vol. Lvm.
INDIANAPOLIS, DEC. 12. 1903.
NO. 50
Our Winter Birds.
Editors Indians  Farmer:
As winter approaches, the birds which
hare filled our woodlands with song during the summer seek warmer climes in
which to pass the winter. All do not
leave aai however, and none of our binls
are of more value th:m those remaining
throughout the year. It may seem strange
to many persons that winter birds are of
much value to the farmer and fruit grower, but their usefulness lies in the fact
that they destroy numerous eggs and larvae of noxious insects. The destruction
of a single egg in winter is of more value than tiie destruction of fifty insects
later, for every insect hatched will produce from ten to a hundred, or even five
hundred eggs, the increase being so rapial
that it would be impossible to control
them, were it not for our faithful friends,
the birds.
No tree escapes the notice of the downy
and gold-winged woodpeckers, while the
red-head searches telegraph poles and fence
posts for grubs and eggs. The little
brown house-wren is an indefatigable
worker, destroying great numbers of the
eggs and scala?s which infest fruit trees.
Its favorite haunts are brush heaps and
fence rows, where it catches hundreds of
hibernating insects. It is upon these adult
insects that the perpetuation and increase
of the race depends, and the destruction
of one now means a thousand less for
the coming year.
It is surprising to the uninitiated how
many of the birds which we ri'gard as
only summer visitants may be founal in
sheltereal ravines. Goldfinches, robins,
chats and sparrows dwell together in
peace, forgetting old enmities until the
coming of spring shall dissolve their happy comradeship and each shall go his
separate way.
Tiny indigo birds hop about, contentedly picking at buds and roots; a fly-catcher
quarrels with a jay over an acorn, while
hairy woodpeckers dart about decaying
tree trunks, extracting numerous grubs.
The notes of song sparrows, wrens, chickadees and an occasional bluebird form a
pleasing medley. If the ravines frequented by these binls were examined not an
insect would be found.    N. G. Saxton.
Ohio.
The Free Heed Faroe.
Editors  Indlsns   Farmer:
"Do away with the free seed farce" is
the subject of a resolution introduced No-
vember 27th by Representative Khcppanl
from Texas. The resolution proposes to
apply tlia- big Congressional ___.ppropriat.oiif
n.aw expemleal f«ar common seeds in a
manner more beneficial to the interests of
agriculture, lt reapiasts the Secretary of
Agriculture to submit to Congress plans
If I Iti Illl the original purpose of the seed
.listrilnitit.ns which contemplate the introduction of new varieties in various
I.aaalities. The resolution meets with tha-
unqualified   approval   of   many   members
More Cheat.
aSdltors  Indls'ns  Fsrraer:
S. .ing   _   great   dispute   in   the   1'armor
aaver tha* causes ail   .heat   ill  wlll-ilt  alia]  ma*a-
alaaws, I will give my experience as a farmer.
I contend that duat will not mature
from cheat that is sown, and I will give
my r.as.aii.
Whin a la.iy, I was sowing wheat and
had not enough 1*1 tan MOd to finish thsi
t-alil. l.y .me aire; so I went to the barn
and tilled up four bushels of cheaty wheat
tliat was one-half eli.-at, anal sowed it on
the acre at harvest time. It was as line
a  piece  aif  clean  wheat as ever  was  cut.
A Good Idea on Keeping the Roads
ln Uood Condition.
Editors Indlsns  Fanner:
The question is not how to make good
roads, but how to keep good roads. It is
evi.lent that the travel, and especially
hauling, when roaals are soft from continued tains, or especially when the frost
is coming <jut, does the greatest damage.
The law prohibits heavy hauling at such
times, but it is not often enforced. Now
the remedy I propose is for the law to
encourage broad treads. If all two-horse
wagons haal a tread of 12 inches, and so
arranged that the hinal wheels would not
follow in the track of front wheels, only
lap one or two inches, they would be like
a roller, rolling 44 or 46 inches, and buggies and carriages 4 to 6-inch treads.
This would do away with making channels in the road by continued travel in
one place. Of course this could not be
brought about all at once, but there
should be a stringent law against narrow
treads when roads are soft, and perhaps
it would be well at first to give a bounty
for broad treads. It would enceurage
the same, which I think solves the road
problem. G. S. IC.
Shelby Co.
The  Old   Tow   Path,   n.ar  Indianapolis.
jou may mff .heat, but you will not reap
cheat. If yiaii donbt this, how a piece of
cheat when you sow wheat, anal see if I
nm not right. 1*. J. T.
The Story of Standard OU.
In the Hi-comber McClurc's Miss Ida M.
Tarbell luul lie the HOC ond part of her History of the Standard Oil Company.
