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THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
April 24, 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FAI( ME ITS PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established I860. 
Fnbllrhrd weekly by the Rural Publishing Company, 400 Pearl Street, Sew York. 
Herbert W. Collingwood, President and Editor, 
John J. Djllon, Treasurer and General Manager. 
Wm. F. Dillon, Secretary. 
Dr. Walter Van Fleet and Mrs. E. T. Royle, Associate Editors. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR. 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, equal to 
8 s. (id., or 8*2 marks, or 10'u francs. Remit in money order, 
express order, personal check or bank draft. 
Entered at Now York Post Office as Second Class Matter. 
Advertising rates 50 cents per agate lino—7 words. Discount for time 
orders. References required for advertisers unknown to 
us; and cash must accompany transient orders. 
“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 oureolumns, and any such swindler will bo publicly ex¬ 
posed. We protect suberibers against rogues, but we do not guarantee 
to adjust trilling differences botween subscribers and honest, respon¬ 
sible 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 advertiser. 
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 pur¬ 
poses. We depend on our old friends to make this 
known to neighbors and friends. 
* 
The House of Representatives passed the new 
tariff bill with few changes. Those retaliating duties 
on basic slag, potash and sulphate of ammonia were 
taken off. The Senate, however, met this House bill 
with one of its own, putting most of those duties 
back. This means a contest or trade between the 
two Houses of Congress. The thing to do now is 
to write at once to both of the Senators from your 
State and ask them to vote to let all plant food in 
free—without any hindrance or trading. Do this 
at once. 
* 
Last week we spoke of new legislation needed to 
prevent the fraudulent sale of oleo in this State. 
A large amount of the stuff is sold as butter in 
hotels and boarding houses. A bill now before the 
Legislature compels such establishments to display 
signs on the walls. The oleo must also be served 
in plates colored green, with the word olcomarga- 
ine marked on the upper surface. This law pro¬ 
hibits the gift of coloring matter with the oleo, and 
also the use of dairy names like Jersey, Holstein, 
“churned,” etc. If the oleo makers wanted a true 
and characteristic name they might try “steer butter.” 
* 
We often see farmers buying cans of cheap syrup 
at the stores. Much of this is glucose—a poor sweet, 
dull and heavy in taste. It costs more than it is 
worth, and is 1 not to be compared with honey. A 
few swarms of bees on the farm would, if cared 
for, provide an abundance of honey with some sur¬ 
plus to sell. It seems like a shame to buy this 
cheap and expensive glucose when the country is' 
alive with flowers only waiting for the bees to come 
and gather honey. The honey crop is about the only 
one which takes no plant food away from the farm. 
There is no wholesomer sweet for children. If 
there is any argument against bee-keeping except 
the fear of being stung we do not know what it is. 
* 
Now and then we hear of farmers with an apple 
orchard who cannot see that it will pay them to take 
good care of it. In one case a farmer sold apples 
enough from his orchard to buy 10 good cows for 
his dairy, yet he cannot see that it would pay him to 
spray and prune the trees. There is some scale in 
this orchard, and the fruit is usually wormy. Taken 
in hand now with oil and later with arsenic for the 
Codling worm this orchard would give the easiest 
money on .the farm. We would like to shake such 
men up and make them see the future. The demand 
for good apples is sure to increase, while bearing 
trees are not keeping pace with this demand. Young 
trees are being planted, but many older orchards are 
.dying through lack of care. Do not under any cir¬ 
cumstances neglect good apple trees. Stay by them 
with all the care you can muster. 
* 
Some of the best chemists at our eastern experi¬ 
ment stations are trying to find a sure method of 
telling what the organic nitrogen in mixed fertilizer 
comes from. At present there is no sure test for 
dried peat and some other substances. There is no 
doubt but that large quantities of peat and other 
unavailable forms are used. These cost the manu¬ 
facturer but little, yet when a farmer buys them in 
mixed fertilizer he is forced to pay the full price 
of “organic” nitrogen. There is a vast amount of 
fraud in this, but it may go unpunished because the 
manufacturer can mix in such a way that the chemist 
is not sure of his tests for dried peat. Therefore 
a sure way of finding it is one of the most impor¬ 
tant needs in the fertilizer inspection. Our opinion 
is that the price charged for all forms of “organic” 
nitrogen are too high. Farmers would be better off 
if they would refuse to buy anything except soluble 
nitrogen. 
