n»  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
967 
The  Hired  Help  Proble 
m 
TI I E  hired  help  problem  is  one  of  the  most  com¬ 
plex  questions  on  a  farm,  and  there  are  so 
many  sides  to  the  question,  and  so  many  different 
natures  to  deal  with,  that  there  is  no  such  thing 
as  a  solution  of  all  the  difficulties  which  exist.  An 
open  discussion  of  the  subject  by  both  employers 
and  employees  should  prove  very  interesting  and 
helpful  to  all  concerned.  For  fear  some  of  your 
readers  may  think  my  remarks  unfair  I  want  to 
say  that  I  started  out  something  over  20  years  ago 
Avith  $13.50  in  my  pocket  as  a  common  farm  hand 
at  $10  per  month  and  board  and  have  worked  for 
others,  mostly  as  manager,  for  several  years,  so  1 
am  naturally  inclined  to  look  at  the  situation  from 
the  standpoint  of  a  poor  boy  starting  out  in  the 
world,  rather  than  that  of  an  employer  with  plenty 
of  capital. 
Until  the  World  War  took  so  many  of  our  young 
men  out  of  the  country  it  was  fairly  easy  to  get  men 
to  work  on  the  farm,  but  as  you  all  know,  we  have 
found  it  extremely  difficult  during  the  past  four  or 
five  years  to  find  the  right  sort  of  help.  Perhaps 
this  condition  is  more  noticeable  on  a  poultry  farm 
because  of  the  finer  work  required,  but  it  is  never¬ 
theless  true  with  a  majority  of  the  farmers  in  this 
part  of  the  country. 
How  are  we  to  get  competent  help?  After  try¬ 
ing  employment  agencies,  college  stu¬ 
dents,  and  applicants  in  general  1  have 
found  the  best  success  comes  from  the 
Subscribers’  Exchange  of  The  R.  N.-Y.. 
and  practically  all  of  our  help  is  ob¬ 
tained  through  this  medium.  If  I 
could  find  a  more  satisfactory  method 
of  obtaining  the  right  kind  of  help  1 
would  be  glad  to  try  if,  and  would  like 
very  much  to  hear  the  opinions  of 
others  along  this  line.  My  reason  for 
looking  for  a  more  satisfactory  method, 
which  I  do  not  expect  to  find,  is  simp¬ 
ly  because  there  are  so  few  applicants 
for  farm  positions  at  the  present  time 
who  measure  up  to  even  moderate  re¬ 
quirements,  so  it  is  certainly  very 
much  of  a  lottery  trying  to  draw  a 
prize  when  there  are  so  many  blanks. 
It  is  not  uncommon  to  receive  from  20 
to  40  applications  for  a  position  by 
placing  a  want  advertisement  in  one 
issue.  Here  is  a  fair  sample  of  many 
of  the  replies  received : 
Replying  to  your  advertisement  in  The 
R.  N.-Y.  I  a  in  applying  for  the  vacancy. 
I  have  worked  on  a  poultry  farm  for 
three  years,  and  have  had  a  course  in 
poultry  husbandry  at  — - University. 
Am  20  years  of  age.  Would  consider 
$75  per  month  and  maintenance.  For 
reference  I  give  the  following:  Mr. - , 
Vestal,  N.  Y.,  and  Mr. - ,  Colchester! 
Conn.  (Two  unknown  parties.) 
A  great  many  of  the  applicants  for  a  position 
which  pays  from  $50  to  $00  per  month  are  boys  from 
17  to  20  years  of  age,  wholly  unfitted  to  accept  a 
position  of  this  kind  until  they  have  acquired  more 
practice  and  experience,  during  which  time  they 
would  be  doing  well  if  they  really  earned  $25  to  $30 
per  month  and  board,  but  in  these  times  of  high 
wages,  high  rents  and  high  living,  it  seems  to  be 
the  rule  not  to  earn  what  you  get,  but  to  get  all  you 
can,  whether  you  earn  it  or  not.  Right  here  I  want 
to  say  that  there  never  was  a  time  when  better  op¬ 
portunities  existed  for  persons  who  honestly  try  to 
earn  their  wages  than  the  present,  because  there  is 
so  very  little  competition  when  it  comes  to  this 
class  of  men.  which  vividly  illustrates  the  truth  of 
the  old  saying,  “there  is  always  lots  of  room  at  the 
top.” 
In  selecting  men  who  answer  help  wanted  adver¬ 
tisements  it  is  not  always  the  man  who  writes  the 
best  letter  who  proves  to  be  the  best  worker.  I  hired 
one  man  not  long  ago  who  wrote  an  excellent  letter, 
and  seemed  to  have  the  necessary  qualifications, 
with  good  references,  but  he  proved  to  be  absolutely 
useless  in  the  poultry  business.  In  this  case  I  learned 
that  the  trouble  was  caused  mostly  by  his  bringing 
up.  His  mother  died  when  he  was  very  young,  and 
he  lacked  the  training  that  a  young  man  should  have 
at  home  to  fit  him  for  future  usefulness.  He  was 
allowed  to  lie  in  bed  in  the  morning  until  a  late 
hour,  and  was  not  taught  to  work  at  home.  He 
was  sent  to  college,  and  displayed  so  little  interest 
in  his  studies  that  he  Avas  allowed  his  afternoons  in 
which  to  take  music  lessons.  The  next  man  I 
hired  was  a  good,  honest  worker,  but  he  did  not 
know  how  to  do  the  common  things  on  a  farm,  as 
he  was  brought  up  in  a  college  town  and  only  had  a 
little  farm  practice  besides  his  course  in  college. 
