]mW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY; OR, THE FAKMER'S BOOK OF PRACTICAL INFOEMATION ON AGRICULTURE, STOCK RAISING, FRUIT CULTURE, SPECIAL CROPS, DOMESTIC ECONOMY & FAMILY MEDICINE. BY CHARLES W. DICKERMAN, MEMBER OF THE PE.NV. AORIcrLTfRAL SOCIETr.NrHE AMERICAN POMOLOOICAL SOCIETY, AND THE PENNSTLVA.VIA HORTICCI.TfKAL SOCIETY. ASSISTED BY Hon. CHARLES L. FLINT, Sucretjxr.v M:iss. St.-ite Board of Agriculture, AND OTHER PRACTICAL AGRICULTURAL WRITERS. ILLUSTRATED WITH ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY ENGRAVINGS < ■ » • > ZEIGLER, McCURDY & CO., PHILADELPHIA, Pa.; CINCINNATI, Ohio; CHICAGO, III.; ST. LOUIS, Mo.; and SPRINGFIELD, Mass. 1870. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1869, by CHARLES W. DICKERMAN, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. S. A GEORGE, ELBOTROTVl'ER. STEREOTYPER, AND PRINTER, 124 N. SEVS.N'TU STREET, FHILAD£LPUIA. TO JOHK JOHjSTSTOF, OF GEXi;VA. X. V. THE VETERAN PROMOTER OF ALL AGRICULTURAL IMrROVEMENT IN THIS COUNTRY, THIS VOLUME IS DEI»ICATED WITH THE SINCERE ADMIRATION OF. THl-: AUTHOR. PREFACE. ^ one at this day doubts the importance of agricultuial information. Knowledge in this department is not only power, but it is wealth, iudividual and national. That system of cultivation which produces two blades of grass or two kernels of grain where only one grew^ before ; which produces two quarts of milk or two pounds of meat in place of one, must not only be a benefit to each iudividual pro- ducer, but of immense advantage to the country' and the world. Great improvements have been made in the past twenty years. Underdraining, improved machinerj-, the better understanding of the rotation of crops, and the application of manures, and the improvements in the breeds of domestic animals, have all helped to raise Agriculture, from mere drudgery, to an important science. And improvement must still continue. Only a small proportion of the great body of farmers have adopted the advanced position in modern agriculture. The great mass of farmers are still laboring under the disadvantages of a false and ruinous system of agriculture, without knowing just how to better their position. It is the duty of those who do know, to bring their knowledge to the use of these their brethren in toil. Much of the best talent of the country is devoted to this object. Agricultural colleges are springing up on every hand. Men of genius, of the best scholarship, of great scientific attainments, are devoting their lives to the work of bringing forth the secrets of the soil. Enterprising j'oung men of good abilities are putting their hands to the plow, and the plow to the furrow, resolved to (iii) IV PREFACE. leave the mark of improvement on the work of the farm. The labor of the farmer is thus elevated. What has always been claimed by a few, will soon be acknowledged by all, that the prosperity of a country depends upon the intelligent cultivation of the soil. In this land of schools, where evei'y child can have an educa- tion, knowledge is easily disseminated. Improved methods of culture can be spread broadcast over the land by means of books and paper-s. For these reasons American farmers are more intelligent than the same class in any other country. . Few- farmers are now so ignorant as to scoff at agricultural informa- tion. They desire it, and welcome it. The trouble has been and is, that it is not given them in a form adapted to their wants. There have been many technical and scientific works, containing most valuable information, but in language not readily under stood. These works are very largel}" theoretical, and the practical is not so distinctly separated as to be easily applied. The3^ have performed a noble service, for without the informa- tion they have contained, but little advance would have been made. The agricultural papers come down more nearly to the wants of the farmer, and we advise every farmer to take some agricul- tural paper. They furnish many useful hints and valuable suggestions, and serve to interest the younger members of the family in the labors of the farm. But agricultural papers are not wholly satisfactory. Of course, each number can refer to only a limited variety of subjects, and a farmer may take the paper foi years before he gets information upon the very subject ne wishes most to know about. Again, much that is in these papers is crude. Many theories are given that have not been sufficiently tried, and must be received with the greatest caution. The records of carefully conducted experiments are the most valuable part of these papers, if the farmer has the wisdom and patience to study them, and apply their principles to his practice. PREFACE. V There is another class of agricultural books, b\' our best writers, ou specific subjects, the objection to them being their cost. In order to make a book, a great deal is put in that is curious and interesting, but not practical. For instance, one of our best writers has recently published a book on " Wheat Cul- ture," which, while it contains nearl}^ all that is practically worth knowing about the plant, is so full of other matters, as to be called by the editor of one of our agricultural papers, " The Romance and Curiosities of Wheat Growing." It is just the avoidance of these supertluitics which is aimed at in the present work, while all the practical information is retained. To obtain information on all the subjects treated of, it would be necessary for the farmer to purchase books upon drainage, manures, imple- ments, wheat culture, grasses, sheep-husbandry, milch cows and dairy farming, horses, cattle, fruit culture, market gardening, and numberless other books, large and small, requiring much money to purcJiase, and much time to read To make the present volume wholly reliable, it has been aimed to record nothing but what lias been proved in practice, beyond a doubt. Mere theor}- has been rejected. Some valuable ideas have in all probability been thus lost, but it is the only safe course ; the only course by which the farmer can be saved from disastrous mistakes. The results of practice in different sections and on different soils have been carefully compared with the re- corded opinions of the oldest and best of our own writers ; and much valuable assistance has thus been received from such able, careful, and practical men as the Hon. Charles L. Flint, Secretary of the Massachusetts State Board of Agriculture, (to whom the reader is indebted for the valuable chapters on Agricultural Imple- ments and Dair}^ Stock, in this volume ;) John II. Klippart, of Ohio ; S. Edwards Todd, (tf New York; Professors Norton and John- ston, of Yale College; J. J. Thomas,of Alban3^,NeAY York; Norman J. Coleman,of St. Louis,Mo.; Lewis F.Allen, of New York; Robert Stewart, M. D., Y. S., author of " The American Farmer's Horse Vi PREFACE Book ;" Henry S. Randall, L.L. D., author of " The Practical Shepherd ;" George H. Dadd, V. S. ; Andrew S. Fuller, Peter B. Mead, and Dr. C. W. Grant, of New York ; George Hussman, of Mo. ; Edmund Morris, of New Jersey ; Donald G. Mitchell, of New Haven, Conn. ; Charles B. Williams, of Va. ; Joseph B. Lyman, of La. ; Fearing Burr, Jr., of Boston, author of " The Field and Garden Vegetables of America ;" Marshall P, Wilder,. Robert M. Copeland, Joseph Breck, and Edward S. Rand, of Boston ; Patrick Barry, of Rochester, New York ; L. L. Langstroth, of Ohio, and many others. To all these gentlemen the author tenders his most sincere acknowledgments. In writing this volume, the author has kept steadily in view the requirements of the East, the West, and the South with her fields newl}^ opening to agricultural enterprise. That it will fully meet the wants of every farmer is too much to expect ; but that it will more fully meet them than any other single volume is his hope and belief. With the sole desire that it may be of permanent value to his brethren of the Plow, the author commits it to the Press. Near Philadelphia, ) October 1, 1868. j CONTENTS. PREFACE 3 INTRODUCTION : 19 CHAPTER I. DRAINAGE. What Soils need Drainage — Signs — Effects of Stagnant Water upon various Crops — Shortens the Working Sea.son — Shortens the Ripening Season — Effects of Drainage — Removes Stagnant Water from the Surface — Removes Surplus Water from under the Surface — Lengthens the Working Seasou — Deepens the Soil — Warms the Under Soil — Equalizes the Temperature — Prevents Injuries by Frost — Prevents Injury from Drought — Increases the Effect of Manures — Prevents Rust in Wheat and Rot in Potatoes — Other advantages — Material for Drains — Open Drains — Brush — Stoue Drains — Tile — Why the best — Depth of Drains — Draining Tools — Time to make Drains — Laying out — Digging^ — Mains — Minors — Joints — Heads — Outlets — Obstructions — Uow discovered — How remedied — Ditching Machines — Mole Drains, etc , etc. — Draining Prairie Laud... 31-46 CHAPTER II. PLOWING. Objects — Pulverization — Wet Soils — Deep Plowing — Shallow Plowing — Increase your Acre^ Lapped Furrow Slices — Double Furrow Slices — Flat Furrow Slices — Trench Plowing — Benefits of Trench Plowing — Subsoil Plowing — Benefit.-^ — When not applicable — Fall Plowing — Winter Plowing — Spring Plowing — Which the best — Why — Stubble Plowing — Plowing Clay Soils — How to Plow — Heavy and Light Plows — Breaking Prairie — Harrowing — Rolling — Clod Crushing 47-51 CHAPTER III. MANURES. Waste of Manures — One Thousand Dollars a Year to waste — Liquid Manure — Human Excre- ment — How to save it — Its value — The Barnyard — More waste — Urine — Manure Wells- Soiling — Horse Manure — Liability to " fire fang" — Loss of Ammonia — Its value — How to prevent it — The Piggery — Hen Dung — Liquid Manure alone valuable — Application to the Soil — Surface Manuring — Fall Manuring — Spring Manuring — Protected and unpro- tected Manures — Peat — Muck — Straw — Leaves — Bones, and how to Dissolve them — Dead Horses, etc. — Ashes — Sawdust — Soot — Soap — The Sink Spout and Privy — Red Clover as a Manure — Other Green Manures — Their value — Plowing them under — Make the most of your Manure — When to use Fertilizers — Guano, the same thing as Hen Dnni; — Lime — A lecessity — Its application — Gypsum — Plaster of Paris — Do Fertilizers exhaust the Soil — fjomposts — Drainage necessary to give effect to Manures — Last words 52-09 vii VI 11 CONTENTS. P&AB CHAPTER lY. FARM IMPLEMENTS. Amount of Capital invested in them— Improvements — One Plow to a town — The Carey Plow — Shovel Plow— Implements for preparing the Land— Tree Sawing Machines — Stump Pullers and Stone Lifters — Drainage and Draining Implements — Plows and Plowing — Draright— The Doe Plow— Its general application — Deep Tiller Plows — Telegraph Plow- Cylinder Plow— Mead's Conical Plow— Sod, Stubble, and Side Hill Plows— Steel Plows-- Their advantages— Collins Plow— The Subsoil Plow — Its great usefulness — Other Plows — Dr. Grant's New Trenching Plows — Plows for the Prairie Farmer — Skinner's Gang Plow — Steam Plow — Comstock's Spader — Harrows — Geddes' Harrow — The Hinge Har- row — Share's Harrow— Horse Hoes-Cultivators— Sulky Cultivator — Clod Crusher— Rollers— Cooper's Lime Spreader— Drills — The advantages of Drilling in most Crops — The Star Drill — Seed Sowers — Weeding Hoes — Allen's "Weed Killer" — Implements for Harvesting— The rapid march of improvements — Number of Mowing Machines manu- factured — Their progress towards perfection — The Buckeye — Woods — Other Mowers — The Hay Tedder — Its remarkable sncces.s — Horse Rakes — Forks — Horse Forks — Reaper Trials — Self Rake Reapers — Autumatic Binders — Combined Mowers and Reapers — Pre- servation and care of Implements — Valuable directions — Threshing Machines — Corn Shellers— Hay Fodder and Root Cutters— Cider and Grape Mills 70 152 CHAPTER y. GRAINS. Wheat CuLTURte. Its importance — The corner stone of Wheat Culture — Drainage — Soils — Clay — Limestone — Sandy Soils — Mistake in Prairie Farming — Manures required — Clover Fallows — Cost of Manuring with Clover — Its value — Lime, Ashes, Salt, etc., — Relative value of each to the Wheat Crop — Fattening the Soil — Thorough Pulverization — Sheep vs. Cattle — Preparing the Soil for Wheat — Deep Cultivation — Mellowing the Soil— Sow- ing — Early and Late Sowing — The Depth — Amount of Seed to the acre — Drilling in the Seed — Can be done earlier — Less Seed required — Uniformity secured — Other advantages — Harrowing Wheat in the Spring — Chess, Grass, and Weeds — Time to Harvest Wheat — Signs of Ripening — Reaping — Cradling — Raking — Binding — Stacking — Grain Caps- Spring Wheat — Special directions — Selection of Seed Wheat — Carelessness in selecting Seed the great bane of Agriculture — Qualities of Good Wheat — Varieties of Wheat — Their Qualities described — If not properly selected and carefully cultivated the best Wheal will degenerate — Smut — Rust — Mildew — Ergot — Insects. Rtk. Soils — Preparation — Manures — Sowing — Harvesting — Selectioa of Seed. Barlet, Buckwheat, Oats. Varieties — Soils be.st adapted to their Culture — Their place in the rotation of Crops — Manures to be applied — Preparation of the Soil — Harvesting, etc., etc. Indian Corn. The Staple Crop — Cotton no longer King — Soil — Autumn Plowing — Manures — Lime — Salt — Guano — Ashes — Bones, etc. — Preparing the Seed — Time to Plant — Corn Planters or Drills — Culti- vation — Southern and Western Method.s — How can they be improved — Corn for Fodder — Topping condemned — Harvesting — Huskings-^Raising, selecting and preserving Seed Corn — Varieties — Broom Corn — Legal Weights of Grains, Roots and Seeds in different States — Number of Seeds to the pound of different Grains and Grasses 153-1S2 CHAPTER yi. GRASSES. Purposes for which Grass is cultivated — Hay — Pasture — Thirty Species of Agricultural value — Varieties of Grass described — Their relative value — Red Clover — Time fbr Seeding Clover — Quantity of Seed per acre — Cutting and Curing — Early vs. Late Cutting — Curing in one day — Cutting for Seed — Hay Caps — Clover as a Manure — Time to Sow Grass Seed — Early Spring vs. Fall Sowing — Quantity of Seed per acre — Too small a variety of Seed usually sown — Twenty varieties in natural sod — Mixtures recommended — Tables — Top dressing Grass Lands — Seeding wet Prairie — Red Top vs. Slough Grass — Improvement of Pas- ares — Selection of Grass Seed — Raise your own Seed IS.'^-lSo COXTEXTS. IX CHAPTER VII. ROOT CROPS. PASH The best Farming implies a Culture of "Roots" — Roots for Stock in Winter — Relative value of Roots aud Cora — Where Roots caa be raised to advautage — Soil — Preparation — Ma- nures — Turnips — Ruta Bas,'a^ — Jlangolds — Carrots — General Cultivation — Harvesting; — Storing — Feeding — Careful seleptiou and preparation of Seed — Drilling vs. Sowing — Profits. Potatoes. General use — Preparation of the Soil — Manures and their applica- tion — Planting whole or cut, large or small, in Hills or Row.s — Cultivation — Harvesting — Storing — Varieties — Characteristics of a good Potato — Description of thirteen good varieties — Sweet Potatoes 196-208 CHAPTER VIII. SPECIAL CROPS AND ROTATION OF CROPS. CoTTos. Its great importance — Cheap Cotton means Cheap Clothing — Three classes of soils — Cotton State.s — Division of a Cotton Plantation — Plowing — Planting — The Seed — Circle Plowing — Marking off — A cheap Marker — Distance to Plant — Drilling in — Dropping by hand — Rules of Dr. Cloud — Fertilizers — The best and their application — Cultivation — First Plowing — Bringing to a stand — Keeping out the Weeds — Care for the Laborers and Stock — Picking — When to commence — Directions of J. B. Lymau — Ginning, Baling, and Marketing — Suggestions — A common Gin House — Home Manufacture — Diseases — Insects — Certain methods of preventing their ravages — Cotton Seed — Oil Cake. Rice Culture. Tobacco. Does itexliaust the Soil — Faulty methods of Culture — Soil — Preparation — Sub- soiling — Manures the life of the Crop — What Manures — The Seed Bed— How much Seed — Transplanting — Cultivation — Enemies — Suckers — Worms — Toppint, — Indications of Ri- pening — Harvesting — Yrost — Curing — Artificial Curing — Bibb & Co.'s Apparatus — Sweat- ing. Hops. Soil — Underdrainiug — Position — Preparation of the Soil — Fertilizers — Run- ners — Transplanting — Planting out — Sets — Distance — New and improved method of Training — The Hop Lou.se — Prevention — Gathering — Drying — Storing. Hemp. Its Cul- tivation. Fl.AX. Where raised to advaut:;ge — Soil required — Prepaiation must be thor- ough — Manures — Place in a Rotation — Weeding — Mowing vs. Cradling — JRippling — Retting — Pools — Seed — Sorghum — For Sugar — For Syrup only — Is it piofltftble — Cultiva- tion — JIanufaoture. Maple Scoar. Plant Maple Tree.