i89o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
8i3 
many might be temporarily in want in limited areas. 
The condition of Ireland today might seem to 
refute this; but in 1847, when the suffering was intense and 
people were starving by thousands and food, clothes and 
money to the value of $10,000,000 were sent to their relief, 
products to the value of $250,000,000 were exported (or 
taken away by the landlords) from the country. Prince 
Kropotkin, in an article in the August Forum, entitled 
“The Possibilities of Agriculture,” says : 
“ Since man has learned steam and electricity industrial 
wealth has grown at a rate which no possible increase of 
population could attain, and it can grow with still greater 
speed. Cultivated by 10 times more workers, the soil 
would not refuse to supply them with all they might 
want.” He speaks of the islands of Guernsey and Jersey 
and various other places where the soil (in many places 
rocky and naturally unproductive), supports a population 
of 1,200 to 1,300 to the square mile, besides numerous cattle 
and other stock, while, in addition, large quantities of 
agricultural products are exported. With the methods of 
agriculture at present known, I believe this country could 
support 500,000,000 inhabitants.” The writer of the before 
mentioned article again says: “ It is not the natural in¬ 
fertility of the soil or the climatic conditions which prevent 
all wheat growers from raising 60 bushels to the acre ; it 
is simply the systematic ruining of the tillers of the soil by 
the landlord, the State, the middleman and the capi¬ 
talist.” T. E. BULLARD. 
Saratoga County, N. Y. 
THAT FISH FERTILIZER. 
PROF. E. H. JENKINS, NEW HAVEN, CONN. 
Fish scrap of the composition mentioned on page 757, is 
a very cheap fertilizer. I assume that it is ground. If not, 
it will pay to have this done and still it will be a very cheap 
article. It should be bought with the understanding that 
if it is not fully up to the guarantee a proportional rebate 
must be allowed on the price. At the given price and with 
the guaranteed composition, if phosphoric acid be valued 
at six cents per pound, the nitrogen will cost only seven 
cents. The ruling price last season was from 16 to 18 cents 
in blood and from 12 to 15 cents in cotton seed meal. 
Muriate of potash at $42 per ton furnishes potash at 4.2 
cents per pound. 
“Standard brands of potato fertilizers by the best 
makers” vary greatly in composition. A particular brand 
may be quite constant in composition; but the ideas of 
different makers vary much as to the requirements of the 
crop. Thus 11 different brands examined here this year 
showed from 2 to 5.3 per cent of nitrogen ; from 7.7 to 11.2 
of phosphoric acid and from 4.2 to 10 of potash. 
The neighbor who uses the mixture of muriate and fish, 
which he proposes, will get 3,500 pounds of fertilizer, con¬ 
taining 7 per cent of nitrogen, 6 of phosphoric acid and 
7 of potash. It will cost him $25 per ton, allowing 
$1.90 for the cost of mixing. By adding 1,800 pounds of a 
“ potato fertilizer,” costing $37.50 per ton, he would prob¬ 
ably largely reduce the per cent of nitrogen, increase some 
what that of phosphoric acid and not greatly change that 
of potash. He would also increase the cost by about $3 per 
ton. I do not see that anything is to be gained by adding 
the “potato fertilizer.” If it is felt that there is too high 
a per cent of nitrogen, that to give an early start, some 
nitrate is wanted, or that the presence of muriate is a dis¬ 
advantage, mixtures like the following are worth con¬ 
sideration : 
A 
Lbs. 
1,(100 
150 
Fish at $20 per ton. costs.$10.10 
Nltrateofs da at $50 per ton, costs 3.15 
Phosphoric 
Nitrogen. Aci >. Potash. 
-And supplies-■ 
83 lbs. 70 lbs. —lbs. 
24 — - 
800 
Muriate potash ,, $42’ „ „ 
6.S0 
— 
— 
150 
550 
DU. boue black at $26 , ,, 
7.15 . 
