x 89o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
745 
Business. 
CRANBERRIES IN SOUTH JERSEY. 
A Special Crop. 
Special crops requiring special conditions of soil, climate 
and treatment are found in various parts of the country, 
and are usually quite profitable where favorable conditions 
exist. One of these which has been cultivated only over 
small areas is the cranberry. It has been grown but little 
outside of the two districts of Cape Cod and Southern 
New Jersey. More recently cranberries have been 
extensively planted in some parts of Wisconsin ; but 
while the conditions seem favorable for their growth 
the liability to late spring and early autumn frosts en¬ 
dangers the blos?oms in spring and the crop in the picking 
season. This is a drawback that the Eastern growers do 
not fear. The formation of the country in South Jersey 
is similar to that of Cape Cod, aud is commonly called 
“ pine barrens,” in which sandy plains and low elevations 
alternate with small swamps and creek bottoms. It is in 
these latter that the cranberry luxuriates. 
The Bogs Around Hammonton. 
A representative of The R. N.-Y. recently visited the 
vicinity of Hammonton, N. J., for the purpose of studying 
the cranberry on its native heath, or, more properly speak¬ 
ing, in its native bog, this being the appellation of a field 
where cranberries are grown. The ideal location for a bog 
is in the drained bed of an old mill-pond, but as mill ponds 
are not located on every swamp favorable for cranberry 
growing, it becomes necessary to prepare some very un¬ 
promising looking swamps for planting. These are usually 
covered with a dense growth of bushes, brakes aud wild 
grasses, and clearing them is.a formidable, and often 
an expensive undertaking. One requisite for a cran¬ 
berry bog is that it must be so situated that it can be 
flooded with water and the water be drawn off when desir¬ 
able. The first step in subduing a swamp is to drain and 
‘"turf” it, that is, remove all the bushes, brakes, etc., roots 
and all, it sometimes being necessary to remove A foot or 
more of the surface in doing so. Natural water-courses 
flowing through it are cleaued out and straightened and 
ditches dug to drain the surface. An outlay of several 
hundred dollars per acre is often necessary to fit a bog for 
planting. After the turfing, the surface is covered with 
sand to a depth of four to six inches. Sand, by the way, is 
one of th» most plentiful of the products of this vicinity. 
Sometimes dams are built and the swamps flooded before 
turfing mug euougn to Kill all vegetation. Tais facilitates 
the latter process, but requires a longer time. After the 
bog has been turfed and sanded, the cuttings are planted 
at any time of year when convenient, except in winter. 
These cuttings are made from thrifty vines, sometimes being 
cut in a cutting box six or eight iuches long, and are thrust 
well intotne sand eight or ten inches apart. Although the 
preparation of the bog is au expensive process, the after 
cultivation is next to nothing, consisting in pulling a little 
wild grass aud weeds now au 1 then, aud opening and shut¬ 
ting the flume gates when it is desired to draw off the water 
or flood tne bog. 
Fitting a Mill-Pond. 
When an old mill pond is transformed into a “ bog,” the 
cost of preparation is comparatively light, it being neces¬ 
sary simply to drain it aud remove any stray logs, stumps 
or other obstructions. The surface is seldom sanded, the 
vines being trodden into the mud. While this method 
does not secure so level a surface or so even a stand of 
plants, it is preferable to the other method, for reasons 
that will be given further on. One large bog visited, about 
three years planted, had been handled to simulate au old 
mill-poud, the dams having been built and the swamp 
flooded for about three years, the water then being drawn 
off and the bog planted the same as a mill pond. 
Picking the Fruit. 
The bogs produce little fruit tne first year, but some the 
second, usually yieidiug a full crop the third or fourth. 
The picking is done by hand, mainly by “dagoes,” the 
common term for the Italians who are depended upon to 
periorm much of the labor on the bogs. The price usually 
paid is 40 cents per bushel; more when the picking is poor. 
After the picking is finished, a novel method is '•esorted to 
to secure scattered berries. The bog is flooded, when the 
loose berries all rise to the surface and float down to the 
outlet, where they are secured. From oue bog 100 bushels 
were secured in this way, 1 was told. This is a profitable 
proceeding surely. Au average yield is about 50 bushels 
per acre, though crops are reported much in excess of this. 
1 was told ot oue bog that had yielded 1,000 bushels on a 
single acre, but no oue placed muen confidence in the 
statement. At the prevailing prices for several years, this 
certaluly must prove a profitable crop. 
Flooding the Bogs. 
