1896 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
74i 
NOTES FROM AMERICAN INSTITUTE FAIR. 
NUTS, GRAPES AND VEGETABLES. 
One feature of the American Institute Fair that at¬ 
tracted much attention was the display of nuts made 
by Parrys’ Pomona Nurseries, Parry, N. J. It com¬ 
prised 18 varieties of chestnuts, French, American 
Black, Persian, English Madeira and Japan walnuts, 
hickory nuts, pecans, filberts and butternuts. It 
showed the advance that has been made in nut grow¬ 
ing, and the interest manifested by visitors in the ex¬ 
hibit, showed that the public are anxious to learn 
about the subject. The size of several of the varie¬ 
ties of chestnuts was a revelation to many. The 
quality of the nuts was left to the imagination, as 
“ hands off ” was the injunction. Yet some not hav¬ 
ing the fear of wormy chestnuts before their eyes, 
had sadly depleted the collection, the superintendent 
saying that visitors would steal them in spite of 
everything. 
Of the Japan chestnuts, the following, given in the 
order of their ripening, are recommended by the 
firm : Alpha, said to be the earliest chestnut known, 
is described as an upright, vigorous grower, coming 
into bearing at three years of age, and being very 
productive. Nuts large, four inches around, and two 
to three in a burr. It ripens September 5 to 10 with¬ 
out frost. Beta is an upright, vigorous grower, bear¬ 
ing at two to three years of age, very productive. 
Nuts large in size, two to three to the burr, ripening 
September 10 to 15, at the Pomona Nurseries. Early 
Reliance is of low, dwarf spreading habit, beginning 
to bear immediately, one-year grafts being frequently 
loaded. Nuts large, four inches in circumference, 
three to five nuts to the burr. The tree is said to be 
enormously productive, the nuts smooth, bright, uni¬ 
form, attractive, ripening September 18 to 20. Success 
is given as larger than any of the others, tree an up¬ 
right, vigorous grower, very productive. Nuts ripen 
September 20 to 23, but nothing is said as to their 
quality. Parry’s Superb is very highly praised, both 
in tree and fruit, and is recommended as a very valua¬ 
ble market sort. Giant is said to bear nuts measuring 
six inches in circumference, and running two to a 
burr. Tree a vigorous, upright grower, very produc¬ 
tive ; nuts smooth, dark and attractive. “ The largest 
known chestnut.” 
The Spanish chestnut is described as a handsome, 
round-headed tree of rapid, spreading growth, that 
yields abundantly of large nuts of good quality, 
hence a desirable ornamental tree or profitable for 
market. Ridgeley is described as a large variety of 
the Spanish chestnut from Delaware, very productive 
and of good quality. Numbo and Paragon are both 
highly praised. The Native Sweet is placed at the 
end of the list, but is described as being unsurpassed 
for sweetness and quality. 
The Japan walnut is very highly recommended. It 
is claimed to be as hardy as the oak, leaves of im¬ 
mense size and of a charming shade of green. The 
nuts are produced in abundance, in clusters of 15 or 20 ; 
they have shells thicker than those of the Persian 
walnut, but not so thick as the Black walnut. Meat 
sweet, of the best quality, flavor like a butternut, but 
less oily and much superior. The trees are vigorous, 
of a handsome form, and need no pruning; they 
mature early, and bear young. The trees named are 
well worthy the attention of farmers. This country 
is paying for imported nuts something like $2,000,000 
per year, the larger part of which should be kept at 
home. 
A superb collection of grapes, comprising nearly 
100 varieties, was shown by C. C. Corby of Montclair, 
N. J. Among them was a new seedling which gives 
great promise. Ellwanger & Barry with a magnifi¬ 
cent collection of 75 varieties, had to take second 
place this time, something unusual. E. & J. C. Wil¬ 
liams of Montclair, had some fine specimens on 
exhibition, though having a smaller number of varie¬ 
ties. D. M. Dunning, of Auburn, N. Y., captured 
everything in the way of premiums on hothouse 
grapes. 
There was a large and varied display of vegetables. 
Of greatest general interest, were those shown by 
what are known as the vacant lot farmers. These are 
grown, to a large extent, by the unemployed poor of 
the city, who have thus been aided to help themselves, 
and to learn, by practical experience, the independ¬ 
ence that comes to the tiller of the soil. The exhibit 
showed that they were successful in producing, not 
only fine specimens of all the common vegetables, but 
many of those not commonly grown here, like sweet 
potatoes and peanuts. And the winner of the largest 
number of prizes was a woman. 
One collection of vegetables showed the advantages 
of cooperation. It was made by the Riverhead Town 
£ gricultural Society. Probably no single individual 
could begin to make such a collection, but united 
effort made a big and a fine showing. J. M. Thor- 
burn & Co., also had a large collection, comprising 
almost every garden vegetable, both seasonable and 
unseasonable. Peter Henderson & Co., made some 
very attractive special exhibits, the most noticeable 
among them being a representation of a market wagon 
loaded with Snowball cauliflowers, all of the finest 
and whitest, and facing outward. It was a fine sight, 
and was really a work of art. It was arranged by 
Mr. Julius Heinrich, the man who had charge of their 
exhibit at the Columbian Exposition. 
