568 
THE RURAL IN EW-VORKER 
May 20. 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER. 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes. 
Established, 1850. 
I'ubUibcd wrrkly by the Knral PuhMshlnc Company, 409 Prarl Street, New York. 
HERBERT W. Collingwood, President and Editor, 
John J. Dillon. 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. 0d., or 8*2 marks, or 10*2 francs. Remit in money order, 
express order, personal check or bank draft. 
Entered at New York Post Office as Second Class Matter. 
Advertising rates 150 cents per agate line—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 wo will make good any 
loss to paid subscribers sustained by trusting any deliberate swindler 
advertising in onreolumns, and any such swindler will bo publicly ex¬ 
posed. We protect suberibers against rogues, but wedo not guarantee 
to adjust trifling differences between 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 mouth of the time of the transaction, 
and you must have mentioned The Rural New-Yorker when 
writing the advertisor. 
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 
3 0 weeks for 10 cents for strictly introductory pur¬ 
poses. We depend on our old friends to make this 
known to neighbors and friends. 
* 
Why can’t the State Grange have a strong legal 
department which could bring suit against a railroad 
in such cases of wanton damage by fire as Mr. John¬ 
son reports on page 451 ? 
* 
We are able to announce ail article by Alfred 
Johnson, the “One-Horse Jersey Farmer.” Mr. John¬ 
son is the man who “made good” on a small, wet 
farm—starting in middle life. Having travelled 
through Florida and California Mr. Johnson will 
compare these sections with the East, while giv¬ 
ing an account of his successful operations. 
* 
Those “Alaska” wheat promoters have run upon 
another stump. The first company was denied the 
privilege of the mail on account of their extravagant 
statements. Then a new concern, known as the 
“Alaska Wheat Seed Grain Company,” started in at 
Idaho and Minnesota. This one used very much the 
same “literature.” As a result, on April 19 the Post- 
mas. er-General issued a fraud order against this 
company. 
* 
When, on page 509, our correspondent, L. R. P., 
gave his opinion of the plan of feeding dry mash and 
"trap-nesting” hens, he probab'y did not know how 
hard he was stepping on the corns of many poultry 
keepers. They are coming hack with ruffled necks 
and sharp spurs. Our old friend, “Mapes, the Hen 
Man," leads the dry mashers and Mr. Miller Purvis 
lhe trap-nesters. We shall give them all a chance, 
flic beauty of The R. N.-Y. is that we can all dig 
together down after the truth without fighting among 
ourselves. 
* 
Last week we stated that the “water-glass eggs” 
question was most popular. “How to tar seed corn” 
ranks next. Last week we tried setting it in verse, 
but here comes a better way: 
In an effusion in your last week's issue, the poet told 
us bow to cover seed corn with tar. Instead of using an 
iron spoon, put the corn in an old hag; pour in the tar 
on the corn; tie the bag; turn the bag over, from end to 
end. from side to side; let the children play with it five 
minutes: untie the bag; put in the ashes; tie the bag; 
tumble it around and then plant your corn. It beats the 
iron spoon, and not so hard on the arm. o. b. k. 
This prose is stronger than poetry. Under this 
plan all will be pleased—except the crows. 
* 
This is about the last call we can make for east¬ 
ern farmers to plant corn for grain. We have 
planted flint corn in July and obtained a fair yield, 
hut, after all, June is the corn morrth. If it is 
possible for you to do so turn over an old meadow 
or pasture and plant corn. Use a fair amount of 
fertilizer on such soil and give high culture. You 
cannot make any mistake in planting all the corn 
you can care for well. The price of grain will 
never be low again, and corn will now pay even 
better than potatoes on some eastern farms. Put 
in all the corn you can take care of, and follow 
it with rye or wheat. 
* 
This year has given us all the argument we want 
in favor of drainage. Two of our best fields stood 
idle through the steady rains because they were 
water-soaked—with no way of taking out the water. 
Alongside of them are well-drained fields which were 
planted early. What a relief it is to the feelings 
during such a season to see the water pouring out of 
the drains. These two fine pieces of land are laid 
off, not through some “dispensation of Providence,” 
but because we did not drain them. Our conviction 
is that many of us are putting labor and fertilizer 
into soils which cannot respond because they are un- 
drained. Never again! Speed the spade, otherwise 
there is no speed to the plow! 
