To 
January 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Herbert w. Collingwood, Editor. 
Ur. Walter Van Fleet, (.Associates 
Mrs. K. T. Hoyle, ( 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% marks, or 10V& 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 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 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, JANUARY 27, 1906. 
TEN WEEKS FOR 10 CENTS. 
In order to introduce The R. N.-Y. to progressive 
intelligent fanners 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. 
* 
One of the best arguments we have seen for bottled 
milk was at a house where we called recently. On the 
porch, protected on three sides, on a table were three 
pails of milk that the milkman had left an hour before. 
It was a cold windy day, and sufficient dust had blown 
upon the milk to make a solid brown coating too dark 
in color for cream, and not of a very appetizing appear¬ 
ance. We prefer our milk in clean bottles from clean 
cows and that one can drink without shutting his eyes, 
holding his nose or swallowing with a gulp to avoid 
the taste. 
* 
We have spoken of the strange apathy of many south¬ 
ern people toward a parcels post. Some of them are, 
however, waking up and doing good service. Two 
southern agricultural papers, the Florida Agriculturist 
and Texas Farm and Ranch, are doing excellent work— 
far better than most of the farm papers at the North. 
We must all understand that nothing but constant and 
persistent work will gain this much-needed service. No 
fair reason has yet been given to show why a parcels 
post would prove anything but helpful to a farmer. The 
more a farmer considers ; t the more the advantage of 
such service will appeal to him. 
* 
Mr. Cosgrove gives on page 59 the 1905 record of his 
poultry. He will give in due time the record for Janu¬ 
ary, with a statement of care and so on through the 
year. We have been asked why, if we are to give poul¬ 
try information, we do not go to some agricultural 
college or to some great plant where things are done 
on a large scale. The answer is easy. Such things are 
interesting, and many useful things may be learned 
there, but they are out of the reach of ordinary farmers. 
Mr. Cosgrove, with his 500 hens, represents conditions 
which are within reach of thousands of careful farmers. 
We consider it a large part of our business to get into 
such conditions and fit them if we can. 
* 
The discussion of the horse thief problem shows the- 
various ways people have of regarding crime. Witn 
some a criminal is like a wild animal—to be caged and 
kept from liberty. Others regard him as an unfortunate,, 
made what he is by evil influence and surroundings, and 
always capable of reform. It seems to us impossible 
that anyone who knows much of the life inside our jails 
and so-called reform schools could honestly expect a 
boy or young man to overcome evil habits there. Tn 
■county jails, where prisoners are herded together, the 
young are under the most depraved influences. Such 
institutions, especially where the sheriff is paid on the 
fee system or for boarding the prisoners are simply 
factories for criminals. They make criminals as well 
as restrain them. The majority of those who write 
favor freedom for this horse thief, all of them from 
worthy motives. 
* 
It is reported that a Chicago woman has recovered 
heavy damages from a saloon keeper for selling liquor 
to her husband, and thus destroying his ability to provide 
for his family. This is a new idea, and while it is not 
•safe to credit such a newspaper report entirely, it would 
seem that such a woman would be entitled in morals if 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
not in law to some recompense. A sober and industrious 
man may earn $800 per year. He becomes a drunkard, 
loses his job and develops into a lounger and bar-room 
loafer. He then becomes worse than useless to his 
family—a bread eater or stealer in place of a bread win¬ 
ner. In this condition his family is worse off than if 
he were run over by a train or lost his usefulness in 
some other accident. In the latter case a suit for dam¬ 
ages would win support for the wife, and justly so. 
The saloon keeper who destroyed the man’s usefulness 
by selling him liquor is even more responsible than the 
owners of a railroad which might crush the man or cut 
off both his legs. We hope the report is true. 
* 
One must read between the lines of Mr. Johnson’s 
article to get the whole story. We know the man and 
the farm, and have seen the books. The figures are cor¬ 
rect, but they stand out like blisters on years of hard 
work, self-denial and discouragement. 
“You are too old!” 
