3 120 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
December 3, 
Hope Farm Notes 
I have a number of questions which 
are somewhat in line with what we are 
tiying to do at Hope Farm: 
I read in a recent issue “What a mistake 
a farmer makes by letting cultivated ground 
lie bare through the Winter.” This 
Fall there was an unusual quantity of 
leaves. I buried as many leaves as I could 
in every furrow, and my garden is ‘“bare.” 
Will not the leaves buried to rot atone for 
the nakedness, or what shall 1 dress it 
with? N. s. p. 
Long Island. 
It seems necessary to go over this 
again and again. A man would make a 
mistake if he left his corn all shelled and 
exposed where the neighbor’s chickens 
could come and get it No argument 
would be needed to prove that, because 
you could see the corn disappear. You 
cannot see the loss which occurs in bare 
ground until the next crop fails, and then 
you may put the blame on something else. 
Nitrogen, which is the most valuable 
form of fertilizer, is held in the soil 
in the form of organic matter. This 
may be manure, roots, stalks and stems 
of plants, or anything else which has 
made growth. When the conditions are 
right—that is, when the soil is warm 
and moist and well aired these organic 
forms of manure bhcak up or ferment, 
and nitrates may be formed. Tlv-se 
nitrates are soluble in water, and plants 
can take them up and use them. The 
organic nitrogen will not be washed away 
by rain, but the nitrates, being soluble, 
will be washed out if there are no liv¬ 
ing plants on hand to use them. On 
bare ground these nitrates will be lost 
as surely as the corn would be if left ex¬ 
posed to the chickens. The greatest loss 
of these nitrates occurs during Fall and 
early Winter—before the ground freezes 
solid, for they arc usually made most 
freely in late Summer, when the soil is 
often damp and hot. This is the reason 
we try to have our fields covered with 
some living crop, even though it may be 
nothing but rye. It will not help to cover 
the garden with leaves or manure, for 
they would only provide more nitrates 
with nothing to hold them. A living 
crop is the polkeman to hold these ni¬ 
trates. 
I have a neighbor who is cracked on 
ginseng. Would a thousand dollars and a 
little patience be a safe investment? Would 
it be successful to grow away from the 
shade of woods? c. a. n. 
Pennsylvania. 
It will be hard to mend a man who is 
“cracked on ginseng.” Wc should hesi¬ 
tate about tackling the job. A few peo¬ 
ple have made money on this crop, but 
the great majority who tried it have seen 
the crack widen to an impassable gulf 
between their hands and their money. 
At any rate ginseng culture, to my mind, 
is pretty close to a windbag proposition. 
The root has little medical value, 
and any profitable trade in it is 
based upon the superstitions of the 
Chinese. If a man were rich the invest¬ 
ment of $1,000 might prove a cheap 
course in wisdom. My advice to a 
neighbor would be to put the money 
into a savings bank, a bond and mort¬ 
gage, or some other sound security, and 
wait in patience, sure of small income. 
Can I get full returns from lime by 
spreading it on the surface of meadows or 
grass lands without working it into the 
soil? J. p. K. 
No—not from our experience here. 
We have tried this surface spreading 
of lime, but never got the results which 
follow when the lime is worked into the 
soil. Prof. F. V. Coville has been con¬ 
ducting some remarkable experiments in 
blueberry culture which show up this 
point The blueberry thrives in an acid 
soil, and is built especially for growing 
where the soil is sour. Whenever lime 
is used so as to sweeten the soil the 
blueberry fails. In one case blueberry 
plants were started in pots and watered 
for seven months with nothing but lime- 
water. It was figured that the equiva¬ 
lent of nearly 25 tons of lime to the 
acre was put into this soil, and yet these 
acid plants kept on growing. An ex¬ 
amination showed that practically all 
this great amount of lime had been left 
in the upper few inches of soil. It had 
not penetrated into the lower part of the 
pot, but had formed a sort of shell at 
the top, under which the soil was still 
sour, so that the blueberries grew in it. 
