72 
IShe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
January 19, 1918 
Was Your War Garden a Success? 
Last summer saw thousands of first attempts 
at gardening. Many folks gathered big harvests 
and enjoyed a goodness in garden things they 
never knew before. Others cropped mostly 
experience. To them seeds were simply seeds. 
This year there should be more gardens and 
more successful gardens. Experience will say, 
“Don’t gamble in seeds.” Buy 
FerrV’S Seeds 
and be as sure as scientific seed selection can make you 
that your garden will be a success. 
Ferry’s Seeds are pedigreed seeds. 
They come from plants known for 
sturdy growth, ample production and 
the most luscious quality. Each 
year the seed crops of all Ferry’s 
Seeds are tested to make sure the 
family traits are being kept up. 
Doubtful seeds are dear at any 
price. Be sure that the seeds you 
plant this year are Ferry’s Seeds. 
The Ferry Seed Annual will be 
Bent you on request. Ferry’s Seeds 
are sold by dealers everywhere. 
'fkf J 
DIBBLE'S 
FARM SEED 
CATALOG 
/hr* 19/S 
i 
beautifully illustrated in colors, with accu¬ 
rate descriptions, written by a Farmer for 
Farmers, of all that is newest and best in 
Farm Seeds, is now ready for distribution, 
FREE. Tells the truth about the Farm Seed 
situation. Gives information every Farmer 
should have before he spends a dollar for 
Farm Seeds. DIBBLE’S SEEDS are of but one 
^rade and that the highest possible quality. 
D. B. Brand AKalfa, Clover and Timothy Seed, averairo 
W juuiivsis pure. Heavyweight and Twentieth 
Centiiry Oats tliorouiilily rooleaned. 
Barley,Spring Wheat, Buckwheat, Canada Field Peas, Field and 
Soy Beans, Millet, Vetch, Rape, etc. SEED CORN lliat yi-ew s, 
t hree varieties of Flint, and the best Jlents for ensilage. 
POTATOES: Best 15 varieties, early and late, in any 
qua"iitity from barrels to carloads. 
Headquarters for Farm Seeds. Over 100,000 bushels 
in stock. Prices right, as we ship from “Our Farms 
to Yours.” Send for your catalog NOW. Address 
Edward F. Dibble SeedgrowerJoTeoye Fails, n.y. 
Harris^ Hill—Selected Potatoes 
Potatoes grown from seed selected from the 
besthills. Thisseed produces much more uni¬ 
form and healthy crops than common seed potatoes. 
Our catalogue gives list of varieties and prices. 
Harris’ Garden and Field Seeds 
are standard for quality. There are none better. 
The per cent that germinates is marked on the label. 
You can tell just how many will grow and can sow 
the right quantity. 
You want a good 
garden—start right 
—ask for free cata¬ 
logue, and buy di¬ 
rect from the grower 
at wholesale. 
JOSEPH HARRIS CO. 
Box 23 Coldwater, N.Y. 
Harris Seeds 
Label on every Loi 
Tells how man 
According to our tests 
98 percent 
of this seed germinates 
CARDEN SEEDS 
Let us send you our catalog' of seeds—it’s ■ 
different. It tells you facts, and why we can save you money, and give you a guaranteed I 
SOFARF, deal. Just drop a postal today and%ee the difference in buying your seeds I 
in country. FORREST SEED CO.. Box No. 32. Cortland. N. Y. I 
Unhulled Sweet Glover 
Kcoiioinic:il foi' wintov sowing. Ask for price and cat¬ 
alogue. O.M. SCOTT A SONS CO., 150 Main St.. Marysville. 0. 
SAMPLE OUR SEED 
Three earliest vetretables in cultivation for 10c. One 
packet each. Robinson's Earliest Tomato, Earliest 
Round Red Radish, Earliest Lettuce, 10c to new 
customers. Regular price 30c. CATALOG FREE, 
C. N. Robinson & Bro., Dept.51, Baltimore,A^d. 
Farm Mechanics 
Engine Power on Ice Saw 
Ibdow you will soo tho rough sketch of 
iiii ice saw which we used this season. 
