658 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
Live Farm Topics 
Notes on the Roadside Market 
I live on a State road, where in the 
Summer time there are hundreds of cars 
passing every day, and I do quite a good 
deal of gardening to sell to tourists, and 
last Summer I had quite a nice trade. 
Could some of the readers tell me of some 
way I could advertise so as to bring more 
trade this year? Maybe some of the 
readers do this same thing, and I would 
be glad of advice. b. j. 
New York. 
The business of roadside marketing has 
been wonderfully developed during the 
past few T years. The great increase in 
the number of cars and the desire to 
travel have brought customers to the 
farmhouse door. All around the large 
cities the roads are lined with stands 
where fruit and vegetables or eggs are 
displayed. Many of them sell tons of 
produce during the season. All sorts of 
advertising schemes are resorted to. Some 
put up a large blackboard by the road¬ 
side, on which is “chalked up” day by 
day what there is for sale. Sometimes 
the family artist will try his hand at 
pictures. When well handled the black¬ 
board plan is good. Others have printed 
or painted signs or racks with adjustable 
panels, each one marked with a certain 
article offered for sale. Where the stand 
is on a prominent corner it is possible 
to attract some trade by pasting signs 
all over the country for miles about. 
These signs are of small size and are 
tacked to trees or posts: 
: Straight Road to : 
SUNRISE FARM 
: Apples—Peaches—Poultry : 
..i: 
These signs will often attract the eye 
of tourists, and send them to the farm. 
In some cases the farmer gets out a neat 
circular or pamphlet describing what he 
has to sell. These circulars are dropped 
into every possible car. A supply is left 
at the garage or hotel or where these 
cars may stop, and it is usually easy to 
arrange with someone to drop them into 
all cars. Another good plan is to adver¬ 
tise in local papers. This is coming to 
be a great feature of this trade in New 
Jersey. Farmers of Mercer County have 
combined for this purpose of advertising 
in the Trenton papers. They have a 
trademark or sign which indicates mem¬ 
bers of the association, and by combin¬ 
ing their advertising they are able to ob¬ 
tain good service. 
Farmers Adjacent to New York City 
Organize 
New York City depends for its perish¬ 
able vegetables upon farmers within haul¬ 
ing distance of the city, who can market 
these perishable products in a fresh con¬ 
dition. Farmers from Queens and Nas¬ 
sau Counties and some from Suffolk 
County, Long Island, produce most of 
the fresh produce brought into New York 
markets in this way. There are a large 
number of gardeners in Staten Island 
and Rergen County, New Jersey, who 
also market their produce on farmers’ 
markets. These men are all within a ra¬ 
dius of thirty miles of New York City. 
There are three markets in Greater 
New York City. Wallabout is the larg¬ 
est of these and is located in Brooklyn. 
Harlem and Gansevoort Markets a re lo¬ 
cated in the northern and southern parts 
of Manhattan respectively. During the 
busy months of July. August and Sep¬ 
tember, there are often parked daily on 
the two largest of these markets between 
500 and 800 farm trucks and rigs. Wal¬ 
labout lias been referred to as the largest 
farmers’ market in the world. Walla¬ 
bout and Gansevoort are city owned and 
controlled markets and the Harlem Mar¬ 
ket is owned by a private corporation. 
Farmers pay a fee for each load of pro¬ 
duce they sell to either the city or to 
the Harlem Market Corporation, depend¬ 
ing on which market they patronize. The 
Ilarlem Market Corporation also charges 
a yearly rental of $112.50 per truck for 
parking space where the farm truck 
stands daily. The two city markets do 
not rent space in this way and farm 
trucks are not always in the same place 
day after day. The value of having a 
definite location is that customers always 
know where to look for a particular 
farmer. 
For years there had been a custom on 
the New York markets which required 
farmers to give 105 or more when selling 
sweet corn, cabbage and certain other 
produce by the hundred, instead of the 
even counts. They were also expected to 
give 13 for a dozen when selling bunch 
stuff and other produce that is sold by 
this unit. Any farmer who did not give 
these extra “tallies” naturally lost trade, 
and the man who gave the most tallies 
was the most popular with the buyers. 
