164 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
February 2, 1924 
Marshaling the Telephone Forces 
In the simple act of lifting the telephone receiver from its 
hook every subscriber becomes the marshal of an army. At 
his service, as he needs them, a quarter of a million men and 
women are organized in the Bell System. One skilled corps of 
the telephone army moves to place him in talking connection 
with hi$ neighbor in the next block, in the next state or across 
the continent. Another highly trained corps is on duty to keep 
the wires in condition to vibrate with his words. Still others 
are developing better apparatus and methods, manufacturing 
and adding new equipment, and installing new telephones to 
increase the subscriber’s realm of command. 
The terrain of the telephone army is the whole United States, 
dotted with 14,000,000 instruments, all within range of the 
subscriber’s telephone voice. Even in the remote places this 
army provides equipment and supplies. Its methods of opera¬ 
tion are constantly being improved, that each user may talk 
to his friends with increased efficiency. Millions of money are 
spent in its permanent works. Yet its costs of operation are 
studiously held to the minimum, that the subscriber may con¬ 
tinue to receive the cheapest as well as the best telephone service 
in the world. 
The permanent objective of the Bell System army is to meet 
the telephone needs of the nation—a hopeless task were not its 
command unified, its equipment adequately maintained and 
its personnel trained in the latest developments of telephone art. 
American Telephone and Telegraph Company 
And Associated Companies 
“BELL SYSTEM " 
One Policy, One System, Universal Service 
The Secret or Garden Success 
You can make your garden produce-more by plant¬ 
ing Maule’s highgrade tested seeds. Backed by 
47 years' scientific experience, they are used by 
thousands of gardeners all over the world. Be¬ 
cause of their higher quality, and certainty ot 
growth, Maule’s Seeds produce larger, healthier 
vegetables and finer flowers, A postal will bring you 
Maule’s 1924 Seed Book FREE 
Its 176 pages, handsomely illustrated, give you expert garden 
advice, and list every known variety of selected quality seeas. 
You owe it to yourself to read it before you order Beeas. it 
you wish, include 25c for a. regular eize packet of Mauie s 
Mixed Giant Pansy Seed. 
WM. HENRY MAULE, Inc. 
814 Mauie Building Dept. F Philadelphia, Pa- 
MAULES SEEDS 
ONCE GROWN- 
ALWAYS GROWN 
DANISH BALL HEAD. Tested. 
Best strain. One-half lb., $1. 
CA ULIFLO VVER — Snowball, 
One ounce, $t. Postpaid. Cash with order. 
Farmers* Service Co,, Inc s Middletown, N. Y. 
Sunnyside Strain SST-nIm Seed Potatoes 
Grow biu crops of smooth white potatoes. Selected 
13 years. Get our circular ami prices before you buy. 
RILEY BROS. Sunnyside Farm Sennett, N. Y. 
Harris’ Northern Grown Seed Corn 
Has 
For planting in New York or New England'there is nothing 
more important than to use corn that was grown in the 
north. We have unusual facilities for drying seed corn and 
can offer seed that is of very strong vitality, and that was 
grown in western New York. Such seed is very much superior 
to western or southern seed for the Eastern states, either for 
ensilage or grain. 
Hall’s Gold Nugget Corn 
proved to be one of the best ensilage varieties for the 
northern parts of the country. It yields a heavy tonnage of 
stalks which are covered with big ears of well matured corn. 
We can also furnish many other varieties of corn includ¬ 
ing Sweepstakes, White Cap and early flint varieties. 
Sudan Grass, Soy Beans, Vetches, etc. Catalogue 
free. If you want seeds of real 
quality you should send for it. 
JOSEPH HARRIS CO. 
R. F. D. 11 , Coldwater, N.Y. 
HARRIS 
SEEDS 
The Henyard 
Hens in an Improved Barn 
According to reports from all sections 
of the country there seems to be a ten¬ 
dency on the part of farmers to let their 
membership in Farm Bureau Associa¬ 
tions lapse. This is a serious condition 
of affairs. The Farm Bureau is just as 
much a part of an educational system as 
is the district school, or the high school, 
or the publicly supported agricultural col¬ 
leges and experiment stations. The idea 
that a boy or girl’s education is finished 
when school books are laid aside has been 
exploded higher than a kite. 
The picture of a part of the flock of 
pullets, below, belonging to a young 
man of my acquaintance is a case in point. 
Instead of going to an agricultural college 
lie has had the college brought to him 
through the Farm Bureau office, and has 
put the information thus obtained in 
practice. 
There is a poultry specialist connected 
with the office who stands ready to assist 
all who apply, in the solution of their 
poultry problems. The young man in 
question is a member of the Farm Bureau 
Association and has made free use of all 
the latest developments in scientific 
poultry culture. 
