1897 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
3i3 
WHAT I SEE AND HEAB. 
Many of the smaller groceries sell milk by the 
quart, customers coming for it and carrying it home 
themselves. This milk is likely to vary widely in 
quality. Many of the stores display signs stating 
that they sell pure milk for five cents per quart, and 
I have seen some recently which made the price four 
cents. The regular price of most of the dealers who 
deliver milk in bottles is about eight cents, and the 
fancy dairies charge as high as 12 cents or more. The 
Ellerslie milk retails for 12 cents, but it is about as 
fine an article as it is possible to produce. 
t X t 
Displaying goods to good advantage is a great art. 
In some of the store windows, I have seen hay or 
straw used to make immense nests in which to show 
off the eggs offered for sale. One of these nests gives 
a very rustic and taking appearance to the window, 
and contains many times more eggs than any nest 
that ever delighted the heart of a country boy in the 
old hay-mow. In some of these windows, I have seen 
28 and even 30 eggs offered for 25 cents, w hile plenty 
offer 25 for that amount. The consumption of 
eggs has been largely increased, and sales of meats 
have decreased in consequence. 
X X X 
A short time since, we received from the Bridge- 
water Box Company, of Bridgewater, Mass., a sample 
carrier of a new style of fruit box or basket; one of 
the baskets is shown closed and also with the lid 
partially raised at Fig. 134. These baskets hold five 
pounds of grapes. They are of pine, very solidly 
made, the top rim being dovetailed together at the 
corners as shown. The cover has a shoulder which 
fits down snugly, more so than is necessary for a 
fruit package, as most fruits are better for a circula¬ 
tion of air, and most packages are so constructed as 
to give ventilation. But the distinguishing feature is 
the manner of disposing of the handle, and fastening 
down the cover. The handle fits squarely over the 
top of the cover into a groove in the cover and rim ; 
the ends are bent at right angles and slip into holes 
bored into the sides of the basket, thus holding the 
cover down firmly. By this means, also, the handle 
is out of the way, so that the baskets can be packed 
in crates or carriers. The sample carrier received by 
us contained 10 of these baskets in two layers, and is, 
certainly, a very neat, attractive package. When it 
is desired to carry a single basket, the handle can be 
slipped out of place, raised, and the ends inserted in 
holes just under the rim. 
X X X 
The firm wrote that the Boston commission mer¬ 
chants who had seen the package, “are delighted 
with it, and claim that it will save an immense 
amount of handling and waste from breakage, etc.” 
To learn the opinions of New York fruit men, I 
showed it to a number of them. Without an excep¬ 
tion, they all spoke very favorably of its neat appear¬ 
ance, and firm, solid construction. Also, without ex¬ 
ception, they thought that it could not be manu¬ 
factured at a price to compete with packages usually 
used for grapes and other fruits. The tendency of 
late years has been constantly to cheapen the baskets 
and packages in which grapes and other fruits are 
sent to market. Most of these are gift packages, and 
the lower price of fruits, and the lessened profits have 
necessitated cheaper packages. Many of the baskets 
and crates are very frail, but they are strong enough 
to answer the purpose. The new package in question 
is on the same principle of many of the carriers used 
for sending Southern grapes to market, and for ship¬ 
ping the California fruits, only that it holds more, 
and is more substantially made. The California 
baskets are square, made of a thin veneer of wood, 
and have no covers. They are supposed to hold five 
pounds each. A large part of the Eastern grapes are 
sold in the 5 and 10-pound handled baskets. Late in 
the season, some from nearby points come in trays 
without baskets, holding, perhaps, 25 pounds or more. 
Many of the poorer grapes are marketed in this way, 
and are mostly used for wine, and some of these even 
come in barrels. The new package described above, 
and for which patents have been asked, is, certainly, 
a very fine one; but it is likely to be too costly to 
manufacture, for those who must buy cheap pack¬ 
ages, and it needs more ventilation. The makers 
were fearful that the pine from which it is made 
would be objectionable, but fruit men here say not. 
Since the above was in type, a representative of the 
company has brought in another basket, in which 
ventilation is provided for by more open corners, and 
a row of holes around the box. He also said that the 
matter of competing with the other grape baskets as 
to cost, isn’t bothering them. F. h. v. 
ALL SORTS. 
How to Keep Milk Sweet. 
E. C. B., Uniondale, Pa .—We are going into the retail milk busi¬ 
ness; have to carry our milk about six miles over a rather rough 
road, and wish to have it in as good shape as possible, as we 
shall have sharp competition. We have 14 Jersey cows, 13 of 
which are purebred, so the milk will be all right. Will it pay 
to get a milk cooler ? If so, which kind is the best to use with 
ice, as we have no spring water ? We wish to prevent the milk 
from churning as much as possible while carrying, as the tend¬ 
ency of Jersey milk is to churn easily. Will cooling it before 
starting prevent this ? 
