THE RURAL NK W-YORKER 
602 
October 15, 
in larger quantities, at better prices, and consequently 
sell at a lower price also. He could offer his patrons 
a large stock to select from, and as a consequence 
many trips to the city and larger stores would never 
be made, because they would never be necessary when 
they can get nearer home what they want. But we 
will no more get the necessary and much desired par¬ 
cels post with the consequent good, without a fight, 
than we got the postal savings bank. We have two 
sessions of Congress before the Presidential election 
of 1912, and all should do what they can to force 
their Congressmen to supply this long delayed neces¬ 
sity. We are at least entitled to as cheap a rate as 
any foreigner, but we arc not getting it now. A 
foreigner can send a parcel to China for less than we 
pay for the shortest haul in our own Slate. We 
might begin this Fall by finding out wha f Congress¬ 
ional candidates stand for before voting. When Con¬ 
gress is in session start agitating and keep at it, and it 
will come the same as any other needs if strong pres¬ 
sure is brought to bear on your representatives. 
Maryland. b. e. EVANS,' 
A WOMAN’S FEED HOPPER. 
As I could not afford to buy feed hoppers for my 
chickens I determined to make them myself. I got 
shoe boxes, about four feet long and one foot wide, 
took off the sides and top, next put strips on the 
ends of box, having them flush with top corners on 
top and each strip slanting in about three inches 
on the bottom. Then sawed off side boards so they 
will just fit between the ends, allowing them to go 
down within two inches of bottom of box, and 
nailed these boards to the slanting strips that had 
been fastened to the ends. For the cover of hopper, 
take the boards from top of box, nail a cleat on 
under side of each end, and cover with roofing, allow¬ 
ing the roofing to project four inches on each side. 
The cover I merely lay on top and weight down with 
flat stone, so it will not blow off in heavy storms. 
For about 25 cents I have a hopper feeding from 
each side that takes the place of two, which, if you 
bought them, would cost a dollar or more each. 
I also use small cracker boxes for making small 
hoppers to put in each yard where I have 40 or 50 
small chicks, and give the chicks the dry feed when 
they are a week or 10 days old. If the hopper is 
allowed to go empty for part of a day and then 
filled, the chicks will pile up two deep, sometimes, in 
their eagerness to get at it. a. m. j. 
New York. 
THE PRICE OF CAN-HOUSE TOMATOES. 
In years gone by practically all tomatoes bought 
by, or grown for canners, were bought or contracted 
for by the crate. Some years ago this custom began 
giving way to the ton method. This was largely 
an unsatisfactory way of receiving the crop. Far¬ 
mers thought they were giving too much for the money 
received, and would, in many cases, slack-fill the 
packages. The can-house people, from time to time, 
enlarged on the size of the package, which still made 
further trouble, hence about the only way out of it 
was by weight. One by one packers began receiving 
by weight only, until all but two receivers in this 
section now receive by weight only, and I believe it 
to be the most satisfactory way. It prevents cheat¬ 
ing on either side. Only a year ago I had a con¬ 
troversy with a receiver on the amount in pounds 
that our market crate would hold, he claiming they 
held only 45 pounds, while I contended they held 
quite 50 pounds when properly filled. To settle the 
question I drove a load of 00 boxes that were already 
filled on his scales; this load fell 15 pounds short 
of an average of 50 pounds per crate. After this 
both were satisfied. 
The price paid here varies with some receivers 
with the season, while others pay the same every 
year, and yet some seasons when the crop is large 
there is so much faultfinding that it actually makes 
the price less. That was the case last year, 1909. 
While the present season the crop is light, there is 
nothing said; this allows the growers to gather 
almost everything that is a tomato, except rotten 
fruit. Here there is a distinction made by some. 
The man who tries to can a good quality of fruit 
and makes no account of catsup will pay a little 
higher price for his stock than will the man who 
makes catsup only. The average price paid at pres¬ 
ent for strictly can-house fruit is $10. One firm is 
receiving 50-pound boxes and paying 20 cents per 
box, which rs the same, while another man is receiv¬ 
ing poorer stock for catsup only and paying $8, but 
the average price in this section of New Jersey is 
$ 10 . Further south, in Delaware and on the eastern 
shore of Maryland, where can-house tomatoes are 
grown more largely than here, the price is lower, 
ranging from $7 to $9, rarely, I think, ever reaching 
$10 per ton. c. c. HULSART. 
Monmouth County, N. J. 
WHAT LIME TO USE. 
