338 
J 
April 14, 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
The Rural New-Yorker 
TEE BUSINESS FAJiMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established, i860. 
Herbert W. Collingwood, Editor. 
Du. Walter Van Fleet, l . . 
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. 6d., or 8 Mi marks, or 10 Mi 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 us within one 
month of the time of the transaction, and you must have 
meptioned The Rubai. New-Yobkkr 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, APRIL 34, 3906. 
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 
30 weeks for 30 cents for strictly introductory purposes. 
We depend on our old friends to make this known to 
neighbors and friends. 
SUBSTITUTES FOR HIRED MAN. 
We offer prizes of $5 and $3 for the best articles on 
handling the hay crop with least hand labor. We want 
actual experience, not theory, showing how improved 
machinery has enabled a farmer to dispense with the 
hired man in handling this heavy crop. There are cases 
where a light man with a boy or girl to help him has 
raked, loaded and unloaded a large crop of hay. We 
want the experience, with a list of the needed tools. 
The articles must be here by May 35. 
* 
Will readers who have tried farm help from the 
various missions and bureaus in this city please give us 
a fair statement of the outcome? Can you advise 
farmers to experiment with such helpers? If not, why? 
* 
Speaking of trespass signs, One of our readers gives 
the following copy of such a sign put up on a farm in 
his town: 
“No haunting and Shoaiting alod on This farm Eny 
Moar Agin.” 
That is a legal sign and will attract attention. A let¬ 
ter or so out of place here and there doesn’t matter so 
long as it is understood that the man back of the sign 
means business. 
* 
We have tried to put all the facts about “nitro-cul- 
ture” before our readers. On page 255 the Department 
of Agriculture endorses in a guarded way the plan of 
sending the culture on dried cotton. Now comes the 
Texas Experiment Station with a bulletin in which this 
statement is made: 
The results obtained by ibis method of investigation were 
so uniform ihat there could be no room for doubt but that 
something was wrong with the substances sold as Nitro-eul- 
ture. So directly at variance with the claims put forward 
by the Department of Agriculture and by numerous writers, 
presumably Inspired from the same source, were the results 
of this investigation, that in May. 1905, the writer addressed 
a summary of these to Dr. Geo. T. Moore. 
The use of this “nitro-culture” is considered “of more 
i than doubtful value.” Only a few plants showed tuber¬ 
cles, and these were not helped by them. 
* 
On page 303 we mentioned a plant growing in Colo¬ 
rado which is said to contain rubber. The following 
statement is made by a practical man who spent over a 
year in experimenting with the plant: 
I cannot advise anyone to invest in the business at the 
present stage of development. People who cannot go and 
make personal investigation would better let it alone. As 
a rule, I pay no attention to inquiries of the above nature, 
but I say this much for your Information on account of the 
friendship I have for your paper. At present, I do not 
consider either the culture of the plant or the extraction 
of rubber from the wild plant a paying proposition, although 
there is a small amount of rubber In the plants. 
We pay attention to this matter because it is quite 
likely that efforts will soon be made to sell stock in 
rubber companies formed to cultivate this plant. The 
world’s supply of rubber is limited. A few years ago 
certain Mexican rubber companies were boomed with 
very plausible arguments. None of them seems to have 
prospered, though some paid so-called dividends out of 
their capital for a time in order to sell stock. Better 
let rubber alone. 
The bill making “denaturized” alcohol free from the 
internal revenue tax has been reported from committee 
and seems likely to pass. It ought to, for the effect of 
it will be useful in many ways. Farmers of all sec¬ 
tions or sentiments can safely unite in demanding its 
passage. This tax has helped develop and hold several 
special privileges which are close to monopolies. The 
wood alcohol industry has fattened upon it. Manu¬ 
facturers and importers of goods which require grain 
alcohol in their making have enjoyed close to a monop¬ 
oly. No doubt the high price of alcohol, made by this 
tax, has enabled the oil companies to put up the price 
of gasoline and kerosene. The removal of this tax will, 
we believe, help break these monopolies by making com¬ 
petition possible. Here comes a curious thing. 1 he 
tariff has given a special privilege to many classes, 
which has been developed into a monopoly just about 
as this internal revenue tax has in a smaller way done 
the same thing. If one should demand a change in the 
tariff in order to break a monopoly there would be 
great opposition at once. Yet while cutting off this in¬ 
ternal tax is about the same thing no one opposes it 
except the privileged people who have enjoyed the mo¬ 
nopoly ! There is no sound argument for retaining this 
alcohol tax! 
