1899 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
869 
Short Stories. 
Meat Eaters. —An American surgeon 
has said that our soldiers in Cuba and 
the Philippines eat too much meat. He 
says that a diet of fruit, cereals and 
vegetables, with a small amount of meat, 
would be better for them. The National 
Provisioner doesn’t think so. It says: 
Nothing is so fatal to a theory as a fact; 
and experience out-argues conjecture. 
Vegetarians in any climate are lifeless, 
short-lived, weak, frail, and slow in every 
sense of the term. They are humans nar¬ 
rowed to smallness in stature, intellect and 
feeling. Meat seems as essential a diet 
in the tropics as in other zones after the 
system has become climatized. Fruits and 
vegetables cool the blood; a persistent diet 
of them seems to carry the cooling process 
to such an extent as to take the fire and 
steam out of the nature of man. 
Our friend is writing words that will 
analyze nearly 100 per cent theory. He 
probably never went a month without 
meat tin his life. Should he do so, he 
would not be “narrowed to smallness, ’ 
and would have plenty of fire and steam 
left in his nature. We are satisfied from 
observation and practice that most 
nervous people eat twice as much meat 
as they should. You will find all the 
fire the law allows in cheese and fish! 
Keeping Apples. —It is about time to 
store away the apples desired for Sum¬ 
mer use. There are various ways of 
keeping them, but for a good many 
years I have had apples along into 
July in good condition, kept in this 
way: Perfectly sound fruit is wrapped 
in soft paper, so as to protect them from 
the air, and then packed carefully each 
by hand in clean barrels. When filled, 
the barrels are headed up and kept in a 
dry cellar. The best apples to keep I 
have found to be Rhode Island Green¬ 
ings, Baldwins, Northern Spy and Spitz- 
enberg. Apples may be pitted in the 
ground as potatoes are, and will keep 
in the best condition. Some poor-keep¬ 
ing kinds may be preserved in this way. 
It is best to keep them in direct contact 
with the earth, but it is necessary to 
choose a dry place for them. Pears may 
be kept in a similar way, but contact 
with the air is to be prevented. To 
ripen fruit kept in cold storage I have 
kept them between the folds of a blanket 
in a closet, taking for use those which 
ripen first, but fruit so kept will ripen 
very quickly, and will need daily atten¬ 
tion. All this applies of course to small 
quantities. For large business the cold 
storage system is perfect. H. s. 
“Winding Up” Farmers. —I have read 
your article in issue of November 25 
about the “winding up” of institute 
workers in New York, and note some of 
the problems concerning how to reach 
the every-day farmer, and increase the 
attendance at the institutes. I suggest 
that we commence at the foundation, 
and build from there up—that is, teach 
our boys and girls some of the funda¬ 
mental principles of farming, the uses of 
clover and other legumes, the value of 
and reasons for cultivation of the soil, 
and many other practical things of this 
nature, which everyone should know. 
We are continually complaining about 
the boys not staying on the farm, when 
we educate them away from it in our 
schools; give them a classical education 
fitting them for a professional life which 
is already overcrowded. The number of 
the farmers’ institute and increase the 
attendance. a. l. t. 
Smithsburg, Md. 
Self-Lifting Water. —We have all 
laughed at the story of the man who 
tried to lift himself by pulling on his 
boot straps, and for years this has been 
taken as an illustration of the folly of 
attempting the impossible. The Kansas 
Farmer gives the following account of 
an irrigation scheme in Barton County, 
Kansas. There is an “underground 
river” flowing about 10 feet below the 
surface. The problem of raising this 
water cheaply has been too much for the 
engineers: 
It is proposed to make this water pump 
itself. At the head of the canal it is to be 
lifted through a height of 10 feet. When 
it reaches the reservoir, 16 miles away, it 
will fall 30 feet. The power that will be 
generated by this fall will be nearly three 
times as great as will be required to raise 
an equal amount of water into the canal at 
its head. The plan is to make the water 
as it shall fall into the reservoir drive 
water wheels; these in turn will drive 
dynamos. The electricity produced will 
be wired to the head of the canal, where 
it will propel electric motors which will 
drive great pumps. Once started by flood 
water or by other power this work will 
continue with no expense save for attend¬ 
Exposition to be held at Buffalo in 1901, 
and should, in all consistency, be ex¬ 
tended to any county fair or local ex¬ 
hibition that may choose to ask for it, 
if the principle of using public facilities 
to boom private enterprise is to become 
a permanent feature. A representative 
of The R. N.-Y. visited the Exposition 
in the height of its glory, a short time 
previous to its termination. Aside from 
the really fine collection of photographs 
gathered by United States consuls in 
various foreign localities, we found but 
little of real interest for farmers. The 
exhibits were very fragmentary, there 
being an almost entire absence of com¬ 
petition in any given class. Everything 
that the farmer must buy was repre¬ 
sented in the way of machinery, manu¬ 
factured food products and other com¬ 
modities, but products he has to sell 
were not discoverable in any part of 
the Exposition. In short, the whole pro¬ 
ject was exploited in the interest of the 
transportation companies and a certain 
class of trust-controlled manufactures. 
