1901 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
489 
Events of the Week. 
DOMESTIC.—The Wabash limited train from Boston 
to St. Louis was wrecked near Peru, Ind., June 26; 13 
persons killed and many injured.Fire destroyed 
a breaker and washery of the Delaware and Hudson 
Coal Company at Wilkesbarre, Pa., June 26; loss $100,000. 
.... Fire at Mayfield, Ky., June 26, destroyed seven 
tobacco rehandling houses, a large quantity of tobacco, 
a cooper shop and 32 small residences and stores. Scores 
of persons were rendered homeless. The loss is esti¬ 
mated at $200,000, partially insured.The excur¬ 
sion steamer Mohawk struck a rock in Long Island 
Sound, near Glen Island, June 30, and sank within 20 
minutes. There were 900 persons on board, but no lives 
were lost.A corner plot at Broadway and 
Thirty-fourth St., New York City, comprising less than 
half a city lot, was recently sold for $375,000.At 
Chicago, Ill., July 1, 11 persons were killed by lightning, 
which struck a pier on the Ijake shore under which 
they had crowded for refuge from the storm. 
July 1, 81 persons died in New York from the heat. It 
was the hottest July 1 on record, the official temperature, 
20 stories above the street, being 98 degrees, while the 
street temperature was 103 to 107 degrees. The mortality 
among horses was vastly greater in proportion than 
among men. The Bergh Society estimates that not less 
than 250 horses died from the heat in the city between 
sunrise and sunset July 1. At the New York Veterinary 
Hospital nine doctors were kept busily employed all day, 
and they treated more than 150 horses suffering from 
heat prostration. It was the general verdict of veter¬ 
inary surgeons that more horses died July 1 in New 
York than on any single day since the great eplzoStic 
ravages of many years ago. The fact is that the horses 
have been going through another epizootic siege of late, 
a sort of horse grip, with the result that many of them 
were in a low physical condition when the present burst 
of heat came and were ill-fortified to meet it. The heat 
extended over the entire country east of the Mississippi. 
The high temperature continued July 2, when 161 deaths 
from heat were reported in Greater New York, and the 
heat increased July 3.Fire at Huntington, W. 
Va., July 2, destroyed hotel and other property valued 
at $200,000. The city water reservoirs were empty, and 
all the fire engines were out of repair.A large 
new apartment house in New York City was struck by 
lightning July 2 and burned down; loss $300,000. 
ADMINISTRATION.—When Secretary Gage’s action 
in imposing countervailing duties on Russian sugar ex¬ 
ported to the United States was followed by so dispro¬ 
portionate reprisal as the imposition of 30 per cent in¬ 
creased duties on the most Important American impor¬ 
tations there, the importers of American tools and ma¬ 
chinery seemed stunned. They were disposed to support 
Ku.s.sia on the legal aspects, but some of them reex¬ 
amined the matter, and concluded that the Russian 
sugar regulations amount to practical compulsion to 
manufacture for export. They still doubt the expediency 
of Secretary Gage’s action, but latterly they have con¬ 
cluded that if the policy was mistaken, of which, after 
all, Washington, knowing the complete facts and foster¬ 
ing American interests throughout the world, was the 
best judge, it does not follow that a backdown is now 
expedient. They claim that such a precedent would 
weaken American commercial and political prestige. 
Attention is directed to the increasing disinclination of 
the Russian authorities to permit the importation of any 
goods which the Russians can produce, no matter what 
tliey cost. This policy, more than the tariff, obstructs 
foreign trade. It is recalled that the government re¬ 
cently narrowly restricted the use of foreign goods in 
the Russian army and navy factories, and that the same 
policy is pursued wherever the government influence 
extends. 
