1!I03 
697 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
Events of the Week. 
DOMESTIC.—A 60-mile-an-hour windstorm, with heavy 
rain, passed over New York September 16, breaking win¬ 
dows, tearing off signs and uprooting trees. Several per¬ 
sons were injured by flying timbers. Vessels in the harbor 
were in great danger, and the entire fleet of the Staten 
Island Yacht Club was sunk at its anchorage. A pilot boat 
was driven ashore. The President, coming from Oyster 
Bay on the Sylph» was in danger, and the yacht was 
forced to put into the Brooklyn Navy Yard. In Brooklyn 
church steeples Were blown down, streets flooded, trolley 
cars delayed and two drivers injured by falling buildings. 
In New Rochelle many yachts were blown ashore. There 
were thrilling rescues. At City Island there was damage 
estimated at $100,000. Jersey City was badly flooded, trees 
were uprooted and street car service hampered. At At¬ 
lantic City, N. J., the damage amounted to $30,000. There 
was heavy damage and serious loss of life among the fish¬ 
ing fleet from New York, and the loss of life at sea was 
large. The British tramp steamer Mexicano, under char¬ 
ter to the Standard Oil Company and bound from Phila¬ 
delphia for Vera Cruz with a cargo of petroleum, went 
down September 15 off Cape Hatteras; 17 men lost. Sep¬ 
tember 16, when the gale hit the Maine coast, 15 fishermen 
were drowned off Pemaquid Point.Orrando P. 
Dexter, a wealthy New York man, was assassinated at 
Santa Clara, N. Y., in the Adirondack region, September 
19. He had bought an immense tract of land in the North 
Woods, and had become an object of dislike to guides and 
lumbermen whose livelihood had been taken away or cur¬ 
tailed. The preserve which he owned is one of the most 
magnificent in the entire North Woods. It comprises 
nearly 10,000 acres and covers an area of 15 square miles. 
Dexter paid $5 an acre for the land and expended $100,000 
in improvements. The preserve is surrounded by a high 
wire fence beyond which no outsider may venture. Thou¬ 
sands of deer roam this immense park, and the streams 
and Dexter Lake, a magnificent body of water, are filled 
with the choicest fish. Throughout the preserve are 
tacked signs warning against trespass. It is believed that 
this exclusion furnished the motive of the murder. . . . 
The jury in the slander suit of Thomas Robinson against 
former Postmaster-General John Wanamaker at Pitts¬ 
burg, Pa., September 21, returned a verdict in favor of Mr. 
Wanamaker. Thomas Robinson, of Butler, formerly Su¬ 
perintendent of State Printing, endeavored to recover 
$25,000 damages from Mr. Wanamaker in an action for 
slander. In 1898 Mr. Wanamaker made a number of politi¬ 
cal speeches, and in one delivered at Williamstown he was 
charged with slandering Robinson.Deputy Com¬ 
missioner of Labor Bush, of Nebraska, has notified mana¬ 
gers for Cudahy, Swift, Armour and the Omaha Packing 
Company to dispense with the services of nearly 500 chil¬ 
dren between the ages of 10 and 14 years, to permit them 
to attend school. This la the first instance of the com¬ 
pulsory education law being enforced. Each of the plants 
employs moi'e than 100 children.The school 
board at Princeton, Ind., decided not to admit a Filipino 
boy into the public schools of that place. P. T. Gilbert, 
who is the instructor in English of the Princeton schools, 
took a fondness to a Filipino boy while in the Philippines 
and decided to take him to Princeton. The lad is 12 years 
old and intelligent. When Prof. Gilbert expressed his 
intention of placing the lad in the public schools of 
Princeton the “color line’’ was raised, and the prejudice 
against the lad became so great that the members of the 
school board were forced to cgill a meeting and decided 
against the boy.Breathitt County. Ky.. has a 
strong rival for lawlessness and bloodshed in Monroa 
County, Ala., where 23 murders have occurred since Jan¬ 
uary, two of the men killed being sheriffs. Twenty-three 
homicides occurred in this county last year. There is 
practically no attempt to enforce the laws, as Juries are 
afraid to do anything. Local papers take no notice of 
a killing for fear of revenge. 
