lOii 
'FH fcC KUIRAL NEW-YORKER 
J iiuuai j 
Hope Farm Notes 
I have been watching for some time in 
The R. N.-Y. for a question that would fit 
my case, but have not found one, so 1 
ask you this: If you were a young man 
of 18 who had been born and lived for 12 
years on a farm in New York, then moved 
to a city and had obtained a high school 
education, and intended some day to have 
a fruit and poultry -farm, liked that work, 
and had .$2,000, what would you do/ If 
vou had read considerable concerning the 
numerous land booms all over the country, 
but had decided upon either the New Eng¬ 
land States or Oregon, which would you 
choose? And what part of the New Eng¬ 
land States? J - H * v - 
If I were. 18! Well, I am not, and 
for some few reasons I am rather glad 
of it. But imagining 1 were in this 
young man’s place with the conditions 
he states I would settle in New Eng¬ 
land. Happily I am not asked to ex¬ 
plain why. I would locate either in the 
Champlain Valley, in Maine, or in the 
Connecticut Valley somewhere between 
central Vermont and upper Connecti¬ 
cut. In selecting a location, distance 
from market, price of land and its 
character would be considered. If I 
found a place where Alfalfa grows I 
would if possible give it preference be¬ 
cause Alfalfa and corn are to be great 
factors in future farming. I would 
spend $50 or more of that money in go¬ 
ing slowly over that country looking at 
farms and hunting particularly for 
seedling apple trees and deer. The seed¬ 
lings indicate apple land—the deer in¬ 
dicate trouble. 
In a recent R. N.-Y.. the Hope Farm 
man proposed a commission for fixing prices 
on farm products. Why not include all 
products of labor, not excepting labor it¬ 
self? Then, in cases of dispute, let the 
courts from the highest to the lowest fix 
the prices according to varying conditions. 
Barker, N. Y. L - D * M - 
I did not know I had advocated such 
a thing. I have talked about a Milk 
Commission for New \ ork City, but it 
is a big question, and 1 am not sure 
about it. The argument for a milk com¬ 
mission is that in a great city like New 
York there is little or no competition 
possible. The city is on an island, milk 
is perishable and the middlemen aie in 
control. A commission if it did its 
duty could regulate the price of milk to 
consumers and state what producers 
ought to get after studying the whole 
situation. In a smaller way such a 
commission could do what the Inter¬ 
state Commerce Commission does for 
railroad rates. As New York is now 
situated in the milk proposition I think 
this would be a good thing, provided we 
could keep this commission fair and 
straight. In other lines of production 
or labor where competition is possible 
I should not favor commissions. There 
is such a thing as having too many of 
them. 
Wbat is the best size of farm horse? I 
have just bought a team winch weighs 
about 2,300 pounds. I had almost closed 
for a team weighing about -,800, but on 
consulting with one of the most successful 
farmers in this section, was advised that 
such a team would be sluggish and would 
tire quickly on plowed ground. w. A. M. 
New Jersey. 
1 think you were wise. The big 1,400- 
pound horses are good for the West 
or for large level fields. For our 
smaller farms and rougher sections the 
lighter and more active horses are bet¬ 
ter. I am looking now for a good farm 
horse of about 1200. I would like a 
cluinky-built horse, active and strong, 
as I think that type is better for us 
than the baby elephants which do so 
well in the West. 
\Ve have saved well towards $100 worth 
of feed this Winter by putting all our corn 
stover through a tornado cutter. This ma¬ 
chine puts the stalks in such shape that the 
cattle eat it all, generally licking the man- 
pnre nerfeetlv clean. The cows have held 
up well In milk, too, with no other rough- 
but of course, with & good grain ia- 
tion' I judge by your Hope Farm papeis 
that vou hive given up shredding your 
stalks' and have often wondered _why, as 
we have had such good results from the 
practice for the past three Winters 
Virginia. G - 
Yes, we have given up shredding be¬ 
cause we changed our variety of corn. 
We grow a small flint variety, selected 
for some years to produce a small ear, 
a slender stalk and much leaf. We 
worked this out so as to have a low 
growing corn for the young orchards. 
These slender stalks of flint are eaten 
as freely as coarse hay or millet. There 
is little if any waste. If I were grow¬ 
ing the big dents again 1 should cer¬ 
tainly shred the stalks. I know it pays. 
