11S4 
November 1, 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER’S PAPER 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban Home* 
Established tsso 
Published weekly by the Rural Publishing Company, 338 West 30th Street, Sew York 
Herbkrt W. Collingwood, TYesident and Editor. 
John J. DILLON, Treasurer and General Manager. 
YVm F Dillon, Secretary. Mits. E. T. Rovlk, Associate Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR 
To foreign countries In the Universal Postal Union, $2.01. equal to 8s. Gd., or 
8M marks, or 10 'A francs. Remit in money order, express 
order, personal cheek or bank draft. 
Entered at New York Post Office as Second Class Matter. 
Advertising rates GO 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 backed by a respon¬ 
sible person. But to make doubly sure wo will make ffood 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 trifling* aificrences 
between subscribers and honest, responsible advertisers. Neither will weibe 
responsible for the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned by the courts. 
Notice of the complaint must bo sent to us within one month, o! the time or 
the transaction, and you must have mentioned line Rural nkw-iohker 
when writing the advertiser. 
The surest way to identify fruit varieties is to 
send them to the Pomologist, Department of Agricul¬ 
ture, Washington, D. C. You will receive a decision 
as strong in fruit matters as one from the Supreme 
Court would be in law. They will send you boxes 
for free postage. Go right to the Department with 
specimens. 
♦ 
A reader sends us “as the father of the Apple Con¬ 
sumers’ League,” a pamphlet giving over 50 ways of 
eating an apple. That’s good, but he has left out 
the best way. That is to sit iu an unlighted room 
before an open fire with a bunch of children flower¬ 
ing around your chair, and while you eat a Northern 
Spy have the youngsters tell what great things they 
will do off in that beautiful time when they are to 
“fun the farm!” 
Another thing in addition to what was said last 
week about “substituted” trees. Do not wait after 
you find the bearing trees are untrue. “Start some¬ 
thing” at once. The time to complain is the mo¬ 
ment you are sure that the fruit ou the tree is not 
what you ordered. We have cases where people 
have waited five years, or even more, after they 
were sure the trees were wrong. Such'dallying will 
be sure to weaken your case. 
* 
Discussion of the case of John Campman, the New 
Jersey boy who shot and killed a supposed chicken 
thief, brings out some fierce advice. We actually 
find men who advise blazing away with a repeating 
gun or pistol without even an investigation. This 
advice to shoot in the dark without fair warning is 
a dangerous thought to put in the minds of boys or 
timid people. The possibility of taking human life 
is too great. A faithful dog will take care of most 
thieves. Shooting in the dark at random has too 
much peril for neighbors or innocent strangers. 
* 
I got a letter from Acting-Governor Glynn last week 
iu which he pats himself on the back and asks the farm¬ 
ers to notice what a fine fellow he is, because he final¬ 
ly signed the bill to pay for our gittle. 
That is from a New York dairyman who waited 
nearly two years for money due him when the State 
killed his cattle. He voted for Mr. Glynn, too. It 
was a fine thing to put that bill appropriating money 
for these cattle through the Legislature. It was a 
matter of plain duty and justice, and not a thing for 
political capital. It shows how these farmers are 
watching things. Try to pat yourself on the back in 
front of the glass. You would not have your picture 
taken in any such position and send it to the girl 
you wanted to marry! 
* 
In every tariff discussion we are told that the 
Canadian farmers are in some way able to produce 
such things as potatoes, hay, fruit or dairy products 
cheaper than our own farmers can. How can they 
do it? The invisible line which separates the two 
countries runs through a fairly uniform section as 
regards soil, climate and natural conditions. What 
is there north of this line which makes cheaper 
production possible? We selected at random names 
of a number of Canadian readers and sent the ques¬ 
tion to them. All are unanimous in agreeing that 
conditions in Eastern Canada are such that there 
can be no serious competition in farm products as 
the result of free trade. Canada has her own back- 
to-the-land and Western immigration problems, and 
recent changes in farming have been more toward 
supplying the things which Canadian cities and 
Europe demand. It is true, however, that the Can¬ 
adians now find it most profitable to import butter 
from New Zealand and send whole milk or cream 
to this country. This will remain largely a local 
trade with the New England cities, but in the broad 
sense of wide competition in general farm products 
Canada seems to he,out of it. 