The bogs are flooded annually to a depth sufficient to 
cover the plants from late autumn to early spring. This 
is done to protect them from trust in fail and spring aud 
to prevent heaving duiing the winter. Flooding may also 
be resorted to in case of di ought or danger from fire. It is 
also practiced to repel insect attacks. The only insects 
causing any trouble are the “ fire-worms” aud grass-hop¬ 
pers. The latter give the most trouble, as flooding simply 
drives them off, aud as the water cannot be lelt on more 
than a day without injury to the fruit, the insects return 
and continue their depredations. When the bogs are 
flooded, they require close watchiug in case of heavy rains, 
as the dams might break from a sudden rise of the water. 
The Scald or Rot. 
One source of loss is the scald or roc, aud for this no oue 
seems to be able to offer any certain explanation or remedy. 
Oue of tne urnst plausible explanations of us origin is that 
it is caused by the exposure to the action ot the sun when 
the bogs are tuned and sanded. This is thought to be an 
unnatural state for the plant and one that may be the 
cause of the trouble. This is the reason for the prefer¬ 
ence for old mill-ponds, previously spoken of, where the 
plants grow more nearly in their natural state. Many 
growers have advanced theories as to the cause of this 
evil; but thus far nothing definite seems to be known. 
The Iron Mills Bog. 
This is one of the largest and best bogs in town. At 
first sight a grain farmer would probably hesitate to accept 
it as a gift if he were compelled to pay the taxes on it. It 
looks like a vast, swampv waste, yet it is valued at $1,000 per 
acre. It is situated on the site of an old mill-pond and covers 
an area of 75 a* res. It has been picked for a great many 
years, and is as good as ever. Excepting during the pick- 
A New Form of Spoon. Fig. 335. 
ing season, one man at an expense of something like a 
dollar per day, cares for it It does not occupy all his 
time either. There is no plowing, no seeding, no hoeing— 
nothing but pulling s^me weeds and grass and attending 
to the water. The life of a bog seems uncertain, but 
under ordinary conditions there seems no reason why it 
should not last as long as any one man Is likely to sur¬ 
vive. Bogs which have been picked for 30 years are ap¬ 
parently as good as ever. The different varieties seem to 
receive little consideration, many people knowing nothing 
Lawn-Mower Attachment. Fig. 336. 
of the names. Some were simply “ early ” or ” later ” or 
something equally indefinite. 
Old Cranberry Growers. 
Aaron Sorden & Sons are old growers and have done 
much work in clearing and planting bogs for other parties. 
Walter Sorden, to whom we are indebted for much of the 
information given, has been familiar with the business for 
many years. He advocates the system of plantiug without 
turfing as possibly the best to avoid the scald or rot. He 
is an extensive grower of small frmts, sweet potatoes, etc. 
The roads traversed to reach the bo^s are literally winding 
ways. They wiud here and there through unbroken 
forests of small pines and scrub oaks, over sandy knolls 
A New “Ear-Drum.” Fig. 337. 
and through swampy depressions. There are thousands of 
acres of this unimproved land through this part of the 
country. Much of it is held at $30 per acre, and the clear¬ 
ing would cost from $15 to $30 more—rather expensive land 
oue would think, considering that there are no buildings, 
no fences, no improvements of any kind. But there are 
men who buy this land and make money. All who buy 
do not. Special treatment with special crops brings 
satisfactory results. f. h. v. 
We notice that a patent has been issued tor a new 
method of fastening the cover to the rectangular churn. 
Tue R. N.-Y. uses this churu regularly, and the only fault 
it has had to fiud with it is the mantier of fastening the 
cover. The fastening will add to the value of the churn. 
A POTATO-DIGGING MATCH. 
Who knows what a really good day’s work at digging 
potatoes is ? Some men have to struggle to dig 10 bushels, 
while others claim to have dug and picked up 60. Com¬ 
petitive trials would be useful in determining this point 
and making a record. When some of our permanent fairs 
decide to grow actual crops on their own grounds, we 
shall see prizes offered for corn cutting and potato-digging, 
and we feel sure such contests would attract a good deal 
of attention. The following, taken fiom the Melbourne 
( \ustralia) Leader, is the only account of a potato-digging 
contest that we have seen in print. 
