1905. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 829 
Events of the Week. 
DOMESTIC.—James H. A. Brooks, a well known manu¬ 
facturer of Philadelphia, Pa., was killed; Michael G. Price, 
a business associate, was seriously injured, and their wives 
were painfully hurt in an automobile accident near Absecon, 
N. J., November 1. A tire on a rear wheel exploded while 
they were riding at high speed. . . . Mrs. Delia George, 
probably the oldest resident of New York State, died in 
Lancaster November 1. She was in the 108th year of her 
age. Mrs. George had been in feeble health for some months. 
Her husband served in the War of 1812. . . . Eleven 
Whaling vessels, comprising almost the entire fleet which 
sailed from San Francisco, have been caught in the Arctic 
Ocean. They will not be able to get out until next July or 
August, and in the mean time their crews of 440 men must 
face the hardships of a Winter in the North. . . . The 
sympathetic strike was attacked in a suit for damages for 
$50,000, filed at Chicago, Ill., Nov. 1, in the Circuit Court, 
against the International Association of Bridge and Struc¬ 
tural Iron Workers and I 1 rank M. Ryan, general president. 
The Oscar Daniels Iron Works Company is the plaintiff. 
Attorney II. C. Rumery, representing the complainant, 
declares that if the Courts decide that the union is liable 
for the damages incurred by the company, it will put an 
end to sympathetic strikes. . . . The Hennepin County 
Grand Jury reported at St. Paul, Minn.. November 4 four 
indictments of men connected with the former management 
of the Northwestern National Life Association, which has 
been reorganized under the direction of State Insurance 
Commissioner O’Brien. The men indicted are W. 
F. Bechtel, former president. W. A. Kerr, for¬ 
merly attorney and director; Wallace Campbell and .1. 
F. Force, who were officials before Bechtel got control. 
The report adds that there was evidence showing that 
former State Insurance Commissioner J. A. O'Shaughnessy 
accepted a bribe of-$5,000 for suppressing an unfavorable 
report and that George F. Getty was a party to the con¬ 
version of the company's funds. Mr. O’Shaughnessy was 
Insurance Commissioner during the term of Gov. Lind, 
but the statute of limitation prevents indictment. The jury 
expressly says that the present management is honest ana 
efficient and is not to be blamed for the deeds of the ousted 
management. The charges against the four men indicted 
are conversion of funds, bribery and fraud. Thirty-two 
indictments were returned by the Grand Jury Nov. 4. and 
although some of these are against other persons accused 
of crime, the majority of them are supposed to be the result 
of the insurance investigation. . . . Former State Game 
Protector Charles A. Klock, of Fairfield, Herkimer County. 
N. Y., who since August has been sought by the State 
authorities for alleged wholesale frauds in collection with 
the Adirondack forest preserves, reappeared in his home 
town November 4 and sent a message to Forest. Fish and 
Game Commissioner Whipple at Albany saying he was 
ready to surrender and face all charges. Klock is wanted 
on a charge of grand larceny in the first degree, preferred 
by Deputy Attorney-General Ward for fraudulently dispos¬ 
ing of 4,000 cords of spruce pulp wood in the forest pre¬ 
serves, receiving therefor with his partner, Harvey N. Gay¬ 
lord, a game protector of Ixiwis county, $7,750. Gaylord 
was arrested on October 1.3 at Malone and arraigned before 
the City Judge of Utica. lie pleaded not guilty to the 
charge, waived examination and was held without bail to 
await the action of the Grand Jury. The specific charge 
preferred covers a deal which was consummated in the city 
of Utica on August 13, 1905, when Gaylord and Klock, it 
is alleged, sold 2,000 cords of the pulp wood to James 
Gallagher of Forestport, who paid them $3,750. and 2.000 
cords to Syphert & Harrig of the same town, who paid them 
$4,000. This money has never been turned over to the State. 
Election returns show that generally this was a 
poor year for bosses. Ohio went Democratic. George W. 
Cox, for years Republican boss of Cnlcinnati, as soon as the 
defeat of his machine was shown, announced his retirement 
from politics. John M. Pattison (Dem.) defeated Myron T. 
