1907. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
387 
Events of the Week. 
DOMESTIC.—The Florida State Senate, by a vote of 23 
to 5, has adopted a joint resolution to declare the Fourteenth 
and Fifteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution 
void and to disfranchise the negro in Florida. The resolu¬ 
tion was introduced by Senator John G. Beard of Pensacola. 
Senator Beard declared that he believed the Supreme Court 
of the United States would uphold the action of that State 
in disfranchising the negro. . . . Thomas M. Hunting- 
ton, Ami B. Todd, and Fred Iloyt were convicted April 19 
in the United States Court at Omaha, Neb., on charges of 
conspiracy to defraud the Government of 500,000 acres of 
public lands in Sheridan and Cherry Counties, Neb. Hunt¬ 
ington, a banker at Gordon, Neb., furnished the money to 
pay the expenses of the entrymen. Hoyt Is his partner. 
Todd, a resident of Denver, got old soldiers to file claims 
on the homesteads. . . . Charging conspiracy in re¬ 
straint of trade. 91 business men of Toledo, O., were In¬ 
dicted April 20 by the Grand Jury, which reported to 
Judge Morris of the Common Pleas Court. The men are 
among the best known in the city. Some are not actively- 
engaged in the business of brick, lumber and plumbers com¬ 
bine, which has been under investigation, but are interested 
indirectly and are included in the charges made against the 
firms. In the. list of lumbermen and brickmen indicted are 
the names of men high in local financial circles. The head 
of the local lumber trust is said to be the Toledo Lumber¬ 
men’s Credit Association. This trust, it is alleged, has 
complete control of the lumber market, raising prices when 
it saw fit and compelling outside concerns to sell only to 
it, making it Impossible for the independent dealer to get 
material outside the trust. The Toledo Brick Supply Com¬ 
pany is the alleged head of the brick trust. Well-known 
men are named in the bills against the ofllcers of the various 
concerns in this combination. In the indictments it is 
charged that the manufacturers fixed the prices to the exclu¬ 
sion of outside dealers and in restraint of trade. The 
National Supply Company, against which an indictment has 
been returned, deals extensively in plumbing supplies, oil 
well machinery and all manner of plumbers’ and carpenters' 
tools. ... A forest fire which started April 20 on the 
Lyman Babcock property at Amagansett, L. I., did an im¬ 
mense amount of damage to timber land and to cut wood. 
The fire burned over several hundred acres, and several 
villages were endangered, but all were saved by hard work 
an the part of farmers. Even women and children turned 
out tq help beat back the flames. The fire is believed to 
have been started by an Incendiary. . . . April 22, 
fire in a factory owned by the Lutz Company, manufacturers 
of artists’ and architects’ tools, at Guttenberg, N. .T., caused 
a loss of $70,000. . . . April 23, fire in a big stable at 
Barrow and Christopher streets. New York, caused the death 
of four men and over 200 horses; loss, $100,000. ... An 
action has been brought in the courts at Manila to recover 
from the Standard Oil Company $19,216.88, gold, the duty 
on a consignment of oil that entered the Phillippines in 1901 
free of duty, it being intended for the use of the Govern¬ 
ment. A portion of the shipment was sold to private firms. 
The fact that the duty had not been paid on the oil thus 
sold was recently disclosed, and the customs authorities 
made a demand for payment. The matter was referred to 
the home office by the representative of the company there, 
who was informed that the company refused to pay. There¬ 
upon the suit to compel payment was started. The shipment 
comprised 30,000 cases. . . . The New York State 
Senate passed April 23 Assemblyman Phillips’s bill, which 
permits the use of carriages at the polls on election day. 
Under the corrupt practices act of last year they were 
prohibited, and Republican leaders in the country say that 
this hurt the vote considerably in the rural districts. . . 
. . April 23 the lumber barge Arcadia was wrecked off 
Pentwater, Mich., and 14 persons were drowned. 
At Amarillo, Tex., in the Panhandle, smow covered the 
ground to a depth of eight inches on April 23. From 
Brownsville, Tex., near the mouth of the Rio Grande, the 
first shipment of roasting ears to the northern market was 
made the same day. 
MEXICO.—The known list of dead im the Mexican earth¬ 
quake, April 13-16, is over 600. Every town southwest of 
Mexico City in the direction of the Colima volcano was 
damaged. Urupan, Zitacuaro, Angangueo, Tolouca, Buente, 
Deixtla, Balsas, Morelia and many other cities suffered 
severely, and In many the houses, although low adobe af¬ 
fairs, had tumbled into the streets and on to their inmates. 
