1908. 
THE R.U HAL NEW-YORKER 
oe© 
EVENTS OF THE WEEK. 
DOMESTIC.—Three persons were killed end four badly 
injured when ilie engine of a San Francisco passenger 
train was derailed 12 miles east of imboden, Ark., August 
7. .. . The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad 
Company by its counsel pleaded guillv to rebating August 
7. and was assessed a fine of $7,000 bv Judge Bethea in 
the United States District Court at, Chicago. The Gov¬ 
ernment proved that a, bonus paid by the railroad to the 
Garden City Sugar and Land Company of Garden City, 
Kan., was in effect a rebate. The' railroad company, 
through its industrial department, offered the Garden City 
concern a bonus of $50,000 for locating on its line. This 
bonus was to lie paid as freight was shipped, and a year 
ago the sugar and land company bad paid 822,000 in 
freight charges and had received $11,000 of its bonus. 
It was by this arrangement that the scheme came under 
the ban of the inter-State commerce and Elkins laws. 
The decision does not, it is stated, affect: the paying of 
legitimate bonuses to assist new industries. . . . ‘ Short¬ 
age of ready cash, an attempt on the part of English 
shareholders to freeze out American Interests and alleged 
mismanagement are among the various reasons given for 
the application filed at Minneapolis, Minn., August 8, for 
a receiver for (lie Plllsbury-Washburn Flour Milling Com¬ 
pany, Ltd., Minneapolis. None of the mills or elevators 
of the company will close down because of the receivership 
proceedings. Tim estimated assets of the ,1’iilsburv- 
Washburn and allied companies are $15,000,000. The 
unsecured liabilities are $5,000,000 and the secured lia¬ 
bilities $4,000,000. The greater part of the Indebtedness 
of the concern is in the shape of notes ranging from 
$1,000 to $125,000. Large and small banks all 
over the United States, but principally in the West 
and Northwest, are among the creditors. ... A 
million and a quarter acres of land in Nebraska has been 
returned to the public domain since? the prosecution of 
I be land fraud cases has been in progress. The filings 
have been cancelled and the illegal fences pulled down, 
I he land reverting to the public and is now subject to 
homestead. Suits were brought against 98 defendants for 
illegal fencing and decrees were obtained against all of 
them. Fifty-eight criminal suits are still pending. Twenty- 
eight criminal cases have been tried and convictions ob¬ 
tained in 24 of the cases. . . . Three men were killed, 
two probably fatally wounded and 12 others hurt in an 
attack August 9 on a Louisville and Nashville train that 
was carrying strike breakers under guard of the State 
militia to the mines of the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Rail¬ 
road Company in Bibb county, Ala. . . . Fire in a 
tenement house in the upper part of New York caused the 
death of four children August 10. ... A Are believed 
to have been incendiary destroyed six large bonded ware¬ 
houses of the Greenbaum Distillery at Midway, Wood¬ 
ford county, Ky„ August (!, containing 47,500 barrels of 
whisky, burned several negro cottages, the Southern Rail¬ 
way trestle and two county bridges and threatened the 
northern part of the town or Midway. The actual property 
loss was at least $500,000, partly insured. The loss to 
the Government in the destruction of whisky in bond, 
amounting to 2,300,000 gallons, will be $2,500,000. . . 
Great forest fires in the Canadian Northwest the first week 
in August resulted in many fatalities and heavy property 
loss. The loss of the Crow’s Nest Bass Company, owning 
mines at Coal Creek and Fernie and Michel, is $200,000 : 
the Canadian Pacific Railway loss is $200,000, the Great 
Northern Railway $250,000 and the lumber companies not 
less than $ 1 , 000 , 000 . The oss t.o the city of Fernie is 
not less than $2,000,000. More corest fires in the vicinity 
of Sullivan and Kimberly were reported August 11, anil 
there was danger of the latter town being destroyed. . . . 