Herrick (Hep.) for Governor of Ohio by a majority esti¬ 
mated at tiO.000. in Maryland the boss, Senator Gorman, 
was defeated and his constitutional amendment, the great 
issue in Maryland, under which 50,000 negroes and hun¬ 
dreds of foreigners would have been disfranchised was de¬ 
feated in Baltimore City by a large majority, estimated on 
early returns at 10,000 to 12,000. In New Jersey the boss 
of Essex County was defeated, and the initial steps toward 
the downfall of Republican bossism in the State were taken 
when Everett Colby was elected State Senator in Essex 
County and Mark M. Fagan was re-elected Mayor of Jersey 
City. The people voted the Eighth Commandment into the 
governments of the State of Pennsylvania and the city of 
Philadelphia. William II. Berry. Democrat and Prohibi¬ 
tionist, was elected State Treasurer, by a majority of over 
(10,000, and the Fusion ticket swept Philadelphia County, 
rolling up a majority of nearly 80,000 out of the heaviest 
vote ever cast there. This is a crushing defeat for the 
great Quay machine, which has held a throttling grip upon 
the throats of city and State for more than a quarter of a 
century. The reform movement began last May, when the 
Penrose-Durham Republican organization of the city tried 
to lease the city gas works to tlie United Gas Improvement 
Company for seventy-five years, a lump rental of $25,000,00(1 
to be paid down. This attempt was defeated by Mayor 
John Weaver, who turned the representatives of the machine 
out of his cabinet and offered his support to the City party, 
a new and struggling independent organization. Following 
the exposure and defeat of the gas steal came exposures of 
gigantic frauds and stealings in connection with paving and 
filtration contracts, and the estimate by a United States 
Army engineer that filtration delay and frauds had been 
responsible for twelve hundred deaths from typhoid fever and 
that over $t!,000,000 had been stolen from the city by the 
McNIchol-Durham contracting firm. To these city scandals 
were added exposures of fraud in the management of the 
State treasury. The Enterprise National Bank of Allegheny 
failed, and the cashier, who committed suicide, left a con¬ 
fession declaring that the politicians had ruined him. 
William II Berry, a Democrat. Mayor of the city of Chester, 
was nominated for State Treasurer by the Democrats, 
“Lincoln” Republicans, Prohibitionists and Independents, 
and made a nine weeks' tour of the State, promising to “lift 
the lid" from the Treasury and to have an audit made of 
its books for the last 30 years. On this issue he carried the 
State, which last year was carried by Roosevelt by 500,000. 
For State and city judges practically the same tickets were 
put up, the only difference being that the Prohibitionists 
named Ilomer B. Castle, of Pittsburg, for judge of the 
Superior Court. Castle has made charges against “Bull 
Andrews. Senator Penrose. John I. Shaw and others which 
plainly make him liable in both civil and criminal courts, 
but no move has been made to prosecute him, and no effec¬ 
tive denial has ever been entered against any of his charges. 
In New York City, Mavor McClellan was re-elected, having 
a plurality of about 3,000 over William Randolph Hearst, 
the candidate of the Municipal Ownership League, with 
William M. Ivins, the Republican candidate hopelessly 
beaten Mr Hearst anounced that he would contest the 
election of Mayor McClellan. Campaign managers of the 
Municipal Ownership League declared that they had evi¬ 
dence that 50.000 illegal votes had been cast in the election. 
William Travers Jerome, the District Attorney of New 1 ork 
County, is re-elected, with a plurality of about 4,500 votes 
over James W. Osborne, the Tammany candidate. In San 
Francisco. Eugene Schmitz, the Union Labor candidate, has 
been re-elected Mayor. 
ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary of the Interior 
awarded a contract November 4 to Orman & Crook of Pueblo. 
