1132 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S TAPER 
Jk National Weekly Journal lor Country un<l Suburban llcmrr 
Established is:.o 
FetiUtbed weekly by the Rural Publishing Company, 333 West 30th Street, >'e» fork 
Herbert W. Oollixowood. President and Editor. 
John J. Dillon, Treasurer and General Manager. 
W*. F. Dillon, Secretary. Mrs. E. T. Roylf.. Associate Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION: ONE DOLLAR A YEAR 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, $2.04. e<iua! to Ks. Od, CT 
marks, or 10 1 * francs. Remit in money order, express 
order, personal check or bank draft. 
Entered at New York Post Office as Second Class Matter. 
Advertising rates, T5 cents per agate line—7 words. References required for 
advertisers unknown to us , and cash must accompany transient orders. 
"A SQUARE DEAL - ’ 
We believe that every advertisement in this paper is backed by a respon- 
eible person. We use every possible precaution and admit the advertising of 
reliable 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 eases should not be confused with dishonest 
transactions. We protect subscribers against rogues, but we will not bo 
responsible for the debts of honest bankrupts sanctioned by 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. Thk Rural New- 
Yorker when writing the advertiser. 
I N 1010 Wayne Co.. N. Y.. had a population of 50,- 
179. There were 5.237 farms, with a total acre¬ 
age of 357.800 acres. About 00 per cent of the popu¬ 
lation was white, with parents born in this country, 
and more than 70 per cent of the total population 
was rural. In that year the farmers of Wayne 
County produced $6,000,024 worth of crops, ranking 
No. 58 in all the counties of the country. No. 7 
among all the counties of New York. The business 
of producing food and preparing'it comprises 85 per 
cent and more of the total business of Wayne Coun¬ 
ty. All other lines of business are. or should he. sec¬ 
ondary to agriculture. We give these facts in order 
to ask Wayne County farmers this plain question: 
“Do Wayne County fanners leant to be represented 
at Albany by Chas. H. Betts?"’ We have shown that 
Wayne County is essentially an agricultural section, 
if there ever was one. Everyone knows that the bus¬ 
iness of fruit growing lias c-ome face to fac-e with a 
serious situation. Western competition will be se¬ 
vere. New insect pests and diseases are threatened. 
I 
The problems of transportation and marketing were 
never more seriously acute. If ever there was a 
time when Wayne County needed public servants 
who are heart, soul and hands right in the business 
of producing fruit, it would seem to be right now! 
Does Mr. Betts size up to these requirements? If he 
does not, what else does he possess of such tremen¬ 
dous power that he will prove superior to a trained, 
business-like fruit grower? The question must be 
answered by Wayne County farmers. We have no 
word of abuse for Mr. Betts, because you know him 
better than we do. We are going to keep asking our 
question, because it involves a principle which all 
farmers in the country recognize. Will the farmers 
of a prosperous and purely agricultural county select 
one of their own number to represent them when 
they have a chance to do so? 
* 
I T is getting so that a farm without a car is much 
like one without a cow. One result of this is a 
change in the nature of agricultural meetings. In¬ 
stead of gathering at some central place to listen to 
speeches, farmers now organize a trip, or “run.” 
They meet at some convenient point and ride in pro¬ 
cession for 50 miles or more through farms and or¬ 
chards, stopping now and then for observation and 
then speeding on. There will be thousands of such 
“runs” this year, and when well organized they are 
better than any central meeting. In announcing the 
recent trip of the New Jersey Horticultural Society, 
Prof. Blake said: 
On this trip we will go to visit some orchards where 
the crop is light on account of weather conditions, blight 
and other troubles. I believe on tours of this sort peo¬ 
ple are too often taken to points where everything has 
been favorable and extra skill has been employed ; they 
do not see orchards and places which have not been so 
fortunate, and where* average skill has been employed, 
which would somewhat balance the idea which they 
would secure upon the whole trip. 
We think that is right. On such a trip it i$ well to 
have contrasts to bring out both light and shade. It 
is a mistake to show only the high spots, without any 
low spots for contrast. 
