THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
dbfrjrtojj'ra. 
NEBRASKA NOTES. 
Yesterday I saw a neighbor buy a Dickey 
No. 2 farm mill for twenty-live dollars, on 
time at ten per cent interest. The mill is 
good enough, but I opiuo my neighbor must 
be exceedingly shrewd and fortunate, or a 
year hence, he will find his note a difficult 
one to take up. In this section there is no 
profit in extensive wheat growing. It de¬ 
mands expensive machinery—the drill, the har¬ 
vester and the thrasher. Before the “labor- 
saving-machinery” era farmers were compelled 
to offer large wages to secure a hasty harvest, 
and without reason laborers to-day demand 
an exorbitant price if they liaudle w'heat. 
Last summer, hands asked one dollar and fifty 
cents per day for handling nicely bound bun¬ 
dles of wheat, but were willing to handle 
heavy Hungarian liay all day for seventy-live 
cents. It occurs to me that the wheat-grow¬ 
ing farmer uses machinery needlessly expen¬ 
sive. Every self-binder that comes into this 
county meets my mental regrets. Think of 
it—over three hundred dollars for a binder that 
is expensive to keep in repair and feed with a 
wire, and at best is used but a few days, leav¬ 
ing the farmer still to invest another hundred 
before be can cut his hay. 
A history of the reaper from the time it was 
held in the yeoman's strong hands until it 
reached its present complicated form, would 
be full of interest. Let us look critically at 
one chapter in that history. The harvester 
carrying its crew of binders, sailed for a sea¬ 
son over the cereal sea. To an ingenious 
man, the first perfect working harvester must 
suggest the doing with arms ot steel what was 
often imperfectly done by the t wo or three 
binders. This actually occurred, and presto! 
“ Orthello's occupation’s gone." It was nee- 
essaiy to elevate the grain. wind or no w ind, 
to suit the living binders’ convenience, but 
why hoist it up in the wind to be bound in 
wire? I here throw out a suggestion, hoping 
that it may prove a bonanza to some grateful 
genius who w ill remember me with the ma¬ 
terialized idea : Combine the binder with 
a table rake. When the gavel on the table is 
compresed ready to be delivered, tie ii up and 
gently push the bound bundle off. Why not ? 
The next step is to cut hay w ith the same 
machine. My experience proves that a two- 
wheel machine is uot the best for cutting grain, 
and a one-wheel machine is an imperfect 
mower. We have already learned to overcome 
that diflieui tv. 1 can name a machine that has 
two wheels when mowing—aud a good mower 
it is, too, its only objection in my eyes lying in 
the fact that it is a rear-cut- but iu grain harvest 
its t wo wheels are put side by side on the ceutcr 
of the axle, thus making it an equally good 
reaper. The two four-inch-wide mower-drivers 
make an eight-inch reaper wheel. What would 
be the gain in such a combinaton ? 1. Twohuu- 
dred dollars, or fifty per cent, ou first cost of 
the machines 2. A machine that would work 
well in the wind where many binders work 
badly. 3. One horse less in harvest, as no 
power would be consumed in useless elevating. 
4. A trifle would be saved in graiu by bind¬ 
ing the gavels near the ground instead of 
binding them high up and throwing the bun¬ 
dles out of the way, thus shelling more or less 
grain. 
PLOWS. 
The Center—Nebraska is not in the West— 
has plows peculiarly adapted to the wants of 
its inhabitants. Our stirriLg plows, made of 
steel, are short, light and costly. The furrow 
slice is suddenly raised and pitched as much 
forward as sidewise, aud tumbled upon its 
head, stubble and ordinary “ trash ” entirely 
disappearing. The longer mold-board of the 
East would seem to be of lighter draft, but it 
would not “ stir ” or pulverize as does ours. I 
say “ would seem to be of lighter draft,” for if 
those iron fellows of the East have not been 
materially modified since my boyhood days, our 
light steel plows would “get away with ” them 
so far as lightness of draft is concerned, pro¬ 
vided each moved an equal amount of earth. 