* — Profits large in proportion to the expense — How to Tap Trees — New methods of Boiling the Sap. Beet Roots pok Spoar. Amount of Sugar imported — Economy of raising Beets — Cost of Crop — Amount of Sugttr — Cost of Manufacture — Great Profits to the Producer — Cheap Sugar — Value of the Crop in a Rotation — Improvement of Land and Stock — How to go about it — Combina- tion — Soil and Climate — Manures — Preparation of the Soil — Sowing — Gathering — When to gather — Storing — Pits — Manufiicture of Sugar — Beet Pulp — Seed — How to secure, clean and save the best Seed — Rotation of Crops aud JIanures — The adaptation ol Stock to the Soil and Crops, and General Management of Crops — Theoi-y of Rotation — Agricultural Chemistry — .Analysis of Crops — Of Manures — Necessity of Rotation — Rotation of Manures — Replacing the Constituents removed by the Crops — Adaptation of Manures to the soil — To the Crops — Stock — What Stock to keep — Neat Cattle — Sheep — Pigs — Adaptation of Stock to the Soil aud Crops — '"Keep nothing but the be«t" — Improve what you have — How — Keep all in good condition — One too many — Consume the Crops on the Farm — "Why does Kirmiug Pay no better" — Mixed Husbandry — Rotations again — Systems of Rotation — Phace of Wheat in the Rotation — Corn — Oats — Clover — Other Grains — Grasses —Hoots-— Other Crops — Rotation on Prairie Soils — On Plantations— General Management of Crops — The best Market , 209-36J X CONTENTS. PART SECOND-STOCK RAISING. CHAPTEE IX. HOUSES AifD MULES. PAGB The Horsk. How to Breed— Selection of the Stud — TreHtment of the Sttid— Selection of 'ne Mare— Treatment of the Mare— Care— Kindness— The Foal— How to Traia— Gentling — Vices the result of Treatment— Profit of Early Training— Breaking— Rarey's System — How to Feed a Horse — Stables — Grooming — Working — Kindness vs. Harshness — No Vices —How to Buy a Horse — Points — How to S( 11 a Horse — Truthfulness — Duty of the Horse owner — A Draught Horse — Mares rs. Geldings — Uses of the Horse — Anatomy of the Horse. Diseases of the Horse — Symptoms and Remedies. Diseases of the Bodbs — Diseases o' the Feet — Diseases of the Glands and Membranes of the Nose — Diseases of the Eye — Dispases of the Muscles and Tendons — Diseases of the Skin and Ears — Diseases of the Brain and Nervous System — Diseases of the Teeth and Mouth — Diseases of the Throat — Diseases of the Chest and Lungs — Diseases of the Stomach and Bowels — Dis- eases of the l0 INTRODCJCTION. accomplishments or learning — but one versed in the business he writes upon. It is thus that we have books by the best men in all the departments. These make our literature — and to be opposed to them, is to be arrayed against knowledge, against schools and newspapers. "What is thought of the man who opposes education ? And what is education, but to learn to know a thing? If the prejudiced reader, (prejudiced against book farming,) knows how to trim his vine, he is the man, if he has words 'for it, to write a book on the subject — the very man we want, for we are after facts, after the best mode. And yet this would be called 'book farming.' It is mere prejudice, depend upon it." It is one of the most striking and encouraging signs of the present period, in the history of Agriculture, that it has been able to call the highest talent to its aid, and that men of science, m all departments, have devoted their lives to investigations designed to promote its progress. We can remember the time when even farmers themselves were quite indifferent to the assistance which scientific investigations could offer them. All improvements were regarded merely as innovations, and were looked upon with distrust, not to say contempt. Farm work was done in the old customary way, or if any change was made, it was only with a vague hope of gain. No sound principle was followed in either case. Happily, those days have parsed. Men of the hightest at- tainments in science now vie with each other in their efforts for the advancement of agriculture, and the practical farmer i.« ready and anxious to avail himself of their teachings. Me chanical ingenuity, too, has brought its tribute in the form of newly invented machines of inestimable value. Progress has fairly begun, and it must continue as long as the mind of man can devise and his hand can execute. IXTRODUCTIOX. 21 No one who has carefully watched this progress in Agricul- ture, for the last few years, can have failed to observe that it is constantly growing more scientific, thdugh not, perhaps, less practical. Its standard is continually becoming ^jiigher. It is now the aim of all intelligent farmers to unite science and prac- tical skill. These two powers are not antagonistic, but each will aid the other, and by their help we may make ourselves familiar with the mysteries of nature and remove the worst difficulties which have beset the farmer in his work. The thinker in his closet, the chemist over his crucibles, and tho earnest experimenter in the field, are laboring together for the discovery of truth, and it is only by their united efforts that the highest truth can be obtained. The tendency of the age is to change. All educational sys- tems are changing. Scholastic and monastic education i \an- ishing, and even purely literary culture is waning to make way for more practical, more active, more scientific instruction, an instruction which shall have a more direct bearing upon the work of everyday life, and the time will, perhaps, come, 'when even the children in our common schools will be taught to recognize and to know by sight all the stones upon which tbev tread, all the plants, and animals, and reptiles, and birds, and insects which are to be found in their neighborhood, so thai they will go better prepared to the higher schools of science. The study of nature, in a word, will lie nearer the foundation of our school system, and so permeate all our higher institutes of instruction till our literature becomes more agricultural in its character, for what branch of natural history is not linked and interwoven with the farm itself, and what better prepara- tion could there be, for. that practical training which our age demands? The time may, indeed, come, when mathematics. when geometry, when astronomy, will be taught by men who 22 INTRODUCTION. are trying practically to draw lightning from the skies, and to devote knowledge to some use, rather than to the purpose of merely training the liuman mind. Agricultural literature is, of course, utilitarian. It would be of little account if it were not. It is an important guide to develop the boundless resources of our soil, and it will always be valued as one of the most powerful aids to improvement in practice. Much, of it may still be crude. We are groping along in ihe dark, but it is not dilficult to see that a brighter day is dawning. Science and mechanic art are solving one problem after another ; a better system begins to prevail, and we are led to hope that the time will come when we shall knoAv practicall}?" and positively what we are to do, and how to do it, when every process of the farm will be conducted with greater certainty of results, Avhen practice itself will have more of the exactness which is supposed to belong to the applied sciences. It is the true province of agricultural literature to indicate the processes and to record the triumphs of science and me- chanic ait as applied to the promotion of agriculture, to bring to the knowledge of the farmer all the suggestions and dis- coveries of the chemist, the geologist, and the botanist, which can be useful to him, to make known the results of experi- ments by which new theories of culture are tested, and to show how the highest knowledge may be applied to the improve- ment of the common processes of agriculture, thus aiding the ceaseless struggle to meet the ever increasing demands of growing populations. It, records both the failures and suc- cesses of the past, and teaches alike by both. Take, for example, the principles of breeding. The stock grower needs to keep a clear and definite aim in view, and to understand the surest means of attaining it. The experience of anyone man will go but. a little way toward acquiring a / INTKODUCTIO^r. \. 23/ kuowiedge of these principles. Indeed, a life-long expei ienoe, without the aid of the acquisitions of others, would fail to arrive at it. Now, we know, that vast achievements have been made in this direction. Long continued, extensive,, and careful observation has established many facts, and discovered physi- ological laws from which sQund principles have been deduced. Others, no doubt, still lie hidden from us, so that what we do not know, may far exceed tW aggregate of what we know, but to ignore what has been\fixed''and acquired by laborious experi- ment and observation, AVould be like setting sail upon a vast and unknown ocean without chart or compass. Now these facts of vital importance to the interests of Agriculture must inevitably be lost unless Recorded,' land thus saved from ob- livion, and Agricultural Literature has done this. A faithful record of an experiment in Agriculture, well planned and carefully conducted, is a valuable addition to our stock of knowledge, and contriioutes to the substantial progress of the art. In this especially our modern agricultural literature differs from the ancient. Tile agricultural literature of the ancients, includiug that of Grreecd and Rome, extends over a period of more than eight ceiituries. Jn literary merit and- in social estimation it may have pxcelled lour ov^n, but it is some- what remarkable that in all these eight hundred years, which have transmitted to us maiiy volumes of great interest and value relating to Agriculture, we seek; in vain for any sign of real progress. We find a piactice liiat is careful, exact, and saving, but it is the same, age after /age; no new imDleraents are adopted, no old custon^ abandio|ied for better. We may search every page, from Cato to Palladius, a period of nearly five hundred years, but there is no (mention of auy improve- ment in system or advance of any kind, and it is doubtful if the whole of that long period added as much to the real productive 24 INTEODUCTION. power of the farmer as has been gained within the last ten years of our own history. In English agricultural literature, we find many marked and striking evidences of progress. This is especially true of the works of the present century. Within this time the minds of all have been awakened to a wonderful activity. Scientific men have developed important theories, which experience has proved to be true, while cultivators of the soil have done their part by careful observation, and discoveries have followed one another in quick succession. Every step, moreover, has been recorded. Every new machine invented, and every new pro- cess carried through to success, has been published to the world, and thus we have a multitude of works by which a flood of light is thrown upon every department of farm economy. Scientific discoveries in Agriculture are the property of the intelligent farmer everywhere, and those made abroad have had a material and important influence in promoting the advance- ment of practical agriculture among us. No one who desires to be even moderately skilful and successful can dispense with the use of books relating to his calling. It is much to the credit of the present time that old prejudices against books upon farming, which are the recorded experiences of careful observers and experimenters, are fast giving place to a generous appreciation of the labors of the inventor, the chemist, the geologist, the entomologist, the botanist, and the practical man who tries experiments and records results. For some years after the public mind, in this countrv, began 10 discard its narrow prejudice against the use of books on farming, we relied chiefly upon the mother country. English works on Agriculture were our only resource. These were not in all respects adapted to our climate, our soil, and our cir- cumstances, and, notwithstanding their great value for many INTRODUCTION. 25 purposes, their directions and suggestions often misled. Ewu when based upon sound practice, it was not a practice with which most of us were familiar, and hence it was far less valua- ble to us than if it had passed through the crucible of the practical American brain. The only means of removing these difficulties was the creation of an agricultural literature of our own ; and this we shall accomplish by patient labor. We have begun to think, to experiment, and to record results. By the publication of agricultural periodicals and books, and by means of our agricultural societies, national, state, and local, the results of our labors are made known to all who (jare to learn them, and our agricultural literature is assuming tlie dignity and importance which it deserves as the instrument and aid of the most important material interest of a great and powerful nation, capable, from its extent and boundless re- sources, of becoming the granary of the world. We do not mean to say that farming can ever cease to be practical, or that such a state of things would be desirable, if possible. But it is certainly becoming more a matter of study and science. No amount of information can do away with the necessity of hard work, but a knowledge of principles and the application of scientific laws is of the utmost importance to the farmer. When these are well understood, and when sound reasoning and close calculation are substituted for that i.iixture of tradition and guess-work, which once guided all farm operations, we may expect to lighten labor and shorten its pro- cesses while we continually increase its products. Agriculture cannot be made profitable simply by securing good crops and abundant products ; but it is necessary to take into consideration, also, the judicious employment of the capi- tal invested, the expenses to be incurred, the wages to be paid, the prices, and the varying state of the market. These matters 26 INTRODUCTION. have a most important bearing on the general results, but they do not come directly within the cognizance of science, and actual experience is necessary for the solution of the questions continually arising in regard to them. He who depends wholly u])on books, even if he be well read and have thoroughly mas- tered the general and well established principles of his occupa tion, may fail from want of this experience. But this is far from showing that no advantage is to be derived from well selected b5oks. It is unreasonable to expect that tact and busi- ness ability can be obtained from any amount of study and reading. Experience itself does not always give them. To a great extent they seem to be intuitive and innate, and though familiarity with business affairs may sharpen the wits and quicken the perception, it does not always mature the judgment or create the skill which commands success in the market. Practice and experience in the field should, therefore, be re- garded as an essential part of an agricultural education. But the farmer should not, for these reasons, depreciate the aid he may gain from the man of science, the man of letters, or the faithful and accurate experimenter. The revelations of science will bring ever new and ever varied instruction to his mind. From year to year he may improve his practice, thus attaining greater and greater results ; and no limit can be set to his upward progress. A simple record of experiments, carefully made and well de- scribed, will give him material for much improvement. By the exercise of judgment and discrimination he may separate the good and useful from what is of doubtful utility, and what- ever he thus gets is so much positive gain. The actual results of an experiment are facts from which truth itself may be ex- tracted. They are not mere vague conclusions, or the opinions or reflections of another, they are that which induced and ena- bled him to reflect. INTRODUCTION. 27 It rniist be borne in mind that, as scieniifio investigation nad advanced in modern times, it has brought its contributions to Agriculture from a great variety of sources, each of which brings something peculiar to itself. Chemistry has explained the composition of soils and manures. Botany has solved the mysteries of plant growth. Vegetable and Animal pliysiology have lent invaluable aid. Geology, Mineralogy, and, indeed, all the sciences, have done their share, and the farmer has only to use the knowledge so lavishly thrown out before him. In considering the value aud uses of a high standard of Agri- cultural Literature, it is not to be forgotten that it tends to create enthusiasm, and must exert a powerful influence to draw and to keep the young upon the farm, and to stimulate them to con-itant efforts to attain greater excellence and success. In this view, it is hardly possible to ovvr-estimate the value and practical importance of well selected works on agricultural and horticultural subjects. AVhen any one begins to read what has been written by others about any pursuit, and to reflect upon the facts and theories he finds stated, when he learns the results of investigations and experiments, and sees the labor and care bestowed upon them, he will soon become interested himself. As he proceeds his interest will grow into enthusiasm, and this enthusiasm will give him a love for his occupation and a strong desire to elevate it and attain a high position in it. Hence, he will gain vigor and energy which will insure success. The young farmer, like other men, is subject to these influ- ences. If he work in his calling with enlightened views, look- ing at its scientific and theoretical side while attending to its practical labors, he will acquire the strong interest in it, and love for it which is so essential to success. His enthusiasm will keep him upon the farm, and carry him through its 28 INTRODUCTION. labors, and he will be able gradually to infuse into otters the spirit by which he is himself animated. Enthusiasm is conta- gious, magnetic, and all powerful. If scientific investigation and well-written books on Farming and Gardening had done nothing more than create a love for rural pursuits, they would have rendered an invaluable service to mankind. This they have done already, and the feeling they have excited is con- stantly growing. We find to-day, in our farming community, a more earnest, spirit of inquiry and more interest in agricul- tural pursuits than at any former period, and these alone will lead us steadily and surely to higher results. And what an influence the progressive character of an Agri- cultural Literature has exerted in another direction ! It has attracted the interest and awakened the kindliest sympathies of the wealthy and educated classes. Men who, by their energy and foresight, have acquired property or position, who once saw little in the hard realities of farm life but drudgery and mechanical routine, and looked with pity upon the farmer as one compelled to toil without intellectual culture, shut out, almost, from the amenities of life, have been led, by the fascina- tion which this class of writings has for cultivated minds, to find in farming ample scope for the highest intellect, and prob- lems worthy of the greatest efforts of human genius. This kindly sympathy has elevated the farmer in the social scale, given his occupation the character and dignity of an intellec- tual pursuit, and introduced him to a common brotherhood with men of culture, science, and social position. And so it Bhoulc' be. Agriculture is the mother of us all. 