1904 . 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
545 
Events of the Week. 
DOMESTIC.—The coroner's jury investigating the Gen. 
Slocum disaster made the following recommendations June 
28 : First—That the president, Frank A. Barnaby ; the sec¬ 
retary, James K. Atkinson, and the board of directors of the 
Knickerbocker Steamboat Company, namely, Frank A. Bar¬ 
naby, Charles E. Hill, James K. Atkinson, C. DeLaeey 
Evans, Robert K. Story, Floyd S. Corbin and Frank G. Dex¬ 
ter, were guilty of criminal negligence in the failure to 
see to the proper equipment of the General Slocum in the 
matter of the lire lighting and life saving appliances on 
board said boat. Second—That the captain, William II. 
Van Schaick, be held criminally responsible for the accident. 
Third—That John A. i’ease, the acknowledged commodore 
of the fleet be held criminally responsible for his failure 
properly to equip the General Slocum with lire lighting 
and life saving appliances. Fourth—That Edward Flan¬ 
agan, the mate, acted in a cowardly manner, and we rec¬ 
ommend that he be held criminally responsible for failure 
to perform his duty on (he General Slocum on the day of the 
disaster. Fifth—that, in the opinion of this jury, the mis¬ 
conduct of Henry Lundberg, the government inspector, in 
failing to report to his superiors the true facts concern¬ 
ing the vessel’s lire extinguishing and life saving equipment, 
should be brought to the notice of the United States prose¬ 
cuting ollicials, and we further hold that Henry Lundberg 
be held for criminal negligence by reason of his in< n 
petence, careless and indifferent inspection of the Gen ,al 
Slocum’s hull and life saving appliances on the fifth day of 
May, 1904. Sixth—The jury are also of the opinion that 
the system of Inspection which prevails in the harbors of 
New York is very inefficient and does not proper.y deter¬ 
mine whether the life saving apparatus and lire appliances 
on the vessels In the harbor are in proper and suitable 
condition to prevent the loss of life, and we recommend 
to the Secretary of Commerce and Labor that he issue such 
instruction to the supervising and local forces of inspectors 
as will cause them efficiently and honestly to examine the 
steamboats plying in and about this harbor. 
it was announced at St. Louis, June 28, that Charles A. 
Gutke, formerly a member of the House of Delegates, con¬ 
victed on a charge of bribery and soon to be tried on an¬ 
other similar charge, had made a confession to Circuit 
Attorney Joseph W. Folk, in which he declared that ex- 
Delegate Charles F. Kelley had said that he had received 
$50,000 for going to Europe when his presence in St. Louis 
jeopardized well known men. Kelley Is also under one 
conviction, and is soon to be tried in another case. Mr. 
Folk attaches great Importance to Gutke’s statement. He 
says that it opens up many new avenues of Investigation, 
and that it brings things to light which have not been 
heard of before, involving the “men higher up.” Other de¬ 
tails were given by Gutke, who mentioned the name of a 
prominent local politician, who, lie said, had been at the 
head of nearly all the combines in the House of Delegates 
during the last 25 years. He said that the “boodle” gang 
in St. Louis had already planned to capture the Circuit 
Attorney’s office at the next election.Several 
lives are reported lost and thousands of dollars worth of 
property damaged and washed away as the result of a 
cloud-burst over Robb Valley, two miles from McDonald, 
l’a., June 27. Bridges were caught in the mad rush of the 
waters and torn from their places. Houses were torn from 
their foundations and carried down stream, and at Oakdale 
it is reported a whole family perished.Two 
men were arrested in New York, June 29, for stealing 
money from church poor-boxes. They Ashed the money out 
with a strip of whalebone having moist glue on the end. 
George Rice, of Ohio, who for 80 years has been 
fighting the Standard Oil Company, has tiled a suit in the 
New Jersey court under the Federal anti trust laws, seeking 
the dissolution of the combine as an illegal corporation. 
The decision of the Supreme Court in the Northern Securi¬ 
ties case is relied upon in the prosecution. 
