8 
Tht RURAL. NEW-YORKER 
January 1, 1921 
TOP-DRESSING TALK No. 4 
Nitrogen Helps the Meadow 
A Primer of Economics 
By John J. Dillon 
Part IV 
Timothy and other hay crops, like 
the grains, need a plentiful supply 
of quickly available nitrogen early 
in the season, and a top-dressing of 
Sulphate of Ammonia, applied as 
soon as the frost is out of the 
ground, will often greatly increase 
the profits from the meadow. 
In fertilizer demonstrations on 10 
Ohio farms of various soil types, 
an average of 110 lbs. Sulphate of 
Ammonia per acre gave an increase 
of 1,646 lbs. of timothy. In every 
instance the top-dressing was prof¬ 
itable and on some soils the re¬ 
sponse to nitrogen was remarkable. 
Arcadian Sulphate of Ammonia is the 
ideal top-dressing fertilizer. The analysis 
is^25^% ammonia guaranteed. ^The am¬ 
monia is in an all soluble, quickly available 
and non-leaching form. 
Arcadian is fine and dry and can be ap¬ 
plied by hand or machine easily and uni¬ 
formly. The amount recommended for the 
hay crop and for grains is from50 to 150 lbs. 
per acre depending upon the natural fertility 
of the soil. For pasture lands 50 to 100 
lbs. per acre is advisable. 
Arcadian , the Great American Ammoniate , is for sale by 
NEW YORK: New York; The Coe-Mortimer 
Co., The American Agricultural Chemical Co., 
Nassau Fertilizer Co., W. E. Whann Co., Pa- 
tapsco Guano Co., The National Fertilizer Co., 
Bowker Fertilizer Co., Frederick Ludlam Co. 
Syracuse; F. S. Royster Guano Co. 
NEW JERSEY: Chrome; Armour Fertilizer 
Works (Address Baltimore, Md.). Newark; 
Listers Agricultural Chemical Works. Tren¬ 
ton; Trenton Bone Fertilizer Co. Woodstown; 
South Jersey Farmers’ Exchange. 
OHIO: Cincinnati; Armour Fertilizer Works. 
Cleveland; Swift & Co. Sandusky; Armour 
Fertilizer Works. Toledo; F. S. Royster 
Guano Co. Columbus; Federal Chemical Co. 
CONNECTICUT: Bridgeport; The Berkshire 
Fertilizer Co. 
Write Desk 10 for our 
free booklet No. 27 
“How to Increase the 
Yield of Timothy 
MICHIGAN: Detroit; Solvay Process Co. 
MASSACHUSETTS: Boston; The American 
Agricultural Chemical Co., Bowker Fertilizer 
Co., The National Fertilizer Co. 
PENNSYLVANIA: Philadelphia; Baugh & 
Sons Co., I. P. Thomas & Son Co., S. M. Hess 
& Bro., Inc., J. E. Tygert Co. York; York 
Chemical Co. 
VIRGINIA: Norfolk; Pocomoke Guano Co., 
Norfolk Fertilizer Co., Inc., Imperial Co., 
Hampton Guano Co., Berkeley Chemical Co., 
Robertson Fertilizer Co., Inc., Tidewater Guano 
Co., Carolina Union Fertilizer Co., F. S. Roy¬ 
ster Guano Co. Richmond; Old Buck Guano 
Co. Alexandria; Alexandria Fertilizer & 
Chemical Co. Lynchburg; Pocahontas Guano 
Co. Buena Vista; Armour Fertilizer Works. 
The ($OAAJ& Company 
Baltimore 
Medina, O 
AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT, NEW YORK 
WITTE 
LEVER CONTROLLED 
Log Saw^19CFl 
Engine, Saw, Etc., all complete. 
From Pittsburgh add $6.80. Ask far Terms. Folder FREE. 
WITTE ENGINE WORKS 
■t890 Oakland Avenue 1890 Empire Building 
,4 Kansas City, Mo. Pittsburgh, Pa. 
BUY YOUR FERTILIZER NOW 
PURE UNLEACHED HARDWOOD ASHES 
THE BEST POTASH FERTILIZER. AND THE BEST, CHEAP¬ 
EST AND MOST LASTING FERTILIZER ON THE MARKET 
A complete and sure Fertilizer for all growing 
crops. The Joynt Brand stands for quality. 
