1902 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
135 
Events of the Week 
DOMESTIC.— February 5 robbers wrecked a bank at 
Clarksville, Ark., with dynamite, securing $6,000, killed 
the sheriff of Johnson County, who attempted to capture 
them, and escaped.February 5 an explosion of 
sewer gas in the cellar of a dwelling at Chicago, Ill., 
killed 11 persons; the building was blown into kindling 
WOO( j.February 9 a Are in a hotel at St. Louis, 
Mo., caused the death of 11 persons. The property loss 
was $20,000.Fire started in trolley car barns at 
Paterson, N. J., shortly before midnight, February 8, 
Fanned by high winds, the blaze soon became uncon¬ 
trollable, devastating the retail business section of the 
city. The fire extended over 26 blocks, destroying the 
City Hall, five churches, the free library, with its 200.000 
volumes, six banks, two hotels, several public halls, four 
clubs and one theater, in addition to 500 dwellings. The 
fire burned for 18 hours, and the loss is estimated at 
over $8,000,000. The city was placed under martial law, 
and churches turned into refuges for the homeless. The 
heaviest losses are among well-to-do people, and the 
fact that the great factories are untouched prevents ex¬ 
treme destitution among the working people. The city 
does not ask for outside aid.Fire which started 
in a carriage factory in Brooklyn, N. Y., February 9, 
caused a loss of $300,000, and injured 14 persons. 
Fire on a pier at Jersey City, N. J., about half a mile 
below the scene of the former North German Lloyd dis¬ 
aster, caused a loss of $250,000 February 9. 
CONGRESS.— February 5 Senator Hoar, chairman of 
the Judiciary Committee, introduced in the Senate a bill 
increasing the salaries of Senators and members of the 
House from $5,000 to $7,500 and the salaries of the Speaker 
of the House and President Pro Tern, of the Senate to 
$15,000 each.Injunction proceedings have been 
begun against Secretary Hitchcock and Indian Commis¬ 
sioner Jones, as a result of the lease of lands belonging 
to the Sioux to cattlemen. The hearing before the Sen¬ 
ate Indian Committee laid bare the iniquity of these 
leases, precisely as the friends of the Indians have all 
along claimed would occur if the Sioux could be heard 
directly. Six of the head men of the Standing Rock 
Sioux have been in Washington waiting to be heard in 
their own behalf. The Commissioner has insisted they 
should not go before the committee, and it was only 
after most earnest efforts by those who were aiding the 
Indians that they were admitted to the committee room 
and told their story. The provisions inserted in the 
Lemmon lease for enclosing the Indians’ grazing lands 
within the leased tract were fully explained. The Gov¬ 
ernment was to furnish the wire, but the Indians would 
have to haul it from Bismarck, over 100 miles, cut posts 
and haul them long distances, in some cases from 40 or 
50 miles away, and then when the material was all on 
the ground would have to work two or three years to 
build the miles of fence required to enclose their stock. 
Meanwhile the cattle syndicate would on April 1 turn 
in their herds, and the Indians’ herds would be mixed 
with the lessees, and in the round up the Indians could 
never hope to get their calves out if they were able to 
get back the original stock.Representative 
Griffith, of Indiana, February 6, introduced a bill to 
provide for coupon currency in order that small sums, 
in multiples of five cents, may be conveniently sent by 
mail.In the House the general debate on the 
Oleomargarine bill was closed February 10. The friends 
of the bill have decided to offer an amendment to make 
the 10 cent tax apply to oleomargarine in imitation of 
butter, “of any shade of yellow.” The amendment is 
designed to meet the charge of the opponents of the bill 
that without this amendment the language of the bill 
might be construed absolutely to prohibit the sale of 
oleomargarine. The bill was passed February 12. There 
was no division on the final passage, the real test of 
strength having been made on a motion to recommit, 
which was defeated by a majority of 34.The 
memorial of the Filipino Federal party, asking civil gov¬ 
ernment for the Islands, was presented to Congress Feb¬ 
ruary 12. The party is anxious that the archipelago 
should be organized as a Territory, with right of ad¬ 
mission as a State. 