That a Masonic oath is no bar to reveaung information de¬ 
sired in a court proceeding was decided June 30 by the 
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, Third Department, 
Slate of New York, in an appeal from an order imposing 
a line of $100 and imprisonment on Rresldent Eugene I,. 
Ashley, of the Hudson River Bower Company until he purged 
himself of contempt in refusing to disclose information he 
testified he possessed concerning the William Van Renssa- 
laer estate, in which the Ytilliam Moore estate is interested. 
The proceedings were brought by H. B. King, executor of 
the Moore estate. Ashley was at one time Moore’s attorney, 
and refused to answer on the ground that he had secured 
the desired Information from confidential revelations of his 
client, and in addition he had taken the Masonic oath not 
to reveal them.Wealthy owners of private pre¬ 
serves in the Adirondacks and sportsmen throughout the 
State will be interested in a decision of the Appellate Divi¬ 
sion of the Supreme Court June 30 in William Rockefeller's 
suit against Oliver Lamora, an Adirondack guide and fisher¬ 
man, whereby Mr. Rockefeller again secures a reversal of 
the judgment and order of the lower courts. The principle 
at issue was whether owners of parks in the North Woods 
can preserve for their private use streams that have been 
stocked from the State fish hatcheries. Lamora, who is a 
resident of Franklin County, near the great estate of his 
millionaire opponent, was arrested for fishing in the waters 
of the St. Regis River where it flows through the Rocke¬ 
feller grounds. Lamora was sued for trespass, lint ac¬ 
quitted by the justice’s court and the county court affirmed 
the decision. Mr. Rockefeller appealed, and the appellate 
division, less than a year ago, sent the case back to the 
county court for a new trial. Lamora was successful again, 
and it is from tiffs judgment in his favor that the plaintiff 
brought the present appeal.Fire at Jefferson, 
Tex., July 1, destroyed property estimated at over $300,000. 
. . . . The wreck of an express train on the Wabash 
near Litchfield, III., July 3, caused the death of 20 persons, 
and injuries to many more. The train, which is known as 
the Chicago Limited, ran into an open switch, was ditched, 
and flames altacked the coaches. The engine, after running 
into the switch, struck a string of freight cars, and with 
the first three coaches was piled into a heap across the 
track, and caught lire immediately. Nearly all the passen¬ 
gers were bound for the St. Louis Exposition, but among 
the number were said to be several delegates to the Demo¬ 
cratic convention.Fire at Tuxedo, N. Y., July 
5, destroyed the Cainmack “cottage,” and its contents, 
valued at $1,000,000. ... A passenger train was blown 
from the tracks by a tornado near Oakford, Ill., July 5; 
one person killed and 20 injured, some fatally. ... A 
furious storm of hail, rain and wind swept over Larimer 
County, Col.. July 5, doing great damage to growing crops 
at Fort Collins and in that vicinity. Extensive orchards 
were almost entirely denuded of fruit, while grain and veg¬ 
etables were cut down by the hail. A similar storm visited 
Lamar, Sugar City and vicinity, in the southeastern part 
of the State, almost destroying the grain and other crops. 
July 5 lightning struck one of the Boston &. 
Maine Railroad freight sheds on Mystic Wharf, Charles¬ 
town, Mass., and the resulting fire spread so rapidly that 
within half an hour two other freight sheds, the power 
house, the huge grain elevator and the Allan Line steam¬ 
ship Austrian were in flames. The loss was $000,000. 
