46 
January 11, 101!) 
HOPE FARM NOTES 
Our nine Red hens came bach from the 
Vineland egg-laying contest in due time, 
and quickly fell into the usual Winter 
routine of mature liens—doing nothing. 
They are now “resting” after their ardu¬ 
ous labors at college, and later they will 
resume operations as a breeding pen. The 
figures representing their two years’ work 
are given below : 
Egg Record.. 
Polly . 
3.937 
. 138 
1918 
160 
Total 
298 
Belle . 
. 358 
91 
249 
Queen . 
. 300 
36 
136 
Bettv M. 
...... 196 
199 
395 
Faith . 
. 168 
147 
315 
Hope .-. 
Charity . 
. 130 
106 
236 
. 146 
119 
265 
Success . 
. 104 
148 
252 
Rufa . 
. SO 
120 
200 
Polly anna . .. . 
. 349 
194 
343 
There were over 100 eggs laid outside 
the trap-nests. My notion is that Rufa 
laid many of these, but they cannot be 
fairly credited to her or any of the oth¬ 
ers. ' Some birds apparently always lay 
in the trap-nests, while others frequently 
lay outside. You may call it perversity, 
laziness, a “call of the wild,” as you 
please. 
* * * * * 
Charity died in August of this year 
from the effect of the heat. She was lay¬ 
ing well at the time and would have 
added 35 or more to her record had she 
lived. The pen finished with nine birds— 
second among the Reds. Had Charity 
lived I think they would have led. Now 
there are three regular groups in tins 
pen. Polly, Belle and Queen are sisters, 
and eloselv bred to a strain. Yet see how 
they vary. I should have discarded Polly 
on her first year’s record, yet see how 
she came back in her second year, while 
her sisters Belle and Queen proved the 
laziest of drones. Then Betty M., I 1 aitli 
and Hope are own sisters selected and 
bred carefully. Here we have a more uni¬ 
form performance, though Hope went 
back on her name. Then the last four 
birds came from another group of sisters 
—taken from our own stock. They were 
not well matured, and made a very late 
start the first year, but they all came 
back strong the second year, and look 
now as if they would be better yet for 
the third year. It has become evident to 
me that you cannot figure on the egg- 
laying power of a family of hens as you 
can on the milk production of a family 
of cows. Individuals vary too much, and 
I think these egg-laying contests have 
come to be as much a test of men as of 
liens. Let two men go into a flock where 
the birds are all of much the same breed¬ 
ing and let each man select 10 pullets. 
A man with the skill of Tom Barron will 
select birds that will beat any ordinary 
selection by 40 per cent. 
***** 
That is one thing which makes the 
present contest at Vineland particularly 
interesting. In our own case we put as 
good a Red cockerel as we could find with 
our 10 hens, and the plan was to start 
the third year with one pullet from each 
hen. It was not quite possible to do this, 
but we have 30 good pullets—all from the 
same cockerel. Of course we had no 
chance to make physical selections. These 
pullets seem to bo starting off very much 
as their mothers did, and it will be good 
to see how pullets bred in this way com¬ 
pare with those in other contests where 
there is a much wider range of selection. 
In our own pen I shall cut out Belle and 
Ouoen, and breed the rest to a son of 
Betty M. This bird is lighter in color 
than I like, but he is otherwise a good 
specimen, and surely his mother is a 
laver and a stayer. Yes, I shall include 
Rufa in spite of that bad first year. There 
is good stuff in her, and I feel sure she 
laid many eggs which could not be trap- 
nested. Then we have another pen of 
daughters and nieces of these birds headed 
by a bird of our own raising that looks 
like the son of an entire crate of eggs! 
***** 
Yes, I think the poultry business is due 
for a come-back this season. We can all 
of us raise a little more grain and prices 
ought to drop before next Winter. The 
world must have and will have more eggs 
and poultry. This war has forced most 
of us to cull and cut out the drones until 
the quality of most stock is higher than 
ever before. I am going on the principle 
that it is time to get back conservatively. 
It never was safe to gamble or plunge 
in the poultry business, and it is not safe 
to do so now. It is, however, a good 
time to get back into a reasonable busi¬ 
ness. For one thing many people have 
learned how to grow Spring wheat—by 
seeding early and using the right kind of 
seed. I have not advised Spring wheat, 
but I must confess that some of the re¬ 
ports we get are remarkably good. With 
Spring wheat and barley a farmer with 
a reasonable amount of good land can 
provide the grain for a good-sized flock 
of hens, and get more from them than any 
miller would pay! 
***** 
In fact that is what a lot of us have 
got to come to in the way of figuring. 
What does it cost to keep a hen or a cow, 
and what do they sell hay and grain for? 