Stephen Hoyt’s Sons exhibited a collection of or¬ 
namental trees and shrubs. There were three collec¬ 
tions of potatoes, comprising 130 or more varieties 
each, conspicuous among them being the Carmans and 
Rural New-Yorker No. 2. The best part of the fair was 
the show of fruits, vegetables and flowers, and these 
were greatly appreciated by the visitors. F. h. v. 
WHA T THEY SAY. 
Apn.ES from Wyoming. — Two specimens of a 
variety of apple came to-day (October 18), from G. W. 
B., of Sheridan, Wyoming, for name, with the re¬ 
quest to reply through The R. N.-Y., as, “Many 
western readers would be glad to know the name of 
this apple that keeps well into mid-summer, and does 
well otherwise.” It is Ben Davis, but the specimens 
are remarkably small for that variety, (less than two 
inches diameter), although not smaller than I have 
seen it in Maine, northern Michigan, and elsewhere 
in the extreme North, and in high altitudes. At 
Salida, Colorado, at an altitude of 7,100 feet, I found 
it bearing about such specimens as those from 
Wyoming. This proves, not only the remarkable 
adaptability of the Ben Davis, but the wide range of 
variation in size, color, flavor and season that climate 
will produce. I had this fact displayed in the ex¬ 
hibit of the Division of Pomology, in the Government 
Building, at the Columbian Exposition in 1893, by a 
set of typical varietal variations, and with this same 
variety. The models were made by that famous 
artist, Col. G. B. Brackett, of Iowa, whose work as a 
fruit modeler, I have never seen equaled. 
H. E. VAN DEMAN. 
An Improved Combination Machine. 
The close times have set me to contriving all man¬ 
ners of ways to help me out, and by sowing German 
millet seed in my potatoes when I laid them by, I suc¬ 
ceeded in producing potatoes at two cents per bushel. 
But it is of a labor-saving machine that I desire to 
write. I have had the Moore Company, of New 
Jersey, make me a special roller with two seeders 
attached, and I can now roll my land, sow clover and 
flaxseed, and draw a nine-foot harrow behind the 
roller, all at one job, thus saving two trips with the 
hand seeder and one trip with the harrow. By tak¬ 
ing out the middle pulley of the roller, and attaching 
the weeder behind the roller, I can roll my potatoes 
and weed them all at once. A V-shaped lever attached 
to the weeder and over the roller box, enables me to 
put my weight on it and lift the weeder clear of the 
ground. In listed corn, I can run the roller and draw 
the harrow all at once, two 1,500-pound horses doing 
the work easily. When potato tops are small, my boy 
can drive and ride on the roller, while myself and 
man hold two Planet Jr. cultivators behind, thus roll¬ 
ing, cultivating and pulverizing all at once. A meadow 
can be rolled and two kinds of grass seed sown at 
once, or dry fertilizer and grass seed. The Moore 
Company write me that they are constructing a roller 
with two seeders, for Prof. Voorhees, of the New Jer¬ 
sey Station, that will sow grass seed and wet chemi¬ 
cal fertilizers all at one job. The seeders will never 
clog, and will sow anything from shelled corn to dry 
road dust. clarence j. Norton. 
Kansas. 
WHAT SAY? 
What is Milk Fever? —I had the misfortune to 
lose a cow that was taken sick shortly after calving. 
The veterinary called the attack “ milk fever.” I 
lost a mare that was taken sick almost immediately 
after foaling, and the veterinary called that “ acute 
indigestion.” I did not regard the diagnosis as cor¬ 
rect either time. The next time I have a beast at¬ 
tacked under such circumstances, I shall ask the 
veterinary thoroughly to disinfect the generative 
tract, making sure, at the same time, that no por¬ 
tion of the afterbirth or membranes is retained. I 
shall do this because it seems to me that these cases 
are of the same nature as those that are known under 
the name of puerperal fever in lying-in women. If 
no improvement follow in a reasonable time, I shall 
not let the animal suffer as those two did. I am not 
a veterinary, and may, therefore, be wrong in my 
conclusions. I should be pleased to learn from any 
reliable source what are the post-mortem appearances 
discovered after such cases. To me, it seems as 
though the best preventive must consist in the most 
scrupulous and thorough antiseptic precautions 
against infection. For, if my suspicion be well- 
founded, the disease is of microbial origin; the germ, 
or germs, that serve as its essential cause, entering the 
system by way of the open surface left after the 
detachment of the afterbirth, having first, however, 
probably infected the usual discharge, in which they 
would multiply, under the favorable conditions that 
it affords, with frightful rapidity. The only hope of 
cure in a genuine case would rest upon prompt and 
appropriate treatment. w. o. E. 
