2i8 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
March 23 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FABMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Hbbbbbt W. Collihgwood, Editor. 
Db. Walteb Vak Fleet, | 
H. E. Van Dkman, V Associates. 
Mbs. E. T. Rotle, ) 
John J. Dillon, Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, t2.04, equal ta 
8 b. 6d., or 8M marks, or lOHI francs. 
“ A SQUARE DEAL.” 
We believe that every advertisement in this paper is backed by a 
responsible person. But to make doubly sure we will make good any 
loss to paid subscribers sustained by trusting any deliberate swindler 
udvertlsing in our columns, and any such swindler will be publicly 
exposed. We protect subscribers against rogues, but we do not guar¬ 
antee to adjust trifling differences between subscribers and honest, 
responsible advertisers. Neither will we be responsible for the debts 
of honest bankrupts sanctioned by the courts. Notice of the complaint 
must be sent us within one month of the time of the transaction, and 
you must have mentioned THE Kckal New-Yokkeb when writing 
the advertiser. 
Name and address of sender, and what the remittance is for, 
should appear in every letter. 
Remittances may be made in money order, express order, 
personal check or bank draft. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
409 Pearl Street, New York. 
SATURDAY, MARCH 23, 1901. 
Dozens of fruit twigs are sent us tor examination 
from all over the country. People are reading about 
the San Jos6 scale, and they begin to examine their 
trees, perhaps for the first time. Out of ail the speci¬ 
mens sent but one has proved to be the true Perni¬ 
cious scale. The others are mostly the common 
Oyster-shell bark-louse. All this shows how the con¬ 
stant hammering on the scale question has waked up 
the people and taught them to use their eyes. 
* 
The New York Fruit Growers’ Association will be 
represented at the State Fair, It may not be desir¬ 
able to hold a regular meeting, but “headquarteis” 
will be established, new members secured and statis¬ 
tics and reports collected. It is thought by many th .t 
this farmei'S’ organization is likely to become second 
only to the Grange in size. As we have explained, it 
is a business rather than a horticultural society. We 
wish that fruit growers in other States would join 
this Society, or organize similar ones. We need them 
all in order to secure accurate facts about production 
and distribution of crops. 
* 
The second part of the story of the city man who 
turned farmer is printed this week. We take pains to 
caution every writer who attempts to discuss this sub¬ 
ject against drawing too bright a picture. In reply 
to this caution G. A. C. writes: 
I should greatly regret being the cause of loss to any 
poor soul. I know from experience, with what eagerness 
the workingman grasps at a chance to escape from that 
constant dread—the loss of his job—and as advancing 
age is surely bringing that event nearer, so he becomes 
more willing to take the chances of success in a new 
calling. 
A man might do great damage by painting country 
life in such glowing colors that city people might be 
induced to leave good jobs to attempt something for 
which they are utterly unfitted. Country life may 
mean freedom or slavery—depending on the ability 
of the family to be helpful and happy. 
The hill farmers of Connecticut want it understood 
that the ox is not passing off the stage. At one local 
Grange fair there were 226 yoke of working cattle in 
line. Most of these oxen were Devons. Years ago 
a farmer started a Devon herd, and the steers proved 
so useful at the yoke that most of the barnyards are 
now red with them. That shows what one man’s good 
work in special breeding will accomplish. It also 
shows that the ox is still working in Connecticut. The 
chances are that he always will work there—and work 
at a profit, too. The grandchildren of the men who 
followed the ox across the plains into the western 
wilderness, do not know what an ox yoke is. How 
they would laugh at the slow, toiling, creature, and 
yet this faithful brute is keeping the forest back from 
many a New England farm, and earning a good liv¬ 
ing for his owner! 
* 
We judge from reliable reports that the farmers’ in¬ 
stitutes this Winter are more appreciated than ever 
before. Evidences of the work more than ever before 
are appearing. The spirit of criticism that once pre¬ 
vailed is fast dying out. It seems true that the 
greater part of the institute workers are practical 
men, and men of standing, honored and respected at 
home. We must keep in mind the fact that no man 
in this country ever took a step in advance of his 
neighbor, but what he found some one to criticise 
him, and even say unkind and untrue things concern¬ 
ing him. Such always has been the case, and always 
will be as long as the world stands; no man ever 
yet even planted a hill of potatoes different from the 
general custom in that neighborhood who was not 
called hard names by some one; no one ever yet 
brought into a neighborhood any pureored stock, or 
even bought a purebred bull, ram, pig or chicken, 
that he was not called “a fool” for so doing. The 
animal was simply better than what the mass of the 
people owned, and jealousy called forth the word 
“fool.” The fact remains just the same that this man 
was a public benefactor; yet his neighbors condemned 
him for, it, and that is often just the case with the 
farmers’ institute work. 
