I
THE INDUSTRIAL AND EDUCATIONAL INTEKESTS OF OUK PEOPLE PARAMOUNT TO ALL OTHER CONSIDERATIONS OF STATE POLICY.
a. 15.
RALEIGH, H. C, MARCH 20, 1900
Ho. G
PUBLISHED WEEKLY
"Tbe at oa your label tells you when your
abecriptlon expires. Receipts for money on
nbecription wifl be given in chanpe of date on
libel. If not properly changed In two weeks,
notify ns
Ko pub crlptlom entered rn onrbo Its unlets
cafih comu-i'l s onler Th e mon hs' sur
g f p iois nre disc mii uea promptly at ex ira
tlon of time paid f r.
Dlf 'ONT1 NU A.NCES If a -ubscriber wishes
hia copy of the paier discontinued at the x
Dlratl'n "f his subscription, notice to that effect
should be sent. Otherwise it Is assumed that a
continuance ' the subscription Is desired, and
5j arrearages must b paid when paper is
order'! st-ipped.
Money at '"" rt8& 11 t5,ul wred ietter
or money order. Plae don't tend Ktampa.
Be ear to trtve both old and new addresses in
ordain cbanjeof poetfflce.
W'e waul intelligent correspondents In every
ronnty In 'he State. We want facts of value.
rnlti accomplished of value, experiences of
vlue plainly and briefly told. One solid,
demor. struts aot. Is worth a thousand theo
ries Thla Item Is marked to remind you that you
hou d carefully examine i his sample copy and
end u- f 1 for a ear's subscription, iil also
send iier on trial 6 months for 50 cents, or
3month- for 25 cents Or we will send your
paper frte for one year If ou will send ns to In
new subscript Ions, or free six months for $3 in
Dew Tirrtptlm8 at these rates.
Tbi fHMKE88iv Farmer Is the Official
Organ T he orth Carolina Farmers' State
FARM AFFAIRS.
STRAW AT HOM AND FOR THB
MARKET.
Correspondence of The Progressive Farmer.
Btr .rt been Hinder priced thia
winter in the largp E stern c.t ea than
almo; a fiber farm prodoc sellirg
a3 bin a 8(' cents per hundred weght
in Ne Y rfc for the beet lor g rye At
such one a the straw crop, instead of
beitgaa article to get rid of the best
way r-oseioie. 19 b und to figure promi
neml in he marfcet returns of tne
farmer in the future O e of the
reasons for tbe relative ecarcity cf
straw has been ihe consumption of
large quantities of it oy the straw
boarc payer mills, which use thou
sands of tens of it every year. But
the straw tnte pays to rsije fo" mar
ket i a 1 cg re straw cf an unusual
length nod bright und goidenia appear
ance. Tois straw is used by private
stages, whee owners can afford to
pay tae price font. Inord;r to secure
such sira v it ia necessary to raie
crepi of rye in which the gaio itself
i3flriucUta Good rye is iroiuced on
good etraw Without a goo J stand of
the stalk tbe grain ia not apt to be
good. Tare are seme varitiea that
have a si 06 and weak straw which
produced fairly good cropa, but it does
no: pay to raise them when long rye
straw is eellia? eo well in tbe cities. In
order to matte this by product of tbe
rye crop profitable it muss be sorted
out and graded with the same care
that tat bay firmer grades hia hay.
There is such cloee discrimination
shown by the mirket men between
good and ordinary beddiog straw that
it pay to do the sorting at heme care
fully and conscientiously.
Bui any of ihe straw crop tha fails
to gride up to tbe beet ia demand can
be u 1 iz d in profitable waj a at home
Came et it, and it belpa to make valu
ab!e frilz-r, while piper factories
will o't -n py good pi ices for it by the
ton Ia croer c o get the m sg for the
best stra Tiinq ate essential thai it
ehou d ba ktpt md( ora through th)
winters a-on until redy for market
Straw ecacksd and left outdoors through
the wiutcr can never cue much figure
in the city markets. It btccmt s bn ken,
rusty, dirty and saft, ary cneof whih
ia sufficient to condemn it. Housing
of the straw should be a practice wher
ever it is raided for market. Then if
there U an overflow, leave the pooreet
grades out of doors in stacks with at
least a canopy or covering over the
top. If possible this straw should be
taken in bs soon as possible, for when
left ou-. ill winter it tbaorba moisture,
and cons-qien:ly it can absorb less
liquii manure when used for bedding.
