324 
MAY 45 
THE 
RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
A National Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Conducted by 
e. s. CARMAN, 
J. 8. WOODWARD, 
Editor. 
Associate. 
Address 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
No. 34 Park Row, New York. 
SATURDAY, MAY 15, 1886. 
Our Parker Earle Strawberry plants 
are variegated. Is that as it should be? 
Eight Japan Chestnuts were received 
May 3 from the Storrs, Harrison Co., of 
Painesville, O., which weighed exactly 
11K ounces. 
If the number on your address label is 
1894, your subscription expires with this 
number; if 1895, next week; 189G, in two 
weeks, etc. 
♦ t » - 
This season we are trying the effects of 
excessive nitrogen applications upon pota¬ 
toes. We are also trying the effects (for 
the second time) of all sorts of chemical 
fertilizers, separately and in every com¬ 
bination. 
North, South, East and West the 
Rural’s method of corn culture is gain¬ 
ing advocates—drill planting, level and 
shallow cultivation, and spreading the 
fertilizer or manure near the surface. 
Now, after two weeks of sunny skies, a 
gentle shower comes to help on the oats, 
the early corn, the wheat, the peas, the 
potatoes, the grass. It is an early Spring, 
and the country is so beautiful tbat we 
are sorry indeed for the poor people that 
are confined to the monotonous, prison¬ 
like life of the city. 
If one desires to sicken of strawberries, 
let him purchase those that come from 
the South in April. If one wants to dull 
his appetite for sweet corn, let him plant 
the earliest varieties. The earliest sweet 
peas are insipid as compared with some 
of the wrinkled kinds which come in only 
two or three days later. The earliest 
tomato is good for nothing. Wc might 
extend the list somewhat. 
The “Mikado” is to be prized as an 
ornamental tree It is now (May 4) cover- 
ered with its large white blossoms IK 
inch in diameter, while those of other 
pears will average scarcely one inch. The 
leaves, too, are twice as large as other 
pear leaves, and more glossy. The fruit 
was illustrated in the R. N.-Y. last year. 
Except for canning it is worthless. 
-- 
Turbulent agitators who set the laws 
of the country at defiance deserve no 
pity or favor. The foreign anarchists 
who, after receiving here chances of ad¬ 
vancement they could never have met 
with at home,' try to put their insane 
political and social theories into practice 
among us at the cost of blood and con¬ 
flagration, must he promptly and pitiless¬ 
ly suppressed. As turbulent mobs, their 
treatment should be short, sharp, and 
decisive; as individual lawbreakers, their 
punishment should he prompt and severe. 
Referring to Dr. Lawes’s article on page 
320, “The Source of Nitrogen in Corn,” 
we may be excused for again referring 
to our experiment which, two years in 
succession, gave us nearly twice as much 
corn (grain) on plots which received pot¬ 
ash, phosphate and nitrogen as on those 
which received only the potash and phos¬ 
phate. All similar experiments with pota¬ 
toes made on the same poor land, give 
substantially the same result. We can't 
grow crops on this field without complete 
fertilizers. If the corn plant gets its nitro¬ 
gen from the air, potash and phosphoric 
acid should suffice at the roots. 
We are sorry to see the statement 
“going the rounds” that tomatoes from 
seeds sown in the open ground will give 
ripe fruit as soon as the plants raised in 
the house or in frames. It is true that 
when the plants are grown too thickly 
and are not transplanted, they become 
feeble, yellow and “drawn,” and when 
planted out require two or three weeks 
to recover strength enough to start into 
vigorous growth. But if not crowded 
too closely in the seed-bed, and if they 
are started early enough to be transplanted 
once by the middle of April, they 'will 
form strong,'healthy plants with Sample 
roots, and will give fruit a month before 
those raised in the open ground. 
Master Luce, of the Michigan State 
Grange, has appointed June 10 for 
Children’s Day. The day will be gener¬ 
ally observed throughout the State by all 
Granges, For one day in the year the 
childreu will be masters of the situation. 
They will be seated first at the table, and 
as far as possible be aided to take the 
place of the older people in arranging and 
carrying out the entertainment. In fact 
the older people will appear as spectators, 
and try to crowd themselves into the 
places usually occupied by the boys and 
girls. This plan is a good one. It, will 
surely interest the children in the useful 
work of the Grange, and teach them 
lessons in dignity and importance. We 
believe in giving the boys and girls a fair 
chance. The children of to-day are to 
make the history of to-morrow. Train 
them well for the work. 