'Agriculture feeds ; to a great extent it clothes us ; without it we should not have manufactures, we should not have commerce. They all stand together like pillars in a cluster, the largest in the centre, and that largest is Agkiculture I" Fig. 6. The Span. Fig. 7. Stoxe DraIxs. Fig 29 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. CHAPTER I. DRAINING. ^Jl NDERDRAINING will improve three fourths ot the land now under cultivation in this country ; and full one half will abundantly pay for the expense. Drainage deepens the soil, assists vegetation, lengthens the season for labor and vegetation, precludes the necessity for replanting prevents the freezing out of winter crops, promotes the absorp- tion of fertilizers, supplies air to the roots of plants, improves the quantity and quality of crops and tends to prevent drought. These are facts established beyond all doubt, by multiplied ex- periments in nearly every state in the Union. The lesson this reads to every farmer is, Drain your wet lands. The best of all materials for drains is the round oi pipe tile. See Figs. 1 and 2. Sole tiles. Fig. 3, are more expensive ftmd more difficult to lay, and not as good as the pipe tile. Horseshoe tiles, Fig. 4, should never be used. The pipe tile is mproved by having a collar, Fig. 5 ; but this can be dispensed Niih. by putting a thin piece of board or slate under and a strip )f turf over each joint, to steady it until its position is secured. Where tiles are scarce and high, and stones are plenty, resort '31 32 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. may be had to stone drains, which, if properly constructed, answer a very good purpose. Where peat can be had for the digging, very good tiles can be made from it. Brush drains hardly pay for the making, and open drains are, as a general thing, a disadvantage rather than an improvement, as the expense of digging is the same ; they take up a large portion of the land, render farming operations difficult, afford a harbor for muskrats and other pests, are liable to be tread in, or prove pitfalls for cattle, promote the growth of rank grasses and noxious weeds, and must be dug over every year. The Depth of Drains, of whatever material constructed, should never, in the Northern States, be less than three feet, and if the soil is easily worked, four feet, while in the Southern States, where the frosts do not penetrate the ground, the depth may be lessened to two and a half or three feet. What lands require Draining, and how it shall be deter mined, are questions we must answer before going further Evidently swamps, marshes, and all visibly wet lands, require drainage before they can be profitably cultivated. All hig lands holding too much water at any season of the year, require drainage. Most useful plants are drowned by being overflowed, even for a short time, and injured by stagnant water about their roots. Lands in which planting is delayed in the spring, by reason of their wetness, require drainage. In^j the Northern States nearly two weeks may be gained by thor' ough drainage, an advantage which only those can appreciate who have been obliged to haul their manure over soft ground, plow their land when too wet, and then find the season too short to mature their crops, and all because of a surplus of ?,6[d water in the soil. Land on which water stands and freezes in the winter should be drained. , DRAINING. 33 In all these cases, thorough, drainage will abundantly pay. As we have before hinted, nearly all land will be improved by drainage ; for the expense is a permanent investment, a brush drain will last ten to fifteen years, a well laid stone drain twenty to forty years, and there is no reason why a perfect tile drain may not last one hundred years. In all this time the crops are improved both in quantity and quality, A distinction can be made in view of crops to be raised, as land that is too wet for root or grain crops, may do admirably for grass, and it is often well to keep such lands permanently I in grass, maintaining their fertilit}'- by top dressing or by occa- sional plowing and re-seeding in the fall. The indications of too much moisture are, in grass, the growth of rushes and weeds ; if it be in grain, there "will be frequent spots of sparse, low, and sickly looking stalks. Root crops, in too wet soils, instead of growing straight down plump and even, divide into numerous small fibres just below the surface. Our corn fields are yellow and sickly, and our cribs filled with nubbins fiom the effects of too much water in the soil. Drains should be laid as far as practicable, directly down Ae slopes. A fall of three inches in one hundred feet, is all that is absolutely necessary, and this can be secured on almost any field, however level it may seem to the eye. The best means of determining the slope is with the span. Fig. 6. This may be made of lath or inch boards, and should be sixteen and one half feet wide at the base. When set upon a perfectly level floor, and the plumb line applied at the top the line will croas the bar in the centre, put a block just one inch thick under one foot and mark the bar where the line now crosses it, this denotes a fall of one inch to the rod. This operation repeated, if done with care, will give a sufficiently accurate measure for the whole work of laying out and constructing the drains. 84 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. Next determine carefully the number a,nd position of tbo drains. This is the most difficult part of the operation. A few general rules will aid you. As far as possible tbe drains should run parallel with the inclination of the slope. When laid three feet deep they should be forty feet apart; iart of the swamp is about the edges, a deep trench should be cut, not through the center, but around the outside, with an outlet at the lowest practicable point ; after this drain has done its work of removing the surface water, shallower drains may be laid sixty to one hundred feet apart, and if the soil is clayey- auger holes should be bored down to the gravel beds. These auger holes should be a little to one side of the current of the drain. Thus far, we have been instructing the farmer to con- .-truct drains, with the means always at his command; we now come to the description of the various Draining Ma- chines in use in different parts of < ur country. The Mole Plow works well in stiff clay soils free from 44 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. obstructions. It consists of a long wooden beam and stilts, but, instead of the share, has a long, thin iron shank, at the bottom of which is a short, pointed bar of iron, two, three, or four inches square, as the nature of the ground permits. This machine can be dragged through clay at a depth of from three to four feet, by means of a capstan and chain and a pair of horses or oxen, or by putting on five or six yoke of oxen. It leaves a narrow channel like a mole run, whence its name. A somewhat similar machine has been used, (and, we believe, may yet be perfected,) which also draws in the tile after it. A short section of trench is first dug, and then the tiles are strung on a vope and drawn through after the plow, and then the rope removed. We believe this to be entirely practicable, and we urge the propriety of continued experiments upon our western prairies until the idea is brought to perfection. There are various machines which cut a ditch two feet deep, leaving the last half of the ditching still to be done by hand. In many hard limestone soils, where a regular system of drainage is impossible, there are points at which wells might be sunk and filled with cobble stones. If these wells reach a substratum of poroms soil they will drain quite an extent of ground. Experiments are required to prove the practical economy of this system of drainage. The size of Drain Tiles is an important consideration, as prices increase with the size. The common mistake is too large minors and too small mains. One and one and a half inches is ordinarily large enough for minors, unless they are of great length, when the first half may be one and a half, and the latter half two inches. As the slope increases the necessity for size diminishes. The mains should be able to carry ofl' all the water brought by the minors. But here, it should be remem- bered, that one three inch pipe is equal to nine one inch pipes DRAINING 45 m capacity That is, all the water that can be brought by six one and a half inch pipes will be carried off b}'^ one three inch pipe. Taking the plan, Mg. 9, the first six minors dischaige into a three inch main, the next six into a four inch main or into a second three inch. Elaborate tables are prepared, by some writers, to show how many gallons of water will be discharged per minute by dif- ferent sizes of pipe, but they are of no practical value to the farmer, as it is impossible to calculate the amount of water that they will be required to discharge in any given time. The following tables give the number of tiles required per acre : Table Xo. 1. Width be- tween ilrains. Feet. 20 30. 40. 50. 60. Lcngtb of drains. Roils. No. of 13 inch tiles per ;!Cre. .132 2,011. 88 1,341. 06 1,006. 52 805. 44 671. No. of IS inch tiles per acre. ...1,452 ... 968 ... 726 ... 581 ... 484 No. of ^>°f acres. ^'"'\ apart. 1 20. 1 30. 1 42. 1 45. 11 21. 11 30. Table No. 2. No. of j.^ ^j. No. of No. of rods of '^^ feet rods of drain. "" apart. drain. 125 11 42 691 88 11 45 655 62 21 21 2,640 58 21 30 1,848 1,382 21 42 1,.320 968 21 45 l,-2.32 That is, in one acre with drains twenty feet apart, there will be about one hundred and twenty-five rods of drain requiring about two thousand thirteen inch tile. 46 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Table No. 3. No. of rods No. of No. of rod No. of of drain. 13 iiicli tile. of drain. 13 inrli tile. 40 610 80 1,219 50 7(32 90 1,371 GO 914 100 1,524 70 1,007 Table No. 1 shows how many rods of drain are required in an acre at given distances, and how many tiles of given lengths are required. Table No. 2 gives the number of rods of drain in fields from one to twenty-one acres, with drains from twenty to forty-five feet apart. Table No. 3 shows the number of thirteen inch tile required for any given number of rods of drain. Note. — We desire to return our thanks to George Jackson, Suinrin- tendent New York State Drain Tile Works, for assistance in illustrating this chapter, and to recommend to the farmers of that section the superior hard burned tiles made by that Company. CHAPTER II. PLOWING. HE objects of plowing are, to pulverize the soil, to mingle the dififerent portions, to kill weeds, to covei manures, and to keep the surface open and fresn. The plowing which accomplishes these objects best, is the best plowing. Pulverizing being the most important, that system of plowing which pulverizes the most thoroughly and the deepest is the best. Gardeners understand this, and where » they wish to raise fine vegetables and plants, they work l^he soil tho^'oughly and deep. Do the same on your farms, if you have been plowing twenty acres four to six or eight inches deep, make it forty acres by doubling the depth of your plow- ing ; it is better and cheaper than to buy twenty acres. It is less work to raise thirty bushels from one acre, than from two or three. We do not mean by this, that eight inches of the sub-soil is to be turned to the surface, but that it is to be stirred up and broken up where it lies, by means of sub-soil plowing. If made with the common plow, the change from shallow to deep plowing would have to be made very gradually, as it will not do to throw more than an inch or two of the subsoil on the surface at a time, but even by deepening one or two inches each year, an entire change would soon be effected in the productive- ness of our fields. Stronger implements and teams will be needed, but the increase of our crops will soon compensate us for the outlay. 4 47 48 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Nearly every farmer m the country has a new farm under the old one : indeed if the desire for more land could be changed to a desire for deeper land, the number of acres under cultiva- tion would soon be doubled. Eoot crops especially need deep culture. Those who plow six or eight inches and never sub- soil, have but little idea of the size to which carrots, turnips, etc., will attain, when they have room to reach down. Try it. There are two kinds of deep plowing ; trench plowing and sub- soiling. The former often fails where the latter would be suc- cessful. Trench plowing is deep plowing, and turning the subsoil to the surface. This subsoil is often hard, cold, and wet, and it takes two or three seasons of manuring and cultiva- tion, to render it productive. It is this kind of deep plowing which many have tried and condemned, for the reason above ^stated. But subsoiling is deep plowing and pulverizing, and stirring up the subsoil without raising it to the surface ; this is always beneficial, except in the case of a very few sandy soils, with no basis of clay subsoil. Stiff clay soils are most bene- fitted by deep plowing after thorough draining, but when filled with water, any kind of plowing in such soils is nearly useless. A wet clay cannot be pulverized, any more than so much dough. After a clay soil is drained, it should be plowed always in the fall, in order that the action of the frost may pulverize it. The later in the fall the better. Trench plowing on such land through two inches of snow has proved to be the most success- ful plowing we have ever done. There are four ways of plowing sod ground, known as lapped furrow slices, flat furrow slices, round furrow slices, and trenching. To make lapped furrow slices with the common plow, shorten the traces, so as to just clear the heels of the horses when turning round. Adjust the guide so that the plow will run level and true, directly after the team. After turning. PLOWING, 49 the first furrow which will be flat, drive the team close to the furrow slice, and lean the plow handles to the left until the furrow slice will just lap on the first one turned; after one round has been plowed, the plow can be gradually adjusted to cut just as wide or as deep as required, although on new land good execution cannot be done at a greater deptn than seven inches. If greater depth is desirable, a double plow is better. For turning flat furrow slices, a plow with a narrow base and broad at the top of the mould board, is the most desirable. The coulter should be set so as to cut under ; and the handles inclined a little to the right. The slices must be twice as wide as their depth. This style of plowing is most suitable for bushy, rooty, and obstructed pastures, or other grass lands, where the double plow cannot be used to advantage. Trench plowing is done by putting a skim plow forward of the main plow on the same beam, which removes a thin sod, and lays it upside down in the bottom of the furrow, while the main plow turns up ten inches or more of the undersoil. This sort of deep plowing should be decided upon with caution. Except in light sandy soils, trench plowing should be done late in the fall. On most soils, two inches deeper each year is enough. The excep- tions are light soils underlaid with clay, and old worn soils. Sod and Subsoil Plowing is done with what is commonly called the Michigan Sod Plow, (an illustration of which, with all the plows, etc., mentioned, is given in the article on Agri- I cultural Implements,) consisting of two plows on one beam ; the forward, or skim plow, cutting not more than three or four iuches deep, and the rear plow lifting the under soil to the depth of six or eight inches, raising it up, and laying it over the sod, breaking the soil well, and leaving a clean channel for the next sod. For the deep breaking up of all sod land, free i enough of obstructions, this is the best method of plowing. 50 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. How to Subsoil. If yoa have but one team, plow one fur- row round the field, or such portion of it as you wish to plow ; then hitch to the subsoil plow, and go round again in the same furrow. As the subsoiler does not raise the earth to the top, but only pulverizes it where it lies, it can safely be run as deep as your team can draw it. A span of horses, or yoke of oxen, will draw a subsoiler from eight to fourteen inches deeper than the first cut. In preparing orchard grounds, the subsoiler is often run eighteen to twenty inches deeper than the first cut. When the plow cuts a wide furrow, the subsoiler must be run twice in the same furrow. It is all the better to use the sub- soiler also in cross-plowing. Subsoiling in this way, for two or three years, will mellow the ground for fourteen to eighteen inches deep, and the subsoil may then be turned to the surface by trench plowing. In subsoiling, you must keep a sharp eye on your plow. It is of little use to subsoil wet, heavy lands, until they have been under-drained. Many valuable acres would be added to our farms if we would underdrain and subsoil these lands, at much less expense than to buy new acres. Underdrain as soon as possible, but until your drains are completed, plow your wet lands up and down the slope, in nar- row divisions, sixteen to twenty feet wide — not with flat furrow slices, which give the land no chance to drain, but with lapped furrow slices. After these divisions are completed, run the plow as deep as your team can draw it through the middle fur- rows. Then, with a round-pointed shovel, throw out the loose dirt from them, and you have free channels for the surplus water to run off. It is not so much extra work as it seems, and will abundantly pay. The time for plowing has been hinted at in the preceding l)ages, but we would say distinctly, here, that all hard, heavy soils, inclined to be lumpy, should be plowed in the fall as late TLOWING. 51 as possible. The frost will pulverize the lumps, and the worms, hid in their winter quarters, will hardly have life enough to find their way back again. All soils, except light, sandy, or gravelly soils, that are alread}^ too porous, had better be plowed in the autumn. Harrowing is fine plowing, and is only second in importance to it. The harrow is designed to complete the pulverization of the soils, and, as we have said before, the more completely this is done, the better, for many reasons, which we do not need to state. Be as particular to harrow, where the soil is in good condition, as to plow. Harrow your land until the lumps are gone. Lumps are as bad as stones. More so ; for they hold plant food, that the plants will get at if the lumps are pulverized. If the harrow will not do it, roll it and harrow it until the ob- ject is accomplished. Use the roller also on light soils after spring plowing. CHAPTER III. MANURES. EXT to thorough draining, the great lack, in American farming, is a proper economy and application of ma- nures and fertilizers. By manures, we mean that pro- duced on the farm ; and by fertilizers, guano, phos- phates, and the like. And no farmer should buy any fertilizers until he saves and applies his manures. From extensive ob- servation, we conclude that not one farmer in one hundred makes the most of his manures. The urine of a cow is aa valuable as her dung ; and not one farmer in one hundred saves it. The urine and excrement of each member of the family is as valuable as that of the cow ; and yet it is not cared for. Such waste of valuable food for crops cannot be too strongly condemned. Our object, then, in this chapter, will be to show the farmer how to save and apply manure. And we begin where there is the most general and inexcusable waste — at the privy. The urine and excrement of each member of the family is abun- dantly sufficient to fertilize a half acre of land yearly. The simplest way to save this, where the vault can be opened, is to cover it with five or six times its bulk of peat or muck once a week. But a much better way, is to have a shallow vault, with a cemented or tight board bottom, sloping to one corner, from whence there should be an ample drain leading into a cesspool at convenient distance from the house. Into the upper corner 52 MANURES. 