664 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
October 3 
The Agent’s Share. 
By the time this issue of The R. N.-Y. reaches readers, the trial-subscription 
contest will he closed. It ends September 30. Here are the winners of the last 
weekly premiums in this contest: 
$3—J. O. LOFTTN. North Carolina. 86 Trial Subscriptions. 
*2—RONSON GERMAN. Michigan. 30 Trial Subscriptions. 
$1—C. R. FARNUM. Massachusetts. 20 Trial Subscriptions. 
The new agents to draw premiums were : 
88—F. W. PAINE. New York. 12 Trial Subscriptions. 
$2—C. C. PYLE. Pennsylvania. 9 Trial Subscriptions. 
$1—S. S. THORNILY. Ohio. 5 Trial Subscriptions. 
fr^M r As soon after September 30 as we can get the names counted, checks will be 
sent for the contest premiums as promised. We hope to get them out by October 1, 
and to give a full report in next week’s issue. The agents, as a rule, have not sent 
in large clubs. Many, however, have sent in small clubs, with no intention of 
competing for premiums, and these have swelled the list very much, though, on 
the whole, it will be short of the similar contest of last year. When it is all 
figured up, we think that the result will show that we send the agents back more 
money than they sent us on this contest, without counting the commission 
retained. This fact may serve as a suggestion for others in the work that follows 
daring the season 
Beginning October 1, agents or club-raisers and our good friends who send 
us an occasional subscription, may say that the paper will be sent free for the 
rest of this year to new yearly subscribers for 1897. This will help agents. The 
term for the next contest will be announced next week, and in the meantime, all 
names sent in after October 1 will count. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, NEW YORK. 
/IsWeCoToI^ 
"CLIMBING HIS BACK." 
When I was a boy, the motive power 
on the farm was a lean, old, knee-sprung 
horse, named Hero. He was bony and 
hide-bound, and his knees bulged out 
like a hunter’s bow. The shadow of an 
oat would have driven him nearly crazy, 
for hay was about the only food that 
he was ever able to get his teeth into. 
It was rumored that, in his earlier days, 
Hero was a horse of some speed, but 
those days were but memories, and all 
he could do in his old age was to jog 
along before the creaky old carriage, or 
pull the rusty wagon. He was motive 
power on a small and rocky farm. 
One winter, the old gentleman with 
whom I lived, bought three pine trees 
standing in the woods. His plan was to 
cut them down, haul them to the saw¬ 
mill, and have them cut into boards for 
a new henhouse. That was the way we 
did business in the old-time Yankee days 
When snow came, we tackled this 
“living henhouse,” and after much rest¬ 
ing and reflection on the old gentleman’s 
part, and much “riding the saw” on 
my part, we got those trees cut into 16- 
foot logs. The next step was to get 
these logs to the sawmill, and that was 
where old Hero was to prove himself 
true to his name. 
He did fairly well with the smaller 
logs ; but one day, the old gentleman 
hitched him to the butt of the largest 
tree, and said, “Git up I” Hero tried 
hard to be worthy of his name. He 
struggled and strained and pawed the 
ground, but all to no purpose — he 
couldn’t start it. The old gentleman 
gave him a dose of the extract of birch 
on the outside o f his ribs ; but that 
didn’t work. Then the old gentleman 
sat down on a stump, and tried to rub a 
solution of the problem out of his bald 
head. Those Yankees do raise remark¬ 
able crops on mighty barren soil some¬ 
times, and this man suddenly started up 
with a brilliant idea. He made me get 
up on old Hero’s back and take the 
lines. Then he brought his stick down 
on the old veteran’s quarter and said, 
“ Git up I” 
Now 1 am giving you the exact facts 
regarding this matter. There was one 
long struggle, and then old Hero started 
the log, walked right off with it, and 
didn’t stop until he got to the sawmill. 
1 rode him all the way—proud enough 
that my 70 pounds weignt had started 
the log ! 
Now, the old gentleman’s reason for 
this result was that Hero “ didn’t have 
heft according to his strength.” His 
legs were strong enough, but he wasn’t 
heavy enough “ to hold his feet on the 
ground !” We will not discuss the scien¬ 
tific aspect of this matter. If my weight 
held Hero’s feet on the ground so that 
he could pull harder, that was enough 
for the old gentleman. My weight 
represented many useful operations, and 
it was cheaper to put my 70 pounds on 
Hero’s back than to put 70 pounds of 
flesh on the old horse’s ribs. I have not 
mentioned this great mechanical truth 
for many years. The last time I referred 
to it, 1 got myself into trouble. I told 
one of our neighbors about it. Shortly 
after, the old gentleman went to an 
auction and bought a broken-down 
wagon — because it was cheap. He 
started for home pulling on the shafts 
while I pulled behind. A great voice 
came bawling after us : 
“ Say, Uncle Daniel, why don't you put 
the boy on your back xo you can pull 
harder! ” 
I can assure you that I was both 
credited and debited for that remark. 