ADMINISTRATION.—A Sub-Committee of the Senate 
Indian Committee, consisting of Senators Stewart, Clark, 
of Wyoming; Platt, of Connecticut, and Quay will go to 
Indian Territory October 25 and conduct an inquiry into 
the matters alleged against Federal officials and others. 
Senator Quarles, of Wisconsin, who is a member of the 
committee, was asked to go, but declined, saying he had 
visited the Territory last year and was familiar with the 
situation. Mr. Quarles does not think there is anything 
going on there to make any fuss over, and that if the 
Indians are being robbed that is their own lookout. 
The case of State Senator George A. Green, 
charged with conspiracy and bribery, growing out of the 
postal investigation, was adjourned until September 28 
by United States Commissioner Hall. The Commissioner 
denied a motion of the prisoner’s counsel that the 
charges be dismissed on the grounds that the indictments 
upon which the charges are based do not recite sufficient 
facts to constitute a crime. 
PHILIPPINES.—One hundred cases of bubonic plague 
are reported in Tondo, the most northern and populous 
suburban district of Manila. Of these 80 have had a 
fatal termination. Twelve cases, with nine deaths, aie 
also reported from Cebu, in the Province of Visayas. 
Cholera is prevalent in all parts of the island, the result 
of an absence of rain.One hundred fanatics 
have attacked the headquarters of the constabulary at 
San Jose, in the Province of Neuva Ecija, Island of 
Luzon, attempting to take the place by storm. I he at¬ 
tacking force was repulsed with a loss of eight; the 
constabulary lost five men. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—Farm mechanics, a new chair, 
has been established at the Agricultural College at Ames, 
Iowa. C. J. Zintheo has been installed at the head, and 
instruction in all kinds of farm machinery, motive power, 
drainage, the use of electricity and other matters of use 
on the farm will be given. 
The directors of the Dallas Commercial Club have called 
a National convention, to be held in Dallas, Tex., on 
October 8, to consider the boll weevil situation in the 
cotton-growing districts. The attendance of delegates 
from all the cotton-growing States and of representatives 
from the National Department of Agriculture is desired. 
Since the efforts of the State Government of Texas, 
which offered n reward of $50,000 for a remedy, have 
failed it is desired that the National Government aid 
the movement by employing scientific knowledge aiul in¬ 
ventive genius in behalf of the end sought. While the 
boll weevil ravages in Texas this year are much less than 
last season, still the feeling prevails that only by constant 
vigilance and the most extensive and comprehensive ef¬ 
forts can the pest be kept from extending into the entire 
cotton-growing section of the United States. 
Arrangements have been completed for the establish¬ 
ment of a department of forestry in Purdue University. 
Experiments and testing of the different trees and shrub¬ 
bery in the United States will be the principal work of 
the new branch of the school, and the Government will 
soon erect a large building and install apparatus needed 
in the study. An extensive tract of land will of a neces¬ 
sity be added to the already large Purdue farm for the 
raising and cultivation of the trees and shrubs, and will 
greatly broaden the scope of the University. The Govern¬ 
ment considered many schools in the Middle West for the 
establishinent of the school of forestry, but concluded to 
place it at Purdue, Lafayette, Ind. 
The Association of American Cemetery Superintendents 
held its seventeenth annual meeting at Rochester, N. Y., 
September 8 to 10, John C. Dix, of Cleveland, being, as 
has become the practice, advanced from the vice-presi¬ 
dency to the presidency, Chicago was selected for the 
1904 meeting. 
