THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
November 2, 
810 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established 1850. 
Published weekly by the Rural Publishing Company; II. W. 
Collingwood, President; Dr. Walter Van Fleet, Vice-Presi¬ 
dent; John J. Dillon, Treasurer; Wm. F. Dillon, Secretary; 
409 Pearl St., New York. 
Entered at New York as Second Class Matter. 
Herbert W. Collingwood, Editor. 
DR. WALTER VAN FLEET, I . , ^ 
MRS. E. T. Roylk, ( 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 Ms marks, or 10 Mi 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 trilling 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, NOVEMBER 2, 1907. 
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. 
* 
Yes, it is time for the Knights of the Postage 
Stamp to sharpen their pens, clean out the ink bottle 
and begin to save money for stationery and stamps. 
There will be the hardest fight for a parcels post this 
Winter that has yet been put up. Don’t waste ammu¬ 
nition; wait till we learn just who is standing in the 
way, and then stamp him hard. 
* 
One of our readers is fortunate enough to have two 
silos. One is filled with corn quite ripe enough. The 
other contains stalks that were quite green, with too 
much juice. Which should be fed first? We would 
feed the green silage and begin at once. This will bring 
the better silage later in the Winter when it is most 
needed. When two kinds of corn go into one silo the 
rule is to put the best corn in the bottom. 
sk 
There may be some who say the advice to that city 
■man on the first page is not as cordial as it might be. 
Just consider his proposition. He is over 45 years old, 
will have say $2,000 capital, which he wants to hold 
together as far as possible, and does not want the 
"slavery” and long hours which go with eastern farm¬ 
ing. Now, with your experience as a farmer, where 
would you go with such an outfit and expect success? 
* 
Now it is a seedless pear! The story goes that an 
Oregon fruit grower bought a pear tree labeled Clapp’s 
Favorite. When it fruited he found a large pear of 
high flavor and no seeds. Therefore it is announced 
in large headlines that this man "beats Luther Bur¬ 
bank.” We are not going to pay any $2 a tree for 
this “wonderful new fruit” now or next year. We well 
remember the old Idaho pear, introduced with such a 
noise 20 years ago. That had few seeds, but if there 
are 100 of them growing outside of Idaho we would 
like to know where they are. 
* 
People have been sending us samples of clover and 
Alfalfa which are held in a genuine “hammer-lock” by 
another plant. The plant which wins in this fatal wrest¬ 
ling match is "dodder,” and if there is anything more 
effective than the clinch it takes we have not seen it, 
much less felt it. The dodder is more troublesome in 
Alfalfa than in clover, as the latter is plowed every other 
year, while Alfalfa, being permanent, gives the dodder 
a chance to perfect its hold. Dodder spreads slowly, but 
is remarkably sure. It generally comes through the 
seed. While it is possible to sift it out of Alfalfa, it is 
hard to remove from clover seed. When the dodder 
has once started it is hard to remove without killing the 
Alfalfa along with it. The most practical methods are 
to dig up the spots where the dodder grows, or to burn 
them over. To burn, mow those spots carefully, add 
dry hay or straw to the stubble and sprinkle with kero¬ 
sene. You must have fire enough to kill the Alfalfa 
asi well as the dodder, for apparently nothing but death 
can break that "hammer-lock.” The best thing is to 
make sure of your seed. Send a sample of clover or 
Alfalfa seed to the New York Experiment Station at 
Geneva. It will be examined for impurities, and if they 
are found the station people will show you how to 
s t it out. 
* 
Now we have another case where papers do not fit 
the cows. A man in New Jersey bought several cows 
which were guaranteed to be tuberculin tested and 
free from tuberculosis. Not long after he bought them 
they began to show signs of disease, and in about three 
months after purchase they were found to be tuberculous 
and killed. No other cattle in the herd were af¬ 
fected. Now what does such a “guarantee” amount to? 
Who did the testing, and why were those sick cows sold 
for sound animals? The man who bought the cows 
lias taken the case to the State Tuberculosis Commis¬ 
sion and we shall be glad to see whether there is any¬ 
one whose duty it is to push such things to a finish. 
