March 22 
2l8 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
K National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes, 
Established. 1850. 
Herbert W. Collingwood, Editor. 
dr. Walter Van Fleet, l . . 
MRS. K. T. Royle, £ ABbociaie* *. 
John’ J. Dillon, Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, $2.94, 
equal to 8s. 6d., or 8*4 marks, or 1UM> francs. 
“ A SftUARE 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 trilling 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 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, MARCH 22, 1902. 
When you read Mr. Norton’s article on Siberian 
millet remember a few things. He is writing from 
Kansas. A crop may do well in Kansas and fail in 
your part of the country. He has good land, uses 
plenty of manure and has the best of tools. You may 
be looking for something that will do well on poor 
soil and hurried culture. There is a difference, you 
see. This millet is a good thing to try as an ex¬ 
periment. 
* 
Rumor has it again that Secretary Wilson is to 
retire from the Cabinet. We regret that these reports 
are so persistently published. The President should 
not, under any circumstances, permit Mr. Wilson to 
surrender his work in the Agricultural Department. 
His work there has been very satisfactory to farmers, 
and there are too many promising plans under way, 
but not fully developed. Secretary Wilson should stay 
where he is. 
* 
Given two lame men—neither one able to walk 
easily. How can they grow a large acreage of pota¬ 
toes? Several years ago it would have been impos¬ 
sible for two such men to do “everything but pick up” 
on 20 acres. There was too much heel and toe work 
about the job for any man with an unhealed toe to 
attempt it. Now we have machines for doing most 
of the work. We believe that some of our readers 
are using a set of machinery that would permit the 
two lame men to raise such a crop. Will they give 
us a list of tools that will do the work? 
• 
A bill now before the Massachusetts Legislature 
directs that “It shall be the duty of all nurserymen 
and other persons who raise or sell trees, plants or 
shrubs, to fumigate, by the use of hydrocyanic acid 
or other known and approved insecticide, any trees, 
plants or shrubs raised or imported, or sold or other¬ 
wise disposed of,” and florists, who may reasonably 
be classed among “other persons,” wonder whether 
they are expected to fumigate their geraniums and 
Coleus. Of course this is not intended, yet a strict 
reading of the bill would compel it. A penalty of not 
less than $25 nor more than $200 is to be imposed for 
each offence where the fumigation is omitted. 
* 
Here is an important matter which we desire to 
put before our readers for discussion. A Pennsyl¬ 
vania farmer states the case clearly and concisely in 
the following letter: 
On April 29, 1901, I purchased a lot of grass and other 
seeds from a seed dealer. Among the lot I ordered a bag 
of Scarlet clover seed for my own use. Bill was for 183 
pounds at $4.35 per bushel amounting to $13.28; freight on 
whole, $4.99. Before last cultivation of corn in July I or¬ 
dered my farmer to sow seed and have cultivator cover 
it. About 10 days after I went to examine it and found 
to my surprise no clover, though the weather had been 
most favorable. A small quantity of seed left was closely 
examined and found to be an inferior quality of millet 
seed. Small spindling millet was found all over my corn¬ 
fields instead of clover. All froze soon after. Corn was 
removed and my fields lie bare where a good growth of 
Scarlet clover should now be. In all, about seven acres 
were sown. As the seedsmen and I differ as to the dam¬ 
age they should allow me for their error, I wish to refer 
it to you and your readers to say how this damage should 
be borne by us. Of course, the loss to me. as a whole, I 
consider very considerable, as the season so far has been 
very favorable to newly seeded clover. 
We omit the names of seedsmen and farmer in or¬ 
der to avoid any prejudiced opinion, and invite read¬ 
ers to say what the seedsmen should pay in the way 
of damages. It is clear that the cost of the seed at 
the farm should be refunded anyway, but how much 
more? What loss did the farmer sustain? it is not 
claimed that the millet proved a bad weed, but evi¬ 
dently the land would be in better condition this 
year and better able to produce a crop if the seed had 
been really Crimson clover, and if the clover had 
lived through the Winter. The farmer had a fan- 
right to expect this improvement and the seedsmen 
by their blunder prevented it. Seven acres of good 
Crimson clover would, in the hands of a skillful man, 
benefit the soil to the extent of at least $100. Should 
the seedsmen be held responsible for any part of 
this lost value? 
