Marcfi ?, 
188 
THE RURAL'NEW-YORKER. 
W 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Herbert W. Collingwood, Editor. 
DR. WALTER VAN FLEET, I A n „ late . 
Mrs. K. T. HOY LE, ) Associates. 
John J. Dillon, Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries In the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, 
equal to 8s. (id., or 8 Mi marks, or 10 y 3 francs. 
« A SQUARE DEAL.” 
We believe that every advertisement in this paper is 
hacked by a responsible person. But to make doubly sure 
we will make good any loss to paid subscribers sustained 
by trusting any deliberate swindler advertising in our col¬ 
umns, and any such swindler will be publicly exposed. \te 
protect subscribers against rogues, but we do not guarantee 
to adjust trifling differences between subscribers and honest, 
responsible advertisers. Neither will we be responsible for 
the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned by the courts. 
Notice of the complaint must be sent to us within one 
month of the time of the transaction, and you must have 
mentioned Tiie Rural New-Yorker when writing the adver¬ 
tiser. __ 
Name and address of sender, and what the remittance 
is for, should appear in every letter. 
Remittances may be made in money order, express order, 
personal check or bank draft. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
409 Pearl Street, New York. 
SATURDAY, MARCH 4, 1905. 
FORTY PACES! 
TEN WEEKS FOR 10 CENTS. 
In order to introduce The R. N.-Y. to progressive 
intelligent farmers who do not now take it, we send it 
10 weeks for 10 cents for strictly introductory purposes. 
We depend on our old friends to make this known to 
neighbors and friends. 
GOOD MORNING! 
Have you written that letter to Hon. Thomas C. 
Platt ? 
What letter? 
Why, the letter giving your views on the need of a 
parcels post. The Senator wants to know how people 
stand on this subject. Help him get close to the people. 
His address is Washington, D. C. 
* 
Is it possible for a man to work in town or city, and 
at the same time conduct a farm at a profit—work and 
oversight largely done by proxy? R. N.-Y. readers can 
usually give facts and experience covering any side of 
farming! Can “anyone demonstrate the possibility of 
this sort of farming? What can such a man produce, 
and how can he produce it? 
* 
.There seems to be something of a lull in the “boom” 
for that famous “seedless” apple! What’s the matter ? 
We are informed that some of these apples were tested 
at the Department of Agriculture. They were not as 
good as Ben Davis. One had seeds and all large places 
for seeds. Would you pay $3 or three cents for a tree 
which yields apples “not as good as Ben Davis?” 
* 
In refusing to consider a bill for giving increased 
powers to the Interstate Railroad Commission the 
United States Senate discredits both itself and the 
House of Representatives. Many people now say: 
“Well, the ‘House’ would never have passed the bill if 
members had not known the Senate would kill it!” 
The United States Senate seems to be afflicted with that 
form of dignity which becomes a disease. 
* 
We have had our say about ginseng. The craze now 
seems to be dying out. Few fortunes have been made, 
but hundreds of people have spent sums of money which 
they are not likely to see again. The craze was no new 
thing. There was another nearly 200 years ago, which 
is mentioned on page 183 of “Old Quebec,” by Gilbert 
Parker: 
The cultivation of flax and hemp, and the weaving of 
cloth, which had been but a feeble industry since the days 
of Talon, now assumed real importance, and Quebec be¬ 
came the center of considerable shipping trade. Moreover, 
the energies of the people presently found another and al¬ 
luring field. In 1716 a missionary to the Sault Indians 
discovered the ginseng root, which as a medical drug, was 
quoted in European market at its weight in silver. At 
first its price in Quebec was only 40 sols per pound, but 
when the people saw its value rising to almost as many 
livres the rush of searchers to the woods left all other in¬ 
dustries at a standstill. Agriculture furnished a slow road 
to wealth by comparison with the hunt for the ginseng 
plant, and Quebec passed through the fever of a modern gold 
rush. Natural and economic conditions, however, provided 
their own remedy, and in time the glut of the market and 
the extirpation of the ginseng plant sent the fevered 
botanists back to their wonted pursuits. 
There are always plenty of people who lose their 
heads over “novelties,” but the majority of those who 
are able to read are growing more conservative. The 
true “sucker,” however, dies but never recovers. 
Attention is called to the letters from seedsmen on 
page 171. We learn that some of the seedsmen make 
use of the Government experts by sending seeds to be 
tested. As a rule they favor the work of official testing 
for grass and clover seeds, but it is evident that vege¬ 
table or grain seeds require something more than a 
microscope and sprouting pan to determine their value. 