NOTES ON GRAIN CUTTING AND STACKING 
To cut grain before dead ripe suits me best, as it does not 
shatter then, and with three days of good drying weather it 
is then fit to be either mowed or stacked, and then to begin 
when a little green you finish by time the last is ripe. We 
make a gieat effort to get in barn as soon as possible: 
usually use one team and two wagons, and sometimes haul 
20 big four horse loads in one day. It takes a good many 
men to keep it going right, but we think we make money 
by using them. We endeavor to get it done as soon as 
possible in order to get to the corn and other growing 
crops, as they are nearly always neglected during harvest 
time. I very much prefer letting wheat remain in barn 
or stack from four to six weeks before thrashing, and then 
it. comes out in fine condition. I choose that time for the 
reason that it lias been through a sweat tat least I think 
it nas), and if it does not in barn or stack it will In bin or 
garner after thrashing. That is my theory, and from the 
fact that I never had any trouble with the wheat thereafter 
I infer I am correct. I never had much experience in stack¬ 
ing, but I Interviewed a neighbor whose experience extended 
over a period of five years, and whose Ideas I have the 
greatest respect for in other matters, lie says to stack 
successfully with the least loss begin in middle of an ellip¬ 
tical stack, lay two rows of sheaves, lap the tops to bands, 
butts out, and continue in like manner until you have the 
stack the desired width, and then return to center and pro¬ 
ceed as in first layer. In making bulge on stack you will 
always notice sheaves that are shocked have an inclined 
butt. Lay the long part up until you have the desired bulge, 
and then turn the other way, and in that manner draw in 
(as we say) until you wish to top out. Cover top with 
boards or tarpaulin. I certainly think wheat would keep. 
My neighbor says theirs did until in Winter sometimes, 
when they would haul in barn. b. k. is . 
Waynesboro, i’a. 
We always began harvesting as soon as the grain was in 
the dough, a great many of the heads still retaining their 
green tint. Our mode of stacking was first to begin the 
bottom by setting up sheaves for the center in precisely the 
same form one would use in building a round shock in the 
field, continuing to add to it until the size needed for 
I he stack bottom was obtained. That way allows only the 
butts to touch the ground, the heads being above the ground 
far enough so that moisture does not reach them to their 
injury. The bottom being completed, lay an outer course 
around and inside of that, lapping the bundles to the bands 
of the first course, lay another, and so on until the cente*- 
is reached, which will need but a half dozen or so bundles 
to complete It. Until the bulge of the stack is reached keep 
crowding the outside course out a little, which can easily 
be done by turning each bundle so that the longest side 
of the bundle will be on the upper side. After reaching 
the proper place for the bulge lay two or three outside 
courses with butts even, then draw in each subsequent 
course gradually, until the top is reached. This can be done 
best by placing the bundles with the shortest side up. Cap 
the stack as you would a round shack in the field, and if 
high winds are likely to occur take a stick size of broom 
handle about four feet long, sharpen both ends and run it 
down full length into the shack, pinning the cap sheaves 
fast, if these direction are followed, always keeping center 
full and high, the stack will not wet in to injure it, even in 
a driving rain, for all sheaves will have such a descending 
slope toward the outside that water will not enter, even 
rodents will find slim welcome if the job is well done. I 
prefer to thrash after the stack has stood long enough for 
the grain to complete the sweating process. It is then in 
much better condition to keep well and has a brighter, 
cleaner and healthier appearance. K. W. L. 
Minong, Wis. _ 
THE RISE IN MEAT; WHO BENEFITS ? 
The price of meat has just been raised to the consumers 
in eastern towns and cities. Do western feeders receive 
corresponding benefit? Do consumers benefit when the 
price goes down? We have asked a number of western 
stockmen to give us facts. 
The Feeders Are Doing Better. 
You ask if the growers are profiting by the recent advance 
in price ot beef. Yes, steers that sold on Chicago market 
from January l to May 15, 1904, for $4.75 per 100 live 
weight are selling now for $5.75, a rise of one dollar per 
hundred, which would make about two cents per pound in 
dressed beef. Hogs have risen in price, live weight, from 
05 to 75 cents per hundred in the last 30 days. The feeders 
of the West have lost money feeding cattle the last two 
years, as corn has been too high for the price of meat. 
Meat has been very low a great deal of the time, especially 
beef. 1 don't expect the consumer in the East ever knows 
the difference unless there is a sudden raise in prices. The 
present prices are letting the feeders out in pretty good 
shape. Mutton has brought a good price from January 1 
to July 1 the last two years; the rest of the year very 
low. Brices of meats change a great deal with the grower 
from month to month, and often from one day to another, 
which the consumer knows nothing of. The packer and 
local butcher are the ones who receive the profit. 
