Tht  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
235 
A  Discussion  of  the  Proposed  School  Plans 
I  am  a  reader  of  The  R.  N.-Y.,  and  enjoy  its  articles 
very  much.  At  present  I  am  much  interested  in  the 
rural  school  problem.  I  heard  Mr.  Snyder  of  the  Com¬ 
mittee  of  Twenty-one  give  the  recommendations  at  a 
meeting  called  for  the  purpose  the  past  week.  I  would 
like  to  ask  some  questions  for  information : 
Are  there  communities  where  this  new  plan  is  now 
being  used?  Please  state  the  cost  per  $1,000.  We  are 
located  two  miles  from  Herkimer,  on  the  main  high¬ 
way,  and  our  tax  is  about  $4  per  $1,000.  while  our  vil¬ 
lage  tax  is  about  $12.50  per  $1,000.  I  feel  that  this 
plan  is  taking  away  our  liberty  as  individuals  in  our 
districts,  but,  as  Mr.  Snyder  stated,  it  is  an  undesirable 
job  for  a  trustee  at  present,  and  brings  a  change  nearly 
every  year.  Would  the  plan  of  the  trustee  board  of 
education  work  out  to  the  advantage  of  the  rural  dis¬ 
tricts  or  the  village?  As  I  understand  Mr.  Snyder, 
we  are  to  have  a  meeting,  later  giving  us  a  chance  to 
vote  on  this  question.  When  is  such  meeting  to  be 
called?  If  we  get  in,  can  we  get  out  in  a  year?  If  we 
do  not  get  in  now,  can  we  later?  The  plan  is  very 
fair  in  leaving  each  district  by  itself,  but  should  be 
more  thoroughly  understood  than  at  present.  I  am 
suggesting  for  our  district  a  special  school  meeting, 
and  have  some  capable  speaker  to  explain  the  advan¬ 
tages  for  our  district.  L.  E.  K. 
Herkimer,  N.  Y. 
IF  you  have  a  good  school  in  your  district  you  are 
particularly  fortunate  in  having  a  tax  rate  of 
only  $4  per  $1,000.  The  majority  of  common  school 
districts  of  the  State  have  a  higher  tax  rate,  and 
many  of  them  very  much  higher.  In  a  considerable 
deavored  to  provide  for  the  minimum  of  compulsion 
and  the  maximum  of  encouragement  for  communi¬ 
ties  to  do  the  things  that  will  result  in  good  schools 
for  the  children.  As  you  can  readily  see,  if  these 
changes  are  to  he  made  it  is  necessary  to  have  a 
local  organization  that  can  carry  larger  responsi¬ 
bilities  than  is  possible  under  the  present  plan  of 
trustees.  We  believe  that  the  community  and  super¬ 
visory  district,  hoards  that  have  been  recommended 
will  make  possible  the  attainment  of  these  ends. 
The  committee  hopes  and  believes  that  the  plan 
would  not  work  to  the  advantage  of  either  village 
or  country  if  it  were  at  the  expense  of  the  other. 
We  believe  that  it  will  result  in  both  working  to¬ 
gether  in  providing  the  best  possible  schools  for  all 
of  the  children  of  the  community,  and  thus  to  the 
advantage  of  each.  Take  it  as  a  whole,  the  findings 
of  the  study  show  that  country  districts  have  the 
most  to  gain  in  securing  adequate  schools  for  their 
children. 
If  the  plan  were  adopted  by  the  State  Legislature 
and  enacted  in  law  it  would  be  possible  to  have  it 
repealed  at  any  session  when  the  Legislature  be¬ 
came  convinced  that  it  was  desirable  to  do  so.  It 
say  $40,  spruce  timber  $30,  boards  (planed)  $26,  car¬ 
penters  45  cents  per  hour?  This  icehouse  would  be  up 
off  the  ground  and  insulated  to  avoid  using  sawdust. 
I  read  of  some  being  satisfactory,  but  have  doubts 
whether  they  were  on  a  commercial  scale,  and  if  depre¬ 
ciation  was  counted.  joiin  buchaxax. 
Nova  Scotia. 
THIS  is  a  good  topic  for  discussion.  Has  anyone 
had  experience  with  this  type  of  storage?  Is 
it  possible  or  practical?  We  imagine  that  our  peo¬ 
ple  have  tried  about  everything  in  this  line.  What 
do  they  know  about  this  idea? 
Suggestion  for  Pruning  Blackberries 
I  would  like  to  ask  some  of  your  readers  who  raise 
blackberries  if  they  cut  out  the  tops  of  the  canes  as 
they  do  red  raspberries,  and  if  they  do,  what  time  of 
the  year  they  do  it.  I  tried  it  one  Spring,  and  those 
that  I  cut  back  did  not  have  any  fruit,  and  the  others 
were  loaded.  A  man  told  me  last  Fall  to  commence  in 
June  and  cut  out  the  top,  and  then  in  August  to  clip 
the  ends  of  the  branches,  and  again  in  September. 