I am not afraid of the consequences any 
longer, therefore we may make the fol¬ 
lowing application. 
X X t 
Many of us are like old Hero. The 
conditions under which we have lived 
have left us just a little knee-sprung. 
There was a time when we had lots of 
speed. Trouble, disappointment, “that 
&Ui£crUanmt.o' 
A brilliant complexion is a beauty in It¬ 
self. It pleases the eyes of thoughtless 
? eople and the minds of thinking people. 
hey know that a really good complexion 
is a sign of health, and created by Nature. 
There are different ways of imitating a fine 
complexion : cosmetics, which deceive no¬ 
body, but ruin the skin and make the user 
look silly and prematurely old ; stimulants 
which only give a temporary flush: danger¬ 
ous drugs which drive pimply disorders 
from the face back into the blood. All 
these “counterfeit” complexions are un¬ 
safe and easily detected. But the genuine, 
unmistakeable, much-admired color and 
clearness of health can only be obtained 
by clearing all bilious matters and humors 
out of the blood. 
The first step towards creating a good 
complexion by Nature’s own method is to 
get the blood clear, and the circulation free 
and active. There is no complexion so sal¬ 
low, muddy or pimply but it will be cleared 
and brightened by Dr. Pierce’s Golden 
Medical Discovery. It is the best natural 
complexion-maker on earth. It sends the 
fresh glow o' real health to the cheeks by 
thoroughly Clearing all bilious and eruptive 
humors out of the blood. It strengthens 
the digestion and regulates the bowels in 
a mild, natural way. It gives brighter color 
to the blood, and not only beautifies the 
complexion but makes the eyes brighter 
and the breath sweeter. 
If the bowels be very much constipated, 
it will be advisable to take small doses of 
Dr. Pierce’s Pleasant Pellets, conjointly 
with the use of the “ Golden Medical Dis¬ 
covery.” One or two each day—just suf¬ 
ficient to get their laxative and alterative, 
or blood cleansing, effect will be sufficient. 
tired feeling,” and other influences have 
taken the mental and moral strength 
and speed out of us. When we are 
hitched up to the log of some big enter¬ 
prise, we can’t start it. We may have 
the power, but we lack the weight of 
will and purpose to make that power 
count. 
Now, in such case, we need, just as 
old Hero did, somebody to “ climb on 
our backs ” and add the weight of some 
force and suggestion that we have not 
yet picked up. Lots of men object when 
this climbing process is carried out, but, 
in most cases, the result is good, for it 
stimulates action and thought that 
would not otherwise be brought into 
play. We find that Tue R. N.-Y. has 
acted as a “ back climber” in many in¬ 
stances. We have heard people say that 
certain articles have presented a new 
thought in such a way that it opened a 
new field to them. Others have confessed 
that articles have made them angry, 
but the very anger stirred them up to 
deeper thinking and, in time, lent new 
weight and power to their efforts to 
make a success of agriculture. You can’t 
strike sparks by knocking steel against 
cotton wool. You must have something 
harder than the steel. In order to start 
a fire under the boiler that provides 
power for your life-work, you must 
knock your ideas against something 
harder and more solid than they are. 
The R. N.-Y. tries to get ideas out of 
bed-rock principles hard enough to knock 
sparks out of your plans when they are 
wrong. That is one fair reason why you 
need the paper. As for your neighbors 
and friends—read this note from a man 
on the Pacific coast: 
I am not competing for any premiums. If I can 
get your paper into the hands of a few hundred 
intelligent fruit growers, the better for me. There 
is a community of interest. 
Certainly—there was a “ community of 
interest ” between old Hero and myself. 
There will be just such a community 
between The R. N.-Y. and every sub¬ 
scriber whose name you can send us. 
We shall be as proud as kings if we can 
add any weight that will make your 
hands or heads do better work ! 
SOME MORE HORSE NOTES . 
Low prices have discouraged the business of 
breeding. Very few colts are raised now, as most 
farmers have a surplus of horses and colts on 
hand. Prices have fallen nearly one-half. There 
has not been any change as to breeds, care or 
handling. There is practically no demand at 
present, and farmers, generally, can see no pros¬ 
pect of better prices in the near future—the dis¬ 
tant future they hardly guess at. .r. w. b. 
Chase County, Kan. 
Horse breeding has been on the decrease for the 
past five or six years. Farmers do not raise as 
many colts as formerly. This year there is one 
colt to 30 a few years ago. Prices have fallen 
one-half or more; ahorse that a few years ago 
sold for $ 150, could be bought for $60 or $75 now. 
As to breeds, they are mostly French Norman. 
As for care and handling, there is not much 
change. Horse breeders, as a rule, are hopeful; 
they look for better times soon. o. u. o. 
