Title: Quarterly report of the Pennsylvania Board of

Agriculture, no. 28

Place of Publication: Harrisburg, Pa.

Copyright Date: 1885

Master Negative Storage Number: MNS# PSt SNPaAgOl 7.4

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Twenty-Eighth

QUARTERLY REPORT

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OF THE

PENNSYLVANIA

Board of Agriculture,

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FOR

JULY, AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER,

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HARRI8BURG:

E. K. MEYEIIS, STATE PRINTER.

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Twenty-Eighth

QUARTERLY REPORT

OF THE

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PENNSYLVANIA BOARD OF AGRICULTURE, 1885.

Memijers Fx-Officio — His Excellency Governor R. E. Pattison; Hon. J. S. Africa,
Secretary of Internal Affairs; Dr. E. E. tligbee, Superintendent of Public Instruction;
Hon. J. B. Niles, Auditor General; Dr. G. W. Atherton, President Pennsylvania State
College.

Appointed by the Governor -Dr. John P. Edge, Downingtown, term expires, 18G6;
Col. James Young, Middletown, term expires, 1888; V. E. Piollet, Wysox, term expires,
1887.

Elected by County Agricultubal Societies.

Term expires.

Adams I. Garretson Bigler 1888

Armstrong F. K. Patterson Freeport 1886

Beaver A L. McKibben Green Garden 1887

Bedford Jos. E. Noble Waterside 1886

Berks J. G. Zerr Geiger's Mills 1886

Blair J. D. Hicks Tyrone 1886

Bradford H. L. Scott Towanda 1886

Bucks E. Reeder New Hope 1887

Butler H. M. Wise Harmony 1888

Centre E. W. Hale Belief onte 1888

Chester Thos. J. Edge West Chester 1887

Clarion John F. Brown Clarion 1888

Clinton Joel A. Herr Cedar Springs 1887

Columbia Chandlee Eves Millville 1888

Crawford M. W. Oliver Springboro' 1886

Cumberland C. H. Mullin Mt. Holly Springs 1888

Dauphin G. Heister Harrisburg 1888

Delaware Elwood Harvey Chester 1886

Erie J. C. Thornton Avonia 1886

Indiana A. D. Sutton Indiana 1886

Jefferson Jas. McCracken, Jr Frostburg 1887

Juniata Prof. D. Wilson Port Royal 1888

Lackawanna H. H. Colvin Dalton 1888

Lancaster H. M. Engle Marietta 1886

Lawrence D. H. Wallace New Castle 1885

Lebanon C. H. Lantz Lebanon 1886

Lehigh J. P. Barnes Allentown 1887

Luzerne John B. Smith Kingston 1888

Lycoming D. H. Foresman Williamsport 1888

Mercer Robert McKee Mercer 1887

Montgomery 1885

Montour M. D. L. Sechler Danville 1886

Northampton Asher D. Shimer Bethlehem 1885

Northumberland W. C. Packer Sunbury • 1888

Somerset C. C. Musselman Somerset 1885

Schuylkill J. S. Keller Orwigsburg 1887

■a*>t.

9 Quarterly Report.

^ Term expires.

S,,ni^an L. B. Speaker. HiirB Grove . , 1H88

SusWmni^ J. F. Butterfteld Montrose |8H >

S ...........J.W.Mather Wellsboro' 188^

IJn^on •••';••• * Philip Frederick Lewiaburg 1887

Venango William Gates Oil City 1886

John McDowell Washington

....N. F. Underwood Lake Como 18H5

....W.S.Roland York 188<»

warren _^ ^ j ,,„t^ ^n Wofthintrton 1887

Washington

Wayne.

York

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C. C. Musselman,

His Exc'y R. E. Pattison,
M. C. Beebe,
D. Wilson,

OFFICIAL lAST.

President.
His Excellency R. E. Pattison

Vice r residents.

D. H. Foresman,

ExecntiiJe Committee.

N. F Underwood,
J. A. Herr,

E. Reeder,

Advisory Committee.

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J. P. Barnes.

G. Hiester,

Dr. J. P. Edge,

T. J. Edge, (ex-officio.)

Dr. J. P. Edge,

D. Wilson,

Thomas J. Edge, (ex-officio.)

G. Hiester,

Secretary.
Thomas J. Edge, Harrisburg.

Botanist.

Thomas Meehan, Germantown.

Pomoloffist.

E. Satterthwait, Jenkintown.

Chemist.

Dr. F. A. Genth, University of Pennsylvania.

CoYisulfinff Veterinary Surgeon.

Prof. R. Shippen Uuidekoper, University of Pennsylvania,

Veterinary Surgeon.
Dr. F. Bridge, W^est Philadelphia.
' Entomologist.

Prof. W. A. Bnckhout, State College.
MicroscopisLs, Hygeinists and Food Inspectors.
Dr. Henry Leffman, PhihuUlpliia.
Prof. C. B. Cochran, West Chester.
Onithologist.
^. Harry Warren, West Chester,
Meteorologist
J. L. Heacock, Quakertown.
Fish Culturist.
Capt. M. P Peirce, Philadelphia.
Mineralogv^t.
Prof. F. A. Genth, University of Pennsylvania.

Geologist.
Prof. J. P. Lesley, State Geological Survey.

Stenographer.
Col. H. C. Demming, Harrinbiirg.

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Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

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ESSAYS AND DISCUSSIONS.

XHK WORK OF rHK XKW VORK KXPHRIMHISX SXA

XIOIS.

BY DR. E. L. STURTEVANT, DIRECTOR.

Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen:

It is sometimes well to look to the past to see if we can get lessons which
will a])])ly to the present, for often times in this manner facts may be ob-
tained which are decisive in their character. In the early days of the
present era we had authors who gave us very good literature concerning
Roman agriculture during a period of several hundred years. Cato, Varro,
Columella, Palladius and Vegedius' writings show that the Roman farmer
was painstaking to the most careful degree, and that the cheapness of slaves
and the demand for produce, brought about a farming which resembled
more our garden than our field practice. The land was thoroughly tilled,
the various operations of husbandry were performed in a very perfect
manner, and the crops were attended to in the best way. The manure
made on the farm was carefully replaced on the land, and yet the univer-
sal testimony is that there was a progressive diminution in crops, and that
the ]>o]^ulation were dependent largely upon imports from other countries.
Yet this continued even under conditions for the most successful culture —
cheap labor and advancing prices. We have here an experiment carried
over several hundred years, by which it seems evident that by mere culti-
vation alone, the manure of the farm cannot maintian fertility so long as
sales are made from the farm. In contrast we will glance at the agricul-
ture of iMiglaiid, since about 1840, the time when artificial fertilizers began
to receive attention. We note from this period, great improvement in En-
glish agriculture, a greater freedom of sale from the farm, and a progress-
ive increase in crops and cropping capacity of the land, affording a marked
contrast to what we have mentioned as having occurred in Italy. These
two experiments in Italy and England seems to prove the fact that when
we take long eras into consideration when the crops are sold from the farm,
although for a short time we may get good crops, yet exhaustion is going
on, which ultimately will luring diminution of crops unless science steps in
and su|)i)lies a way out of the dilficulty. It is from the hope that pro-
gressive exhaustion of the soil may be prevented, and the belief that more
profital)le farming can be pursued, where new knowledge has V)een ac-
quinnl. that the existence of experiment stations become justified. This
h^ads me to the subject I am to talk on, vvliich may be called mt^thods of
agricultaral experimenting, and which I shall [Mirpos^^ly make a little ram-
bTing, as my intent is to be illustrative rather than convincing.

The work of an experiment station is two-fold. One portion is expen-

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mmtal the other verificativo. Au experiment proper way have no im-
woaate relaton to practice. It may be merely for the purpose of as^
certain n- facts, wh ch mav tend to iUustrate, or to make poHBible the
inllrre ation or the result; of practice: and yet the ultimate object of
eter n IS that the inforn.ation thus derived may be so apphe.1 as to
nm "r he crops of the farm, or to diminish the cost of production. A
exm' menUtatiln is founded for the purpose of discovering the law« which
X rn n,.on the farm, their character, to what extent they are under hu-
man coni'rol, and how mankind can influence them m the direction foi then

"i:irS iliirstration may seem to you trivial, and I select it because ^f

its apparent triviality, in order to show ^ y^.^Z.^'^.^'^:-
ently small matters may becom.. when studied in their P^'^^'^^\''l^
Hons I have here two fields of corn, which have been i)laiite<.l at the
same time and n the same manner, with the same kind of ^«e^ Pro^'^; ^o
be Tood but with seed from two different sources. In one held we have
(rood ffermination, and a fair plant, m tne oiuci ueiu lui
gooa geimi ' , ,- • 'i.p,,„i,.ed. Now what was the cause of the

terminate, and repiaimng is injiuit-M. ,,ti>ov'' Most

Growth <jf the corn seed in one field, and its failure in the othei . Alost
nZle sav it was the cold of the spring that prevented germina ion. The
Lpe iment heL which is required, is to determine whether -Id chd i>re-
ven germinatio.u for if cold is the cause, the only way to I«':;»t;«^'> ^
Lter planting. If cold is not the caiise, then it is possible that the cause
ItenTscovered, may be under our control ^^.e first reflection is th^^^^^^^
1 1 K^iiorl flio onvn in oiip field, wliy did it not kill the corn in tnc otnei .
Ss one fao^'vZ d Lad to the'belie'f that it is not the cold which causes
ttie poor germination. However, to make the matter sure a germination
Ipp^t^is^as prepared, in which a low temperature could be constantb^
m-iintained for long periods. It was found in these trials that coin ex
no" to a temperafure of from 37 to 41 degrees did not rot, but germi-
nate after aTong interval, and when removed from the apparatus and ex
1.S to a tLipefaturo of from TO to 75 degrees, growth w- rapid Wthy
indvifforous We can therefore assert with certainty, that the cause ot
the non grmi.>ation in the early planting was not the cold, but must be
soLht for in some other circumstance. Upon looking over our record it
waSouid tl"it the corn which germinated poorly was f - --^b^.^^^^;
the corn which showed good germination was taken from a room-/^ ^^ "^
H had become thoroughly di^ed. This suggested t^e experiment wl.Hhei
clrv nir had anything to do with the vitality of corn. It was found that the
5 -rn germLatef perfectly, while the corn from the b- germinated les^^^
perfectlv We have, therefore, the practical conclusion that kiln drying
Led c2n will preveit the loss of the plant in early planting, *« "large
extent By carefully noting the conditions during growth, we find tha
bS: moUrfa fungusi will gr'ow at a lower temperature tbau wiU corn^^^ a^^^^^
that when corn germinates rapidly, it grows in advmice '.f *«/^^f °1"^™*
of the mold. l)ut that when germinating slowly, mold will develop so lap
Tdly attodestroy the kernel before it has . chance to secure a foothokh
Thus it becomes evident that the loss of seed comes, not from the co Id
S but rorthe delay in germination, which allowed the mold time to
Tstrov the s^ed We are now brought to the conclusion that not the cold,
but the mo d destroyed the corn, mul this suggests another experiment^
By se ect n?r corn seed from cobs, on which th..re was no appearance of
mold and f^om cobs which showed a few black, moldy spots and gerniina-

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

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ting this seed, we secured in the one case complete germination, while in
the other case we were greatly troubled by the mold, which killed a large
portion of the seed. We are now ready to draw our conclusions. W e find
that the cause of the poor seeding was not the cold but was the character
of the seed; that mold destroyed the corn; and that mold can be recog-
nized in advance upon the cob. The practical conclusion thcu-efore is, that
if we select corn which is free from the appearance of mold, and that it
this corn be kiln-dried, germination will result under the most unfavorable
conditions which are likely to occur in practice. We have separated the
causes of failure, and find that they are under human control. I lats are
now iilanted to verify these conclusions. We thus see that this apparently
trivial experiment furnished data wliich may secure us against the results
of failure in our planting, and is capable of obviating one of the most
common causes, in many regions, of deficiency in crop. Any of you who
will look over the crop jiredictions of the season will see the immensity of
the loss which comes from the failure of seed to germinate. This very
fact indicates clearlv the value of a little experiment of the kind, which
will enable the thoughtful farmer to escap(> this source of loss.

The next point I wish to consider has reference to butter making. W fiy
is it that the same person cannot always make the ^ame (juality of Imtter?
"Why is it that sometimes under the most ordinary care, first-class hutter
can be made, while at other times the most careful attempts will result m
butter of poorer .piality. The conditions of butter making being alike,
and the .piality being difterent, suggests that the reason must be sought
for in the individuality of the cow. For the purpose of testing the valid-
ity of this suggestion, by means of a Cheiry Test churn we hav-e churned
under exact and like conditions the milk of the various cows in the Station
herd Some 700 or more churnings have been made the past season, of
milk previously analyzed, and drawn from cows whose feed and conditions
have been systematically noted. A\ <■ find that some cows furnish a milk
which always makes a high (piality of butter. We find that one of our
cows furnishes a milk which, although it contains the necessary amount of
fat, and is apparently of excellent ciuality, yet never furnishes butter of
eood (luality. We have here outlined a fact of great interest to dairy-
men We find that the quality of butter and the ease of butter making
depends largely upon the individuality of the animal. I think that I may
safely say there would be more profit from the five cows of the btatiou
herd than from the six. In other words, the eliminating from our dairy
the milk of the sixth cow would add to the value of the butter and to the
profit derived from the churnings. Just think of it a moment, five cows
better than six, and the discarded of the sixth means the saving of the
first cost of one cow, and the annual cost of her food and care. How
many farmers know the value of their individual cows for the purpose for
which they are used? It seems very probable that the farmer who would
keep a record of the amount of cream or butter that he scoured from the
milk of each individual cow, would find it gi-eatly to his advantage to dis-
pose of certain cows in his herd, and would soon find out, by so doing,
that with fewer cows he would absolutely add to his profits. Ihe farmer,
however, is a type of the business man who does not desire as a rule to
understand his own business. The merchant does not hesitate to follow
that com-se which will add to his j.n.fits. The farmer usually thinks it is
too troublesome to weigh each cow's milk daily, or to churn now and then
the milk of each cow separately, and in consequence knowing which cow
brings him a profit and which brings him a loss. When a man learns

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Quarterly Report.

throu^li his own experience that cows have an individuality, he has made
a ^rreat stride towards success. To ilhistrate this individuality of the cow,
I will report to you the results observed during an ex])(^riment with two
cows continued over 100 days, whc^rein the cow which weighed '200 pounds
more than the other consumed no more feed than did the lighter cow, and
this ap])arontly from the power this cow had to digest her food more
thoroughly than did the other. We also found that one cow had the power
of diverting her food more toward milk product than did the other. W e
note also that the cows varied in their ai^p<-tite for food and drink from
day to day, and that when fed ad libUum, dilTerent kind of food were con-
sumed daily and dilferent amounts of water drank. The diiTerences were
often quite well marked, as for instance, while in perfect health, 20 pounds
of water one day and 105 pounds of water the next. The amount of
water drank one day, intluences the a])parent live weight of the next day,
so that a variation in live weight may have no real connection with gam or
loss in Hesh. Thus, on February 8, a cow weighed 708 pounds; on Feb-
ruary 15, 745 pounds, an apparent gain of 42 i)ounds for the week; and
yet if we take the weights upon February 7th, 751 pounds, and February
I4th, 745 pounds, we have an ap])arent loss of O pounds. This illustra-
tion indicates the necessity of daily weighings, if we would know the gain
or loss, rather than at the commencement and at the end of the experi-
ment, as a single weighing is intliienced so much by the amount of water
consumed the previous day.

Another point, the third and last one, is in regard to fertilizers— whether
one fertilizer is better than another whether a farmer can afford to use fer-
telizer on his crops— whether a farmer will increase his crops in one season
—are local (luestions which can only be answered at an experimeut station
for its own land, and the results will not apply to any one's else land or
any other locality, because the whole thing is influenced by the local con-
ditions of the place. The action of fertilizer is influenced by the char-
acter of the plant, the temperature and moisture of the soil, and the
method used. If plants are studied in their underground relations,
it will be seen that the various kinds have various habits of rooting.
Some may be classed as shallow rooters, and others as deep rooters. If
fertilizer is put in below the roots, the roots do not reach it, and therefore
we cannot expect any resultant crop. If fertilizer is placed upon the sur-
face, and the plant is deep rooting, but a small portion of the fertilizer
reaches the plant. In a warm season the corn plant feeds vigorously. In
a cool season it feeds sluggishly. Consequently, it would follow that fer-
tilizer would benefit the corn i)lant most during a warm season. The po-
tato is a deep rooting plant, and succeeds best at a soil temperature far
lower than that required for corn. We find that during a year in which
corn reacts most favorably to fertilizer, tlu^ potato acts less favorably and
vice versa. Experimental trials with fertilizer must be governed by such
considerations as these, and we must judge efficacy under conditions which
can b(^ carefully noted. For this juirpose it is recjuired to use it on differ-
ent kinds of plants, and during seasons in which wf^ have a record of soil
tem]>eratures, for otherwise we should find it veiy difficult to trace cause
and effect. We frequently find a greater variation between i)lants treated
alike, than between ])lants which have received different quantities of a
Q\\im fertilizer in every case, the result obtained is a local one, and gives
but litth^ information for general practice. The line of experiment, there-
fore in this directioxi is to determine under what conditions the fertilizing

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Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture. 7

material can become incorporated into plant structure, for it is self-evident
that all the fertilizer which enters into the plant, means so much increase
of production. The method of experimentincr with fertilizer is to deter-
mine the con-elations which occur with the plant. The following is the
details of an experiment. A trench is dug alongside a snigl;- lull of corn
a little deeper than, and a little longer than the roots extend. By means
of a hose and a spray of water, the earth is carefully washed away from
the roots into the trench, so as to expose the fiV)ers as they lay in the soil.
We find that in our region the princiiSnl feeding roots ocxiupy the upi-.-r
four inches of the soil, and extend a distance of some 12 feet from the i)lant
If we examine these roots carefully we find that some few extend downward
a distance of 3 feet, more or less. The proi,ortion of thes^e deep extending
roots to the lateral roots is about 1 to lOUO, or more. ^) « l»'^"f'f: r<^»«^»i
that corn will respond more successfully to broadcast fertilization and
to surface manuring, than to hill fertilization or deep manuring. ^^ e
therefore, have a guide to practice, applicable to regions where a mean
temperature of 82 degrees is maintain.'d in the upper 4 inches of the soil
durine the growing season. The same operation applied to the potato
,)lant shows that our better varieties occupy, with their roots, a circle about
18 inches in diameter, the roots extending below the tubers, and rainifymg
at a dei)th within the soil. It, therefore, seems reasonable to believe that
manure placed bf.low the seed would be more ben<>tici<al to the i.laut than it
placed above, and trial seems to justify tin- belief. I will here call your
attention to variety differences in potatoes. The potatot>s of my boyhoo.l
davs were usually borne further from the plant than are the more improved
varieties of to-day. The wild potatoes from Arizona, as grown, in the
Station ground, bears its tubers many feet from the plant. A wood cut
that I have of the potato in Uu 1, shows a plant whose tubers extend a long
distance hom the stem. Our modern varieties, such as the ^^ hite btar,
bear their tubers in a bunch close to the plant. It thus seems that the
rules for manuring which applie.t to the potato of U./l, would not neces-
sarily applv to the potato of 188r.. Those of my audience who grow po-
tatoei who;., habit of growth caii-ies the potato far from the phmt, may
find a different process of ma.uiriug advantageous than that .mtlmed here
from information founded upon the more improved vari.ities.

