1899 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
363 
HOPE FARM NOTES. 
Pleasant Prospects. —I stood in the 
barn door on the last Sunday afternoon 
in April, and watched the sun go down. 
I don't know when Hope Farm has 
seemed so true to its name. The maples 
in the woods were purple, the willows 
were green, and here and there, a clump 
of White birches stood up like beckon¬ 
ing fingers. On the hill to the right, 
wood-choppers have been cutting out 
telephone poles. They left two big trees 
standing. There they were, straight in 
the air, without a limb for 50 feet, and 
only a great bushy top. As they stood 
in the thick wood they seemed like per¬ 
fect trees. Put them out by themselves, 
and they made a poor showing. A tree 
is not unlike a man. He may look well 
in a crowd, but put him out alone, and 
what is there of him ? The farm was 
like patchwork. The dark green of the 
Crimson clover, the light green rye, the 
black cow pea stubble and the brown 
plowed ground were well contrasted. 
The wind rippled over the Crimson clover, 
turning up the leaves till they shone in 
the sun. The bush fruits were leafing 
out, and the strawberries were jumping. 
It was a pretty sight—full of promise 
for the season. In spite of the back¬ 
ward Spring, we are well along with 
our work. 
Changing Plans. —I don’t believe in 
cast-iron plans. We often find it con¬ 
venient to change. We planned to put 
one large field into hilled potatoes. 
After plowing and fitting about one-third 
of it, we were tempted to take the 
planter and drill in the seed at once. 
The soil was just exactly right at the 
time. To wait until the whole field was 
fitted, and then mark both ways and 
drop by hand was risky, with a heavy 
rain possible and the potatoes sprouting 
badly. Of course, planting with the 
machine meant extra hoeing and weed¬ 
ing, for we could work both ways in the 
hills. We reasoned it all over—and got 
out the planter at last and put that seed 
right in. We may regret the change of 
plan when the grass starts, but it’s done 
now anyway. The women folks change 
their plans, too, I notice. The Madame 
went shopping in New York last week, 
and made such good bargains that she 
treated us to two boxes of strawberries. 
She got home just as Grandmother was 
making up a batch of biscuits. The 
berries wouldn’t have given us a taste 
served in the usual way, so they changed 
their plan, and made that dough into a 
Bhort-cake! 
Long Days —The days ought to be 30 
hours long in order to crowd into them 
all the work and sleep needed to get the 
crops started. The workers keep moving 
through the daylight, and after supper, 
the brooders and incubators must be 
fixed up and other little chores done, so 
that bedtime hangs a card on work. 
One thing that puts us back a little is 
the fact that old Major has seen his best 
days. He can’t keep up with Frank at 
the plow or harrow. We can’t push the 
work with a halting team. We need 
another horse. We want to get a mate 
for Frank, and use Major for light cul¬ 
tivating and “ the women’s horse.” The 
Madame thinks it’s a poor game to say 
that, when a horse fails at the plow, he 
is fit for the women to drive ! We find 
that good horses are over 50 per cent 
higher than two years ago. We bought 
Frank for $70 and he would now sell in 
24 hours for $125. Not much use trying 
to force work unless you have strong 
motive power. 
Lively Hens. —During April, the hens 
laid 1,773 eggs, which were worth 1 M 
cent each. The grain cost about $7.50. 
The pen of Blacks that were mentioned 
last month laid 510 eggs, and not one 
has hinted at sitting. We think these 
Blacks are good enough to talk about. 
I haven’t as much sporting blood as I 
had 20 years ago, but I have an opinion 
which Charlie doesn’t hesitate to express 
openly. He says that he will match 15 
of the Blacks or 15 of their pullets 
against any other 15 bicfis in New Jersey. 
He would like to send the birds right 
down to the Experiment Station, and 
put them side by side with others, each 
pen to have c qual sized houses and yards, 
and each owner to select the ration to 
be given his birds. The Station people 
to keep accurate records of food con¬ 
sumed and its cost, eggs laid, both num¬ 
bers and weight, the contest to continue 
for one year. The expenses of the ex¬ 
periment to be paid by those who enter. 
It strikes me that would make a good 
poultry experiment. We have faith 
enough in our Hope Farm Blacks to 
think they can make more ounces of egg 
out of a pound of food during one year 
than any other birds you can bring along! 
