1004 
T1IK RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
417 
Events of the Week. 
DOMESTIIC.—Drew College for women, at Carmel, N. Y., 
was destroyed by lire May 3; loss $125,000. . . . Pow¬ 
der mill owned by the Northwestern Powder Company, three 
miles from Newport, Ind., was blown up May 4. Four men 
were killed outright. Ten thousand pounds of powder ex¬ 
ploded and the bodies of two of the men were blown into 
such small pieces that they could not be picked up. The 
injured men will recover, . . . May 4 a cloudburst in 
Central Texas caused much loss, and drowned four children 
near Austin. . . . Charles Cunningham, the “Oregon 
sheep king," was fined $5,000 in the United States District 
Court at Portland, Ore., upon his plea of guilty to conspiracy 
to defraud the government of public lands. Three of his 
accomplices were fined $100 each. ... A destructive 
blaze which started among steamer wharves at Boston, 
Mass., May 0, caused a loss of $200,000 before it was under 
control. . . . May 9 the United States paid for the Pan¬ 
ama Canal privilege. Payment was in the form of a Treas¬ 
ury warrant for $40,000,000, which is the largest single war¬ 
rant ever issued by this country. . . . May 10 J. F. Wal¬ 
lace, of the Illinois Central Railroad, was appointed chief 
engineer for the canal construction. 
GENERAL FOREIGN NEWS.—The war news from the 
East shows little but a succession of Japanese victories. At 
last report the Russians had evacuated New Chwang and 
were defeated in a battle at Llaoyang, about 30 miles north. 
The Russiau policy seems to be to a steady retreat until 
they get sufficient reinforcements to make a stand. 
Sir Iienry M. Stanley, explorer of Africa, died in Loudon, 
England, May 10, aged 03. His early boyhood was spent in 
an almshouse in Great Britain. Then he shipped to New 
Orleans and was employed by a merchant, whose name he 
adopted. He fought on the Southern side in the Civil War 
until captured, and then volunteered in the Northern army, 
where he served with honor. His work in Africa is well 
known through books, newspaper articles and lectures. As 
a journalist his popularity was extraordinary. Some of his 
characteristics were energy, enthusiasm, courage, and the 
ability to turn difficulties into opportunities. A lazy or 
half-hearted man can find little consolation in Stanley’s 
career. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—Mount ITermon School, Mount 
Hermon. Mass., holding its Spring commencement ear¬ 
lier in the season than other institutions, added to the 
programme this year the inauguration of its new fea¬ 
ture, the agricultural department, on April IS. The 
speaker of the day was Prof. L. H. Bailey, director of 
the Agricultural College, Cornell University. The school, 
which was founded nearly 25 years ago by D. L. Moody, 
with the country boy particularly in mind, has a large 
farm of over 1,000 acres which has been cultivated al¬ 
most entirely by the students, who are required to work 
two hours a day. The idea, however, of utilizing this 
farm in giving these same young men training in the 
theoretical as well as the practical side, did not take 
shape until quite recently. A good forest of commer¬ 
cial value, up-to-date farm machinery, a large poultry 
plant, and a herd of Holstein cattle make up a part of 
the equipment. 
The Board of Trustees of the Iowa State College has 
granted Prof. W. J. Kennedy a year’s leave of absence 
to study European methods of live stock breeding and 
feeding. He will sail for Liverpool about the middle of 
May. While gone he will visit England, Scotland, Ire¬ 
land, the Channel Islands, France, Germany, Switzer¬ 
land, Holland and Denmark. He will make some special 
investigations for the United States Department of Agri¬ 
culture along certain lines. . 
The Connecticut Agricultural College third annual Sum¬ 
mer school for teachers and others in nature and coun¬ 
try life will be held July G to 29, 1904. Instruction by spe¬ 
cialists will be provided in ornithology and entomology, 
in botany, floriculture, landscape gardening and forestry, 
and in fruit and vegetable growing, sanitary dairying, 
poultry culture and other farm operations. 
More than a year ago the National Live Stock Asso¬ 
ciation requested the management of the Universal Ex¬ 
position at St. Louis to include in its live stock exhibits 
premiums and space for range stock in carload lots. The 
management of the Exposition deemed it inadvisable to 
grant this request, giving as the reasons that sanitary 
conditions would not permit it, and also that thei’e was 
not sufficient ground in the Exposition in which to have 
exhibits of this character. The agitation was continued, 
and principally through the efforts of Eugene H. Grubb, 
of Colorado, and Louis Wortham, of Texas, the ELxposi- 
tin management agreed to reconsider the mattei. This 
Association was represented by A. P. Bush, of Texas, 
and E. B. Frayser, of Indian Territory, and as a result 
the request of the western men was granted. Sufficient 
premiums will be offered, and an exhibition of lange 
stock in carload lots will be permitted. 