In other cases large rents were made in the ground and in 
numerous instances pedestrians were simply swallowed up 
by the yawning chasms. The report says that the waters 
in Lake de Chapala were shaken so violently that they 
wont over the banks and did considerable damage. The 
north end of the lake is' now very shallow and the south 
end is very deep, showing that the earth tipped to the south 
in the upheaval. The Gulf fishing smacks arriving at Gal¬ 
veston, Tex., April 17, from the fishing grounds off Cam¬ 
peche and the Mexican coast report terrible experiences 
in the_ Gulf from the earthquakes which converted the lower 
Gulf into a boiling sea and piled the water mountains high. 
Rumblings were heard and the sea appeared to open about 
a mile to the northeast and three columns of water shot 
into the air 250 feet. A terrible sea was running amd 
steam rose from the water on all sides of the vessel, melting 
the ice in which the fish were packed. Three explosions 
were heard and the rumbling beneath the water continued 
for an hour, gradually dying out to the southwest. The 
air was charged with sulphur. The fishermen knew nothing 
of the Mexican earthquake until they reached Galveston. 
The Gulf currents have been altered, they say, by changes 
in the bottom due to the eruption. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—The annual meeting of the Amer¬ 
ican Guernsey Cattle Club will be held at the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel, New York, May 15, at 10.30 A. M.; Wm. II. Cald¬ 
well, secretary, Peterboro, N. II. 
The Pennsylvania Railroad has completed its schedule of 
rates for the shipment of Delaware berries during the com¬ 
ing season, a reduction of ten cents on the 100 pounds in 
most cases on carload 1 lots. In the shipment to points in 
Pennsylvania and New Y T ork States the company proposes 
to establish the same rate as the competitive lines from 
Baltimore. Division Freight Agent Kingston of the Penn¬ 
sylvania Railroad says the tariff for the shipment of 
peaches has not yet been fixed, but It will be lower than 
last year. 
Many nurserymen of South Dakota are complaining of 
the provisions of a new law enacted by the recent Legis¬ 
lature which relates to the carrying on of a nursery busi¬ 
ness in the State. Among other things the new law provides 
that every company, individual or firm carrying on a nur¬ 
sery business in South Dakota must file a bond of $5,000, 
and that the head or proprietor of each nursery concern 
must pay a license of $10, with a small fee for each agent. 
The chief objection to the bill is to that clause which pro¬ 
vides that when a contract is taken it must be specified 
in black and white just where each tree, shrub, plant @r 
vine ordered is grown. The nurserymen declare that it is 
utterly impossible to fill this requirement. It is charged 
by some of the nurserymen that the bill was passed in the 
interest of nurseries located in other States which do busi¬ 
ness in South Dakota by 1 means of catalogues, and which, 
because they do not sell “by agent," are not affected by the 
new law. 
The Maine Agricultural Experiment Station, at Orono, has 
issued Bulletin 138, containing analyses of samples of 
grass and other seeds collected by the inspector and an¬ 
alyzed by the Station in 1906. The results of the analyses 
indicate that there was considerable poor grass seed sold 
in Maine last year. The Timothy, for the most part, was 
tolerably clean and free from injurious weeds. Red-top not 
only contained large amounts of waste materials and a good 
deal of lower-priced seeds, but in many instances it was 
loaded with weeds. Much of the clover seed examined, 
however, proved to be much poorer than the other kind of 
seeds. Not only did the clover frequently contain a long 
list of weeds, but many samples contained the spores of 
ergot. This is the second bulletin that has been issued since 
the law providing for the inspection of seeds sold in Maine 
was enacted. The bulletin states that no prosecutions were 
made, on the ground that in most instances the dealers were 
ignorant of the requirements of the law, and that they 
themselves were imposed upon when they made their pur¬ 
chases. Notices have been sent to all dealers calling atten¬ 
tion to the law, and to the fact that sales of bad, un¬ 
guaranteed seeds must stop. 
THE CANADIAN NORTHWEST. 
This has been the hardest Winter on range cattle that 
has probably ever been experienced in the Canadian West. 
There were two weeks of very stormy and cold weather. 
The cattle, as they are apt to do, drifted before the storm, 
and in one or two cases actually invaded the streets of 
towns and gave a little trouble until they were driven out. 
There are two classes of ranchers; one holders of large 
areas, who provide shelter and food to ensure against such 
conditions as we have experienced lately. Among such 
ranchers the loss has been very small, ranging from two 
per cent to 10 per cent. The great majority of cattle are 
owned by such ranchers. The other class is composed of 
those who have settled upon a quarter section, that is, 160 
acres, as a homestead, and who have multiplied cattle for 
which they have neither food nor shelter. They depend 
upon the cattle obtaining food on the unoccupied prairie. 