— 
88 
— 
2,004 
B 
27.20 
107 
158 
150 
1,000 
H*h at $20 .. ,, 
10 00 
83 
70 
— 
150 
Nitrate of soita at $50 „ „ 
3.75 
21 
— 
— 
600 
Double manure salt at $iu 
5.00 
— 
— 
156 
250 
Dls. bone black at $26 „ „ 
3.25 
— 
40 
— 
2,000 
C 
26.00 
107 
no 
156 
1,000 
Fish at $20 
iaoo 
86 
70 
— 
150 
Nitrate of soda at $50 ,, „ 
High Kfadesul. of potash at $65 „ 
Dls. boue black at $26 „ „ 
3.75 
21 
— 
— 
300 
9.75 
- 
— 
150 
550 
7.15 
— 
88 
— 
2,000 
3*).65 
107 
158 
150 
These three mixtures compare in composition and price 
as follows, allowing $2 per ton for mixing, which is a very 
liberal estimate: 
ABC 
Nitrogen as nitrates. 1.2 1.2 1.2 
Organic nitrogen. 4.1 4.1 4.1 
Total nitrogen. 5.3 5.3 5 8 
Soluble an 1 reverted phosphoric acid. . 6.1 3-7 6.1 
Insoluble phosphoric acid. 1.8 1.8 1.8 
Total phosphoric acid. 7.9 5.5 7.9 
Potash as muriate. 75 — — 
Potash as sulphate. — 7 3 7.5 
Cost per ton.§28.50 $28.00 $32.00 
Very likely better can be prepared. These are given 
merely as illustrations. 
Considerably more potash can be applied without injury 
than these formulas call for. Whether it will pay can only 
be learned by experiment. 
The only economical way to purchase either mixed 
goods or fertilizer chemicals is : 1. To club together and 
make up an order of some size. 2. To pay cash. 3. To in¬ 
sist on a definite guarantee with a rebate payment if the 
goods are not fully up to guarantee. 
C. C. P., Brooklyn , N. Y .—What is the best asparagus ? 
Is fall the best time to plant it ? 
Ans.—W e are trying all kinds of asparagus at the Rural 
Grounds. As yet we can not see any marked difference 
which would justify us in naming one kind as better than 
others. You may still plant asparagus sets. Earlier 
would have been desirable, but the sets may be planted as 
long as the ground can be suitably prepared. 
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.] 
Soil Analysis. 
A. IF. S., No address— Why do not soil analyses point 
out just what fertilizers are needed to make a soil produce 
the best crops of grain or vegetables ? 
ANS.-rSimply because soils vary so in composition that 
it is impossible to select for analysis a peck that will 
fairly represent a five or ten acre field. Soil analysis is a 
useful aid to experimenting because it points the way and 
hints at what is needed, but it will not answer alone, not 
only because it is next to impossible to secure an average 
sample of a good-sized field, but because while it may tell 
the amount of the different elements present, it does not 
give their solubility and hence fails to give their real value. 
Rye for Pregnant Mares. 
IF. A. D., Oraysville, O. —1. Will feeding rye, either 
whole or ground, cause a mare to abort at any period of 
parturition ? 2. Will working a mare with foal in a tread- 
power affect either the dam or fetus ? If so, how ? 
ANSWERED BY DR. HENRY STEWART. 
I. There is nothing in rye that is free from ergot to 
endanger the safety of a mare in foal. It i3 a nutritious 
grain and, when coarsely ground with corn, makes an ex¬ 
cellent food. But, while the grain itself is harmless if it is 
fed alone, it may do injury by its impaction in the stomach 
and its indigestion, and this may so interfere with the con¬ 
dition of the mare as to endanger the safety of the foal in 
utero. But this is not at all a frequent occurrence. I have 
known wheat to have this effect, but never rye, although 
in smallness and tendency to ferment when crushed and 
moistened in the stomach, the grain is quite equal to 
wheat. The rye, however, is always to be used with sus¬ 
picion, because it is frequently accompanied with ergot, 
which acts very strongly upon the nervous system of the 
uterus. Almost every person knows of the medicinal use 
of rye ergot, and if the rye were diseased in this way 
it might easily have the above result upon a pregnant 
mare. This is so well understood, or should be, that no 
rye should be fed to mares unless it is grown on the farm 
and is known to be free from ergot. This freedom, how¬ 
ever, is so rare, and rye is so nearly always infected by er¬ 
got, that I would never use it as food for a breeding mare. 
