1902 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
68 r 
MARKET NOTES 
MILK.— The Borden prices to producers 
have been raised 10 cents per 100 pounds 
for the six months beginning with Octo¬ 
ber 1. The schedule is as follows: Oc¬ 
tober, SI.45; November, $1.55; December 
and January, $1.65; February, $1.50; March, 
$1.40. This general rise was not expected 
by producers, but is none the less accept¬ 
able. 
EGGS.—The moulting season in many 
producing sections is at hand. Hundreds 
of hens now look as though they had been 
run through a. corn sheller, and have lost 
all interest in the egg market. It is fortu¬ 
nate that the fever for new Winter cloth¬ 
ing does not strike all hens throughout 
the country on the same day. Prices are 
now two or three cents per dozen above 
last year’s figures of this date, and refri¬ 
gerator eggs are meeting a fair sale. 
MAINE CORN SHORTAGE.—For a 
number of years this extreme northeast¬ 
ern State has produced large quantities of 
prime sweet corn for canning purposes 
Main corn has a reputation worth having. 
The 1900 and 1901 crops were very large, 
but could not be considered an overproduc¬ 
tion, as it is said that there are enough 
canneries scattered throughout the State 
to handle all that can be grown. The cold 
and wet weather of the present season 
has greatly damaged the crop, 25 per cent 
of a normal yield being considered a fair 
estimate. This will bring the price for the 
supply available for canning to a very 
high figure, as much as $1.20 wholesale 
for two-pound cans being named at pres¬ 
ent. 
JEWISH HOLIDAYS.—Several of these 
are at hand. October 2-3 is the New Year, 
5663, Jewish reckoning. Then come the 
Day of Atonement, October 11, and the 
Feast of Tabernacles, commencing October 
1G and lasting eight days. While there is 
always a fair trade in this city in live 
poultry, on account of the large Hebrew 
population, it is materially increased for 
these celebrations, and finer quality than 
ordinarily demanded is required. Poultry 
intended for this trade should be on hand 
three or four days in advance, so that they 
may get into the hands of the consumers 
in time. The market is practically dead 
during the feasts, and poultry that is late 
must be held over. More time is needed 
to get live poultry into the hands of re¬ 
tailers than most products, as, for sani¬ 
tary reasons, the authorities keep the 
wholesale trade bunched together where 
they can watch it, and most of the poultrv 
must be carted a long distance to reach 
the thickly settled Jewish sections. These 
holidays make a noticeable effect in other 
lines than poultry, as the Jews are heavy 
buyers of eggs, vegetables and fruits. 
GINSENG.—The market outlook is not 
encouraging. While the slump reported in 
some newspapers is perhaps exaggerated, 
it is safe to say that dealers here are sur¬ 
prised at the reports of la,rge quantities 
left unsold in China and the demand from 
that country for lower prices. Of course 
part of the unsold quantity is accounted 
lor by the Boxer troubles, which greatly 
upset trade in all branches, and it is quite 
probable that as the country is further 
opened to modern customs the ginseng 
trade will be still further curtailed. Botan¬ 
ical druggists and medical men in this 
country and Europe have been unable to 
find sufficient use for ginseng to warrant 
the enormous prices that the Chinese have 
paid, and this is considered largely the re¬ 
sult of a superstitious regard for the root. 
It is said that the Chinaman carries a 
piece of ginseng root in his pocket, bites 
off a little piece now and'Then, and feels 
that he is practically immune from all 
diseases. No doubt this feeling of secur¬ 
ity actually helps him to resist disease. 
The principle is about the same as in the 
case of the man who carries a small potato 
in his pocket to cure his rheumatism. If 
he really believes that it will help him, xt 
will to the extent of a certain amount of 
mental effect. It is quite likely that the 
man who believes in the potato as a rheu¬ 
matism annihilator would be willing to pay 
ginseng prices for it if necessary. 
SELLING VINEGAR.—A reader in the 
Hudson Valley asks this question: “I have 
a quantity of vinegar which I wish to dis¬ 
pose of. Will you inform me as to the 
State law concerning it, also give particu¬ 
lars in regard to making the desired tests.” 
The laws of New York provide that any 
person selling adulterated vinegar, or cider 
vinegar that falls below the prescribed 
percentages of acidity and solids shall be 
fined $100. Adulterated vinegar is any that 
contains lead, copper, sulphuric acid or 
other ingredients injurious to health, or 
any artificial coloring matter. It must 
have an acidity of at least 4% per cent by 
weight of absolute acetic acid, and cider 
vinegar must have not only this acidity 
but two per cent of cider vinegar solids on 
evaporation over boiling water. Two 
forms of testers are used by inspectors. 