Why pay for the burning of limestone? Because the 
burnt lime, quicklime, which is calcium oxide, slakes at 
once to calcium hydrate, strongly basic, and able to unite 
with two portions of free acid or with bodies of the na¬ 
ture of carbolic acid (many of these being poisonous to 
plants and nearly all to bacteria), and these latter, and 
many of the former cannot drive carbonic acid from 
limestone, calcium carbonate, which is usually crystal¬ 
line and relatively insoluble. What does not at once 
unite will change back to the carbonate, but slowly and 
in an infinitely line state of division and relatively solu¬ 
ble. Remember that in this rlass of reactions the sub¬ 
stances reacting must be in water solution, and this de¬ 
pends, temperature, pressure and substances being the 
A YOKE OF WORKING CATTLE. Fig. 415. 
same, on the surface exposed : and the ratio of surface to 
mass tends to infinity as the diameter approaches zero. 
This applies to digestion also, a special case of solution. 
On the other hand the oxide and hydrate will break down 
the salts of, and set free, ammonia and the substituted 
ammonias, which the carbonate will not do. Whether it 
will “pay” to use 56 pounds burnt lime or 100 pounds 
limestone depends on the particular case. F. D. cbaxe. 
In your editorial page 824, relative to ground vs. 
burned lime, the question follows, “Why pay for the 
burning?” Lime can probably be burned just as cheaply 
as it can be ground. The ground limestone, if a practical¬ 
ly pure lime, would contain only 56 pounds of actual cal¬ 
cium oxide, while the burned lime, if made from pure 
limestone, would contain -practically 100 pounds of cal¬ 
cium oxide, therefore getting nearly twice as much actual 
lime per ton of material bought. To get the same amount 
of actual lime, freight would only have to he paid upon 
slightly more than qne-half the quantity. The same ap¬ 
plies to hauling and handling. Another factor ought to 
be noted relative to the commercial limes upon the 
market. These vary much in their actual lime content; 
some of the fresh burned limes resulting from the burning 
of dolomitic limestone, contain when burned not over 
50 to 60 per cent of actual calcium oxide, the remainder 
being made up largely of magnesium oxide. In other In¬ 
stances, where practically pure limestone is burned, we 
have u burned lime analyzing 95 to 98 per cent of cal¬ 
cium oxide. 1 do not think that we have proof that 
many of our soils would be improved by the use of 
magnesium oxide, and it seems to me that in many in¬ 
stances wc are buying a material of practically no bone- 
lit, and in some instances one that may possibly prove 
deleterious. b. d. van biuex. 
I have a farm on reclaimed marsh land, not very 
heavy muck, underlaid with clay. 1 think the land needs 
lime. I find by inquiry that I can lay down at mi- 
station pulverized limestone at $3.50 per ton. or fresh 
burned quicklime at $7 per ton, and refuse from fuller’s 
earth works at about $1.50 per ton. The fuller’s earth 
A WOMAN’S FEED HOPPER. Fin. 410. 
is the line powder screenings that remain in preparing 
tin- product for refining purposes, and contains about 40 
per cent lime. Which product would you advise me to 
use to correct acidity in the soil? .tno. w. JACKSON. 
Florida. 
If there is any doubt whether land needs lime or not 
test it. One method is to grow common garden beets. 
This plant makes a very poor growth on soil which 
needs lime. Try strips or plots of land—one limed 
and the other natural, and sow garden beets on each. 
If on the limed strip the beets are superior your ques¬ 
tion is answered. Or test the soil with litmus paper 
which you can buy at any drug store. Take a fair 
sample of the soil—sifting out roots and grass—and 
fill a cup about half full. Add enough pure water to 
make a paste. Put pieces of litmus paper down into 
this soft soil and keep them there two hours. If the 
part of the litmus paper covered by the soil turns from 
blue to red the soil is sour and needs lime. 
As to the kind of lime to use we must remember 
what “lime” is. The limestone as taken from the 
ground consists chiefly of carbonate of lime and car¬ 
bonic acid. Roughly speaking the limestone will con¬ 
tain about 56 pounds of lime to each 100 pounds. 
When this limestone is burned the carbonic acid is 
driven off and we have for each 100 pounds about.56 
pounds of “quicklime.” Left exposed to moisture this 
quicklime “slakes”—that is takes up enough water to 
make 74 pounds of slaked lime. If this is put on the 
soil it slowly changes until it is once more of about 
the same composition as the original limestone. Thus 
if we take the lumps of limestone and burn them, 
through the processes of slaking and weathering m 
the soil they finally return to the same limestone as at 
first, except that the lime is a powder instead of a 
lump of rock. This rock may be crushed or ground 
without burning and spread on the soil, and will be 
practically the same as the burned lime after the 
latter has been some time in the soil. That is why we 
asked the question “IVhy pay for the burning?” True, 
the burned lime is more active than the ground lime¬ 
stone but, except on very sour soils, the limestone will 
be active enough. 
