922 
7ht  RURAL.  NEW-YORKER 
July  7,  1923 
Cherry  Tree  on  the  Line 
I  have  a  cherry  tree  standing  on  the 
line  fence.  The  trunk  stands  2  in.  from 
the  line.  What  part  of  the  cherries  are 
the  people  on  the  other  side  entitled  to? 
Can  this  man  climb  the  tree,  or  must  he 
pick  from  a  ladder,  and  how  many  can 
be  pick?  Can  you  let  me  know  where  I 
stand  in  regard  to  law,  as  my  neighbor 
and  I  are  not  on  friendly  terms.  o.  J. 
New  Jersey. 
It  would  require  a  very  fine  eye,  and 
very  accurate  surveying,  to  locate  a  tree 
exactly  2  in.  over  the  line.  That  is  too 
close  a  decision  to  justify  any  quarrel. 
As  an  actual  legal  proposition,  this  tree 
belongs  to  the  party  from  whose  ground 
it  grows.  In  a  strictly  legal  sense,  two 
inches  would  be  as  good  as  two  rods, 
and  if  you  can  actually  prove  the  two 
inches,  you  can  claim  the  tree  and  its 
fruit  legally.  You  cannot,  however,  go 
on  your  neighbor’s  land  to  pick  the  cher¬ 
ries,  and,  of  course,  he  is  not  privileged 
to  pick  them  without  your  permission. 
You  can  climb  into  the  tree  and  pick  the 
cherries  which  hang  over  his  land,  but 
it  seems  to  us  a  poor  thing  to  have  such 
a  neighborly  quarrel  over  a  tree.  The 
fine  thing  to  do  is  to  say  to  your  neigh¬ 
bor,  “Help  yourself  to  a  fair  proportion 
of  the  fruit  which  hangs  over  your  prop¬ 
erty.  They  belong  to  me  legally,  but,  un¬ 
der  the  circumstances,  help  yourself  to  a 
reasonable  quantity.”  On  a  tree  of  fair 
size  there  ought  to  be  cherries  enough  for 
both  of  you,  and  it  is  a  very  much  finer 
thing  to  try  to  divide  the  crop  this  way, 
rather  than  to  try  to  stand  on  two  inches 
of  legal  space  and  prolong  your  quarrel 
by  preventing  your  neighbor  from  having 
at  least  a  small  quantity  of  this  fruit. 
young  People  as  German  Immigrants 
A  young  girl  from  Northern  Germany 
would  like  to  come  to  this  country.  She 
is  engaged  to  a  young  man  in  Germany 
who  would  like  to  come  at  the  same  time. 
Can  these  young  people  travel  on  the 
same  ship  without  their  getting  married, 
or  will  they  have  to  wed  here  before  they 
leave  the  ship?  They  would  like  to  re¬ 
main  single  until  they  have  earned 
enough  to  pay  the  debt  their  journey  will 
incur.  They  will  travel  second  class. 
New  York.  MRS.  A. 
It  is  not  probable  that  either  of  these 
people  would  be  admitted  just  now.  Our 
understanding  is  that  the  quota  of  im¬ 
migrants  from  Germany  has  been  filled. 
A  certain  number  of  immigrants  are  al¬ 
lowed  for  each  country  during  the  six 
months,  and  we  think  Germany  has  al¬ 
ready  sent  about  all  she  is  entitled  to. 
Before  these  pepole  attempt  to  start  we 
advise  you  to  write  to  the  Commissioner 
of  Immigration,  at  Ellis  Island,  New 
York  City,  and  make  sure  that  Germans 
may  now  enter.  Of  course,  they  cannot 
expect  to  get  through  unless  they  obtain 
a  passport  from  their  own  country,  and 
have  this  vised  or  countersigned  by  the 
American  Consul. 
With  regard  to  the  other  matter,  it 
would  be  better  for  these  people  to  come 
on  separate  ships.  We  would  not  advise 
them  to  come  together*  under  the  cir¬ 
cumstances,  unless  they  are  married  be¬ 
fore  they  start.  There  might  be  difficulty 
in  entering  the  country  if  they  traveled 
together  as  proposed  and  were  not  mar¬ 
ried.  There  is  no  compulsion  to  be  mar¬ 
ried  before  entering  the  country,  but 
we  should  consider  it  wiser  for  the  girl 
to  travel  alone,  and  to  have  someone 
empowered  by  her  friends  to  meet  her 
on  arrival.  The  immigration  officials  are 
very  careful  now  about  such  matters. 
