676 
October 4 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Herbert W. Colling wood, Editor. 
Dr. Walter Van Fleet, 
Mrs. e. t. Rovle, 
Associates. 
John J. Dillon, Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, 
equal to 8s. 6d., or t>V£ marks, or 10V£ francs. 
“A SQUARE 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 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 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 4, 1902. 
When a man comes to you with a story of some 
great thing he will do for you in return for some little 
service on your part, you may safely put him down as 
either a fool or a fakir. The proportion of fakirs to 
fools in that business is 100 to 1. 
We are perfecting arrangements to give more com¬ 
plete market reports. More space will be given to 
them, but this is not so important as to have the fig¬ 
ures reliable. It is easy enough to pad out a column 
or a page, but padding is poor stuff to do business on. 
* 
Does it not seem a bit inconsistent in editors of 
agricultural papers to chide farmers for want of en¬ 
terprise, to accuse them of lack of pride in their busi¬ 
ness, and to scold them for putting up second-class 
products, when all this worthy advice, entreaty and 
abuse is printed on the cheapest paper on the mar¬ 
ket, with the poorest ink that is made, and with type 
battered and worn with years of repeated use? 
* 
For several years we have been trying to learn the 
selling price of good corn silage. There must be cases 
where silage is either sold at an auction or disposed of 
at private sale, but they are hard to locate. We know 
what the scientific men give as the comparative value 
of silage, but we want to know what the practical men 
are willing to pay for it. Thus far we have learned 
of but few sales, which run from $2 to $2.50 per ton. 
• 
Where can shredded corn fodder be bought in 
bales? There are calls for it in eastern markets, but 
no one seems to know where to buy it. Chemists and 
practical feeders unite in praising the shredded fod¬ 
der as live stock feed, and manufacturers of shred¬ 
ders claim to sell many machines. But where can the 
fodder be bought? It ought to sell at a fair price in 
some of the eastern markets, but why is it not there? 
* 
We understand that apple buyers in some parts of 
New York State are still claiming that “the West has 
an immense crop.” Such statements are made in or¬ 
der to frighten farmers into selling their apples at a 
low figure. The fact is that the western crop is below 
the average. Our reports show that without any ques¬ 
tion. Buyers from the West are in New York now 
trying to obtain a supply of apples. In former years 
this “western crop” story might have been effective, 
but this year the fruit growers are too well informed. 
• 
“Blood will tell!” The story it tells was made up 
long before it was pumped through the heart of the 
animal that acts it out. When we speak of “blood” 
we mean inherited tendencies to do some certain 
thing which are strong enough to do it when occasion 
arises. At a recent county fair we saw an illustra¬ 
tion of the way this “blood” operates. A colored 
man kept a small stand at which bicycles were 
checked. Two strange white men claimed one of the 
wheels, and undertook to steal it. A fight finally en¬ 
sued, and the colored man whipped both of his assail¬ 
ants and drove them off—bruised and humiliated. As 
a rule, colored men do not lead quite such strenuous 
lives, but applanation made the problem easy. There 
was an Indian reservation nearby, and a fair share 
of the man’s color came from his Indian blood. Cen¬ 
turies ago the ancestors of that man on one side 
fought for their native land. On the other side were 
ancestors who through centuries had been satisfied 
with patient submission. The old war spirit of the 
Indian led the hard bone and muscle of the negro to 
victory. It was a case where “blood” had its way! 
We do not, of course, print this as any argument in 
favor of fights or fighting. Most men are likely to be 
“strenuous” enough in such matters without any out¬ 
side suggestion. The incident merely strengthens the 
point often made with great force by breeders of live 
stock. We should know what “blood” or inherited 
tendencies our breeding farm animals carry. Packed 
away somewhere inside their bone and flesh are ten¬ 
dencies to do certain things well or ill—which are 
sure to appear in their offspring. These inherited 
tendencies may be firmly fixed through a long line of 
selected animals or they may be weakly and imper¬ 
fectly fixed. Since the average farmer must depend 
upon his males for most of his improvement in 
“blood” he should pick only those individuals which 
are strongest in breeding lines. Thus an animal less 
pleasing to the eye than another may make a better 
sire because he has pedigree rather than points. 
