378 
April 28, 
TIIE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Entered at New York as Second ('lass Matter. 
Herbert W. Collingwood, Editor. 
Dr. Walter Van Fleet, i a 
Mrs. e. t. Boyle, ( 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 V 2 marks, or 10% 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, APRIL 28, 1906. 
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. 
* 
1 he California Fruit Grower states that J. H. Adams, 
one of the largest orange growers in that State, has pub¬ 
lished the following notice: 
It is evident that some party, for a purpose, is infecting 
our orchards with the Purple scale. This is a fact which 
I can demonstrate. 1 offer a flat reward of $1,000 for the 
arrest and conviction of this party. j. h. adams. 
The object of this cursed work is to spread this de¬ 
structive insect so that public money will be spent in 
fighting it! If a man should be caught at this dastardly 
work in a section where fruit growing is the chief in¬ 
dustry-jailing would be too good for him. 
* 
Canada does not do much talking about State social¬ 
ism or public ownership of natural commodities, but 
the Province of Ontario has decided that a section 
called the “Gillies timber limit,” containing valuable de¬ 
posits of silver and cobalt, is not to be open to private 
or corporate exploitation, but is to be mined by the 
Government for the benefit of the people. What a 
horrifying shock such* such a system would be to the 
benevolent gentlemen who made us pay $6.75 for our 
last ton of coal! In this country Senator LaFoIlette 
has been fighting to prevent the sale to private parties 
of Indian lands which are said to be full of coal. They 
should be held by the Government for the people. 
* 
It seems, from the letters printed this week, that the 
plan of using water glass for preserving eggs has given 
satisfaction. It has kept the eggs in good condition. As 
we see, in one case these eggs were sold. There has 
been some question about the danger in using such eggs. 
We hardly think such danger worth considering, but we 
want to learn the facts if any one can tell them. The 
following note from Prof. E. B. Voorhees, of New 
Jersey, is the best statement we have yet received: 
While we have had no experience in this matter, and 
have not analyzed any of the eggs after such treatment, it 
would seem from theoretical grounds, that the danger would 
not he very great. A reaction would naturally take place 
between the sodium of silicate and the carbonate of lime, of 
tiie egg shell, resulting in a lime silicate and sodium car¬ 
bonate. This would be likely to form a thin film over the 
egg. It may be, however, that if the eggs are kept in contact 
with the silicate for a long time, there would be some os¬ 
motic action. I should, however, not fear any danger from 
such a possibility. 
Personally we shall go ahead and put up eggs in water 
glass. 
* 
We have had something to say about the Seedless 
apple, and shall say more from time to time. It may be 
asked why. If we do not think this apple possesses any 
particular merit, we do not ignore it. We are told that 
the company expects to sell this Fall 500,000 trees of 
the Seedless at $2 per tree. That means $1,000,000 to 
be paid by fruit growers and taken out of regular trade. 
The possibility of any such business justifies a thorough 
investigation of the apple and we intend to make it. 
We shall find out if we can just where the apple came 
from. We have evidence to show that the apple started 
as a seedling in Virginia, and that after some years 
wood of the variety was given to John F. Spencer, of 
Colorado. We understand that Mr. Spencer denies that 
the apple came to him in this way, but that he evolved 
it by means of some secret process. We call upon 
Mr. Spencer to give the facts and clear up the mystery. 
How did he get the apple? There is no disgrace in 
propagating from a seedling. The original of Baldwin, 
Grimes Golden, Ben Davis and other standard varieties 
were seedlings. We should pay no attention to the 
origin of the apple if it were not claimed that Mr. Spen¬ 
cer produced it by some secret process. We shall also 
learn what we can about the young trees now growing 
ready for sale. The company claims to have some 
8,000,000 trees in various nurseries. We have infor¬ 
mation from several points where these nurseries are 
said to be located. In some cases few, if any, trees 
are to be found; in others reports do not indicate great 
care or skill in handling the nurseries. Tt is our priv¬ 
ilege to investigate such things fairly, and we shall do 
so, for it is a serious thing to ask a man to pay $2 for 
a tree that is not guaranteed by an expert. These 
things, however, are of minor importance. The fruit 
must win or lose on merit. There are too many varie¬ 
ties in cultivation now. We do not need any new apples 
unless they are really superior. Every man who knows 
anything about fruit understands that a new one must 
run the gauntlet and prove its merit against hard 
knocks. The Seedless Apple Company cannot complain 
at fair criticism and a fair statement of the facts. We 
can see nothing in the specimens of the fruit we have 
tested to justify its introduction even at the price of 
standard varieties. To attempt to “boom” such fruit 
in an extravagant way and charge eight to 10 times the 
price of far better varieties seems to us an imposition 
upon the public and a menace to the nursery trade. 
