jo re 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
November 19, 
Hope Farm Notes 
Balanced Rations.—I consider the 
following about the most remarkable 
question ever sent us: 
I would like to inquire from you as to 
the subject of properly feeding farm bands. 
Will you be kind enough to give me an 
idea of what class of food they can be fed, 
and the approximate quantity which they 
require? Do they require meat three times 
a day? If you can give me suggestions for 
a weekly menu I should appreciate it. 
People have asked many questions 
about feeding farm animals on a bal¬ 
anced ration, but when you group the 
hired man with them you get me off 
into deep water. Just now we are feed¬ 
ing our horses a grain ration of oats, 
rye and corn ground together. Now if 
. you had a slave or a serf under you I 
have no doubt you could feed him on 
this same mixture baked or boiled; make 
him eat it and keep him in good work¬ 
ing order. Very likely some of the very 
hired hands who demand meat and a 
“balanced ration” here had very poor 
fare at their old homes in Europe. I 
have known Italians and Huns when 
woiking by the day and boarding them¬ 
selves to keep in good order on rye 
bread, onions and cheese. When they 
came to work for wages and board 
(some one else paying for the board) 
they demanded meat and other food 
which they hardly tasted before. 
The hired man is a human being. 
Both the employer and the man should 
realize that fact—the first by providing 
a man’s food and the latter by eating it 
like a man. I never saw a good work¬ 
man yet who did not eat plenty of food, 
nor have I ever seen a “stuffer” who 
was worth much. The “staffer” simply 
lives to eat. He will eat about all you 
put on the table and then watch the 
clock until the next meal. Such men are 
like the hens in a flock that get to the 
dough trough first, fill up and then go 
on the roost to rest up for the next 
meal. Mr. Cosgrove, of Connecticut, has 
told me that when lie first went to his 
farm he hired one of these “stuffers” to 
cut wood. This man nearly ate them 
out of house and home, and barely cut 
wood enough to keep them warm. Any 
hired man who is worth his wages 
should be well fed or food that suits 
him. No man expec' to feed a horse 
or a cow on anyth' , he may happen to 
have in the barn .id then expect them 
to do work or ve milk as they should. 
The theory of a balanced ration for ani¬ 
mals is to give them what they need. 
In order to do this it is usually neces¬ 
sary also to give them what they like. 
Within reasonable limits- a hired man 
ought to be fed in much the same way. 
When you get a man in jail or in the 
army or navy you can feed him about 
what you like, but an American farm 
hand is neither a jail bird nor a soldier. 
When there are many of them it would 
pay to hire one of their own countrymen 
to take the contract for feeding them. 
They will usually be satisfied with po¬ 
tatoes, cabbage and other vegetables and 
the coarser cuts of meat. It is different 
where you have only one or two men. 
It will not pay to cook special food for 
them. 
As for telling what food to give them 
or how much, 1 could not lay down any 
rules. I have worked as hired man in 
the West, and always had what the rest 
of the family ate. It was not always 
what I called a “balanced ration,” but 
it was all they had. If anyone had 
planned to feed me as he would a horse 
or a cow there would have been a mutiny 
right away, for with all the vegetables 
and fruits and poultry and other meat 
that can be produced on a farm there is 
no sense in scrimping anyone or putting 
down any prison rules for feeding. Hav¬ 
ing been a hired man myself, I am in¬ 
clined to take his side in this matter— 
that is so long as he is decent and fair 
in what he asks for. If he got to be a 
hog I should not have him around if I 
could help it. Most of our laborers have 
been relatives or friends who came right 
in as members of the family. Other 
hired men do not eat with us, but they 
have just the same as we do—no less 
and no more. For example, we cook 
one piece of meat and cut it up fairly 
for all—the same with vegetables, fruit 
or anything else, and I want everyone 
to have food enough to carry them 
through a good working day. Here is 
a fair sample of what we have: For 
breakfast there is some kind of cereal, 
and our folks eat it freely. Then we 
have fried bacon or eggs in season, fried 
potatoes or some remnants of meat made 
into a hash or a stew, and, of course,, 
bread and butter. For dinner we have 
meat boiled, roasted or fried, with us¬ 
ually three kinds of vegetables. We are 
not very strong on puddings, pies or 
cake, or food which requires much hand 
work, but use fresh or preserved fruit 
instead. Our supper is a light meal, 
sometimes soup and boiled rice to fol¬ 
low, or a dish of macaroni and cheese, 
baked potatoes and cod fish, or scal¬ 
loped potatoes, or now and then a fish. 
