542 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
WHEAT FAILURE IN TENNESSEE. 
On page 517 there is a question about 
Winter-killing of wheat in the Sweet¬ 
water Valley. We have the same con¬ 
ditions affecting wheat in Kentucky 
that you note for Tennessee. My opin¬ 
ion of the cause of freezing out is that 
it is due to the depleted" condition of 
the soil; that is, to the lack of humus 
in the soil. I have, had occasion to visit 
some wheat fields in this State, and in 
the same field and on the same general 
character of soil would be spots of 
wheat badly frozen out, and others 
scarcely frozen at all. Upon examina¬ 
tion of these fields, I have found that 
where the wheat is frozen out, there is 
generally a decided deficiency in humus,* 
or poor physical condition of the soils, 
and that where the wheat is not frozen 
out, I generally find a good supply of 
humus in the soil and the soil in good 
physical condition. In my opinion, the 
freezing out is due to the fact that 
when the soil deficient in humus freezes 
there is not sufficient room for lateral 
expansion, consequently, the ground 
must expand upward. When the soil 
is well supplied with humus and has a 
good crumb structure, there is room for 
lateral expansion, and, consequently, 
not the upward thrust which throws the 
wheat out of the ground. We have on 
our station farm 40 varieties of wheat 
which went through the Winter in per¬ 
fect condition, and looks as well this 
Spring as any wheat I ever saw. This 
soil is pretty well supplied with humus, 
and was put in excellent condition be¬ 
fore sowing last Fall. In my mind, the 
only remedy lies in good physical con¬ 
dition of the soil, due both to a suf¬ 
ficient amount of humus and proper 
preparation. Limestone would be of ad¬ 
vantage to any land in poor physical 
condition, because it tends to establish 
a crumb structure which would, in my 
judgment, tend to prevent freezing out. 
GEO. ROBERTS. 
Kentucky Exp. Station. 
SOIL CONSERVATION MEETING. 
A public meeting for the consideration 
of farm production, soil conservation and 
immigration in its relation to agriculture 
was held in the New York Produce. Ex¬ 
change April 27. Hon. James Wilson, Sec¬ 
retary of Agriculture, was the first speak¬ 
er. He emphasized the necessity for in¬ 
telligent farming and a fair consideration 
for the farmer by the railroads, manu¬ 
facturers and other outside interests. He 
said that, the most important “conserva¬ 
tion" is that of preserving soil fertility, 
and referred to the groat progress being 
made in the South in the production of 
corn and beef. 
Commissioner R. A. Pearson, of the New 
York State Department' of Agriculture, 
spoke of the important place New York 
holds as a producing State, lie considered 
the outlook hopeful, and said that what 
• farmers want is not charity, hut a fair 
share of the market value of their products. 
Assistant Secretary Cable, of the De¬ 
partment of Commerce and Labor, spoke of 
the work done by that Department in the 
distribution of farm help, especially in 
helping immigrants from agricultural sec¬ 
tions of the old wox-ld to get work on 
farms where they can be of more service 
to themselves and the country than by 
staying in the cities. lie said they were 
planning to increase this field of the De- 
patment's work. 
President Wm. C. Brown, of the New 
York Central Railroad, spoke of the value 
of farm drainage as a factor in increasing 
production. He believed that the question 
of the intelligent use of our farm lands 
is of more importance than the tariff or 
any other subject before the country, and 
pledged the host efforts of his corporation, 
as well as his own best efforts, to the 
advancement of agricultural interests. 
W. C. Barry, president of the Western 
New York Horticultural Society, endorsed 
the objects of the meeting, ile spoke of 
the discouragements the farmer has had 
to face, but considered the outlook hopeful. 
Milton Whitney, chief of the Bureau of 
Soils, Washington, I). C.. said that the 
soils of New York State, though they had 
been badly abused, wer6 in as good com¬ 
parative condition now for the new era of 
intensive agriculture as they were for the 
pioneer methods when the State was first 
settled. 
The following committee was appointed 
for perfecting a permanent organization: 
W. C. Brown, of the New York Central ; 
E. G. Miner, of Rochester: Congressman 
John Dwight; Geo. A. Frisbee. of Utica; 
Commissioner R. A. Pearson ; State Grange 
Master F. N. Godfrey; W. C. Barry; F. p. 