He  Avas  not  very  strong  and  therefore  could  not 
make  up  his  lack  of  experience  Avith  hard  work,  so 
of  course  he  Avas  not  able  to  make  good.  Then  I 
hired  an  older  man  who  had  been  to  the  war,  and 
had  seen  considerable  of  the  world.  He  took  hold 
quite  energetically  at  first,  as  he  seemed  to  be  anx¬ 
ious  to  learn  the  poultry  business,  but  as  he  gained 
in  experience  and  ability  to  work  he  lost  ambition, 
thinking  that  the  time  he  saved  by  learning  to  do 
his  Avork  quicker  belonged  to  himself  for  rest  and 
play,  instead  of  trying  to  become  more  efficient,  so  as 
to  deserve  continued  employment  and  advanced 
wages.  Of  course  such  a  man  could  not  be  retained 
or  recommended  to  anyone  else.  This  man  had 
worked  in  shops,  and  he  tried  to  adopt  shop  methods, 
including  a  short  day,  Avhich  failed  to  Avork  on  a 
poultry  farm. 
The  next  attempt  brought  several  inquiries  for  the 
position,  among  which  was  a  letter  from  a  man  32 
years  old  who  had  taken  a  special  two-year  course 
in  poultry  culture  at  a  prominent  agricultural  col¬ 
lege.  besides  having  two  years  practical  experience. 
I  gave  him  a  trial,  only  to  find  that  he  was  not  a 
farmer,  having  worked  on  a  railroad,  and  he  had 
very  little  conception  of  the  requirements  of  a  good 
poultryman,  or  aptitude  for  the  business,  so  lie  was 
replaced  with  a  man  who  Avas  brought  up  on  a 
dairy  farm,  and  knew  what  work  means  and  Iioav  to 
go  at  it.  This  man  had  never  seen  college,  although 
he  had  a  good  common  school  education,  but  he  is 
making  good,  and  will  continue  to  do  so,  as  he  is  in¬ 
terested  in  his  business,  and  spends  his  evenings 
studying  the  latest  books  and  papers,  instead  of  run¬ 
ning  around  and  staying  out  late  nights.  He  is  the 
sort  of  man  avIio  is  sure  to  make  good,  and  instead 
of  losing  his  position  because  of  incompetency  will 
gradually  improve  himself,  becoming  more  and  more 
efficient  until  he  develops  into  a  first-class  manager, 
and  is  able  to  command  a  good  high  salary.  It  is 
such  men  as  this  one  who  are  making  good  on  the 
farms  of  the  country  today,  but  the  sad  part  of  it 
is  that  they  are  so  Arery  scarce  and  hard  to  find. 
C.  S.  G KEENE. 
Naked  Necks  or  “Flapper”  Poultry 
DURING  the  past  year  or  two  there  has  been  con¬ 
siderable  said  about  an  odd  looking  fowl  vari¬ 
ously  known  as  “Turken,”  “leather  neck,”  “bare 
neck,”  and  “naked  neck.”  This  was  started  by  some 
man  in  California  who  claimed  that  the  “Turken" 
represented  a  genuine  cross  between  the  turkey  and 
the  hen,  and  on  the  strength  of  that  statement,  a 
good  many  of  these  birds  were  sold  at  a  high  figure. 
There  is  really  nothing  in  this  claim.  The  pecu¬ 
liarity  of  the  naked  neck  is  characteristic  of  a  breed 
of  poultry  originating  in  Transylvania.  That  fact 
seems  to  be  well  authenticated. 
We  learned  that  a  good  many  of  these  naked  necks 
are  to  be  found  on  the  Island  of  Jamaica,  and, 
through  the  courtesy  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Jamaica 
'Board  of  Agriculture,  Ave  were  able  to  import  a  trio 
of  these  birds.  He  said  that  Ave  could  obtain  them 
in  any  color  desired.  As  Ave  wanted  a  red  color, 
our  birds  came  in  that  binding,  and  it  Avas  evident 
that  they  contained  the  blood  of  the  Pit  Game  and 
the  Buff  Orpington  with  the  characteristic  naked 
neck  of  that  definite  breed.  The  birds  Avere  small, 
active,  full  of  vitality,  and  proved  to  be  good  layers, 
but  we  have  been  unable  to  discover  any  great  value 
to  them,  except  as  a  possible  novelty.  There  is 
nothing  Avhatever  to  the  claim  that  they  represent 
a  cross  between  the  turkey  and  the  hen.  Most  of 
them  seem  to  contain  a  mixture  of  blood  from  A'ari- 
ous  popular  breeds,  but  the  characteristic  naked  neck 
remains. 
