4o6 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
May 12, 
farmers had proven that Alfalfa could not be success¬ 
fully grown on their farms, it was useless to make 
further trials and they hoped that this was the last 
time that they would have to waste their time listening 
to a talk on this subject. He voiced the sentiment of 
all the farmers present. Three years later, at another 
meeting, the same farmer asked the writer for a good 
plan for an Alfalfa hay barn, explaining that for 20 
years he had been raising Timothy and clover, and had 
barns to hold all the crop. He now had the same acre¬ 
age in Alfalfa, and could not shelter half the crop. 
This success after 12 years of failure came from chang¬ 
ing the date of seeding and from using seed grown 
under entirely different conditions from that which 
had previously been used. There are to-day hundreds 
of acres of Alfalfa grown in this county. I spent a 
week in a section of Kansas where Alfalfa had been 
often tried, and had finally been given up because no 
profitable crops had been grown. Investigation showed 
that the failures were due to methods and time of 
seeding. One man was induced to try a different 
method, and two years later, at a farmers’ institute, re¬ 
ported a growth of five crops of Alfalfa in a single 
season. Samples of each crop were shown and the total 
length of growth of the five crops in the one season 
was 21 feet. Alfalfa is now a common crop in this 
farmer’s county. The eastern farmer needs Alfalfa. 
He should set his jaws harder together and keep trying 
to grow it until he succeeds. h. m. Cottrell. 
NEW FRENCH PEAR , DOYENNE DU COMICE 
This fine pear, fruits of which are shown in Fig. 161, 
first page, is not new in the sense of being a recent nov¬ 
elty. It is described in late editions of Downing’s Fruits 
of America, and had been long propagated in Europe, 
where it is a great favorite for espalier culture, but 
trees have only recently been offered in this country, 
appearing first in the catalogue of Ellwanger & Barry, 
Rochester, N. Y. It is regarded as an excellent Fall 
ripening variety, being at its best in October and No¬ 
vember. The tree is a fairly vigorous, clean and up¬ 
right grower, and commences to bear when young, 
becoming markedly prolific with age. The pears are 
large and uniform in size, rather more roundish in 
form than Anjou. The color at maturity is yellow, 
shaded with crimson and russet. Flesh is white, rich 
and buttery, with a fine, sweet flavor. The quality is 
rated as among the very best. Doyenne du Comice 
should be considered worthy of trial where fine pears 
are appreciated and ordinary kinds succeed. 
PLAN FOR RECONSTRUCTING BARN. 
Will you give me plan and dimensions of stables for four 
horses, remainder for cows? It is a bank barn with over¬ 
shot. I propose taking out yard wall and boarding up at end 
of overshot, making inside measure 35 feet deep by 47 feet 
wide. It is a basement barn, located on sloping ground, 
the barn floor or driveway, including a mow on each side, 
being nearly level with the ground and extending eight feet 
over the yard wall, forming as we express it an overshot of 
eight feet. I propose taking the yard wall out, the remain¬ 
der to remain as supports instead of posts: then to build a 
foot wall 18 inches high at extremity of overshot, and 
board up with matched boards, making an enclosed basement 
35 feet wide by 47 feet long. The barn has old style racks 
and ground floors. I desire to have cow stable and feeding 
rooms on passage-ways cemented; horse stable, ground floor 
planked under horses; a box stall for horses and one for 
cows. Horses to be on south side and cows on north side of 
barn. Number of cows to be kept problematical; 45-acre 
farm, loam soil, somewhat hilly, has had tenants for a long 
time, probably eight to 15 cows. Above basement is hardly 
large enough to accommodate hay, straw and grain ; horses 
would come out of yard side or end. You mention stan¬ 
chions; do you prefer them to feeding off the floor with 
chains or mangers with chains and why? There is a stringer 
running from wall to wall along ceiling of basement in one 
stick; it will need support; ceiling eight feet high. 
Erie, Pa. J. J. z. 