* 
The blessings of Alfalfa and one of its troubles 
are set forth this week. We know that Alfalfa 
holds up prosperity, while it grows and leaves a 
blessing behind it. Anyone who has tried to plow 
an Alfalfa sod or has seen a crop grow after it 
will realize the truth of what Mr. Jenkins states. 
Mr. Martin finds the roots of Alfalfa preparing 
to choke up his tile drains. The specimens sent us 
show strong roots which promise to stop the drains. 
This is the first complaint we have had along this 
line. Heretofore we have been told that Alfalfa 
had such a horror for “wet feet” that the roots 
would die and rot off when they struck water. Yet 
here they are in his drain. Now we want to know 
what there is to this. Have any other Alfalfa 
growers had similar trouble? 
* 
A strong effort is being made to induce Congress 
to remove the tariff entirely from the low grade of 
window glass used in making hotbed sash. Such 
glass is a necessity to gardeners and truck farmers. 
Formerly this glass could be bought for 90 cents a 
box. A duty amounting to $1.10 a box was levied on 
this kind of glass, and the price rose to $2. This 
tariff is not necessary to the manufacturer, for ocean 
freights and commissions of importers will give all 
needed protection. The tariff is an unnecessary tax 
upon a necessity, for thousands of farmers are now 
forced to use sash. Here is a case where the high 
tariff has simply been tacked on to the price of the 
American-made goods. Every gardener in the coun¬ 
try should write his Senator and Representative at 
Washington and ask for free sash glass! 
* 
We advise you to go right ahead and spray arsenic 
on your apple trees as usual. It is either that or let 
the Codling worm get the fruit. We need the fruit 
and we shall continue to use the arsenic. Some of 
the papers are printing doleful warnings about what 
will happen in case we keep on spraying. Every fruit 
grower who knows the primary part of his trade 
realizes what will happen if he does not spray. The 
matter is discussed on page 554. Without doubt apple 
and pear trees in Colorado have been injured or 
killed by arsenic. The injury occurs at the base of 
the trunk, and not on the foliage. In our humid cli¬ 
mate the rains carry off the arsenic which is washed 
down the tree. Very likely most of this remains 
in the upper soil of these Colorado orchards where 
there is little or no rainfall. The “alkali soil” also 
has something to do with it. These Colorado 
results do not prove the case for your orchard, 
and we advise you to keep right on poisoning the 
worms. 
* 
No country has a monopoly in this game of selling 
one thing on the reputation of another. Over 10 
years ago Prof. Hansen of the Department of Ag¬ 
riculture went hunting in the wilds of Eastern 
Europe and Asia after seeds of promising plants. 
In Turkestan he found Alfalfa of good quality, and 
finally imported- nine tons of the seed for trial. It 
did well in some western sections, and from this 
importation there has grown up an immense trade. 
Turkestan now exports each year nearly 10,000,000 
pounds of the seed, mostly to South America. There 
were seed frauds and fakers even in that country, 
and a large amount of that seed is said to be poor 
and inferior stuff—not the genuine Turkestan seed 
at all. The breed of fraud is the same whether he 
puts “Turkestan Alfalfa,” “New York Baldwins,” 
“Fancy fresh eggs” or what not on the label. 
♦ 
The New York Sun prints a letter signed “Agri¬ 
cola,” in which these statements are made; 
What is the matter with our farmers, anyway? We 
have great areas of fertile soil, favorable climatic condi¬ 
tions, anti intelligent farmers using the best agricultural 
machinery and implements, yet we are told that the 
farmer cannot profitably grow crops without the aid of 
the tariff. 
Who told him any such thing? Ten to one it was 
some politician who is trying to make it appear that 
a tariff on corn is a fair offset to a high tariff on 
steel. There is no greater humbug than the old 
scarecrow about free trade in food products. The 
tariff on wheat enabled the speculators to gamble 
successfully with.the price of grain. Very few farm¬ 
ers made anything out of the rise, while the con¬ 
sumers paid more for flour. The tariff on hides 
benefits the packers and the tariff on sugar benefits 
the beet sugar manufacturers. What is the matter 
with farmers? Go and see what consumers in our 
cities pay for food and then find what farmers re¬ 
ceive for these very articles. You will find that on 
the average the farmer does well when he receives 
35 cents of the consumer’s dollar. The other 65 cents 
is paid out to the various handlers who stand be¬ 
tween the producer and the consumer. We do not 
refer to such products as cotton or wool, which are 
made over and manufactured. With these the 
margin between the raiv material and the finished 
cloth is even greater. A great army of workmen live 
on the work of changing the form of these products. 
