1028 
The RURAL. NEW-YORKER 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER 
A Notional Weekly Journr.l for Country mid Suburban Homes 
Established ISSO 
VnhlUht'd weekly by the Rnral Publishing- Company. 333 West 30th Street, New York 
Herbert W. Collingwood, President and Editor. 
John J. Dillon. Treasurer and General Manager. 
Wm. F. Dillon, Secretary. Mrs. E. T. Hoyle, Associate Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, 82.04. equal to 8s. 6d. or 
81^ marks, or 101a francs. Kemit in money order, express 
order,'personal check or bank draft. 
Entered at New York Post Office as Second Class Matter 
Advertising rates, 75 cents per agate line—7 words. References required for 
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“A SQUARE DEAL” 
We believe that every advertisement in this paper is backed by a respon¬ 
sible person. We use every possible precaution and admit the advertising of 
ie liable houses only. But to make doubly sure, we will make good any loss 
to paid subscribers sustained by trusting any deliberate swindler, irrespon¬ 
sible advertisers or misleading advertisements in our columns, and any 
such swindler will be publicly exposed. We are also often called upon 
to adjust differences or mistakes between our subscribers and honest, 
responsible houses, whether advertisers or not. We willingly use our good 
offices to this end, but such cases should not be confused with dishonest 
transactions. We protect subscribers against rogues, but we will not be 
responsible for the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned bv the courts. 
Notice of the complaint must be sent to us within one month of the time of 
the transaction, and to identify it, you should mention The Rural New- 
Yorker when writing the advertiser. 
W E never saw the prospects for a fruit crop 
fade away as they have this year. There 
was a tremendous bloom, but it came just at the time 
of the baby blizzard in late April. During the cold, 
wet weather which followed, the bees could not 
work properly. The apples seemed to start, but the 
“.Tune drop” has been very heavy, and there is now 
but a scattering of fruit left on many trees. Tikis 
condition seems to be quite general throughout the 
East. There are “spots” of good fruit, but, as a 
whole, we think the crop will be light. As the old 
crop is about cleaned up, the early fruit ought to 
bring high prices. 
* 
Chas. II. Retts is slated by Republican organization 
of Wayne County, N. Y., to succeed Hon. Frank D. 
Gaylord as member of Assembly. Mr. Gaylord is a 
man of high ideals, prominent in temperance, Sunday 
school and church work: has had three terms in Assem¬ 
bly. Normal Republican majority in Wayne County is 
about <1,000. E. 
E print this announcement just as it comes to 
us. Sometimes the politicians put these 
things out as “feelers,” to try the political pulse of 
the people. Our opinion of Mr. Retts is well known. 
If he decides to run in the primary for nomination, 
it will be one of the most interesting tests ever put 
up to the people of Wayne County. The farmers of 
that county have a high reputation for intelligence 
and for progressive ideas. And they know their 
neighbor, Mr. Retts, for just what he is—good or 
bad. It n:ill therefore he up to them —perhaps the 
best test yet -to determine whether people are polit¬ 
ically hidebound or free. 
* 
T HE Government reports still insist that the 
coming wheat crop is to be a record breaker. 
The Spring ivheat will be somewhat short, but the 
Winter wheat crop is immense. We believe it will 
all be needed and disposed of. The only trouble 
will be in the handling of the entire flood of it if 
poured into the market at once. There are not 
elevators enough to hold it. It is therefore sug¬ 
gested that the Government pay farmers at the rate 
of two per cent a month for holding and storing the 
crop on the farms. The guaranteed price will be 
paid, and if farmers can he paid reasonably for 
storing and holding on the farms they can and will 
prevent a flood which would swamp the elevators. 
The public will be obliged to pay for storage in 
elevators anyway, and the charge for this service 
would come to more than the two per cent asked 
for farm storage. 
* 
I N Maryland a committee headed by Prof. H. J. 
Patterson, of the Experiment Station, has sub¬ 
mitted a plan for the State’s policy on land for sol¬ 
diers. Here is the essence of it: 
1. Soldiers desiring to farm should be assisted at 
once in securing productive farms of their own choice 
on which they may reasonably expect to make a com¬ 
fortable living and profit. 
2. That farms may be made immediately available, 
Congress should amend at once the Federal Farm Loan 
Act so as to allow soldiers to secure loans up to the full 
farm values, as determined by their appraisers. 