Experimentation, to be successful, requires a training as well as an ex-
pense which is bevoiid the limits of the ordinary fiu-mer. In expermient-
Fng we have to keep a record of conditions which at fars thought nuiy
seem to the observer to have little connection with the results that we wish
to attain. We have to enq.loy skilled men to make notes of the condition
of the soil, temperature and of the different stages of growth of ttie plant.
We have t^ coniume much time in bringing these notes into harmony, and
studying the various relations which occur. We must note the number of
plants Tn each row, the number of seeds which are planted the number
which grew, the amount of crop, etc., etc. For the comple o study of
even such simple matters as these I have noticed we require the services
of a chemist, botanist and of mathematicians. These various trials must
be carried on with such carefulness that we may be ^^'-f ^^ >:;"- f^^^J^
promises upon which all our reasonings are o be founded. ^^^ ,1'«;^^ *« be
theoretical as well as practical, but the conclusion is ^-rtain ttia twnen he
theory is correct, theory an<l i.ractiee always coincide. Th s .idds to tiie
importance of the various c(.nsiderations which the practical man ,s often
unwilling to acknowledge. . „* f,> „,„

I am now ready to answer any question which may be i)ut to me.

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Quarterly Report.

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

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J. McDowell, of W asliiii^^tou county. I was t^lad the gentleman re-
ferred to the temi)erature of the soil. One ])art of my soil is limestone,
and another portion of it is a sandy soil, and we always find that the corn
in the limestone ground is up a few days before the other, and makes
growth much more ra])id than that on the sandy soil. With regard to the
product - how to ol)tain the best results I would like to ask whether they
ever make it a practice to pull oiit all the poor stalks in order to breed the
very best corn. It has always occurred to me that we can improve our
corn very largely by not planting It too closely, and when it is up by going
through* the corn and tearing out all those stalks which are poor. We
hnd that one of the great drawl)acks in the crops of our sandy soil is the
little ant. A\'e have had to plant our corn over; we have planted our corn
and found that this little pest injured it so much that we had to plant it
again — some are comi)laining of it now, and re- planting their corn. I
would like to hear a remedy suggested to get rid of this little pest.

Dr. Sturtevant. Of course the gentleman expects me to speak favora-
bly of breeding seed corn, as I was perhaps the very tirst one to under-
take the breeding of seed corn, but in this whole question of corn plant-
ing I would say that I do not know yet how to grow corn, fc^r I cannot get
as good results at Geneva, N. Y., as I have been in the hal)it of obtaining
i.i Massacliusetts. I was talking with Mr. Newman, of Alabama, and I
found he differed with me in the growing of corn. He says you must
plant one stalk in a hill five feet a])art in Alabama. My own practice in
Massachus(^tts was to put four kernels in a hill, the hills being about two
feet apart, and in drills three and one-half feet apart. This variability of
practice appears to be connected with the rainfall of the locality, but I do
not want, as yet, to be very positive on this matter. I reason in this way:
In Massachusetts my average crop of corn was 71) bushels per acre, my
maximum crop 128. In New York I cannot get a maximum of much over
70 bushels. In Alabama where single plants five feet apart forms the
practice, evaporation is great during the growing season. The average
rainfall at (>('neYa is about 80 inches for the year, and at my place in
Massachusetts it was about 45 inches. The amount of water r(Hpiired to
carry a corn plant througli growth is something enormous, I forget the
exact figures. In })lanting corn closely, say one foot apart, I find very
feeble growth, and every indication of lack of water. From reasoning
founded upon data snch as this, I liave come to the conclusion that thick-
ness of planting corn is determined very largely, if not entirely y)y the
amount of evaporation, and the amount of rainfall of the locality during
the growing season.

E. Harvey, of Delaware. I would like to ask the gentleman whether he
has discovered any remedy for cut worms?

Dr. Sturtevant. No sir. I once thought I had mastered the insect but
I aj)plied the same remedy again and failed, so that at present I must say
that I have nonc^ to suggest. Some years I could report that certain things
will drive insects away. One year I had corn cobs dipped in coal tar, and
])ut among the s(piash plants. This was nearly a com])lete protection.
The next year I found the coal tar of little protection, as the insects came
in overpowering nu!;il)ers, and Ix'ing hungry, would eat from the un])alata-
ble hills as well as from the palatabk^ ones. I am willing to believe that
the only remedy against worms is to kill them, l)ut how to certainly kill
them in every case is a subject for further consideration. My (experience
invariably has been that early ])lanted corn gave better results than later

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]>lanted corn. I was once using a western corn planter, on a \) acre field,
which planted two rows at a time, but through some mischance that year
every alternate two rows were left unplanted. After about two ^^eeks I
discovered that my field was })lanted with two rows intervals, and I then
went over it a second time and i)lanted the vacant rows. Being interested
in the results, I harvested the early and lat»: plantings separately, and
weighed the corn. In no one case did the lat(^ planting equal in weight
the early planting. Since coming to the Station I have noted some rea-
sons which may explain this observation. \v\ the green house if you wish
to root plants you desire a warm soil and a cool atmosphere. In tlu^ field
in spring we have this conditioiL The soil warmer than the air, and there-
fore reason that th(^ early planted corn established a better root growth than
did the later planted corn, on account of the greater difference between the
warmth of the soil and the air during th(^ two periods of early growth.

Col. Young, of Dauphin. Don't you think that it is very necessary to
have the ground prepar(^d and in good condition, ploughed deej), and w(41

pulverized ? u ;i

Dr. Sturtevant. In j)lanting corn I have noticed great benefit to be de-
rived from thoroughly ])ressing the earth to the seed. In i)lanting some
plats I gave orders that the nuin i)lanting should stand upon each hill,
while he planted the next one. I went down and looked on while he
was planting to see whether this was being done, and saw that it was neg-
lected on one plat. I left this plat to be finished without interruption, and
noted the result of the stand was very much in favor of the plats
which were tram})led as directed. I am not >n favor of hand corn- planters,
because they do not compress the soil over the seed, and I think it would
pay any farmer who cares for ten acres of corn, to own one of these west-
ern corn planters, which plants two rows at a time and whose wheel runs
over the seed as planted. Corn land requires much han'owing. The ob-
ject of harrowing is to concentrate the soil. There is no tool which takes
the place of a harrow. You go into a greenhouse and pot a plant loosely,
and you will notice failure in nearly every instance, but where the soil is
pressed with the thumbs about the i)lant, you will find nearly universal
success. You go into a muck swamp in the east, and you will note that
where a cart track runs ovc^r it herds grass will grow where the soil is
pressed by the wheels, while in other places only swamp grasses occur.
Many other illustrations might be given of the importance of concentrat-
ing the soil. Fill a half bushel measure with oats, and strike it level.
Now, stir these oats carefully, and you will find that you can condense them
so that more can be poured into the measure. In the same way, a harrow
concentrates i\\^ soil, so that while it is left permeable, it occupies less
space than before the harrowing, and is in better condition for sup])orting

the growth of the ^oung corn. , i,r cu x l

M. W. Oliver, of Crawford county. I would like to ask Mr. Sturtevant
when he would recommend manuring, and how to plant?

Dr. Sturtevant. My answer would be to spread the manure or fertil-
izer u]>on the surface and harrow it in, as the corn plant is a shallow fcMvler
and tho fped for growth is obtained from the u])per lay(»rs of the soil.
As to ])lanting corn, it has been our experience that it should be i)ut ni as
shallow as possible, without liability of being washed out by the Spring
rains. W iih us, about one inch deep seems under ordinary circumstances
the best depth. The depth of planting, however, varies with the locality.
In the southwest it is planted eighteen inches deep, a hole being punched

li

10

Quarterly Report.

in the ground, and the corn kernel buried in a ball of clay placed at the
bottom in ordi^r that the germinatincr seed may be in contact with the mois-
ture of the lower soil. With us, we find that some of the seed will come
up even when planted eight inches deop, but that a larger proportion veg-
etated at one inch dee}) th:in at any other depth.

J. (I. Zejiu, of Berks. I would like to further illustrate in regard ta
what the Doctor said in reference to salt. I have a neighbor who could not
grow corn successfully. He was told that if he would use salt he would
be siiccessful in the raising of corn and he ap[)lied to the man who
keeps store in our ])lace, to get him a ton of salt— get him anything that
he could in the shape of salt, whether it was the scrai)ings of the salt
house or anything of that kind, and he did so and sowed it on his ploughed
corn ground and that year he was successful in liis cro[) and he has
been raising corn successfully every year. This year he neglected to
get his salt and he ])ut out his corn in one of his fields and the wire worm
has eaten his corn up so badly that he said he would get no crop at all.
He told me this a few days ago.

Col. Y. E. Piollet, of Bradford. I have purchased 00 tons of salt in
the last four years. I took three bushels of salt and two bushels of slacked
liii^e— I have a plaster sower that goes along and sows three rows at a
time. No fly touched a turnip leaf where that composition went, and the
Doctor tells me they are eating his up, so I will pay him back for what he
is doing here. If you will just sprinkle that with the plaster sower—
That is"the only service that I have had of this mixture. So far as the
pulverizing of the soil is concerned, no plant ever matured over a cavity,
so that the whole thing of pulverizing the soil is to pack it down so that
there is no cavity. Then the roller ought to follow the plow; then the
harrow go on, and the more times you go over it with these horse feet you
will have a bi^tter cultivated surface.

CoL. YouNo. After all, don't you find that the best thing is the barn\ard

manure ?

Col. Piollet. Yes sir. I took my friend around a cornfield to day,
and he said, why that corn is as big as mine, and he lives '200 miles south
of me where the' temperature is diff'erent and the conditions of the weather
are different. I believe th(» barn yard manure ought to be applied as fast
as it is made. I covered that field last winter when there was snow on the
ground, and I hauled it out there just as fast as it was made when we could
get on there with horses and wagon.

H. M. Engle of Lancaster. This question has become an interesting
one, and we have received very interesting information from the professor
in reference to corn ground being prepared to germinate well. There is no
(piestion in my mind so important, and my opinion is that the general
failure of corn coming u]) is because not enough care is taken in the select-
ion of corn from the crib. The best corn should be taken from the crib
when selecting it for planting. I am in favor of shallow planting, especi-
ally early in the season. There is no (juestion corn or any other grain the
shallower we can plant it, so it is not too shallow, th(^ (piicker it will come
Tip— that is an im])ortant matter. In the matter of salt I have always been
a little doubtful of applying too much salt to any grain you plant. I have
tried it on melon seed and it never germinated, and I would be afraid to
apply it in too great a quantity to corn or any other seed, for ftuir it would
not germinate. With reference to planting late corn; I think that is not a
fair'^test. H(» planted alternate rows and planted the second later; the

4< ^^

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

11

trouble is that the earlier gets the start and absorbs the fertilizing ingre-
dients, bat plant that same corn at the same tim(> and it will do just as well.
I venture to say that it the doctor would have had it all to hit at the hrst
T)lantiug it would have been generally alike; or if he had planted half the
tield altoirether and missed the other half the ditt'eronee would iK)t liave
been so much because the earlier planting had the advantage and kept the
later back— That is mv experience in ])lanting thecabl)age i>laiit; you ].larit
two large stron<' plants and a small oiks or two small one. and a large one,
and the smaller ones will remain behind all the time because the largo one
has the advantage: but when we plant we assort our plants and plant the
smaller ones in one place and the larger in another, and the smaller ones
do just as well as the larger ones. In regard to the planting of corn close
or distant: there is no rale to bo laid down in that ease; there is «u<?h a
difference in corn there is some varieties grow largo stocks, and the
lar.'or the stalk the larger the variety and the wider wo are ro(iaired to
plant it: it wants room to grow. The smaller the variety the closer we can
plant it What farmers ought to all aim at is not to rais(> the largest stalks
of corn but to grow the largest proportion of ears. I have been experi-
menting some also, although not as much as the doctor I have known
neighbors to grow larger stalks than myself but the ears were not larger.
Yoii can grow corn with a large proportion of corn to the cob. There is
some corn growing that the cob is nearly as thick as the corn. You take a
paper and wrav. it around the cob and you can till that paper with the corn.
In erowin<r corn there is another point, and that is to get a proper shape
of the ear r we find corn sometimes planted that is very heavy across the
butt of the ear and the ear is short there is a wide field open for im]irove-

"" Dr Sturtevant. In speaking of growing corn, we must remember that
a great deal depends upon tho variety grown. This present year I am
growing a variety called the Topover, which is so very distinct and so
very peculiar that it may interest you to have a description. In the first
place the ears is fusiform. The butt and tip res(^mble each other so closely
that when the stalk is removed, the butt cannot be distinguish.>d from the
tip by casual inspection. This comes also from the smallness of the ear
st'ilk; which is only the size of a ,u,.e stem. The see.l is very dense, and
is very compact upon the cob, which is about eight inches in length. It is
a novelty that we are now growing for distributi.ni, provided it answers ex-

^"^The'ear'is 8 to 8.\ inches long and it is made up by the extraordinary
compact grains; it weighs, as near as I can tell you, about ()4 pounds to
the bushel, and when it is shelled it is surprising what an amount of grains
are taken off. They call it the Topover this year because when it ripens it

'dr prHARVEY. ^^ hat would be early in one locality would not be so in
another' There is much to be said in favor of late planting and early
i.lanting; late planting gives two or three weeks of pasture before plant-

ng; the- usually plant about the lOth of May, in my section, and I hve
in the southern part of the State. The corn comes uy. m the warm weatlier
as promptly as the grass, but if you plant early with us and the gi.nn
comes up the ground keeps as hard as a brick and you will have a diffi-
cult time to get it worked; but if it is planted late your corn comes up
^r.oZs the grass-it comes up strong and healthy, and if it is planted
early it comes up yellow and sickly. It seems to me that this corn, which

12

Quarterly Report.

is not a native of this part of the world, does not <(row well without hot
weather. I can see no reason why yon would s})read the manure on the
snow. I am extremely interested in the results of Professor Sturtevant;
they are the kind that come from undoubted scientific observations, care-
fully made, and deductions not rationally drawn, but careful and rational.

Mr. Palmer. I arise to ask Dr. Sturtevant a (question: Whether his manure
that he drew^ out was plouo^hed under.:' If his crop is what he says it is,
and I have no doubt it is as he said it was, how the Professor accounts for
that; he recomnu^nds that we put manure on the soil and drag it in, not-
withstanding Col. Piollet stated that he would put it on the snow and
plough it und(^r.

Dr. Sturtevant I would say the hauling of manure out in winter and
s])ring received much discussion at a meeting of the Connecticut Board of
Agriculture, some years since, and I doubt if there is any steeper hillsides
in Pennsylvania than can be found in the New England States. In Maine
I have seen manure put on top of the snow upon a steej) hillside, and the
following year we could not trace the effects of the wash more than a few
rods. There is something very curious about the action of manure. In
the first place, the elements which influence the croj) are soluble. The
black li(|uid which comes from a manure heap may have its soluble ingre-
dients removed, leaving the color, by its passage over the ground. Barn-
yard manure has two actions upon the crop, the one chemical, and the
other physical . Tlaw manure can be used most successfully upon corn, but
when a])plied to some other crops, it breaks the ca])illary connections of the
soil, and causes dryness, which is detrimental. If a layer of manure be
placed, in summer, a few inches under the surface of the soil, and a drought
occurs, the plants which have not become established and whose roots do
not extend below this manure, may perish, while if this manure was thor-
oughly incorporated with the soil, the results would be only beneficial.

CAX SI GAR ItlAKING BIC ItlAOK PltOFIXABLE XO XHK

I»i:iV!VSV I.VATVIA FAHmKR?

By N. F. Underwood, Member from Wayne.