Ill health has compelled F. D. Cobum to resign from 
his position as chief of the live stock department of the 
St. Louis Exposition. 
Secretary Wilson lias issued an order prohibiting the im¬ 
portation of hay and straw from Continental Europe. The 
order declares that, ou account of the danger of the intro¬ 
duction of foot and mouth disease by contagion, the impor¬ 
tation of these products from any country of Continental 
Europe, or where they have been transported through any 
such country, shall be prohibited. 
PEACHES ON LONG ISLAND. 
Why the Crop is Neglected. 
There may be a number of reasons why peaches are 
not largely grown on Long Island. I think the principal 
reason, in my locality, is that no fruit trees do well, 
owing to our proximity to the sea. The prevailing winds 
during the growing season are from the southwest, and 
it is very difficult to make a tree of any kind live; the 
salt air is sure death to every tree. California privet 
does well, but fruit trees will not grow within much 
less than a mile from the sea coast. The soil is all right, 
but the climate does not seem to be. Many farmers have 
from 12 to 20 fruit trees, and in a favorable season get 
fruit enough for family use. but it is very seldom that 
there are any peaches to sell. Fruit trees do very much 
better on the north side of the island, and I believe some 
fruit is raised for market. Of course we have all the 
insect pests that peach trees are subject to. w. l. j. 
Southampton N. Y. 
Suffolk County has a large area of what I consider 
fine peach land, and at the fair we always see peaches. 
Those who have planted are getting good returns from 
a home market to the city people at the border resorts. 
Yet they only plant in small lots. I once asked an ex¬ 
hibitor at the fair: “With such peaches why do you not 
plant largely?’’ “Well,” he said, “there are three of 
us talking of buying a hundred acres of good peach land 
for $600.” I said: “I will go 10 acres with you.” It was 
not done, and I suppose simply for the want of a leader. 
The berry growers of the Hudson River Valley were 
long in want of a leader, but one was found; so I think 
it will be with the peaches in Suffolk County, when 
they will go into it as they have in the cauliflower, but 
some one must start and make a success and then they 
will tumble over one another to get peaches. But when? 
There is the rub. Peaches, and fine peaches, grow here 
and are a surer crop than in any other part of the 
State; less liable to be injured by a hard Winter or late 
Spring frosts. Send along some Jersey grower to look 
the ground over. N - hai.lock. 
Queens Co., N. Y. 
There are a number of reasons why there are so few 
large peach orchards on Long Island, which could be 
classified under the following heads: Constantly in¬ 
creasing values of land; farms constantly changing 
hands; climatic conditions; neglect; unprofitable. I think 
it is Irving in his “Life of Washington,” who, in speak¬ 
ing of the Battle of Long Island, alludes to the great 
annoyance the soldiers were put to by slipping and falling 
when going through a peach orchard, owing to the large 
quantities of decaying peaches on the ground. Fifty 
years ago there were large peach orchards at Oyster 
Bay, and we boys were never tempted to steal, as one 
could have all he wanted for the asking, only take care 
not to hurt the trees. Now the site of the Battle of 
Long Island is a resort city, and my peach orchard at 
Oyster Bay is covered with lovely country villas. Large 
tracts of land have been bought up by speculative realty 
companies, many of which have been successful and 
some failures. I pass frequently one of the failures, and 
your letter forcibly recalls the bleached and moldering 
remains of a quite extensive peach farm; sad monument 
of greed and neglect. Owing to the vast quantities of 
water—we are surrounded by the Atlantic on one side, 
the Sound on the other—we are very subject to cold 
storms in May, surcharged with salt, most destructive 
to the pollen, causing loss of fruit. These storms are 
even worse in August, augmenting fungoid diseases; our 
prevailing wind is south; humid, salty and mosquitoey. 
The older Long Island farmer is very loth to adopt any 
of the new insecticides and when the scale, yellows and 
rot get it they let the orchard go, and the remains of 
some large diseased orchards are still extant, and yet 
we show them over 500 fruit-beaiing trees that bear 
every year more or less. We tell them they must spray; 
they say they will as soon as they can get at it, but 
few get at it. The land is so valuable, the crop so un¬ 
certain, the farms so small, peach raising can only be 
profitable when there is a good retail home market, and 
while I am convinced these remarks apply with equal 
force to all our productions, it is particularly so with 
peaches. You can get almost any reasonable price at 
retail for a choice basket of lovely ripe peaches, fresh 
from the trees, with the exception of raspberries, peaches 
are our best-paying crop. F - R - T - 
Babylon, N. Y. 
