1400 
Iht RURAL NEW-YORKER 
and produced too many small heads. We 
wore supposed to get the light-seeded 
Giant Russian, which produces one mam¬ 
moth head to a stalk, often running 12 
inc-hes and better acro.ss. Some growers 
have a black-seeded sort which they claim 
is almost bird-proof. The seed is more 
pointed at the top end, and they claim 
the bird.s’ beaks slip off the seed. If one 
has only a few stalks it looks as though 
the birds will clean them up, but on an 
acre or more it is not noticeable. 
Some few miles south of us in the cut¬ 
over bottom land there are very large 
acreages, one man I know growing more 
than a hundred acres each year. Here 
they use their pea hullers for thrashing 
the .seed. Prices are very variable, run¬ 
ning from two to eight cents per pound, 
but, all in all, it is considered a good 
money crop. w. k. martin. 
Indiana. 
Hand-picking Beans 
Is there any trick in hand-picking 
beans? We have some that need careful 
looking over. B. F. 
Swazey, N. II. 
If there are but a few bushels of beans, 
and again if there are lumps of dirt 
among them, I should i)ut them in some 
phosphate or othei- sacks, one bushel in a 
sack, and tread them, turning and shaking 
them up often in order to get the lumps of 
dirt ground up fine. This will also help 
to brighten up the beans if they are 7 -ain 
damaged. Then screen them thi-ough .a 
f.anning mill, or use a hand screen ; this 
will take out all the fine dirt and small 
beans, which reduces the labor of hand 
picking to a great extent. They can then 
be placed on a large table in a well-light¬ 
ed room, a half bushel at a time, the 
pickers sitting around the table, .spreading 
them out, picking out the bad ones and 
letting the good beans fall into a pan ol¬ 
dish held in the lap. This is an occupa¬ 
tion .suited to those who are not greatly 
driven with other work, as it is a rather 
slow and tediou.s job. If one has beans 
in any considerable qiiantity it is much 
more practical to get in touch with some 
firms who are making a business of oi>er- 
ating a beanery ; there are majiy of the.se 
in both Michigan and New York State. 
These firms have agents and shipping sta¬ 
tions in a great many different parts of 
the country where beans are grown. The 
only seci-et that I know of in picking 
beans is patience, and a care not to spill 
the beans. ii. e. cox. 
Heeling in Raspberry Plants 
Will you give me some information in 
regard to keeping raspberry plants 
through the Winter? It was necessai-y 
for me to take the plants up out of 
ground and I would like to know of some 
way to fix them so they will keep alive 
and in a good condition to set out in 
Spring. C. s. C. 
Whallonsburg, N. Y. 
Select a location, perferably with a 
W'indbreak to the north, and where the 
natural drainage is good, open a trench 
six or eight inches deep and a foot or so 
in width, into which place the plants 
thickly, working the fine soil -well in 
among the roots; fill in the trench with 
soil, press it down gently with feet to set¬ 
tle the earth around the roots, then bank 
the soil up around the stems a foot or so 
to protect them, and to shed surplus wm- 
ter, and the job is done, and in a man¬ 
ner that will insure the plants going safe¬ 
ly through the Winter. K. 
Learning the Florists’ Trade 
Could you give me any information in 
regard to learning the trade of florist? 
That is, learning to make funeral pieces, 
such as wreaths and all kinds of difficult 
fornis. What other lines come under this 
particular work, if any, and how would a 
person go to work to learn the trade? 
Would one work as an apprentice? If 
BO, how much wages would they receive 
at first, and how much would they re¬ 
ceive after trade was perfected? How 
long would it take an average' person to 
learn the trade? I am passionately fond 
of flowers, and as I w'G'. to take up 
some trade this seems appeal to me 
the most. MRS. o. w. 
New York. 
The apprentice system is practically 
unknown in the' American florists’ trade. 
This inquirer w-ishes to enter the retail 
.store trade, rather than the growers’ end. 
Many women are engaged in such work. 