I have noticed much the same thing in 
my meadows, where we spread the lime 
on the sod and leave it. In some soil 
that lime seems to be held at the sur¬ 
face as a sort of shell The surface 
roots are helped, but the deep-rooted 
clover or Alfalfa gets little benefit. 
That is why I claim that the best way 
to apply lime is to put it on the plowed 
furrows and harrow it in. If you plow 
it under you put it down too far. 
A Massachusetts woman gives me this 
hard one, which I pass on to the wise 
ones: 
Suppose you knew nothing and were go¬ 
ing on to a farm April 1. Tou had land 
for a vegetable garden and hens. What 
would you do in New Hampshire? Would 
you buy 10 -day-old chicks and raise broilers 
for the fashionable market nearby? I wish 
your various people would tell me bow 
they would go to work to get a living un¬ 
der the above circumstances? E. h. 
If I knew nothing I should regard 
April 1 as a very appropriate season 
for taking a farm in the hope of mak¬ 
ing a living. I should certainly start 
a good garden as early in the season as 
possible, and stock up with a fair outfit 
of laying hens. I would buy some of 
the baby chicks and also plan to hatch 
some of my own stock. The baby cl licks 
ought to give early broilers and the 
home-hatched come on later to keep up 
the supply. I have had little experience 
in the baby chick business, and this side 
of the question must be turned over to 
people who have handled them. I would 
like to know what such hen men would 
do in order to make a living from the 
start. 
Here is another man who wants to 
start an anti-cat society: 
Here is a subject I would like to have 
discussed through The U. N.-Y., the com¬ 
mon house cat, the destroyer of more song 
birds than any domesticated animal. It is 
one of the greatest conveyors of disease, 
destroys enough young game birds to give 
the boys who shoot many happy afternoons, 
and an enjoyable mess to the family and 
neighbors frequently. It multiplies (like a 
pestilence) to be scattered broadcast and 
not killed, for fear of the nine lives, bad 
luck and other superstitions. This subject 
is of vital importance to all lovers of our 
feathered friends. K. L. s. 
We have had this subject up before. 
The discussion always leaves the anti¬ 
cat men stronger for extermination than 
ever before, while the friends of the 
cat become stronger champions. We 
may grant that what R. L. S. says is 
true, but a well-trained cat is the best 
protection against rats and mice that 
the ordinary household can have, and 
it is a fact that some people regard a 
fat and sleek cat as a great companion 
and pet. Well-bred Angora cats sell for 
$500 or more. We have several cats at 
Hope Farm, and I think they pay tlieir 
way. We do not permit them to come 
into the house. To show how this cat 
question mixes things up one man has 
written that the editor of The R. N.-Y.' 
is not a human being, because he prints 
advice about treating or curing sick 
cats and dogs. AH such should be killed. 
On the other hand, a woman says it is 
inhuman conduct to keep thei Hope 
Farm cats out of the house. Now how 
far do you think a discussion of the 
cat between these parties would ever 
get? 
By the time this is read the Hope 
Farmers will be on the ocean on their 
way to Florida. The Hope Farm man 
and Merrill are still up near the frost, 
but the rest sailed out with as firm hope 
as the old timers who expected to find 
the region of perpetual youth. They 
will open up their house and start the 
school at once. A wholesale lot of 
groceries has gone ahead, the boy will 
have fuel ready and within a few hours 
after they land, the Winter campaign 
will begin. The boy’s garden is com¬ 
ing on. The strawberries seem to be 
prepared to prove what was claimed for 
them. We bought a number of plants 
in the South to compare with our own 
potted plants. Our folks have already 
booked some boarders, and the school 
will be swelled to fair proportions by 
the nearby children. It will be a busy 
Winter. We shall see how it comes out. 
Why Bud Peaches? —Here is another: 
About 20 years ago T planted a peach 
pit for my little girl near an ash barrel, 
and up to nine years ago when I moved 
that tree bore the largest crop of large, 
luscious peaches, and was 25 feet high. 