* 
The Agricultural Department estimates that there 
was a smaller per cent of last year’s corn and wheat 
crops in farmer’s hands on March 1 than for many 
years. It was thought at one time that so much 
wheat had been used for feeding that farmers might 
have more corn than usual on hand, but there now 
seems to be a serious shortage of all grain. The 
chances are that high prices will continue until the 
next crop is harvested. There will be a large acreage 
of corn planted on eastern farms, and many old 
meadows and pastures will be plowed for the first 
time in years. By using fair amounts of fertilizer 
on these old fields good crops of corn can be grown 
this year. It will prove a profitable crop. 
• 
The alleged swindle reported from the Middle West, 
where men claim to be selling homestead entries for 
South Dakota Indian lands, seems a particularly 
contemptible operation. The land in question is not 
yet open to settlement, but there is a bill now pend¬ 
ing before Congress, which will open between 2,300 
and 2,400 acres. The persons who represent them¬ 
selves as selling homestead entries have no authority 
whatever, yet they have succeeded, apparently, in 
inducing a number of persons to pay $10 each in cash 
and give a note for $90, payable when the land is 
filed in the Government Land Office, for which they 
receive no return. The victims are chiefly farmers 
and working men. The attention of the Federal au¬ 
thorities in Wisconsin has been directed to this 
swindle which, according to report, has been worked 
in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois and South Dakota. 
* 
So far as we know Prince Henry of Prussia, while 
in this country, asked to see only one man who can be 
said to be prominently identified with agriculture. 
That was Booker T. Washington, the head of the great 
agricultural school for colored boys at Tuskegee! It 
appears that Germany has hired several graduates of 
this school to go to Africa and experiment with cot¬ 
ton growing in the German colonies. It was natural 
therefore that Prince Henry should single out this 
worthy colored man for a conference, for the Ameri¬ 
can negro may be the means of providing German 
mills with cotton grown on German soil. Would it 
not be a singular industrial outcome if the South, 
after having made it difficult for the educated negro 
to make full use of his education on southern soil, 
should find that foreign countries appreciate his ser¬ 
vices in this way? 
• 
There has been a great struggle in Congress over 
the proposition to reduce the tariff on Cuban sugar. 
Those who favor the plan believe that this country is 
in duty bound to give the Cubans a trade opportunity. 
They say that if we give Cuban sugar an advantage 
over that from other countries the Cubans in return 
will give American products the preference. This is 
what they call “reciprocity.” The bill is also sup¬ 
ported by many who believe as a matter of principle 
that the time has come to reduce the tariff all along 
the line. Those who oppose the bill are known as 
“beet sugar men,” because one of their chief argu¬ 
ments is the claim that the production of beet sugar 
in this country is an “infant industry” which demands 
and deserves protection. They say that a reduction of 
the tariff on Cuban sugar would destroy or cripple 
the beet sugar industry in this country, and that the 
whole thing is a direct blow at the theory of protec¬ 
tion. As a sort of side issue it is claimed that the 
sugar trust has bought up all the sugar in Cuba, so 
that the reduction would help that monopoly far more 
than Cuban planters. The beet sugar interests are 
very strong, and have been shrewdly managed. They 
say, with some truth, that other industries have been 
built up and put on a sure foundation by the aid of a 
high protective tariff. For years the farmers have 
paid high prices for goods, ana in many localities suf¬ 
fered loss of value to their farms in supporting a 
policy which has chiefly benefited town and city. 
Having done this they are entitled to similar help 
in building up a new industry for the American farm. 
It would seem as though this ought to be a fair propo¬ 
sition to those who honestly believe in the theory of 
protection. Business as at present conducted is sel¬ 
fish, and the interests which have for years enjoyed 
public benefits care more for increased foreign trade 
than for helping the farmer. Having obtained what 
they want by the nexp of the farmer they are now 
ready to let the farmer take care of himself—and that 
is wnat he is trying to do in Congress. 
