AUG.'IS 
THE RURAL HEW-YORKER. 
THE 
RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY. 
Address 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
78 Duane Street, New York City. 
SATURDAY, AUG. 2. 1879. 
CASH vs. CREDIT. 
“ The man who builds and wants wherewith to pay, 
Erects a house from which to run away." 
So says tlie poet, and the experience 
of many a business man, as well as many 
a farmer has indorsed this statement. 
But it is more especially applicable to 
farmers. Merchants, from the very na¬ 
ture of their business, must trust and be 
trusted in return. To them a credit sys¬ 
tem is indispensable. When a demand 
for a certain article is created on short no¬ 
tice, the tradesman must be able to sup¬ 
ply bis customers, and to do so it often be¬ 
comes necessary for him to go iu debt for 
the goods ; but if be bas foresight, buys 
with judgment and understands his busi¬ 
ness, he will in a short time have disposed 
of the goods at a profit and be ready to 
pay off bis debt. Not so in the case of 
the farmer. Iu his business there are no 
sudden hits to be made. For him to go 
in debt, in ninety-nine cases in a hundred 
hampers his prosperity instead of pro¬ 
moting it. His income consists in what 
he derives from the sale of his products, 
his grain, fruit, hay, potatoes, stock and 
dairy produce. These are slowly pro¬ 
duced. Many disasters beyond his con¬ 
trol, are liable to interfere with his plans, 
of which the present condition of affairs 
in England furnishes a striking example, 
and when quick and sure returns cannot 
be bad it is, to say the least, a hazardous 
policy to go in debt. 
What we desire to impress upon our 
readers is to keep clear of debts. Of all 
I’ash acts, we believe that to borrow 
mouey even for a permanent improve¬ 
ment, unless such improvement is an ab¬ 
solute necessity, is most likely to be re¬ 
pented of. A new house may afford much 
cherished comfort, but comfort bought 
with borrowed money is borrowed com¬ 
fort, and must in the end, be dearly paid 
for. It is not enough that a certain im¬ 
provement will pay the interest on the 
money invested. It' it pays only the in¬ 
terest, what will become of"the principal ? 
The tendency of things is to wear out, 
and diminish in value. The drains put 
into a field, or a new barn, cannot last for¬ 
ever, and if improvements that return 
only the interest, are made on borrowed 
capital, the condition stated at the outset 
will eventually ensue : the owner will be 
forced to leave his home in the hands of 
his creditor. Again, the returns from 
the farm are ordinarily so slow that be¬ 
fore a borrowed capital can be paid off, 
the interest upon it may often amount to 
once or even twice the principal, and the 
improvement becomes a cosily undertak¬ 
ing. We do not mean to say that no im¬ 
provements should be made on the farm ; 
without improvements agriculture would 
degenerate. What we mean is that they 
should not be made with capital borrowed 
on loose and superficial calculations. 
But few men have the sagacity to foresee 
and judge correctly of the real value of 
6uch investments, and without such fore¬ 
sight it becomes but little better than a 
game of chance in which no man should 
stake his independence. 
There is another class of debts in which 
some families thoughtlessly involve them¬ 
selves. It is those little items from the 
grocery, the hardware store, the lumber 
yard, the shoemaker, etc., which, though 
seemingly innocent and insiguificant in 
themselves, soon swell in the aggregate 
into respectable bills that will be doubly 
hard to pay after the goods have all been 
consumed. No one should bay on credit 
if he has the cash wherewith to pay, 
though it be necessary to disturb a bank 
account, and if the money is not at im¬ 
mediate command, it is better to contrive 
to do without a thing in some way, thun 
to buy it on credit. To live within one’s 
means is an important lesson to learn. No 
man is rich whose expenditures exceed 
his ineome, though he dabbles in mil¬ 
lions, while the one who can save ten cents 
a day is on the road to fortune. 
