834 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
October 31, 
but neither, except on a very limited scale, is suited 
to a small farmer or one just starting in for him¬ 
self, on account of the large outlay of money re¬ 
quired. Sheep and hogs are better, the returns being 
quicker and the margin of profit greater. On the 
Chicago market, draft horses recently sold at from 
$170 to $225 and light drivers at from $125 to $200, 
so it is to be seen that the drafter is in the lead as to 
price. Of course for race horses there is no market 
price as, according to performance, some horses may 
sell for as many thousand dollars as others sell for 
hundreds. For the man of means, the man who has 
other sources of income of sufficient size, the raising 
and racing of fast horses and all it means is certainly 
the sport royal, a game wherein both skill and chance 
have a part. However, with but few exceptions it 
must remain a sport, and not be regarded as a certain 
source of dependable income. I believe the accom¬ 
panying pictures, Figs. 387 and 388, speak well for 
our horses, and for the tastes of our horsemen, and I 
will add that I admire the person who knows what 
lie wants and goes and gets it, whether it is in the 
line of live stock or works of art. When fine, big 
Percheron or other draft horses pull our heavy loads 
and light, well-trained, fine-acting drivers, hitched to 
smart vehicles, rapidly take us over well-macadamized 
pikes, a scene in which mud and nondescript horses 
have no part, we consider ourselves becoming civilized. 
Ohio. W. E. DUCKWALL. 
HONEST BALDWIN APPLES WANTED. 
I have been a subscriber to The R. N.-Y. for a num¬ 
ber of years past, and find time to read it every week. 
I read with interest your articles published some time 
since on honest and dishonest apple growers, because 
it is next to impossible to get here an honest barrel 
of Baldwin apples packed by New York State apple 
growers. The Baldwin is my favorite variety, and 
each year I get “stung” in buying a few barrels for 
family use. My grocer, through whom I make the 
purchase, informs me it is next to an impossibility 
to get first-class apples, though he aims to order 
that kind, but when they arrive he invariably finds 
them stove-piped—little ones in the center and faced 
with fruit of good size. Can you put me in com¬ 
munication with a grower of Baldwin apples who is 
thoroughly honest in this matter, who would ship me 
a half dozen barrels of first-class Baldwin apples? 
Washington Co., Pa. J. f. t. 
R. N.-Y.—This is but one of many letters from mem¬ 
bers of the Apple Consumers’ League, who want hon¬ 
est fruit. Having been “stung” several times in buying 
“choice apples” and having no choice but to take the 
poor trash found in the center—it is no wonder they 
protest. The men who packed those dishonest barrels 
last year did a great injury to trade in New York 
fruit. It was a foolish thing to do in a season when 
so much good fruit was sold at a loss. Years ago 
we were told that a good share of the “sports” in 
any town would be found around the livery stable. 
We wondered why a noble animal like the horse 
should attract so many crooks. We have learned by 
experience that some men can only be honest in a 
cow trade after a violent struggle with themselves. 
Now we fear that we must add the apple—king of 
fruits—to the list of tempters! We have given our 
friend the names of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, a Meth¬ 
odist, a Dutch Reformed, a Quaker—and a man who 
once took a prize as a fruit packer. We decline to 
say which would be most likely to make the center or 
heart of the barrel match the face. The surest way 
would be to make a contract that the packer’s wife 
shall watch the packing. Seriously, this packing prob¬ 
lem is enough to make our New York growers mighty 
thoughtful. Let the practice of last season go on 
for a few years more, and the reputation of New 
York fruit will be seriously injured. On the Pacific 
Coast, in Virginia and several other parts of the 
country, growers are planning to put their fruit into 
smaller, guaranteed packages. They will get a monop¬ 
oly in the high-class trade if this dishonest packing is 
continued. __ 
THE SIZE OF A BUSHEL. 
Around Harrisburg, Pa., they measure in half¬ 
bushels, and their custom is to heap it what will 
stay on when shoveled, without going to pains of 
packing on by hand. I will enclose a little diagram 
(Fig. 389) which will illustrate this matter somewhat. 
The smallest cone represents the customary heap¬ 
ing for half-bushel. If we should adopt this same 
height for a bushel measure it would make a cone 
represented by the second line. If, however, we 
should give the bushel measure the same proportion¬ 
ate heap the cone would be represented by that line 
five inches high. The top line represents a cone six inches 
high, which would mean about 2,700 cubic inches, 
which you say a number of growers have written you 
is the most popular size. Your suggestion that a 
standard barrel should contain three standard bushels 
is undoubtedly sound, and both that and the size of 
the box will be easily determined after we settle on 
the proper cubical contents for the standard bushel. 
