56 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
January 24 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE nXJSlNESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established l8r>o. 
to blame for the waste in these lines; the responsi¬ 
bility must be laid entirely upon Congressmen, who 
appear to think that they have a right to waste the 
people’s money. 
IlERBKUT W. Cor.i.iN'owool), Editor. 
nil. WALTER VAN fLEET, I . , _ 
Mils. E. T. Koylk, Associates. 
John J. Dillon, Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLUAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, 
equal to Ss. 6(1., or HU mark.s, or lOV^ francs. 
“ A SQUARE DEAL,” 
We believe that every advertisement In this paper Is 
backed by a responsible person. But to make doubly 
sure we will make good any loss to paid subscribers 
sustained by trusting any deliberate swindler advertising 
in our columns, and any such swindler will be publicly 
exposed. We protect subscribers against rogues, but we 
do not guarantee to adjust trifling differences between 
subscribers and honest responsible advertisers. Neither 
will we be responsible for the debts of honest bankrupts 
.sanctioned by the courts. Notice of the complaint mu.st 
be sent to us within one month of the time of the trans¬ 
action, and you must have mentioned The Rural New- 
Yorker when writing the advertiser. 
Name and address of sender, and what the remittance 
Is for, should appear in every letter. 
Remittances may be made in money order, express 
order, personal check or bank draft 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
409 Pearl Street, New York. 
SATURDAY, JANUARY 24, 1903. 
The New York daily papers have been reproducing 
photographs showing miles of loaded coal cars stand¬ 
ing in railroad yards and on sidings within a few 
miles of this city. There is no visible reason why 
this coal is held back instead of being hurried to New 
York, where there is certainly no lack of demand. It 
looks like a hold-up on the part of the operators, an 
astonishing policy (similar to lighting matches in a 
powder mill) considering the present state of public 
sentiment. In commenting on the situation the 
Journal of Commerce says: 
If this is due to the independent operators in Pennsyl¬ 
vania, in league with speculative dealers in this city to 
keep up the price while the people suffer, they .should 
understand that they are playing an exceedingly danger¬ 
ous game.It is calculated to Inflame public 
feeling even to the point of not waiting for an exercise 
of public authority.If they try the public 
patience much further they are liable to bring upon 
themselves consequences which will far outweigh any 
profit they may make from the present necessities of the 
people. 
« 
The letter printed below hits near the bull’s eye. 
No doubt the one you have written or have in mind is 
stronger and clearer, but this one will be understood: 
10 V¥eeks for 10 Cents, 
Good friends have been sending in these 10 weeks 
subscriptions at a lively rate for the past month or so. 
We return thanks for all who have done so. It has 
resulted in the employment of more help to take care 
of them, and that means just a little more ability of 
city people to buy and pay for the products of the 
farm. The 10 cents comes to us, we pay it out to help, 
and back it goes to you for food. But it does more. 
It increases the capacity of the paper to help you, 
particularly in an educational way, and in a more 
general sense by making it a stronger power to sup¬ 
port and protect your interests. That is what we want 
it to be. Speak to your neighbor about it, and send 
us his 10 cents for 10 weeks trial. 
* 
What chance has the eastern apple grower to com¬ 
pete with western competition? Just one chance and 
that the greatest of all—quality. Plant fruit of high 
quality, feed, spray and pack. Keep out the culls and 
the worms and fear not Ben Davis! 
* 
As most readers know, a fire on May 7 of last year 
destroyed several buildings and other property on the 
grounds of the New York Experiment Station at 
Geneva. It is estimated that in addition to the money 
received from insurance $25,000 will be required to 
equip the station properly. There should not be a 
moment’s hesitation in providing this money. The 
Station needs it. That is enough said, and farmers 
should see to it that Dr. Jordan is provided with 
proper tools. 