Take our 10 hens for the two years, and 
how many of them paid? At present 
grain prices you cannot feed a hen two 
years for much under $4.75. Many of 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
us hen men pay far more than that. If 
we count anything for care or risk hardly 
half of these 10 hens paid any profit, and 
yet I believe they were all superior to the 
average farm hen. You will find thou¬ 
sands of hens running about on our 
farms, eating their fill and bragging in 
high, shrill voices about their egg record, 
yet not laying as many eggs as “Queen” 
—who, I think, is queen of the drones. 
A hen must lay at least 250 eggs in two 
years and have many of them in the 
colder months in order to pay her way. 
A man with land must plan to produce 
more of his needful feed, and I think 
there will be more Spring wheat and bar¬ 
ley needed. We had a fair crop of rye, 
but it seemed impossible to get the quoted 
prices for small lots. I was offered $1.65 
a bushel, but we figured it was worth 
more than that for feed. So we crush 
rye and oats and corn together in our 
sweep mill, and have the basis for any 
kind of stock feed. By adding bran, oil- 
meal or cottonseed meal we suit it to any 
kind of stock. 
***** 
There are a good many farms in this 
country whose chief crops are Red hens 
and red-heads—that is some form of farm 
produce and children. Such people usual¬ 
ly know what to do with the farm pro¬ 
duce, but the future of the children be¬ 
comes a big problem. My red hens come 
back from their college experience and 
fall back into the regular life of the 
farm. We have their lives under full con¬ 
trol. We can make Queen into a royal 
chicken pie if we like, or wring Belle’s 
neck or end Hope’s hopeless case. When 
the children come back from school to take 
up some sort of life work we have a hard¬ 
er proposition. Perhaps if it were pos¬ 
sible to keep the child’s record as faith¬ 
fully as these hen records have been kept 
we 'might find that our children vary in 
efficiency as widely as those Red hens. 
Suppose -we did know it; would we have 
the courage and the power to treat our 
children on the basis of their needs rather 
than on their showing in public? Take 
the case of Polly and Queen. We would 
be inclined to. pet and pamper and feed 
the former, since she is a good layer, 
while Queen, having proved a failure, 
would be cast out, neglected or destroyed 
because she has not paid her way. 
***** 
Do you know that I see some cases 
where children are handled and treated 
in about the same way. and it makes one 
of the great tragedies of human life. It is 
particularly true where children are 
adopted or taken into the family. Some 
people think they must have a bright, at¬ 
tractive child, far above the average; one 
that they can brag about and show off. 
Somehow it never occurs to them that 
there is no real sacrifice in taking such 
children. Why. such little ones can easily 
find homes. There is competition for 
them. The true test of character will 
come in caring for the duller, Unattractive 
children who are doomed to disappoint¬ 
ment and failure unless they can have a 
fair chance. It is a fine thing to take the 
bright, capable children and dress them 
nicely and see them develop, as they often 
do, into extraordinary attraction and pow¬ 
er. It is a much finer thing to take the 
backward child or the one with a poor 
record and help put beauty into his mind 
and character. It is very much harder to 
do the latter, but as I go on through the 
world I see so many people who walk in 
the shadow and carry a burden because 
they were not smart and quick as children 
and so father and mother could not have 
patience with them. I wonder if you ever 
thought of that before. I have, and I 
have seen the tragedy worked out in life. 
There seems no use in our paying any 
great attention to Belle and Queen, ex¬ 
cept to get them fat and fit for a pie. On 
their record they deserve their fate, and 
must face it. Did you ever hear of human 
beings, including children, judged in the 
same way? I have. H. w. c. 
Cornstalks for Horses 
I see a lot of inquiries regarding feed¬ 
ing cornstalks, green or dry, so I will give 
you what experience I have had. On the 
shore here we have no fresh hay; it is 
all salt hay. Four years ago, when I 
came to this section, I did not like salt hay, 
so the first Winter I had to buy corn¬ 
stalks or salt hay, so I bought cornstalks, 
and they served till June. In June I 
started to feed green fodder corn; fed 
green fodder till September, then started 
on dry fodder again, and have been do¬ 
ing so ever since. I feed no grain of any 
kind except corn, and only three months 
of each year, March, April and May. 
That is plowing time. My horses are in 
prime condition all the time. The people 
who see my team wonder how I keep 
them so fat. I farm 35 acres all alone, 
and it is work for me and my team, 3.300- 
lb. horses. I cut all my fodder with hand 
silage cutter. I feed three bushel baskets 
of cut fodder at night, two in morning 
and two at noon. They get salt once a 
week, bran and mash once a week. What 
fodder they cannot eat goes under them 
for bedding, and then on manure pile, 
and just watch the corn and potatoes 
grow. I clean my horses morning and 
night. This is four years’ steady diet of 
corn fodder, and I would buy corn fod¬ 
der at $20 a ton rather than buy fresh 
hay at $20 a ton for my use, and I never 
feed more than two quarts of shelled corn 
at a feed, or six quarts a day for each 
horse. A. B. 
Manahawkin, N. J. 