Two pieces 2x4. about 7 ft'et long, holt on 
two eross-jiieces 1)1) and handies 1>, old 
plow handles. (’ is the engine, two to 
three horsepowi'r, which goes on tin* siiray 
pump. We put the frame on a bobsled, so 
it will balance well. Two ingn will push, 
one in front, other heliind. Set the saw 
in <‘ight inches. Don’t crowd it too liard ; 
it will cut more than six men. Wo got 
this from 'I’liK R. N.-Y. last March, hut 
<Iid not make it the same. M’e used the 
shaft and saw of the woodsaw. ran saw 
(iO f('('t in four niinntes. M'e sawed l)oth 
ways, six or eight strips at a time. It 
saves a lot of work. IVe put .”>00 tons in 
the refrigerator and .”>00 in the icehouse. 
AVeatherstiekI, A't. ,T. u. 
Curing a Leaky Chimney 
In our case tlie flue into which the 
stovi'pipe from the kitchen range led was 
built on a bracket, .so that the pipe en- 
tei-ed very near the bottom of the flue. 
AA'e found tliat b.v thoroughly cleaning 
out the pocket at the bottom of that flue, 
and deepening same to six inches lielow 
tlie bottom of the stovepipe hole, a cure 
was immediately affected. It seems to b<? 
permanent, as this was done nearly two 
years ago and there has been no trouble 
since, although the same kind of fuel has 
been used, and all other conditions have, 
remained the same. 
Tlie above simple remedy was suggested 
to us by a flue buihh'r, a^iid jirovcd a sure 
cure for a very disagreeable nuisance. 
The pipe and flue were certainly acting as 
a condenser because there was not snfli- 
cient draft iiresent to suck the smoke out 
through tlie flue, and for some reason 
such a draft was created when a pocket 
was made in the flue of at least six inches 
depth below the bottom of the stovepipe 
hole. E, C. WEAVER. 
Oregon. 
Government Whitewash or Paint 
4 he following known .as Government 
wliiti'wasli. has beiui rc'coinmi'ndcd to ns 
as a siihstitiie for paint on a n<‘W barn : 
bn. liiiK' : 1 pk. salt; .‘1 lbs. ground 
rice; 14 Ib. S))anish wliiting; I lb. ghn*; 
.) gal. hot wati'r. AA’hat are its wearing 
(jualities, and what is ydiir oiiinion in 
ri'gard to if:* llow' much surface will the 
aliove amonnt cover’? How does it com¬ 
pare with paint in amount reipiiri'd’? 
Illossvale, N. Y. c.' Jl. E. 
Of course a whitewash cannot oipial 
a h'ad and oil iniint for wearing power 
or ap]K'arance. It is a good snlistitute 
in many climati'.s, and tiiis mixture is a 
good one. 4'liis is one of the questions 
wliicli can only he propcrl.v answered by 
a full discnssion--hy ohsen ing people in 
diflerent localities. AA’e would like to 
li(':ii' from our readers about it. AA’hite- 
wasli or jiaint—how do tliey compare? 
Women Fire-fighters 
AATiile our men are under fire on tho 
ICuropeau battlefelds lot us not forget 
the American women who also know tlie 
taste of snioki'. 4'liroe -Arizona woiikui, 
Mrs. O. P. Schoenberg, and (he Alissos 
Lillian and llildegarde I'rii'kson liaie 
received oflicial thanks from (he Nation¬ 
al F’oreslry Service f(n' the work they 
did fighting lire. A serious forest fire 
broke out in -Arizona. All the available 
4ueu W(‘re iK'cded on the tiring line and 
Airs. Schoenberg look cliargi' of the 
work behind the line, mid acted as an 
officer in charge. The two other women 
took an active part in fighting the fire. 