The amount of sugar annually consumed in the United States is some-
thing inmiense. Probably in no other county is so large a quantity used,
per capita^ as in our own. The imports of this commocUty amounted in
187U to $76,500,000, one eighth of which was for molasses, which would
indicate fhat with an annual consumption exceeding by this amount the
total home production, the sugar making industry of our country is in no
pres(»nt danger of ])eing overdone. The sources of supply of the saccharine
products, including sugar, molasses and syruj), ( and we understand them
as being all included in the (juestion), may be briefly stated as four, with a
fifth possible one only lately Ix'ginning to attract attention. There are,
1st, the true sugar cane of tropical and semi-tropical latitudes; 2d, the
sugar l)eet; 8d, the various and numerous species of sorghum; 4th, the
sugar nuiple, and lastly the common maize. The first of these, while of
more inij)ortance, so far, than all th(^ others, is debarred from cultivation in p
our State by its climatic requirements, and need not be considered here.
The manufacture of sugar from beets has been carried on successfully for

r ••

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

18

a number of years past, in some European countries notably, in France, but,
so far attempts to work out the problem of producing beet- sugar in this
country, have not succeeded to any encouraging extent. The idea of the
profitable production of sugar from be(4,s, in the United States, has not,
however, by any means been abandoned, and it is not unlikely that final
success may crown the efforts of those who are still expcn-inu^nting in this
direction. It is at least yet too soon to say that the thing cannot be done.
Such experiments, however, come within the ])r()vince of the capitalist and
the man of science, rather than tlu^ farmer. In the present status of this
industry the farmers of our State will not rt^gard it as a profitable source of
income. So far as sorghum is conceriuHl, it has been grown for many years
by the farmers of the west, and doubtless many families have thus sup-
plied themselves with syrup, who otherwise would have lacked either this
or its equivalent; but as a source of sugar supply it has been mostly or en-
tirely a failure*, under individual management. Now that it seems to be a
well settled fact that sugar can be readily manufactured from sorghum,
and that cai)italists who have invested money in mills and machinery for
making sorghum sugar and syrup are encouraged by the experience of the
past seasoiCit seems likely that the business may assume greatly increaseed
propoi-tions. and that fariiuu's may find it profitable to grow the canes and
supply the mills which may be erected in their vicinity. It is pc^rliaps yet
too soon to be very sanguine about sui)plying all our country's lack of
sweetness from this source, yet the prospect seems to be an encouraging
one that large results may be expected from this cpiarter. Concerning the
(experience of the past season in the manufacture of sorghum sugar, we
(luote from the Crop and Market report, as published in the "Country
Gentlemen" of December 1:^, 1888, as follows: "The company at Cham-
paign, 111., which has had faith enough in the business to invest *50,000 in
it, have worked up 4,200 tons of cane, which grew at the rate of ten tons
per acre. From this there were obtained 100,000 pounds of sugar, and
30,000 gallons of svrup. This is at the rate of 880 ])ounds of sugar, and
70' o-allons of syrup to the a(§e. The cane was injurinl l)y frost as
mucii as was corn in that section. Last year tht* yield of sugar was
12 per cent of the juice, this year it was only 8 per cent, or two thirds
of a crop, while corn was hardly half that. The company estimate that m
any averao-e vear the yield will be 05 ])ounds of sugar to the ton of cane,
and 650 to the acre, and 0 gallons of syrup to the ton, and 00 to the acre
on fair corn ground. The sugar was so pure that refining was not neces-
sary as it went direct to retailers as a good C sugar. The syrup sold
wholesale at 40 cents ])er gallon. At SterHng, Kansas, there is a factory,
the company owning it having put *100,000 into it. This is the lirst sea-
son there and they crushed 5,715 tons of cane, from which they made
*>03 000 ])ounds of sugar and 85,000 gallons of syrup. The sa me process
of reduction is followed as at Champaign, 111. The product grades as fine
Southern C Both companies have made contracts for dou])le the ([uantity
of cane next year, and with an average season expect a large return above
cost" The cost of manufacturing in the al)Ove instances is not given,
neither is it stated what the farmers who raised thc^ cane received for it;
but it is fair to conclude that they considered the business a remunerative
one or they would not have been willing to make contracts for another
season In connecticm with this, some interesting facts are set forth m
the bulletin of Prof. George H. Cook, Director of the New Jersey Agri-
cultuol Experiment Station, giving a full account of the experiments

14

Quarterly Keport.

made the past season with the object of determining the effect of fertili-
zers upon the formation of sugar in sorghnm, and to prove that by the
present system of working the cane, more than one-half of the sugar
formcHl in the plant may be wasted, and that even when a mill yields 50 to
()() per cent, of juice, it may still have more sugar in th(^ bagasse than it
extracts from the cane. It is not our purpose to follow in detail the re-
sults given of the effects of the various fertilizing elements upon the sugar
developement in the sorghum ])lant, interesting as they are, but simply to
call attention to the fact that as hitherto only a part of the available ma-
terial of this plant has been utilized, the proilts of its cultivation and man-
ufacture seem likely to be much increased when some method of securing
the whole of the saccharine material contained it shall have been discov-
ered. That this will soon be accom})lisherl there can be no reasonable
doul)t, for modern science laughs at difficulties of this kind. The production
of sugar in the United States has hitherto been confined almost exclusively
to the^xtreme Southern sections ; Vnit should the now hopeful prospect of
the sorghum interest being realized, the whole corn producing area of the
countr/will share in the benefits accruing from its developement. It will,
however, in the future, to be successful, be carried on as a co-operative
work, and when mills shall have been erected in Pennsylvania, and a de-
mand created for the raw material, the farmers of our State will be found
ready to meet the demand by devoting a portion of their fertile acres to
the o-rowth of sorghum cane, or peradventure they may be found contril)-
uting of the produce of their corn fields, to keep the wheels of the mills
in motion, should that material be proved available. But there are our
sugar maples, acres of them upon the most of the farms in many sections,
whole forests of them in some still largely wooded counties. Indigenous
in our State throughout nearly all its borders. Ready at hand to yield an
annual return, without care or cultivation, it gives up its sap as freely as
the springs their water. Are we making the most of this ready means of
supplying our wants as consumers of sweet things, or are we not rather
neglecting that which is capable of su]fj)lying us with the best, and
accepting'' something in its stead, which is inferior in quality, many
points off in flavor, too frequently adulterated and unwholesome. The
process of converting the sap into either sugar or syrup is sim])licity itself.
The novice at the opening of the sugar season becomes the skilled opera-
tor before its close. No costly and complicated apparatus is needed for
the work. The ])urifying process, so difficult in treating the juices of sor-
ghum, is successfully performed by unskilled sap- boilers, who propably
could not tell whether the operation was a chemical or mechanical one.
The one essential point in making a tolerably good sample of sugar or
syrup, even with the rudest outfit, and the most primitive methods of eva])
oration, is that strict cleanliness shall be observed. But the methods of
the pioneers, who hewed down the forests of our State, the maple trees
along with the others, are not to be recommended to the farmers of to day.
Improvement both in camp and field, rural as well as military, is the order
of the present, and no grove so dense as to shut out innovations and inven-
tions. The well regulated sugar cam[) of to-day is no exception to the
rule, and in it may be found many appliances for lightening the labor, in-
creasing the yield, and improving the quality of the product. We would
not, if we could, go back to the conditions of the pioneer ''sap-bilsh," yet
we would like to see preserved, for the benefit of the future generations, a
picture of what to many members of this Board is doubtless a vivid mem-

Pennsylvania Board or Aoriculturk.

15

^

ory of early life. The primitive forest, almost as yet untouched by the
settlers axe, with giant trees, of many species, the maple in the majority.
The wide and shallow sa})-troughs, hewed out from sections of tree trunks,
split in half, which served to catch and hold not only the sap as it flowed
from the trees through the sumac "spiles," inserted in a hole bored with
an inch augur; but all the rains and snows and dirt which came down dur-
ing the sugar season. The great store-troughs fashioned from the bole of
perhaps aliuge hemlock, in form like the water craft known as a "dug-
out," yet lacking the pointed and unturned prow and stern, in which the
sap' as it was brought to the boiling place in two wooden buckets, sus-
pended at either end of a sap-yoke, was stored until it could be boiled
dow^n. The gn^at iron kettles suH])ended from a pole, which in turn was
supported by crotched sticks, set in the ground at a safe distance from the
fire,— perhaps a cabin near by, or a rude shelter of boughs, and this com-
pleted the outfit. And then, when a good run of sap came, what a busy
and exciting time. For one day, for two days, all would go well, but some-
times the run did not stop at that, but kept on running, week days, Sun-
days, all days alike, until kettles and store -troughs, sa])-troughs and buckets
were full to overflowing. Day and night the fires must be feed, the kettles
liept filled, the overflowing troughs relieved, and often the boy who kept up
the camp fire through the night would be kept wide awake by the howl of
the wolves, his alc^rtness spurred by the thought that wolves usually keep
away from a bright fire. This is no picture of imagination, but the writer,
and no doubt many others, can testify to its reality. But the sugar camps
of the original forest growth, have in most sections of our State gone the
way of the hemlocks and the pines. They have been felled by the axe, up-
turned by the winds, or killed by forest fires. In some sections fine groves
of maples of second gi-owth, fostered by the care of the land owner, and
proportioned to withstand the winds to which their situation may expose
them, may now be found. From these, and from such older groves as
still survive, considerable quantities of sugar and syrup are annually made;
yet in the absence of statistics we think it safe to assume that owing to the
destruction of the trees and to other causes, the production is much less
than formerly. Among the reasons which may be urged in favor of the
profitableness of maple sugar making we may name the following: The
work comes at a time when other work is not pressing, hence the sugar
made is so much added to the annual income. The revival of this branch
of industry woidd tend to encourage the planting and care of groves of
timber, and thus a two-fold benefit would be secured. Upon many farms,
in some rocky or neglected portion, a growth of young maples s])ring up,
which if cared for and protected from cattle, and perhaps a few trees
planted in vacant places, would in a few years become thrifty groves, and
in time fine sugar orchards, and the most valuable portions of the farm.
In very manv sections of the State seedHng maples, literally by the thous-
ands, can be' found in the woods, and with little labor a plantation of a few
acres could be made, which would soon become the pride of the owner, and
in the end a well paying investment. In addition to this it may be said
that maple sugar, and especially maple syrup, have a distinctive flavor, un-
equalled and unapyroached by any other in the list. It has in consequence
a value not affcH'tenl bv th(^ price* at which its rivals may be offeree!, and will
always be in d(Mnand,^it goe)d jrices as a table luxury, in spite of sorghum
syrup, the sulpher blevached molasses of the Southern re^fiiuries, or the
"silver drips" of the glucose factories. The cost of fitting up a me^dern

QUARTEBLY KePORT.

10 + T, o- storinK and evapora-

covers, suital. e ^^^l'^^^, V;^„t .i.elt.r for F"*f^'"",^d Evaporation is prac-
.vitb such ^ '••^S*' 7^^iaed at an expense of not t a ^^^^^ ^^^

- gain in q.mbty^ J^° ^^^^^ ,f ^^plos ^^^^^^^ n,.on shares,
village, «7 ;"f ^^-^^ ^^;'^^,„i their ^'JP « ^*' ^Y^iU, \uaple syrup of hne
number of '"'' "*^lf. , .._„ suDDbod at little cost ^ , ' ; disposing of
Jfl^u^ several faimhes are ^ "W ^^^^^t^, finds no ^^»«;«, .""^ ,e f or many

,p,abty, and ^^^ IZSi^io^l Vr^'^^^- ^^t ^'f I'on T u su "eet of the
ill his surplus ^t ^^'f,37,J.ore general ■»^'>i;°!^^^J,a attention in the
localities, and ^^o^t^yj^^ ^.^, received much ^^^^:^^^ t^e preroga-
plauting and care of trw> ^^^ ^^^ j^^^,^, to t^M^^^- ^^ .,^ f^,,,r

Urk of this Boa .d> and \ ^.^^ ^^^^^^fJfof cultLtion. It grows

tives of the committee on ^^^^ ^.^^hy ^f «\"*;,,te of growth is

of the maple -7)^^^ ^.^^Us^b easily transplant,^ ^s -^^^^^^ ^^ tri-

natarally m ^^^JZ^,. f,,; many V^VO^'^l^'^^^l, and its beautiful
.rood, its wood 18 vaUM ^^i foliage in f""""!' .auding alone, in

eal, and with its c -n^y f d „ ^^ appearance, w-hetti« stand ^. ^^ ^^^ ^^

aixtumn tints, it resent ^^^^^^ .^ g^°^^tu"us claim to favorable con-

rows along the roa^^^f ^'J*^^ ^t would seem tbat its claim ^ ^^^^ ^^^^

this its sugar yielding van ^ owners was ^el\^^**'' ' leiV land to its
,UV..ation on the part o ja aevoting some porUon « ;;- ,,^, ,

S^^h wlirb^^es^-Tm? " ^" " •

The subieot having been declared ope ^^^ ,,amifacture of

\- 4ki sa. i^'"r s.-> .r=^.eS's^^^^^^

in which I live we ba^<^ »^^ ^ ^tthat price. I haNe n ^^^.^^^ .^

l^Ueve we could "-^^'^V "to cents a gallon; '-^ 't^^f^^^^ 'S* to KH) gal-
selling all I t'ad t« «P^;^,, i, perhaps no 'no-^ tbat^ ^^ ^.^^ ^^ ,,
i« profitable. O",;;'^^;. Save occasionally produced as ^ ^manufactured,
Ions to the acre, but w. ^^^^^^ ^^ g^^i^, foi Inivin 1 ^^ ^^^.^ j^^.

^rallons p«- acre. ^^^J%^^ ,nd crushing 1 • Tw''^^ jf profitable. ^Ve
besides hauling- X^ ^^ ^^^ ^..i,, i quoted I thnikit^^^ )^^ ^^.^^, ^^^^^.
evaporating It, and^ ^^^^^^ ^^,,.1 ,t bas mi ^^^^^^^ ,,t no very

have been practicing ^^^^.^^^ ^^ become an importa
year. I believe ■ ^ ii,i(ite. .,, ..p^ard to

»S™: »^^^^^^ ^ "•• '

this Heanon, ( i was lu^

1

1

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

17

I

^

noticed that one farmer has a practice of using yellow clay, and it is pretty
hard to get in. H(^ mixed this up with the syi'up, just as it comes from
the mill. It is not run into the evaporator unti' the next day. It is all
stirred through, and it has a purifying effect upon the syrup which frees it
from this peculiar taste. I do not know whether any of our people in
Pennsylvania are practicuig this, and I merely make this suggestion that
if there is anything beneficial in it, we may have the benefit. It is thereby
freed from that objection, and the molasses sells much higher on that ac-
count.

Dr. J. P. Edoe, of Chester. I think that the source of sup[)ly for sugar
for this latitude will ultimately be derived from the beet, although recently
failures have been experienced in tln^ attempt to manufacture profitably.
But I think the time is approaching when that will be overcome, and large
quantities of sugar will be produced where the beet is cultivated in this
State. I have seen a recent statement that the production of sugar in
France and Grermany has universally increased, and there will be a large
importation of beet sugar into this country this year. It is superior to any
other sugar I have used- veiy much superior to the cane sugar, and very
much more so to the sorghum sugar. ^Faple sugar, of course, has a char-
acteristic of its own which no other sugar has; but the beet sugar, as
made in Europe, is unquestionably the best that is manufactured.

D. Wilson, of Juniata. In Europe, and especially in France, it has
been found that while the sugar beet grows well, and attains great
size, and is full of juice, yet it has not the proper amount of saccharine
matter in it. I think that is the ex])rience of our friends in Delaware that,
while there was juice enough in the beet, it was not sweet. I would be a
little afraid that that would l^e the case with sorghum. *It may have the
juice, and yet the weather may not be warm (uiough, or the season not suf-
ficientlv long enough, to make it sweet: and if it is not sweet, it will not
make sVi^'-ar. If sorghum will ripen wherever the ordinaiy corn crop Avill
ripen it will do.

H. L. Scott, of Bradford. AN'herever corn will ripen, the sorghum will
ripen. In the southern jKirt of the Stat(» th(» (v-irly amber cane ripens fully
as early as the corn cro]).

Prof. \N . H. Jordan. Menti(Hi has been made of the variation of beets
in the amount of sugar. Beets are much more susceptible in that di-
rection to the influeiiee of phosphates than sorghum. A highly nitrogenous
fertilizer has a tendency to increase the size; but that increased size (where
nitrogenous fertilizers are used) is at the expense of the sugar in the juice,
because they mature late. On the other hand phosphate has the effect to
cause early maturity, and an increase* percentage of sugar, but the beet does
not grow so large. Our German friends have adopted two kinds of fertil-
izers. Sorghum is not so susceptible to the influence of fertilizers as are
beets -that'^is, in the change of the ptMcentage of sugar.

Prof U. S. HuiDEKOPER. I have no })ractical experience in the man-
ufacture of sugar myself, but saw a few bfigs of sugar from Mr. Scott's
farm in New Jersey, which was as beautiful and sweet as any southern cane
sugar could l)e. The success of their work has been so great that next year
(1884) they will have over 2,500 acres of ground in sorghum, and I will not
venture to state the number of pounds of sugar they expect to make. The
producticm last year (1883) was 200,000 pounds of most beautiful sugar.

11

18

Quarterly Report.

Note by the Secretary. It is to be regretted that want of space compels
the exclusion of the greater portion of the discussion whicii followed the
readintr of Mr. Underwood's essay. From a careful review of all of the
discusSon (as preserved by our stenographer) it is evident that the produc-^
tion in Pennsylvania must be discussed and judged from a single stand-
point that of PROFIT. If by an exptuiditure of th(^ same amount of capi-
tal and labor the Pennsylvania farmer can produce enough corn, wheat or
potatoes to more than pay for the sugar which he could have produced from
the same ground, it will be useless for us to plead the advantages of home
production for home consumption for this will not pay rent nor interest
upon mortgages. When the practical farmer is convinced that cane for su-
gar will not^'yield him a greater profit than our present crops he will
desert the crop in spite of all arguments based upon tariff and politi-
cal economy. The discussion brought out very prominently the point, that
this crop brought with it a greatly increased amount of labor at a time
when the working force of our farmer is strained to its full extent and of
course at a time when additional labor can scarcely be procured. So far as
an opinion was expressed by the membeis it was evident that by far the
lar^^er number were of the opinion that up to the present time the result
of the experiments with this" cro]) were not of a nature which would war
rant the Board in the statement that it would prove a profitable crop to the
average farmer; but at the same time it was admitted that the capabilities
of the crop were such as would sooner or later place it on our list of special
crops, suited to special soils and successful under the management of cer-
tain individuals who can with profit make it a specialty.

