778 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
October 29 
than 750 physicians with milk daily, and they are mostly 
of the first class. About every physician, chemist, bac¬ 
teriologist and expert in the Health Board has long been 
a customer of ours, and these hundreds of educated, in¬ 
fluential men and women are daily praising and recom¬ 
mending our goods. With such goods and such assist¬ 
ance how could we fail of success?’ 
“Why. did you enter into the combination now known 
as the Sheffield Farms-Slawson-Decker Company?” 
“For two main reasons. First: Because we wanted 
to keep down the price of our milk to the lowest possi¬ 
ble figure; and the cost of producing and distributing 
milk had greatly increased since we began, and was 
still increasing. We could no longer make any profit. 
We were compelled to make some change. Four courses 
were open to us; we could raise the selling price to the 
consumer; lower it to the farmer producer; lower the 
standard of the goods, or avail ourselves of the large 
economies incident to combinations. We chose the lat¬ 
ter course. Second: By frequent conversations I 
learned that there were four businesses running on par¬ 
allel lines over the same territory, catering to the needs 
of the same class, and agreed as to the methods and 
principles on which such business should be conducted. 
Before consolidation they made use of 25 stores and 140 
delivery wagons on Manhattan Island. After consoli¬ 
dation we closed 10 stores, dropped 15 delivery wagons 
and accommodated our customers just as well as before. 
As it costs $2,000 yearly to operate a store, and $1,000 
to operate a delivery wagon, here was a yearly saving 
of $35,000, not to speak of smaller economies. Before 
consolidation we were constantly hampered by want of 
capital; now we were better supplied. Before consoli¬ 
dation the controlling minds in each business were occu¬ 
pied in the general administration of that business; 
now we are able to assign our ablest men each to the 
specialty for which he is best fitted. The results have 
fully justified the combination, and we are not only 
better off ourselves, but are able to serve our customers 
better.” 
“But were you not called a ‘trust’?” 
‘“Yes, by people ignorant of the facts. We are the 
very opposite of what is unfavorably known as a 
‘trust.’ We have 30 stockholders, all young men but 
myself, and every one actively employed by the company 
on a very moderate salary. Every one is literally ‘earn¬ 
ing his bread by the sweat of his brow.’ There is not 
a half dozen of us to whom the small salary we get is 
not absolutely necessary for common, everyday living 
expenses. We do not attempt to restrict production, or 
force down the producer’s price; on the contrary, we 
pay the world’s highest prices for milk, and the farmers 
who sell to us are prosperous and contented. We use 
no forbidden methods to outstrip our competitors in 
the city; we simply do our best to excel them in quality 
and methods, and give a better article -for the same 
price. We have no advantage not open to the competi¬ 
tion of the whole world.” 
“What part of the new business do you have charge 
of?” 
“The production end has been assigned to me, and it 
taxes all my powers. Before consolidation the old Shef¬ 
field Farms Company was using about 20,000 quarts of 
milk daily.' We had been about 20 years getting this 
quantity of milk together, and raising its quality to the 
highest degree of uniform excellency, whereas we now 
handle over SO,000 quarts of milk daily. It was all the 
best. The other members of the combination all had 
some of the best milk. It is now my task not only to 
keep improving the best, but to bring all up to the 
same uniform standard. This is no easy task, but it is 
being fast accomplished. We watch scientific progress, 
try every new process, and ‘hold fast to that which is 
good;’ keep in touch with the scientific men, the most 
eminent specialists among physicians, boards of health, 
agricultural colleges and dairy schools, study dairy 
papers, books and publications, both American and 
European, and expend lots of money in improvements 
of all kinds.” 
“In what respects do you have advantage over a pri¬ 
vate fancy farm ?” 
“In two respects particularly. All the fancy farmers 
keep only purebred, registered cows. When such cows 
are produced by inbreeding the same effects are pro¬ 
duced in cattle as does the intermarriage among near 
relatives in the human family. It produces animals 
with weak and delicate constitutions, much more sus¬ 
ceptible to diseases than other animals constantly 
strengthened and reinforced by fresh, strange blood. 
1 personally know of two private fancy dairies which 
once shipped their product to families in New York 
City. On one farm the herd was once completely wiped 
out by tuberculosis, replenished, and the second time 
destroyed by the same dread destroyer. The herd on 
the other farm was once destroyed by tuberculosis and 
never replenished. Fancy farmers, as a rule, give little 
personal attention to their dairies. Practically every¬ 
thing is left to hired help who work without the eye 
of the master. There are few, if any men, who will 
give the same conscientious care to work in which they 
have no interest, but to get a stated salary therefrom, as 
if they were financially interested in results. Most men 
exercise most care when they gain or lose by success or 
failure.” e. nelson erhart. 
PLANTS KILLED BY GAS; LAWSUIT. 
Can, you recall if at any time you have noted instances 
of trees, shrubs, etc., being killed by illuminating gas es¬ 
caping from underground pipes? Information is desired as 
to litigation concerning such damage. t. w. b. 
In the early seventies (dates lost) the firm of Davis 
MILKING A GOAT IN MALTA. Fig. 340. 
& Taplin, florists and nurserymen, Detroit, Mich, suf¬ 
fered serious damage in their greenhouses caused by 
leaks from main gas pipes in the street. These were 
about 10 feet from outside wall of greenhouses. The 
ground was frozen very deep at time, and escaping 
gas could not break through the frozen surface, so it 
worked through soft ground below the frost line till it 
reached the inside of greenhouses. There it escaped 
through soil and destroyed everything. The gas smell 
was very strong in the houses, and ventilators were kept 
open night and day, only being closed during strong wind 
or snowstorms. Within a week after closing venti¬ 
lators any plants still retaining leaves or commencing 
new growth would be again stripped. We notified the 
gas company, who did not pay much attention at first. 
