7o6 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
OCT. i8r 
been trying to get these plats into productive shape and fit 
for regular rotation, had used all the manure I could get, 
and never got a good crop of wheat or a really good catch 
or crop of clover, though the land was gaining in fertility. 
So I put the three plats into wheat, using 300 pounds per 
acre of Forest City superphosphate, a high grade brand 
made by the Cleveland (Ohio) Dryer Company. I bought 
at wholesale rates. It was a bad year, as excessive drought 
late in the summer made the ground too dry for a good 
start. One man and one team did the work, which was too 
much for them (with the ground so hard), besides other 
summer and fall work. So dry was the ground that some 
of the seed lay in it two weeks, and then came up with low 
vitality. The wheat was uneven in spring, the east slopes, 
with snow protection, being good; the west slopes with tile 
drainage, superphosphate and some manure, being poor. 
That year tile drainage seemed to make little difference. 
Some years it makes all the difference. Its results depend 
on the rainfall. The good effects of the superphosphates 
were more striking than ever before. I had two strips of a 
drill’s width left without any superphosphate through the 
entire length of plats 3 and 4. The fall start was so 
poor that on these strips there was actually no wheat 
worth cutting at harvest time—not at the rate of a bushel 
per acre, even on the easterly slope with snow protection, 
or even where manure had been used the year before. The 
photo-engraved illustration (see Fig. 303) shows the strip 
in plat 3, though not half so strikingly as the field itself 
did, for it was a very cloudy day and just beginning to 
rain when the photograph was taken. It looked strange 
enough, that bare strip 80 rods long, with strong wheat on 
both sides of it, which, in places where it had snow pro¬ 
tection, would yield over 30 bushels per acre. One would 
have thought that the seed and not the fertilizer had been 
omitted but for the chance stalks here and there at har¬ 
vest, and for the fact that the wheat came up after seeding 
like the rest, only not so strong. It winter-killed just 
before harvest. On July 5 I wrote (see Ohio Farmer July 
21, 1888) • “I am convinced that but for the superphosphate 
this year on that land, with the poor fall start and hard 
winter, the wheat would not have been worth cutting. 
As it is, there will be, I judge, from 400 to 500 bushels. I 
used tons of the superphosphate. I am sure I am quite 
within bounds in saying that each ton of it will give me 
over 100 bushels of wheat, besides the great help to the 
clover and Timothy seeding. I shall be glad if the editor 
of The Farmer ‘ or any other man ’ will visit the field 
before it is cut and see whether I have overstated it.” The 
photographer visited it instead, and recorded the facts as 
in the engraving, though not clearly and sharply, owing 
to the extreme darkness of the day, which almost 
forbade the instantaneous process, while the 
wind waved the grain so as to require the use of 
this process to show the heads. I have never 
offered the photograph for publication before, 
because I wanted to wait for subsequent results. 
I will give some of these in a second number. 
They have not changed the conclusions of the 
above quotation. 
Ames, Iowa. 
in the State legislature. During his last term he was 
elected Speaker pro tem., and performed the duties of 
Speaker during the greater part of the session. In 1888, he 
was elected State Senator, and was chosen President pro 
tem of the Senate. Bv the death of Lieutenant-Governor 
McDonald, he became Lieutenant Governor of the State, a 
A FARMER FOR CONGRESS. 
The farmers of Michigan have taken a very 
lively interest in the present political campaign. 
They know what they want and have proceeded 
in an honest ana business like way to make 
known their wishes. In most of the Michigan 
Congressional districts the farmers not only 
largely outnumber those engaged in other occu¬ 
pations, but their business represents more 
capital than that of all others combined. This is 
particularly true of the Sixth District, in which 
is located the capital of the State. The Republi¬ 
cans of this district recently nominated for 
Congress Mr. William Ball, whose photograph 
is printed at Fig. 305. This is sufficient evidence 
of the wisdom and dignity of the “farmers’ 
movement,” for it would be difficult to find a 
man who more fully answers the requirements 
of the farmers’ ideal candidate than Mr. Ball. 
In the first place, he is a successful farmer, 
honest, practical, energetic and business-like. 
