June 23, 
5o8 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S RARER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Entered at New York as Second Class Matter. 
Herbert W. Collingwood, Editor. 
Dr. Walter Van Fleet. I 
Mrs. K. T. Hoyle, (Associates. 
John J. Dillon, Business Manager. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries in tlie Universal Postal Union, $2.04, 
equal to 8s. (id., or 8 l /j 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 
Hu* debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned by the courts. 
Notice of the complaint must be sent to tt's within one 
month of the time of the transaction, and you must have 
mentioned Tub 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 l 7 ork. 
SATURDAY, JUNE 211, 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. 
* 
A very large proportion of rural people in the Eastern 
States buy a fair share of their meat. Somehow west¬ 
ern people have an idea that farmers are producers en¬ 
tirely'. That is not so, for in thousands of farm homes 
90 iper cent of the bread and 50 per cent of meat is pro¬ 
duced by other farmers. For our own part, the meat 
question is a small trouble, with more strawberries and 
cream, green peas, lettuce, beets and new potatoes than 
we can eat! 
* 
1 he following labor report from Pennsylvania gives 
a new idea of one side of the situation: 
The hired girl question is very bad here. All the girls seek 
employment in cities, because of larger wages and more priv¬ 
ileges: they in turn marry city men, leaving country boys 
to find companions in city girls, who in turn will not live 
on a farm. Then the farmers wonder why the younger peo¬ 
ple do not like to work on the farms. 
broni this it would look as if the girls are still mas¬ 
ters of the society. The hand that cooks the dinner 
holds the reins! 
* 
Most of the farmers who write of cultivating corn and 
potatoes say that they would never go into the field in 
wet weather. We would not make quite so positive a 
statement. We have seen several very wet seasons 
when deep cultivation seemed to help the corn. The 
only time when we thought plowing really helped corn 
was on rich soil in a very wet season. It seemed that 
year as if the corn really needed to have some of its 
roots cut off, and was the better for the pruning. In the 
average season and soil we cannot think of anything 
much worse for the corn than to run a plow between 
the rows. 
* 
We call attention to the article on page 503 regarding 
the proposed amendment to the Minnesota constitution. 
Nothing could be clearer than the statement made by 
Mr. Reeves—nothing, unless it is the duty of Minnesota 
farmers. Here they have a chance to defend their own 
interests by the simple matter of voting for this amend¬ 
ment. As Mr. Reeves points out, a majority of the 
votes cast must be in favor, and the grocers and mer¬ 
chants want to keep quiet and let the thing die through 
lack of interest. Do not let this happen under any cir¬ 
cumstances. All that is necessary is to let farmers and 
gardeners understand what there is at stake. The R. 
N.-Y. has many readers in Minnesota. Let every one of 
them instantly form himself a committee of one to carry 
the news to 100 others. Talk, write—do anything that 
will attract attention to this matter! 
* 
One of the problems growing out of the San Fran 
cisco earthquake disaster is what to do with the children 
left homeless or in destitute circumstances. There seem 
to be many children who have lost one or both parents ' 
Where shall they go? It has been suggested that homes 
be found for them in farm houses. It seems a shame 
to put such children into orphan asylums when thou¬ 
sands of comfortable farm homes are childless. Yet 
most people hesitate to take a child that has at least 
partly 7 formed habits and character. One may take an 
infant and by wise and. firm treatment overcome some 
*of the defects of blood or hereditary traits. It is, how¬ 
ever, a very different thing to handle a child that has 
begun to form careless or evil habits, and no one should 
attempt it unless he is willing to make some sacrifice 
of self. He who takes a little child for his pleasure 
or convenience or because lie expects merely to train a 
worker will, in nine cases out of 10, be disappointed and 
spoil the child as well. 
* 
When Senator Burton of Kansas resigned Governor 
Hoch appointed E. D. Coburn, the well-known secretary 
of the Kansas Board of Agriculture. No worthier se¬ 
lection could have been made, but Mr. Coburn declined 
the appointment. The reason is an old-fashioned one. 