Usually they begin young as a hired as¬ 
sistant, or else' work into the trade grad¬ 
ually through helping some relative al¬ 
ready in the business. The actual tech¬ 
nical details of the business are not diffi¬ 
cult. but natural good taste and artistic 
instinct are needed. Difficult set “pie'ces” 
do not appeal to modern taste, but a good 
deal of technical skill is needed for 
shower boupuets, church decorations, 
casket palls and other elaborate 
forms of the florist’s art. A woman 
entering this trade in any critical com¬ 
munity will find good education, pleas¬ 
ing personality and agreeable manners 
valuable assets. Trade periodicals should 
be read, and an album of floral designs 
studied, but the only way to learn the 
business is to work in it. Salaries paid 
are usually not high, and run about thd 
same as in other lines of retail trade. It 
is not possible to say how long one would 
be in learning the trade, for individual 
capacity varies. We think, however, that 
there is a good prospect for wmmen in 
both greenhouse and store trade, as flor¬ 
ists generally are very .short of help. 
Better discuss your wishes with local 
florists; the city trade is too busy and 
too critical to consider inexperienced store 
assistants, excepting young people begin¬ 
ning on small w-ages as messengers or 
helpers. 
Fruit Notes from Missouri 
In my former article on raspberries I 
omitted to speak of the Black Pearl. I 
have found this a very good variety in 
every i-espect, so far as I have tried it. 
This year some pickers thought it the best 
of all. It has vigor of growth and the 
berries are large and fine. Whether it is 
superior to Cumberland could only be 
ascertained by thorough trial, but it is 
certainly safe to plant it in the assurance 
that it is one among the best. The 8t. 
Regis or Ranere, so largely grown in 
New .Tei-sey, is so far my best early, 
though the berry could be larger and the 
bush .a stronger grower. As a Fall va¬ 
riety it has proved valueless, not because 
it is not di.sposed to bear a second crop, 
but because our climate is too hot and 
dry. These Fall-borne beri-ies are in¬ 
ferior to those of Spring, and many of 
them never mature. 
The gooseberry crop was fairly good. 
The heaviest and most regular bearer I 
find to be the Oregon, rather a new intro¬ 
duction. Its growth is not strong, and its 
canes are quite slender, but it has never 
failed to load itself with fruit that is a 
grade larger than the Houghton. Its ber¬ 
ries are a light green and do not change 
color when ripe. This year it was more 
productive than the Houghton. I should 
rank the Oregon and Houghton as the best 
commercial varieties for this country, but 
the larger berries of the unreliable Down¬ 
ing bring a higher price. I shall test the 
Chautauqua again, after a number of 
years, with more thorough spraying for 
mildew. It is said to be successfully 
grown in the East. Regular crops of its 
large berries would be very profitable. A 
hybrid of the wild and English species, 
produced by Dr. Van Fleet, makes a huge 
bush, but being a pistillate, it does not 
pollenize perfectly, and therefore fails to 
set full crops. If productive it would be 
a wonder. I have it next to the Oregon. 
Possibly other kinds would prove better 
pollenizers. The culture of the goose¬ 
berry should prove profitable in many 
parte of the country, as it is a berry that 
is often neglected on fruit farms. I con¬ 
sider it one of the most satisfactory kinds 
of fruit to grow. The only enemy of the 
native sorts is the green worm, which is 
easily controlled, generally by one spray¬ 
ing. The large sorts with English blood 
require special treatment to ward off mil¬ 
dew. It looks plausible that perseverance 
in crossing will finally produce the va¬ 
riety that unites the large berry with dis¬ 
ease resistance. E. R. JOHNSON. 
Cape Girardeau Co., Mo. 
THE MAILBAG 
Sinking Well Through Quicksand 
I had the experience this Fall of trying 
to dig a well, as we have been short of 
water for stock for quite some time. 
Where I have dug it the ground for the 
first 12 feet is mostly a fine free sand, 
and below that we came into quicksand. 
I dug dowm as far as the free sand went 
and then lowered four lengths of vitrified 
tile, the four measuring 10 feet, and then 
dug the quicksand, working inside of tile. 
until I sunk them down as low as I 
thought safe without having the quick¬ 
sand come in at the top of them, and the 
next day had about six feet of water, 
which would have been plenty, but since 
then the quicksand has come in the tile 
until it has reached about four feet, and 
likely will rise more. I would like to 
know if any of the readers of The R. 
N.-Y. have had experience sinking wells 
where they have quicksand to contend 
with. ANDREW MITCHELL, 
Orange Co., N. Y. 
