026 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
September 16, 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Home* 
Established tsso 
Published weakly by the Rural Publishing: Company, 409 Pearl St., New York 
Herbert W. Cotxnrewoon, President and Editor. 
Jonv J. Dillon, Treasurer and General Manager. 
V'm. F. Dillon, Secretary. , Mrs. E. T. Royle, Associate Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, g2.(H. equal to 8s. 6d., or 
marks, or I0}£ francs. Remit in money order, express 
order, personal check or bank draft. 
Entered at New York Post Office as Second Class Matter. 
Advertising rates 60 cents per agate line—7 words. Discount for time orders. 
References required for advertisers unknown tons ; and 
cash must accompany transient orders. 
“A SQUARE DEAL” 
We believe that every advertisement in this paper is backed by a respon¬ 
sible person. But to make doubly sure we will make pood any loss to paid 
subscribers sustained by trustinp any deliberate swindler advertisinp in our 
columns, and any such swindler will be publicly exposed. We protect sub¬ 
scribers against ropues, but we do not puarantee to adjust t’-iflinp differences 
between subscribers and honest, responsible advertisers. Neither will we bo 
responsible for the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned by the courts. 
Notice of the complaint must be sent to us within one month of the time of 
the transaction, and you must have i mentioned The Rural New-Yorker 
when writing the advertiser. 
TEN WEEKS FOR 10 CENTS. 
In order to introduce The R. N.-Y. to progressive, 
intelligent farmers who do not now take it, we send it 
10 weeks for 10 ^cents for strictly introductory pur¬ 
poses. We depend on our old friends to make this 
known to neighbors and friends. 
* 
Those articles on “The Land of Heart’s Delight” 
have stirred up considerable ink from Texas people. 
Comment thus far is about equally divided between 
those who say “A Victim” stated just their experi¬ 
ence, and those who say he is wrong. * The latter do 
not attempt to deny that the story is true. We printed 
that article because it was an exact statement of what 
happened to a man of middle years. It is neither 
the cursing of a “kicker” nor the airy “guff” of a 
loud boomer, but just about what the average home- 
seeker may expect. Many people seem unable to 
grasp the idea that we do not try to “boom” any 
section or to injure it. We try to get the truth. Is 
it possible that quality has become so rare in farm 
journalism ? 
* 
There are a good many back-to-the-landers on our 
subscription list. Many of them started out in the 
Spring with high hopes. Now we are coining close 
to the season when Nature settles up with us. It is 
wonderful how many chickens have died, how small 
the potatoes are, and how the other crops refuse to 
come up to expectations. We all have our disap¬ 
pointments in this line. Every famous farmer could, 
if he would be honest, tell of dismal failures or mis¬ 
takes in the first years of his work. You must know 
by this time that farming is no pleasant walk along 
the road under shady trees. Yet do not on the 
other hand conclude that it is a long treadmill with 
a hard master swinging the whip. It is neither one. 
Some people have no business to go to the country 
to live. They cannot be happy there. Others ought 
to'go there, for they have the patience to hang on and 
endure. 
* 
William A. Shepherdson, a farmer of Norwich, N. 
Y., represents Chenango Countv in the Legislature. 
Some of our readers wrote asking how he stood on 
the Collin bill for regulating commission men. Mr. 
Shepherdson does not seem to know. He says lie 
wants to help the farmers and still take care of the 
dealers. As for the Collin bill, he does not seem to 
know much about it and does not remember whether 
he voted for it or not, but his “impression” is that 
lie voted “yes!” The record shows that Mr. Shep¬ 
herdson did not vote at all! One would expect a 
good shepherd to stay by his flock, or at least know 
whether he went to sleep or went visiting when the 
dogs broke into the pasture. Very likely Chenango 
County farmers can tie this gentleman to his post, 
hut what they need is a man who does not require 
hitching. 
* 
Go through the dairy sections at this season and 
you will hear the roar and shriek of the silage cutter. 
The shower of cut stalks goes steadily pouring into 
the silo. Starting 25 years ago with a few crude 
siloes and foul-smelling stuff the system has grown 
until the silo is a legitimate barn pasture. Wipe out 
the siloes and the dairy business would co to pieces. 
In a few sections silage has become a marketable 
product—bought and sold like hav or grain. It is also 
used in a few places as a partial substitute for fine 
manure in making hotbeds. Take it all through, 
silage is great property, and a farmer can well feel 
satisfied when the last load is blown into the silo. 