2. As to working a pregnant mare in a tread-power, chat 
would be injudicious. It would strain severely the mus¬ 
cles of the abdomen and the uterus, and would undoubt¬ 
edly be harmful, not only for this reason, but also because 
the position of the mare, elevated in the front and lowered 
behind, would tend to throw the weight of the uterus and 
its contents into an abnormal position, and add very much 
to the injurious strain upon the muscles. It would bo 
much more dangerous to a mare advanced in pregnancy 
but would not be without so much danger at any time as 
to make such work unfit for a mare even lately in foal. If 
the mare in question has been worked in this way, and the 
rye has been clean from ergot, there can be little doubt 
that the tread-power was the cause of the mischief, for it 
is clearly sufficient to accomplish it. 
Peculiar Growth of Potatoes. 
D. N., Tioga County, N. Y.— While digging potatoes I 
frequently find a hill that has large, well-developed vines, 
and every appearance of a good hill, but, when opened, 
there will be one potato the size of a hen’s egg with per¬ 
haps 10 to 30 smaller ones down to the size of a pea. Can 
any one tell what causes this peculiar growth ? 
ANS.—It is a hard question to answer. It probably is 
caused by inequalities of the soil or local deposits of ex¬ 
cessive nitrogen from dead animals, such as rats and moles, 
or from hen manure or something of the kind. It some, 
times occurs that moles or other insects destroy the setting 
tubers while the vines are not injured. 
Large Yield of a Seedling Potato. 
F. B., Pine Village, Ind. —The vine of a seedling potato 
grew five feet in length and spread proportionately. There 
were three poimds one ounce of tubers. Six of them 
weighed from 2 to 7X ounces. They were nearly all 
smooth. Is such a yield common ? 
Ans.—S uch yields from seed are uncommon, but not 
phenomenal. We have raised as high as five pounds from 
a single seedling plant. The value of a new seedling can 
scarcely be guessed at before it is raised from the tuber. 
Of course we may hope for better varieties from strong 
vines and mauy tubers than from the reverse. Still the 
fact that it yielded so well from seed is not proof that it 
will yield well from the tuber the next year. 
“Small Potatoes; Few in a Hill.” 
J. T. T., Buffalo, N. Y. —I bought a farm about four 
years ago and hired a farmer. By his advice I planted two 
acres of an old pasture with potatoes (White Star): result, 
45 bushels. In 1X acre of land that had been in corn the 
previous year, I got 65 bushels (Burbanks), part of them 
being badly eaten by “grubs.” The following year two 
acres of another field were planted with Clark’s No. 1, and 
600 pounds of Crocker’s Potato Manure to the acre were 
scattered in the row after the potatoes had been planted : 
result, 40 bushels of tubers almost too small to market. 
The following season I planted two acres with Clark’s No.l, 
Lee’s Favorite, New Queen, Chas. Downing, and Alexan¬ 
der’s Prolific, using unleached wood ashes at the rate of 
600 pounds and Milsom’s Phosphate at the rate of 600 
pounds to the acre. From this planting I got no potatoes 
that could be marketed. This year I turned over two 
acres of a field that had been under grass for 18 years, the 
hay having been taken off year after year and nothing put 
on in the shape of a fertilizer. The soil is a black 
loam with a sort of a gravelly clay subsoil. Here I planted 
the State of Maine, Empire State, Rural New-Yorker 
No. 2, Halo of Dakota, Burbank, Beauty of Hebron, Po¬ 
laris, Snow Queen, New Queen, Summit, Bonanza and 
Thorburn. The crop was full of wire-worms. The Rural 
New-Yorker No. 2 gave two bushels for one planted, and 
Halo of Dakota the same. I planted 20 bushels altogether, 
and got back 15, mostly small and wormy tubers. Through 
the mistake of my farmer nothing was put on this land, 
the sheep manure I bought for this purpose having been 
put elsewhere. My oats and wheat, both spring and win¬ 
ter, have been good in favorable seasons, but it seems that 
the soil needs something beside phosphate for potatoes. 
Would a dressing of salt or lime be likely to do good P If 
so. how much should be used for next year’s experiment 
(my last if not successful) ? I have one acre planted to rye 
and one acre to clover, which I propose to turn under about 
June 8, with the intention of planting potatoes there; what 
other treatment would be advisable to make a success of 
the effort ? Can good crops of potatoes be raised by using 
nitrate of soda ? 
Ans. —We have never been successful with potatoes 
planted late. We fancy, from the above statement, that 
our friend may have used too little nitrogen. We would 
advise him to try the following per acre: 200 pounds 
of superphosphate furnishing phosphoric acid only, 
in a soluble form ; 400 pounds of fine bone ; 200 pounds of 
muriate of potash; 200 pounds of nitrate of soda. 
