796 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homei, 
Established 1850. 
Herbert w. Collingwood, Editor. 
i>r. Walter Van Fleet, 
Mrs. K. T. Koyle, 
( 
Associates. 
John J Dillon. Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries In the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, 
equal to 8s. Od., or 8 V& marks, or 10>/ 3 francs. 
“A SQUARE DEAL.” 
We believe that every advertisement In this paper is 
backed 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. We 
protect subscribers against rogues, but we do not guarantee 
to adjust trilling 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 u's within one 
month of tlie time of the transaction, and you must have 
mentioned The 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, NOVEMBER 4, 1905. 
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. 
* 
Can anyone tell us of a hard drinker of liquor who 
also eats apples freely? We have hunted for such a 
man, hut have never found him. Do you know him? 
We believe that apple eating leads to temperance in the 
use of liquor. Is it so? 
* 
One thing quite needful to us just now is information 
about drainage. We want to know most of all if any¬ 
one has been able to use plows or machinery to dig 
ditches or lay the tile. Is there any practical back- 
saver or must it all be done by hand? Who can tell 
us about this? 
* 
Analysis has shown from 10 to 12 per cent of alcohol 
in “hard” cider, while average beer will show about 
eight per cent. When a man goes down cellar and 
takes a horn of hard cider and then declaims against the 
beer saloon what a strong and consistent argument for 
temperance he must make! 
* 
You would be surprised to see how many readers use 
the “little envelope” and send a trial subscription. A 
number of readers have sent for packages of the envel¬ 
opes and carry them about, always ready to capture 
a “trial.” These trials generally grow into blessings, 
for most of them renew and they all seem to get their 
money’s worth. Dispatches from Washington state that 
there is an increased demand for new one dollar hills. 
We shall evidently get our share of them ! 
* 
We have seen farmers at work in the cornfield in 
the Middle West who had little respect for the stalks. 
They drive through the field with a screen at one side 
of the wagon, and snap off the ears and throw them at 
the wagon box, as is shown at Fig. 337, page 790. That 
seems like a great waste of material to the eastern 
farmer who cuts and ties up the stalks and then gets 
down on his knees to husk. And what he does seems 
like a waste of time and energy to the western man, hut 
a modification of the eastern plan is slowly crawling 
West. 
* 
That children’s flower league suggested on page 795 
is a good thing to join. Mr. Crosby is right in what 
he says about children and flowers. It has always been 
a great pleasure to The R. N.-Y. people to realize that 
we have helped put climbing roses on many farmhouses. 
These roses have climbed right into the home. There 
are plenty of cases wnere the man of the house, indif¬ 
ferent at first, would not have them permanently re¬ 
moved for $50. By all means, interest the children in 
flowers—you can hardly do a better thing for them. 
* 
A Canadian agricultural society is reported to be 
doing valuable work by giving prizes for the best-kept 
farms. It is suggested that if this scheme were adopted 
in place of exhibitions in some localities it would be a 
great aid to agriculture. It is also suggested by Cana¬ 
dian officials that some of the money spent in fairs 
might be used by agricultural societies in the purchase 
of purebred animals, for the purpose of grading up 
native stock. Anything that aids a farmer to feel 
greater pride in his surroundings, whether the condition 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. November4, 
of his farm or the quality of his stock, is legitimate 
work for an agricultural society. A competition for the 
best-kept farm might have a wonderful effect in the 
improvement of a rural neighborhood. 
* 
In preparing a book which should really tell a busy 
farmer how to plan and plant a garden we have been 
surprised to see how wide of the mark most books are. 
The authors seem to know their subjects thoroughly, 
but are not well acquainted with their audience. They 
assume that their readers know all about it, while in 
reality they know little or nothing. Suppose a man 
came to us dying of thirst, and we rolled some hard 
snowballs and tossed them to him. That is not a bad 
illustration of the way some farm or gardening books 
must appeal to the reader! One trouble seems to be 
that the making of farm books has passed almost en¬ 
tirely into the hands of scientific men, who think they 
know what a farmer ought to have, but who apparently 
do not know what lie needs. 
