934 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUS1SESS FARMER'S PARER 
A national Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Homes 
Established i8S0 
Published weekly by the Rural Publishing Company, 409 Pearl St., New York 
HERBERT W. COMJNGWOOD, President and Kditor. 
Jony J. Dii.i.on, Treasurer and General Manager. 
Wx. V. Diulon, Secretary. Mrs. E. T. I torus, Associate Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, equal to 8a 6d., or 
8>i marks, or 10J4 francs. Remit in money order, express 
order, personal check or bank draft. 
Entered at New York Post Office as Second Class Matter. 
Advertising rates CO eents per agate line— 7 words. Discount for time orders. 
Iteferences required for advertisers unknown to us j and 
cash must accompany transient orders. 
“A SQUARE DEAL” 
Wo believe that every advertisement in this paper is hocked by a respon¬ 
sible person. Rut to make doubly sure we will make good any loss to paid 
subscribers sustained by trusting any deliberate swindler advertising in our 
columns, and any such swindler will be publicly exposed. We protect sub¬ 
scribers against rogues, but we do not guarantee to adjust trilling differences 
between subscribers and honest, responsible advertisers. Neither will wo bo 
responsible for the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned by the courts. 
Notice of the complaint must bo sent to us within one month of the time of 
t)io transaction, and you must have mentioned Thk ItURAL Nkw-j orkkh 
when writing the advertiser. 
We have a reader, an earnest young man, who 
says: 
I am thinking seriously of taking the Winter course 
in agriculture at Cornell this Winter, and should be 
interested in articles by people who have been there or 
have taken a similar course elsewhere, telling just what 
they have found its value to be afterward on the farm. 
There are many more of us who would like to 
know about this. It will seem easy enough to give 
such experience—but we want it straight. Try to 
avoid extravagance either way, and tell us just what 
such a course amounts to in a farmer’s life. Fair 
criticism will be better than unfair praise. Tell us 
about the course at any college. 
* 
There are sqme very good people in this world 
who let a good thing go in at one ear and right out 
of the other. It gets away before oiling up the think 
works or leaving a deposit of wisdom. Of course 
you are not of that class. But perhaps that idea of 
the chemical fly-killer got past you. We shall keep 
right at it—just as we do at cover crops and Alfalfa, 
agricultural credits or parcels post. The house or 
typhoid fly breeds in horse manure. Acid phosphate 
and kainit—a mixture of equal parts scattered in 
and over this manure—will prevent the eggs from 
hatching nearly or completely. These chemicals also 
supply the fertilizer elements which the manure lacks. 
Thus you can kill a dozen flies with one stone and 
have the stone back. This is one of the things that 
ought to be remembered and practiced. Do not let it 
get by you. 
* 
Section 262 of the New York agricultural law pro¬ 
vides : 
That no person shall sell, offer or expose for sale apples, 
pears or peaches as and for New York State grown if they 
were not produced or grown within the State, nor shall 
they brand or label the package or barrel containing such 
as of New York growth if they wore not grown within the 
State. The same section of the law provides for uniform 
packing of apples and pears, and for the erasure of grow¬ 
er’s name from packages if these be used for repacking 
fruit other than originally contained therein. 
The scheme of reusing packages and thus making 
fraudulent use of a reputable packer’s name has grown 
to be worse than a nuisance. We have seen crates 
and small packages bearing the name of a well-known 
grower refilled with inferior fruit and put on the mar¬ 
ket as the original package. In this case the fraudu¬ 
lent seller receives the benefit of a higher price, while 
the man who has worked for years to establish a repu¬ 
tation is seriously injured. This is one of the meanest 
of swindles, and the man who is caught doing it ought 
to be shown up. 
* 
Nowhere in America is there organized effort to improve 
rural schools. Philanthropists rush to colleges and univer¬ 
sities with their money. With the exception of the Gen¬ 
eral Education Board of New York—established by a 
Rockefeller fund—which maintains some rural inspectors 
in the South, no philanthropist has come to the aid of the 
district school. It seems to be the one branch that has 
been allowed to go along without notice or help. 
That is what E. T. Fairchild, Kansas State Super¬ 
intendent of Education, told the county superintend¬ 
ents. In Kansas 300,000 out of 516,000 school children 
are taught in the rural schools. Less than one-fourth 
of that number complete the grades. The story every¬ 
where is the same—neglect of the small schools where 
the great majority of Americans get all the book 
learning they can hope to receive. Yet, here and 
there you find such rural schools that are doing good 
work—living up to their opportunity. They are effi¬ 
cient because two or three citizens have made them 
so by their influence and example. A few good 
workers with ideals of education can improve any 
rural school—and that is about the only way such 
schools can be improved. The superintendents and 
the great philanthropists can-do something—but not 
all. The real work must be done by the parents and 
humble citizens right at home. 
