320 
'1'HiC KUHiAL, NEW-YOKKER 
February 27, 
If The Potato Crop Situation || 
I READ with considerable interest the 
article on the first page of the Feb. G 
issue in regard to the potato crop and the 
lack of proper methods of distributing 
not only potatoes, but practically all farm 
produce. You rightly said that this is a 
matter for the farmers themselves to take 
up and the sooner they take it up the 
better for their own interests, and the in¬ 
terests of the consuming public. Let us 
draw a few comparisons and see how they 
fit. 
We will say that a manufacturer turns 
out. a first-class manure spreader, and his 
salesman goes to the farmer and says: 
“Mr. Farmer, here is a manure spreader, 
the latest improved thing, the most up- 
to-date machine on the market. We sell 
it for .$100.” 
The farmer says: "Bosh. $100.” and 
after looking it over, says: "I’ll give you 
$50 for it.” “Fifty dollars!” cries the 
salesman, aghast, “why, man. it costs us 
$05 to make that spreader. What, do you 
think we are making manure spreaders to 
give away?” 
Says the farmer: “I don’t care what it 
costs you to make your spreader, T will 
give you $50 for it. and If you don’t want 
to accept my offer you can keep your 
spreader.” 
Does any such conversation take place? 
Not much! True, there may be some 
dickering over the price of a piece of 
machinery, but the manufacturer knows 
what he has got to get for that spreader; 
he has set his price and lie gets it. So it 
is with all the farming Implements, and 
fertilizers, and seeds, whether potatoes 
or oats, or wheat, corn, hay or any other 
seeds the farmer has to buy, or fruit trees, 
or berry bushes. The manufacturer, the 
seed grower, and the nurseryman have got 
their prices fixed, and the farmer has 
got to pay the price, or he doesn’t get the 
goods. 
Now the farmer has a few thousands 
of dollars invested in a farm, machinery 
and stock. This is his plant, just as 
much as the factory is the manufacturer’s 
plant. lie has invested in supplies, i. e., 
fertilizers and seeds, and has prepared 
his fields, planted his seeds, and worked 
hard for weeks and months to insure him¬ 
self a good crop, and has finally succeed¬ 
ed. and secured and harvested a splendid 
crop of potatoes, oats, wheat, or corn, and 
he goes to market his crop. lie says to 
the commission man or wholesaler: "IIow 
much are you giving for potatoes?” and 
the buyer says: “I’ll give you 30 cents a 
bushel for them.” The farmer says: 
“Thirty cents a bushel? Why, man, I 
can’t grow them for that; it costs me 35 
cents a bushel to raise them. I can’t 
raise potatoes to give away.” Buyer 
says he can’t help that, there is carload 
after carload of potatoes coming in and 
he can buy all he can handle for 30 
cents or less. The farmer has to sell for 
30 cents, or keep them in the hopes of 
getting a better price later, which he may. 
but more likely he will not. It is the 
same with practically all kinds of farm 
produce, whether it is food for cattle or 
food for the human race. 
The farmers do not fix the price which 
they shall receive for their product, but 
they have to accept what the buyer sees 
fit to offer, whether it means a profit to 
him or financial ruin. As is the case at ; 
the present time, when there is an abund¬ 
ance of foodstuffs in the country, unscrup¬ 
ulous speculators take advantage of the 
situation, buy up. and hold back, vast 
quantities of the food necessary for the 
sustenance of life, and dole it out at 
prices that are outrageous, and well nigh 
prohibitive to the workingman. 
The problem truly is one that is up to 
the farmers themselves to solve and they 
can very well take pattern after the 
trades unions, as far as organization goes. 
The carpenters and masons, plumbers, 
painters, iron workers, shoemakers and 
mill hands are organized the length and 
breadth of the land, regulating their hours 
of labor, and fixing the wages they shall 
receive. I am not saying a word for 
these trades unions, only using them as 
an illustration. Sometimes they get what 
they demand, and sometimes they get 
something they don’t want. Surely the 
farmers are intelligent enough to organ¬ 
ize for their own protection, and the pro¬ 
tection of the public, whose very exist¬ 
ence depends on these necessities, which 
the farmer alone produces. The two go 
together, the producer and the consumer 
are inseparable. The farmers, through 
their local Granges, county and State or¬ 
ganizations, can control the whole product 
of the staples of each State. The State 
organizations, working together, could 
control the supply of the whole country, 
and in years of abundance, and years of 
short crops, could regulate the price and 
control the distribution from North to 
South and from East to West, thereby 
insuring for themselves a fair return for 
their investment and labor, and placing 
the necessities of life at a fair price 
within reach of all tin* * people. Till some 
such plans are perfected and put in op¬ 
eration, the American people will continue 
to be fleeced by the speculators, who will 
take advantage of existing conditions to 
make immense fortunes for themselves at 
the cost of the producer and the con¬ 
sumer. T. KNOWLES. 
Removal of Brush from Roadside. 
W ILL you kindly let me know if 
there is a law.in New Jersey that 
compels a property owner to trim 
a township road that runs through or 
adjoining his property? If there is such 
a law tell me what you know ab ut it. 
New Jersey. N. b. f. 
There is such a law, which provides 
that the owner or occupant of land abut¬ 
ting on any highway in any township 
of the State shall during the month of 
September of each year cut and remove 
all brush, briers and weeds growing in 
or upon such portions of such highways 
as his lands abut upon, and in case of 
his failure to perform this service the 
township committee shall cause such 
work to be done, and the owner shall 
pay the expense with cost. This seems 
to be a good law if equally enforced, and 
should lie more generally complied with. 