Six passengers and two of the crew of the steamer Premier 
lost their lives when that vessel burned to the water’s 
edge at: Warren’s landing, at the northern end of Lake 
Winnipeg August 0. The fire started in the engine-room 
of the steamer during the night and spread so rapidly 
that many of the 38 passengers aboard had only a moment 
to escape. Those who did so leaped overboard. The vic¬ 
tims were either smothered or burned to death in their 
berths. Fire from the burning vessel soon ignited the 
piers and buildings of the landing at the trading post, and 
though the traders and their men fought hard, most of tin* 
post is in ruins. . . . Eight men were killed and more 
Ilian a score injured in the explosion of a boiler at the 
York Rolling Mill, a branch of the Susquehanna Iron and 
Steel Company, at York, Pa.. August 19. Buildings in 
all parts of the city were rocked and windows were broken 
in houses a quarter of a mile away. Large pieces of steel 
and iron were hurled In all directions, some alighting in 
the principal streets of the city. The building, a brick and 
wooden structure, is a complete wreck. . . . Three 
men were killed, seven were injured so seriously Unit their 
deaths are expected momentarily and a score, including 
passengers and members of the train crews, were hurt in 
a head-on collision of limited cars on the Western Ohio 
Traction Company’s line nine miles north of Piqua, <).. 
August 10. A misunderstanding of meeting orders, due 
to the fact that a seldom used country switch was indi¬ 
cated as the meeeting point because of tin* southbound ear 
being overdue, is blamed for the collision. Both cars 
were smashed to kindling wood, while some of the passen¬ 
gers were hurled 50 feet. Others were pinned in t he 
wreckage and only one man of the 30 aboard the two 
•ai\> escaped unhurt. Not one of the injured escaped 
without a broken bone, while many of those who are not 
fatally injured will be maimed for life. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—The Official call for the six¬ 
teenth National Irrigation Congress lias fust been issued. 
This year’s session is to lie held in Albuquerque, N. M., 
from September 29 to October 3, inclusive. 
The State Horticultural Society of Missouri has had an 
honored career of half a century, holding two regular 
meetings each year during that time. In 1907, however, it 
became necessary to reorganize in order to be eligible to 
receive State aid and the new organization was called the 
Missouri State Board of Horticulture. The new board 
will continue to hold two meetings a year one during the 
Summer at different places in the State and the other 
in the Winter at: Columbia. The board desires to an¬ 
nounce that W. L. Howard, of the Horticultural Depart¬ 
ment of the University of Missouri, has been elected secre¬ 
tary and the headquarters established at Columbia, the 
seat of the State University, the Agricultural College, and 
Experiment Station. 
A bulletin has been issued by the Purdue ( Indiana) Ex¬ 
periment Station, giving the results of the butter scoring 
contests for July. E. L. Martin, of New Carlisle, won the 
highest score, 9(1, in the whole milk butter contests, and 
Miller, Hall & Sleeth, Alexandria, obtained the best score 
for gathered cream and dairy butter. 94 iter cent. Chief 
defects noticed, according to C. L. Mitchell, of California. 
United States butter expert, were sourness, staleness and 
uncleanliness. The next educational butter contest will 
he held September 10, in connection with the State Fair. 
Valuable prize cups will be awarded the contestants ob¬ 
taining the highest scores. Certificates of merit will be 
given competitors with an average score of 93 or over in 
the whole milk class and 91 and over in the gathered 
cream and dairy butter class. 
THE LONG ISLAND POTATO EXCHANGE. 
The potatoes from Orient, L. I., are nearly all sold at 
lhis writing (August 9) and prices have been good this 
'car, averaging $2 or upwards home to the farmer, and the 
Exchange has handled the largest part of them in spite of 
the fact that the local buyers offered 25 to 50 cents 
more per barrel than tin* Exchange could clear. Now that 
is n<>! so liaial a proposition as would he supposed, be- 
cause a large pari of (he farmers refused to sell their 
potatoes to the dealers at any price. The workmen for 
•he local buyers had made their brags that they could buy 
any of the fanners for five cents, but if was only a brag. 