53 of the privy vault should run the drain from the sink, not only to save the washings of the sink, but also to keep the vault washed out, and to dilute the urine, which renders it more valuable. Of course, a brick or stone cesspool is the most durable, but an oil butt, or hogshead, sunk in the ground, forma an economical substitute. The place may be hidden from pub- lic view by a row of dwarf trees, pines, or spruces. Near it should be hauled peat, muck, leaves, straw — any kind of vege- table matter — and the contents of the cesspool poured on to it. For this purpose, a long-handled dipper may be constructed of a keg or firkin. When this heap is thoroughly saturated, fork it over, haul it away, and bring new material. Peat will absorb more ammonia than any other soil, and is therefore the most valuable for this purpose. The manure thus made will be worth more, than the same amount of the best barnyard ma- nure. Don't pay a dollar for fertilizers till you have made the most of this valuable matter right at your elbow. Proceed about it at once, for it is money wasting every hour before your eyes. The Barnyard must always be the farmer's main source of supply for manures. And here, as in the previous case, the almost universal mistake is in the waste of the urine, the liquid manure. The urine of most animals is nearly, if not quite, as valuable as the solid manure ; but it is usually allowed to go wholly to waste. And, more than this, it is allowed to carry away with it many elements of fertility fl-om the solid manure. "We protest, in the name of the hungry lands, against this waste j of vegetable food, of the best quality. And we not only pro \ test, but shall give practical directions for saving it. Every farmer should soil his cattle in the stables or in the yard. A cow will produce about three and a half cords of solid and three of liquid manure ; this, absorbed in twice its bulk fJ4 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. of peat or muck, makes twenty cords of manure worth from five to eight dollars a cord. This mixing can be done just as well in the yard, as to shovel the dirt in and out of the stables. All stables should have tight floors, and be so laid that the liquid will all run to one point, where there should be a manure well, which can be made by sinking a hogs- head, Tlie liquid is made more valuable by being diluted with water, and the stable-floors should be washed down occasionally with a few pailfuls of water. The barnyard should also be graded to one corner or to the centre, and another manure well sunk at the lowest point. Every barn- yard should be surrounded on three sides by sheds with eave- troughs to carrj'- off all the rain water, which would otherwise wash away the wealth of the yard. Under these sheds, the solid manure of all the animals, to- gether with the litter from the stables, with double its bulk of peat or muck, should be evenly spread every week, and the liquid manure from the wells dipped or pumped over it. Light troughs may be made to carry it from the pumps to any part of the yard. The liquid manure is thus not only saved, but helps in the decomposition of the solid and prevents it from becoming heated or fire fanged. Manure thus treated will be doubled in quantity and doubled in quality. The yard should be kept well supplied with peat or muck. We repeat that no farmer can justify his purchase of fertilizers until he has used these simple and comparatively inexpensive means of increasing his home manufacture. The Horse stable is especially apt to be the scene of this waste. The manure of the horse contains a large amount of ammonia, (which is the best of all fertilizers,) and less mois ture than other manures, and is therefore much more likely to MANURES. 56 neat and becomes fire fanged. When it becomes heated and mouldy its value is nearly all gone. It is hardly worth carting to the field. Horse manure should never be kept in a pile by itself, it should either be spread evenly with the other manures, or muck, and kept moist with the liquid from the manure well. Water and muck are the universal absorbents of ammonia, and should always be plentifully supplied to the manure heap. The Piggery and Hennery should also be kept well supplied with peat or muck, which in the Hennery should be kept moist. The manure, both liquid and solid, of fattening pigs, being espe- cially rich, should be especially cared for; enough soil should be shoveled in every day to absorb all the droppings ; it should be protected from the rain and sunshine ; and whenever practicable should be mixed with the barnyard manure before spreading. The pig will work over the soil, pulverizing it and adding at the same time to each particle the most valuable fertilizing in gredients ready to be dissolved for the use of the plants ; for it must be born in mind, that in the end nothing but liquid ma- nures can be of any value to the plants. The roots can take up nothing but liquids. Every solid particle must be reduced to a liquid state before it will be available to the plants. There- fore the more thorough the decomposition of the manure the sooner and the more surely will it reach the plant ; and the more moisture the manure absorbs the more readily will it dis- solve in the soil and be taken up into the crops. Barnyard manure, prepared as above, contains all the ele- ments of nutrition needed by any crop. It does not always contain them all in sufficient quantities for a succession of crops, and here is where the fertilizers come in as aids. But before discussing this subject we will speak of the application of manures to the soil. The general principle of application is that manure sinks 56 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. into the soil, and the roots catch it and appropriate it on its way downv/ard. Surface manuring is often very effective, and ma- nure covered so deep as to be for the most part beyond the reach of the plants is valueless. It will never rise again to the surface, and is lost. Manure should be put, then, as nearly as possible where it is to do its work. For light grasses it may be spread upon the surface and will soon reach the roots which are near the surface. Manure for this purpose should be as thoroughly pulverized and as evenly spread as possible, and applied in the fall before the frosts; if green manure is used, the unrotted straw, cornstalks, etc., fibould be raked off with a horse rake in the spring. We think this method gives the best results of any on light grass lands. Manuring such lands in the spring we have found to be very much less effective. For nearly all other crops, manure should be well decom- posed and plowed under, or thoroughly harrowed and cross- harrowed into the soil after plowing. No time can be set for applying manures, for every farmer has, more or less, to consult his own convenience as to the time. Having reccommended fall plowing, we recommend, as far as practicable, fall manuring with green manure, as it is at present managed: but if we could persuade every farmer to adopt the system we have advised, of thoroughly composting his manures, under cover, with peat and liquid manures, often forked over, and thus ready at once to give up their fertilizing elements to the plants, we could say emphatically, manure in the spring, except surface manuring of light grass lands. This housing of manure through the winter is the best economy. By actual and oft repeated experiments we have proved that manure thus protected will produce double the crop that un- protected manure will. This is nearly all clear gain ; there is MANURES. 57 no more expense for seed or tillage, but little more for cartage ; the only increase of expense is in harvesting double the crop. Pitching manure and forking it over is very laborious work, but if our plan of mixing with muck, and keeping moist, is followed, it will fork over much more easily, and in the spring will be so thoroughly decomposed that it will readily fall in pieces, and the labor, both of loading and spreading, will be much lessened. There will be no hard, dry lumps to be knocked in pieces, or left like pieces of brick to retard rather than aid the growth of the plants. Try it, if you are incredulous, on a s:nall scale at first, and you will find in it a new source both of pleasure and wealth. We wish here to say a few words about pitching and spread- ing manure. Use a long handled dung fork in loading manure, using the handle as a lever across the knee. In distributing it in the field, never dump a, whole load in a place. Many small heaps are better than a few large ones. They should never be more than a rod apart. If the manure is left on the field through the winter, do not leave any where the heap stood in the spring, as enough fertilizing material will have washed into the soil at that spot. If the manure has been composted according to our plan, it can be very evenly distributed, in spread- ing ; but if it has lain and dried hard, the laborer who spreads it must go all over it a second time to knock the lumps in pieces. Once more we say, that, as the barnyard is the farmer's main source of supply, it is his bounden duty, as well as his greatest profit, to save and make the most of it. But there are many other materials on your farms that you must use before you can justify the purchase of fertilizers, and foremost among these is peat or swamp muck. We shall use the term peat as covering swamp muck and marsh mud also. These are a valuable amendment to two entirely opposite kinds of soil, viz: 58 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. light, porous, sandy soils, and heavy, clayey soils. In the former the peat binds the soil together, acts as a sponge to hold moisture, manures, and gases for plant food, warms the soil by absorbing the sun's rays, while at the same time it cools more rapidly at night, and collects the dew so necessary to vegetation in hot weather. In clayey soils it separates the particles and renders them more porous. Its second source of value is as a compost with the manure of the yard. It absorbs and retains the ammonia, the most valuable element of manures ; it also holds the moisture necessary to keep the manure heap from heating and becoming fire fanged. By its use, and only by its use, the farmer is enabled to save the liquid manure. We do not hesitate to say that, properly composted with one half its bulk of solid and liquid stable manure, it makes an article each cord of which is equally valuable with any cord of the original manure. The excavation and preparation, then, of the peat, is an im- portant matter. Every man's circumstances must determine the time and manner of getting out peat. The month of August, is all things considered, the best time. But most farmers will have to put it off till winter, as labor is cheaper, and there is less hurry with other matters on the farm. It should be thrown into a pile upon loose boards, and covered with loose boards, leaving it to the action of the air for several months before it is carted to the yard. An excavation should be begun at the border of the marsh in the autumn, and continued into it sufficiently wide for a cart path, and the muck thrown out in piles on each side. By the succeeding autumn this will be seasoned enough to cart away, and can sometimes be done on the surface, or waiting until the grdund is frozen, can be readily hauled to the vicinity of the barnyard. It is better to get out enough ai MANUKES. 59 one time to last for several years, and have it convenient for constant use. Red Clover is one of the most convenient, effectual, and economical fertilizers that can be used for improving the fer- tility of an impoverished soil. Its long tap roots reach down into the soil, absorbing fertilizing influences that are beyond the reach of ordinary vegetation, and bringing them to the surface to form the stem and leaves. These roots make the soil more porous than before, and in decay leave a large amount of vege- table matter for the food of the succeeding crop. Its leaves absorb a large amount of ammonia from the atmosphere, and if plowed under at the proper time, this is all secured for the soil. For plowing under sow the large clover and plow it under when it is ripe, just as the blossoms begin to change color. Do not be tempted to cut the crop for hay. Lime or plaster should usually be sown with the clover in small quanti- ties, and on many lands this is all the fertilizing that is needed. It is always an economical and valuable aid to the barnyard. On many barren hill-sides, red clover, plowed under, will effect a change in the soil which no other fertilizer could produce so quickly or so economically. Every thing that can make manure should be saved. Leaves, litter, chip-dirt, saw-dust, ashes, bones, waste salt, soot, should all be put into the compost heap. Soap contains a large pro- portion of fertilizing matter. In a barrel of good soft soap there is enough to produce a half a ton of good hay, or several bushels of grain. After this soap has been through the wash tub, it is more valuable than before. It is in the very best possible condition to be applied to the soil, yet it is usually suffered to run off into some slough hole or stream and wasted. Construct your privy vault on the plan we have advocated, and run the sink spout into it, for such waste is inexcusable. go HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Wood ashes is a very valuable manure, and much of it can be saved at home. They are nearly as valuable after being leached as before, if they are used immediately. The longer they stand after being leached the less valuable they become. They are most valuable for sowing on grass lands, and for cereal grains. They give stiffness and strength to the straw; one hundred pounds of ashes being suflacient for the production of three thousand pounds of good straw. When sown they should be a little wet, or else sown on a misty, damp day, or they will blow away. When used on potatoes they should be thrown evenly all around the hill, where they will reach all the roots. When sown on any root-crops, care should be taken to put as little as possible in contact with the leaves or stems. There is no danger of using too much ashes; but their use should always be accompanied by manure, muck, or the turning under of clover. Ashes mixed in the compost heap assist in the decomposition of elements, which would otherwise be useless, without destroy- ing their efficacy. We, therefore, advise this method of appli- cation, except when sown on grasses and cereal grains. Ashes give compactness to light, sandy soils, and render heavy clay soils light and friable. About the best use to which ashes can be put on the farm, is in dissolving bones. Put a layer of ashes in the bottom of a barrel, then a layer of bones, then another of ashes, and so on until the barrel is full, then keep the ashes wet with soap-suds, but not wet enough to leach. Never deposit ashes in any bin, box, or barrel, until more than a week after they have been taken from the fire. Many a barn and farm-house has been destroyed by neglecting this precaution. The bottom of a dry cellar is a good place to keep wood ashes, but a bin of brick or stone is better. If put out doors they should be at a distance from any building or fence. I MANURES. 61 Rnd covered with loose boards. Most insurance policies are forfeited by keeping ashes in wooden vessels. Bones are the very cream of manures. Our best crops are all the time going into bones. Some way should be contrived to get it back. There are large manufactories where bone dust is prepared, but the best part of the bone is boiled out, and the remainder is adulterated with shells, lime, plaster, marl, sand, etc., and sold for sixty dollars per ton. Never buy any of this stuff. Put a molasses hogshead in your back yard, cover the bottom with peat, muck, or mellow soil, cover this again with ashes four or five inches deep, into this throw all bones from the kitchen, and all that you can hire the small boys to collect for you at ten or fifteen cents a bushel. All the large bonea should be broken before they are put in. When there are eight or ten inches of bones, cover them with ashes, then soil, or muck, then a thin spreading of plaster. Let this mass be wet with soap suds occasionally. The alkali of the ashes dissolves the bones, and the muck and plaster absorb the gases. Contract at the slaughter house for the skulls and other bones, and furnish a sugar hogshead to receive them. When there is a large quantity they must be crushed by machinery, an ordinary grain mill with horses will grind one thousand pounds per hour. The ground bone of commerce sells for three dollars per Imndred, and the bones a farmer would collect and grind would be worth twice as much. One hundred pounds of bones contain enough phosphate of lime for twelve thousand pounds of hay. The finer they are ground, and the more thoroughly they are mingled with the soil, the better. Some farmers can secure spent tan bark near home, and at little expense. It should never be used on light or porous soils. The true way to use it is as a litter. It should be put under cover until dry and then spread in the stables, or the pig pen. 62 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. It will absorb and retain a large amount of liquid manure. It makes excellent bedding for all animals except sbeep, as it gets into their wool. When used in the piggery it makes a most valuable top dressing for grass or grain. In the preparation of the soil for root-crops, tan bark prepared in this way will supply an abundance of those salts essential to their rapid and luxuriant growth. .The same remarks apply to saw dust, turning shav- ings, planing mill shavings, etc. They should never be put into the stable wet. The carcases of dead animals should never be left for the crows to pick. Cover the carcass six inches deep with muck, and allow it to decompose, which will take six months or a year. It may be placed within sight of the house, as, if covered thoroughly, the muck will absorb all the ammonia and other gases. Watch it a little at first, to see that dogs and crows do not uncover it. After having lain through a summer, fork over the mass, and throw out the bones, add a half bushel of plaster and another load of earth, and leave it another month or two ; ic is then fit for use and worth more than an equal bulk of barnyard manure. It should be spread very thin and well harrowed in. Other green crops, besides clover, are turned in for manure, although we consider clover the best when it is to be turned in on the land where it is grown. Indian corn and buckwheat come next in value for this purpose. When fields are at a distance from the barnyard, this is often a most economical method of manuring. Four things must be observed in raising green manures. Those plants must be used whose seed is cheap; which are sure to succeed and grow very fast, which are deep rooted, and contain no substances which will be injurious to the succeeding crop. Usually five or six bushels to the acre of lime, plaster, or ashes, should be sown with the seed, or just before the crop makes its appearance on the surface. Vetch and MANURES. 