He likes his present position, is doing lots of good in it, 
and his friends want him to stay there. It is not often 
that history shows a man who, when asked to go up 
higher, prefers to stay on a middle seat, where he feels 
sure of his usefulness. It is almost a lost record— 
this idea of a man studying the good he can render to 
society rather than his personal advancement. How 
many other agricultural secretaries in the country have 
impressed their value upon the State so that they would 
be considered good Senatorial timber? If there were 
any, how many would refuse to go to the Senate? And 
yet, why should not the chief agricultural official of a 
great State be a big enough man for any office? Secre¬ 
tary Coburn has shown that the secretary’s office has 
possibilities large enough for any ambitious man! 
* 
Congressman Wadsworth of New York must enjoy 
reading the papers nowadays. He is being placed where 
he seems to belong. Upton Sinclair, author of “The 
Jungle,” the book which brought the meat packing 
abuses to a head, has written a letter to Mr. Wadsworth 
in which he says: 
I predict, Sir, that you will to live to regret tlie insult 
which you have offered to (lie intelligence of the American 
people. They are thoroughly aroused upon this question, and 
bent upon justice. They realize that your committee has 
been largely to blame for the continuance of the condemned 
meat industry since it has been your task, year after year, 
to smother the request of the Secretary of Agriculture for 
funds to maintain an efficient inspection, and now that you 
have been forced into the open as the servant and champion 
of the criminals involved I shall be surprised If the people 
do not find a way to make you feel the weight of their dis¬ 
pleasure. 
Yes, the people will find a way! Of all the misfits in 
political life it seems to us that the one most out of 
shape is for a man like Mr. Wadsworth to represent an 
agricultural district. A champion of farmers!—after 
doing his best for oleo rogues and then trying to prevent 
a strict inspection of butchers! 
* 
Some 20 years ago a reader asked if he could pos¬ 
sibly find a small engine capable of doing housework— 
such as driving fans, turning a washing machine and 
so on. He wanted something small, that could if need 
be stand in the corner of a room. We wrote all the 
then leading manufacturers of steam engines, and were 
told that such an engine was impossible. It would be 
a mere toy, costing nearly as much as a large one. 
At that time few, if any, gasoline engines were on the 
market. What a change has come during the 20 years! 
Engines of more than 10 horse-power are carried on 
bicycles, and the latest is a small engine fitted upon 
roller skates. The gasoline which feeds these tiny 
engines is carried easily in a can strapped to the waist, 
and the skates carry the rider at the rate of 20 miles 
an hour. These things show that the development of 
the application of power has not been so one-sided 
after all. It was argued some years ago that power 
would be concentrated in the large cities close to the 
coal centers, or to water power. We heard men say 
at that time that the day of small power had gone— 
never to return. Instead of that engines are being 
made smaller and more portable and thousands of 
farms are now supplied. With free alcohol we believe 
that this distribution of power will become wider yet. 
We shall have direct competition with coal and petrole¬ 
um, and the new fuel will come from farm products. 
* 
The investigation of the meat packing business shows 
how hard it is for the average reader to obtain a really 
fair account of public matters from the daily papers. 
Some of them are very unfair—the news they attempt 
to give is biased one way or another. Some attempt to 
hide the truth by sneering at the investigation, while 
others err on the other side by exaggerating the horrors 
and imaginary dangers. The simple truth is that many 
of the packers have permitted nasty, if not unhealthy, 
methods in the preparation of meat. There seems no 
use in denying that—the packers have proved it them¬ 
selves by hastening to clean up and adopt better methods 
as a result of the investigation. Naturally no man likes 
to be caught at such tricks, but the public have even 
greater rights than the packers, since they cannot buy 
meat elsewhere. Having given these packers nearly a 
monopoly in the meat business, the people certainly have 
a right to oversee their gift! For those packers to fight 
against a fair supervision of their business and to say 
the} 7 will pull cattle men down to ruin with them unless 
they have their own way seems to us the most foolish 
position they can take. They say their trade has been 
hurt! What hurt it? Their own methods—not the ex¬ 
posure of them! People have lost confidence in them, 
and the only thing that will restore it is the guarante- 
of the Government! Who, with any self-respect, will 
care to touch canned meat again until he feels sure that 
the Government not only has the power to reject unfit 
food, but enforces that power? Possibly this would not 
entirely prevent the sale of unwholesome meat, but there 
is nothing that would inspire greater confidence at thU 
time. Wc do not believe that western farmers and 
stockmen are in favor of letting things stand as they 
are. Common sense ought to show them that the great¬ 
est danger to the meat trade lies in continuing the pres¬ 
ent system, while the only way to increase the consump¬ 
tion of meat is to give some stronger guarantee of 
purity. They will find in the end that the strictest sort 
of Federal inspection will be to their advantage. 
