1908. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
606 
STILL MORE FERTILIZER FACTS. 
That fertilizer outrage in Ohio has taken a new 
turn. The Smith Agricultural Chemical Company 
secured an injunction restraining the State Board of 
Agriculture from publishing its fertilizer analyses. 
Thus the secretary, Mr. Calvert, was unable to tell 
the farmers of Ohio how the fertilizers sold in that 
State analyzed. Anyone can see that this is a blow 
struck at. the very vitals of State control of sales 
of fertilizers. Secretary Calvert was attacked 
viciously in circulars distributed by the Smith Com¬ 
pany. He has now made a sworn statement which 
has been filed and made a part of the court record. 
We are unable to give the analyses of fertilizers 
made in Ohio this year, but we take the following 
from Mr. Calvert’s sworn statement: 
Affiant further says that during the latter part of the 
year 1907 the Ohio State Board of Agriculture as then 
constituted, by many analyses began to discover that the 
Smith Agricultural Chemical Company had defiantly, fla¬ 
grantly. persistently and continuously violated the fertilizer 
laws of the State of Ohio, in the manufacture and sale of 
its various products. * * * Affiant further says that 
recently a very great number of samples of fertilizers man¬ 
ufactured by the Smith Agricultural Chemical Company 
have been collected in many different portions of the State 
of Ohio, and analyzed by the best chemist obtainable, and 
that universally and without exception the analyses of 
said samples showed the. product manufactured by the 
Smith Agricultural Chemical Company to be fraudulently 
inferior from what it was claimed to be, and represented 
to be when sold by the said Smith Agricultural Company. 
Mr.. Calvert quotes from the Indiana and Michigan 
bulletins and also shows the poor quality of these 
goods as sampled in Kentucky and Pennsylvania. He 
might have added Connecticut. 
It is getting to be a pretty nice question to decide 
which has the poorer official record—the Smith Agri¬ 
cultural Chemical. Company or the Buffalo Fertilizer 
Company. A fair summing-up might be made as 
follows: In Indiana the Smith Company certainly 
makes the worst showing of any concern offering 
fertilizers. Last year out of 47 brands examined 
only three were up to guarantee. In six years out of 
274 examined only 74 were fully equal to guarantee! 
In Michigan one of their branch houses was men¬ 
tioned as particularly bad, and the great majority of 
their goods ran behind. In Kentucky in 1906 out 
of 17 brands offered 11 ran below! In Connecticut 
one of their brands was so poor that it was specially 
named in black type. In Ohio Mr. Calvert states that 
“universally and without exception” analyses showed 
the Smith Company’s fertilizer “to be fraudulently 
inferior from what it was claimed to be.” 
That looks like a hard record to match, but the 
Buffalo. Company seem to have the facts and figures. 
In Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island 
and Connecticut goods made by this concern fell 
below guarantee. In Vermont complaint was made 
Ho the authorities and fines were enforced. In 
Connecticut out of 16 brands printed in heavy type 
because they were specially bad 12 were made by 
the. Buffalo Company and sold by themselves or 
others. In Michigan the State chemist says that 
the only brand sold by the Buffalo Company up to 
guarantee was muriate of potash. Every one of their 
mixed goods fell below. 
In New York 19 brands of mixed fertilizers 
made by the Buffalo Company were examined by 
the Experiment Station and every one was reported 
below the guarantee. We cannot give the figures 
for Ohio, since the Smith Company holds them up 
by injunction, but we know that many of the Buffalo 
goods have fallen below. 
These two concerns, with their close race for the 
record, are the only ones, so far as we know, that 
have found it necessary to offer to sell their fer¬ 
tilizers on a private analysis. One would think they 
were very appropriately yoked together in such an 
offer. 
EVENTS OF THE WEEK. 
DOMESTIC.—Fire swept the Grand Junction docks on 
the waterfront of East Boston, July 8, and in about an 
hour destroyed four piers and caused a loss estimated at 
more than .$8,000,000. One of the Cunard Tune piers, a 
Boston and Albany pier, the Boston and Albany grain ele¬ 
vator and the Leyland Line pier were burned to the water’s 
edge. The flames started in one of the cargo sheds on 
No. 2 Cunard pier and driven by a high northwest wind 
leaped along the waterfront a distance of one-fourth of a 
mile to the coal pocket of the Massachusetts Wharf and 
Coal Company, where the fire department made a deter¬ 
mined fight and stopped its further progress. One life is 
known to have been lost, the victim being Daniel Sullivan, 
70 years of age, a watchman employed by the Cunard com¬ 
pany. lie was in the shed where the fire started, but 
being lame was unable to escape from the building. 
