1900 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
8i5 
THE BEST FARM POWER. 
A Steam-Engine Man Talks. 
After 10 years’ experience in running all kinds of 
power, from a homemade windmill, sweep power, 
tread power and last of all a 12 horse-power traction 
engine, I can say that the best all-around power on 
the farm is the steam engine. I have made a busi¬ 
ness of filling silos for several years, and have run 
all kinds of cutters, from the old-fashioned bull wheel 
cutter up to the modern Ohio cutter with a capacity 
of 18 tons per hour. Filling a silo with a tread power 
makes me think of an old farmer who had always 
used a three-horse tread-power to fill his silo. Frost 
had caught him with 12 acres of corn cut and stand¬ 
ing, and he came after me to get my engine, for he 
said it would take his a week or 10 days to cut it, and 
he wanted to put it in as soon as possible. Twelve 
hours from the time we started the last stalk went 
into the silo, with 100 tons of silage cut and elevated 
30 feet high. When we came in and sat down to a 
well-filled dinner table, the old farmer winked across 
the table and said: “Sally, if your teapot could make 
the power that that one out in the dooryard does we 
would have paid that mortgage up long before we 
did.” It made that old cutter rock and bound like a 
ship at sea. Instead of one man smoking his pipe 
and waiting for the big stalks to go through it took 
two good men to keep it full. As for filling a silo 
that is built on up-to-date principles, that is high 
and small in diameter, it would be pretty hard work. 
The horses would have to be heavier than most farm 
horses, and the tread would have to be set very steep, 
and I have yet to see a two horse-power tread that 
will cut and elevate five tons of corn per hour stead¬ 
ily. When it comes to the cost of running the engine 
it is far ahead; as Mr. Van Alstyne says, 
the farmer can pick up wood that is un¬ 
der foot and going to waste in his wood 
lot to run a good many days. As for re¬ 
pairs the engine is by far the cheapest 
if the one that runs it takes care of it 
as it should be. The wear and tear of a 
tread power is great; the lags have to 
be renewed often unless the horses’ feet 
are fitted to work in it all the time. 
With a good steam engine the farmer 
can scald his hogs and keep the water 
in the tub at the right spot; cook feed 
for his stock and keep his dairy tools 
in good clean shape, and when it comes 
to filling his silo he can run from sunup 
till sundown and make every man earn 
his money. In the Fall when Jack 
Frost is lurking around and he wishes 
to rush his corn in a good steam engine 
is the best friend he has; it never gets 
tired when the sun gets hot, and sits 
back on the cross-pole. Where would 
this country be to-day without the steam 
engine in all its forms? f. b. b. 
Mayville, N. Y. 
we are intending to add a corn elevator, woodsaw and 
well. We are well pleased with our outfit. 
Parke Co., Ind. John goss. 
DRY FODDER AND GRAIN USEFUL. 
I have used the silo for the past 10 years, and 
think it a valuable addition to the farm equipment 
under most conditions. I do not by any means think 
it takes the place of good well-cured fodder, but is 
rather an assistant, making the ration more varied 
and hence more palatable. It puts a part of the corn 
crop out of the way early, and gives the use of the 
land. It is profitable to grow a large growth of large 
corn for the silo, but I do not think it economical 
to silo a smaller growth of well-eared corn. The 
grain is worth very decidedly more to crib, and the 
stalks if cared for as suggested by Mr. Wright in a 
recent R. N.-Y. in proper time and manner, are not 
much if any inferior to silage. Right here is where 
the great loss to the corn crop with the average 
farmer comes in. The fodder depreciates rapidly 
after it is sufficiently cured, if allowed to stand out 
and weather until dry, hard and bleached. I would 
say to farmers, grow corn; there is no crop we can 
raise that will give better profit if properly utilized, 
and no crop that with our improved implements can 
be grown cheaper. Grow corn for the silo; grow corn 
for the crib. A good well-filled corncrib gives every 
animal on the farm a satisfied feeling and is especially 
good for sore eyes to the owner. There are but few 
seasons that corn may not be planted as late as even 
July 1, and make a very profitable crop for late Fall 
and early Winter feeding; twice what an ordinary 
meadow will produce in a dry season. 
Dutchess Co., N. Y. c. s. underbill. 
The Windmill as a Cheap Power. 
Several years ago The R. N.-Y. pub¬ 
lished two or three articles on windmills 
and what they would do, that set us to 
tninking, and knowing that The R. N.-Y. was gener¬ 
ally right, wife and I concluded then and there that 
whenever we got able to build a barn, we would have 
a power windmill on it. After years of waiting and 
planning we built the barn and put a 12-foot wheel 
on it. The shafting in %-inch steel, bolted to angle 
irons inside of a 12xl2-inch wooden mast made of 
4x4 timbers bolted together every four feet, with 
four-inch blocks between the timbers. The tower on 
barn is six feet high and six feet square; the mast 
goes through the center of tower and is placed about 
two feet from the end of barn so it takes up but little 
room. The top of wheel is about 50 feet from the 
ground. People laugned at us, and predicted all man¬ 
ner of failures. Now what can it do? Well, in a 
good wind it will cut, shred and elevate the fodder 
into the second story as fast as one hand can feed 
the fodder cutter. We can also grind corn, or rye or 
oats, either coarse or fine. We grind all our meal 
for family use on the mill. It is self-feeding and self¬ 
regulating. We can grind 25 bushels of corn with¬ 
out going near the mill except to pull it into the wind. 
