4889 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
333 
The evidence, says Dr. E. J. James, is ample 
and conclusive that we are making fearful in¬ 
roads on our forest stores. We are cutting off 
a much larger crop then can possibly be re¬ 
placed by natural growth within the period 
when, at the present rate, we shall have clear¬ 
ed the original forests off the ground. We are 
wasting our forests by the ax, by fire, by pas¬ 
turage, by neglect. Ho far as timber is con¬ 
cerned, we are eating into our capital with 
little care for the future. 
A recent bulletin of the New Jersey 
Agricultural Experiment Station summarizes 
the results of certain experiments made by 
the Station, and by certain individuals 
with the object of fiudiug out what the land 
needs. The Rev. H. P. Thompson, of Road- 
ington, on one-tenth acre plots, used phos¬ 
phoric acid, potash and nitrogen separately 
and in combination, with this result: 
Percent, on 
Net 
money la- 
Fertilizer. 
C08t. 
profit. 
vested. 
Nitrogen, phosphoric acid 
and potash. 
$14.85 
$4.19 
28. 
Phosphoric acid and potash. 
9.00 
15.50 
172. 
Phosphoric acid. 
5.25 
10 15 
193. 
Potash. 
3.75 
13.05 
364. 
The returns on the money invested ranged 
from 28 per cent, to 364 per cent. Mr. 
Thompson has continued the use of potash 
upon corn, and has secured uniformly profit¬ 
able returns up to the present time. His ex¬ 
perience also shows that kainit, while it costs 
more per pound of actual potash than muri¬ 
ate of potash, has been the more economical. 
Certain questions were asked by Direc¬ 
tor Cook of a number of New Jersey farmers. 
Answers were received from 23, representing 
10 counties; of these 17, representing nine coun¬ 
ties, reported the profitable and continued use 
of either muriate of potash,kainit or unleach¬ 
ed wood ashes as a fertilizer for potatoes, 
corn, grass and fruit. Twelve farmers, rep¬ 
resenting eight counties, favored the use of 
muriate of potash, while five, having used 
both muriate and kainit, were satisfied that 
kainit gave the largest returns for the money 
invested. The weight used per aero ranged, 
for corn, from 50 to 200 pounds of muriate, 
and from 300 to 500 pounds of kainit; and for 
potatoes, from 150 to 400 pounds of muriate, 
and from 300 to 800 pounds of kainit. The 
crops reported as being especially benefited 
were corn, potatoes, fruit, clover and oats. 
Without exception, the use of potash, either 
alone or as an adjunct to farm manures, wa3 
regarded as highly satisfactory and[economi¬ 
cal ... 
These results, gained from experiment, 
and confirmed by practice, while only posi¬ 
tive for the farms and crops represented, 
should have a significance for those farmers 
who have not tested their soils, because they 
not only demonstrate that soils differing 
widely, both in formation and previous treat¬ 
ment, respond profitably to applications of 
potash alone, but also indicate a general lack 
of potash in the soils of the Htate, and conse¬ 
quently point out the importance of soil tests 
by the farmers themselves; for when maxi¬ 
mum crops can be secured by the application 
of potash alone, it is poor economy to apply 
complete fertilizers, costing ?40 per ton, in 
which $5 represent the value of the potash,.. 
The R. N.-Y., as its readers know full well, 
has found that potash alone, no matter what 
the form, has little if any effect on its poor- 
soil experiment plots. Neither has nitrogen 
alone nor phosphate aloue. Neither nas any 
two. Only complete fertilizers pay. Thus 
we see that what is profitable on one field is 
profitless on another, ana the question is one 
to be answered by every farmer for himself.. 
Prok. E. M. Shelton, from careful tests 
made at the Kansas Agricultural College, says 
that farm-yard manures must be hauled to 
the field in the spring; otherwise the loss of 
manure is sure to be very great, the waste in 
the courso of six months amounting to fully 
one-half the gross manure and nearly 40 per 
cent, of the nitrogen which it contained. 
Prof. Shelton found thatoornfrom which 
the tassels were removed as soon as they ap¬ 
peared, yielded less than that allowed to ma¬ 
ture its tassels. He also found, as has the 
R. N.-Y., that corn from which the “suckers,” 
were removed, yielded less grain than that 
allowed to grow' naturally. He concludes 
that all such manipulation is worse than a 
waste of time. 