In the second place he is a successful legislator, 
a good speaker, a close and careful student of 
public questions aud a man of sound common 
sense. Farmers justly object to a “ politician’’ 
candidate, one whose only qualification is his 
ability to manipulate caucuses and legislatures. 
In the same way they should not feel satisfied 
with a candidate whose only recommendation is that he is a 
farmer, with no experience in public affairs. Business farm¬ 
ers recognize the fact that their representative should be a 
man whose life and work have given him a sympathy for 
agriculture, and whose training and experience will enable 
him to carry out their wishes. 
William Ball was born in Cayuga County, N. Y. He 
moved to Michigan with his parents when quite young 
and located in \yashtenavv County, where he lived till 
1858, when he moved to Hamburgh, Livingston County, 
where he now resides. He was given a liberal education 
at Albion College and the Michigan University. In early 
life he spent several years in teaching, but since then his 
entire business has been farming aud stock breeding. He 
has been for 25 years engaged in breeding thoroughbred 
American Merino sheep and has now 300 head of registered 
stock. He is also a breeder of Shorthorn cattle, and has 
taken the first prize for best herd three successive years. 
His success as a breeder of live stock, has been due to the 
care and thoroughness which characterize all his opera¬ 
tions. He served with much satisfaction as township 
supervisor aud was afterwards elected county superinten¬ 
dent of schools, aud for three terms represented his couuty 
Map of W. I. Chamberlain’s Farm. Fig. 304. 
position he now holds. This is the record of our ideal 
farmers’ candidate—a practical and successful farmer, 
a trained legislator, an honest, sturdy, sensible man. It 
will pay Michigan farmers to roll the Ball still higher. 
THAT CHILD OF YOURS. 
J. W. NEWTON. 
It is sad to see a starved child. Some children are starved 
for want of food, others for want of pure air and light. 
The result Is a pale, puny, dwarfed child. Many a farmer 
who would far sooner suffer hunger himself than have 
his child lack food, is, nevertheless, starving the child. 
Minds as well as bodies are dwarfed by lack of food. The 
for Children.” They have the merit of being selected and 
edited with care, well printed on good papar and at low 
prices. Such reading is of great value, and I wish the 
children who live in bookless homes might be provided 
with reading of this kind. Why cannot the boys and girls 
of The Rural family go to work and earn books for them¬ 
selves by getting subscribers for The Rural ? 
His School.— One great trouble with the country schools 
is that they are not graded. Most of the school books are 
for graded schools. Then country teachers are often not 
trained for their work. The supervision of country teach¬ 
ers is often wretchedly inefficient, if not lackiug altogether. 
No wonder there is dissatisfaction. Can farmers’ children 
have better facilities for education P Yes. How ? By 
consolidating school districts, grading the schools, and 
employing trained teachers under competent supervisors, 
with text books and all school supplies furnished by the 
State. The chief difficulty is to get the children to these 
consolidated schools. Let the towns hire trustworthy 
men with teams to gather those who are far from the 
schools and to carry them home at night. Let the drivers 
have authority to keep good order among those they are 
carrying, allowing no bad language or behavior. Con¬ 
solidated and graded schools, trained teachers, able super¬ 
visors, the child-gathering system, all expenses being borne 
by the State,—this is the way to secure good country 
schools. 
His School Books.— Some Rural writers have depre¬ 
cated spending so much time in the study of grammar and 
its rules. The fact is that grammar is nearly or quite 
abolished from the middle grades of the best schools. 
Language lessons have taken its place. The pupil 
is trained in correct ways of writing and speaking. A 
very excellent text-book on language is Metcalf and 
Bright’s Language Exercises—American Book Company, 
New York. It or a similar book should be used in place 
of the old useless grammar in every country school, and 
one of the strongest reasons for such a course is found in 
Myra V. Norys’s article on page 030 of The Rural. That 
article is really a plea for better schools. In books like 
“ Language Exercises ” scholars are taught how to write. 
