380 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. JUNE 8 
practically as good as ever. All farm ma¬ 
chinery must be cared for and used carefully. 
Thus treated,the tedder is durable, as my ex¬ 
perience plainly shows. The theory of my 
boyhood was that the best hay was always 
cured in the windrow or cock. My experi¬ 
ence is that time, expense, safety and excel¬ 
lence are all best secured by the free use of 
sun and wind, and, I may add, of the tedder. 
I never saw better hay than we secured last 
year. We cut it as soon as the dew was off. 
As soon as wilting commenced we set the ted¬ 
der at work; but stopped its use before the 
hay was dry enough to break. Usually by 
two o’clock—last season was very dry—we 
could commence drawing. Now how quickly 
and easily is all this done. The hay is in the 
barn the same day that it is cut. There is no 
risk from rains, no expense of caps, raking or 
cocking. We like the style; and this method 
demands the tedder. 
The next sentence in the Professor’s article 
is entirely at variance with our experience. 
“Hay loaders even at the best, can hardly be 
recommended for general use.” I am glad 
their special use is not interdicted; as we 
should hardly know how to spare ours. Mich¬ 
igan is much like Western New York, and I 
know that the loader is a grand success in 
Michigan. I can’t help wondering if Profes¬ 
sor Roberts has used the Keystone or seen it 
used. 
My attention was first called to the loader 
some years since by our excellent Governor, 
C. G. Luce. He told me that he valued it 
very highly. Soon after I saw one of our best 
farmers, Mr. Sower. He said he would almost 
as soon give up his mower as his loader. But 
said I, “ Is it strong and durable?” “ I have 
used mine,” said he, “ several years and it 
is as good to-day as ever.” I bought the Key¬ 
stone loader, and it is a very substantial aid. 
Haying on my farm is now changed from the 
hard, tedious, anxious work of the past to the 
easy, quick, pleasant work of to-day. My men 
like'haying as well as any work of the farm. 
We commence with the loader at about two 
o’clock, taking the hay without raking, just 
as it was left by.the tedder. If we have only 
one man to load, he has to work lively. By 
the use of slings unloading is also quickly 
done. Thus by the use of that grand trium¬ 
virate, the mower, tedder and loader, we save 
an immense amount of hay in a day 
in the best condition. In case we 
have heavy clover—which we have not had 
since we have used our loader—perhaps we 
could not work so rapidly unless we had very 
close bays or used the silo. Just before night 
we put on the rake, and go over all the ground 
This rakes up any left by the loader or 
that has been dropped from the load; and 
this is still green, bright, and unbleached. 
The last load taken is from the small windrows 
formed by these Takings. Last year we had 
no use for the rake except to do this clearing 
up. We ha ve never done our haying with any¬ 
thing like the satisfaction which we received 
the last two years; and the whole difference 
came from the use of what we pronounce the 
admirable Keystone loader. Thus it is that 
when I see so good a friend receive the black 
e <, I feel like stepping to the defense, even if 
the person who deals the blow is greatly my 
superior in both knowledge and experience. 
WHAT IS TO BE THE OUTCOME ? 
T. D. CURTIS. 
Dangers of monopolistic combinations ; vio¬ 
lent and peaceable methods of riddance ; 
national co-operation to supersede monop¬ 
olistic co-operation ; all large undertak¬ 
ings of a public character to be under gov¬ 
ernment control—run by the people tor 
the peopAe, not for a few plutocrats. 
I have been much interested in the series 
of articles contributed to the R. N.-Y. by 
Prof. W. I. Chamberlain, of the Iowa State 
Agricultural College, on the subject of mon¬ 
opolies. He is a square, outspoken man, and 
presents the subject in a forcible light. But 
it appears to me that no legislation yet pro¬ 
posed promises a radical remedy for the stu¬ 
pendous evil of the day from which we all 
suffer, while through it a few become million¬ 
aires—a class unknown before the war of the 
rebellion. 
