i89o 
723 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
Canada his text is the desirability of our securing a mar¬ 
ket of 60,000,000 people for the products of the Dominion, 
in the Union. When we consider that, to a large extent, 
the products of both countries, agricultural as well as 
mechanical, are nearly the same, it looks as if Mr. Wyman 
is of the opinion that the inhabitants of Canada are in 
a semi-civilized condition even in this nineteenth century. 
We Canadians think the people of the United States have 
for many years shown an unfriendly feeling towards us. 
They refused to reciprocate with us in anything at the 
time of the Southern rebellion. The Canadian govern¬ 
ment then permitted the government of the United States 
to pass vessels intended for the transport trade on your 
Southern coast through the canals in the St. Lawrence 
without inquiring what they were laden with; but when 
the Canadian government was sending its troops to Old 
Fort Garry, in 1870, to put down the first Riel rebellion, 
the government of the United States would not allow our 
vessels laden with military stores, to pass through the 
Sault Ste. Marie Canal, These acts we think show an un¬ 
friendly feeling which is much to be regretted. But anent 
the effects of the McKinley bill, I think 
the Canadians will survive any loss they 
may sustain by the increased duty on 
barley. GEO. HILLIARD. 
Ontario, Canada. 
THROUGH THE GENESEE VALLEY 
WITH A CAMERA. 
GUY WHEELER’,S GENESEE GIANTS. 
At different times during the last cen¬ 
tury certain individuals have sprung into 
prominence for a brief period as the 
breeders or owners of phenomenally large 
steers. It seems to be a mania with some 
people to grow something large, whether 
it be cattle, grain or roots, without any re¬ 
gard to the extra expense incurred. A 
farmer has a good steer and keeps him 
growing for several years, when he announces that he has 
the biggest steer in America, “ or the largest ox in the 
world.” How familiar are such statements to readers of 
the agricultural press. I have seen it stated in several 
papers that such or such a man owns a steer weighing 
4,000 pounds, when in reality if the animal in question 
were driven on the scales he might tip the beam at 3,000 
pounds. There have been steers, however, that have 
actually reached the latter weight, but this seems to be 
the limit of growth. I know that greater weights than 
that have been stoutly claimed, but as far as I can learn 
the leading authorities in live stock do not put much 
credence in the claim. 
Exaggeration is one of the great faults of the American 
people, and it is so easy to add several hundred pounds to 
the real weight of an animal when telling about it. The 
steers illustrated in Fig. 318 are, I believe, the largest pair 
of brothers owned by one man in the United States. A 
short time since The Rural showed a yoke of oxen owned 
by Mr. Moore, of Vermont. They were the biggest cattle 
in New England, and certainly worthy of the attention of 
any one interested in live stock. As I was about to leave 
Belwood, the beautiful home of S. S. Howland, several 
weeks ago, Mr. Bartholemew, the stud groom, said: “Mr. 
Dibble, do you know that the two largest steers in America 
are owned two miles east of here?” I replied: ‘‘Why, 
no, I have never heard of them.” “ Well,” he continued, 
“ I have attended a great many fairs and stock shows in the 
last 12 years, and have seen a good many big cattle, but I 
have never seen any that began to approach these in size, 
form or perfection of development. Do not leave this part 
of the country without seeing them.” So earnest was he 
A Straw-burning Stove. Fig. 3 19. 
