1908. 
TALKS WITH A LAWYER. 
Disinheritance of Children. 
Is it lawful for a parent to disinherit one 
or more children in this State? k. a. 
Pennsylvania. 
The laws of your State gives extensive 
scope to testators as to how they may 
bequeath their property. In the absence 
of undue influence and mental weakness, 
they may disinherit one or more of the 
children. 
Division of Estate Among Heirs. 
A man dies intestate, leaving a widow, 
sister and nephews. How is his personal 
property distributed? p. h. b. 
New York. 
Section 2732 of the Code, No. 2, states 
“If there be no children, nor legal repre¬ 
sentatives of them, then one-half of the 
whole surplus shall be allotted to the widow 
(or widower) and the other half distributed 
to the next of kin.” 
Damage by Cows on Road. 
A neighbor alleges that my herd of cows, 
while on the roadway, injured his machine 
as he was passing along. Am I liable? 
Pennsylvania. H. h. 
The highway is primarily for the per¬ 
sonal use of travellers, and nothing must 
impede them. The cows have a right to be 
there, provided they do not annoy or injure 
anyone. In this case the owner of the cows 
must make good the damages done. 
Fire Caused by Railway. 
My land has been injured by a fire 
ignited by the adjoining railroad company. 
Are they liable? k. b. h. 
Pennsylvania. 
It is for the jury to say whether the 
company was guilty of negligence in the 
matter, but the juries usually find that the 
railroad is answerable for the damages. 
Present your claim, secure witnesses and 
demand an early settlement of it. 
State Payment of High School Tuition. 
In what cases will the State pay the 
tuition at high schools of pupils in the 
district schools ? o. 
New York. 
In cases when the district schools do not 
maintain an academic department the State 
will pay the tuition, not to exceed $20 per 
year, at nearby high schools. Pupils must 
hold the preliminary certificate. 
Liability for Fence. 
I do not keep cattle, yet my neighbor 
demands that I help repair the division 
fence. »M*ust I do it? m. f. 
Massachusetts. 
The law of your State calls for a four- 
foot fence. If you do not keep up your 
portion your neighbor may summons the 
fence viewers to visit and examine it, 
take testimony and report on conditions 
found ; if then you do not fix: it your neigh- • 
bor may do it, and make the bill a lien on 
your farm. 
Division of Property in Connecticut. 
A man dies, leaving a wife, mother and 
sister. IIow is the property divided in the 
State of Connecticut? b. l. m. 
Connecticut. 
Section 398 provides that when the mar¬ 
riage occurs since April 20, 18-77, or where 
husband or wife filed contracts to comply 
with that law, the surviving husband or 
wife takes one-third of the real and per¬ 
sonal property, the balance going to the 
next of kin, in which case the mother 
takes the two-thirds. 
Storing Logs. 
A man bought logs with the understand¬ 
ing that they might be stored on the place 
for a reasonable time. They have re¬ 
mained two years. What should I do? 
Massachusetts. f. m. 
lou should write the man demanding 
that he remove the logs within 30 days 
otherwise you will sell them at public 
auction for storage. If he does not remove 
them you may proceed to have them sold 
to satisfy your lien for storage. 
Ownership of Manure. 
I own a stable and rent out stalls for 
horses. Who is entitled to the manure? 
New York. B . L . 
The rule of this State and nearly all 
others is that manure is a part of the real 
property and cannot be removed by a ten¬ 
ant. But this rule does not apply to livery 
or boarding stables, where the animals are 
fed by food produced elsewhere. If the 
cattle graze on the place and are fed hay 
from the land then the manure cannot be 
removed. If the feed and fodder is brought 
to them the owner of the cattle may 
claim the manure. In the above case it is 
the property of the tenant, not the owner. 
Alteration in River Boundary. 
A river is the boundary between two 
farms. Gradually the sediments collect on 
the north shore, until the owner has much 
THE) RURAL NEW-YORKER 
455 
more land, while the owner of the southern 
shore is losing. IIow does this affect the 
title? w. e. 
New York. 
If the increase by the wash of the river 
is imperceptible the owner of the north 
shore acquires title to the increase by what 
is called accretion. If the river takes a 
new channel, as is often the case in the 
Western States, the river is no longer a 
boundary. 