* 
We are asked whether the New York State Agri¬ 
cultural Department is in favor of building and equip¬ 
ping the College of Agriculture at Cornell! We as¬ 
sume so—most certainly! The best farmers of the 
State want the college. Every farmers’ organization 
that has yet held its meeting has called upon the 
Legislature to make the needed appropriation! Who 
ever heard of an agricultural department standing 
still when farmers openly demand such an honest, 
worthy and necessary thing? In favor of it? Why 
of course—how absurd to suppose that it will be 
necessary to stick postage stamps on the back of the 
Commissioner and his assistants! 
* 
La.st year the United Slates Department of Agri¬ 
culture issued 750 publications, aggregating a total 
of 10,586,000 copies. People who revel in statistics 
might calculate that these publications, separated into 
their component leaves, might line all the carpets of 
all the farm sitting-rooms from the Penobscot to 
Puget Sound, and still leave an overplus which, pasted 
into moth-proof bags, might enclose all the Winter 
overcoats of all the farmers from the Red River Val¬ 
ley to the Gulf of Mexico. Furthermore, utilized in 
this way, this literature would serve a more useful 
purpose than it does, in many instances, at present. 
Much of it is valuable and timely, but we believe that 
as now distributed, a vast amount of the public money 
is wasted. The useful farmers’ bulletins, which go 
directly to the farmers who ask for them, represent 
a comparatively small part of the outlay. Where 
Congressmen are permitted to act as distributing 
agents, they soon look upon Government literature 
as they do upon Government seeds—as a political 
largess, to be applied “where it will do the most 
good.’’ The Department of Agriculture itself is not 
The Governor cannot take offense at such a letter— 
he will be glad to receive it. 
What are these “fundamental rights’’ which Mr. 
Smith refers to? 
Two weeks ago we printed the Governor’s words in 
small type—now we print them in italics: 
The farmer, constituting as he does the greatest single 
producing factor of the Commonwealth and of the na¬ 
tion, is deserving of support and encouragement, and 
of the extension of such privileges as xcill make his 
farm more profitable, thus adding to the resources of 
the State. 
That places Governor Odell squarely on record. He 
very properly singles out the farmer from doctors, 
lawyers, merchants and mechanics because he knows 
what the country owes to the men on the soil. He 
would be but human if he also remembers what he 
personally owes to them. Of course the Governor 
would not have made any such general statement had 
he not expected the farmers themselves to come for¬ 
ward and make their wants known in detail. There¬ 
fore any farmer who tells Governor Odell that he 
favors the Agricultural College really does so upon 
the Governor’s invitation. Some things are develop¬ 
ing which will make it absolutely necessary for farm¬ 
ers to take this matter into their own hands. We 
have never asked our friends to vote with the postage 
stamp unless we felt that there was a vital need for 
it. There is such a need right now in New York 
State. The necessity is greater than most farmers 
imagine. We urge you to write to Gov. Odell at once. 
* 
Are city people compelled to pay $16 or more per 
ton for coal? The newspapers say so—what are the 
facts? Those who buy coal by the full ton or in 
larger quantities do not pay such prices. There are 
many who buy at the rate of 50 pounds or even less 
at a time. They do not have the money with which 
to buy larger quantities or have no place to store it. 
There are thousands of such people and they often 
pay at the rate of $20 per ton! How does this inter¬ 
est a farmer? Such people must figure closely. There 
is no margin between income and outgo. When fuel 
empties the purse there is nothing left for food. The 
coal dealers and the railroads receive the extra dollar 
which would otherwise be spent for apples, butter or 
meat! 
* 
So-called “Novelty” companies are advertising in 
country papers for “home writers,” They offer from 
$7 to $20 per 1,000 for people to write letters to^ friends ' 
praising goods or starting other writers! A reader i 
sends the following note: 
I 
I could easily do this work if it was not a swindle 
scheme. Do you know anything good or bad about it, 
or at least, what is your opinion? 
We know nothing good about such concerns. We 
group them all together as too bad to touch with a 
10-foot pole—much less with an honest pen! Our 
opinion is that after the full exposure of this letter¬ 
writing game last year any man who will go into it 
now stands in need of a guardian or requires a cure 
for his memory! 