A little more attention to the ftrav
crop will not only prove a matter of
small economy, but an important item
of prcfi; to the owner.
Will? am Coitway.
The students of tne A & M College
in Rileiith ixpct to vuic Biltmore
Farm -o)n. To make ht viait an in
teresurg ore. Mr. Vandtrbilt han
cfierea t50 in prg to bi distributed
as follow: (l) Fiftem dollars to tbe
bst j t go o' cattle; (2) T-n doller3 to
Bsconi b -t j djze of cattle; (3) rM:een
dollars to beni j ldg of awine; (4) Ten
dollars to eccnd bfst j idga of swine.
These pr;z s will be in te form of
gold coin or silvsr cups, as the students
may prtfer.
THB ONE GRRAT NEED OF
FARMERS.
Dr. Nobles, Who Opened the Fight
Against Jute lagging, Writes a Let
ter 1 hat Deserves the Careful Consid
eration of all Tillers of the boil.
Correspondence of The Progressive Farmer.
I have thought for sometime I wculd
write you. I waa the first man to op
pose the bagging trust, several years
f go. We saw the need of action then,
nd we introduced in our Alliance (No.
54) 1 resolution not to use a pound of
ihej ite baggicg for cur cotton crop;
that we would use cotton cloth or some
other material to cover our cotton bales
vith. We sent cur resolutions to our
O'unty pater (the Southerner) ar d t
The Progressive Parmer for publica
tion, and in two weeks I saw cur reso
lu ions in a Texas piper. Tney went u 1
over tfce South, and we all know with
what result. We farmers were then
partially organfz d. but we were ce
cermined to use our influence. So,
many cf us ueed cotton gocd , that
cost ua more than the bagging would
have coat. But we went in to win.
Now, what I want to say to the
farmers, and all who are favorab'e to
ua, ia this : L-1 us get together, orgi.n
X 3 and go to work with a vim, a de
termna'ion, go to work for a cause,
and let us not be afraid to let every -body
know it.
Abuse no one for failure to see as we
do. Impress upon all farrrera the
necessity of organising, or getting to
aether. And then choose cut tte v ry
best men we have in cur ranks to for
mulate plan of action. Lt men from
every county ba selected to drait what
they think would be the best plan.
Give them time to call on their counties
for advice, and put their views down
in writing. And then appoint a day
when they will meet in Rileigh and
have all plans reed and take the good
out of each and form a plan, and then
all agree to stick to it, and go to work
for it, and stand solidly together.
We can improve our plan as things
develop. Have good solid men in each
c unty at the head, and ycu need not
fear evil. We can whip out evtry
trust in the land, if we will so to do;
only get together to work.
I am aare that some fellow will say
we "can't." I never did like to eay "I
can't." Say we can and will, aud the
oattle will be ours. It will re q lire
work; so it is by everything that is
worth having. I for one ( trich the
many) would go into it to fight all
trusts, tne Standard Oil Truss not ex
cepted. I wculd use for lights any
thing but the oil, if I had to resort to
lightwood knots for lights. What we
want and most need is to fight together,
organize and go to work with a de
termination. Wish no one wrong, help
all you can, trust in the righteous ires
of our cause, and should wa find we
are in tha wrong, or h'ive made a mis
take, get it right, for we are not in -fallible.
But stand solid.
I have read 3. Q. 8atterhite'a plan,
Jordan plan, and m old Pitt county
resolutions, and I find good in all. L3t
ua have a plan that ia broad and open
for improvemnts, for we will need im
prcviments as we go along. We must,
every one, be determined to succeed
and let nothing deter ua. All we ark
(if we stand together) ia hands off, or
fair play, only use no combination of
mcney to ouac u. If the men we eend
to legislate for us do not recognize that
they are our servants, sent to carry out
our wishes, then turn them out, and
try the next best man.
Now, Mr. Eiitor, correct, leave out,
or cas& ino the waate basket all I have
written, if you should think it wise.
