1887 
Caro. 
“Every Man is presumed to know the Law; 
Nine-tenths of all Litigation arises from Ig¬ 
norance of Law." 
M L. S., Elmira, N. Y.—A, a farmer dies 
. possessed of a good farm, leaving no will. 
His wife and five children survive him—four 
sons and one daughter. B, the widow,seizesthe 
farm and sells it to the eldest son,C,for five dol¬ 
lars, without the consent or knowledge of the 
other four children. Can such a sale stand, 
and if so what redress have the other four 
children? The second son, D, managed and 
worked the farm for four years after the 
father’s death, receiving no money compensa¬ 
tion for wages. Is he entitled to recover 
from the estate the value of his services in ad¬ 
dition to his share as an heir ? 
Ans. —The sale of the estate by the widow 
gives no title to the eldest son. All she could 
do was to release her right of dower in it. 
If the son who worked on thj farm was a 
minor, and had his living upon it, that would 
probably be considered an equivalent of his 
services; besides, in that case, if any wages 
were earned, they could be claimed by his 
mother. If be was an adult, however, he can 
recover the value of his services from the es¬ 
tate. No actiou of any of the parties can de¬ 
prive the children of their interest in the es¬ 
tate. 
A. J. P. (no address),— A telegraph com¬ 
pany while setting poles on the highway along 
my farm tied brace-wires from the poles to 
trees standing in my fields I did not see 
them at the time, and now wish to cut the 
trees as they are in my way; have I a right 
to remove the wires? Is there a law regulat¬ 
ing where poles are to be set, how far from 
the fence, and if they are in the way ot travel 
have the overseers of the highway a right to 
move them? 
Ans. —The laws are somewhat different iu 
different States; and the name of the State is 
omitted in the inquiry. There is no doubt, 
however, that the owner can cut down trees 
on his own property, whatever may be the 
consequences to others. The overseers of the 
highway are authorized to remove all obstruc¬ 
tions to travel from the roads under their 
charge. 
H. L., Jefferson, Mo. —In the year 1858 a 
soldier in the German army while on a fur¬ 
lough deserted the army and left for the 
United States. In the year 1859 he took out 
his naturalization papers. He is now 58 years 
old and desires to v.sit Germany. Can the 
German Government cause him trouble should 
he make the visit, he having proper papers 
showing him to be a citizen of the United 
States? Also please state from whom such 
papers (passport) eau be obtained ? 
Ans. —Desertion from the army is a crimi¬ 
nal offense, from the punishment of which, 
when found within the Empire, the United 
States passport will uot be a legal defense. It 
may be that owing to the lapse of time no 
prosecution would be attempted. A passport 
may be secured on application to the State 
Department at Washington. The proper 
blanks may be obtained in this city, or will 
be sent from Washington if applied for by 
letter. 
J. O. D , Robbin&ville, N. J. —A induces B 
to sign a contract to do a certain amount of 
work by misrepresenting the nature of it. 
On finding out that A is a fraud B tells C, who 
comes to do the work, that he must not do it. 
C replies that B signed the contract to do it, 
and that as he has failed to keep the bargain, 
he, C, will do the work and that B mud pay 
for it. After doing the work C by big words 
and threats scares B into signing a note; can 
that note be legally collected? 
Ans. —Notes obtained by fraudulent means 
are void. 
M. S., Lake Bay , IV'. T, —After an alien has 
taken out his first papers for citizenship or 
made the oath of allegiance iu this Territory, 
how soon cau he buy aud sell real estate or 
organize a stock company 
Ans. —There is no restriction as to time. 
Citizens and those who have declared their 
intention to become citizens have the same 
rights iu this respect. 
& T. L., Elizabeth, N. J .—If a citizen of 
this State dies leaving personal property aud 
no lenial descendants, but he has a mother, 
brother and sister; who inherits the property? 
Ans. —If there is no widow the property 
will be divided between the next of kin in 
equal degree—that is, between the brother 
aud sister. 
J. IV., West Lebanon, Ohio. —What is 
the limit provided by the statute of limitation 
on a promissory note the interest on which 
was paid up to 1881. 
Ans. —Actiou must be brought for recovery 
within 15 years from the date of the last pay¬ 
ment of interest. 