Apportionment of Taxes. 
I live in the east school district, but own 
property across the roadway in the west 
district. Both school districts demand 
school taxes for this land. To whom 
should I pay the taxes? o. B. w. 
New York. 
All real property is governed by the law 
of the place where located, and is taxed 
on the same theory. As the place is lo¬ 
cated in the west district it will be taxed 
there, though the owner lives in Paradise. 
The west district may tax O. B. W. for 
his personal property, which is presumed in 
law to reside with the owner. If the place 
is partly in each district, the officers may 
divide the place to suit themselves. 
Agreement Concerning Restitution. 
A obtains money under false pretences. 
May I agree not to prosecute provided he 
pays it back? May I write him threaten¬ 
ing to prosecute if he does not settle? 
New York. subscriber. 
It would be wiser to demand your money 
without any promise; at all events do not 
offer such a promise in writing. Tell the 
party that you want your money, nothing 
else. It is always proper to demand your 
rights; otherwise you will take legal steps 
in the matter. Do not tell him what you 
will do. Do not use the mails to convey 
threats of criminal proceedings. 
Keeping Sweet Potatoes a Year. 
VTe do not keep sweet potatoes the year 
round because we usually eat them all be¬ 
fore the new ones are ready. But we have 
had them at thrashing time, in prime con¬ 
dition. I know at least two houses about 
here where they are kept every year and I 
believe I am familiar enough with their 
practice to do it also. Whether I can tell 
you and others how, perhaps depends on 
your understanding as much as mine. 
These people have a box in the sitting 
room of convenient size and upholstered 
to look like a lounge. When the sweet po¬ 
tatoes are dug they are partially dried in 
an open shed and then selected tubers are 
placed in this box and the lid is left off 
until the potatoes are through the sweat 
and thoroughly dried. They are then 
closed and given no further care except to 
get them out as needed. If you should call 
there on a Winter afternoon .you would 
# likely find the farmer lying on top of the 
box as happy as a king. The -potatoes are 
so well dried out that when Spring comes 
they make but little effort to start sprouts, 
and what do start soon dry up. They are 
nice to have, for a change, on the table 
when fresh vegetables are scarce. 
Pennsylvania. p. a. cloud. 
We do not think keeping sweet potatoes 
through the year hard to do as we have a 
house built for the purpose of keeping our 
crops. We clean out our house in the Fall 
before we commence to dig our crop, give 
it a good airing, as when we commence to 
house our crop it depends on the weather 
when we start the fire, but start before we 
get it full, then we give it all the ventila¬ 
tion we can till they get done sweating. 
As the weather gets cold we then try to 
keep the house as near 40 to 45 degrees as 
possible till April, or better, till freezing 
weather is over. By that time we 'have our 
crop all marketed and our next crop of 
seed in the bed. We leave enough in the 
house to eat till new ones come. My 
neighbor told me yesterday that for 10 
years he has been keeping them in his 
cellar; that he has not been out of sweets 
but once in the 10 years, and that because 
he sold too close. If you wish to keep them 
for family use get some sugar barrels; 
put the barrels in the cellar, not too close 
to your heater but where there will be no 
danger of them getting chilled: then as you 
dig put them in the barrels same day you 
dig them; handle carefully; fill your barrels 
full; do not cover them; give ventilation 
till they get done sweating; do not move 
them after they are put in the cellar, or 
when you pick one up do not put it back. 
Delaware. _ s. h. 
Potato Seed From Rotted Stock. 
Should potatoes be used for seed from 
stock that rotted badly last season, or is 
the seed infected? t. h. 
Pennsylvania. 
No. The germs of the rot disease are 
probably in the tubers and are likely to 
spread and develop. We should not plant 
such seed. 
BEST ONIONS FOR BUNCHING. 
Can you tell me the best kinds of onions 
for bunching for early market, and the best 
way to grow them? Some sdy plant sets, 
and some say sow seed of hardy ,kinds and 
leave them in the ground all Winter, and 
pull when large enough in the Spring. 
How do those do who are engaged in the 
business? d. e. b. 
Scotland, Ont. 
I have tried a number of varieties of 
onions for tne early green bunching crop. 