* 
Not a word yet from John F. Spencer or his lawyer 
about the origin of the Seedless apple. As the public 
wants to know where the apple came from, we will give 
Mr. Spencer a little more time. Then it may be neces¬ 
sary to let others tell the story. People write us from 
Colorado that a great mystery is kept up regarding the 
Seedless trees—few have ever seen them apparently. 
One well-known nurseryman tells us that he was offered 
the growing wood from one entire tree for $1,000. His 
reply was that lie “would not give 1.000 cents for the 
entire outfit—lock, stock and barrel T’Charles A. Green 
informs us that he has obtained wood from a seedless 
tree hailing from Virginia and will offer the variety as a 
novelty—not because of any high quality. So the 
Seedless Apple Company has not even a monopoly 
of “seedless” fruit. We were offered “seedless” 
trees by the thousand, so that they could have been 
given to readers for a few cents for comparison with 
the trees for which this company will charge $2. The 
offer was declined with thanks. Thousands of Ruby 
Queen roses are climbing over farmhouse porches and 
making friends for us by the dozen. When these seed 
less apples come in bearing—gifts of The R. N.-Y.— 
the chances are that they would drive most of these 
friends away. We have no use for the trees and we 
have yet to find an authority on fruit growing who has. 
If there are any such we would like to hear from them— 
thus far they have been painfully modest in coming for¬ 
ward. In a recent issue of The Ranch Mr. F. Walden 
says: 
There is a controversy over the so-called Spencer seedless 
apple. Will it pay to plant it extensively? What say the 
experiment stations? Has one of them recommended it as 
of commercial value? Has the Department of Pomology in 
connection with the Department of Agriculture ever en¬ 
dorsed this apple? G. B. Brackett was quoted once as en¬ 
dorsing the apple, hut he turned the whole thing down with 
a thud by denying that he ever said anything of the kind. 
So fat- as I know, not one of the experiment stations in the 
United States has ever endorsed this new-old thing as having 
any commercial value. Does II. E. Van Deman. who was 
for eight years at the head of the. Department of Fomology 
at Washington, D. C., endorse this fruit as having any value 
except as a novelty? 
We think we are safe in saying that not one of the 
authorities mentioned has endorsed this fruit. On the 
other hand, many of them advise fruit growers to let it 
alone. At least 50 times a year people come with sad 
tales of money lost in buying “wonderful new fruits.” 
In every case these people would never have lost a dollar 
if they had taken the advice of the fruit authorities! 
BREVITIES. 
For a coarse, quick-growing fodder the Japanese Barn¬ 
yard millet pleases us. 
Suppose you could make men honest as easily as you 
can punish dishonesty ! 
That meat breeder’s association, page 514, is doing good 
work for its members. It pays to get together. 
It is against the United States laws to send live insects 
by mail. Some day it may be a crime to carry them. 
We have no record of stock poisoned by pasturing In 
orchards after spraying. We should have no fear turning in 
stock 24 hours after! 
If your family have not had all the strawberries, peas 
and other good garden stuff they can tuck away—what do 
you think of yourself? 
Show us how to make swinging a hoe as popular as 
swinging a base ball bat and we will solve the labor prob¬ 
lem and provide food for all. 
In our investigation of the farm help problem we have 
found a man on the Pacific coast who makes a business 
of supplying Japanese farm help. 
A neighbor who has a large flock of hens saw us carry¬ 
ing a large bunch of Alfalfa the other days. “Why, I pay 
$50 a ton for that stuff—dried and ground,” he said. 
The Oyster-shell scale has hatched in most locations. 
Now is a good time to kill it on apple trees with a spray 
of one pound whale-oil soap in five gallons of water. Try 
it and watcji the trees first. 
Since a reader in southern Illinois suggested Japanese 
clover as a mulch crop for orchards we have had a number 
of letters from readers asking if the clover will thrive at 
the North. The prevailing opinion is that it will not. 
Readers ace sending us samples of what they find grow¬ 
ing as “Alfalfa.” Some of them paid hard-earned money 
for seed only to find cheap and useless clovers growing at 
harvest time. No care or expense will offset the evil of poor 
seed. 
1 I. 
* - 