The Lower House of Congress has 
called on the Commissioner of Agricul¬ 
ture for information “as to the amount of 
wheat and corn on hand in this country, 
where it is located, the number of acres 
of winter and spring wheat now in the 
ground, the amount likely to be required 
for exportation, and other information on 
the subject.” We are glad the House 
takes interest in such matters. The in¬ 
formation will be valuable, and uobody is 
iu a better position to collect it than the 
Commissioner. Much of the information 
sought is given in the monthly reports; 
but this special demand is likely to cause 
extra effort and secure more detailed and 
trustworthy information, Some see the 
fine hand of speculation in the matter; 
but why shouldn’t Congress be honestly 
interested in the greatest industry in the 
nation—the one that imparts animation 
and life itself to all the others? 
A REsrECTED friend who justly assumes 
that the R. N, Y. approves in the main 
of the new fruit nomenclature, remon¬ 
strates that, without protest, we should 
have described and illustrated an apple 
with the preposterous name of “Grand¬ 
father Smith’s Favorite.” Our frieud is 
quite right, and we thank him for calling 
attention to the oversight.. 
Several years ago the Rural expressed 
its opinion very positively as to the 
changes which the new nomenclature pro¬ 
posed, and we have no wish to alter that 
opinion. There is something which vio¬ 
lates one’s sense of the appropriateness of 
things when one is obliged to hear or to 
utter the coarse, absurd names which 
many fruits, both old and new, have re¬ 
ceived. We would uot restrict the names 
of fruits to a single word by any means, 
providing the names were free from such 
objections, and especially if they were 
such as to aid iu impressing them upon 
the memory or indicated some striking 
peculiarity. Otherwise, the shorter the 
name the better. But these little matters 
will regulate themselves. The main 
thiug is to purify and reform our fruit 
nomenclature. 
-- » » ■ - - 
SPECIAL. 
Those who, having applied for the 
Rural’s present seed distribution prior 
to May 8th, have not yet received it, 
will kindly notify us by postal at once. 
so much against the concoction itself 
when properly made, as against the 
fraudulent misrepresentation of it, that 
the dairy world is in arms. 
■ ■ ■ 
It is calculated that the eight hour 
movement can affect only one in ten of all 
the workers in the country, the other 
nine-tenths being engaged in occupations 
in which shorter hours are impract icable, 
such as farming, herding, fishing, rail¬ 
roading and the like. All the other work¬ 
ers, however, as well as the great body of 
non-workers—the ailing, the old, and the 
young—must contribute towards the ease 
and comfort enjoyed by this' one-tenth, 
but which they cannot share themselves. 
How are farmers who must suffer from 
the advance in wages or, its equivalent, the 
shortening of workinghours of operatives, 
to gain any benefit from the labor agitation? 
The Knights of Labor and Grangers of 
Texas and Kansas have for some time been 
co-operating, and the State Grange and 
State Assembly of Knights of Labor of 
Michigan, have lately held a two days’ 
conference at Detroit with a view to per¬ 
fecting a similar scheme. It is proposed 
to establish distributing agencies at var¬ 
ious central points in the State, where 
produce and merchandise of all kinds shall 
be gathered through purchasing agents, 
and then distributed to the members of 
both organizations. The plan, it is claim¬ 
ed, will not antagonize the merchants or 
commission men, as full prices will be 
charged for all goods, the profits to be 
paid back to the members in the shape of 
dividends. It is to bo hoped that some 
means will be devised by which the far¬ 
mers of the country shall partake of some 
of the advantages for which other toilers 
are contending. 