If a man did not care for any particular 
variety, only peaches, what is the use of 
budding, etc.? Why do we bud anyhow? 
Perhaps the Hope Farm man can tell me 
about this. f. o. b. 
Massachusetts. 
All I can say is that you were fa¬ 
vored by nature and you ought to appre¬ 
ciate it. The chances are that if you 
had planted 100 more pits $0 of them 
would be inferior to other sorts. We 
have planted many pits, only to raise 
a lot of small and inferior clings. It is 
true that our standard improved va¬ 
rieties are seedlings, but only a very 
small proportion are improvements. The 
object of budding is to make sure of 
what we are planting. The bud will 
grow true while the pit will not Sup¬ 
pose, for example, we want Elberta and 
Carman peaches. How could we ever 
get them unless buds from those va¬ 
rieties were taken? Plant a pit from an 
Elberta. Bud tlie tree with a true El¬ 
berta bud and let one of the natural 
buds develop. Compare the two peaches 
and you will be fully answered, h. w. c. 
" lllariin 
HEW M0DSL Rgpgatfng 
The gun to use for rab¬ 
bits, squirrels, hawks, 
crows and all small 
game. 
It handles all .22 short cartridges and C.B. caps; is an excellent gun 
for small game and target work up to 50 yards. You quickly save 
the price of your rifle in the reduced cost of ammunition. It conforms to the 
high quality standard of all 77Zar//ji repeaters yet sells at a surprisingly low price. 
The solid-top and side ejection are always a protection, keep shells, powder 
and gases from your face, allow instant repeat shots. Quick take-down construction— 
easily cleaned—takes little space and brings greatest pleasure at small expense. 
Learn more about the full 777/7/7/” hoe. Send 3 C~0. 
nostasrc for the 136 v^//7ar7/i catalog, 157 Willow Street New Haven. Conn. 
olds 
Keeping out the cold and keeping! 
in the bodily heat is only the begin-. 
ning of the good work of Wright’s] 
Health Underwear. It stands guard] 
over the sensitive skin, preventing 
that sudden closingof the pores which 
causes colds, coughs and congestion 
in various parts of the body. 
Wrigilt’s Health Underwear, made 
by a recent process of selected high 
grade wool, is the best on the market. 
Yet it is in reach of people of moderate 
means. Not a fad nor a gimcrack. 
Just a sensible" loop-knit” woolen 
garment, lined with the fleece of com¬ 
fort. Union suits and 2-piecegarments. 
"Dressing for Health” booklet free. 
WRIGHT'S HEALTH UNDERWEAR COMPANT 
75 Franklin St., New York. 
Cleaner Barns 
at half the cost 
If you are still carting the litter from 
your barns in a. barrow, you are los¬ 
ing money. Equip your barns with a Star 
Litter Carrier system and you will have 
cleaner barns and save half the cost of the 
cleaning. The equipment will pay for itself, 
very soon,in timeandlaborsaved. Itrelieves 
you of the worst half of the dirtiest job on 
thefarm and makes themanuremore valuable. 
STAR 
Litter 
Carrier 
Even the smallest farm can make a big saving’. 
Get the figures for your barn to-day. Send us a 
pencil sketch of the ground floor plan of your 
barn, giving length, breadtli and distance to 
dump, and we will give you by return mail the 
exact cost of the equipment you need. We will 
also send you our illustrated catalogue, No. 3 b. 
Write to-day—a postal will do. 
Bunt, Helm, Ferris & Co., 5 5 Hunt St., Harvard, III, 
Manufacturers for 25 years of labor 
aud money saving baru.equipments. 
|A LEATHER TOP 
RUBBER SHOE 
For Farmers, Lumbermen and Sportsmen. 
Yon can’t find a better 
protection from snow and 
wet Ilian the Manitoba 
Boft leather top rubber' 
•hoe. After a trial you 
Will never be satis ilea to 
wear heavy felt boots. 
They are neat, close fit¬ 
ting and Unfit in weight. 