Some  bushes  are  7  to  8  ft.  long  and  so  tall  that  I  could 
not  get  in  to  gather  a  lot  of  the  fruit.  n.  s.  ir. 
Cattaraugus  C’o.,  N.  Y. 
PERHAPS  there  is  no  greater  diversity  of  opinion 
in  pruning  any  fruit  than  there  is  in  that  of 
the  brambles.  For  our  part,  however,  Ave  prefer  to 
9 
I 
The  sheep  aie  coming  haclc  on  man  it  a  farm — a  good  thing,  too.  Wool  prices  will  hr  fair  for  some  years; 
and  sheep  improve  the  pastures,  give  a  steady  income,  and  do  not  require  daily  care,  like  cows. 
number  of  cases  the  tax 
rate  runs  over  $20  per 
$1,000,  and  in  extreme 
instances  to  $50  or 
more  per  $1,000.  There 
is  little  doubt  but  what 
you  av  ould  have  a 
higher  tax  if  you  were 
to  become  a  part  of  a 
community  unit,  even 
with  the  increased  aid 
for  rural  schools  that 
has  been  suggested  by 
the  Committee  of  Twen¬ 
ty-one. 
Certainly  if  the  thou¬ 
sands  of  districts  in  the 
State  that  are  now  pay¬ 
ing  excessive  school 
taxes  are  to  be  relieved 
in  a  measure  at  least, 
districts  that  now  have 
a  very  Ioav  tax  rate  Avill 
have  to  carry  a  some¬ 
what  larger  burden. 
While  it  is  only  natural 
that  one  should  con¬ 
sider  the  influence  of 
the  proposed  plan  on 
his  tax  rate,  I  am  con¬ 
fident  you  realize  that  it 
is  not  the  only  factor  to 
be  considered.  You 
realize  that  it  is  a  prob¬ 
lem  of  considering  what  can  be  done  to  give  all  of 
the  children  of  the  State  adequate  educational 
opportunities  and  at  the  same  time  securing  an 
equitable  distribution  of  the  expense  involved. 
There  are  no  communities  in  the  State  in  which 
the  plan  is  being  used.  The  laws  of  the  State  do 
not  permit  of  the  plan  'being  worked  out  at  present. 
The  Committee  of  Twenty-one  made  a  careful  study 
of  what  the  tax  rate  would  be  if  the  plan  Avas  put 
in  operation,  and  it  was  found  that  it  Avould  be 
about  $5.80  per  $1,000  on  the  basis  of  the  equalized 
valuation.  This  means  that  if  the  property  Avere 
assessed  at  its  sale  A7alue  the  tax  rate  would  be 
$5.80  per  thousand. 
The  committee  does  not  believe  that  it  is  depriving 
local  communities  of  a  voice  in  school  affairs.  In 
fact,  it  has  included  in  its  recommendations  sug¬ 
gestions  that  provide  for  a  larger  measure  of  local 
responsibility.  It  has  recommended  that  there 
should  be  no  consolidation  of  schools  unless  there 
is  a  majority  vote  faiwable  to  the  consolidation  in 
the  district.  Suggestion  is  made  that  there  should 
be  a  board  of  education  in  each  supervisory  district 
representative  of  the  people.  This  board  would 
select  the  district  superintendent  and  be  associated 
with  him  in  the  control  of  schools.  Such  a  change 
would  mean  that  the  superintendent  would  become 
an  agent  of  the  local  authorities,  assisting  and  ad¬ 
vising  them  on  school  matters.  ' 
Other  instances  of  a  similar  nature  could  be  cited 
to  show  that  the  pi’oposals,  if  put  into  laAV,  Avould 
xxxean  a  considei’able  measure  of  decentralization  of 
school  control.  In  its  work  the  committee  has  en¬ 
would  not  be  possible  for  a  given  district  to  ivitli- 
draw  unless  the  law  Avas  repealed.  Under  the  recom¬ 
mendations  that  have  been  made  all  of  the  districts 
of  the  State  would  have  to  go  in  at  the  same  time. 
Your  idea  of  having  a  meeting  in  your  school  dis¬ 
trict  to  discuss  the  question  is  an  excellent  one.  You 
might  be  able  to  secure  some  one  locally  Avho  has 
studied  the  repoi’t  of  the  committee  to  lead  this 
discussion.  Since  you  heard  Mr.  Snyder  Avhen  he 
Avas  in  Hei’kimer  County,  you  would  be  in  good 
position  to  take  that  responsibility. 