PHILIPPINES.—Samar, now the hotbed of Filipino 
insurrection, is the scene of great activity on the part 
of the flotilla of small gunboats. Admiral Remey has 
reported to the naval authorities the assistance afforded 
to the army, and the hardships and sufferings imposed 
on the officers and crews of the vessels serving in that 
part of the Islands. Admiral Remey says that the neces¬ 
sity of maintaining a large fleet of patrol vessels in that 
section may continue for several years, and he is con¬ 
fident it will be a long time before this part of the fleet 
can be reduced. Every small gunboat and vessel of 
light draft, he reports, is now in the vicinity of Samar 
preventing smuggling and the escape of the Filipinos to 
the larger islands. These boats enter the shallow 
streams and clear out the banks while the army hunts 
the Filipinos in the interior and often drives them to 
the streams where the patrol vessel holds them in check. 
All of this fleet will in a short time require an extensive 
overhauling at the Cavite station. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—The Wisconsin State Agri¬ 
cultural Society met at Madison, Wis., February 5. hold¬ 
ing a three-days' session. President T. E. Loope. of Eu¬ 
reka, presiding. A number of excellent papers were 
read, and 57 varieties of fruit were on exhibition. 
The agricultural societies of Wisconsin that held fairs 
last Fall will receive $63,045.56 in State aid. A year ago 
they received $58,661.25. The State pays the societies 40 
per cent of the actual cash premiums paid by them at 
their last fair. This aid, however, is extended only to 
those societies that exclude all gambling devices from 
their grounds. 
The handsome silver cup offered at the Wisconsin State 
poultry show at Oshkosh, Wis., January 27-31, for the 
highest scoring pen in the American class was won by 
Buchanan & Wells of that city on a pen of White Ply¬ 
mouth Rocks that scored 189%. A silver cup for the 
largest collection of birds was won by W. H. Laabs, of 
Waupaca, who had 50 Black Langshnns on exhibition 
He also won the cup last season and the season pre¬ 
ceding, so that he now possesses the cup permanently, 
having won it three consecutive times. 
THE NEW YORK STATE GRANGE. 
The Meeting at Glean. 
Among the prominent matters passed upon by the 
Grange were resolutions favoring a State appropriation 
for the beet culture interests; and the reduction of the 
interest rate from six to five per cent. They opposed the 
ship subsidy scheme now before Congress, and the 
canal bill now before the State Legislature, appropriat¬ 
ing $28,800,000 for canal enlargement and improvement. 
They recommended the reappointment of the State Mas¬ 
ter as a member of the State Fair Commission, and an 
appropriation for the State Department to carry on its 
work of inspection of trees against the San Jos6 scale 
imported from other States, and also in the nurseries 
and orchards of New York State. They asked the State 
railroad commissioners to grant franchises for trolley 
roads when asked for by the people of rural districts. 
They also favored the McCleary-Grout bill now before 
Congress of the United States. The Grange, as shown 
from reports coming up from all sections of the State, 
is doing a good work. It is breaking up the monotony 
of farm life; it is bringing farmers and their families 
together socially to their betterment, and along educa¬ 
tional lines it is an important adjunct of the public 
school. Its benefits accruing from cooperative buying 
and selling, and fire insurance, are incidental though 
very important considerations, while the ennobling sen¬ 
timents of its ritualistic teachings cannot fail to make 
men and women better if lived up to, and out of it all 
is growing a higher citizenship and a nobler manhood 
and womanhood. _ J - w - D - 
COMPETITION FOR WESTERN MELONS. 
In .your opinion., has the shipment of Rocky Ford melons 
to this part of the country proved a serious competition 
to local growers? It has been claimed that these melons, 
coming in large quantities during the latter part of the 
Summer, have hurt the sale of the local crop. Do you 
consider melon growing as profitable as formerly? 
The shipment of all melons into our local markets has 
proved a serious matter to our local growers. Not only 
does the sale of each outside melon prevent the sale of 
a local-grown fruit, but many if not a large proportion 
of those shipped in are of poor quality and stale. When 
these are bought the purchaser becomes disgusted with 
all melons, and refuses to buy again, thus producing a 
stagnation in the market. Owing to bad markets, in¬ 
sect pests and fungus diseases, melon growing is less 
profitable than in the past. f. g. t. 