Many of the articles exported are of- 
ance and repairs. This is a perpetual mo¬ 
tion scheme with which the most exacting 
scientist can find no fault. The margin 
between power required and power fur¬ 
nished is probably sufficient to pump 
enough additional water to irrigate all ac¬ 
cessible land along the canal. 
Thus the water will lift itself by run¬ 
ning down hill—a singular proposition, 
yet true. 
Sulphur Fumes for Potatoes. —The 
treatment of potatoes by sulphur fumes 
for the purpose of destroying the germs 
of scab and other fungous diseases is not 
a new thing. It was suggested, and, I 
believe, practiced 50 years ago as a rem¬ 
edy for what was then called the Black 
rot of potatoes, which first occurred in 
Belgium in 1815, first appearing on this 
Continent in Canada in 1844. The pro¬ 
cess of sulphuring the seed potatoes was 
suggested and tried soon after the dis¬ 
ease became common in the State of 
New York, and I tried it myself in Mich¬ 
igan in 1855. It was found that the acid 
produced by the burning of the sulphur 
destroyed the vitality of the eyes, and 
seed so treated would not sprout. Of 
course it is quite practicable to make 
use of this process suggested by Mr. 
Norton (page 814) for the destruction 
of the germs of scab, but it is no easy, 
or indeed safe, matter to sulphur a lot 
of potatoes in a cellar, in bins three or 
four feet deep, and get a thorough and 
safe result. 
From my experience in burning sul¬ 
phur in poultry houses, I feel sure that 
to burn half a teaspoonful in a cellar 
20x32x8 feet is in no sense dangerous to 
potatoes, and indeed of very little dis¬ 
comfort to a person whose head is five 
feet above the cellar floor. And if that 
small quantity will effectively disinfect 
such a cellar filled with potatoes, the 
discovery of the fact should entitle Mr. 
Norton to the Nation’s thanks. Be¬ 
sides, it was not the sulphur burned in 
the stove in his cellar, but the carbonic 
acid produced by the combustion of the 
coal, which gave Mr. Norton the “bust 
head,” and it is a lucky thing for him 
that he got out as quickly as he did, for 
the heavy fumes of this gas settling to 
the bottom of the cellar might easily 
have finished Mr. Norton, and made 
business for an undertaker. I don’t wish 
to throw cold water on any suggestion 
in the line of experimenting in regard to 
the diseases of the potato, but Mr. Nor¬ 
ton is so clearly off the track that it is 
only doing as I would be done by that 
I state these facts. henry stewart. 
THE ONE-SIDED PHILADELPHIA 
EXPOSITION. 
The National Export Exposition, 
opened in Philadelphia September 14, 
fered at a lower price abroad than they 
are sold at home. This is made possi¬ 
ble in great part uy the almost universal 
practice of the railroads of carrying ar¬ 
ticles intended for export at cheaper 
rates than those for home consumption. 
The United States is essentially a food- 
producing country, possessing the great¬ 
est area of fertile soil and most extended 
range of desirable climate of all modern 
nations. Its natural products are needed 
by the thickly-populated countries of the 
Old World, and a sufficient export trade 
for all legitimate purposes is a logical 
certainty without such frantic efforts at 
exploitation. The extension of Amer¬ 
ican commerce in the artificial manner 
advocated by the trade expansionists is 
only rendered necessary by the impover¬ 
ishment of the home market, which has 
quickly followed the era of concentra¬ 
tion of capital in almost every manufac¬ 
turing line. Hundreds of thousands of 
artisans have been forced out of employ¬ 
ment to swell the ranks of poorly-paid 
labor, thus depreciating the purchasing 
power of all. 
A noticeable feature of the Exposition 
was the extensive use made of the Span¬ 
ish language in advertising. This is ex¬ 
plained by the fact that the Exposition 
itself was an outgrowth of the Spanish- 
American Conference held several years 
ago for the purpose of fostering trade 
relations between the United States and 
the various republics lying to the south. 
Certainly, if our manufactures must be 
exported in considerable amounts, the 
countries of South and Central America 
offer the most logical field, as their pro¬ 
ductions compete with ours only in a 
very limited degree. Some of the ar¬ 
ticles made in European countries for 
export were interesting, viewed in com¬ 
parison with those of domestic manufac¬ 
ture, especially among agricultural im¬ 
plements. An English broadcast seed- 
sower, 20 feet wide, was made to sell at 
about $60. Some French horse hayrakes, 
all iron but the shafts, ranged from $45 
to $50. All appeared to be extremely 
clumsy and heavy for the service they 
are intended. Most of the similar imple¬ 
ments, including some odd-looking grain 
drills, were anything but attractive in 
design and finish. w. v. f. 
