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THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
CORRESPONDENTS’ VIEWS. 
Like9 “ Reciprocity.”—The R. N.-Y. is doiug a good 
work in bringing the tariff question up for discussion by 
the farmers. Very many of them do look at it only from 
a partisan standpoint, and not, as they should, from the 
point of view of the agriculturist. In my opinion. Mr. 
Blaine very nearly strikes the key-note. Let us recipro¬ 
cate; let us get as much for our products as possible. 
Let us protect ourselves as much as we can against all 
countries with which reciprocity cannot be arranged. In 
fact, let us use the tariff in a business-like way for the 
benefit of the entire country, and let the farmers see that 
they get the direct benefit. LORENZO HULBERT. 
Livingston County, N. Y. 
What to Do with the Enormous Crop of Hat ?—Feed 
it; and commence now. Feed it to cows, give the pas¬ 
tures a little rest, and as for the meadows, do not let a hoof 
press them. We have had two good years for grass and 
hay, and we can hardly expect three such in succession. 
Let the aftermath remain as a mulch, and if we have a 
hot and dry summer in 1S91 the meadows will stand the 
drought all the better. I have often brought my cows 
out of the pasture so full that it seemed as if they could not 
eat any more, but - they would eat dry bay with a good 
relish. Bring the cows to the stables at noon, feed them 
all the good hay they will eat and there will be more body to 
the manure, and as fast as this is made, do not let it lie as 
dead capital, but cart it out on the best place on the farm, 
which is probably on the sod which you intend for corn 
next year. E. J. 
Franklin, N. J. 
Glass Bottles as Tree Labels.— Having tested all 
the different kinds of tree labels now in use, I have never 
found any so simple and perfect as small glass bottles. I 
have used these for several years in the nursery and field 
and found them satisfactory in every way, as the whole 
record of the tree can, by their means, be preserved. My 
attention was first directed to the bottle as a useful label 
by seeing one that was picked up on the shore that con¬ 
tained written memoranda. It had been in the water for 
years and still the paper was sound and readable. Labels 
made from such material as copper, tin, zinc and wood, do 
not keep well in this climate ; they are greatly affected by 
the salt air. Copper, with the name stamped through it 
with steel stamps, does very well where a record of the 
names only is needed I use the label by first placing 
the record in the bottle, then I put in the stopper and 
cover it with rubber cloth drawn down to the neck of the 
bottle and wire it the same as any other kind of label. 
Rio Grande, N. J. w. 8 . B. 
A Reading Club.—A reading-room in the country is 
impracticable. We want our papers and magazines at 
home around our own firesides. Yet, after paying for one 
or two first-class farm papers, a church paper, a State and 
a county paper, many feel that they could spare little 
more money for current literature. None of the papers 
named except the farm, and perhaps church papers should 
engage a great portion of our leisure time. Shall we stop 
here? No. We have a good plan in our neighborhood. 
Five or six families are in a magazine club, each family 
subscribing for its favorite publication. The cost is not 
heavy on any one, and each family gets the cream of half a 
dozen leading magazines. They are exchanged on a certain 
day and none are kept waiting. We are thus enabled to 
learn what our leading thinkers are saying, and the reading 
is very helpful. There are probably many such clubs among 
The Rural readers, but should there not be more * Three 
members are enough and more than five are too many. 
Probably four is the best number, thus giving each family 
one week for each magazine. A. J. R. 
Cheshire, Ohio. 
Carp Culture. —The number of fish ponds is steadily 
increasing in the vast area over which government fish are 
gratuitously distributed. Some have been made in hopes 
of returns from the sale of fish for stock or food; but far 
more owe their existence to their owners’ love of sport, of fish 
for their own tables, and of the picturesque beauties which 
artificial and natural pools and lakes create or improve. 
