744 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
October 2-j 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS EABMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850 . 
Herbert W. Collingwood, Editor. 
Dr. Walter van Fleet, ( , , ^ 
Mrs. E. T. Boyle, j-Associates. 
John J, Dillon, Business Manager. 
SX7BSOBIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, 
equal to Ss. 6d., or marks, or francs. 
J2.04, 
“A SOU ARE 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 
pstained 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 must 
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, OCTOBER 24, 1903. 
Thebe never was such a mix-up in politics as there 
is now in New York City. That would not concern 
The R.-N. Y. except that it will have a bearing on the 
canal vote. With interest centered on the city elec¬ 
tion comparatively few voters here will care enough 
about the canal to vote either w’ay. On the other 
hand, through the rural counties the question of dig¬ 
ging out the canal is above all others. The indiffer¬ 
ence here is such that farmers have a chance to win 
if they will muster their forces and get out the vote 
as they would for some political issue. .Join hands 
and work! 
* 
The National Grange will meet in Rochester, N. Y., 
on November 11-10. This is an event of great im¬ 
portance and New York Patrons must see to it that 
the meeting is well attended. Numbers count in these 
days, especially at a farmers’ meeting. Let farmers 
crowd into Rochester in such numbers as to attract 
attention, and every worthy farm enterprise in the 
State will be benefited by it. Too many of our pub¬ 
lic men do not understand what the Grange is or 
what it is doing. We must make them understand 
that it is doing more for practical American civiliza¬ 
tion than any other organization in the country. 
* 
The Illinois Farmers’ Club has issued a vigorous 
circular attacking the sideshows at the Illinois State 
Fair. Here is a sample: 
No reasonable excuse for admitting these corrupting, 
public-fleecing fakes to the grounds on the basis that 
the revenue thus obtained is needed for the maintenance 
of a fair whose receipts from legitimate sources are 
more than adequate to meet its expenses. 
We are told that the Inter-State Fair at Trenton, 
N. J., was this year “the worst collection of fakes and 
snide shows ever brought together at an agricultural 
exhibition!’’ New York has cleaned up the State fair. 
Why should New Jersey and Illinois continue to give 
farmers a foul fair? 
* 
It seems that the American cotton crop is in less 
danger from foreign competition than it is from a 
worm. The boll weevil has become so destructive that 
unless some way of checking it can be found the cot¬ 
ton crop will fail. The State of Texas offered a re¬ 
ward for a simple method of destroying this insect. 
We are told that more than 300 different plans were 
offered. They ranged all the way from hand- picking 
to training birds to catch the insect, but none was 
considered worthy of the prize. The National Depart¬ 
ment of Agriculture is helping. Three methods are 
suggested. The use of poison and other insecticides 
comes first. Then various methods of culture and 
the use of “trap crops’’ to catch the insects. It is 
also thought that a new variety of cotton may be 
bred which can either resist the insect or ripen be¬ 
fore it can do full damage. The spectacle of Na¬ 
tional and State Government fighting a worm is a 
novel one, yet there is more gain and more true glory 
in it than in a war against some foreign nation. 
Two farmers go home at the close of day. They 
live on neighboring farms, breathe the same air, eat 
much the same food a,nd perhaps attend the same 
church. One goes sadly, with hanging head and 
brooding thoughts, unhappy and discontented. For 
him the sunset only means the end of another day 
of toil—the coming of a cheerless night. The other 
gazes over the hills at the sunset and seems to see in 
it a wonderful painting in which God has blended the 
colors of hope and promise. To that man the sunset 
brings rest from a day of toil, and the promise of a 
happier and better to-morrow. Thus the two men 
pass homeward, one seeing only the mean toil and 
drudgery of his life, the other lifted above and be¬ 
yond it. The difference between the two men is that 
one sees only the material side of farming, while the 
other has kept alive and cultured the spiritual side 
of it. One man walks alone—^keeping step with his 
own desires, narrowing the needs and ambitions of a 
farmer’s life down to the pocketbook measure. The 
other sees something of the spiritual side of his busi¬ 
ness. Hope, beauty, prophecy walk home with him. 