Kankakee Co.. Ill. ciias. agor. 
How the Price is Worked. 
Two years ago, through July, August and September, the 
price in the country was very high for choice corn-fed beef 
cattle on account of a shortage of corn crop, it being very 
high. Good corn-fed were scarce and high, but common 
and grass cattle were very low. The price was held up 
on the cheaper grades when there was no call for it; the 
packers made a big thing out of the cheaper grades. 'I 
sold choice corn-fed beef cattle in August, 1902, for $S.20 
per 100 in Chicago, but later on in the season when cattle 
got more plentiful they broke the market at about $3 per 
100 pounds, and lost the feeders lots of money. I fed a fine 
bunch of choice cattle last Summer, 125 head, at a very 
great loss. Bart of them went to New York on the hoof for 
Christmas beef, bought in Chicago for $5.50 per 100 pounds. 
The way they sold the beef 1 ought to have had $0.50 per 
100. They were the ones that made the money, not I ; 
I did the work and they made the money. All this year up 
to about 30 days ago all the feeders in this part of the 
country fed at a loss, but tne last of May they began to 
put the price of beef up in Chicago, and in about 30 days 
they put choice cattle up a dollar a hundred. This raise 
would make me about $1,500 on my present bunch of cattle 
of 120 head. This will stimulate the feeders to buy high- 
priced corn to feed cattle, and when they get a lot started 
and about ready for market down goes the price. The 
men who make the money on the increase are those who 
stick at feeding the year around. As a rule the majority 
of the feeders have lost money for the past two years. If 
the market keeps up for the next three months feeders of 
choice cattle will be very much benefited, but I am inclined 
to think that the price of beef in me East is too high for 
the cost of It in the West. The stock men are not getting 
their share of the profits. j. m. bradsiiaw. 
Hancock Co., Ill. 
Small Margin on Beef. 
For the last Its months prior to May 20, 1904, this beef 
has been produced and marketed at a price that meant 
loss to the feeder, and a great many times a serious loss. 
There is no question in my mind but that the retail and 
wholesale butcher enjoyed a good profitable trade and made 
easy money at the expense of the feeder and perhaps the 
consumer also. On account of the long depression of low 
values to the feeder a great number became discouraged, 
and in January, February, March and April a great num¬ 
ber of cattle were marketed in an unfinished condition. 
They crowded the market, had the meat channels in the 
East all clogged time and again, and you cannot blame them, 
for it takes lots of. sand to play at a losing game for 10 
months, and feed 40 to 50-cent corn to cattle that will not 
pay out half of it. As a consequence, about May 20 a 
shortage of finished beef began, and a shortage of cattle on 
feed. The prices on the hoof began to jump, and in less 
than 30 days the prices of fat cattle had advanced $1 per 
100, and some grades even more. The feeders who are mar¬ 
keting cattle after May 20 are making money, some plenty 
of it. and others not so much, but a small portion will get 
the benefit of it, and a large portion the losing market 
earlier. Beef is bound to rule high now for a while, ’for it 
is not in the country to come, and I believe it will make 
the retail butcher hustle to cut. his money out of a carcass 
of beef. One dollar advance on a 1,300 pound steer means 
that he has got to cut out $13 more money on about 700 
pounds of beef, 'l'lie advance is even greater on some grades. 
The only relief I see for you Is the fact that the range 
country has a large supply of range or grass four or five- 
year-old steers that will come this Fall, commence about 
August 1. Brices on that grade will undoubtedly get lower 
by the time they come. The reason it costs so much to 
produce beef now is on account of the high values of feed¬ 
ing stuff. Corn has averaged from 40 to 50 cents the last 
few years, and other feeds in proportion : oil meal $25 per 
Ion; cotton seed meal $24 per ton; hay $8 to $10 per ton. 
It has cost from seven to eight cents per pound to pro¬ 
duce the beef in the corn belt on an average this last year. 