Maryland is opposed to the plan of spending mil¬ 
lions on deserts, swamps and stump land while 
thousands of good farms, close to good markets, and 
available at once, are to be found. Under the plan 
suggested by Secretary Lane we do not see that 
farms could be made ready for cropping for several 
years. Most of these soldiers would prefer to go to 
farming at once if at all. The millions proposed for 
work on these wild lands could be used for securing 
farms in the older settled States. At any rate, if you 
are to give the soldier a chance to buy a farm, let 
him select it and live where he wants to. We should 
go slow in making soldiers a privileged class as bor¬ 
rowers from the Federal land bank. 
H ERE we come again with a boost for the cover 
crop. It. will soon be time to seed it. Do you 
want your land covered and protected during Win¬ 
ter, or do you want it left bare? It is for you to de¬ 
cide. All you need to do to protect it is to throw the 
seed on the ground before the last cultivation and 
work it in. You will give that last cultivation any¬ 
way, so all it means is the seed. Suppose some 
insurance company would contract to save the sur¬ 
plus nitrates in your soil, prevent washing away, 
and add as much organic matter in each acre as you 
could get in eight tons of manure. You would take 
the contract at once, yet that is just what rye, clover, 
vetch, turnips, etc., offer to do. We know they can 
make good. No man who ever carried a cover crop 
through to the following crop ever regretted it. The 
thing seems so much like picking up money to those 
who have tried it that they cannot understand why 
any farmer should oppose. In Northern New Jersey 
we use the combinatiod of one bushel of rye, five 
pounds Alsike clover and one pound of turnips to the 
acre. Many prefer Winter vetch to the clover. 
Either will obtain some nitrogen from the air. while 
the rye will add organic matter. No matter what 
your combination of seeds, put a cover crop in the 
corn. It will pay. 
* 
T note that the Watertown price of cheese is given as 
30% to 31c. This week we are charged 45c for very 
ordinary -cheese. This week, being out of potatoes, we 
bought two quarts from our grocer; they were ISc—9c 
a quart—for very poor, old potatoes. Our little Italian 
shoemaker tells us lie now pays $1.25 per pound for the 
leather with which he soles our shoes. It used to be 
40c. He showed a piece of leather about 3x4 ft, and 
said it cost $14. Wonder what the farmer got? fi. T. 
S stated last week, when there is any question 
about retail prices, we go out and buy the 
goods. The above figures give one report from a 
housekeeper. She paid at the rate of $8.64 a barrel 
for potatoes. The farmer gets about 14c a pound 
for hides, and a pound of hide will make about one 
square foot of leather. And here right in this same 
connection is a report from a cattle feeder in the 
West: 
During the past five or six weeks the price of beef 
cattle of the best grades has declined pretty nearly $5 
per hundred. During all of this time prices of feeds 
have been advancing, corn going a little higher every 
day, and hay being at almost unprecedented heights. 
During all this time labor has been well employed and 
receiving unheard-of wages. Our exports abroad have 
been very heavy. There has been no panic, and, in fact, 
no really untoward situation at all that we common 
people could see to bring about this change. Finally, 
rhe retailers have not lowered their prices one penny. 
Wherefore, then, should have been this slump? w. 
While this “slump” was in progress a hump 
appeared in the retail prices of meat. and. as 
usual, consumers charged the farmers with robbing 
them. The present system of distribution is simply 
robbery reduced to a fine art. It not only steals 
money, but it steals morality, because it is a part of 
this system to array consumer against producer and 
prejudice the city mind against the farmer. This 
will continue until the farmers change it by combin¬ 
ing to handle the distribution of their own products. 
* 
“A Neic York dog has no business off liis owner's 
property alone!" 
HAT has been our interpretation of the New 
York dog law, and a recent jury trial in Sar¬ 
atoga County seems to confirm it. A man in that 
county owned a hound which lie said was worth 
$500. At 9 o’clock at night he let this hound loose 
for “exercise.” As part of this exercise the hound 
appeared on the premises of a farmer, got into a 
shed, frightened poultry and made a nuisance of 
himself generally. The farmer went out with a gun 
and, as he says, was threatened by the hound. It 
was too dark to see the dog, hut the gun was acci¬ 
dentally discharged. In the morning the dead body 
of the dog was found in the field near by. The 
dog’s owner sued for damages, but the jury properly 
decided that he had no cause for action under the 
new dog law. This declares, in substance, that any 
person may kill a dog found attacking any domestic 
animals, including poultry, or while being pursued 
therefor. That seems to settle the prowling dog. 
The practice of turning dogs loose at night to roam 
about at will ought to be stopped. This jury did 
their duty. Let the honest dog have his rights, but 
prowling at night is not one of them. 
* 
T HREE centuries ago, the Mayflower, a small 
and shaky little vessel, left England and sailed 
west across the Atlantic. After a stormy voyage of 
nearly 90 days the Mayflower landed her passengers 
at Plymouth, Mass. Under the circumstances tins 
was considered a reasonable passage, and is now 
accounted one of the great events in human history. 