Underwood, president of the Erie Rail¬ 
road ; Welding Ring, of the New York 
Produce Exchange; Geo. W. Thayer, of 
Rochester; Chas. W. Larmon. of the State 
Labor Department ; W. .1. MeCarroll, pres¬ 
ident New York Board of Trade; Congress¬ 
man W. W. Cocks; President W. II. Trues- 
dale, of the Lackawanna Railroad: W. T. 
Noonan, of t Ho Buffalo. Rochester & Pitts¬ 
burg Railroad; E. B. Thomas, of the Le¬ 
high Valley Railroad: and Ralph Peters, of 
the Long Island Railroad. 
MORE ABOUT WHITING NURSERY CO. 
. We have kept track of the Whiting 
Nursery Company and their trouble with 
fruit growers in Orleans County, N. Y. The 
latest statement of this controversy is in 
the form of an article printed in the Ge¬ 
neva Times. This article states that the 
trouble originally came through the mis¬ 
take of a telephone girl. It is stated that 
last Winter a farmer in Monroe County 
called up Geneva on the long distance tele¬ 
phone and asked for the Whiting Nursery 
Company. The girl told him there was no 
such firm there. Having placed an order 
with an agent of this firm, the farmer be¬ 
came suspicious, and on being informed that 
there was no such firm in Geneva he con¬ 
cluded that he had been dealing with a 
bogus concern. The article goes on to 
say that this farmer spread the news and 
suspicion among his friends, and this led 
to an indignation meeting, and a committee 
was appointed to come to Geneva to look 
things up. This committee reported that 
they found the packing ground of the Whit¬ 
ing Nursery Company and also a place 
where the company’s stock was grown. The 
committee also said that the Whiting 
Nursery Company bought their stock from 
other nurseries. As a result of this feel¬ 
ing against the Whiting Nursery Company 
spread all through western New York, 
particularly in Orleans County, where 
considerable business has been done, 
Mr. Whiting, it is stated, went be¬ 
fore a meeting of the farmers and made 
affidavits which were printed in the local 
papers. But this did not satisfy the peo¬ 
ple, who claimed that these affidavits were 
simply advertisements. It happens that 
The R. N.-Y. described Mr. Whiting’s meth¬ 
ods long before the telephone girl answered 
that long distance call. The article states 
that Mr. Whiting himself lives in Boston, 
and has conducted a nursery business for 
35 years. Some of his stock is grovvla by 
contractors near Geneva. The Whiting 
Company does not own the land upon which 
their stock is grown under contract, but it 
is claimed that this stock is always in the 
possession of the company. It is also ad¬ 
mitted that the Whiting Company buys 
stock from other nurseries, but this prac¬ 
tice is defended on the plea that all nursery¬ 
men do this very thing. It is said that no 
nurseryman can tell two years in advance 
about the exact demand for his trade. The 
traveling agents may strike a run on cer¬ 
tain varieties and sell more than the nursery 
has prepared for. In that case, it is 
claimed that the nurseryman is justified in 
buying from other sources. It is stated in 
this article that the Whiting Nursery Com¬ 
pany proposes to deliver the goods and 
then stand the chance of collecting after¬ 
wards. But one thing, however, has been 
evidently learned by Mr. Whiting, as it is 
said that he proposes hereafter to print a 
statement on his order blank to the effect 
that he is not a jobber, that he does not 
own the land upon which his trees are 
grown, but that he does control the stock. 
Our advice to him is to go further than 
this, and drop many of the claims about 
his trees which have made so much trouble 
in the past for his agents and customers. 
So far as we can learn, it cannot be said 
that his trees are any better than those 
sold by other reputable nurserymen. It is 
true, however, that his agents have made 
extravagant claims for them, and that his 
prices are considerably higher than those 
charged by other nurserymen for equally 
desirable stock. We have letters from men 
in other parts of the country where the 
Whiling Nursery Company lias operated 
before. They speak of dissatisfaction with 
the methods of the company and with the 
stock. The experience of the past season 
certainly ought to give Mr. Whiting a les¬ 
son which he can well profit by. We are 
told by those who bought his trees that 
he is about the most accomplished nursery 
orator that ever took the road. He seems 
to be able to hold up black and talk farm¬ 
ers into tlte belief that it is white. It is 
hard to break off some confirmed habits. 