Here is an Illustration: A 1,000-pound steer will eat two- 
fifths of a bushel of corn per day, one pound of oil meal and 
about 10 pounds of hay or other rough feed. The corn 
costs 50 cents per bushel or 20 cents: tlie oil meal and hay 
five cents per day, say nothing about labor or interest on 
money, and you have an outlay of 25 cents per day. The 
only way that we can make any money and the way wa 
try to do it is to buy the 1,000-pound feeder at say four 
cents, feed him six months or longer, produce 350 pounds 
beet at a loss, but by finishing the raw steer make him bring 
six cents a pound. When we have to sell him at a one- 
half or one-ceut margin above cost we are the loser, and 
somebody else gains on our loss. When grain gets lower it 
takes less margin to make it pay. The feeder steer can be 
produced on the cheap grasses at about four cents per 
pound. C. S. BATCHELDEll. 
Macon Co., Ill. 
The Beef Trust Responsible. 
That there is a meat trust in this country will soon be 
apparent to all who are in any way connected with buying 
or selling meat. Why has the price of beef Increased? 
The only answer that can be given is that it is forced up 
and held up by a combination of men and money. The 
farmers and feeders cannot feed cattle at the price (corn 
is 50 cents) and get out even, nor can they do it on 30-eeut 
corn, because the Chicago packers can manipulate the mar¬ 
ket, and are doing so to their advantage, and to the ruin 
of the growers and feeders of cattle. As time passes on I 
am more of the opinion tnat the rise in the price of beef 
cattle two years ago was done to get an excuse to raise the 
price of dressed meat, and wneu this was accomplished the 
price of beef cattle was then lowered to a point at which 
enormous profits could be made by the packers. In October, 
1902, the price of fat cattle at Chicago was soaring around 
the $8 mark, but by December 15 it was down to $4.50 or 
less, and I was there with 10 head of line steers which sold 
for that price, far less than they cost to pasture and feed. 
Did you notice a reduction of nearly half in the price of 
meat at your butcher’s? I think not. From this price ($4.50 
per 100) there has not been much change, and most of the 
cattle the packers use net the producers around four cents 
per pound. Some fancy cattle sell for much more, but these 
go for export or to some packer who furnishes fancy beef 
for the high-class hotels of Boston or New York. In an¬ 
swering your question whether this great increase in price 
has benefited or is going to benefit the farmer who fed the 
beef, I will say no, never. The situation at present is about 
like this: A large majority of the feeders in this com¬ 
munity have fed at a loss for 18 months or more. Some 
have lost all they had, and many banks have been ruined 
because money loaned on cattle did not come back when the 
cattle were sold. As to the future no man can tell, for it 
will depend largely on the corn crop, but this much is 
certain, many who have been feeding cattle will not do so 
again until a more stable market is assured. It takes from 
4 to 10 months to finish a steer, and in this length of time 
(ho packers can manipulate the market enough to smash all 
profits to the feeder even if the steer was bought for $2 per 
100 or less. The cattle feeders of Iowa are in the worst 
condition to-day they have been in 15 years, caused un¬ 
doubtedly by the meat trust stealing the profits of their 
business. t. r. Beveridge. 
Iowa. 
CROP PROSPECTS . 
Weather very dry and farmers much alarmed, l’otatoes 
cut down by late frosts. Farmers’ Union and Fruit Growers' 
Association are both doing good business. o. h. b. 
Montana. 
The acreage of corn Is quite large, but the crop is very 
backward on account of the wet Spring, llay and grain are 
looking well; prospects indicate a large crop; haying not 
begun yet. g. a. p. 
Black River, N. Y. 
Beaches are not grown here; have not been for a good 
many years; pear and plum trees are more than half dead 
tiffs Spring in this locality. Some have not leafed out at 
all, some a little. Some do not show it much. I think it 
was the blight that struck our trees last Summer, not the 
cold Winter. Apple trees are affected more or less in the 
same way. w. d. g. 
Berlin, Va. 