We got reliable and experienced witnesses to back up 
A GIANT GLADIOLUS. Fig. 347. 
See Ruralisms, Page 782. 
our complaints. The gas company then set men to look 
for the leak. This took some time, owing to the 
frozen ground, but at last they found the leak, a bad 
one. We put in a claim for damages, which they 
laughed at. We offered them the choice of settling the 
claim, submitting to arbitration or standing suit. They 
decided to arbitrate; proceedings were conducted as 
before a judge, one arbitrator being selected by each 
side, and these two men selecting a third. I had once 
in England the worst experience with gas-and plants 
it would be possible to find on record, which was a very 
important feature at this trial, preparing me for any 
move made by the company. The case took three days 
and was decided in our favor; damages $2,500, which 
the gas company paid. This case has been used to 
establish a precedent by others suffering similar loss. 
Damage done to outside stock would be the same as 
inside, but in many cases much harder to prove. A 
strong lawyer could break down any such claim unless 
the claimant had at his fingers’ ends every fact of 
cause and effect. Of course all damage from escaping 
gas to outside stock would be at the roots. Claimant 
must be able to show the effect at root; also be pre¬ 
pared to show roots of same kind of stock in healthy 
condition, from same soil, but out of reach of gas and 
not affected by it. He must also be prepared to answer 
such questions as the following: How far is gas main 
from your line fence? Is there any open ditch between 
gas main and line fence? If so, width and depth of 
such ditch? What months in the year does water stand 
in ditch? What is the fall of ditch in front of your 
place from side to side? Is your place underdrained; 
if so, at what depth? Where do your drains discharge? 
What distance are your drains apart? Are they all in 
good running order? Does water ever lie on the sur¬ 
face of your ground? If so, at what seasons? Is 
nature of soil light or heavy? How long since first 
cleaned up? What have been former crops, and with 
what results? The importance of such questions will 
be to prove that there is oil, some natural gas, sulphur, 
salt, standing water or some other injurious matter in 
soil to which damage can be charged. Get all measure¬ 
ments accurate, but give them in evidence as about so 
many feet or yards, as the case may be. A gas com¬ 
pany will put up a strenuous fight, as they pay their 
legal talent by the year. s. taplin. 
Michigan. 
MULE BREEDING IN VERMONT. 
On page 747 was a picture of a mule colt which won 
second prize in the photographic contest. This picture 
was sent from Vermont, and the question has been 
asked why mules should be bred in that State. Ver¬ 
mont is the home of the famous Morgan horses. It 
cannot be said that the mare in the picture seems 
greatly proud of her child. Why should a Vermont 
farmer raise mules? The young man shown in the 
picture says: 
“Vermont has for a long time been known as the 
home of the Morgan horse, which for general farm 
work is an excellent animal. Yet in the mule there are 
possibilities not found in the horse. The mule is raised 
easier and cheaper than any other stock, and is as ready 
for work or the market at three years of age as the 
horse at five years. He is less liable to heaves, thick- 
wind, spavins or any other unsoundness; when pastured 
is less liable to injuries because he is sure-footed and 
cautious, avoiding holes and dangerous places. He 
can stand hardship and endure the heat better than a 
horse; is not easy to sweat, is steady, less excitable and 
can be relied upon as a true, honest, valuable worker. 
He can back and hold as heavy a load as he can draw, 
and the hills of Vermont furnish a good field for him 
to prove it. Where there are plenty of mules there 
will be plenty of buyers. There is always a demand for 
good mules.” ______________ 
NOTES ON PAPAWS. 
I have picked and eaten the first fruit I ever saw 
from a grafted papaw. In the Spring of 1901 I pro¬ 
cured scions from J. A. Little, of Canterbury, Ind., and 
grafted them on a small tree. Last year there were 
several blossoms, but a late frost killed them. 1 his 
year five large specimens ripened, and what seems 
rather remarkable to me, they softened on the tree 
before droppping. They averaged nine inches in cir¬ 
cumference and abut five to 5^4 inches in length; big, 
sleek, fat, creamy yellow fruit that were good to look 
at. On tasting I found the smooth yellow custard of 
the inside very good in quality, and the seeds few and 
dark in color. The first of October may be named as 
the approximate season. This is the “Uncle 1 om, and 
I think it well worth propagating. Other named varie¬ 
ties have not yet borne with me, so I can make no 
comparison except .with the wild fruit of the creek bot¬ 
toms. It seems to be the general impression that be¬ 
cause the papaw is usually only found growing on bot¬ 
tom land it will not succeed in the upland, but this is 
a mistake, for I have never seen better nor larger 
papaws anywhere than those I have found on V lute 
oak hills. It is possible that these five specimens ot 
the Uncle Tom are the first specimens of the grafted 
papaw, as it does not seem to be generally known that 
the papaw is amenable to grafting laws in the Spring, the 
same as the apple or pear. The medical schools do not 
teach nor admit that there is a poisonous principle m 
the papaw. much like that found in ivy and poison oak. 
A few backwoods doctors know it, but the books and 
the professors do not teach it. Most persons are im¬ 
mune, but with a few the poison is much more viru¬ 
lent than that of either poison oak or ivy, and other 
washes besides sugar of lead are necessary to prevent 
the face from breaking out in almost a solid mass ot 
sores. B - buckman. 
Illinois. 