Agents Wanted. Correspondence Invited. Address 
JOHN JOYNT - Lucknow, Ontario 
S V STUMP PULLER 
^W.Smith Grubber Go 
1 CATALOG FREE-DEPT- 15. LA CRESCENT 
£ 111111111111 ! 
) llllllllllllg 
| The Farmer | 
| His Own Builder \ 
= By H. ARMSTRONG ROBERTS = 
— A practical and handy book of all kinds S3 
— of building information from concrete to S3 
= carpentry. PRICE $1.50 S3 
“ For tale by — 
| THE RURAL NEW-YORKER | 
333 West SOth Street, New York 
sTiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin 
MR. FARMER -7 
IT’S WORTH YOUR WHILE TO GET % 
SOME INFORMATION ABOUT 
BARIUM- 
PHOSPHATE 
AN, ALKALINE FERTILIZER 
Containing 
28%| PHOSPHORIC ACID 
7% BARIUM SULPHIDE 
and 
SULPHUR IN ATWATER SO LUBLE FORM 
Headquarters also for all 
FERTILIZER MATERIALS 
For “HOME MIXING” 
Nitrate of Soda, Potash Salts 
GROUND PHOSPHATE ROCK 
Witherbee, Sherman & Company 
2 Rector Street, New York City 
The THRESHING PROBLEM 
nA| i/ri|\ Threshes cowpeas and soybeans 
from the mown vines, wheat, 
oats, rye and barley. A perfect 
combination machine. Nothing like it. “The 
machine I have been looking for for 20 
years,” W. F. Massey. “It will meet every 
demand,” H. A. Morgan, Director Tenn. Exp. 
Station. Booklet 30 free. 
Roger Pea & BeanThresher Co.,Morristown,Tenn. 
THE JURY AGREES 
(Experience is the Guide) 
, /That Grangers Lime is a necessity to building up 
the soil and fitting it for a permanent system of 
agriculture. 
GRANGERS MANUFACTURING CO.. Succe.«or» 
GRANGERS LIME CO 
•J Bridgewater, Mas*. 
Works : West Stockbridge, Mass. 
[ When you write advertisers mention 
The Rural New-Yorker and you’ll get 
a quick reply and a "square deal. ” See 
guarantee editorial page. : : : 
What is the difference between distri¬ 
bution of wealth and distribution of 
products ? 
The distribution of wealth is the divis¬ 
ion of the fruits of production to the 
landlord as rent, to the capitalist as in¬ 
terest, and to labor as wages. Distribu¬ 
tion of farm products is a part of the 
process of production. It includes trans¬ 
portation, storage and sale. Production 
is not complete until the products are in 
the hands of the ultimate consumer. For 
brevity we often use the term distribution 
when we mean the transportation and 
sale of the products. 
What general plan has society always 
adopted for the production and distribu¬ 
tion of wealth? 
With very limited exceptions, and some 
variations, the economic adjustment of 
society has always been worked out 
through the institution of private pro¬ 
perty. 
What economic arrangement other than 
individual property has been proposed or 
put into practice? 
The plan directly opposed to private 
property is called communism or social¬ 
ism. 
What are the cardinal principles of 
socialism? 
The fundamental principles of socialism 
are that individual property he abolished, 
and that land and other instruments of 
production should be held by associations, 
communities or by the state, but no 
state has ever adopted socialism as a 
general and exclusive economic scheme. 
What are the principal divisions or 
systems in our present economic plan? 
In our great institution known as the 
institution of personal property we have 
many general and powerful systems, and 
numerous secondary systems. Among the 
most important are the transportation 
system, the banking system, the insurance 
system, the middleman system, the cor¬ 
porate system, the big business system, 
the exchange system, the trust system, the 
the union labor system, the political 
system and the capitalistic system. 
These systems are so dovetailed into 
one another, and all so interlocked 
with the political system, as to form a 
virtual partnership with the city, State 
and national governments. These systems 
are built up and intrenched by law and 
government favors. They could not be 
established or even maintained after¬ 
wards without government protection. 
Just what is meant by a system? 
In this sense a system is an orderly 
arrangement of all the elements in a 
given line of industry into a single unit. 
It is a whole made up of separate parts. 
Each of the constituent parts is free within 
certain limitations to act its own part, 
but all are so related by custom and self- 
interest and the general arrangement so 
as to make one complete harmonious 
whole, and any element that puts itself 
outside the rule of the general plan is 
sacrificed to the general order and com¬ 
pleteness of the unit. 