Made in all heights from 
S to 16 inches. Will out¬ 
wear any high rubber 
Blioeorpac tiiat you ever 
ea-.v. The Top is otaeolt, 
aliahle, tlurableand pract- 
cally waterproof leather 
known as Special Chrome. 
Beware of cheap 
imitations made of 
split leather. Such 
shoes will wet 
through quickly. 
T2:e tops are fitted 
with Copper Klon¬ 
dike Eyelets and Rawhide Laces. 
The Over is made of the purest Rubber. There 
are two distinct vamps of heavy duck with layers oi 
rubber between, fastened together under great 
pressure. ..... _ 
The Sole is made to stand the hardest wear. The 
Manitoba is an honest niado Shoe that will give hon¬ 
est wear, because the right kind of material and 
workmanship is pot into it- 
When you want any hieh grade, 
aati*iactory rubber boot or ulioe iif*k 
for the Kcncon Falls Brand, made 
by a eompany that is '“not la a 
trust.” Illustrated Booklet free. 
The Beacon Falls Rubber Shoe Co. 
New York Chicago Poston 
Trade Mark 
Look for tho 
Cross 
VICTOR POWER MULLS 
Successfully grind ear corn, shelled 
corn, oats, rye. barley and any kind 
of small grains. Grind your own 
feed for your stock during odd hours 
and get all the food value from 
the grain. A Victor will soon pay 
for itself. Will notcliokoorclog. 
Simple and durable in construc¬ 
tion and easy to operate. 
Most Perfect Mill Built 
v Write for Catalog. All styles and 
* sizes. Sweep, Geared and Power 
Wo build the best Safety Steel Saw 
Machine made. All fully guaranteed. Write to-day. 
VICTOR FEED MILL CO., Box 1SD Springfield, Chlo 
SAVE BOG ROONEY ON 
Quaker City 
FEED MILLS 
Send your name 
for our Dig Book 
and then buy the 
World's Standard 
Grinder of 11 years’ 
success. We sell it this 
season at low factory 
price, direct to 
No extra c h a r g 
r.ew improvements. Grinds 
soft, wet or dry ear corn, 
shelled corn, all grains, sepa¬ 
rate or mixed. Grinds 
medium or tho finest table 
and also grinds husks as well as 
cobs and corn. Shipped direct to you 
FREDGHT PAID 
No Deposst—Free Trial 
Don’trlslc your money on claims. Let us send 
you a Quaker City Mill wlthoutcash or deposit 
in advance and all freight paid. Then you can 
see that it does best work or you ship it right 
back at our expense. You don’t tako a single risk. 
WRITE TODAY FOR BOOK, prices and guar¬ 
antee. One of our mills will .just meet your needs 
and fit your pocketbook. You’ll find 
A StySe and Price for Yeu 
No matter what you need. But whichever Quaker 
City Mill you choose, it must satisfy you or you 
need not keep it. Now send a postul and ask for 
our Feed Mill Catalog. Address 
A. G. STRAUB & COMPANY 
818? Filbert Street Philadelphia, Pa. 
or The Machinery Warehouse 
3707 S. Ashland Ave. Chicago, Illinois 
COOK VOUR FEED and SAVE 
, ■ Hait tne Cost— with the 
PROFIT FARM BOILER 
With Dumping Caldron. Empties 
its kettlein one minute. The simplest 
and best arrangement for cooking 
food for stock. A iso make Dairy and 
Laundry Stoves, Water and 
Steam Jacket Kettles, llog 
Scalders, Caldrons,etc. E^“Send 
for particulars and ask for circular J 
L>. li. SbjEitliY & CO., Batavia, Id. 
RHODES DOUBLE CUT 
PRUNING ~lir 1 F IIIIII'IIIU 
RHODES MFG. CO., ^ 
GRAND RAPIDS, H1CH, 
‘Pal’d June 2, 1903 
Dept. 
UTHE only 
1 pruner 
made that cuts 
from both sides of 
the limb and does not 
bruise the bark. Made in 
all styles and sizes. We 
pay Express charges 
on all orders. 
Write for 
circular and 
prices. 