T HE Post-office authorities at Boston have 
started a red-hot crusade against swind¬ 
lers who are getting rich by means of fraudu¬ 
lent schemes which they “work” through the 
mails. New Eugland is the very hot-bed of 
petty frauds of this sort. Indeed a majority 
of the petty swindles of the country have 
their headquarters there; while a large pro¬ 
portion of the sharpers working in that line 
in othf-r places, obtained their knowledge of 
the “business” in New' England. Every game 
for catching simpletons by means of adver¬ 
tisements in weekly papers, that is successful 
anywhere, is successful there. A new scheme 
which is quite successful anywhere is the ad¬ 
vertisement of second-hand gold watches to 
be given to those who first correctly name the 
longest verse iu the Bible.provided they send 14 
2-cent stamps for a book of instruction on fan¬ 
cy-work and a finger ring. The Post-Office 
detectives say that an advertisement of 
this sort recently received 44.000 replies within 
a month. The contract is fulfilled, for acheap 
second-hand gold watch is really sent to the one 
first answering. For their 28 cents the others 
get only the ring ami the pamphlet which are 
said to be worth less than two cents. Put the 
riug, pamphlet and postage thereon at three 
cents iu each of the 44.000 eases, and the 
amount is 81,320. Deduct this from the 
amount reeieved—812,320—and "there remain 
8U.OOO to pay for the watch aud advertising. 
There will surely be several thousand dollars 
a month clear profit. The Post Office people 
are doubtful whether actual fraud can be le¬ 
gally proved iu this case. 
G. G. and C. M. Swindles.— The police au¬ 
thorities here have been very busy for the last 
fortnight hunting down “green goods” swin¬ 
dlers. Over 30 arrests in all have been made: 
but owing to the great difficulty of securing 
evidence enough to obtain a conviction, over 
half of them have already been set at liberty, 
and it is not exnected that more than half a 
dozen cau bo sent to Sing Sing. The “green 
goods” or “sawdust" swindlers continue to do 
a rushing business in spite ot all the frequent 
warnings against them giveu to the public. 
In every case piles of their mendacious circu¬ 
lars were captured, together with bundles of 
genuine greenbacks, oue of which, usually cut 
iu halves, they sent to each victim as a speci¬ 
men of the counterfeit articles they pretend to 
have for sale. The Eye-Opener has the names 
of over 50 of their dupes, living in all parts of 
the country, each of whom lost from 890 to 8575 
by dealmg with the rascals, besides bis trav 
eliug and other expenses. Not one, of course, 
even got a dollar in counterfeit money Several 
of them are deacons in their own localities, 
and most of them, no doubt, bear exeelleut 
reputations among the neighbors they intended 
to swindle by passing counterfeit money upon 
them. Many of the old “green goods” swind 
lers are now" sending out circulars, mysterious¬ 
ly offering “C. M.” at very low figures. 
Their circulars are worded so as to convey the 
impression that it is “counterfeit money' 1 they 
are offering, and they are loud and solemn in 
their declarations that it was really printed 
by the Government, but the sheets were stolen 
before the signatures were affixed. Several 
of these sharpers have been arrested; aud they 
innocently declared that they were merely of¬ 
fering “Confederate money” tor sale—quite a 
legitimate business. They expected to carry 
on the swindling through the mails and might 
1 have seut genuine “gray backs” which can be 
had by the barrelful for a mere pittance. In 
a number of cases a stick of “Crystal Muci¬ 
lage,” w ith a recipe for making it., has been 
sent instead of “Confederate money.” A 
swindler who played the latter game was ar¬ 
rested aud convicted the other day, and made 
the technical defense that the stick of muci¬ 
lage, with the accompanying directions for 
making it. was worth the $5 which hecharged. 
While people of this sort "have no conscience" 
iu swindling the public, they are anxious to 
have some sort of plausible defense if arrested; 
and of course they always fear the chances of 
such a fate. 
Missing “heirs” Swindle.— Last week a 
story was telegraphed from ludiauapolis to 
the effect that persons living in that city and 
Waco, Texus, had recently discovered that 
they were heirs to ail estate including a great 
deal of valuable property on Staten Islaud. 
