1004. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
843 
EXPERIENCE WITH LI MO ID AND KEROSENE . 
My experience with the kerosene-1 imoid mixtures 
is such as to lead me to believe that it will prove a 
most valuable remedy in our war against San Jose 
scale. My first application was made on August 2 upon 
badly infested apple trees, on which the fruit was cov¬ 
ered with scale—a 10 per cent solution was used. We 
killed all young scale, but did not kill the old or hard¬ 
ened scale. Again on August 18 we made another 
application on the same trees, with the result as before, 
with the exception that I am finding an increased 
number of the old scale dead upon cacti examination, 
so that I believe even so weak a solution as 10 per 
cent will kill some of the hardened scale, aiid will kill 
all of the younger scale. Neither fruit nor foliage is 
injured. Oil used in this mixture is so thoroughly 
taken up by limoid that its penetrating effect is neutral¬ 
ized, and its even distribution upon the branches of 
the trees where applied is absolutely assured, some¬ 
thing impossible in any other form in which oil is 
used. I believe a 20 per cent solution can be used on 
dormant trees, which will effectually destroy the scale. 
The addition of rosin soap added to the adhesiveness 
of the mixture, but there was no perceptible increase in 
its killing properties. 
This mixture is cheap; it is easily made, can lie made 
several days before wanted; when properly made will 
stand several weeks without separation, an evidence 
of the complete manner in which this high process mag¬ 
nesia lime takes up and holds the oil. I shall begin 
spraying next week with 20 per cent kerosene-limoid 
where infestation of scale on my orchard has not been 
satisfactorily controlled. In March next I shall use it 
in connection with the lime, sulphur and 
salt wash, and should I discover any scale 
during the growing season of 1905 I shall 
at once use the kerosene-limoid mixture, 
10 or 12 per cent strength. 1 am sure 
such a course will keep the scale under 
control. This mixture will work through 
any nozzle if properly made and kept free 
from any foreign matter without strain¬ 
ing; it spreads beautifully on the tree, and 
is worthy of trial by all orchardists, be¬ 
cause if it is as effectual as it now prom¬ 
ises it will surpass even the lime-sulphur- 
salt wash, and the matter of spraying will 
be greatly simplified. Prof. Close is now 
making some improvements in the wash 
that will add materially to its value. 
Delaware. a. n. brown. 
AN INSURANCE MAN ON FIRE INSURANCE 
Regarding the decision of the Pennsylvania court 
"that insurance cannot be collected on a house destroyed 
by fire if this house has ever been unoccupied for 10 
days,” no doubt the court, finding that the house had re¬ 
mained unoccupied for more than 10 days, it was con¬ 
trary to the contract and vitiated the policy, and the 
policy once being vitiated could not by any action of 
the assured become a good contract again without the 
sanction of the insurance company. Tf the contract had 
had the permission to remain unoccupied during part 
of the life of the same, of course it would have been 
unnecessary to have brought suit, as the company then 
would have been legally liable for the claim made. As 
to what action our company would take in the same po¬ 
sition, we could not take any action or assume any posi¬ 
tion that is in any way contrary to the contract. A 
contract once given and accepted must be lived up to, 
and if either side breaks a contract that side must suffer 
accordingly. While the position taken by insurance 
companies is often misconstrued as being unjust and un¬ 
reasonable, the fact must not be overlooked that during 
the past 10 years the fire insurance business has been a 
losing one to the companies, and a great many com¬ 
panies have been compelled to suspend and go out of 
business. The experience so far this year shows that 
the losses that have occurred are equal to the premiums 
to be received by the companies for the whole year, and in 
addition to that is the large item of expense, and if 
you will put these two outgoing figures together you 
will find that the companies, as a whole, have lost a 
vast sum of money. Under the above circumstances, of 
course, it is necessary for all of the companies to be as 
fit, and the result is no uniform statistics can be obtained 
to show what would be the absolute correct rates for all 
companies to charge. 