THK XRAiWP iiv HIS i.i:c;ai. aspkcx.

By F. K. Patterson, Member from Armstrong.

The utility of our organization can only be assured by the earnest effort
of each of its memV)ers. We meet for the jnirpose of comparing ideas,
submitting our theories, gathi^ring together, as it were, the aggregate of
our knowledge on such subjects as are brought before us. W hile my con-
tribution to this knowledge fund may be very small, allow me to assure
you it is offered with but one regret, and that is that it is no greater. I
realize the grave importance of the subject assigned me, and feel my in-
competence to do it justice. It is a (]uestion that perplexes the lawmakers
of our country, and one that our best think(^rs have failed to dispose of
satisfactorily. The subject assigned me, " The Tramp in His Legal As-
pect," is a qualified expression, and that we may not wander from the sub-
ject'it is necessary that we have the legal dc^tinition of the word Tramp,
in the winter of 1879, the Legislature of Pennsylvania passed a law defin-
ing the word tramp and providing for his arrest and punishment, deter-
mining that to be a tramp was a misdemeanor ])unishable by imprisonment.

This act defines a tramp as '' a person going about from [)lace to place
begging, asking or subsisting upon charity, and for the i)urpose of ac(j[Uir-
ing money or a living, and who shall have no fixed place of residence or
lawful occupation in the county or city in which he shall be arrested."
From this definition it would appear that the tramp is one who has made

Pennsy'lvania Board of Agriculture.

19

^-<

<ihoice of tramping as the business of his life, one who has an irreconcila
ble dislike to all kinds of honest employment and has ado})ted for his motto
the old saw " The world owes me a living," and who claims his support in
his wanderinfrs as a riirht or debt due to him. To this class alone would I
apply the word tramp as an epithet, and he is unworthy of any commiser-
ation or any better name, for no tinge of shame mantles his brazen cheek
at his own baseness and worthlessness when in pursuit of this his
adopted vocation. Honor and principal are words without a mean-
ing to him; he would a])propriate the orphan's crust or the widow's
scanty meal, if better fare is denied him, with as little compunction
of conscience as a jackal would have in robbing a grave. He is a
kind of beast of prey of the human species if you will allow such
expression. That he is destitute of every manly principle and sentiment
is evidenced by his life and actions. That he is ca[)able of imposing him-
self as a burden upon his fellow men, by deception, falsehood and threats,
fixing himself like a vampire upon the honest industrious citizen, is suffi-
cient to condemn him alone. But this imposition of himself as a burden
upon others is not by any means the only objection to this society pest, but
what is a graver subject for apprehension to the law abiding citizen is the
menace to life and property incurred by these vagabonds tramping the
country, boldly resenting by arson or by murder, all refusals to comply
with their demands; they recognize nothing as too sacred for them to claim
as their own. Neither age nor sex, life nor property, is secure when th©y
are abroad. This is proved by the murder of households, the outraging of
women, the burning and pillaging of property and such like misdemean-
ors. And this nuisance is on the increase. I am not able to give their
number, but that they are organized with signs and signals, thereby recog-
nizing and communicating with each other, there can be but little doubt.
Now the practical question is how shall we abate this nuisance ? Is the
law referred to above sufficiently severe in its provisions and })road and
practical enough in its details to meet the recjuirements of the case. The
first difficulty that meets us in considering the subject is how shall we
distinguish between the tramp proper and the honest seeker for employ-
ment y It is sufficiently hard for the poor laborer, that necessity drives
him from his home and family, sending him forth as a wanderer to "beg a
brother of the earth to give him leave to toil," suffering the refusals and
discouragements, the hunger and the fatigue tliat fall to his lot, without
the annoyance of petty officials and the cruel suspicions of crime or the
expensive and tedious vindication by law. This last sad wanderer deserves
our encouragement. The hand of charity should be open to him, the heart
of sympathy ready to cheer him on. God knows life is full enough of
l)itterness for him, and any act of ours that may tend to sweeten his life,
or smooth away its roughness is praiseworthy. In the act of 1879, before
refeiTed to, the following provisions are made for the protection of this
class of honest laborers, viz: "That if any person so arrested can prove by
satisfactory evidence that he does not make a practice of going al)out beg-
ging or siibsisting upon alms for the })urpose aforesaid, in the manner
above set forth, he shall not be deemed guilty of the offense hereinbefore
described, and u])on such proof shall be discharged from arrest either by
the magistrate, before whom he is committed or by the court upon hearing
of the case, upon writ of habeas corpus.'" As the act further provides
that an act of beggary shall be prima facia evidence of guilt it throws the
honest seeker for employment, if driven by hunger to ask for bread, liable

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20

Quarterly Report.

to arrest and then the burden of proof falls on him, this is a difficulty we
would <,^ladly see him spared, but must confess our inabilty to suggest a
remed\^and'leave the law efPective. The law as it stands, is a creditable
one, while it holds out the rod of correction to the guilty, it endeavors to
interpose the shi(4d of protection to the unfortunate.

While it provides for the punishment of the able-bodied mendicant, it
licenses the lame, the maimed and the blind, to appeal to the charity of
the Tuiblic. These provisions are praiseworthy; the law fails most in it&
object: in its provisions for the protection of the innocent who are forced
by circamstaiices to throw themselves liable to suspicion as tramps. The
citizen has his part to j^erform in ridding the community of this nuisance as
well as the legislators. Laws to b(> useful and effective must be enforced.
The citizen in this case has failed to make use of the machinery provided
bv the Legislature for the extermination of this pest. If the law were en-
forced it would rob the tramp's life of its charms and return to useful and
to industrial pursuits, many a one that is now wasting his energies without
accomplishing any good and burdening the community without any neces-
sitv to do so. ^^'hile charity is a duty, it is neither charity nor duty to en-
courage vice. And any assistance given the tramp, other than assistance
to honest employment/is encoiu'aging and perpetuating this nuisance. If
every honest citizen would do his part to see that this law was enforced,
exercising his judgment, and not wronging his conscience, giving charity
where he believed it due, and calling in the aid of the law where he be-
lieved that the proper assistance to lives of usefulness, happiness and hon-
estv refiuired it, we would then, and not until then, have performed our
dutv.

The subject being open for discussion: —

J. F. Barnes, of Lehigh. The essay I think is a very line one. It refers to
the law by which the tram^) may be })unished. Now it supposes the tramp to
be guilty, but the tramp is not the judge in that case, and in order that some
of 7>ur officers in our counties can make a little money out of the tramp
they undertake to tell whether he is a tramp. I have seen as many as five
together at one time hid in a corn shock until night would come on and
then taken to jail and kept there. I live on the National road and I know
of a man, to all appearances an honest man, who could not find lodging,
and some one suggested that he should go the jail and stay there— I don't
understand the whole law. He goes before the justice and he has one dol-
lar and the constable has some fee, and the sheriff retains him theie and he
won't let him out, and he kept him there un'il he had a bill against this
man that wanted to go next morning. Now, that is the way that oflicers
want to make tramps out of persons that are not tramps. It seems to me
we need some change with regard to the ofhce of sherifl\ It is said in
Washington that the office has paid immense profits until we can come
down to Mr. Piollet's idea: pay them ])y salary, then we can get to the ad-
ministration of justice.

Senator Davies. I was in the Legislature when the act of 1879 was
passed. 1 did not vote for it and I have not changed my mind as to the
inhuman character, or rather of the injustice that may be done under the
execution of that law. Under pressure coming from many of the counties
represented by men who would come up there and tvli tales in reference to
the evils of tramping, that were almost marvelous, it was enacted into a
law under a claim that by the vigor and the severity of the law the evil

I

(

PENNSYLVANIA BoART) OF AGRICULTURE.

21

would be done away with. The law goes on the presumption of guilt,
whereas I have always been taught to believe that the })resumption of in-
nocence attached to any prisofjer until proved guilty. At that period of
time we were just recovering from a period of great depression and of lack
of employment of labor. Immediately following the j)assage of the law
there was a general demand for labor and all over the State of Pennsylvania
the tramp became almost unknown, again proving to my mind the fact that
tramps are not entirely to l)e condemned; that there is a want and a neces-
sity that drives them to the business of tramj)ing. You have your law
upon your statute books that treats them as criminals, considered as crimi-
nals, adjudged as criminals, without trial. While the prevailing sentiment
in Pennsylvania is in favor of the stringent enforcement of that law yet
it does not change my mind, nevertheless that the law is exceedingly in-
human and exceedingly harsh and may act to the condemnation and confine-
ment of innocent men, who are driven to become traini)s V)y the necessities
of the case. What shall we do with the famihes of the tramps, with their
daughters and their sons. We have condemned them in our statute laws.
Though the prison doors are open to them the moment work becomes scarce
you will find our State flooded with these tramps. That brings to my
mind that they don't follow that occupation because they desire it, but be-
cause of some radical necessity that recjuires them to do so. As to what
shall we do with our tram^^s is a serious question. I ([uestion very much
whether we shall ever remove the difficulty by threatening them with con-
finement in jail. My friend touched upon the subject; that officers made
much money' in this direction. I find that in my own county that the of-
ficers are becoming exceedingly greedy to grasp every one that travels up
and down this railroad, in order to put the fees in their pockets. He is
already condemned by passing up and down your railroad, and I declare it
to be an inhuman and very stringent law.

J. P. Barnes, of Lehigh. We are favored in our country with tramps, as
well as other sections, and we find that it is a difficult subject to contend
with. We find in the neighborhood of Allentown large lots of them, as
many as forty go to the boiler shops or other cpiarters, kept for that pur-
pose, go there and then start out. They would rather go there than to jail.
In some localities they work them. The present authorities in our place
have decided that they shall be fed on bread and water and sleep on the
floor. Sometimes when they are released they say, you will soon see me
back here again, and commit some theft in order to get back again. Some
of them commence their lives as tramps and end it as tramps.

Hon. K. E. Pattison. I would like to say on the subject of th(> tramp,
that there is one question that has somewhat interested me in the last seven
or eight years, and that is the question of pauperism. I believe this coun-
try is'yet but in its infancy. Pau]>erism is keeping apace with population.
It is no solution of the question that society provides money for its homes
and almshouses for the protection of paupers. I think the greatest pro-
tection to give the pauper is to discover why he is a ])!iuper. Take the
almshouses and we have no doubt that they mean to do well; they give
their people all they can eat and drink, [provide a comfortable bed for them
and do tlu^ l)est they know how; and yet I believe they are treating
the pauper unkindly, basing my judgment upon the obsc^rvations I have
made in visiting the almshouses. A hearty young woman, seemingly
sound in mind and healthv in body, and yet she was confined m a

H

22

Quarterly Report.

county aljiisliouse. The result of that will be to make her a confirmed
pauper, or a mother of paupers. I only offer this, as it suggests itself to
my mind. There are in the almshouses to-day, eight thousand. There is
something wrong in the condition of the mind that will insist, when ap-
parently the individual is sound in body, in the prime of life, upon beg-
ging from door to door, or tramping the earth in the summer time and
makintr the almshouses their homes in the winter time. What is the rem-
edy for that condition of affairs is the great question that concerns us all.
I only ofFer it as a suggestion. I don't believe that any person by reason
of misfortune, old age, or anything which he cannot be held accountable
for, should be put in a county almshouse. I visited an almshouse where I
found in the garret, working, a line old man, and I asked him his age —
eighty- seven. I asked how long he had been there — some time. I in-
quired as to his history and I found that this man, in early life, had been
an active man in that section; had been father of the common school svs-
tem in that section. Later in life he was afflicted with inflammatory rheu-
matism, and being a modest and retired man, k'^pt it from society until he
almost died from want, because he would not make it known. He was not
a pauper; by the death of his friends and associations all had gone and he
was unfortunate. I believe the cure to be this, and I offer it as a suggestion.
I don't believe the State is ready for it yet. I believe they should be dis-
tributcnl; I suppose four districts would cover them. I believe that they
should have the best n^anner of treatment in cleanliness, in medicine, and
studying the character of them, and when sufficient information is obtained
from their habits of life, then classify them. If a healthy man of sound
body and mind will not work, then put him where he must work. That is
the solution. You will find the begging propensity comes from an un-
soundness of mind, and not insane enough for society to discover a remedy.
The remedy for such people is not in the pauper house, but to put them in
an in«^ane house and see whether their condition can be cured. These are
some thought ■ that have passed through my mind with reference to this
question of pauperism. We do not understand and do not cure it, and it
is growing with our population. I do not offer this in condemnation of
any of our county almshouses; they are built well and the inmates treate I
kindly, but we must discover this, wcy a man or woman, who is able to
work, -nid wnll not work, what is the cure to make them work? Towards
the close of day, about dusk, you will see children often, boy or rcirl, or two
or three girls and a boy, going from door to door begging, collecting bread
and what is handed out from the h<juse, and if you follow them, often you
will find, that the parents are proprietors of workingmen's boarding
houses. They are used for collecting this food and carrying it to these
places. The result will be for those children to grow up to be beggars or
tramps, or the parents of beggars and tramps. I believe society should
take and arrest, and lock up, and ascertain who they are, where they live,
who their ])arents are. Or take a man, where he is from, where his last
place of em})l()yment was, and see w^hat is the matter. These are the (pies-
tions that deserve the greatest consideration and thought, for ihe statistics
are furnishcnl now, that pauperism or trampism is -leveloping with the
growth of ])()})ulation.

Mr. Dewitt, Mav I be allowed to sav one word in explanation. I have
an idea about a cure for these tramps. I have had some little (experience
with them. I know one man who came to this town, who was called a
tramp and punished as such, being unable to make satisfactory explana-

I
>

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

23

tion. I know that just one word was said to that man. The person said,
your person is creditable, you are able to work. He said, I am able to
work all I want to do is to work. I have the disposition to work and I am
willing to work. That man is working in this town to day. He had been
unfortluiate and went from one place to anotlun- and was compelled to steal
or beg. If people who are unfortunate, and if you look at the matter to-
day, it will seem that it is more honorable to steal than to beg. This man
has gone to work and is industrious, and I think he is trustworthy. You
take'^a man, I don't care how low, and you never can b(^nefit that man by
punishing him. It is wrong to punish any man unless he has intended to
commit a'^crime, and unless he has donc^ something which necessitates pun-
ishment. But just take the man who is down and you will find that there
is a tender spot in that man that some one can reach you cannot reach
him by kickino- him. If you take these men running around the country
and do something that will render them the slightest encouragement then
something can be done for them. An unfortunate individual may begin
life and help himself in most instances until this misfortune comes upon
him, and you will find that that individual will be a good man. Men who
believed they were prosperous and began to build homes, went on by force
of circumstances and by changes were unable to carry tluMr buildings
throuo-h, and in hopes to do better elsewhere they have started out. Ihese
are unfortunate, out of food, out of money, and somc^thing has to be done.
A crood many come who are malicious without any offense or breach ot the
peace, and you pass a law by which at once you are going to make an un^
fortunate man go right into business when h(> has no business to goto. If
he tries to provide for himself until the opportunity pr(esents its(4f, with •
out friends, he violates the law, becomes a criminal. It won't answer.
You have to do something to encourage a man if you expect him to act like
a man and be a man.

OAIRV FAU:>IITVC; IX I\OU IHICRN PIi:>>^^VI.V AXI A.

By J. W. Ingham, of Siajar Run, Pennsylvania.

(Read at the summer meetino^.)

From mv subject. Dairy Farming in North(^rn Pennsylvania, it might be
inferred that I intended to giv<^ a history of the rise, the progress^ and the
present condition of that interest in the region mentioned; but it is rather
inv purr)ose to show that dairying is more profitable than gram raising, is
more favorable for maintaining the fertility of the soil, and ought to en-
c/ao^e the chief attention of our agriculturists. , ,. ^-i u ^•

"^ The hills and valleys of Northern Pennsylvania, though fertile, beauti-
ful, and healthy, though they are capable of producing mos^t of the grains,
grasses, and fruits of tlu- temperate zone, and although they are as the
harden of Eden when compared to most of the land m the New England
States, yet they do not begin to ecjual the great plains and prairies of the
West in the depth and natural richness of soil, and freedom from ol>struc-
tions to rapid and cheap cultivation. Some farms in the W est have with-

24

Quarterly Report.

Ill

stood continuous ^rram cropping for twenty years without any rest, or fer-
tilization and do not show much signs of exhaustion. Our hinds will not
stand such abuse, and should not be subject to it if they could

By dairy farming, I do not mean the production of milk, butter and cheese
to the entire exclusion of grain raising, or stock rearing, as the Southern
planters used to raise cotton, to the exclusion of most other farm crops
and were obliged to purchase their flour, me^at and butter, from the North
and the A\ est; but I n)ean that dairying, should be the chief obiect we have
in view, and grain raising a secondary consideration, and a coiitributor to
the chief object.

