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THE KURA L NEW-YORKER 
August 23, 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER’S PAPER 
X National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Home* 
Established isso 
Published weekly by the Rural Pnbllshln K Company. 388 West 80th Street, Mew York 
Herbert W. Colungwood, President and Editor. 
Jons J. DnxoN, Treasurer and General Manager. 
Wm F. Dit.i.On', Secretary. Mrs. E. T. Royi.k, Associate Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union. $2.04. equal to 8s. 6d., or 
marks, or 10)4 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. References required for 
advertisers unknown to us ; and cash must accompany transient orders. 
“A SQUARE DEAL” 
We believe that every advertisement In this paper is hacked by a respon¬ 
sible person. But to make doubly sure we will make good any loss to paid 
subscribers sustained by trusting any deliberate swindler “d'lertisihg m our 
columns, and any such swindler will be publicly exposed. VVc protect sub¬ 
scribers against rogues, but we do not guarantee to adjust ti'>U 1 IP_ f ^ ^i-onces 
between subscribers and honest, responsible advertisers. l , ' ^ J e 
responsible for the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned bj the courts 
Notice of the complaint must he sent to us within ^ "lonth of tl e time of 
the transaction, and you must have mentioned The Rural New-i orker 
when writing the advertiser._— 
As a rule we have great charity for the man who 
does not always spell in strict accordance with the 
dictionary. “A fellow feeling makes ns wondrous 
kind. - ’ When we come to the citizen who intro¬ 
duced the so-called word “Chix” into the English 
language charity stays at home. That man ought 
to be sent on a long journey under the conditions 
which the express companies give to baby chicks. 
He certainly played the baby act with the English 
language. 
* 
A LOT of good money is lost in selling “bob” veal 
or in killing calves instead of raising them. Veal 
prices are high, and the carcass of a big. fat calf 
will bring more than a good many cans of milk. 
Farmers often say that they cannot afford to raise 
calves, but must sell the milk. Let them try feeding 
some of this milk to good calves, then sell the calves 
and see how the account compares. In a good many 
cases they will find the calf a better middleman than 
the milk dealers—paying a better price for milk 
and giving greater independence. 
* 
The more you study the purebred stock business 
the surer you must become that “me man behind 
the cows” is the true test of character. The theory 
of pedigree is right. A well-bred bull, with a long 
line of milk and butter-making ancestors behind 
him is bound to transmit these superior qualities. 
His daughters have got to act more or less “like 
father’s folks,” for that is one of the strong laws of 
Nature. But the papers must fit the bull, for every 
superior pedigree must come wrapped up in paper 
with the brand of the man who knows that the bull 
is right. That is what people mean when they speak 
of “the man behind the cow.” In buying purebred 
stock the question of personal integrity enters as in 
few other lines of business, for a dairyman can only 
be sure of getting his full dollar’s worth when he 
knows there is an honorable man behind the cows. 
* 
We keep right after this new commission law be¬ 
cause the shippers can do more than the State offi¬ 
cers to make it effective. The Department of Agri¬ 
culture at Albany is sending out a pamphlet giving 
names of all licensed commission men, their address 
and the kinds of produce they handle. Every ship¬ 
per should keep this’ list, and patronize only those 
firms which can show a license. This Is the best 
way to make the law effective—because it encour¬ 
ages those dealers who accept responsibility. 
* 
It is remarkable how excited some of our “author¬ 
ities” get on the subject of lime. They advocate 
ground limestone, and have apparently worked 
themselves to the point where they believe it is a 
crime for a man to use burnt lime in any form. No 
reasonable man can question the value of limestone 
when the conditions are right for it. There should 
be low freight rates or a short haul from a grinding 
plant. The farmer should remember that twice as 
much of the ground limestone will be needed as of 
slaked lime, and that it will give best results on the 
lighter soil, or where the land is well filled with 
humus. We have demonstrated to our satisfaction 
that on our hard, brick-like soil, the slaked lime 
gives quicker and better results. Figuring also 
shows that in many localities a pound of lime costs 
less when slaked than it does in ground limestone. 
That is because the freight, ton for ton, is as great 
on one form as on the other. Some of us pay $2.50 
or more per ton as freight. We think it would be 
better to stop fighting over the form of lime and 
teach farmers to figure the cost, freight included, 
and to study the effect of the different forms. 
* 
In our investigation of the baby chick business 
we run upon some strangely contrasting opinions. 