in his statements that we drove two miles over hill and 
dale with the thermometer at 100 degrees in the shade, 
with little expectation of finding the steers as large as 
they were said to be. Mr. Bailey, the artist, said : “ This 
is a wild goose chase,” and I was half inclined to agree with 
him, when, one can imagine our surprise, after reaching the 
animals and getting them up on their feet, to behold the 
noble fellows in all their massive perfection of bovine 
beauty. The steer at the left showing the broadside is 
seven years old, and in color red and white. The other, an 
own brother, is a year jounger, and of a handsome roan 
color. The cut is so good that the steex-s need no further 
description. Desirous of learning something of their his¬ 
tory, I approached Mr. Wheeler who had been watching us 
from a distance, but as I neared him he began to run for 
the house. I called after him and he ran all the faster, so 
.1 commenced to run too, but he reached the house first, 
and locked the door in my face. I called to him to show 
himself, but no amount of urging on my part could induce 
him to make an appearance. The house is a little one- 
story, wood colored cabin, with only one room and a cellar, 
and the barn is a very primitive structure 12 by 20 feet, 
made of rails with straw sides and roof. Mr. Wheeler is 
a very peculiar-looking old man, with long, curly, gray 
hair, and grizzled features, and is somewhat eccentric in 
his habits. He has not worn a hat or coat in 30 years. We 
would have liked to have taken his picture, but “ circum¬ 
stances over which we had no control” prevented. To one 
of Mr. Wheeler’s neighbors we are indebted for the follow¬ 
ing facts : “The steers are from a good-sized, thoroughbred 
Short-horn cow, and a common Short-horn bull. At the 
time they were dropped they were ordinary-sized calves, 
but soon began to grow rapidly, and at the age of two 
years were the largest two-year-olds in the county. At 
that time Mr. Wheeler refused an offer of $75 a head for 
them. Every year since then speculators have been trying 
to buy them, but as they grew older and bigger the price 
was raised, and they were never sold until last season, 
when two showmen bought them for $1,500, with the in¬ 
tention of exhibiting them at the different fairs. After 
looking into the matter of transportation, they came to 
the conclusion that the cost of freight and other expenses 
would eat up the profits, and so they backed out, leaving 
the steers on Mr. Wheeler’s hands. The dally feed of each 
consists of hay in winter, grass during the summer, and 
four quarts of corn-meal three times a day the year 
around, and water and salt are by them all the time. They 
have not been weighed within several years, but last fall 
an expert measured them and pronounced the weight of 
one 4,200 pounds, and that of the other 3,800 pounds, and 
they have gained at least a hundred pounds apiece since 
that time.” With all due respect to the gentleman’s word, 
I could hardly swallow such immense weights, and, learn¬ 
ing that Hon. James S. Wadsworth, Ex. M. C,, than whom 
there is no better judge of cattle in western New York, 
had seen the steers, I wrote him in regard to their weight. 
In his reply he said, that although he had not measured 
the animals, in his opinion neither of them would weigh 
far from 3,600 pounds. So it seems perfectly safe to say 
that these two noble brothers tip the beam at over 7,000 
pounds. If sold for beef at five cents a pound—$350—they 
would not pay the cost of the 22 tons of corn-meal they 
have eaten, let alone the hay and grass that have passed 
down their capacious throats, but if some enterprising 
showman should buy them at $1,500 their owner might 
get paid fairly well for his feed and time. As an example 
of what can be done in the production of a living 
curiosity, the steers are a success; but as to profit in 
feeding, they are failures. edward f. dibble. 
Livingston County, N. Y. 
Potatoes on Hillsides.— Will the soil wash away 
worse if potatoes are planted up and down the hill than if 
they are planted otherwise ? Some farmers tell me the 
soil will not wash so much if they are planted in the first 
way. as each row will carry its own water; while if planted 
across the hill the water will follow the rows to the lowest 
places and break over and wash great gutters in some 
places, and cover the potato rows with mud in the lower 
places. This has been my experience this season. Now 
what would have been the result if I had planted them up 
and down the hill f Can any Rural readers tell me from 
careful observation and experience which is the better way 
in order to avoid washing ? One thing I do know—the 
Aspinwall planter works much more satisfactorily up and 
down the hill, and the same may be said of the cultivator. 
Smock, Pa. j h. r. 
[The R. N.-Y. wants information on this point.] 
HAY AND STRAW FOR FUEL. 