When the completion of the Erie Kailroad opened the milk market of
New lork City to the farmers of Orange county and they found the pro-
duction of milk was so much more profitable than grain raisincr had ever
been, he cry went forth-" 6urn up i he plow.: ^ In a few years, however,
they discovered that their meadows and pastures, wliich had been wc^ll
seeded and productive, were beginning to fail. The most luxuriant and
nutricious grasses were running out. and their places were being occupied
by coarser grasses, and noxious weeds; then the plows which fortunately
they had not burned, were brought out, the fields as they could spare them
were plowed, the large piles of manure which had accumulated were
arawn out and spread on them, and a very heavy crop of corn was raised
first, then a good crop of wheat, when they were reseeded and retained in
grass so long as they i)roduced well. In the moist climate of Great Britain
it is said that some meadows have not been plowed for a thousand vears
and still yield such abundant crops of hay that their owners would consider
It a great damage to have them plowed. In this country of severe winters
and hot drouthy summers we cannot keep such j.ermanent meadows or pas-
tures, and the successful dairyman must use the plow in order to irrow
good grass and secure the best results from his business. I am aware that
some good farmers advocate plowing and re-seeding fields without takino-
any grain crop at all, l)ut the wise dairyman will not refuse to take two
good crops of gram from a rich well plowed field, when they can be raised
at a profit, and a good seeding to grass obtained at the same time.

bteam plows have been successfully used in England and Scotland, the
work being done by the owners of the plow at so much per acre, cheaper
and better than horses. There is not much doubt that steam plows, greatly
improved over those now in use, will at no distant day be generally em
ployed in tlie Great \ est, where they can be used to better advantag^ than
in Great Lritain. They will never come into common use in Northern
I ennsylvania because Providence has interdicted it by making th(^ surface
of the country so uneven and full of rocks. There was a time when it took
the price ot two bushels of grain to transport one bushel, from tlii' Western
farms to the markets of the East, and those high rates of transportation
furnished a protection to the Eastern farmer; but that time has i.assed and
will never return again. The sharp competition for through freight be-
tween the rival trunk lines has reduced the price of transportation to such
an extent that frecpiently it costs less to ship grain from Chicago to the sea
board, than from most any of th(^ intermc^diate points, and it has seemed
as though the farther a farmer lived from market, the better was his condi-
tion,-that instead of it being an advantage to livo nnar \he, Atlantic cities,
it IS really a misfortune. '

Farmers and millers at W yalusing have paid 22.] cents per hundred
weight b^ the car load on buckwheat, and buckwheat flour shipped to New

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

25

r

lork, when the regular fn^ght charges by railroad on the same class of
goods was })ut 20 cents from Chicago to New York. The difference in cost
of transportation betwen the railroad routes, and the water routes, is so
great that the West will not long be satisfied with the limited facilities af-
fordad by th9 Erie canal, but will ba likely in a few years to compel tho '
general government to enlarge the Erie, to a ship canal and also enlaro-o
the Hennepin canal, which connects the Mississii)pi and the great lakes,
and when so enlarged would greatly cheapen the rates of ti-msportation
west of Chicago and thereby lessen the price of grain in the East. The
average freight on wheat from Chicago to New York, for th(> year 1881, by
lake and canal, was (S\ cents per bushel, by all rail it was 14 cents. The
farmers of Northern Pennsylvfinia, had tliey shii)p(Hl wheat to New York,
would hav(^ i)(H>n obliged to pay nearly double the latter, and three times
the former, or water rate.

The force of jniblic opinion, legislation, or a sense of justice on the part
of the railroad corporations themselves, may in time remedy these unjust
discrimiuations against us in freight rates, but nothing can remedy the
steepness and roughness of much of our hillside farms and {)lace them on
an equality for cheaj) grain raising, with the rich and easily cultivated
plains of the West.

Mr. Wm. H. Brewer, who prepared the report on cereals for the census
of 1880, says "those portions of the United States {producing the bulk of
the grain, hav(» soils of reasonable fertility, but are those also which are
easily tilled, and ui)on which the best machinery and la])or saving appli-
ances can be most readily used." Mr. Wm. J. Fowler, in the Country Gen-
tleman says: "the cause of trouble is growing in competition with farmers
in localities where commercial fertilizers are not needed."

Unless some great and general calamity or insect pest should comc^ upon
wheat in the wheat growing countries of the world, or unless they should
be devastated by war, there is not much prospect that wheat and flour will
be much higher for years to come than now. So long as we have any sup-
plies to sell, the Foreign market will regulate the price here.

Great Britain, our principal customer, has lines of steamships to every
wheat growing country, and we must under bid Australia, India, Egypt
and Russia, in order to sell her our sup])lies.
Can we afford to do this ?

The average yield of AN'inter wheat in Russia, is from lU to 18=| bushels
per acre, and of Spring wheat from 12.^ to U)'^ bushels per^acre. The aver-
age of Spring and W inter wheat in the United States for the year 1888, was
11 j% bushels, and the average for 11 years was but 12 ^ bushels, so that
the Russian farmer not only has a larger average yield per acre than we
have, but has the advantage of cheaper labor.

The average yield of wheat in India is 1 1 q bushels per acre, or a trifle
less than the average in the United States, but labor is very low there and
the actual cost of raising wheat ranges, according to the best authorities,
from 45 to f)0 cents p€»r l)ushel.

The export of wheat from India has increased from a few hundred
thousand bushels ten years ago, to over 8y,000,(M)() of bushels in 1884.

Railroad charges on wheat in India average about 24 cents per busln^l,
and transportation from Calcutta to London is about 80 cents per bushel.

A\'ere it not that the railroad charges and ocean freights wer(» higher on
wheat from India than from America, the exports from that country would
have been much greater, but competition will soon bring down th^ price of

< 1

2(>

Quarterly Report.

transportation there, as it has here, and the wheat throwing capacity of
that great country can be increased, it is said, to ahnost any extent, when
new railroads are coni])l(^ted to get the grain to market.

The West can raise and send corn here cheaper than we can raise it ta
sell off file farm. In February last we bought a car load of splendid
Kansas corn deli veered on th(^ Sugar Run switch for 50 cents per bushel,
and one last week for 55 cents. The West can raise oats cheaper than we
can afford to, and will soon drive us from our markets in the coal regions.
It is folly for us to contend with the Western farmers for the possession of
the foreign and domestic grain markets. A bad season in the West, and a
good one here, might h(4p us for the time being; but the relief would be
only temporary, and like a crust of bread given to a famishing man, would
but increase the pangs of hrmger and show us the extent of our misery.
But, Providence is not so partial in the distribution of favors as some peo-
ple may suppose.

Every place has its natural advantages, if they are only sought after and
found. North(^rn Pennsylvania lies in the dairy belt where the grasses are
sweeter, and springs of })ure, soft water, are abundant; with shade trees^
and running streams, so refreshing and grateful to cattle in hot weather,
and so favoraV)le to increase the (piantity and cpiality of milk, butter and
cheese. Dairy products are produced to a considerable extent in the South,
and in the West, but owing to the coarser, ranker, nature of the grasses,
the limestone, or alkaline im])regnation of the water, the absence of shade
trees, and wind breaks, the different climate, or all these causes combined,
render their dairy products, as a general thing, infc^rior to ours. I am
aware that cr(»amery butter is made at Elgin, in Illinois, and at some
creameries in Iowa, which compare verv favorablv with Bradford countv
butter. So good oranges have been raised in Pennsylvania in glass houses,
with great care and pains, but they can be raised cheaper and better in
Florida, the more natural the place, where the conditions are more favora-
ble. The Elgin ))utter is but an exception to the rule, that tlu» great mass
of AVestern butter is poor, and hardly tit for liuman food.

Most of us farmers are in th(* habit of milking more or less, and think
we know all about the dairy business, and how much milk, butter or cheese
a common cow will average per day, or per year; but if we were called be-
fore a court to give evidence I fear we would have to admit that a good
deal of our knowledgfe is orness work or hearsav. and that we have no reli-
abl(' statistics of our own; and although we might l)e able to tell the amount
of our sales we would have to guess at the amount consumed by our fami-
lies. In such case the coiu't would pr()])a])ly dispense with our testimony
and call on witnesses who had used their scales and measures, at every
milking, and had kept an exact record of every pound of their dairy pro-
ducts produced, sold or used in their families, with the amount of their
cash receipts, the value of f(^ed and the sums paid for hired h(4p. Such a
man was Zadoc Pratt, of Prattsville, Greene county, N. Y., who has furn-
ished the pul)lic with the record of his dairy business from 1857 to 1868,
inclusive — a period of seven years. Few farmers keep such exact records of
their business, and when a man is found who dors keep accurate accounts^
for a long series of years, he becomes a public benefactor and desc^rves to
have his name handed down to jMjsterity along with the names of Fulton^
Morse and Howe.

I have selected his statistics, not because I could find nothing of a later
date, but because the conditions under which he carried on the dairy busi-

\

L(

r^

I

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture. 27

ness were similar to the conditions which surround us. His farm was on
the eastern slope of the Cattskill mountains and occu])ied two hill sides,
with the intervale between them, through which ran a little brook. As he
kept fifty cows the first six years, and eighty cows the seventh year, I have
found it easier to take the first six years and the fifty cow s and make a gen-
eral average for the six years, as follows:
Average quantity of milk per day for each cow for

eight months, . ' 18.0 lbs. or 1).4() qts.

Average weight of butter per day from each cow for

eight months, 11.48 oz.

Average value received for each quart of milk made

into butter, 1.77 cts.

Average number pounds butter from each cow for sea-
son of eight months, 1 80 lbs.

Average price received for butter for six years .... -4.2 cts.

Average amount of cash received for butter from each

cow per year $4o.ijo

Average amount of pork fattened from milk of each

cow per year, 12J lbs.

Average price received for pork, 10 cts. per lb.

Net profit on fifty cows each year, for six years, after
deducting all expenses and allowing ^700 for the in-
terest on the capital invested, $l,4'59.'i2

Averaere net profits per annum on each cow over all ex-

penses, :^^o. <<-s

His seventh year, 1803, owing to the higher prices caused by the war, was
the most profitable of all. His net profits on eighty cows, after paying all
expenses, and allowing §700 for interest on the investment, being $3,-
704.40.

As he valued his cows and farm at Si 0,000 it is i)lain to see that his cows
were more valuable than bank stock, government bonds or a California gold
mine, his nett profits on his capital being 44 per cent, per annum for the
year 1803, and 21.4 per cent, per annum for the ])revious six years. When
we bear in mind that he commenced business in 1857, a year of great busi-
ness depression, and that the first four years, out of seven he followed it,
were previous to the war and high })rices, we can readily admit that his ta-
bles are safe ones to go l)y if we only practice the same care and economy.
His cows were native stock, he had no cattle^ to sell, no motive to misrep-
resent, and so far as I know his statements have never been disputed.

Th(^re is nothing in his practice, the amount of his production, or the
price he received, which we may not ecpial if not excel. The average price
he received for butter 24.2 cents per pound was not excessive.

The average price for New York State butter in New York, for the year
1884 accordmg to the statistics of the Agricultural Department, was 20
cents per pound, and Bradford county butter is fully e([ual to it.

The experiii'ents of associated dairyirg have in the majority of cases
proved even more successful than individual dairying. The following re-
port of Mr. E. S. Munson, Su})erintendent of the Frankljn Creamery,
Franklin, N. Y., for the season of 1870, is to be found in the Report of the
Commissicmer of Agriculture for 1871:

Average number of cows, ' 2p\

Pounds of milk received for season, ^wo months 2,31(y)0'> lbs.

Pounds of butter made, 78,4511

Ll

28 QiTARTEKi.Y Report.

Pounds of che(^se, 124.1)66

The average price of huUer was nearly 39 cts.

The average price of cheese per i)onnd 8 J cts.

Takincr the season as a whole the patrons netted $1.83 to $1.35 for 100
pjunds milk or a ne't return of ne irly 3 C3nts par quart for milk supplied.

The followinor statement was prepared by the Hon. J. S. Vanduzer, the
owner of a butter factory near Ehnh'a, N. Y., and published in the Elmira
Dallij Adrertlser, January 30th, IcSTl: Mr. Samuel Sayres delivered at our
factory from March 2r)th to November 29th, 1873, 38,'374 quarts of milk,
which at the ])rices we paid him netted $961.11, or over $80 per cow. We
l)uy milk on the basis of a pound of butter from 12 (juarts of milk. The
average net price we ])aid for ])utter at the factory was a fraction over 30
oents per pound, or 2i cents per (]uart for the milk. Mr. Sayres' cows
were giving on an average of () (piarts of milk on the 1st of December.
Mr. Hendricks, whj sold us the milk of four cows, received nett proceeds
$324.41, or $85.61 per cow. Mr. James E. Whitley received over $70 per
cow.

It must be admitted that in 1870 and in 1873, the currency was still
somewhat inflated, but if we reduce the price of 3 cents per quart at the
Franklin creamery, and the price of 2.^ cents per quart paid at the Elmira
creamery, to a gold basis, we shall find that the patrons of these creameries
received better prices for milk than Mr. Pratt, whose average for six years
was not (juite 2 cents.

In a letter from the Hon. J. S. Vanduzer, dated June 0th, 1885, he says:
^'\\e now have about ()00 cows sui)plying milk at our creamery, and are
conducting it on the co-o])erative basis. Last year our milk netted the
partners 2 ^\ cents per (piart, the year oefore nearly 2.^^ cents per quart.
We get all the butter we can out of the milk and then make the skim milk
into cheese, also working some buttermilk into the cheese in the Spring and
Fall, and if the cheese is not to be held, also in the Summer. We aim to
make an ^' A No. 1 " article of butter and ship it all to New York "

The following statement was pre[)ared for me by Mr. W. S. Lester, the
gentlemanly and energetic manager of the Troy creamery, Troy, Bradford
county. Pa., S. H. Hey wood, proprietor:

"We had the cream from about 1,400 cows during the season of 1884.
We do not make cheese, butter only. The average price j)aid dairymen at
the farm, from April 1st to December 1st, for the amount of cream that
made a pound of })utter, was 22.^ cents. We d(j not buy cream by the gauge,
as many do, but allow the dairymen just what butter his cream will make.
On the gauge plan, the dairyman who uses plenty of ice, will raise so much
of the poor cream aL.ng with the rich, that a gauge of his cream will not
make (juite a pound of butter; and the man who uses no ice or a spring of
running water, his gauge of cream all through hot weather, will overrun a
pound of butter from 20 to 30 per cent. The irauge is not an accurate
measure for milk set at different t(^m[)eratures. Our standard dairies last
year netted their owners betweei. $40 and $50 per cow for the butter sold
and the milk was left on the farm sweet for raising calves and hogs."

The following record wf s kindly furnished by ^NLr. Jesse T. Stalford, of
Wyalusing, Pa., a })erson \v hose statements can be implicitly relied upon as
being careful, conscientious and exact:

Received, commencing Mie 1st day of May, 1883, and ending the 30th
day of April, 1884.

/--■

(

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

29

Number of cows kept 14

13 of them sfrade Jersevs and 1 native.
4 of the cows 2 years old.

2 " u o a a

^ u ^'4 '^ ''

1 u a (| u ii

Sold 5,802 quarts of cream at 10 cents i)er (piart $ 580 20

" 18,629 " '' milk at 3 and 4 cents per (|uart .... 692 42

Raised 4 calves, worth at 1 year old 100 00

" 5 hogs 50 00

Amount ot receipts $1,422 <)2

Deduct value of feed other than hay and pasture 200 00

$1,222 62

Average cash receipts from each cow, $87.33, after deducting value of
feed other than hay and pasture. He states that he raised enough grain,
potatoes and meat to supply his own family, besides selling (Tiough t(^ pay
all his hired help, blacksmith bills and wear and tear of farm implen ents.
He values his farm and cows at about $7,000. His clear profits, after de-
ducting all expenses and $420, the interest on the capital inv(»sted, was
1804.62, or nearly 17.^ per cent, per annum interest on his capital.

Every farmer is not situated near a railroad so that he can sell his milk
and cream like Mr. Stalford, but had Mr. Stalford made his milk and cream
into buttei- like Zadoc Pratt, his profits would have l)een but a little less
than they were, and large enough to satisfy any reasonal)le man.
He states that eight (juarts of his cows' milk will make one
pound of butter, and conse([uently would have made 3,054
pounds of butter, which at the average price of good butter
in Ncnv York, for the year 1884, 2^) cents i)er pound, would

have brought, $791 04

He could have raised all his calves, worth 350 00

And the same number of hogs h(» did raise, 50 00

1,104 01
Deduct value of grain fed, 200 (M^

Or an average value for each cow's [)ro(luct, after deducting

grain fed— $71, $904 04

Mr. J. C. Straight, proprietor of a milk, cream and butter depot at El-
mira, N. Y., very obligingly furnished the following: I l)uy the milk from
300 cows; ])ay 2 cents per (juart till the 1st of November, and then 3 cents
per qu.'u-t till the 1st of April.

According to a test made a short time ago eleven (juarts of milk made
one pound of butter.

Th(^ creamery established at W^'alusing a year ago was not a success fi-
nanciallv to the proprietors. I think it was start(Ml without a contract for
the milk of a sufficient number of cows. It recjuires the milk of fiv(' or six
huiidrcHl cows to make a factory profitabh^ to the owners.

The people of Northern Pennsylvania have not been entirely ignorant of
the advantages of dairying. According to the census talJes of 1S80 the
number of cows kept, and the amount of dairy j)roducts, in the northern
tier counties in the year 1879 were as follows:

! \-

i

(I

30

QUAKTERLY KepOKT.

on farms. ^®^ ^^'^ cheese
factories or sold.

Bradford

38,472 ^ 4,824,656 lbs. 19,264 lbs. ! 469,112 Galls.

Tioga

23,738 2,901,272 « | 68,367

>(

Susquehanna | 27,325 2,979,

048

a

w

ayne

14,199 1,423,753 "

17,100 "

238,964 "

70,909 "

Potter

8,959 884,303

;(

5,042 "

16,172 "

54,643 ''

^^^^^^ 4,210 360.994 "

417,812 "

16,442 " 240,984 "

^^'^^^^^^ ' 10,294 1.253,

874

u

^"® 26,425

2,201,141 "

4,260 "

72,796 "

184,071 "

1,893,631 «

Totals forthe 8 counties...' 152,622 16,829,041 " ] 219,443 "

3,570.125 "

niH are owned in Bradford county, which leads eve^ other county Tthe
number of its cows except Chester, and one sixteenth of .mV^, k .*
made on farms, in the Stite, is made in BraltZtMe^ltcS^:

The following statistics of the number of cows, the amount of daily pro
ducts and grain raised were obtained from the census of ISSn 1 ^ ^.l
prices are stated to be the average farm prices in tht^.t 1«80, and the
the report of the Department of^gri'uCr tt ySr'lSr *"''" ''°"

11 1,9<;() cows, valued at S20.24 each, amounting to «q niR -rn

Number pounds of butter made on f^rms, ^ ' ' ' 1 9 .,,'1 ' , -^",f "

Value of the butter at 24 cents per pound, .' .' ' S ..7 ir^«

Number pounds of cheese made on farms, • • • • *-1,n.)Mb8
Value of the cheese at 7 cents per jxnuid'
Numb(>r gallons of milk sold or sent to factor

177,527 lbs.
fl?.420

,r , ."V "'"'"■' '^"^^ "i nojii. to lactones, fiTw'Jfiif,

Value of the m,lk at 2 cents per quart, . . .....;; $53.3809

Totd value of dairy products in four counties for the year~

$3,643,703

-

Pennsylvania Boahd of Agriculture.