From all the facts, Prof. Shelton says the 
listing of corn seems well worth the careful 
study of his Station. The method itself, like 
most agricultural operations, is far from be¬ 
ing a simple oDe. As compared with the old 
methods, it presents the following points of 
difference: Listed co n is planted at the 
bottom of a deep furrow, and in otherwise 
unplowed land; the corn is drilled, perhaps 
less, or more thickly than in surface planting. 
Last year a number of plotg were listed 
and a corresponding number treated in the | Farm and Home says that the seed of pea- 
usual way. The listed com yielded over 46 I nuts must be taken out of the shell before plant- 
bushels to the acre, the drilled com about 40 ing. TheR. N.-Y. knows not whether South- 
bushels . I ern peanut planters do this or not. But we do 
_ „ I know that in an experiment tried by the R. 
Prof. Shelton mentions the Tower Sur- K _ y< th0 ^ taken out o£ the gbell failed to 
face cultivator which is an implement the t while the entire peanuts sprouted with 
R. N.-Y. would like to know more about scarcely an exception . 
This machine is made on the general plan of . 
the familiar two-horse walking cultivator. Yes, Mr Henderson " Market gardening 
It differs from the ordinary implement in « a poor business for-a lazy man.” In fact, 
... . ... . _. . - „ the lazy man had better live and work in the 
that each cultivator consists of a gang of J 
sharp knives acting horizontally and set at an I cR y. 
angle with the direction of the line of draft. At the Michigan Agricultural[College pota- 
It acts superficially, as its name indicates, I toes raised from one eye for four seasons have 
slicing the ground very thoroughly to the averaged 115 bushels per acre; from two eyes 
depth of one or two inches, as may be desired. I 160; from three eyes 170; from half-potato 
167; from whole seed 182. 
The Kansas Station made a number of A „ 
trials to find out how much cultivation it is Thk R ’ N -' Y ’ bas for / ea ™ contended 
profitable to give corn. that if P° tatoes are P ,a ” ted fa ’ r1 / dee P aud 
The plots “slightly” cultivated yielded at * iven level cultivation, there will be fewer to 
the rate ot 38bushels of sound com; those r^ K row out ot the 5011 taaa ,f the * are hlll f U P; 
ceiving “ordinary” cultivation yielded 48; Rrof ‘ Johnson of the Michigan Agricultural 
those which received very shallow or surface College says that some raise objections that 
cultivation, yielded 45 and those which were the potatoes will sun-burn if not billed up; 
excessively” cultivated yielded 42 bushels. but the balance of evidence is just the reverse, 
I and the potatoes will not suffer from drought 
Prof. Shelton finds that the largest yield, ^ badly when the ground is kept level. 
of the best quality of corn, goes with the I “pjant deep and keep the ground level”. 
plants cut latest. Corn continues to improve I Farmers have been a long time in finding 
in weight until the very last-after the blades thjg iraportant fact out. Those of our neigh- 
of the plant have been dried up, and quite borhood object to planting deep and giving 
likely blown away, and seemingly until the ]evel culture bec ause it is far more trouble 
juices of the stalks have been completely | d j g them, which is true enough. 
sue e up... i ,j. HE Breeder’s Gazette says that butter 
No experienced farmkr will suppose for I . g co j ored j n w inter because the public de¬ 
an instant that this improvement in the qual- mand jt and that “it is the producer’s duty 
ity of the fodder obtained in the early cut- p j ace bis goods before the consumers in 
tings nearly compensates for the great loss tho manner best liked by a n.« i s no tthis 
sustained, both in quantity and quality, of ar g U ment too broad? queries our excellent con- 
the yield of grain. Considering all the facts I temporary the New England Farmer? “It is 
—the great labor of husking com from the tbe game ar gument that the oleo men use to 
shocK as compared with “picking” it trom I excu8e themselves for coloring their goods in 
the standing stalks, the great difficulty in ty- I order ^ make them imitate real butter.” 
ing, hauling and stacking or otherwise secur- I Coloring matter in the latter case is used 
ing the fodder crop, and the great waste of I to make a sham appear more like the article 
fodder in the field and ultimate loss in feeding jmitated and is therefore objectionable. If 
-it is perfectly clear to Prof. Shelton that ]awg cou]d b0 made and respected whjch 
Kansas farmers must raise corn for corn, with I wou j d i nsure that every pound of oleo should 
no thought of fodder, and corn again which b@ so i d ^ 0 | eQ and known to be oleo by the 
has no higher purpose than the production of consumers we would not object to its being 
fodder. They must, in short, have two corn co]ored ^ as to imitate t be color of gilt- 
fields on every farm, receiving radically dif- edge butter as closely as possible. What we 
ferenttreatment to correspond with the dif- waut is good , wholes0 me butter. This assur- 
ferent purposes for which they are cultivated. ^ we have no question to ask whether the 
The weak point in the practice of Kansas I cow or the butter-maker colored it. We nave 
farmers is the all but universal neglect of I made butter at the Rural Farm for 25 years 
corn as a hay plant. It is far from Prof. and b ave neither colored tbe butter nor de 
Shelton’s purpose to write in belittloment of I s j red d o so. But had we so desired, we 
the efforts so many Kansas farmers are put- I sb ould have colored it with as little compunc- 
ting forth to secure grasses and clovers suited I jj on aa we co t or soup with soy-sauce or eat 
to their climate, but certainly the men who I grap gg that were raised in bags. 