It was alleged that the property formerly 
belonged to Alexander Buchanan who had 
lived on Staten Island iu 1848, and who hail 
recently died out West; that he had allowed 
persons to build houses on the land so as to 
make it more valuable; that he had given no 
deeds to these persons, und that the heirs 
would be able to secure the property; but care 
was taken not to tell where the property was 
situated on the island. There is excellent 
reason for believing that some persons are 
trying to swindle, the supposititious heirs in 
Indiana, Texas, and elsewhere, by writing to 
them about the property and offering to look 
out for their interests on receipt of a fee. As 
our readers know, this method of swindling 
brings in large returns to the swindlers. The 
area of Staten Island is 58V£ square miles and 
the population only about 40,000, so that in¬ 
vestigation into land titles of that sort is not 
difficult. It is all embraced in Richmond 
County and an examination of the records in 
Richmond, the county seat, for the last 50 
years, shows that no title to property, on behalf 
of Alexander Buchanan has been on file there 
within that time. The only person of the 
name known on the island, lived in a hut on 
the shore: worked at fishing: died on the 
island and was buried in a pauper’s grave. 
“HOW FARMING PAYS.” 
I NOTICED iu a recent issue of the Ohio 
Farmer the following statement given to 
illustrate how farming pays in Ohio: 
“In the summer of 1888 one of my neighbors, 
a farmer of 40 years’ experience, and of more 
than average practical ability, thoroughly 
plowed 10 acres of land during the first half 
of August. During the first half of Septem¬ 
ber he thoroughly plowed the same both 
ways. September 17 he drilled in bushel 
of wheat per acre. He used one ton of com¬ 
mercial fertilizers on six acres of tne ground 
and upon the other four acres he put barn¬ 
yard manure. After the wheat was drilled 
i be ground was rolled.in order to secure a solid 
seed-bed. The field yielded 48 bushels of 
average No. 2 wheat and about four tons of 
straw. Let us figure tbe cost: 
Plowing ground, fi days .830.00 
Harrowing, 3 days.15.00 
Drilling, 1 day . 5.00 
Use of drill 30 cts. per acre. 3.00 
Harvesting with binder. 81-25 per acre.. 12.50 
One hand to shock. 1 day. 2.50 
Commercial fertilizers.32.00 
Barnyard manure 20 at 5i>e. 10.00 
Thrashing, 15 hands day. 9.30 
Thrashing, 48 bu. at 4c. 1.92 
Use of land 83 per acre .30.00 
Seed 15 bu. at 80c. 12.00 
Woman’s Work. 
CONDUCTED BY EMILY LOUISE TAPLIN. 
CHAT BY THE WAY. 
Total cost 
.8163.22 
Forty eight bu. wheat at 70c. 33 60 
Five tons straw.25.00 
Total. 58.60 
Total loss.$104.62 
It seems to me that a man of 40 years’ ex¬ 
perience in farming ought to do better than 
that. What do you thmk was lacking to se- 
sure a good crop? I can’t see that there was 
anything. I think he ought to take the Rural 
or stop trying to raise wheat. 
By the side of t his I would like to give a 
few figures on New" York farming. This is 
not a wheat section, but we raise some fair 
crops. Iu July and August of 1885, I plowed 
1},, acre of fair soil and sowed it to Clawson 
wheat. The expenses and yield were as fol¬ 
lows: 
Plowing ground.83.00 
Harrowing ground . 2.00 
Seed, 3 bushels at 81 per bushel....3.00 
Sowiug broadcast and harrowiug iu 
seed. 1.50 
Cutting and binding. 2.00 
Thrashing 28 bushels at .08 per bushel... 2.24 
Total expenses.. .$13.75 
Value of wheat, 2S bushels at $1. 28.00 
Value of straw, 1}^ ton at $6. 9.00 
Total value. $37.00 
Deducting expenses, there are $23.26 profit. 
Had 1 sown some good commercial fertilizer 
on the ground in the spring, no doubt the crop 
would have been greater. The same ground 
was this year planted to potatoes with good re¬ 
sults The ground was marked out three feet 
each way, and each seed potato of much size 
was cut into four pieces, two pieces being 
dropped in a hill, and a small handful of 
Bowker’s superphosphate, mixed with an 
equal amount of plaster, was dropped upon it, 
and both were covered. Expenses and yield 
as follows: 
Fitting ground.$6.00 
Seed. . . 4 00 
Superphosphate .. 5 00 
Planting, cultivating aud hilling . 7,00 
Digging and marketing. 8 00 
Total.830.00 
50 bushels sold July and August at 60c.. 30.00 
150 bushels sold September at 50c. 75.00 
T HIS is the season of family gatherings 
and open hospitality: it should be above 
all others tbe time when we remember the 
stranger within ^ur gates. We are none of us 
so poor that we cannot do something to make 
others happier, if it is only a sympathetic 
speech or cordial good wish, and our own 
Christmas will be all the happier, in that we 
have made it happier for others. 