The first installment Of the sa*eond part
aaf the History ileals with tlio War on tlio
lajeliati-. It is llie story of the long, grievous tight niaili* by tlia* Iinlcpcnds-nt Oil Men
to lara-ak the awful power which the Standard Oil Company haal gained through the
rebate! allowed it by the oil-carrying rail-
Kiaals. The n-v< lations made by Miss Tnr-
l.ajl an those rebate* are absolutely stupefying. Of eoursa*. the mechanism of Rebate, as it is generally understood, is com-
parativ.lv simple. It means merely this:
A railroad carrying oil makes an ngn-e-
inent with the Standard Oil Company to
anargc, say fifteen cents a barrel to transport its oil; and to charge all other oil concerns, say forty cents. This, of course,
the Standard Oil Company a tremendous advantage; ..ne. m fact, bnposal-
ble to overcome. But with this simple re-
l.ala* systain, immoral as it waa, the Stanalaral Oil Company w:as not satisfied. It
added to it a new and machiavelic complication, it incisted that .he railroad*
should give the Company "alraw-laaoks"
upon the freight money gained from tie-
independents. That is, for every barrel
carried for Independent oil-men the rail-
i-ouds   were  to  charge   forty     aants,     but
twenty-fire centa ot thia was to "retnrn"
to the Standard Oil Company. So that
ilu- situation was this: For erery barrel
in.. Standard Oil Company wanted tr.ins-
ported, it paid 15 centa to the railroad,
l-'or eva-ry barrel ->f independent wanted
carried, it paid tho railroad IB tents, and
the Standard Oil Company 25 cents.
of both the House and Senate who, whil *
they have usually voted for tln-s<
alistribution appropriations, have vi.-w.al
with disgust the squandering of the public
money for such a useless purpose. It will
bo interesting to see whether Congress, at
this sessiaaii will nse common sense in v.at-
ing for the interests of tinner constituents or whether the usual appropriation
will be rushed through, giving each Con-
lUeanmi 30 or 40 mail sacks full of little seed packets to scatter around over
his district.
The Secretary of Agriculture, while
obeying the mandate of Congress in this
wod distribution, would be heartily in favor of applying the money more logieally
nnd introducing and distributing larger
quantities of foreign seeds and plants
from all over the world which may develop of great value to American farmers.
Washington,  D. C. G.  E.   M.
—This is in line with what we said on
the subject last week. We nre glad to
know tliat Congress is going to take ac-
tion on it, and if the farmers will only
write their representatives, giving their
opinions on the great and foolish wast.-,
we are sure the measure will be passed.
Onr history, biography, oratory, poetry,
s. contain innumerable references to
Incidents, characters, precepts, and
phrases which can only be understood by
those who are familiar with the pages of
the   Scriptures. If  for  no   other   rea
son, the Bible shonld be studied as one
of the most inspiring, suggestive, instructive and enduring literatures that the
worhl iaaoss-esses.—Christian  Herald.
Naaw   what   went   with   the   client':
IIa*ra- is another ansa*: I saawail .1 fielal
in a .nn* with .lean wh at. The next har-
\ast it was half cheat. I sowed the same
ground the na-Nt season and it was a fine
piece aaf wheat without li grain of cheat.
I also sowed I field of wheat in ...rn that
was all cheat fn.ni as fine seed as ever
wms sown. Now what hOfamf of the
wheat? That is the question; and where
alial   th--   a heat  come  from?
I also mowed as fine ■ crop of timothy
Imy is I a*va*r saw and the next vein- there
came a solid field of cheat. The timothy
certainly produced the cheat, as there was
no timothy.
I also sowosi cheat in* the garden for
three years and never a head came to per-
laaiien. It came up in the fall anal was
green all over the ground, but in three
Weeks, or n month, it all died. This is
a fact, as I passed it every day anal saw-
it perish.
Now I will give my reason for iheat in
those fn-lals I speak of. The winters were
without snow the greater part of the time,
and as the rabbits ware plenty they ate
the wheat off close to the ground, and
when* it started up in the spring it had a
dark green color. It is a certain time in
winter, when frozen up, that eauws the
chance from Wheat to cheat. When cut
off a person may pasture wheat in the
staring with aheep or calves until May.
nfter the frost is out of the ground, without harm. You will find very little cheat
In wheat when we have heavy snews taa
prot»ct it from rabbits, chickens and
birds  that feed on  it in  winter.
I say again to my farmer friends, t" "H
Let Us Have the Post Check Currency Bill.
Henry A. Castle, auditor of the Fost
Office Department, shows an annual
shoring- of a half million of dollars or
more in tlio money order system. The
Opposition to the Tost Check Currency
plan comes largely fnam this bureau lae-
aause the na-w currency would practically
abolish   the  money   order  system.
This opposition should not ho permitted
to block the establishing of a Currency
that combines a safe and convenient draft
for reniittanai*. with a reliable circulating
medium. The Post Cheek Currency seeks
taa benefit tin- masses. It is a government issue of the same relative value as
the greenback anal is so controlled that it
can be used safely in the mails for the payment of small accounts. It has a host
of friends and no enemies outside of a
limiteai  class  who oppose it  because  of
self interest.
The bill should become a law at the
pra-sa*nt session of Congress and it will, if
public sentiment lie-comes sufficiently
aroused to express taa congressmen its
views a.n ihe subject Letters taa congressmen from Iheir constituents will aid
the canoe.-  Ex.
The late Rev. George Koenig. a Brooklyn clergyman, who was rather puritanical in his views, rebuked one of his parishioners whom he saw with her hair
profusely curled. "If the Lord intended
your hair to curl," he said. "He would
have curled it for you." Whereupon the
young lady replied saucily:
"He did when I was a baby, but now I
am quite able to curl it myself."—New
York Times.