1899 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
577 
Value of a Fertilizer. 
C. W. R., Pleasant Valley, Va. —What is the 
commercial value of a fertilizer with the 
following analysis: 
Per Cent. 
Available phosphoric acid. 9 to 12 
Equivalent to bone phosphate. 20 to 24 
Insoluble phosphoric acid. 2 to 3 
Equivalent to bone phosphate. 4 to 6 
Total bone phosphate.24 to 26 
Ammonia . 1 to 2 
Actual potash, K2 0. 1 to 2 
Equivalent to sulphate of potash.. 1 to 2 
Ans. —The only things you need to 
consider in buying this fertilizer are the 
items of available phosphoric acid, am¬ 
monia and actual potash. The manu¬ 
facturers guarantee only nine per cent of 
the phosphoric acid, which means 180 
pounds. We would value that at 4Y 2 cents 
a pound. They guarantee one per cent, 
or 20 pounds, of ammonia, worth 13 
cents a pound, and 20 pounds of actual 
potash, worth 4 y 2 cents. You must un¬ 
derstand just what these figures repre¬ 
sent. The prices per pound are supposed 
to be the average value of these sub¬ 
stances in the regular market. There 
are, for example, half a dozen forms in 
which nitrogen or ammonia would be 
bought. Chemists of the various experi¬ 
ment stations figure the average price of 
phosphoric acid, nitrogen and potash by 
getting the figures at which the various 
substances are sold, and making a fair 
average. The fertilizer value does not 
mean the value of the crop that can be 
produced from this fertilizer, but it 
means the cost, or what you would have 
to pay for 180 pounds of phosphoric acid, 
20 pounds each of ammonia and potash 
at the average market prices. 
A Coyer Crop for New Hampshire. 
P. E. B., Suncook, N. H.— What would you 
use in this latitude, for a cover crop? 
Crimson clover will not stand our Winters, 
and the custom here is to let the land lie 
open after the corn crop is taken off. 
Ans. —We would keep on trying with 
Crimson clover, in a small way, at least. 
Our next choice would be rye. This 
adds nothing to the fertility of the soil, 
but gives a good supply of humus, and 
with a fertilizer ricn in nitrogen, will 
produce fair crops. Winter vetch is 
worth trying. 
Sound Butter Bowls; Plums. 
L. A. M., Climax, Mich. —1. Where can I 
find a wooden tray for butter, that would 
not crack at once, notwithstanding the 
greasings and soakings given it? 2. What 
ails the plum? A large ti’ee, nine years old, 
blooms full each year. This year, I de¬ 
stroyed the aphis with the kerosene emul¬ 
sion, but the tiny plums drop off—enough 
for bushels. A few will grow larger, but 
repeated sprayings with Bordeaux and 
Paris-green have not saved even the few. 
Ans.— 1. So far as our own experience 
goes, and from all the information we 
are able to elicit from dairy experts, 
wooden butter bowls have a strong ten¬ 
dency to crack upon the slightest provo¬ 
cation, and occasionally, it seems that 
no provocation is necessary. D. H. 
Burrell & Co., Little Falls, N. Y., are ex¬ 
tensive manufacturers of dairy supplies, 
and they would possibly be able to Sup¬ 
ply some kind of a bowl or butter work¬ 
er which would prove satisfactory. 2. 
The plum complained of is, without 
doubt, the Victoria. It is a shy bearer 
at the best, and it corresponds very well 
with the description you give. The trou¬ 
ble is that it fails to fertilize the blos¬ 
soms when it stands alone. To improve 
the bearing quality, plant near one or 
two Lombard plum trees. These Lom- 
We Want Men 
to represent The R. N.-Y. at fairs. 
We want every farmer who attends a 
fair in any part of the country this 
season to see a copy of The Rural 
New-Yorker. We want at least 
20,000 of those who are not now tak¬ 
ing it to become subscribers. We 
want to make arrangements with you 
to help in this result. Lastly, we 
want you to write us for terms and 
appointments. 