What Ails the Apple Orchard? — I have an 
orchard of 00 apple trees, of about 40 varieties, set 
35x40 feet, 19 years ago. It bore a full crop about 
eight or ten years ago, and aside from that, has not 
borne more than the equivalent of one good crop in 
the 19 years. It has been fed with ashes, clover and 
stable manure, and well pruned and sprayed. Part 
of the soil is sandy loam, and part clay loam. The 
trees are thrifty, yet I do not think that it is making 
an excessive growth. It is well drained. Possibly it 
receives too much nitrogen. At least, I shall apply 
no more stable manure until I take a few good crops 
from it. What can I do to start it to producing ? It 
ought to yield 200 barrels per annum, instead of that 
many pecks or less, as it now does. f. 
Ohio. 
What Ails These Pullets. —My early pullets are 
affected with a strange disease. When first taken, 
scabby sores break out on one side of the head and 
comb, the eye on that side closes, but there is no dis¬ 
charge. The mouth inside then becomes swollen and 
is coated with a thick, yellow coating about the color 
of sulphur which can be skinned or pulled off and has 
a very offensive odor. They then begin to discharge 
from the mouth a white, foamy substance that is also 
offensive, and the same foamy discharge comes from 
both eyes, and the nose is stopped up but is dry. The 
throat is also swollen and sore and they can’t eat or 
drink. That’s as far as a case has gone. There’s 
only about one day to each stage of the worst affected 
case we have. The 10xl6-foot house they roost in is 
built of heavy poles, and is very open. I built it for 
all the ventilation possible. The roosts are 18 inches 
high, and about 75 pullets roost there and have ever 
since they could first sit on a pole. The house is 
cleaned every morning, and it’s as clean as a yard. 
Americus, Ga. J. J. m. g. 
BUSINESS BITS. 
Do your own repairing. But you cannot do it without a kit of 
tools. Just lookup the offer of Heesen Bros. & Co., Tecumaeh, 
Mich., in this issue, it seems to us that these tools, and the 
articles that go with them, ought to pay for themselves in any 
family in a short time. 
Florists and others in need of moss and holly for the holiday 
trade, will be interested in “ Vaughan’s Green Circular”. The 
circular gives some valuable ideas about moss. The circular is 
issued by Vaughan’s Seed Store, 86 Randolph Street, Chicago, Ill., 
and 14 Barclay Street, New York. 
Where the conditions are just right, the hydraulic ram is a 
most economical means of forcing water where you want it. If 
you don’t know whether it would work or not with your condi¬ 
tions, write C. & A. Hodgkins Co., Marlborough, N. H. They will 
also give you estimates for putting it in. 
Tub National Association of Exhibitors of Live Stock will hold 
their second annual exhibition of live stock at Madison Square 
Garden, New York, November 23-28. This show will embrace all 
sorts of live stock, and since the Chicago Fat Stock Show has 
been given up, the New York exhibition ranks at the head of all 
American stock shows. 
The Nordyke & Marrnon Co., 270 Day Street, Indianapolis, Ind., 
make a cob-meal grinding outfit especially adapted for farm and 
custom grinding. The mill is fitted with genuine French buhr 
stones, and will grind, coarse or fine, cob meal, mixed feed or any 
grain for stock, also the finest of table corn meal, buckwheat, 
rye and Graham flour for family use. This firm have been building 
flour mills and feed mills for 50 years, and have won a world-wide 
reputation for first-class machinery. They will send “ Book on 
Mills ” and sample of meal free if you send your name and 
address. 
The best mutton sheep come from countries where roots are 
largely fed. A root is nearly nine-tenths water, but so are fruits, 
and we all know how useful fruit is in a human ration. Sheep 
crave “ succulence” in their food. It stimulates the appetite, in¬ 
creases the natural secretions, regulates the bowels to a nicety, 
and aids greatly in the consumption, digestion and assimilation 
of other foods, and finally promotes the general health of the 
animal. It is safe to say that root growing would have been 
greatly extended by this time, but for the difficulty of reducing 
the roots to a condition to be fed economically and safely. The 
Banner root cutter, made by O. E. Thompson & Sons , Ypsilanti, 
Mich., is to root culture what the ensilage cutter is to the corn 
crop. It changes the whole aspect of farming in many places, 
because it gives increased value to a good crop. Look it up. 
T. B. Terry writes his experience with the Dietz lamp in 
dark nights, to Practical Farmer, as follows: “Ido not like 
to drive in a very dark night. When I must, I want a lamp 
that will light the road ahead of me, so that I can see about as 
well as in the daytime. This Dietz lamp is dark in the rear, so it 
does not trouble your eyes, and can be attached to the center of 
the dashboard for two horses, or on the left side for one horse. 
Then I sit on the left side, and drive in the blackest night with 
safety and comfort. There is no straining of the eyes. I can see 
teams coming better by sitting on the left side, and having the 
lamp on the same side. If I sit on the right side, the shadow cast 
by the horse bothers me. In a dark night, there is no trouble in 
lighting the whole width of the road from fence to fence, 100 feet 
or more ahead, except in the shadow of the horse. This testimony 
is entirely unsolicited. I saw their advertisement several years 
ago, bought a lamp, and like it,” 
