1450 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
December 4. 1915. 
PUBLISHER’S DESK 
A friend has inquired about the rup¬ 
ture cure advertised by II. H. De Pew. 
M. D., of Des Moines, Iowa. I have 
heard of some who have been cured by 
this method of “paraffin injection - ’ treat¬ 
ment, but as Dr. I)e Pew’s charge is .$100 
I want to find out the truth. Can you 
tell me how this doctor stands, and if the 
treatment is harmless to the system? 
Minnesota. H. J. B. 
We did not have any definite knowledge 
of this method and went to the American 
Medical Association of Chicago, and their 
report is as follows: 
It is. we believe, the general consensus 
of medical and surgical opinion that the 
paraffin treatment of hernia is unreliable, 
useless and likely to do harm. 
Our information and belief is that the 
only safe course to pursue in trouble of 
this kind is to consult a reputable physi¬ 
cian and follow his advice. The many so- 
called appliances and nostrums of one 
kind and another advertised for the cure 
of rupture, often cause greater trouble 
without correcting the difficulty. 
I read with interest the experience of G. 
G. B. with the so-called International Au¬ 
tomobile League of Buffalo, as published 
in this week’s issue of THE Rubai. New- 
Yobker. I had an equally unsatisfactory 
experience with the company, and along 
precisely the same lines. The company 
lias a cleverly worded contract that pro¬ 
vides that in case notice is not sent to 
them 60 days in advance of the termina¬ 
tion of the period of “membership,” that 
another year can he added and so on with¬ 
out end. till they run up a bill of $50 or 
$100, when they threaten to sue. and I 
suppose they frequently scare their “mem¬ 
bers” into paying. I also found that in 
dealing with them I could save nothing 
below the prices I could buy outside of 
their association, so that I lost my $10 
of membership fee and got hooked as a 
sucker in their attempt to make me pay 
beyond my year’s membership. They 
know my address any time they want ro 
sue me, but they haven’t sued, and I 
guess they don’t sue very much, but de¬ 
pend chiefly on “scaring them.” B. E. w. 
New York. 
The evidence is accumulating in sup¬ 
port of our contentions from the time this 
International Automobile League was 
first organized, that this organization had 
no facilities that would enable them to 
sell automobile tires and other accessories 
to the public at any less price than the 
same grade of goods could be bought in 
the trade generally. Those who .pay the 
$10 membership fee on the representa¬ 
tions that they would be able to save a 
large amount on their purchases, have, as 
far as our reports go, been universally 
disappointed. We very seriously doubt 
that the clause in the membership con¬ 
tract, providing that the member is re¬ 
quired to give 60 days’ notice in advance 
of the termination of the membership in 
order to withdraw, will hold good in any 
court, but this provision in the contract 
gives the International Automobile 
League the club by which to browbeat 
previous members into paying unreason¬ 
able claims rather than go to the annoy¬ 
ance and expense of a lawsuit. 
John T. Hall or John T. Newcome, as 
he was also known, president of the Hall 
Music Publishing Company, was sen¬ 
tenced November 10 to two years in the 
Atlanta Penitentiary for fraudulent use 
of the mails. Mr. Ilall asked remittances 
of $00 and $35 for publishing songs for 
writers, but in many cases there were no 
returns, and some parties testified they 
had received a few cents in royalties. 
There were 66 witnesses to testify against 
him out of some 1,500 who had lost 
through Hall’s methods. Many had been 
contestants in a lyric contest, which 
netted Hall more than $15,000, but the 
prizes which were promised were never 
awarded, according to the testimony in the 
trial. The judge denounced the scheme 
as the most flagrant swindle that had ever 
come under his observation, and when 
Hall’s attorney moved that the verdict be 
set aside and a new trial granted, the 
judge promptly denied the motions. 
This verdict will doubtless not meet 
with the approval of Mr. J. Victor 
Green, head of the Knickerbocker Har¬ 
mony Studios, 13 West 42nd Street, who 
is now awaiting trial on a charge of hav¬ 
ing used the mails to defraud. It is al¬ 
leged that Hall and Green were in a con¬ 
spiracy to defraud would-be poets. Hall 
claimed that it would be impossible to 
judge the merits of the lyrics sent in for 
the contest unless they were set to music, 
and for this purpose they were turned 
over to Mr. Green of the Knickerbocker 
Harmony Studio, and a fee of $10 
charged. This the Government claims 
amounted to a scheme to defraud, and 
Mr. Green will be brought to trial now 
shortly. Not long ago we reported the 
arrest and conviction of Robert B. Kel¬ 
logg. publisher, who operated under simi¬ 
lar lines as the Kellogg Music Company, 
and was sentenced to 13 months in the 
Atlanta Penitentiary. These musical mail 
swindles are meeting their just reward, 
and the history should be added to the 
collection in “Hindsights.” 