Young men who are fettered by pover¬ 
ty and who w T ish for the use of a few hun¬ 
dred dollars wherewith to start in busi¬ 
ness, to finish a course of study, to buy a 
piece of land, or for any purpose, should 
hesitate twice before they give up then 
independence, and voluntarily fling them¬ 
selves into a creditor’s arms. Wait, work 
and pay as you go. You may attain your 
object more slowly, but it will be reached 
just as surely and with infinitely greater 
satisfaction. If your good name is all you 
can offer as security, a rate of interest 
will be required which, under other cir¬ 
cumstances, would with propriety be 
termed exorbitant and usurious. 
“ Hope springs eternal in tbe human 
breast,” and to the young man who views 
life through rosy glasses, it seems an easy 
matter to repay a few hundred dollars ; 
but when tbe money is spent, and the 
principal is swelling with the accumulat¬ 
ing interest, the mistake is too late dis¬ 
covered. 
-** ♦- 
TEACH AND LEARN. 
One man cannot thoroughly, safely, 
and wisely conduct many experiments 
at the same time. Hence, it is very 
desirable for neighboring farmers to 
help one another in this respect. So of 
all classes engaged in productive pur¬ 
suits. Ten men can, in one year, try a 
number of theories that, one man could 
not put to the test in less than ten year's. 
If one makes an experiment that proves 
unprofitable, it is his duty to let his 
friends know it, that they may not suffer 
by repeating it. If one possesses special 
knowledge about varieties of articles of 
produce, peculiarities of culture, methods 
of preserving or utilizing what is raised, 
or anything else of importance to success 
and prosperity, he ought to be kind 
enough to inform his neighbors, at least, 
so that they may be wiser and more suc¬ 
cessful. In a certain community the 
farming was unimproved, and, hence, un¬ 
profitable. A progressive man of intel¬ 
ligence and skill moved in from a distant 
State, introduced more advanced ideas, 
and rapidly converted the poor land into 
a fertile, profitable farm. His neigh¬ 
bors were kindly enlightened, adopted 
his wise example, and soon brought up 
the whole comm unity to much greater 
prosperity. Of course, the man who 
taught and thoBe who learned are much 
happier. Let it be known that selfish 
monopoly of useful information is suici¬ 
dal as well as ignoble and uncharitable ; 
and that few men are to be pitied more 
than those who refuse to learn by the ex¬ 
perience of others. 
To further these suggestions, it is re¬ 
commended that farmers, gardeners, 
fruit culturists, etc., visit one another 
more frequently, talk together more 
freely, publish their experiments more 
carefully, and, in every legitimate way, 
try to teach more and learn more. y 
What May Yet be Done.—Where 
the drought has prevailed and the regu¬ 
lar crops have been cut short, everyone 
ought to do the best possible in the effort 
to supplement the insufficient product. 
It is not yet too late to profit by the 
later rains. Corn planted in drill will 
attain sufficient size to make good forage 
before frost, at least iu many States. 
Peas sown now will make large vines, 
which are very strengthening feed. Mil¬ 
let may yield one good cutting. The 
last crop of hay should be carefully 
saved—even the coarsest kinds, and all 
that can be found in spots along the 
ditches and streams. Now is the time to 
sow turnips. A good rule is to sow at 
different times, so as to have a succession 
of chances. Certainly those who are 
threatened with scarcity for their stock 
should aim at a much larger production 
this year. Another help maybe found in 
putting in a larger area in rye, so as to 
have grazing in winter; and, in some 
protected places, with a view of early 
green feeding in spring. That which is 
set apart, for spring mowing should not 
be grazed at all. Where the forage crop 
is limited, the hardest season will be at 
the opening of the spring, before other 
green crops are sufficiently advanced. 
Hence, the wisdom of sowing a field of 
rye. 
Prompt Payment.—It is very desi¬ 
rable that there should be entirely pleas¬ 
ant feelings between the employer and 
employed. While many things tend 
to prevent this, notwithstanding the 
best efforts of tlie employer, it is 
true that there is often much unnec¬ 
essary dissatisfaction in the minds of 
hired laborers because their wages are 
not promptly paid. It is unnecessary, 
because it could be easily prevented. 