* 
We were astonished at the showing made at Wor¬ 
cester, Mass., last week by the Massachusetts Fruit 
Growers at their annual meeting. The Worcester 
County Horticultural Society entertained the crowd— 
and it was a crowd. In the evening a banquet was 
given, at which over 400 men and women helped 
create a market for farm products. This was followed 
by a dance, in which the limber-limbed unlimbered. 
These social features seemed to us very useful. 
The banquet and dance brought the townspeople 
in and made them acquainted with the fruit growers 
and what they had to offer. After all, the man who 
lives in the town house is a most useful citizen to the 
farmer. He is the man to be reached and educated. 
It was an inspiring thing to face this great audience 
of clean, bright-faced men and women. We regret to 
say that in some places it would be necessary to go 
out and compel the lame, the halt and the blind to 
come in and eat the dinner. Even then there would 
be empty seats. These Massachusetts fruit men at¬ 
tracted the very fiower of the State, and few made 
excuses. The Worcester County Society has put dig¬ 
nity and character into Massachusetts horticulture, 
and the State is stronger and better for it. 
* 
One by one the wiid-eyed, strenuous horticultural 
catalogues, with their usual appalling array of su- 
periative adjectives and preposterous claims, are be¬ 
ing modified within the bounds of reason. Customers 
are beginning to regard these extravagant statements 
with a cold and wary eye, and venture cautiously, 
if at all, into a vegetable wonderland conjured up 
by the untrammeled imagination of the novelty 
boomers. The introduction of the photo-engraving 
process is responsible for most of the noticeable im¬ 
provements, however. The camera may be induced 
to flatter, but will not lie outright. The resulting pic¬ 
ture is certain to show the essentials of the object 
placed before it, while the riotous imagination of the 
artist employed to design the old-style cuts enabled 
him to depict thing things seen neither on land nor 
sea, and only possible in a seed or nursery catalogue. 
The number of these humbug catalogues is now re¬ 
duced so low that we have hopes of witnessing their 
practical disappearance. We think that any fair- 
minded individual should be convinced, on examining 
the catalogues for the current season, that our seeds¬ 
men make as honorable a showing as any known class 
of merchants. 
« 
President Hadley, of Yale College, one of the most 
conservative institutions of learning in the land, in 
a recent address, declared that an emperor at Wash¬ 
ington was possible within 25 years if the power of 
the trusts was not curbed by the growth of public 
opinion. He could see no chance of benefit from re¬ 
strictive legislation, but based his hopes for the fu¬ 
ture on the restraining power of public opinion alone. 
It is conceivable that these immense combinations of 
capital, engineered by the shrewdest and least scrup¬ 
ulous individuals of the time, in order to gain direct 
military power, may insist on crowning one of their 
pliant tools as head of the Government if the popular 
will is not more alert and wakeful. But who is to 
express a forcible opinion adverse to predatory 
trusts? Not the college men surely. If not direct 
beneficiaries of the trusts as at present constituted, 
most of them hope to secure employment or protec¬ 
tion under them in the practice of one of the liberal 
professions. Not the business man, for unless driven 
from the field he generally contents himself, as far 
as his ability extends, in practicing the same sharp 
methods of dealing. Hardly the artisan or laboring 
man, unless he develops more foresight than he has 
recently shown. He is so immediately dependent on 
the capitalists for his maintenance that they have 
little difficulty in cajoling or terrorizing him when¬ 
ever the need arises. If there is really serious danger 
to our National institutions it will only be averted in 
the future as in the past by the intelligent and deci¬ 
sive action of the farmers and rural dwellers of the 
country. The farmer alone has everything to lose and 
nothing to gain by submitting to the commercial ex¬ 
tortion of the trusts, and to the era of military ex¬ 
travagance and oppression they seem about to inau¬ 
gurate. The American farmer has as yet given this 
subject very little attention, but when his mind is 
made up he will be heard from in no uncertain man¬ 
ner. The solid justice and patriotism of the agricul¬ 
tural masses may be trusted to thwart these monopo¬ 
listic schemes. 