Now if the apple has merits—tell us what they are! 
We have no prejudice against the apple, but we shall 
rip the entire business right open without fear or favor. 
* 
Our friend John M. Jamison, of Ohio, wrote Con¬ 
gressman Chas. H. Grosvenor of that State, asking him 
to vote for the free alcohol bill, and also to abolish the 
free seed distribution. Here is the reply: 
The principle embodied in the free alcohol bill is a vicious 
one. It is the principle of legislating to destroy one indus¬ 
try in the interest of another. It is in the interest of de¬ 
stroying an industry that has flourished and to build up one 
that has not flourished. But the bill will pass and we will 
have an experiment, and I predict now that the farmers of 
the country will not feel the slightest effect of it, and that 
the manufacturers of a few certain articles, to wit. hats, 
and so on, will reap all the benefit. You will never get 
alcohol to take the place of the commodities now used. It 
is a dream which I hope I am mistaken about, but I shall 
put no obstacle in the way of the passage of the bill. 
I am in favor of the abandonment of the seed scheme, 
but not on the ground you put it, not on the ground, as you 
say, that Congress foists these seeds on every citizen. It 
has cost me as high as a hundred dollars a year to make good 
the demands upon me from farmers. You have not any idea 
of the universal and long-continued clamor that the farmers 
make upon Congressmen for garden seeds, and many of them 
demand farm, garden and flower seeds and all that. I shall 
vote to get rid of it because I think the principle is a 
bad one. Now, we are pretty near together, but we are on 
different grounds. c. h. grosvenor. 
Mr. Grosvenor has just been put to one side, as his 
party refused to renominate him. One reason for this 
was the position he took in favor of oleomargarine. 
There was another industry he didn’t want “destroyed.” 
The wood alcohol industry has flourished because the 
high tax on grain alcohol gave it nearly a monopoly. 
The industries that will be built up by free alcohol will 
benefit the American people. Air. Grosvenor thinks 
alcohol will never take the place of kerosene and gaso¬ 
line. In Pennsylvania, oil men claim that free alcohol 
will close 50,000 small oil wells in that State, because it 
will force down the price of petroleum. It will do this 
by taking the place of gasoline for heat and power, and 
providing light. Every ounce of the alcohol used in 
this way will be made from some crop grown by a 
farmer! Air. Grosvenor is doing the dreaming himself. 
As for those free seeds, Congress ought to make a spe¬ 
cial appropriation to pay back the $100 to this benevolent 
gentleman. He knows at least that free seeds will not 
win a renomination! 
* 
The following letter is from a man of wide observa¬ 
tion and good judgment: 
I have just read the first of Mr. Garrahan’s series of arti¬ 
cles. I can see the plan he is headed for; it is all right. I 
am glad that he is taking it up. You have, however, a duty 
in the case. Warn your readers against kangaroo conclu¬ 
sions. Do you know what they are? No?* Well, you have 
heard what a cuss that animal is to jump. Now, can you 
guess what I mean by kangaroo conclusions? Mr. Garra- 
han will make his case so clear that some readers of The 
R. N.-Y. will jump to the conclusion that the fertility of all 
soil may be increased. Tell them to draw a sharp line be¬ 
tween restoration of fertility and creation of fertility. 
There is some land which has been cleared of the virgin 
forest which the Lord never intended for farms. In time 
such farms are abandoned. Then comes some wise rural 
sociologist with long rows of statistics, arguing that the 
abandonment is due to social conditions out of joint. You 
can always depend on the man who studies figures rather 
than the things themselves, to find social dislocations. 
This difference between restoring fertility and creat¬ 
ing it must be understood. There is another side to it. 
There are some thin, light lands where trees make a 
slow growth. Clear these lands and attempt to carry 
on general farming and failure would be sure. Plant 
peach and apple and feed them intelligently, and it 
might be possible to make a good profit. In such cases 
the soil would be regarded as a place for the trees to 
put their roots. The growth of the trees and the fruit 
would come entirely from the fertilizers or manures 
which were added. Considering the price of such land 
it might be possible to supply all the fertility needed and 
still make as much profit as would be made at general 
farming on stronger soil. As we know from experi¬ 
ence, the character and producing power of these thin 
soils can be greatly improved in time by a wise use of 
chemicals and green manures. At the same time this 
warning is timely, and with seven men out of 10 the safe 
place for chemicals and green manures is on farms of 
naturally rich soils which have been “run down” by poor 
farming or neglect. Our ancestors took up many farms 
which never should have been touched. They were lim¬ 
ited in their choice in many cases. Some of them stuck 
to these farms longer than they should have done with 
their old methods of farming. In some cases newer 
methods would have saved the farm—in others it was a 
part of destiny to send the fields back to the woods. 