With our flint it does not pay. 
We are just young in life, and like the 
title L. Li. D., for our farm, and have also 
decided to give our farm the degree ol 
I>h. I).. onlv the h is a big capital, mean¬ 
ing poultry, horticulture, and domestic- 
We think this will make a good title, to 
raise the liovs and girls with poultry and 
fruit. E - F - 
West Virginia. 
Poultry, horticulture and domestic 
happiness makes a good Ph.D. title. The 
'original of this is doctor of philosophy. 
The man who stays by the hen until she 
doctors the mortgage or the debt must 
be something of a philosopher—but she 
is capable of doing it if you humor her. 
But do not forget the lime, legumes and 
drainage too. These things will make 
the hen contented, and that is the only 
form of business hen there is. 
In late Fall a trench is dug on one side 
of each tree where there are few roots to 
cut. and the tree is then pulled over to 
the ground, covered with straw and tnen 
with about three inches of dirt. Five men 
do the work easily and quickly. He says, 
further: “When planting the tree I shorten 
the tap root and extend all roots in two 
opposite directions in order that there be 
no large roots to cut when I proceed to 
bend the tree over to be covered. 
A Long Island man sends that. Tt 
is a newspaper clipping supposed to tell 
how a Colorado man protects peach 
trees in Winter. I met a man on 
Grand Isle in Lake Champlain who put 
down trees somewhat in this way. He 
trained them to grow in a peculiar fan¬ 
shaped way, so they could be twisted or 
turned over easily. He told me never 
to put hay or straw around them, as 
this would attract mice which would 
gnaw the trees. As for planting a tree 
so there will be no large roots where 
you dig the ditch—I doubt it to say the 
least. In New Jersey such digging or 
cultivating would attract root growth. 
Bakes from 1 to 16 Loaves at a Time—Each 
Loaf well Browned, without Turning. 
T HE Sterling “ Has No Equal" Range bakes equally well in any part of the oven, 
perfectly browning every loaf, without turning or shifting pans. The 
is the one that you have seen in public demonstra¬ 
tions, baking “A Barrel of Flour with a Hod of 
Coal "—250 big loaves, with less 
than 30 lbs. of fuel. We Have done 
this over 1,000 times, at County 
Fairs and in retail stores. 
The secret of Sterling baking 
supremacy lies in the auto¬ 
matic Oven Circulation 
(evenly distributing the 
heat), the Sterling 
Flue System, 
and the pa¬ 
tented Sterl¬ 
ing Grate 
and 
Firebox. Send for our book, which tells about the 20 Sterling 
features that save fuel, time and trouble. 
SILL STOVE WORKS, 
Rochester 
and Boston 
Send your dealer's name. 
Cut 
Out 
This 
Coupon 
&>MaiI 
To-Day 
A BEAUTIFUL FARM FOR SALE in the finest fruit 
crowin" and trucking section in the world; 
fertile soil and fine climate:^ also a beautiful water 
Farm and Home. —As 1 write the farm 
is covered with a mass of mud. We 
have had rain and fog for several days 
until this January day reminds one of 
late March. The rain has not helped 
the wells much, for there is still a layer 
of frost down below. The ponds are 
filling up and the brooks are full. Our 
drains appear to be working well, and 
the soil on the lower farm ought to be 
dried out and in working order early. 
We have been hauling out our manure 
and scattering it over the strawberries 
and around the young peach trees. The 
berry plants are in fine shape. These 
big 'hill plants are firmly rooted, and 
it would take a small earthquake to 
throw them out. Many matted row 
plants will be lifted out by the weather 
we are now having. We shall stick to 
hill culture because our varieties do best 
that way, because we can use the horse 
freely and because we get larger berries. 
I cannot say we get a larger crop—nor 
do I think the plan would pay on lighter 
soil or with varieties which naturally 
make runners freely. . . • Another 
thing we intend to make sure of, and 
that" is a good supply of fuel. It is a 
nuisance and disgrace for a farmer to 
he obliged to stop farm work in Sum¬ 
mer to cut wood, or to ask the women 
to use green wood. Right now is a 
good time to haul wood to the house 
and have it cut up and pyt in the shed. 