One  of  our  friends  has  sent  us  the  accompanying 
picture  which  gives  a  good  idea  of  the  appearance 
of  these  birds.  These  chickens  were  exhibited  local¬ 
ly  under  the  name  of  “Flapper,”  the  name  probably 
obtained  from  the  lack  of  dress  often  displayed  by 
that  character.  The  following  extract  is  made  from 
Wright’s  Book  of  Poultry: 
Under  the  name  of  naked  necks  is  now 
and  then  seen  a  very  curious  variety, 
Avith  perhaps  the  most  extraordinary 
characteristic  known  in  any  race  of  poul¬ 
try.  The  first  specimens  we  ever  saw,  in 
England,  were  exhibited  by  John  C. 
Fraser  in  1874.  These  birds  were  im¬ 
ported  from  Austria,  their  place  of 
origin  being  Transylvania,  whence  several 
other  specimens  have  since  been  imported, 
the  last  exhibition  of  them  which  Ave  can 
remember  being  a  pen  shown  by  Lord 
Deerhurst  at  the  dairy  shoAV  in  1900. 
The  heads  of  these  birds  are  feathered 
a .4  usual,  but  the  entire  neck  is  absolutely 
bare  of  feathers  down  to  the  shoulders, 
as  much  so  as  if  plucked,  and  the  skin 
being  of  a  red  color,  almost  like  that  of 
a  healed  wound.  This  red  color  is  con¬ 
sidered  in  Austria  a  point  of  the  breed. 
There  is  a  curious  tradition  that  their 
origin  was  in  a  bird  severely  scalded  on 
the  neck,  so  as  to  lose  all  the  plumage, 
the  feature  being  afterwards  transmitted ; 
but  that  this  is  a  mere  fancy  is  shoAvn 
by  the  extraordinary  tenacity  of  the  point, 
which  is  imparted  to  its  c fosses  with  all 
other  breeds  of  fowl.  From  such  crosses 
has  arisen  much  variation  in  color  and 
other  minor  points.  Black  plumage  is 
said  to  be  the  most  typical.  Both  single 
and  rose  combs  are  recognized  in  Austria, 
but  rose  combs  are  preferred.  Both  faces 
and  ear-lobes  should  be  red.  At  the 
shoulder,  or  bottom  of  the  neck,  there  is 
a  sort  of  frill,  adorned  in  front  by  a  tuft 
of  feathers.  A  writer  on  poultry  states 
that  in  Austria  considerable  importance 
is  attached  to  this  tuft  of  feathers,  as 
without  it  the  contrast  between  the  red 
skin  and  the  plumage  becomes  rather  un¬ 
sightly.  and  the  bird  is  therefore  reckoned 
of  less  value. 
The  same  authority  states  that  the 
economic  merits  of  this  curious  fowl  are 
considerable.  It  is  said  to  be  very  hardy,  a  moderate 
eater,  and  a  good  layer,  the  eggs  being  of  considerable 
size.  If  is  also  a  very  satisfactory  table  fowl.  The 
young  chicks  are  said  to  be  particularly  hardy  as  re¬ 
gards  thriving  in  inclement  weather,  their  ancestors 
having  been  reared  on  the  rugged  slopes  of  the  Car¬ 
pathian  Mountains. 
In  spite  of  Avliat  this  authority  says  regarding 
the  economic  merits  of  the  bird,  Ave  do  not  advise 
their  breeding  unless  the  breeder  cares  more  for  a 
novelty  and  having  something  a  little  different  front 
the  neighbors  than  he  does  about  great  economic 
value. 
Short  Rotation  for  Potatoes 
I  have  some  land  here  but  only  about  two  acres 
dry  enough  to  grow  potatoes,  and  would  like  to  plant 
one  acre  each  year.  How  would  it  work  to  plant  one 
acre  in  potatoes  and  the  other  acre  in  buckwheat  and 
plow  buckwheat  under  in  the  Fall  for  potatoes  next 
year?  Would  it  grow  potatoes  every  second  year  bj 
plowing  buckwheat  under  before  each  potato  crop? 
Oneida  Co.,  N.  Y.  o.  h. 
Ill 8  plan  can  be  worked  out  in  various  ways, 
and  is  often  a  good  one  Avhere  the  land  suitable 
for  potatoes  is  limited.  It  is  not  usually  a  good 
plan  to  plant  potatoes  year  after  year,  although  it  is 
done  in  some  cases.  The  plan  you  suggest  of  grotv- 
ing  buckwheat  and  plowing  it  under  will  help,  but 
there  are  other  ways  of  doing  it.  some  of  them 
better.  The  object  is  to  get  as  much  organic  matter 
as  possible  into  that  soil.  while  it  is  resting,  and 
waiting  for  the  next  year’s  potato  crop.  It  Avill  de¬ 
pend  somewhat  on  when  you  can  dig  the  potatoes. 
If  you  can  get  them  out  early  enough  you  can  har¬ 
row  or  disk  the  land  afterward,  making  a  seeding 
I 
Trio  of  “Flapper”  F  owin'.  Fit/.  3.93 