“ Men may come and men may go,” but 
must this evil, like Tennyson’s brook, “ run 
on forever?” Is it a possible thing that evil 
can be pursued indefinitely ? Or will there 
come a limit to the career, reaction set in, 
and the opposite extreme be reached, bring¬ 
ing annihilation to the evil and destruction to 
those who have been its devotees ? 1 believe 
every evil, in the end, brings its own remedy, 
and that every wrong must be righted. The 
pendulum is not truer to the law of gravita¬ 
tion than justice is to the law of equity. Ac¬ 
tion may have a narrow or abroad sweep, but 
the reaction will correspond. Though it may 
continue for a while after the equilibrium is 
broken, the return is as sure as that of the 
pendulum when it moves beyond the line of 
gravitation. 
What is the cause of the present co-opera¬ 
tive movement on the part of each industry? 
It is the reaction from the old competitive 
system, which has brought us down to shoddy, 
adulterations and cheats^and swindles of all 
kinds, for the purpose of securing a profit 
from the consumer. It is co-operation on a 
narrow base for monopolistic purposes. 
Every combination has the same end in view 
—to get rid of competition in its own ranks, 
and to compel the general public to pay 
whatever is demanded. In some cases, it may 
even reduce prices to the consumer; out 
prices, sooner or later, are sure to go up. The 
different combines will be so many organiza¬ 
tions for fleecing the public, and each will 
want to get the biggest share of the fleece. 
So each will gradually move to put up prices, 
and the roar of the giants will begin. In¬ 
stead of competition in detail, we shall have 
competition between the organized industries 
—all scrambling to get the most of what there 
is, regardless of the consumer and the toiling 
and producing millions, save so far as they 
can be made a source of dividends. 
But there is a limit to the burden-bearing 
capacity of the camel’s back. The last straw 
will come at last. Then what? I shudder 
to contemplate the answer. But let us hope 
it will be a peaceful solution of the trying 
problem. I can imagine leaders among the 
trusts wise enough to listen to the voice of 
reason and humanity, and to submit to the 
demands of the public welfare. I can imag¬ 
ine the people made wise enough through ex¬ 
perience and suffering to drop all party poli¬ 
tics, turn their backs on the demagogues, 
and to demand through the ballot-box such 
an administration of the government as shall 
secure the ends of justice and equity. And 
I can imagine a much more fearful conclu¬ 
sion. But I hope for the best. 
What shall be the remedy ? All palliative 
legislation will fail; and there is no sense in 
legislation which public intelligence does not 
indorse, and public sentiment will not see en¬ 
forced. Premature legislation, however just, 
would retard instead of helping reform. But 
It is likely that many ineffectual measures will 
be tried before the people will clearly see and 
demand the true one. That I conceive to be 
national co-operation. 
At present, the best service which the peo¬ 
ple get is the postal. This is run by them¬ 
selves through their government. They must 
take possession of all railroads of the country, 
and build as many new ones as may be needed, 
as a part of the postal system. It must carry 
passengers and freight, as it does mail matter, 
at bare cost and the expense of repairs. They 
must in conjunction with these, take the tele¬ 
graphs and telephones. The mining and other 
public interests must be assumed and run in 
the name of and for the people—and so on, as 
far and as fast as the public demand and the 
necessities of the case will permit. These be¬ 
ing already organized under trust manage¬ 
ment, they will be ready to be delivered up to 
the people. The same officers may continue 
to run all these industries and the same oper¬ 
atives, with others, may continue to be em¬ 
ployed. But the officers will work on sala¬ 
ries and the operatives will be paid equitable 
wages as government employes. The trans¬ 
fer and transition from competitive co-opera¬ 
tion to national co-operation will be natural 
and easy. The system once begun, its exten¬ 
sion will readily follow. Other nations will 
be compelled to imitate our example, national 
co-operation will prevail,and then com petition 
will equalize the condition of humanity 
throughout the world. It will do then to be¬ 
gin to talk about the coming of the millen¬ 
nium. 
CORRESPONDENTS’ VIEWS. 
Potato Yields. —I have followed with in¬ 
terest what has been said about the Rural’s 
potato contest, and I think it has done remark¬ 
ably well, considering the unfavorable season. 