* 
A northern farmer sowed cow peas on a strip of 
poor soil. They made a fair growth, and were left to 
rot down upon the ground. When Spring came there 
was nothing left but a few little sticks, and the farmer 
made all manner of fun of cow peas. He said he could take 
a bushel of chips from under the wood pile and help the 
ground more than those “sticks” would do. He aban¬ 
doned his experiment in disgust, and plowed the entire 
field without marking the cow-pea ground. An agent 
for a low-grade fertilizer came along and got him to 
try an experiment with the cheap goods. It happened 
that this cheap fertilizer was put on the strip where 
the cow peas had grown. That strip outyielded similar 
ground at its side where a fertilizer worth twice as 
much was used. 1 he cow peas were responsible for the 
increase, hut the farmer gave the low-grade fertilizer the 
credit, and used it largely the next year. The result 
was a loss. It surely requires faith to believe that 
what is left of a cow-pea crop in Spring has any value, 
for it must be “evidence of things unseen.” 
* 
Concerning cross-bred bloodhounds, referred to in 
Hope Farm Notes, it is more than possible that the 
degree of ferocity varies with the individual and with 
the education bestowed upon him. Any large dog is 
dangerous if lie is not taught absolute obedience and 
self-control, but the same thing may be true of any 
dog. large or small. The most intelligent dog we ever 
knew—a perfect gentleman in dogskin—was a Cuban 
bloodhound crossed with English mastiff. He had been 
brought up under military discipline, and conducted him¬ 
self like an old soldier. Had lie been permitted to 
grow up a hoodlum, like too many dogs, his size, 
strength and courage would have made him dangerous. 
We have never been personally acquainted with a pure¬ 
bred English bloodhound, but as seen at the bench 
shows their melancholy, deeply wrinkled faces seem 
very friendly, and attract us more than the Great Dane. 
We think keenness of scent and great endurance are 
the qualities especially cultivated in the English blood¬ 
hound. The most objectionable dogs we have known, 
in actual ferocity, were badly-trained and undisciplined 
English mastiffs. 
* 
A farmer hoy once went to an agricultural college. 
During his first term lie listened to some lectures on 
“care of animals.” It was in the old days when one 
man lectured on half a dozen topics, all the way from 
history to veterinary science. The lecturer devoted 
some time to the disease in pigs known as “thumps,” 
which he said resulted often from lack of exercise. The 
hoy took notes and went home for a little vacation. 
He was at that age when we fear people will not know 
we are wise unless we toot the fact through a horn. 
The hoy looked around for something on Father’s 
farm that was not “scientific.” He finally found a litter 
of little pigs that had been kept close in the pen and 
were fat and logy. He saw danger of “thumps” at 
once, and urged Father to let them out to run. Father 
humored him and the hoy drove the pigs around. He 
overdid the exercising and the pigs were so fat that 
several of them died! “Scientific farming” was not 
very popular for a few years on that farm. Later on 
the hoy gave it a better reputation, when he learned 
that the proper way to interpret it was to mix ]0 
per cent of theory with 90 per cent of common sense. 
Our agricultural colleges do not teach things in that 
way now. 
* 
Last week we refered to the “good roads” amend¬ 
ment which if voted for will authorize the State 
to borrow $50,000,000 for building public highways. 
One argument against it is the charge that it 
will enrich rural districts at the expense of the city. 
It would be impossible to make the country richer with¬ 
out indirectly benefiting the city. The two are bound 
together, each providing a market for the other. The 
smoother the roads between them the easier the ex¬ 
change will be. In the little town where the writer 
lived as a boy the grist mill was run by water power 
taken from a pond made by a dam at the foot of a 
meadow. I he pond was fed by several little streams. 
One dry Summer the pond was nearly empty, and the 
mill stood still. The miller was laughed at for sending 
boys with shovel and hoe up the bed of the streams 
to scrape out little channels for the water. He knew 
his business. The streams had dried until each was 
only a string ot shallow pools. Left alone they would 
only evaporate in the sun. The boys connected them 
by little ditches, and in this way hundreds of them, 
each containing some barrels of water, ran down to 
the pond and actually gave power for several day’s 
work. 1 he little rural community with a poor road 
leading to the railroad is not unlike the pool in the 
stream, with energy wasting and wants unsatisfied. 
Build a smooth, hard road to the railroad, and the town 
and city will feel Lie added business and power, as the 
water wheel felt the force of the water when the little 
ditch tapped the pool. Instead of growling at whatever 
helps the country the city should realize its dependence, 
and help the country to secure what belongs to it. 