Sometimes simple forgetfulness, some¬ 
times not altogether excusable neglect, 
sometimes great pressure of other busi¬ 
ness, sometimes the charms of pleasure 
or the attraction of good company,— 
causes delay iu paying wages. . No mat¬ 
ter what the cause, it does not supply the 
wants of the poor man or his family, or 
prevent his having a feeling of being 
wronged. A cheerful payment of sheer 
dues has often put a smile on the face, 
elasticity in the step, energy in the arm, 
and more and better work iu every hour. 
Water for Stock. —In the dry sea¬ 
son which is proving so severe in many 
parfs of our country, all who have stock 
of any kind should be more than usually 
coreful about the supply of water. Tbe 
large pastures and the broad common may 
be without water before such a thing is 
suspected. In many instances the water 
that remains is stagnant, and unfit to be 
used by any animals that we prize. An¬ 
other fault with some persons is in per¬ 
mitting the trough or other vessel from 
which animals are watered, to stand too 
long without being emptied and properly 
cleaned. 
-- 
Blunt’s Prolific. —We have received 
several letters of which the following is a 
fair specimen : 
III,, Evanston, Cook Co., July 22.—What is 
the matter with the corn you sent me—Blunt’s 
White Prolific—it is from 10 to II feet high, 
and not a sign of an ear on it yet and no tas¬ 
sels. How tail will it have to grow before it 
tassels out and lias ears on it? Is the ground 
too rich or is it the style of the corn ? 
Ans. —We cannot answer the questions, 
never having cultivated the corn before 
this season. Perhaps Prof. Blunt can. 
We have seen several plots and tbe same 
queries have suggested themselves to us. 
- * - ■* ■ ■* - 
BREVITIES. 
Marshall P. Wilder's health improves. 
There is probably no other crop that shows 
more emphatically the benefit ot mauurcs than 
oats. 
Onions chopped up fine are good for chick¬ 
ens. Give once a week. The green leaves of 
mustard plauts answer both for pepper and 
green food. 
We said a year ago aud over—and now we 
repeat it in corroboration of our own words— 
that tlie Cuthbert Is ihe coming red Raspberry. 
We believe this variety, either for the amateur 
or market gardener, to be the best in cultiva¬ 
tion. The reader is requested to bear our 
words in mind. 
Mr. J. J. Thomas doubts the propriety of 
cutting out the cane of Raspberries just after 
they have borne a crop of berries, so as to give 
the new canes a full chance to develop them¬ 
selves, because the removal of a large amount 
of green foliage always checks or injures the 
plant or its roots. 
It pays well to go over the rnta-bagas and 
mangel rows at this season and thin them out 
to proper distances. The leaves of tlie latter 
make excellent greeim, and the tender roots 
are relished by stock. It is a fact that three 
mangels growing at suitable distances, will 
make heavier roots than six would if crowded 
together in the same space. 
Mr. Chamberlain writes us from Hudson, 
0.. as follows; “Fultz aud Clawson. Ground 
not under-drained- Fultz, 20 bus. per uere ; 
Clawsou, side by side with eqnal chance, 80 
Inis, per acre. Best three acres of Clawson 
last year, on under-drained land, (51 bus. per 
acre; best 10 acres last year, 40$ bus. per 
acre." Such facts are instructive. 
Gladioli arc now in fine bloom. Unless the 
ground is moist, tlie midday sun scalds the 
racemes and causes an early decay of tlie 
beautiful flowers. Many, indeed most, of the 
finer varieties do not form fruit. They may 
sometimes be iudueed to do so, however, by 
polloiuUing the stigmas (beads) of the pistils. 
Seeds of the Gladiolus vegetate freely and pro¬ 
duce blooming bulbs tbe third year. We can¬ 
not too strongly urge our readers to try their 
cultivation. 
Blooming in woods and meadows over many 
parts of tlie country may now be found that 
fine shnib 8pira;u salicifolia. 11 is one of tbe best 
of the Spiraeas, though many country people in 
their rides or walks pass it by as a wild flower, 
without ever thinking that it is as worthy a 
place in their gardens as any of the Spirals 
seen aud admired in nursery rows. It has a 
clean, smooth, reddish, brittle stem, light 
reen leaves of an ovate or obovate form. The 
lowers are borne in compound panicles. 