Now we hear of a substitute for silage—sprouted oats ! 
Many are familiar with this as “green stuff” for liens. 
We understand that plans are working out for sprout¬ 
ing oats on a large scale for use in dairies. 
We have told how fruit-growing sections in the 
West proceed to advertise their goods. One day last 
year a great delegation from Watsonville, Cal., went 
to San Francisco and marched about and held meet¬ 
ings—giving away apples and singing and talking for 
that fruit. We are glad to see such methods start in 
the East. The Ontario County (N. Y.) Fruit Grow¬ 
ers’ Association will start things at the New York 
State Fair. During the forenoon of September 13 an 
Ontario County apple will be given to every person 
who visits the exhibit. The Association will take 
direct orders for boxes or barrels of fruit to be 
delivered in the Fall—all guaranteed for quality. 
Here we have the beginning of a great direct busi¬ 
ness. Put us on record as saying that when any fruit 
growing section of the East gets ready to guarantee 
its fruit, spend some money in advertising and sell at 
fair prices the consumer’s dollar will come. The 
Ontario County people might well go further and 
have some good cook with a stove turning out fried 
pies, turnovers and tarts while you wait. Seriously, 
there is a chance for some one to make himself 
famous and get rid of his apples, for most fair 
grounds’ food is poor stuff. 
* 
Twenty-five years ago a few far-sighted men in¬ 
duced Congress to provide for agricultural experi¬ 
ment stations. It is doubtful if any of them were 
long-headed enough to imagine that one of these 
stations would ever issue a long and scientific bulletin 
on ice cream. The Vermont Station has done this 
very thing in Bulletin 155, and it will rank as one 
of the most interesting and useful publications of all 
the stations. You probably do not realize it, but the 
ice cream trade is revolutionizing dairying in many 
places. The American consumer pays $150,000,000 
every year for ice cream, and the demand has grown 
so that the entire product of many creameries has 
been taken from butter making and sold to make ice 
cream. In some cases the ice cream is made right at 
the creamery and sold as such. The comparative 
profits are figured about as follows: Take 100 pounds 
of cream, testing 18 per cent. fat. This will make 
about 21 pounds of butter worth about $5.90. The 
same cream when properly mixed and frozen will 
“swell” to 20 gallons, which at 80 cents, means $16 
or $15, deducting the cost of sugar. As butter the fat 
brings 33 cents a pound, as ice cream 83 cents. Quite 
a margin, you see, and thus far a few large manufac¬ 
turers have bought the cream and worked this margin 
into their own pockets. There is little reason why 
some of this ice cream should not be made right 
where the cream is separated. This bulletin tells 
exhaustively how it may be done, and does the job 
so well that it is deserving of high praise. Many 
interesting things are stated. For example, melted 
ice cream is mixed with a little skim-milk, soured 
and churned into butter! We also learn that “homo¬ 
genized cream” is a new proposition. It is subjected 
to a pressure of 3,000 to 5,000 pounds per square ii\ch. 
This so breaks up the fat globules as to prevent all 
cream from rising, the separator cannot get all the 
cream and it cannot be churned. It is possible with 
this process to make a fake milk or cream of any 
grade by reuniting unsalted butter and skim-milk! 
The ice cream trade is having a great influence upon 
the dairy business. It ranks in importance ahead of 
cheese and only second to butter. As it grows it is 
sure to influence the price of milk for butter making, 
and thus for the whole milk supply. 
* 
One of the most foolish reasons for buying land 
is the argument of the travelling car. Such a car 
comes rolling into a northern town, and the local 
papers invite people to view it. There are photo¬ 
graphs of wonderful plants and actual specimens of 
fruits, grain and vegetables that are wonders to look 
upon. The visitors are told by an eloquent orator 
that those specimens were grown on ordinary land 
in his sunny and glorious country. You might not 
believe it, hut thousands of people actually buy and 
pay for land on the strength of this “hot air” and 
these “specimens.” Now consider what this means. 
Right where you live there is some good land, well 
fanned, which could not he bought at any low figure. 
There is also a lot of thin poor soil, badly located 
and neglected. You could hardly give it away. Sup¬ 
pose some one took the best land in your section, 
fertilized it without regard to cost and cultivated 
it like a garden. Then suppose he selected the very 
cream of his crop, put it in a car and started off to 
sell land. He could hire some 'hot air” artist to 
tell the story, and show his wonderful specimens. 
