1012 
The Rural New-Yorker 
THE BUSINESS FARMER'S PAPER 
A National Weekly Journal for Country and Suburban llomo« 
Established 1850 
Published weekly by the Rural Publishing Company. 333 West 30tb Street, New York 
Herbert W. Collingwood, President and Editor. 
John J. Dillon, Treasurer and General Manager. 
Wm. F. Dillon, Secr etary. _ Mrs. E. T. Royle, Associate Editor. 
SUBSCRIPTION; ONE DOLLAR A YEAR 
To foreign countries in the Universal Postal Union, 82.04, equal to 8s. 6d., or 
sy„ marks, or lOfe francs. Remit in money order, express 
order, personal check or bank draft. 
Entered at New York Post Office as Second Class Matter. 
Advertising rates, 90 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¬ 
sible person. Wo 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 cases should not be confused with dishonest 
transactions. We protect subscribers against rogues, but we will not be 
responsible for the debts ol' 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 The Rural New- 
Yorker when writing the advertiser. 
(Those who expect to lire on the fat of the land 
must realize that someone must work himself lean 
in order to produce the fat! 
* 
There are plenty of fanners who prefer “daylight 
saving ” to the old time. Does not this prove that 
you are wrong in opposing “daylight saving?" 
L. J. P. 
E find such a farmer here and there, but it 
cannot be said there are ‘‘plenty” of them. 
They had their great chance to express themselves 
in our Farm Referendum, but only about three per 
cent favored the law. We have known bankers who 
favored free silver, tenants who favored an increase 
of rent, ministers who stood for the saloon, we once 
knew a rum-seller who favored prohibition, an im¬ 
porter who wanted a high tariff, a manufacturer 
Who wanted free trade in the goods he produced, a 
farmer who wanted higher prices on fertilizers, a 
dairyman who thought feed prices too low, a college 
graduate who wanted a job as hired man and not as 
manager, and a professor of economics who admitted 
that there might be such a thing as a 35-cent dollar! 
Such men have lived. They were rare specimens. 
There never could be said to be “plenty” of them, 
but we think the working farmer who favors “day¬ 
light saving” is more of a rare bird than any of the 
other abnormal specimens. 
# 
At our annual school meeting on May 4 a motion to 
open our school at 9 o’clock, old time, or 10 o’clock, new 
time, was carried, 19 for and 11 against. On Tuesday 
morning. May 6, school was started on the old time, but 
now notice has been sent out to open on new time. Can 
the board legally change the time without a vote of the 
patrons. If not. what course is to be followed? 
New York. patron. 
N many places the schools are open on the old, or 
National time, in accordance with the wishes of 
the patrons. In want of any specific law on the sub¬ 
ject. the board naturally fixes the hour of opening. 
It would seem, however, that the board would follow 
the expressed wish of a majority of the patrons. The 
only remedy we know now is a protest to the board, 
and the election of a new board at the first oppor¬ 
tunity. 
* 
T HUS far our readers have suggested about a 
dozen names of men who might make suitable 
candidates for Governor of New York. We have 
written all these men and requested their views on 
the questions printed on page 949. Some have thus 
far ignored the questions; others reply, but refuse 
permission to print their views, while others answer 
openly. We printed two such letters last week, and 
there are three more this Aveek. We make no com¬ 
ment at this time, since the object of all this is to 
have a perfectly fair and frank understanding. Avith- 
out special fa\ T ors to anyone. When the suggested 
candidates have said what they care to, we shall call 
for a great farm referendum, or postal ballot, in 
which our readers will state their preference for 
Governor or other State officers, as an aid to effective 
work in the primary. This is a new experiment in 
New York political life, and it offers great posibili- 
ties to those farmers avIio really desire to make their 
influence felt in State affairs. 
* 
A VERY strong effort is being made to erect and 
maintain a “Temple of Agriculture” at Wash¬ 
ington. All the great farm organizations are inter¬ 
ested and a “drive” has been organized to raise the 
needed funds. The object is to erect a fine building 
at the National Capital—one large enough and fine 
enough fitly to represent agriculture. It is argued 
that practically all other great interests have such 
buildings, and in this age agriculture, in order to 
have full standing, must do likewise. While The R. 