Fall-planted Walnuts; Mulberries 
1. Would it be wise to plant .Japanese 
walnuts in Fall? Will they do well on 
medium clay loam? I have a piece which 
is extra well drained, and another which 
is monster? Which should I use? 2. Arc 
Downing, New American or Russian mul¬ 
berries classed under Morus rubra, and 
do they usually come true to seed? I 
want a row of cheap mulberries to keep 
the birds from my cherries. R. M. 
Worcestei*, Mass. 
1. .Japanese walnuts can usually be 
planted safely in the Fall, but, as with 
all trees having .somewhat fleshy roots. 
Spring planting is better. These trees are 
not very particular as to soil, but prob¬ 
ably will grow best on land which con¬ 
tains a fair amount of moisture. 
2. The Downing and New American 
mulberries are varieties of Morus rubra. 
The common white mulberi*y, commonly 
called the Russian mulberry, is Morus 
alba. The last named comes true to seed. 
The others do not. The white or Russian 
mulberry is the kind to grow to keep the 
birds from your cherries. You can buy 
plants cheaply from most nurserymen, 
and are advi.sed to start with plants 
rather than to plant seeds. E. l. F. 
The Daylight Saving Law 
This is the way that daylight saving 
hurts the farmer: It does not make much 
difference until haying and harvest. Then 
it makes a big difference as long as there 
is harvesting to do. For example, a 
farmer hires four men at $3 a day, of 10 
hours, to draw in hay. These men come 
to work at 7 o’clock and quit at 6. By 
the old time hay was generally ready to 
draw at 9 o’clock; by the new time not 
till 10; thus by the old time, two hours 
were lost each day, and by the new time 
three. This hour costs the farmer $1.20. 
If he hires for 60 days he loses $72 more 
by the new time than by the old time. I 
think this will enlighten S., whose letter is 
printed on page 12113. If the Government 
wants to get city folks out of bed an hour 
earlier, let it make a ruling that all shops 
and factories open for work at 6 o’clock ; 
farmers commence at 4. 
AUBREY WESTERVELT. 
Chemung Co., N. Y. 
Now that the Government time system 
has been tried for the length prescribed, I 
think it is time for another discussion on 
the subject. Last Summer in haying time 
its benefits to the farmer were vei-y clear¬ 
ly brought out. We hired a man by the 
day to help at that time. He was always 
on hand by 8 o’clock, though the dew was 
not off the hay until after 9, and just as 
sure as noon came around he was on hand 
for dinner, after the labors of a little 
more than two hours. His afternoon end¬ 
ed at 5, which really was only 4. but 
neverthele.ss he expected his supper short¬ 
ly afterward. By this schedule at least 
two hours of perfectly good hay weather 
were lost every afternoon. Naturally 
every farmer can see the profits gained by 
such a method. The farmerette in our 
December 21, 1018 
family really gained something, because 
her school was over at 3..30, which, in 
fact, was only 2.30, thus giving her aJi 
extra hour every day, becau.se she usually 
worked until dark. This Fall, if it had 
not been for the “flu,” which closed the 
schools, she would have had to leave home 
before daylight had really appeared in or¬ 
der to be on time. I think Uncle Sam 
would better use his thinking cap a little 
more this Winter on another plan. Why 
don’t the factories and those who were 
really benefited by the plan begin an hour 
earlier every day instead of making the 
average farmer lose that hour? Why 
does not the Government tell us to tear 
the next four or five sheets off the calen¬ 
dar so as to escape Winter? 
Chautauqua Co.. N. Y. ruth kapple. 
Crops and Farm News 
Milk, shipping station. $4.10 per cwt.; 
butter fat. 92e; eggs, 73c; pork, 25c, 
dressed ; fat cattle, cows, 12c, live; chick-, 
ens, live, .30c. Wheat, .$2.15; oats, 75c; 
corn, new, in the ear, ,$.38 per ton ; hay, 
Timothy._ .$30; mixed, .$25; wool, 6.5c; 
lambs, 15V4c per lb.; sheep, 10c per lb.; 
ewes, 9 to 12c. The farmers have their 
work well in hand, owing to the fair 
weather. All Fall wheat was a good crop ; 
nearly all marketed. Oats the best on 
record; corn a scant crop, goo^l quality, 
well matured. Fall seeding looks good. 
Less cows than the five-year average. 
