434t 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
TURKEY RAISING. 
While some other people may have a 
way of their own, I have had good suc¬ 
cess my way. In the first place be sure 
to get good stock. The young poults will 
be stronger. I always make nests where 
I would like my turkeys to lay and sit; 
make some good nests in boxes in a 
quiet and secluded place, and when you 
see they are looking for a nest drive 
them around where they can see the 
nests; invariably they will select this 
place for their nest. I also sprinkle each 
week with insect powder after the mother 
begins to sit, and put sulphur in the nest 
to exterminate all lice, for young turkeys 
and lice cannot thrive. After the young 
turkeys are hatched nicely I take some 
new warm milk and let each little turk 
take a sip of milk from a spoon; it gives 
them so much strength. When they are 
24 hours old put them into a good clean 
coop made from drygoods boxes; have 
a floor so skunks or rats cannot dig un¬ 
der and get them, and be sure to have 
a good roof to keep them dry. If the 
coops are roomy you can keep them in 
while the dew is on, also when it is 
stormy you can keep them in this coop. 
I always clean the coops each morning; 
it takes but a few minutes and you are 
sure of no breeding place for vermin. 
I commence feeding bread and milk with 
plenty of good fresh clean water where 
they can get it at all times, and plenty 
of grit is very essential. Feed sliced 
onion tops or dandelion tops sliced fine 
Do not keep them confined after the dew 
is off the grass. It is their nature to 
forage; they get so many insects and 
fresh grass. When they are three or 
four weeks old I commence sprinkling 
wheat where they can get it, and before 
you know it they are eating wheat. Give 
them good wheat, not screenings; this 
makes bone and muscle, and does not 
fatten, for we want to keep them grow¬ 
ing as fast as we can. After they get 
six weeks old you can give a mixture of 
cracked corn and wheat, hut the wheat is 
best for them. When they get large 
enough to fly they are better in a tree to 
roost. I think they are more healthy. 
When cold storms come I drive them in 
under shelter, also when cold weather 
comes on I put them into a building. 
Some people let them roost out all Win¬ 
ter, but I think they come out better 
from being protected from the cold and 
Storm. MRS. E. J. RIDER. 
Jefferson Co., N. Y. 
CHEAP FARMS AND TAXES. 
.4. F. F., Radnor, Pa .—We are much 
interested in the New York farm tax- 
rates which you have reported lately. We 
are trying to find a good location for a 
small capitalist to buy a little farm, and 
wish to obtain all the reliable information 
we can. Some parts of New York State 
seemed desirable until we read your ac¬ 
count of the awful taxes. We are told that 
in Tompkins and Tioga counties farms are 
usually assessed at about half their real 
value, and that personal property is not 
assessed. We have the list of farms for 
sale, issued by the New York Department 
of Agriculture, but find no reference to 
taxes. I)o you suppose extortionate taxes 
are the cause of unoccupied farms? Is it 
possible to get an official statement of the 
taxes paid on any farm? Any reliable in¬ 
formation as to small farms in Tioga and 
Tompkins counties would be very valuable. 
Ans. —So far as rival communities 
a-re concerned, I do not think our taxes 
are excessive, except in a few instances. 
It is probably true that farm property 
bears a disproportionate share of taxa¬ 
tion, but that is no more the case in 
New York than in other States where 
there are large cities and aggregations 
of wealth. We have at the present 
time no direct State taxation, and haven’t 
had for several years. Our taxes are for 
county, town, and school district ex¬ 
penses. Different counties have different 
rates, depending largely upon the sort 
of county officials that have charge of the 
expenses, and the same is true of town 
affairs. Very many of the cities of our 
State have debts fastened upon them 
that are extremely heavy to carry, by 
reason of improvements, some of them 
wisely planned and carried out, but 
many of them of doubtful value and 
carried out under very doubtful condi¬ 
tions. As yet not many of the town¬ 
ships are thus enthralled, and it is within 
the power of farmers, usually, to keep 
heavy bonded indebtedness off the towns. 
We have a project fastened upon this 
State to build a costly canal from lakes 
to ocean. This will undoubtedly be con¬ 
structed, and there will surely be un¬ 
necessary expense connected with it. 
It is not now supposed that this expense 
will be met by direct taxation. We have 
also an undertaking to construct “good 
roads” in the State. Here is another 
chance for the cheap politician to do 
some exploiting, and he undoubtedly 
has done so and will do so again. How¬ 
ever, the public is becoming more inter¬ 
ested and enlightened, and is more like¬ 
ly to get just returns for the money in¬ 
vested, than was formerly the case. 
Taxes we will have, and I see no reason 
for expecting lower ones, but the amount 
is not so very heavy although it may be 
disproportionate, sometimes. 
There are instances left yet where a 
town was bonded, years ago, for the con¬ 
struction of some railroad, or other im¬ 
provement, and the inhabitants are still 
struggling with the payments. On the 
other hand, there are towns that own 
stock in some road which they paid for 
some years since, and which now bring 
considerable interest money to the town, 
thus lowering the rate of taxation. Re¬ 
garding school district taxation, there is 
great variation. I know of school dis¬ 
tricts that have had no school taxes for 
a number of years, while by the side of 
them is another district, within the same 
township where the tax rate may run as 
high as $7.50 per thousand or .75 mills 
per dollar of assessment. Town taxes, 
within my knowledge of towns, may 
range from $5 to $30 per thousand, but 
I presume do not average much above 
$10 or $12. When we speak of assess¬ 
ments, we have, perhaps, a harder ques¬ 
tion yet to answer, satisfactorily. It is 
supposed that property is assessed at 
full value, and that all personal property 
is assessed except that a person’s debts 
may be offset against his personal prop¬ 
erty. In the past this has usually meant 
that a farmer is not assessed for per¬ 
sonal. More recently, some farmers are 
being assessed for a small amount of 
personal property. Towns are by no 
means uniform in their estimates of 
“full value” of farm property. It is sel¬ 
dom that a high rate is fixed. Except in 
a few instances, assessments of farms, 
in this region of cheap lands, are below 
the cost of erecting the buildings that 
are upon them, but not always under the 
price at which these farms may be pur¬ 
chased, although I think they usually 
are. I know of one farm of nearly a 
hundred acres with pretty fair buildings 
that is assessed at $G0(). There was a 
time when this farm could be purchased 
for about a thousand dollars, but I do 
not think it could be now. Another farm 
of about 180 acres with good buildings, 
and keeping about 15 head of cattle is 
assessed at $2,000. There are other 
farms that are assessed much higher, 
because of more attractive location or of 
greater present productiveness, or both. 
Chenango Co., N. Y. h. h l.yon. 
Seeding Alfalfa on Wheat. 
J. A. MFrankfort, Ky .—I am contem¬ 
plating sowing Alfalfa seed on my wheat. 
I have about 50 acres in wheat. What 
would you advise in the matter? 
Ans.—M r. Wing tells us that “wheat 
makes a splendid nurse for the young 
Alfalfa.” It is necessary to harrow the 
wheat after seeding, so as to cover the 
Alfalfa seed. As we know. Red clover 
may be scattered on top of the ground 
and let to work into cracks, or to be 
covered in the mud. The Alfalfa seed, 
on the oilier hand, must be covered, and 
a spike harrow will do this well without 
hurting the wheat. 
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