5oo 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
July 16 
The Rural New-Yorker. 
THE BUSINESS FARMERS PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal lor Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Elbert S. Carman, EdItor-in-Chief. 
Herbert W. Collinowood, Managing Editor. 
Frank H. Valentine, I . 
Mrs. E. T. Rotle, [Associate Editors. 
John J. Dillon, Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTIONS. 
PRICE, ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries In the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, equal to 
8 s. 6 d., or 8 % marks, or 10 V 4 francs. 
ADVERTISING RATE8. 
Thirty cents per agate line (14 lines to the inch). Yearly orders 
of 10 or more lines, and 1,000-line orders, 25 cents per line. 
Reading Notices, ending with “Adv.," 75 cents per 
count line. Absolutely One Price Only. 
Advertisements inserted only for responsible and honorable houses 
We must have copy one week before the date of issue. 
Be sure that the name and address of sender, with name of 
Post-office and State, and what the remittance is for, appear in 
every letter. Money orders and bank drafts on New York are the 
safest means of transmitting money. 
Address all business communications and make all orders pay¬ 
able to THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
Corner Chambers and Pearl Streets, New York. 
SATURDAY, JULY 16, 1898. 
We are still receiving 1 inquiries about that wonder¬ 
ful book that tells how to make $500 from 12 hens, in 
one year. We have denounced this fraud many times 
within the past few years. It is simply a reprint of 
an old pamphlet published during the early days of 
artificial incubation in this country, and wasn’t worth 
the paper it was printed on then, much less now. 
Keep your dollar,or buy some good poultry book with it. 
© 
Rust on the cultivator teeth doth corrupt the crop. 
This bright, windy weather is just the time for weed 
killing. Keep the cultivator moving, and the sun 
and wind will do the rest. What kills a weed ? The 
same thing that cures hay, viz.: the removal of the 
water from it. A dry wind is better than a hot sun to 
remove moisture from weeds or grass. Shallow culti¬ 
vating or the use of the weeder uproots thousands of 
little weeds which might be covered by deeper culti¬ 
vation. To cover a small weed is, usually, to trans¬ 
plant it. Quick, sharp and shallow work in the corn 
is now in order. 
0 
On page 495, Prof. Slingerland says that the Colo¬ 
rado potato beetle never eats the tubers. It may not 
eat them except when the tops or other preferred food 
are not available, but it does eat them, to some extent, 
nevertheless. We have known of cases where the 
hardshells were poisoned in Spring by pieces of pota¬ 
toes treated with Paris-green, and scattered over the 
field before the new crop came up. And we have fre¬ 
quently seen the beetles making a meal from the 
tubers protruding from the ground at digging time, 
after the tops are dead. Yes, they do eat them. How 
many of our readers have observed this ? 
O 
The relation between the proper thinning of fruit 
and the too frequent glut in the market, as explained 
by A. A. Halladay, on our first page, is worthy the 
careful consideration of fruit growers. Seldom, if 
ever, is there an oversupply of the best. It’s the in¬ 
ferior stuff that overloads the market, gives the appear¬ 
ance of a glut, and lowers the price of all grades. Not 
only is this poor stuff sold at little or no profit, if not 
at an actual loss, but it lessens the possibility of profit 
on choice products. Marketing to advantage must 
begin with the growing. Thorough culture, careful 
pruning, spraying, thinning and gathering, skillful 
sorting and packing, intelligent attention to every 
detail, are required. Poor products are the bane of 
the markets. 
© 
This Summer, we have noted an unusual number of 
birds nesting in our vicinity, some of them being types 
we rarely see. Perhaps they are encouraged by the 
efforts of the Audubon Society in their behalf. One in¬ 
teresting bird which has set up housekeeping within 
a few steps of our windows is the Rose-breasted gros¬ 
beak, known in some parts of Pennsylvania as the 
potato-bug bird. This bird is a great insect-eater, and 
the fact that it includes the larvte of the Colorado 
beetle in its menu, makes it a friend worthy of en¬ 
couragement. The male bird is about one-fifth smaller 
than a robin, head and back black, white underneath, 
with a white patch on each wing, and a shield-shaped 
patch of brilliant rose on the breast. The beak is very 
thick and broad, bright yellow in color. Mrs. Gros¬ 
beak is a Quakerish creature in brown, much like a 
sparrow, but shading to yellow underneath. This 
bird has a deliciously sweet warble, even more liquid 
than the thrush’s note, and has a peculiarity of sing¬ 
ing sweetly when he wakes up in the night; the full 
fluty note has a singular effect at such times. This 
grosbeak is very domestic, and takes turns with his 
mate in sitting upon the nest. As this bird is a friend 
to farm and garden, in addition to possessing beauty 
of both song and coloring, we hope it will be protected 
and encouraged. 
