1912. 
THE RURAL* NEW-YORKEK 
ie? 
LIME ON CORN. 
L. M., Zionsville, Pa .—Would you give 
me your opiuiou ou the following? I have 
a field (low land) heavy loam. I cut the 
first crop of clover and Timothy hay, and 
left the second crop on it (had no cows 
in it). I expect to manure it. put so'me 
on it last Fall, and shall finish it this 
Spring. Is it necessary to put something 
like lime or phosphate on it? If so which 
do you think is best? I can get quicklime 
at io cents a bushel here, or can get agri¬ 
culture lime at $6.20 per ton, or ground 
phosphate rock from Tennessee for $7.33 
per ton, same distance to haul as quick¬ 
lime. I will plant corn in the field. 
Ans. —From our own experience we 
would not use lime on the corn. We 
should plow under the manure and fit 
the soil well, and use 300 pounds of acid 
phosphate and 100 of muriate of potash 
per acre. This combination will give a 
good “balance” to the manure. While 
some farmers use lime with manure for 
corn, we prefer to use it for grass or 
small grain. We would not depend on 
the ground phosphate rock unless fair 
experiment proves that it gives as 
good results, dollar for dollar, as the 
acid phosphate. 
ALFALFA AS HUMAN FOOD. 
Every now and then some one gets 
into the papers with a story about using 
Alfalfa as human food. We have traced 
many of these stories down to find 
them all based on some scheme to sell 
stock in an enterprise to manufacture 
Alfalfa food. The latest comes from 
a Dakota paper regarding one Mark 
Rich: 
Tbe editor of the Sentinel enjoyed a visit 
with him and also had the privilege of 
looking over the many food products that 
he has produced from Alfalfa. The Alfalfa 
syrup, of which we sampled, has a flavor 
and quality that surpasses the best maple 
and corn syrups that are on the market to¬ 
day. The tea, coffee, flour and candy that Mr. 
Rich showed us, opened our eyes to the 
wonderful qualities of Alfalfa as a food 
producing plant. After one sees and sam¬ 
ples the food products of Alfalfa, it will 
cause the most skeptical to take to the 
“backwoods.” Mr. Rich surely has tbe 
“goods” and will deliver them. 
Of course this paper goes on to say 
that a $600,000 company has been or¬ 
ganized to boom these products—and 
sell stock. Instead of investing in this 
stock we advise our readers to start 
Alfalfa on their own farms. 
But is there anything in these con¬ 
tinued suggestions about Alfalfa as 
human food? We think so, and have no 
doubt that in future years ways will be 
found for utilizing this plant. In his 
wonderfully interesting book, “Farmers 
of 40 Centuries,” Prof. F. H. King states 
that the Chinese consume large quanti¬ 
ties of Chinese clover of Medicago astra¬ 
galus, a close relative of Alfalfa. The 
tender shoots are steamed or boiled and 
the dried stems are also cooked and 
eaten. The Chinese also eat large quan¬ 
tities of rape, both fresh boiled and 
salted. 
CO-OPERATIVE MARKETS. 
A Plan for Large Cities. 
Pakt II. 
State aid, under the control of the 
Markets Commission, would probably be 
required at the start, but ample safeguards 
and security could be provided, so that ail 
money or credits furnished, in a short time, 
would be fully repaid and discharged. This 
scheme must not be regarded as a private 
enterprise or business for the enrichment 
of the stockholders or promoters. It is 
strictly cooperative marketing, direct from 
the producer to the consumer for the bene¬ 
fit of both, and that means for the benefit 
of all. This is properly a governmental 
function. The State builds canals, roads, 
armories, hospitals, prisons, schools, parks, 
and many other public works for the benefit 
of a part or all of the commonwealth, when, 
from the nature of the enterprise or the 
conditions prevailing, it would be impos¬ 
sible to accomplish the desired purpose 
through private capital. The present con¬ 
dition of the high cost of living in cities 
and towns, and the inadequate and ever de¬ 
creasing returns to the producers, has come 
about by the opportunity afforded by pri¬ 
vate capital to multiply and complicate the 
machinery of transportation, manipulation, 
distribution and speculation. The middle¬ 
men fix the price to be paid the producer 
and the cost to the consumer. They would 
be more than human if they did not fix the 
price at the lowest possible point that would 
keep the producer working and the cost at 
the highest possible point that would keep 
the consumer from starving. 
Bitter opposition to this plan will be 
made by the whole horde of middlemen, 
speculators, storage men and distributors 
generally, including the retailers of all food 
stuffs. They will see the end of their ca¬ 
reer as parasites, and unnecessary, expen¬ 
sive and wasteful interveners in the busi¬ 
ness and domestic economy of the people. 