I beg to congratulate you on your vic¬ 
tory as recorded on page 1338. It is only 
one of the great things you are doing for 
“us farmers.” I bought a place through 
Strout and became separated from 500 
good “In God we trust” dollars and an 
artistic touch was added to the transac¬ 
tion by beating me out of the stock, crops 
and tools, and I can assure you I have 
been made to pay for my stupidity every 
day I have been on this farm. 
I have a good money-making farm 
which I like, but I am working under a 
great handicap. I would also add your 
paper carries the only advertisements 
that I consider seriously. I saw the 
Strout advertisement in the - 
-, and from that day to 
this there is not one line of advertisement 
in their paper I would believe or one ar¬ 
ticle I would purchase. I have made it 
a rule unless a firm advertises in your 
paper I will not deal with them. The 
average publisher to-day seems to forget 
his duty to his subscribers is to see the 
advertisements are honest and not fakes. 
Experience is a dear school and you have 
got to have a lot of money to get a degree. 
Connecticut. ' n. D. B. 
We do not publish the above letter 
from any sense of vanity, though we ad¬ 
mit a pride in it. We publish it rather 
to show the trend of public thought and 
action. Publications may exist and even 
prosper, while they put the interests of 
their own pockets ahead of the interests 
of their readers; but that kind of policy 
can never earn the full confidence of the 
public. 
On .Tune 20 I ordered two auto tires 
from the Premier Tire Company of Buf¬ 
falo, N. Y. They agreed to take back 
any goods not satisfactory. One tire 
looked to be all right, and I put it on 
my car and used it. However, after run¬ 
ning it for about 600 miles it exploded 
and was of no more use. The other tire 
looked to be defective. I wrote to them, 
and they advised me to return it and they 
would send another tire in exchange. I 
sent it back on July 19 by prepaid ex¬ 
press. I did not hear from them and 
wrote them several times with no re¬ 
sults until August 12, when I wrote them 
that if I did not hear from them by the 
16th of said month I would investigate 
them. To this last letter I received the 
letter enclosed, dated Aug. 17. 1915. 
I wrote them again giving instructions 
as to the kind of tire wanted. But the 
tire never came, nor have I ever heard 
anything from them since. Will you 
kindly investigate them and see what 
there is to them? j. p. c. 
After repeated letters written to the 
Premier Tire Company of Buffalo, we re¬ 
ceive response from the Central Tire 
Company of 234 North Broad St., Phila¬ 
delphia, which concern seems to be the 
general distributors of the Premier tires, 
to the effect that their Buffalo branch find 
no record of having received the tire re¬ 
turned by J. P. C.. and further states 
that their tires are sold without a guar¬ 
antee, and therefore will make no ad¬ 
justment on the used tire which gave only 
600 miles of service. This subscriber paid 
$22.50 for the two tires in question, and 
all the service he got from the invest¬ 
ment was 600 miles of service from one 
tire. Any automobile owners that have 
any desire to pay at this rate for auto¬ 
mobile tire mileage, can get accommo¬ 
dated at this Philadelphia house or its 
branch in Buffalo. It is remarkable that 
there are so many houses in the automo¬ 
bile tire line that are willing to take ad¬ 
vantage of customers at a distance in this 
way. These houses invariably quote 
prices which are much lower than the 
price at which standard makes of tires 
can be purchased. It has been the ex¬ 
perience of our people that the tires re- 
ceived from these cut-rate houses would 
be expensive at any price, and we repeat 
our previous advice to automobile own¬ 
ers that they purchase only standard 
makes of tires and from reliable dealers. 
J. J. D. 
“What do you think about the cause 
of gravitation?” “I don’t know much 
about it. But I guess I’m for it.”-- 
Princeton Tiger. 
The Biggest 
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Buijding 
in the world is fire¬ 
proofed with NATCO 
Hollow Tile. The best in¬ 
surance is absolute safety 
and permanency. Insurance 
companies know this and 
build accordingly. The Equit¬ 
able Life Assurance Co.’s new 
office building, New York City, shown here is fireproofed 
with Natco tile. Make your farm buildings just as secure— 
Build with Natco HollowTile 
Best for the city—best for the farm. We have sold thousands of Natco Imperishable 
Silos—and their owners have testified to their great efficiency and economy. The 
steel reinforcing bands, laid in the mortar, hold the silo in a grasp of steel. The 
hollow vitrified clay tile will last for ages. Just so with other Natco buildings. 