Pigs_ about normal. The farmers made 
speci.al efforts to raise more pigs, with 
poor results, on account of poor feeds; 
middlings could not be had, so substitutes 
were put on the market, recommended for 
pig feed, which gave very bad results; 
dried up brood sows, gave the pigs indi¬ 
gestion and killed them by the whole litter. 
I never saw the farmers in such a predica¬ 
ment and disgusted about pig feeding 
than this last Hummer and Fall. The 
feed put on the market as a substitute 
for middlings contains some oat hulls, 
mill sweepings, smut, and, to my judg¬ 
ment, some cottonseed meal or ground 
hulks, a general combination as a rule 
valuele.ss to the big mills dumped on the 
market at .$45 per ton. Then, later on, 
velvet bean meal was recommended as a 
good substitute, giving about the same 
bad results with pigs and cows. Chickens 
were not harmed by it; they did not eat. 
even if mixed with other feed. I think we 
need a good law protecting the farmer 
from bogus feeds, and feed recommended 
for pigs must be free from cottonseed in 
any form ; it kills the pigs in a short time, 
even in very small quantities. I do not 
think that the average farmer is making 
more money now than the average of the 
last six year.s. As to scarcity of farm 
help, farmerettes, high school boys and 
agricultural college students are no good 
in the busy_ season; they ai-e all right 
when there is not much to do (good sol¬ 
diers in time of pe.ace). I have 2.34 acres 
of farm land; used to three men regular¬ 
ly ; now I have one, and hardly any help 
by the day, and all other farmers are in 
the .same predicament. s. f. 
Montgomery Co., Fa. 
Potatoes, $1.25 per bu. (60 lbs.) ; have 
been .$1.40. A dealer is lo.ading today ,a 
car of fat hogs at $16 per cwt. live 
weight. Poultry is bringing 22 to 24c 
per lb. .according to quality. I'liere are 
no turkeys raised in this locality, com¬ 
paratively speaking; also no sheep. Some 
farmers received $.32.50 for hay ; at pres¬ 
ent it is selling from .$27 to .$28 per ton. 
Abbott of Philadelphia gets nearly all of 
the milk; at present we are receiving 
.$3.81 net per cwt. for 4 per cent milk. 
Apples and peaches were a failure in this 
section ; we farmer-s are paying $1.50 to 
.$2 per bu., accoi-ding to quality, for them. 
Wheat is bringing ,$2.18 per bu. at our 
local warehouses ; old corn all sold; new 
corn, $1.80 for 105 Ib.s. on cob. Oats. 70c 
per bu. Buckwheat, $1.50 per bu. Both 
oats and buckwheat were an extra good 
crop and good quality. There is consid¬ 
erable tobacco i-aised in this locality ; to 
date there have been no sales repoi’ted. 
Veal calves, 17 to 18c per lb. Good fresh 
cows, $125 to $145. Wheat generally did 
not yield over 20 bu per acre; personally 
I had a good crop, 742 bu. from 25 acres. 
Oats averaged 50 bu.; buckwheat akso. 
There were a good many reported 65 to 
70 bu. of oats per acre. Corn was about 
two-thirds of a crop, but quality was 
very good. Potatoes did not run over 60 
to 70 bu. per acre. The general outlook 
appears good for farmers another year. 
Nearly all have a little extra wheat in, 
and it all looks exceedingly good to date. 
As a rule nobody suffered for help. The 
coming year (help that is steady by the 
year) higher wages are demanded and 
will be paid, I think. Bran and middlings 
cannot be bought. Our local warehouse 
man says he has them ordered, but they 
never come. However, he will supply 
dairy feed at .$52 per ton, which only runs 
16 per cent protein. He also has a 20 
per cent cottonseed meal that goes at 
$55. Also a 36 per cent cottonseed meal 
at $66. Old proce.ss linseed meal at $65 
can be bought also. He has ground whole 
barley at .$3.10 per cwt.; a hog meal is 
also sold at $3.75 per cwt. w, J. R. 
Lancaster Co., Pa. 
Mrs. Hix : “I don’t believe in these 
faith cures brought about by the laying 
on of hands.” Mrs. I)ix; “Well, I do. 
I cured my little boy of the cigarette hab¬ 
it in that way.”—Credit Lost. 
Chautauqua Gooseberry Below; Houghton Above 
