HOj4 
'•ettPHOTO ENQ.CO 
VOL. KLVIII NO. 2044. NEW YORK, MARCH 30, 1889. 
[Entered according to Act of Congress, in the Year 1889, by the Rural New-Yorker, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.J 
PRICE FIVE CENTS, 
$2.00 PER YEAR. 
THE NEW SECRETARY 
OF AGRICULTURE. 
EREMIAH McLAIN 
RUSK, the new Secretary 
of Agriculture, was born 
in Morgan County, Ohio, 
on June 17, 1830, and is 
therefore in the 50th year 
of his age. He is six feet 
two inches in hight, and 
massive in proportion, ac¬ 
tive, bright, and—the 
ladies say—handsome. On 
a horse, or heading a pro¬ 
cession, or in a promiscu¬ 
ous gathering, he certainly is, with his white, 
flowing hair and beard and ruddy complex¬ 
ion, a man of marked and attractive personal 
appearance. An excellent picture of him, 
engraved directly from a photograph, is shown 
at Fig 77. His public career, from the in¬ 
cisive and courageous manner in which all 
duties, especially in sudden emergencies and 
trying times, have always been performed, is 
pretty generally known. That we shall there¬ 
fore touch lightly. 
In 1853, at the age of 23 he settled on a farm 
in Vernon County, Wis., which is still his 
home, where his shrewdness, good sense and 
natural aptitude for leadership at once placed 
him at the head of pioneer improvements and 
public affairs. He was successively elected to 
several county offices: sent to the legislature 
in November, 1801; elected State Rank Con¬ 
troller in 18o(j, holding the office four years 
during the trying time of bank reorganiza¬ 
tion; served in the 42d, 43i and 44th Con¬ 
gresses, promoting during that time some of 
the most practical and important pension leg- 
islatimon the statute books; was appointed 
by Pres. Garfield and confirmed by the Senate 
Minister to Paraguay, which office he de¬ 
clined, as he did also the Mission to Denmark; 
was elected Governor of Wisconsin in 1881; 
re-elected in 1883 and again in 1880, holding 
the office seveu years. 
Of course, he went into the war, having en¬ 
listed early in 1802 as major of the 25th Wis¬ 
consin regiment. He was soon promoted to 
the colonelcy. After suppressing an Indian 
revolt in Minnesota, his regiment was sent 
South, and he served with Sherman from 
Vicksburg to the close of the war. During the 
last campaign he had charge of the advance of 
the 17th corps, and was breveted Brigadier 
Genorat for bravery at the battle of Salkehat- 
chee. Ho was a dashing and intrepid soldier 
having the full confidence of his men as well 
as of his superiors. Ho never ordered the 
boj s to “ go," but always led the way and 
bade them “ Come onl ” 
Alter his father died, in Uhio, Rusk while 
still a boy, was compelled to put forth extra 
exertions to help support his mother end two 
sisters, and for that purpose, as the nearest 
and best thing at hand, learned the coopers' 
trade. It is a fact not generally known that 
he became a first-class cooper, and to this day 
can put up a “tight” or “loose" barrel as 
well and quickly as the best journeyman. 
He always made money from his farm, and 
duriug his long and busy public career never 
relaxed his active interest in agriculture. 
Though especially fond of fine horses and cat¬ 
tle, he also directed attention to other branch¬ 
es of farming, and it was common fame that 
there was no man in the country who could 
match him with the scythe or cradle, or at 
raking aud binding grain. In fact, his quick, 
sure eye and superior physical strength aud 
activity gave him easy aud graceful mastery 
of almost everything his hand found to do. 
In short, he wa3 equal to every emergency. 
When he first proposed to be a candidate 
for Congress the late Wm. T. Price, the most 
tenacious and crafty fighter of his time, was 
bis opponent for the nomination. Buffalo 
county seemed solid for Price; but Rusk must 
know for himself whether that county was 
invulnerable. Therefore, in company with a 
political friend named Bryant, he journeyed 
over into the fastnesses of Buffalo to “ S9e 
about things.” Finding the local leaders had 
gone to a particular neighborhood to test and 
observe the workings of a new thrasher, the 
General and his friend sought them out. The 
crowd, as had been reported, was perverse, 
obdurate. “We’re all for Bill Price—don’t 
want no Rusk in ourn.” 
Pulling off his coat, the General stepped up 
to the man who was feeding and observed : 
“You go down and talk with Bryant awhile 
and just let me show you fellows how to feed 
a thrashing machine.” The crowd laughed 
derisively, for the candidate had on his “store 
clothes” and hardly had the appearance of a 
thoroughbred “ thrasher.” But the feeder 
descended to the ground and brightened up 
the steam, thinking he would “ have a little 
fun with the fine politician,” while the latter 
mouuted the platform and began to toss in 
the grain in a style the boys had never before 
seen equaled. While he was putting in the 
bundles Bryant was putting in his persuasive 
language and the crowd was captured. They 
hurrahed for Rusk, saying a man who could 
stuff a thrasher like that was good enough for 
them. He had a solid delegation from Buf 
falo, and was nominated. 