• 
We do not often put our personal opinion regarding 
the tobacco habit before readers. We have seen 
enough of human nature and life in general to know 
that opinions vary as to the effect of a moderate use 
of tobacco upon a mature man. We have no use for 
the weed, but have no wish to jail any man who de¬ 
sires to pack himself with nicotine. We would, how¬ 
ever, gladly jail anyone who deliberately encourages 
a growing boy to smoke cigareues. We fully agree 
with a teacher in this city who is reported to have 
said: 
The facts warrant me in saying with as much positive¬ 
ness as I know that any boy under 20, who is a regular 
smoker, may just as well give up all hope of competing 
in point of scholarship with boys who let tobacco in all 
its forms alone. This is a sweeping assertion, and I 
might even make it more sweeping and still keep within 
the limits of my honest convictions. I might go so far as 
to say that a boy under 20 who is addicted to excessive 
use of tobacco—and in these days of cigarettes almost 
every boy who is addicted to the use of tobacco at all 
is addicted to its excessive use—I might, I say, go so far 
as to assert it as a fact that any boy with the tobacco 
habit thus firmly fixed upon him might as well abandon 
all hope of even a moderate proficiency in his studies. 
We believe that any honest man who has observed 
the effect of tobacco upon his own health or upon 
others will agree with that statement Let any doubt¬ 
er visit this or any other city and look at the pale, 
nerveless cigarette fiends who crawl out of the stores 
and manufacturing buildings at noon. Poor, blood¬ 
less victims of an infernal habit, they are dwarfed 
down from the standard of manhood which God gave 
them and incapable of doing a man’s work in a world 
that needs all manly qualities. Such parodies on what 
a man ought to be should shock any honest man who 
has boys of his own who feel proud to do what father 
does! No, we have no argument just now with grown¬ 
up men who use tobacco, though we know dozens who 
puff and turn white as a sheet whenever the heart 
quickens its beat. We are talking to those who might 
start a growing boy into cigarette smoking! 
• 
Singe the statement of our lawsuit was printed let¬ 
ters have been pouring in from all sides from parties 
who claim to have been swindled. Farmers, lumber 
and grain dealers and other business men are sending 
us positive statements about the treatment they have 
received—fully justifying our position. The plaintiff 
brought suit against several parties in Ohio because 
it claimed they were instrumental in obtaining a let¬ 
ter from Hon. J. M. Sheets, Attorney-General of Ohio. 
In this letter, printed in the Grain Dealers’ Journal, 
Mr. Sheets gives his opinion about the Company and 
makes use of this sentence: 
It is better to save the people from being swindled than 
it is to send a man to the penitentiary after they have 
been swindled, as that does not restore their money. 
He is to investigate further, and if he finds that his 
first conclusion is right he will attempt to drive the 
Company out of the State. We are informed that an 
attempt will now be made to oust them—that is pre¬ 
vent their doing business in Ohio. Among the many 
letters which we have received is the following from 
a well-known lumber dealer: 
Our acquaintance with the American Seed Company 
began in July, 1896. At that time one of the partners 
called on us and wanted to get a lot of hemlock run for 
silos, which he had coming in on cars. We were to un¬ 
load the cars, get the stuff in shape and ship it on his 
orders in accordance with his instructions. This we did, 
and in lieu of cash they gave us orders on the parties 
they had sold the silos to. Some of the orders were paid 
and others we had to return to them, as the part’es 
would not accept the orders, and when we got through 
with them about April, 1897, they owed us $163.56, which 
we have since been unable to collect. Shortly after April. 
1897, we handed the account to our attorney for collec¬ 
tion, but we could never get any service on them because 
we never could find them. The concern we sold was the 
American Seed Co., but about the time the stuff was all 
delivered the American Seed Company had gone out of 
business and we could not locate the responsibility on 
anyone, so were unable to collect our bill. We have heard 
from time to time all kinds of stories about this concern, 
but we never investigated any of them, and did not know 
whether they were true or not. We do know’, how’ever, that 
the lumber that we worked up into silo stuff for them 
was not fit for the purpose, and that they stuck us for 
$163.56. They have injured the silo business very much 
by reason of the fact that many people who bought silos 
of them found they were not such as they expected, and 
after that all silo men look alike to them. 