* 
During the past week a balloon voyage of over 800 
miles has been safely made, the balloon being under rea¬ 
sonable control, so that the driver could steer it. Aerial 
navigation is now reasonably safe—accidents being re¬ 
markably few. Those who understand it best are con¬ 
fident that within 20 years balloon voyages will form a 
steady and important part of passenger transportation. 
Another marvelous thing of recent happening is the 
sending of wireless telegraphic messages across the 
ocean. Twenty years ago he who would have pre¬ 
dicted a successful balloon voyage of 800 miles or a 
message sent across the ocean without wires would 
have been voted an idle dreamer. We may now well 
stop to ask what our children will live to see, and 
whether they will be able to adapt themselves to the 
marvels which are to come. 
9k 
Mr. Edward Van Alstyne’s statement in a recent 
R. N.-Y., that trees have been injured by oil spraying 
mixtures has caused some comment and we print the 
following note: 
On page 699, I made the statement that I had been in 
an orchard of 400 trees that had been injured b.v “Scaleeide” 
and other spray mixtures applied in January. My attention 
having been called to the fact that I had done a possible 
injustice to “Scaleeide” in this particular instance, I have 
investigated the matter and found that I was mistaken. 
“Scaleeide” was purchased, but arrived too late for use as 
above, and the injury was done by the miscible oils. I 
therefore desire to make this correction and public apology 
to the manufacturers of “Scaleeide.” 
EDWARD VAN ALSTYNE. 
That is just what might be expected from Mr. Van 
Alstyne, who would not, under any conditions, do any¬ 
one an injustice. He still recommends the use of lime 
and sulphur, knowing that it kills the scale and also 
has good effect as a fungicide. We call for the facts 
from anyone who has ever injured trees by spraying 
with the oils, or with lime and sulphur. Please give 
us the details that we may understand just what 
caused the trouble. 
9k 
Not long ago Peary, the Arctic explorer, called for 
$200,000 with which to fit out another expedition. He 
is willing to risk his life in a search to locate the North 
Pole. We do not understand that any practical good 
will result from this great outlay of money or possible 
loss of life. Yet the world shouts in admiration when 
some explorer comes home to report that he has crept 
a few miles nearer this imaginary point. We grant the 
courage and skill required to face the terrors of the 
North, but there are men little heard of who are far 
more deserving of applause. Such a man is Prof. Han¬ 
son, of Dakota. He went into Northern Siberia hunting 
for seeds of crops which may add value to farming 
in our American deserts. He nearly perished from cold 
and exposure, but he brought back seeds and plants 
which may prove a godsend to our western farmers. 
For example, we are told that he brought seed of a 
hardy variety of Alfalfa which may be expected to add 
millions to the value of agriculture in our Northwest. 
Such men as Hansen deserve the highest praise, for 
they bring out of the cold North a part of its strength 
and vigor, packed away in seeds, which may help to 
provide extra food and comforts for our people. 
* 
A man called the other day to ask advice about 
buying a farm. He was undecided between Maine and 
Western Canada. In Maine he was offered a small 
farm near the coast, and quite near Summer resorts, 
where there is a good demand for produce. There were 
old buildings and old orchards on this farm. The 
Canadian farm was about six times as large as the 
other—rich prairie land at present raw and without 
buildings. The only crop that he could grow for some 
years at least in Canada would be wheat, and this 
would require a considerable outfit for team and 
tools. Where should he go? It is evident that no 
man could decide such a question for another. In 
Maine intense farming or trucking, with small opera¬ 
tions well done, would be the right policy, while in the 
Northwest large operations, often without a chance for 
careful work, would be the rule. Some men fit one con¬ 
dition and some the other, but no man who knows that 
lie is a square peg should try to get into a round hole. 
The man who came for advice was willing to buy a 
farm without seeing it on the word of the agent or 
owner. He would take his wife and children into a 
strange place and pin himself down by paying out most 
of his capital before he knew anything definite about it. 
He got straight advice on that point, at least, which 
was never to buy a home with his eyes shut! He ad¬ 
mitted that he would not buy a horse or select a wife 
in any such way, and that he knew no reason why real 
estate agents were more honest than other people. 
