1132 
September 20, 1017 
HOPE FARM NOTES 
Frost. —There are many people who 
think Jack Frost is planning to vote for 
the Kaiser! lie might have held off this 
year of all others, but on the morning of 
September 12 his fingermarks were on 
the roof as I looked out in the early 
dawn. This is the first time in years 
that our country has felt the treacherous 
old fellow’s fingers before October 1, and 
with the late planting and slow growth 
of the season it looked bad for a time. 
It had been a still, quiet night, however, 
and we know that cold air, like water, 
will move down hill into the valleys or 
pockets, where it is held—doing more 
damage even than the money kept in a 
miser’s pocket when it is needed to warm 
up a crowd of humans by getting out 
into circulation. At any rate, here was a 
scrat<-h from a fingernail on the stern 
hand of Winter—a reminder of what is to 
follow. 
The Damaue. —Up here on the hills 
there was little trouble. On the lower 
fields corn was crumpled a little, and the 
cow peas and Soy beans show some scald¬ 
ing. The squash and pumpkin vines 
were nipped, but all these crops are in a 
small valley with trees growing along the 
fence-rows so as to hold back air drain¬ 
age. Apparently the cold air settled into 
these fields and was held there around 
the crops. On the higher ground, from 30 
to 200 feet above, there was practically 
no damage except in small depressions or 
pockets here and there w'here the air 
could not drain out. In one place 
sowed coi-n fodder was turned white at 
the top right up to a certain well-defined 
line, on the otlier side of which not even 
a tip was touched. Lima beans and to¬ 
matoes were not even marked, and at the 
top of the hill you would not know there 
had been any touch of Winter. It 
seemed as if Jack Frost had gone sneak¬ 
ing through the valleys—ashamed to get 
up on the hills. On the lower ground 
there was considerable damage. I see 
cornfields turnedjvhite, beans fully scald¬ 
ed and tofnaJ)3r dead to the ground. 
Much of this||<t)-n was behind in devel¬ 
opment and cahtiot now make hard grain 
or sound fodder. 
What to Do.—I have a number of 
questions frdni. people who ask what they 
can do with frosted corn. Those who 
have a silo nee's' not worry, for the frost¬ 
ed corn cut in as it comes from the field, 
with water added, will make good silage. 
It is usually nepossiH'y to add some w'ater. 
Yet it see ^^,.^4 strange thing that the 
ears on frosted corn are damper than 
those where th^stalls grew on to matur¬ 
ity. When I pull back the husk on stalks 
where the leaye^. have been crumpled I 
find them quite ^amp. They do not dry 
out as quicki.^ as 'the uninjured plants 
and are quite likely to mold. I think it 
is because the water in the plant is 
largely thrdwli off through the leaves. 
When the cell^ of^ these leaves are broken 
or destroyed by the frost of course this 
power to throw off water is lost, and the 
stalk will not dry but well. That seems 
to explain why frosted corn makes better 
silage than dry fodder. Of course, when 
the leaves, or lungs, of the corn plant are 
injured by fr(#6t #ie plant cannot do^fits 
full work ^d ive have soft and inferior 
grain, I sh^u^d estimate the loss to dry 
fodder by froi;tiug at about 25 per cent. 
I have often seen whole fields of frosted 
corn fodder abandoned. The ears will be 
picked off for feeding and the stalks left 
to be plowed under. Many farmers think 
their feeding valu(;^so low that it will not 
pay to cut and, Ij^ul them out. In our 
own case we shomd let the frosted corn 
stand a few and then cut in the 
usual way, splitting in small shocks. We 
would husk ^oi^t^rly and feed the stalks 
to the cattle, letting them eat what they 
like. I think Jack Frost docks us 25 
per cent, or more when he lays hands 
upon the green corn. Shall we accept 
this warning as final and cut at once, or 
figure on about the average “killing” 
date and let the uninjured corn stand? 
We followed the latter plan. 
Various Crops. —Both cow peas and 
Soy beans were nipped a little on the 
- fields. If anything, the cow peas 
an. more tender. They are also earlier 
to mature, as they have already formed 
quite a crop of seed, while the Soy beans 
are just filling out the pods. Neither 
Oie RURAL NEW-YORKER 
crop was hurt enough to stop its growth. 
Both could be cut now and make good 
fodder, but I want to let them go and see 
how long they wdll continue. . . . AVe have 
a great crop of big pumpkins this year. 