They are white, sometimes tinted with a blush 
of pink. It blooms from mid-July to mid- 
Angus t. 
As the fair season approaches, we need 
scarcely remind our readers that it is a good 
plan to take with them a note-book and pencil, 
that they may jot down memoranda which it 
may be desirable to refer to afterward. We 
would like to have them, also, take notes as to 
the moral effect of horse-racing; as to whether 
that i6 or is not the life of the agricultural 
fair. It. might bo well, also, to note—should 
the earth need raiu—to what extent the ladies 
and gentlemen who attend are Inconvenienced 
by the clouds of dust that envelop them from 
the race-course. 
Oim fine engravings of Lord Exeter’s “ Tele- 
maehus Uth;’ * Lord Euthdouuell’s “Anchor;" 
Mr. Taylor's Hereford bull "Thoughtful”— 
which, by the way, is an extremely appropriate 
name, as will ho seen by a glance at tlie portrait 
—were originally produced iu the columns of 
that enterprising English journal the Agricultu¬ 
ral Gazette. As we were not ai this great show 
ourselves, the best we can do is to give such 
portraits and items as may be copied from the 
beat Loudon journals, while we glean the best 
information from our own correspondents aud 
the most trusted foreign accounts. 
Correction.— In a recent issue, in answer 
to a correspondent, we stated dial, tlie riding 
saw made by the Furmans’ M'fg. Co. of Cin¬ 
cinnati, was the same implement as that for¬ 
merly made by Mr. Giles. We are in receipt 
of a letter from the company to the effect that 
the machine is not the same, und that suits are 
now pending against Giles for infringement of 
patent. 
If, then, it is merely a case of infringement, 
the saws canuot differ materially, aud our cor¬ 
respondent will be safe in assuming that the 
saw made by the Farmers’ M’f’g Co. is a good 
saw. We are requested to say that Mr. Giles 
has at no time been connected with the above- 
named company. We do so with pleasure. 
Our articles, “Cash vs. Credit," are bring¬ 
ing us mauy letters of thanks and apprecia¬ 
tion. We are pleased to Ree that a number of 
our Western contemporaries are taking nptliis 
really important question. If we could, we 
would prohibit the entire credit system by law. 
No doubt credit is good iu some cases. So is 
strong drink. Our readers may have heard of 
the man thut was saved by drinking whisky. 
The drink made blt» too late for (lie steamer, 
which burst its boiler and killed all on board. 
Nevertheless, we would prohibit the sale of all 
intoxicating liquors, if this were possible. 
We have few implements at the Rural Farm 
that we prize more than the disc harrow and 
the roller. One of the secrets of success in the 
flower garden is that the ground is frequently 
and well stirred. The. available nutriment of 
the soil is thus brought, within the reach of the 
tools of the plants aud the pulverized surface 
is in more ways than one favorable to the well- 
being of vegetation. We have no doubt that 
in many cultivated fields, tbe very same lumps 
of earth remain from year to year as useless as 
stones, though not so hard. Tlie use of a 
disc harrow and a two-horse, roller upon mauy 
fields svould prove as valuable for a year or so 
at least as a liberal dressing of manure. 
Those who cultivate hilly or rolling lauds in 
corn, ought, to he sure to nave the rows wide 
apart. If there should be much rain, the 
ground is well drained and the yield will be 
good any way. But if the season should be 
dry, the narrower the rows the more the corn 
will suffer; and the wider the rows, in reason, 
the less the row about the stalk will be ex¬ 
hausted by tile drainage of the middle furrow. 
In a field observed this summer, a short row 
that was very wide, was very slightly affected 
by the dry weather, while the over-drained, 
narrow rows around it were much more seri¬ 
ously injured. 