deplore the lack of tamo grasses in Kansas I 
forget that, so far as hay is concerned, they I # * 
have in Indian corn and sorghum hay plants I ABSTRACTS, 
which are superior for mo6t of the purposes I - 
for which hay is used to any of the so-called - George Washington: Replying to one 
tame grasses in certainty of yield, quality , , . . . 
and quantity of crop in handling, if properly who had the strongest claims upon his friend 
handled. I ship, and who had applied to him during the 
With the object of learning the effect of I progress of the Presidental campaign, as we 
moderately grazing wheat, both in fall and I should say, for the promise of an appointment 
spring, a portion of a field was selected for ^ q he wrote . „ In toaching upon the 
the purpose of trial. There was only this no- I 
ticeable differeuee-and this was slight-be- more delicate part of your letter, the com 
tween the grazed and ungrazed areas: the for- I munication of which fills me with real con 
mer, particularly that used for fall pas- cern, I will deal with you with all that frank- 
turage, bore a considerably more leafy straw, nesg which is due to friendship, and which I 
as indicated in the table, ana it seemed a , . „ 
L wish should be a characteristic feature of my 
little slower in ripening, although the time I J 
of cutting the three areas was the same. I conduct through life. * * * Should it be 
The application of manure to certain plots I m y administer the government, 1 will 
of the Kansas Experiment Station did not go to the chair under no pre-engagement of 
pay at all. It is notable that the application I any k jnd or nature whatever. And when in 
of salt did pay. it, I will, to the best of my judgment,discharge 
The report respecting Teosinte is essentially the dutieg of the office Wlth that impartiality 
that which the R. N.-Y. made 10 years ago. I , . ... , , . , 
and zeal for the public good which ought nev 
Prof. Shelton says that the Rural Branch- I . 
. , . .. , , er to suffer connections of blood or friendship 
ing sorgbutn was last year the most satisfac- I 
tory variety grown. The exceedingly in- I to have the least sway on decisions of a public 
terestiug and instructive report which we are nature.” 
now quoting from-a report which reflects _ Blsnop p OTT jjR. » T he constant importa- 
much credit upon the Station—makes no men- I 
tion of having cut the Rural Branching sor- tion, wrote the author of The \\ eal of Nation, 
ghum back to ascertain what its second I as now in this country, of the lowest orders of 
growth would be. people from abroad to dilute the quality of 
The Director has no kind words to speak I our natural manhood, is a sad and beggarly 
of Kaffir corn. He says that it has been tried prostitution of the noblest gift ever conferred 
for two years. It grows quite surely and . „ 
yields more seed per acre than the other va- ou a ^ ^ 
rieties of sorghum. The forage has not proved I - Agricultural Science: “The man of 
valuable for feeding, and it is doubtful if sense will approve of the most scientific work 
this variety is equal in value to either Rural atour Stations, but he will endeavor toso frame 
Branching sorghum or African millet. his words and draw his conclusions that they 
Kaffir corn, it will be seen, behaves in I ma 7 be intelligible to his audience whether 
Kansas much as it does at the Rural Grounds. I scientific or practical.” 
Dr, Learned charges 30 cents a pound for —Connecticut A. E. S.; “Cotton-hull 
his hygienic bams; 25 cents for hygienic sau- ashes have been for some years the cheapest 
sages and 25 cents for hygienic lard, He is I source of potash in the Connecticut market, 
the pioneer in treating hogs in reasonable I The potash is soluble in water, is entirely free 
accordance with the laws of hygiene and finds I from chlorides and is combined chiefly with 
many who tire willing to pay the above bigb I phosphoric and carbonic acid. The ashes are 
prices for sqpnd, healthy pig jnoducts.. 1 ysecj chiefly on tobaccq t'i! fN^ 
worth the attention of all who buy raw ma¬ 
terials rather than mixed goods.” 