Fire started in a dancing pavilion and hotel at College 
Point, N. Y., July 8, endangering a number of factories: 
loss $80,000. . . . The oil field fire that began burning 
near Ozuluama, State of Vera Cruz, Mexico, July 5, is the 
greatest and most spectacular in the history of the oil 
industry. The blaze covers an area one mile square and it 
mounts to a height of 1,000 to 1,500 feet. The officers 
and crews of vessels arriving at Tampico report that they 
saw the light of the fire when 200 miles out at sea. 
The earth’s crust covering the entire area where the fire 
is burning was uplifted by a terrific explosion of gas. 
The surface of the earth and rocks have entirely disap¬ 
peared. The whole territory of a square mile, upon which 
a number of flowing oil wells were located, is now a 
seething cauldron of burning oil. It is estimated that mil¬ 
lions of barrels of oil have already been destroyed and there 
is no. hope of the fire subsiding until all the oil in the 
pool is destroyed. The burning oil has spread into the 
San Geronimo River and is flowing in a broad stream into 
Lake Tamiahua. It has spread to the forests along the 
slipre and much destruction of property is threatened from 
this source. The fire originated at one of the flowing wells 
in the field. It seemed to work its way down until it 
reached the pool of oil about 1.000 feet below the sur¬ 
face* ^ was then that the terrific explosion occurred. 
I he earth’s surface for a mile around was uplifted by 
this explosion as if by an earthquake. The men who were 
employed in the field had rushed away from the spot when 
the fire began and so far as known no lives were lost, 
the noise of the explosion was plainly heard for 75 miles 
around and many peonle thought that it was due to an 
earthquake. . . . Canada is putting guards upon her 
frontiers to bar undesirables from the United States. There 
are at present so many thousand unemployed in the United 
that it has been deemed wise to establish a system 
ot boundary inspection similar to that carried on by 
Americans for years. The principal places of entry have 
been covered by officers of the department and as rapidly 
Possible arrangements are being made at minor points. 
1 He Inspectors have power to debar all persons considered 
mentally or morally unfit. Admittance was refused to 
many Italians coming from the States to engage in railway 
construction in Canada. A transportation company run¬ 
ning steamships from Duluth to Port Arthur, Ontario, is 
now refusing to carry hundreds wishing to come to Port 
Arthur, as they realize that they take big chances of 
having to take them back and not coming up to the inspec¬ 
tion regulations now instituted. ... A Are started at 
South River. N. J., July 10, which threatened for a time 
to wipe out the town. It was controlled at nightfall, but 
more than $50,000 damage had been done then, and many 
buildings had been destroyed. . . . Grave charges are 
made against officials of the New York Fire Department 
and against the Windsor Appliance Company, which sold 
to the city fire hose found to be defective in the Parker 
Building fire last January, in a report of the Commissioners 
of Accounts to Mayor McClellan. The report declares the 
company, though repeatedly called upon to do so, never re¬ 
placed .any defective hose. The commissioners recommend 
charges against officers of the fire department for the loss 
of three lives at the Parker Building fire. . . . That 
both the physician who writes a prescription for denatured 
alcohol and the druggist who prepares the prescription and 
sells the medicine to the patient are liable to criminal pros¬ 
ecution is held in a decision rendered by Commissioner of 
Internal Revenue Capers. The decision says: “Completely 
denatured alcohol contains kerosene and crude wood alco¬ 
hol, which renders it unfit even for external medication. 
Moreover, the second section of the law regulating the sale 
and manufacture of denatured alcohol provides fine and im¬ 
prisonment for any person who uses denatured alcohol for 
manufacturing any beverage or liquid medicinal prepara¬ 
tion, or knowingly sells any preparation made in part or 
wholly from such alcohol.” . . . The Crockertown for¬ 
est fire in Jerusalem plantation. Maine, has burned over 
3.000 acres, destroying a million and a half feet of 
standing timber of the Great Northern Paper Company, 
and the Berlin Mills Company. The fire has burned 
camps of the Great Northern Paper Company. The total 
damage is estimated roughly at not less than $100,000. 