We had been tied up to the dealers’ price for years, ami 
had to take just what they laid a mind to offer us. and 
all the dealers combined to pay the same price. Then we 
had another problem on our hands. The Pennsylvania 
Railroad owns the steamboat lines, and they put on a boat 
and take it off just according to the whim of the manager, 
and an independent line was started in opposition which 
the farmers insisted should be patronized regardless of 
freight rates. The new boat carried stuff for .15 cents 
per barrel and the Pennsylvania line promptly cut down to 
10 cents, although they claimed to he losing money at the 
old rate of 20 cents. The manager of the Pennsylvania 
line has not made a success of it either for themselves or 
the farmers, as the old line thaf they bought out paid 1 2 
per cent on their stock and six per cent on the bonds, and 
gave us good service from March till December. The Penn¬ 
sylvania manager sold the steamer Montauk, built for the 
route and an economical boat, and bought some second¬ 
hand boats that, are afraid of east winds, the only good 
boat being the gliinnecock, and she is too large for the 
route. Then in the next place we had the opposition of 
the large dealers in New York, who we heard put up 
$50,000 last Spring to smash the Exchange. Our trust 
is not the only trust by any means but a farmers’ organiza¬ 
tion to sell their own products without, such a gang of 
middlemen to feed and clothe. Orient farmers while they 
have not received ns much as they would to have sold 
to the local dealers this year, feel that the prices are 
more than they would have been if there had been no 
opposition. If the rest of Ixmg Island will slick as well as 
Orient has the Exchange will prove a success, but we are 
only one station out of 1(1, and it is up to them whether 
it lives or dies. Freedom lias always been the price of 
blood, and if the farmers of the county think the wealthy 
potato dealers of New York and Brooklyn are going to die 
a natural death they are much mistaken. 
AVe have had a drought from May 30 till now. My next 
door neighbor and I •planted each about 12 acres of pota¬ 
toes. We used about the same amount of fertilizer, planted 
alwut the same time, bought some of our seed together 
and I am sure I have spent more for help. He has dug 
about 700 barrels. I have dug about 400. At the price 
1 his year it means a difference of $000 in favor of the good 
farmer, and enough to pay the fertilizer bill of either of 
us, and it all lies in the judgment of a man’s mind. Just 
what I shall do different another year I don’t know, but I 
shall plant deeper and bill up more. 1 think my potatoes 
were too near the top of the ground, and the old theory 
of flat cultivation for dry weather is exploded with me. 
Life is a continual disappointment anyway, but we must 
not let a little thing like that trouble us, or else we will 
he unhappy. We did a whole lot of ditching for mosqui¬ 
toes last Spring, and thought we were having great suc¬ 
cess, for we did not have any (ill July 20, and we need 
not have had those except for carelessness. The tide 
came up on tlie last full moon just high enough to (ill 
small ponds that had evaporated during the drought, and 
the next week the mosquitoes were (lying. Mosquitoes are 
good for a case of swelled head and nothing else, but we 
are going to work again next Spring and will organize a 
thorough system of inspection. After all the only thing 
we need fear from failure is that we get cold foot. 
__ C. L. Y. 
DRAFT HORSES AND THE STATE FAIR. 
I have just received a copy of the prize list of the 
New York State Fair horse show, and am surprised to 
find the draft and farm horse practically eliminated. There 
is one money prize of $50 and two ribbons for best display 
of draft and delivery horses (just what they mean by 
delivery horses I do not know) and the same premiums for 
best display of farm horses. There is no class for pure¬ 
bred Shires, Clydes, Percherons or Belgians. To be sure 
(he pure draff breeds could be shown in the above collec¬ 
tion:, but a display would mean from live to a dozen 
horses; 10 stalls at $4 each would be $40. With railroad 
and other expenses added a man must indeed have a bank 
account above the average farmer to attempt to show 
under those conditions. In the standard bred trotting 
••lass they offer $030 premiums, and in the Hackney class 
$050 premiums, besides harness and championship classes 
amounting to probably over $2,000, to which the trotters 
and Hackneys would be eligible. No one en joys seeing the 
beautiful high steppers put through their paces more than 
the writer. We doru’t want them eliminated, hut why 
eliminate the draft horse, the horse that furnishes the 
motive power to produce feed for the sporting man as well 
as for bis horses? Our "State fair is supposed to he an 
object lesson for the farmers. Comparatively few farmers 
can afford or care to own a horse that can simply run 
or jump some; the ability of a team to step high'is of 
little value hauling loads over our country roads or heavy 
machinery about our billy farms. We all remember bow 
the barn at the State Fair was crowded every day which 
contained those beautiful ton horses two years ago. Was 
there ever a prettiep sight Ilian those 12 or 15 aged stal¬ 
lions in their gaudy dress parading the show ring? We 
hope the time may come when the farmer and bis horse 
may get a “square deal” at bis own fair. .1 \y csildbii 
ORCHARDS IN SOUTHWEST MISSOURI. 