The other day two men rose from the ground in 
June 28, 1919 
Newfoundland in a flying machine and headed east 
across the Atlantic. In 16 hours they descended 
upon the ground in Ireland, having traveled over 
1,900 miles at an average speed of two miles a 
minute. The storms which the Mayflower encoun¬ 
tered were as nothing compared with the terrible 
storm clouds through which these men flew. The 
thought of the mastery of natural forces which 
these three tremendous centuries have wrought is 
enough to stagger the human mind. It may be that 
this great feat may not lead to any immediate prac¬ 
tical improvement in transportation, but it gives 
courage and confidence to inventive genius and will 
push ambitious men on to still greater things. We 
have little doubt that at the 300th celebration of the 
Mayflower’s voyage next year it will be quite pos¬ 
sible to send some great air machine direct from 
Plymouth, England, to Plymouth, America, in about 
two per cent, of the time required for the May¬ 
flower’s voyage. At any rate, these dazzling events 
must convince all of us that life cannot stand still. 
We must all move around with it. 
* 
B OTH houses of Congress at Washington passed 
a hill repealing the “daylight saving” law. 
Unless this is changed the present “time” will con¬ 
tinue until the end of October. After that the clocks 
will be turned back permanently. The matter finally 
came to a direct contest between city and country— 
city people against farmers. The farmers were 
nearly unanimous for repeal because they could 
show that the new time caused them inconvenience 
and loss. Therefore they were insistent and deter¬ 
mined. On the other hand, only a small proportion 
of city people cared enough about the law to fight 
for it. A few of them did so, but the great majority 
of them could only say that the law gave them an 
extra hour for pleasure. The most effective argu¬ 
ment for repeal was the statement that the new 
time makes farm work less efficient and will there¬ 
fore reduce the output of food. Our city friends 
may now begin to realize what the country people 
can do, politically, when they once unite for action. 
* 
There has been much said about patriotism among 
women in helping do the work of men. It is, in my 
opinion, patriotic for women to help women. Many 
farms have lowered their output not because they could 
not get men, but because they could not get help in the 
kitchen to take care of the men. Farmerettes were to 
bo had who were of some use possibly, but many farm 
homes, with modern conveniences, could not get a volun¬ 
teer for the kitchen, even when they were to work side 
by side with wives and daughters, when one more pair 
of hands would have made easy work for all. It would 
seem some school teachers (they are complaining loudly 
of lack of funds) might be willing to help, or some 
saleswoman could get a change that way, and good pay. 
New Jersey. ed. Danielson. 
W ELL, why not? There are many cases where 
women would do far more helpful service in 
the house than they ever can do on the farm. There 
would he genuine patriotism about it. Yet nine out 
of 10 women we have talked with about this refuse 
to work in the kitchen, hut prefer to pick, pack or 
hoe. Why is the hoe more of a patriotic implement 
than the dishrag? The women workers have the 
answer. Will they give it? 
Brevities 
During the war more than half a million surgical 
pads made of peat moss were prepared by volunteer ser¬ 
vice. 
We never before had so many questions about line 
fences. In many eases the fence viewers must be called 
in to settle it. 
JiPEW fruit growers are now afraid of the San Jose 
scale. They know how to fight it. The borers are far 
n ore of a menace. . 
THE New York Experiment Station finds a solution 
of salt in water with chloride of lime added the best 
wash for milking machines. 
We are told that in some parts of the Middle West 
there are half decayed straw stacks within a few miles 
of apple orchards. That straw ought to be spread in 
the orchards as mulch. 
In New Y r ork State anyone may kill a dog when 
caught chasing domestic animals. Would this include 
cats? The law states that the domestic animals must 
have a commercial value, and few cats could be bought 
and sold. 
In former years we have advised readers who were 
annoyed by the neighbors’ chickens to keep a smart little 
dog trained to chase these chickens home. Under the 
present dog law the owner of such chickens could shoot 
the dog if he caught him at his job. 
Locating schools and teachers, thus far we have 
heard from two rural districts where teachers are want¬ 
ed and from one college graduate who would like a -posi¬ 
tion in a high school. We are still ready to help if we 
can locate teachers and schools. 
Here is the latest report about the “warbles” or grubs 
in cattle: “Late investigations have proven that when 
these warbles are crushed in the back of the cow. the 
juices are often absorbed into the circulation of the ani¬ 
mal and cause death in a very short time. This is a bit 
of interesting knowledge obtained in an experimental 
way within the last few years and is not generally 
known.” 