Forest fires were burning in many sections of Franklin 
County, July 10. Besides the Jerusalem fire, the principal 
damage is being done in the Rangeley region, near Red- 
ington and on Mount Saddleback. New Hampshire has 
not escaped the peril of forest fire .which has followed the 
peril of drought in Maine and other States. Reports 
received July .13 show that the woods have become ignited 
in many sections, and in some places heavy damage has 
resulted. Near Lake Gardner, in Bath, a fire was raging 
for three days, burning over several hundred acres. An¬ 
other fire was in progress in Allenstown, near the 
llooksett line. On Mount Major and IMne Mountain in 
Alton, near Lake Winnepesaukce, fire had been sweeping 
through the timber land for four days. Two hundred 
acres of nine timber land were burned over on Potter and 
Watson Mountains in Gilford July 12. the fire finally being 
controlled by a force from the Laconia fire department. 
At Peterboro July 12 about a million feet of pine boards, 
owned by the Nashua Lumber Company and valued at 
$18,000 were burned. . . . For his connection with 
the Standard Title and Trust Company Ilomer T„ Castle, 
formerly an active Prohibition party campaigner, and 
candidate for Governor of Pennsylvania two years ago, 
was indicted by the Grand Jury at Philadelphia July 13. 
Technically Castle was accused of criminal conspiracy 
with Senator II. F. Aspinwall of Illinois, C. J. Massin¬ 
ger. Charles Hunter and Arthur F. Williams, as officers 
of the institution, in having published “a statement of 
resources, liabilities and financial condition of the Stand¬ 
ard Title and Trust Company which they knew to be 
false.” 
OBITUARY.—John .T. Munson, who was one of the 
first: men to introduce the grapegrowing industrv in 
Chautauqua County, died at his home in Westfield. N. Y„ 
recently. He was 66 years old and had lived in Westfield 
all his life. At the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted 
in Company E, 1121h New York Volunteers, and served 
until the close of the rebellion. He was a member of 
William Sackett Post, G. A. II.. and a member of the 
Union Veteran Legion. He was also a prominent Mason. 
He is survived by one sister. Miss Sarah Munson, of 
Westfield. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—The Pennsylvania Stock Deal¬ 
ers’ Association has closed deals with corporations and 
individuals around Pottstown, Pa., which will give it 
5,000 acres of mountain and valley lands for the pas¬ 
turage of cattle, and expects soon to acquire 5.000 acres 
more. This association proposes to go into the business 
of raising grass-fed cattle on an extensive scale, and 
expects to demonstrate that the vast mountain ranges 
of Pennsylvania are as valuable for this purpose as the 
prairies of the West. 
One of the popular attractions in the Dairy Building at 
the New York State Fair will be a single cheese weigh¬ 
ing more than a ton. This will be made by Mr. norace 
Rees, the veteran State Cheese Instructor, of T^owrille, 
N. Y. The cheese will require about 20,000 pounds of 
milk, or the product of one day from about 1,200 cows. 
It will be one of the largest dieses ever made. 
The Iowa Duroc Swine Breeders have subscribed about 
$2,500 worth of purebred Duroc swine as special premiums 
to Iowa corn growers who win prizes on their grains at 
the National Corn Exposition to be held in Omaha next 
December. This means 72 head of the fine hogs will be 
distributed over the State of Iowa, as it is unlikely the 
farmers of any one section will win all the premiums. 
The third term of the Graduate School of Agriculture 
opened at Cornell University July G. This school is 
under the auspices of the Association of American Agri¬ 
cultural Colleges and Experiment Stations .and has for 
its Dean Dr. A. C. True, of the United States Depart¬ 
ment of Agriculture, and Mr. G. N. Lauman as registrar. 
It is the purpose of this school to consider the more 
advanced phases of the science of agriculture, with spe¬ 
cial reference to the methods of investigating agricul¬ 
tural problems and teaching agricultural subjects. Ad¬ 
mission is limited to those who have received a bach¬ 
elor’s degree, and those especially recommended by their 
colleges as being persons properly qualified to profit by 
advanced instruction in agriculture. Instruction is of¬ 
fered in biochemistry, agronomy, horticulture, entomology, 
dairy husbandry and dairying, poultry, and veterinary 
medicine. The mornings are taken up with lectures and 
the afternoons with laboratory demonstrations and ex¬ 
cursions. 
CROP PROSPECTS. 
It is gelling dry in this section: no rain in some time. 
Hay a fair crop, quality good. Rye light, but small acre¬ 
age sown last Fall. Oats extra good. Apples about half 
crop, quality extra good at this time. Pears heavier than 
last season and looking fine. o. a. l. 