Nursery oratory is one of them, but after 
this season’s experience Mr. Whiting might 
well change his tactics. 
The Acre-An-Hour Sifter. 
A new invention. Applies dry rnix- 
t iht' 8 like Slug Shot, piaster or cement 
and Paris Green or Bordeaux to pota¬ 
toes, on Phage, i i diacci», c uc uni be rs, rot»o 
or currant bushes,as fast as a man can 
walk. Will cover instantly and per¬ 
fectly plant 3 feet in diameter. It 
costs cents, but v ill do as much and as 
good work as machines that cost dol¬ 
lars. We want every farmer to see one. 
To help accomplish this wo are offer¬ 
ing ns an inducement to any society of 
the Grange whose Secretary will write 
us, one Sifter at halt price for trial and 
inspection by the members. Keenlar price, 75 cents mail or 
express. Prepaid by mail, bu,ver’8 risK, 2f» cents additional. 
Exceptional inducement to agents. Farmers and dealers buy at 
sisUt ' ACRE-AN-HOUR SIFTER CO.. Pouolikeepsie, N. Y. 
A SUBSTITUTE 
For Bordeaux Mixture 
10-gnl. keg making 1,500 gals. Spray; delivered at 
any R. R. station in the United States for lit 1 Si.50. 
Prompt shipments. Write to day for fullinformation. 
B. G. PRATT CO. 9 Chemists, 
50 CHURCH ST., NEW YORK CITY 
tiimLariwn a.- c a—— m————— 
May 7, 
NEVER 
LEAR 
Congo on Armour’s Fertilizer Works, Buena Vista, Va. 
It Carries a Surety Bond Guarantee 
T HIS means better protection 
than you think. It means 
that to guarantee Congo in 
this way we had to make it so 
good that it would meet all the 
exacting requirements of the Na¬ 
tional Surety Company. It was 
tested as to its durability, pli¬ 
ability and anti-rust and anti-rot 
qualities—all these had to be 4em- 
onstrated beyond a question. 
After that, they issued the bond. 
Every man who buys Congo is 
assured ten years of protection, 
and this is what you need when 
buying a roofing. You don’t buy 
for a week or a year, hut" for 
as long a time as possible. 
Along the lines of making Congo 
as good as we can, we supply free 
in the center of each roll, galvan¬ 
ized iron caps, which cannot rust. 
This also is exclusively a feat¬ 
ure of Congo Roofing. 
FREE SAMPLE 
We would like to send you a 
sample of Congo and have you 
test it with other samples which 
you may have. We know Congo 
is the leader. Write to-day. 
UNITED ROOFING & MFG. CO. 
532 West End Trust Bldg.,Pliiladelphia, Pa. 
Chicago San Francisco 
Beniamin Franklin taught V^@S4 DOClcl^S * roX ’ Wo *‘ Dodd { h,,ou S h 
Iho world what lightning ....... 7. his Invention perfected 
roa "con«ront howto Wonderful Invention— L moVc ™?™'. 0 
D. & S. Woven Copper Cable Lightning Rod and System of Installation 
affords the only safe and reliable protection to life and property against the terrible ravages of 
lightning. This positive, exclusive endorsement is made by the Mutual Insurance Companies or 
the United Suites and Canada (over 2000 leading fire insurance companies). 
INSTALL THE D. & S. SYSTEM OF PROTECTION 
Many a door is padlocked after the horse is stolen—lock yours now. 
Endorsements of leading fire insurance companies (list of them in catalogue—send for it). There 
are allowances of 10 to 33k # off insurance bills when your buildings are rodded with D. & S. Woven 
Copper Cable Lightning Rods. D. & S. Hod pays ior itself and then saves you money off 
your insurance bills. More D. & S. Rods sold than any other three makes combined. Insist on 
trademark I). & S. It is your protection. Send for free hook, ‘‘The Laws and Nature of Lightning.” 