I like your paper and have tried much
to get my neighbors to take it. If I
could make money as I have in years
past, I wculd take a dcz?n of your
papers and distribute them among my
neighbors. But the truth is, we are
not able. We have to do all we can to
keep gcing. I am not a Solomon, and
hwe sense enough to know it, tut if I
could see the farmers thoroughly or
ganised, and to eee things as I see
them, I think we soon would be the
most independent people in the world
Suppose we were to rai?e most of the
meat we crnsume on our farms (nd
we ought to raise all) and all the bread,
and with etrict attention to cur stock
by housing them, and raising all the
manure we can, we wou'd not only
save our meat bill, but would be en
abled to cut cur fertil:z?r bill dovn I
will say one half, if not more. Now
give us the money spent for meat
bought out of the State and the fertili
zers bought, and wculd we not be far
better efff
Now when we get together and are
in working order, I want to propose a
plan to the formera for co-operation
without coming in contact with th
trust, letting them severely alone. No
law compelling us to patrcn z3 them,
not even necessity.
Respectfully,
A. B Nobles
Edgecombe Co., N. O.
Somebody ia alweya talking about
keeping the boy a on the farm. The
farm girl, says a writer, is fully bs im
portant in the businees of the univers es
the farm boy who ia so much talked
about, and we don't know any philoso
pher who is tryirjg to find a method of
keeping the girls on the farm.
EARLY FRUIT QUESTIONS.
J irrespondence of the Progressive Farmer.
It is advisable to gt the mulch away
from fruit trees and vines aa early in
sprirg as possible, but not until the
danger from excessive fre zing ia past.
A warm epo 1 in March will sometimes
start the eap up, and then if the mulch
is removed and the e round worked the
roots may b3 severely damaged by a
1 ite cold snap. Fruit gro "vera ce not
do better tfcan to remove the mulch
early, work the soil 88 scon aa it is
possible to do it, and then watch tbe
weather rep ;rt8. Oa the flies indica
tion of a :;old wave pur back the mulch
at n'ght or give some protection to the
early varieties of fruits Ia thia way
one can have an early start with the
fruits and sometimes harvest tbe first
crop a week earlier. Thia means a
Food deal, for the first picking of any
fruit crop, if good, is the most profit
able. Some in their desire to reap the
benefits of these early high prices har
vest their fruits before they are ripe
and ship them to market, and in nine
cases out of ten lose. There is a differ
ence between an early harvest of ripe
fruit and green, half formed fruit
picked a week or two too early.
In the matter of spraying it should
be remembered that this must be done
at the proper time to ba of any use.
Spraying is cne of the meet wasteful
practices on many farm.', eimply be
cause the owners do not understand
the use of it. We spray for scab early
in the s:ason, just before the buds
open. Later than this it ia of little cr
no use. Ttia applies to all fruits. It
on9 has reason to believe that there ia
no trac9 of scab in the orchard what is
the obj ct of spraying? None at all,
for the codling worm and similar pests
will Dot be reached by thia early work.
The time to spray fcr this pest is after
tbe bloom is over. Neither should the
sprayirg be done while the blossoms
are in full blocm. At such a time the
spray haa a decided tendency to pre
vent the setticg of the fruit, and the
orchard may be materially damaged
The blossoming period ia the cri:i?al
time for the orchard, and nothing
must be done to blight or interfere
with the setting of the fruit. The sen
si ivencsa of the blossoms is apparent
when we consider how an east wind or
a damp week may turn a premising
orchard into an unprofitable one by
blasting all the blosscms. Another
danger that may arise from spraying
during the period when the blossoms
are in full bloom is that of poisoning
honey bees. Tbe bees which suck cut
the pollen are sure to take out some of
the poison, and thereby suffer. AH
orchard is ts do not keep bees, but they
may injure their neighbor's property
and indirectly themselves, because
beea in an orchard distinctly help tbe
fruit crop. S W". Chambers.
Just at this season of the year thia
following for decomposing bones may
prove of value to some. Pack the
bones with wood ashes in an old fah
ioned hogshead or other wooden vessel
and keep the mass well moistened for
eeveral months. Or caustic lime could
be used in the same way. Where
there are large quantities to be treated
trenches in the field may be used in
stead of wooden vessels. M iCh heat is
developed and the bjnes are dr com
posed completely. Seme farmers re
port best success from the use of cm e
caustic potash Make a strong solu
tion of this, heat until hot in a kettle,
then pour over the bones in proportion
of one part potash to four parts bone,
turn over occasionally for several
weeks, when it ia fie for uee. Care
muat be exercised in handling the caua
tica, for the? are liable to cause bad
sores and ir j ire clothing.