Surely conditions are wrong when the creators of 
wealth have so little share In the comforts and luxuries 
which increased wealth is making possible. Those who 
are doing for the farmers the things they formerly did 
for themselves are really the servants of the farmer, and 
yet these servants who are making the things the farmer 
buys and transporting them and his crops to their destina¬ 
tion are really masters of the situation, and allow the 
farmer but the poorest kind of a living, barely enough to 
keep him in the harness and able to produce still more 
wealth for them to monopolize. 
The above is taken from a letter written by an 
intelligent and successful farmer in New York. This 
man is so close to town that he can get just about 
all of the consumer’s dollar. It will not be said, 
therefore, that he is a “sorehead,” or that he does not 
take advantage of agricultural education. We find 
a class of people who would like to spread the im¬ 
pression that all who criticise social conditions are 
incompetents or failures. That is not so, for some 
of the most successful men in the country realize 
only too well where we are drifting. Now we shall 
be glad to have some one stand up and tell us what 
is wrong with the above statement. 
* 
We are to have better fence wire! There is 
no question about it. Already the Anchor Fence 
Post Co. will guarantee steel fence posts that will 
last 20 years, and the Wright Fence Co. give the 
same guarantee for ornamental fencing. We expect 
the fence manufacturers to fall in line and offer a 
guaranteed wire fence. This fence will cost more 
money than others, and will be worth more. The 
credit for this improvement is due to Prof. A. S. 
Cushman of the Agricultural Department. The R. 
N.-Y. helped start the investigation. When Prof. 
Cushman took it up we knew it would be put through. 
We did not need to hammer away at it continually 
as we have at some other things. Prof. Cushman 
found the manufacturers indifferent, if not hostile. 
They said their wire was “good enough,” though 
miles of it stood in rusty strings of protest. With 
admirable patience and tact Prof. Cushman first 
proved that the rusting was due to an electric action, 
and suggested methods of improving both wire and 
galvanizing. The manufacturer became interested and 
—we are to have better wire! Thus far we have 
had no better example in this country of the Yvay 
a practical scientist can heln the farmers. 
* 
There is no doubt that automobiles do more to 
damage country roads than anything else that passes 
over them. In New York State 1,800 miles of 
“good roads” were built. The autos have torn them 
up so that it will cost nearly $1,000 per mile to 
repair them! These roads were built for business. 
It is a shame to have them torn up for fun. The 
ordinary stone macadam road will not stand the wear 
of autos. There is little use in building State roads 
which we know will be ruined in a few years. 
Farmers are not only in danger from the autos, but 
they see the avenues which lead to market torn up 
before their eyes. If the autos spoil the roads their 
owners should at least pay for the damage. A bill 
before the New York Legislature proposes to raise 
money to cover these damages by taxing autos. Those 
weighing 1,500 or less are to pay $5, those between 
1,500 to 2,500 pounds $10, and $5 additional for each 
500 pounds in weight over 2,500. The owners must 
register with the Secretary of State, and drivers 
are to pay a license of one dollar. It is estimated 
that this would provide $600,000 for road repairing. 
Another feature of this bill is that speed limits are 
abolished. The driver may go as he pleases, but 
he must take the responsibility for all accidents, no 
matter whether his machine goes fast or slow. 
* 
According to every theory horses ought to be cheap 
this year. The use of autos is increasing rapidly. 
Besides the cars made in this country we are import¬ 
ing 2,000 or more each year. All this drives horses 
out of business. It was claimed that the anti¬ 
gambling laws would ruin the business of breeding 
trotters and throw thousands of horses upon the mar¬ 
ket. In spite of all this the price of a good horse is 
higher than ever before this year. If you do not 
think so try to buy a horse suitable for all-round 
work on the farm. The number of dairy cows in 
the country is also increasing, and^ there Is a greater 
demand than ever before for grain and hay. That 
is why we urge our eastern farmers to plant alf the 
corn they can care for properly. During the past few 
years more corn has been planted in the Hast than 
ever before, but a large proportion of it has been 
cut into the silo and does not affect the grain crop. 