There was raised in the same counties in the year 1879:
f)3l,606 bushels wheat vahied at $1.^52 per bushel, . . .

*2,220,2()() bushels corn valued at 54 cents per bushel, . . .

3,527, 96() bushels oats valued at 86 cents per bushel, . . .
82,755 bushels rye valued at 08 cents per bushel, . . .
881,508 bushels buckwheat valued at ()() cents per ])usliel,
2r)5,91)() ])ushels barley valued at 88 cents per bushel, . .

31

1883,711) U2

1,1U8,940 40

l,270,Of)7 76

56,i78 40

498,904 80

220,776 68

Total value of all the grain in the four counties, .... $4,078,r)82 9f)

Taking out the value of the buckwheat, which has no competition from

the west, the dairy products exceed in value all the grain raised by nearly

164,000.

It w^ill be observed that the census gives no account of milk, cream and
buttermilk used in the family or fed to calves and hogs. If we had a fair
account of these there is no doubt that the value of the dairy })roducts in
the counties of Bradford, Susquehanna, Tioga and Erie w^ould far overbal-
ance the value of all the grain raised in them, and also produced at a less
expenditure of labor and loss of fertility from the soil

I have endeavored to show that from the year 1857, down to the present,
in good times and in bad times, dairying has been profitable in the dairy
regions of Pennsylvania and New^ York, when carried on by men of intelli-
gence, experience and proper energy. I am sorry that I am not able to
show what the profits of grain raising, if any, have been in the same re-
gions. The manufacturer can tell the cost of a yard of cloth or a ton of
iron to the tenth part of a mill. The dairyman can compute the cost of his
products with reasonable certainty, but the exact cost of raising a bushel
of grain, is a problem which has never yet been solved. There are so
many varying conditions, so many different influences, so many uncertain
factors and unknown (piantities that enter into the calculation, that no far-
mer living can tell exactly what a bushel of grain costs, unless he buys it
in the market. He cannot tell • how much it cost to raise a bushel last
year, nor how much it will cost to raise one next year. The value of the
land varies in the same locality, and even on the same farm, the price of
seed, the price of labor and team work, vary, the amount of rain fall and
snow fall, of heat and cold, vary ; the amount of damage from storms and
frosts, from birds, and worms, and insects, from diseases, from rust, and
smut — evils over which we have but limited control— vary in different sea-
sons and in diff'erent localities. If a farmer manures a field with barnyard
manure at $1, or guano at $50 per ton, he can never tell with absolute cer-
tainty how much of its cost to charge to the first crop or how much to the
secoud or third. The Dakota farmer merely figures up what it costs to
plow, sow and harvest and market his crop. The value of the precious
and indispensable constituents of his soil, w hich he is selhng with his wheat
and which he must buy back again some day, does not enter into his calcu-
lations at all.

I do not wish to underate the grain growing capacity of the region in

which I live.

The records of the Bradford County Agricultural Society show that in

the vear 1884:

Robert Templeton raised 52 bushels corn on 1 acre.

28 " red winter wheat on 1 acre.

a

a

a

u

100

oats on 1 acre.

32

Quarterly Eeport.

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculturi

33

George Campbell raised 34 bushels buckwheat 1 acra

a u u 29 '' rye.

" " " 39 " barley.

" " " 27 '^ Spring wheat.

I am not here to say that such grain raising, if it could be kept up from
year to year, with reasonable certainty, and without the cost of too nnich
labor or manure, would not be profitable; but I assert, my belief that it is
more profitable to feed it to cows at home than to sell it off the farm.

It must be remembered that these were premium crops, which are not
apt to be stinted with labor or manure, and which may not be so very
profitable even though they draw the prizes. " On ordinary farms, it pays
to 'farm better,' up to a certain point." Says Mr. Brewer, this passed
"increased production is only secured at an unprofitable expenditure.''
The average number of bushels of grain per acre raised in Pennsylvania
in bSS3, and average price in the State was as follows:
^Vheat, average per acre 13.2. Average price in the Sta^e, $1.08.
per acre, §14.20.

Average price in the State, 70 cents.

Rye, average per acre, 10.1.

per acre, 17.07.
Corn, average per acre, 27.

per acre, $18.09.
Oats, average per acre, 30. 0

Average price in the State, 67 cents.
Average price in the State, 40 cents.

Value
Value
\ alue
Value

per acre. $12.24
Buckwheat, average per acre, 9.8. Average price in the State, 85 cents.

Value })er acre, $8.33.
In 1884 the only crops reported l)y the Department of Agriculture,
which I have seen, were as follows:
Wheat, average bushels per acre, 13.2

value per acre, $11.01.

Average price, 80 cents.
Average price, 54 cents.
Average price, 30 cents.

Average

AveratJfe

Averatje

Corn, average bushels per acre, 30.

value per acre, $10.20.
Oats, average bushels per acre, 27.9.
value per acre. $8.37.

This is not a very good showing for a productive year, $8.37 per acre
for oats, $ir).20 for corn, and $11.01 for wheat.

As Southeast Pennsylvania has a deep soil full of fatness and fertility,
and always raises more than these averages, it is probable that Northern
Pennsylvania does not raise the average, and a question of deep inter-
est to us all, is how much less than these averages can we raise, make a
living and pay our taxes, to say nothing about profits. There are much
fewt'r risks in dairying than grain farming, (irass is a surer crop than
grain, having fewer enemies to contend with, and b(?ing less lik(»ly to
Winter kill. Drouth being the oidy thing that seriously injures it, and
tins can be guarded against by providing a good supply of fodder corn.
It may be said that the dairy business, like every other business, can be
overdone. So it may, but the dairymen of Northern Pennsylvania have
natural advantages conferred on them by the hand of the Almighty, and
are in the business to stay. Should it ever become overcrowded, and neces-
sary for any to retire, there will be the survival of the fittest, and the
Western dairymen must go. It is my firm conviction, after giving the
subject much thought, that in Northern Pennsylvania we should make
dairying our principal business, and let the farmers of tlie West struggle
with each other for the possession of the foreign and domestic grain mark-

t^-f

ets, BO long as they see fit; and while they are shipping away to Europe,
the life-blood of their land, the very cream of their soils, we will only
ship off the cream of our milk, and our farms instead of becoming im-
poverished, and sterile like the cotton and tobacco lands in the South, will
become richer year by year, and yield bountifully when required, the crops
necessary for our own bread and the feed for our cows.

Shonld any person desire information which I am able to give, they will
oblige me by writing their questions on a slip of paper.

MINUTES OF THE AUTUMN MEETING.

Held at Lancaster, Commencmg Wednesday, Septemher 30, 1885.

Board called to order in the court house at 10, a. m., by Hon. K. E,
Pattison in the chair.

Present, Governor R. E. Pattison, Dr. G. W. Atherton, president State
College, Dr. J. P. Edge, Colonel James Young, and Messrs. Zerr of Pc^rka,
Herr of Clinton, Eves of Columbia, Oliver of Crawford, Hiester of Daupliin,
Harvey of Delaware, Engle of Lancaster, Barnes of Lehigh, Smith of Lu-
zerne, McKee of Mercer, Shimer of Northampton, Musselman of Somersc^t,
Keller of Schuylkill, Speaker of Sullivan, Butterlield of Suscpu^hanna,
Frederick of Union, Underwood of Wayne, Poland of York, and Secretary.

At the close of roll-call, Hon. J. P. M'ickersham addressed the Board as
follows :

Mb. President: — I am delegated by the Lancaster County Agricultural and Horticul-
tural Society to bid you welcome to Lancaster city and to Lancaster county. We invited
you here by resolution passed by the society. They instructed our representatives ia
your Board to urge the matter to your attention, and we thank you for coming here.
You are welcome, and we hope to make you entirely at home among uh.

There is much about the organization of your Board that commends itself to agri-
culturists to farmers all over the State. We like its organization. Represented in it
are the State officers, who have indeed, in whose hands are entrusted all the iiiteresta
of the Commonwealth, but more especially the interests of agriculture, as that is the
leading interest in Pennsylvania. Then, by appointment of the Executive of the State,
the general agricultural interests of the State are represented in the Board by the ap-
pointment of certain gentlemen. And then the counties, through the agricultural soci-
eties, are all represented. I am told that there are now about sixty meml)ers of the
Board elected by different agricultural societies. Thus combined in the organization
of the Board are the highest and most responsible of the executive officers of the State,
the general appointees representing the general agricultural interests of the State, and
the local societies of the counties of the State. Organized in this way, it seems to me
that a Board of this kind ought to exert a powerful influence upon the agricultural
interests of the State, and it commends itself in its organization to the farmers
throughout this Commonwealth.

Then our people like your reports. They have read them largely, and they consider
them, as I know from conference with them, among the best books on the subject of
agriculture that are published in this country. There is nothing more practical —noth-
ing better calculated to assist the farming interests than the reports that emanate from
this Board.

3

34

Quarterly Report.

Then we like the persons of the Board; and in saying this I express, I know, the views
of the farming interests of this county. If you will allow me to say it, the Secretary of
the Board is doing a wonderful amount of good in the direction of his office. He has
been down here to Lancaster county over and over. He has met with our ao-ricultural
society. He has been down looking after our diseased cattle, and he carries on corres-
pondence and gives advice to our farmers. Ho is aiding us in Lancaster, and aiding
others all over the Commonwealth; and no better man, I think— he will pardon me for
Baying it— there is no better man in the Commonwealth for the office he holds than the
gentleman that fills this office. And we are glad to welcome him here because of the
good he is doing. I hope that no civil service will make any change in that department,
and that he will be retained in this office as long as he will fill it.

And now allow me to say that we .-re especially glad to seethe Executive of this Com-
monwealth in the President's chair of this Board. We know very well that he has filled
this chair in different parts of the State, and is generally present at these meetings; and
we think it is quite in the line of his duty. When the highest officer of the Com-
monwealth meets with farmers of the ditferent parts of our State, and takes an interest
in their work, it is a subject of commendation on their part. The President, the Gover-
nor of the Commonwealth, has been in this county on several different occasions. He
is here now. I trust, and we all trust, he will com'3 again; and he cannot please us bet-
ter than by coming often and staying long. It is true, we all know it, that he did not
receive a very large vote for the high office in Lmcaster county. Democrats are a crop
that do not grow largely here, for some reason or other. But we have this to say: We
have watched the acts of his administration; and I do say it as being true that they have
been in the interest of the Commonwealth, and indepsndent through and through. [Ap-
plause. ] You will permit me to say personally that I do not believe there has been a
purer administration in Pennsylvania in all the years that are gone than the present
one. I Renewed applause.] You are welcome here, Mr. President, in your capacity as
Governor of the Commonwealth, and no less in your capacity as President of this organ-
ization.

Lancaster county is a little empire. We have about nine hundred and fifty square
miles of territory. If it were made in a square piece, it would be thirty miles each
way. It is a fact interesting to us that there is not in the United States a piece of ter-
ritory of the same size that is of equal value. If you could sell out Lancaster county,
it would bring more money than any other territory, except the territory upon which is
located our large cities— more than any other territory of the same size in the United
States of America. We had a population in 1880 of one hundred and forty thousand.
We have probably one hundred and fifty thousand now. Through Lancaster the
breeds and bloods very much epitomize the population of Pennsylvania generally. We
have here in soma of our towns the English Quakers, plain, steady, industrious, intelli-
gent ; better citizens cannot be found anywhere. We had originally, and have still, a
large sprinkling of the Scotch Irish blood— progressive, hard-headed, and just, the pio-
neers of civilization in the wilderness of Pennsylvania as it was one hundred and fifty
years ago. Then we have the Reformed and Lutheran Germans, quiet men, good citi-
zens—quiet enough if you let them alone, but ready to fight stubbornly if you impose
upon their privileges or their rights. The largest part of the Lancaster county people
are now and were originally the plain, non-resistant German sects, Mennonites, Bank-
ers, Ornish and other like denominations. These non-resistants settled down herti from
the Old World; and, settling down in Lancaster, they still remain. They are the sub-
Btrata of the present population of this county. Now it has been by the mixture of
these bloods ani th3 crossing of these breeds that oar present population has grown
up; and a better or more promising p-^pulation I suppose cannot be found anywhere.
Ours is a farming community. We have in this county six hundred and eight thou-
sand aore3 of territory. 0/ar five huadrai thousand acres of that territory improved

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

35

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land— a very large proportion for America— and it leaves about one hundred thousand
acres for woodland, city, and town sites, and our rivers. The whole of the Susquehanna
river as it runs past here is in Lancaster county. We have in round figures five hun-
dred thousand acres of territory, and that is divided into about nine thousand farms.
The average size of farms in Lancaster county is between fifty and sixty acres; small
farms worked by their owners. In the old countries that is not the fact, as you know.
The land is owned generally, and especially in England, by large holders, who hold thou-
sands and sometimes hundreis of thousands of acres of land. The farmers in the old
country are tenant farmers; they do not work their own land. But hero in Lancaster
county and throughout Pennsylvania we have small farms, and worked by their owners;
and a more prosperous and happy people have not been found upon the face of the
earth. It is just the way to make people happy to work their own lands and own their
own farms; and that is just the case here with us.

Now the value of the improved land of the county of Lancaster, according to the
late census, was sixty-nine million dollars, almost twice as much as that of any other
county in this Union outside of Pennsylvania. There is no county in Massachusetts,
in Connecticut, New York, Ohio, or Illinois— no county anywhere in the United States
of America — where the improved land is worth much more than half the land in Lan-
caster. Thirty-five million dollars is the highest estimated worth of the improved land
in any county in New York, or any other State in the Union. Ours, as I said, is placed
at sixty-nine million dollars, and we certainly can claim to be the garden spot of Penn-
sylvania, if not of the United States of America.

True enough, our farmers are not largely represented here to-day. They do not at-
tend our county fairs to the same extent that they in some sections do. Perhaps the/
do not read the agricultural works quite to the same extent. But they experiment a3
much — they do as good farming — and if you will ride out here, as I trust you will, on
any one of the twelve or thirteen turnpike roads, and look at these farms of ours, I
think you will believe that Lancaster county deserves the name of the garden spot of
Pennsylvania; and in the name of these farmers, and all these people I represent, I
welcome this Board to Lancaster county.

On behalf of the members of the Board, Gov. R. E. Pattison replied as
follows:

Mr. Wickeesham:— On behalf of the Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture, I desire to
return thanks for the very kind welcome spoken by you.

When the resolution was presented fixing Lancaster as the place of the next session
of the Board, I felt very much, and I have no doubt I can safely say the Board also felb
very much, like the officer of whohi an excellent story is told, the incident occurring
during the battle of Antietam. He was quite a distinguished officer, and during the
action his horse was shot from under him. Anxious to secure a horse, worn out during
the search, getting very thirsty, he thought ho would try and get a drirk of water, and
at the same time avoid the enemy and prevent his capture. After searching around for
some time he discovered a spring. It was well covered with underbrush. It was in
a low part of the field, and he thought this was a good^place. At the same time he was
very much excited and very much alarmed at the clopeness of the enemy about him.
But he thought he would make the effort. So he pushed his way through the brush,
and got down on his knees. In the army he had been distingushed for wearing very
large and showy spurs. As hp crawled down under the brush and pushed his way through
to get down to the spring, stooping down very low, while upon hi-> knees they suddenly
slipped and his spurs fiew up and struck him in the back. He immediately cried out,
"I surrender! I surrender!" supposing the enemy was upon him. [Laughter.] Thi3
Board felt very much like this officer when the resolution was presented for the holding
of the session of the Agricultural Board at Lancaster, and they immediately, without

36

Quarterly Report.

discussion, surrendered and gave themselves into the possession of the representative
from Lancaster.

The Board is all you say about it —the State Board of Agriculture. We have first
and foremost in view — I think I can say after nearly three years of observation—
purely the agricultural interest of this State. They have worked, in season and out of
season, to arousa the farmers in this State to the importance of cultivating their own
interests by the exchange of opinions in association, and by agricultural literature.
They have not been without results in this. Pennsylvania has felt the work of thia
Board. In every direction there is a di^^position to arouse among the farming interests
to the importance of association. Professions have their associations, and trades have
theirs — all branches of enterprise have by association promoted their several interests.
The agricultural county fair originally had this purpose in view, the object being
association and the exchange of opinions and views in that association to promote
agricultural interests. This question, however, has presented itself to me, as it must
have presented itself to every agriculturist and other observing citizens throutrhout the
land, that while other professions, other trades and other callings have reaped an ad-
vantage by association, agricultural associations have rather been retarded than ad-
vanced from that stand-point. It is a question, therefore, of inquiry, and ought to
impress all our firming people throui^hout the land with the importance of ascertaining
what the cause is of this. Do they know the importance that is to be secured by the a so-
ciation of other trades and other callings, and of the manufacturers' influence thereby
on legislation? The trades' interests have simply to knock at the door for legislation,
and the answer is made. The farming interests for, lo! these twenty years have been
knocking constantly at the door, aiid there has been no answer. I believe that is more
because of the lack of association than anything else; and, therefore, the enactment of
law in the interest of agriculture has failed, and there has been a retarding movement
in consequence of that almost entire lack. The purpose of this Board coming into
your county is to cause adiitioaal interest in associated power.