We shell the corn by wind-power. In a heavy wind 
we run both grinder and fodder cutter to their full¬ 
est capacity, and then have power to spare. Stormy 
days in the Winter are nearly always windy. The 
beauty of it is one can do nearly all the work by 
oneself. With hay at $10 to $14 per ton it is an easy 
matter to figure the profit. If the fodder is put up in 
good shape and hauled in early, horses and cattle will 
eat nearly every bit of it. The entire cost of wind¬ 
mill, grinder and fodder cutter was about $130. This 
plso includes the mast and tower. As soon as able 
THE HEAD OF A PROMINENT BEEF MAKER. Fig. 315. 
CABBAGE AND POTATOES AT THE SOUTH. 
Remarkable Methods of Southern Growers. 
Many of our northern gardeners have but a faint 
idea of the way crops are grown and marketed in the 
South. They know that the southern vegetables fre¬ 
quently compete, at both ends of the season, with 
their own, but lew have a definite idea of the vast 
business that has been developed along the southeast 
coast of this country. We have recently had a chance 
to discuss this matter with large growers who are lo¬ 
cated along the South Carolina coast. Probably some 
of their statements will interest R. N.-Y. readers. 
“When do you set out your early cabbage?” 
“We commenced this year setting on November 19, 
and will continue until December 20.” 
“What varieties are you setting?” 
“We first set Succession, then comes Henderson’s 
Early Spring, which is our best money-maker in the 
cabbage line; next follows Charleston Large Type 
Wakefield, and last of all. Extra Early Wakefield.” 
“Will they not be killed dut during the Winter?” 
“We generally carry them through. As a rule, our 
Winters are very mild; still, we have cold weather 
enough to toughen our cabbage crop so that it stands 
the cold Spring blizzards. As a rule, when there is 
cold enough to kill out cabbage in Florida, North 
Carolina and Norfolk the crop on our seacoast will 
escape destruction. In years like 1888 and 1889, and 
last year, our cabbage pulled through and was ready 
for market from March 25 to May 20.” 
“When do you usually dig your second-crop po¬ 
tatoes?” 
“They are usually dug late in November, and some 
times as late as December 1.” 
“We are told that the second-crop potatoes are 
sometimes dug and stored to be put on the market in 
early Spring as early potatoes. Is this ever done?” 
“The Southern trucker always tried to make a Fall 
crop of potatoes, usually enough for Spring seed, but 
with a wet August and September we frequently lose 
the entire crop. It is never stored as you understand 
the term.” 
“Is there any basis then for this story?” 
‘Yes, there are some growers near Charleston who 
produce a Fall crop of Bliss Triumph potatoes on 
what we call mulatto land.” 
“What do you mean by mulatto land?” 
“It is a light brown soil, quite open and porous, but 
with a clay bottom.” 
“What do you do with the crop?” 
“When we get it, which is about three times in 
five, it matures in November. We grow it in drills 
three feet apart and 10 inches in the drill. When the 
vines die down, we throw two furrows over the po¬ 
tato row, one from each side, and let them stay in 
the ground until February. At that time we usually 
catch a warm spell. Then the potatoes are dug out 
and sorted into two grades. They are packed in 
second-hand flour barrels, both heads whitewashea, 
and shipped to New York, where they are sola as new 
Bermuda potatoes.” 
“Do they bring good prices?” 
“Some years they bring fancy prices, and if they 
could be held until March, there would be more money 
in them, but with March they begin to sprout.” 
“How do they look when kept in this way?” 
"If we have a moderate Winter and not too much 
rain the potato comes out of the ground in beautiful 
condition and color. It looks and eats 
like a new potato. If we have too much 
rain, the color is darker, and they do not 
look so well as potatoes from Bermuda.” 
“They sell, as I understand it, for Ber¬ 
muda potatoes.” 
' Yes, and I do not see that any wrong 
is done. The Bliss Triumph thus hand¬ 
led, is planted with us at the same time 
as in Bermuda, and the tubers are also 
dug at about the same time. I really 
think that as they reach the market, 
they are better in quality than those 
from the Islands. The advantage the 
growers in Bermuda have is the fact 
that they make successive plantings. 
Commencing in August they plant in 
September, October, November, Decem¬ 
ber and January, keeping the New York 
market full until their potatoes are 
driven out in May by the South Caro¬ 
lina crop.” 
“Of course this plan would not work 
where the ground freezes deeply?” 
“No, common sense will tell anyone 
that wherever the ground freezes six 
inches deep the potatoes will be frozen. 
Our soil rarely freezes three inches deep, 
and, of course, we only practice this 
method on the light, well-drained soils.” 
“What has been your experience with 
second-crop seed compared with seed grown at the 
North?” 
“The Fall-grown southern seed is best for our 
Spring crop. It is not as liable to rot when planted 
in February as the northern-grown seed. We usually 
have a severe drought in the latter part of April. 
When this comes plants from the northern seed will 
ripen at once, even if they are not larger than pigeon’s 
eggs. The second-crop seed from the South in the 
same drought will hold on a week longer and stay 
green, so that if we have a good rain it still makes a 
full crop of large potatoes.” 
“What about the yield?” 
“As a rule, the southern-grown potato will give us 
one-third more marketable potatoes per acre, other 
conditions being equal.” 
“Has the northern seed any advantage over the 
southern?” 
“Yes, if we have a good season without drawbacks 
in the shape of late frosts or heavy drought, the 
northern potato seed matures its plants 10 days before 
the southern-grown seed. It is unquestionably earlier. 
Many growers take advantage of this by using both 
kinds of seed for the earliest varieties. By planting 
one-half of the early varieties from northern seed 
and one-half of southern second-crop, they do not all 
i*ipen together. The season is lengthened out by 
about 10 days, and we are able to dig and ship over 
a longer period of time. When the potatoes begin to 
ripen, our growers dig and ship as rapidly as they 
possibly can. Many individual growers will dig and 
handle in this way 1,000 barrels per day, which gives 
an idea of the vast extent of this business. An aver¬ 
age yield last Spring was about 260 bushels per acre.” 