In order to accommodate the required number of 
cows it has been necessary to place them in two rows 
and leave space enough for one box stall. This ar¬ 
rangement allows three feet of space each for 13 cows. 
If cows are large the number of stanchions should be 
reduced and more space given each animal. A door 
will have to be cut through the wall in the north end. 
The manure can be taken out with a carrier, or one 
could back into the barn through this door. In the 
south end are the horses, and a drive floor with room 
for light wagons, etc. The overhead stringers or sills 
will be supported by posts, (the locations of the posts 
are marked by squares on the diagram) except that 
portion over the drive floor, which will be supported 
by a truss above. For convenience the granary should 
be moved to the east side, and the bins built against 
the wall, where spouts or chutes will convey the differ¬ 
ent kinds of grain into the small grain boxes directly 
underneath, where it will be convenient for both horses 
and cows. Either an open or closed space may be 
provided for harness against the south wall in the 
rear of the horse stalls. Stairs are placed as indicated, 
a triangular-shaped enclosure built in the mow with a 
tight door leading to the barn floor. Feeding doors 
built in the mow with an enclosure like the stairway; 
doors opening to the barn floor are provided as indi¬ 
cated. It will be necessary to remove all of the yard 
wall, as those portions that you propose leaving would 
be very much in the way. A post will support the 
sill above just as well and take up but little space. 
Many people in submitting plans for stables lose sight 
of the fact that it is absolutely necessary to have posts 
in the stable to support the beams above, and that the 
location of those posts must be taken into consideration 
in making plans. Use nothing but cement for the floor 
under horses, cows, and passage. The swing stanchion 
is, all things considered, the most satisfactory fastener; 
several good ones are advertised. The plan calls for 
PLAN FOR RECONSTRUCTING BANK BARN. Fig. 162. 
mullion windows, as the light nearly all enters from 
one side; those double windows are necessary to se¬ 
cure four square feet of window space for each animal. 
_ J. J. s. 
A METHOD OF TOP-WORKING TREES. 
Seeing on page 326 an account of some new ideas 
in top-working fruit trees, I would like to add a 
thought or two not made quite plain in the article in 
question, and also give, as I think, a better way in 
another. I refer to cutting and shaping the saw kerf to 
receive the scions. There is no need of a fine saw to 
make this kerf, any pruning saw (I use a Disston) is 
good enough, and I much prefer a reasonably stiff 
blade, and make only one cut, see Fig. 163, la. I do not 
fear cutting this kerf to the center of the stock, or 
if only one graft is to be inserted, and the stock is 
small, quite beyond. I then trim out with a small 
METHOD OF TOP-WORKING TREES. Fig. 163. 
crescent-shaped harnessmaker’s knife the kerf as at 
lb and 2f. Before cutting or shaping this kerf, how¬ 
ever, I point the scion, cutting it as shown in cross- 
section as shown in 8g, and cutting away the back as 
shown at 4c, after which the kerf is cut out to fit the 
scion but with a slightly snugger fit at top of stock. 
Place the cambium layers as near together as possible, 
and drive scion home. I insert only one scion unless 
the stock is large and an important one, preferring to 
top-work higher and more limbs. In all cases I cut 
to one when grafts develop to vigorous growth. In 
this climate I have had best results by wrapping the 
ends of stocks where grafts are inserted with paper 
secured by cotton twine, covering a distance of some 
six inches in length, extending beyond the stock one- 
half inch or so, for protection from rays of sun. I 
have had some failures, due no doubt to top-working 
almost entirely trees badly inclined to blight in an 
effort to save root, trunk and limb system. I count no 
failures otherwise in the six years of use of this sys¬ 
tem. I cannot say who originated this plan, but heard 
it at a meeting of the State Board of Horticulture, and 
think W. S. Coburn gave it out at that time. 
Otero Co., Col. _____________ t. lytle. 
HOW A TREE AGENT WORKED HIS GAME. 
A few years ago an agent of the Riverside Nursery 
Co., of Troy, Ohio, went into Monmouth Co., N. J., 
did considerable talking, and walked out some $1,200 
richer—leaving a number of farmers that much poorer. 