* 
We have been interested in the evolution of a cer¬ 
tain farmer in a New England town. He is 14 miles 
from market and in a locality where the majority of 
the farmers are inclined to be shiftless, and scarcely 
make ends meet. They make a little maple sugar in 
the Spring and pick a good many blueberries and 
peddle them in the Fall, but their dairies are neglect¬ 
ed and their cows quartered in dirty stables, and as 
one man expressed it, you can throw your stool 
through the cracks in the side of the barn anywhere. 
Haying commences the middie to latter part of July, 
and continues into September. This farmer began 
with a small dairy, making butter for private custom¬ 
ers which he delivers once a week. His dairy was not 
satisfactory, and he made arrangements with a good 
dairyman to take his heifer calves, paying a little 
more than the market price. Those from the best 
cows were raised, the others fed on skim-milk and 
later vealed. A good bull we believe now heads the 
herd, so that his own calves are of value. He has 
now a good-sized herd of cows that are first-class 
butter producers. His hay is early cut, and better 
quality than most of it in his neighborhood. He has 
a long haul for grain, and has studied the feeding 
question so as to haul the least possible, ana have it 
of the most value. He now buys cotton-seed meal 
and bran, and still further to reduce cost, is now 
buying it by the carload, getting it hauled for $2 per 
ton. He thinks about his business, reads all he can 
upon the subject, and whenever he meets a good 
dairyman always has a hatful of questions to ask 
him. Most men would regard him as a little slow, 
but his progress has been sure, and now he is the 
leading dairyman of that section. 
* 
BREVITIES. 
RURALETTES. 
Mr. Freeze and Mr. Thaw 
Have combined to try to draw 
Y'oung Tim. Hay out by the roots; 
He puts on his rubber boots 
Just about two sizes large 
When old Mr. Thaw’s in charge. 
Then old Jack Frost suddenly 
Gives a jerk and pulls him free. 
And in April we shall find 
Only his big boots behind. 
Dig down deeper, Timothy, 
We have further need of thee; 
Put on boots that will not slip. 
Do not let them break your grip. 
• * * * 
The missionary who goes forth to preach 
To cannibals would figure from the start. 
That there are even chances that he’ll reach 
Their stomachs rather than their sinful hearts. 
And so the missionary on the farm 
Who would convert his neighbors need not think 
To hear them sing his praises in a psalm. 
But rather give him poisoned words to drink. 
* * • 
Yes, man is made of mortal clay. 
And clay is still our strongest land; 
Yet, am I not right when I say 
That both require a heap of sand? 
* * * 
Alfalfa does not fancy shade. 
Mr. Alf. Alfa presents his card! 
What have you ever given away? 
Do some strong thinking every week. 
Beardless barley may shave the feed bill a little. 
How will beardless barley grow in a shady orchard? 
The strong man is able to cauterize a criticism into 
character. 
There are people who need something that will kill the 
microbe of my. 
The robber hen should not try to lie out of her bad 
reputation, but rather lay out of it. 
So far as farming is concerned, New England seems to 
be becoming a land flowing with milk and apples. 
In reply to a question from northern Michigan as to 
whether cow peas will make more cow fodder than oats 
and peas, we say at once—No! 
Hundreds of our readers seem to have cameras, and 
they know how to use them. It is a great thing to be 
able to illustrate your private letters. 
The best time for a beginner to investigate the poultry 
business is in the Fall. The losses are then most appar¬ 
ent. By Spring delusive hope has secured a new grip. 
The system of “syndicate” celery growing in the West, 
by means of which great tracts were covered with tlie 
vegetable, has nearly driven out the smaller eastern 
grower. 
At the Kansas Experiment Station it was found that 
chopping up the old Alfalfa fields with a disk harrow did 
about as much good as cultivation does to corn. It 
would not pay to disk one-year-old Alfalfa. 
A BILL before the Nebraska Legislature declares sun¬ 
flowers and cocklebuxTS to be a public nuisance, and 
makes it the duty of every owner of land to destroy them 
between August 15 and September 1 each year. 
Smith, owing to the present high price of cotton, will 
increase his acreage of cotton, but Jones, who has read 
that the stock of manufactured goods is unusually large, 
will increase his acreage of corn with the view of feeding 
it, and convert his surplus crop into beef, pork and mut¬ 
ton, and dairy products. 