Plums have been a fair crop; Wild Goose, about half 
affected with the brown rot. Japan plums always rot here; 
no good commercially. Asparagus looks well; no signs of 
blight. Beaches are showing signs of brown rot; the out¬ 
come is doubtful. Cotton is poor. I estimate the growing 
crop will be eight per cent larger than last year, chiefly 
on account of increased acreage. The South is about at 
Its limit in cotton production ; nearly all the land is in cot¬ 
ton ; very little corn, oats or hay are produced. The greater 
portion that we consume comes from the West. This neigh¬ 
borhood is suffering from drought, which does not hurt cot¬ 
ton that is up ; other crops are drying up. w. t. 
Aiken, S. C. 
Strawberry picking is over; about one-third of a crop, 
which all came from an old patch. A new piece that was 
set last year was so badly winter-killed that it was plowed 
up and planted with cabbage and cucumbers. New piece set 
this Spring has been hoed twice, and has a fair start. 
Prices have ruled low, as from an old bed I cannot get as 
fine fruit as from a new one. Cherries are plentiful; Yel¬ 
low Spanish line and free from rot this season, selling in 
home market at eight cents per quart. Corn is late, but a 
good stand and good color. Haying will be put off another 
week (July 2) to give time for working corn and potatoes 
again; in fact, it is not yet ready to cut. New seedings 
partly light, old meadows line, but will not equal the prom¬ 
ise of two weeks ago. Several heavy storms have kept back 
farm work, but we have kept ahead of the weeds this sea¬ 
son, something we could not do last year. Blum trees are 
loaded, as also are pears; apples not so well; Greenings 
seem to have their full amount, but Baldwins, our best mar¬ 
ket apple, are not so full. Red raspberries promise well, 
as also blackberries. Last Winter was a hard one on peach 
trees; we lost at least half of Spring-set trees and many 
from older ones; no fruit. G. h. C. 
Dalton, l’a. _ 
BUSINESS BITS . 
Another of those handy kitchen cabinets is made by the 
Cortland Kitchen Cabinet Co., Cortland, N. Y. These are 
sold direct from factory on exceptionally liberal terms. Just 
look up the special offer on Woman and Home page. 
A low-down wagon is almost an essential to a private 
trade of any kind, and especially so for a milk route. Par¬ 
sons’ milk wagons have stood the test for many years. Any¬ 
one wanting a low-down wagon will do well to write to 
John It. Parsons, Earlville, N. Y., for full information. 
You can secure free an official Republican or an official 
Democratic campaign button. The Roosevelt “Stand Bat” 
button is now ready. The Democratic button will be ready 
immediately after the Democratic National Convention. 
This free distribution of buttons Is characteristic of the 
well-known makers of famous Zenoleum Dip and Disinfect¬ 
ant. Send a postal now. The correct address Is Zenner 
Disinfectant Co., 100 Bates St., Detroit, Mich. 
That destructive insect, the Potato bug, while a 
little late this year, has made its appearance, as usual, 
in goodly quantity in many sections, and jve find men tramp¬ 
ing wearily along loaded down with water or bags of lime, 
which are simply conveyors, to distribute a pound or two 
of green over an acre. Many potato growers for 10 or 12 
years past: have been using the Champion Dry Powder 
Duster, which covers two rows at a time as fast as a man 
walks, ami exterminates the pest more effectually than can 
lie done in any other way, saving much time and labor at 
a trifling outlay. This powder gun is made by lA>ggett & 
Bro., 301 Pearl St., New \ r ork. 
One of the most profitable investments that can be made 
by a farmer Is the purchase of a hand cream separator. 
The only question is. which machine is most efficient and 
durable, and reasonable enough in price to make it a good 
investment for the man with only two or three cows. The 
makers of the American cream separator. The American 
Separator Company, of Bainbridge. N. Y., have, we believe, 
met with all these requirements. They are also the makers 
of the American treadle power, which reduces one-half the 
arm power otherwise required, and can be adjusted to fit 
any make of hand separators and other machines operated 
by hand, such as churns, fanning mills, feed cutters, etc. 