THOSE SCIENF1C TLRLIS
A reider of The Progressive Farmer
complains that too many scientific
terma are used in farmers' bulletins,
reports of experiment stations, etc.,
etc. For the bene fi ; of thia reader and
othera holding the same views, we give
the fc Uowing explanation c f scientific
terms used in treating of fertilizers,
food, etc. Our correspondent will do
well to preserve this copy of the paper
or clip thia article for hia scrap book.
TEEMS USED IN DISCUSSING FERTILIZERS
Complete" ferin zdr ia one which
contains the three essential fertilizit g
constituents, i. e , nitrogen, phosphoric
acid and po aah.
"Niirogen" in fertilizers ia in three
aisttnet lorms, v z , as organic matter,
as ammonia, and as citrates. It is the
most expensive fertilizing ingredient
"Nitrates" furnish the most readily
available foima of nitrogen. The most
iommon are citrate of eoda and nitrate
of potash (saltpeter )
Nitrification" is a prccsa by which
the highly available iii raes are formed
from the less active nitrogen o? organic
matter, ammonia, salt, etc. It is due
to the action of minute microbe . pic or
gamsms.
"Phosphoric acid," cne of the essential
fertil z og ingredients, ia derived from
materials called phosphates. Ic does
not exist alone, but in combination,
mcst commcnly as phosphate of lime
in the form of bones, rock phosphate,
and phosp&atic slag Phosphoric acid
occurs in fertilizes in three forms
eoluble, reverted, and ineotuble.
"Sjperphoepbate."- Is natural or un
treated phosphate the poorpboric acid
is insoluble in water and not readiiy
available to plants. Sup rphoephate
is prepared trom these by grinding
and treating with sulpouricaciJ, which
makes the phosphoric acid more avail
able to plants. Superphcsphatea are
sometimes called acid phosphates.
"Potash," as a constituent of f ertibzrs,
exists in a number of forms, but chit fi
as cblorid or muriate and as sulphate.
All for ma are freely, if not quite tq sally
available, but it has been found that
the chlorides may irjuriously affect
qaality of tobacco, potatoes, and cer
cam other crops. Tne chut aources of
potash are the potash salts from Stas
furt, Germany kainit, fylvinit, muri
ate of potash, sulphate of potash, and
sulphate of potash and magnesie.
Wcod ashes atd cotton hull ashes, are
elso aources of potash.
TERMS USED IN DI CUSSING FOODS AND
FEEDING STUFFS
"Water" is contained in all foods and
feeding stuffa. The amount varies
from 8 to 15 pounds per 100 pounds of
such dry materials aa hay, straw or
grain, to 80 pounds in silage and 90
pounds in some roots,
"Dry matter" is the portion remain
ing after removing or excluding the
water.
4,A8h" 13 what is left when the com
buai ible part of a feeding stuff is burned
a ay. It consista ctiefly cf lime,
magnesia, posash, soda, iron, c'alorin,
aod carbonic, supnuric, and phos
phoric acid, and is used Ur-zely in
making bones. Part of the a?h con
stitaents of the food ia stored up in the
animal's body ; the rest is voided in the
uriEe and manure.
Protein" (nitrogenous matter) is the
name of a group of substances contain
ing nitrogen. Protein furnishes the
materials for the lean fL-sh, blood, skin,
muscles, tendons, neives, hair, horns,
wool, casein of milk, albumen of eggs,
etc , and is one of the most imp or ant
constituents of feeding stuffs.
"Albumiooids" is the name given to
cne cf the most important groups of
substances classed together under the
general term protein,, The albumen
( he whites) of eggs is a type of albu
oiinoids.
"Carbohydrates."- The Eitrogen-free
extract anl fiber are often classed to
gether under the name of carboby
drates. Tne carbohydrates form the
largest part of all vegetable foods
Chey are either stored up bb fat or
burned in the body to produca heat
and energy. The most common and
irxpKtast carbohjdratea are sugar
ana starch.