I notice a gradual change in the form of plows 
as annually sent out by the factories to this 
“plowmans paradise.” Our breakers which 
are not intended to break, hut simply to invert 
about two inches of the soil, have grown long¬ 
er from heel to point, aiming to lift the slice 
as gently as possible, and let it fall over. 
While the mold-hoard and land side have 
grown ridiculously long, the share or “ lay ”— 
as we call it—has grown correspondingly short. 
Our breakers now arc divided into “square 
cuts" aud “slanting cuts.” The latter often 
have iron land sides with a piece of steel deftly 
welded to the heel, w here there is the greatest 
amount of friction. The more slanting the 
cut, the greater necessity for the steel aud a 
long laud side. The question occurs, "Is not 
the friction that calls for the use of steel, a 
continual loss ?" A square cut w as patented aud 
put on Lhe plow, with gratifying results. It 
was found chat the plow fitted in this way, was 
of about one-third lighter draft in the ordinary 
conditions of the soil than those without this 
device, and the difference was still greater 
when the ground was so dry that a “ slanting 
cut' could not be used; for then the “square 
cut” worked excellently. It is expensive, 
however, and the land side, is superfluous. An 
enterprising friend of mine has brought out 
another plow which he names the Eureka. It 
is not patented, and an ordinary mechanic, 
can construct it without a heavy outlay. It 
is sold by the inventor for a dollar an inch, 
that is, a twelve-inch plow for twelve dollars, 
and a plow that cuts a furrow fourteen inches 
wide, for fourteen dollars. The accompany¬ 
ing eut shows its construction aud may aid in 
its manufacture. 
to ten inches, and in some places ice has been 
cut and packed. Times are hard here, money 
scarce, wages low ; nobody has money but the 
threc-per-ccnt-a-month men anil the Jews, A 
good crop of cotton, hut prices so low—six to 
seveu cents.—that it is a loss to raise it, but it 
is the only thing to make money out of.” 
William Falconer. 
- 4 ♦- 
RURAL SPECIAL REPORTS. 
- • 
Kansas, Parsons, Labette Co.. Jan. 27, 1879. 
—A sudden and great change has come over 
the spirit of the weather. The suu aud south¬ 
erly wiuds operated the whole of last week, aud 
though the temperature rose ronbdg. and 02 dg. 
in the middle ol the days in the last of the 
week, it. required the full week 
to liquefy tlie snow, which 
^ rested upon a couple of inches 
of ice. There is not a vestige of 
it insight. It remained on the 
^ ground just six weeks. Though 
an inexperienced person might 
naturallv think to-day, that 
winter \,as gone, this would be 
a wrong conclusion. We shall 
yet have several cold snaps, but 
In future lhe sun will quickly put an end to 
them. Fine days here in the spring and fall, 
are quite illusory. A stranger was here 
one day in late December, (not 1878). He 
sat with his friend on a sunny bank, and 
the new-comer was surprised beyond meas¬ 
ure. at the bright warm sun, and the soft 
south -wind. He would write straight home 
about the delightful country. The friend told 
him to leave room for a postscript. They met 
the next morning, one running from, aud the 
other right into the teeth ol a bitter north¬ 
wester. “Did you send off your letter?” 
asked the friend. Yes." said the stranger, 
“and the postscript, too." 
It is quite probable that, the wheat iu this 
latitude will be thin, as the seed did not ger¬ 
minate well: still, the sanguine newspapers 
represent that it looks well, etc. The acreage 
is probably one-fourth less than that planted 
last season. Of course, corn, potatoes, etc., 
will occupy the place where wheat was last 
year. Owing to a very inferior yield of all 
farm products in this (south-eastern Kansas) 
section, and the low* prices of grain and stock, 
farmers are in a very bad state. But we find 
they are no better eastw ard. Taxes here are 
not heavy, say 21 to 3 per cent, on a 50 per 
cent, valuation. If not. paid when due, then 
follows a penalty of, say, 24 per cent, every 
six months, and penalty and taxes failing to 
hu paid, the property real--is sold, aud if not. 
redeemed, will be lost. Execution issues im¬ 
mediately for personal property tax, if not paid 
when due. Many farmers have mortgaged 
their farms, and a great many mortgages are 
being foreclosed. 