Similar laws are found in most of the 
States. 
“Did your wife’s new dressmakers give 
her a good fit?” “They did. I had to 
call in two doctors.”—Baltimore Ameri¬ 
can. 
TILE DRAINAGE 
Often doubles the yield per acre. It makes 
your idle land produce good crops and iacreases 
the yield of your good land, 
The greatest expense of tile drainage is the 
cost of digging the trenches in the old way. 
This cost is reduced to the minimum by digging 
your ditches with the 
CYCLONE DITCHER 
which cuts down the cost of labor to almost 
nothing. Hundreds of farmers are using the 
Cyclone. Price is within your reach. Save 
its cost in digging your ditches—then ditch for 
your neighbors. Write for information and 
booklet today to 
BAKER-BARRON, Inc. 
221 West Broadway, New York 
Eastern and Export Sales Managers for 
The Jeschke Mfg. Co. 
This year, do the best disk¬ 
ing you have ever done — 
it will make you money. 
Cirt&w&V 
disk harrows make it your dealer toshow you 
soeasytodoffooddisk- Cutaway (Clark) 
ing that there is really disk harrows and 
no excuse for doing plows. If he does not 
any other kind —and sell them, write to us. 
there’s a style and size We ship direct where 
for every farmer. Ask we have no agent. 
Send for new catalog today 
THE CUTAWAY HARROW COMPANY 
Alaksr of the original CLARK disk harrow 9 and plows 
839 Main Street Higganum. Conn. 
CONCRETE FOR PERMANENCE” 
THE WHOLE NATION 
is celebrating this year at San Francisco, 
California, the opening of the Panama 
Canal to international commerce. In so 
doing they fittingly celebrate another 
victory for Atlas Portland Cement, for 
Atlas to the extent of over six million 
barrels was used in the construction of 
the Panama Canal. 
As for the cement yon use, you can get 
Atlas. Insist on it! Look carefully for 
this black trade mark with yellow letters 
on every bag of cement. 
/^PORTLAND ^ 
ATLAS 
^.CEHEHTAt/ 
The Atlas Portland Cement Co.. 30 Broad St„ NewYork 
CHICAGO MINNEAPOLIS PHILADELPHIA 
m Buckeye Cultivators are made in all 
different styles — Riding and Walking. 
The famous Buckeye Dodger Pivot Axle 
Riding Cultivator, the Buckeye “Easy” Riding 
Balanced Frame, the Buckeye Tongueless, the 
Buckeye Narrow Row, and many other kinds, are 
illustrated in the Buckeye Cultivator Catalogue. 
Send for a copy and get posted on the Buckeye Line. 
Every Cultivator Guaranteed to be and do all we claim 
After you are posted on the Buckeye, go to your local dealer 
and see the Cultivator that is suited to your^ 
particular work. The Buckeye is a wise buy.* a r. 
Buckeye Cultivators have the materials X a., 
in them that insure yca'rs of satisfactory f 
work and hard service. f V dfl 
Buckeye Cultivators do their work I 
right without killing man or team. gjBj 
A Buckeye Catalogue is yours for the asking, fW Hbj ijM MlR r S <6iBS 
THE AMERICAN SEEDING-MACHINE CO., Inc. |gJPl|l 
Springfield, Ohio 
DROUTH <*— 
Prepare your soil to retain moisture and produce big¬ 
ger crop yields, by making a perfect seed bed with the 
IMPERIAL PULVERIZER 
Packs the subsoil, and crushes, rolls, levels and pul¬ 
verizes the topsoil. Does the work of 3 implements- 
all in one trip. 
Q buying more implements —saves two 
OdVcS extra trips over the plowed ground. 
3 Garden Tools in 1 
DADlirD Weeder, Mule her and 
The DMIWVCifl Cultivator 
The only garden tool that successfully, in one op- 
aeration, tills weedt, and forms a complete soil 
,mulch to hold moisture. “Best Weed Killer 
Used.” A boy with a Barker beats 
ten men with hoes. Has shovels for 
. deeper cultivation. Selfad- 
' ^adjusting. Costs little. 
•pHE K Write for illustrated folder 
I and special Factory-to- User 
• offer. 
Barker Mfg. Co. 
’ Box 106, David City, Nebr. 
Send for 
Catalog 
—Free 
Corn Planter 
Plants corn, beans, peas, beets, etc.— any 
distance apart, any depth—In hills or drills. 
Plants uniform depth,puts on fertilizer (If 
desired) up to 800 lbs., covers over, marks 
for next row. Steel and malleable iron 
construction—that means lightest weight 
ana least cost of repairs. Driver can see 
seed dropping. Made for one or two rows. 
We make the Eureka Mulcher and Seeder 
—a m ulcher, smoothing harrow, cultivator, 
weeder and seeder— all inone. Prompt 
shipment from branch near 
you. Write today. 
EUREKA MOWER CO. 
Box 864, Utica, N. Y. 
7C Delivered at any Station 
* * East of Mississippi River. 
"Lucky Low Down” Dump Carl. 
Strong, substantial 
hard wood body. Steel 
wheel*, wide tires, steel 
axle. Body 12x40x6(1 ins. 
Capacity 1400 lbs. Hun¬ 
dreds in use to entire sat¬ 
isfaction of every pur¬ 
chaser. Saves its cost 
every year, 
Hobson & Co., Box 47, Easton, Pa 
When you write advertisers mention The 
R. N.-Y. and you’ll get a quick reply and a 
“square deal.” See guarantee editorial page. 