That is what met Mr. Johnson when he asked to have 
his wages restored. He knew that his work was as good 
as ever, but younger men were crowding in, and the 
man of 50 was becoming a “back number.” Mr. John¬ 
son made a wise decision to quit while there was a 
chance for him to make a home in the country. We 
always hesitate to print such articles, because somehow 
we cannot make city men see the shade which lies upon 
the picture. A man will make a vital mistake if he go 
to the country expecting an easy job. He should plan 
for a harder job to begin with. Why go then? Be¬ 
cause on a home of your own you have a chance to 
make your labor count for yourself. The best of Mr. 
Johnson’s experience will be drawn out by questions 
which readers will ask. 
* 
An experiment that may mean considerable to the 
cotton-growing States has been conducted at the Texas 
Experiment Station. Cotton-seed meal is an abundant 
stock food at the South. Hogs are the most important 
live stock. It has long been known that if cotton-seed 
meal could be used as a partial feed for hogs more and 
cheaper pork could be made at the South. A number 
of experiments have been tried, but after about 30 days 
of feeding most hogs sickened and died. A Texas hog 
feeder found that when the meal was mixed with corn 
chop and fermented before being fed the hogs lived and 
did well—standing 100 days or more of such feeding. 
Other practical breeders gave similar reports, and the 
Texas Station gave the method a severe test. It seems 
to be demonstrated that after being fermented for 36 
hours the cotton-seed meal can be safely fed to hogs. 
No doubt the scientific men will find out and tell us 
why, but it appears to be a fact that a fair proportion 
■of this cheap and strong feed can be used—producing 
firm, well-marbled pork. This is an important thing for 
the South, where pork is the popular food and where 
a large proportion of it is imported. 
* 
Less is now being said than formerly about insurance 
“graft.” This does not mean that the public has for¬ 
gotten or forgiven the rascals who have squandered 
their money. People are waiting to see what the New 
York Legislature will do to protect policy holders. Many 
•of the larger grafters have “resigned” or disappeared 
from view, and we are told that expenses have been cut 
down. The virtue to which men are driven with a 
horsewhip is as transparent as glass, and no one has 
any respect for the man who will not leave a useless soft 
job until he is kicked out of it. As for the economy so 
much paraded—what good will that do us unless we 
receive our fair share of earnings or dividends? When 
they want to obtain new insurance the companies have 
much to say about their surplus which, they say, belongs 
to policy holders. Thus far the policy holders have 
received a very small share of what is coming to them, 
and saving in expenses will not satisfy them unless they 
know they are to get their share of the savings. 1 he 
life insurance companies must be compelled to declare 
dividends every year or every two years so that policy 
holders may know what their insurance is earning. 1 hat 
is one of the things which the public has a right to 
•demand. 
* 
We have spoken several times about the Gypsy and 
Brown-tail moths, two insects that have done great dam¬ 
age in New England. They are slowly spreading 
through the country—a fearful menace to fruit growers. 
These insects eat the leaves, and thus they can be killed 
by poisons. It is possible to exterminate them if prompt 
measures are taken, but the job is too large for any 
single State or section to handle. 1 he pests are now 
•confined to a comparatively small area, and now is the 
time to destroy them. Congress has been asked to 
provide funds for National help, and this help ought to 
be granted promptly. It is not a local issue, for unless 
•destroyed, these insects will spread over the country 
and cost 50 times as much to fight as a determined 
battle now would cost. This is just as worthy a cause 
as the fight against the boll-weevil, swine plague or cattle 
tick. Dr. L. O. Howard told the Massachusetts Horti¬ 
cultural Society that in Europe the two insects now so 
dangerous are kept in subjection by parasites, so that 
they rank about with the tent-caterpillar here. This 
caterpillar is kept from doing serious damage by native 
parasites which kill it off when too numerous. Previous 
efforts to import parasites into the eastern part of the 
country have not met with much success. In this case 
it is worth trying. 