The laud is entirely destitute of swamps and 
only an exceedingly small portion is uot avail¬ 
able for cultivation, this portion being stony. 
The country is beautiful, all the streams run¬ 
ning between the rolling prairies, beiugfringed 
with trees. The climate is that of the Indian 
Territory—from the north liue of which w*e are 
only 20 miles distant—and Is not excelled in 
the Southwest, except on the Pacific Coast. 
People living off the “bottoms” escape the 
malaria, and when cultivation becomes general, 
the country will be more free from such dis¬ 
eases than Illinois or Indiana. Wo are 965 
feet above the sea. It seems a little singular 
that no one is sun-stricken here. The oldest 
physicians have never known of a ease, 'l he 
highest poiut of the thermometer last year was 
118 deg., and with a heat over 86 deg., we always 
have good breezes. Our nights iu summer are 
Invariably luxurious. I have never known a 
case of hydrophobia here, aud iu all conscience 
we are uot iu want of clogs. -i. b. 
Tennessee, Humboldt, Jan. 28.—A general 
thaw has set, in hereabouts. During the past, 
week the mud and slush have been simply 
aw ful. We are now having spring-like weath¬ 
er with thuuder showers. Bull-frogs are 
croaking lively, as a sort of bass accompa¬ 
niment to the cheeringly melodious songs of 
the mocking-birds. Elms. Maples, evergreens, 
etc., are flushing out their buds and blooms. 
We count this a hard winter, however. Since 
the first of December ice and snow have been 
abundant all the time until quite lately, the 
thermometer varying from freezing point 
down to zero, and several times dipping down 
5 deg. below r that. Stock and 6inall graiu are 
looking well. Provisions are abundant and at 
low rates. Pork, 4c. per lb. ; bacon, 6c.; 
flour, 21c. to 3e.: corn, 50c. per bushel; wheat, 
$1; potatoes, 50e. to $1: apples, none in the 
market: cotton and tobacco are going at very 
low rates. Lauds, if at all salable, bring only 
half former prices, and rent for less than half 
of old-time figures. Yet, on the whole, the 
outlook is encouraging. Frugality and thrift 
—and these virtues only can get us out of our 
troubles. n. f. v. 
N. Y., Corning, Steuben Co., Jan. .81.—The 
weather is now very pleasant and the snow is 
nearly ail gone, except in sheltered spots and 
along fences; but we shall likely have more 
It, would be poor economy, indeed, to 
incur the freight on such plow's from a dis¬ 
tance, as any good local mechanic can sup¬ 
ply them cheaper than those made elsewhere 
c an be furnished, with freight and other charges 
added to the cost of manufacture. 
The advantages claimed for this plow are; 1. 
Lightness of draft: 2, it is a “dry ground 
breaker:" 3, the expense of keeping it sharp is 
ten per cent, less than that for the patented 
plow : and. 4. the first cost is thirty per cent. less. 
When the plow gets dull which it will not do 
much sooner than a spade -it is sharpened ou 
the blacksmith’s anvil. Only two belts are. re¬ 
moved to get the plow ready for the smith. 
The rods cause less friction than the old-style 
mold-board. The strop of iron running from 
the horizontal cutter to the bottom of one of 
the handles, stiffens the plow aud steadies it in 
running. R. II. Crane. 
Orleans Co. 
NOTES FROM SOUTHERN TEXAS 
As regards the fruit and nursery business in 
Southern Texas, the follow ing extract from a 
friend’s letter of January the 20th. may interest 
some Rural readers, lie lives in Washington 
Co., on the Austin branch of the Texas Central 
R. R., aud in a lovely country—rolling prairie 
considerably broken by timber belts—about 11 
miles west of the Brazos River. The soil is 
sandy and black sandy, inclining to hog- 
wallow along branch aud creek bottoms. 