West Coxsackie, N. Y. 
Hay and grain crops were all secured in good condi¬ 
tion in this section, without any rains interfering. 
However, we are paying for the advantage, in seeing the 
Summer crops withering and drying up with the exceed¬ 
ingly hot sunshine and no rains. We have no trouble 
drying berries this season; can gather dried from the 
bushes. w. n. s. 
Pine Grove, Pa. 
Wheat is cut and a poor ci'op. Ilav cut with conmlaiuts 
of light yield. I think‘there is a good deal of old hay 
still on hand, and price low. Corn 85 cents. I don't 
know of any for sale, only as it is shipped in. New corn 
poor stand and late planted on account of the wet 
Spring, but growing verv rapidly. Apple cron will be 
short I fear. We had dry weather fore part of June, nice 
rains now. A. r.. R. 
Licking Co., Ohio. 
We are having delightful haying weather: some wheat 
fit to cut. Corn growing finely, and if nothing happens 
will make a bumper crop: we will want it to make out 
the deficiency in hay. T think Timotbv bay will make 
but little more than half a crop, and some badlv rusted 
and filled with weeds. Some fine fields of oats and barley, 
but not first class on the whole. Potatoes doing well, 
pastures good; fruit plentiful; cherries to waste, pears 
too many on the trees, apples about half crop. Upon the 
whole I think the Cayaga County farmers are good for 
another Winter, no matter who is elected President. 
Auburn, N. Y. a. d. b. 
Wheat thrashing is well under way, yield about two- 
thirds average crop. Timothy meadows are being rapidly 
cut; yield good, but some fields somewhat weedy. We 
have had eight weeks of rather dry weather here, broken 
only by a few local showers, which, where they occurred, 
have pushed the corn well along. Where no rains have 
occurred the corn is small and is turning yellow. Apples, 
peaches and pears are not falling badly now, but the crop 
will be light. w. b. D. 
Hillsboro, O. 
Alfalfa scored another victory recently according to 
Omaha papers. Joe Lommers of Stanton," Neb., shipped 
four carloads of fat catte to the Omaha market and received 
$8.19 per hundred for them, and they averaged 1,572 
pounds. Mr. Lommers bought them the middle of last 
November for $4.60 per hundred, when they weighed 1,110 
pounds each. He placed them on a balanced ration of 
corn and Alfalfa and put 462 pounds on each animal. The 
price of $8.10 per hundred was paid by Swift & Company 
and was the highest price paid for a carload of cattle at a 
Missouri river market since 1902. 
The farming section about Wolcott, N. Y.. now presents 
a fine appearance. The frequent rains and the warm 
weather have combined to cause a luxuriant growth of 
vegetation of - all kinds and not for several seasons have 
all crops shown such remarkable growth at this season of 
the year. Farmers are now hoping for a spell of fair 
weather, as this week (July 10), will see them in the 
midst of their haying. The crop is not as heavy as was 
predicted early in the season, but is of good quality. There 
is still considerable old hay in the hands of the growers. 
Corn is making a phenomenal growth, and there is every 
indication that there will be a record-breaking crop. The 
weather man has been exceedingly favorable to its growth 
and everywhere the crop looks fine. Wheat is maturing 
rapidly, and will be ready for harvest as soon as the hay¬ 
ing is out of the way. The crop is a small one and the 
acreage very small in comparison to what it was a few 
years ago. All of the tobacco is now sot, and the young 
plants are making a vigorous growth. The acreage is the 
smallest for years, and large quantities of old tobacco are 
still in storage. A large acreage of beans is being grown 
for the local canning factory and is looking well. Oats 
have made a rank growth, but will mature unevenly, as 
the period of sowing was a long one. The usual acreage 
of cucumbers is being grown for the canning factory, and 
the plants are doing all that could be desired. The vines 
are just beginning to run. The pea harvest is now at its 
height, and the local canning factory is being rushed to 
its full capacity. The crop is a heavy one. and the yield 
is highly satisfactory to the growers. This week the 
black raspberry season opens, and everywhere the growers 
are gathering up their pickers. The crop this year has 
had plenty of moisture, and will be one of the best of 
recent years. The acreage has been on the increase again 
after suffering a few years’ relapse due to low prices, 
and this season will be the largest crop for several years. 
Bickers are paid two cents per quart, and women and 
children are easily able to earn men’s wages during the 
picking season. A few years ago many growers adopted 
the method of batting their berries instead of picking by 
hand, but this has now been almost entirely abandoned. 
