1897 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
521 
WHAT I SEE AND HEAR. 
Watermelons are to be seeD in great piles every¬ 
where ; prices are low and trade is dragging. People 
don’t feel like eating watermelons when they are 
being drenched with rain daily. The result has been 
a great accumulation. Georgia melons are said to be 
about out of the market, as it no longer pays to send 
them here. Many of those now coming are from 
North Carolina. 
t t x 
The first information sent out by the leading apple 
exporters is to the effect that, from all available 
information, at least average crops of that fruit are 
to be expected in Eagland and throughout Europe. 
It is yet a little early to make exact estimates. They 
say that it is more than ever advisable for shippers to 
send only first-class stock of good size and high color 
to the English market. For such fruit, well assorted 
and correctly and neatly packed, they expect a good 
demand. Of course, prices will be regulated by the 
quantities exported. Special attention should be 
paid to the barrels; only large barrels with 103^ or 
17-inch heads should be used. The English don’t 
want any fraud, either in the package or its contents. 
X X X 
A western New York peach grower says that they 
have an abundant crop, and wishes advice as to the 
best market for them. It is a difficult matter to say 
which will be the best market for this or any other 
crop. Usually, cities or large towns in a locality 
where the crop is not grown furnish the best market. 
New York and the larger cities are not always the 
best markets, though they usually pay well for the 
fancy fruit. Here we receive large shipments from 
all the States along the coast down to Florida 
Georgia didn’t have so large a crop this year, but 
plenty of peaches are coming from the South, and 
prices are not high. The Hudson River Valley reports 
a good crop this year, and these would be likely to 
come into competition with the western New York 
crop. Still, it is likely that this city will pay well 
this year for fancy peaches, but it will not pay to 
ship any inferior fruit. It is utterly out of the ques¬ 
tion for any man to say what will be the best market. 
Too many circumstances may arise to change the con¬ 
ditions to make it safe to make any such predictions. 
X X X 
A correspondent referring to our market reports, 
inquires whether the prices there given are those 
farmers are getting, or the prices at which the prod¬ 
ucts are sold to retailers. The prices quoted are 
usually those at which large lots are sold, that is, a 
car-load or similar quantity, and are about the prices 
received by the growers. It must be remembered that 
New York is a large city, and contains many large and 
widely separated market districts. Some products may 
sell for more or less in some parts on certain days than 
in others, for various reasons. But the prices quoted 
are the ruling ones so far as it is possible to get them. 
The retailer gets goods at about these prices if he buys 
in sufficiently large quantities. But if he buys in 
small lots, he will have to pay more. For instance, 
when butter is quoted at 15 cents per pound, if he 
buys only a tub or two, he will have to pay one or two 
cents a pound more. Some large jobbers will not 
sell at all in small lots, but others buy of them and 
then supply the dealers who wish to buy only in 
small quantities. Then again, some commission mer¬ 
chants have a special trade in some certain line of 
goods, andean get more than the quoted or the ruling 
prices. Of course, it is to the shipper’s advantage to 
send his products to these when possible. In short, 
it is always wise to ship to those merchants who 
make a specialty of particular products, because they 
have better facilities for handling and selling them, 
and can almost always get higher prices. 
X X X 
The dealers here say that the recent wet weather 
has put a damper on the fruit and vegetable trade. 
In many parts of the country, it has been almost im¬ 
possible to gather the crops, while those that have 
been gathered and shipped are so watery and poor 
that they are of little value, and many of them spoil 
before they can be sold. Retailers are afraid to buy, 
and the demand is limited to immediate needs. Every 
kind cf fruit and vegetable that hasn’t been drowned 
or rotted has grown to tops and vines and hasn’t 
matured. Tomatoes are rotting down in the crates. 
Muskmelons are plentiful, but are watery and poor ; 
they haven’t the flavor and quality that are desired. 
Raspberries, especially up the Hudson River Valley, 
have been about ruined, and it is almost impossible 
to ship them in any kind of shape during such wet 
weather. Blackberries also come in in poor shape. 
Delaware and Niagara grapes are coming in consider¬ 
able quantities, but they lack quality. Pears, apples 
and other tree fruits are reported to be dropping 
badly. Potatoes don’t show the effects of the 
weather yet so much as they, probably, will 
later, though some of them look as though they 
had been fished out of the mud. Cabbages show a 
tendency to go all to leaves, but they will harden up 
later if the weather be favorable. The unfavorable 
weather, and the interruption to regular traffic have 
interfered materially with trade, here as well as in 
the country. 