But the land he had for sale would he the thin, neg¬ 
lected soil, which every sensible native let alone. 
Suppose some sucker 500 miles away bought such 
land on the strength of what was in that car! You 
can easily see the reverse side of such a case. Now 
when the travelling car comes rolling into your town 
put yourself in the other sucker’s place. You might 
far better spend your money on drain tiles for your 
own piece of land. 
* 
It looks as if all kinds of animals have among 
them a Judas who will betray them to the enemy. At 
the stock yards you will find a steer or a sheep or 
goat trained to lead its comrades up to the slaughter 
pen. This four-footed Judas leads the crowd into the 
fatal passage and then dodges out at one side after 
his reward of food. Near New South Wales fishermen 
depend on what are known as “killer” whales to help 
them. These “killers” surround the larger oil whales 
and drive them to shore, where fishermen kill them. 
As a reward the tongue of the whale is cut out and 
thrown to the “killers.” Running all through nature 
is this singular and cruel trait of betraying one’s 
kind. Among humans we have an illustration of this 
in the “prominent citizen,” who goes around urging 
his neighbors to come into some business deal or 
investment which lie knows is crooked. These men 
are paid to betray their neighbors. They play the 
part of Judas, and should he ranked with the “killer” 
whales. They are worse than the fish because they 
foster confidence and then kill it. 
* 
While an obligation rests upon both political parties 
to -carry out platform pledges, this obligation rests pri¬ 
marily upon the political majority; that is to say, upon 
the Democratic members of the Legislature. They stand 
duly bound to enact such a measure as will satisfactorily 
meet the demands of public sentiment, and give oppor¬ 
tunity to test the principle of direct nomination in 
actual practice. 
That is what Governor Dix says to the Legislature 
as it comes back to Albany for the next session. 
Both political parties promised to give the people 
direct nominations. Probably neither of them ex¬ 
pected to do anything. The Republicans expected to 
lose the Assembly, hut to hold the Senate. With 
each party controlling one branch of the Legislature 
they would be in position to point a finger and say: 
“I wanted to but the other fellow stopped me!” When 
in full control the Republicans failed to give us the 
law we need. It is now up to the Democrats! We 
do not believe the politicians in either party will ever 
willingly permit the people to select their own candi¬ 
dates. What an opportunity the Democratic party 
has! But do you suppose the wire pullers and graft¬ 
ers intend to let the situation get away from them? 
* 
The following is a fair sample of what the daily 
papers are constantly printing: 
BILL TO AID THE FARMERS. 
Bankers Want Vocational Education—Will Increase Products. 
Chicago, Aug. 30.—Vocational education for the farm¬ 
ers at the expense of the National Government is a plan 
which the Illinois Bankers’ Association probably will ask 
the next session of Congress to enact into a law. The 
proposed legislation would increase materially the agricul¬ 
tural products of all States, according to the bankers. 
It simply beats all how interested the hankers, the 
railroad men and the bondholders are in the farmers. 
“Vocational education” is good. Suppose such educa¬ 
tion did increase or double the agricultural products. 
The farmer now averages 35 cents of the consumer’s 
dollar. With “vocational education” he would get 70 
cents of two dollars.. The handlers, instead of getting 
65 cents, would get $1.30! The railroad men and 
others would still get their share, while it would all 
go sooner or later to the bankers and the bond holders. 
If you want to increase “agricultural products” let 
the farmer receive 50 per cent of the consumer’s dol¬ 
lar. You will need no other “vocational education.” 
Those gentlemen make us think of the ants and the 
plant-lice. The latter work on the foliage of trees 
and secrete a sweet substance, known as honey-dew. 
The ants are very fond of it, and they keep the plant- 
lice steadily at work. These “vocational” gentlemen 
would like to play ant and have the farmer continue 
his useful occupation of producing money due —to 
them! 
BREVITIES. 
A "real nice man” has his place, but it is not at Albany 
representing farmers. The commission men will quickly 
eat him up. 
Yes, sir, the chances are that right where you have 
always lived is the best place for you to invest your 
energy and your capital. 
We hope you have a fair supply of fresh eggs packed 
away iu water-glass. Use them for the home supply, but 
do not try to sell them without telling just what they are. 
You will see that on page 927 a baker comes forward to 
describe a day’s work at his job. The farmers have been 
telling us of their long hours, but this man of bread has 
little time to play baseball or visit. Well, we want the 
human side of a day’s work, and we are getting it right 
along. 