I should be glad to have opinions as to which would 
be the fairest measure for all concerned. 
E. C. TYSON. 
The Need of a Law. 
I am in favor of a national law regulating the 
packing and branding of packages of apples, but de¬ 
sire a few changes in the bill as presented by the 
Apple Shippers’ Association. By all means let us get 
a bill passed in some form and make a trial of it, 
and then improve on it when it is found defective 
or lacking in some respect. There should be a way 
of tracing up a package that is not what it should be, 
judging from the face and marks on it. If the variety 
and grade and the name and address of grower or 
packer are stamped or printed on the package, it is 
easy to correct a wrong, and it is also a good way to 
advertise and make sales easier for the future. Al¬ 
most all lines of manufactured goods bear their trade¬ 
marks or names and the wholesaler, middleman and 
user can trace a mistake or wrong, but in the apple 
deal, with no name or address, we can go no 
further than the last salesman. A bushel of apples 
should be, in my estimation, a heaped bushel, and that 
is the only kind of measure that goes in our markets. 
The barrels should be as near three bushels as the 
cooper can set them up. The barrel will be a little 
larger if made up with narrow staves, or smaller 
if wide staves are used, all being the same length and 
having the same sized heads. I think that a compul¬ 
sory system of branding packages is a step in the 
right direction. We might reach the same results by 
having the packages marked and a penalty for im¬ 
proper marking, and those not marked at all would 
be eyed with suspicion and sold that way, and people 
would learn to buy only when properly marked. 
Lawrence Co., O. u. t. cox. 
Must Have a Government Standard. 
In justice to both buyer and seller the standard of 
measurement of both quantity and quality of all com¬ 
modities should be definite and fixed by the national 
Government. It does not matter whether we call a 
barrel a bushel or a peck a bushel so it is understood the 
price will be governed accordingly. Inasmuch as the 
best known unit of measurement of such commodities 
as apples, potatoes, grain, etc., is our common grain 
bushel, it should be made the standard for apples. 
This means a “struck” bushel, that is, measure full 
even with the top. The “heaping” bushel would then 
be a matter to be adjusted between the buyer and 
seller. Our market here demands a “heaping,” and I 
have known buyers to want “a few extra thrown in” 
at that. An apple barrel should contain exactly three 
bushels, if for no other reason than that we might 
the better understand the market quotations. It 
should have branded thereon the quality, quantity and 
the name of the seller, as should all other containers 
with contents sealed from view. For the benefit of 
the grower who is sure of both the quality and 
variety of his apples, the variety name should be 
branded on the container. A heavy penalty should be 
exacted for fraudulent branding, especially of the 
seller who would brand a Ben Davis Grimes. He 
should be -, I came near saying hanged. 
Indiana. J. w. trinkle. 
A Bushel of 2700 Cubic Inches. 
The proposed apple barrel law is a step in the right 
direction; any measure that will give the consumer 
confidence in what he is buying as regards quantity 
or quality will increase consumption of that article. 
Twenty-seven hundred cubic inches is the bushel that 
satisfies the trade. Any change would excite suspi¬ 
cion, and cause loss of trade for a time. The average 
consumer prefers to buy from a peck measure rather 
than from a basket that is said to hold a peck. A 
barrel should hold exactly three bushels. I am not 
in favor of a compulsory system of packing; I think 
it much better to have the Commissioner of Agricul¬ 
ture formulate a set of grades, and leave it optional 
with the growers to grade up to specifications or not. 
In order to have the department brand on package it 
would be necessary to have packages inspected by in¬ 
spectors appointed by commissioner, and working simi¬ 
lar to nursery inspection, the mark naming the grade, 
the inspection and grower. This mark would no doubt 
add value to the package and, of course, would be 
sought after by the growers, grant g. hitchings. 
SUGAR BEETS IN ILLINOIS. 