They organized and put one crew of 
men at work, and did actual work in 
(‘xtiiiguishing (lie flames all one niglit. 
and served in every way tliat an efficient 
fire-fighter could. P>y all means let the 
women have what is due them in tlie 
^vay of mention and praise. There are 
thousands of other women in the co uitry 
wlio have given equally valuable service 
to the public, and if we had their names 
we would gladly print them here. 
Henhouse Door Operated with Rope 
In order to avoid the extra steps need- 
e<l to close the henhouse door after the 
hems had gone to roost I fixed a small 
sliding door so I could operate it from a 
distance with a rope. Directly over the 
small door, which is made to slide up and 
down, I fastened a tall 2x4. and attaclieil 
an awning pulley to the upper end. Then 
at the side of the path between the house 
and the well I set a tall pole and fas¬ 
tened anotlior awning pulley near the top 
of the pole. -About three feet from the 
ground I drove an old bolt into the polo, 
and another about 4^4 feet from the 
ground; soaked two pieces of 1,4-inch rop(> 
in tar to make it stand the weather, and 
fastened one piece to the door, then iiassi'd 
over the pulley and spliced on a long 
piece of telephone wire which reached 
within four feet of the pulley on the pole, 
tin'll ran the other tarred rope over that 
luilley and down to the first bolt in pole. 
I tied rojie to an iron ring and hooked 
ov('r tln^ holt. AA’hen it was desired to 
open tlie door I pulled on rope and hoolced 
ring on lower holt. Door should wor!; 
easily in (he guides, and if not heavy 
enough to close readily a ]iiecc of iron 
may he fastened to it witli h'ather h);-;);. 
-Missouri. wm. r. tayi.oi;. 
A Concrete Block Mixer 
I was <|uite interested in your reply 
concerning concrete block machine on 
page 14.‘>S, Every word wms good sound 
advice. I have made and handled con¬ 
crete for the last 20 years or more, hut 
I find no matter how good the advic> 
givi'ii, it takes experience to turn out the 
goods. One very great fault I find is 
that people will not. use enough water in 
tin' mix. and no matter how much you 
tamp your blocks they will be poroms. 
I (iiid that aft(*r deciding on the well- 
grailed material one intends to use, one 
should not be afraid to put the water in, 
even if the concrete should stick a little 
to the face jilate. A’ou can get all kinds 
of mould waslies wliich will prevent coii- 
<‘rete sticking to face plate. -A vc'ry 
litth'^ extra water to a block makes all 
the (lilVerence between a good hard block 
that will ring like a bell w’lien cured, 
and (he loose porous block that is only 
good onmigh to use for a filter. I knov.- 
these things for a fact. One can prove 
it oneself this way: Take four parts < f 
sand ,iust as it comes from the pit, mix 
well with one part of cement, mix all 
all parts well, dampen down as most manu¬ 
facturers do, take block out of the ma¬ 
chine and set aside. Now for the other 
test take eight parts of the same sand, 
mix one jiart of ('('ment, mix well ami 
juit in all tlie ^\■atel■ iiossible. Alake your 
block and take it out of the macliine :is 
qnickl.v as possibly. Y’on will find that 
this block is (|iiite quaky and must he 
handled very carefully. Sot aside to cure. 
Keep from dry winds while blocks are 
being cured. Y'ou will find that the <S to 1 
block will stand more iiressurc and al.so 
he more waterjiroof than the 4 to 1 block. 
Tin's ma.v seem unreasonable to you, as 
the 4 to 1 block has considerable more 
cement than th(' S to 1 block. It takes 
too much space to explain but the whole 
secret is the water used in reasonahlt' 
amounts. Very few block makers use 
enough water in making blocks, depend¬ 
ing upon the spray after made to furnish 
the right amonnt of moisture. A well- 
made block 8x8x10 (part hollow} should 
■hav(' eight pounds of cement in it to 
make a good block; that makes about 48 
blocks to tlie barrel of cement. Alyself 
and man turn out and take care of 100 
blocks are well made, well tamped and 
per block for the making of them, the 
owner furnishing the material. These 
blocks are -well made, well tampered and 
well mixed. ^ ^ L. T. ii. 
l/cwistou, N. Y. 