Whether  or  not  the  recommendations  are  sub¬ 
mitted  to  the  people  of  the  State  for  a  referendum 
vote  would  have  to  be  determined  by  the  Legisla¬ 
ture.  It  seems  to  me  that  people  in  country  dis¬ 
tricts  have  their  best  chance  to  make  their  influence 
felt  for  or  against  the  proposals  through  the  farm 
organizations  and  Avith  their  members  of  the  Legis¬ 
lating.  (PROF.)  GEORGE  A.  WORKS. 
A  New  Idea  in  Cold  Storage 
Which  of  your  readers  has  experience  in  putting  in 
200  to  500  tons  of  ice  and  piping  air  under  the  bottom 
of  the  ice,  then  through  storage,  and  so  round  and 
round?  We  need  cooling  in  the  Fall  for  quantities  of 
apples  up  to  1.000  or  2,000  barrels,  which  would  be 
renewed  twice  or  three  times,  say  2,000  to  6,000  bar¬ 
rels,  and  if  more  cold  ivas  available  could  get  more 
apples.  I  think  the  ice  can  be  packed  in  the  icehouse 
for  $2  per  ton  for  all  expenses  of  cutting,  handling  and 
storing.  I  understand  pretty  well  that  if  the  ice  is 
chopped  up  and  used  either  alone  or  with  salt  pretty 
decent  cooling  can  be  had;  but  will  the  use  of  the  mass 
of  ice  give  any  results?  I  believe  the  so-called  brine 
circulating  system  is  much  too  expenswe.  What  Avould 
an  icehouse  to  hold  500  tons  (or  Avhatever  quantity  is 
thought  a  good  one  for  a  unit)  cost,  spruce  sheathing, 
clip  the  canes  but  once 
during  the  growing  sea¬ 
son,  done  Avhen  the 
shoots  have  reached  a 
certain  height,  and  not 
any  set  time  of  the  year. 
Our  plan  is  to  cut  back 
or  pinch  off  the  tips  of 
the  young  gro  w  i  n  g 
shoots  when  they  have 
reached  a  height  of 
about  2  ft.  and  to  leave 
untouched  the  laterals 
that  are  induced  from 
this  heading  back  pro¬ 
cess.  Some  g  r  o  w  e  r  s 
make  the  mistake  of 
waiting  until  the  shoots 
have  grown  to  4  or  5  ft. 
in  length,  and  then  cut¬ 
ting  them  back  to  the 
desired  height  of  any-, 
where  from  18  to  24  in. 
But  experience  h  a  s 
shown  that  such  de¬ 
layed  treatment  fre¬ 
quently  x>  r  oduces 
growths  that  do  not 
properly  mature  and 
which  are  consequently 
severely  Avinter-injured. 
Tipping  the  laterals  is 
said  to  produce  a  greater 
number  of  berries  by 
actual  count,  but  that  the  total  yield  and  size  of 
fruit  is  smaller. 
Now  this  “Summer  pruning’’  must  not  be  confused 
with  the  dormant  pruning  usually  done  in  late 
Spring.  This  consists  in  cutting  back  the  laterals 
that  developed  in  response  to  the  “tipping”  during 
the  preceding  Summer  to  approximately  15  in.  Very 
likely  some  of  the  laterals  will  be  found  to  be  3  or 
4  ft.  long.  We  are  unable  to  see  why  cutting  out 
the  tops  of  your  berries  resulted  in  no  fruit  unless 
you  cut  off  all  the  fruiting  Avood.  Perhaps  .some  of 
our  readers  have  had  a  similar  experience.  h.  b.  t. 
Connection  with  Private  Wire 
If  a  private  party  (A)  has  an  electric  line  built  ex¬ 
tending  from  high-tension  line  which  is  on  public  high¬ 
way,  also  electric  poles  from  A’s  line  are  on  public 
highway,  has  A  a  right  to  keep  anyone  from  tapping 
<  connecting)  on  her  line  between  high-tension  line  and 
A’s  premises?  j,.  jj 
E  are  unable  to  give  a  very  definite  answei’, 
for  the  reason  your  inquiry  does  not  state 
many  facts.  The  right  to  connect  to  a  so-called  pri¬ 
vate  line  depends  entirely  upon  the  conditions  under 
which  the  private  line  was  built.  If  the  right  to 
use  the  public  street  was  conditioned  upon  others 
using  the  line,  of  course  others  could  connect,  and 
if  the  electric  company  furnishing  the  power  made 
a  stipulation  providing  that  others  could  use  tin- 
line,  that  would  hold  good.  In  the  absence  of  any 
of  these  provisions,  and  if  the  line  was  in  fact  a 
private  line,  then  the  party  owning  the  line  could 
control  it.  Why  worry  over  it?  What  harm  Avould 
it  do  if  a  neighbor  did  connect?  Good  light  and 
power  Avould  bring  happiness  to  the  neighbor,  x.  t. 