Growers say that it injures the vines, and knocks off 
many green berries, besides rendering the fruit very mussy 
and dirty. Most of the crop is being evaporated, but 
growers do not look for high prices, probably not "much 
over 20 cents per pound. The green fruit is bringing six 
cents per quart, and is being shipped away to canneries. 
At this price the crop is a paying one. The strawberry 
season is over, the last of the berries being brought to 
market the first of the week. Cherries have been an 
abundant crop, and every tree appeared to be loaded, but 
the fruit is grown but Utile here for commercial purposes. 
Now that the regular June drop is over in the apple 
orchards some idea of the crop can he obtained. Dealers 
have been driving over western New York; for Wayne 
Bounty their reports vary, and they estimate the crop as 
being from 65 to 80 per cent of being a full one. Most 
of the growers about Wolcott estimate it at 75 to 80 
per cent. The apples are fair and healthy looking, and 
the foliage is looking fine. The price talked now is $1 
a barrel, including package. The dealers will go carefully 
this season, owing to the heavy losses of last. 
Wayne Co., N. Y. c. J. a. 
THE APPLE CROP.—The Fruit Grower after receiving 
many reports states that the apple crop has deteriorated 
considerably since last reports. Throughout the Middle 
West excessive rains have not only prevented spraying 
of trees, but have also helped to increase the quantity of 
apple scab, and other fungi in orchards. The crop ’ has 
therefore lost in two ways—in quantity and quality. The 
crop in New York State does not promise as well as 
seemed indicated at blooming time and reports now indi¬ 
cate about the same yield in New York State as last 
year, but that fruit should be of better quality. Pennsyl¬ 
vania will not have as many apples as a year ago, nor 
is it expected that Ohio. Indiana or Illinois will reach 
last year's mark. Missouri and Kansas, in spite of deter¬ 
ioration of crop, will have more apples than a year ago, 
so that the crop seems to better distributed throughout 
the country. Colorado's crop of apples is short, but 
Idaho. Washington and Oregon report indications for a 
bumper crop. While the outlook for fruit crop is not 
nearly so good as at blooming time, there is every reason 
to believe there will be more of every kind of fruit ex¬ 
cept apples than last year, and that the apple crop, 
while about the same size as that of a year ago. is better 
distributed throughout the country, thus rendering the 
problem of marketing the crop a more simple one. 
Apple trees bloomed heavily this Soring, but late frosts 
blighted them so badly that there will not be more than 
one-third of a crop. Potatoes on light soil have all dried 
up, and the bugs seem thicker than ever. Garden stuff on 
naturally light soils is practically ruined, but on moist 
land is holding its own. f. s. M. 
New Hampshire._ 
I have had San Jose scale here since the Spring of 1900. 
By 1904 and 1905 it was so bad that trees were dying 
from it. During the latter part of 1906 the scale began 
to disappear. A small black lady bug and its larvae 
were working on the scale, and there seemed to be some 
disease besides. I.ast year there were very few scales to 
be found, and few lady bugs either. This year there are 
more scales than last, though still so few that one would 
scarcely notice them. g. w. m. 
Jackson, Miss. 
Replying to your inquiry in regard to San .Tosd scale, 
found on page 572, there has been no abatement of the 
ravages of this pernicious pest in this locality this sea¬ 
son. We have been able by persistent spraying to almost 
annihilate it in our orchards, but recognize the neces¬ 
sity of continuing a vigorous campaign against it inso¬ 
much as none of our neighbors are paying any atten¬ 
tion whatever to the orchard, there having been but 
one other orchard sprayed in our entire community and 
that was done by us. We are fully persuaded that 
this very disastrous chap will not go out of business of 
his own volition, and would recommend that none of 
the claims to the contrary mislead your readers. Keep 
after him with zealous determination and determined to 
have your neighbors do likewise. The time, in our judg¬ 
ment. will never come when a locality once thoroughly 
infested, will ever be entirely free from it. w. w. p. 
Mosgrove, Pa. 
The present high price of beef on foot need not cause 
us to envy the western farmer. In the first place he is 
not selling. Born prices began to soar before meat prices, 
and consequently lots of half finished stuff poured into 
Chicago all last Winter and Spring. Now when the 
very good beeves come from the ranches, only the very best 
of yard-fed cattle top the market. In short, scarcity of 
native cattle and the necessity of a high finish stand be¬ 
tween the corn belt farmers and high prices. s. e. k. 
Iowa. 