-Hoard’s Dairyman: “Professor E. W. 
Stewart in the Country Gentleman tells how 
to quickly put flesh on either a poor, or an old 
animal. ‘Cut clover hay short, say, one-half 
inch, take cheap molasses, and dissolve one 
pint in one gallon of water and sprinkle this 
upon three pounds of the cut clover with two 
pounds of buckwheat flour and two pounds of 
wheat bran. Feed this amount to each horse, 
or animal three times per day,—commencing 
with a little less per day for two days.’ The 
Professor says he put 100 pounds additional 
weight upon a horse thin in flesh, in 30 
days by feeding him said ration.” 
-Farm Journal : “ Super-serviceable 
friends made it appear that the Editor of the 
Rural New-Yorker sought the position of 
Assistant Secretary ot Agriculture. We hap¬ 
pen to know that he would not touch this or 
any other political position with a 10-rod pole, 
evon if it had a Cabinet officer’s salary at the 
end of it.” [Thanks. Ed. R. N.-Y.] 
—Farmers’ Review: “The American 
people are coming to relish mutton better 
than they did The knowledge that it is the 
most wholesome meat food of all of the meats 
has drawn them to it. In the Chicago market 
balf-a-million more sheep will be required in 
18?9 than were used in 1888.” 
—Wisconsin Institute: “We do not ex¬ 
haust land by selling the fat of animals, but 
we exhaust it when we sell their muscle, their 
bones, their hair, skin and horns. We ex¬ 
haust land when we sell milk, cheese or eargs, 
but not when we sell butter. If we sell $200 
worth of wheat, or 250 bushels, we are part¬ 
ing with $67 worth of plant food contained in 
the soil. If we sell a horse worth $200 that 
we have raised on the farm, we sell $7 worth 
of plant food; while if we sell $200 worth of 
butter, averagmg 25 cents per pound, we have 
sold less than 50 cents worth of plant food.” 
—Kansas Agricultural Experiment 
Station: “The R. N.-Y. Branching sor¬ 
ghum, both green and cured, was eaten by 
our cattle with greater relish than any other 
forage crop fed this season.” 
-“ Kaffir Corn yields from 30 to 60 
bushels of grain per acre. The stalks have a 
harder shell than the other sorghums, and our 
cattle refused to eat them.” 
For Nervous Diseases 
Use Horsdord’s Acid Phosphate. 
Dr.F. G. Kelly, Alderton, W. T., says: 
“I have prescribed it in a large number of 
cases of restlessness at night, and nervous dis¬ 
eases generally, and also in cases of indigestion 
caused by lack of sufficient gastric juice of the 
stomach, with marked success, ana consider it 
one of the best remedies known to the profes¬ 
sional world.”— Adv. 
Purify the Blood. 
We do not claim that Hood’s Sarsaparilla is the 
only medicine deserving public confidence, but 
we believe that to purify the blood, to restore and 
renovate the whole system, it is absolutely 
unequalled. The influence of the blood upon 
the health cannot be over-estimated. If it be¬ 
comes contaminated, the train of consequences 
by which the health is undermined is immeasur¬ 
able. Loss of Appetite, Low Spirits, Headache, 
Dyspepsia, Debility, Nervousness and other 
“ little (?) ailments ” are the premonitions of 
more serious and often fatal results. Try 
Hood’s Sarsaparilla 
Sold by all druggists. $1; six for $5. Made 
ouly by C. I. HOOD & CO., Lowell, Mass. 
IOO Doses One Dollar 
For Internal and Externnl Use. 
Stops Pain, Cramps, Inflammation in body or Mmh, 
like magic. Cures Croup. Asthma, Colds. Catarrh. Chol¬ 
era Morbus, Piarrtuva, Rheumatism, Neuralgia, lame- 
back, Stiff .lointsond Strains. Full particulars free. Price 
S5ots. post-paid. L S. JOHNSON Jfc OO., Boston. Mass. 
The Brompton Hospital for Consumptives, 
London, Eng., published a statement that 
flfty-two (52) per cent, of the. patients of that 
institution bave unsuspected kidney disorder. 
Prof. VV m. H. Thompson of the University of 
the City of New York, says: “More adults are 
carried off in this country by chronic kidney 
disease than by any other one malady except 
consumption.” The late Dr. Dio Lewis, in 
speaking of Warner’s Safe Cure, says over his 
owu signature: “If I found myself the victim 
of a serious kidney trouble, I would use War- 
fier’s Safe Cure.” 