The acetometer tells the percentage of 
acetic acid. It consists of a tube which is 
filled with vinegar to a certain point. Then 
a liquid which comes with the tube is 
added, and, by noting the effect of this 
upon the vinegar, according to instruc- 1 
tions, the degree of acidity may be deter¬ 
mined. The percentage of solids in cider 
vinegar may be learned by the use of a 
form of hydrometer made especially for 
this purpose, being a graduated tube 
weighted to sink to a certain point in 
liquid of a given density. Both of these 
instruments are simple and easily used. 
The one first named may be had from the 
Genesee Fruit Co., 497 West Street, New 
York, and the other from R. Eloehn & Co., 
80 Chambers Street. No prosecutions are 
made by the authorities until the vinegar 
is found faulty by actual chemical tests, 
but these instruments for preliminary 
testing are considered sufficiently accurate 
to warrant an analysis of the suspected 
vinegar. _ w. w. h. 
IRRIGATION ON LONG ISLAND. 
The phenomenally large crops of Long 
Island this year are unquestionably due to 
irrigation, not artificial, but natural, in the 
form of rains and full ponds and streams. 
It has demonstrated that the light sandy 
soil of the greater portion of Long Island 
can only be relied upon to produce a maxi¬ 
mum crop where there is an abundant sup¬ 
ply of water. The surface of this portion 
of the State is for the most part practically 
level, with an abundant supply of water 
in brooks and ponds. In many places it 
would be very easy to establish irrigating 
plants on a large scale. Only a slight ele¬ 
vation of the water would be sufficient to 
distribute it over a large area of arable 
land. It is probable that much of the so- 
called barren lands could be made to pro¬ 
duce abundantly if properly irrigated. In 
fact, it is said that much of the scrub oak 
land of Long Island closely resembles the 
lands of the West, which have been re¬ 
deemed by irrigation. Some of the best 
peach orchards on the Island are in beach 
sand which overlays soil rich in vegetable 
humus. Even on the beaches in the beach 
sand fine crops of watermelons and straw¬ 
berries have been raised. The soil and 
climate of Suffolk County are admirably 
adapted for fruits, both bush and stand¬ 
ard, especially berries and peaches, but in 
order to secure a maximum yield it will 
undoubtedly be necessary to irrigate on a 
large scale. 
In Queens and Nassau counties unfortun¬ 
ately a very large proportion of both the 
rainfall and the spring water is taken by 
the Borough of Brooklyn for its water 
supply, and it would be difficult if not im¬ 
possible to secure water for irrigation un¬ 
less wells were sunk deeper than those of 
the city. The damage which has resulted 
to market gardeners by sub-drainage to 
supply the wells of the cit” indicates the 
profitable results which would follow either 
surface or sub-irrigation. There are many 
people who think it would be very much 
better for the City of New York to have 
the water of Nassau and Suffolk counties 
converted into vegetables to supply the 
city rather than to leave it to decompose, 
in shallow sandy basins and eventually 
find its way through the rusty iron pipes 
to the city. It is probable that the re¬ 
demption of thousands of acres of lari, 
mostly light sandy loam now covered with 
pitch pine and scrub oak, yet within an 
hour’s ride of four million people will be 
accomplished by water irrigation. A judi¬ 
cious combination of water and fertilizers 
will make the plain sections of Long Isl¬ 
and the market garden of New York State. 
There is certainly enough in it to war¬ 
rant the establishment of experimental 
grounds, say north of Islip, or at some 
other point where a water supply could De 
readily obtained at a small cost to apply 
to the pine and scrub oak lands. 
J. H. G. 
FRUIT AND FEATHERS. 
Birds and San Jose Scale.— The drift 
of older teachings used to be in the direc¬ 
tion of showing that we must have birds 
in order to have fruit. This year the cor¬ 
rectness of that proposition seems to be 
much disputed. I find that the more birds 
I have on the place the less fruit is left 
me to harvest, and the more San Jos6 
scale is to be found. At present birds are 
eating the few Abundance plums that are 
on the trees, and even some early (Rus¬ 
sian! pears, which are mellow and soft 
when fully ripe, are not safe from bird 
depredations. Now to all this long list of 
grave charges against our feathered visi¬ 
tors comes thi3 even more serious one of 
being the most effective agent in spreading 
the San JosS scourge and curse all over 
the neighborhood. For proof of this charge 
I point to the fact that the favorite Sum¬ 
mer retreats and feeding grounds of birds 
are just the places where we are most like¬ 
ly to find the San Jos6 scale in greatest 
numbers—on the Juneberries, the Japan 
quinces, and on dense thickets or clusters 
of Purple-leaved plum (P. Pissardi). If 
you want to look for San Jose scales ex¬ 
amine the Juneberries and Japan quinces 
If you don’t find them there, and after a 
diligent search fail to find the tell-tale red 
spots on the fruit of Bartlett pears and 
Greening apples, you may be reasonably 
sure that your place is as yet free from 
the San Jos6 scale pest. t. greiner. 