Such opposition must be expected, and it is 
the strongest argument in favor of the re¬ 
form. All reforms have met, and always will 
meet opposition from those who derive profit 
from existing conditions. But the time is 
ripe for this reform, the people are aroused, 
the press of the country is sounding the 
death knell of the middlemen and food spec¬ 
ulators, and the unscientific, unbusinesslike, 
expensive and wasteful practices now in use 
for the transportation and distribution of 
food. 
The government, national. State and 
municipal, is awakened and active. Com¬ 
mittees and commissions are investigating 
and seeking for a remedy for existing evils. 
City officials, clubs and organizations ol 
working men and farmers are trying various 
expedients to bridge the chasm between 
producers and consumers. Is it not fitting 
that the Empire State should lead the way 
and set an example to the country, by enact¬ 
ing necessary laws, and proceeding in an 
adequate and intelligent manner to relieve 
the heavy and unnecessary burdens now 
artificially imposed upon practically all the 
people of the State? Let me repeat, and 
emphasize the necessity of taking hold of 
this matter in a large and comprehensive 
way. Any small and partial experiment 
would be foredoomed to failure, especially in 
the City of New York. The reasons will be 
apparent on a moment's consideration. 
Vast amounts of produce of all kinds are 
constantly shipped to New York to bo sold 
on commission without restrictions in re¬ 
gard to price. Upon the opening of these 
markets, this produce would be sold for 
little or nothing and would come into the 
hands of consumers, for a time, at prices 
absolutely ruinous to the producers. The 
battle wquld be a fierce one, the producers 
would furnish the ammunition and the mid¬ 
dlemen would fire it. with no direct cost 
to themselves, but if the markets were of 
sufficient number and capacity, established 
on a firm financial basis, and backed by the 
power and influence of the State, the result 
would be speedy and certain. Producers 
would soon see that they were being used 
as “the cat's paw to pull the chestnuts out 
of the fire” for the middlemen. Shippers 
would no longer send goods to be sold on 
commission, but would ship to the markets 
and join the ranks of the Producers’ and 
Consumers’ Union. 
I would advocate a wide and aggressive 
propaganda of direct marketing, bringing 
the plan with its objects and advantages to 
the attention of consumers and producers 
and manufacturers of food stuffs throughout 
the country. There should be an active and 
sustained campaign of education and co¬ 
operation, conducted throughout the State 
and especially in the larger cities. The 
public press would gladly assist. Speakers 
and organizers should visit every section of 
the State to secure the interest and sup¬ 
port of the farmers, and to form cooperative 
shipping organizations. This work should 
also be carried on in the South aad West, 
in fact over the whole country. In the 
meantime, the State through its Markets 
Commission should be acquiring the neces¬ 
sary property and erecting the appropriate 
buildings, under a special and restrictive 
charter, subject to the approval of the 
Markets Commission, and in a year or two 
a condition of preparedness would exist that 
would make the movement irresistible and 
its success assured with all its attendant 
benefits and advantages. 
Could the State, through its proper offi¬ 
cers and representatives, engage in a more 
worthy and beneficient undertaking? Would 
not the glory of wisely and honestly in¬ 
augurating such a system be greater than 
the conquests of war? Would not the mil¬ 
lions of people in this State and in other 
States sing the praises of a party or an 
administration that had the foresight and 
the courage to emancipate the people from 
their present condition of commercial and 
economic slavery ? ezra a. tuttle. 
Now l’ork. 
When you write advertisers mention The 
R. N.-Y. and you'll get a quick reply and a 
“square deal.” See guarantee editorial page. 
A TROUBLE MAKER 
Coffee Poison Breeds Variety of Ills. 
A California woman who didn’t know 
for twenty years what kept her ill, writes 
to tell how she won back her health by 
quitting coffee: 
“I am 54 years old,” she says, “have 
used coffee all my life and for" 20 years 
suffered from indigestion and insomnia. 
Life was a burden and a drag to me all 
the time, and about once a year my ail¬ 
ments got such hold upon me that I was 
regularly ‘sick in bed’ for several weeks 
each time. 
"I was reluctant to conclude that 
coffee was the cause of my trouble, but 
I am thankful that I found out the truth. 
“Then I determined to use Postuni 
exclusively—for a week at first—for I 
doubted my ability to do without coffee 
for any length of time. I made the 
Postum carefully, as directed, and be¬ 
fore the week expired had my reward 
in a perceptible increase in strength and 
spirits. 
“Seeing the good that my short ex¬ 
periment had accomplished, I resolved 
to continue the use of Postum, cutting 
out the coffee entirely. This I did for 
nine months, finding, daily, increased 
cause for gratification at my steadily 
improving health. My indigestion grad¬ 
ually left me, my sleep returned, I gained 
26 pounds in weight, my color changed 
from sallow to a fresh, rosy hue and 
life became a blessing. 