Col for the construction of the Belle Fourehe dam. South 
Dakota and distribution canals. The contract calls for the 
construction of an earthen dam and ajtpurtenances, and 
seventeen and a half miles of canals, involving about 
2 500,000 cubic yards of earth work. 3.000 cubic yards of 
rock excavation. 24,000 cubic yards of concrete masonry 
and 45,000 pounds of steel and cas*t iron. The dam when 
completed will be one of the largest earth embankments in 
the United States. It will be 100 feet high in the highest 
place, one mile long and 20 feet wide on top, with one and 
one-half to one water slope, which will be completely paved 
with stone to a depth of 12 inches. When the reservoir- 
created bv this darn is full the area of the water surface 
will be nearly 9,000 acres, and the water will be 60 feet 
deep. The canals provided for in this contract are for 
both sides of the Belle Fourehe River. The North Side 
Canal will irrigate 60,000 acres, and the South Side 
Canal 4,000 acres, emptying a quantity of stored water 
into the river, which will be made to irrigate 
20,000 acres of first-class land in the vicinity of Vale and 
Empire. According to the contract the dam must be com¬ 
pleted by September 1, 1909; the North Side Canal by May 
1, 1907, ami the South Side Canal by September 1. 1906. 
It is specified that as work on the dam progresses the Re¬ 
clamation Service has a right to store water behind it to 
such a height as the engineer may determine to be safe. In 
case the work on any schedule is not completed on the date 
required, a deduction of $50 per day will be made from the 
amount due on the contract for such schedule for each and 
every day the work remains uncompleted. 
THE BEEF PACKERS.—J. Ogden Armour and the other 
packers and employees charged in the United States Court 
with being promoters of the Beef Trust, claim immunity 
from prosecution under the present Indictment. The new 
plea says that Commissioner Garfield promised the same 
immunity for the defendants who gave evidence voluntarily 
in his investigation as if they had been subpoenaed and 
placed under oath. The allegation of an agreement between 
Mr. Garfield and the packers was a surprise to the pros¬ 
ecuting attorneys, and it was said that Mr. Garfield had 
been asked about it. 
RUSSIA.—Reports from almost all sections of Russia tell 
of mobs attacking prisons. Cossacks firing on the crowds 
and massacres of Jews. The dead and wounded probably 
number thousands. The Emperor's manifesto was favorably 
received in a few cities, but there are signs that the popular- 
discontent will not be appeased without further bloodshed. 
The situation seems to be worst in South Russia and Poland. 
There were many conflicts with the troops, with heavy loss 
of life. Twenty persons were killed and more than a hun¬ 
dred wounded at Warsaw. Finland is in open rebellion, 
and the red flag flies over the government buildings at 
Helsingfors. At Odessa, horrible massacres of the Jews 
occurred, the mobs controlling the city for days. The out¬ 
breaks can only be equalled by the most appalling 
medireval persecutions. 'The estimates of the number of 
victims grow in magnitude, being now placed at 3,500 
killed and 12,000 wounded. The accuracy of these figures 
will never be known, but when it is stated that in the 
suburb of Moldevarka alone a thousand dead and wounded 
lay in the streets from midnight until noon it will be 
realized that no official denials will serve to hide the terri¬ 
ble extent of the butchery. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—The semi-centennial meeting of 
the Illinois State Horticultural Society will be held at 
Champaign December 12-15. 
The American Breeders’ Association will hold its second 
annual meeting at Lincoln, Nebraska, Jan. 17-19. 1906. 
The Association will be the guest of Nebraska’s numer¬ 
ous agricultural societies which meet together at Lincoln 
during "Agricultural Week.” Several of the sessions will 
be held jointly with one or more of the State societies in¬ 
terested in animal and plant breeding: secretary. W. M. 
Hays, Department of Agriculture. Washington, D. C. 
APPLE RESULTS IN ARKANSAS. 
Let your people know that they will meet with no oppo¬ 
sition in the apple business from Arkansas this year, for 
a liberal estimate gives 20 per cent of a crop, and not 
much better than seconds and culls at that. Many might 
have had apples, had they worked for apples, as the follow¬ 
ing will demonstrate. The life of an apple orchard in this 
state is held to be 15 years, a very wrong estimate, amount¬ 
ing to a popular fallacy. Last year Prof. Ernest Walker 
of the A. U. Experiment Station bought an orchard of 30 
acres; many of the trees had been cut out leaving about 27 
acres in fruit. This land had been in corn before the war, 
and for 8 or 10 years after the orchard was planted. 