6H while hipine are valuable oq all except limestone soils, turiiips are good on all soils, either plowed under or fed to sheep on the » land, Spurry is valuable on sandy soils, as it grows fast, and two or three crops can be secured in a season. There are many plants which can be used for this purpose, both annual and perennial, the latter having the advantage of saving the seed after the first season. In plowing under crops OQ the soil where they are grown, a chain is attached to the end of the whiflfletree of the off horse, or if oxen are used, to a stick bolted into the plow beam for the purpose, and the other end hitched to the beam near the standard ; this will draw the plants into the furrow to be covered up by the furrow slice. We take the following from the transactions of the New York State Agricultural Society on Husbanding Manures : " Where sufficient has been reserved for arable lands, barn- yard manure may be spread upon pastures and meadows under the following restrictions. If spread early in the spring on pastures for immediate use, it should not be the droppings of that species of animals intended to be placed in the pastures. Coarse manures should never be spread upon meadows in the spring. It may be evenly spread on meadows any time after harvest, and bushed in. When spread the atmosphere should indicate the absence of high winds, the approach of rain, or damp weather. On rapidly sloping lands, a heavy top dressing should be applied near the summit. No manure should be ap- plied to the surface of bill-sides in winter, when the ground id frozen, as it will be likely to be washed away." " On farms whose principal staple is grain, where the straw is in excess in the barnyard, it should be spread profusely, trodden down by the cattle, mixed with their droppings, kept moist with liquid manure from the manure tank, and thus thoroughly decomposed before it is applied to the soil, else the (34: HOW TO MAKE THE FAK.M PAY. Straw of the crop will be in excess of the grain. Where there is a scarcity of straw, muck, leaves, tan bark, and sawdust, will take its place as absorbents, and stall feeding resorted to. Where there are many sheep, they should be kept under sheds, with small yards attached. " By the use of peat, muck, etc., for soiling, the straw may be saved for food, cut up, mixed with feed, thoroughly wetted and allowed to stand a few hours before being fed, for which pur- pose it is twice as valuable as for litter. " In this way a larger number of animals can be kept upon the farm, and a much larger mass of manure made. Ilorn piths, from the tanneries, waste from the woolen mills, scraps from the shoemakers, charcoal from the pits, and all vegetable sub- stances, should be secured by the farmer for his crops." It is often desirable to use liquid manures for special crops, gardens, etc. It can always be made by soaking barnyard manure in several times its bulk of water, or by diluting urine with three or four times its bulk of water. After having saved and made the best application of all his home manures, the farmer may be justified in purchasing fertilizers as aids, but seldom as a main reliance. When tempted to pay sixty dollars for guano, look carefully to see if the same amount of money cannot be better invested in the barnyard, in permanent improvements w^hich will enable you, for years to come, to save the liquid manure. Where sixty dollars is wanted for bone flour, calculate if a much better arti- cle than the article of commerce cannot be made at home for less money. If poudrette calls for money, ask yourself if a less amount of money will not make the improvements we have suggested, by which the privy and sink spout shall be made to contribute their valuable supplies for many years to come. For every dollar you think of putting into super-phosphates, MANURES. 65 can you not haul a load of muck to your privy, piggery, or barnyard? When you cannot, we recommend the use of fertilizers. We have no doubt of their value ; and first among them, by common consent, is guanOy or the droppings of sea fowl, which has been accumulating for ages on certain islands of the sea. In its pure state it is one of ihe most powerful of fertilizers, and should never be ajiplied successively to land, unless with barnyard manure or green crops plowed under, as it will force such large crops as to exhaust the soil. The best and safest way to apply guano, is to dissolve it in water, a few pounds to a barrel of water, and apply it with a dipper, but this cannot be done on any extensive scale, and it must usually be sprinkled by hand. In either case, care must be taken that it does not come in contact with the leaves or stems. If applied before planting, a handful should be sprinkled over an area of at least eighteen inches, around where the hills are to stand, and dirt sprinkled over it. It is useless to drop a hand- ful in a place or to leave it uncovered. Indeed it is positively injurious when applied in this way, and many crops of Indian corn have been spoiled, and guano broifght into disrepute by such a course. Many fields, at a distance from the barnyard, may be kept in a state of fertility by the application of guano, alternating with the plowing under of clover or other green crops. We cannot recommend the practice of sowing it broad- cast and harrowing it in until it becomes much cheaper than ii now is. Hen manure is of the same nature as Peruvian guano, and when the droppings of the hens are absorbed in peat or muck, an article is formed worth more, pound for pound, than the adulterated guano of commerce. Fish guano is the product of the millions of fish that are caught every year along our coasts, the oil being extracted from them by steam ijig and pressure. It contains much phos- ,j(3 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. phaie of lime and ammonia; composted with salt marsli mud, these fish are a valuable fertilizer. Lime is a necessity in Agriculture. If the soil is destitute of it, it must be supplied. Of itself it gives no fertility, but it assists in decomposing the organic vegetable matter in the soil, in fixing and retaining the ammonia of the manures, in destroy- ing the acidity of the soil, (the worst foe to productiveness,) in pulverizing granitic soils, in lightening heavy, clayey, peaty soils, and in other ways is a valuable assistant to the farmer. When a large amount is to be used upon a field, it may be dropped in small heaps, and slacked by tlie air, rain, and dew, and spread with shovels, but where only ten or twenty bushels are applied to the acre, it should be more thoroughly slacked. This may be done by spreading it on the cellar bottom about one foot deep, and let it air-slack for a few weeks, forking it over every few days, and sprinkling a little water on the large chunks. AVe advise spreading it on the cellar bottom, as much the best place, but if not convenient, a covered shed Avill answer the purpose. If it is to be sown with a machine, the (lint and stones should all be raked out. Cooper's lime spreader, or some other machine of like character, spreads it more evenly than it can be done by hand, and is equally useful in sowing ashes or plaster. {See fig. 45.) The best plan is to sow fresh slaked lime, in the finest possible condition, and immediately harrow it in throughly. Do not plow it under. The amount of lime to be sown to the acre, can only be deter- mined by experiment. A few bushels to the acre cannot injure any soil. On dry clay or peaty soils, it may always be used bountifully with good effect. Underdraining is th,e first requi- site for wet clays and manures, and fertilizers are wasted until this is done. When the proportion of vegetable matter m a soil is so great that crops of grain go mostly to straw, a liberal MANURES. 67 top dressing of lime will rectify the evil, and improve both the quantity and the quality of the grain. All old pastures and grass lands may be improved by the application of lime or ashes, as a top dressing. Our western prairies, long cropped, will improve by liming. As we have said, when the soil is acid, a liberal supply of lime will destroy the acidity, and thus supply food for plants. It may be applied to potatoes, and other root crops, on almost any soil, with good efiect. If lime is needed, and is near at hand, supply it bounti- fully, but if lime is not plenty, apply a few bushels, say ten or fifteen each year, rather than a large amount at once. None of it will then be lost. The heavier the soil, (except when wet,) the larger the quantity of lime that may be sown. On light and sandy soils, the application of ten or fifteen bushels per acre once in five years, alternating with the plowing under of green crops, is often all the manuring that is necessary to keep them in fertility, although an occasional dressing of barnyard manure, well composted with muck, is still better. A few cau- tions are necessary in regard to the use of lime. Do not apply water too fixst when slacking. Do not use uuslacked lime. Keep it near the surface. Mix it well with the soil by harrow- ing. When applied to growing crops, be careful not to bring it in contact with the leaves or stems. Sprinkle it thinly all about the plants, and not in small heaps. Gas lime, which is often thrown away and wasted at the works, is the most valuable of all fertilizers. In compost with strawey manure, or mixed with barnyard manure when it is applied to the soil, it is better than fresh lime, as it comes from the puri- fiers powdered and highly charged with a;nmonia. Gypsum, Plaster of Paris, Sulphate of Lime ; substan- tially the same article under three different names, is an im- portant addition to our already large list of fertilizers. f53 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. It should be ground very fine, the finer the better, as it must be dissolved before it can aid the growth of plants. It is used as a top dressing on pastures, grass, grain, and growing crops. The nature of the soil, as Avith other fertilizers, deter- mines its value as a fertilizer. A soil already full is not bene fitted by more; an exhausted soil cannot be expected to be- come fertile by its application alone, but it will greatly aid barnyard manure; cold, wet soils must be underdrained before it will benefit them. But farms either sandy, gravelly, or loamy, if also well dunged, are greatly benefitted by plastering. Manuring a poor soil with nothing but lime or plaster is simply folly. Using plaster with manures is wisdom. Do these fer- tilizers exhaust the soil? * Such is a very common opinion. We reply, nothing put into a soil can exhaust it. It is the increased crops that are taken off the soil that exhaust it. Barnyard manure or green crops should always alternate with any of the fertilizers. Whatever may be the article; guano, bone flour, poudrette, superphosphate, or gypsum; remember you pay a very large price for a very impure article and only use it where, after the most careful economy, your home-made ma- nures fail to be sufficient. In applying any of these fertilizers, care should be taken that they are thoroughly incorporated into the soil. Pulverizers, such as efiective harrows, clod crushers, and subsoilers, assisted by thorough drainage, may be made of greater benefit than all the guano that is imported. Before leaving this subject, we will give our idea of the proper formation of the compost heap. When it is desirable to form a compost heap of weeds, straAv, litter, leaves, etc., with muck, without the addition of much dung, ashes and lime, or plaster, should be sprinkled in at the rate of a bushel to each layer. We recommend the long narrow heap rather than the round one. Spread muck at the bottom six inches, then litter MANURES. 69 or yard manure six inches, sprinkle witli plaster, and cover with muck. Continue this until the pile is three feet high. If dung is added in any large proportion it must be forked over to prevent heating. One cord of muck exposed for one year to the action of air and frost, ten bushels leached ashes and five bushels crushed bones, is an excellent compost for the garden or orchard. Any thing that will decompose is valuable in the compost heap. Our last words on this subject are, save every thing, solid or liquid, that will make manure ; pulverize it as thoroughly as possible, incorporate it thoroughly with the soil, and abundant crops will rise up to reward you for your care and labor. NoTK. — The ashes should be added to the compost heap, at the last forking over, just before spreading. If added before, they will tend to liberate valuable elements which will make their escape. CHAPTER IV. FARM IMPLEMENTS. HE amount of capital now invested in farm implements in fiNB I the United States, bj a reasonable estimate, exceeds five (^A^ hundred million dollars. No argument therefore is ^ needed to show the importance of its being well invested. The difference in economy, between working at a disadvantage with poor tools, and the use of the modern appliances to lighten labor and save time, is clear to every farmer, of even ordinary comprehension. There was a time in the earlier history of this courtrj'-, and it (jontinued with little change to within the memory of persons still living, when labor was cheap, when strong limbs and the power of endurance were the requisites chiefly sought for in the man on the farm, and when his work was paid for as so much brute physical force. Thought and skill found higher rewards in other callings, and the practical farmer was held to be suffi- ciently well informed if he was able to hold a plow, to mow, to sow, and to reap. When labor, or the physical force necessary to carry on the simple operations of the farm, could be obtained so easily, a' limited variety of implements was enough to satisfy the necessi- ties of the times. It was the custom for years, in some parts of the country, for any one owning a plow to go about and do the plowing for a considerable extent of territory. A town often paid a bounty 70 r J FARM IMPLEMEN'TS. 71 to any one who would buy and keep a ])low in repair lor the purpose of going out to work in this way. 4'he old wooden plow then in use was so massive and clumsy that it requirei] a strong and well fed team to move it through the soil; a heavy, muscular man to press it into the ground ; another to hold, jind another to drive. Other implements were of a similar rude description, and the various processes on the fai'in'wcrc conducted iu a manner that was traditional, handed down from l\uher to son, each one adhering to his prejudices in the strongest manner. Besides the plow there was the ruae iind heavy spade, the clumsy wooden fork, and now and then a harrow. As the plows in use were made chiefly at the bhicksiuitli's shop, without patterns, they assumed an almost infinite variety of forms, scarcely any two being precisely alike. Still, now and then a maker of a little more than ordinary skill would gain a local reputation which, in some cases, spread bevoiid the limits of his native village, and toso;ne extent over the country. Kence we hear of the " Carey plow," in somewhat general use, the particular form varying almost as much as the skill and efficiency of each small manufacturer or blacksmith wliw made it. This had a clumsy wrought iron share, a standard made of wood, and a wooden mould board, often plated over in a rough manner -with pieces of tin, sheet-iron, or pieces of old saw plates. The handles were upright, and held in place l)y two pins. A powerful man was required to hold it, and at least double the strength of team now used to do the same or better work. The " bar-side plow " and the " bull plow" were other forms that gained some general reputation, while the "shovel plow" was in use in the Southern States. In this, a rough hewn stick served for a beam, with another stick framed into it, upon the end of which a piece of iron, sliapod like a sharp pointed shovel, was fastened. Two rcjugh handles were 72 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. nailed or pinned to the sides of the beam, with a draught iron at the forward end of the beam. This plow, in a greatly improved form, is still extensively used there. {Fig. 20.) In attempting to convey some idea of the wonderful improve- ments which have been effected in the implements of the farm within the last fifty years, it will be convenient to group them under several heads, according to the work they are designed to accomplish; such as the Cleaning and Preparation of the Land, Sowing the Seed, and Harvesting the Crops. Implements fos Preparing the Land. — The preparation of land for crops varies with the state and character of the soil, the object being, in all cases, to secure a texture, or mechanical condition, most favorable to plant growth. The soil must be mellow, so that the roots and the air can penetrate it freely. The processes most commonly required are clearing, draining, ploughing, harrowing, and rolling, (for which the contrivance shown at^ij. 21 is very convenient.) Clearing is required in a new country, or where new land or woodland is to be cultivated. Cutti^ig down and removing the timber and brushwood is simple enough, but the greatest diffi- culty has always been to free the land from stumps and stones, which often present very serious obstacles to after cultivation, increasing the labor and expense at every step. Various simple powers have been devised to effect this end, by means of which a powerful leverage, or purchase, is gained, so as to raise a stump or a stone of several tons weight with comparative ease. One of the simplest and cheapest forms of the stump puller is shown in the annexed cut. [Fij. 22.) For stumps of ordinary size it is very convenient. It is so well illustrated as hardly to need any explanation. For pulling the tangled masses of roots of bushes, etc., a simple and powerful grapple is very n.seful. {Fig. 23.) I F',(j. 20. Shovel Tloav. J^-^ - Tl *^:^**iifei;«>#i^i|- ii'/*/. 