* 
The letters from Congressmen are coming in, and 
some of them are certainly “stars.” Here is one from 
Geo. E. Waldo, of New York State, in response to a 
letter about the parcels post: 
I believe # a # parcels post limited to packages of small size 
and light weight would be of great benefit to this country. 
There is already in effect a parcels post now of merchandise 
not likely to injure other mail, which can be forwarded in 
packages not to exceed four pounds in weight at a rate of 
two cents per pound. This is certainly a very cheap parcels 
post. To extend the weight beyond this would require spe¬ 
cial freight cars to carry the large packages that would be 
sent. I think the fact that the Post Office Department is 
already running a parcels post is overlooked by you and by 
tbe public generally. I believe, however, increased facilities 
and service should be made for the public and trust that this 
may be done in the near future. g. e. waldo 
For a Congressman that is just about the limit. Does 
he really think any intelligent person will believe his 
statement that four-pound packages can be mailed for 
eight cents? It costs just 64 cents to mail them from 
one town to another, while a man in Hongkong, China, 
could send such a package to any part of this country for 
30. cents. That is certainly a brilliant man. He must 
think he has a lot of wooden men as constituents. “Spe¬ 
cial freight cars! In England, when the great fight 
for a penny post was made, the opposition got down to 
the argument that so many letters would be written that 
they would burst the post office walls! Air. Waldo 
should have been a legislator in those days! 
BREVITIES. 
T rv to harrow as soon after plowing as possible. 
A good thing to commit to memory—the first verse of 
the Psalms. 
In their great desire to be “broad" some men lose the 
edge which really “cuts ice.” 
Steriline is a new “food,” consisting of condensed sep¬ 
arator skim-milk with gelatin added. 
It is Interesting to see how the accumulation of property 
changes a man's views on many public questions. 
One of (he most hopeful things about Connecticut farm¬ 
ing is the large number of young men who attend the agri¬ 
cultural meetings. 
The Bureau of Labor prints a long article on “Concilia¬ 
tion in the Stove Industry.” It may be an agreement be- 
tweent wife and husband as to which shall start the fire. 
An “auto hog” ran over a Brown Leghorn hen belonging 
to a California woman. She collected $5 “at the point of 
a blacksnake whip!" There’s the new woman for you! 
Poor men often sigh because their boys cannot have the 
advantages of education which rich men’s sons enjoy. Let 
them lemember that rich men sigh because their boys can¬ 
not be brought up like the sons of poor men. 
Mr. Smith, page 375, teljs how he sold water-glass 
eggs which proved satisfactory. We have not advised sell¬ 
ing them. The method seems best adapted to holding the 
home supply. For this it seems very successful. 
Market gardeners in the vicinity of Paris, France, are 
reported to be striking for shorter hours. They are satis¬ 
fied with their present wages, about 12 cents an hour, but 
they object to working 18 hours a day, and want to cut it 
down to l()i,4 hours. 
Many readers will be Interested to know what became 
of Mr. Cosgrove’s horse thief. He was discharged from 
prison for the former sentence before the Connecticut deputy 
presented his warrant—and so is still at large. The inten¬ 
tion was to convict him and ask the judge to suspend sen¬ 
tence. 
We read of a new method of teaching a parrot. The 
bird is put in front of a phonograph which constantly re¬ 
peats a single sentence to him. In time he gets it so that- 
he never forgets it. though time may prove it false. We- 
meet men from time to time who seem to have ideas put 
into them in the same way. 
We shall attempt to give the facts about “nitro culture”' 
as they develop. This is what the Iowa Station concludes : 
“The farmers of Iowa and other States with similar soil 
conditions ’should waste no money buying bacteria. Barn¬ 
yard manure and thorough tillage are worth more than 
all the nitrogen cultures on the market. Put the soil in ; 
good enough condition to grow 75 bushels of corn per acre t 
then sow 20 pounds of Alfalfa seed about the middle of 
August, following a crop of small grain, and the question 
of cultures will take care of itself.” 