The Rural New-Yorker, 
New York. 
bard trees will cause cross fertilization 
with the Victoria, and improve its bear¬ 
ing quality. l. a. c. 
The Source of Mica. 
R. B., Plymouth, Mich.— Where is the 
supply of mica found that is used in stoves? 
Is it found deep in the earth, or near the 
surface? I found a lump of mica the 
size of my fist in my field. Would I be 
likely to find more by digging for it? The 
soil where I found it is sandy gravel, and 
I think quicksand subsoil. 
Ans. —The main sources for the supply 
of mica in the United States are the 
mines of North Carolina .and New 
Hampshire, and a considerable quantity 
is imported each year from Canada. It 
is probable that the most valuable mines 
in the United States are those in New 
Hampshire, where the larger part of the 
sheet mica of commerce is found. There 
are several kinds of mica, but the most 
important is commonly called musco¬ 
vite. It is probable that, if R. B.’s land 
is underlaid with quicksand, there is no 
mica there, or at least, it is not present 
in sufficient quantities to pay for work¬ 
ing. It is quite common to find lumps 
of mica similar to what he described, but 
sheet mica is far more rare. l. a. c. 
Turning Cider to Vinegar. 
S. A. If., Babylon, N. Y.—I have some cider 
over three years old that will not turn to 
vinegar. It was exposed to the sun for the 
last two Summers, and allowed to drip 
from one barrel to another, drop by drop. 
Yet it is not sour enough. What can I do 
with it? 
Ans. —The fact that you have exposed 
the cider to the air by dripping, also, 
that it is already four years or more 
old, leads me to think that one or all of 
the following unfavorable conditions are 
present: Having been made of poor, 
early, or unripe fruit; watered freely 
when made; the barrels kept too full 
and undisturbed, and in too low a tem¬ 
perature. Any one of these would tend 
to cause the conditions mentioned, but 
cider made from early, unripe apples is 
the most common cause of failure. Such 
apples contain so small an amount of 
saccharine matter, that they will not 
make vinegar. Add seven pounds of 
sugar to each barrel, stir, and again drip, 
after which fill the barrels only half full, 
expose the barrels to the sun during 
Summer, and stir often by shaking, the 
oftener the better. m. l. b. 
Short Stories. 
An Angleworm Farm. —The most re¬ 
markable stock farm yet reported is at 
Bangor, Maine, where a citizen is said 
to breed bait for fishermen. Maine is a 
paradise for Summer fishermen, and this 
man was once caught without bait: 
He built into the ground reservoirs of 
cement, and carefully glazed the walls to 
make escape impossible. These were fitted 
with drainage and with a system of sub¬ 
irrigation by which the reservoirs are alter¬ 
nately flooded with, and emptied of, fresh 
water. The queerest thing about this novel 
business is the method used in making a 
place for the worms to breed. Instead of 
a generous supply of rich earth, the reser¬ 
voirs are filled with old bran, which pro¬ 
duces a large and exceedingly lively worm. 
The worms breed twice yearly, laying their 
eggs in August and May. They reach their 
maturity at the age of seven months. The 
worms are fed on lettuce leaves and grass, 
and they thrive on this fodder. 
The worms are said to be packed and 
shipped in moss. There is a great de¬ 
mand from Canada. 
A Human Xylophone. —Most people 
who have heard an orchestra play, know 
what a xylophone is. Pieces of wood 
and metal are strung on wires so that 
each piece gives out a certain note of 
music when struck with a stick or little 
hammer. Some of the musical effects 
from this hammering are quite remark¬ 
able. The Philadelphia Record tells of 
a boy, Eddie Warp, who possesses a set 
of musical ribs: 
Eddie is very thin, and his ribs protrude 
distinctly. The latest music is drawn from 
them in the following manner: The boy sits 
down and tucks his shirt up about his neck. 
