414 
lht RURAL NEW-YORKER 
March 5, 1021 
PUBLISHER’S DESK 
All letters to Publisher’s Desk depart¬ 
ment must be signed with writer's full 
name and address given. Many inquiries 
are answered by mail instead of printing 
inquiry and answer, hence unsigned let¬ 
ters receive no consideration. 
Our records for the year 1920 show 
that. Publisher’s Desk collected 2.492 
claims, amounting to $45,592.74, or an 
average of eight claims each working day 
of the year. The claims were large and 
small, but the average was about $18. 
For the last 11 years the claims collected 
numbered 14,014. and amounted to $245,- 
297.44. Of course, the collection of ac¬ 
counts, while perhaps to many the most 
vital part of the service, is really only an 
incidental part of it. Another factor of 
the work is indicated in the weekly re¬ 
ports in the paper, but the great bulk of 
it is in the voluminous files kept for ref¬ 
erence and in the work of keeping these 
files constantly revised so that we can 
give reliable information by letter or 
printed report in this department. We 
believe there are no other files of the 
kind in existence anywhere, and without 
the references and information and 
sources of acquiring information the work 
would be impossible. That explains why 
no other publisher has been able to imi¬ 
tate the work. It required time and pa¬ 
tience and work and expense that no one 
else .seems willing to give it. 
Perhaps few readers realize that many 
of the things printed in Publisher’s Desk 
are libels as they appear or as the law 
says libels on their face; and when called 
upon to do so we must justify the publi¬ 
cation on the ground of truth and public 
service. Truth alone would not be enough. 
We must show that there is no malice in 
it, and that public service requires it. 
The person suing a publication for libel 
has nothing to do but show a copy of the 
paper and prove its publication by the de¬ 
fendant. The publisher must prove truth 
and justification. Sometimes the evidence 
is years back, the witnesses are dead or 
hard to locate or for some reason unwill¬ 
ing to testify. Considering the volume of 
the work, we have had few suits, and the 
only case we ever lost was a small one on 
which the jury disagreed on first trial 
and on the second trial with two jurors 
against us, the other 10 jurors consented 
to a six-cent judgment because they 
considered that more to our advantage 
than to bear the expense of a third trial. 
Many rogues escape because we would 
rather many go free than take a chance 
of saying hard things about an honest 
man, but in all the years that Publisher’* 
Desk has worked for the protection of 
country people, it has never knowingly 
said a false word of anyone and, as a 
matter of fact, the fakers and schemers 
and rogues get off easier than they de¬ 
serve. 
On page 331 lasf week was published 
a synopsis of the findings of the Federal 
Trade Commission in its case against the 
American Mutual Seed Co., Chicago. 
This company is closely allied with the 
A. A. Berry Seed Co., Clarinda, Iowa, 
against which the Federal Trade Coe 
mission issued an order to desist f r < f .u its 
fraudulent practices within the pas' year. 
The advertising of both these hous.\s has 
been refused by The Rural New-Yorker - 
in past years and the unfair methods and 
practices exposed repeatedly to public 
view. Farm papers carrying the adver¬ 
tising of these houses in the past might 
plead ignorance of their methods, but 
what excuse can such publishers offer now 
since the Federal Trade Commission has 
branded both houses with making “false 
and misleading claims as to the charac¬ 
ter and quality of seeds sold by both of 
these houses.” It has ordered the com¬ 
panies to “cease and desist” from the ob¬ 
jectionable practices. A similar order 
against the farm papers carrying the ad¬ 
vertising of these fake seed houses is in 
order. 
Yours is the only magazine or news¬ 
paper in the United States today, so far 
as I know, wdiieh does not truckle to its 
advertisers. Personally, I think this very 
fine, for I know it must hit your pocket- 
book sometimes. v. h. 
Sometimes our friends astonish us wdth 
their keen insight and appreciation of 
cause and effect. Thirty-odd years ago, 
when we determined to demonstrate 
whether or not a farm paper could be suc¬ 
cessfully published in the interest of the 
farmer alone, and without “truckling” to 
the advertiser or anyone else, the policy 
did “hit” our bank account. It probably 
was a fortunate thing that our resources 
at the time were small. Big capital 
would hardly have made the attempt or 
persisted in what seemed a reckless pol¬ 
icy. It is no easy task to overcome an 
established system. Capital will not do 
it, because capital is timid and afraid of 
losses, but moral ideas will win. if the 
American people can simply get the cor¬ 
rect angle of thought, and this is partic¬ 
ularly true of the farm community. The 
legitimate advertiser has since come to 
learn the value of confidence and the 
square deal as an asset to a permanent 
responsible business: but there has never 
been a time when ideals and courage to 
advocate them were more needed by an 
honest, fearless and independent, farm 
press. 