The annual picnic and clambake of the Mercer Co., 
N. J., Pomona Grange was held near Allentown, N. J., 
August 26. There was very good speaking by Sister 
Southerland, Lady Assistant Steward of Massachusetts 
State Grange, Brother Geo. F. Gaunt, Master State 
Grange, D. J. Perrine, president of Middlesex County 
Board of Agriculture, A. H. Rogers, Master of Mercer 
County Pomona Grange. The Pomona Grange will have 
headquarters on the Interstate Fair Grounds, Trenton, N. 
J.. September 28-October 2, where all Patrons are cor¬ 
dially invited to rest and check wraps and other parcels. 
This fair is the best held in New Jersey. 
THE NEW YORK APPLE CROP. 
It is difficult to make an accurate estimate of the apple 
crop this season, owing to the fact that it is very un¬ 
evenly distributed. It is certain, however, that the crop 
in this section is less than last year. The quality is much 
better than last season, a fact that is favorable for im¬ 
proved prices as compared with last year, as the demor¬ 
alized markets for that crop, I consider, were due more 
to the abominable quality of the fruit and the wide¬ 
spread fraud in packing, chiefly on the part of dealers, 
rather than to the large crop. In fact, the press com¬ 
mittee of the International Apple Shippers’ Association 
at its recent meeting claimed the crop of last season 
amounted to only 47,000,000 barrels, which is about 6,000,- 
000 barrels less than the estimafe of the State Fruit 
Growers in August. 1902, for the 15 leading States. They 
also reported a decrease in the United States and Can¬ 
ada of nearly 2,000,000 barrels this year, as compared with 
last. As there is undoubtedly a great increase In the 
South this would indicate a very large decrease in the 
great commercial apple belt of the North. Another fact 
that should be taken into account is the abnormal de¬ 
crease, or practical failure, of the apple crop of Europe, 
particularly in England and France. Thia insures a large 
foreign demand for our better grades. These facts taken 
together would seem to justify growers in demanding 
good prices for Winter fruit. Buyers, however, are very 
conservative, and but few sales have yet been made. The 
only ones that have come to my knowledge have been at 
$2 per barrel. w. t. mann. 
Niagara Co.» N. Y, 
HE FAVORS THE BARGE CANAL 
As the opponents of canal improvement have had their 
innings, I want to make answer to some of the state¬ 
ments of Mr. Wood on page 609. We can all agree that 
millions are incomprehensible; twenty millions for the 
annual State budget, as much more for a State Capitol, 
and four hundred millions expense for our National Gov¬ 
ernment; surely the word million is an everyday word, 
and in this age of great things we are no doubt careless 
about its use, especially when the sum figures in our tax 
budget. By the proposed improvement the maximum 
rate of taxation cannot exceed $1.20 per thousand of 
valuation, and Gov. Odell assures us that there will be 
no burden of taxation, as most if not all the expense will 
be met by indirect taxation, of which the farmer has lit¬ 
tle or no part. However, the opponents assume that the 
entire cost is to be met by direct taxation. Let us an¬ 
alyze our own town finances and it will be applicable to 
every rural community in the State. Our assessed valua¬ 
tion is about $800,000, so if the maximum amount was ex¬ 
pended we would have to pay annually $960. Last year 
we paid State taxes to the amount of $145.28, and re¬ 
ceived from the State $1,957.01; we have just voted to 
abolish the labor system on our highways and adopted 
the money system under which “we will be obliged to 
raise about $1,000, and to this amount the State will add 
50 per cent or $500, so that the coming year we will lack 
about $2,300 of being self-supporting. Now this benevo¬ 
lence on the part of the State is almost wholly contrib¬ 
uted by the canal cities, made great by this channel of 
commerce. It seems to me that while the farmer is ask¬ 
ing what benefit is the canal to him his city brother may 
well ask what benefit are the highways 400 miles away, 
or why should he be taxed to educate the children of 
communities that are forever meddling with city local 
affairs, and are now opposing one of the very things 
which has given us this taxable wealth. We hardly think 
Mr. Wood consistent v/hen he says the transportation 
question has been settled in favor of the railroads, and 
goes on to say “every acre of land in the West com¬ 
petes with every acre in the State of New York in the 
markets of New York City, and we object to spending 
immense sums of our money to give them an unfair ad¬ 
vantage over us,’’ fully admitting all that the most cheer¬ 
ful advocate of canal improvement has ever claimed— 
cheaper transportation. I must confess I admire Mr. 
