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THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
October 15 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Herbert W. Collingwooij, Editor. 
I)R. Walter Van Fleet, I . 
Mrs. k. T. Koyle, (Associates. 
John J. Dillon. Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, 
equal to 8s. <>d., or 8% marks, or 10% francs. 
“A SQUARE DEAL.” 
We believe that every advertisement in this paper is 
backed by a responsible person. But to make doubly sure 
we will make good any loss to paid subscribers sustained 
by trusting any deliberate swindler advertising in our col¬ 
umns, and any such swindler will be publicly exposed. We 
protect subscribers against rogues, but we do not guarantee 
to adjust trifling differences between subscribers and honest, 
responsible advertisers. Neither will we be responsible for 
the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned by the courts. 
Notice of the complaint must be sent to us within one 
month of the time of the transaction, and you must have 
mentioned The Rural New-Yorker when writing the adver¬ 
tiser. 
Name and address of sender, and what the remittance 
is for, should appear in every letter. 
Remittances may be made in money order, express order, 
personal check or bank draft. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
400 Pearl Street, New York. 
SATURDAY, OCTORER 15, 1904. 
To January 1 , 1 905, for 10 Cents 
For strictly introductory purposes we will send The 
R. N.-Y. every week now to January first next for only 
10 cents. Have you forgotten the little envelope en¬ 
closed in your paper two weeks ago, conveniently ar¬ 
ranged for carrying the dime, and also for the name and 
address of the new subscriber? There is time yet 
to send this envelope on the return journey. Tf you are 
unable to attend to it personally, please hand it to 
some one who ought to have The R. N.-Y. 
* 
Clark Allis, of Orleans Co., N. Y., says that last 
year one apple picker in his section averaged 60 
barrels per day for 17 days at l2'/> cents per barrel. 
'1'hat is tremendous picking and big pay. Is this man 
the champion or can some one show a better record? 
Some of us might enter a match at eating apples, but 
there is no use picking against such a human machine 
as that! 
* 
Seedsmen tell us that the demand for Alfalfa seed 
is growing rapidly. People all over the country are 
buying small quantities of the seed for experiment. 
This is the result of discussions in bulletins and farm 
papers, and is good evidence of progress. Many farmers 
fail with Alfalfa the first time they try it, but they 
should keep on trying. One glance at a good Alfalfa 
field at its best would show them that it will pay to 
fail a dozen times if each failure helps a little toward 
final success. 
* 
That article by Dr. Aspinwall on page 746, “The 
Plain Farmer’s Words,” is worth thinking over at 
this time, when approaching Winter evenings give op¬ 
portunities for study and mental improvement lacking 
during the busy season. Some effort in this direction 
will not only drive away loneliness in an isolated home, 
but also draw the family closer together in a common 
interest. While we naturally think first of rural topics 
and nature study, there is no reason why a farmer and 
his family should limit their study to these lines. 
History, travel, biography, science and wholesome fic¬ 
tion, rightly construed, never spoiled a man for farming 
yet. An enlarged vocabulary, and a command of well- 
spoken words, will certainly not curtail a man’s ability 
to sell a load of cabbage. “Book farming” is often 
derided, but a wide range of information, grafted on to 
a stock of practical knowledge, makes life happier for 
its owner, and aids in moving the farmer towards his 
rightful position—that of First Citizen of the Republic. 
* 
Thirty-one years ago Jules Verne wrote “Around the 
World in 80 Days!” It was then considered little 
more than a dream. Last year the circuit of the world 
was made in 54J4 days. When the Siberian railroad is 
finished—and the Japanese are also finished or have 
finished—83 days will enable a traveler to leave New 
York in either direction and go completely around the 
earth! The great main lines of railroad which traverse 
t the earth are supplied with feeders, large and small, 
which work back into what were unknown wastes 50 
years ago. It is estimated that there are 532,500 miles 
of railroad now in working order, of which 202,471 
miles are in this country. These roads do two things— 
provide new markets and tap new stores of food or 
material. They bring new demands for some things 
which the American farmer has to sell, and also enable 
distant sections to compete in his market with what 
he grows. If the railroads alone are developed until 
they network the world the farmer will receive less 
direct benefit and more direct competition than any other 
producing or commercial class. This is because his 
products must he hauled over a dirt or stone road before 
they can be distributed. It is evident to all that a 
farmer at the end of a rough or muddy road cannot 
compete on even terms with another farmer who has 
a smooth, hard highway between his farm and the rail¬ 
road. So far as farmers are concerned the improvement 
of country highways is of far greater importance than 
the extension of railroads. Not only farmers, but the 
entire nation will be benefited by improved highways. 