A few weeks ago a very nice agent 
visited our town and the adjacent ones, 
representing the J. B. Colt Company, 
New York, and selling acetylene gas 
plants. He claimed that on account of 
new’ improvements they might be placed 
in the cellar w’ithin a few feet of the 
furnace, and the insurance companies ap¬ 
proved them. lie was unwilling to wait 
a few days before signing the contract, 
and wanted it signed at once, as in no 
other way could one get free gas stove and 
iron. lie got many to sign his contracts, 1 
and now the insurance companies are un¬ 
willing to have them put in the cellar 
without being inclosed by a cement or 
brick wall. We have been told that this 
is not the original J. B. Colt firm, but 
one who has bought New England rights ! 
of them. Can you tell us if this is so? I 
There is great dissatisfaction all around 
here with the stories told by agent and 
people are refusing to take the plants. 
Their address is J. B. Colt Company, 30 
East 42d St.. New l'ork City. We learn 
the old Colt Company was a reliable con¬ 
cern, but cannot reconcile the actions of 
this agent to the old firm’s ways.. 
Massachusetts. M. w. d. 
Enclosed please find $1. for which send 
the paper to L. M„ Coleraiu, Mass. He 
has been stung by the Colt’s agent in good 
shape. I told him to take The R. N.-Y. 
and he would know better than to sign a 
contract without reading it over. That 
agent was a slick bird, all right. One 
of the machines blew up up in New 
Hampshire the other day and killed three. 
Everyone around here is scared to death 
of them, and is just waiting, hoping 
fervently that the agent who sold them I 
will show up in this territory. I think 
he may be surprised at his reception. 
Massachusetts. rev. h. m. e. 
The .T. B. Colt Company is a subsidiary 
of the Union Carbide Company a finan¬ 
cially strong concern which practically 
controls the acetylene lighting business. 
The Colt Company for many years, as 
M. W. D. suggests, bore .an enviable rep¬ 
utation which is hard to reconcile with 
the many reports of unfair sales methods 
on the part of the company and its agents 
during recent years. The salesmen of this 
coneern seem to be earning the reputa¬ 
tion in the farm communities visited sim¬ 
ilar to that of the notorious “lightning 
rod agents” of former years. In a few 
instances where definite proof of decep¬ 
tion was shown, cancellation of the 
orders have been accepted, but the 
general policy of the company is to 
hold the farmer to the terms of -the 
contract when he has once put his 
name on the dotted line, regardless of the 
promises or representations made by the 
salesmen. The J. B. Colt Company ad¬ 
vertising was refused by The R. N.-Y. 
more than a year ago, and the increasing 
complaints from readers makes this state¬ 
ment necessary for the guidance of the 
farming public. 
SOPHIE DEFORE — Involuntary; 
merchant, engaged in business under the 
name of St. Louis Margarine Company, 
2292 12th Avenue. The petitioning cred¬ 
itors and amounts claimed are: Neil II. 
Strome. $381; Abe Morris, $40; Reliable 
Auto Repair Company, $ 86 . Lester L. 
Callan, attorney for the petitioners. 
A number of poultrymen in the vicinity 
of Lakewood, N. J., are creditors of this 
concern on account of egg shipments. In 
some of the correspondence the letter¬ 
heads of L. S. Defore Co. are used, but 
the letters are signed St. Louis Margarine 
Co. We fear the claimants will be able 
to realize little, which once more demon¬ 
strates the unwisdom of shipping produce 
to houses of no established responsibility. 
The promise of a few cents above the 
market of irresponsible houses should 
cause only suspicion; but unfortunately 
this is the bait that secures the shipment. 
DO YOU NEED PAINT? 
THE INGERSOLL WAY OF DOING BUSINESS 
OVER THE HEADS 
OF THE MIDDLEMEN 
lNCERS0li| 
*AINT 
"dru mmer s HOTEL 
iffN&KJBLCs 
HIMMI 
^SUPPLY HOUSE 
(dOBBE.1 
[i r - 
IRECT DEALING SAVES YOU 
ALL THESE MIDDLEMENS 
EXPENSES AND PROFITS 
I Can Save You One-Half 
Your Paint Bills 
In buying the INGERSOLL PAINTS, you pay ONLY THE FACTORY COST for the actual 
Paint furnished. YOU SAVE ALL MIDDLEMEN'S PROFITS. The Dealer or Supply House 
may offer you a Paint at our price, but THEY CAN NOT GIVE YOU OUR QUALITY OF 
PAINT AT OUR PRICE as they must charge you in ADDITION to the value of the Paint fur¬ 
nished, the expensive cost of their selling method and Middlemen’s profits. Dealers can offer 
you low priced 1 Paints ONLY AT THE EXPENSE OF QUALITY OF PAINT FURNISHED. 