The orchard was cultivated, liberally treated with 
potash and a general fertilizer, sprayed none too well where 
the sprayer could not be seen from the house, for he 
thought lie would prevent the Professor from throwing away 
so much money. The Shockleys were pronounced the largest 
and finest ever seen, same for the Coffelts: Mammoth Black 
Twig gave a heavy crop of immense apples perfect as any 
that ever grew ori trees, while old Ben Davis swelled up, 
so that he was dark red in the face, and 16 inches around 
the waist. Eight hundred barrels of No. 1 and fancy were 
placed in cold storage, and 30 barrels of vinegar made. 'I’lie 
vinegar will about pay for all expenses. An adjoining or¬ 
chard of 30 acres yielded 70 barrels of No. 2 and culls, 
mostly the latter. These results, obtained in an off year, 
furnished the best object lesson ever given the orehardlsts 
of Arkansas, prove that an orchard 16 years old Is a 
valuable asset, and that it does not hurt to have “book 
learnln’ ” combined with practical common sense. 
Fayetteville, Ark._ J. s. R. 
OUTLOOK FOR FURS. 
The outlook for furs the coming season is encouraging, 
both in our own country and Europe. The only doubtful 
feature is the crippled condition of Russia’s affairs. Russia 
lias always been a heavy buyer of American furs, and the 
partial loss of her support will be felt here seriously. 
Germany has been a splendid customer for several years, 
being interested in such staple articles as skunk and mink. 
France and England and all the other European nations 
have been doing well by our American furs. 
Following are a few notes on staple furs; 
BEAR has been low. Sooner or later fine bears will bring 
increased prices; but whether or not this Winter no one can 
say. No encouragment can be held out for inferior low- 
furred, heavy-pelted skins. 
OTTER.—All grades and all colors eagerly sought for. 
Keen demand for fur-lined and fur-trimmed overcoats for 
men’s wear, for which purpose it is well adapted. 
BEAVER has been quite neglected. It was thought that 
the popular taste for short-haired furs would stimulate 
higher prices, but expectations were only partly realized. 
MINK.—Prices ruled high, but demand was strong. Very 
few mink left over, except in hands of manufacturers. All 
grades and colors needed, although the fine dark skins and 
the pale blending kinds, were most wanted. Mink of all 
grades will undoubtedly bring good money to collectors, but 
don’t try to overdo it. Let consumers have a chance, in 
order that high prices may not drive them to some cheaper 
and possibly imported fur. 
MUSKRAT.—The black muskrats from Virginia, Delaware, 
Maryland and southern Jersey were especially wanted for 
coat linings with the result that their price was run up to 
the turning point. Owing to the extremely cold spell 
during February, when everything was frozen up, the catch 
was not quite up to the average. The outlook is favorable; 
but this is an article which is collected in such great 
abundance that the demand for it must be strong to cause 
any appreciable increase in price. It is essentially a poor- 
fur. that can be bought in large quantities, which will 
always serve to keep its price moderate. 
SKUNK has had a heavy foreign demand. Had we been 
obliged to depend on American demand. No. 1 skins would 
have been bought and sold for less than a dollar. At 
present skunk continues in favor in Europe, and will remain 
in good demand during Winter, provided its price is not 
forced to extremes. 
RACCOON all through the season was very unsatisfactory 
to handle. Coat manufacturers found it impossible to sell 
(heir garments unless they could buy the raw material at a 
lower basis, and the consequence was that demand slackened. 
Ileavy-furred skins will probably sell at a lower range than 
a year ago. as long-haired furs, among which we class 
northern raccoon, have been gradually losing their hold, 
being replaced by shorter haired furs. 
OPOSSUM proved the greatest disappointment of the sea¬ 
son. crlefly due to lack of merit in the article itself. 