Snapping  Turtles 
Can  you  suggest  any  way  to  kill  snap¬ 
ping  turtles,  which  are  killing  my  young 
ducks  in  our  lake?  w.  T. 
Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y. 
Can  you  tell  me  how  to  kill,  dress  and 
cut  up  a  snapping  turtle  for  soup,  how 
to  make  the  soup,  and  what  sort  of  tur¬ 
tle  to  use  ?  w.  M.  B. 
Seymour,  Conn. 
Probably  the  best  way  to  get  rid  of 
the  turtles  that  are  killing  young  ducks 
is  to  convert  them  into  soup  and  other 
food  products. 
The  old  recipe  for  rabbit  stew  begins 
“first  catch  your  rabbit.”  Turtles  may 
be  caught  by  hand,  if  one  is  at  the  right 
place  at  the  right  time.  In  some  places 
they  are  caught  in  traps  like  an  eel  pot, 
but  with  a  larger  opening.  The  trap  may 
be  baited  with  meat  or  fish.  A  set-line 
baited  with  chunks  of  very  tough  beef  on 
large  hooks  will  often  give  good  results. 
The  use  of  all  these  methods  is  regulated 
by  law  in  New  York,  and  the  local  game 
warden  should  be  consulted  as  to  details. 
The  easiest  way  to  kill  a  turtle  for 
cooking  is  to  drop  it  into  boiling  water, 
just  as  one  would  kill  a  lobster.  If  the 
hot  water  cannot  be  used,  the  turtle  can 
be  made  to  stick  out  its  head,  which  can 
then  be  cut  off.  Then  cut  through  the 
skin  close  to  the  shell  all  the  way  around 
and  cut  through  the  bridge  between  upper 
and  lower  shell  on  each  side.  If  the  tur¬ 
tle  has  been  killed  by  cutting  off  the 
head,  the  next  thing  is  to  skin  the  legs 
and  neck.  With  the  boiling  water  treat¬ 
ment  the  outer  skin,  including  that  on  the 
shell,  can  be  wiped  off,  leaving  the  out¬ 
donna  be  handled  for  a  Winter  crop  (or 
very  early  Spring)  ?  N.  R. 
Arden.  Del. 
1.  We  know  of  no  way  in  which  rose 
chafers  may  be  kept  from  roses.  Vine¬ 
yards  are  sprayed  with  arsenate  of  lead, 
1  lb.  to  50  gallons  of  wTater,  with  one 
gallon  of  molasses  added,  but  we  con¬ 
sider  this  poisonous  compound  too  dis¬ 
agreeable  to  use  on  roses.  Hand  picking 
into  a  tin  of  kerosene  is  interminable, 
but  helpful. 
2.  The  question  about  ferns  is  not 
clear,  as  we  do  not  know  what  varieties 
are  meant.  To  grow  ferns  such  as  are 
used  for  decorative  and  jardiniere  work, 
a  temperature  of  not  less  than  55  degrees 
at  night  should  be  maintained  in  the 
coldest  weather,  with  a  rise  in  the  day¬ 
time  of  10  or  15  degrees.  To  keep  them 
healthy  and  growing,  and  to  avoid  insect 
pests,  proper  atmospheric  conditions  are 
needed ;  extremes  of  dryness  or  moisture 
are  detrimental.  On  a  warm,  dry,  sunny 
day,  when  ventilators  are  open,  much 
bed  in  the  greenhouse  in  late  February 
or  early  March.  You  can  also  get  good 
spikes  of  bloom  from  annual  larkspurs 
earlier  in  the  Spring.  Sow  in  flats  in 
the  beginning  of  December,  transplant 
into  2%-in.  pots,  and  then  plant  out  in 
solid  beds.  Allow  four  months  from 
sowing  to  blooming.  You  will  get  much 
finer  spikes  under  glass  than  in  the  gar¬ 
den,  and  there  are  charming  shades  of 
pink,  white  and  blue  in  these  annual 
sorts. 
Pumping  from  Two  Wells 
The  answer  to  the  question  about 
pumping  from  two  wells,  on  page  733, 
does  not  seem  to  me  to  give  the  result 
which  M.  A.  wishes.  With  that  arrange¬ 
ment  he  will  have  to  watch  his  wells  all 
the  time  to  see  which  has  water.  He 
wants  something  automatic.  The  arrange¬ 
ment  used  in  a  water-closet  bowl,  it  seems 
to  me,  will  meet  his  requirements. 