There are 450 pullets all in one flock, 
in what was formerly a cow stable in an 
wage scales which prevail in many other 
industries. Here is an example of a 
young farmer just out of his ’teens, tak¬ 
ing a post-graduate course in agriculture 
through the Farm Bureau, whose profits, 
considering the time devoted to it, will 
compare favorably with the wages of a 
bricklayer or a mine worker. He is doing 
it in a building which has its counterpart 
on many of the so-called deserted farms 
of the East. o. w. mapes 
Valuation of Poultry Buildings 
There are three persons in partnership 
in the thicken business. One desires to 
withdraw, the other two to purchase the 
third interest of withdrawing member. 
The flock has been built up from original 
stock of one of the remaining members, 
and almost all the work and experience 
was of the two remaining members. 
There are now 314 two-year-old hens, 
and 260 pullets of just average flock 
qualities, pullets now laying 30 per cent 
under lights; old hens not laying (in 
molt). What is a fair value to put on 
the above chickens? In addition to the 
above there are two brooder stoves, pur¬ 
chased last year, costing $22.50 each, and 
one purchased two years ago at $11 (not, 
very desirable type) ; also $39 worth of 
wire fencing purchased last year and 
which has been in use ever since. What 
would be a fair depreciation per year to 
be charged on above items? In addition 
to above there was spent two years ago 
$200 in raising front and remodeling old 
Hens in an Improved Cow Barn 
old cow barn. The room is 44 by 33 ft., 
and contains 4S nests, practically all of 
which were occupied when the picture 
was being taken in mid-December. They 
laid 4752 eggs in the month of November, 
and at this writing. December 28, are 
laying better than 55 per cent daily. He 
raised them in his spare time, being other¬ 
wise employed during the day, with a little 
assistance occasionally from his school¬ 
girl sister. He uses barn lanterns for il¬ 
lumination. 
There are plenty of men and women 
keeping pullets and hens who have ab¬ 
solute^ no use for the Farm Bureau, 
when they are asked to invest the price of 
a membership ticket. These can be 
reached and made to help support it 
through the tax collector, just as they are 
forced to support the district school, but 
you don’t catch them voluntarily putting 
up a little more money so as to turn 
what they are forced to pay through the 
tax collector, into a profitable venture. 
I saw one such a few days ago coming 
from the barn, imitating the cackle of a 
hen, with a single egg in her hand, evi¬ 
dently the first she had gathered in weeks. 
This same class mostly have more or less 
apple trees that were defoliated last Sum¬ 
mer by the web worm, and are likely to 
go the way of our chestnut trees from 
this cause, if something is not done to 
prevent it. Most of them are buying their 
apples, if they have any, from some man 
who has availed himself of the knowledge 
as to how to save his apple crop through 
proper spraying. This knowledge may 
be had for the asking, through the Farm 
Bureau, and represents years of study and 
experimenting on the part of scientists 
in the employ of our agricultural colleges 
and experiment stations. 
These are cold facts. Our district 
schools are at one end of our educational 
system, and our Farm Bureaus at the 
other end of it. Most farmers are in¬ 
clined to look with envy upon the high 
chicken houses. Due to lack of T time no 
paint was put on buildings. What is a 
fair depreciation charge? There were put 
up last year three 10x12 brooder houses, 
costing $200; no paint put on these 
Original buildings were the property of 
remaining members, and no charge was 
made for their use. w. H. E. 
New Jersey. 
It is very difficult to place a value upon 
another person’s property without seeing 
it, so as to be fair with all parties con¬ 
cerned. so it must be first understood 
that the values I am placing are based 
upon very limited information, and are 
therefore only approximate. 
If the hens and pullets are of good av¬ 
erage quality, as would seem to be the 
case from condition of molt and egg pro¬ 
duction, they should be worth an aver¬ 
age of about $1.50 each at this season of 
the year. If you could sell them for a 
higher price of course they are worth all 
that you could get. for them, but I be¬ 
lieve this estimate would be about right. 
In regard to the wire poultry fencing, 
I would estimate the depreciation at 25 
per cent per year oil the straight bar type 
and 15 per cent on the regular hexagon 
netting. I have seen poultry fencing of 
the straight bar type rust out almost com¬ 
pletely in four years, while the hexagon 
was apparently good for as many years 
more. 
I would estimate the depreciation on 
laying houses and broader houses which 
are not painted at 8 per cent, and on 
brooders at 10 per cent. This may seem 
like a very high rate, but owing to the 
progress and development in the poultry 
business, brooders which have been in use 
for 10 years are usually out of date to 
such an extent that they should be re¬ 
placed with modern machines. 
C. S. GREENE. 
One day, not long since, a Baptist 
preacher of our State was out hunting. 
During the day a rainstorm came on. In 
o^der to keep dry he crawled into a hol¬ 
low log. When the rain began to fall the 
log began to swell, until he could get 
neither way. He thought his end had 
come. He thought of all the wrongs he 
had done, and when he recalled that he 
had not sent a subscription to this paper 
this year he felt so small that he crawled 
right out of the log without difficulty. 
Does this story fit you?—The Western 
Baptist (Winnipeg, Manitoba). 