N.-Y. has steadily argued that farm leaders should 
not spend all their time at Washington, Ave do 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
think agriculture as a business and a profession 
should be properly represented there. A great build¬ 
ing known as a “temple,” or by any other name, 
erected by millions of small voluntary contributions 
and recognized as belonging—not to the leaders but 
to the rank and file of plain farmers—will be recog¬ 
nized as a monument to our business. We should 
help erect it. If built at all it should be paid for. not 
by the few. but by the many. Our readers can con¬ 
tribute through their Grange, Dairymen’s League or 
any other farm organization. 
* 
A T the present prices for Liberty bonds these 
securities give the greatest bargains ever offered 
by any government obligation. After the Civil War 
government bonds fell off in price for a time, and 
they were quite largely bought by European inves¬ 
tors, who made a great profit out of them. The 
Liberty bonds at recent prices give the best bargain 
for a gilt-edged security the world has seen in the 
past generation. The following figures show the 
prices for these bonds on May 19 and the interest 
rate which they earn at these figures: 
Closing Yield 
Liberty 3%s . 90 90 4.10 
Liberty First 4s. 83.30 5.15 
Liberty Second 4s. 82.00 5.33 
Liberty First 414s. 84.50 5.33 
Liberty Second 4%s. 83.20 5.57 
Liberty Third 414 s. 86.60 6.30 
Liberty Fourth 414s. 83.10 5.78 
Victory 3%s . 94.92 5.42 
Victory 4%s . 95.20 6.48 
At these figures .$100 invested in Victory bonds or 
in the Third Liberty issue will yield an assured in¬ 
come of more than six per cent. There cannot pos¬ 
sibly be any stronger security than the National 
promise back of these bonds. If any possible turn 
of fate should make them worthless there could not 
be value in any property. Many people are puzzled 
to know lioAv these bonds can be so low. Tn one day 
last week nearly $30,000,000 worth were thrown on 
the market. They do not come from small investors, 
but from big corporations. Credit is being contracted 
or refused all over the country, and cash is in great 
demand. Many corporations find it to their advan¬ 
tage to sell these bonds, even at a great discount, 
and use the cash at high rates of interest and figure 
out a “loss” which reduces their income tax. This 
situation gives the small investor with a little money 
to spare a chance to secure a six per cent gilt-edged 
investment far safer than anything else he can find. 
The bonds are sound as a rock and will go to a pre¬ 
mium before they mature. While that is true, 
thousands of bondholders feel that they have not 
been fairly treated. They Avere urged, if not forced, 
to buy these bonds as a patriotic duty. Many of 
them bought at a great sacrifice, using money which 
should have gone for necessities. Now they see the 
selling A'alue of their securities cut 10 to 20 per cent 
because those who urged them to buy and hold dump 
their bonds on the market for the sake of higher 
interest rates! 
* 
Fruit growers in our State are disturbed over the 
fact that sugar is likely to be high in price Avhen 
the canning season arrives. It is the feeling among 
our fanners that candy companies and canners are now 
buying up large quantities of sugar, and that, on ac¬ 
count' of the hoarding of this commodity, the people 
who may Avish to do home canning will find themselves 
at a disadvtanage. We all realize that the scarcity and 
high price of sugar will lead to a waste of berries and 
fruit that might otherwise be conserved for future use. 
HAT is a timely note from Dr. J. G. Lipman of 
the New Jersey Agricultural College. It ex¬ 
presses the vieAvs of fruit growers and housewives 
everywhere. Candy makers and canners are doing it 
themselves —no, they are not. for the government 
seems to be helping them get sAveet. It is an outrage 
that these big concerns should lie permitted to gob¬ 
ble up the available sugar and let the housewives 
and fruit growers suffer. Is there any fight, left in 
this government? Even the “spineless cactus” is said 
to develop an occasional thorn Avhen hungry stock 
would eat it to the roots and destroy it, but spineless 
man will sit by and see “big business” eat the very 
sugar out of the pockets of consumers. Something 
has got to be done at once to stop this outrage. 