Few things are more beautiful than a pond of clear, fresh 
water, well stocked with German carp, from which a large 
one can occasionally be drawn for the table. The water in 
carp ponds should never be kept cold or even very cool, in 
the season, but a constant influx from springs will not 
necessarily render it too cool for successful spawning; for 
in nearly any part of the United States the rays of the 
sun, if unimpeded, will warm the water enough for that 
purpose. The greatest danger at the spawning season is 
likely to arise from too much shade on the one hand, or 
the too direct rays of the sun on the other. If, however, 
there is a shady place on jour farm suitable for a carp 
pond, with water from three to ten feet deep, and a supply 
accessible without allowing the muddy rain-water from 
the fields to enter and gradually fill the bed with sediment, 
there is no reason to fear failure in carp raising. 
But is it profitable ? Yes, certainly, so far as home com¬ 
fort and beauty are concerned, and for those who want 
money returns the answer will be the same, if they have 
good opportunities for marketing the fish and fair business 
abilities. At any rate, few who have ever earnestly 
labored to make a good artificial lake for fish, have not, 
sooner or later, wondered how they could have done with¬ 
out such a source of convenience, comfort and beauty. 
A. B. W. 
Florida's Flattering Facts.— We Floridians are now 
much more hopeful and encouraged than we have been 
for several years. The health of the peeple throughout the 
whole State is excellent, the wonderful discoveries of phos¬ 
phates have enlivened business and already brought many 
thousands of dollars here, with the assurance that much 
more will follow. The past summer was very favorable for 
crops of all kinds. The orange crop, though probably not 
more than two thirds of an average, bids fair to bring 
largely increased returns, on account of the excellent prices 
assured; the grape industry Is developing vigorously, 
while the railroads are doing something substantial by 
giving the residents of other parts of the country oppor¬ 
tunities to visit Florida at greatly reduced rates, and see the 
merits of the country for themselves. There are also many 
other reasons for our increased confidence and hopeful¬ 
ness, not t he least of which is that we are learning that 
we can raise most of our needed supplies instead of draw¬ 
ing them from other States, as has heretofore been our 
custom. The family garden is rapidly coming to the front 
as an indispensable adjunct of every homestead. Our 
truckers, too, are putting in a largely increased acreage, 
and sh 9 uld the season be favorable, large quantities of 
Florida vegetables will be shipped to the North during the 
winter and spring. Florida is turning over a new leaf, for 
her people have been learning that the production of all pos¬ 
sible home supplies is the thing of first importance, while 
the growing of fruits or other things for shipment is a 
secondary matter. Everybody is busy nowadays planting 
a winter garden. In fact, garden work commenced about 
the middle of August and with many is well advanced. 
Orange County. sherman adams. 
Profits of a Garden.— I find that a good garden is 
everything to a farmer, as it should be to every one. Some 
farmers say they have not time to attend to one. A little 
time now and then in a garden will keep it up. Let one 
spend a whole day at work there at the right time, instead 
of going fishing or visiting, and he will be surprised at the 
amount of good he can accomplish. We have half an acre 
in our garden, out of 145 acres in the farm, and we get 
about as much for the table there as from all the rest put 
together. The hens are not allowed there. First, in the 
spring we have two beds of asparagus, and roots ordered 
for a third, with early French Breakfast Radishes. Then, 
later on, come early onions and lettuce. Then we have 
strawberries—only a small bed, but enough for the table. 
Afterwards we enjoy • currants, Red Cherry, as well as 
White, and Fay’s Prolific, and we had so many more than 
we wanted that we sold two bushels. Next come black¬ 
cap Mammoth Cluster and red and yellow Antwerps. The 
red didn’t yield much this season, but the black gave us 
some to sell, besides supplying a family of four grown per¬ 
sons. New potatoes next cheered us, and I have a few 
sweet ones this season. We have a patch of the Taylor 
Blackberry about the size of an extension table, which ga7e 
us, in five weeks, about two bushels, and they were of a 
finer quality than the wild ones, and much nearer when 
the housewife wished some for tea. I am thinking of set¬ 
ting out the 50 sprouts that have started from them in the 
spring. We have about a dozen Houghton Gooseberries 
which gave us about two bushels. I must not forget a 
fine lot of about 600 plants of celery which we have been 
eating, and expect to eat till January or later. Pear trees 
raised in the garden yielded 10 bushels, and now there are 
about three bushels of grapes that have commenced to 
ripen. We cover them up to keep Jack Frost off. Besides 
these, there are cabbages, cauliflowers, cucumbers, beets, 
melons, sweet corn, pop-corn, parsnips, peas, peppers, etc. 