PHILIPPINES.—General Chaffee is preparing to push 
Malvar, the insurgent chief in Southern Luzon. He has 
ordered the transfer of the Fifth Infantry from Northern 
Luzon to Batangas Province. The general has been in¬ 
formed that Malvar’s principal headquarters are in a 
mountain town in Northern Tayabas, whose inhabitants 
are contributing to Malvar’s support. General Chaffee 
has not formulated plans for the occupation of the Island 
of Mindoro. General Hughes, at his request, will be 
permitted to continue in command of the Visayas Islands 
until the Samar campaign is completed. Consequently, 
General Davis will continue, temporarily, to be provost 
marshal at Manila. Four American prisoners, who es¬ 
caped from Calapan, Mindoro, June 25, in a sailboat, 
have been recaptured. Six others are reported to be in 
Southern Mindoro. Bills have been passed establishing 
a board of health for the Philippines and providing for 
laboratories in connection therewith. The salary of the 
health commissioner will be $6,000.Three officers 
of the Forty-third Infantry are under Investigation on 
charges of violations of orders by permitting trade be¬ 
tween ports that were closed to trade. This was an of- 
fen.se considered grave in Itself, but with it was coupled 
the charges of bribery and corruption. It is claimed by 
witnesses, both native and American, that these officers 
not only permitted steamers to go into prohibited waters, 
but in several Instances went personally themselves on 
such trips to collect what was due them. Some wit¬ 
nesses charge that as high as $500 Mexican has been 
paid by the owners of steamers for Illegal permission to 
go into closed ports, where a very profitable trade was 
driven in hemp and rice. It is asserted that the rice 
taken went into insurgent towns, where its value was 
doubled. Some steamers paid high rates for privilege of 
going into the rice districts and securing cargoes, which, 
it is claimed, were sold at high rates of profit. 
general FOREIGN NEWS.—A despatch from St. 
Petersburg says the crops in the province of Saratoff 
are withering and the grass is scorched, owing to the 
prolonged heat and drought. The price of corn is jump¬ 
ing up and the outlook at Saratoff and in the neighbor¬ 
ing Volga district is alarming. The scarcity promises to 
he as severe as the famine of a decade ago. 
I'resh reports of fighting in Manchuria and on the 
rentier of Chl-Li Province have been received in Tien¬ 
tsin. A pitched battle has been fought at Shan-Yang, 
in which the natives defeated the Mchammedans. Ad¬ 
vices received in Simla from the Sikkim border say that 
an edict, signed by the Emperor and Empress Dowager 
of China, has been posted in Chinese Thibet announcing 
that the European Powers have been victorious in North¬ 
ern China and ordering that the lives of missionaries and 
Christian converts be respected on pain of decapitation. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—Representatives of the Japan¬ 
ese government have been in Chicago to inquire into the 
methods of American horse breeding. The members of 
the party are connected with the agricultural college 
of the Japanese government. They say horses in Japan 
are, as a rule, of inferior breeds, which operates as a 
serious handicap not only from military point of view, 
but from a domestic point. The superior quality of the 
American horse is becoming recognized the world over, 
the visitors say, and while they will visit England, 
France and Germany before their return to their native 
land, they are frank to admit they are of the opinion 
that the best horses in the world are being bred in this 
country. 
The National Live Stock Association is testing the con¬ 
stitutionality of the Colorado State law which requires 
State inspection of live stock after a clean bill of health 
has been given by the Federal authorities. 
The annual convention of the National Apple Shippers’ 
Association will be held in Toronto, Canada, opening 
August 7. 
Illinois Corn Carnival will be held at Peoria, October 
7—19; Bert L. Heylman, secretary. 
The Canadian Horticultural Association will hold its 
annual convention at London, Ont., August 5—6; secre¬ 
tary, A. H. Ewing, Berlin. Ont. 
CROP PROSPECTS. 
JULY 3.—Not much of an apple country around here; 
a fair bloom, but nearly all dropped off; not as many 
on the trees now as last year by one-half. f. c. j. 
Kishwaukee, Ill. 
JULY 3.—Apples less than one-fourth crop In this 
county. Corn very backward owing to cold wet Spring. 
Early potatoes less than one-half crop; late crop will be 
very short unless we have rain soon. Farmers com¬ 
menced harvesting; wheat good, hay fair. This section 
is suffering for the want of rain and from excessive heat. 
Espy, Pa. M. C. m’c. 
JULY 4.—We haven’t had any rain since early In June, 
and our potatoes must be badly injured. Grass fields 
are brown from the burning sun. Hay all secured in 
good condition. Corn is coming forward nicely, and 
will wait awhile for the rain. We commence the wheat 
harvest to-morrow. p. c. r,. 
Middlesex Co., N. J. 
JULY 4.—In this part of Allegany County, N. Y., 
planting is Just being finished. I planted corn June 4—5 
that is now eight Inches high. Potatoes planted in May 
are choked in the bricky ground. I have planted 11 
acres of potatoes from June 26 to July 2; ground in Ideal 
condition. Others are planting yet. Grass is in large 
quantity, but seems to have but little feeding value. 1 
have some oats treated with formalin; (two ounces to 
one gallon water and sprayed on till the oats were wet 
and then air-dried.) Will they do to feed horses. 16 
(luarts a day? No apples except a few Greening and Spy. 