Spray Materials 
are safe. The insects and diseases which damage your orchard 
and crops are often more hardy than the plant or tree affected. 
You want to be assured that the insecticide or fungicide you 
use will be effective and cause no injury to plants or trees. 
Guard your trees and make certain of best spraying results by 
using Orchard Brand Spray materials. 
The Orchard Brand line includes a spray material specially adapted to 
every need and, when properly used will guard against the liability of injury 
to plants. For dormant period spraying for San Jose Scale and other insect 
pests and fungous diseases. Orchard Brand B.T. S. or Lime Sulphur Solution 
are specially recommended. They are tested and known to be of highest ef- 
’ , _ . r _ . ,_ 1 l... 4U n In M/vnnt r* lx nm l on I oAMl non V In A ill PTIPII. 
Our Special Service Department is open to people everywhere 
who want reliable spraying information. Put your spray- 
ing problem up to our experts. 
An Investment of $12 
Saves $180 per Year 
Up untillastyearmany growers 
used three lines of hose and 
three operators on 
theirsprayers. These 
men spray about 30 
days each year and 
by investing $12 
for one 
Hardie 
Orchard 
Gun 
they SAVED the labor 
of two men, or $160.00. 
Their spraying was 
done BETTER and the 
gun will last for YEARS. 
SOME investment? 
Hardia Sprayer and 
Hardie Orchard Guns 
have revolutionized spraying. 
Our catalog tells the whole story. 
A postal card brings it. Send today. 
, THE HARDIE MFG. CO., Hud.on, Mich, 
(l 31 Branches Kamai City, Mo., Ha*er»to wn, Md. 
BIGGER CROW 
jpE?.PROFITS 
(CAMPBEIIJ 
System' ‘ 
Breeding 
Big 
Crops 
Big Crop 
SECRETS! 
Send postal for my 
big new book now. Just 
off the press. Filled 
with amazing facts on 
Seed Selection. Tells 
r why planting pure, 
plump, strong grain 
adds hundreds —even thousands of 
dollars to crop profits. Also tells how 
to end the costly “dockage evil ” Get 
the Book NOW. A postal brings it! 
Seed Grader 
and Cleaner 
_ __|__y pas engine power. 
Cleans, grades,separates rankest mixtures of any 
grain or grass seed— 1000 bushels per day! Or 
it turns easy by hand. Cleans out dust, trash, 
wicked weed seed—separates poor, sickly grains 
that never grow—sacks the plumb, clean grain 
for need or market. Sold on 80 days’ free trial. Take un¬ 
til next Fall to pay. Or 10 r i off for cash. Write for 1* RLE 
Book— and special proposition. Maosoo Campbell, Pree, 
Manson Campbell & Sons Co. 
D*pt. 252 , D.trolt. D.pt. 252 ( Kansas City, Mo. 
Dapt. 252 ■ Minneapolis, Minn. 
CHATHAM 
Breitwieser’s TOBACCO STEMS 
are put up in 100-pound bales, *1.8(1 per bale, or 5 bales, 
$6.50; 10 bales, *12.50; 20 bales. $25 ; F. O. B. ears; 
cash with order. II. A J. HKEITWIESER, Huffalo, N.Y. 
I 
When you write advertisers mention 
The Rural New-Yorker and you’ll get 
a quick reply and a “square deal.” See 
guarantee editorial page. : : 
Save Your Crops 
From Bugs and Disease. Use 
-CALSO 
THE PERFECT POTATO SPRAY 
the "Double Strength Material” for potatoes 
and vegetables. 
D A MTffc'V is tlle ideal tree and 8 eneral 
A .Tml.xi A VFzm. p Ur pose spray. We also 
carry Lime-Sulphur and a full line of spray 
material. Tell us your wants— our prices will 
interest you. 
AGENTS Wo want one reliable man in each 
x */aiuttxx county to act as our general agent 
WANlbU and appoint local agents for our 
products. Exceptional opportunity for the right 
man. We also want a local agent in each vicinity. 
Write for our terms. 
Readina Chemical Co.. Reading, Pa. 
Plenty of Nitrate 
in Chile 
The amount of Nitrate in 
the Chilean Deposits is 
720,000,000 Tons 
At present rate of world’s con¬ 
sumption, deposits will last for 
300 Years 
Shipping conditions are improv¬ 
ing. American farmers should 
learn the FACTS. Write for in¬ 
formation. 
WM, S. MYERS 
Chilean Nitrate Committee 
25 Madison Avenue New York 
Only $lgg 
Down After Trial 
Keep the New Edison Ambcrola-Edlscn’a jrreat phonograph 
with tiie diamond stylus—and your choice of records, lor only 
• 1.00. Pay balance st rate of only a few cents a day. free 
trial Inyour own homo before you decide. Nothing down. 
Write Today for our jN*w Edison Book and pictures, /res, 
F. K. BABSON. Eduoa Phonograph Did 9781Edi»on BIk. Chicago 