It was these cattle, in bunches from 100 to 1,000, which 
drifted in some cases as far as 200 miles in search of food 
and shelter. Having no care, and being practically without 
food for a fortnight, the mortality was very great, in some 
few cases extending as high as 50 per .cent. I have made 
careful inquiries from cattlemen, who have just returned 
from inspecting their ranches, and from extended trips over 
the whole western country, and I am convinced that taking 
into consideration the fact that all the larger bunches of 
cattle were properly cared for the mortality has been among 
the smaller bunches only. I should judge that not more 
than 15 per cent at the outside of the range cattle has 
been lost. 
As to cases of suffering among the settlers in the newer 
parts of the country, there is but one authentic case of 
actual loss of life from freezing. One family of five, far 
from other settlers, and undoubtedly improvident, were 
found dead from lack of food and fuel. Other loss of life 
that has occurred during the Winter has been from the fool¬ 
hardiness of newcomers, who were quite improperly clothed 
for such journeys, undertaking long journeys alone over 
the prairies In Winter. One or two have actually perished 
in this way, and several have been frost bitten to a con¬ 
siderable extent, but have recovered. This, I think, repre¬ 
sents the correct and true conditions of things in the Can¬ 
adian West. I presume the conditions here have been ve-y 
similar to the conditions in North Dakota and Minnesota 
during this unusually hard Winter. On account of the ex¬ 
cessive snow the railways have been blocked from time to 
time and the trains delayed. Some of the branch lines were 
entirely closed for several weeks. On this account in many 
parts fuel has been scarce, but in all cases the people have 
been relieved by special means befor actual suffering was 
N. WOLVERTON. 
Manitoba Experimental Farm. » 
THE CANADA “FRUIT MARKS" ACT. 
I notice different items of late in your paper recommend¬ 
ing your Congressmen to take steps to adopt the above as 
a law. Let me say, as one who lives under its influence, 
it is not giving the satisfaction we had hoped. The law 
in itself may be all right, but does not give aid to the 
grower as it should. To have a uniform size barrel Is all 
right and desirable. To have packages branded or marked 
in a plain and indelible manner, with initials of Christian 
names, full surname and address, etc.; these, with a few 
other points, may be all right. As for the inspection, 
methinks this should be done where apples are packed and 
not seized by inspector in transit as is now done. Inspectors 
station themselves or are stationed at Halifax (shipping 
point), and seize such packages as they please, open and 
examine. If not just as they expect, they mark them 
such, and in some cases fine the packer. To my mind, this 
is private property, and no man can open a barrel of 
apples and take out even a few and put them back again 
as well as when first packed. Some years before the above 
act passed. I met a grower who sold his early apples, and 
when delivered at shipping point buyer said: “I want 
one barrel opened.” The grower, a careful packer, said: 
“No; if you open those apples, you mil not send them to 
market under my brand,” The writer has packed apples 
45 years and never had any fault found except the first 
barrel (too loose) and the last, by said inspector. I called 
to see inspector, and said : “I would ask as a special favor 
if you must seize any more if the Government will bear 
you out in it, to dump all such over the wharf. You tear 
the head out to examine, when the weather is at zero, leave 
them half an hour to two hours, stevedores in meantime 
helping themselves, before they are closed up, and perhaps 
not very solid at that, and mark them fraudulently packed. 
If they sell for enough to pay expenses, well. Thus my 
good brand for which I have labored 45 years, is destroyed 
at one fell swoop. You would better burn my buildings. 
These I can replace in a few weeks, but the other will take 
years.” 
Again, a few weeks before, I met said inspector on train 
and asked him if he had ever seen Cox's Orange Pippin? 
“No, except what you shipped.” “Where?" “Oh, at Hali¬ 
fax." “Did you open them?" “Yes." “Why, did 
you suspect them as not being well packed, or 
to satisfy your own curiosity? These were private prop¬ 
erty, and you had no business to touch them." In this 
case it gives the grower no chance to rectify mistakes, if 
any, but to accept the inevitable. Then, again, a buyer may 
buy a lot of apples. In a day or two the market drops 50 
cents or $1 per barrel. Said buyer calls in an inspector 
and has them condemned, and if not justly, a hamdful of 
culls can be added, and throws them, to accomplish his end, 
back on the grower’s hands. Where growers have been 
accustomed to pack and label, or brand them extra, for 
years and sent them in barrels, they find all at once the 
said act says, no, mark them Fancy, and put them in boxes. 
New plates, etc., must be made from time to time, which, 
when packing time comes, is inconvenient. t. e. smith. 
EXPERIENCE WITH DIPPING TREES. 