Make Yourself, Your Family, .Your Property Safe. 
DODD STRUTHERS, 437 Sixth Avenue, Des Moines, Iowa 
HAY UNLOADER 
IT SAVES 
TIME, LABOR 
AND HORSES 
Perfectly controlled by operator. Fully GUAR¬ 
ANTEED. Unload your bay with this unloader 
and a gasoline en¬ 
gine. You can take 
off a load in less 
than one third the 
time it can be done 
with a team taking 
the same number 
of forksfull It 
takes the fork of 
hay up and brings 
back empty to load. 
Write for particulars. 
REDDEN BRO.’S 
MFG. CO., 
KORWtCH, NEW YORK. 
rHAY CAPS-; 
N Stack Covers, Wagon Covers, 
Y Waterproof or Plain Canvas 
4 for Farmers, etc. Plant Bed Cloth. 
5 HENRY DERBY 
j) 123 Chambers St., 
New yorl^ ^ 
Dr Best EXTENSION LADDER “ 
JOHN J. l’OTTKJLH Mill St., Binghamton, N\ Y. 
32 Inches of Alfalfa 
In 00 days from seeding, at Ghent, N.Y., by the 
Farmogerm Method 
George T. Powell, President of the Agricul¬ 
tural Experts’ Association, Ghent, N. Y., says: 
“I put in a piece of alfalfa at Orchard Farm the 
past summer that has made a most remarkable 
growth. The seed was inoculated with the alfalfa 
hacteriayou sent and sown on the 20 th of July. In47 
days the plants reached 27 inches in height, and in 
00 days, when cut, they measured 32 inches. This is 
equal to any acre of irrigated alfalfa in the coun¬ 
try. Shall put in more of it next year.” 
If you desire to grow larger crops and per¬ 
manent ly enrich your soil, send at once for 
Our Free Book No. 18 on FARMOGERM (high-bred nitrogen 
fixing bacteria), and how it should he used. Read 
what practical farmers and experts who have 
tried Farmogerm, and know, say. 
EARP-THGMAS FARMOGERM CO., Bloomfield, H. J. 
INOCULATED ALFALFA SOIL 
75c. per hundred pounds. S10.00 per ton. F.O.B. Cars. 
Send for free booklet " IIow to Grow Alfalfa.” 
DR. H. SOMERVILLE, 
Chest Springs Cambria Co., I’a. 
USE THREE DOLLARS' WORTH 
Nitrate of Soda 
On an Acre and 
INCREASE YOUR 
CROP OF HAY 
1000 POUNDS 
Directions for use of Nitrate on any crop 
will be sent if you wii ^cud Post Card to 
W. S. MYERS, DIRECTOR PROPAGANDA 
71 Nassau Street, New York 
Write to dealers below for quotations. 
Nitrate Agencies Co. 
64 Stone Street, New York 
1204 Hartford Building, Chicago, Ill. 
305 Baronne St., New Orleans, La. 
Citizens Bank Bldg., Norfolk, Va. 
2' Bay Street E., Savannah. Ga. 
Temple Building. Toronto, Canada 
Htonarch 
Hydraulic 
Cider Press 
Great strength and ca¬ 
pacity; all sizes; also 
gasoline engines, 
steam engines, 
sawmills, thresh, 
ers. Catalog free. 
Monarch Machinery Co* 609 Cortlandt Bldfl.. New York 
['Famous ' * 1 
For 
Over 
35 
Tr*»S 
Tarn your surplus fruit !uto 
money. You can make 
handsome promts lrora the 
1 k sale of cider, vinegar or 
fruit j uices. W rite for 
catalog of out tits. 
^ THE BOOMER & B3SCHERT 
' ; PRESS CO,,312 Water SL, 
Syracuse. N. Y. 
drauifc Cider Presses 
omas-Albright Co., 
sizes. We have had 33 
years’ experience and 
can save you money. 
Also Steam and Gaso¬ 
line Engines, Boilers, 
Sawmills, etc. 
Catalogue 
Free 
NEW YORK. N.Y. 