As the scheme he worked is a favorite one in his busi¬ 
ness we give the details for the benefit of others. The 
following contract was presented: 
Partnership Contract Between.of. 
and.of the county of.. of the State 
of.witnesseth: 
THIS IS TO CERTIFY That the undersigned have 
agreed to and do enter into partnership. This company, 
after many years of experience in the Nursery and Or¬ 
chard business, have adopted this plan to introduce their 
fruits, and believe that this will prove the most profitable 
plan for those interested in the growing of fruits for the 
markets. 
This company will furnish to.P. O. 
county of. State of., the following 
bill of trees for the purpose of improving his property. 
108 pear. 
Freight paid to.in the Fall of 190.. 
At the time of delivery of trees by this company. 
.shall have prepared the ground for the trees 
and shall plant the same therein. 
Upon the delivery of the trees.shall, as his 
portion of the value of said trees, pay to the company 
or its authorized agent, the sum of $100, being the 
one-half of the price of this orchard. 
The company, on its part, agrees to trim the trees 
properly, and furnish trees to replace any that shall die. 
free of charge, for the period of 5 years. 
As soon as this orchard shall come in bearing. 
shall, out of the proceeds from the sale of the fruits 
harvested from this orchard, receive as rent for the 
ground on which this orchard stands, the sum of $4.00 
per acre per annum; and further sum of $100 paid 
this company for his one-half of the value of this or¬ 
chard, it being the intention of the parties hereto that 
.shall own his one-half of this orchard at 
bearing time, free of cost to him. 
The company shall, for its labor and its part of the 
trees so furnished by them, after the payment to. 
of the amount due him as stated above, have a joint 
and one-half interest in the net proceeds of this orchard 
for a period which shall terminate, and this partnership 
shall cease, 5 years from the date when this orchard 
is planted; and at the last mentioned date this orchard 
and its product shall be the sole and exclusive property 
of. his heirs and assigns forever. 
If this company shall fail to perform any of the stipu¬ 
lations and agreements on its part, shall fail to trim this 
orchard or replace any of the trees which shall die, then 
this partnership shall terminate and cease and all rights 
or obligations under or by virtue of this contract shall 
terminate and . his heirs and assigns, shall 
be the sole owner of this orchard, free from any claims 
of this company, either as to trees or fruits therefrom. 
In Testimony Whereof, ., by its Agent 
.. and.have hereunto set their hands 
and seals this .... day of June 1902. 
By.Agent. 
Now it would seem as if any man of good judgment 
could see what a jug-handled scheme this is. It is im¬ 
possible for the company to lose. They get their $100 
and bind themselves simply to trim the trees. A man 
might come, and in an hour’s 1 time, cut off a limb here 
and there and call the job done. As for supplying new 
trees for dead ones—it would be easy to send cheap 
trees which might cost eight cents each. 
But what was there about this pear which made the 
trees worth a dollar? Nothing but a poor quality of 
wind. The agent called it the “Eclipse” pear, and it 
certainly put the hopes of these growers in an eclipse! 
He claimed that this wonderful variety would ripen 
fruit in July—ahead of any other variety, that the 
trees would begin to bear at three years old, and keep 
on producing paying crops qvery year. The pear was 
certainly a wonder, and this company had guarded it 
so well that the experiment stations and fruit experts 
knew nothing about it. Yet, strange to say, intelligent 
men and old fruit growers signed this contract and 
paid the $100! That agent understood human nature 
like a book. One of his victims tells how he was 
caught: 
The agent called on me, urging that I should purchase 
and set out a partnership pear orchard as described in the 
contract. I gave him no encouragement. After leaving 
me he went to my neighbor, who described the circum¬ 
stances to me as follows; “The agent asked me if I would 
set a pear orchard. I replied : The only place that I care 
to put an orchard is over in the northwest field. He then 
asked if I would allow him to take a spade and go over to 
that field and try the subsoil. I gave my consent. After. 