Oswego, N. Y. 
The effect on the local market of the introduction of 
Rocky Ford melons is injury to the sale of native fruit. 
They are grown in large quantities in the South, and 
come so much earlier that it makes the season for them 
much longer than formerly; they are not so much of a 
luxury as they were when the markets had to depend 
on the native grown. Those from Colorado come a little 
earlier than the natives. I think the‘Rocky Fords are 
deteriorating in quality from what they were when first 
introduced; at least those I have had. A friend gave 
me some seed four years ago from melons that come 
direct, and T wmuld have had a fine crop, but just as 
they commenced to ripen, the blight struck them, and 
away they went like the dew. I cannot grow enough of 
either watermelons or citron melons for family use, and 
that is the general complaint. In North Haven, on 
sandy soil, they get fairly good crops, but the quality is 
nothing compared to what it used to be. When I was 
a boy it was no trouble to grow either variety, and the 
quality of 75 per cent would be fine. The old Apple Seed 
watermelon would make honey seem sour. I don’t 
know anyone who is making a dollar growing melons. 
Milford, Conn. D - F - 
We do not think that the shipment of the Colorado 
Rocky Ford muskmelons to the eastern markets has 
come in competition to any serious extent with the 
melons from near-by localities. As far as our observa¬ 
tion of the market has extended these western fruits 
arrive in our market here after the local crops have 
been gathered and marketed, and they form an exten¬ 
sion of season to our supply of good melons. If handled 
under proper conditions there is no reason whatever 
why the melon crop should not be as profitable as in any 
previous year. Our south Jersey growers, with whose 
operations we are most familiar, plant very largely for 
the early market, and sacrifice all considerations of fine 
quality to earlinesc, and their crops are entirely gath¬ 
ered before any of the Rocky Ford melons reach the 
market. You are of course aware that the "early ripes” 
of all crops are the most profitable to grow for market, 
and are at the same time of very inferior quality. This 
is true alike of early green apples, oranges and other 
green fruits, as well as the early garden vegetables. 
Later, when the fruits are really ripe and fine and in 
abundant supply, it frequently happens that in the gen¬ 
eral run of shipments they realize but very little to the 
planter after deducting the expenses of transportation 
and marketing. We have no doubt whatever that the 
grower who will produce a melon equal in flavor to the 
Rocky Ford, and who will take pains to market them 
in an attractive shape, such as the Rocky Ford people 
use, that is, shipping in crates filled with an even size 
of carefully selected fruits, and who will use good busi¬ 
ness judgment in making shipments, will be able to 
compete with the western melons at any time during 
the season, and the local planter would have a great 
advantage in the matter of transportation charges. The 
chief feature in favor of the Rocky Ford melons is their 
equable climate, as you know a few cold rainy days 
when the fruits are growing or a few cool nights at the 
time of ripening will entirely destroy the flavor of the 
finest strain of melons. Again, our eastern planters 
seem to make no provision to supply the early Fall mar¬ 
ket, planting only for the earliest Summer crop. The 
finest fielfi of Burpee's Netted Gem ('the melon whieh 
has made Rocky Ford famous) we have ever seen, was 
planted in south Jersey and bore a large crop of unusu¬ 
ally fine melons, which came on the market during the 
first two weeks of September, a time when the other 
fields in the vicinity had been cleared of fruits or only 
inferior ones were left on vines, weakened by bearing 
during the hot, dry month of August, while this field, 
which had been planted later, was in fine growth and 
well furnished with healthy foliage at the beginning of 
September, at which time the melons started to ripen. 
Fordhook Farm, Pa. e. d. Darlington. 
ARID LAND IRRIGATION. 
Whereas, It has been announced that the New York 
State Fruit Growers’ Association is opposed to any 
action by the Congress of the United States which would 
assist in the reclamation of the arid lands of the West; 
Resolved, That we, the Colorado State Horticultural 
Society, express our deep regret that the fruit growers 
of the great State of New York should so misunder¬ 
stand the situation as to put themselves on record 
against the National irrigation movement, which prom¬ 
ises so much to promote the business and social con¬ 
ditions of the country. 