Many of the embarrassing and dangerous 
accidents that occur in riding aud driving 
might be prevented by a little attention. The 
rider should kuow for himself that every part 
of the bridle aud saddle is iu reliable condi¬ 
tion. Tbe driver should know if the harness 
and vehicle may safely be trusted. Consider¬ 
ing the carelessness of multitudes, it is won¬ 
derful that there are not, vastly more accidents 
in travel, it is time wisely spent w hen one 
walks around and cautiously Inspects the sev¬ 
eral things upon which his limbs and life will 
depend. Those who keep trappings and vehi¬ 
cles should examine them patiently, Irom time 
to time, when not in use, and not wait till the 
moment of starting to work or to travel. 
“ The Japanese Manles," says the London 
Garden, " in Messrs. Vei toll's collection, de¬ 
servedly attracted a good deal of attention. 
Su«h dainty little trees, with elegant feathery 
growth, are sure to be sought tor the green¬ 
house and conservatory, even if they do not 
prove quite hardy iu all parts of the country." 
They are hardy here, why not iu the vicinity 
of London ? If we need a Latin nomenclature 
so that any plant may be known by its botan¬ 
ical name in any country, we certainly need 
6ome other word besides “hardy” by which 
to express a plant’s power of euduriug drought, 
wet, heat, cold, and frequent alternations of 
heat aud cold. It seems to us that the mean¬ 
ing ot the word hardy ought to be accepted as 
simply relating to a pluut/s power of euduriug 
cold. 
It has seemed to us that the word “ catch,” 
as applied to clover seed gemmation, is un¬ 
fortunate, because misleading, since it justifies 
the impression that a good deal rests upon 
chance. It may be observed that if the seed is 
good, aud properly sown, there Is no chance 
about, tbe “ catch if the soil is in a proper 
condition to insure it. If the soil is too dry, 
It may germinate, but the young plauts may 
dry up and die for want of moisture. If the 
soil is too poor, they may germinate all the 
same but starve to death. It may be safely 
acted upon that if the soil is uicilow and rich, 
clover sown either iu fall or spring will prove 
a “ good catch,” the same as any oilier seeds, 
aud that when it fails, the cause, except it may 
he excessively dry weather, is within the con¬ 
trol of the farmer. 
The Messrs. Williams send us from Mont¬ 
clair a box of Doyenud d’ Ele, and Madeleine 
pears. Both are small. The first has a re¬ 
freshing, sweet, juicy flesh, a small core aud 
small white seeds. The tree bears while very 
young. Madeleine is rather more acid, but 
iiot tlielessof a moat delicate, agreeable flavor. 
These early pears ripen just at a time when 
fruit is needed. Raspberries, currants aud 
gooseberries aie past—really good peaches arc 
uot vet in the market. Nothing hut black¬ 
berries remains. They have much of the high fla¬ 
vor of our best later varieties and they may he 
oaten with all the relish that one enjoys while 
eating the first good fruits of the season. 
D’ Eti) thrives iu N. II.—N. Y.—Delaware.— 
Md.—Teuu.—S. 0.—Ga.— Ala. ami even Texas. 
Madeleine does fairly well in u number of 
states, but we have no trustworthy uoteB as to 
where it thrives best. 
Pot-grown Strawberries may be set now 
and until October 1st for this climate. The 
plants may be ordered at any lime, and then 
cared for the same as any other potted plauts 
until sufficient rains make it desirable to set 
them in their permanent beds. If these Straw¬ 
berries have been carefully raised by the nur¬ 
seryman aud carefully packed, they may be 
trusted to produce nearly a full crop next 
summer. Instead, therefore, of waiting an¬ 
other year for such promising new sorts as 
Sharpless, Cumberland Triumph, Prouty's 
Seedling. Marvin’s Strawberry, utc., ete., to 
fruit abundantly, a few potted plants may be 
purchased at a small cost, aud tlie family may 
tlie first season determine their value for their 
soil aud location. It may be desirable to place 
the baskets or pots (soil and all) in water for 
a few minutes previous to final planting. Dis¬ 
turb the roots aud soil about them as little as 
possible. 