He looks over the hills and thinks that however hum¬ 
ble his farm home may be, the foundation of the na¬ 
tion is built upon just such homes as he is trying to 
make. The man’s work is glorified as he remembers 
the power that lies in every human life for growth 
and development. Yes, some farmers deal with dead 
things alone—money and what it will buy. Others 
keep alive the spiritual side of their calling and deal 
with living things. One reason why we respect 
and honor the Grange is because it recognizes the 
need of this spiritual side of farming, and tries to 
cultivate it in a practical way. 
* 
The affairs of the shipyard trust are being ripped 
up, and they reveal a system of “waterworks’’ that 
would drown almost anything. The companies ab¬ 
sorbed by this trust had a total capital of less than 
$30,000,000, with nearly half of that w'ater. After com¬ 
bining the trust undertook to do business on a basis 
of $80,000,000. In other w'ords, with actual assets 
probably worth less than $15,000,000 they undertook 
to mix over $60,000,000 of “water” or fictitious value. 
Of course such a soggy mass was sure to go down, 
and take with it thousands of “innocent” people who 
bought the watered stock. The crazy desire to de¬ 
ceive people by selling “water” is the curse of the 
age in high or low. Farmers near large cities buy 
stable manure. Before they buy it all the water that 
it will hold is put on through a hose—and the farmer 
pays for it all. We heard of a man who had ducks 
for sale. He let them get hungry and then fed them 
cornmeal and fine sand mixed. They gorged upon it and 
were fhen sold at live weight. The man received the 
price of live duck for a few pounds of sand. Before 
farmers can ever settle this infamous trust “water¬ 
ing” crime, they must recognize the fact that the dis¬ 
honest sand in the duck will never dam the water in 
the trust! 
♦ 
The American Apple Consumers’ League was start¬ 
ed as an experiment. The writer noticed that apples 
were never served at some first-class hotels and res¬ 
taurants. Guests were offered oranges or bananas, 
but a good baked apple was rarely found. We began 
to call for apples at such places, believing that such 
a demand would encourage hotel keepers to serve 
them. This proved to be the case, others joined in 
the campaign until now thousands of apple eaters 
do their best to tongue-graft apple to the hotel bill 
of fare. There can be no question about the value of 
such work. Baked apple is now a regular dish at 
hundreds of places where formerly it was never men¬ 
tioned. Commission men in large cities report an 
increased trade in apples from all eating houses, and 
in many private families sour apples are taking the 
place of oranges. There are still some faint-hearted 
members of the League, who eat their own share of 
apples, but rarely spread the gospel of apple eating. 
We must encourage them by example. Let us hold 
an experience meeting. We want reports from those 
who know that they have started others at eating 
or serving apples. How was it done? Tell us all 
about it! 
* 
Fob the past year or more farmers and others have 
been asked to buy shares in various companies which 
are said to promote rubber culture. The usual state¬ 
ment is that some one has secured a large tract of 
land in Mexico or Central America. Money is needed 
to develop it into a plantation of rubber trees. The 
money is to be raised by selling small blocks of 
shares at a low price. It seems that millions of dol¬ 
lars have been raised in this way, and we have been 
asked whether such investments are sound. The De¬ 
partment of Agriculture has issued an excellent bulle¬ 
tin on the culture of rubber which every investor 
ought to read. There is no doubt as to the value 
of crude rubber. The annual importations for the 
past five years average $28,000,000. While the tree can 
be grown in Mexico and Central America, the regions 
adapted to it are limited. Clearing the land is ex¬ 
pensive, and any practical system of culture requires 
a long time and great care and skill. With the right 
conditions and honest, capable men to manage the en¬ 
terprise, rubber culture can be made successful. It 
is still an experiment, and few men thoroughly under¬ 
stand the business. Speaking of the various rubber 
companies which offer stock for sale, 0. F. Cook, who 
writes the Bulletin mentioned, says: 
It is certain that their adv'ertising matter is being pre¬ 
pared by persons who know little about tropical agricul¬ 
ture in general or rubber culture in particular, or by 
those who carelessly or intentionally misrepresent the 
facts. The appeal is to the cupidity rather than the 
good sense of the investor, though it is probably super¬ 
fluous to warn those who have not yet learned that safe 
investments bringing annual dividends of from 20 to 200 
per cent do not go begging in the newspapers and maga¬ 
zines, while millions are available for anything that can 
assure returns at five per cent. 