44 A Gentle Wind 
has just closed. An attendance during 
its existence of nearly 1,500,000 i3 
of Western Birth " 
The Future of 
Children 
A child’s life may be 
blighted by the diseases of 
youth, such as Rickets, 
which is characterized by 
weak bones or crooked 
spine, and inability to stand 
or walk steadily, or Maras¬ 
mus, that wasting disease 
characterized by paleness 
and emaciation, or Scrofula, 
a constitutional disease of 
the glands and neck. 
Scott’s Emulsion 
of pure Cod-Liver Oil with Hypo- 
phosphites of Lime and Soda will 
prevent and cure these diseases, 
it supplies just the material needed 
to form strong bones, rich red 
blood and solid flesh. It will also 
reach the infant through the moth¬ 
er’s miik, and be o? the greatest 
benefit to both. 
At all druggists; 50 c. and $ 1.00 
SCOTT & llOWNE, Chemists, New York. 
FOR A PLEASANT DAY’S OUTING 
TAKE ALONG A 
Stevens Favorite 
It l» an accurate rifle, puts every shot just where 
you hold it; is light weight, gracefully outlined, a bona 
fide arm in appearanco and construction; nothing cheap 
about it but the price. 
Just the thing for an outing where you want a rifle which 
will not cost too much, but will do the work. Made in 
three calibers—.22, .25 and .32 rim-fire. Weight*^ lbs, 
No. 17—Plain Open 
No. 18-Target sight*. 8.50 
IT 18 A “TAKE DOWN,* 
Ask your denier for the “Favorite.” Jt he doesn t 
keep it, wo will send prepaid on receipt of list price. 
8end stamp for our new 84-page catalogue 
containing description of our entire line and 
general information. 
STEVENS ARMS TOOL €0.,Box I5ii0 
Chicopee Full*, Mu**. 
How Would You Like 
to have a farm fence that would turn ALL KINDS of 
stock? Try ours. Send for Catalogue. 
PAGE WOVEN WIRE FENCE CO., ADRIAN. MICK. 
LIKE A BULL DOG 
IstheCHANOLEE LOCHanditnmk 
the stay stay where you put it, < 
any kind of wire—hard steel • 
.makes 
on 
ny kind ot wire—hard steel or 
.soft, large or small, that’s why 
ICHANDLEE FENCE h> su¬ 
perior to others. Anybody can bnlld 
It, and it's rigid, itrong, iaf. and 
’handsome. Agents make money sell- 
.. , ing and building It. WE WANT 
' ,1 * AGENTS everywhere and will grant excldeive ter- 
Hsrd St«el |i H* r jmry Write us to-day for terms, catalogue, Ac. 
CHANDLEE FENCE CO., 17 S. Howard St., Baltimore, Md. 
young men out of employment, the 
scarcity of farm labor, and the decreas¬ 
ing price of farm lands, all attest that 
there is something wrong with our mod¬ 
ern system of education. The change 
will have to be gradual, as our teachers 
know as little of nature studies as the 
children. I suggest that a lecture, or 
lectures, be given to the scholars in the 
country schools particularly, and then 
■require that our teachers fit themselves 
•during their vacation to teach some sim¬ 
ple lessons in agriculture, on which our 
health, wealth and happiness depend. 
Thus we will give an added interest to 
claimed, so that it ds regarded as a suc¬ 
cess from the projector’s standpoint. It 
has been widely boomed by transporta¬ 
tion and manufacturing interests, and 
our National Administration lent its 
help to advertise the scheme broadcast 
through the land by attaching a stamp 
to the postmark of the Philadelphia 
Post Office, which imprinted all letters 
passing through that office with the Ex¬ 
position trademark, and its opening and 
closing dates, an official endorsement of 
more than doubtful propriety. This 
privilege has already been asked and 
granted to the coming Pan-American 
Tells no sweeter story to humanity than 
the announcement that the health-giver 
and health-bringer. Hood’s Sarsaparilla, 
tells of the birth of an era of good health. 
It is the one reliable specific for the cure 
of all blood, stomach and liver troubles. 
FENCE! 
Horse -High 
Bull-Strong 
Plg-TIght.... 
Over 100 Styles, plain and ornamental. I 
Build It yourself at the actual whole¬ 
sale cost of the wire. Don’t miss this | 
GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY 
Write for our Catalogue and convince I 
yourself how easily and cheaply it can | 
be done with a Durden Machine. 
KITSF.LHAN BROS. BoxlOfi Kidgevllle, Ind. 
Never. Disappoin ts 
S FENCE!*™* 
***"■^1*1 ■ ^ ■ afr.'nir H 
STRONGEST 
Bull. 
strong. Chicken- 
tight. Sold to the Farmer at Wholesale 
Prices. Fully Warranted. Catalog Free. 
COILED SI’KINO FENCE CO. 
Box M. Winchester, Indiana, U. 8. A. 
1,000 SAMPLES FREE 
of our new Success fence ratchet 
which tightens any wire fence, new 
or old. Grips automatically as wire 
Is wound on. No holes to Bore In posts. Attaches 
midway of the fence. We will mail you a sample to 
test if you will send us 12c. to cover postage only. 
Olr. free. W. H. MASON Sc, CO., Box 67, Leesburg, O. 