I am spending the Summer in the Ozarks, among vast 
peach and apple orchards, but the big red apple is 
chiefly conspicuous by its absence, the May 1st freeze 
having practically destroyed the Missouri and Arkansas 
crops. The permanent value of nearly all the trees has 
been sacrificed one-half or more by planting in large 
holes with long roots laterally spread out. The rows 
show marked lack, of uniformity in size of trees, and the 
general aspect is low and squatty instead of tall, vigor¬ 
ous, well-rounded heads. A great majority of the or¬ 
chards seen from the ears show entire neglect, a bur¬ 
lesque on the sod method. Of course there are many 
exceptions, and notably t Jin t of Captain Lincoln, o'f 
Kenton ville. Ark., a very large apple grower. I was 
through Ills orchard to-day and saw a tine young five- 
year-old root-pruned block of trees; also an orchard of 
several thousand 15-year-old trees that have been in 
clover sod for four years, giving regular and heavy 
crops of splendid fruit. It<> Intends to plow the clover 
under shallow Ibis Fall and cultivate next year. I could 
see no reason for this extra expense, but he seems 
to think an occasional plowing best. The orchard lias 
been mowed several times each season and clover left 
where it fell. The trees have the best and most uni¬ 
form crop I have yet seen. The captain is a great be¬ 
liever in spraying and’ lias bad excellent success with 
the lime and Paris-green dust spray, applied with a 
band machine from a wagon, using a six-foot conductor 
pipe. He also uses the liquid form. The peach crop 
promised to be fair, but showery weather developed 
brown rot, and the larger part of it lias been a loss. 
Altogether the fruit growers are considerably discour¬ 
aged, though with a good crop next year arid the in¬ 
creasing number of canneries and evaporators that are 
being put in everywhere, confidence and prosperity will 
return. The climate is ideal and no mosquitoes. 
H. M. STItI NC1KBLLOW. 
CROP PROSPECTS. 
Potatoes badly blighted; corn bids fair for a big crop. 
Short crop of apples in this locality; the same can be said 
of peara. Very little other fruit grown in this section. 
Mechnnicsville, N. Y. e. e. W. 
Nearly all crops are short in our section. I predict for 
yellow corn three-fourths of a crop; for late sugar corn, 
lull crop; late tomatoes, one-half crop. Strawberry plants 
set very poor. Sweet potatoes, three-fourths of a crop; 
cantaloupes, poor to fair; watermelons, short; grapes, fair; 
apples, very wormy hence poor and short; users of intoxi¬ 
cants, full (pinta. c. J. u. 
Merchant ville, N. J. 
Weather dry, only light and scattered showers all Sum¬ 
mer. Wheal but little over half a crop. Timothy seed 
yielding well, and Mammoth clover promises well, but the 
small Red clover seed crop will probably be light. Quite a 
lot of Orchard grass seed is sown here; the yield was 
good this year and good prices were realized. Corn is good 
and bad in plan’s, owing to the unequal distribution of our 
rains. Pastures arc holding lip well and stock cattle are 
held at good prices. Some bogs are lieing fed on 75-cent 
corn and 80-cent wheat. The local bog buyers are imyiug 
$(>.50 per 100. but trading is light. w. e. i>. 
Hillsboro, O. 