Most of us at one time or another have read about set¬ 
tlers on the far Western plains, who are forced to use hay 
and straw for fuel. As a matter of fact this practice is no 
more remarkable than the old New England custom of 
utilizing all the brush and chips to be found in the neigh¬ 
borhood. The writer spent many hours, when a boy, in 
chopping up twigs, sun-flower stalks and even large 
weeds for fuel, while it was quite a common practice to 
follow the wood choppers and pick up the chips cut out by 
their axes. There is surely less dignity about this work 
than about stuffing straw into a Dakota stove. The fact 
is that when people worry about the great destitution of 
the straw burner they do not realize that special stoves 
and furnaces have been provided for this fuel, which put 
the matter on an entirely new basis. Three sorts of stoves 
used in Dakota are shown at Figs 319, 320 and 321. That 
shown at Fig. 319, is made at De Smet, S. D., while the 
others are newly patented devices. The attachment shown 
at Fig. 320 is similar to that described by Mr. Macalpine. 
In every case, as will be seen, the drum of the stove is 
taken out and packed full of straw or hay. 
It is then put back in place and the con¬ 
tents are slowly burned. In some houses 
a sort of furnace is built in the cellar of 
stone, brick or a mixture of sand and 
clay. Pipes from this are run to the dif¬ 
ferent rooms of the house where the heat 
may be utilized for cooking or for simple 
warmth. A rousing fire is kept up in 
this furnace, straw or hay being thrown 
in with a pitch-fork. In some cases small 
bales of straw are used. The following 
article is written by one of our subscribers 
in South Dakota. 
Heat from Straw and “ Buffalo 
Chips.” 
Burning hay or straw for fuel in Dakota 
was born of necessity. Given a cold and 
rigorous climate with no timber or coal 
except that hauled in by the railroads and sold for about $8 
a ton, and one can readily understand that the early 
pioneers looked for some cheap substitute and found it in 
hay. Coarse slough hay was usually taken, a handful at 
a time, twisted or coiled up a little and then put into an 
ordinary stove the same as fire wood. It was a slow busi¬ 
ness and not very satisfactory, but it was the best we could 
do. Soon every other man got working on a hay twisting 
or pressing machine till it became a standing joke when a 
neighbor could not be seen, he must be working on his hay 
twister. Some actually applied for patents; probably 
some were granted, but they were superseded by the straw- 
burner. This is a sheet iron affair just like a wash boiler 
only twice as deep, and with two large loop handles on the 
sides. All one has to do is to take it to the straw pile and 
fill it with straw, packing it well down ; take off the two 
front covers and the center piece of the stove, invert the 
straw burner and apply a light to the straw and away the 
burner will go puffing and snorting like a steam engine, 
gradually settling down to business. As a heater, it is a 
great success, warming a room in about 10 minutes and if 
run at its best will make a room uncomfortably warm in 
about twice that time. In fact, it is not uncommon to 
have to open the outside door when the thermometer is 
below zero. One can cook behind the straw-burner, but it 
takes time and considerable patience. A burner filled with 
ordinary straw will last from half an hour to one hour ; 
one of flax-straw, from one to three hours, the length of 
time depending on the draught. To the beginner the 
straw-burner is an enigma, very often sending out smoke 
and soot over everything; sometimes it will act quite 
uglily, and ruin a meal cooking behind it and make one 
feel as if he would like to throw the whole thing out-of- 
doors ; but when the mode of supplying the draught and 
the proper regulation of the stove are understood, it is 
easy to manipulate it. The success of the original straw- 
burner led to other improvements, so that now we have 
A Newly Patented Straw-burner. Fig. 32 1. 
sheet-iron stoves for burning hay and straw only, and these 
are used chiefly for heating purposes. They are round, 
about two feet in diameter and four to five feet high. 
When well filled, the fire will last all night and be a good 
substitute for hard coal. Where coal or cord-wood can be 
got at a reasonable price, they are not likely to be used; 
but out on our oceanic prairies they are here to stay, and 
save many a dollar to the farmers. They make a hot fire 
very quickly—a thing to be appreciated on a cold morning; 
but, per contra, when the fire goes out, the room soon 
gets very cold. For summer fires both straw and hay have 
given place to “ buffalo chips.” Do I use them ? Yes, and 
an excellent fire they make. We usually gather them with 
the wagou and store them inside. They make a nice, 
quick fire, which is as cleanly as one of fire-wood, and much 
cleaner than coal, and they do not muss up the house like 
hay or straw. t. macalpine. 
THE GENESEE GIANT STEERS. Fig. 318 t 