Montgomery County, O. 
Horse breeding has changed by farmers breed¬ 
ing the better grades of horses. Not one-fifth as 
many colts are raised as live years ago. The 
price has fallen nearly two-th irds within the past 
four years. They are breeding from nothing but 
the best, such as the Norman, Shire, Coach and 
English Draught, and are taking the best of care 
of what they raise. The breeders are more hope¬ 
ful, as good horses are advancing a little in price 
at present, but are very low yet. a. r. n. 
Galt, Iowa. 
I came to this county from Oswego County, N. 
Y., 11 years ago. At that time, the business of 
horse breeding was “ booming”; anything and 
everything that could be used for that puip se, 
was put to breediug. The result could have oeen 
foreseen; the country was filled with a poor grade 
of.stock, which found no sale except at the buyers’ 
own figures. That discouraged breeding, and 
three years ago, a sucking colt could hardly be 
found. Last year, a few animals were bred, and 
this year, the stallions were again making their 
rouu ds through the country as of old. I can’t see 
that there is any improvement in breeding stock 
among the majority of farmers; they have simply 
gone at work again with the same old tools. 
This Is The Light That Never Failed. 
“■*' — “ IT IS A 
Dietz Lantern 
that for seventeen years, through storm and darkness, lighted the 
way of B. W. Burnham, a retail milkman of Saratoga Springs, 
N. Y., on his nightly rounds without a single expense of repair 
during that time, except for now globes, being in constant use. 
Mr. Burnham brought it to the New York ofliee, where it is now 
on exhibition and received a new one for his pains. It is a sample 
of Hie superior material and make of the Dietz Lanterns. 
Ask your dealer for them o r niiTTV pomdauv 
and accept no other. Write olt-lC 1/UIYlrAINI, 
for free pocket catalogue. 60 Laight Street, New York. 
Established 1840. 
YOUR REWARD 
FOR GETTING US 
NEW SUBSCRIPTIONS. 
For one new subscription we will send 
of the books 
The Nursery Book. 
L. H. Bailey. It tells, plainly and briefly, what 
every one who sows a seed, makes a cutting, 
sets a graft or crosses a flower wants to know. 
Paper.50 
Chrysanthemum Culture for America 
James Morton. An excellent and thorough 
book, especially adapted to the culture 
of Chrysanthemums in America. Paper, 60 
The Business Hen. 
H. W. Collingwood. Breeding aDd Feeding 
Poutry for Profit. The egg and the dollar are 
what it chiefly considers. Cloth.75 
First Lessons in Agriculture. 
F. A. Gulley, M. S. It is just what the practi¬ 
cal farmer, without a knowlledge of chem¬ 
istry or botany, needs. Cloth.$1 
you, postpaid, your choice of any one 
in this list. 
American Grape Training. 
L. H. Bailey. Illustrated by photographic en 
gravings of the actual growing vines, and 
represents all the practical systems of train 
ing in detail. Indispensable to every grape 
grower. Flexible cloth.75 
Horticulturists’ Rule Book. 
L. II. Bailey. It contains, in handy and con¬ 
cise form, information required by garden¬ 
ers, fruit growers, truckers, florists, farmers, 
etc. Cloth.75 
The New Potato Culture. 
Elbert S. Carman. Grower of over 1,000 bushels 
of potatoes per acre. This book gives the 
result of 15 years' experiment work on the 
Rural Grounds. Paper.40 
Asparagus Culture. Barnes <fc Robinson.50 
Cabbages. Gregory. 88 pp.30 
Cabbage aud Cauliflower, How to Grow. 
Burpee.30 
Carrots and Mangold Wurtzels. Gregory.30 
Fertilizers. Gregory. 116 pp.40 
Melons, How to Grow for Market. Burpee.30 
Onion Culture, New. Greiner. Paper.50 
Onion Raising. Gregory.30 
Onions, How to Grow. Burpee.30 
Squashes. Gregory .30 
Rural New-Yorker Handy Binder.25 
Hyperion. Longfellow.30 
Outre-Mer. Longfellow.30 
Kavanagh. Longfellow.30 
The Scarlet Letter. Nathaniel Hawthorne.30 
The House of the Seven Gables. Nathaniel 
Hawthorne.30 
Twice-Told Tales. Nathaniel Hawthorne.30 
Mosses from an Old Manse. Natn’l Hawthorne.30 
The Snow-image. Nathaniel Hawthorne.30 
A Wonder-Book for Boys and Girls. Nathaniel 
Hawthorne.30 
Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Stowe.30 
Every book is fit for any library. Bear in mind these books are not given to 
the subscriber as an inducement to take the paper; they are given as reward or 
pay for work and trouble in introducing the paper to new subscribers. If the 
new subscriber is not satisfied with his bargain he can have bis dollar back. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, New York. 