My practice has been altogether in the 
South, and a milder climate than that of 
Ontario, and my planting has been entirely 
in the Autumn. I have had fairly good 
success with Beaulieu’s Winter onion from 
seed sown in late August. The Welsh 
onion is as hardy as this one, but is in 
my experience no larger than a shallot. I 
have used with great satisfaction sets of a 
white onion sold in Norfolk, Va., as the 
Queen. But it is not the early Queen of 
the northern catalogues, and is a larger 
and better onion. Sets of this planted in 
September gave in North Carolina fine 
bunching onions in February, but late in 
the season they run to seed and are spoiled. 
My greatest success has been with the 
Y'ellow and White Potato onion. These 
make no seed, but increase by multiplica¬ 
tion of the bulbs. The smaller ones can be 
pulled off for bunching and the larger ones 
left to make the earliest of all ripe onions. 
The Yellow Potato onion makes a very 
large bulb, but is not a good keeper, and 
must be sold early. The White Potato 
onion never grows to a large size, but is 
fine for bunching, and is the best keeper of 
any onion I have ever grown. I have lifted 
them in July and kept them over a year 
before planting again, and they were per¬ 
fectly sound and unsprouted. I always use 
sets for the bunching crop. The sets of 
the Potato onion can be planted in the 
Fall in well-manured ridges deeply, so 
that when the soil is pulled from them in 
the Spring the bulbs will, be on the surface. 
I have grown with success even in the 
South, fine crops of ripe onions from seed 
sown very early in Spring, and I would 
not use sets for the ripe crop except of 
the Potato onion, with which sets are the 
only resource. For producing sets of the 
Qneen onion I sow the seed very thickly 
on soil of only moderate fertility about the 
middle of April, and when the tops ripen 
I take them up and cure with the tops on, 
and never remove the tops till wanted for 
planting. In fact, I have found that all 
onions keep better if stored with the dry 
tops on. I would advise the Canadian 
correspondent to use the Potato onion, 
either yellow or white. They are as hardy 
as any I have ever tried, and will give a 
larger crop than any sets raised from seed. 
W. F. MASSEY. 
EVERETT PORTABLE DUMP-BOX 
Fits any wagon gear. Dumps load Instantly, or will spread It. 
Entire loot operation. One-third the cost of dump-wagon. 
Money-saver for contractors, teamsters and farmers. Money¬ 
maker for dealers. Indispensable for road improvements, 
macadamizing, etc. Write for prices and circular. 
EVERETT MFG. CO., 33 Lake St., Newark, NEW YORK. 
Nitrate of Soda 
Nitrate Sold in Original Bags 
NITRATE AGENCIES CO. 
64 Stone Street, New York 
Keyser B uilding, Baltim ore, Md. 
36 Bay Street, East, Savannah, Ga. 
305 Baronne Street, New Orleans, La* 
Holcombe & Co., 50 Clay Street, 
_ San F rancisco, Cal. 
Address Office Nearest You 
Orders for All Quantities Promptly 
Filled -Write for Quotations 
WEEKS 
SCALES 
Accurate, Simple, Durable. 
No expert Scale builder required to 
set them— DO weights that can be lost 
or stolen. Three to twenty tons capa¬ 
city. Catalogue on application. 
WEEKS SCALE WORKS, Buffalo, N. V. 
RUNNING WATER Means Less Work 
Running water on the farm saves labor by 
doing away with hand pumping, and gives 
city conveniences in tlio home. If there’s 
a stream on your land install a 
Niagara Hydraulic Ram 
and have all the comforts possible. No cost 
forpower. Works day and night. Write for 
calalogue A-0 and estimate. We furnish 
towers and tanks. 
NIAGARA HYDRAULIC ENGINE CO., 
HO Nassau Street, New York. 
Factory: Chester, Pa 
TO GROW A GOOD 
GARDEN 
good cultivation is absolutely neces¬ 
sary, but it can’t be done with poor 
tools. Here's an Iron Age Tool 
especially made for garden work. It 
not only does good work, but it is 
easy to operate. The boys 
and girls can do the 
gardening and pro¬ 
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y ou’ 11 equi p them 
with Iron Age 
Tools. Send 
for our 
1908 cat¬ 
alog. 
ROOFING 
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