First, other sections have better or cheaper facilities 
for getting fruit to market. Second, too many enemies 
and too much disease to contend with. Third, trees are 
short-lived, and one or two failures of a crop on young 
orchards (which often happens) preclude such orchards 
from ever paying much profit. Fourth, other and differ¬ 
ent crops seem to be more reliable, if not more re¬ 
munerative of late. When peaches grow well they pay 
well. It is not true that Long Island peaches are lack¬ 
ing in flavor or quality if trees are healthy. No section 
can beat us in flavor when fruit is grown to perfection. 
For a number of years I have given up growing fruit 
of all kinds except for my own use. H. a. b. 
Suffolk County. 
With very few exceptions the peach orchards have 
not been a success. Reasons are the following In a large 
measure: Want of men who are thoroughly acquainted 
with all the knowledge necessary to combat the many 
diseases and insect attacks the peach is subject to; also 
want of men who are young, strong and enthusiastic in 
this line of work. Our ocean fogs and spells of very 
damp weather during the ripening season favor fungous 
diseases, so that a large proportion of crops nearly ready 
for marketing are destroyed. e. h. 
Nassau County. 
INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION EAST AND WEST 
The following quotation is from an editorial in the 
March 30 issue of the Breeders’ Gazette, under the head 
of “President Draper s Successor”: 
“Positively a western man is wanted. Is there geogra¬ 
phy in education? Yes, in a measure: emphatically does 
longitude inhere in the qualifications of a man fitted to 
administer the affairs of a great western university. 
The wisdom of the East does not altogether meet the 
conditions of the West. As far as the East is from the 
West, so far do western educational sympathies, ten¬ 
dencies, dispositions, inspirations, stand apart from those 
in the East. The education typified in the University of 
Illinois is strange to the East. The scholasticism of that 
section looks askance on it. Our university is a land- 
grant college. It was long called the Illinois Industrial 
University. Industry, agriculture and the liberal arts are 
embraced in its broad field. It is folly again to attempt 
to educate an eastern man to an appreciation of indus¬ 
trial education.” 
The above is not flippantly written by an egotist with¬ 
out standing or reputation, but is from the leading edi¬ 
torial in one of the strongest and best-managed papers 
of the Middle West. Attention is called not so much 
positively to affirm or deny this broad inference, or 
really open statement, as to study the actual conditions, 
and if true that we are not keeping pace with the West 
in sentiment and practice, surely it is a matter of great 
concern to our future welfare and development that we 
recognize this rather unpleasant statement. This quota¬ 
tion is written from an agricultural point of view, and 
there is an agreed sentiment that the West has led and 
does lead the East in agricultural education in point of 
numbers. This fact has no wonder, mystery or criticism. 
Agriculture has been the great industry and wealth 
builder of the Middle West. She lacked the water power 
and commerce of the East. In looking over some sta¬ 
tistics from the United States Bureau of Education I 
find the following figures, giving the number of students 
in the three great, divisions of our country who are 
studying agriculture and mechanic arts: 
General Agri- Engi- 
science. culture, neering. 
New England (6). 3S3 424 1537 
Middle Atlantic (8). 2225 224 4172 
Central States (13). 2218 1850 4908 
We observe, therefore, that the agricultural States of 
the Middle West lead in farm students nearly three to 
one, while in engineering the East has a very few more 
(101). In general science we lead by 390, all of which 
leads us to note that the E'ast is, after all, doing some¬ 
thing along the lines of industrial training. I have not 
made comparison in classical work, in which the older 
sections lead. No one can possibly admire the splendid 
educational work of the West more than I. The eastern 
people who went there seemed to take on new life, and 
the great wealth of our nation has come largely from 
their work and resources. But they have been praised 
so long by every one east and west that like a spoiled 
child the head becomes somewhat enlarged. What I 
want, and what all eastern farmers desire, is not that 
western agriculture should do less, or have anyone 
detract from their push and usefulness, but that eastern 
agriculture should do more; fortify its weaknesses and 
maintain its just and right position, and defend itself 
both in action and word. Saying things amounts to 
little, doing things amounts to much. Every nation, 
every State and every individual will sooner or later 
occupy its true relative position, as determined by its 
Intelligence and activity as morally directed, so saying 
that no eastern man is wanted does not prove that east¬ 
ern educators are not abreast of the times, h. e. cook. 
FRUIT PROSPECTS IN SENECA CO., N. Y. 