We commend to the New York fruit growers, for care¬ 
ful study, the last report of the Secretary of the In¬ 
terior, in which he says; “There is no question now be¬ 
fore the people of the United States of greater import¬ 
ance than the conservation of the water supply and the 
reclamation of the arid lands of the West, and their 
settlement by men who will actually build homes and 
create communities.” We also urge them to study care¬ 
fully the remarks of President Roosevelt in his recent 
message, concerning forestry and irrigation, in which 
he declared that “successful homemaking is but another 
name for the upbuilding of the Nation.” 
We declare that the great homestead law of 1862. 
signed by the immortal Lincoln, built up the prairie 
States and made great and prosperous the States and 
cities of the East. We insist that the free home bill 
passed by the Fifty-sixth Congress, which opened up to 
settlement lands within Indian reservation and the Na¬ 
tional irrigation plan which will transform western 
deserts into fruitful farms, are essentially a part of the 
free homestead policy endorsed by both of the great 
political parties. We assure our eastern friends that 
the reclamation of the arid lands will necessarily be 
accomplished* gradually, and the increased agricultural 
products of the Eastern States will be called for by our 
mining and stock raising d’stricts and in the great new 
markets, in lands across the Pacific, all of which will 
result in a new demand for manufactured goods from 
the East, thus increasing the home markets for the 
products of eastern farms and orchards. 
An Eastern Man Out West. 
We print the following extracts from a personal letter 
sent by Dr. C. D. Smead to an old friend. A. D. Baker, 
of Cayuga Co., N. Y. Every man who goes West quickly 
realizes the fact that the western farmer has a seat at 
the first table; 
"Here you hear nothing but praise of farming, all 
striving to make the best of their opportunities and 
they make the business pay. Let a stranger here in¬ 
quire about a farm and words of praise of it will be 
spoken; but how is it in New York? I will venture to 
say that let a man who thinks of buying a farm stop 
in any country store and inquire about land and the 
chances are ten to one he will be told that farming used 
to pay in that part, but it did not now; there was no 
money in it and a lot on that line. The facts are the 
farmers themselves of New York have done more by 
their talk to drive the boys off the farm and lower the 
price of land itself even by far than western competition 
has. Speaking of competition T desire to say that they 
are complaining of us as competitors. They are talking 
now of lower land in the East, better markets and when 
they are compelled to. of eastern products of the soil. 
Take potatoes for instance. I never have yet seen a 
potato in Minnesota that would sell at all when we had 
enough to supply the market. Tt is only when we are 
short they can come in at all. We have with us a man 
from town, a potato grower, and he admits that no such 
potatoes can be grown west as we raise. He says, 'Con¬ 
found it, if you fellows would stop sending your east¬ 
ern potatoes we would have a better market one year 
with another for ours.’ Here and there all over the 
West and in Colorado fruit can be raised of some kinds. 
A man who grows fruit in Colorado said. ‘If you New 
York fellows would stop sending your grapes up here 
we could get along all right; we can raise grapes, but 
not as good as yours and we could sell all we could raise 
for good prices. But your New York grapes come and 
we have to knock under and take what we can get.’ 
They can’t raise any more wheat per acre, corn nor 
anything else even in a good season, than we can. and 
they are far more at the mercy of the middlemen than 
we. Then why is it they succeed and our farmers are 
not succeeding? In a word they are striving to suc¬ 
ceed; live within their means, while east by far too 
many are not trying very hard to make a success of 
their business. The business runs them, while they 
have run the business. If we could unload a lot of 
howlers and growlers on the West and take in exchange 
some of their young men and women who had been 
educated in the West to do something useful as well as 
ornamental, the East would soon be in agricultural 
prosperity. That is my view of the matter.” 
We have had a very mild Winter and very pleasant 
for outside work, with about three little showers of 
snow, none of which covered the ground an inch deep, 
until January 24. We had a blizzard which lasted all 
day and the thermometer went 18 below zero that night 
and has gone as low as 25 since. It still keeps cold; we 
have now about six inches of snow. The price of wheat 
has been very low. For two weeks it went as low as 
36 cents, sacked, per bushel. Now the farmers are get¬ 
ting for Bluestem 50 cents per bushel, sacked. w. b. 
Lincoln. Wash 