A chemist may pick apart a sample of fertilizer and 
give us a fair idea of its value. We hope that some 
other chemist will some day pick apart wire and pipe 
and show us something to demand—but evidently no 
expert in a laboratory can determine the “character” of 
a seed. This character is a part of the care and skill 
of the man who grew the seed, and therefore we must 
expect to pay a fair price for a seedsman’s honor. 
There is a sort of honor of which it may be said that 
the more it is sold the larger and more valuable it 
becomes. 
* 
There is no more important subject for fruit growers 
to-day than that of spraying. Go into some sections 
and see how the scale is killing off the older orchards, 
and realize what will be found there in 10 years if the 
insect is not held up. No use trying to exterminate 
the scale. It is simply a stand-up fight for life. Let 
every man understand that before he plants another 
tree. The situation is desperate, and many are ready* 
to grasp at any new remedy which promises to destroy 
the scale. Very little is heard about fumigation now, 
for we all know that something more is demanded. 
Thus far a well-made mixture of lime, sulphur and salt 
seems to be the most effective spray material. That it 
is not perfect is made sure by the complaints which 
come from some who have given it a fair trial. Per¬ 
sonally we have great confidence in limoid and kerosene. 
We do not claim too much for it; in fact, only ask a 
fair trial. The experience of a farm paper in claiming 
great things for caustic soda should teach us all caution. 
If you do not dare to depend on K.-L. alone, try it on 
a part of the orchard at least. 
* 
The Michigan violet article on first page is especially 
valuable because of its moderate tone. We have all 
seen glowing newspaper accounts of women violet grow¬ 
ers who earn $3,000 a year or more from a modest range 
of cold frames, and who are pictured daintily sprinkling 
their plants from toy watering pots, in a common-sense 
costume that begins with a frilly shade hat and ends 
with French-heeled slippers. The novice who takes up 
such work soon learns that even the fragrant violet 
associates with callous hands and blue jean overalls, 
and that the simplest forms of greenhouse culture call 
for hard work and close study. -Different markets 
create different conditions, too; at the present time we 
think that in the vicinity of New York the small florist 
with limited capital has far less chance than west of 
the Alleghanies, unless he bends his energies toward 
building up a local trade. However, the person who 
produces flowers superior to anyone else can always sell 
his stock, whether his establishment is large or small; 
it is the dead level of mediocrity that brings disappoint¬ 
ing returns, in flowers as in anything else. 
* 
It will do no one any good to get excited over the 
word “bacteria.” It does not follow that our troubles 
are all over, and that we are all to grow rich because 
inoculation has been found useful on some soils. We 
may as well be reasonable in our claims for these bac¬ 
teria. On poor land where the legumes have not been 
grown, or where these legumes, though planted, do not 
thrive, it is a wise plan to try inoculation on a reason¬ 
able scale. The chances are that if plant food is pro¬ 
vided the crops will do better for inoculation. On 
very rich soil there would be little use in adding the 
bacteria. In most cases it would be useless to attempt 
to inoculate soil where the crop had succeeded. For 
example, in a field where Red clover has grown well for 
years, we could not expect to increase the yield of Red 
clover by adding the bacteria. There have been cases, 
however, where clover has grown on a farm for years 
and yet seems feeble or “sick.” The addition of new 
bacteria has improved the yield in such cases, because 
they were more vigorous than those already in the soil. 
Thus with these tiny organisms as with farm animals, 
the question of “blood” or vigor and breeding is to be 
considered. 
♦ 
Mr. Manchester sends us the following little story 
which shows that there are still a few Connecticut 
Yankees left: 
In a local grocery store the other day we saw a paper 
carton labeled “Hope Farm eggs,” and as there is only 
one Hope Farm to It. N.-Y. readers naturally we were in¬ 
terested. We inquired where Hope Farm ivas, and the 
grocer said, “Down in B——-,” naming a little hamlet four 
miles away. We told him we had lived around here a good 
many years and had never heard of a Hope Farm there, 
lie smiled then, and said: “To tell the truth, we get these 
eggs from Armour. They sell at 28 cents per dozen and 
give good satisfaction. They are all graded as to size and 
color, and pass for fresh eggs.” Local fresh eggs were 
bringing 35 and 40 cents then, and scarce, and many peo¬ 
ple buy these eggs becouse they are neatly put up and have 
the appearance of being local eggs They work all right 
for cooking, hut for table use don’t come up to the real fresh 
article. Our markets are full of butter said to be creamery 
with familiar names, but perhaps made thousands of miles 
away. Most people who get things cheap ask few ques¬ 
tions, and it's fortunate they do, as the answers if true 
might be embarrassing. 
We know of at least three Hope Farms, one in 
Nova Scotia, one in California and one in New Zealand. 
