182 
THE RURAL* NEW-YORKER 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER 
\ National Weekly Journul for Country and Suburban Homes 
Established 18R0 
[■ :biishod weekly by the Kami I’ublisblnp Company, 3113 We*t 30th Street, New Yorti 
Herbert W. Colling wood, President and Editor. 
John J. Djllon, Treasurer and General Manager. 
Wm. P. Dillon, Secretary. Mrs. E. T. Royle, Associate Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR 
To foreign countries In the Universal Postal Union, $2.04, equal to 8s. 6d., or 
8!£ marks, or 10k francs. Remit in money order, express 
order, personal check or bank draft. 
Entered at New York Post Office as Second Class Matter. 
Advertising rates, 7o cents per agate line—7 words. References required for 
advertisers unknown to us ; and cash must accompany transient orders. 
“A SQUARE DEAL” 
We believe that every advertisement in this paper is backed by a respon¬ 
sible jsjrson. We use every possible precaution and admit the advertising of 
reliable houses only. But. to make doubly sure, wo will make good any loss 
to paid subscribers sustained by trusting any deliberate swindler, Irrespon¬ 
sible advertisers or misleading advertisements in our columns, and any 
such swindler will be publicly exposed. We are also often called upon 
to adjust differences or mistakes between our subscribers and honest, 
responsible houses, whether advertisers or not. We willingly use our good 
offices to this end, but such cases should not be confused with dishonest 
transactions. We protect subscribers against rogues, but we will not be 
responsible for the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned by the courts. 
Notice of the complaint must be sent to us within one month of the time or 
the transaction, and to identify it, you should mention Tue Rural, Nkw- 
Yokkeu when writing the advertiser. 
Oo and bury your “grouchy It may not be rich 
in fertility or help malic up the potash shortage, 
but the best place for it is under ground. 
* 
Y OURS TRULY has subscribed for aud read many 
farm papers in the last 40 years. There are 
lots of good ones as such things grow, but Tiie R. 
N.-Y. is in a class by itself. I have passed my 
three-score year mark and must say you can teach 
old dogs new tricks if they are any dog at all. F. K. M. 
Vermont. 
When any “old dog” learns new tricks the teacher 
should not claim credit as being a great educator. 
He simply got hold of a very superior dog of good 
pedigree and broad liberal mind. When a man or 
a dog feeds on prejudice and gets into the narrow 
rut of believing that hope and progress should be 
laid aside with youth, no one can ever teach him. 
When a man accepts gray hair with philosophy and 
goes on his way younger in heart and wiser in head 
he is teachable and his “new tricks” are the best 
of all. 
* 
T HE fruit-judging team from the New Jersey 
Agricultural College won first place in the 
inter-collegiate fruit judging contest in West 
Virginia, January 8. This is the way the college 
teams scored: New Jersey, 91.8; Kentucky, 87.17; 
Penn State, 8G.22; Ohio, 85.91; West Virginia, 85.86; 
Maryland, 83.33; Delaware, 80.55. During Summer 
and Fall the papers are crowded with accounts of 
football and baseball games. The boy who can kick 
a football over a bar and incidentally knock the 
breath out of bis opponent is a popular hero. What 
he does is of no use to the world, but most heroes 
are made of very thin stuff. A skilled fruit judge 
does something worth while, helps organize a new 
industry, and makes the world better. We are glad 
to give the names of the young Jerseymen who won 
in this useful contest: Joseph R. French, Moores- 
town, N. J.; Ralph M. Hubbard, Allendale, N. J., 
and Lawrence G. Gillam, Mount Holly, N. J. 
* 
E NCLOSED find one dollar for renewal of my sub¬ 
scription to your valuable paper. At this place 
it takes five bushels of potatoes to get the dollar 
and one peck to send it. Two of my neighbors 
have figured that a bushel of potatoes costs 35 cents 
to raise; adding five cents to haul to market makes a 
total of 40 cents. Our Government wants Michigan to 
raise 10,000,000 more bushels per year. If the potato 
growers of Michigan follow the advice given and have 
to sell at the present price it will mean a loss of $2,- 
000.000 on the increase to the growers. Isn’t it about 
time we get something for our labor? F. AI. M. 
Michigan. 
You are right—it is. With 10,000,000 more bushels 
the railroads and the handlers would get more out 
of it, while under present conditions the consumers 
would still be held up. The 5% bushels which are 
needed to send your dollar will cost the consumers 
right on the street where The R. N.-Y. is printed 
at least $7, and probably more, since purchases are 
made in small quantities. We think the item of 
35 cents cost on a bushel of potatoes would not 
give the farmer hired man’s wages. Last week we 
invited the two blades of grass men to tell us all 
about it. Now we renew the invitation. In all the 
large cities throughout the country thousands of 
people are being fed by charitable organizations. 