* 
1 he State of Pennsylvania offers to give public 
spraying demonstrations. Under the direction of Prof. 
H. A. Surface, of Harrisburg, circulars are issued in 
which we find the following: 
The Division of Zoology of the Pennsylvania State De¬ 
partment of Agriculture is arranging to hold a series of 
public orchard meetings—one in eacli township in this State 
where the San .lost* scale occurs—for the purpose of show¬ 
ing the people how to make and apply the best remedies for 
the San Jose scale. This office will furnish, without charge, 
the necessary material for a demonstration at each orchard 
selected, a mounted spray pump and other apparatus, and 
an expert to do the spraying and give a talk at the orchard 
on tlie day appointed, and to examine specimens of twigs 
and fruits that, may be brought to him to tell what pests 
infest them, and make inspections of other premises and 
answer questions. The owner or manager of the orchard 
is asked to do the necessary hauling of apparatus or to care 
for the operator and his horse (or do both) and to furnish 
a workman to help during the demonstration. All expenses 
will be borne by this office and printed posters will be fur¬ 
nished to announce the dates and places of meetings. 
'I his seems to us very useful and sensible work. We 
know how hard it is to learn how to do things by 
reading or even listening to a speaker in a room or 
hall. Out in the orchard, with the actual tools and 
materials around him, a teacher can teach so as to 
educate. I his seems like a first-rate plan. 
BREVITIES. 
Better say amen to the “good roads” amendment. 
No political pull ever hauled a man toward his best.. 
is "pure cussedness” worse than the adulterated article? 
Aim, not more boys hurt by over play than by over work? 
When you cull out the pullets for Winter, what standard! 
do you adopt? 
Hard! To resist the desire to put on a coat which, 
looks as if it would tit ! 
Did you ever find anything that will really take the 
place of a little common sense? 
1 iie fellow who starts out to blow his own horn, must 
expect that the public will step on his corn. 
Buncombe is a favorite crop with most people. It is one 
where soft soap entirely displaces elbow grease. 
More springs, bolster springs, on lumber wagons make 
a live load of a dead one. Saves wheels, saves team ; just 
try it. 
The worst tiling that can happen to a young man is to 
have a rich father. We do not run after the job of convinc¬ 
ing some boys we know of this fact! 
It is stated that many farmer's wives near Harrodsbnrg, 
K.v., will hereafter give all the eggs laid by their hens on 
Sunday to the cause of foreign missions ! is this another 
newspaper “fake?” 
Move the wood pile next year and plant corn whore it 
stood. You will be surprised to see how the corn grows. 
The dark (soil) under the wood pile does the trick_an il¬ 
lustration of what a good mulch will do for a tree. 
At a sweet corn cannery in New York State many ears ap¬ 
peared with a dark or bluish color. It is said that some 
fanners claimed that tins color was caused by crossing with 
elderberry blossoms! Nothing in breeding could lie more 
impossible. 
In our first page picture a group of New Jersey children 
are shown preparing for Halloween. Early in life comes 
the habit of putting the burden of labor upon the darker 
member of the group! He will have to crawl up by the 
skillful use of his hands. 
New South Wales tried the experiment. of granting old 
age pensions. The theory was that these pensions would 
empty 1 he poorhouse and make the inmates more independent. 
It failed to do so. After a trial many paupers came back to 
the homes and' gave up their pensions. 
The Dominion Department of Agriculture will send out 
a “seed special” over the Canadian Northern and Canadian 
Pacific railroad next January. A staff of experts will give 
demonstrations on seed questions and the abolition of 
noxious weeds, visiting about 250 places. 
Hereafter patent medicine which contain a certain per 
cent of alcohol must be regarded as liquors, and subject to 
a liquor license. The Government chemists are now ana¬ 
lyzing samples. We knew a man who persisted in getting 
drunk on a well-known brand of “stomach bitters.” 
Three Italians from this city recklessly went across the 
river to Jersey recently on a shooting trip. Jersey justice 
promptly gathered them in. and each man was fined $25 
for hunting in the State without a license, and $40 for 
shooting robins. After all. these “sportsmen” are as big ^ 
nuisance as predatory birds. 