They come also into your county with the knowledge that it is no new ground. It
has been well tilled. There are very few stomps left in it. It was the first county, if I
recollect aright, carved out of the original counties. It has been in organization more
than one hundred and fifty years, so that as the State Board comes into session in this
county it looks up with somewhat of a reverential feeling to the agricultural experience
and great wealth, and the great knowledge that only comes from old age and long ex-
perience. NVe come also into your midst with the knowledge that Lancaster county not
only has been rich in its productions of the field but in its productions of men of wide
reputation, distinguished not only in the county but in the State and Nation —not only
m State craft, but in law, in medicine, in invention, and in discovery. Here has beeli
the nucleus that Pennsylvania could w-ll point to for many, many years with pride for
the development of those men of renown out of this section of the State.

This Board also comes with the knowledge that here resides the chairman of the
Democratic State Committee. Whether that will have any influence upon this Board or
not I am not prepared to say; but with some suggestions that you made in your addiesfl
to the Board I do not think it unwise to suggest that fact. [Laughter. |

But they come, sir, to sit at the feet of the people of Lancaster county — to learn from
them what the le^ult is of these years of investigation and experience. I am satisfied
that the session here will not be without fruit, and that the State Board, as it has left
other sections of the State, will leave this section of the State better than when it met;
and I am satisfied that the meeting of thi« Board in Lanca-^ter county will leave a favor-
able impression upon the citizens of this county concerning agricultural interests. If
we shall have accofn[)lished that, after the warm welcome that you have extended, I shall
feel, sir, that thU Board was wi^e in surrendering to the member of the State Board from
Lancaster, and that this session was held here.

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

87

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On behalf of the Boa.rd I desire again to express thanks for the kind words of welcome
you have spoken.

The Chair named Messrs. Eeeder, Barnes, and Herr a committee to re-
ceive and report upon the credentials of newly-elected members and of del-
egates from agricultural organizations.

On motion of Dr. Roland, seconded by Mr. Smith, the Committee on Cre-
dentials were requested to present their report at the opening of the after-
noon session.

On motion of Mr. Oliver, seconded by Mr. Engle, the reading of the
minutes of the previous meeting was dispensed with.

On behalf of the Committee on Dairy and Dairy Products, Mr. Reeder,
chairman, presented the following report of work' accomplished since the
preceding meeting :

'' Soon after the meeting of the Board in June last at Towanda, we received
word from Mr. Hiester, member of the Board from Daupliin county, that a
suit to test the constitutionality of the law, passed at the last session of the
Legislature, prohibiting the manufacture and sale of imitation butter, had
been instituted by the Duquesne Oleomargarine Company of Pittsburgh, in
the courts of Dauphin county, the trial to take place early in September.
In pursuance of instructions received from the Board at our last meeting,
namely, to cooperate with the various organizations of dairymen in the
State in sustaining the law, we immediately opened a correspondence with
Edwin Sattertnwait, president of the "Farmers' Protective Association of
Philadelphia and Adjoining Counties," A. S. Cadwallader, president of the
** Bucks County Creamery men's Association," and John I. Carter, member
of the " Creamerymen's Mutual Aid Association of Chester and Lancaster
Counties." Meetings of these respective organizations were called for
August 6, and delegates appointed to attend a union meeting called to be
held in Philadelphia, August 8, 1885. At this meeting a union was effected
under the title of '*The Farmers', Dairymen's, and Creamerymen's Pro-
tective and Mutual Aid Association of Pennsylvania." The officers elected
were : President, Edwin Satterthwait, of Philadelphia ; Treasurer, Tryon
Lewis, of Delaware county ; Secretary, Eastburn Reeder, of Bucks county.
A committee of six, consisting of E. Satterthwait, Tryon Lewis, A. S. Cad-
wallader, E. Reeder, John I. Carter, aud J. H. Brosius, was appointed to
collect funds, employ counsel, and take such measures as may be found
necessary in sustaining the law. Several meetings of this committee have
been held, and a synopsis of their work is as follows : As counsel, the ser-
vices of Hon. Wayne MacVeagh, of Philadelphia, and Messrs. Hall & Jordan,
of Harrisburg, were secured to assist the District Attorney of Dauf)hin county;
committees were appointed to raise funds, witnesses subf)fjenaed, detectives
employed, as well as experts. After various delays, the trial commenced
on Friday, September 11, before the Hon. John W. Simonton, President
Judge of Dauphin county, the Commonwealth being thi^ plaintiff and
Powell & Bros., of Harrisburg, defendants. Two tubs were offered in evi-
dence containing and marked "oleomargarine butter," which had been
made by the Duquesne Manufacturing Company of Pittsburgh, and sent
to the Powell Bros., of Harrisburg, for sale. Those were purchased by the
detective and witness for the Commonwealth, whose evidence established
the sale of the prohibited article. The Com!uonwealth then rested their
case. The defense called Professor Hugo Blank, of the Pittsburgh College
of Pharmacy, under whose supervision "the butter" was made, to give evi-
dence as to its purity and wholesomeness. This was objected to by the

88

Quarterly Report.

counsel for the prosecution upon the ground that it was irrelevant and im-
material It was the prohibited article, and it mattered not whether it was
wholesome or imwholesome. The objection was sustained, and the evi-
dence excluded. The jury were then instructed to render a verdict of
guilty and were discharged. The counsel for the defense then made a mo-
tion for arrest of judgment, upon the ground that the law was unconstitu-
tional, and therefore null and void. This motion was argued at length bj
the Hon. James Gay Gordon, of Philadelphia, and Hon. Lyman D. Gilbert,
of Harrisbiirg, for the defense, and Hon. Wayne MacVeagh, District At-
torney S. J. McCarrell, and Hon. Francis Jordan for the Commonwealth."

After a partial discussion, the report was, on motion of Mr. Barnes, re-
ceived and ordered printed with the proceedings.

The following notice of Hon. M. C. Beebe, (late member from Venango,)
prepared by the Secretary, was read by Col. Demming :

Manly C. Beebe, late member of our Board, was born in the town of
Fabius, Onondaga county. New York, September 6, 1827. At the age of
twenty years he started to make his way in the world, and in 1847 arrived
in Titusville with all of his worldly possessions in his pocket ; after a short
period devoted to a search for employment, he opened a school, which be-
came very popular and numbered among its pupils many who afterwards
became ^' men of mark in the world," among whom we may name Judge
Thomas Wilson, Hon. F. W. Mitchell, of Franklin, and Hon. Samuel Q.
Brown, of Philadelphia. At the close of his probation as a school teacher,
he eno-aged in the pottery business, and soon afterwards went into partner-
ship with Mr. Henderson in the grocery business. During this period he
was elected justice of the peace, and served with signal credit for a number
of years. In this capacity he was noted for his constant endeavors to in-
duce those who called upon him in his official capacity to settle all disputes
without a final appeal to court, and many were the cases which he " set-
tled" satisfactorily to both parties, and many were the dollars which he
thus saved to his clients. In 1858, he was elected county superintendent
of public schools, and gave up his office without a single word of reproach
as to his administration of the position. In 1867 and 1808, he served as a
member of the State Legislature, reju'esenting the district composed of
Mercer and Venango, and having Hon. James C. Brown as his colleague.
In 1872, he was elected a member of the Constitutional Convention, in which
body his counsels and advice were regarded as of importance and value by
all parties. He afterwards practiced law and gave up his practice to T. A.
Morrison, Esq., but after the removal of the latter, in 187D, Mr. Beebe re-
sumed his legal duties, which he followed until a very short period before
his death. In 1877, Mr. Beebe was elected by his county agricultural so-
ciety to represent them in the newly-organized State Board of Agriculture.
Attending the first meeting, February 1, 1877, Mr. Beebe took a prominent
part in moulding the work of the organization, and is the first one of the
orio-inal members who, after continuous service, has been removed by death.
W ith the exception of our recent meeting at Towanda, Mr. Beebe never
missed a meeting, and our minutes show the prominent and important
part which he took in all of the proceedings of the Board ; and even at the
Towanda meeting, when prevented by sickness from being present, he fur-
bished an essay upon the use of plaster as a fertilizer. In the Board, Mr*
Beebe was noted for his strong and never-swerving advocacy of a State

/

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Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

89

experimental station, and at every suitable time advocated the importance
of such an institution to the farmers of our State. In the last conversation
which the writer had with him, the day before his death, he expressed it as
the one desire of his life to see such an institution firmly founded in his
adopted State.

In his adopted home Mr. Beebe was always foremost in all works of im-
provement, and at the time of his death held a number of prominent posi-
tions of honor and trust, among which were those of burgess of his town
and director of the Second National Bank. He was the first president of
the Oil Creek Valley Agricultural Society, and was prominent in the organ-
ization and management of the Venango County Agricultural Society, which
he for a number of years represeuted in our Board.

One of Mr. Beebe's friends, in referring to him, writes as follows : " Mr.
Beebe was scholarly, possessing rare intellectual attainments and sound
judgment. He was a profound reasoner and an able debater. His voice
was often heard Trom the stump during political campaigns. He was
highly respected by his neighbors and friends, he took a deep interest ia
the prosperity of our town, and was a public- spirited citizen. He was an
earnest champion of the cause of temperance, and embraced every oppor-
tunity for its advancement. He was very fond of children, and was a fa-
vorite of all the children and young people in the town. He was not a
member of any church, but gave liberally to all dc^nominations. In all of
the various offices he filled he disphiyed talent and ability of a high order,
discharging his official deities with fidelity and promptness.''

Another friend writes as follows : "His influence in political movements
was great, but it grew out of his acknowledged shrewdness in foreseeing
the drift of popular thought and constant effort to direct it aright. Of
him it can be truly said that he was never known to advocate a measure
or refuse his assent to a proposition through any time serving disposition,
but was governed by his convictions of right or wrong. These convictions
were strong. He was a man of o[)inions upon all questions, and ho had
the courage to express them. He was charitable towards those with whom
he differed in opinion, and was one of those rare men who, living in a most
eventful period of war and strife of ideas, saw clearly the circumstances
and surroundings that make characters and beliefs, and gave to honest dif-
ferences of creed, whether of rc^ligion or politics, the respectful considera-
tion due among brotherhood. But while he dischargcnl the broader duties
of political life in the public places to which he was called with the exer-
cise of most excellent judgment and common sense, and always with fc'iith-
fulness and conscientiousness, yet in the daily walk of life among his fellow-
men he exhibited in no less degree the sterling qualities of his nature. He
possessed in a very high degree a clear knowledge of human natiu'e, and
with great kindness of heart, with all of his aggressiveness and strong con-
victions, he was always a peacemaker among his neighbors. Engaged iu
the practice of law, and having to do with the quarrels and disputes of his
fellows, it was a very bad case that he could not find some way to settle to
the satisfaction of all j)arties without a protracted law- suit.

His death occurred at Asbury Park, New Jersey, at six o'clock, July 29,
1885, and by it our Board lost one of its most efficient members."

On motion of Mr. Oliver, the Chair was authorized to name a committee
of three members to draft resolutions expressive of the sense of the Board,

^.

QUAKTEKLY RePORT.

in reference to the death of Mr. Beebe. The Chair named Messrs. Oliver,
Gates, and Miissehnan.

The committee afterwards offered the following resolutions:

Whereas, Jt has pleased an All-wise Providence to remove from us by
death the Hon. JVIanly C Beebe, late member from Venango.

Resolved, That we bow in submission to this dispensation of an over-
ruling Providence, knowing that God is too wise to err and too just to
afKlict williii<;lv the children of men.

Resolved, That this Board, by the death of Mr. Beebe, has lost from its
membership one who v^as active in its organization, who has proved himself a
most useful, w^orthy, and energetic assistant in its labors, who has enriched
its councils by his extensive information upon the subject of agriculture,
and who found time, amid the duties of a professional life, to advance the
interests of the farm and the products of the soil, and by precept and ex-
ample aided in the advancement of an intelligent and wise system of agri-
culture.

Rpsolved, That this Board recognize and appreciate the labors of Mr.
Beebe in the cause with which he was identified, and mourn the loss of a
CO- laborer, who, by his abilities and acquirements, was well fitted to aid
very materially in the promotion of the best interest of oin* Board.

Resolved, That we hereby tender our heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved
family, in this their hour of trouble.

Resolved, That as a mark of respect to the memory of Mr. Beebe, these
resolutions be entered at length on the minutes of this meeting, and that
a copy be sent to the family of the deceased.

Dr. J. P. Barnes, of Lehigh, moved, seconded by Mr. Smith, of Luzerne,
that the report of the committee be received and the resolutions be adopted.

The President having declared the resolutions open for discussion, differ-
ent members bore testimony to Mr. Beebe' s worth, as follows:

D. W. S. Roland. Mr. JPresident, my acquaintance with Mr. Beebe runs,
back to 1877, when we were both newly-elected members of this Board of
Agriculture, and I feel that I could not add one word to what has been said
in the obituary notice, as well as in the resolutions, if I felt inclined or dis-
posed so to do. Mr. Beebe was a man that we were disposed, on acquaintance,
to not only respect, but love, whether as a member of this Board, or as a
private citizen. We respected his opinions because they were always so
liberally uttered and so fairly entertained; and, as has been stated in the
obituary, because he was a gentleman. He was always ready to engage ia
any discussion that might occur, and I believe from my knowledge of him
and ray acquaintance during the nine years that I have been associated
with him, that he loved not only the meetings of the Board, but that he was
attached to the welfare of its members.

Col. Wm. Gates. As the successor of Mr. M. C. Beebe, I. desire to say
just a word. I had intended to give a short history of Mr. Beebe's life
since he came to Venango county, but it is so fully given in the obituary
notice that I think it is not necessary for me to repeat it.

In the death of Mr. Beebe, the people of Venanoro lost a good citizen.
I was acquainted with him from 1854. He was always active in every
undertaking in which he engaged. He was our first county superintend-
ent in common schools. At that time everything was crude in the school
system. Mr. Beebe took hold of the matter, receiving but a very small
salary — if my recollection is right, only one hundred and tifty dollars. He
traveled over that county; he urged the directors and teachers to increase

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

•It

(

the standard of education. He lived to see the day when instead of old
and rackety buildings, not fit to be used for such purposes, there were sub-
stantial buildings throughout the county, and the school terms increased
from three to six and nine months. He was a progressive man in all the
work that you gave him to do. He was a lover of good morals and correct
ideas. He was a man that despised everything that was wrong. He de-
spised drunkenness and crime; and perhaps was as good an example of
good morals as we had in the county.

* It seems to me unnecessary to take \\\) further the time of the Board
after the lengthy obituary notice that has been given. I intended to go
over the same ground, but it is not necessary to do so now.

Dr. J. P. Wickersham. If you will allow me to say a word or two — I
knew Mr. Beebe for about thirty years. I knew him from the time he was
elected county superintendent of Venango county, and became acquainted
with him as county superintendent. At that time I was superintendent of
this county. About thirty years ago, I met Mr. Beebe at a convention of
county superintendents. At that time there was a period of unrest and
experiment, and fighting in school matters. There was a restless condition
of things all over the Commonwealth, and this office of county superin-
tendent— that has been so useful and has been the ri^jcht arm of the school
system — was then in jeopardy from our Legislature and elsewhere. Mr.
Beebe held that office, and he was the most active, earnest, and able in the
whole corps of su})erintendents.

I knew him as a citizen of Venango county. Later he went out of the
office of county superintendent, and I went to Harrisburg; and it was my
duty to travel over the State and meet the school men everywhere. I met
the school men of Venango county and Crawford county, and Mr. Beebe
was nearly always present. I knew him as a citizen at his own home — and
the truest test of a man is his standing at home. There are a great many
men who have high standing away from home, and when you come to test
them there, they do not stand so high. Mr. Beebe bore that test. He was
ap])rociated and held to be worthy by his neighbors — by those who lived
around him — by those who met him in his daily walks. I say again that
that is perhaps the severest test by which a man can be tried.

I knew him as a member of the Legislature, and saw him going in and
out; and I think I can bear testimony that he was a man worthily there.
He was against bad measures and in favor uf good laws. As one gentleman
tas said, he was progressive. Everything for the improvement of the State,
and every measure calculated to benefit it, he was on that side.

I knew him as a member of this Board. I was present when this Board
was organized. Ex officio I was a member then, and I was exceedingly glad
when I noticed that he was among the earliest members. He was very
active, and I think I risk nothing in saying that — and no one of these
gentlemen who has held positions of such eminence in this Board will feel
hurt- that Mr. Beebe was — shall I say it? — the most useful member of
this Board. [Aj^plause.] There was scarcely another member who was
his equal. He attended all your meeting.s, and his advice was always sought.
He was a member of your chief committees; and, when there were legal
difficulties, — and the Board often required legal remedies, — his advice was
always safe and always sound. I can say, and I think the members will
agree with me, that he was in his measures also always sound. He was in
tke prime of his manhood, and by his departure the Board has suffered a
severe loss.

42

Quarterly Report.

I was glad to hear this memorial read, and I hope this resolution will be
disposed of as has been proposed.

Hon. C. C. MussELMAN. I think I owe a word to the memory of our de-
parted friend, Hon. M. C. Beebe. I had not intended to say anythino- after
knowincr what was in the obituary notice and resolutions;* but after the re-
marks of Dr. Wickersham I feel like adding others.

I had the honor of being a member of the Legislature when Mr. Beebe
was there, and he and I had seats close together. We often disaoreed; but
1 always took him to be an honest and conscientious representative. As to
etticiency in this Board,— he was my senior by one year, and I cannot speak
fi'om observation for that time,— but I know I express the opinion of the
15oard when I say that we have lost in him a very useful member; and, I
may say with Dr. ^\ ickersham, perhaps the most useful member of this
J3oard. I know that I lost a true friend in him. What made us particular
friends was that M. C. Beebe and I thought that our early history was so
strikingly alike that we should be congenial.

Dr. ih W. Atherton. I do not know that the Board cares to prolong re-
marks upon this subject. When we came together this mornino- I had not
observed the programme, had no thoughts on the subject, and therefore
had not anything to say. But you will pardon me a single word as a com-
paratively new member of the Board. When I came into the Board three
years ago I knew Mr. Beebe as one of its most active members, and since
my participation in the meetings one or two things have struck me with a
good deal of force. The more I saw and knew of his work in the Board the
more 1 was impressed with his characteristics ; and I have been very much
interested m hearing this morning from these members who have known
him so much longer than others, and their testimony to his character and
worth upon these prominent characteristics.