* 
A DISCREDITED “ REFORMER.” 
The reform elements in politics met a great disap¬ 
pointment in District Attorney Jerome of New York 
City. Taking advantage of the people’s disgust of cor¬ 
ruption and boss rule last year, Mr. Jerome announced 
himself as the people’s candidate for District Attorney 
of New York County on an independent ticket in oppo¬ 
sition to the candidates nominated by the political par¬ 
ties. During the campaign Mr. Jerome made the state¬ 
ment that he had been reading the evidence brought out 
by the investigation of life insurance affairs, and that 
he thought some of the officials were liable to criminal 
prosecution. If elected he promised promptly and vig¬ 
orously to prosecute them. During the canvass for his 
election it was thought that, owing no allegiance to 
any political party, Mr. Jerome would devote himself 
to the interests of the people exclusively. ITe would be 
bound by no consideration of party, and know no boss. 
He was elected on this issue, and the result was hailed 
as a death blow to boss rule in politics. It was thought 
that he would make good his pledges and promises, and 
hereafter any honest citizen could announce himself for 
office and appealing to the voters direct be elected inde¬ 
pendent of political bosses. Mr. Jerome has discour¬ 
aged that hope. Five months have now passed, and 
nothing has been done to bring the life insurance 
grafters to trial. Last month the grand jury proposed 
to investigate the criminal liability of life insurance 
officials who made contributions to political campaign 
committees, and reimbursed themselves afterwards out 
of the money belonging to the policy holders. Instead 
of assisting the grand jury, as was his plain duty, and 
as he promised to do when looking for votes, he took 
up the cause of the accused officials and declared in 
advance that they had committed no crime. Tie then 
started what look like farcical efforts to whitewash the 
accused officials, and to prevent an indictment by the 
grand jury, thus giving the appearance of being a cham¬ 
pion of law-breakers and an apologist for high financial 
crookedness. Small criminals he prosecutes with great 
energy, but he has no heart to tackle big thieves. Six 
months ago Mr. Jerome was one of the most popular can¬ 
didates for office in the city. To-day he is the most dis¬ 
credited man in New York, and those of us who voted 
for him and supported him the strongest are the most 
disgusted and chagrined. Discredited himself, he has 
brought reproach to the cause of clean politics, which he 
was supposed to represent, an attitude giving comfort 
and security to grafters and political bosses. The R. 
N.-Y. does not ordinarily discuss politics, but this man 
has had higher ambitions and country people were look¬ 
ing for him to go “higher up.” He goes lower down! 
* 
Not long ago one of our readers asked some ques¬ 
tions about Alfalfa and other matters. They were too 
much for us, and we referred them to readers. Just 
what this man wanted came in the form of sound per¬ 
sonal experience. In thanking us for the information 
this reader says: 
It is a very pleasant thing to belong to a big club of prac¬ 
tical men, scattered all over the country, each having a 
lot of difficulties of his own, but yet not too busy or selfish 
to be willing and glad to help the others when they get into 
difficulties. The man who reads The R. N.-Y. for a. year 
will not only learn more actual farming than ho can in any 
other periodical I know of, but he will also get a good many 
lessons in and Illustrations of helpfulness, and brotherly 
feeling that may well make him proud of being able to say, 
“I am also a farmer.” 
This puts very well what we have often tried to ex¬ 
press. The best part of The R. N.-Y. is what comes 
as volunteer testimony from practical people. Without 
doubt over 300,000 people read The R. N.-Y. each week, 
many of them studying every page. We have tried the 
experiment of tucking important questions in the small¬ 
est type away in some corner, yet in every case some 
man with just the right experience found and answered 
it. It seems to us that there is no other paper in the 
country with quite such a kindly feeling among its 
readers or a spirit showing a greater desire to be 
helpful. 