Fioer, "sometime s called crude cellu
lose, is tbe framework cf plants, ano
K as a rule, the mcst indigestib e con
stituent of feeding ettff j. The coars
fodders, such es hay straw, contain a
much larger proportion of fiber than
ihe grains, oil cakes, etc
"Fat,"or tbe materials di?sO' Vad from
a feeding stuff oy ether, is a substance
of mixed character, and may include,
resides real fats, wax, tbe geea color
log matter f plants, etc. Tbe fat cf
food ia either stored up in tbe body as
fat or burned to furnish heat and
energy
"Nitrogen free exract" includes
starch, sugar, gums, and tte like, and
forms an important part of alt feeding
stuffs, but especially of mrst grains.
MISCELLANEOUS TERVS.
'Micro -organism," or m croscopicor
ganism, ia a plant cr animal too small
to be seen wi houc the aid of a com
oound microscope.
"Fungus" (p ural, Fungi) ia a low
form of plant life destitute cf green col
oring matter; molda atd mushrooms
are familiar examples Many uiseaees
of plants are due to fungi
'Bactenum ' ( jlural. Bacteria) is the
name applied in com men to a number
of cifferenc or closely related micro
scopic organisma, all of wbi;b cocei-i
of single Ehorc cylindrical or ellipnca
tell 8 or two such ctlts j md end to
end and capable of epomtnous move
ment. Many kinas of bacteria are
harmful ana cause ciapapes and oth r
injurious effects, but maty are bene
filial, am ng the lauer are tnoee
wbxen give flavor to buiter a d cheese,
and these wmci enable leguminous
plants to use the free nitrogen cf the
air.
'Bacillus" (plural, Bacilli) is a genus
cr kind of bacterium.
eritizad" mitk or cream, properly
speaking, is that in which all tne germ
hav b.en ceitrovQ (asualiy by re
peated heaung to 23 degrees F boil
ing pom ), bUG m uairy pracace ihe
term is applied to cream or mils, whicn
haa been heated once 10 a temperature
of about 212 Jegreeb F.
"Pasteur z d" milk or cream ia that
which haa been heated to a tempera
ture (aoouc 155 degrees F ) whica does
not kill all ihe bacteria, out o-ly those
which are in a vegetating condition
and ready to begin ihtir activity at
oncd
L ict ttlon "-The formation or secre
tioa of milk. Tne "period of lacta
tion" as applied co cows mjans the
length of time since calving that they
have ben giving milk.
TuotrcuUn is a 1 q u& in which the
groiS of tubufculcei 1 have been grown,
bus trom which alt live germa of the
dia9as3 have been carefully removed.
Ic ia administered by hy podermio in
jection a a test for tuberculoma inaci
mal?, a rise of temperature after injee
tion indicating the presence of the dis
ease. At the Miohigan Experiment Station,
128 Iambs pastured fur eight weeks on
fivn acres of rape, showed a gam of
2,890 pounds, or three pounds a week,
at a to al cost of IS.
COMMERCIAL, FERTILIZER.
P ants that are gown under natural
coaditions contain 13 elementary sub
t'tanc s, three of which come from the
air. cne from tbe soil and one from
b -th air and soil, remarks a corre
spendent of the Epicomist. .
All, except three of these, do not re
q lire replenishing as a rule, but nitro
gen, potash and phosphoric acid, of
which soils contain buc a comparative
ly small supply atd upon which all
crop- draw heavily muat be added to
the fo 1 from time to time. All com
mercjal fertilizers are principally com
posed of rhtee three elements in differ
ent proportiocs, and tte fertil z r do
penda fcr its valua upon the qiantiiy
and ouritv ' ds ingredients 1! a
fertilizer contains salt of ammonia or
nitrate cf S )da eourcea of nitrogen
or organic nitrogen; potash, as, for
instance, wood ashes or muriate of
potash and phosphate of lime, it is a
complete manure. Superphosphate is
soluble in water and hence can be
made immediately available by the
plant Tne bone phosphate and rock
phosphate are insoluble in water
Wnen the plant first begins to grow
phosphate ia very valuaole to it. It
hasten 8 maturity of fruits. Among
the several recemmf ndatioas for aid
ing non bearing fruit trees to bear,
-ometimes thfre can be a no mre im
portant one than to adviee the applica
tion of potash Bme meal will fur
nish phosphate of lime atd nicro?en,
and is fx;el!entaa atop dressing for
grass, especially meadows that are
omewhat cemp. Wood ahes, if they
can be had pure, are among our very
best fertil z ;rs They contain several
eletnenta potash, phosphate and car
bonatea of liue that plaoo iheoa very
nigh among the renovators of the toil.