© 
The newspapers tell us of an Indiana grocer and 
saloonkeeper who is said to have issued the following 
notice: 
Notice is hereby given that, if you will come to my store three 
times a day during the next year, and purchase a drink of whisky 
each time, paying 10 cents a drink, at the end of the year, I will 
donate 5 barrels of my best flour, ICO pounds of fine granulated 
sugar, 100 pounds of rice, 10 pounds of coffee, 10 gallons of syrup, 
50 yards of calico, 3 pairs of shoes, 1 $10.50-cloak for your wife; 
and then I will have $20 left to pay for the liquor you drank. 
Three 10-cent drinks a day mean $109.50 a year. The 
grocer's rebate at the end of the year sounds quite 
generous, but there is a good deal of arithmetic which 
does not appear on the surface in this offer. Both 
financially and morally, it seems likely that the pur¬ 
chaser of those 1,095 drinks at 10 cents each would 
have much the worst of the bargain. 
© 
The story of that Michigan creamery, on page 506, 
points a good lesson for farmers who undertake to 
codperate. Many such enterprises are not satisfactory 
at first. The men back of them are not experienced. 
They cannot obtain enough milk or other raw material 
to work the machinery to its full capacity. Idle ma¬ 
chinery means non-earning capital. Expenses at 
starting are heavy—too heavy to warrant a profit at 
first. These things are discouraging, and many weak- 
kneed members will fall out of the ranks, and run the 
risk of pulling the whole thing down. These Michi¬ 
gan men did the right thing. They put in more milk 
and capita], and pushed the creamery to its fullest 
capacity. Many a creamery now stands idle because 
its owners expected full returns from half-hearted 
support. Good things are made by pushing them along. 
© 
A traveler in Bolivia tells of the queer way some 
of the potatoes are prepared for keeping. They are 
first soaked in water, and then allowed to freeze, 
night after night, until they become soft, after which 
the natives remove the skins by treading the potatoes 
with their bare feet. The potatoes are then thor¬ 
oughly dried in the open air, when they become as 
white as snow and as hard as stones, and may be kept 
for a year or more. They have to be soaked for three 
or four days before they are eaten, and are often 
served in the form of a stew. They are a staple article 
of food among the Bolivians. The writer speaks of 
having tested them several times, but he did not get 
very enthusiastic over them. All the life of the potato 
seems to have been taken out, and he found them in¬ 
sipid and by no means appetizing. He reflects that, 
perhaps, he might have relished them better had he 
not frequently seen the bare feet with which they 
were sauced. 
© 
Our country has spent millions to provide means for 
offering an agricultural education free to young men 
who desire it. Over 35 years ago, during the Civil War, 
provisions were made for securing a princely sum with 
which to equip our agricultural colleges. Few r will 
question the wisdom of this plan. This vast country 
of ours is destined to provide more and more of the 
world’s food supply. By reason of peculiar climate 
and location, much of our soil is easily injured by 
careless and unskillful culture. The so-called virgin 
land has now been largely occupied, and American 
agriculture, from now on, must be a matter of utiliz¬ 
ing wastes and developing opportunities. This comes 
in the face of the fact that a far greater output of 
food and fiber will be demanded from our soil. It is 
wise, therefore, to bring every possible help of science 
to the aid of the farmer. Have the millions that have 
been devoted to agricultural education been wisely 
spent ? Not all. A good deal of this money has been 
clearly misappropriated. It has gone to foster State 
universities which maintained a so-called “college of 
agriculture” with a corporal’s guard of students. An¬ 
other feature of the few successful agricultural colleges 
has been the fact that hundreds of boys attended who 
had no thought of becoming identified with agriculture. 
The colleges offered a good course of study cheaper 
than the average boy could obtain it elsewhere. It 
should not be considered the duty of these colleges to 
turn out clerks, teachers or business men, or to give 
doctors and lawyers the rough timber which a few 
months at some special school will polish off. We 
have an idea that most men who have studied the 
question realize now that a mistake was made in at¬ 
tempting to organize a large number of “ colleges ” 
of agriculture. It would be much better for us to-day 
if we had four or five strong and high-class agricul¬ 
tural universities, and several hundred small farm 
schools. The schools should be for those who want 
simply the technical instruction that will fit them for 
work on the well-conducted farm. The universities 
should be for those who want the higher work in 
agricultural science. Secretary Wils&n’s letter on 
page 496 indicates a desire to make the National Agri¬ 
cultural Department in one respect an agricultural 
university. Probably, four or five of our present col¬ 
leges will, in time, reach the required high standard. 