This has been an ideal Spring thus far for the fruit buds, 
no warm weather occurring until the first of May, and al¬ 
though the farmers are about a week behind with their work 
the season bids fair to be only a few days later than nor¬ 
mal. To-day, May 10, Japan plums and sweet cherries are 
in bloom, and from notes kept we observe they have been as 
late twice within the last six years; viz., in 1900 and 1901 
Last season, which was abnormal, they were in bloom April 
30. The prospects for a full crop of fruit were never better. 
Burbank plums, which bore a heavy crop last year, are again 
full of bloom, having withstood 20 degrees successfully. 
Beaches on the lower limbs are almost entirely killed, but 
on the upper limbs live buds appear. Sweet cherries are 
blossoming full and a crop will be appreciated in this sec¬ 
tion. as the last one occurred in 1900. The Winter was a 
hard one on young trees. We find a number of two-year set 
apples burst near the surface of the ground. We thought 
the banked ones might have escaped,.but find some of then, 
burst open also. Beach trees set last Spring are not injured 
in this way. Wheat will not be half a normal crop in this 
county, but grass and pasture are looking fine. 
w. A. n. 
CROP NOTES. 
The fruit prospect is good for G5 per cent, apples, 20 per 
cent, peaches, 5 per cent, pears, 30 per cent, cherries. Fruits 
ten days to two weeks later than last year. w. t. z. 
Springfield, Mo, 
Spring very late, cold and wet, but at this writing, May 8, 
it is getting some warmer; peach and apple trees are in 
bloom and promise a fair crop : corn planting or listing, as 
it is called here, has commenced; there will be thousands of 
acres listed this week if the weather is good. Fall wheat 
looks well, hut is very backward; the same can be said ot 
grass. j. j. r. 
Bennet, Neb. 
The fruit crop is 100 at altitude of 3,000 feet and over. 
By May 5 the peaches will have shed their bloom and apples 
in full bloom, plums good, grapes dormant almost as in 
Winter. Under 3,000 feet fruit is thought to be damaged 
one-fourth. As far as white lead has been used by me it has 
proved a complete success. I have applied with brush to 
apples, peaches, pears and plums: peaches one year old, also 
grafts just set. I am of the opinion it prevents evaporation. 
Waynesville, N. C. a. j. a. 
We are having a very late Spring; have only just sowed 
my onion seed, and I think it is the latest I have ever been. 
I.ast week the weather was very warm and all kinds of vege¬ 
tation fairly jumped, but this week is cooler: in fact, this 
evening was almost a freeze, if not quite. Early cherries are 
in bloom ; also plums and apples are coming very fast, but 
the cold will check them. Apples and all early fruits seem 
to be blossoming full, but only a few peaches show bloom. 
Williamson, N. Y. w. p. r. 
BUSINESS BITS. 
Don't rut your fields with narrow tires. Get a set of 
electric metal wheels; save your horses, save your backs, 
save repair bills and be happy. A good wheel sense booklet 
free. Address Electric Wheel Co., Quincy, Ill. 
The 500 expert mechanics employed by F. E. Myers & 
Bro., Ashland, Ohio, turn out one Myers Pump every minute 
of the working day, besides hay carriers and other articles. 
In soliciting patronage F. E. Myers & Bro. do so on the 
merits of their goods. Their newest catalogue of pumps and 
hay tools can be had for the asking. 
The Harder Mfg. Company, of Cobleskill. N. Y., man- 
facture no less than 200 sizes of silos. Having pursued this 
line of manufacture ever since silage feeding began to be 
popular in this country, it is but natural that they should 
have learned and embodied in their silos the best thought and 
teachings pertaining to silage use and silo building. Write 
them for descriptive matter and detailed information. 
Luther Bros. Co., 165 Ohio street, North Milwaukee, Wis., 
offer to send a sample of their invention. Carborundum, to 
those interested. The beauty of this substance in form and 
color is remarkable. Write for sample and particulars of 
their bi-pedal tool grinders. They send these grinders on 30 
days approval and will pay all charges and take them back 
if not satisfactory. Liberal terms made to agents. 
We have never had so many calls for information about 
“dust sprays” and dust machines. This plan of using dry 
powder in place of liquid seems to be gaining ground in 
some localities. Leggett & Brother, 301 Bearl street, New 
York, make a variety of machines for blowing dust or spray. 
They have them in all sizes from the big “Jumbo” to the 
small hand machine. They also sell dry Bordeaux mixture 
and other insecticides. 
Stockmen recognize the value of a good disinfectant or 
liquid for killing disease germs or insecis. For dipping 
sheep or hogs or'for use where contagious diseases have ap 
peared Zenoleum has given the best of results. The plan 
of dipping hogs is now followed with success, for the dip 
destroys lice and cleans the hog so that he is sure to do 
better. The Zenner Disinfectant Co., of Detroit, Mich., send 
a pamphlet entitled Biggies Troubles, which every hog man 
ought to read. 