Now why doesn’t every person who has a piece of land say 
to himself: “ I will have a garden any way.” 
Chenango County, N. Y. F. J. TUTTLE. 
Read the second cash-prize offer under Publisher's 
Desk on page 716. 
The Farmers Club. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name and address 
of the writer to insure attention. Before asking a question, please 
see if it is not answered in our advertising columns. Ask only 
a few questions at one time. Put questions on a separate piece 
of paper.] 
Baled Manure. 
J. 3. T., Orient, Long Island .—In The R. N.-Y. of Octo¬ 
ber 4, G. D. C., Harrington, N. J., in telling about baling 
manure, says: “We find that a considerable quantity of 
liquid manure is lost by pressing at our New York stables 
where 15 horses are kept.” Is the manure at the stables 
hard to sell? Can The R. N.-Y. inform me of any reliable 
large stable where manure is baled for sale? I would like 
to arrange with some dealer to try some of the baled 
manure. 
Ans. —There are only a few stablemen who bale manure 
and these are mostly men who have a short distance from 
the city, farms of their own on which this manure is all 
used. The trouble lies with the dealers and contractors 
who do not want to bale, finding it more profitable for 
themselves to sell in wagons or cars to nearby farmers. 
Wood Ashes and Bone Meal for Hogs. 
J. H. A., Clinton County, Mich .—What effect do wood 
ashes and charcoal have on hogs ? Pig breeders advocate 
their use ; what are they used for ? 
Ans.— Neither can be regarded as medicines, yet both 
evidently aid digestion and keep the system in good con¬ 
dition. Charcoal is quite largely used in human medicine 
in cases of sour or disordered stomach. It is valuable 
mainly for its power of absorbing gases. The ashes are 
usually fed because of a general belief that they prevent 
disease by supplying some substance needed by the system. 
So they do, though hardly in the way that is supposed. 
The Wisconsin Experiment Station has just issued a bulle¬ 
tin giving the results of feeding bone meal and hard-wood 
ashes to hogs that were living on corn. As is quite well 
known, many farmers feed their hogs on corn alone, and a 
good deal of disease may be traced to the herds thus fed. 
Prof. Henry had shown by previous experiments that 
corn-fed hogs are deficient in bone, and his object in this 
experiment seems to have been to learn if the addition of 
bone meal or ashes to the corn ration Would not make 
stronger bones and consequently more vigorous animals. 
One lot of pigs received a pinch of bone meal daily in their 
feed ; another lot were supplied with wood ashes in a sep¬ 
arate trough ; while still another lot had nothing of the 
kind. The following conclusions were reached by the 
experimenters : 
“ 1. The effect of the bone meal and ashes was to save 
about 130 pounds of corn, or 28 per cent, of the total 
amount fed in producing 100 pounds of gain, live weight. 
2. By feeding the bone meal they doubled the strength 
of the thigh bones ; ashes nearly doubled the strength of 
the bones. 
3. There was about 50 per cent, more ash in the bones of 
the hogs receiving bone meal and hard-wood ashes than in 
the others. 
No difference was found in the proportion of fat to lean 
meat in the body. The benefits of the ashes, therefore, 
seem limited to strengthening the bones and aiding diges¬ 
tion. These, however, are very important, and warrant 
our farmers in using some mineral agent of this character 
regularly and freely in hog feeding, especially where much 
corn is fed. Bone meal seems to build up somewhat 
stronger bones than ashps, but ashes do the work very 
well indeed, and usually cost the farmer nothing. The 
figures show very plainly that Indian corn cannot of itself 
build up strong bones, and must be supplemented by ash 
material from other sources. They point very plainly to 
one cause, at least, why hogs become too fine and lack 
bone, a common complaint in the corn-growing sections.” 