21. TKEE SaAVIXO M.\( hi\7-. 73 4 FARM IMPLEMENTS. 75 For lifting and removing stones, we have found nothing equal to the Stone Lifter, as shown in the adjoining figure. FiU\-KHll« Foj. 2G. Deei' TiLLEii Plow Fig. -21. Telegraph Plow. FARM IMPLEMENTS. 83 Here a second or smaller front plow is attached to ilie plain cylinder plow. By this arrangement the top sod is first cut and thrown into the furrow, where it is completely covered, leaving the plowed surface light and easily worked by the harrow into a mellow seed bed. It gives a general idea of what is known as the Michigan or double mould-board plow. The mould-board is made of a curvature to fit a perfect cylinder, and the plow is named from the principles on which it is constructed. The " Conical Plow," invented and made by Solomon Mead, a practical plowman, of New Haven, Connecticut, is another instance of the adaptation of the various parts of the plow to mathematical principles. {Fig. 29.) The mould-board is made to fit the frustrum of a cone with the base or larger end forward. A block of wood, rounded ofl:' in the form of a cone, will fit closely to the surface of the mould- board from the highest point to within about two inches <.»f the cutting edge of the wing of the share. The angle of the share, for two or three inches of the cutting edges, is so slight that some inches of the furrow slice are completely separated before it rises much. This gives an easy separation of the furrow slice, since it rises slowly and gradually at first till it reaches a point higher up on the mould-board, where a more abrupt curve hastens it over. {Fig. 30.) By this form of the mould- board, the furrows are more thoroughly pulverized and crumbled up, than when the board is made to fit the straight surface of a cylinder. The surface of the board of the conical plow is neither concave nor con- vex in a horizontal plane, so that the friction between the board and the furrow slice is uniform, no greater in one place than another. It cleans, therefore, more readily than a concave board can do, and the wear is evenly distributed over the su: 34 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. face. The draught of this plow is easy, and in light and medium soils it leaves the surface eyen and mellow. Being short on the sole it is well adapted to stony land. It is remark- ably evenly balanced, and in stubble land it scarcely requires holdino-. This shows the plow to be made on true mechanical principles. A plow has been constructed for the purpose of opening drills to plant corn or potatoes, and for ridging up for certain kinds of vegetables or root-crops. {Fig. 31.) It is a double mould-board, as shown in the foregoing cut, and throws the furrow out both ways. It has often been found convenient in digging potatoes. A plow is often required for side hills, or rough and un- even land where the ordinary plow cannot readily be worked. "What is called the Swivel plow, {jig. 32,) is used for this purpose, the mould-board being constructed double, and so as to revolve from one side of the standard and beam to the other, making a right or left hand plow at pleasure, while the team is in the act of turning at the end of the land. The hook being lifted it turns of itself, or with only a slight efibrt, from one side to the other. The plowman may begin on the lower edge of a side hill, and turn his furrows all down the slope, or he may begin on one side of a level field, and lay his furrows all one way, and so avoid the dead furrow in the centre and the ridging on the sides. Now that the mowing machine has be- come so universal, it is quite important to keep the land level, and hence the Swivel plow is coming into general use upon well managed farms. This plough, manufactured by the Ames Plow Company of Boston, received the medal, or highest premium, of the Ne«r England Agricultural Society, at the great plow trial at Am herst, in 1868. FARM IMPLEMENTS. 8'^ In a fine, sticky mould, like the black friable soils ol the prairies of the West, none but steel plows can be used, for ilio reason that no others will "scour," or run clear. In some sections the soil seems like putty in its adhesive properties, while often a very fine quartz sand will rough up the polished surface of even a steel plow, if made of ordinary sheet or cast steel, and not high tempered or sufficiently hardened. Sheet steel plows have, therefore, been in use on the prairies of Illinois and other adjoining States for the last forty years, having been introduced as a matter of necessity. The first steel plow was made there by John Lane, near Lockport, Illinois, the sheet being taken from saw- mill Saws and welded together to get a sheet broad enough for a mould-board. This plow scoured in the heavier prairie soils, and was a great and decided advance upon all iron and wooden mould-boards hitherto in use. Sheets of spring or blistered steel we^e after- wards rolled out, and thousands of j^lows were made from them, the plow makers forming them with the hammer on the anvil. But even cast steel plows made in this manner were found to be defective. They could not be uniformly tempered. Many of them, therefore, would not scour perfectly and run clean The process of hammering, rolling, and bending, would produce a strain upon the fibre of the steel. It would stay in .sliape only while it was cold. It would warp while heating to get the requisite temper, and warp still more while cooling off' again. Very few, therefore, could be brought to a sufficient temper for a good scouring plow, so that even if it could stand the heat to produce a proper temper, the warping would ruin the form, so that the sections of the plows could not be duplicated, which is requsite in order to supply new shares in place of those broken or worn out. P6 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. To remedy these defects, a most important invention waa made by Mr. F. F. Smith, of Illinois, in 1860, that of casting plo^Y3 from molten steel in iron moulds, a process which was adopted by the Collins Manufacturing Company, of Collinsville, Connecticut, the same year. It was a process of casting cast steel, and hence the plows are known as cast-cast steel plows. {Fig. 34.) , Being cast to form, they will keep that form after receiving the highest temper. They can, therefore, easily be duplicated from molten cast steel. This process forms a hardened cast steel plow that the quartz sand, found in many prairie soils, does not scratch. The sections receive their temper kindly, because the metal is " set" in the iron moulds into which it is poured, and where it has no strain upon its fibre. They do not warp in heating or in cooling, so that the parts are duplicated perfectly. A cast-cast steel plow has all the ad- vantages of cast iron, and hardened cast steel combined. The Collins plow, though a comparatively recent invention, has rapidly gained popularity and favor, especially on the prairie farms of the AVest. When tempered hard, it never clogs, but clears perfectly in sticky soils, and hence its draught is light and easy. So far as its form and mechanical finish are con cerned, it is all that could be desired. {Fig. 85.) Among the advantages claimed for the Collins cast-cast steel plow, are: First^ that it will last much longer than any other steel plow. Sheet steel is often " cut through" after a short wear in gritty soils: Second^ that it will scour in the most difii- cult soils, where other plows fail, the extreme hardness ot the steel preventing all scratching, atid the high polish enabling it to shed the mould, however sticky it may be : Third, that it draws one fifth lighter than other plows cutting the same width and flepth : Fourth, that the share can be sharpened, or a new steel Fig. 28. Allex-:^ Cylixdek Tloav, Fig, 30. CoNICi^x Plow. 87 I FARM IMPLEMENTS. 89 point welded on as readily as on the ordinary plow, hy any blacksmith, the steel being perfectly malleable, and working kindly: Fifth, that any section can be duplicated or replaced, the share, land-side, and mould-board, being cast in moulds. Though absolutely essential to the prairie soils of the "West, a steel plow is equally servicable on many other soils, and many think it superior on account of its greater lightness of weight and of draught. The Subsoil Plow. It is often desirable to break up and loosen the subsoil, to a greater depth than can be done with the common plow, without bringing it up to the surface where its effect would be injurious to vegetation. This loosening up admits the air and the surface water to work down through the lower strata, and so gradually to improve the whole soil. To effect this often a subsoil plow is used to follow in the furrow of the common plow. {Fig. 36.) Subsoil plows are of various forms, the general principle of I the wedge being adopted in them all. Sometimes the same object is effected by a subsoil attachment to the ordinary plow. i In drained soils, and in soils where a hard pan has been formed ' just below the action of the common plow, subsoiling is highly beneficial. A large variety of plows are exhibited and advertised by inventors and manufacturers. We can only name those we deem the best. Dreere's steel plow, manufactured at Moline, Illinois, {Jig. 37,) has many good qualities, and the prairie fixrmer will not go amiss in purchasing it ; a curved iron beam plow, is a late improvement by the same firm. Dr. C. W. Grant, the veteran grape culturist of Ionia, New York, has perfected a series of trenching plows, which, for preparing ground for root crops, and particularly for orcliards and market gardening, are exceedingly valuable. 90 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Skinner's Gang Plow. In the wheat regions of the West, and in California, the Gang Plow has been introduced and worked to advantage. This is an arrangement by Avhich one, two, or more mould-boards are attached to a frame with wheels, filfe plowman riding on a sulky seat. {Fig. 38.) Skinner's Gang Plow, which is regarded as one of the best, met with, eminent success last season, giving great satisfaction in many sections of the country. This machine is manufac- tured by the Ames Plow Company, of Boston. With two mould-boards, it requires three or four horses, which are worked abreast. The point of draught can be regulated to accommodate the team, and there is no side or down draught on the pole. The plow can also be set to run deep or shallow, and be changed in a moment without stopping. The Steam Plow. The efforts made within a few years to introduce the steam plow upon the prairie soils of the West, have not proved successful. Several trials have been made in the last ten years, chiefly in the State of Illinois, but they have been abandoned, and nothing of any practical importance has come of them. The success attending similar efforts in Eng- land, has been due to the use of fixed engines, working the 'iommon plow by means of wire cables. Iron machinery, coal, and labor, are cheaper there than in this country ; and the same appliances that might be economical there, would perhaps result ' in failure here, so far as the saving of any expense is concerned. Intelligent, practical farmers, have, at any rate, come to the conclusion that the inventions offered to the country possess no economical advantages over the simple implements now in use. The opinion is however still entertained, that steam plowing ought to be practicable upon the broad stoneless prairies of the West, and that it is destined, ultimately, to come into use there Comstock's Rotary Spader. In the Rotary Spader, a dif Fi'j. o± sAvivEL Plow. Fig. 33. Iron Beam Plotv. FARM nirLEMEXTS. 9c5 ferout principle is attempted. Instead of plowing, tlie Spader i is designed to dig up ana loosen the earth to a sufficient depth. This has not as yet succeeded to any extent in this country, unless we except the machine invented for this purpose by [Ion. Cicero Comstock, of Milwaukee. Ilis machine is some- vhat complex and expensive, but it has been introduced into some parts of the West, more especially in Illinois, where it is said to have been used with some satisfaction. In a clear, friable soil, the Spader will dig up a strip of land, three feet wide, to the depth of eight inches, and with a power of two or four horses, will spade about six acres a day. It seems probable that a digger, in some form, will eventually supersede the plow, as it appears to be more philosophically adapted to the end in view. It is proper to say, that Comstock's Spader made a successful trial at Paris in 1867, and that it is now being introduced into France, Belgium, und Great Britain, as the result of its success. Harrows. The harrow naturally follows the plow, and its object is to effect a more complete pulverization of the soil. It has, till quite recently, undergone less changes and modifica- tions than most other farm implements ; and, in fact, many forms of the wooden harrow bear some resemblance to those of the ancients, as illustrated on medals and sculptures. Though simple, the harrow, if properly constructed and worked, is hardly less important than the plow itself. The triangular harrow is, perhaps, the most common. Tbe Geddes Harrow, as shown in the annexed cut, is a modification of it. It is made of two pieces of frame work, joined by hinges in the centre, so as to adapt itself easily to uneven surfaces. One side can be raised to pass an obstruction without stopping the team, and without interfering with the operation of tho other half. Each tooth makes its own impression, and the 94 now TO :^iAKE the farm pat. extent and effectiveness of the work is dependent in part upon tlie number of teeth, which vary from twenty to fifty. {Fig. 89.) The Hinge Harrow. The improved Hinge Harrow is an effective implement in breaking up clods, disengaging roots, and pulverizing the soil. It is usually made so as to take a breadth of five feet. {Fig. 40.) Two pieces of framework are connected by iron hinges, in the form of common barn door hinges, extending across the frame, and bolted to each bar, helping to strengthen the whole. This harrow may be folded double, or separated into two parts for transportation or other purposes. Take the Geddes Harrow, either side may be lifted, and it easily adapts itself to uneven surfaces, as in passing through hollows, and over knolls or ridges, so that it is always at work. It usually contains thirty teeth, so arranged that they are not liable to clog. Thu frame is made of white oak bars, three inches square. It may be drawn by either end, so as to relieve the wear on the teeth. This, like any other harrow, should be moved rapidly over the ground. A light, sharp-toothed harrow, moved quickly, accomplishes far the best work. The work of the same im- plement, moved quickly or sluggishly over the ground, differs widely in its results. The implement should therefore be com- pact in form, not too light, and furnished with sharp steel- Dointed teeth. Shares' Harrow. For some purposes, the form known as Shares' Harrow, is superior to all others. The advantage of this lies in the form of the colters, which are broad thin blades of cast iron; or, what is far better, of steel, because lighter, less easily broken, and less liable to wear dull. These teeth, or colters, incline forward, which prevents clogging with grass roots, stones, or clods. There is a mould-board attached to and forming the lower end of the colter. This harrow is six Fig. 34, Collins Plow. Fig. Bo. CoLLixs Plow. VV«i^>*''-» * Fig. 3G. Subsoil Plow. 95 FAUM niPLEMEXTS. 97 feet wide when expanded, but may be closed up to two feet, for transportation. It is usually made seven feet long, and weigbs about one hundred and fifty pounds. {Fig. 41.) For pulverizing the surface of sod land we have found no harrow equal to this. The sharp flat blades, or teeth, sloping backward like a sled runner, cut the soil very effectively, pass over and press down the sod, while, at the same time, shaving off and grinding up finely the upper surface. A single passage of this implement will mellow the surface more than twice as deeply as the ordinary harrow; acting also like a roller, to press and keep down the grassy sod. Several forms of rotary harrows have been invented, but arc not likely to come into general use. Horse IIoes and Cultivators. Anothei class of imple- ments combine the principles of the plow and the hairow. These are the Horse Hoes and the Cultivators, which have ren- dered very important aid both in the original preparation of the soil, and the after- cultivation between the rows of corn or other crops. {Fig. 42.) One of the most useful of these is known as Knox's patent, as made by the Ames Plow Company, of Boston. It is de- signed to hoe or cultivate corn and root crops, cotton, and the hoed crops generally. It is very light, und easily managed, with the draught of one horse, and thoroughly pulverizes the surface, cutting up weeds, grass, etc. It is steadied by a forward tooth, or colter, the two middle teeth being miniature plows, which are easily changed from one side to the other, turning the earth from, or towards the rows, as may be desired. The frequent use of the cultivator among hoed or drilled crops, cannot be too highly recommended. It is the easiest and quickest way to keep down the weeds. It has been said, with much show of truth, that one day's work in the cornfield, with 98 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. a horse and cultivator, is wortli ten with the hand hoe, and if the farmer would use it oftener, as often as once a week in a dry time, he would find it pay in the result of the crop. To facilitate this work, the rows, of course, should run even and straight. The Sulky Cultivator {fig. 43) has been gaining in favor for the last few years, and will very soon, no doubt, come into general use, as its advantages in cultivating corn on a large scale become more and more apparent. The driver is furnished with a seat sufficiently high to be in full view of his work, the forward shovels being some feet in front of him. This is made by Dreere & Co., of Moline, Illinois. Other modifications of the Sulky Cultivator are manufactured in other parts of the country. Seerated Clod Crusher. The clod crusher is one of those implements that have made their way but slowly into public favor, partly because of their expense, and partly because they have failed to be appreciated as they deserve to be. But on some soils, particularly on stiff cloddy lands, dependent very much upon the season, it is really invaluable. {Fig. 44.) In a wet season it often happens that strong lands cannot be worked to advantage. The soil turns up in solid lumps, which become as hard as a brick when dry. The clod crusher then becomes almost indispensable. On light land farms, too, it may often be substituted to advan- tage for the common iron roller. Like the roller, it is usually cast in sections kept apart by washes on the main shaft. It pul- verizes the lumpy soil, and breaks down the clods much more i effectually, while on lighter soils it compacts the surface earth. J No farmer who has once used the clod crusher so as to be able to appreciate its many advantages, would think of doing ??ithout it, and wherever it is used it will increase in favor. Cooper's Lime Spreader. The use of lime as a manure is -J Fig. 37. DKEEirs Cast-steel CLirrtK Teow. Fig. 38. Skinner s Gang Plow. I il FARM IMPLEMEXTS. 