“All silo men look alike!” There is a world of 
truth in that sentence. A man with a crooked busi¬ 
ness will throw discredit upon a dozen men who are 
trying to sell straight goods ip a straightforward 
manner. Some people will be crooked until the law 
collars them and makes them walk Spanish along a 
straight line. 
« 
It has been stated that there is no tariff on an¬ 
thracite coal, yet it is probable that no foreign anthra¬ 
cite could be imported without paying the duty of 67 
cents per ton. This tariff is levied on “all coals con¬ 
taining less tnan 92 per cent of fixed carbon.” “An¬ 
thracite coal” has been on the free list for more than 
30 years, but the clause quoted above was put in the 
present tariff law when the duty was raised from 40 
to 67 cents. In effect that puts a tariff on nearly all 
the anthracite that could be imported, since it would 
average less than 92 per cent carbon. There is no 
anthracite in the world equal to the American coal. 
It is surely one of the things which do not need pro¬ 
tection. 
* 
Every week brings questions from readers about 
the reliability of parties offering for sale stock in 
Texas oil companies. The offer of such stock is usual¬ 
ly made in a circular so printed as to look like a type¬ 
written letter. The name and address are written in 
but the rest of the so-called letter is printed, includ¬ 
ing the signature. Here is part of one of these circu¬ 
lars: 
We are offering for sale a limited amount of stock of 
the . which, as a first-class investment, 
should interest you. At the present time we are deliver¬ 
ing 1,200 barrels of oil from our field daily on contract; 
with the proceeds from the sale of this block of stock we 
shall purchase more cars and barges, and fill existing 
contracts for 2,500 barrels of oil additional daily. The sale 
of this stock will be brief, and we respectfully suggest 
if you are interested, drop us a line for further par¬ 
ticulars. 
Now we do not pretend to know all about this com¬ 
pany, but we would not invest a dollar in it through 
strangers who send out a printed circular. Does any 
sane man buy diamonds, lightning rods or other valu¬ 
able property of a stranger when there are respect¬ 
able business men dealing in these goods? Money 
has been made in Texas oil, and it is comparatively 
easy to sell the stock of valuable plants without try¬ 
ing to peddle it out in this way. If a man owned 
really valuable oil property he would never try any 
such game. It would be easy to borrow money on it, 
and every share he held would mean that much more 
for himself. Instead of trying to sell it he would 
hold every share he could. Why rush to put your 
money into Texas oil wells? You can probably find 
better chances for investment right in your own town 
—on your own farm! 
* 
BREVITIES. 
THE GENTLE COW. 
The gentle cow looked sadly round, 
Her face suffused with shame; 
“For all the ills which now abound,” 
Quoth she, ‘‘I’m not to blame. 
‘‘Good butter of an honest hue, 
Built by a rustic dame, 
The factory may hide from view, 
But I am not to blame. 
“The milk takes on an azure tint, 
Its taste belies its name; 
The cream is but a passing hint, 
But I am not to blame. 
"And when I am set forth as beef 
The prices they proclaim 
Become a source of general grief; 
But I am not to blame. 
“For I have simply done my best 
And tried no crooked game. 
The human beings did the rest, 
And I am not to blame.” 
—Washington Star. 
What do you pay for picking potatoes? 
Does the New York State law make game of the Bel¬ 
gian hare? See page 671. 
Mechanical fruit graders are being shown at eastern 
fairs, but do not strike many buyers. 
It seems appropriate for that Boston commission man 
to speak up for Plymouth Rock, page 683. 
The smaller country fairs seem to have taken on new 
life. The street fairs have mostly died out. 
Cat fanciers improve upon Mr. Slingerland’s plan for 
removing fleas from pet animals, page 655. They stand 
the cat upon a sheet of cotton batting while dusting in¬ 
sect powder into its hair; the fleas, as they jump out, 
are entangled in the batting, and cannot jump away as 
they could from a sheet of paper. 