The weather here was so dry in the fore part 
of the summer that the growth of our pota¬ 
toes was checked, and then they made a sec¬ 
ond growth when the rain came. Then the 
weather became so wet that we had hard 
work to secure our crop. The largest yield of 
potatoes I ever had was 220 bushels of Early 
Maine, 00 pounds to the bushel—from two bar¬ 
rels of seed. The land had been in early cab¬ 
bages the previous year, and had been ma¬ 
nured with 80 Scotch cart-loads of rotten 
barn-yard manure to the acre. No manure 
of any kind was applied to the potatoes. I 
planted in rows 30 inches apart, 10 inches 
apart in the row. I tried the trench system 
with one peck of Puritan potatoes. The land 
became so dry that it fairly cracked. There 
was a fine growth of vines, but not many 
tubers. I applied rotten manure—a complete 
fertilizer for potatoes—and hard-wood ashes, 
and only had three bushels of tubers. Per¬ 
haps some other variety would have yielded 
better. I generally grow from 15 to 20 acres 
of potatoes. I notice that where I do not hill 
them up with a drill or shovel plow they are 
apt to grow out of the ground and get sun¬ 
burnt. Some varieties, like the old Garnet 
Chili, produce their tubers deep in the ground, 
while those of the Early Rose type grow 
near the surface. One implement we use ex¬ 
tensively in this vicinity is a potato separa¬ 
tor. With it three persons can easily bag 200 
bags per day. It puts the large ones in a bag 
and those of medium and small size in sepa¬ 
rate boxes, and the earth falls from the pota¬ 
toes into a box underneath. I also use it for 
sorting onions. R. b. 
Montreal, Canada. 
Never Keep Hens For Eggs After 
Molting. —There is one thing in regard to 
the poultry branch of farming—and with the 
majority of farmers this branch is essential 
to a well regulated establishment—that I will 
not be caught doing again: I will never be 
caught keeping hens over the second year, for 
I have decided to my entire satisfaction, that 
it doesn’t pay to keep them over the molting 
period for the purpose of laying eggs the 
following season, unless they are very valu¬ 
able for breeding purposes. It Is far more 
profitable to kill them off as near molting 
time as possible, and depend on early-hatched 
pullets for the winter supply of eggs, and on 
later hatched ones for eggs during the rest of 
the season. Many farmers have a hobby; all 
should have one at least. I believe I have 
two for a certainty—one is raising potatoes 
and the other raising chickens. I find both 
very interesting. a. p. a. 
Meadville, Penn. 
£avm 0f0tumuj. 
DEVICE FOR RELIEVING A CHOKING 
COW. 
(See page 379.) 
At Fig.^lIG is shown a device for removing 
a potato or other obstruction from the throat 
of a cow. I have used it several times for 
this purpose, and know that it does the work 
well. Take about eight feet of common pail 
bail wire; double it in the center and make a 
loop of about one foot by two inches. Twist 
the rest of the wire so as to form a handle. If 
the obstruction in the animal’s throat is loose 
when this is inserted, it will push it down; if 
it is not loose, the end of the loop will slip 
past it, and the obstruction can be readily 
pulled out in the loop. L. j. p. 
Lowell, Mich. 
RURAL SPECIAL REPORTS. 
Hanna*. 
Parsons, Labette County, May 17.—The 
weather for this month has had no precodent 
in Kansas. Commencing Sunday May 5, the 
wind blew without intermission from the 
fifth to the ninth, making 120 consecutive 
hours at a speed varying from 25 to 40 miles 
per hour. Since the ninth the winds have not 
ceased and have attained velocities ranging 
from 15 to 30 miles per hour, with a few gusts 
of 40 miles which toppled over smoke-stacks, 
and slight barns. The water-fall has also 
been peculiarly liberal. During the month 
we have had heavy rains every five or six 
days which were so nicely timed that no 
serious disasters occurred. But the farmers 
are having a poor time in their attempts to 
raise a crop of corn. No sooner have they 
been compelled, as it were to plow, cultivate, 
and plant, than another down-pour occurs. 
Every fifth or sixth day a rain occurs. The 
rain-tall this month, so far, is not le88 than 
eight inches, which is nearly one-third of the 
average rain-fall for tne year. In spite of 
these obstacles to progress, the usual amount 
of planting and replanting has been done 
and farmers are not famt-hearted. 