THE? RURAL NEW-YORKER 
I have seen the statement made that English mine 
owners are preparing to burn the coal in their mines 
without taking It out. Is there any truth In It? 
8. B. K. 
Sir William Ramsey, an English scientist, has sug¬ 
gested a new plan for utilizing coal. He would 9ink 
a shaft down into the coal-bearing strata and admit 
enough oxygen to burn the coal where it lies. The 
gas thus produced would be drawn off and used to 
create electrical power at the surface. This power or 
the gas itself would be distributed wherever needed. 
This would save fuel, save cost of transportation, and 
cost of lighting and heating. As all know wh« have 
entered a mine, only a portion of the coal is mined 
and taken out. Much of this is wasted. By controll¬ 
ing the oxygen supply it is claimed that combustion 
could be controlled and practically all the coal used as 
needed. This experiment is to be tried. If it suc¬ 
ceed " a candle will be lighted in England which will 
not be extinguished in our time.” It is, of course, 
easy to say that such suggestions are wild dreams, 
yet what man of 50 years looking back upon what his 
iifetime has covered, will say that such an economy is 
impossible? In England this suggestion results from 
a demand for smoke reform. The London Lancet 
gives the following figures: 
The estimated fall of soot on the administrative county 
of London amounts to 7G,050 tons per annum, this In¬ 
cluding 6,000 tons of ammonia, 8,000 tons of sulphates, 
and 3,000 tons of chlorine combined as chlorides. This Is 
equal to a soot fall on each inhabitant of 25 to 35 pounds 
per annum. 
Burning the coal at the mines would save this soot- 
fall and give cheaper light and heat. A similar plan 
in this country could also cheapen the supply—but 
what becomes of the railroads which pay dividends 
through hauling coal from their own mines? We might 
ask what became of the Eastern farmer when his 
government opened great stretches of free western 
land and crowded cheap food into his market 1 
* 
The greasy story of Standard Oil money which the 
papers have been printing, proves beyond question 
the great argument why the secret “invisible govern¬ 
ment’’ should be driven out of politics. There is no 
longer any doubt that the big corporations and “inter¬ 
ests” paid money for “campaign purposes” with the 
distinct understanding that they were to be “taken care 
of.” And who was to take care of them? The 
farmers and workingmen who cast the vote, and who 
paid the few cents extra on the articles which were 
controlled by some special privilege. When Standard 
Oil put up $125,000 they fully expected to be “let 
alone” while they took millions from the public a 
nickel at a time. It was a plain “business” arrange¬ 
ment. In the “Life of Mark Hanna” you will find 
the system clearly explained and defended. The 
politicians simply bought and sold what we are pleased 
to call popular rights, and then pounded on the drum 
to set the people fighting over trivial issues. In 
spirit one party was and is as bad as the other. One 
perhaps lacked the other’s opportunity to obtain large 
graft. Both proved their guilt by burning up their 
books and thus destroying all the records. It does 
little good now to shout fraud and thief. We have 
for years claimed that just this gigantic grafting was 
going on, and we have for years pointed out the first 
step toward a remedy—primary nominations and re¬ 
call. What made this grafting possible? The con¬ 
vention system of nominating candidates and select¬ 
ing issues. Under that system a few strong men 
can organize an “invisible government,” by means of 
which 10 per cent of one party can dominate the 
government. They have grown in power so that 
this small minority can absolutely dictate to the rest 
of the country, and buy and sell our liberties. There 
is only one remedy—government back to the bands 
of the people, and the power to kick rascals or weak 
servants out of office. 
* 
I have managed to bring my farm from tbe poorest to 
about as good as any in this section ; have increased its 
productive capacity several times over. But I had to 
borrow money to do it, and it has taken the best part of 
my life to do it. With a loan system such as you write 
of I could easily have done it in one-half the time. I 
have always been able to get money at the legal rate, six 
per cent; never have had to pay any shave, as some 
of my neighbors are doing, hut a three months’ loan, 
while it many times helps over a tight spot, is not suffi¬ 
cient for regular farm business, where one’s capital is 
largely tied up in farm stock and tools. E. G. p. 
Cayuga Co., N. Y. 
Since we began to discuss the European systems 
of farm credits oiur people have taken great interest in 
the matter. We find everywhere men who are tied 
up and hampered for the lack of liquid capital or 
cash. It is true that men in all lines of business are 
thus hampered at times, but if they have assets these 
are of such character that they are accepted as 
security. The farmer is obliged to carry assets in 
September ?, 
land, stock and fixtures much larger in proportion to 
the business he does than storekeeper or manufac¬ 
turer, and these assets are sound and substantial, yet 
in the majority of cases they will not be accepted. 