THE KU R-A.lv NEW-YORKER 
The other day a city man came in for some in¬ 
formation which we were able to supply. He wanted 
to show his appreciation in the usual business way, 
so he pulled out a couple of good cigars. We thanked 
him, but do not smoke. Nearly every corner of this 
great city has a place where “refreshments” are 
served. “Step out a moment,” said our friend “and 
have something .” “No,” we said, “the obligation is 
ours —have something on us.” “Ah!” said the man, 
“I see; it’s your treat—what will it be?” We pulled 
out a basket of apples. “Have something—have an 
apple!” Our friend munched into a good Northern 
Spy and said it beat any treat he had had for years. 
This thing of substituting a good apple for a cigar 
or a drink was a new one. Two-tliirds of the men 
he met in business would prefer the apple. Here 
is a new one for the Apple Consumers’ League— 
have something—have an apple! 
* 
That Farmers’ Association seems to be the in¬ 
side works of the watch in the Connecticut Legis¬ 
lature. We referred the article to several farmers 
who have been sent to Hartford, and they agree 
that the statements are fair. There is probably no 
other State—unless it may be Vermont—in which 
the farming towns have so much influence. We 
shall .of course be told that the cities of Connecticut 
ought to have greater legislative power, since they 
provide so much of the wealth and population. As 
is pointed out in this article, the great mass of city 
voters have no conception of the farmer’s needs, and 
no sympathy for him. One defect in this plan of 
sir gle-town representative is the fact that men are 
seldom sent back to Hartford to serve a second 
term. In several cases where excellent men were, 
elected ouce we were told “117;//, they nave had it 
oncel” This cuts many able and trained men out 
of public service, yet it means practically a new 
Legislature each year, and some men are trained 
in grafting by continued service. But suppose we 
had 50 sensible farmers in the New York Legis¬ 
lature ! 
* , 
Last chance to talk cover crops to farmers north 
of New York. We may sow rye up to November 1 
and hope to pull it through. Come with us and dig 
into the soil where the young rye is growing. The 
growth above ground is not so large, but below the 
surface the soil is a network of roots. There are 
tons of humus to the acre, and these active roots are 
taking up all the nitrates as they are formed. Up 
to December 1, and frequently later, this nitrate 
formation goes on with the energy of a department 
store at Christmas. These valuable nitrates will run 
off in the drainage water unless living roots are there 
to catch them. The vigorous young rye gets them 
all. It is not unusual for good average soil to lose 
25 pounds of nitrogen per acre in this way during a 
long, late Fall. Ten acres make 250 ^pounds, which 
at present prices would cost you $45.00 at least. If 
a man came to your barn and stole a high-grade 
yearling, or took 20 tons of manure out of your barn¬ 
yard there would be a commotion on your farm; yet 
the water carries more than that value in nitrogen 
out of your bare ground. Rye put in now will stop 
that loss, hold the nitrogen and give you a crop to 
plow under next Spring. Last chance for rye! 
% 
* 
There is no greater nuisance connected with a 
college course than the tomfoolery known as “haz¬ 
ing” still carried to extremes at some of the older 
colleges. This nonsensical and often brutal contest 
between the two lower classes has nothing to recom¬ 
mend it, and often results in serious injuries and 
interference with study. It seems strange that in¬ 
stitutions which claim to be leaders of modern 
thought should permit practices which be¬ 
long to the old and barbarous years. It. Is refresh¬ 
ing to learn that students at the Iowa State College 
shut off this hazing nuisance themselves. The pre¬ 
sent sophomore class, at the end of its freshman 
year, voted to help rather than haze the class which 
followed them. They sent a committee ahead to 
meet the freshmen and help them locate and settle. 
As a result there was no hazing or brutal destruc¬ 
tion of property. In past years it has been neces¬ 
sary to tax the students in order to pay for destruc¬ 
tion of property through student misconduct. There 
is a surplus of $2,000 on hand now, and President 
Pearson recently announced that this sum and more 
will he given to the student body, for such use as 
they may vote. Among other things suggested is a 
fund for loaning money to needy students. This 
thing has been made possible by giving up the fool¬ 
ish nuisance of hazing. What these, young men are 
learning in this fair conduct is the best part of their 
college course. 
It is said that a ship recently brought to New 
York 100 tons of frozen beef from Argentina. When 
she went back she carried about the same weight 
of high-class apples from New York and New Eng¬ 
land. These apples find good sale in Argentine cities 
at a high price. Here is a trade that is likely to 
grow as South America sends us more of wheat and 
meat. We have a subscriber in Patagonia who grows 
fine apples, but the river which provides water for 
irrigation floods every now and then, and spoils 
part of his orchard. The apple is a luxury in that 
country, and there will he a great demand for it. 