“Hope Glen” is in Australia. The owners of these 
farms wrote and asked if the name is copyrighted! We 
are glad to help extend the circulation of Hope. This 
game of trying to use another’s reputation to sell goods 
is an old one. J. H. Hale tells us that people buy his 
packages and crates, fill them anew with peaches, and 
thus try to gain a reputation from his famous red 
label. A man must be very small to crawl beneath 
another’s man label—after it has been pasted down! 
* 
Those companies who have been giving away “valua¬ 
ble” lots on Long Island as prizes for solving puzzles, 
only demanding $5 for payment of expenses, have been 
put out of business by the Post Office Department. 
Says the New York Sun, in describing this fraud: 
The Post Office inspectors have pronounced the literature 
issued by the company to be the most carefully and artis¬ 
tically worded that has ever come under their notice. The 
property of the company was described as being on the 
line of the Long Island Railroad, north of the Quogue 
station, but it was not explained that the station is one 
and a half miles east of the town of Quogue and that 
the property norfh of the station is sand waste, overgrown 
in parts with scrub oaks and pines. The literature was 
so carefully worded that the only quality directly attrib¬ 
uted to the property was that It was “high and dry,” which 
is cerainly true. Everybody who answered the circular got 
a notification that he had “received a ‘Prize Lot Order’ 
and “is entitled to one lot, size 25x100 feet, upon pay¬ 
ment of $5 to cover cost of making deed, notary fee, ab¬ 
stract of title, etc. This amount covers ail payments of 
taxes for five years.” Those who won “prize lots” also 
had the privilege of buying adjacent lots at from $15 to 
$20. A lot winner who got some one else to Invest got 20 
per cent of the purchase price as a fee. 
It is said by the Post Office inspectors that the three 
companies who were thus feeding upon poor human 
nature have netted between $100,000 and $150,000. In 
the meantime we expect a number of people who have 
contributed to their exchequer are skimping on a new 
pair of shoes, or cutting out the Spring order of flower 
seeds. 
BREVITIES. 
Apple ! Apple ! Call for apple 
Everywhere you go! 
Closely scan the bill of fare. 
And if “apple” be not there, 
Then proceed at once to pare 
Cook and landlord down with care. 
They will tome with smirking manner 
Offering tlie fat banana 
Or the orange—be not shaken 
In the job you've undertaken. 
Apple! Apple! Call for apple 
Everywhere you go! 
Keep the horse's teeth filed down. 
Good advice on “How to Spray”—page 162. 
Does anyone ever build a square silo nowadays? 
Distances and depths in garden culture—page 177. 
“Roofing felt”—a shingle under certain conditions. 
Read what Mr. White says about peach trees in a hen- 
yards, page 174. 
How many letters have you written on the wire question? 
Never let up on the letters. 
At the end of February we were still enjoying Greg¬ 
ory's Delicious squash, which lives up to its name. 
Here’s the way one reader calls for “The Business Hen”: 
“Please give the hen a cloth suit of feathers. The paper 
covers might moult.” 
Savoy or curly cabbage should always find a place in 
the home garden. It is much more delicate in flavor than 
the hard-headed sorts, preserving the freshness of Sum¬ 
mer cabbage far in the Winter. 
We have often thought that if a man had to tie himself 
to a hitching post without any overcoat, while his horse went 
into the store to order the groceries, Winter shopping would 
be done with an expedition we rarely see now. 
This is what a Pennsylvania man says: “If you can 
succeed in directing the farmers where or how to get good 
fence wire you will gain thousands of subscribers." We can 
find the wire faster with more subscribers to help. 
Washington florists are disturbed over the proposed in¬ 
troduction to Congress of a bill which will prohibit the 
construction of any building without the supervision of a 
master builder. This would prevent a florist from erecting 
his own greenhouse, and would also prevent a farmer from 
putting up his own barn. 
The following “weather report” from Michigan agrees 
with our own experience: “Yesterday morning, February 
13, it was five degrees below zero here, and 24 in town 1 Vi 
mile away, with the air still. This morning it was 10 
degrees below here and the same in town, and the wind 
blowing a gale.” On still days the colder air seems to 
roll down into the valley; when the wind is blowing it is 
all stirred up. 
Congress has passed the free seed appropriation again. 
There were a few more votes and a great deal more ridicule 
against it this year, but it went through. Here is a sam¬ 
ple from the debate—solemnly entered in the Congres¬ 
sional Record : “Mr. Sheppard—Mr. Chairman, I would like 
to state that a request came from Mississippi for some seed 
which would grow Adam’s apples. (Daughter.) Mr. 
Candler—Adam's apples? Mr. Sheppard—yes. Mr. Candler 
—From Mississippi? Mr. Sheppard—Yes. Mr. Candler— 
Well, we are the direct descendants of old man Adam, and 
we don’t care to cut his acquaintance or the acquaintance 
of his apple tree. (Laughter.)” 