It would suit us to start December 1 
with pullets, for we have found that 
each generation of our breeding and 
selecting has improved the Blacks a 
little. However, we shall enter the 
hens if desired. The tremendous great 
hen records we read about don’t frighten 
us at all. Our birds are calculated to do 
as well on a visit as they do at home. 
Use the Weeder —The earliest 
planted potatoes are nearly at the sur¬ 
face, and millions of little weeds have 
appeared. As soon as we could fairly 
see them, we got out the weeder, and 
scratched the whole field over—going 
lengthwise of the rows first. We started 
on the morning of a hot, bright day, 
and nobody knows how many million 
little weeds were turned up to the sun 
and killed. It was a great slaughter. 
Just think what it would mean to let 
those weeds grow in the potato rows 
until large enough to kill with the hoe. 
That would be about the quickest way 
to manufacture work that I can think 
of. I regard a hoe as a muscle-maker, 
while a good riding cultivator and 
weeder is more of a fat-former. We need 
muscle-makers in feeding oows, but I 
see no reason why a man should build 
up unnecessary muscle on a diet of hoe. 
Sweet Corn. — Our first acre was 
planted April 26. We used Crosby for 
this first planting. We have given up 
Cory for early market. It does not suit 
our customers. The flavor is usually poor, 
and this variety seems a favorite nesting 
place for the worms. We plant Perry’s 
Hybrid about a week after Crosby and 
Evergreen for late crop. As a rule, the 
early varieties pay us best. The soil 
where this corn was planted has had 
two crops of Crimson clcv r and one of 
cow peas plowed in. By its side, is a 
strip where no humus crop has been 
used. What a contrast both in eolor 
and texture ! I feel so certain of it that 
I would like to guarantee that, with 
equal amounts of fertilizer, the cow pea 
strip will outyield the other by 50 per 
cent! The Madame and Aunt Patience 
went out and dropped a good deal of the 
corn for us. They also cut potatoes dur¬ 
ing the rush. Every piece had two good 
eyes on it, too ! We are all interested 
in making things go this Summer. 
A Late Season. — Uncle Ed left 
Florida about April 10. At that time 
the martins were mating, and people 
were eating strawberries out of the 
field. Here the birds had failed to put 
in an appearance, and the fruit was just 
starting its buds. I suppose if a man 
started from Florida and walked up, he 
would just about keep up with the birds 
and the season, but a railroad train goes 
too fast for them. Uncle Ed tells such 
great stories about the Velvet bean and 
what it does in Florida, that we mean 
to give it another trial this year. Last 
year it made a poor, feeble growth—not 
at all equal to our cow peas. Perhaps 
we didn’t understand it. Uncle Ed is 
an old friend of the Velvet bean, and 
we’ll let him take it right into partner¬ 
ship. He wants to run the vine up over 
an old pear tree that stands on the road, 
so as to advertise the bean ! By the 
way, as the bush fruits bud out, I ob¬ 
serve some interesting things about the 
situation and amount of frozen wood. 
Canes that I gave up as killed are now 
in full leaf. It does not do to give trees 
and vines up till they can show them¬ 
selves. h. w. c. 
Some Missouri Stories —At the Win¬ 
ter meeting of the Missouri Horticultural 
Society, N. F. Murray was called upon 
to respond to the welcoming address. 
Among other things, he bragged about 
the great sales of American produce in 
Europe. He told of the hungry cattle¬ 
man from Missouri who went to a Chi¬ 
cago hotel. After devouring the titbits 
that were set before him, this man called 
out to the waiter, “ Your samples are 
all right, now bring on your grub.” “So 
Europe,” he said, “ after sampling Mis¬ 
souri’s apples, says, ‘Bring on your 
grub,’ with the result that, in five years, 
shipments of American apples have been 
increased five-fold.” 
These Missouri men are good talkers, 
and Mr. Murray told of the old man who 
died in Boone County. His wife ordered 
a suitable monument for his grave. The 
contractor completed the job, but the old 
lady looked it over carefully, and said, 
“You can take that thing right down, 
and take it home with you ”, 
“ Why, what is the matter ? ” said the 
contractor. 
“ I can’t have no monument with such a 
lie as that is on it, on my old man’s grave. ” 
“ Lie, my dear woman ! What do you 
mean ? ” 
“ Why, them there lines at the base, 
where it says * Gone home to that better 
country ’. I just tell you right now, that 
my old man and me has tried all them 
other countries, and there ain’t no better 
country than good old Boone County, Mo ” 
No genuine Peruvian Guano had been 
imported into this country for years, 
until the arrival in December last of the 
steamship “ Bovic” at New York, and of 
the “Assyria” at Boston, in February. 