Whitney Crossing, N. Y. j. s. b. 
R. N.-Y.—The oats may be fed with safety. 
Many foreign buyers are in the Kansas wheat district 
making contracts for exporting the grain. The French 
have a preference for Kansas wheat, their millers con¬ 
sidering it superior for flouring. 
J. A. Davis, a former New York produce dealer, now 
raising strawberries at Goldsboro, Md., expects that be¬ 
fore the season is over he will have shipped 600,000 quarts 
of berries. The cost of handling this crop will be not 
far from $7,000. 
The apple crop will be very small in this section. 
Wheat a fair crop; hay a good yield. I have just finished 
hauling clover from a nine-acre field that yielded 23 two- 
horse loads, over a ton to the load. Corn backward; 
beans looking well, large acreage planted; potatoes, small 
acreage planted; crop promising. w. n. r. 
St. Johns, Mich. 
It is reported that 20 Kansas farmers, whose grain was 
going to waste for lack of help in harvesting, armed 
themselves with revolvers and held up a train contain¬ 
ing 200 men who were bound for the grain fields in the 
Far West. According to the account the men resented 
this original and strenuous method of solving the labor 
problem, and for half an hour there was a free fight. 
At last a compromise was made, the harvesters agreeing 
to stop there and work at $3.50 per day. 
The present indication from the entire apple-growing 
belt of the United States is that the crop will be very 
much below the average. Reports from other States in¬ 
dicate that there will be a good demand for New York 
.apples, and it is greatly to our interest to know as 
nearly as possible what the yield will be. We are mak¬ 
ing some efforts to secure reports about the crop in 
other States. f. e. dawley. 
Sec’y N. Y. Fruit Growers’ Association. 
ORLEANS CO., N. Y.—We have had a very wet Spring, 
and as we have nearly 50 acres of beans up it has wor¬ 
ried us to keep ahead of the weeds, but thanks to a new 
weeder (Z. Breed) we are out of the woods in good 
shape. A heavy rain packed the ground so hard that 
the weeder would not break the crust, so we put two 
bags of dirt (75 to 100 pounds) on to make It go through, 
and as the beans were up well it looked rather rough to 
folks who saw what we were doing; but it does my 
heart good to see how we cleaned out the weeds. The 
prospects in the county are very poor for most kinds 
of fruit, but J. E. Allis will have a fair crop of peaches, 
but no pears. Last year most of the wheat went down 
badly in this section, all except a new kind, Dawson’s 
Golden Chaff, and those who sowed that kind have a fine 
crop; all other kinds are a complete failure. The fly 
has the crop in this section and most farmers have 
plowed or pastured or will cut the wheat for hay, as 
the Timothy has made a good growth. One of our best 
farmers said he would not get two loads of straw from 
25 acres, and some are worse off for straw than that. 
My wheat will go 40 bushels per acre. Some pieces of 
beans have suffered very much from the weevil or some 
kind of Insect or worm, and some have replanted, but 
my brother has 90 acres and I 46 acres and they are very 
good, so if nothing prevents we can have baked beans 
and the sheep bean fodder next Winter. clark allis. 
I have examined four wheat fields of Dawson’s Golden 
Chaff on four different farms, and find them all com¬ 
paratively free from the fly. One of these was sown 
early and had no fertilizer. I have four acres of Car¬ 
man No. 2 that Is going to give 25 bushels to the acre, 
if I am any judge. I have also over 20 acres of Clawson 
that I expect to mow and cure for the sheep. There Is 
more Timothy than wheat. These looked equally well 
on April 1. I have visited another field of white wheat 
sown on oat stubble, fertilized very heavy for the oats, 
but didn’t grow many, and then had about 300 pounds 
to the acre on the wheat. It is a fine field of wheat as it 
stands to-day. I would think that one-half of the crop 
in Seneca and Tompkins counties is ruined. t. h. k. 
Tompkins Co., N. Y. 
Our wet weather has gone dry with a hot wave that 
is killing to man and team. Many have had to put up 
the horses and wait for cooler weather. The ground is 
harder than I ever knew it before, and is cracking open. 
We cultivate and fume and hurry, and sow our crops 
over several times, and then only get a moderate stand. 