Again, a short-term loan may float a factory or a 
newspaper into prosperity, yet from its very nature 
farming requires a loan which may run for years. 
Our farmers learn that in Canada, Europe, Australia 
and elsewhere other farmers are cared for as though 
they were as important to society as bankers. The 
government studies their needs and steps in to organ¬ 
ize societies and banks through which money will be 
loaned on long time. In Russia, for example (a 
nation which we regard as far behind us), the gov¬ 
ernment saw that small farmers were being robbed 
and exploited by the usurers and loan sharks. For 
the definite purpose of stopping sqch practice the gov¬ 
ernment helped and organized societies for loaning 
public funds to farmers. When the postal savings 
banks were started here we hoped the funds could 
and would be definitely used for loans on real estate. 
The bankers got ahead of the people and secured the 
use of this money. The fight against agricultural 
credits has been somewhat like that against parcels 
post. The bankers and the interests they represent 
wish to enjoy a monopoly of credit which they now 
possess as a special privilege. Should productive 
land be also classed as national credit, direct or in¬ 
direct, the banks would slowly lose their monopoly 
and credit would be widened. The express companies 
fought parcels post because they knew that if their 
special privileges were broken the entire question of 
transportation would be shaken up. This demand for 
agricultural credits has grown so fast that all the 
parties mention it in their platforms. About Octo¬ 
ber we may expect a “campaign document” from the 
Republicans in a report of European farm conditions 
with a statement of what should be done here. 
In connection with your editorial on page 894, concern 
Ing the franking of political mail into Massachusetts by 
Senator Penrose, permit me to remind you of the ancient 
warning, “Let not the pot call the kettle black.” During 
the recent primary campaign I received, in common with 
thousands of other Republicans in this State, and (if the 
newspapers told the truth) in every “direct primary” 
State, a copy of a certain speech of Theodore Roosevelt’s, 
printed in the Government Printing Office, and franked 
by Senator Dixon, Mr. Roosevelt’s campaign manager. As 
I understand it, Mr. Dixon, in the -course of a speech in 
the Senate, mentioned the Roosevelt speech, but did not 
read it, and then obtained “unanimous consent" to have 
it printed in full in the Congressional Record as part of 
his speech. This proceeding made the spcecli a “public 
document” and forthwith it was printed, at the Govern¬ 
ment expense, in pamphlet form, and distributed by the 
thousand all over the country under the Senator’s frank. 
Now, it seems to me that the action of both Senators 
is a very cheap form of political work, such as would be 
called dishonest in private life, and I think that Senator 
Penrose’s act deserves fully the criticism you make of it. 
But if this he true, what is to be said for Senator Dixon? 
Is not his case even more dishonorable? It is possible 
that I may be mistaken in some of my assertions, although 
I know them to he true in the main. If so, I hope that 
I may he corrected. I hope that you may make these 
facts as prominent as you have those concerning Senator 
Penrose. Howard s. russell. 
Massachusetts. 
Both the pot and the kettle are likely to be in hot 
water most of their, working hours. They cannot hope 
to cool off by discussing an unhappy condition which 
they share in common. We print the above willingly, 
for we intend to attack any form of graft and special 
privilege, no matter what man or party gets in front of 
it. In the editorial mentioned we said, “It looks as 
if we had here the reason why all these political 
parties run away from parcels post. They all want 
the ‘50 sacks of mail privilege!’” It is just this im¬ 
pudent form of postal graft which enables the enemies 
of parcels post to say we cannot have it because the 
postal expenses are so high. We regard this abuse 
of the franking privilege as close to a political steal. 
BREVITIES. 
Nature makes the “brick” of a man without stuffing 
him with straw. 
Why, of course, the best bread and butter cow is the 
one that was bred for butter. 
“Give half the cost of a battleship to encourage wheat 
growing”—is the English farmer’s cry. 
The potato crop in the Argentine Republic is growing. 
Last year 2,645,550 bushels of seed potatoes were im¬ 
ported. 
“Buttered eggs” are the latest. The butter is smeared 
over the eggs to “preserve” them. But what happens 
when the butter grows rancid? 
The old question of picking off the corn ears for grind¬ 
ing and putting only stalks in the silo is up again. Our 
advice is to let the ears alone—cut the entire corn plant 
into the silo. 
There is actually a bill before the English Parliament 
which imposes a fine of .$25 to $125 upon all who perform 
certain operations upon animals without first administer¬ 
ing an anaesthetic. 