These extra counts were clear profit for 
the peddlers and grocers, as the consum¬ 
ing public never received more than an 
even 12 for a dozen. In 1018 the farmers 
decided that this practice should stop, and 
through the Nassau County Farm Bureau 
they decided to give even count on and 
after January 1, 1919. Posters were 
placed in conspicuous places on each mar¬ 
ket to inform buyers, and farmers made 
themselves responsible to see that all 
other farmers discontinued giving the 
“tallies” on the date mentioned. The 
plan was successful, and is working at 
the present time—over two years after it 
was started. Various other problems 
were constantly coming up, such as dif¬ 
ficulties with carriers and watchman on 
the mai'ket. traffic regulations in regard to 
farm trucks, etc., which could not bo 
handled by the Farm Bureau because the 
Farm Bureau represented the farmers of 
Nassau County only. The need for an 
organization which would represent the 
interests of all farmers pati’onizing the 
New York markets became very appar¬ 
ent, and was emphasized by carrier prob¬ 
lems during the season of 1920. 
“Carriers” are men who assist farmers 
in unloading their produce from the 
trucks to the wagons of grocers and ped¬ 
dlers buying the px-oduce. On Wallabout, 
for example, there would be from eight to 
ten gangs of carriers, each gang under 
the direction of one “boss carrier.” Each 
boss might have from three to eight men 
working under him. depending upon the 
amount of business being done. There is 
a need for carriers on the market, but 
they have capitalized this knowledge to 
such an extent that they have become ob¬ 
noxious. Six or eight gangs have formed 
a sort of a union, and smaller unions 
have also been formed on each market. 
The union set the rates for carrier service, 
agreed that no farmer could engage ear- 
riers from any other gang than the one 
which he was steadily employing and 
other rules. When they agreed that no 
farmer could change carriers, the ef¬ 
ficiency of the carriers decreased. If a 
farmer wished to change carriers because 
the one he had was not doing his work 
properly, he found himself unable to. hire 
a carrier from any other gang. He also 
found that if a carrier did not help him 
unload his produce at all, the boss carrier 
expected to be paid just the same. With 
this regulation came an increase in fee 
and a decrease in the number and ef¬ 
ficiency of the carriers. 
Such were conditions during 1920. 
Farmers were then paying $3 per load per 
cari-ier and $1 per load for watchmen, 
whose duty it is to see that nothing is 
stolen from the farm truck during the 
night, after the farmer arrives at about 
8 P. M. until the next morning, when 
selling begins around 4 A. M. Consider- 
ing the fact that each carrier had from 
six to 10 trucks to take care of, or, in 
other words, was earning for the boss 
carrier from $18 to $30 per day, it can 
readily be seen that the carriers were 
overpaid’. One or two attempt were made 
on the part of farmers to have the fee 
reduced and to get better service, but 
they were unable to do anything success¬ 
fully because they were not organized, 
and because every attempt on their part 
was quickly squelched by redoubled ef¬ 
forts on the part of the carriers. The 
watchmen, it would seem, were also being 
paid pretty well. Each watchman re¬ 
ceived $1 ner truck, and he may have 
watched from 50 to 85 trucks. Besides 
watching these trucks during the night, 
he was also held responsible for any stuff 
that was stolen during the night. 
An idea conceived by various leading 
men was that of forming an organization 
of farmers from New Jersey. Staten 
Island and Long Island, who sell on New 
York markets. Probably the New Jersey 
farmers were the most enthusiastic in this 
matter. Through the Bergen County 
Farm Bureau and County Agent C. Ray¬ 
mond Stone, a preliminary meeting of 
representative farmers from various sec¬ 
tions was held in New York City to dis¬ 
cuss their mutual problems in this con¬ 
nection. As a result of this meeting a 
committee was appointed to draw up by¬ 
laws for the New York Market Growers' 
Association. These by-laws were later 
approved by the same body and an an¬ 
nual meeting date was set for March 9. 
At this meeting about 300 farmers were 
present, and officially approved of the by¬ 
laws, adopted a program of work for the 
year 1921 and elected directors. Nine 
directors were elected, three representing 
each of the large city markets, and ac¬ 
cording to farming section adjacent to 
New York City. These directors later 
met and elected officers and proceeded to 
carry out the program approved at the 
annual meeting. 