Wood’s frankness when he says it is unfair to tax the 
railroads of our State to build a competition to be op¬ 
erated at their and our expense. For once we are sorry 
to say the farmers and railroad.s have joined hands for 
the admitted purpose of stilling competition. We are 
now having to pay nearly 50 per cent more for coal tlian 
before railroad combinations, and everyone knows that 
scores of people died in New York City last Winter from 
lack of warmth, because the railroads refused to deliver 
coal, although thousands of carloads were side-tracked 
almost everywhere. 
I think it safe to say 25 men are now able to dictate 
the policy of every important railroad in the United 
States, and the question of a great free water-way from 
the Central West, the granary of the world, to the sea¬ 
board, is of more importance than ever before. Con¬ 
sider for one moment what the packers and railroads 
have done to the cattle interests, reduced the price of 
meat of the producer and increased the price to the con¬ 
sumer. “giving the devil his due,” as it were. 
Is there a single reason why this proposed improve¬ 
ment should not be favorable? Surely we are being more 
than generously treated in the division of school and 
other public moneys. We believe Gov. Odell, Mr. Wood 
u the contrary notwithstanding, when he says that the 
expense of this great improvement will be mostly if not 
wholly met by indirect taxation, and that the added pro.s- 
perity to these great industrial centers means a greater 
demand for the products of our farms, giving a measure 
of prosperity to us all. julian a. orh. 
Sardinia, N. Y. 
Comment by Hon. James Wood. 
1 have carefully read the interesting letter of Mr. Uir 
in favor of the canal proposition, and do not find any¬ 
thing requiring a reply. It is a novelty to find an intelli¬ 
gent man who is not afraid of taxation, but rather en¬ 
joys it. The assessed property of the State pays equal 
taxes everywhere. The farmer’s property is all in sight, 
and the assessor find it, while others are able to keep a 
great share of their property out of sight. The new 
schemes of indirect taxation may be only temporary, 
the courts or the Legislature may upset them at any 
time, but the farmer’s taxes are as sure as fate. The 
advocates of the canal only talk of the first cost. Not 
a word is ever said about the cost of maintenance and 
operation, which will be perpetual. Let me Illustrate. In 
the year 1991 the canals of the State earned for the boat¬ 
men and all concerned the sum of $974,874.70. in order to 
enable them to earn this the State paid out of its treas¬ 
ury $3,308,741.79 of the taxpayers’ money. If the baige 
canal is constructed as provided by the pending bill, and 
if every esiimate as to its cost, its traffic and its saving, 
made by its advocates, is found correct, the canal will 
earn $3,676,228.39 per year, and for this, allowing the cost 
of maintenance to be the same as in 1901, the State will 
have to pay $10,652,415.79! The farmers will find whether 
there is any particular pleasure in this, james wood. 
QUEBEC POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 
'I'he Summer meeting of the Quebec Bornological So¬ 
ciety took place August 26-27 at Abbotsford, at the foot 
oi tne picturesque Yamasha Mountain. Professors Craig, 
of Itnaca; Waugh, of Massachusetts, and Macouii, of 
tile Governnieniai Farm, Ottawa, were present, and 
many of the leading fruit growers of Quebec and north¬ 
ern Vermont. An interesting and instructive progi-amine 
bad been arranged. Mr. Whyte, of Ottawa, addressed the 
meeting on gooseberries, and showed samples of the skill 
of his hands. Such fruit was never seen before in this 
vicinity. Plums and strawberries were subjects of papers 
by local experts; orchard cultivation, a practical and in¬ 
structive paper by Henry 'i'ruckell; spraying, by Mr. 