Are these systems beneficial or other- 
,wise? 
A system may be good or ill, depending 
on its practices and purposes. Nature 
works in an orderly way, and forms 
economic systems. There is greater effi¬ 
ciency and economy in an orderly ar¬ 
rangement of elements into a whole, all 
functioning to one purpose, than in a 
large number of small independent units, 
but the system, once established, forms a 
virtual monopoly, and the power acquired 
encourages abuses. The weak become de¬ 
pendents and the strong become bosses 
and tyrants. 
W r hat particular system may be classed 
as good? 
Like most things human, had systems 
have good in them and good systems have 
bad features. Our banking and insurance 
systems have great merit; but they con¬ 
fer great powers on a few men by con¬ 
centrating the credit of the country in a 
few hands, and this privilege and power 
is often, yes, generally, abused. The 
banks align themselves with speculators 
and gamblers, and thus make it possible 
for non-producers to use the resources of 
the country without returning anything 
to society for the use of it. Country pro¬ 
ducing districts are drained of capital 
through the banking system to finance the 
gambling institution in the city. The 
savings banks and insurance companies 
gather up small sums from individuals, 
thereby encouraging prudence and saving 
and thrift, and at the same time making 
the aggregate of these small sums avail¬ 
able as capital; but instead of devoting 
it to the service of the frugal people who 
save it and who are the real owners, it 
is used largely to finance great corporate 
concerns in which the frugal people have 
little or no concern. 
So, too, with our middleman system, 
which includes in a broad way the trans¬ 
portation and exchange and speculation 
and storage systems. These organizations 
serve the public by taking commodities 
from the hands of the producer where 
they are not needed, and by putting them 
into the hands of the consumer, who does 
need them. This is a worthy service. The 
system built ( up for this service, how¬ 
ever, is aligned also with the hanking 
system. It puts control of the markets 
in the hands of the dealers, and in many 
cases makes it possible for them to dic¬ 
tate prices both to the producer and con¬ 
sumer with unreasonable profits to them¬ 
selves. For example, the people of New 
York deposit their money in the banks. 
The sum total of this is very large. It is 
loaned on warehouse receipts to a specu¬ 
lator who buys up eggs and other food 
products in flush seasons when prices are 
low. Later, when supplies disappear from 
the market, these goods are brought out 
of storage and sold to the city people at 
double and sometimes 10 times the 
original cost. In this case the money be¬ 
longing to the people has been used 
through the distribution system as a 
means of extortion against themselves. 
With possibly a single exception our 
system of government is as a whole the 
best in the world. Individually we have 
more independence and liberty and a 
freer field for the pursuit of happiness 
than any other people in the world. A 
democratic government is more respon¬ 
sive to the public will than central gov¬ 
ernments, yet our system of politics is 
so organized that to a large extent it de¬ 
feats the public will. The system, con¬ 
cerned only to maintain itself, nominates 
the candidates and prescribes the policies; 
and it is not until abuses become unbear¬ 
able and scandals become public that the 
people rise up and demonstrate their 
sovereign power. 
Our systems of schools and churches 
and charities and homes are not without 
their troubles and their faults; but the 
good in them so completely dominates 
the ills that the ills are insignificant in 
comparison. 
As to the great system of private pro¬ 
perty as a whole, it, of course, is affected 
for good or ill by the corresponding qual¬ 
ities of its constituent parts of systems, 
some of which we have briefly discussed. 
But as John Stuart Mill says, “The prin¬ 
ciple of private property has never had a 
fair trial in any country. The arrange¬ 
ment did not begin in a just division of 
wealth created by industry, but it did be¬ 
gin by acquisitions and divisions procured 
by conquest and violence and plunder.” 
The system yet retains maby of the relics 
of its origin, and capitalism, which is of 
recent development, aggravates and mag¬ 
nifies the original defects. The capital¬ 
istic system creates inequalities. It creates 
great industrial monopolies. It puts utili¬ 
ties in the hands of a few men to trans¬ 
form natural resources and human labor 
into great individual fortunes. It re¬ 
wards cunning and position and power, 
but it does not encourage equal oppor¬ 
tunity or just division of the fruits of 
industry. It serves individuals and 
classes, but it does not serve society as 
a whole. In emergencies like the late 
World War it drives the government into 
great socialistic experiments. Even in 
times of peace it turns the minds of peo¬ 
ple to desperate means of relief from the 
(Continued on page 10)’ 