■"' * 
W E have had many complaints from small prop¬ 
erty owners who think they have been un¬ 
justly treated by the highway commissioners. Some¬ 
times it is a ditch which limits their road frontage or 
throws water in their field. It may be the loss of 
shade trees, breaking fences or cutting over the line 
for a new road. All sorts of things are done, and 
these people believe that they are treated in this way 
because they are poor and insignificant. In some of 
these cases we find that the road authorities are 
within their rights, while in others there seems to 
Tht RURAL NEW-YORKER 
'be a dear case of injustice. We .have often advised 
such people to make complaint to the Commission of 
Highways at Albany. They seldom do it, saying 
that they are so small and feeble that the big com¬ 
mission will not notice them. Recent correspondence 
with the commission makes ns think this is wrong. 
The secretary of the commission, Royal K. Puller, 
assures us that: 
No complaint has ever come to this office which has 
not been investigated, and as much attention is given to 
the poorest and humblest person as one with political 
influence. 
We are in favo» of taking Mr. Fuller right at his 
word, and we will see that any road complaint sent 
us is put squarely up to the commission. Tt may not 
follow that it can always help, as in some cases the 
county is responsible. 
* 
O PR understanding is that the crops of wheat 
and barley in New England this season are 
heavier than in any season for the past 25 years. 
The record wheat crop for New England is about 
2.000.000 bushels. That section should produce 8,000,- 
000 bushels, and will do so in some future year. The 
record corn crop for New England is about 15.000.000 
bushels. We expect to see that raised to at least 
25.W0.000. We think this increase in the production 
of bread food will be necessary if New England is 
to hold her place in manufacturing. She must pro¬ 
duce more of her food nearer home. We think this 
will come through the use of land formerly cultivat¬ 
ed, but now out of use. Mammal plants like Sweet 
and Alsike clover will bring this land back into rea¬ 
sonable culture. 
* 
“The deplorable condition of country life in 
America may he largely traced to more than half 
a century of legislation at the hands of town-bred 
lawyers, reformers from the big cities and agents of 
railroads and factories .” 
HAT is taken from Poultney Bigelow's book on 
“Prussianism and Pacifism.” Bigelow states 
that Bismarck of Germany and Cavour of Italy 
were each farmers. They were both personally 
interested in farming. Thus they became familiar 
with the desires and economic needs of farmers. 
Thus they came to know that the true prosperity of 
the state must rest upon that part of the population 
which lives in the country and works directly upon 
the soil. Knowing this, these statesmen realized 
that the prosperity and contentment of the rural 
people must be the true measure of a nation’s great¬ 
ness and stability. On that principle of legislation 
they made Germany and Italy strong and great. It 
is true that the strength of Germany was chiefly 
devoted to upholding the power of the imperial 
family. We may well understand now what a 
shining world mark German civilization would now 
be if Bismarck had used the power of agriculture 
to develop the rights of the plain people rather than 
the wrongs of the Kaiser's family. Italy became 
a world power through favour's wisdom in consid¬ 
ering agriculture as the foundation of the nation. 
In this country we have had no statesman since 
Washington who has had the vision to realize the 
true economic importance of the farmer, or to build 
national legislature upon agriculture. The situation 
has worked away from us. We must bring it back. 
No one will do it for us! 
* 
WniT.E the producer has been taking a loss ranging 
anywhere from $30 to $50 on each beef steer, the con¬ 
sumer has been paying the same or nearly the same old 
price for his beefsteak or his roast. Judged by the 
present price of the beef steei\ fresh beef is the cheapest 
staple food product in America today. Actually, it is 
one of the dearest. If a fair price were asked for it 
consumption could immediately be increased, resulting 
in a better market for the producer. 
HAT is part of a statement made by Senator 
Arthur Capper of Kansas. It goes well with 
the article of Charles B. Wing in this issue. The 
prices demanded for meat at this time are shameful, 
and more shameful still is the organized effort to 
put the blame for this condition upon the farmers. 