Country children are surrounded by the wonders and 
beauties of Nature, but they need to have their eyes opened 
and their ears unstopped that they may see and learn of 
God’s works. How cau natural science be taught in our 
schools ? By putting it in the reading books. In the best 
schools two classes of reading books are used, the regular 
and the supplementary. In the latter are taught natural 
history, geography, etc. The sooner country schools adopt 
supplementary reading the better. In natural science 
there are most excellent series of text-books. 
For instance, Johonuot’s Natural History Series 
—American Book Company—consists of a set of 
six books filled with stories of animals. A child 
could not help being attracted by these, and 
would learn a great deal from them. Then the 
Rev. J. G. Wood wrote, and the School Supply 
Company, Boston, have issued in this country a 
series of six graded books—Natural History 
Readers. The author’s name is a guarantee of 
their excellence. On a very different plan are 
Julia McNair Wright’s Nature Readers, Seaside 
and Wayside (D. C. Heath & Co., Boston and 
New York). Written by an American woman 
for American children, and a radical departure 
from anything before issued in this line, they 
are unexcelled for nature teaching. 
It has been the fashion to fill the regular read¬ 
ing books with miscellaneous pieces, such as one 
may find in any good children’s magazine. Hap¬ 
pily this practice is beginning to be abandoned. 
The best reading books I have found for our 
country common schools are called “ The Nor¬ 
mal Course in Reading,” Silver, Burdette & Co., 
Boston. In them the child learns not only to 
read, but also to love and study Nature. To 
have good schools, schools that will train our 
children for their work in life, we must have 
good school books and good teachers. Shall 
your child have these ? 
WILLIAM BALL, A FARMER FOR CONGRESS. Fig. 305. 
minds of many children are starved mid dwarfed for want 
of mental food. 
His Reading. —Your child goes to school and learns to 
read. He thus acquires a new power. How will he use it ? 
It is largely for you to say. If you do not provide him 
with good books to read, he will very likely read bad ones. 
If good books and papers are not withiu reach, he must 
either read bad ones or not read at all. Parents don’t 
think of this. Taey send their children to school so that 
they can learn %o read, then fail to provide them with 
books. Many children are thus ruined, some by reading 
evil things and being led into evil ways; others, not hav¬ 
ing reading at home, spend their evenings with bad com¬ 
panions and thus are ruined. 
One reason why there are so few books in many farmers’ 
homes is on account of their cost. Fortunately, the best 
books are now sold at a reasonable price. By the best, I 
mean works by the old standard authors, which have stood 
the test of time and become classics. Such books are edu¬ 
cational in many ways. Their value is becoming more aud 
more appreciated. One publishing house—Ginu & Co , 
Boston aud “New York—has done the young a great 
service by issuing a carefully graded series of “Classics 
REMEDY FOR EARLY FROSTS. 
Some years ago I heard a lecture by an educated 
Finnish woman, and I remember well the method 
she gave as in use in her cold country to prevent 
an untimely frost from injuring the unripe 
grain. It was to produce a slight motion in the 
stalks and heads by two men stretching a string 
over the field, and then walking back and forth 
with it so long as the danger lasted. She claimed that this 
plan produced very satisfactory results. We all know that 
when the air is in motion, frost does not occur as in a dead 
calm. In a large area in the new Northwest, there is need of 
devising some method whereby early frosts, or the evil re¬ 
sults from them, may be averted until the grain crops 
ripen. Possibly in small areas, even up to 100 acres, the 
Finnish method may answer; or would it be possible by 
any artificial means to disturb the atmosphere to a suffi¬ 
cient degree to prevent injury by the frost ? There is no 
doubt of the utility of smoke and small fires for this pur¬ 
pose, especially in orchards; but we desire to know all the 
recognized or known methods, so that farmers may be able 
to take their choice. Is there not here a field for some in¬ 
ventive genius ? DR. G. G. GROFF. 
R. N.-Y.—We certainly think so. A Swedish hired man 
told us this same story about shaking the growing grain 
to keep off the frost, aud in Boyeseu’s stories the plan is 
spoken of as being quite common among the peasants of 
northern Norway. Experiments in this line while easy 
ana not expensive, are likely to lead to valuable practical 
results. Why do not our experiment stations make some, 
and report the results to the public ? 