He takes in each hand an empty bobbin, 
and draws a long breath, which throws the 
ribs into the greatest prominence. With 
the bobbins, he then plays on them as or¬ 
dinary musicians play on xylophones, ex¬ 
tracting the tune from the right-side ribs 
and the accompaniment from the left-side 
ones. The upper ribs give the high notes 
and the lower ones the low notes. E is the 
key of the first, or topmost rib and F is 
that at the bottom, though Eddie Warp, by 
stopping off a rib with his fingers, as vio¬ 
linists stop off a string, can raise or lower 
the pitch greatly. Eddie’s music is not 
very loud, but it would easily fill a concert 
hall. 
Eddie’s exhibition is not exactly what 
one would call edifying! 
Rhubarb in the Dark. —The articles 
by Mr. J. E. Morse last Winter and 
Spring, on growing rhubarb in the dark, 
suggested a new industry to many of 
our readers. The information came too 
late to be of service to some, for the 
ground was frozen so hard that the 
obtaining money under false pretences: 
“Youah Honah,” said Mrs. Bagley, “I’se 
been lookin’ for this professor ever since 
last Wintah, when he come to my house 
and fooled me with a musical hairpin that 
he called a toonin’ fork. He come in very 
perlite, and handed me a card with a lot 
of letters on it after his name—B. M., D. of 
P., V. and H. ‘What new game is this 
here?’ says I. ‘This here, Madam,’ he says, 
‘interdooces me—Prof. Bolden, Bachelor of 
Music and Doctor of de Piano, Violin and 
Harp. Has you a daughter, Madam?’ 
“Well, dat took my bref away, an’ he 
bowed all the time he was talkin,’ so I 
said ‘Yes, I have,’ right quick, and then 
yelled ‘Missouri, come heahl’ Missouri’s 
my gal. She was in de kitchen a-washin’ 
dishes. When she yelled back, ‘Yaas, Ma,’ 
de professor grabbed hold of hisself on the 
chest an’ he says. ‘Dat voice! Dat voice!’ 
meanin’ Missouri’s. 
“ ‘Madam,’ he says, ‘dat chile is what we 
want foh de institoot. The School Board 
is goin’ to let me have public schools foh 
roots could not be plowed out. Among 
the questions asked about this culture 
was one from a Connecticut reader, who 
lives in an old-fashioned farmhouse in 
which the great chimney rises through 
the center of the house. He wanted to 
know whether a dark closet, with this 
chimney for the back wall, would an¬ 
swer for the rhubarb. Mr. Morse says: 
The dark closet spoken of will do the 
work all right without any doubt; but the 
labor of carrying the roots up to the sec¬ 
ond story will be somewhat arduous, as if 
the floor be of boards, there will need to 
be some soil on it before placing the roots; 
but it will do all right, I think. Care must 
be taken that the floor of the closet is 
strong and well braced, as there will be 
considerable weight upon it. The rhubarb 
can be picked for use this Summer and 
forced in the Winter, thus getting two 
crops; but the seed stalks should not be 
allowed to grow, as that exhausts badly. 
The variety he has will, doubtless, be all 
right for forcing. 
Ants and Ai\ple Trees. —Among the 
large statements floating through the 
newspapers, is the following: 
Burlington, N. J., July 26.—An army of 
rapacious black ants, three times as large 
as the regular Jersey product, has attacked 
the apple orchard of Joseph Rodman, on 
the Fountain Woods road, near this city, 
and is devastating the trees. Yesterday, Mr. 
Rodman, while standing in the orchard, 
was surprised to see an immense limb fall 
to the ground. The tree and limb were ap¬ 
parently perfectly healthy, and there was 
no excuse for the catastrophe. Mr. Rod- 
man made an investigation, and was as¬ 
tounded to find that the limb had been 
sawed off by ants. They had bored into the 
heart of the limb, and began to eat in a 
circular way until the limb fell to the 
ground. From two to three barrels of 
apples fell with the limb, and if other trees 
are similarly attacked, the damage will be 
incalculable. 