“TnE Slaughter of the Birds” was 
the subject for discussion last Mon¬ 
day at the May meeting of the Sorosis, a 
club whose headquarters is in this city, 
and which is representative of the female 
culture, literature, intellect and fashion 
of this Western Hemisphere. It was con¬ 
ceded that women were “largely respon¬ 
sible” for the “injury to the welfare and 
beauty of our country by the destruction 
of our native birds;” but the English 
sparrow was justly denounced as an “in¬ 
truder and a nuisance.” In view of the 
fact that the slaughter of the birds “is 
calculated to alarm the lover of Nature 
and the agriculturist,” it was resolved 
“that the members should pledge them¬ 
selves not to use the plumage of native 
birds in any manner whatever,” and that 
they would forward their “names to the 
Audubon Society to be enrolled among its 
members.” Audubon societies (called 
after John James Audubon, the celebrated 
ornithologist, who died in this city iu 
1851), have already been established in 
several of the States by lovers of birds, 
haters of cruelty and friends of the 
farmer, and the movement is steadily 
extending. What a glorious thiug is cu- 
thusiasm! Was there ever a great reform 
effected without it? Friends aud neigh¬ 
bors may laugh at the enthusiast iu any 
benevolent, humane or otherwise noble 
cause; but if their opinion is worth a 
thought, the laugh is tempered with kind¬ 
liness, and right down in the hearts of 
the most “practical” of them there is an 
increased, if half-pitiful, respect. Oh, 
for an enthusiast in the cause of the birds 
in every neighborhood! 
THE FIGHT AGAINST TEXAS FEVER. 
May 13 has been decided upon as a 
“field day” for the discussion of the Ag¬ 
ricultural Committee’s oleomargerine bill 
in the House of Representatives. The 
several bills on the subject were referred 
for legal consideration to the Judiciary 
Committee of the House, supposed to em¬ 
brace some of the brightest legal lights of 
that body. In its report, just made, 
while it concedes that Congress has the 
right to tax oleomargarine for revenue 
purposes, it objects to such legislation 
aud declares that the evils arising from its 
manufacture and sale must be remedied, 
not by Congress, but by the States. 
The product has obtaiued its present sale 
by fraudulent misrepresentation. Super¬ 
vision of its manufacture, as an uncolored 
product, by the General Government is the 
only way to prevent a continuance of this 
fraudulent practice. Such supervision 
must entail expense which should be paid 
by the manufacturers. For this reason, 
aud to put it on an equal footing with the 
product it has for years been dishonestly 
injuring, it should he taxed. If the 
handlers of it should ever lie forced or 
taught to make anti sell it without dis¬ 
guise, for what it really is, the tax might 
be reduced so as to cover merely the cost 
of supervising the manufacture. It is not 
The usual annual fight against Texas 
fever was begun last Thursday by Gover¬ 
nor Oglesby of Illinois, who issued a 
proclamation, scheduling “all that por¬ 
tion of the United States South of the 35tli 
parallel of latitude (the southern line of 
Tennessee) east of the Mississippi River; 
and south of the 36th parallel (running 
30 miles south of the northern line of Ar¬ 
kansas) west of the river. The scheduled 
region embraces a small part of Southern 
North Carolina, the whole of South Caro¬ 
lina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississ¬ 
ippi, Louisiana and Texas, nearly the 
whole of Arkansas, the Indian Territory, 
New Mexico and Arizona, The importa¬ 
tion of cattle into Illinois from this whole 
region is prohibited hereafter between 
April 1st, and November 1st, or account 
of the existence therein of Texas or splen¬ 
ic fever, except under certain regulations 
prescribed by the State Board of Live 
Stock Commissioners and approved by the 
Governor. This year the proclamation is 
to go into effect on May 15. The Gover¬ 
nors of the other States which arc specially 
liable to infection will, doubtless, at once 
follow the exam pie of Governor Oglesby. 
Then we shall probably soon hear once 
more of Winchesters and bloodshed on the 
“dead line,” along the southern boundary 
of Missouri, Kansas and Colorado, espec¬ 
ially the latter, the men of the North reso¬ 
lutely barring the march of the death¬ 
dealing herds which the men of the 
South, with equal resolution, arc forcing 
onward to the “finishing” pastures of 
Nebraska, Dakota, Wyoming and Mon¬ 
tana, or to the railroad shipping points 
for the markets of Kansas City, St. Louis 
and Chicago. 