# 
A buyer told me the other day that lie was receiving 
twice as many hides this year as he had last, i. e., I 
mean wool pelts, but that the amount of wool he had 
received this year was only 50 per cent of what his 
usual bill had been. He added by saying that “it will 
not be long before we will neither have pelts nor wool.” 
h. 
The fact is we need more sheep, especially on our 
rougher farms. It will be a fatal mistake to con¬ 
clude that free trade is to kill the sheep-growing 
Industry. There are other uses for sheep, and a 
new use for the wool. Sheep are the best weed 
cleaners and foragers that a farmer can keep. They 
eat up wastes which most other animals would re¬ 
fuse or trample under foot. Then comes the meat 
problem. The beef supply is running short. Why 
not use*more mutton, if meat is needed? The people 
of Argentina are mutton eaters. In that country the 
sheep takes the place of the hog as a family meat 
provider. The wool! As we may see on page 1174 
the movement now is to cut out some of the wool 
middlemen and deal direct with the manufacturer. 
A company of, say, 100 farmers can lump their wool 
together, ship it to the mill and take part pay for 
it in all-wool cloth or knit garments, or in yarn. In 
this way they may save at both ends—getting more 
for their wool and paying less for their cloth. These 
are but a few of the ways in which sheep will help 
us. There should be twice as many of them. 
* 
A new England reader sends a clipping from the 
New England Grocer and Tradesman in which we 
find the following: 
Let no one be misled by the beautiful picture of con¬ 
sumers dealing directly with the producer, for example, 
the farmer. To come down to simple language, and 
language which can be understood even in the Middle 
West, the moment the consumer begins to deal directly 
with the producer, especially the farmer, lie gets 
“skinned,” “trimmed,” which amount to one and the 
same thing. 
This paper is constantly ridiculing the farmer and 
his efforts to obtain more than a 35-cent dollar. 
No use blaming the poor thing who writes such stuff. 
He has to do it in order to hold his job. No mid¬ 
dleman likes to take his finger out of the G5 cents, 
as he knows he must do when consumer and pro¬ 
ducer get together. For centuries a horde of pleas¬ 
ant gentlemen have stood between farmer and con¬ 
sumer and said—“Here, keep quiet and let me keep 
you apart and take two-thirds of the final income 
for doing it.” Yes indeed, the consumer will be 
“trimmed.” A lot of parasites and useless middle¬ 
men will be trimmed away. As for “skinning,” it 
appears that some of the thick hide on some of 
these smart farm haters is being pared down so 
that they understand what is coming. 
BREVITIES. 
Apple ! Apple! Call for apple 
Everywhere you go; 
Scrutinize the bill of fare, 
And if apple is not there, 
Call the landlord clown with care. 
He will come with smirking manner 
With some over-ripe banana, 
Or a grape fruit sour as gall. 
Tough and hard as a baseball. 
Take no substitute but grapple 
With the question—call for apple. 
Do not let the cows enter Winter “barn poor." 
Never sign a contract unless you have to. You never 
have to sign one with an unknown agent. 
We wish every reader of The R. N.-Y. could have a 
big open fireplace with a roaring fire every Winter’s 
night. 
A FRENCHMAN has set the record for speed in a fly¬ 
ing machine—125 miles in little less than an hour! 
Who wants to fly? 
Who is qualified to say definitely when and how a 
farmer with 100 acres would be justified in buying 
a gasoline tractor? 
You would he surprised to see how many questions 
we get from people who ask if there 1 is any legal way 
of avoiding the trouble and expense of caring for then 
parents! 
There can be no doubt that parcel post offers a great 
opportunity for farmers near a town to dispose ot 
dressed poultry. The beef shortage ought to boom the 
poultry trade. 
Rain ! rain ! rain ! over the lonely farm ; Rain ! rain ! 
rain! Can’t do a bit of barm. Children and wife are 
safe here at the close of clay. Cattle are all inside here 
at the close of day. 
The North Dakota Experiment Station says it is 
the practice at Fargo, N. D., to lay six-inch water pipes 
7 % feet deep to avoid freezing. Would that make a 
Florida man claim new advantage for his State? 