The prospect for apples is not encouraging. Some well- 
cared for orchards have a fair crop, but as a whole I 
should say not over 25 per cent of a crop. Peaches, when 
orchards are in fair condition promise a fair crop. Nearly 
a full crop of Kieffer pears although much of tlie fruit is 
very small and will !»■ inferior. Barlletts a fair crop 
and quality good. Grapes rotting badly and not over 50 
per cent. Our farmers are gathering a fair 75 per cent 
crop of late potatoes and getting good returns. <’orn 
generally good, better than an average; onions a pom- 
stand and not over 50 per cent; considerably quantities 
grown here. Sweet potatoes promise a full crop and 
earlier Hum usual; digging now. ciias. black. 
New Jersey. 
Crops are good in hay, wheat and rye. Corn is doing 
finely lately, owing to arrival of good rains. More early 
potatoes plowed up than ever before in this neighborhood; 
those that: wore not: plowed up are as a rule a very poor 
crop. The late-planted Early Ohios made a good stand 
ami so did the late varieties, but blight shortened the crop 
very much. A great crop of plums where trees had care. 
All varieties of cherries were scarce. A line crop of pears, 
fruit perfect. 1‘caches have suffered much from leaf-curl, 
the intensely hot and dry weather until lately injuring 
them very much. The eureulio also got in his work good 
and hard on most varieties. Hardly any apple trees are 
left around hero. j,. p 
Cincinnati, Ohio. 
This lias been a very trying season for farmers. Just 
ns they got ready to plant corn it began to rain, and it 
kept it up so that they did not got to work again for a 
full month. Corn is therefore very late and the Iasi 
few weeks have been very dry. A good deal of corn is 
fired and cannot make half a crop. Wheat was pretty 
good, but oats very poor. Small fruits not over half crop. 
Grapes full but rotting. No apples, but fair crop of 
peaches. Land selling for double what it is worth. This 
Is a great corn growing section but the heat and humidity 
that is good for corn is very trying on 11 s humans. Mrs. 
Rorer, at our Chautauqua, told us that we had here the 
most trying climate of which she had any knowledge. The 
heat of the last few weeks has, [ think, made a new record. 
Central Illinois. (J . .r. n. 
’I’lie cherry, apple, plum and peach crop was a total 
failure in this part of t,he -Slate. The persimmon trees 
have a full crop. The persimmon blooms so late the 
frost never kills it, and there is always a full crop of 
fruit. Wet weather in May and dry weather since then 
has given us a short crop of oals and corn. See clip¬ 
ping from Springfield News as to fruit : 
“The State Horticultural Advisory Board, after a trip 
through the principal fruit-growing sections of the state, 
reports a complete failure of the fruit crop. The eon- 
elusions of the board were that in no recent years have 
fruit crops in the fruit-growing sections of the Stale 
been so nearly a complete failure ns during the present 
year. Outside of a small crop of Summer and early Fall 
apples, at some points, it was concluded that there was 
not over a three" per eenl crop of apples- very nearly a 
total failure. This is considerably less than last yeai. 
which, until the previous year, was a record breaker.” 
Christian Co., Ill. h. a. s. 
Crops hereabouts are as follows: Hay. both clover and 
Timothy, fine and heavy; wheat good, but short beads; 
thrashers report grain very scarce. Mill price a! present. 
80 cents per bushel. Oats, fine, large straw, headed well 
and reported to bold out line in thrashing; price, 50 
cents per bushel. Rye, good crop; corn looks the finest 
in years and if conditions are anywhere near fair for 
harvesting will lie a bumper crop. Buckwheat looks well. 
Dairying is the main business hereabout, carried on in the 
old-fashioned way mostly, that is, plenty of milk when 
pasture is good, very few silos; hardly liny green fodder 
feeding. It is considered a sinful waste to feed nice 
green rye or corn to cows. 1 can easily say that 90 per 
cent of dairymen are not making a living. While on ibis 
subject, would like to call attention to a dishonest practice 
in regards to importing Now York State cows to this 
locality. These cattle are bought by the carload, tested 
when they arrive, and for any found with tuberculosis the 
Slate of New Jersey foots the bill. Quito a scheme, 
isn’t it? All you need is a friendly veterinary and you 
can get your money back. Fruit in the line of small 
berries Is 1 he greatest In years. Apples look tine, although 
there is no special effort made with large orchards, or 
extra care given, suchr as spraying, cultivating, etc. 