One breeder, who represents a large proportion of 
those who have had experience, does not hesitate to 
express his frank opinion: 
Reference to the baby chick business takes me back 
just seven years ago last Spring, when the baby chick 
craze struck us and we fell. But thank the good Lord 
we had onlv made two or three shipments when the 
spell was broken, our fondest dreams were completely 
wrecked, our imaginary fortune we could see growing 
smaller hourly, and in the future we could see nothing 
but dissatisfaction, contention, correspondence and 
probablv litigation, and we abandoned the idea at once 
and have been thoroughly satisfied ever since to “let 
George do it” if he thought best, but for ourselves we 
have enough to last us for seven more long years. 
That is certainly fervent enough, and we under¬ 
stand just what this man means. We judge that a 
great majority of breeders feel the same way, though 
few of them think it wise or politic to say so as 
frankly as this man does. We think they would be 
wiser if they did so. Yet almost in the same mail 
comes this opinion from a large breeder: 
I wish to say that we found this branch of the busi¬ 
ness one of the most profitable and most successful of 
any, so much so that we intend to install a large 
hot-water incubator, capacity 6,000 eggs, before another 
season. 
Now how are we to reconcile such statements? 
Our investigations thus far show that a large major¬ 
ity of breeders and all the express companies would 
gladly see the baby chick business given up. We 
have yet to hear from the buyers—the most impor¬ 
tant class of all. We would like to hear a fair 
statement of results from those who have bought 
and tried to raise these baby chicks. 
l 'JJe who is bound to repair a force, and neglects 
to do so, is answerable for an injury arising from 
his default The Supreme Court of New Jersey 
lays down that proposition as a thing to he admitted- 
without argument in that State. The ease outlined 
on page 951 will be a new interpretation of law to 
many of our farmers. A cow passed from her own¬ 
er’s farm onto a farm of a neighbor, and entered his 
cornfield. Without question this cow must have 
caused considerable damage to the corn. She dam¬ 
aged herself more, and died from the effect of 
gorging upon this green corn. The Supreme Court 
holds that under these conditions the owner of the 
cow was not responsible for the loss in the corn 
crop, but that the owner of the corn is held respon¬ 
sible for the death of the cow. This ease hinges 
upon the duty of a farmer to maintain his line 
fence when such duty is clearly assigned to him. 
If this farmer had kept up his fence properly, and 
the cow had broken through, he could not then have 
been held responsible, but his responsibility arises 
from the fact that he neglected to do his share of 
repairing this line fence. We are not sure that this 
law would hold in other States, but it seems to be 
clear that this is the law in New Jersey. Some of 
our readers object to this decision, and say that it 
is unjust and unfair. We give, however, a plain 
statement of the law as it stands, and until such 
law is changed we advise our readers to make sure 
of their fences when it is their duty to keep them up. 
* 
Discussion of the currency bill now before Con¬ 
gress has developed a strong demand for legislation 
which will directly benefit farmers. It is proposed 
by a large section of the Democratic party to issue 
currency ou deposits of grain, cotton or tobacco 
when put in bonded warehouses. This is on the 
theory that such staple farm products are as sound 
security upon which to base circulation as any other 
product. The sentiment in favor of some such pro¬ 
vision became so strong that President Wilson comes 
out with a statement which puts him squarely in 
favor of a system of rural credits: 
There has been too little Federal legislation framed 
to serve the farmer directly and with a deliberate ad¬ 
justment of bis real needs. We long ago fell into the 
habit of assuming that the farmers of America enjoyed 
such an immense natural advantage over the farmers of 
the rest of the world, were so intelligent and enterpris¬ 
ing and so at ease upon the incomparable soils of our 
great continent, that they could feed the world and 
prosper no matter what handicap they carried, no mat¬ 
ter what disadvantage, whether of the law or of nat¬ 
ural circumstances, they labored under. We have not 
exaggerated their capacity or their opportunity, but 
we have neglected to analyze the burdensome disadvan¬ 
tages from which they were suffering and have too often 
failed to remove them when we did see what they were. 
The President asks Congress to make this matter 
of rural credits a special act of legislation—separate 
from the currency bill. Wait, he says, until the 
commission sent to Europe to study conditions 
makes its report. Then he says this matter will be 
“our next great task and duty.” Well, it looks as 
if the loug years of battle and argument were finally 
to give results. Many of us can well remember 
when any suggestion that farmers needed or de¬ 
served any particular business recognition was 
laughed out of Congress. There was a surplus of 
hot air but a deficit of cold cash. You see this 35- 
cent dollar and what it represents is becoming a part 
of popular thought, and it is popular thought which 
moves Congress. 