Put  a  return  bend  on  the  end  of  pipe  in 
the  shallow  well ;  have  a  clamp  made  for 
the  rod  of  the  rubber  ball  to  slide  in,  and 
that  well  will  be  shut  off  as  soon  as  the 
water  falls  enough  to  let  the  ball  drop. 
It  will  rise  again  with  the  rise  of  the 
water.  It  would  be  well  to  file  the  end 
of  the  return  bent  smooth.  h.  s.  M. 
Newton  Center,  Mass. 
The  Early  Chinese  Cherry 
•‘Plant  Immigrants”  No.  203,  the  bulle¬ 
tin  issued  by  the  Office  of  Foreign  Seed 
and  Plant  Introduction  at  Washington, 
refers  to  the  Tangsi  cherry,  a  Chinese  va¬ 
riety  now  being  grown  in  California.  One 
observer,  writing  March  31,  reports  : 
“I  was  in  Loomis,  Cal.,  last  Tuesday 
(March  27)  and  saw  a  tree  of  this  variety 
loaded  with  an  enormous  crop.  The  cher¬ 
ries  were  about  two-thirds  grown,  and 
should  be  ripe  in  a  few  days.  Last  year 
this  tree  furnished  the  earliest  cherries 
in  the  State,  and  Howard  Smith,  the 
owner  of  the  tree,  sent  a  box  of  them  to 
the  Red  Cross  in  .Chicago,  where  it  was 
auctioned  off  for  $50.  You  are  probablv 
aware  that  this  is  a  red  cherry  of  small 
size,  but  delicious  flavor.” 
The  San  Francisco  Chronicle  of  the 
same  date  says: 
“Several  weeks  earlier  than  usual  the 
first  shipment  of  cherries  was  made  last 
Tuesday  (March  27)  from  Vacaville.  Cal. 
These  were  of  the  Chinese  variety,  and 
the  box  was  sent  from  the  Hill  ranch  by 
L.  M.  Chubb  to  Chicago,  where  it  will  be 
auctioned  off  to  the  highest  bidder.  Some¬ 
times  as  much  as  $150  is  received  for  this 
early  box  of  cherries,  which  is  always  the 
first  to  be  sent  to  market  from  any  part 
of  the  United  States.” 
This  cherry  is  a  native  of  Tangsi,  Che¬ 
kiang.  China. 
Purifying  Disused  Well 
I  have  a  well  on  my  property  which 
has  not  been  in  use  for  four  years.  What 
can  I  put  in  the  well  to  purify  the  water, 
and  where  can  I  have  a  sample  of  the 
water  tested?  R  „ 
Scarsdale,  N.  Y.  '  ' 
Don’t  put  anything  into  the  well  to 
purify  the  water;  you  might  drink  it 
later.  If  the  water  of  the  well  does  not 
appear  to  be  wholesome,  or  If  you  suspect 
that  it  may  not  be,  have  the  well  pumped 
dry  and  cleaned  out.  When  it  refills,  it 
should  be  in  condition  to  use,  unless  there 
is  some  source  of  pollution  that  should 
be  removed. 
It  is  not  up  to  the  local  board  of  health 
to  have  this  water  analyzed,  unless  they 
suspect  it  as  a  possible  source  of  a 
typhoid  epidemic.  In  the  latter  case,  rhe 
analysis  will  be  done  by  the  State  De¬ 
partment  of  Health  and  free  of  charge, 
but  the  department  does  not  undertake 
to  make  analyses  for  private  purposes. 
Your  local  health  officer  will  doubtless 
be  able  to  refer  you  to  some  reliable 
laboratory  where  you  can  have  any  an¬ 
alysis  that  you  wish  made,  at  your  ex¬ 
pense.  m.  B.  D. 
The  Landlady  (discussing  plans  for 
spring  clothes  renovation)  :  “Ah,  sir,  I 
often  wonders  what  the  moth  did  live  on 
before  that  there  Adam  and  Eve  invented 
clothes.” — Passing  Show  (London). 