Niagara Co., N. Y. 
Friend of Robin.—I feel it my duty just 
at this time to write a few words for the 
robin about which so much complaint has 
been made for the last six months. I think 
the man who is too ungrateful to allow the 
robin all the fruit he will eat should not 
have any himself. Just here is where the 
great trouble in fruit growing tomes in. 
Only too many of these little feathered 
friends are slaughtered by wholesale, and 
an ugly, selfish disposition entertained 
against these friends who demand so lit¬ 
tle for the great deal they do for us. Wc 
would no more allow any person to kill any 
bird on our farm than to kill our pet Collie 
York, Pa. e. f. k. 
A Plea for the Robin.—A pair of robins 
built a nest in a honeysuckle vine on our 
piazza a year ago. Elaving been a mem¬ 
ber of the game protection society, I 
thought I would study the habits of the 
pair, and watched them closely for one 
hour, not disturbing them in any way. In 
that hour the two old birds brought 68 
worms to their young, composed of cut¬ 
worms, and a nasty-looking thing with 
fur, which before bringing to the nest 
they stopped on the path and picked it and 
pulled it through their claws, as it were, 
to break its bones, then took it limp and 
dead to the nest. We have over an acre 
in strawberries, and by simply tying lines 
across the beds, with white rags like the 
tail of a kite, we have no trouble. For 
the lovely cheerful little robin who comes 
to us so ready, after the long Winter days, 
to tell us Spring with its verdure and 
beauty will soon be here, I affectionately 
make this plea. f. r. t. 
Babylon, L. I. 
AMERICAN INSTITUTE FAIR. 
The seventy-first annual fair of the 
American Institute of the City of New 
York was held at its rooms, 19-21 West 
Forty-fourth Street, September 23-25. The 
exhibits were generally of a high grade 
and in quantity greatly exceeded the usual 
offerings, overflowing all available space 
and crowding the ante-rooms. Dahlias nat¬ 
urally were the leading attraction, over 
5,000 splendid blooms being shown, divided 
in many classes and sections. The newer 
cactus Dahlias are superb—full of fire and 
brilliancy in color, and of most satisfactory 
form and finish. The novelty of the season 
appeared to be Salmon Queen, intermediate 
in form between the cactus and exhibition 
types. The flowers are large and perfec 
in outline, and the salmon color rich and 
pleasing. Single Dahlias continue to grow 
in favor and come better in quality every 
exhibition year. Dahlias are again in high 
favor and are being more intelligently 
grown than ever before. 
There were large and beautiful groups ot 
foliage and decorative plants as well us 
superb orchids. Considerable difficulty was 
found in judging the awards in this sec¬ 
tion. Several extensive collections of wild 
and hardy herbaceous flowers properly 
labeled were very interesting. There was 
a very good exhibit of Gladiolus bloom 1 -- 
considering the lateness of the season, in¬ 
cluding massive groups of Princeps, the 
new large-flowering variety from the Rural 
Grounds. The vegetable exhibit was high¬ 
ly creditable in all particulars. Some of 
the finest specimens ever shown at the In¬ 
stitute were brought forward for competi¬ 
tion this season. The Manhattan State 
Hospital, Central Islip, L. I., made an im¬ 
mense and most interesting exhibit of pro¬ 
ducts grown on the hospital farm by in¬ 
sane patients. There were lots of good po¬ 
tatoes, but no finer specimens than Carman 
No. 2, Sir Walter Raleigh and others dis¬ 
seminated by The R. N.-Y. 