The directors and officers as they now 
stand are as follows: President, E. V. 
Titus, Glen Cove, Long Island ; vice-pres¬ 
ident, E. A. Korn, Hackensack, N. .1.; 
secretary, II. J. Evans, Mineola, L. I.; 
treasurer, G. T. Powell, Glen Head, L. I.; 
Joseph March, Hempstead. L. I.; John 
Wulfurst, Forest Hills, L. I.; S. H. 
Weeks, Little Neck, L. I.; George Van 
Siclen, Queens, L. T.; William Ehret, 
Harrington Park. N. J.; Charles D. 
Ahrend, Port Richmond. N. Y. The 
president is acting as manager of the 
association at the present time. A per¬ 
manent manager will be engaged as soon 
as the need for one becomes more appar¬ 
ent. Mr. Titus has secured the co-opera¬ 
tion of the City Department of Markets 
and the New York State Depai’tment of 
Foods and Markets. The directoi's have 
also held a meeting with the boss carriers 
from all three markets. They have told 
the carriers that the farmers demand 
better service, open-shop methods and 
reduced fees. The carriers were not fa¬ 
vorably inclined to consider them, and 
they will be called before the directors 
of the association shortly to make definite 
ari’angements for the season of 1921. A 
membership campaign was conducted be¬ 
fore the annual meeting, and about 600 
farmers applied for membership. 
An official membership sign will be is¬ 
sued to all members. These signs will 
be in the shape of a 5-in. circular enamel 
plate bearing the name of the association. 
The year will he on a .separate enamel 
bolt, with a U/^-in. circular head. The 
bolt passes through the center of the 
plate and attaches the sign to the car. 
The association has also engaged the 
services of a prominent attorney to advise 
them as to their legal standing in various 
matters. 
Among the Devon Cattle Breeders 
It was my privilege a short time ago 
to take a trip through the western part 
of Connecticut, which was the home of 
some of the earliest importations of 
Devon cattle. Those who have visited this 
section know that it is noted for its 
Devon working oxen, and the noted Dan¬ 
bury fair has sometimes had as high as 
125 yoke of cattle on exhibition, and 
nearly all of these animals showed Devon 
characteristics very strongly. My first 
stop was at the farm of Nathan Beards¬ 
ley, Litchfield County. Mr. Beardsley 
has 20 yoke of purebred Devon steers as 
nearly alike as peas in a pod. These 
are all trained and Mr. Beardsley got 
them out with the long Connecticut whip 
and in a short time could round up the 
whole bunch, putting every animal in its 
proper position. There is not an animal 
in the herd over four years old. Mr. 
Beardsley making it a practice to dispose 
of everything, whether male or female, at 
four years. The weight of the oldest 
steers was somewhere from 3.000 to 3.200 
lbs. for the pair. They were in perfect 
beef conditions, and these as well as the 
rest of his animals received no grain 
whatever. The bull that headed this herd 
was a magnificent animal, bred by Neal 
of New Hampshire, straight as a line and 
clean-cut throughout. Every young ani¬ 
mal on the farm showed its breeding. 
One exceedingly interesting thing on this 
farm was that Mr. Beardsley had never 
seen the bottom of all of his hay mows, 
there being one having hay that was put 
Devon Cattle in Connecticut 
April 30, 1921 
in over 40 years ago. This was still of 
excellent quality. , 
My next stop was at the farm of Ran¬ 
dolph Bradley, in Fairfield County. Mr. 
Bradley is closing out his herd, and has 
only a few head left. The photograph 
with this article show's the style of animal 
which he has been accustomed to raise. 
We next visited the farm of Dr. J. L. 
Buel in the extreme northeast of Litch¬ 
field County. Dr. Buel is at the head 
of one of the best sanitariums in Connec¬ 
ticut, and believes that Devon milk is the 
most satisfactory for his patients, con¬ 
taining its solids and butterfats in such 
proportions as to be most easily digested. 
He also sells milk in the town of Litch¬ 
field. His herd shows the milking quali¬ 
ties of Devons as strikingly as Mr. 
Beardsley’s showed the steer qualities. 