Many years later Governor Rusk—for he 
was Governor then—went with Henry Villard 
aud his party to drive the golden (last) spike 
in the Northern Pacific railway. The settlers 
were holding a large thrashing “bee” near 
the scene of the golden spike ceremonies, to 
which the visitors were ultimately drawn. 
The Governor stripped off his broadcloth and 
began to put through the “ No. 1 Hard” more 
rapidly and scien‘ideally than the best pro¬ 
fessional feeder in the crowd, as much to the 
amusement of the distinguished party as the 
astonishment of the natives. Besides being 
able to milk cows, break, and drive oxen, and 
teach a pig-headed calf to drink, he is a mag¬ 
nificent horse-back rider and an enthusiastic 
expert with a coach and four. He loves his 
children and his horses and never goes back 
ou his friends. 
While he was Governor of Wisconsin he ac¬ 
complished more of practical value to the ag¬ 
ricultural interests than all of his predecessors 
combined. Amid the general ridicule and 
carping of that time, he stood manfully by 
Magnus Swenson’s earliest experiments with 
amber cane sirup, out of which grew more 
specific knowledge and valuable machinery 
han the country had theretofore possessed. 
Indeed, so anxious was he to see Professor 
Swenson succeed, that when the experimental 
boilers and machinery reached Madison he 
mounted one of the loaded wagons and rode 
to the State Farm and there helped to locate 
the plaut and begin active operations. 
Governor Rusk was one of the earliest friends 
of the Wisconsin Fanners' Institutes. He 
always recommended and helped to secure 
liberal appropriations for them, watched and 
helped to guide their management and ac¬ 
tively participate! in many of their sessions. 
In fact, not only were these institutes, now so 
popular and effective in Wisconsin as edu¬ 
cators, conceived and brought to fruition 
during his incumbency of the gubernatorial 
chair, and by his help, but the valuable im¬ 
provements at the State Farm and Agricul¬ 
tural Experiment Station, the enlarged ap¬ 
propriations to the Dairymen’s, Sheep-breed¬ 
ers’, Horticultural and other Associations of 
that kind were recommended by him as well 
as the office of State Veterinarian, with power 
to control and condemn diseased horses anl 
cattle and to preserve the general health of 
domestic animals. 
The new Secretary is essentially a man of 
ideas, of action, of insight, and of executive 
ability. While performing his duties and 
carrying out his plans with promptness, he 
never falls into serious mistakes. His judg¬ 
ment of men and his power to anticipate re¬ 
sults are as remarkable as his independence of 
thought and general breadth of policy. He 
is always practical, always patriotic and pub¬ 
lic-spirited, always generous and humane, al¬ 
ways looking into and building for the future, 
always studying and ministering to the needs 
of the people. And in his new position, if he 
shall not be too much hampered by musty 
old statutes and red-tape regulations, he will 
be as popular with and as useful to tue people 
of the nation as he has for years been to those 
of his own State, W isconsin, who think there 
is nobody in the world like “Uncle Jerry 
Rusk.” 
Profit in Farm Poultry.— I think Mr. 
Bucephalus Brown is away off in regard to 
the price of eggs this winter. Here (Dayton, 
O.) the price of eggs was highest at Thanks¬ 
giving. Two weeks later they began to drop 
from 25 cents until in the fore part of Febru¬ 
ary they were retailing at 12 cents per dozen. I 
got 15 cents all last summer. 1 credit the high 
prices of last summer to the packers (cold 
storage and otherwise) who gathered large 
stocks and had to unload them in an open, 
warm winter’s market; hence the low prices. 
They are selling at 14 cents. I predict that 
they will go still higher. 
New Black Javas. — I have five Rose- 
Combed Black Java hens that now are lay¬ 
ing an average of four eggs per day, and 
this too in the coldest weather this winter; 
four degrees above zero. 1 have never heard 
of any Black Javas with rose-combs but 
mine. I have had hens to weigh in laying con¬ 
dition nine pounds and six ounces. The 
largest Plymouth Rock hen I ever saw 
weighed eight pounds five ounces. “w.” 
The Red-Caps for their size lay a large 
egg. It is nearly white and eight eggs 
weigh one and one-sixteenth pound. Tue only 
objection to them is their heavy combs. 
Secretary of Agriculture. From a Photograph. Fig. 77. 