ANSWERED BY JARED VAN WAGENEB JR. 
The fact that E. C. B. lives six miles from the town 
where he purposes to conduct a retail milk business, 
presents considerable difficulties. It involves the 
question of keeping the milk cold while in transit 
during hot weather, and also the question of pre¬ 
venting freezing when the temperature drops to zero 
or below, because milk, a portion of which is frozen, 
is not satisfactory to retail. The best protection 
against either trouble would be to use the heavy felt 
jackets, which are made of proper size to fit snugly 
over a 40-quart or other sized can. These may be 
obtained of any leading dairy supply house, and are 
listed at about $3 each. Lacking these, a heavy 
blanket thrown over the cans and tucked down on 
all sides, would be a great protection. We are coming 
to understand that nothing so conduces to the preser¬ 
vation of milk in fine condition as does cooling and 
aerating as soon as possible after milkiDg. This is 
because, even where the most scrupulous care is 
used in the milking, the milk is at once infected with 
very many bacterial forms, whose growth is the 
cause of deterioration of the milk. These grow and 
multiply with immense rapidity at all temperatures 
between 60 degrees and the body temperature of the 
eow ; but if the milk can be at once cooled to 50 de¬ 
grees or below, bacterial growth will be very slow, 
indeed. Aeration helps remove any abnormal taints 
due to food or other causes, and, also, in some not 
very clearly understood way, prevents souring. The 
Champion cooler and aerator made at Cortland, N. 
Y., is admirably adapted to be used with ice where 
large quantities of cold water are not available. Quite 
possibly, there may be others as good. The smaller 
size would be ample, and is listed at $7. Milk will 
not churn in full cans, and, probably, would not churn 
even in cans partly full if the temperature was kept 
as low as it should be kept in milk designed to be 
afterwards retailed. Remember that the ideal preser¬ 
vation of milk consists in cooling it directly from the 
cow, to a temperature of 50 degrees or less, and never 
letting it get above this temperature until it reaches 
the consumer. Good milk, drawn in a cleanly man¬ 
ner, aerated and cooled at once and kept cold, will 
keep sweet for a really astonishing length of time, 
and for 48 hours, at least, without any deterioration 
of fine flavor. If this be done, there will be no need 
of secret formula “ preservatives ” which, at best, are 
the lazy man’s substitute for care and skill. 
A Leaking Milk-Maker. 
T. W. B., Clearfield, Pa .—I have a young heifer that loses her 
milk; not only when her udder is full, but shortly after milking. 
Is there any remedy ? She seems in good health and promised to 
make a good cow. 
Ans. —For a cow that leaks her milk so readily, I 
know of no practical remedy or prevention. Collod¬ 
ion can be used to prevent the leaking, but it has to 
be applied after each milking, and will be too much 
trouble to make it profitable to keep a persistent 
case of this kind. f. l. k. 
Can Salt Injure a Horse ? 
T. S., Orange County, N. F.—Can a horse take too much rock 
salt if left always in reach ? I leave a large lump, and she 
works at it constantly. 
Ans. —No. That is an excellent and perfectly safe 
method of feeding salt to a horse. When the salt is 
first placed before them, some horses will eat enough 
to physic themselves a little ; but after that, with a 
lump kept constantly before them, they will not eat 
too much, and they can lick it whenever they crave 
salt. There is almost as much difference in horses as 
in people, about eating salt. Some horses will eat 
several times as much salt as others. F. L. K. 
Grease-Heel and Acclimation Fever in a Horse. 
F. W. V., Milton, N. T. —1. What should be the treatment for a 
four-year-old colt that inherits a tendency to grease-heel ? It is 
strong, healthy, in good flesh and working. 2. What should I do 
for a western horse just over the distemper about three weeks 
which has slight cough, a little discharge from the nose, and a 
very bad breath ? It looks and feels well, and is also at work. 