“Then I thought I would try coffee 
again, and did so for a few weeks. The 
punishment for deserting my good 
friend, Postum, was a return of my old 
troubles. 
“That taught me wisdom, and I am 
now and shall be all my life hereafter 
using Postum exclusively and enjoying 
the benefits it brings me.” Name given 
by Postum Co., Battle Creek, Mich. 
“There’s a reason,” and it is explained 
in the little book, “The Road to Well- 
ville,” in pkgs. 
Ever read the above letter ? A new one 
appears from time to time. They are genu¬ 
ine, true, and full of human interest. 
“This Car-And My 13-Year Old Boy” 
Y OU do not require an engineering education in order to operate the 
Abbott-Detroit, because it is so simple in construction that your wife, 
daughter or young son can drive it at will with the absolute knowledge 
that the car is running perfectly. 
President Lawrence E. Smith of the Smith-Grieves Typesetting 
Company of Kansas City, Mo., whose Abbott-Detroit has covered 6,000 miles, 
writes: "This car has been driven exclusively by the writer and my thirteen year 
old boy. The engine is working Derfectly and has more power today than when 
I first began driving it. The fact of the matter is, the more you run the engine 
the better it seems to work." If you are in the market for a new car, you owe it 
to yourself to read the score of letters we have just issued in booklet form—letters 
written by representative men who own and drive Abbott-Detroit cars. 
‘‘The Car With a Pedigree” 
Built for Permanence 
When you consider, criticize and compare the standard 1912 Abbott-Detroit 
with other cars selling at or near the Abbott-Detroit price, reflect what it means 
to your best interests to own a car that is not only pleasing to the eye. comfort¬ 
able to ride in, and built by a reputable firm, but embodying the ideal design, 
features and standard gasoline engine principles that have made possible the 
100,000 mile trip of the Abbott-Detroit "Bull Dog”—the stock car that has 
covered 40,000 miles to date of the roughest roads in the United States. 
3 Free Books 
Our Book of Letters, our Story of the "Bull Dog” and our Reference Catalog 
will be mailed free to any address upon request. The Abbott-Detroit Reference 
Catalog is an excellent prompt book and reminder of what constitutes standard 
construction. Write today for these 3 free books. 
Waterloo Street 
MICH. 
Abbott Motor Company DETROIT,* 
You Can Forget a Dickelman Roof 
That is one thing a good roof is for. You have other troubles which you 
cannot forget, but there i< no need of thinking about your roof after you get it 
on, if it is a Dickelman. 
When you put your money into a guarantee bond, you know it is safe, 
there is no worry about it. It ought to be the same way with a roof, and it is 
when your building is covered with 
Dickelman Extra “Dex 15-Year Guaranteed” 
Brand Galvanized Metal Roofing 
You know that 
not the roofing for a 
Send 
for free 
sample of 
our “guar- 
anteed 15 
years’ Dex” 
roofing, also 
cataloo showing 
other styles of roof¬ 
ing we manufacture: 
Galvanized Corrugated 
Roofing, Galvanized 3-V. 
Crimped Roofing, Galvan¬ 
ized Roll Roofing, Galvan¬ 
ized Shingles and Tiles, etc. 
long service means economy. The Dickelman Extra is 
temporary shed which may be tom down next year, but 
it is the roofing under which you may start the child 
in the cradle, and expect him to grow up and see the 
roof still firm and solid when he is past middle life. 
Dickelman gives you an absolute guarantee for 
fifteen years. There is no hitch or joker about it. 
Vou put on our roofing, do it right, then you go 
about your business and cut out trouble and 
expense for fifteen years, one hundred and eighty 
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dry as a bun while you are under our 
roofing. The roof will stand fifty years 
of service. You can readily see that 
we would not dare to do this unless 
we knew that the goods will stand 
up under test and back up our 
guarantee. 
Dickelman Mfg. _ Co. 
50 Gormley St., Forest, Ohio 
Low-Down Steel Wheel Wagons 
Are fast replacing’ the high farm wagons for 
general farm work. The reason is plain. The 
Low-Down wagon makes easier work for the 
man and no harder for the team. One man 
can do most of his farm work alone with the 
Low-Down wagon. Get our free catalogue. 
HAVANA METAL WHEEL CO., BOX 17 HAVANA, ILL. 
Free Box of Samples 
sent to your station, charges prepaid. 
All sizes, 2 inches to 20 inches, delivered. 
Prices quoted on request. 
THE E. BIGLOW CO «J NEW LONDON, OHIO 