Corn will not be cheap again, and the demand for 
grain will grow heavier with each year. It is good 
to try to grow Alfalfa, clover and such crops, but 
after all corn is the old stand-by. You can start 
right in this year, break up old pasture or other sod 
and with fertilizer grow a good crop of corn. We 
would not advise any farmer to block out more work 
than he can attend to, but there is no better time for 
turning some of that idle land into corn. 
* 
The direct nominations bill was responsible for 
some remarkable statements from those who opposed 
it. One speaker is reported to have said that under 
this bill the voter would have no more chance to 
whip the politician than 
“A dog with tallow legs chasing an asbestos cat 
in hell.” 
We give this gentleman’s exact words. There are 
times when even polite society should know just 
what is being said. There was once an ancient joke 
about the farmer rubbing tallow on his boots when 
he went into “society.” When one of these tallowed boots 
hits a politician in a direct line the latter will surely 
realize what he is nominated for. The battle for 
direct nominations was not ended when the Legisla¬ 
ture at Albany voted down the Governor’s bill. It 
has only begun. If these politicians had been wise they 
would have let the bill pass. As it stands the meas¬ 
ure would not hurt them seriously. By fighting it 
they simply intensify the hatred against them which 
has been growing since Mr. Hughes became Gov¬ 
ernor. With an obstinancy which seems little short 
of brutal stupidity they are adding to the army 
which will follow the Governor anywhere that opens 
a chance to hit the bosses. Our belief is that the 
people will now study the subject carefully. They 
will compel the Governor to change his bill so as to 
include nomination by petition and vote on United 
States Senator. They will then compel the Legisla¬ 
ture to pass such a bill. If necessary to do so they 
will even elect Gov. Hughes for a third term on an 
independent ticket with an independent Legislature! 
* 
In November, 1908, a meeting of the governors 
of the New England States was held at Boston. It 
seems reasonable to suppose that while they dis¬ 
cussed problems of state these governors sat around 
a barrel of mellow apples. We think so because one 
result of their meeting was the decision to hold a 
great fruit show in Boston October 19-24, 1909. 
The whole thing has been organized and put on a 
solid foundation, and the apple will rule Boston for 
that week at least. Baked beans will retire in favor 
of baked apples. In the circular announcing this 
show we find the following: 
New England lias a wonderful future before her in fruit 
growing, for, contrary to the general opinion, her soils 
are not run out nor her farms abandoned for lack of 
soil fertility. Lack of knowledge and industry are largely 
responsible for the present condition of fruit growing here. 
New England can produce as good-looking apples as the 
West. This has been proved beyond a doubt by the few 
men who are really caring for their orchards, and the 
quality of New England grown apples surpasses that of 
apples grown in any other section of the country. 
Now that’s the way to talk! Prove the talk by 
bringing on the apples. There is a great future 
before New England fruit. The day will come 
when the exports of apples from New England will 
be of greater value than those of wheat from the 
Central West. The proper thing to do is to keep 
these New England governors well supplied with 
apples. They will then think out new schemes for 
advertising Yankeeland. 
BREVITIES. 
The New York Legislature has passed a bill making a 
cream standard of 18 per cent butter fat. 
Down in Mexico, where rubber is grown, a pair of rub¬ 
ber boots cost $8. What is the Mexican “farmer’s share” 
of that price? 
No, the seed oats that have been treated with formalin 
to kill smut germs are not injurious to stock. There is 
no poison about them. 
Safe rules—keep lime away from strawberries and pota¬ 
toes. Use it heaviest on the clover and grass. Corn re¬ 
sponds to it less than other grains. 
Let us all remember that ordinary chicken manure con¬ 
tains three to four times as much plant food as ordinary 
stable manure—depending on the dirt and feathers found 
in it. 
Where hens are kept for a year or more in a small 
yard the soil becomes nearly as rich as some brands of 
low-grade fertilizer. Work it up with a cultivator and 
scatter over the grass or garden. Put new dirt back. 
A bill before the New York Legislature would compel 
the owner to register and license all dogs in the State. 
The license money is to pay for injury or destruction of 
any animal by dogs, and for paying costs of treatment 
for cases of hydrophobia. 
We hope you are awake to the need of giving the New 
York State Agricultural Department the power to conduct 
its own legal business. The present Legislature ought to 
confer that power. Will you tell the member from your 
district that he ought to favor the change? 