The problem will then be what to do with the weaker 
colleges, and how to make the money spent on them 
give greater results to agriculture. 
© 
The seedsmen of the country are, evidently, some¬ 
what at sea as to how and when the Agricultural De¬ 
partment is to begin its tests of seeds. We are now 
informed that, under the new law, no seeds were 
taken for testing before July 1. The reason why this 
date was chosen, was because of the appropriations 
taking effect on that date, therefore this makes the 
best time for beginning and ending the fiscal year. It 
is not expected to purchase seeds to any considerable 
extent before next Fall, and it is likely that the bulk 
of the samples will be from stock to be offered next 
year. One fact, however, is worth remembering: 
The principal source of trouble is the large amount of 
foul stuff which grass and clover seeds contain. That 
is, probably, the most serious trouble in the seed 
trade, and the Department will, probably, take sam¬ 
ples of seeds during midsummer, and give them care¬ 
ful testing. In case it finds any evidence of serious 
adulteration with weed seeds, we hope the public will 
be informed at once. The principal buying of seeds 
will not begin before the Fall, and seedsmen will thus 
be allowed ample opportunity for acquainting them¬ 
selves thoroughly with the condition of their goods 
previous to any action by the Department. The De¬ 
partment starts out bj^ assuming that all seedsmen are 
careful and honest. Great pains will be taken to pro¬ 
cure fair samples of seeds just exactly as they are 
offered in trade, and not fancy samples put up spe¬ 
cially by the seedsmen. That is the only way to make 
the tests of any practical value. The public do not 
care to know how nice a sample the seedsmen can 
make up if they try. They want to avoid the average 
chance of losing their seed ! 
© 
BREVITIES. 
“ I will not die here in this narrow bay, 
But like a sailor, on the open sea! ” 
Cervera said. He forced the narrow way 
From Santiago harbor. Peacefully, 
The Yankee warships floated off the bay 
That Sabbath morniug, but keen, eager eyes, 
As watchful as the eagle’s on its prey, 
Saw where the Spaniard came; without surprise, 
Calmly and patiently the gunners wait 
Their word, and then, through blinding smoke and flame, 
They send their awful messengers of fate, 
And leave the Spanish navy but a name. 
Had Yankee sailors manned the Spanish decks, 
With Dewey leading them that Sabbath day, 
They would not lie a group of blackened wrecks, 
They would have broken through the line—you say. 
Why ? O’er the smoke, blinding the Spaniard’s aim, 
The awful form of Destiny was found ; 
The hand of God lighted the Yankee flame, 
His voice was in the cannon’s roaring sound. 
A mighty presence shielded us frcm harm. 
Blown o’er the waves, the voice of Destiny 
With echoes that unnerved the Spaniard’s arm, 
Proclaimed to all the world that Liberty 
Has given to America, the fair 
Young Mistress of the West, the right to free 
Her neighbors, and beneath God’s watchful care, 
To lift men up from hateful slavery. 
Grind out quit with grit. 
Does it pay to bag grapes ? 
The big / is a prone pronoun. 
The scrub cow is a barn barnacle. 
Nature has been using her check rain. 
Somb things are better razed than raised. 
Tiie hangman cultivates the art o’ choke. 
The Colorado potato beetle in Europe — page 495. 
Not much encouragement for planting peas late. 
There is bulk in bran—enough to substitute for hay. 
How they did run up that run-down Michigan creamery,page 508! 
Speed the day when the Babcock test shall rule in all creameries. 
“ Bear ye one another’s burdens! ”—don’t bare them—they are 
conspicuous enough now. 
A tub silo iu Quebec, page 496. The herd band was heard to 
play whenever it was opened. 
Consider the dairymen who have no green fodder for the cows — 
they soil not, neither do they get any milk. 
A good fruit fertilizer is equal parts by weight of flue ground 
bone, dissolved South Carolina rock and muriate of potash. 
This is a tough season on the cattle men who depend on green 
crops for Summer feeding. The weather is so dry that late-seeded 
crops will not sprout. 
The Spanish soldiers could hardly hit the ocean when they fired 
at the American fleet. No wonder. They had been filled up with 
liquor. Rum gives neither hindsight nor foresight. 
A rascal in Greensboro, N. C., is grinding soapstone and selling 
it under the name of “ mineraline ” as an adulterant for wheat 
flour. It is the meanest fraud out—a soap that is dirty. 
On page 496, Mr. Slingerland makes clear the difference between 
a biting and a sucking insect. No use casting Paris-green before 
a plant louse, or shooting whale-oil soap at a potato beetle ! 
Select your poison to suit your bug! 