In regard to dipping trees to kill San Josd scale, we 
dipped over 2,000 young trees in the Spring of 1902 in lime, 
sulphur and salt solution made in the ordinary strength 
for spraying. It certainly killed any scale and did not 
hurt a tree that I know of. Certainly much of the solu¬ 
tion got on the roots, and last Fall I saw an orchard of 
about 1,000 of those trees, and they have not shown the 
evil effects yet, neither has the scale survived the treat¬ 
ment. This was done with the idea that it, would help keep 
the trees clean for some little time, as well as insure clean 
stock when planted. I have bought every Spring many thou¬ 
sands of apple seedlings, which were often shipped 2,000 
miles, sometimes 7,000 miles (from France) to the Pacific- 
Coast, and if there are a very few Woolly aphis in the 
box when they are packed the aphis will increase wonder¬ 
fully in the box; the gentle heat seems to just suit them. 
I have dipped these seedlings Into kerosene emulsion (spray¬ 
ing strength) at 120 degrees Fahrenheit, root and branch, 
and held there about 30 seconds; never knew it to Injure 
any. Last Spring some root grafts had developed Woolly 
aphis in a journey from the East, and we fumigated with 
sulphur before planting; saw no more of the aphis, and the 
grafts all grew. I am not at all afraid to dip or fumigate 
dormant trees; would prefer dipping. There are many 
cases of trees which leave the nursery in apparent good 
order, but reach the customer badly infested with Woolly 
aphis, which have increased in the gentle heat which de¬ 
veloped in the case in transit. The customer is surprised 
to see what the nursery has sent out; result lots of trouble 
for the Innocent nurseryman. t. r. hopkins. 
Washington. 
FRUIT PROSPECTS. 
Prospects for a great fruit crop were never better than 
now; all kinds of fruit havei bloomed and spraying is the 
issue of the day. Wo shall have hundreds of thousands 
of bushels of apples in this section if all goes right. 
Haysville, Kan. j p F 
We are having a very late Spring; outlook good for 
fruit at this time except peaches. The outlook for trees is 
much poorer, as only* a very few are spraying, and ma/ny 
of those only in a half-hearted way and trees dying every¬ 
where from scale. w H 
Boston, Mass. 
The ground froze here night of April 14 hard enough to 
bear up a horse. Ail fruit buds that were open, and many 
that were not, were killed, which includes about all of 
everything in tree and vine fruits. A few scattering, un¬ 
developed grape buds escaped. We had a period of July 
weather in March. F B T 
Visalia, Ky. 
On our grounds I think the one word “ruin” expresses 
the situation of the fruft prospects. It was a freeze, not 
merely a frost; ice one-quarter Inch thick this m.orning 
(April 17). Of course we cannot speak for other parts of 
the State, but for our own part we cannot hope for much, 
but think some strawberries and blackberries with perhaps 
some secondary grape; buds may make some fruit. Except 
where cut back peaches had set on entirely too heavy a 
load, but all kinds of fruit as well were very heavy with 
bloom, and very forward for the time of year. j. b. f. 
Kincaid, Kan. 
I have been making for some time a canvass of, the 
fruit growers of this section in regard to the condition 
of the orchards, and their fruit prospects the coming sea¬ 
son. All report apple trees in fine condition, particularly 
orchards that are well cared for, and all report buds as un¬ 
hurt to date (April 15), with an average crop in prospect. 
Pears and plums are all right and so are the cherries, ex¬ 
cept the early sweets, which are damaged probably from 
five to 10 per cent. Peaches are without doubt damaged 
50 per cent, and on exposed positions are all gone. Injuries 
to grape buds come in the first weeks of May, but as this 
month so far has been cool and backward they may come 
through all safe. g. v. h. 
Yates Co., N. Y. _ 
Now comes a man with this proposition: “I often wonder 
which men get along the better, those who work over the 
stones and bowlders or those who get them off.” 
Here are some old weather records from the vicinity of 
Hempstead, N. Y., given by a correspondent of the New York 
Evening Post: April 21-22, 1818, snow and ice; April 13. 
1836, snow; April 14, 1838, snow; April 16, 1838, cold; 
April 23-24, 1838, snow; April 10, 1841, snow; April 12, 
1841, snow; April 14, 1841, snow 5 April 12, 1847, snow; 
April 20, 1847, cold; April 6, 1850, snow; April 20, 1851, 
snow ; May 5, 1851, hail; April 5-6, 1851, snow ; April 12, 
1854, snow: April 14, 1854, thunder; April 17, 1854, hot; 
May 20, 1857, very cold; April 2, 1857, very cold—snow; 
April 27-28, 1858, very cold—snow; May 4, 1861, snow; 
April 9, 1862, snow; April 10, 1862, sleighs running. 
L 