« 
The R. N.-Y. does not pretend to be an “ONLY” 
paper, and we have no time to stand and hold a mag- ' 
nifying glass before its good points. The truth ap¬ 
pears to be that we have no need to do so. Others 
are vei’y willing to do it for us. Here is an adver¬ 
tiser’s comment: i 
I judge other farmers by myself, and I know that at I 
our house The R. N.-Y. is, next to the Bible and the dic¬ 
tionary, the supreme authority. I would rather have 
half a dozen of your “business farmers” than a wagon¬ 
load of the two-for-a-nickel crowd some of the papers 
have. HENRY FIELD. 
Iowa. 
Some weeks ago a Philadelphia business man want¬ 
ed a farmer to take charge of his farm. The “Hope 
Farm man” printed part of his letter. Immediately 
there came a stream of letters—from Cape Cod to 
Montana—from skillful and honest men who are i 
ready to work. This is what our Philadelphia friend 
says: 
The tone of the letters, composition, critical Judgment, I 
etc., show me that there seems to be a higher standard M 
of Intelligence or a more observing class than there is Ij 
around our section. I have received hundreds of letters r 
from Philadelphia papers in answer to “ads ” for a I 
farmer, but the best could in no manner compare with I 
the least attractive that has come to me through you! I 
Have we not a right to be proud of such letters? r 
Clean, honorable and fair dealing! Self-culture and 1 
improvement of mind and body—fearing no man who 
stands with wrong or oppression. These are some of 
the things that The R. N.-Y. has tried hard to teach 
and proclaim. The supply of “business farmers” and 
competent managers is larger than many people 
think. We can introduce them to any who need their 
trade or their service. 
« 
BREVITIES. 
Skim-milk —it keeps the hens as fine as silk. 
A STRONG team—confldence and honest ambition. 
Who is the best talker? The man who knows when to 
stop. 
What have you been doing to strengthen the farmers’ 
institutes in your district? 
A LIVE language for live men—giving the best of the 
dead languages about dead men. 
Sat a few words and say them to the point. Then stop 
and let your limber tongue unjolnt. 
The man who can can Keiffer and label It Bartlett can’t 
be candid about his canned goods. 
They tell us the farmer is only a unit in society. Well, 
a live unit is better than a dead one. 
Why do farmers fall to mix their own fertilizers? One 
reason is that they wait until the ground is all ready 
before buying. 
We call attention to Mr. Cook’s excellent report of the 
Vermont Dairymen’s Association—page 63. It is full of 
sound suggestions. 
We hope to know more about the danger of using 
poisonous preservatives in food when Dr. Wiley gets 
through with those young men—page 51. 
The American soldier must take great pride in having 
his officers argue for him that if he can’t have one sort 
of a rumshop he is sure to go to another. 
Some genius has just discovered that crude petroleum 
cures lockjaw. This treatment, however, does not seem 
to affect the Jaws of the Standard Oil octopus. 
Prop. Koch, the distinguished bacteriologist, has gone 
to Rhodesia, South Africa, where the British Chartered 
South African Company will pay him $250 a day and hi.s 
expenses to study the cattle plague. 
There are some good reports from fruit growers who 
are using dust blowers for “dry spraying” trees. Is it a 
fact that such reports usually come from localities where 
water for spraying is hard to obtain? 
One of the leading English Insurance companies now 
Insures against appendicitis. For a premium of five shil¬ 
lings the Insured, should he undergo the operation, will 
have all his direct expenses paid up to $1,000. In the event 
of his death during or after operation a similar sum will 
be paid. 
Railroad men say that no cow worth less than $75 was 
ever killed by a train, and the officials engaged In stamp- , 
ing out the foot-and-mouth disease in New England say 
that judging by the Indemnity asked for Infected stock, 
only the most valuable animals are always attacked by 
this disease. 