The  Story  of  the  Tompkins  King 
BECAUSE  there  were  already  several  “King”  apples,  the  American 
Pomological  Society,  meeting  in  Rochester  in  1856,  prefixed  the 
word  “Tompkins”  to  the  name  of  the  King  apple  from  Tompkins 
County,  N.  Y.  So  natural  was  it  to  distinguish  this  King  apple  fi*om 
other  King  apples  by  adding  the  name  of  its  supposed  place  of  origin 
that  we  find  it  called  variously  “Wiinter  King  from  Tompkins  County,” 
“Tompkins  County  King,”  and  “King  of  Tompkins  County.”  Yet  the 
original  tree  was  never  within  the  boundaries  of  New  York  State,  let 
alone  Tompkins  County. 
About  1800,  so  the  story  runs,  Jacob  Wycoff  moved  to  Tompkins 
County,  N.  Y.,  from  Warren  County,  N.  J.  Four  years  later,  x*eturning 
from  a  visit  to  his  old  home,  he  brought  with  him  grafts  of  an  apple  tree 
a  few  miles  from  the  town  of  Washington,  Warren  County.  The  result¬ 
ing  grafted  tree  at  Jacksonville,  Tompkins  County,  N.  Y.,  was  the  pro¬ 
genitor  of  the  Tompkins  King  trees  of  America. 
Another  and  even  more  romantic  version  of  the  stoi-y  links  the  name 
of  Mi*.  Letts  with  the  bringing  of  scions  from  New  Jersey.  He,  it  is  said, 
brought  scions  to  Tompkins  County  fi*om  a  tree  in  the  orchard  of  Mi*. 
Harrison  in  Essex  County,  N.  J.,  supposedly  the  original  Tompkins  King 
tree.  Some  of  the  scions  he  set  for  himself  and  some  for  Mr.  Jacob 
Wycoff  of  Jacksonville,  but,  strangely  enough,  both  the  original  tree  in 
New  Jei*sey  and  all  the  grafted  scions  save  one  belonging  to  Jacob 
Wycoff,  died.  Thus  it  is  that  the  pex*petuation  of  the  fourth  variety  of 
importance  in  New  Yoi*k  State  is  said  to  be  dependent  upon  one  success¬ 
ful  graft.  And  still  a  third  version  traces  the  movement  'of  the  apple 
fi-oxn  Warren  County  to  Tompkins  County  by  way  of  the  Hudson,  where 
in  passing  it  acquired  still  another  name — Flat  Spitzenburg. 
There  are  some  who  will  insist  that  the  tree  at  Jacksonville  is  the 
original  one,  but  that  it  is  a  gi*afted  tree  was  noted  in  1S96  by  L.  H. 
Bailey,  and,  further,  James  M.  Mattison,  also  of  Jacksonville,  on  a 
trip  to  Warren  County  in  1860,  found  that  the  vai’iety  had  been  locally 
widely  disseminated  for  a  long  time  under  the  name  “Toma  Red.”  Old  men 
in  the  vicinity  had  known  it  from  boyhood,  and  located  the  place  of  its 
oi*i>gin  as  about  two  miles  from  the  town  of  Washington  on  the  north 
side  of  the  M'usconetcong  Mountains.  At  any  rate,  soon  after  1S40  it 
attracted  much  attention  in  New  York  State,  and  since  has  been  culti¬ 
vated  in  both  America  and  Europe  as  one  of  the  finer  dessei*t  apples. 
A  very  characteristic  tree  with  its  horizontal  growing  limbs,  it  re¬ 
quires  but  little  pruning  to  keep  it  in  hand.  Moreover,  it  is  a  vigorous 
grower  and  a  fairly  regular  though  not  overly  productive  cropper.  But 
here  praise  stops  and  dissatisfaction  entex*s.  Because  of  a  trunk  sus¬ 
ceptible  to  collar  rot,  sunscald  and  Winter  injury,  the  Tompkins.  King 
has  become  known  as  a  short  lived  variety,  though  where  it  lias  been 
topworked  on  varieties  not  so  subject  to  these  ti*oubles  the  years  of  profit¬ 
able  culture  have  been  materially  extended.  Beai’ing  is  largely  on  the 
outside  of  the  tree,  so  that  the  prospects  of  a  wonderful  ci*op  presents 
itself,  yet  the  actual  yield  does  not  equal  expectations. 