* 
This shows how people begin to feel about a parcels 
post: 
As to your fight for the parcels post, you have undertaken 
a bigger job than you have any idea of; without exception 
there is no business monopoly in America that taxes so 
many people unjustly for the service they perform as the 
express companies. Everything goes to show that they 
have been represented in the United States Senate by a 
power that has never been met and conquered. Theodore 
Roosevelt would to-day confer a more general benefit on the 
people of this country by bringing the express companies to 
reasonable terms through the establishment of a parcels 
post, than by the building of the Panama Canal or bridging 
the Atlantic. I have just paid in coin of the realm 90 cents 
for a small • article from Chicago that weighs just iy 2 
pound, and I paid 95 cents for a piece of brass shafting 
that weighed five pounds from New York to the Connecticut 
River some time ago. chas. q. eldredge. 
Connecticut. 
Mr. Eldredge is right. We are told that “coming 
generations” will bless us for the Panama Canal and 
similar great public works. Very likely—we shall not 
be here to know whether they do or not. They are 
just as likely to curse us if we stand idly by and let 
extortionate power accumulate in the hands of the few. 
The chances are that those who follow us will be very 
able to take care of themselves. Give us something that 
will benefit the present generation and let us have it 
right away! We fully realize the size of the job, and it 
would appall us if we did not also realize the size of 
the force which country people can bring to bear if 
they will. 
* 
There are always croakers who try to discourage 
every effort of the common people to obtain what they 
want from public men. These people sneer at our advice 
to “Vote with the postage stamp!” “No use to write 
letters,” they say, “no one will pay any attention to 
you—you will only become a laughing stock!” We have 
paid no attention to the croakers, but have gone right 
ahead urging readers to write strong and respectful let¬ 
ters to those who represent them in Legislature and 
Congress. The other day there was a little debate in 
the United States Senate over the need of more clerks. 
Senator Bailey of Texas made the following remarks: 
A Senator nowadays has five times the letters to answer 
that he had back in the days that Senator naie refers to 
when he for 15 years got. along with one clerk. Why, I 
dread waking up every morning because 1 must read 40 or 
50 letters and answer them. I believe that every American 
citizen has the right to address a letter to his Senator, and 
when he does he also has the right to get an answer. But 
that is a very burdensome matter. I sometimes wish that 
I could find a constituency somewhere where not a single 
man could read or write. I would resign and try to get 
elected again by that constituency. 
That is evidence enough for us to show that the 
postage stamp vote makes folks sit up and take notice. 
We have known for a good while that some public 
men have been fairly plastered with stamps, and now 
Senator Bailey admits it. We notice another thing. 
When this postage stamp vote started most of the let¬ 
ters were written by enthusiastic people who are always 
ready for a fight. Now, a hard-headed, conservative 
class of men are waiting. It took them a year or more 
to think the thing all out and realize the power of a 
postage stamp. Now, their letters are falling like solid 
shot, and they are of such a character that public men 
must notice them. Keep up the postage stamp vote. 
Never mind the croakers. 
BREVITIES . 
Which do you put first—order or liberty? 
Our object is to tell why, when and how ! 
There is now an electrical device for thawing out water 
pipes. 
Don't be afraid that Jack Frost believes in Dr. Osier’s 
theory ! 
Plants for making concrete blocks are springing up all 
around us. 
Machines for testing the strength of lumber are now 
used at many sawmills. 
Man is something like a gasoline engine. He needs a 
spark to develop his power. The trouble with some men 
is that the sparker is out of order. 
It is reported that tulierculosis has been found in a herd 
of cows from which “certified” milk has been sent to New 
York. Who certified the certificate? 
What has been your experience with second-crop straw’- 
berries? Have you succeeded in getting enough Fall berries 
to sell? Do they pay? What varieties and handling are 
necessary ? 
Here is a sample of mild Winter remarks from Massa¬ 
chusetts. “How B. II. R., on page 3, is going to get his 
ice is the problem that I am puzzled over, the keeping is 
comparatively simple.” 
If every man took each job in hand with this idea—“I 
will do my best to make'this the best job of my life”—what 
a world we would have! Every man would find that by 
giving out his best he made what was left better still. 
r. i 