The first thing that struck me, and I think the most members of the
Board, was that he was a very positive, aggressive man. He mio-ht truly
have been called, without wishing to be undignified in the expression, the
fighting member of the Board." He had his opinions, for which he was
willing to wage a kindly fight any time, and so came to be looked upon as
rather fond of a contest. But, on the contrary, the more one saw of him
the more they found that he did not enter into the contest for the sake of
the contest, but simply for the sake of maintaining the views which were
thought by him to be of very great importance ; because his head and
thought, when he reached those conclusions, which were his conclusions,
were as settled as the eternal hills about him. But, with his positiveness
and conviction, I never heard him in public or private utter an uncharitable
word. I never heard him utter a word which misconstrued or misrepre-
sented the position of his bitterest opponent ; and with that there was a
broad-minded sympathy, with all his views which he possessed, which led
him to enjoy being defeated. I suppose members can recall— I can recall
when he was voted down after a most earnest contest of some kind, in which
he brought forward some of his ideas, and then he sat back in his chair
with the appearance of one whose victory was coming some time, showing
that whatever the result there was a conscious rectitude— that which was
tied to everlasting principles. When he had got there with a subject he
fought he had something to tie to, and he took that confidence with him.
He haJ so much confidence in their true principles that he did not caro
much whether then adopted, because ho thought his final success would bo
more signal and conspicuous in contrast with transient defeat ; and so I

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.

43

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V

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came to admire that quality of character, and because it seems typical of
all the American race. I say it without any feeling of exaggeration that
that quality of adherence to right principles, and standing determined to
go down with them, confident of ultimate triumph, it is that that makes
men's lasting triumph of our race ; and I shall always think of Mr. Beebe
as one of the noblest representatives of that sound, manly, pure character
that it has ever been my good fortune to meet. I join with the Board in
regretting his loss, and in commending to ourselves that constant growth
in true conduct and sound principles which he so well represented.

Dr. J. P. Edge. Mr. President, 1 think this Board cannot better employ
a part of the morning hour than in paying this tribute to our departed
friend. Mr. Beebe was no ordinary man, and I have very seldom met with
a man, whose character I studied to any extent, whose mental organization
was so clearly expressed in the externals of the man. I think I am under-
stood—the physiological expression indicated the mental operation to a
large extent — and when he was in active ontroversy in this BDard, it was
pleasing to look at that bright flash of his eye, the firm set of his mouth,
and that aggressive forward motion as a part of the expression of aggres-
sive men. He was a character to study with profit, and to admire, "fhor-
oughly honest, I can indorse every word that has been said in vindication
of his character. Hj was nob only honest, b:it esp3cially bravo in the ex-
pression of his honest convictions. The result to himself was a secondary
consideration, as Dr. Atherton has indicated. Defeat was not to him defeat.

The only consolation I feel in considering this question is the fact that
I find here as his successor my excellent friend Colonel Gates, whom I
commend to this Board as a very excellent successor of our departed friend,
however much I may regret the occasion of his coming.

J. A. Herr. Mr. President, it is perhaps not becoming in me to occupy
the time of the Board in extending remarks upon this subject, especially
as those who have spoken have extended their thoughts so widely over the
fields of action in which he was prominent. Yet a thought or two occurs
that I think is worthy of mention. It occurred to me that when future
generations shall review the work of this Bjard o: Agriculture, certain in-
dividuals will stand out ju'ominently as bright lights^ Their productions
will shine among the rest as the sun among the stars; and among these
productions will bo those of Mr. Beebe. I always admired the calm, cool
confidence that he possessed. Entirely unexcitable, he could not be thrown
off his guard, and I always felt that we had something to lean upon— some-
thing reliable in his ability— and that the Board of Agriculture had a
champion in Mr. Beebe that it would be hard to find in any other individual.
Another point that I admired was, that while among our most distinguished
attorneys in the State, the railroad and other mono[)olies had gathered up
nearly all their influence, this could not be said of Mr. Beebe. He was the
champion of the people, from among the peo[)le, against the invasion of
corporations, and in advocacy of the right; and his work in the Board will
stand out as evidence of that.

I cannot express to you the feelings which I entertained upon receiving
the news of his death. I certainly felt that, as a member of the Board ol
Agriculture, our loss was one that we could poorly sustain. My hope is
that his example and his work may prove to us an incentive to greater and
more active labor in the Board.

M. W. Oliver. Being also a successor of Mr. Beebe, I would make a
few remarks, but only a few at this time. Mr. Beebe's hfe was certainly a

44

QWARTEKLY RePOKT.

bright example of wliut will-power can accomjilish. Coming to Titusville
at the age of twenty, with twofive-dollar note« in his pocket- that bein<r the
Bole amount of his earthly goods --he went to work and built up himsSf so
that his closing days were his best days. Mr. Beebe was a man with whom
thanght alvvays preoedeJ work; and, having thought properly upon a sub-
ject, and placing himself right, he was ready for work, and he worked in-
telligently and successfully. Because of this prior thinking he was a mem-
ber of great worth to this Board; and w.. may safely hold up his life as one
worthy to be patterned after by our children and our children's children

Ihe PRESiuENr. Will the Baard proceed to take action upon the resolu-
tions at this time? It is moved and seconded that the resolutions as pre-
sented by the committee be adopted. ^

The question being put, the preamble and resolutions were unanimously
agreed to. ' '■

«„f f ^^' ,^''''''="- ^ ^^ ""^t^ t^i'ik it is necessary, but it will perhaps not be
out of order, t3 move that these obituary notices be also printed in the pro-
ceedings of this meeting. ^

^^The motion was seconded by C. C. Musselman, and unanimously agreed

Under the hea.l of new business, Mr. Reeder, of Backs, presented the
following resolutions from the Solebury Farmers' Club of Backs County :

Whereas, The fence laws of the State of Pennsylvania now in operatioa
were enacted in 18-1:2, under conditions which have greatly chan<red-

And whereas, Within the last decade, wire in its different forms has
come largely into use for fencing purposes, very much lesseuin<. the ex-
pense without destroying the efficiency of the fence ;

And whereas, Such fences made of wire are not lawful, ard render the
owner liable to damages that may occur from their use ; therefore

Resolved, That Eastburn Reeder, member of the Board of Acrriculturo
from Bucks county, be requested to bring the matter before the said Board,
ana urge it to have prepared a law which may meet the views of the farm-
ers in the different sections of the State legalizing wire fences, and to urcre
Its passage by the Legislature at its next session ; and also to remodel the
fence laws of the State, and make them conform more nearly to the needs
of the times.

After discussion by Messrs. Atherton, Roland, Dr. EJge, Gates, Keller,
and Engle, the resolution was, on motion of Dr. Atherfon, referred to the
Committee on Legislation, with instructions to report at a future moetin<».

After discussion, it was resolved that the standing committees of last
year should hold over until the annual meeting of 1880.

On motion of Mr. Enoi.e, the standing coin"nittoes were then called ia
regular order, when Mr. Underwood, on behalf of the Committee on Le-^is-
lation, stated that they had nothing to rejwrt ; on behalf of the Committee
on \V ork of the Board, Dr. Atherton made a similar report ; on behalf of
the Committee on Silk and Silk Culture, Mr. Barnes made a verbal rep,.rt ;
on bcha f of the Committee on Fruit and Fruit Culture, Mr. Engle pre-
sented (he following report : '■

"The report of your committee is necessarily brief fr.jm want of proper
statistics to make it complete, and until a better system is adopted and car-
ried into effect it is impossible to make a report such as our State is worthy
of. VVe are well aware that other industries are looked upon as vastly

Pennsylvania Board of Aoriciti.ture.

i'5

l

(

K^

more important than hortieulture, yet, if the aggregate were summed up it
would amount to more millions of dollars than a superlicial view indicates
The increased, and steadily increasin^r, consumption of fruits must neces-
sarily brincr the importance of fruit culture more ])rominent before the
pubhc— first, as a most desirable, health-giviiig, and health sustaining'- food
and second, their commercial value. . ^ '

The strawberry, the earliest frnit of the season and possibly the most do-
hcious fruit grown, is being shipped into our large cities by dozens of car-
loads, besideis what are grown in our State, and thence a continuous suc-
cession of other fruits to meet the strawberry again. This continuation of
fresh fruits the year round is, however, largely owing to the cold-storao-e
system, which must be considered a most important factor in keepin^r up
the steady supply of fresh fruits. The improved system of evai)orntini
fruits has also assumed vast proportions, and what was quite recently con^
sidered a business that could not be overdone for years to come has already
fully stocked the markets and has found a foreign market besides.

The apparent uncertainty of fruits deters many from planting, but it
must not be forgotten that no crop is certain, and when planters learn
that it is as important to replenish the soil for the purpose of growing
fruits as for field crops there will be less uncertainty of fruits, of which we
have, as a rule, a feast or a famine, and have become accustomed to look
for alternate and off years. The principal cause of this is over-bearing
which enfeebles the tree, and, a severe winter following, it is often severely
injured or killed ; if it survives it requires a year or more to recuperate.
How common to see in a plentiful season branches of fruit-trees })r()i)ped*
to prevent their breaking down with their load. To the judicious fruit-
grower this seems folly, since he resorts to relieving his trees of their sur-
plus so as to require no propping. By this method he secures a more val-
uable crop and does not overwork his trees. In this case vegetable and
animal life are similar, and who would for a moment think of propping up
his horse should he find him overloaded? Would he not rather unload?
The increase of injurious insects is another serious obstacle^ to fruit- culture,
but with the advanced methods of counteracting and destroying them, very
much can be done to stay their ravages. Vigilance, however, must be the
watchword.

Diseases of fungoid and other growths are a very formidable obstacle to
fruit culture, t. e., blight in pear, apple, and cpiince, rot and mildew on
grapes, rust in raspberries and blackberries, and yellows in peaches consti-
tute some of the serious obstacles to fruit-growing, all of which are mord
easily managed than the latter.

Investigations by practical and scientific men, however, promise results
which give the orchardist control of yellows, as well as of other diseases of
trees. A law similar to that of Michigan, re(piiring th(^ eradication of all
diseased peach trees, would go a great way toward staying the spread of
yellows. The deliciousness and value of the peach should stimulate extraor-
dinary exertions to save the trees, not only from destruction, but also to
keep them in healthy condition.

With the mnkiplication of new varieties of fruits annually, and the add-
ing of many of them to our fruit list, we may reasonably hope that in
the near future we shall have all that the most progressive grower and
most fastidious consumer may desire.

Nut-culture has never r(H3eived the attention it deserves, especially chest-
nuts, which, when fresh, being boiled, baked, or roasted, will make as deli-

46

Quarterly Report.

cious a morsel as can be found, and very nutritious besides. With the new
improved varieties planted in soil that can hardly be cultivated, or any li^ht
soil of the lowest value, can be made to produce crops of more value than
others that may require the highest priced land.
A word to the wise will suffice."

On motion of Dr. Barnes, Dr. Roland, chairman of Committee on Fores-
try, was excused from making any report, and the Committees on Apiary
nnd B^.e Culture, Useful Birds, Cereal Crops, Roads, and on Wool and Tex-
tile Fabrics, presented no reports.

On motion of Br. Roland, seconded by Mr. Foresman, the subject of
holding another meeting of the Board before the regular annual meetincr
was referred to the Executive Committee. °

On motion, the Chair was authorized to fill all vacancies in the several
committees.

On motion, adjourned.

Wednesday Afternoon, September 30, 1885.

Mr. Reeder, on behalf of the Committee on Credentials, reported as
follows:

"Credentials have been presented from the following societies: Venango
County Agricultural Society sends credentials of William Gates, to till the
unexpired term of M. C. Beebe, deceased. Clarion County Agricultural
Society sends credentials of John F. Brown, and the Chester County Atrri-
cultural Society sends as delegates Alfred Sharpless and Samuel Walters.

" After examination of the foregoing credentials, we recommend that John
F. Brown, of Clarion county, be admitted to membership in the Board for
the term of three years, from the fourth Wednesday in January, 1885, and
that William Gates, of Venango county, be admitted to membership in the
Board to fill the unexpired term of the late M. C. Beebe, terminatincr the
fourth Wednesday in January, 1886. And that Alfred Sharpless'' and
Samuel Walters be accredited as delegates from the Chester Countv Axrri
cultural Society. " ^ k. ''

On motion of Mr. Keller, the report of the committee, was adopted and
the committee discharged.

The Chair announced that he had added the name of William Gates to
all committees of which the late M. C. Beebe had been a member; the
name of Victor E. Piollot on all of which Leonard Rhone, resigned, had been
a member, and H. M. Wise in place of John Dindinger on all committees
of which the latter had been a member.

On behalf of the Executive Committee, the Secretary reported that
they had decided to recommend the holding of another general meeting of
the Board previous to the annual meeting; the report having been adopted
by the Board, Chandlee Eves, on behalf of the Columbia County Agricul-
tural Society, invited the Board to hold its next meeting at Bloomsburg;
after discussion, the invitation was adopted, and the time of the meeting
referred to a committee composed of the resident member and the Secre-
rary of the Board.

Mr. WILSON, of Juniata, then read an essay on "Red Clover ; its Value
as a Fertilizer, and how to Secure a Good Crop. " The subject-matter of the
essay was discussed by Messrs. Cochran, Oliver, Wilson, Keller, and Engle,

ri

^^

Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture. 47

when, on motion of Mr. Smith, seconded by Mr. Keller, the discus.sion was

Dr. Elwood Harvey, of Delaware, then addressed the meetincr on "The
Horse and H.s Treatment, " and was followed by a discussion n1 ?L f.
by Messrs. Barnes Zerr, Musselman, Wilson, E.^ stth and KeUer "''^

On motion of Mr. Engle, S. P. Eby, of Lancaster, th^n road an essav
on "Forestry and its Effects upon the Farmer " whi -h ^.Vn^!^,! ^

by Messrs. Harvey, Smith, Oliver, Gates, E^y MnianXtmaT wT
Bon, Young, Eves, Keller, and Secretary. ^ 'i^^^iman, 1 orcsman, W il-

The hour of adjournmont having arrived, the next essay was deferred
until the next session, and, on motion of Mr. FREnERiCK, ad^ouTned

Wednesday Evening, September 30 1885
r^Rt^T^t^int^^U-iifLZa^

nS'ltdThafD^Er^tfl' '''' ^f P^-n^f fTorXnchn^V ^k'
ness, and that Dr. Elwood Harvey had consented to address the meotln<r on

the subject of Geology, and that the Executive Committee had decided tn
make the change in the programme. aecided to

The address of Dr. Harvey was listened to with more than usual itten
t Bot d^adJoSX '"^^ °^ ^'^°"^^'^'"^'^*' -'-' - -*^- ^^ Wh:

Thursday Morning, October 1, 1885

Board called to order at 9, a. m., by Gov. R. E.. Pattison in the chair

Mr. Oliver, on behalf of the Pennsylvania State Dairymen's Association

invited the Board to send delegates to the annual meeting of that bodv'

After discussion, the Chair was, on motion of Mr. IIefdkr secondrfi, m^'

Smith, authorized to name three delegates to attenrthe mee'ng '^ """

On motion of the Secretary, the Committee on Work of the Rnnv^ „ •
Btructed to examine the list of the standing committeTs ( othe^^^n tL ' v'
ecutive and Advisory Committees, ) and if thon.dit best to renLttn Vv^ I
meeting changes in the subjects to be consid,.; d by thesr^ommU^^^^^^
report to be made previous to or at the annual meetfnr '*'°''"'"^''' ^^^
On motion of Mr. Reeder, this committee was instructed to add a Commit
teeon Fences and Fence Laws to the list of standing commHtees

Mr H.ESTKR, of Dauphm, then read an essay on "Celery C^ ure.ndit,

Prohts," which was followed by a discussion of the topic by Me srs Ent e

Wilson, Herr, Reefer, Roland, Zerr, Carter, Harvey, Ld Smith ° '

On motion of Mr. Shimer, Mr. Reeder of Bucks, then read an essay on

The Constitutionality of the Oleomargarine Law of 1885," and wasToUowed

^'^'1,'^^^-'^'^'^^ Koland, Reeder, 0^.:!^^:^

Lancaster, rea-l an essay on " Lime and its Elfects." The subject hrvingb;ea

48

Quarterly Report.

declared open for discussion, Messrs. Cochran, Harvey, Baker, Musselman,
Gates, Zerr, Hiller, Whitmer, Hiester, Engle, Miller, Andrews, and Secre-
tary gave the result of experience in the use of lime.

J. P. Edge, of Chester, being unavoidably absent, essay No. 3 of the pro^
gi'auime was deferred until the session of the afternoon.

Thursday Afternoon, October 1, 1885.

Board called to order at 2, p. m., by Governor R. E. Pattison in the chair.

Hon. J. Simpson Africa, Secretary of Internal Affairs, having been pre-
vented from attending on account of illness in his family, Mr. F. Hall, of
the Department of Internal Affairs, read an essay entitled " Glimpses of
Lancaster County, " prepared by Mr. Africa.

Prof. C. B. Cochran, Microscopist of the Board, then addressed the meet-
ing" upon the subject of his microscopic examination of the cereals.

On motion, John I. Carter, of Chester county, read an essay in answer
to the question "Will Better Farming Pay?" which was followed by a
discussion in which Messrs. Baker, Black, Engle, Wilson, Zerr, Carter,
Oliver, Foresman, Gates, and His Excellency Governor Pattison partici-
pated. By recpiest, Thomas Baker, of Lancaster county, then read an essay
upon " The Relation of Capital to Labor."

On motion of Mr. Hiester, a vote of thanks was accorded to the Lancas-
ter County Agricultural Society, to Dr. J. P. Wickersham, to the commij^-
sioners of the county, and to the Honorable Judge of the court for courte-
sies extended to the Board.

On motion, adjourned to meet at Bloomsbur^ at the call of the Advisory

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