It is also stated that the importers and manufac¬ 
turers of rubber who have been familiar with the 
facts for years, have invested no money in rubber 
culture except for experiment. If there were great 
fortunes to be made in rubber culture, these men 
would be the first to start it. The Agricultural De¬ 
partment has done well to make the facts public. It 
seems likely that the future may find successful rub¬ 
ber plantations in Porto Rico, or even in Florida or 
Texas. Just now, however, we think there is more 
money in raising Baldwin apples on the New England 
hills. Why not invest money at home? 
* 
The troops of hunters or casual trolley tourists 
who descend upon country neighborhoods, to the 
detriment of farm and garden property, are not to be 
allowed full swing, in one State at least, where the 
property rights of the farmer are recognized. Chapter 
199 of the Public Acts of the State of Connecticut, ap¬ 
proved June 22, 1903, reads as follows: 
Section 1. Every person who shall throw down or leave 
open any bars, gate, or fence upon the land of another, 
or who shall enter upon the land of another without per¬ 
mission of the owner, occupant, or person in charge 
thereof, for the purpose of hunting, trapping, fishing, or 
taking or destroying the nest or eggs of birds, or boe 
hunting, or gathering nuts, fruits or berries, shall be 
fined not more than fift 5 ’ dollars or imprisoned not more 
than thirty days, or both. The possession by any person, 
while trespassing upon the land of another, of a gun, 
dog, ferret, or fish rod shall be deemed prima facie evi¬ 
dence of his intention of hunting or fishing thereon. 
Section 2. The owner, occupant, or person in charge of 
the land, or such persons as he may command to assist 
him, may arrest any person violating any of the pro¬ 
visions of the preceding section, and forthwith take him 
before some proper authority who shall, upon complaint 
of the proper prosecuting officer, proceed to try such 
person. 
Section 3. The owner, occupant, or person in charge of 
the land arresting any person, pursuant to the provisions 
of this act, shall be entitled to the same fees that are 
allowed by Section 4S50 of the general statutes to con¬ 
stables for .similar services, which fees shall be taxed 
as costs by the court before which the trial is had. 
This gives the land owner or occupant the right to 
protect his property. In most cases a constable or 
marshal cannot be obtained in time to arrest depre¬ 
dators, who openly defy the farmer or trucker while 
raiding his pi'operty. We think that other States 
should give such rights of protection to rural dis¬ 
tricts, and thus help to control a prevalent nuisance, 
which may often become a danger. 
BREVITIES. 
Truth is no stranger to friction. 
Whine is expressed from sour grapes. 
Apples and peanuts would make a balanced ration for 
humans. 
The man w'ho lets his passions rise must quickly fall 
in moral size. 
What is the value of a half truth? It depends upon 
what truth was crossed with. 
How many trees must a fruit grower have to justify 
him in buying a power sprayer? 
The man who is so anxious to meet you “more than 
half way” is likely to have an eye on your pocket book. 
Jones hears that skim-milk is used for making sizing. 
He says he always knew that it puts size on pigs and 
calves. 
A GOOD specimen of the McIntosh apple forms a con¬ 
vincing argument in favor of the American Apple Con¬ 
sumers’ League. 
Some men hear that it is the man behind the gun that 
dees the work. They get in front of the business and kill 
it by showing themselves. 
A reader writes to know how to clean a linseed oil 
barrel so as to make it suitable for holding vinegar. 
Who can tell how to do this? 
We are told that the American farmer should raise 
goats. Who gives that advice, the man who has tried it, 
or the editor whose sole experience is the raising of a 
goatee? 
It is a strange provision of nature that a dog appears 
to wear more in the Summer than in Winter. During 
cold weather he only wears his natural coat, but in the 
Summer he wears his coat and pants. 
The Manila Times says that the manifold defalcations 
by Americans in the Government employ have had a very 
bad effect on the Filipinos. It looks as though a good 
m.any of the men sent to these new dependencies had 
left their country for the country’s good. 
Climbing Clothilde Soupert is a robust-growing rose 
w’ith clusters of creamy blooms, shading to pink at center. 
It endured the rigors of last Winter without protection, 
began to bloom the end of June, and was never without 
flowers up to the middle of October. 