It makes lots of work. My sugar beets have been a 
trial so far. I have had them washed out, packed down 
and dried down, till I hardly knew what to do; have 
sown them all twice over, and shall put about an acre 
of them into cabbages. They begin to grow now. Wheat 
Is all destroyed by Hessian fly; oats are turning red 
with some trouble, and raspberries are dying with the 
new blight. The only healthy crop just now is corn, 
which will be as large as usual by July 4, always count¬ 
ing in weeds, which are plenty. Nothing seems to all 
them. If it were not for the comfort I get from reading 
The R. N.-Y. and hearing from friends through it I 
would get awfully blue these days. c. w. c. 
Tompkins Co., N. Y. 
/ferns of Interest. 
According to the Irrigation expert of the Department 
of Agriculture, irrigation has Increased the value of a 
tract of land in Texas, larger than all New England, 
from $2.50 per acre to $50; and in sections of certain 
Rocky Mountain States a still greater Increase in valua¬ 
tions has been made. 
It is said that several carloads of bananas were given 
away in Jersey City one day recently. For some reason 
the consignees refused to accept them, and the fruit was 
in such a state that it had to be disposed of at once. 
Word was sent to an Italian settlement near, and cus¬ 
tomers for the bananas arrived in short order. Some 
brought push carts and wagons, intending to lay in a 
stock for peddling, but the railroad men refused to give 
except in small quantities to those who had baskets. 
This free distribution ruined the business of local banana 
dealers for a day or two. 
Fruit Crop in Oregon. 
Our horticultural commissioners report very bright 
prospects for Oregon fruits this year. While in some 
sections of the State the apple crop is not so heavy as 
last year—on account of overbearing—in other sections 
the 100 mark will be reached. In the aggregate the apple 
crop will be large, say 90 per cent, and of fine quality, 
as our fruit growers are up-to-date, giving thorough cul¬ 
tivation and eternal war upon fungus and Insect pests. 
The Italian prune is grown extensively in Oregon, and 
this year our prospects are for a record breaker. There 
is no doubt but what thousands of tons will go to waste, 
for want of drier capacity to handle them. Pears will 
make 75 per cent of a crop. Peaches in eastern Oregon 
will make heavy crop; in southern Oregon 75 per cent, 
and in western Oregon 50 per cent. Cherries promised a 
heavy crop, but the continued cold rainy unseasonable 
weather is causing a heavy drop. Strawberries and all 
small fruits are a full average crop. Grapes, in sections 
where gi’own, will make 100. geo. h. lamberson. 
Sec. Oregon State Board of Horticulture. 
Crop and Weather Report. 
All sections east of the Rocky Mountains have been 
suffering from intense heat, which has been partly re¬ 
lieved by local showers. Crops thus far have not been 
seriously damaged. Nebraska corn was in a critical 
state, but a heavy rain came just in time to save it. In 
the Ohio Valley and central Gulf States corn leaves are 
rolling badly, and heat and rust damage are reported 
to oats in the north. On the Pacific coast and the 
plateau east to the Rockies the weather has been ab¬ 
normally cool, with light frosts in parts of Idaho and 
Utah. Small grain has ripened rapidly, the wheat har¬ 
vest being about completed in Kansas and Missouri. 
Spring wheat in the Dakotas is heading out. Thrashing 
is in progress in southern Illinois and Indiana. Chinch 
bugs are active in the northern parts of those States. 
Cotton conditions are not promising. Cultivation in the 
eastern Gulf States was delayed by the early rains, and 
in a large part of Texas the plant is in need of rain. In 
central Minnesota heavy winds and floods have damaged 
crops. The apple prospect continues to decrease. Re¬ 
ports from several Important apple States are less 
promising than a week ago. 
NEW HAMPSHIRE NOTES.—There has been a de¬ 
cided improvement in crop conditions in this section of 
the Granite State during the past two weeks. Cloudless 
and windless days up to June 22, with temperature about 
70 degrees. On June 22 and 23 heavy showers came just 
right; will be an increase in yield of hay in conse¬ 
quence. Early sorts of potatoes in full bloom June 29, 
and never looked better. Those who planted higher 
ground seem to have hit the mark. All agree that both 
early and late crops will bring top-notch prices. Corn 
is making phenomenal growth. Haying already begun, 
but grass is yet very green. We have experienced an 
unprecedented hot wave here this week, and it has been 
a dangerous experiment to work out in fields during 
middle of day. Great for crops, as soil is moist. Mer¬ 
cury has registered from 90 to 102 degrees in shade for 
four days. Heavy showers with wind of tornadd variety 
did great damage to crops in some parts of Strafford 
County June 29. Good prospects for grapes, raspberries, 
strawberries and all garden crops. n. i,. p. 
Dover I’oint, N. H. 