The food is usually bread—at present prices for 
wheat and flour an expensive food. Why not use 
potatoes as part of this food? They could be served 
in many ways. They are nourishing and “filling,” 
and this use would help take care of the present 
crop. 
❖ 
L AST week speculators forced the price of wheat 
to $1.50 a bushel in Chicago. Flour has gone 
up in price, and city people as well as a large 
proportion of American farmers must pay more for 
their bread. At the very time that wheat prices 
are soaring, millions of bushels of potatoes lie in 
storage—dead so far as a living price is concerned. 
Think of it—bread going out of reach of ordinary 
consumers, while this nourishing food in potato stor¬ 
age can hardly be given away! All the advertising 
machinery of official agriculture should be started 
at once to create a demand for potatoes. This 
means cheap food for the consumers and salvation 
for the growers. Come now—get right into the Po¬ 
tato Consumers’ League, and help out. Mine is a 
baked potato with butter and salt. “To be or not 
to be!” said Hamlet—meditating suicide. Tuber or 
not tuber, say we who would give life to a worthy 
industry. 
* 
I N trying to break away from cotton growing the 
Southern farmers are in danger of rushing into 
speculative crops for which they are not fitted. 
In a year like this truck crops or potatoes would 
be worse than cotton. Some of these farmers think 
they can get the seed dealers, the fertilizer and com¬ 
mission men, to finance them and take the crop in 
payment. Let them consider the present condition 
of the potato market. Any scheme greatly to enlarge 
the early planted Southern crop would mean ruin. 
The North is full of potatoes held in storage, and 
they will be put on the market to compete with 
the Southern crop. If the latter is very heavy both 
new and old potatoes will suffer and ruinous prices 
will prevail. It will be a suicidal policy for cotton 
farmers to rush into potato growing this year. Far 
better cut the cotton down one-half and raise grain 
and forage for stock. Some parts of the South are 
even now in good financial condition. They are 
usually places where dairying and beef-making have 
become well established. Such a section is found 
in Northeastern Mississippi. From Starkville alone 
over 100 cars of beef cattle have been shipped, as 
well as great droves of dairy cows. 
* 
L AST year we gave some account of the struggle 
at Tyrone, Pa., over the market situation. 
The dealers started in to prevent farmers from 
peddling their goods on the street without a license. 
The council established a curb market and passed 
an ordinance prohibiting farmers from selling on 
the street during the hours established for this mar¬ 
ket. A number of farmers questioned the right of 
the borough to regulate their business, and they 
disregarded the ordinance and sold on the street. 
They were arrested and the cases recently came 
up for trial. The local judge decided against the 
farmers. They depended on a law passed in 1903, 
which made it unlawful to assess a license fee on 
farmers who sell their own produce. The judge 
seems to have taken the position that this law 
would not operate -where the borough provided a 
curb market so that farmers could sell direct to 
consumers! We do not believe this view of it will 
stand. However, we would waste no time making 
faces at the judge, but let farmers all over the 
State get together and see that a law is passed 
which protects their market rights. 
•v 
T HROUGHOUT the Middle West a new course 
of instruction is being taken up in high 
schools. Not only are approved text books 
used but magazines and farm papers are used in the 
class room. Here is a report from Indiana: 
“Our high school subscribes to a national stock 
breeders’ weekly, to a great dairy weekly and a promi¬ 
nent Western (plains county) general farm paper; 
besides, I always take my R. N.-Y. to the school, where 
it is left for two weeks and read—both by the boys in 
my classes and the domestic science girls.” 
These papers are read. The questions they bring 
up are discussed in the class. The articles are 
analyzed and statements are picked apart and 
tested. Out of this will come a system of correspond¬ 
ence with young men and women in other States 
whose experience or desires are given in the farm 
papers. When you come to consider it carefully you 
can hardly think of a more sensible way of teach¬ 
ing young men and women who are to remain in 
the country. We know that The R. N.-Y. is used 
as a text book in several schools in New York and 
New Jersey. The thought that this is so makes us 
more careful about what we print. 
* 
I WAS particularly interested in the comment of 
George E. Howell of Orange County, N. Y., on 
page 105, under the heading “Big Questions for 
Farmers.” He closed his comments by stating: 
“There has been a farm bureau started in Orange 
County and it is hoped that some of these things will 
be remedied.” 