It has been demonstrated at the Virginia Station 
that pound for pound the actual lime in ground lime¬ 
stone is equal to the slaked lime. That is, 100 pounds 
of limestone v r ill he equal to 56 pounds of burned lime. 
In the case stated from Florida if the ground limestone 
is of average analysis a ton will contain in round 
figures 1100 pounds of lime costing about .32 cent a 
pound. A ton of the “quicklime” or limestone fully 
burned should contain about 96 per cent of lime, or 
1920 pounds. At the price given this means .36 cent 
per pound, or practically the same as the other. In 
this case the ground limestone will be ready to spread 
at once, and will he more agreeable to handle. The 
“quicklime” will be in lumps, and must be “slaked" 
cither in bulk or put in small piles through the field 
where water will make it crumble to a powder. You 
may be quite sure that if you use 100 pounds of the 
limestone you will get about the same results as with 
56 pounds of burned lime. We have no experience 
with the refuse from fuller’s earth. 
VACCINATION AND PENNSYLANIA 
SCHOOLS. 
Will you answer the following inquiry: My chil¬ 
dren have never been vaccinated, ages run from seven 
ti 13 years. They always lived in a town of 1900 in¬ 
habitants until the present year, when J moved into a 
rural district and here the teacher insists on having 
them vaccinated. 1 am as a general rule a law-abiding 
citizen, but toward vaccination 1 am a bitter enemy. 
For six or eight years 1 have been reading articles 
written by noted doctors on the evils resulting from 
the practice of vaccination. Only last Winter a doctor 
from your city wrote a lengthy article against the prac¬ 
tice for one of the daily papers. What about the com¬ 
pulsory school law in this case? Has the teacher or 
directors a right to send my children home if 1 send 
them to the schoolhouse? Where do I stand if my 
children do not attend 60 per cent of the school term? 
Are the directors and teacher liable to prosecution lor 
failing to allow the children to attend 60 per cent of 
the school term? As I understand it, the vaccination 
law and the compulsory school law in this State con¬ 
flict. The school law is compulsory and the vaccina¬ 
tion law is not. I am liable to a fine or imprisonment 
if I fail to send my children 60 per cent of the term, 
yet they will send them home for the reason that they 
are not vaccinated. w. i. F. 
Union Co., Pa. 
R. N.-Y.—The Pennsylvania State Superintendent of 
Education informs us that after children have been 
excluded from school because not vaccinated, the 
parents cannot be fined for the non-attendance of such 
children under the State compulsory school law'. In 
1905 the Attorney General of Pennsylvania reviewed 
this subject. He decided that under the law a teaciier 
had the right to suspend the rights of an unvaccinated 
child. The teacher cannot compel any child to be 
vaccinated, but can keep him out of school until such 
vaccination has been done. After reviewing the laws, 
Hampton L. Carson, t'.e Attorney General, says: 
You cannot, under tin- Compulsory Education law, 
impose a fine upon parents or guardians for the non-attend¬ 
ance of pupils who have been excluded from i.ie public 
schools ou the ground that they do not present a certificate 
of successful vaccination. The point is squarely mlcd by 
the case of Commonwealth v. Smith. 9 District Reports, 
625, 23 County Courts Reports. 126. In that case the par¬ 
ent. was lined by a justice of tile peace for not sending bis 
child to school with a physician’s certificate, .fudge Fan¬ 
ning. after reviewing the McPherson opinion and sustaining 
it to the full effect of declaring that the tea suers were 
right in refusing to admit a child without a doctor’s cer¬ 
tificate, held that as there was nothing mandntoiy in the 
statute which compelled vaccination—the only effect of the 
law being to deprive lie child of school privileges until the 
law was complied with-—a matter of choice witn the par¬ 
ent. there being nothing obligatory as to vaccination, and 
as there was nothing in the statute which made it the duly 
of the parent to obtain, or the child to present, a certificate, 
and these words or their equivalent could not be irad into 
a penal statute, the judgment of a justice of the peace 
for the amount of a fine and costs could not be sustained. 
The judge said in effect: The parent discharged all his 
duties by sending the child to school : another statute re¬ 
quired the teacher to refuse admission in default of the 
certificate; the discharge of that duty by the teacner added 
nothing to the duties of the parent prescribed b,\ statute. 
The Compulsory Education Act by its terms did not make 
it obligatory on the parent to obtain a certificate, iiis sole 
duty was to send his child to school. lie did this. The 
teacher refused admission because of the absence ol a cer¬ 
tificate. The statute does not make vaccination compul¬ 
sory, nor does it require the child to produce the certificate. 
The question of the extent of the police power of the State 
did not arise. 