Peaches are good; if weather is favorable for the next few 
weeks a bumper crop will be picked. Since the scale has 
been controlled the farmers are again setting new orchards 
—generally ranging from live to 20 acres. In fact, taken 
all together this valley is certainly in for a very prosperous 
season. jr. h. c. P. 
Hunterdon Co., N. J. 
EARLY APPLE SHIPMENTS.—The Lockport (N. Y.t 
T'nion Sun says on August 4 : 
"The first carload of 1908 apples to l>e shipped out of 
Niagara County went to New York to-day via N. V t' 
from the fruit bouse of Louis K. Huston. The apples are 
finest variety of Red Astradian. They are of a handsome 
size and fine color Ibis year. The fruit harvest is now 
beginning, and following up the shipment of the ear to-day 
many others will follow from till the fruit houses of the 
dt.V and county. Mr. Huston slated that the apples 
shipped to New York are used In hotels and by Greek 
fruit dealers. He is also shipping large consignments of 
pears to the metropolis and other large cities.” 
The following is from a private note: 
“The Caledonia, which sailed July 24 for Glasgow, took 
the first shipment of Hudson River apples for this season 
The shipment consisted of 3(5 barrels of Duchess.” 
CANADIAN APPLES.—The fruit crop report issued by 
the Canadian Department of Agriculture states that Win 
ter apples are less than a medium crop, in Ontario. 
Greenings, Blenheims, Kings, Baldwins, lien Davis and 
Fnmcuse will be somewhat below an average crop. Green¬ 
ings showing best in District No. 1. Spies will be de¬ 
cidedly light everywhere. Russets are very irregular and 
"ill hardly reach a medium crop. In Quebec the Duchess, 
Transparent and Wealthy are showing excellent prospects! 
The Fameuse is somewhat below the average. The Mc¬ 
Intosh Red will be decidedly short. The prospects In Nova 
Scotia, fbough not quite up to last month, are still good. 
There appears to be less injury from scab than usual. The 
Gravensteins. Kings. Baldwins, Rihstons, Golden Russets 
and Nonpareils are Hie lending varieties doing well The 
Blenheims are light, except in the case of a very few or¬ 
chards. Ben Davis and Greenings are below the* average. 
I 11 Prince Edward Island the present outlook is for a 
medium crop of Fall and a light lo medium crop of Winter 
apples. The Wealthy shows prospects of a crop slighttv 
above medium. The Duchess will give at least a medium 
crop. In British Columbia a medium to full crop is re¬ 
ported both for Fall and Winter varieties. Already a 
few sales of apples have been reported, but all such deals 
are speculative. Many things may happen and, indeed, are 
likely to happen before the apple crop is gathered. Cor¬ 
respondents say that some buyers are talking of 50 cents 
per barrel on tlie tree for early and 75 cents to $1 for 
early and late apples together, and $1.25 for Winter storing 
stock. It is too early to fix prices. The conditions affect¬ 
ing crop and demand, taking all countries concerned into 
consideration, are as nearly average as «nn be estimated 
Prices should correspond. 
NEW YORK FARMERS’ INSTITUTES.—Commissioner 
1'earson has called the Institute conductors together for a 
conference. The plans for this Winter were gone over and 
some new features arranged for. The subjects which have 
been bandied exclusively in women's institutes, will here¬ 
after lo given prominent places at special sessions of the 
regular institutes. Special sessions will be held for chil¬ 
dren. As far as possible the agricultural leaders in dif¬ 
ferent counties will be asked to advise the department as 
to the best places for institutes, and as to the topics which 
they specially desire to have discussed. There will lie some 
minor changes in connection with the details of the in! 
sfitutes, such as methods of advertising and arrange¬ 
ment of the programme. A feature will be made ‘“of 
lectures on bovine tuberculosis with demonstration to 
show how testing is done and how healthy herds can bo 
developed. * 