101 very common in many sections of the country, especially in the wheat growing regions, and the necessity for it on some classes of soils is very generally admitted. It must be regarded as one of the most important fertilizers we have, after barnyard or stable manure, and the judicious application of it on a large proportion of the farms of the country would be attended with beneficial results. It should be sown fresh slacked, and in a fine condition, and immediately mixed with the soil by harrow- ing or plowing. The better practice is to plow first, spread the lime upon the furrows and harrow in. It is a laborious and difficult operation to spread it uniformly over a large area. Cooper's Lime Spreader meets this difficulty and does its work with perfect evenness, saving a great deal of labor and time. It may be worked either with oxen, horses, or mules, may be loaded anywhere, and hauled to the field without waste, where it may be put in operation in a few seconds. The quantity per acre is easily regulated. The machine weighs no more than the common ox-cart, and it will carry as large a load, feeds itself, and crushes and pulverizes all lumps. {Fig. 45.) One man and team can do as much with this spreader, as four men and two teams can do without it, while the manner in which it performs its work cannot be equalled by hand spread- ing. It is simple, strong, and durable, the operating parts being made of iron. It may be used to sow ashes and plaster as well as lime. The Star Drill. The practice of drilling in wheat is of comparatively recent origin, but the advantages of it are now so well understood that few English farmers would think of sowing wheat broadcast, and the best farmers of this country have adopted it. By means of the drill the seed may be dropped and covered uniformly, and, if in dry weather, deeply. Sown broadcast and harrowed in, during a period of drought j[02 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. such as we often have at the time of sowing winter wheat much of the seed will fail to germinate. The kernels may absorb moisture at night, but the parching sun dries it out by day, and these alternations destroy the germ. Besides, the amount of seed required per acre is considerably less, and the liability to winter-kill, by being thrown out by frost, is less. These and other advantages of drilling over broadcast sowing, are so apparent that the time cannot be far distant when the practice will become quite general, if not universal. The Star Drill is manufactured by Ewell & Co., of Baltimore, Maryland. It combines the drill, the cultivator, and the roller. The seed is taken from the seed-box by a revolving distributor, md dropped just behind and in the furrow of the plow, and left to be covered by the next plow. The openings at regular intervals in the distributor provide for a continuous stream of seed, and the quantity is increased or diminished by ihe depth of the openings. {Fig. 47). This machine may be worked separately, as a cultivator only, if the operator desires, the roller and seeding apparatus being readily detached. Various other drills are manufactured in different sections of the country well adapted to the purpose in view, and we strongly advise their use on all grain farms. Seed Sowers. A great variety of smaller machines for sow- ing garden, and other minute seeds, have been invented and introduced. In principle they do not greatly vary, though some are no doubt more efiicient than others. One of the kter inventions of this class is known as the Improved Danvers Seed Sower, made by G. E. Herrick, of ^yn-ifield Centre, Massachusetts. {Figs. 48 and 49.) It is to be recommended for its simplicity and cheapness, a Firj. 39 Geddes' Harrow I FARM IMPLEMENTS.' 105 feature of some importance, since it insures its use in inaiiy lauds, where a more expensive machine would not find its way. It sows onions, turnips and other similar seeds, with great uni- formity, and mangolds, carrots, beets, etc., as we^l as any machine I have examined. Weeding Hoes. The first American patent for improv^e- ment in hoes was granted in 1819, and for cast steel hoes in 1827, though cast steel hoes were made in Philadelphia, by two establishments, as early as 1823. The business in the manu- facture of these and other small agricultural implements has grown up to immense proportions, employing a large number of hands. For lightness and high finish, combined with strength and durability, American hoes are unrivalled. Allen's Weeding IIoe. A simple but effective and valu- able implement is a weeding hoe, invented by Geo. P. Allen, of Woodbury, Connecticut. {Fig. 50.) It is a scuflle hoe, to be worked back and forth between the rows of vegetables, running just beneath the surface. It is one of the most useful little implements in the garden, and in clean- ing walks. The zigzag edges of the blade greatly increase the cutting surface, and make it easy of operation and very useful in destroying weeds. It is appropriately named "the weed killer." Implements for Harvesting. But by fiir the mo?t striking improvements in modern agricultural implements, are those connected with the harvesting of crops, particularly the grass crop and the smaller grains. So important have these become to the welfare of society, that if we could suppose them to be blotted out of existence, even for a single season, it would produce a shock, which would be felt all over the civilized world. And yet scarcely more than fifteen years have elapsed, since the practical economy of mowers and reapers became an 106 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. established fact, since their ultimate success and practibility was acknowledged. The number of mowing machines made, and in use previous to 1850, was probably less than five thousand. Ketchum'a mower, and Hussey's reaper, were the pioneers, the machines tliat did more to make it certain that grass and grain would Unally be harvested by machinery, than any former patents, and yet when the former was tried at the show of the New York Society at Buffalo, in 1848, the large body of farmers who witnessed the trial were not prepared to admit that the work accomplished was good enough to be even tolerated in com- parison with the hand scythes. Some thought it might work in straight coarse grass, but in finer grass it was sure to clog. At a subsequent trial of reapers and mowers, instituted by the New York State Agricultural Society at Geneva, in 1852, seven machines competed as mowers, and nine as reapers, but not more than two or three of the former were capable of equalling the common scythe in the quality of work performed, and not one among them all, when brought to a stand in the graSvS, could start again without backing to get up speed. All the machines had a heavy side draught, some of them to such an extent as to wear seriously on the team. None of them could turn readily in any reasonable space, and all were liable to tear up the sward in the operation. The old Manning and the Ketchum machines, were the only ones, as mowers, that were capable of doing satisfactory work. One or two of the reapers, like the Burrall, the Manning, and the Seymour & Morgan machines, did fair work, and the judges decided that, in comparison with the hand-cradle, they showed a saving of eighty-eight and three quarter cents per acre. Here was some gain ; a positive advance. But still most of the reapers as Avell as the mowers, did very inferior w^ork; the ' •./(•(\t,<^. Fuj. i.-l. KXOX'S JIOKbE iiOE. Fig. 43. Dreer's Sulkey Cultivator. Fig. 44. Allex's Clod Crusher. 107 FARyi IMPLEMEXTS. 109 draught in all was heavy, and some of the best had a side draught sufficient to be destructive to the team. In June of the same year, 1852, twelve reaping machines and several mowers, competed at the trial held by the Ohio State Board of Agriculture, among them McCormick's, patented first in 1834, and Hussey's, first patented in 1833 ; but according to the report of the judges, there appears to have been no very striking superiority in the merits of the different machines. The importance of these early efforts to overcome the obsta- cles to the successful operation of new machinery, will be sufficiently clear when we consider that more than twenty million tons of hay are annually raised and cured in this coun- try, and that the grass and hay crop is the true basis of our agriculture, since, without it, in a northern climate, we can have no cattle; without cattle, no manure; without manure, no crops. "With the necessity we have for stall feeding, from three to five or six months of the year, for means of which we are dependent mainly upon hay, it is apparent that, in an economical point of view, this crop ia one of the most important that can occupy the farmer's attention. From this time the inventive genius of the country was stimulated to an extraordinary degree of activity. Patents began to multiply, and the rapid growth of this important branch of manufactures may be dated about the year 1855. Local trials, to test the merits of the various machines, were held in different parts of the country nearly every year ; but five years after the meeting at Geneva, a general desire was mani- fested to have another on a scale that should bring together all the prominent reapers and mowers in the country ; and, accord- ingly, the United States Agricultural Society held a national trial at Syracuse, N'ew York, in 1857. Here more than forty entries of mowers and reapers were made, and they were no now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. brought to the test upon the field. Striking improvements had been made since the Geneva trial. The draught had been very materially lessened in most of the machines, though the side draught in some of them was still objectionably large. In the ability to cut fine and thick grass without clogging, there was manifest progress in most of the machines, and the two that stood first at Geneva had gained something in this point, but of the ilineteen that competed as mowers, only three could start in fine grass without backing to get up speed. The Buck- eye, patented in 1856, won its first great triumph here, and re- ceived the first premium. New inventions and improvements now multiplied in quick succession, every year adding to the list. In 1859, the cele- brated Wood mower was invented, and very soon took a high rank. In 1804, there were no less than one hundred and eighty-seven establishments in the country devoted to the manufacture of reapers and mowers, many of them of vast extent, substantially built, completely furnished with abundant power, machinery, and tools of the finest description, while tlie work had become wisely and beautifully systematized. The population directly sustained by these manufactories exceeded sixty thousand. The value of the annual product exceeded fifteen millions of dollars, and the number of machines made amounted to about one hundred thousand. After the lapse of nine years from the Syracuse trial, it was thought desirable to hold another, which should be national in its character, machines from all parts of the United States being allowed to compete; and this was accordingly arranged under the direction of the New York State Society, at Auburn, in that state, in July, 1866. For this trial the number of mowers which entered, single and combined, was forty-four, the number of reapers, thirty, in Fl(j. 45. CooPEii'5 Lime Spkeadek. Fig. 40. Buckeye Mowee. wmm 111 .1 FARM IMPLEMENTS. 113 all seventy-four. As compared with the machines at Syracuse, nine years previous, there was a decided improvement in work- manship and mechanical finish. The mowers were more com- pact, 'more simple in construction, lighter and equally strong. They ran with less friction, with easier draught, and generally with less noise. They cut the grass better, especially over uneven surfaces. The following extract from the report of the committee will convey an idea of the general progress: — "Those who had been present at former trials, were astonished at the general perfec- tion which had been attained by manufacturers of mowing machines. Every machine, with two exceptions, did good work, which would be acceptable to any farmer ; and the ap- pearance of the whole meadow, after it had been raked over was vastly better than the average mowing of the best farmer in the State, notwithstanding the great difficulties that had to be encountered. At previous trials, very few machines could stop in the grass and start without backing for a fresh start. At the present trial, every machine stopped in the grass and started again without backing, without any difficulty, and without leaving any perceptible ridge to mark the place where it occurred," In this trial the Buckeye, as at Syracuse, rec^eived the gold medal as a mower, a tribute alike to the genius of the inventor and the skill of the manufacturers, Messrs. Adriance, Piatt & Co., of Poughkeepsie, -New York. This machine is also manu- factured, for a part of the New England States, by the Buckeye Mowing Machine Company, at West Fitchburg, Massachusetts. The frame of the Buckeye is made of wood, this being re- garded as, on the whole, the best material. Where iron is used the weight of the machine is increased, and, in case of breakage, it is not so easily repaired; in fact, a new frame is needed, 114 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. requiring tlie parts to be fitted anew. The driving wheels are thirty inches in diameter and run loosely on the axle. The draught is direct and easy, and it is capable of working in hollows and over ridges with a remarkable power of adaptation. The cutting is easy and uniform, the cutter bar entirely inde- pendent of the frame, and having nothing but its own weight to sustain, under any circumstances. The Buckeye deserves its high reputation. Wood Prize Mower. This machine, long a favorite in this country, has attracted a more than ordinary share of attention and interest by its triumphs at the great Paris Exposition of 1867, where, in competition with some of the best mowers in the world, it won two grand gold medals, and secured for its inventor, Walter A. Wood, Esq., the honorable distinction of a decoration of the Imperial Cross of the Legion of Honor. This gives it a national reputation, in which every American feels a just and national pride, for it has probably done more to estab- lish and vindicate the high character of American agricultural mechanics abroad than any other machine, having taken the highest prizes offered in this or any other country, both for practical work on the field and perfection of mechanical con- struction. {Fig. 54.) This is a jointed bar mower, running upon two driving wheels, each furnished with internal gear, so as to make each an independent driving wheel. These wheels are so placed as to run in the tracks made by the track clearer to avoid unne- cessary injury to the crop. The spring seat is so placed as to balance the tongue, so as to leave no pressure on the necks of the team. The frame is of wood, made of four timbers lying in the same:^ plane, the middle line over the axle. The tongue is attached i to the axle by a joint. The forward part of the shoe is attached \ Il, i|lij|l||,||||l|illli||iiill|,li!iilill| ^ 115 FARM IMPLEMENTS. 117 to a spring bar bolted to the underside of tlie left front corner of the frame. The connections on the shoe are by joints which allow the bar to be turned up to a perpendicular position. The outer shoe is sharp on the under side to part the grass, and has a wheel five inches in diameter adjustable to regulate the height. The holders on the finger bar arc chilled at the bearings of the cutter bar. The guard fingers are made of malleable iron and faced with steel, securely riveted in. The cutter bar is raised with great ease to enable the machine to pass an obstruction. Lightness of draught is secured by a simple and direct applica- tion of power, all needless parts being dispensed with, so as to lessen the friction. The machine is light and elastic, and yet strong enough to stop the strongest team. Simplicity of con- struction insures durablity. This machine cuts with remarkable smoothness and uni- formity, and is not liable to clog. It is manufactured by the "Wood Mowing Machine Company, at Hoosick Falls, New York. About seventeen hundred machines a month on an average have been made at the old works, employing five hun- dred hands. The capacity of the works is now doubled. • Fully one hundred thousand machines have been built, and fifty thousand were in the harvest fields last year. The sale abroad is also very large. American Hay Tedder. The mower was an irameasura ble step in advance upon the older methods of cutting grass. It comes in at a time when the work of the farm is peculiarly laborious ; when labor is held at even higher than the usual high rate of wages, when the weather is often fickle and pre- carious, generally oppressively hot and trying to physical strength, and it relieves the severest strain upon the muscles during the time of harvest. The invention of the horse rake preceded it in point of time. [18 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. and must be regarded as second only in importance ii. tlie economy of labor, taking the place of many men, and accom- plishing a larger amount of work equally well, at a season when, if ever, time is money. But there was still some new invention wanting. The faimer could now cut his grass rapidly enough, and, after it was suffi- ciently cured, he could gather it rapidly enough, but it was still difficult to handle and cure what the mowing machine could easily cut. Spreading hay by hand, though not so laborious as some other processes of haymaking, is slow work, and, not- withstanding the ease and rapidity with which the other work could be done, a strong force was still required to cure the grass. There was a want of balance in the new system, and here the Tedder came in to complete and round it out as it were, [n this respect it must be regarded as of nearly equal iraport- ince with the mower and the horse rake. After one or two attempts, which met with partial success, we have now the American Hay Tedder, as manufactured by the Ames Plow Company, of Boston. The draught of this machine is light and easy for the horse, the construction simple, the work effective. {Fig. 55.) The forward action of the old English machine was too vio- lent, and it handled the half made hay too roughly. Every farmer knows that, after grass is partially dried in the process of haymaking, a rough and violent action or handling is to be avoided. It breaks off the tender leaves of the clover, shakes out the seeds of such of the plants as have approached the period of maturity, and wastes many of the finer leaves of the natural grasses. The American Tedder has aimed to avoid this objection, while, at the same time, it lightens up the grass to the sun and air, and hastens the curing process without the Fig. 48. Daxver's Seed fc-owEK. Fiy 49. Fig. oO. Allen'-s W eeijixg lion. Fig. 52. IIOKSE Foi:k. Fig. 51. Fig. 53. Self Locking Rake. 119 FARM IMPLEMEXTS. 