X X X 
Large quantities of live poultry are to be seen on 
every hand. About 45 car-loads came in last week, 
and this is likely to be exceeded this week, as 21 cars 
arrived in a single day. The price is not high, still 
fancy large chickens sell well, as most of the chickens 
received are too small. They shouldn’t weigh less 
than 2 to 2% pounds each, though many are seen that 
don’t weigh over 1 % pound each, and some still less. 
It doesn’t pay to send such small ones, and especially 
such poor ones as some are sending. f. h. v. 
TO OUR READERS AND FRIENDS : - 
You must have a neighbor or friend in 
some place who needs The Rural ^'ew-Yorker. 
A single copy will not give him a fair es¬ 
timate of its value. We would rather make 
him great inducements to give it a fair 
trial. For this purpose, we will send the 
paper every week for the rest of the year 
for 25 cents. This will be nearly five 
months if acted upon at once. It will 
cost you some trouble to get the subscrip¬ 
tion, and postage to send it, so you may 
keep 10 cents and send us 15 cents. If you 
have some distant friend whom you would 
like to have know the paper, this will give 
you an opportunity to send it to him at 
little cost, and he will appreciate your 
remembrance of him. If you would like to 
make up a club at your place, ask for sam¬ 
ples and we will send them and terms, in¬ 
cluding cash premiums. But send us this 
one trial subscription anyway. We think 
that your neighbor or friend will thank 
you for it, and we shall appreciate your 
interest and shall be glad of an opportu¬ 
nity to reciprocate. 
Very truly, 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, New York. 
THE KLONDYKE GOLD REG/OH. 
The diily papers have been filled for the past few 
days with reports of the new gold mines which have 
been found along the Klondyke River in Alaska and 
British Columbia. Most of these reports are based on 
little of fact, as really but little is known of the new 
gold field. We don’t suppose that many of our readers 
will care to go to the Klondyke, but most of them 
will, probably, be more or less interested in knowing 
something of that region. The Mining and Scientific 
Press, of San Francisco, has printed a very interesting 
article from which we take the following facts : The 
richest gold deposits appear to be within British pos¬ 
sessions, some 30 miles over the American line. There 
are now about 3,000 miners along the Yukon River 
and its tributaries. To Circle City from the coast, 
the miner must travel 898 miles, most of this over 
rough mountain ranges, with part of the way through 
passes where the snow never melts. In order to live 
through the winter, it will be necessary to carry from 
Juneau, for each man, 400 pounds of flour, 100 pounds 
of beans, 100 pounds of bacon, 100 pounds of sugar, 10 
pounds of tea, 30 pounds of coffee, 150 pounds of 
mixed fruit, salt, pepper and cooking utensils. This 
outfit is said to cost at Juneau about $90, and the cost 
of carrying it to the head of Lake Lindermann will 
average about $15 per 100 pounds. The carrying is 
done by Indians, who charge on an average 15 cents 
per pound. The only money current in the mining 
towns is gold dust, and no credit is given. 
Regarding the mines and the manner of working 
them, the Press makes the following statement: 
As to the mines themselves, those so far discovered are shallow 
placers of recent formation lying along the creeks. Owing to the 
coldness of the climate, the ground is frozen the year ’round, and 
must be thawed out by fire in order to work. The system in vogue 
is in principle the same as that in the great Siberian placer 
fields, which are very much the same as those of Alaska. 
The Siberian diggings are of two classes—summer and winter. 
Most of the creeks have a slight fall and wide bottoms, the gravel 
being covered by 1 to 10 feet of muck, or soil (not glacial drift) 
The bedrock is often 20 feet deep, and since the ground never 
thaws more than two or three feet from the surface, drains and 
ditches are expensive, so each winter more burning” is done, 
which consists in thawing the gravel by fire, removing it and 
repeating. The muck thaws but little, and makes a good roof for 
drifting. The dumps are sluiced with the first water in the 
spring. Summer diggings are expensive to open for work, but 
the net returns are often more than if “ burning ” had been the 
method. In most cases, lumber must be whipsawed, the average 
cost beiug $150 per 1,000 feet. Other things being in proportion, 
considerable expense is incurred before the ground is ready to 
shovel into the sluice boxes. 