DON’T USE CHEAP PAINT offered bv Dealers and Supply Houses. Any little saving made 
on first cost WILL BE LOST MANY TIMES OVER in the expense of FREQUENT REPAINT¬ 
ING. THE INGERSOLL PAINT will give you LONG YEARS of satisfactory service and LOOK 
WELL nil the time. # 
Ingersoll Mixed Paints 
Have Held the official endorsement of the 
Grange for 47 years 
We can refer you to pleased customers in your own neighborhood. We make It easy for 
you to buy paint direct from the mill. The book will tell you the quantity needed. The order 
will reach us overnight, and 1 the paint will be on the way to you in twenty-four hours. Let 
me send you my FREE DELIVERY PLAN. Send your address for a beautiful set of Sample 
Color Cards and our Paint Book. We mail them FREE. 
If You Want Paint, Write Me. Do It Now. I Can Save You Money 
O. W. INGERSOLL, Prop. 
The Oldest Ready-Mixed Paint House in America — Established 1842 
No. 24-8 Plymouth St., Brooklyn, New York 
FROM FACTORY 
TO CONSUMER 
LOWEST PRICES TO ALU V 
SPECIAL FAVORS TO NONE 
8EST POSSIBLE QUALITY 
LOWEST POSSIBLE PRICE 
LET ME SEND YOU MY PAINT BOOK. It will tell you all you want to know about paint 
and painting—W’HY SOME PAINTS chalk and fade or scale off in a short time and HOW TO 
OVERCOME these difficulties and secure tile BEST RESULTS at the LOWEST POSSIBLE COST, 
BEEMAN 
TRACTOR $340 
ORDER NOW FOR 
SPRING WORK 
The Pioneer Multi Service Tractor 
Plows, Harrows, Cultivates, 
Mows Hay anil I.awng, 
4 H. P. for Belt Work 
Call or write for Booklet 
K. G. MARTIN CO. 
Distributors Beeman Tractor 
42 Park Place, N. Y. Barclay 6082 ( 
More Work From 
Your Horses 
Horses, like people, work accord¬ 
ing to the way they feel. On 
warm spring days, horses swel¬ 
tering under winter coats don’t 
feel right and don’t work right. 
You can’t dry them off properly, 
resulting in colds, stiffness and 
other horse ailments. 
Clip Your Horses 
This Spring 
It will put life into them and 
keep them fit and ready. Pro- 
> gressive farmers clip their 
. horses in the spring with a 
Stewart Ball Bearing Clipping Machine. Price 
$14 at your dealer's, or shipped by us on 
receipt of $2, balance on arrival. Guaranteed 
to please or money back. 
15 °fo More Wool 
This Stewart No. 9 Machine gets 
15% more wool than the best hand 1 
blade shearing. Shears quickly, 
does not cut the sheep, and any¬ 
one can use it. 
Price, complete, $22 f.o.b. Chi¬ 
cago. Your dealer has it, or you 
can buy from us by sending $2 
with order and paying balance 
on arrival. 
Catalog No. 69 shows complete 
line of hand and power operated 
machines. Write for it. 
Chicago Flexible Shaft Company 
Dept. AB141 5600 Roosevelt Road, Chicago 
COATS 
AND 
ROBES 
Made to your order from Horse, 
Cow, Calf, or any hide or akin 
with hair or fur on it. 
Yousave as high as 30% by using 
your own furs. 
Free catalogue with instructions 
for handling furs. Fur garments 
repaired ana remodeled. 
FUR TANNING AND 
. . . TAXIDERMY SPECIALISTS 
Let the hair go 
with the hide" Large and small game, birds and 
fish mounted. Prompt service, ex¬ 
pert attention. Price quoted is price charged. 
ROCHESTER FUR DRESSING C0. # 
661 West Avenue Rochester, N. Y. 
As low as 
$13 
No. 5 
BACKS THIS SAW 
Our Portable 
WOOD SAW 
is easy to operate. Our 
new A-l, just out, for 
$13 is the loweBt priced 
power saw frame made. 
Guaranteed one year. 
Money refunded if not satis¬ 
factory. We make a larger 
assortment of cord wood saw 
frames than any other manu¬ 
facturer. Write for catalog. 
Hertzler & Zook Co., Box 3 Belleville,Pa. 
Steel Wheels 
Cheaper than any other wheels COST 
when you figure years of serv- - - - 
ice. Make any wagon good as I rCC 
new. Save labor—easy to load, lafcvv 
EMPIRE ^ ore ^ a * r -' ^ rile !? r 
HUtcpauo. --- 
, Mfg. Co. h«* 236 Quincy, I 
