and transportation com¬ 
panies. Everybody recognizes the evil; can’t 
ornebo dy discover a remedy ! 