* * * 
We have adopted a good many of the for¬ 
eign customs connected w’ith Christmastide. 
Here in New York are great stacks of red- 
berried holly and English misletoe, not the 
rather sickly-looking Southern parasite of that 
name, but the original plant beloved of the 
Druids, with plump, white berries and sleek, 
green leaves. There are many tender recol¬ 
lections clustered about this plant; its mystic 
virtues are iu high favor among the mirth- 
loving young folks, from Christmas Eve to 
Twelfth Night or Epiphany. Some of the 
medieval Yule time customs are obvious relics 
of the heathen Saturnalia, and are to be more 
honored in tbe breach than the observance, 
but the mistletoe kiss hardly comes under this 
head. 
* * * 
There is the mince pie, now as much a part 
of Thanksgiving Day as the turkey, but it 
really belongs to Christmas only. The old- 
fashioned mince pies were made in square 
dishes, symbolical of the manger of Bethle¬ 
hem, while their varied contents represented 
the gifts of the wise men. Furmety, or fru- 
mety, usually served before the Christmas 
banquet in old times, is now tolerably obso¬ 
lete: its chief ingredients were whole wheat 
and raisins, boiled together; indeed, this dish 
is supposed to be the primitive form which 
has developed into our plum pudding 
♦ * * 
What a lot of merriment we have had over 
a bowl of snapdragon—another old English 
custom for this season. It consists of a lot of 
fruit—raisins, figs, dates, walnuts.—anything 
of the sort, with alcohol or other spirits poured 
over them, and tbe whole mass set alight. 
Tbe fun consists in plucking out some of the 
fruit without burning oue’s fingers. All the 
lamps must be put out. and the blaziDg spir¬ 
it illuminates everything with a ghastly blue 
light. There are plenty of more appetizing 
dainties than half charred fruit, but tbe 
game always induces much merriment among 
the young folks. 
•ff. % 
For the Christmas tree we are indebted 
chiefly to Germanv. One of the English cus¬ 
toms which would seem rather odd to us here 
is that of serenading by the “mummers"’ 
This is a survival of a medieval custom; the 
mummers are men dressed in fantastic cos¬ 
tumes, who go singing from house to bouse on 
Christmas Eve: they expect to be treated to 
refreshments and a few shillings in return for 
tbeir music. In Derbyshire, the home of 
famous Robin Hood, the mummers sing old 
ballads descriptive of his exploits, and dress 
to represent him and his frieuds Friar Tuck, 
Little John, and Maid Marion. 
This modern country offers few Christmas 
customs that may be considered distinctively 
American, but we can assuredly observe the 
reign of peace and good will, aud wish to all 
our friends, afar and near, a bright aud happy 
Christmastide. 
CHRISTMAS 
TOYS FOR 
PURSES. 
SLENDER 
MRS. F. A. WARNER. 
Total . 8105.00 
Deducting expenses from the value of crop, 
there are left 875.00 profit, and we have still 
80 bushels in our cellar unsold. These at pres¬ 
ent prices would be worth at least 820 more. 
The above crops were raised upon ground 
which cannot be culled rich in plant food. 
The potatoes were cultivated thoroughly, 
which is a great help iu times of drought. 
Oueonta, N. Y. o. i.g 
R. N.-Y.—We bad noticed the statement in 
tbe O. F., and concluded there must be some 
mistake in the figures or that the poor yield 
was the result of drought. 
• The Christmas days will soon lx- here. 
The gladdest time of all the year." 
When the little folks will expect a Christ¬ 
mas tree aud a host of nice things and how to 
fill and trim the tree so that oue need uot feel 
it a luxury too dearly bought is a question 
many are, without doubt, racking their 
brains to answer. For what mother worthy 
of that dear name does not delight in playing 
“Santa Claus” to her little ones. A tree need 
not necessarily be an expensive affair. Some 
as attractive ones as I ever saw cost but little. 
Many pretty things can easily he made at 
home at no cost, to speak of—save tbe time. 
Toy animals are pretty: tbev please little child¬ 
ren as well as boughteu ones and certainly last 
much longer. For a little white rabbit, cat, 
dog or sheep use canton flannel, the nap side 
out, to give a fleecy appearance. Cut out the 
parts, sew together, leaving an opening un¬ 
derneath. through this stuff, with cotton, then 
close. Use beads for eyes, red twist for mouth, 
line the ears with pink cambric (except for 
rabbit) and use waxed threads for the cat’s 