The locality should not be left to pay the cost alone. 
Mr. Thomas J. Dwyer died at his home in Cornwall, 
N. Y., Ociober 3. His illness dated hack two and a half 
years, when a strain resulted in aneurism of the right 
artery. He had been practically incapacitated for work 
since, and his long illness and severe suffering developed 
a complication of physical troubles which have finally 
brought relief in death. Mr. Dwyer was born in 1855 
on the place where he spent his life and died. His par¬ 
ents were poor people, and with a young family 
needed the oldest boy’s help. At an early age Thomas 
left school for service in a neighboring brickyard. Later 
he worked in the nursery of E. P. Roe, and afterwards 
for a time in J. T. Lovett’s nursery at Little Silver, N. J. 
In 1879 he married Josephine Healey, and soon after 
with a capital of $35, his savings up to that time having 
been contributed to the support of the family, he laid the 
foundation of the Orange County Nurseries. The be¬ 
ginning was a modest one on four acres of rough ground. 
His first catalogue was a little four-page leaflet, and 
his first advertisement a little seven-line copy to an¬ 
nounce the sale of pot-grown strawberry plants. Thus 
with the drawbacks of a meagre education, the lack of 
capital, and the burdens of a young family he bravely 
faced the task of building a business and a reputation. 
The present dimensions and reputation of the Orange 
County Nurseries are a monument to his energy, ability 
and integrity. He became a frequent contributor to the 
agricultural press, and was a recognized authority on 
horticultural subjects. He was an ardent friend of this 
paper and its management, and rendered great service 
by his kindly but pointed criticism as well as by encour¬ 
agements of unstinted praise and commendation. It was 
largely through his efforts that the organization of the 
Eastern N. Y. Horticultural Society first took on definite 
form. In 1903, during the early stages of his illness, he 
wrote a book called “Guide to Hardy Fruits and Orna¬ 
mentals,” which contains a wealth of practical and val¬ 
uable information, and wnich has been received most 
favorably by practical men. The second edition has 
already been printed. 
We knew Air. Dwyer intimately. For nearly a quarter 
of a century our relations have been close. We have 
known him in business and in social life, been with him 
where pleasure allured and where duty called, and never 
in any walk of life have we known a purer, a nobler, or 
more honest man. His customers were his friends, and 
his sole ambition was to please and help them with 
counsel and advice. He always wanted to heap the 
measure and he had a special pride in shipping a better 
quality of stock than he led the customer to expect. If 
at times he failed in this it was the conditions and not 
his will that was at fault. He had a genial, kindly dis¬ 
position, and a generous, loving heart. The troubles 
and trials, the joys and pleasures, not only of the fam¬ 
ily, but of the neighborhood, came to him. He was the 
confidant and adviser of young and old, an affectionate 
husband, an indulgent father, and a constant friend. He 
has been cut off at a time of life when his early struggles 
and labor began to promise a rich and abundant harvest; 
yet he accomplished more than most men and the world 
is better that he lived. 
Prof. Voorhees of the New Jersey Experiment Sta¬ 
tion thinks of starting a valuable experiment in feeding 
dairy cows. He will try to see if a dairy herd can be 
fed at a fair profit on Alfalfa and similar fodders and 
silage, with little or no grain. As we all know, one 
great argument made for Alfalfa is that a ton of well- 
cured hay contains as much protein or muscle-making 
food as a ton of wheat bran. This being so, and the 
Alfalfa capable of producing five tons per acre, the 
theory is that with 10 acres of Alfalfa a farmer need 
not buy any grain. Now will the cow’s practice back 
up the chemist’s theory? The answer to that must be 
made in milk, dollars and cents, and we hope that Prof. 
Voorhees will be able to feed a fair-sized herd for one 
year on silage or green fodder, and pasture and Alfalfa, 
cow pea or oat and pea hay. This has already been 
done with a few cows with very satisfactory results. 