“ The conditions were that the man who dug and picked 
the greatest quantity and bagged the same, should get the 
money, bags not to be sewn, but the nearness ot work to 
be taken into account. At 11 A. M., the time fixed for the 
start, the men appeared on tne scene. Quinn, wbo is 
known as the western district potato-digging cnampion, is 
about 31 years of age, about 5 feet 11 incues higfi, and 
about 13 stone in weigfit, well built, and one would think 
physically capable of doing anything where strength 
would be required. Lenahan, the local man, is much 
smaller, being only about 5 feet 8% iuches in night. He, 
like his opponent, is also well built, stands erect, and looks 
as thnugu he could do 100 yards in fair time. He is about 
33 years old. Tne men tossed for pick of ground. Lenahan 
won the toss, but he gained little or no advantage in tnis 
respect. They then made a start. Tuey dug with the 
ordinary forks used. At first the wagering was slightly 
agam.-t the local man, but as time passed on it was a 
matter of some difficulty to say who would be the hero of 
the day. At about half time, however, it was thought 
that the Warrnambool man would do or die. But coming 
to the finish at 2 P. M , Lenahan seemed to throw extra 
vigor into his work, and won by three-quarters of a bag, 
the numoer of bags oug being—Lenahan, 6%, aud Quinn, 
6. It is estimated that they dug between a quarter aud 
one-third of an acre. Thereiore, lu three hours, to dig this 
number of bags, it is reckoned that they are very smart 
digg rs.” 
Unfortunately, we are not told how much the bags held, 
so we cannot tell how many potatoes the men dug or how 
the field yielded. The only potato digging contest the 
writer ever saw came near ending in a tragedy. Among 
the contestants were an Irishman and a negro, who got 
into a fight over some trivial matter and thus broke up 
the match. We would like to know the record of some of 
our potato digging champions. 
THREE NEW PATENTS. 
New Table-spoon. —Figure 335 shows a spoon that has 
just been patented. We understand that strong efforts 
will be made to push it into the mouth of public favor. 
The crooked handle is the characteristic point about it. 
Id our opinion it will be a long time before such spoons 
can come into general use. 
Lawn-mower Attachment.— This device is intended 
to catch the grass thrown out by a lawn mower. Many 
patents have been issued for attachments to serve this 
purpose, most of them consisting of some form of box 
hung close behind the cutter bars. The attachment here 
pictured, Fig. 336, seems as light and serviceable as any. 
We question, however, whether the general public will be 
ready to pay much for the device. 
A New Ear Drum. —This appears to be a sort of cap or 
hat with borne perforated material in front, back of which 
is a trumpet-shaped tube. Another smaller tube leads 
from the back of this to the ouiside of the cap, aud thence 
around behind and into the ears (see Fig. 337). It occurs 
to us that something of this sort might lie made very use¬ 
ful for those who are partially deaf. Most deaf people 
dislike to wear any appliance that must be kept in public 
view, though it is evident that in order to increase the 
power of defective ears, an increased space must be pre¬ 
sented to the sound waves. As deaf people are naturally 
sensitive about their affliction, the most popular appliance 
will be that which can be, at least partially, concealed. 
CATALOGUES. ETC., nECEIVED. 
Peter Henderson & Co., 35 Cortlandt Street, N. Y. 
—This is an autumn bulb catalogue professedly, though 
many of its finely illustrated pages are devoted to the 
popular house pianis of the day as well as to small fruits 
and flower seeds for fail sowing. It is a beautiful work of 
64 large pages, with colored covers showing the spring- 
blooming bulbs which should be planted now. This firm 
has suffered an irreparable loss in the death of its founder, 
the well-known and kindly-hearted Peter Henderson ; but 
the two sons, Alfred and Charles, reared under his prac¬ 
tical guidance, will, we feel assured, fully maintain the 
honorable record of the old firm. 
The Catalogue of William Knabe & Co.. B\ltimore, 
Mu., gives some facts that will interest all musicians. 
The Kuabe pianos are famous the world over. Eugene 
D’Aloert, tne celebrated piamsr, wrote tue following note: 
“During my sojourn here 1 had frequent opportunities to 
make myself acquainted with the Kuaoe pianos, and irom 
fullest conviction 1 declare them to oe tne best instru¬ 
ments ot America, Should l return here for artistic pur¬ 
poses—which may be the case very soon—I shall most cer¬ 
tainly use the pianos of this ceiebrated make. 1 give this 
testimonial with pleasure, voluntarily, and entirely un¬ 
solicited by the house ot Knabe.” 
It is absolutely remarkable how many patents are issued 
for churns and churu powers. Tne object of these new 
devices is to hasten the formation of butter. They are all 
“three-minute” or “ five-minute ” affairs and the prin¬ 
ciple in each is a dasher of some peculiar formation, 
whirled about at a very rapid pace in the cream or milk. 
Now this sort of thing is just what good butter makers 
should avoid. There is no sense in nurrying tue churn¬ 
ing, lor what is gained in time by one of these churns is 
surely lost in quality. 