Ans— 1. Give iodide of potassium in doses of one 
to two drams (according to the size of the horse and 
the severity of the symptoms), twice daily. The 
iodide may be given either in ground feed or dis¬ 
solved in the drinking water. Continue the medicine 
for 10 days to two weeks, after which omit for a 
week, and then repeat as before if necessary. During 
the treatment, give the horse a little salt daily, or 
preferably provide a small box or compartment in 
the feed box in which salt can be kept where the 
horse can eat it at his pleasure. 2. Give one heaping 
tablespoonful powdered gentian with two tablespoon¬ 
fuls sweet spirits of niter, in one pint cold water 
three times daily. Rub the throat from ear to ear 
with ammonia liniment and repeat the application 
every three or four days until the skin is well blis¬ 
tered. Steam the head once daily by holding the 
nose over a bucketful of boiling water for 15 to 20 
minutes. Add a tablespoonful of turpentine to the 
water just before steaming. A short grain sack cut 
ope» at the bottom can be used to confine the steam, 
by placing the horse’s head in one end of the sack 
and the other end over the bucket. f. l. k. 
BUSINESS BITS. 
We are receiving Inquiries about a portrait artist at Tyrone, 
Fa. From all accounts, this is one of tbe numerous class of 
work-at-home humbugs, and a more contemptible business does 
not exist than that in which they are engaged. 
Oub readers do not need to be told of the advantages of spray¬ 
ing fruit trees. The apparatus made by F. E. Myers & Bro., Ash¬ 
land, O , possesses many excellent features peculiar to their line 
of goods. Their profusely illustrated catalogue will be sent free. 
It is said that, by means of a tread power, more power can be 
secured from a horse than in any other way. Many farmers can 
avail themselves of their advantages for whom engines of any 
kind would be impracticable. The St. Albans Foundry and Ma¬ 
chine Co., St. Albans, Vt., make a great variety, and will send a 
catalogue telling about them if you write for it. 
On page 247, we stated that the Eureka potato planter had a 
large tube. The tube is 2% inches in diameter, so that the whole 
tool weighs hardly two pounds. It is very light and easy to 
handle. The “ lock” by means of which the seed is dropped is 
a very ingenious affair. Send for a circular to the Greenville 
Planter Company, Greenville, Mich., and see just what the 
planter looks like. 
The “ Bonnie” binder is made by the Johnston Harvester Co., 
Batavia, N. Y. It has an all-steel frame with solid connections, 
and combines light draft with high power. An automatic trip is 
sure to discharge the sheaf—in fact, this binder combines all the 
newer and successful devices needed to cut grain and bind it, and 
drop the sheaves where they are needed. Our readers will make 
no mistake in examining this binder carefully before buying. 
“The New Corn Culture” requires a quick, shallow cultiva¬ 
tion. You cannot obtain this with a hired man riding on the 
handles of a walking cultivator. The most perfect work is done 
by a riding cultivator driven by a sensible man. The Ohio sulky 
cultivators work the ground to perfection, fining it just deep 
enough to kill the weeds and make a dust mulch over the surface. 
It is under control. The horses do the work. The Ohio Cultivator 
Co., of Bellevue, O., will tell you all about it. 
It is a well-known fact that the mos t expensive item of repair 
on farm buildings is that which relates to the roof. While you 
are about it, you might just as well put on a roof which will last 
you the remainder of your days, and which will insure you 
against danger from Are, from flying sparks falling upon it, etc.; 
in other words, put on a corrugated or sheet-iron or steel roofing. 
The first cost, when you consider that you can easily lay the roof 
yourself, is but little higher than shingles, and it will outlast them 
by far. The Berlin Iron Bridge Co., Berlin, Conn., will send you 
circulars. 
A young man who has just taken possession of a Long Island 
farm, provided with stock and farm implements, called this week 
and says that the wood is all rotted out of the implements, and 
the iron parts are so rusted that they are of no use. The loss 
represents thousands of dollars. The buildings and fences he 
says are in much the same condition. A little shelter and paint 
wouxd have saved all this loss. Don’t say you neglect your paint 
ing because you can’t mix paint, and it costs too much to get a 
painter. O. W. Ingersoll, 246 Plymouth Street, Brooklyn, N. Y., 
mixes paint ready for your use, and wants to sell it at first cost. 
He will send you a book about painting, if you ask for it. 
If a modern Rip Van Winkle were to wake up to-day after 10, 
or even five years of sleep, he would find himself quite at sea in 
business, whether on the farm or in other lines. New things are 
constantly being developed in all lines of business, and the man 
who does not keep his eyes open and comprehend the situation is 
sure to get sadly left. This is no less true of dairy business than 
of any other. Because you do not want to buy something in your 
line, or because you cannot spare the money just now for it, is 
no reason why you should not know all about it, and understand 
the advantages and savings of it in comparison with what you 
are now doing. This difference will be the advantage the people 
who use it have over you at present. These reflections come to 
us as we look over the “ Baby ” catalogue issued by the DeLaval 
Separator Co., 74 Cortlandt Street, New York. If you are in the 
dairy business, you ought to have it, unless you already know 
all about it. 