Most eastern dairymen can no longer grow grain in 
competition with the West. If by growing Alfalfa or 
cow peas they can provide on their own farms the 
protein which they are now obliged to buy in the 
form of grain, they will be in a much stronger position. 
Before any large number of farmers will risk taking 
all or most of the grain away from the cows, some 
one must prove beyond a doubt that the cow accepts the 
theoretical value of Alfalfa. Let this be done and the 
whole system of keeping a dairy cow can be changed. 
* 
We begin this week a series of monthly notes on glass 
gardening. The object will be to give in advance a brief 
statement of the necessary operations for each month, 
with special reference to the work of a beginner. We 
welcome questions from those who want help. In this 
as in all other practical departments The R. N.-Y. is 
largely edited by its readers. We look to them to tell 
us what they want, and then obtain the most reliable 
answer possible. We are driven to this new department 
by the fact that thousands of our readers are trying to 
grow flowers or vegetables for home or market under 
glass. 
* 
The three photographs for which prizes were awarded 
are engraved this week. It is difficult to decide such a 
contest, for who can say why one farm scene is better 
than another? We are surprised and greatly pleased at 
the way readers have entered this contest. Some excel¬ 
lent pictures are coming. We shall be able to pay for 
a good many besides the actual prize winners. This 
will make The R. N.-Y.’s illustrations more original 
and striking than ever. We had no idea that so many of 
our readers owned cameras and were so proficient in 
their use. The pictures this week are so strong and sug¬ 
gestive that they require no comment. The prizes will 
be continued. 
* 
It has been generally accepted as true that when 
swamps or peat bogs are drained it is necessary to use 
lime in ordeh to make them productive. Most people 
believe that black soils are sour, and that lime will cor¬ 
rect them. Careful experiments in Indiana and Illinois 
show that lime is of less importance than potash. 
Swamp lands or peat are not always sour, but are 
always low in potash, which must be supplied if we 
expect crops. It is quite common observation that when 
such swamps are drained and planted in celery fair crops 
can he grown year after year by using kainit alone. 
We should remember this in handling our swamp lands. 
There would be more wealth to the nation in taking the 
water out of eastern swamps than in putting it into 
western deserts. 
* 
As usual at this season we call for personal experi¬ 
ence with the box package for apples. Which has 
proved more satisfactory to you. hox or barrel, and why ? 
We expect to hear good arguments for both packages, 
because it will depend much upon the market and the 
class of people who buy. In some cities, like Baltimore, 
people like to visit the large markets and carry home 
purchases in baskets. Here of course the barrel will 
be best, because the box package is too large to be car¬ 
ried in this way. In other places there are many “flat 
dwellers,” who do not go to market, and who do not 
care to buy a barrel of fruit. On the whole, we think 
the box package is gaining, but it is only for the finest 
apples and the best trade. The use of the boxes must 
come as a matter of education, for the barrel has been 
accepted for years as the standard package. We beheve 
that in time the smaller packages will work their way 
into every prominent market, but a fruit grower must 
not expect too much from them at first. He must expect 
to contribute something to experience. If people were 
not willing to do this there could be no education of 
consumers. When a manufacturer puts a new food on 
the market he expects to give the price of one package 
to introduce two more. The first shippers of boxed 
apples must pay a share of the cost of introducing the 
new package. When it becomes popular all will benefit. 
BREVITIES. 
Get ready for an early Winter. 
Worth working for—tlie Alfalfa crop. 
What about the box package for apples? 
Their name is legion—the people who think they know 
how to conduct a paper. 
The Apple Growers’ Congress at St. Louis November 9 
promises to be a great affair. 
Mu. Vekcon this year is picking his eleventh consecutive 
crop of apples from his mulched, low-headed trees. 
You are right. The woman who must work for her own 
livelihood must put her livest hood on her think works. 
We are glad to hear that l’rof. I. I*. Roberts will return 
to Cornell this Winter to deliver a series of lectures on 
agriculture. 
As far as it can be told in print the way to pick apples 
is made clear. Still we all know that there is no education 
like the actual work, in’ the tree or at the table. 
After most other flowers are blackened by frost the Afri¬ 
can marigolds keep on blooming as joyously as ever. One 
may get many dollars’ worth of pleasure from a flve-cent 
seed package of this old favorite. 