. When it comes to pruning young 
trees this Winter we go very easy. We 
are to have the 17-year locusts with us, 
and they will cut and slit the young 
wood considerably. We shall, therefore, 
let the trees alone until after the locusts 
have gone—then we can Summer-prune 
and shape the trees. But bear in mind 
that this applies only to New Jersej' 
where these locusts are due. In other 
sections 1 would trim as usual. 
I have recently had several letters from 
people who ask if the fertilizer manu¬ 
facturers will buy hen manure. No, 
there would be little chance of selling 
it to them. They would not touch it 
except in carloads or two-ton lots. It 
would not pay them to handle small j 
quantities. It is variable stuff anyway, 1 
and it would be hard to get a fair j 
sample that would represent the lot. ■ 
But why should a man ever want to ! 
sell hen manure? There is not one 
farm in 10,000 that can afford to let 
plant food go away. You cannot hope 
to get more cash for the manure than 
you can get by using it to grow crops. 
I should never think of selling it. Get 
it out on the garden or around the 
voung trees and let the crops pay you 
for it. . . . Our Florida folks seem 
to be thriving. By the time this is read 
I shall be down there, or at least on 
my way, and we can get a better idea of 
the State by looking at it than by think¬ 
ing. People are starting up all over to 
ask about Florida as a place for a home. 
When I go down I will try to find out 
something definite. H. w. c. 
rertiie soil anu iiuo 
front farm with timber, tor full particulars ad* p. A nEb r>r^TC 
dress SAMUEL P. WOODCOCK, Salisbury, BAfEK rUlo 
Wicomico County, Maryland. 
Sill Stove Works. 215 Kent St.. Rochester, N. Y. 
Please send your book on Sterling Ranges to 
My Name ... 
Address . State . 
My Dealer's Name . 
U/AUTCn AGENTS TO SELL FARMERS' ACCOUNT BOOK. 
VV AW I HU Easy to sell. Big inducements. Act 
Quick. Addres s. L. L. SYPHKRS. Ft. Wayne, lnd. 
-Three-inch, $1.25 a 1,000; 
_ —-four-inch, $1.75 a 1.000. 
P. B. CROSBY & 80N, Catonsville, Md. 
AN IHC MANURE SPREADER MEANS 
NEW LAND ON THE OLD FARM 
[HOUSANDS of people during the past year paid fabulous 
m prices for new land—gave up their savings and their homes 
and moved into unknown country just for the sake of securing 
more productive property. 
Hundreds of farmers found a better plan. They stayed at 
home and invested a small part of what it would have cost them 
to move to the new country in an I H C Manure Spreader. 
Now in leisure time during the winter they are returning to 
the soil the rich fertility that has been drained from it—making 
new land out of old—putting it into condition to yield bumper crops. 
With an I H C Spreader the manure can be distributed in the 
proper amount required by the condition of the soil.^ A light 
coat, where land is good, a heavy coat where it is most needed. 
IHC Manure Spreaders have many exclusive features which 
you ought to know about. Years of successful service has shown 
their superiority. In buying an I H C machine 
you are assured satisfaction for they are backed 
by a company that cannot afford to risk its repu¬ 
tation by offering you anything but the best. 
IHC Spreaders are made in three styles 
Corn King—Kemp 20th Century— 
Cloverleaf 
in sizes ranging from 30 to 70 bushels capacity. 
Corn King and* Kemp 20th Century Spread¬ 
ers are of the return apron type—Cloverleaf 
Spreaders have endless aprons. Lime hoods 
for spreading lime and drilling attachments 
for distributing manure in rows are furnished 
on special order. 
Let the I H C local dealer tell you all about 
IHC Spreaders and how you, too, can turn your 
manure pile into money with one of 
these simple, efficient machines. 
Catalogues can be secured from 
him, or, by writing for them. 
INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER COMPANY 
OF AMERICA 
Chicago (Incorporated) USA 
IHC Service Bureau 
The Bureau is a 
center where the 
best ways of doing 
things on the farm, 
and data relating 
to its development, 
are collected and 
distributed, free to 
every one interest¬ 
ed in agriculture. 
Every available 
source of informa¬ 
tion will be used in 
answering ques¬ 
tions on all farm 
subjects. If the 
questions are sent 
to the IH C Service 
Bureau, they will 
rfecelve prompt at¬ 
tention. 