The  fruit,  too,  has  a  serious  fault  on  some  soils,  namely,  the  addic¬ 
tion  to  becoming  water-cored,  and  the  large  size  fruit  afford  high  winds 
an  unenjoyable  advantage.  But  these  drawbacks  are  outweighed  by  the 
good  qualifications  of  this  superb  dessei*t  fruit.  It  is  at  its  best  from 
October  to  December  or  January,  although  it  may  be  kept  until  Febru¬ 
ary  or  even  longer  in  cold  storage.  Later  than  this  it  becomes  mealy  and 
loses  flavor.  Large  in  size,  shapely,  uniform  and  attractively  striped 
mottled,  and  washed  with  red  over  a  pleasing  yellow  ground  color,  it  is 
satisfying  to  the  eye.  An  attractive  yellow  flesh  adds  its  bit  to  enhance 
the  imputation  of  a  crisp,  though  somewhat  coarse  flesh,  with  mild, 
a  i*o  uatic  and  pleasing  flavoi*,  of  quality  “very  good  to  best.”  ii.  b.  t. 
side  of  the  animal  ready  for  the  pot. 
Slip  a  knife  under  the  lower  shell  and 
take  it  off.  Remove  the  entrails  and 
take  out  the  four  quarters  and  the  neck. 
On  a  large  turtle  there  will  also  be  a 
good  piece  of  meat  in  the  tail.  If  the 
turtle  is  to  be  used  for  soup  it  is  much 
better  to  kill  it  in  hot  watei*,  because  the 
skin  that  is  left  will  improve  the  soup 
stock.  The  parts  of  the  shell  can  also 
be  broken  up  and  put  in  the  soup.  After 
rhe  turtle  is  dressed  the  meat  may  be 
used  in  soups  just  the  same  as  beef,  veal, 
lamb  or  chicken. 
In  Appendix  YII  to  the  import  of  the 
United  States  Commissioner  of  Fisheries 
for  1919,  Mr.  H.  Walton  Clark  and  Mr. 
John  B.  Southall  give  19  recipes  for 
cooking  turtles.  The  book  is  for  sale  by 
the  Superintendent  of  Documents,  Gov¬ 
ernment  Printing  Office,  Washington,  D. 
C.,  at  the  price  of  10  cents,  cash  or 
money  order ;  no  stamps. 
ALFRED  C.  WEED. 
Plant  Questions 
1.  How  can  I  keep  roses  free  from 
chafers?  2.  How  are  ferns  grown  com¬ 
mercially?  3.  How  can  I  keep  aster 
beetle  from  destroying  astex*,  Coreopsis, 
etc.?  4.  How,  or  under  what  conditions, 
when,  etq.,  should  Delphinium  Bella- 
xnoisture  evaporates,  and  syi*inging  is  de¬ 
sirable.  Excessive  dryness  encourages  red 
spider.  A  little  artificial  heat  when  it  is 
damp  and  rainy,  even  with  open  ventila¬ 
tors,  is  a  precaution  against  some  forms 
of  fungus  diseases.  Desirable  soil  for 
deep-rooting  ferns  is  three  parts  fibrous 
loam,  one  part  fibrous  peat,  one  part 
leaf  mold,  one  part  sphagnum  moss,  one- 
half  part  bi*okeu  crocks,  and  one-half 
part  broken  charcoal.  Shallow  rooting 
ferns  call  for  the  addition  of  one  part 
sand.  The  Nephrolepis  or  Boston  fern 
likes  a  mixture  of  three  parts  good  fibrous 
loam,  one  part  old  manure,  one  part  sand, 
with  a  sprinkling  of  peat  and  leaf  mold. 
They  will  use  plenty  of  water.  In  pot¬ 
ting,  set  the  plant  with  about  one-foul-th 
inch  of  soil  over  the  crown,  as  the  fronds 
will  soon  grow  through  it. 
3.  The  aster  beetle  (Pennsylvania 
blister  beetle)  is  controlled  in  the  field 
by  arsenical  spray,  as  given  above,  and 
in  the  garden  by  hand  picking.  The  de¬ 
struction  of  such  host  plants  as  goldenrod 
is  desirable. 
4.  The  perennial  larkspui*s,  especially 
the  Belladonna  varieties,  are  fine  for 
Spring  cutting,  but  they  will  not  endure 
intensive  forcing  in  a  high  tempei*ature. 
Use  field-grown  plants  two  years  or  three 
years  old ;  strong  three-year  plants  will 
give  best  possible  results.  Set  in  a  solid 