Usually there is little market for this 
crop except for canning or for stock feed¬ 
ing. In this country are many people 
who were brought up on farms but have 
now become city dwellers. Mo.st of them 
years ago made “jack o’ lanterns” out of 
big pumpkins. They tell their children 
about it, and the youngsters want to try 
their hand at carving one of the.se hide¬ 
ous faces. So we shall find a market for 
many a big yellow fellow to satisfy these 
youthful carvers. This only shows how 
demand for old-fashioned things keeps 
alive and broadens out. . . . We 
have stalks of Sudan grass over seven 
feet high, though the average will be 
about six feet. It looks much like a 
very tall millet, and is good feed for all 
.sorts of stock. At least, everything likes 
it. In a very dry season I think the Su¬ 
dan grass would pay well, but this year 
of dampness our flint corn gives us more 
fodder. . . . The rye and vetch in the 
corn have started well. Frost cannot 
hurt this crop, and when the corn is cut 
the rye and vetch will soon cover the 
ground. Some people who seed rye in 
the corn for the first time are disap¬ 
pointed becau.se it does not make a heav¬ 
ier growth above ground. They need not 
worry; we do not need this green growth 
half as much as we need the thick, strong 
root system below ground. You want 
this mass of roots to save and hold the 
nitrates in the soil, and that is the strong 
point of our old friend rye. Dig into 
the soil in October and you will be sur- 
Itrised to see what a network of roots 
the rye is sending out. That is what you 
want. Do not worry about the growth 
above ground. It will come later and be 
all the better for what the rye is doing 
now, I could go right ahead and seed 
rye on every open lield. 
Unknown Heroes. —The papers are 
well filled now with stories of great pa¬ 
rades, and how young men go marching 
off to encampments with flags flying and 
crowds cheering. AVe do not hear of 
the thousands of couniry boys who go out 
from farm homes silently and without 
gre.at show or flag-waving. Our boys left 
home in this quiet manner. They en¬ 
listed, and were not called by the draft. 
AA’'hen it came time to go they just bade 
us good-bye and walked away. Somehow 
I like that better than the great cheering 
■and flag-waving of these monster parades. 
This war will not be won by brass bauds 
and dress parades, but by the stern de¬ 
termination of men who look back to 
quiet, pleasant homes, where the best that 
is in them is produced. These are the 
days which try the souls of men and 
women, when our boys are taken to fight 
for their country. I think it all comes 
harder upon the wives and mothers who 
live in the lonely country than upon any 
other class. In many farm communities 
life is dull and drab at best, and there 
has long been a feeling that the best was 
being pulled away. This draft will take 
the strongest and best of the men who 
have remained at home. In many cases 
of large families all the boys save one 
have left the farm. That one remains 
the w'orker and mainstay of the parents 
and some of the sisters. AATien this last 
boy is drafted the others will not suffer, 
perhaps, but the farm will not be worked. 
It will simply pass out of production. 
Exemption. —I have had many just 
such cases put up to me, asking for per¬ 
sonal help. I have no political influence 
at AA'ashington, but these cases seemed so 
clear and urgent that I wrote a letter to 
President AVilson, stating the matter as 
well as I could. I hesitated to take his 
time, but evidently his time is well pro¬ 
tected. My letter finally came back to 
me, well covered with initials, where one 
man had passed it on to another. All I 
got in the way of an answer was the fol¬ 
lowing : 
To the writer of the attached letter: 
A portion of the correspondence of this 
office consists in questions which are spe¬ 
cifically answered in rulings that are 
l)rinted and bulletinized from day to day. 
The volume of this correspondence is so 
great that, where questions can be ans¬ 
wered by inclosing marked copies of these 
bulletins, every consideration of economy 
of time and money demands that this be 
done and that a special letter be not writ¬ 
ten. The present is such a case. At¬ 
tached hereto will be found such a bulle¬ 
tin, so marked, and the original letter of 
inquiry is herewith returned. 
A’cry truly yours, 
E. H. CROWDER, 
Provost Marshal General. 
I just print this to show our readers 
bow little we can do with this draft prop¬ 
osition. The Hope Farm man means to 
be a good soldier and obey orders. AVhen 
his boys at the front are ordered to 
march they have to go, though the merest 
glimmer of common sense might show them 
that the order was foolish or worse. I 
think that Germany’s great hope of win¬ 
ning this war is that a large number of 
people in this counti-y will refuse to obey 
orders and spend their time growling and 
“kicking.” Not for me, and I hope to be 
able to say that our family has given as 
great an offering of men and material as 
any family in the land. But I do want 
the honor and the credit properly placed. 
AA'hen the honors are handed out I would 
like to see the medals and the iron crosses 
not only upon the uniforms of those who 
work the great guns that will batter down 
the walls of Germany, but also upon the 
farm aprons of those who with patient 
and faithful courage fight their battle for 
humanity over the kitchen stove. 
H. W. c. 
Sweet Clover for Pasture 
I am interested in Sweet clover for 
pasture. How long can it be counted on 
for permanent pasture if kept fed off, and 
will it do well on clay soil that is not 
well drained? u. S. 