It is cheap-looking fur, no matter how well dyed or made 
up. Large stocks are still in the hands of speculators, 
ready to be thrown on the market whenever any demand 
develops. This naturally will depress the value of the 
fresh collection. But the fact that all other furs are on 
such a high range of value will tend to force the attention 
of manufacturers to opossum, which is about the lowest 
priced article on the list. In our opinion the wisest 
course is to sell whenever a profit shows itself, even though 
it may be a small one. , 
RED FOX has been losing favor for the past two years. 
The dyers, by their clever work, succeeded in keeping it 
in demand for several seasons, but the naturally poor wear¬ 
ing qualities, combined with the change in fashions, have 
directed attention to other furs. There is still a quantity 
of last year's skins left over. The full-furred skins from 
(lie Far Northwest and Canada are doing reasonably well, 
while the medium and poorer classes from central and 
southern sections are quite weak. 
LYNX.—The call for it seemed to be influenced entirely 
by its price. When its cost went up, buyers dropped out; 
when it came down again, inquiries arose from all direc¬ 
tions. At reasonable prices it should move briskly. 
MARTEN.—The demand showed principally in the tine 
dark skins, all of which found eager buyers at increasing 
prices. The prospects continue favorable. It ought to 
prove a ready seller right through the Winter, and yet 
collectors will have to pay so much for it. that its purchase 
cannot be considered a good speculation. It will be a 
good article to buy, but a better one to sell. 
WILD CAT.—We cannot expect much of it this season. 
There may be a little demand, but it will be of narrow 
volume, and the price will undoubtedly rule low. 
WOLF.—The better skins found buyers, but only at mod¬ 
erate prices. We see no promise of early improvement. 
WHITE WEASEL sold as fast as offered at steadily in¬ 
creasing prices. Its future depends on the continued popu¬ 
larity of Russian ermine, for which it is used as an 
imitation. 
SILVER. CROSS AND WHITE FOX, SEA OTTER, 
FISHER AND WOLVERINE all showed an increase in value 
over the year before, in keeping with the general advance 
in the finer furs. We see no reason why they should not 
continue to hold their own. House cat and civet cat are 
selling readily. 
GINSENG.—The larger part of the present ginseng season 
has been a failure owing to tTie inauguration of the Chinese 
boycott. Our latest advices indicate that this boycott is 
still in operation, but is not so violent as a month ago. 
Early in October ginseng began to move a little, and 
holders in the country took quick advantage of the oppor¬ 
tunity to close out part of their holdings. What the future 
has in store is impossible for anyone to say. Cultivated 
root still continues depressed and inactive, and thus far has 
moved only in small lots at low prices. 
New York. wit. eisenhaueii & co. 
CO OPERATIVE INSURANCE AND kODS. 
There is a wide diversity of opinion in regard to the pro¬ 
tection afforded by lightning rods, and a great deal of money 
has been taken out of the pockets of the farmers, who as a 
rule know but little about the principles of electricity, and 
the smooth tongited unprincipled agents find but little trou¬ 
ble in convincing them that they should have rods put on. 
A good many thousands of dollars have been paid out in my 
own town the past year. I am not arguing that a rod is 
not a good thing when properly put up. but they get a con¬ 
tract at so much a point, and then put them on till the 
barn looks like a mullein patch. This may not have any¬ 
thing to do with the question, but I would not dare advo¬ 
cate their use without giving the caution first. A rod which 
is allowed to rest on the roof or is not connected with the 
soil is a menace. One will often see rods which have come 
apart swing at the side of the barn, or the ends lying on 
the shingles: these are allowed to remain so all Summer, 
when the point may be struck and the current carried into 
the building. A professor has said that “the area of the 
storm is so large and the point so small, there can be no 
attraction by the rod sufficient to cause the current to come 
to it.” Notwithstanding, there are numerous instances where 
the building has been struck and the current safely carried 
away. At one time our company did allow a reduction for 
all barns rodded, but when they began to believe that there 
was no need to insulate them we were obliged to make re¬ 
strictions. We believe the principle of the protection of 
building and their contents against lightning, by an ample 
conductor, and well-insulated lightning rod of copper with 
platinum point, is correct, and Is the best known atmospheric 
conductor. Conductibility of electric currents is almost 
exclusively in tire surface of metal : hence a solid core or bai¬ 
ls wrong: the hollow tube presents double the conducting 
capacity, in having an outer and an inner surface. Copper 
has many times the conductibility of iron, and many more 
times than that of the water of an electric storm ; the at¬ 
mospheric current will never leave the copper tube rod until 
plunged into its several feet of earth, as the terminus for 
its circuit. Two rods, one near each end of building of 
average size, are necessary (the more the better) and a cen¬ 
ter one for the larger buildings, at least. We now make a 
reduction of 10 per cent on all buildings having a hollow 
copper tube rod perfectly insulated and in repair. The sev¬ 
eral counties and Baron Steuben Co-operative Companies, 
which I represent, were organized for the purpose of saving 
all they could for their patrons, and believe that in advis¬ 
ing them to keep proper rods, their risk is lessened and the 
rate should be lessened accordingly. c. e. chapman, See’y. 