Send for our new book “Natco on the Farm.” Fully illustrated from 
photographs and construction details of all types of farm buildings. 
_j.. Tell us what you are going to build. 
Also ask for catalog describing the ever popular 
Natco Imperishable Silo— 
“The Silo That Lasts For Generations’ 
A perfect ensilage preserver in all parts, 
through all weather conditions. Hand- 
|some, durable, convenient is this, “the 
skyscraperof the f arm”and a most valu¬ 
able addition to your farm buildings. 
National 
Fire Proofing Company 
1121 Fulton Building 
Pittsburgh, Pa. 
23 Factories—Short hauls— 
Prompt shipments. 
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« The Silo that Lasts 
for Generations" 
HAVANA FARM TRUCKS 
We can furnish these Low-Down Gears with 
either Steel Wheels or Wood Wheels. They 
are as handy for farm work as the Auto 
is for travel. 
We can furnish broad tire Steel Wheels to lit any 
wagon. May we not send you our Free Catalogue! 
Havana Metal Wheel Co., Box 17, Havana, Ill. 
ELECTRIC 
Steel 
Wheel 
Handy 
Wagons 
Are Big 
Money 
SAVERS! 
W \ 
ray 
yf v. ( 
Hf enf 
■ BOVc 
■ field 
No 
more , 
high / 
lifting or pitch/ 
lng. Saves you 
workand light- I 
ens draft nearly I 
60%. Don’t rut 
fields or roads. 
We also furnish 
Electric Steel 
Wheels to fit ANY 
i wagon. Wheels can’i _ 
^ dry out or rot. Send for 
tree book of facts and proofs. 
Electric Wheel Co., 
.48 Kim Street, 
quincj. 111. 
EASIEST RUNNING MILL 
Kelly Duplex Mills require 25% less |V8 /X D E 
power, do as much, or more, work as any A ' 
other mill of equal size. Grind ear 
corn, shelled corn, oats, wheat, kaffir 
corn, cotton seed, corn in shucks, 
sheaf oats or any kind of grain. For 
speed and complete grinding the 
KELLY DUPLEX 
Has No Superior 
Easily operated. Never 
chokes. 7 sizes. Fully 
guaranteed. Any power. 
gasoline engines. ^^^HFREE CATALOG. 
Duplex Mill & Mfg. Co., Box 320 Springfield, Ohio 
S'^feSTy^p pulLER 
Grubber Co 
CATALOG FREE-DEPT- 55, LA CRESCENT. " 
TwistIts Tail ' 
j And 5ave An Extra Per Day 
30 HR 
Write Now Ana We Will Tell You About lt| 
cDLIET OIL TRACTOR CO. 
,812 BENTON ST. 
cJOLIET ILL. 
Delay buying any 
engine until you find, 
out all about 
S te am 
Engines 
LEFFEL 
iey 
cost day after day than any gaa engine. 
Ruu all 
Burn coal, wood or rubbish, 
farm power-driven machinery. 
Furnish steam and hot 
water for cooking feed or 
cleaning and sterilizing 
pots, pans, milk cans, feed 
troughs, etc. Farmers every¬ 
where swear by the Leffel. 
U7 ’i. for booklet and full 
i HI lie information. Don’t 
delay—write tonight. 
James Leffel & Co. 
Leffel 
Steam Engines 5 1 
SSEMER. 
We say the Bessemer Kerosene Engine is cheapest 
in the long run —because of low running expense. We 
have a number of tests to prove this, which will be 
furnished you upon application. The Bessemer is built as a 
Kerosene Engine, and is not a converted gasoline type, therefore 
is freer from trouble and repairs. Sizes 2 to 10 H. P. Also 
direct connected to pumps, hoists, lighting plants, etc. Get a lot 
of real facts free by writing today. 
THE BESSEMER GAS ENGINE CO. 
123 Lincoln Are., Grove City, Pa. 
Those who need more power should use the Bessemer 
Fuel Oil Engine, 15 to 200 H. P. Free catalog “O’,’ 
explains them. 
KEROSENE 
ENGINE 
When you write advertisers mention The R. N.-Y. and you’ll get a quick reply 
and a “square deal.” See guarantee editorial page. 