Our people are fond of salads made of 
apples, celery and other vegetables and 
nuts. I can make a very satisfactory 
supper on a bowl of soup, rice and milk 
and a baked apple. On Saturday night 
we have baked beans and on Sunday 
morning fish balls. That is the way our 
people, including the hired man, are fed. 
We keep well and strong, have very 
little call for the doctor, and as 1 hope, 
start the children on plain and temperate 
habits of living. The scientific men have 
laid down some rules for human feeding 
showing how many ounces a man should 
eat per day. They are useful where one 
is feeding a gang of laborers, but of little 
value where you have one or two hired 
men. I would cut out the science in 
such a case, and substitute human nature. 
Feed the man good clean food that he 
likes to eat, and give him enough to 
satisfy him. If he eats so much that 
he does not give fair returns in labor 
get rid of the man. He is not the one 
you want, and you cannot make him 
such by cutting off his food. 
Farm Notes.— Champ, the white gob¬ 
bler, is an object of envy to the rest of 
the barnyard folks these days. Inside 
a warm, comfortable coop he is feasting 
on corn, mash, table scraps and cabbage. 
Of course his quarters are somewhat re¬ 
stricted and his family is barred out, but 
otherwise he has nothing to ask for. 
The other turkeys would now gladly 
change places with him, but Thanksgiv¬ 
ing will tell another story. For my 
daughter finally decided that Champ 
should go. One man thinks it somewhat 
childish to consult her feelings anyway. 
“What is the turkey for if not to eat?” 
he says. Here we run up against an old 
question. I have tried to interest the 
children in poultry, not entirely because 
they could make money out of it, but 
because I feel that association with liv¬ 
ing pets is a great help in the life of a 
child. If a child had so little affection' 
for its first pet or living animal, that 
there was eagerness to kill and eat it, I 
should be afraid for the future of that 
child. They will learn habits of business 
in time, but I like to have them show 
genuine affection for the first animals 
they own. And, again, I think the prop¬ 
erty rights of children should be re¬ 
spected. A tew years ago a man came to 
the farm and saw the Shetland pony, 
Peter. He said he would give $150 for 
the pony. Peter belonged to the little 
girl, who had raised him from a baby 
colt. I do not think he was worth that 
money, but the child could not bear to 
let him go. So I told this man why 
Peter was not for sale. You should 
have seen that man look at me. Here, 
to his eyes, was a lunatic—a man who 
would skip a chance to take in that 
cash to respect the property rights of a 
child. I couldn’t make him understand, 
but for my part I understood, as never 
before, why so many children lose re¬ 
spect for their parents, and why so many 
boys get off the farm as soon as they are 
able. h. w. c. 
QUALITY 
It is not the quantity but 
the inherent quality of 
SCOTT'S EMULSION 
that enables it to perform its 
mission. It is the one reme¬ 
dy universally known and 
used because of its ability to 
quickly restore lost strength, 
increase weight, and vitalize 
the nerve centers. 
There is vitality in every 
drop of 
Scott's Emulsion 
ALL DRUGGISTS 
Martin Fertilizers 
again, in 1910, far exceed expectations in sales and 
crop results. Farmers for 20 or more years using 
fertilizers say they never had as good crops as with 
Martin’s: oats over 00 bu., wheat over 30 bu. per 
acre with but 150 pounds. Agents are selling more 
MARTIN PURE ANIMAL BONE FERTILIZERS easier and in 
less time than any they ever sold. Haw materials 
used are of the best and chiefly from our own 7 large 
abattoirs and stockyards. We want active, re¬ 
sponsible agents at once. Farmers who have spare 
time during the winter can add to their incomes. 
Write NOW. Mention this paper. 
D. B. MARTIN CO., 706 Penn Bldg., Pittsburg', Pa. 
Are You Going to Build? 
% 
. . ~r 
A 
, —.. _jf 
••*£7 . . .. 
The U. S. Government 
has bought Neponset 
Paroid Roofing every year since 1898—of ten a million square 
feet at a time—for use at home, Alaska, Panama and the 
Philippines, the coldest as well as the hottest climates. 
Do you need stronger proof of the wearing qualities, economy, 
and the satisfaction that NEPONSET Paroid Roofing affords? 
Do you want proof nearer home? We will give it to you. We 
will tell you where you can see a NEPONSET Paroid Roof. See 
how it looks, learn how long it has been on, and hear what the 
owner has to say about it. 