• 
Efforts are being made to get through Congress 
a bill permitting transportation companies to keep 
cattle on cars 40 hours without food or drink. The 
present law places 28 hours as the limit, and states 
that at the end of this time they shall be unloaded 
for at least five hours for rest, food and drink. Of 
course this causes the railroad companies expense 
and inconvenience, and they naturally want to do as 
little of this loading and unloading as possible. It 
is to be hoped, however, that Congress will not pass 
the bill. In addition to the suffering that would be 
caused the animals by such a long period of thirsty 
fasting there is a serious question as to whether the 
flesh of animals treated in this way is strictly whole¬ 
some for human food. At least few farmers would 
consider it desirable in preparing to butcher a beef 
for their own use to turn it loose in a field and worry 
it with dogs and men with clubs for half a day. 
• 
The recent decision of the United States Supreme 
Court invalidating the anti-trust laws of Illinois and 
many other States on the ground of discrimination in 
favor of labor and agricultural interests is to be com¬ 
mended. These laws in effect prohibit conspiracies 
in the form of trusts or otherwise to enhance the price 
or limit the output of any commodity in common use 
with the exception of agricultural products and the 
compensation of labor. The Supreme Court holds 
these exceptions to a general law to be unconstitu¬ 
tional, as legal enactments must apply alike to ail 
classes or persons. Every thoughtful person must 
commend the good sense as well as the legal justice 
of this decision. Discrimination of any kind is hate¬ 
ful to American ideas, and the farmer and laborer can 
very well get along under such a prohibition as long 
as it is impartially applied to all. It is boldly as¬ 
serted by those in a position to get at the facts that 
the oppressive combinations now exacting the most 
burdensome tribute our country has ever known have 
been virtually created by railroad favoritism. The 
public has been paying high prices for transporta¬ 
tion, and preferred shippers have reaped the benefit 
to the extent of hundreds of millions. If laws can 
be passed and enforced stopping such unjust dis¬ 
crimination, the farmer and other producers will 
never be harmed if the terms of the prohibitory legis¬ 
lation include all classes. The just man is never hurt 
by laws prohibiting rascality. 
* 
BREVITIES. 
THE PIG'S VIEW OF IT. 
Piggy wig, piggy wig, where have you been? 
Oh, I have been trying my pigsty to clean; 
Folks seem to imagine I revel in dirt 
But if they’d believe it, ’tis much to their hurt, 
If clean I am kept, my meat is so sweet 
That ’tis simply a joy and a pleasure to eat, 
But if I’m kept dirty, between you and I, 
It really just hastens their jaunt to the sky. 
_ L. STEVEN. 
The right sort—the man who gives a heaping quart. 
Will a bone cutter give cut rates on egg production? 
There is accrued interest in crude petroleum for spray¬ 
ing. 
“Labor Day” comes at a bad season for Connecticut 
peach shippers. 
Even the silver lining to the clouds was denied coinage 
during February. 
It is astonishing how many small tread powers are be¬ 
ing worked by dogs, sheep or calves. 
Does tread power beat sweep power? Tread some mud 
into your wife’s clean kitchen and see. 
We may not be able to blow out the mortgage from 
every farm, but we will try hard to set a garden there. 
Some people “open their eyes to new possibilities” when 
they should shut their eyes and study out some of the 
old ones. 
Will salt kill grubs and wireworms? Yes, if you use 
enough of it, but if you get up to that point you will kill 
the crops, too. 
Bear in mind that the dates and figures given for sow¬ 
ing early vegetables, on page 207, refer to a point about 
25 miles south of New York. 
“You have made me a crank on muck, lime and cow 
peas,” writes a Connecticut man. Such a crank ought to 
turn the wheels of a good crop. 
Pacific coast apple growers see a chance for increasing 
trade with China, and the American Consul at New 
Chwang says that Ben Davis is the best apple for the 
Chinese trade. This will be a relief to home consumption. 
Readers often ask if they can safely dip peach tree 
roots in Bordeaux Mixture before setting to kill borers. 
It would usually be safe enough, but it wouldn’t hurt the 
borers much. One pound whale oil soap in four gallons 
of water Is a safer and better dip. 