Prof. J. B. Smith, New Jersey State 
Entomologist, when asked about this, 
said: “I have no doubt the report is lit¬ 
erally true. Many of the old apple 
trees throughout the State have a ten¬ 
dency to become hollow, and sometimes 
you will see one that is practically rot¬ 
ten inside, and which yet bears fruit 
abundantly. That sort of hollow tree is 
a favorite place for the black carpenter 
ants, and these make their galleries in 
the decayed and half decayed wood. 
Overload a limb of that kind with fruit, 
and it will break with mathematical 
certainty. This is all there is to the 
whole story. Ants of this character 
never attack living wood; but they will 
take advantage of decay, particularly in 
an old apple tree.” 
Slick Swindlers. —Not a week passes 
without a report of the operation of 
some shrewd fellow who obtains money 
by tickling the soft side of human na¬ 
ture. It is not always the countryman 
who is caught by this flattery. All con¬ 
ditions and colors are captured. This 
note from the N. Y. Sun tells a whole 
story. The prisoner was arrested for 
For the land’s sake — use Bowker’s 
Fertilizer.— Adv. 
Summer musical institoots all ovah de city, 
and yoah chile ought to go.’ Then he says 
a lot more things, an’ fool-like I gives him 
one dollah foh harp lessons for Missouri. 
Dat’s de last I’se seen of de professah, and 
Missouri doan know no moah 'bout de 
harp dan she did befo’ I saw de professah.’’ 
This is not the first man to learn that 
the way to unclasp a mother’s pocket 
book is to discover charms in her 
daughter’s voice or face. 
Fall Grains 
need a good start to stand 
the winter ; therfore feed 
them well in the beginning. 
This will produce hardy 
plants with plump grain. A 
good fertilizer should contain 
plenty of 
Potash 
Potash increases stiffness of 
stalk and plumpness of grain. 
Our books tell the rest — sent fret. 
GERMAN KALI WORKS, 
93 Nassau Street, New York. 
Profits of Farming 
GARDENING AND FRUIT CULTURE. 
depend upon Good Crops and they in 
turn npon Good Fertilizers. The 
uniformly best fertilizer for all Crops 
and all soils is made by 
The Cleveland Dryer Co., Cleveland, O. 
Materials Supplied for “Home Mixing." 
Moo Fibre and jadoo Liquid 
Will give you Early Crops and Large Crops 
of Vegetables or Fruit. Send for Catalogues 
and be convinced of the merits of these 
new Fertilizers. 
THE AMERICAN JADOO CO., 
815 Fairmount Avenue, Philadelphia, Pa. 
POISON 
Is not used in my Killer of Cab¬ 
bage Worms. By mail. 25 and 50c. 
EDW. SWARTS, Blockton, la. 
85 
A RUINED 
GARDEN, 
flower bed, green house 
or lawn may be the result 
of a few hours operation 
of an active, energetic 
mole. The remedy is to 
catch them on first signs 
of appearance. 
' Out-O-Sighf' 
MOLE TRAP 
catches him every time. It’s 
guaranteed to do that. Can be 
set anywhere—under glass. In 
the hot bed, &c. Sample trap 
_ J CtS. by mail, or have your dealer 
order for you. It is not like others— 
it l« better. Descriptive matter 
on traps mailed free. 
ANIMAL TRAP CO. 
10 neek St., Abingdon, II 
>ie trap 
ealer — 
TS— A , t 
BUY YOUR FERTILIZERS DlRECTI 1 
Save Money! No Salesman’s Expenses: No Middleman’s Profit. Oar entire prod net 
goes from Factory to Farm. Write for free samples and book. 
WALKER, STRATMAH A CO., Pittsburg, Pa. 