Each of these big steamships carried a 
lot of the genuine article, imported by 
the Bowker Fertilizer Company, of Bos¬ 
ton, whose advertisement appears in an¬ 
other column. The genuine guano has 
been so scarce that farmers who know 
its value will be more than pleased to 
know that they can again obtain it of a 
responsible concern. As the lots offered 
are not large, intending purchasers will 
do well to apply early so as to obtain some 
before the supply brought by the “As¬ 
syria” and “Bovic” is exhausted — Adv. 
Can we Save 
You Money 
on a saddle, harness 
or vehicle! 
Because we have no agents. 
Can we really doit? We any yea. Can we prove It without 
cost to you? We can. llowt We will ship you a harness, sad¬ 
dle, or vehicle, without you sending a single cent, and let you look 
It over at your freight house and if you don’t find we have given 
you the blffgeflt bargain you ever Baw or heard of return the 
goo da to ua at our expense. We give with each vehicle a 
•-year 
years iron-clad guarantee protecting you against poor 
* icle catalog 
laa gui 
material and workmanship. Our vehicle catalogue describes the 
largest line of buggleH, road wagona, phaetons, flurries, 
spring and farm wagons, carts, harnesses and sad¬ 
dles ever shown in one book. It’s free. Bend for it. * 
Marvin Smith Co. 55-59 N. Jefferson St. X 16 Chicago* 111. 
ArtUP-TOTIMElS DAIRYWAGON 
SOLD DIRECT TO 
DAIRYMEN. 
IF INTERESTED IN 
A DAIRY WAGON.wrht 
TffENAT I0NALWAG0N CO. CHI LLICOTHE ,0 
: 
a 
o 
O Al R V 
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fmzer 
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L ARGEST manu¬ 
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spokes, any width tire. 
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spoke in the 
groove can’t 
wear off. 
Make best 
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Four different kinds. 
8ENO FOR OATALOOUE 
Havana Metal Wheel Co. 
Havana, III. 
m M m 
*0\ 
BUGGIES AT I§f 
WHOLESALE.^- 
We manufacture a full line of Buggies, 
Phaetons, Surries, Hprlnic Wagon, 
and Hoad Wagon, and sell them to 
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From our Factory 
at Wholesale Prices. 
This saves you all the extra expense of 
double shipment, traveling men’s ex¬ 
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best finish and best styles. 
Our line of Single and 
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embraces everything you could wish in 
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Prices of everything in plain figures. 
EDWARD W. WALKER CARRIAGE CO. 
13 Eighth St. Goshen, Indiana. 
Driving Lamp 
IT Is the only perfect one. 
IT throws all the light straight ahead 
from aoo to 300 feet. 
IT looks like a locomotive headlight. 
IT gives a clear white light. 
IT burns kerosene (Coal Oil) 
It will not blow nor jar out 
SPECIAL OFFER. cut this advertisement out 
_____________ and send it to us and we will send 
book describing our lamp, and will agree to send you one single lamp or 
a pair at our wholesale price (very much less than the retail price). 
R. E. DIETZ COMPANY, 87 Lalght St., New York. 
Established 18-10. 
PROFIT FOR MAKER ONLY. 
We manufacture 170 styles of vehicles and 06 styles of harnessand 
sell them to you direct from our factory at wholesale prices. Ia 
fact, we are the largest manufacturers of vehicles and harness in 
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this plan you pay only the proht of the manufacturer. 
No traveling expenses, no losses, no agent’s commission and 
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We Havo No Agents 9 
preferring to deal with you direct. No 
matter where you live, we can reach 
you and save you money. We ship our 
vehicles and harness anywhere for ex¬ 
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tVe Manufacture Everything 
tee sell , ”_ No.T80— Double] 
harness, with nickel trim- 
and we can assure you of good quality mlngs. Complete with cob 
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good iron and steel, good paint and varnish, good finish, good trimmings, fine style good u sella for $30. 
and the largest selection In the land. Large Illustrated Catalogue FREE. 
Elkhart Carriage & Harness Manfgm Co. £ikhart, !ndiana. 
No. 717 —Canopy-Top Surrey, with douhle fen¬ 
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apron, sunshade, lamps and pole or shafts, $68; just 
as good as sells for $100. 