Edible nuts in great variety were shown 
by many exhibitors. Too many indifferent 
Japan seedling chestnuts are being named 
The quality of the foreign chestnuts is so 
low in general that only varieties of spe¬ 
cial excellence in size, earliness or produc¬ 
tiveness should be perpetuated. If toler 
able quality can be combined so much th-- 
better, but it is yet woefully lacking, ex 
cept in the case of Paragon, which is quit 
tolerable, though not up to our native 
kinds. There were more peaches that 
usual, the varieties being Stump-the-World 
Red Cheek, Melocoton, Salway and Heath 
There were only a few good plums; Octo 
ber Purple and Wickson showed up best 
Apples, pears and grapes were in unusual 
quantity and great variety, but not alway.- 
up to the standard of former years. Th- 
former were rather lacking in color as a 
general thing, and both apples and pears 
showed marks of Pernicious scale in a fev 
instances. The attendance was large 
throughout the fair, and very intelligent 
interest was shown in the exhibits by many 
visitors. w. v. f 
When you write advertisers mention The 
R. N.-Y. and you will get a quick reply and 
"a square deal.” See our guarantee 8th page. 
TIRED OUT . 
There’s many a farmer’s wife sits on the 
porch in the growing shadows of a sum¬ 
mer evening, knowing to the full what it 
is to feel tired out; as if there was not 
another ounce of effort left in her. But 
she knows how 
sound her slum¬ 
ber will be and 
how refreshed 
the morning will 
find her. That’s 
the tiredness of 
a healthy 
woman. But 
it’s another 
thing for the 
sick woman to 
feel tired out. 
Rest only seems 
to increase her 
suffering. Just 
as in profound 
silence a discord 
jars the ear 
more forcibly, so 
now that she 
has stopped 
moving about, 
this tired woman feels more acutely the 
aching back and throbbing nerves. 
Sick women, hundreds of thousands of 
them, have been made well by the use of 
Dr. Pierce’s Favorite Prescription. It 
establishes regularity, dries weakening 
drains, heals inflammation and ulcera¬ 
tion and cures female weakness. 
"Words cannot tell what I suffered for thir¬ 
teen years with uterine trouble and dragging- 
down pains through my hips and back,” writes 
Mrs. John Dickson, of Grenfell, Assiniboia Dist., 
N. W. Ter. " I can’t describe the misery it was 
to be on my feet long at a time. I could not eat 
nor sleep. Often I wished to die. Then I saw 
Dr. Pierce’s medicines advertised and thought I 
would try them. Had not taken one bottle till 
I was feeling well. After I had taken five bottles 
of ' Favorite Prescription ' and one of ‘ Golden 
Medical Discovery’ I was like a new woman. 
Could eat and sleep and do all my own work.” 
The Common Sense Medical Adviser, 
is sent free on receipt of stamps to pay 
expense of mailing only. Send 21 one- 
cent stamps for the book in paper covers, 
or 31 stamps for the volume bound in 
cloth. Address Dr. Pierce, Buffalo, N.Y. 
Waltham and 
Elgin Watches 
HIGH GRADE. LOW PRICES. 
Some of our people will want watches this Fall. 
Our people are used to good things and will want 
GOOD watches. That is the kind weoffer vWalthams 
and Elglns only) and all full 15-jeweled. Every watch 
is warranted and may be returned at our expense if 
you don't like it when you see It. We guarantee 
every watch to be first class in every respect, and the 
prices are the lowest on record. 
Men’s 14k. 25 Year Gold Filled Watch 
Full 15-Jeweled Works, Hunting Case, 
$ 16 . 50 . 
No. 201 Is a genuine Waltham or Elgin Watch. The 
works are full-jeweled, stem wind and set, and con¬ 
tain the greatest improvements. The case is 14k- 
gold lllled. warranted for 25 years. This watch sells 
at from $25 to $35, but we will send one including free 
safe delivery for onlv $16.50. 
Men’s 14k. 25 Year Gold Filled Watch 
Full 15-.Je\velecl Works, Open-Face Case, 
$ 13.60 
No. 202 Is the same as No. 201, but open face. Price 
including free safe delivery, only $13.60. 
Men’s Sterling Silver Watch. 
Full lo-.Jeweletl Works, 3-ounce Case, 
Open Face or limiting. 
$ 12 . 00 . 
No. 203 Is ust like No. 201, but the case is sterling 
silver, weighing 3 ounces, open face or hunting 
Deliv red •' i good running order for only $12. 
Mens Full 15-Jeweled Waltham or 
Elgin Watch. 
Nickel Silver Case, Open Face. 
$ 7 . 75 . 
I'o. 204 is just likeNo.202. bat the case is made of 
solic! nic'.-.Dl-silv''”, a beautiful white composition 
metal. Price Including free safe delivery, only $7.75. 
Ladies’ Full 15-Jeweled Watch. 
14-k. 25 Year Gold Filled Hunting Case. 
$ 15 . 25 . 
No. 205 Is just like No. 201, but ladies’ size. Delivered 
free In good running order for only $L5.25. 
Address 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
NEW YORK CITY 
