678 
September 8, 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
are almost indispensable, and where but a few years ago 
they were one of the chief resources for money for a 
large number of farmers, the crop of to-day is of little 
value to them and but a source of great disappointment. 
A long experience enables me to say that our varieties 
are as good to-day as they ever were—our growers as 
skilful in trying to raise them, but the obstacle to the 
successful production of good fruit is the destructive 
Melon blight, and the problem is how to control it. 
The best of talent has been and still is engaged in 
the attempt to find a satisfactory solution. Columns 
DRV FEED TROUGH WITH SLIDING ROOF. Fig. 283. 
upon columns on the subject have been published by 
the agricultural press of late, and as much as we have 
heard on the subject of Melon blight and insect lore 
there appears to be no practical remedy or prevention 
that would give us confidence enough to engage in the 
industry of melon growing in this locality. While a 
large majority of growers have failed in the attempt 
to grow them there are yet a few who will venture 
a crop on highly conditioned lands, or in localities that 
appear to be less conducive to the development of the 
pest. These growers on many occasions have been Suc¬ 
cessful. While this method appears to be the safer 
course to pursue, it should, therefore, be the aim of 
the growers to keep their crops entirely out of reach 
of soils on adjoining fields where the same 'or a simi¬ 
lar crop was grown the year before, and the seed 
should be of known purity/ For the home garden and 
for smaller operators generally such a course cannot 
often be followed, and other means of protection have 
to be sought. The most effective measures are those 
of a preventive character, found in applying dry Bor¬ 
deaux Mixture, dusting it under and through the 
vines every 10 days from the time they begin to set 
fruit. This should be continued through the ent re 
growing season. If the soil has not been affected with 
this disease in previous years it will enable one to 
gather a fair supply of good melons. We have for the 
last year heard and read considerable about blight- 
proof varieties. The writer has tried a great many 
kinds, but I can see but little difference in their blight- 
resisting qualities, and while talking with a number of 
growers on this subject thus far none has found such 
a variety, and they are not very enthusiastic over the 
new discovery. T - M - white. 
Monmouth Co., N. J. _ 
THE VALUE OF LIGHTNING RODS. 
In Iowa there are many county and local mutual insur¬ 
ance associations. At the State convention held last year 
the question of lightning rods came up. and was quite well 
discussed. Are such rods any protection? Is there any 
way of preventing the loss of stock in pastures from the 
electric discharge which follows wire fences? In order to 
learn about this we wrote the secretaries of some of these 
associations. Answers follow : 
I do not know of any buildings being struck by 
lightning when properly rodded. 1 consider a properly 
INDIVIDUAL HOGHOUSE TAKEN DOWN. Fig. 284. 
rodded building a better risk than an unrodded build¬ 
ing. Quite a number of cattle and horses are killed 
by lightning, some along wire fences and others out in 
the field. Our method of prevention is to ground the 
wires once in 10 or 20 rods. The perpendicular wires 
should come in contact with all horizontal wires, and 
reach moist ground. M. E. twitch ell. / 
Kingsley. 
Observation teaches me that well-constructed rods 
are a decided protection to buildings. I think very few 
well-rodded buildings are seriously damaged by light¬ 
ning. Much stock is killed by lightning in this vicinity, 
and a great deal of this loss occurs in proximity to 
wire fences. Much of this loss can be prevented by 
grounding the fences. I know of no way to lessen the 
losses in the open fields. To reduce lightning losses 
I would say rod your buildings, and ground your wire 
fences. james r. gillis. 
Mt. Pleasant. 
In our county, 20 x 24 miles, there are very few barns 
that are rodded. In the nine years that I have been 
secretary I have known of no barn that was rodded 
being struck by lightning. If a good rod is properly 
placed on a building I think it is a protection. We 
have considerable stock killed by lightning along wire 
fences. Ground wires attached to the fence every few 
rods will very much lessen the losses, though not 
many of our members have put the device into practi¬ 
cal use. Cement fence posts are now being made here, 
having wires -imbedded in the cement and connected 
with the wire of the fence, the intention being to 
ground the wire at every post. A. M. walker. 
Osage. 
We consider the rodded building should have a spe¬ 
cial rate over like risks (rodless), as in our opinion 
the hazard is thereby reduced to the minimum. Dur¬ 
ing my 10 years’ service as secretary of our associa¬ 
tion I cannot call to mind but one building which has 
been struck by lightning, and in this instance the dam¬ 
age was to the rod. We carry a large amount of in¬ 
surance on live stock, and are advocating the advantage 
of grounding our wire fences at intervals of about 
every 20 rods, by the use of an extra rod or wire con¬ 
nected with the several fence wires, and have it suffi¬ 
cient in length to penetrate into the earth to a depth so 
as to reach moist earth. We believe this would lessen 
the hazard materially to our live stock. 
Mount Ayr. G. a. wyant. 
I have been interested in the insurance business for 
the past 10 years, and as an officer of the present com- 
IIOGIIOUSE WITH PEAKED ROOF. Fig. 285. 
pany 1 have adjusted a number of losses. I have 
never known of a single loss by lightning where the 
building was properly rodded. In fact, I would recom¬ 
mend that all buildings be rodded, even though pure 
copper cable is not used. I consider a rodded building 
at least 50 per cent better risk than one not rodded. 