Wc are talking of the things that are changed little 
or not at all—like fruit, vegetables, hay, grain, dairy 
products or meat. They are simply handled—yet the 
handlers get nearly twice as much as the producers. 
A few, well located, get a larger proportion, but 35 
cents is a fair average. The awful transportation 
tax is what hurts the farmer. 
* 
“Warnock’s tree paint” has been quite extensively 
advertised. It is claimed that “pear blight, rabbits, 
mice, borers, canker worm, San Jose scale, Oyster 
shell louse and sunscald cannot live where trees 
have been painted” with this paint. Among other 
things it is claimed that the Arkansas Experiment 
Station has used the paint for three years! We 
have no doubt this “paint” would kill the scale if 
you could smear the substance over it. So prob¬ 
ably would butter and hair oil, but no one would rel¬ 
ish the job of smearing the entire tree. The pro¬ 
prietors of this paint seem to want to make people 
think that by painting the stuff at the base of the 
tree the entire surface will be protected. We think 
it likely that a smear of this sort can be made which 
will kill borers or repel mice or rabbits. That this 
painting of the trunk will cure pear blight or kill 
the scale on the limbs is nonsense. As for the Ar¬ 
kansas Experiment Station, no test has been made. 
Mr. Warnock has been requested to discontinue the 
use of the Station’s name in his advertising. That 
is right, for the stations cannot possibly be too care¬ 
ful about lending their names to such enterprises. 
* 
Every man who has been held up by an express 
extortion will be interested in a suit brought against 
the officers of the United States Express Co. Ex- 
Senator Platt and his family seem to have run this 
company about as they pleased. It is claimed that 
the Platts owned only 1770 shares out of 100,000, 
yet they seem to have controlled things to suit them¬ 
selves, and have been drawing some $80,000 per year 
as- “salaries.” The American and the Adams Ex¬ 
press Companies held between them nearly 20,000 
shares, but they have now transferred their holdings 
to Frank H. Platt. It is claimed that a majority of 
the stockholders desire a meeting and election of 
directors, but they cannot force this until they obtain 
signatures of two-thirds of the stockholders. This 
is impossible with the large block of stock held by 
the other companies, so that the Platts have apparent¬ 
ly been able to do as they pleased. The United States 
Express Company during the year ending June 30, 
1908, did a business of $16,983,638.18. Out of this 
vast sum it claimed to make only $37,734.64 profit. 
Among the expense items were $3,685,052.84 “sal¬ 
aries” and $1,321,930.16 “special salaries.” When the 
men in control start out to milk a stock concern of 
this sort, their plan is to make profits as low as pos¬ 
sible by paying money to themselves as “salaries.” 
The object is to disgust stockholders so they will sell 
out. Thus, even while the United States Company 
does $17,000,000 worth of business, only 90 is offered 
for its stock, while American Express stock sells at 
225! Nothing on earth will straighten out these 
express companies like a fair parcels post. 
BREVITIES. 
Try a few Soy beans. 
Once more—how about that garden? 
Keep the cultivators moving while the crops are small. 
What is the latest date for safety in sowing oats in 
your section? 
A Jerseyman claims to have invented a machine for 
picking poultry ! 
Castro, the tyrant of Venezuela, made a law compelling 
all citizens to paint their houses once a year on the anni¬ 
versary of the country’s independence! 
We are told that Herbert Spencer solved the problem 
of preventing a rooster from crowing by tying his wings 
so they could not be flapped. The wing muscles seem to 
help the sound out ! 
Some of our folks find fault with Miss Mathewson, “The 
Connecticut Woman Farmer,” because she frankly says: 
“I hate a hen !” There is no occasion for such fault find¬ 
ing. If a hen does not appeal to a farmer lie would 
better buy his eggs. 
The sanitary code of the New York City Board of 
Health now demands that cream, sweet or sour, must con¬ 
tain not loss than 15 per cent butter fat. The Board of 
Health permits the sale of sour cream, which is regarded 
as a delicacy by Russian and Polish people on the East 
Side. 