The Valid Policy law in a good many States is very 
detrimental to the assured, as is also the Anti-Compact 
law. In States in which these laws are in force insur¬ 
ance costs the assured more money than in those 
States that do not have these laws. What is necessary 
in this country is one National insurance law covering 
the people of all States, to allow companies to enforce 
in all States what they can in one. Tf the co-insurance 
clause was in force on all business it would at once 
bring in an increased income to the companies, which in 
the end would result in the reduction of rates for every¬ 
body. As it stands now in some States a small retail 
dealer cannot get his insurance without the 80 per cent 
co-insurance clause, and the owner of the building in 
which this stock is contained is allowed to take a 
policy without the co-insurance clause, whereas if he 
were compelled to carry his insurance on the same con¬ 
ditions as his tenant, he would have to pay to the com¬ 
pany his proportion of their income, whereas now the 
small retail dealer has to stand the brunt. This condi¬ 
tion is not made by the insurance companies, but by the 
Legislature of those various States, having these laws, 
under the false impression that they are doing some¬ 
thing which is beneficial to their constituents. 
Globe & Rutgers Insurance Co. lyman candee. 
WHEN TO KILL BLACKBERRIES. 
On page 810 E. M. Wood, in his article 
on growing blackberries, says: "When 
necessary to renew the plantation the briars 
are mown off and burned, the ground 
plowed and planted to corn, and war made 
on the briars that sprout up amongst the 
corn.” (After getting the briars subdued.) 
Anyone who has tried this plan knows 
what this means, a battle to the finish for the whole 
Summer, and then come off second best in the Fall, 
for the simple reason that you strike them on their 
strongest point, which multiplies the difficulty of vic¬ 
tory over them, also multiplies the plants. 1 will give 
my experience by following Dr. Chamberlain’s advice, 
given in a lecture before an institute in this fBeaver) 
county, Pa., some years ago. ITe said: “Always strike 
your enemies at the weakest point, which in the plants 
is when they have just completed the growth of their 
leaves in the Summer. The root is then in the most 
exhausted condition of any time in the year.” After 
some experiment 1 found from the 15th to the last of 
June in this climate is sure death to all briars if mown 
and plowed. 1 have repeatedly taken out patches of 
blackberries at that time, and could carry all the plants 
that came up on an acre in one hand in the Fall, and 
not a hoe in the field all Summer. The conditions 
are: You must cut them all close to the ground; 
must cut all the roots six or eight inches below the 
surface by taking just furrow enough to turn over, 
and there will be no more "after getting the briars 
subdued,” but just plant the land to sweet corn for 
October roasting ears, which will bring 15 to 20 cents 
per dozen wholesale in any city, which is better than 
a crop of field corn and a Summer’s fight with the 
hoe. Following Dr. Chamberlain’s advice, we put off 
repairing an overgrown fence until June 20, when we 
mowed the briars on one side so we could get near 
enough to lay on some more rails, and in the two 
years since there has not come up one briar to the 
rod of that fence on the side mowed, while they stand 
so flock on the other side one can with difficulty get to 
the fence. I believe if we had treated the other side to 
the same dose the whole family would have been exter¬ 
minated. A. P. G. 
Industry, Pa. 
AN 84- YEAR-OLD FARMER AND HIS CROP. Fig. 392 
careful as possible of the class of business which they 
write, and to avoid those- classes which do not show a 
profit according to the income derived from that class. 
One of the unprofitable classes is farm business, a 
class which we generally avoid. Why this class is un¬ 
profitable it is very hard to say unless there is more or 
less moral hazard which cannot be very readily over¬ 
come. The only way we think farm property can be 
written at a profit to the company is to write it on the 
annual basis with the three-fourths value clause. If 
all the companies would adopt the rate of one per cent 
per annum, with the three-fourths value clause attached 
to all policies, we think in the course of a few years 
they might be able to reduce the rate somewhat, as dur¬ 
ing the time they were writing this class on the above 
conditions they might get sufficient income that would 
pay all the losses and expenses attached to the same. 