“ A good many trees are sold” (by agents— 
w. f.). “but the collections are uniformly de¬ 
ficient. * * * We are planting nursery 
stock in the field below the R. R., and which 
we recently bought—soil, a black sandy: hut 
I think the cut-leaf ants and the poisoned spots 
in the land are as bad there as any where else. 
These two things, with some others, are the 
peculiar curse of this country. (They are. 
Cyanide of potassium dissolved iu water, and 
a little poured into the mouths of their holes, 
kill; a multitude of ants, but it must be repeat¬ 
ed weekly, and the cost of time in applying it 
is a great consideration They may also he 
dug out, flooded out, and fumigated in their 
towns, hut altogether their annihilation is a 
tedious, laborious and expensive job. —far bet¬ 
ter settle where such a curse does not exist. 
For the •poisoned’ spots iu the land, 1 never 
knew a cure.—w. f.) Trees and plauts are 
continually dying out. Very many pear and 
apple trees in our Orchards, and which a few 
years ago were very promising, are now dead, 
and I think a year or two more wilL finish all, 
A year ago we planted a new peach orchard of 
5.UOO trees—mostly Ainsdens and Alexanders. 
They have grown well It was a timely plant, 
as the old peach orchards are nearly run out. 
None of these cultivated fruits seem to he dur¬ 
able in this soil aud climate, not even the 
Peach, which has always been claimed to be 
specially suited for Southern soils. We had 
an abundant crop of peaches last summer, but 
got nothing for them, as the country was full 
of peaches, many young orchards just coming 
into bearing, and the few small cities in the 
Stale require but few fruits, and 8t. Louis is 
too far off. and rates thither too high to ship. 
The present promise for fruit is not good; our 
trees are mostly run out and many of them 
half-dead : many of them blossomed in Decem¬ 
ber, when the last half of that month was quite 
cold. This phenomenon of late fall blooming 
also occurred in the Long Island orchards, as I 
notice, in the newspapers. The present wiu- 
ter, so fin-, is umisally cold and rainy. All our 
solt-wooded plants froze in the greenhouse,— 
we have a greenhouse. ,lmt no heating appa¬ 
ratus in it, * * * We were much fright¬ 
ened all last summer because of the yellow 
fever, But had none ot it in the State, so far as 
I know. * * * T read in the papers of snow 
four feet deep in Central New York, which is 
iny old home. No snow here at all, hut in the 
northern part, of the State there are from four 
I 
I 
I 
before long. Until within a few days, it had 
been quite steady cold since the fore-part, of 
December. We have also bad quite good sleigh¬ 
ing since about that time, which is something 
quite unusual foT this locality so early iu the 
season. Every snow that, has fallen has been 
very dry and the wind piled it badly up beside 
the fences and into the roads, so that in many 
places the roads have been abandoned aho- 
gether. and teams have gone around through 
the fields. It has been a good time lor lumber¬ 
ing, aud thOoe who had much teaming ro do, 
have been quite busy. The snow came so early 
that but very little frost is in the ground 
Trices of produce -eem very low. but when 
compared with those of most articles which 
the farmer has to buy, they stand about the 
same as during several years back; that is, five 
dollars’ worth of produce will buy nearly, it 
not quite, as much now as live Or six years ago. 
Hay is selling for @5 to $7 a ton. f. it. d. 