These farmers are losing money on every $12 beef 
steer they sell. And this is mostly borrowed money 
loaned by the banks! Yet when the town consumer 
is held uii for his meat he turns bitterly against the 
farmer as the cause of his trouble! Congress is dis¬ 
posed to turn upon the packers as the chief cause 
of this trouble. It is now considering a bill to put 
the packing business under rigid control— about as 
complete as the control of national banks. Under 
this bill the packers must take out licenses, give up 
all “related industries” and dispose of their private 
cars, etc. Even with this, however, there will not 
be full relief. Sooner or later we think the meat 
July 26, 1019 
producers will be forced to organize and conduct 
their own business after some such plan as Mi. 
Wing suggests. The present condition is only one 
more sure illustration of the fact that so long as we 
hire other interests to do our business for us, we 
must pay them all the profits—and more. Let us 
spend no more time cursing the big interests. That 
does not hurt them. T.et us all drop our minor dif¬ 
ferences and devote all our strength to the job of 
getting together. 
* 
P RESIDENT WILSON took a hand in the “day¬ 
light saving” campaign and saved the daylight 
savers by vetoing the bill. Congress tacked the 
repeal of the daylight law on the agricultural appro¬ 
priation bill and passed it by a great majority.. The 
President promptly vetoed it. He said, in effect, 
that daylight saving had proved a great benefit to 
the public, and that no one advanced reasonable 
arguments against it! The House of Representa¬ 
tives tried to pass the bill over the President's veto. 
The vote stood 247 against 135. While this was a 
majority of 112, the plan failed because a two- 
thirds vote is required to overcome a veto. The 
vote in the house was a clear-cut contest between 
city and country. Practically every man who repre¬ 
sents farmers or country people voted for repeal. 
Thus we have a remarkable situation. A majority 
of Congress and probably a majority of the people 
are opposed to daylight saving, while the President 
through his veto power sustains the minority. On 
the next page is an article which expresses the 
views of many conservative people. 
* 
N OW and then we hear from someone who thinks 
all farming is done “out West.” Such people 
regard Eastern farming as small business. The fact 
is that some of our Eastern sections can show speci¬ 
mens of the best farming in the world, not only in 
crop production but in value of product. For many 
years Lancaster Co., l'a., has stood at the head of all 
counties in total value of all crops and in live stock. 
In 1910 there were 58 counties in the country show¬ 
ing a total yearly crop value of $0,000,000 or more. 
Of these, 14 counties were located in the Eastern 
States. There were eight in New York, one in 
Maine, one in Connecticut, one in Massachusetts and 
three in Pennsylvania. In the great Central West 
there were 13—12 in Illinois and one in Iowa. No 
other county in the great Mississippi Valley reached 
the $0,000,000 mark. The Western counties are as 
a rule much larger than those in tlie Eastern States, 
so that the value of crop production per acre would 
he considerably larger in the latter. There are 11 
counties in New York which produced greater value 
in farm crops in 1910 than -any county in Ohio, 
Michigan, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin or Kansas. 
These things are not generally known, yet they are 
true, and much more could he given to show that 
some of the best farming in the world is being done 
on the oldest land in America. 
* 
O N the next page the suggestion is made that 
the Board of Freeholders in Monmouth County. 
N. J.. buy or obtain a farm, stock it properly and 
have it run as a potato school and experiment sta¬ 
tion. Well, why not? In 1910 Monmouth County 
produced nearly 25 per cent of all the potatoes grown 
in New Jersey. She might well produce four times 
as many if the business of producing them can be 
put on a sound and scientific basis. The soil run¬ 
ning through Monmouth ranks with the best potato 
land in the world. The State has spent money in 
learning how to put Jersey soil into brick and tile. 
It will be a good investment to learn how to put 
soil into potatoes. Such an experiment farm or 
school would in time increase the value of every 
acre of suitable farm land in Monmouth County, 
besides doubling its agricultural wealth. Much the 
same thing bus been worked out elsewhere with, 
success. 
Brevities 
If the chicks will not learn to roost naturally—show 
them how. 
Cohn growing close to a line fence with a pasture on 
the other side is a dangerous temptation to the stock. 
Keep away from the “canning compounds.” Most 
of them contain borax or salicylic acid and are unlaw¬ 
ful. Use heat! 
A TON of clover hay in the mow requires about 500 
cubic feet. A ton of green clover packed in the silo' 
fills about 200 cubic feet. 