Reynaud,of La Trappe, and a bee paper, by Mr. Winters, 
of Como, Que., seemed to create the most interest among 
those assembled. The feature of the proceedings was the 
illustrated lecture by Prof. Craig, A Trip to Jamaica. 
Prof. Macoun. on the variation in individual trees, show¬ 
ing figures of the yield of trees the same age in the same 
orchard, gave those present food for reflection. He showed 
tables of the amount gathered from apple and plum 
trees grown on the Central Experiment Farm, some 
trees yielding three times the amount of others planted 
at the same time and with the same treatment. William 
Craig, Jr., of Gibbland Farm, Abbotsford, and Norman 
Jack, of Chateauguay, Que., were elected delegates from 
the Society to the forthcoming meeting of the American 
Bornological Society at Boston, Mass., September 10-12. 
Splendid weather favored the convention and the attend¬ 
ance was large, particularly at the evening sessions. 
Quite a collection of fruit of good quality was shown. 
Robert Hamilton and Dr. Wood, the jgenial president and 
secretary of the Society, deserve praise for the harmoni¬ 
ous way things passed off. Local talent furnished va¬ 
riety of amusement, and all departed, voting the proceed¬ 
ings an unqualified success. h. t. 
THE GNION CROP in this section is the shortest 
harvested in many years, and the poorest in quality. A 
number of fields have been plowed under, and some others 
might as well be. A few, however, have fair yields, and 
at prices prevalent now will realize a fair profit. White 
onions selling at $5 per bari-el make a very attractive 
Cl op to the would-be grower, but after he has grown 
them a few years he knows more about them. Quite a 
number of white onions have already been shipped from 
the field at the price stated, but the rainy damp weatlier 
of the past two weeks has hindered the drying process 
and caused rapid deterioi-ation in quality. J. a. 
Westport, Conn. 
WISCONSIN CROPS.—Oats are being thrashed in very 
poor condition, and a light crop; potatoes rotting badly. 
Corn is good but late; will take from two to three weeks 
of good weather to ripen. We are filling our silos, but 
fields are so soft we can only run the binder on high 
ground, and haul small loads, which makes slow work. 
Madison, Wis. _ H. l. o. 
BUSINESS BITS. 
Among the exhibits that attracted more than usual at¬ 
tention at the State Fair was the Foster steel stanchion. 
The manufacturer is Frank H. Battles, the well-known 
seed grower of Rochester, N. Y. A neat little booklet, 
fully describing this stanchion, will be mailed free to any 
farmer writing for it. 
Those wagon and cart wheels offered by Hobson & Co., 
17 State St., New York City, should appeal to every 
farmer whose wagon is in need of repairs. A new set 
of wheels will often make the old wagon as good as new. 
This firm also makes the famous Hobson dumping carts— 
two or four wheels, and in 12 style.s. 
Nowadays it is possible to buy almost any household 
necessity or article of apparel direct from the maker at 
considerably reduced cost. The Glen Rock Woolen Mills, 
Somerville, N. J., are offering either readymade or made- 
to-order suits direct from their woolen mills at very 
reasonable prices; or, if you prefer, they will sell you 
the cloth. Samples will be sent free. 
It is not the first time that we have had a good word 
to say for the Kemp manure spreader, but a machine 
which occupies so important a field in farm economy 
cannot be too frequently brought to public notice. This 
note will have served a good purpose if it leads a single 
farmer who is yet without a manure spreader to procure 
the Kemp catalogue and make a study of its usefulness 
in connection with his own land. Kemp & Btirpee Mfg. 
t-'ompany, Syracuse, N. Y., are the manufacturers 