* 
T HE hearing before Gov. Smith over the repeal of 
the daylight saA'ing laAV developed into a 
mighty struggle betAveen farm and town. Speakers 
for the farmers shoAved how the law affects farm 
labor and how it is one of the causes of lower pro¬ 
duction. No one on the other side seemed able to 
show that the law has increased production or made 
labor any more efficient. The argument for the law 
was frankly that it gave city workmen more time to 
play or loaf. There are some exceptions to this, but 
nine out of 10 aa t 1io advocate the law do so because 
it gives them more playtime. It is hard to conceive 
of a more selfish argument—this forcing upon farrn- 
May 20, 1920 
ers a law admitted to be offensive and uneconomic 
in order to gain more time for play! As Ave Avrite, 
Gov. Smith has not acted on the bill, but he intimat¬ 
ed strongly at this hearing that he would veto it. If 
he does, two courses will lie open for farmers, in ad¬ 
dition to starting a campaign for repeal next year. 
They can combine to test the law in the courts. 
Lawyers tell us that the State law is unconstitu¬ 
tional because it conflicts with a Federal law. Or 
the farmers can combine and refuse to accept the 
new or State time. They can agree to conduct their 
business by natural or Federal time. That will start 
a direct industrial conflict between country and town 
and as part of it the farmers will do business, as far 
as possible, with these towns and cities which come 
to time with them. 
* 
I N a recent land case in the State of Washington 
the Supreme Court decided that when a man buys 
or exchanges land he is justified in relying upon the 
statements made by the seller. Tn this case the land 
in question was 60 miles distant, and the roads were 
so bad that it was difficult if not impossible to go 
and look it over. Tn that case where the seller made 
certain statements about the land which did not 
prove true on close examination, he could not hold 
the buyer to the contract. Where the truth or 
falsity of these representations can be ascertained 
“with reasonable diligence” a contract based upon 
such statements would stand, but where it is difficult 
to examine the land personally the representations 
of the owner or seller must be true in order to hold 
the contract. If this rule could be held in all sales 
of land, especially to non-residents, it would prove a 
great help. 
* 
O UR readers are following the progress of the 
potato crop with special interest. We find that 
thousands of acres formerly planted to potatoes will 
this year be abandoned or planted in other crops. 
This land is usually the poorer fields on the smaller 
farms. On the other hand, on large farms, where all 
suitable potato machinery can be used, there will as 
a. rule be a heavier planting than usual. The most 
evident result thus far is to eliminate the smaller 
grower. In its way this result follows the same 
course as the great change in the production of small 
grain AA-hen the West was opened up. The smaller 
growers gave up first, until finally most Eastern 
farmers gave up Avlieat growing and bought their 
flom\ Recent higher prices have bi’ouglit many of 
these smaller Avheat groAvers back. The smaller 
potato growers seem to be giving up this crop com¬ 
mercially, while the larger growers, like the large 
wheat growers, are increasing. On the whole it 
seems to us that if the season from now on is at all 
favorable there will be the usual acreage planted. 
It will not be generally distributed, but the tendency 
is to centralize the commercial crop in the hands of 
fewer growers. In Southern New Jersey something 
like a revolution in potato growing is working out, 
where growers are changing from an early to a late 
crop. They have met with great success in planting 
about the middle of August, carrying the seed in cold 
storage. This will reduce the acreage of early po¬ 
tatoes somewhat, but increase the late crop for com¬ 
petition with other sections. 
Brevities 
Most farmers will till for utility this year. 
Congress has given partial relief to the Farm Loan 
banks. 
The farmer in sand has his inning this year hut 
wait until Drought comes to bat. 
The milch goat is no longer a joke. Try to buy one 
and see the competition among buyers. 
Work and shirk make a halting rhyme, but there is 
no other way in which they can get together. 
• About duck eggs in Avater-glass, one report is that if 
they are Avashcd off before preserving they will go 
Avrong. 
Watch the “wave of price cutting” now reported in 
the papers. It will end up as usual by cutting the price 
of farm produce. 
We find a number of readers Avho are very willing to 
back the Indian Runner duck against the Leghorn in 
an egg-laying contest. 
Having had four days in succession without rain on 
our farm Ave feel better. 
Some say the farmer has no voice in public allaiis. 
We intend to give him a chance to get his voice back- 
in the coming farm referendum on candidates for 
Governor. 
It is said that the governing hoard of Denver, Col., 
was about to pass an ordinance absolutely prohibiting 
horses from traveling in the city streets. Then 1 iejo 
came a fearful snowstorm which completely stalled tn 
cars and trucks. No vehicle could move except under 
horsepower—and the ordinance Avas dropped. 