Sentiment should not count in an egg-laying con¬ 
test any more than in a fertilizer test, yet we are 
glad to see those White Wyandottes from Idaho 
coming to the front. These birds were carried for 
miles over the Idaho mountains on horseback before 
they came even to a stage road. After that was the 
long railroad journey—enough to justify any self- * 
respecting hen in demanding that she he considered 
a star hoarder and not a worker. We do like to 
see humans, brutes or things that go through life 
carrying a handicap go up near the front. The 
world needs all the encouragement of that sort 
which it can get. 
* 
It has therefore become evidently the policy of our 
legislation to clearly reaffirm the unrestricted right of 
farmers to sell their own products in the streets of the 
towns and villages of the Commonwealth. While we 
sympathize with every proper ordinance to protect our 
merchants and resident venders from unfair competi¬ 
tion of outsiders in like classes, we are compelled to 
hold that ordinances which limit and restrict the farm¬ 
ers of a rural community such as ours from selling their 
own products to the private citizens of the borough as 
vicious in principle and as in restraint of trade. 
That is from a decision by Judge Orvis, of Center 
Co., Pa. The borough of Bellefonte undertook by 
passing an ordinance to prevent farmers from sell¬ 
ing their produce on the streets at certain hours. 
The object was to compel such farmers to go to a 
curb market, as by doing so they interfered less with 
the trade of local grocers and butchers. Two farm¬ 
ers continued to peddle or deliver their goods direct 
to customers in defiance of this ordinance and they 
were arrested. As they refused to pay fines they 
were sued, and the court decided in their favor. The 
law to which Judge Orvis refers in his decision 
contains the following: 
That after the passage of this act, it shall be unlaw¬ 
ful for any borough or city of this commonwealth to 
levy or collect any money or tax, as a license fee, from 
any farmer who sells his own products in or about the 
streets of any borough or city of this commonwealth. 
That would seem to settle it for Pennsylvania 
towns, and is the position we have repeatedly taken 
on this subject. Yet there is a hard battle on at 
Tyrone, Pa., between the farmers and the town 
council over the question of compelling the farmers 
to stay on a certain curb market. We will give a 
detailed report of this market battle next week. 
* 
People often ask why a stranger can go into a 
neighborhood and work up a stock-promoting 
scheme when an old resident, well known and re¬ 
spected, could not raise a dollar for a co-operative 
business. Usually the promoter is a fine student of 
human nature. One of them went into a country 
neighborhood and selected several conceited farm¬ 
ers of quite ordinary ability. He approached them 
one at a time about like this: 
“I cannot understand why your neighbors and 
friends have never fully appreciated your business 
ability. I have been about the world, and I know 
a natural business man when I see one. You have 
natural ability as an organizer though these people 
cannot appreciate it. That is why I come to you 
first because it takes a man of brains to see into it!” 
The promoter polished away at this bump of vanity 
until he had these men borrowing money of the 
wife’s relatives to put into the scheme. Then he 
found three cold-blooded and “thrifty” neighbors 
and told them how they could help promote the 
scheme and get a slice of what these other men put 
up. It worked both ways like a charm—for it was 
a charm—the spell of human nature. Every rogue 
who tries to finger other people’s money has some 
of this charm and as a rule they play upon the van¬ 
ity of their victims. It is a wise man who knows 
he lacks wisdom! Oh! if the men who really try 
to promote the good in the world could cultivate 
this same study of human nature! 
BREVITIES. 
A good time now, at the end of the season, to tell 
which fields or spots need draining. 
Jackson, Mich., is now to have a public market, the 
city having leased a large feed barn for the purpose. 
We find no better canning peach than Crosby, and 
it will grow in a fence corner or under hard conditions. 
There is a definite and steady demand for the root 
of golden seal (Hydrastis canadensis). The Germans 
call for it steadily and in this country it is sold freely. 
Now there is to be on the Philippine Islands a com¬ 
plete study of the banana botanically and commercially. 
This has not been attempted before, though this fruit 
is an article of food everywhere. 
Every time we say dwarf apples are toys half a 
dozen valiant defenders of the dwarfs come baek to 
say that if the little trees are properly planted and 
handled they are as profitable as standards. We Have 
not found them so. 
The original quarantine against Gipsy and Brown- 
ail moths in New England has been broadened, so 
liat since August 1 certain .lines of florists stock, 
is well as nursery and forest products, can only 
noved after inspection. Christmas greens from tne 
luarantined section cannot he sent outside of it. 