The cattle of the scheduled country are 
themselves, to all appearances, quite heal¬ 
thy; yet they impart the deadly fever to 
Northern cattle feeding on the pastures on 
which they have grazed, traveling over 
the roads on which they have been driven, 
or coming in contact with the bedding or 
feed which they have disturbed. If they 
are shipped by rail or river under proper 
precautions, no objection is made any¬ 
where to their passage, and it is probable 
that this will be the exclusive mode of 
transfer ere loug. A telegram early in 
the week from Albany, the northern ter¬ 
minus, nearest to the Panhandle, of the 
Texas railroad system, says the trail 
north from that point is now fairly open, 
and fully 45,000 head of cattle have 
started northward. Thousands of these 
were brought by rail from the southern 
and western parts of the State, as the 
severe drought through those sections 
forced cattlemen, owing to the scarcity of 
water and grass, to send their herds as far 
as possible by rail before starting them on 
the trail. This has never been attempted 
before, and cattlemen find that instead of 
the customary losses on the trail, there is 
no loss at all, aud that the saving in time, 
wages, deaths and condition compensate 
for freight charges. The general impres¬ 
sion there is that iu a short time there 
will be no national cattle trail, as trans¬ 
portation will be found cheaper by rail 
than on the hoof. The resolute stand 
taken by the scheduling States w ill prob¬ 
ably hasten the perception and acknowl¬ 
edgement of this fact. 
BREVITIES. 
Early potatoes at tiie Rural Grounds be¬ 
gan to show above ground April 30. 
We find many newel’s on the Rostiezer 
Pear tree, that have six and seven petals. 
The Yellow-flowering Horse-ehestuut is the 
first large t ree to clothe itself with leaves and 
blossoms 
The leaves of the Variegated Tulip Tree, 
when first they unfold, are distinctly green 
aud yellow. 
During a walk in the woods last week we 
found that many of the flowers of the straw¬ 
berry plants,there growing were pistillates. 
Circus time is at hand. Let the boys go, 
and go yourself. You will leel better for it, 
anil all hands will do better work. 
Chrysanthemums from seeds started in pots 
the last of February, were planted in the gar¬ 
den May 5th. It is supposed they will bloom 
in the Fall. 
May 8.—Oats are well up, and thus early 
checked by drought. Oats never wholly re¬ 
cover from the effects of dry weather any more 
than potatoes do. 
If ever the hens need yarding it is now. 
They will scratch up seed as fast as you cau 
plant it. It is a shame to keep your wife 
chasing heus out of tho garden. Fence them 
iu or out. 
The excellent cuts of Bantam fowls used in 
last week’s number were kindly loaned us by 
Mr. Belmont Perry, of Woodbury, N. J. We 
unfortunately omitted his unmc from the des¬ 
criptive urticle. 
Our method of strawberry culture is to 
mulch with old manure iu the Fall, and uot to 
touch tho soil until after fruitage. Then the 
soil between the rows is turned under und all 
weeds pulled up between the plants. 
Water tho horses frequently. We can’t 
possibly urge this mntter too often upon our 
readers, it will pay, If there is no water 
near the field, haul out a barrel ou n drag, so 
that tho horses can get a drink between times. 
The making of gilt-edged butter exclusively 
is us much to lx- desired by tho dairy inter¬ 
ests of the country as that all men should deal 
honestly Ls to lie desired by t he public at 
large. We do not think, however, that tho 
first of these ends is any more likely than the 
second to be advanced by the fraudulent hand¬ 
lers of oleomargarine, although friend Taylor 
is more sanguine in another part of this 
issue. 
We have never before so early iu the season 
seen so many potato beetles, it is uot found 
that they do much damage to the leaves, though 
after so loug a fast, it might reasonably be 
supposed that, then* appetites would lie very 
keen. But potato boot fes are mi i generis . Any 
animal that, when its laxly is cut in two, walks 
Off as if nothing hail happened aud lives for 
several days afterwards, might be expected 
to do other strange things. 
In Nebraska alone the Union Pacific Rail¬ 
road holds 2,314,901 acres of land which is not 
taxable, because the road has purposely neg¬ 
lected to tuke out patents for it. It is with¬ 
held from settlement, however, until its vulue 
shall be increased by the settlement of the 
adjacent- sections by liorsons who have to pay 
taxes to open up and “improve” the country. 
The wealtny railroad magnates, without pay¬ 
ing a cent of taxes, thus add to their millions 
on account of the taxes levied ou poor settlers. 