He told me that his rule has been for the 
past three 0 r four years not to feed over 
four quarts of grain per day to any ani¬ 
mal, and that there are several cows that 
will give 18 to 20 quarts or more per day 
when they freshen. The bull at the head 
of the herd was Rose Croft Chief, bred 
by Stockwell & Gifford of Massachusetts. 
Fifty years ago this section of Connecti¬ 
cut probably contained more purebred 
Devon cattle than all other breeds, but 
fashion, which is a fickle jade, anyway, 
has ruled them far in the background .it 
the present time. One reason for this 
probably is that Devon breeders have 
failed to keep up with the times in the 
way of records of steer growth or of milk¬ 
ing qualities. They have also failed to 
grain their cattle to any extent, and in 
many cases the animals have been obliged 
to rough it over the hills and rocks and 
among the brush to such an extent that 
they have failed to give the satisfactory 
appearance that other breeds did which 
were better cared for. It is a wonder 
that under these circumstances they have 
been able to maintain even the hold they 
have. 
There is, however, beginning to be con¬ 
siderably more of a demand for Devon 
cattle, especially from foreign countries. 
Quite* a number have been sent to Cuba. 
Requests are coming from the Hawaiian 
Islands, and so many have gone to Brazil 
that a herd book has been started in, that 
country. It is my opinion that if beef is 
ever to come back to New England, it will 
come with some such cattle as these. 
The cow r s give a quality of milk that wili 
enable them to compete successfully with 
other breeds for butter production. 
An advanced registry has been estab¬ 
lished this, year, and it is believed a num¬ 
ber of animals will be carried through. 
This section of Connecticut is not only 
interesting from the point of its cattle, 
but is also one of the most interesting for 
its scenic beauty, being at the lower end 
of the Green Mountain range, and con¬ 
tinuing the famous Berkshire Hills. 
E. G. F. 
A Tribute to the Vermont Morgan 
I noticed in a recent issue of The 
B. N.-Y. Mr. Weed made the statement 
that horses could only be counted on for 
10 years’ work. If that be true, isn’t 
it time some one paid tribute to the little 
Vermont Morgan as a farm power? 
In the much-discussed hill country the 
heavier horses are not always best.' Go¬ 
ing down hill is apt either to injure their 
feet or founder them, and if kept without 
exercise they are more liable to sickness 
or to “stock up.” The Morgan can take 
a load and trot with it on a down grade 
where the heavy horse has to be held 
back. The large horse can. of course, 
many times haul the heavier load, al¬ 
though lovers of Morgans tell you proudly 
and honestly that the “Morgan is large 
in the collar,” or when the “Morgan 
can’t pull it you will have to hitch up 
something bigger.” But to return to the 
years of service a horse will give, to quote 
from an old agricultural report: 
“At 20 they were as yonug as members 
of other families at 10; and at 30 their 
eyes had not lost their fire or their action 
its boldness.” We find that as true to¬ 
day as it ever was, Our first horse was 
an 18-year-old Morgan, and he had worked 
for one man 14 years when we got him. 
He did the farm work for us six Winters 
and seven Summers, and his mate did 
full work 20 years or more. 
After Tom was gone it was hard to fill 
his place. First we got a young horse, 
but at last found another Morgan. We 
could not at the time we bought him find 
out his age, but later traced his life out, 
and after serving us faithfully he died 
aged 29. The picture of Old Doll was 
interesting to us. as she looks very much 
like our black Dolly. Dolly has sur¬ 
vived at least three mates of different 
breeds, and will be 30 or 31 this Spring. 
She has worked continuously since she 
was a colt, and is herself the mother of 
several fine horses, some older than the 
“common age of horses,” as one horse 
trader used to say. Today Dolly’s eyes 
are as bright as a horse of 12. She can 
eat hay and whole corn and oats, and is 
in good flesh. Her joints are getting stiff 
when she first comes from her stall, but 
she will trot a fair gait now. She drew 
her side of the mowing machine and 
wagon to harvest about 40 tons of hay 
last year, drew her side of plow and har¬ 
row. and did the one-horse cultivating, at 
which she is an adept. This Winter she 
has been working, drawing wood and logs, 
and comes home at night with her head 
up, and -when unhitched from the sled 
trots up to the kiehen door to receive 
her well-earned treat. During all these 
years Dolly never has seen a sick day. 
MRS. J. x. w. 