BUSINESS BITS. 
Ale grain to be fed to live stock is increased in feeding 
value when cooked for use. The progressive stockman is 
on the alert to exercise this economy. As a rule the Profit 
Farm Boiler made by D. R. Sperry & Co.. Batavia. Ill., will 
pay its cost in a short time by the saving in quantity of 
food required to produce a given amount of flesh growth. 
The manufacturers will give full particulars to any 
interested. 
Confidence in their machines and confidence in their 
customers is the secret of the success of the A. W. Straub 
Co., manufacturers of the Quaker City Grinding Mills. 
Their method of selling speaks well for the quality and 
efficiency of their mills. Upon icquest, they send one of 
their grinding mills free and prepay the freight. If, after 
a fair trial, it proves unsatisfactory, they take it back. In 
other words the machine sells itself. Ball bearings make it 
the easiest running mill to be had. Write for catalogue to 
A. W. Straub Co., 3737 Filbert Street, Philadelphia, and 47 
South Canal Street, Chicago. 
The Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway is dis¬ 
tributing a beautiful lithograph, 18x25 inches, of the famous 
engine “General" now on exhibition in the Union Depot, 
Chattanooga. Tenn. The picture is ready for framing and 
will be mailed to any address for 25 cents. The “General” 
was captured by the Andrews’ Raiders at Big Shanty (now 
Kennesaw), Georgia, on the Western & Atlantic Railroad. 
April 12th, 1862, and was recaptured by Conductor W. A. 
Fuller, Anthony Murphy and others, near Ringgold. Ga., 
after an exciting chase of about ninety miles. It was one 
of the most thrilling exploits of the Civil War. A booklet, 
“The Story of the General,” sent free upon application to 
W. L. Danley, G. P. A.. Nashville. Chattanooga & St. Louis 
Railway, Nashville, Tenn. 
A change has just taken place in the selling plan of the 
American Harrow Company. All through the 25 years of 
its business experience, the American Harrow Company has 
been loyal to implement dealers. They have always, through 
the dealer, made good every claim that they made for their 
spreaders and other implements. For this reason they 
naturally stand very high with the implement dealers 
throughout theeountry. W. W. Collier. General Manager of 
the Company, in a recent interview regarding the change in 
their selling plan, said : “We will send one of our machines 
to any farmer who will order it on 30 days’ loan test. He 
can use the spreader, without paying us any money in 
advance, or paying us any money for the use of the ma¬ 
chine. We pay all freight to his depot. If the machine 
is not what we claim it to be, and if it does not do the 
work we claim it to do. he can return It to us at our 
expense, and the loan will cost him nothing. If the ma¬ 
chine is what we claim it is. and does what we claim it will 
do, we give him time to pay for it to suit his convenience. 
The time we give him easily lets the machine pay for itself 
out of the profit it makes him, before he nays us." This 
offer is very liberal and we recommend readers to write to 
the American Harrow Company. 16 Milwaukee Ave.. De¬ 
troit, for their catalogue and other valuable information on 
the subject of manure as a fertilizer. 