* 
In our collection of letters from Congressmen we 
printed one from Mr. Landis of Indiana. Now read 
the following from one of our readers: 
Concerning the letter published on page 294, where Con¬ 
gressman Landis defines his position on the parcels post, 
will say that I have also written him on the same sub¬ 
ject, and received a similar reply in which lie argues econ¬ 
omy as his reason for opposing the measure. A few days 
after receiving his reply I also received a package of free 
seeds, which I acknowledged as follows: 
“Closely following your recent letter, in which you plead 
economy as your reason for opposing parcels post legisla¬ 
tion, I received a package of garden seed free as a favor 
from you. I wish to say that I use several dollars’ worth 
of seeds each year. Still the seeds sent me by you at Gov¬ 
ernment expense are not often just what I want, and con¬ 
sequently are not planted. Now, if the Government and 
the mail system were relieved of this expense of sending me, 
each year, these seeds that I do not want, could it not give 
me cheaper and better service in carrying seeds that I do 
want? It seems to me that your, package of free seeds can¬ 
cels all your economy argument for opposing parcels post.” 
Likely you have already given Mr. Landis all the attention 
you care to in your paper, but I send you the above, so you 
may know that the farmers out here are doing some hand¬ 
writing on the wall, and asking our lawmakers to take notice. 
F. M. 
That was well answered. If there were more farmers 
like this one some of these Congressmen would stay at 
home. That is where Mr. Landis would shine to good 
advantage. Keep at him and others like him. These 
drops of ink will grow until they burst into letters of 
fire upon the wall. 
* 
In Rochester, N. Y., there is a fight between farmers 
and hucksters over the old question of a market license. 
The hucksters buy produce from farmers and peddle it 
from door to door. For this privilege they pay a license 
fee of $5, which is now raised to $10. They intend if 
they can to prevent farmers from selling produce on the 
street unless they pay an almost prohibitive license. 
The aldermen, to satisfy the hucksters, propose that 
farmers cannot sell their produce on the street unless they 
first rent a stall in the city market at a cost of $30 or 
more, and then pay in addition the huckster’s license of 
$10. It will be seen from this that an effort is being 
made to drive the farmers off the street and give the 
advantage to the hucksters. Those Rochester aldermen 
must be a blind set of men, or else they have a poor 
opinion of a farmer’s fighting qualities. This question 
has come up again and again. Tt appears to be settled 
that a farmer has a right to sell his own produce on 
any public highway so long as he does not interfere 
with legitimate traffic. When a farmer buys or handles 
the produce of others he becomes a huckster, and may 
be compelled to pay for a license. The courts have 
taken that view, and we do not believe that the city of 
Rochester can compel farmers to stay on a public mar¬ 
ket or pay such a sum for the privilege. Much the 
same thing was tried at Dunkirk, N. Y., a few years 
ago. Of course the hucksters want the farmers penned 
up in this market, for they can combine and refuse to 
buy until the price suits them. On the other hand, if a 
farmer has the right to go out and peddle he can con¬ 
trol the price. Here is a case for the County Grange 
or other farm organizations. Let some farmers who 
now sell their produce on the streets continue to do so, 
and, if arrested, fight the case in court. Let the Grange 
back them up and make a strong fight for the principle 
that a farmer has as much right to the street trade as 
a huckster has. Even a farmer who never peddles a 
basket of apples should help in this, for a brave defense 
of any right, however small, is now a help to agri¬ 
culture. 
BREVITIES. 
Give the work horses a fair show. 
Every job done on time helps another. 
Any man who undertakes to introduce a new fruit must 
be prepared to run the gauntlet. 
Strike while the iron is hot, and keep on striking when 
it is cold sd as to heat it up again. 
Cotton-seed meal Is an excellent fertilizer, but Is gener¬ 
ally worth so much for feeding that its price as plant food 
comes too high. 
A single plant of the rare orchid, Odontoglossum crispum 
Pittanum, was recently sold at auction in London for $6,035. 
This is a record price in orchid sales. 
The TT. S. Department of Agriculture has issued Circular 
No. 63 on “Root Maggots and How to Control Them,” which 
will be helpful to those who have been wrestling with these 
pests in cabbage, radishes, etc. 
Older farmers well remember when land plaster was in 
general use as a fertilizer. Now it Is seldom used alone. 
When acid phosphate is used plaster or sulphate of lime is 
found in it, and this supplies the need. 
The Canton of Geneva. Switzerland, has forbidden the 
Importation of rooted American grapevines, whether grafted 
or not : scions will be permitted entry, after passing inspec¬ 
tion. This prohibition is due to fear of phylloxera. Geneva 
has 4,600 acres of grapevines: the adjoining Canton de Vaud, 
with 17,000 acres of grapes also prohibits American grape¬ 
vines. 