It is probable that gold will finally be found in all 
the country along the Yukon River, and, now that 
rich deposits have been found, engineers and mining 
experts will soon have the country surveyed and the 
gold deposits well located. Of the thousands who 
journey to these gold regions, but few will realize 
their hopes of securing a store of gold. The great 
majority will find only blasted hopes and broken 
ambitions, amid the ice and snow of an Alaskan 
winter. It is well enough for us to read and think 
about the Klondyke mines, but most of us will, prob¬ 
ably, find in our own homes and on our own farms, 
opportunities for gold digging that will be far more 
satisfactory to us in the end than any trip to Alaska 
could possibly be. 
SOME FREAKS /A APPLES. 
I have been very much interested in the sweet and- 
sour apple discussion in The R, N.-Y. Years ago, on 
the home farm, there was a tree that bore a mild- 
flavored apple called sweet-and-sour, but I do not 
recollect that it was a half-sweet, half-sour variety. 
I think, with Mr. Morse, that the original tree was a 
sport. In The R. N.-Y. of July 3, mention is made of 
the different coloring of segments of the peel. In the 
case of oranges, many curious instances have been 
noticed in my 10 yeais’ experience growing oranges. 
Sometimes, a segment of the orange peel would be 
thicker than the rest, and even bright red in color, 
giving the orange the appearance of having a seg¬ 
ment from another orange stuck on it. We thought 
this due to a splitting of the peel and a ranker growth 
over the split. 
Twin or double fruits are also common freaks with 
the orange. I do not believe that aDy one ever suc¬ 
ceeded in making split buds grow. I have a problem 
for the wise ones to explain. I have about 500 wild— 
[Seedlings ?— Eds J apple trees on my farm, many of 
them bearing. When gathering the apples three 
years ago, I noticed under one tree a twin apple (two 
united), and shortly after, several more; all appeared 
alike. I looked at the tree which had, perhaps, 30 
apples on it—all freaks. In some cases, as many as 
five apples were thus united. Last fall, the tree bore 
again, but the apples were no longer twins. What 
made it bear all freaks in the first place and none 
thereafter? This year, I put in 1,100 grafts on these 
wild trees, and had plenty of pruning to do before¬ 
hand. I was surprised to find such a diffeience in 
the bark of the trees, some as smooth as birch and 
others all but thorny. The latter growth, when the 
trunk is pruned clean up to six feet from the ground, 
seems determined to grow out again, while the 
smooth-barked trees give me no trouble from water 
sprouts. Just three trees out of the 500 wild ones 
bear sweet apples ; the rest produce good vinegar 
right from the press. q. 8 . q. 
Newport, N. Y. 
I am not able to tell why this tree should bear twin 
apples, or why it did not continue to do so. A cow 
has twin calves sometimes, but she does not always 
have them afterwards. Why is this ? It is simply a 
freak of Nature. I have seen twin fruits very often. 
The Ben Davis apple and some kinds of plums are 
very subject to this freakish habit. h h y. d. 
BUSINESS BITS. 
The Problem of Fertility, is the title of a pamphlet issued by 
the Kemp & Burpee Mfg. Co., Syracuse, N. Y. This pamphlet 
gives a thoughtful and accurate discussion of the manure prob¬ 
lem, showing how farm manure may be kept and handled to the 
best advantage. It will pay you to send for this pamphlet, which 
is mailed free. Kemp & Burpee make the famous manure 
spreader. Tnis machine makes the horse use a manure fork. It 
not only spreads the manure broadcast, but drops it in the hill 
or drill—the horses doing it all. 
A okeat deal has been said and written of late about different 
preparations for preventing the annoyance of cattle by insect 
pests. The Hies seem to nave been more troublesome, if possible, 
in some sections this year than ever before, which, probably, 
accounts for the increased discussion on the subject. Shoo-Fly, 
which is manufactured by the Shoo-Fly Mfg. Co., of Philadelphia, 
Pa., is a product that gives good satisfaction. We have reports 
from stockmen who have used it successfully for several years 
and the manufacturers guarantee it to do the work. 
Now that the rush of haying and harvest will soon be over, 
many farmers will prepare to make repairs in old fences, and to 
replace them with new ooes. O wing to the cost of wooden fences, 
and the unsightly appearance of many of them, attention will 
be given the more sightly and more lasting wire fences. They have 
the advantage of taking up little space, of an ornamental appear¬ 
ance, of longlife, and of reasonable cost. It is important in a wire 
fence, however, that it be so constructed that it will not sag. 
Tue Keystone fence, made by the Keystone Woven Wire Fence 
Co., 19 Rush Street, Peoria, Ill., Alls this requirement among 
many other desirable features. More can be learned about it by 
sending for their book on fences, which is sent free. 