Maine, Paris, Oxford Co.. Fch 6.—Plenty of 
snow tor the lumbermen iu the northern part 
of the couuty. The Lewiston Steam Mill Co. 
propose to laud over 5,000,000 feet of spruce 
and pine on ouc of the Kangeley lakes the 
present winter. The farmers are getting about 
75 cents per bn she! for potatoes, which are 
taken by railroad to the Boston market. Sev¬ 
eral thousand bushels have been sent from 
this county, The Early Rose command from 
5 to 8 ceuts per busln I more than other kinds, 
a fact which proves it p;v. to raise iraprovod 
kinds of potatoes. The farmers of this State 
piopose to give the corn crop extra attention 
the present yeai ft has been proved that good 
corn can be raised in this State at an expense 
of 41 cents a bushel. The proprietors of the 
Lewiston Journal, the leading paper among 
the Maine farmers, have offered a cash pre¬ 
mium of $50 for the best acre of corn raised in 
the State in 1870. This paper advocates the 
raising of more corn and wheat at home and 
sending loss money for Those products to the 
West, though the railroads receive the larger 
part of it for freight charges. s. m. d. 
Illinois, Rockford, Winnebago Co.. Feb. 
3.—We have bad a fine whiter with from 12 to 
14 inches of snow, and six or seven weeks’ 
good slejgbing. There have been no had storms 
or snmv drifts to interfere with traveling’. We 
have had some pretty cold weather, however, 
the mercury having dived down 20^ below 
zero several times. That wonderful piece of 
vertebra, the winter’s backbone, has now been 
broken, however. For the last ten days a warm 
thaw lifts destroyed sleighing, hut left us excel¬ 
lent wheeling. Last season the crops were all 
good in this county, except potatoes, and of 
these there was an abundance raised for our 
own use. Our grocers are now retailing them 
at 60c. per bushel. In our wholesale markets 
wheat is selling for 75c. per bushel; corn, 28c.: 
rye, 4Dc.; oats, 20c.; hogs. $3; beef cattle, 
$3.50(5)3.75 per civt. We have lost a good 
many bogs by bog cholera. i. d. it. 
Maine, Brooks, Waldo Co.—The winter, 
since New Year’-, has been steadily and at 
times severely cold. The mercury has been 
down to 24° below zero. Stock of all kinds is 
doiug well at the stables, and there is no epi¬ 
demic disease throughout our borders. Huy i. 
worth $6 to $10 ; butter, 8e, to 16c.: eggs. 22c., 
cheese, be. to 12c.; corn. 55c. to 60c.; pota¬ 
toes, 65c. to 80e.: and stock rules low. The 
Legislature, which i now in session, proposes 
some needed reforms iu cutting down salaries 
and curtailing ueedless expenses. There prom¬ 
ises to lie considerable immigration to the 
newer lands in the Northern part of the State, 
about equal to the emigration that will leave 
us for the West. W ith the increase in produc¬ 
tion of wheat aud corn, that has taken place in 
the past ten years, carried forward for the 
next ten years. Maine will produce her own 
bread and corn, .r. w. l, 
Illinois, West Jersey. Stark Co., Feb. 3.— 
This winter we have had more snow and better 
sleighing iu this State than white folks have 
ever had siuce the departure westward of the 
red man. Although we-have had some pretty 
severe weather, 1 think the farmers have en¬ 
joyed this winter better than last. Our first 
snow was on the 8th of December, and ever 
since we have bad good sleighing until the last 
three or four days, duriug which lhe snow has 
been rapidly thawing, so that now sleighing is 
pretty well over for the present. Produce is 
very low aud farmers complain of the scarcity 
of money. II. E. ai’c. 
Illinois, iiisdon. St. Clair Co., Jan. 31.— 
We have had the coldest spell of weather this 
winter that we have had tor years; the ther¬ 
mometer reaching 17 u below zero on the morn¬ 
ing Of the 3d iust. So far as we are able to 
learn, fruit is injured badly, and a majority 
think the Peaches are all killed. There is no 
questiou but that the weather has injured 
wheat, as the cold poll commenced with sleet, 
and tlie drill rows were ali tilled first with ice 
and then with snow. There is very little 
wheat held over Ii nearly all the farmers 
having sold all Um\ , mid spare. A very few, 
however, are holding for better prices, n. j. s. 
Canada, Oxford Oo., Ontario, Jan. 29Hi 
Wo have hud steady winter weather for the 