Japanese workers are to be set to work harvesting 
an immense crop of sugar beets that has been raised 
within the Elgin, Illinois, dairy district this year. The 
question of help in the production of this vegetable 
always has entered largely into the desirability of un¬ 
dertaking the cultivation. A deal of work on hands 
and knees has been necessary, and a great proportion 
of our American soil tillers object to it on that ac¬ 
count. The big growers always have been required 
to call on foreign help. This last year, however, is 
said to have been an easy one in the culture of the 
sugar beet. Superintendent Pratt, who has charge 
of the 2,000-acre Oaklawn Farm in Kane County, 
where 50 acres of beets have been raised this year, 
says that it was as easy to raise beets this year as it 
is to produce corn. A man and his wife with a grown 
son and four children took care of 37 acres. Their 
work consisted of hoeing, stemming, thinning and 
weeding. The beets will average 20 tons to the 
acre, and will bring $5 a ton on board the car. The 
product will be shipped to a sugar mill at Janesville, 
Wis., but it will be only a question of a short time 
until there will be an Illinois plant, for the acreage is 
on the increase. The Oaklawn Farm has been raising 
beets for 15 years, but for sugar making purposes 
only for three years. In previous years they were 
raised for horse feed. The seed, which is furnished 
by the beet sugar company, is sown in a black loam 
sod that is first planted in corn. In the Fall following 
the corn crop it is plowed eight inches deep, and in the 
Spring the beet seed is sown as early as'possible. The 
thing then to do is to keep the beets ahead of the 
weeds. Mr. Pratt says that it is easy sailing if this 
is done, but there is trouble when the weeds get the 
start of the beets. 
Within the last two or three years there has been a 
deal of jangling between dairymen and milk. buyers. 
The former have been dissatisfied with the prices of 
the latter, and a good many of the dairymen have 
taken to raising beets. They have not quit dairying, 
but there is a strong movement now on foot to or¬ 
ganize against the milk buyers. The dairy region has 
been invaded by the best growing industry, and the 
acreage is now over 2,000 acres. It is believed that 
ultimately it will reach 3,000 acres. Some of the 
farms have made enormous yields of beets. Super¬ 
intendent Pratt says that he has had crops that went 
as high as 35 tons to the acre. j. l. graff. 
Illinois. _ 
USE OF BISULPHIDE OF CARBON FOR 
KILLING WEEVILS. 
On page 768 you ask for information in regard to 
use of bisulphide of carbon from some one who has 
had actual experience. For the past 18 years I have 
had charge of a branch warehouse for D. M. Ferry 
& Co., located at Charlevoix, Mich., where we grow 
peas and beans for seed. We handle each year at 
this point from 75,000 to 100,000 bushels of seed, 
and the entire crop is treated with bisulphide. We 
use each year about 200 pounds. We have four of 
what we call “bughouses” that will hold a carload 
each, or about 900 bushels, and are constructed as 
follows: First we construct an ordinary balloon 
frame the size required, sided on outside of studding 
with any quality of siding you may prefer. The in¬ 
side first has a course of good, \yell-matched, plain 
six-inch ceiling mailed on studding. This is covered 
with a heavy coat of pitch and tallow put on boiling 
hot. Use enough tallow to keep the pitch soft when 
cold. This is covered with a course of best quality 
of smooth building paper, then another coat of [ 'fell 
covered again with paper, and then another coat of hot 
pitch, put on as fast as the inside course of ceiling is 
laid. This inside coat of ceiling has all the tongues and 
grooves and end joints laid in white lead as put on. 
The floors, sides mid ceiling are all made the • ame 
way. We use two doors, one on the inside of frame 
and one on the outside. When the house is filled the 
inside door is closed and a good quality of paper 
pasted all over the outside. 
We handle all our stock in bags, and house is 
filled as full as convenient to handle. Before the door 
is closed we put 5 pounds of bisulphide in a shallow 
pan, setting it on top of the bags. As the bisulphide 
is heavier than air it settles to the bottom of the 
room, and forces the air out at a vent pipe at top 
of room. We use a l}4-inch pipe with cap on out¬ 
side that can be closed as soon as the air is all 
driven out. I see no reason why any farmer who has 
use for bisulphide for killing any vermin cannot con¬ 
struct such a room, the size depending on his needs. 
The most essential requirement is to have the room 
absolutely airtight, as the gas displaces the air and 
the weevils are destroyed bv the absence of the air 
rather than by coming in contact with the gas. We 
leave the house closed for 48 hours, as we find that 
a less time is not certain. Great care must be used 
that no fire comes in contact with the gas, as it is 
more explosive than gasoline. e. w. c. 