The farm bureaus are local enterprises more than 
anything else. In New York State they are controlled 
and administered by executive committees of farmers, 
elected by the associations. The work which the farm 
bureaus do, is or ought to be what farmers want these 
bureaus to do. The farm bureaus should tackle any 
big problems concerning the farming of the county, 
which they are capable of solving. If the farm bureau 
in any county is a failure, it may be just as much the 
fault of the association or committee controlling the 
work as the manager himself. The farmers of the 
county should see that the problems which they would 
February G. 
like to have worked up are brought to the attention of 
the executive committee of the farm bureau. This com¬ 
mittee should then draw up a plan in co-operation with 
the central office, which if carried out, will help to 
bring about the solution of the problem. An instru¬ 
ment for concerted action upon some of these prob¬ 
lems mentioned by Mr. Howell has been established in 
28 counties in New York State, and each of these is 
aided in its work by the State and Federal Government 
to the extent of $1,200 to $1,500. It is up to the 
farmers to see to it that bureaus do what they are in¬ 
tended to do. M. C. BURRITT, 
State Director of Farm Bureaus. 
We want to make this point just as clear as we 
can. The object of the farm bureau is to give the 
farmers of a county the chance to help themselves. 
The Government does not come and say: “You sit 
still and we will carry your burdens for you!” No 
one who ever expects that farming may remain a 
strong and independent business wants to be helped 
that way. The farm bureau comes and says “Here 
is your machinery. You must provide the motive 
power, and when you get it going we will connect 
it with any job you say!” This idea must be made 
clear if the farm bureau is ever to amount to any¬ 
thing more than a bureau drawer. It is your ma¬ 
chine and you must work it. What do you want it 
to do? 
* 
O il, we Yanks can do the job when we really got 
going! England, Australia and the Isles of th 
Sea must take a back seat soon. 
A back seat on what? Why, this enthusiastic 
friend is talking about poultry. An American has 
taken a Leghorn cockerel of the Barron strain and 
developed him into a 7*4-pound bird. He has dreams 
of a big Leghorn with the laying qualities retained 
and improved! Things seem to be moving lively in 
the chicken business. Tom Barron came over anil 
started things. Now comes Ed. Cam crowding in 
with a bunch of Wyandottes that are laying rings 
around the rest. We think that Barron and Cam 
are doing a great service to American poultrymen 
by stimulating interest in egg production and or¬ 
ganized utility breeding. Our breeders of Jersey. 
Ayrshire and Shorthorn cattle have now produced 
more practical specimens of these breeds than can 
be found on the other side. It will be the same 
with poultry when our utility breeders get fairly 
going. No one seems to pay much attention to the 
ravings of the fanciers any more. People want eggs. 
They would prefer a handsome looking bird if it will 
excel at egg production, but if the fanciers pass 
up their opportunity—it will never come to them 
a gain. 
* 
O N Jan. 26, 1915, two men with clear voices and 
good ears, one in New York, the other in San 
Francisco, talked direct over the telephone! 
The sound of the human voice was carried over 
3,000 miles and was distinctly heard. The writer 
of this can well remember the first crude experi¬ 
ments with a short telephone line between Boston 
and Cambridge, Mass. Alexander Graham Bell was 
then a rather shabby inventor with a great unde¬ 
veloped idea which the world regarded rather coldly. 
After much shouting and adjusting, the voice was 
feebly carried over the few miles of wire, but most 
people regarded it as an interesting experiment 
without great commercial importance. Today if tin 1 
telephone were suddenly withdrawn from use mod¬ 
ern business would be well nigh paralyzed. And 
the half dozen miles have stretched away to 3,000! 
The young inventor, believing to the soul in his ideal, 
could not be discouraged or put down. He made 
himself necessary to the world, and it came to him. 
There is a great thought in this for you and me— 
this man and that man. We cannot hope to aval 
Bell, yet life is full of opportunities to stand stead¬ 
fast and true to ideals. They may seem small and 
insignificant, but if they are true and useful we can 
by loyal service make the world come nearer to 
them. 
BREVITIES. 
Laziness appears to be a contagious disease. 
Why do you call it a cast-iron e-reement? You 
can smash cast iron. Make it wrought iron. 
Tiie back-to-the-lander has one certain thing to look- 
forward to. Ills income for the first few years will be 
uncertain ! 
We all have our troubles. The Japanese peanut 
growers are alarmed because American peanut buyers 
have withdrawn. 
The wet land grass is Red-top. Timothy also will 
stand considerable water around its feet at times. The 
wet spot clover is Alsike. 
“A rolling stone gathers no moss.” My boy wants 
to know what moss is good for anyway. A stone is 
not natural without it. 
The potash crop is mighty short, and many a farmer 
will be caught. We’d print his words with fewer dashes 
if he would save all his wood ashes. 
To “start the hair” on an old horse in Spring after 
a dull season linseed meal or stock molasses is good. 
We feed carrots regularly and have little trouble. 