Elmira, N. Y. 
Sweet clover is a biennial and the 
roots rot in the soil at the end of two 
years. As a pasture it will be a peren¬ 
nial if allowed to go to seed each year, 
which it naturally will do in a pasture 
lot, and in that case you wnll have good 
grazing every year. A Sweet clover pas¬ 
ture will take care of two animals per 
acre if the soil is good, while, no other 
grass will support more than one to 
evei-y two aci’es. Your soil is just like 
mine, and I think clay is the ideal soil 
for Sweet clover. After years of exper¬ 
ience I claim that neither Alfalfa, the 
clovers, Soy beans, v<>tch or any other 
legume is in the. same class with Sweet 
clover, either as pasture, hay or as a 
soil renovator. If the following rules 
are followed you will make a grand suc¬ 
cess of Sweet clover, and if not in nine 
cases out of 10 you will fall. 
Sow only unhulled seed at the rate of 
20 or 25 lbs. per acre. Sow on disked 
land, preferably laud that was previously 
in a hoed crop, or grain stubble, between 
Nov. 1 and March 1, without a nurse 
crop, and the next September you will 
get as good a crop of the best hay in the 
world as you ever raised on that land. 
If for pasture the new seeding should not 
be grazed until it is six inches high, 
iibout June 1. If you sow on sod, plow 
it before Nov. 1, and then disk and sow 
in November, I’olling it in. Hulled or 
scarified seed must be sown in the Spring, 
and generally dry weather takes it be¬ 
fore it is large enough to withstand a 
drought. If sown in November or before 
March 1 it Avill have growth enough by 
May 1 to stand any weather—but only 
unhulled Northern seed must be used. 
A. BI.OOMINGDAUE. 
Full Year to Pay 
Yes—spread your payments over a year. 
That is the offer made and backed by a 
$12,000,000 concern on the famous "Majestic” 
Engine. We take all the risk. Try it free 
for so days before you decide. No money in 
advance, no deposit, no C. O. D. You kno'w 
we could send only an engine of the very 
highest quality on such an offer as this. 
The Wonderful “Majestic” 
On 30 Days’ Free Trial 
Uses either gasoline or kerosene. Water 
cooled by open jacket hopper-cooled system. 
Bed and cylinder cast in one piece giving 
greatest possible solidity. Perfect lubrica¬ 
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2, 3. 5. 7, 9 and 14 H. P. L. M. Massey. Del., 
says: Develops more power than you 
claim.” W. E. Gregor, Col., says: “Easiest 
running engrine in neighborhood. 
Pay Nothing 
For 60 Days 
Prove before you pay a penny that the 
famous “Majestic” is thestrongest, most eco¬ 
nomical, easiest to operate, and most powerful 
enmne for its rated H. P. Then return it if it 
Isn’t the most satisfactory engine you ever saw. 
If you keep it, make first small payment in 60 days. 
Balance in equal payments 60 days apart. 
Send for Free Book 
Telle all aboutengines. Shows 
you how to buy on money-sav¬ 
ing basis. Also explains our 
30 days free trial, no mon¬ 
ey in advance, year to 
pay offer. Don't miss 
this. The book is free. 
Send postal or letter 
for it today. 
THE HARTMAN CO. 
4019 LaSalle St., Dept. 816 Chicaoo 
RAW FURS 
L * 
I af 
V 
uur prices are always tne nignesc tne marxec ^ 
affords. Liberal grading and prompt remit- 1 
tance guaranteed. Send for Fur Price Lt5<. 
I-l I D K S 
r 
Our hide department quotes highest market 
prices for beef hides, horse hides, calf skins, 
etc, S^nd iot Hide Quotations, 
0 
Dav id Blustein Bro. 
West St.,New\brk. 
$ 10 , 000.00 
Backs this saw. 
As low as 
.$9.90 
It Is ths bast and chaapest saw mads. 
HERTZLER £ ZOOK 
PortabiB Caui 
W ood OdW 
is easy to operate. 
Only $9.00 saw made to 
which ripping table can 
be added. Guaranteed 
1 year. Money refunded 
if not satisfactory. 
Send for catalog. 
Hertzler & Zook Co. 
Box Belleville, Pa. 
[ 
When you write advertisers mention 
The Rural New-Yorker and you’ll get 
a quick reply ond a “square deaL” See 
guarantee editorial page. : : : 
] 
Now Is The Time To Buy Your Roofingj 
I mrrrrrr m\ * i ■ 
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ADDRESS 
OWNERS: 
If you need further information before ordering, send us a rough sketch 
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Dept. GC- 37. 
HARRIS BROTHERS CO., 
■ 
I 
35th & Iron Sts.. Chicago Z 