Buying a farm and making a home is about the most 
serious business in life, and no one should go into it as 
he would trade jackknives! 
* 
“New Jersey Day” was recently celebrated at the 
Jamestown Exposition. Governor Stokes did his best 
to show what a paradise Jerscymen live in. Having 
painted the State with all the hues of the morning the 
Governor proceeded to show how taxes have been 
driven out with the mosquitoes: 
Upon this happy people fall lightly the burden of taxa¬ 
tion. We have no State debt. We have no State taxation, 
except a light one for our schools, which is locally distributed. 
We have established the policy of collecting from our corpo¬ 
rations a sufficient sum to pay the expenses of the State 
government and to distribute to our various local govern¬ 
ments over $5,000,000 out of the revenues raised by the State, 
not a cent of which comes from the pockets of the people, 
and every dollar of which is a dividend that helps pay the 
local expenses and the cost of our public school system. 
Now, we don’t want to sound a note of discord in any 
glowing oration, but up our way the burden is felt. 
The tax on the writer’s farm is $1.58 on the dollar, and 
the valuation has just been increased 30 per cent. In a 
village a few miles away the rate is $1.76, and in a 
larger town $2.14, with property assessed at the sup¬ 
posed “true value.” Some years ago the writer at¬ 
tended a meeting of the Michigan Farmers’ Clubs. 
Great complaint was made about taxation, and several 
speakers pointed to New Jersey as a State where 
taxes had been wiped out. Comparison demonstrated 
that the tax rate on the writer’s New Jersey farm was 
higher than that levied in the Michigan fqrms repre¬ 
sented in that meeting. There are three sides to this at¬ 
tractive story that corporations pay our taxes. The 
lack of a State tax encourages the local authorities to 
increase local expenses. After paying the State tax 
several of the largest corporations seem to feel that 
they own the State, and they make sure that they get 
$10 in special privilege for every dollar they pay in 
taxes. 
BREVITIES . 
Which do we need most—teachers or demonstrators? 
They may get you into straits, but don't let them work 
yon into crookedness. 
Has anyone ever started what would correspond to a 
pawnshop in the country? 
About the quickest way to doom your own character is 
to try to boom it yourself. 
Cambridge University in England has begun to teach 
agriculture, and Oxford will follow. 
You may expect that 100 pounds of corn put in the crib 
now will shrink at least 12 pounds before next Spring. 
Rats are overrunning Berlin. A society with the title 
“RattenvertHgungszweckverband” has been formed for their 
destruction. The name should be enough ! 
It is favorite advice to young men to “get out of the old 
ruts.” Those who made the ruts generally knew the best 
place for the road. Why not fill the ruts up? 
A cubic foot of ice weighs 57% pounds, a ton of ice 
measures about 35 cubic feet. Figure what you want to 
use each day, and for small houses add 30 per cent for 
waste. 
Here is a good one from Florida: “There is a lot said 
about working child labor, but no one says anything about 
a lot of our Senators working for the trusts when they are 
long past 70 years.” 
At a church fair in New York State a “beautiful vine” 
was used for decorating. It turned out to be poison ivy, 
and got in its poisonous work upon a good share of those 
who entered the building. 
Two English farm laborers tried a test of strength by 
carrying a bag of beans weighing 266 pounds a distance of 
one quarter of a' mile. One actually carried it the full 
distance—the other dropped the load 60 feet from the finish. 
The Louisiana Experiment Station reports the successful 
use of bisulphide of carbon for stomach worms in sheep. 
One drachm of the bisulphide was mixed with an ounce of 
raw linseed oil and that shaken up with an ounce of lime 
water and given as a drench. 
How many agricultural college graduates would be willing 
to make their lives a practical experiment, by going to a 
cheap farm in some neglected neighborhood and living there 
until they had made the farm pay? After all, can the average 
graduate serve his country in any more practical way ? 
A rural philosopher sends us the following; “It has 
always been passing strange to me that men, and sometimes 
women would go to a church social where only good should 
flow, eat twice as much as they ought, have dyspepsia next 
day, and feel like blue penciling all creation—but they will 
do it.” 