Nitrogen can be furnished by the roots
o? the legum.3, S3lt3 of ammonia ni
trate of scda, dried blocd, cot ten seed
meal, fish ard stable manures. Lime,
upon certain scila, is a fertilizer, and
n others a mechanical agent fcr de
composing muck and flocculate clay,
chat is exceedingly valuable. Wher
ever the water is hard, es we term it,
the soil contains enough lime. The
writer has conducted an experiment
with lime on a clay soil that produced
distinct beneficial reeulis for six years
after its application. Oo a strip lOyarda
wide and wi'-hGufc accurate measuring
he quantity that waa applied, the sur
face was well whitened. We should
chick that it was applied at the rate
of about 30 bushels to the acre. The
land was in sod at the time of applica
tion, which waa made in the falL In
the spring the fL-Id was put in corn,
aud whether in corn, potatoes, wheat
or grass, tie soil to which the lime was
npplied eooed distinctly for six years.
t was always believed that the soil
was ecmewbat sour, and thia condition
was renedied by the liira That ia
ne ot the valuab'e ffi 23 cf iicae.
The ten ceat lcrg etapl catton sold
Raleigh market thia renner waa
r awd from seed of which the variety
is unknown but th9 eeed c&mo orig:n
aly from Memphis, Tenn. Mr. B S.
Riidtck erew and sold thia crop.
TOBACiffl DEPARTMENT.
AKO'HaR plan for the TO
BACCO ASSOCIATION.
orrespondence of the Progressive Farmer.
I see in your paper that you ask for
the opinion of your readers concern
ing the Tobacco Growers' Associaticn.
I think that all farmers ought to or
gan z 3 on terms fair to all. Do unto
others aa y ou have them do unto you.
There is unrest among farmers. They
are mai with somebody, but cannot
tell who it is; they want to do seme
thing, but cannot tell what to do.
Nearly every one is waiting to see
what is going to be dene, but does not
feel that it is his place to do as much
as anyone else. Everybody complains
of trusta and combines. Wa ought not
to complain so much fcr they help in
many thinga, though in many things
are a curse, if allowed to continue in
the future aa they have been in the
past.
I think that I bavo a plan in view
that if adopted will get the most of the
farmers to unite. Then they will be
in shape to help themselves. My plan,
I think, will test all classes, whether
they are sincere cr not.
Bat, let me say. first that I am not
going to condemn capital, for that is
what we need. Capital ia what the
8&aia needs, is what I need, and is
what I am trying to get. But I want
to get it fair and I want every other
person to have a fair chance and I
think everybody is like me in that re
spect, if honestand I think the honest
man can rule.
The tobacco trust people say they
w.nt to be honest with tbe farmer and
my plan will test their sincerity. Let
ua ba fair with them. I do not think
it wise to drive eff of the tobacoo mar
ket seventy -fl 73 or a hundred mil
lion of dollars. We want more money
in the trade instead cf less.
There has been much eaid about the
Jordan plan. From what I can learn
from farmers with whom I have talked,
I don't think they will organ:z3 on this
plan. They, t seem to fear that they
will be like the .monkey and rat when
they had stolen a cake of cheese.
When they were .trying to divide it in
half they fell out about whish had the
largess piece and agreed to call in
uncle Tom cat to settle the matter.
Uncle Tom brought in hia balances and
said the monkey's piece waa too heavy
and would slice eff a piece and eat it
himself; then tried it again and found
Mr. Rit'4 too heavy thia time. Bo he
would piece eff a piece cf hia thia
time, instead of Mr. Monkey's. The
upahot waa tbe rat and monkey were
not long in finding out where their
cheesa was going.
I am not accusing Mr. Jordan of not
being sincere in what he says. I thick
he is the farmer's frier d, but f armere
have b?en fooled so often that they are
suspicious of almost every thing that is
presented to them. I think my plan
will test his sincerity.
My plan is, firsc, fcr the State Asso
ciation to declare in plain words that
the purpose of the Association i3 not to
antaotiB3 the capitalist, but to eee
that capral is fairly treated, the man
OOSTESTUZD ON PAQSL 8
I!