The prospects are that they might get an income which 
was more or less sufficient to allow them a reasonable 
profit, so that at the end of any given period they might 
be able to reduce the rate, say 75 cents per annum. Of 
course, this result could not be arrived at unless all farm 
property was treated alike, as to arrive at any statistical 
result this class must be written the same by all and then 
pool their experience. If some company writes the class 
at 1V> per cent for three years, some at two per cent and 
some at one per cent per annum, no results can ever be 
properly arrived at until they all get down to the same 
conditions. 
Of course, a great many people think the insurance 
companies are one gigantic trust, and if it was 1 firmly 
believe that the insurance conditions throughout the 
whole country would be put in much better shape, and 
in the end would result in less cost to the people. As it 
is now, the majority of the companies try to write at 
a uniform rate on each class of business, but there are a 
great many companies who write at any rate they see 
THE SEEDLESS” APPLE AGAIN. 
Last week we gave opinions from various well-known men 
regarding this apple. The following is from one of the 
highest pomologieal authorities in the country: 
I he claim is made that this apple has been "developed 
after years of experiment" by J. F. Spencer, 
Grand Junction, Col. The cuts used in the 
pamphlets to illustrate both fruits and bios 
som indicate that the variety is closely sim¬ 
ilar to a number of these freak apples which 
have long been grown in many localities 
throughout Europe and the United States 
under such names as Fig apple, Seedless, 
Bloomless, Corcless, Noblow, Nocore, etc., 
none of which is of any value except as an 
interesting curiosity. A number of these 
varieties have been described and illustrated 
for more than a century, and nowhere has 
one assumed commercial importance. 
The alleged “bloomless” character of these 
freaks consists in the fact that in most of 
them the five petals which constitute the 
conspicuous and attractive feature of the 
apple flower are absent, being represented 
by like number of short and usually more 
or less fleshy bracts inside of and alternat¬ 
ing with the calyx segments. In most of 
them, the stamens are either absent or their 
anthers abortive, containing no normal pol¬ 
len, so that they are to all intents and pur¬ 
poses pistillate or female blossoms, and re¬ 
quire cross-pollination to produce germina- 
ble seeds. Some of these, at least, fail 
to bear fruit unless cross-pollinated by other varieties. 
The fruits of all of them, so far as I have examined 
specimens, including one specimen of the “Spencer” 
apple, contain a more or less well-defined core, with 
the papery carpel linings which constitute the most ob¬ 
jectionable feature of the ordinary apple core, and 
most of them contain one or more well-developed 
seeds, with a considerable number of shrunken or 
abortive ones. So far as I have observed, these varie¬ 
ties are no less subject to insect injuries than our 
standard commercial sorts. In keeping quality they 
range from early Fall fruit to late Winter, and in des¬ 
sert quality from fairly good to very poor. 1 have 
not yet been able to secure specimens of the “Spencer” 
apple at a proper stage of maturity to determine its 
flavor and quality, but unless it proves to be much 
better than any other of its class that I have tasted, 
it is not entitled to recognition as a dessert sort. 
'fhe claim that Mr. Spencer “developed” this apple 
smacks decidedly of quackery. When the truth i*, 
known, I have little doubt that it will be found that he 
took scions from a freak seedling tree, such as noted 
above, and propagated his “five original trees” by bud¬ 
ding or grafting, simply perpetuating the variety that 
he started with. The fact that the officers and direc¬ 
tors of the company, as shown in their literature, with 
the single exception of Mr. Spencer, do not claim to 
have any personal knowledge of or experience in fruit 
culture or nursery work, taken in connection with the 
proposed plan of organizing subsidiary companies in 
countries, States, counties, etc., to control the sale of 
the trees in their specified territory at $3 apiece in every 
market,” returning a profit of $62,500 in the first year 
on an investment of $5,000, as claimed in the circular 
distributed by the company, arouses strong suspicion. 
The stock company feature appears to be intended as 
a sort of seedless apple trust, modeled after Standard 
Oil, and as such it ought to be exposed. I f the source 
from which the stock of the variety was obtained by 
Spencer could be located, the whole matter could, no 
doubt, be promptly cleared up without loss to the 
public, ft. 