The Maple Sugar Bounty. 
Several Subscribers .—What about the proposed govern¬ 
ment bounty on maple sugar ? When and where is it to 
be paid ? How can a sugar maker obtain it ? What effect 
will it probably have on the maple sugar business ? What 
proportion of makers turn out sugar enough to entitle 
them to the bounty ? 
ANSWERED BY DR. T. H. HOSKINS. 
Applicants lor this bounty should write at once to the 
Commissioner of Internal Revenue, at Washington, for the 
blanks and other papers, which must be filed by all appli¬ 
cants for this bounty. On their receipt, these should be 
promptly filled out and returned as directed. There is 
already a rush of applicants, and it is quite possible that 
delay in making application will result in not getting the 
requisite statements returned and attended to in time for 
the next crop. In government offices it is like a barber’s 
shop—first come first served, at least everywhere ex¬ 
cept in the Pension Bureau, where by favor an in¬ 
fluential applicant is sometimes “ advanced ” on the 
roll. The bounties will be paid through the same 
office. The appearance, quality and condition of the 
sugar or the way it is put up will not be con¬ 
sidered, further than to ascertain the actual percentage of 
pure cane sugar contained in the product, which, if 90 per 
cent or more, will entitle the maker to a bounty of two 
cents a pound; but if between 80 and 90 per cent only IX 
cent. The amount for which this bounty will be paid must 
not be less than 500 pounds in a season ; but it is said, on 
how good authority I do not know, that smaller producers 
may unite their product. There are not, however, a great 
many farmers in \ ermont who make a smaller quantity 
than 500 pounds, which is only the average product from 
166 trees. The greater difficulty will be in bringing up the 
product to 90 per cent of pure sugar. Very little maple 
sugar, comparatively, will reach this percentage as it is 
made; but by draining it may easily be brought up to that 
standard by an experienced maker. Of course, all that is 
not sugar reduces the percentage, which makes it import¬ 
ant not only to be cleanly in all the processes, and to avoid 
the least acidity, but also to secure the thorough settling 
out of the lime salt known to makers as “niter.” To 
accomplish this the syrup must be drawn off into the 
settling tub at just the right stage of concentration, and 
carefully strained before sugaring off. The tendency of the 
law is therefore to encourage makers to produce as clean 
and as pure sugar as possible, up to the standard of 90 
degrees, which not only draws the full bounty, but by 
that very fact is guaranteed (if honestly made) to the 
future buyer. But there is a temptation held forth in this 
provision for the addition of granulated sugar to the syrup 
before sugaring. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
J. P. P., Highland, N. Y .—The Minnewaski Black¬ 
berry is offered for sale by A. J. Cay wood, Marlboro, N. Y. 
Subscriber, Michigan,(address mislaid ).—The apple sent 
us for name was forwarded to Messrs. Ellwanger & Barry, 
Rochester, N. Y., for identification. They say: “ The variety 
is to be found here in old orchards, and is known as the 
Leather Sweet. It is a sweet apple and a very late keeper. 
We have never grown it in our nurseries. This is about all 
the information we can give about it. ” 
IF. S. M., Neasho, Md .—What work will give satisfac¬ 
tory information on fruit growing, chiefly apples. 
Ans.— Barry’s Fruit Garden, $2, and Thomas’s Fruit Cul- 
turist, $2, are the best. They will be sent, postpaid, from 
this office on receipt of the price. 
E. R. B., Fayetteville, Wis .—My land was covered with 
dandelions last spring and I want to reseed it. Should I 
plow under a heavy coat of barn-yard manure this fall and 
summer-fallow it next summer, or seed down in the spring? 
Wouldn’t commercial fertilizers be better than farm man¬ 
ure on account of the possible presence of weed seeds in 
the latter ? If so, what kind should I use ? 
Ans.— To fallow would make a long job of it. If our 
friend has old (well-rotted) manure, we should prefer to 
plow it under this fall. In the absence of old manure, the 
fertilizer would answer nicely. We should use, before 
seeding, unleached ashes and raw bone flour, and use them 
liberally, at the rate of not less than one ton to the acre of 
bone and ashes, according to the price in the locality. 