I would be in favor of having special insurance rates 
for risks properly rodded. We have had quite a num¬ 
ber of losses on stock where fences have been struck. 
I know of no absolute way to prevent said losses, but 
would recommend that the wire fences be grounded, 
i. o., in placing a wire, say, every 20 rods into the 
earth it can be done with little expense and trouble, 
and thereby the risk can be reduced to a minimum. 
The plan is being adopted in this community. 
Bedford. w. a. harvey. 
We have never kept any record as to buildings dam¬ 
aged by lightning that were rodded, and cannot say 
what the exact percentage of loss or damage is or has 
been on buildings having lightning rods on them. I 
have in mind a few buildings in this county that have 
been damaged that were rodded. My opinion is that 
rods protect to some extent, but cannot say how much; 
not enough to induce me to pay the prices asked for 
rods. I have never had one put on any of my build¬ 
ings, and have never had a building damaged by light¬ 
ning as yet. Many of my neighbors have. Lightning 
seems to be much more prevalent in some localities 
than in others. As to stock killed by lightning, we 
have had but eight head reported so far this season, 
and but.one of them near enough to the fence to war¬ 
rant the belief that the current was carried on the 
wire to the animals. One horse was killed in a barn, 
all the rest in open pasture: one under a small hick¬ 
ory tree, which was not injured, but a grapevine on the 
tree was killed. I think the per cent is usually greater 
than this for wire fences. Some have put ground 
wires on their wire fences which I am inclined to 
think is a good thing so long as they last, which is not 
very long in this soil. They would most likelv not pro¬ 
tect stock for a few rods, but at a distance of 40' rods 
or a quarter of a mile might do so, 
Corvdon, P. h. scales. 
THE NEW YORK MILK LAW. 
The New York law gives the Commissioner of Agri¬ 
culture almost unlimited power to prevent adulteration 
of milk in creameries or milk stations. It was formerly 
the practice, and to some extent is now, to accept milk 
from farmers, skim out just enough of the cream to 
bring the remainder inside the law, and thus ship both 
milk and cream. This gave the dealer an extra profit, 
and hurt the reputation of the farmer, as lie was charged 
with delivering partly skimmed milk. In order to over¬ 
come this a law was passed compelling the milk handlers 
DRY FEED TROUGH WITH ROOF REMOVED. Fig. 2SG. 
in stations or creameries to take out a license and make 
oath that they will not adulterate milk. The Commis¬ 
sioner is given power to enforce the law, but naturally 
sharp detective work is needed in order to catch the 
skimming rogues at their game. The law gives the fol¬ 
lowing definitions for adulterated milk: 
1. Milk containing more than 88 per centum of water or 
fluids. 
2. Milk containing less than 12 per centum of milk solids. 
3. Milk containing less than three per centum of fats. 
4. Milk drawn from cows within 13 days before and live 
days after parturition. 
5. Milk drawn from animals fed on distillery waste or 
any substance in a state of fermentation or putrefaction or 
on any unhealthy food. 
0. Milk drawn from cows kept in a crowded or unhealthy 
condition. 
7. Milk from which any part of the cream has been re¬ 
moved. 
8 . Milk which lias been diluted with water or any other 
fluid, or to which has been added or into which lias been 
introduced any foreign substance whatever. 
All adulterated milk shall he deemed unclean, unhealthy, 
impure and unwholesome. The terms, pure milk or un¬ 
adulterated milk, when used singly or together, mean sweet 
milk not adulterated, and the terms pure cream or un¬ 
adulterated cream, when used singly or together mean cream 
taken from pure and unadulterated milk. 
We receive from time to time complaints from readers 
that the law is still violated, and that partly skimmed 
milk is shipped. On the other hand, this statement is 
made by Assistant Commissioner Flanders of Albany: 
The law to which you refer is working well. I would not 
for a moment, however, assume that it prevents all viola¬ 
tions, but it assists in getting evidence where we could not 
obtain it before. Under the law the Commissioner of 
Agriculture has power to subpoena before himself or an 
Assistant Commissioner any person whom he may think has 
knowledge relative to violations of the Agricultural I.aw, 
put them under oath and examine them. This has. been 
one of the most salient features of the law. After we have 
obtained evidence by secret service work we then examine 
the persons whom we know are cognizant of the facts, and 
when we get them to own up to the state of facts as we 
kJnow them to exist, we have corroborative evidence. 
Then the case is put in the hands of the Attorney General 
for such action as the facts may warrant. As to the secret 
service work, it is a matter of detective work in essence; 
its success depends upon our men actually seeing the milk 
adulterated and then seeing it sold or exposed for sale or 
consumption as milk. The methods of detecting this are 
INDIVIDUAL IIOGIIOUSE SET UP. Fig. 287. 
not necessarily alike in any two cases, eacn case has to 
stand on its own basis and the ingenuity of the person do¬ 
ing the work is taxed in each instance in a little different 
way than in the former case. Suffice it to say that we 
have made GS cases under the new law, namely, Chap. 
G03 of the Laws of 1905. o. l. flan mens. 
Asst. Commissioner. 
We can easily understand the difficulty in obtaining 
legal evidence in such cases. It is easy for outsiders to 
feel sure that the law is violated, but it is another thing 
to prove it in court. A few dozen convictions with pun¬ 
ishment for these skimmers will put more fat in opr milk 
and less graft in the handler’s pocket, 