Wheat, oats, etc., are fine and the chinch 
bugs must be exterminated if water can do it, 
Grass is good and stock is healthy and doing 
well. One of our farmers lost 19 fine steers by 
one stroke of lightning. Fruits of all kinds 
promise well, especially the small kinds. Can¬ 
ker-worms have done general damage to the 
apple trees. They disappeared before our big 
rains occurred. It is supposed by some that 
the mild winter allowed the pests to survive 
more generally than usual. Corn stands now 
from one to eight inches high. Merchants 
complain of bad trade, and it is not surprising 
when the cholera takes the hogs one season, 
and corn brings 22 cents the next one. 
Medina, Orleans County, May 21.—Our 
leading and most popular apple, the Bald¬ 
win, is entirely a failure in Orleans and Ni¬ 
agara counties. There is a prospect of a fair 
crop of Greenings and other apples. The 
peach crop is almost a failure. We shall 
probably have a few for homo use, but none 
to ship. Every indication points to a large 
crop of pears, plums, cherries, quinces, etc. 
The season is very forward—at least two to 
three weeks ahead of the average. Wheat 
and spring crops are looking well; corn is be¬ 
ing planted, and everything, except prices, 
looks as if this would be a prosperous year for 
farmers. C. s. m. 
Virginia. 
Ware’s Wharf, Essex County, May 23.— 
Farmers are fully one month behind with 
plowing and planting. Wheat is promis¬ 
ing; oats do.; clover extra good. Peas are 
now being shipped to Baltimore and canned 
here, most raisers contracting for not less than 
$1.50per barrel at the canning-house; the crop 
is short owing to so much rain. R. L. w. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must bo accompanied by tlie name 
and address of the writer to Insure attention. Before 
asking a question, please see If It Is not answered In 
our advertising columns. ABk only a few questions at 
one time. Put questions on a separate piece of paper.) 
COWS OR SHEEP. 
“ Young Farmer ,” Mercer County, Pa .— 
“ Which will pay me better, to keep cows and 
sell the cream, or to keep sheep? Prices here 
last summer were as follows: Lambs, five 
cents per pound; mutton four cents; wool 30 
cents; stock ewes $3 to $4 each; good cows 
from $35 to $40; cream per gauge, January, 
24 cents; February, 23-24 cents; March and 
April,|23 cents; May, 20-22 cents; June, 14-10 
cents; July, 12-15 cents; August, 15-10 cents; 
September, 18 cents; October, 18-20 cents; 
November, 20-22 cents;'December, 22-24 cents. 
I have a few high-grade Jerseys and I could 
feed skim-milk to hogs which bring six cents 
dressed. I have about 150 acres of cleared 
land with good barns ” 
Ans. —This question has been referred to a 
number of our correspondents. The replies 
from those who care to offer an opinion are 
given below. It is very hard to give advice 
in such a matter, because it is evident that 
an answer that would apply admirably to one 
man or one farm might.not fit at all in case of 
another man or another farm. There are 
men who take naturally to the care of shoep, 
who might not succeed with cows; while 
others, perhaps, like to handlecows but would 
fail with sheep. Agam, some farms are 
naturally adapted to dairying, while others 
actually need sheep. All these facts have to 
be considered in answering such a question. 
FROM C. R. BEAOlf. 
Any man who has the ability to manage a 
flock of sheep or a dairy of cows successfully, 
can, with the aid of a slate and pencil, answer 
those questions for himself much more cor¬ 
rectly than any one who does not know him 
or his surroundings, aud if he has not such 
ability the most exhaustive aud philosophical 
answer will be of no help to him. 1 will only 
add that with a dairy of well-bred and well 
selected cows, properly fed aud cared for, he 
has no business to sell cream by the gauge,for 
he will be cheated every time. 
Whitewater, Wig. 
FROM W. P. PRATT. 
I can give no facts or figures different from 
those published in the Rural New-Yorker 
January 19, never having had much experi¬ 
ence in selling cream, nor of late years a 
great deal to do with sheep. Barring the 
closer confinement which the dairy entorces 
all the year round, my “theory” would be 