IMEPON5ET PAROID Roofing 
is sold on proof, not promises. 
NEpdnseT PAROID Roofing for the 
roots and sides of barns, stables, poultry 
buildings. Slate in color. Costs less than 
shingles. Resists fire. 
For brooder houses, sheds and tempor¬ 
ary buildings that require low-cost roofing, 
usoNEPONSET RED-ROPE Roofing. Far 
superior in every respect to tarred felt. It 
has been the standard low-cost roofing for 
twenty-five years. 
NEPonsET PROSLATE Roofing, for 
roofs and sides of residences and all build¬ 
ings calling for artistic roofs and siding. 
Looks like shingles, wears like slate. 
NEPONSET WATERPROOF Building 
Paper for use under clapboards and shin¬ 
gles. in walls of residences, etc. Keeps out 
dampness, cold and draughts. Cuts fuel 
bill one-third every winter. 
Consult Our Building Counsel Department. Stondto^t 
dimensions and we will send you illustrated suggestions for different types of buildings, or give you 
expert advice on any building question. 
Bird Neponset dealers everywhere. If you do not know the one in your locality, ask us. 
F. W. BIRD & SON, 113 Neponset Street, East Walpole, Mass., U. S. A. 
Established 1795. Originators of Complete Ready Roofing and Waterproof Building Paper. 
NewYork, Washington, Chicago, Portland, Ore., San Francisco, Hamilton, Ont., Winnipeg, Mon treal,8t. John 
MILLS: East Walpole, Mass., Norwood, Mass., Phillipsdale, K. I., Hamilton, Ont., Pont Rouge, Quebec 
Have Ice and Keep Cool 
IT COSTS BUT LITTLE AM) IS A GREAT 
LUXURY—'WRITE FOR PAMPHLET AE, 
"BOW TO CUT ICE ” 
HUDSON, N. Y. ARLINGTON. MASS. 
123 NO. JEFFERSON STREET, CHICAGO, ILL 
A FARMER’S LETTER 
Subeve P. O. R. F. D. No. 1, Cbaigtos, 0. 
Your fence is O. K. and I am well 
satisfied with it. All my neighbors say 
it can not be beat for the money. 
O. L. C’AYHOE. 
FARMERS’ FENCE 
Fits Hill and Hollow Perfectly 
Easily put up and easily stretched to suit any con<1 itic 
Made of hard-drawn, spring-steel wire heavily and uni¬ 
formly galvanized against weather conditions. It 
will last a lifetime and will stand a tremendous 
strain as effectively ai a stone wall, because it is 
made with 
“The Knot That Cannot Slip” 
This not only prevents the galvanizing being marred at points of 
contact, but also insures a strong, durable, neat looking fence, free 
from uneven meshes. Has no protruding ends to snag animals. 
It is all made in our own factory from highest grade materials 
and every foot of it is covered by an unlimited guarantee. 
SAMPLE KNOT FREE 
AGENTS WANTED * 
Dealers and farmer agents 
wanted where wo are not repre¬ 
sented. Write quick for desira¬ 
ble territory. 
THE FARMERS’ FENCE-CO., Box 804 Bellefontaine, Ohio 
Together with our latest cata¬ 
log and name of nearest dealer. 
Write us today. Letters promptly 
answered. 
iROWN FENCES 
B l 
Strongest, most durable fence 
made. Heaviest, closest wires. Double 
( galvanized. Practically indestructible. Stock 
strong Chicken tight. 14 to 35c per rod. Sample free. Wepayfrt 
Th^Jrow^ence^JrtqreCo^ept^^ClevelandjbhioJ 
Ornamental Fence 
Cheaper and fur more durable than 
wood for Lawns, Churches, Ceme¬ 
teries, Public Grounds. Catalogue 
__| free. A»k For Bpedal Otter. 
THE WARD FENCE CO, Box443'Decatur Ind. 
TRADE MARK REGISTERED IN U. S. PATENT OFFICE. 
“As handsome a piece of Oats 
(11 acres) as ever raised. Used 
400 pounds per acre of Hub¬ 
bard’s BasE Oats and Top 
Dressing-. Seeded to grass, and 
it looks fine.” 
Stocker Bros. 
Caledonia Co., Vt. 
Solely Manufactured by 
THE ROGERS & HUBBARD CO., middletown, conn. 
Send for Free Almanac telling all about the Hubbard “Bone B-ase” Fertilizers 