Geranium and Peppermint Oils. 
H. G. B., St. Joseph, Michigan. —Is it probable that 
the culture of geraniums and other flowers for their oil 
could be made profitable ? 
Ans. —We do not know ; certainly not unless you have 
complete facilities for distilling. Possibly such work 
might be done in connection with peppermint culture. 
The following note from one of our subscribers in Wayne 
County, N. Y., gives a good idea of the matter. “The 
culture of Rose Geraniums for their oil is, with me, en¬ 
tirely a matter of experiment. I have no doubt that oil of 
a good quality could be disposed of— perhaps at a profit. 
I am a grower and distiller of peppermint, wormwood, 
tansy, etc., but have not found either profitable enough to 
enable me to make much progress in lifting a $6,000 
mortgage given five years ago. The prospect for pepper¬ 
mint in this vicinity is the poorest for 10 years. We are 
nearly through distilling. The yield is from 10 to 15 
pounds per acre against 25 to 30 last year. The price is 
low—$2.10—and this, together with the failure of our apple 
crop, makes the farmer feel very poor. Peppermint is not 
a very reliable money crop here, owing to the severity of 
our winters and the immense amount of expensive hand 
labor connected with it.” 
The Egyptian or Perennial Onion. 
M. M. W., Modus, Conn .—How can I grow good-sized 
bulbs from J. J. H. Gregory’s Egyptian or Perennial Tiee 
Onion ? 
ANSWERED BY J. J. H. GREGORY. 
The merits of the Perennial, or Egyptian Onion lie in its 
hardiness, as it lives through the winter in any locality 
without any protection whatever, and in its earliness, it 
being in condition for table use before any other variety. 
Its defect is, that it does not form a well shaped bulb, like 
other onions, but comes under the rare-ripe class, closely 
resembling the growth obtained by setting out large 
onions in the spring of the year. Its earliness makes it 
ready for table use before other varieties; after the others 
come its reign is ended. 
Ditching-Machine Makers. 
A. M. C., Sandy Lake, Pa .—Who make ditching 
machines ? 
Ans.—E xcavators and ditchers are made by the New Era 
Manufacturing Company, Chicago, Ill.; Slusser McLean 
Scraper Company, Sidney, Ohio, and C. D. Edwards, 
Albert Lea, Minn. The ditching machines are made by 
the Streator Engine Works, Streator, Ill ; Kemp & Burpee, 
Syracuse, N. Y., and the Elevator Ditching Machine Com¬ 
pany, Newark, Ohio. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
G. G. G., Lewisburg, Pa .—I desire to plant 100 pear trees in 
Central Pennsylvania, for profit. The ground is all right. 
What varieties, and in what proportion should I plant ? 
Profit and not quality of fruit is desired. 
Ans. —Select from Seckel, Bose, Bartlett, Anjou and 
Lawrence. They all thrive in Pennsylvania. 
E. R. M., Flat Brook, N. Y. —1. What is a good broad¬ 
cast sower of small grains and grass seeds? I would prefer 
one suitable for attachment to a wagon, if there is any of 
that kind. 2. What is a good book on diseases of horses 
and cattle, suitable for one who is not a veterinarian ? 
Ans. — 1 . The Strowbridge seeder made by The S. Free¬ 
man Sons’ Manufacturing Company, Racine, Wisconsin. 2. 
The Farmer’s Veterinary Adviser by Dr. James Law; for 
sale by The Rural Publishing Co.; price $3. 
3. T.3., Chatham Valley, Pa .—The inclosed plant was 
found in a field of Japanese buckwheat. What is it and 
how came it there ? 
Ans.— The plant is Polygonum incarnatum. It belongs 
to the same family as buckwheat. It was probably sown 
with the buckwheat seed. 
T. 3., Bannibal, Mo .—In one of last year’s catalogues, 
Tong Pa and Japan, Nos. 7, 9 and 10, peaches are said to 
be the hardiest peaches known. Who can tell whether 
this statement is true ? 
Ans.—W e have had no experience with the varieties 
named; if any of our readers have we would like to hear 
from them. 