121 waste which would follow a violent hurling into the air of wilted and partially cured grass. This machine has been used very successfully and satisfac torily in New England and in some other sections of the country, and it supplies a want which has been felt since the introduction of the mower, even more than ever before. Those who have used it consider it quite indispensable. The Horse Rake. In raking hay the work to be per- formed, though slow, is comparatively light, and does not require the exertion of a great amount of physical strength. Here, as also in spreading or tending hay, the application of animal power is of the greatest advantage, since it multiplies the efficiency of the hand many times. The same is true in the case of the hand drills for sowing the smaller seeds, like turnips, carrots, beets, etc., where the labor by hand is slow, and, though light, is laborious and irksome. It has been found, therefore, that the labor to be performed by a good horse rake, is equal to that of eight or ten men, in the same time, and that from twenty to thirty acres a day can be gathered by a single horse and driver, without over exertion. Of the innumerable patents issued for horse rakes, within the last twenty years, it would be difficult to single out any one and say that it was the best, all things considered, or that the merits of all have been or could be united in one. Still, many of them work so perfectly that it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that they leave little, if any thing, to be desired in this direction. The best judges have arrived at the conviction that wdre oi Bteel teeth have the preference on account of their wider range of usefulness. The Bay State is a steel tooth, each tooth being hinged to the axle and held down by spiral springs. The ease with which 122 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. this rake is worked is quite wonderful. The driver baa only to touch a lever with his foot, with a slight pressure, which any boy can apply, when the rake is lifted by the horse, and, by means of the cleaning rods, frees itself at once of its load. It is set so high that a large windrow can be gathered, and, if de- sired, the windrow can be cocked ready for loading. This rake is independent in its action, that is, each tooth operates independently of the others in passing an obstruction, while the draught is light, and the material and workmanship are unsurpassed. It is made by the Buckeye Mowing Machine Company, at West Fitchburg, Massachusetts. {Fig. 56.) A simple and effective machine has been introduced into New England, known as the Whittemore Self-Locking Eake. This may be worked either by the foot or the hand, and is easy of operation. The lock lever is arranged to hold the teeth to the ground in doing heavy work, when, in many machines, they are inclined to rise and scatter the hay. An easy spring seat is secured to the axle, so that the weight of the driver does not press upon the horse. It can be set with the teeth a little above the surface of the ground, when it becomes a very effec- tive gleaner in grain stubbles. The teeth of this rake act inde- pendently also, and it is furnished with cleaners, which secure the instant unloading of the rake when it is lifted. It is manu- factured by the Messrs. Whittemore, Belcher & Co., of Chico- pee Falls, Massachusetts. {Fig. 53.) No farmer can afford to be without a good horse rake. It saves labor and time at the most critical season of the year, and often when, without one, it would be impossible to avoid the injury from rain or exposure to foul weather. In the economy of labor, the horse rake must be regarded as second only in importance to the mower, and it is almost as essential on the farm as the plow itself. 123 FARM IMPLEMENTS. 125 The Montgomery Fork. A recent improvement in forks . has been introduced by the Montgomery Fork Co., 25-i Pearl ^ St., New York city, by which the tines can be taken out and replaced without loss of time in case of breakage or other accident. AU formers know that in repairing a broken tine of the common fork, the other tine is usually made worthless, ; and so on the breakage of a tine the whole fork is thrown aside ' as lost. By this arrangement, if the handle should get broken the tines are good and can be set in another handle in a few minutes, and the fork is as good as ever. The handle, instead of being tapered at the end near the fork, is made larger there, so that the whole strength of the wood is left. The ferule, easily re- moved by loosing a screw, binds the whole together, and holds the tines firmly in position. The process of manufacture se- cures a uniform texture of steel, and the weight of the fork is no greater than ordinary. This fork received the first pronium at the New York State Fair of 18G7. In many sections of the country it will be found to be good economy to use a fork of this description. {Fig. 61.) The Horse Fork. Among the labor-saving implements designed to relieve the severe labors of hay making, few have met with greater popular favor than the Horse Pitchfork. It saves not only the violent strain upon the muscles, but a great deal of time, which, in the hurry of haying, is often of ihe utmost importance. Several different patterns have been introduced and worked with success. The Harpoon fork was originally invented by E. L. Walker, of Jenner Crossroads, Somerset county, Pennsylvania, It was simply a straight spear, and, as such, it entered the hay when a bolt was drawn at the handle, which threw out at the side one 126 HOW TO MAKE FAEMING PAY. or more lateral hooks, which seized upon the hay, anJ thus lifted it ill large quantities from the load. There is no doubt that a larger amounly of hay can be removed from the load by this arrangement than by any other style of fork. But Mr. Walker became satisfied that he could improve upon it, and r.ow his fork has assumed the simple form as illustrated in fig. 52, and in this form it has been very largely sold and very widely distributed over the country. It is made entirely of iron, which gives it durability, while its weight is only ten pounds. The construction, as appears by the cut, is extremely simple, and there seems to be but little liability to get out of order, having no tines to bend or to break. It takes up but little room as compared with some of the other forks, and it is worked so easily that a boy can operate it. Its strength and its grappling power are so great, that it will take and hold enough for two horses to raise over the barn beams. At a trial before the Pennsylvania State Fair, in competition with others, the committee report that they found it the best implement for unloading hay. This Fork is manufactured by Wheeler, Melick & Co., of Albany, New York, who send out with it the best style of auti-friclion roller pulleys, which are admirably designed to facilitate the practical working of the machine. The Eeapers. The progress made in the improvement, and the extent of the manufacture of reapers, is scarcely less impor- tant than that of mowers. For the boundless West it is, per- haps, of even great importance. The last ofl&cial census re ported an aggregate production of 178,104,924 bushels of wheat, and it is hardly too much to say that the product at the present time exceeds two hundred million bushels. The appli- cation of machinery has given us the power of an almost unlim- ited expansion of this product. ■'''m^dihM%irRm FARM IMPLEMENTS. 129 At the public trial of reapers at Geneva, fifteen years ago, all the machines 'were very defective in the execution of their work. The draught was very heavy, and the side draught even in the best of them was described as killing for the horses. There was not, at that time, a self-raker in the country that was capable of doing satisfactory work. Five years later, at Syracuse, some progress had been made in this direction, but scarcely more than to make it certain that a self-raking reaper was destined eventually to succeed. At the Auburn trial, in 1866, the self-rakers did better work than the hand rakers, and they will very soon drive the hand raking machines completely from the field. They had im- proved in other respects to such an extent that they could readily cut lodged and tangled grain, and leave it in a good condition for binding. The side draught, which, in previous trials, had been severe, was reduced to a very low point, some machines showing none at all. The next demand on the mechanical ingenuity of the country is for a self-binding, as well as a self-raking, reaper, and there is strong reason to believe that this important object will soon be attained. Attempts have been made to accomplish this, but they have not as yet given general satisfaction. Perhaps ex- ception should be made in favor of Carpenter's automatic Grain Binder, patented by S. D. Carpenter, of Madison, Wisconsin, who is thought by many good judges to have discovered the principle on which an automatic binder, to be attached to the reaper, is possible. This is a contrivance which binds with a wire in bundles to be regulated by the character of the crops. It does not materially add to the draught of the reaper. The automatic rake and the automatic binder, both attach- ments to the reaper, must be regarded as the most important recent inventions in agricultural machinery. Neither of them |^3Q HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. can be said to be perfected, but the success so far attained seems to leave no doubt that the time will soon come when the hand raking machines will be as much behind the times as the sickle and the scythe. One of the most popular self-rake reapers at the West is that of Walter A. Wood. This machine was first brought out in I860, with a novel mode of discharging the grain. The motion criven to the rake resembles somewhat the action of the human arm, and it leaves the grain in gavels the size of which is regu- lated by the will of the driver. The rake is driven by a chain which passes around the edge of the platform, working with great precision, and delivering the grain in compact bundles ready for binding. The reaper cuts a swath five and a half feet in width, and will do from fifteen to twenty acres a day, in the most satisfactory manner. {Fig. 67.) Use and Care of Mowers and Eeapers. With regard to the higher cost machines upon the farm, it would be natural to expect the exercise of at least ordinary care, not only in their selection but in their management, both while in use and after the season is past. But farmers are notoriously negligent. A valuable mowing machine is not uncommonly left, after its work for the season is done, under the lee side of a fence, uncleaned and unoiled, or perhaps under the barn, or in an open shed, where it is liable to rust and be injured by neglect far more than by the wear and tear of a whole season's usage. The following suggestions apply to both mowers and reapers : 1. Buy the best. It will be the cheapest in the end. 2. Buy it early, so as to be sure you have the one you wish, and not find, just as you are ready to begin, that you cannot get •he one you intended to buy. 3. When attaching the horses see that the knives are in a 131 FARM IMPLEMENTS. 133 horizontal position, neither pointed up or down. This secures a smooth, even stubble. 4. See that all the nuts are turned tight. The manufacturers are often obliged to finish a part of their machines some months before the time for using them, and all wood is liable to shrink a little. 5. Buy the verj best sperm oil, if possible. Poor oil will be sure to gum up. If you cannot get sperm oil, kerosene and castor oil mixed, one third of the former and two thirds of the latter, will answer a good purpose. 6. Keep the bearings well oiled, also the buttons which hold the knives down to the plates in the fingers. 7. Keep the knives sharp all the time. Take both scythes into the field sharp, and once an hour or so rub the edges with a sharp gritted whetstone; this saves sweating your horses, and the wear upon the machine, and leaves the field looking as if you understood your business. Use the scythes about equally, aa they fit and work the better for it. 8. Keep the buttons down as close to the cutter as possible, and have the scythes play easily. They are made of malleable iron, and will bear pounding, but in long use they are apt to wear loose. Examine them frequently, and as they wear, rap them down with a hammer so as to keep the edge of the cutters in close contact with the edge of the steel plates in the fingers. You might as well expect to cut wet paper with a dull, loose jointed pair of scissors, as to cut grass with dull scythes, not in their proper position. 9. When the cutters become worn to a point, and begin to grow shorter, have new ones put on ; it is the poorest economy tD use them so ; like using a worn out plough point. 10. Examine your machine carefully as soon as haying or reaping is over, and if it needs any repairs, send it at once to 134 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. the manufacturer, unless you can replace the parts wanted yourself. He lias time in the fall, before beginning to turn out machines for the next season, to attend to it faithfully, and you save much vexation, and perhaps loss, which might occur if this is neglected till spring. 11. If the machine needs no repairing, take out the knives, wipe them clean, and then rub them over Avith an oily rag, to prevent rusting. Oil the fingers, and remove the pole and bar, put the bar and scythe in a dry place, clean your machine thoroughly, and keep it dry and clean through the winter. If these suggestions are not heeded do not blame the manu- facturer if your machine soon wears out. Threshing IJ^Iachines. The improvement in machines for separating grain, has been constantly progressive, until they may be said to have reached a truly wonderful degree of per- fection. The older portion of the present generation can re- member, when the old fashioned flail resounded on nearly every threshmg floor in the country. Here and there the grain was trodden out by the tramping of cattle. The writer often adopted this method of separating both wheat and oats, many years ago, not merely by way of experiment, to see if the thing could be done, but in real earnest, as if it were one of the best and most approved ways in the world. . But what a waste of time and lal)or ! Wheeler's patent is a well known and efficient thresher, which saves labor and time, and separates and cleans wheat or rye, with great rapidity. The machine is manufactured by Wheeler, Melick & Co., of Albany, New York. Twa horses will work the machine, while a three horse power will drive it with such velocity, as to keep a smart man hard at Avork to feed it up to its capacity. {Fig. 58.) The horse power thresher is of English orioin. Its introduc- I FARM IMPLEMENTS. 187 lion was strenuously opposed by the laboring classes there, as an attempt to infringe upon their rights. Separators and winnowers were attached to the thresher at a much more recent date, but they have been found so important, that now few machines are made without one or the other. Straw carriers followed soon after, by means of which the straw is stacked away. A bagging apparatus is now* often added, so that the grain is threshed, winnowed, measured, and bagged, ready for market, at one operation, and the straw taken care of with very little labor. Most of the labor is done by the team, while the rapidity of work is quite wonderful. At the trial of Threshing Machines, at the Paris exhibition, in 1855, the victory was won by an American machine, and during the operation, to ascertain the comparative rapidity and economy of threshing, six men were engaged in threshing with flails, who, in one hour, threshed sixty litres of wheat. In the eame time Pitt's American machine threshed 740 litres Clayton's Enulish " " 410 " Duvoir-8 French " " 250 " • rinet's " " " 150 " A French journal, speaking of this trial, said: "This American machine literally devoured the sheaves of wheat. The eye cannot follow the work which is eflfected between the entrance of the sheaves, and the end of the operation. It is otk' of the greatest results which it is possible to obtain. The im- pression which the spectacle produced on the Arab chiefs, was profound." And yet, since that exhibition, still farther im- provements have been effected in this country. {Fig. 59.) Pitt's machine itself has been somewhat improved, and as now manufactured by J. T. Case & Co., of Racine, Wisconsin, is one of the very best machines in the world. These makers 138 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. turn off from three hundred to five hundred machines in a year, each one including an admirable thresher, separator, and carrier. Most of our approved American machines, in fact, now in use, separate the grain from the chaff and the straw and carry the latter back to the stack. Many of them measure and bag the Avheat, ready for market. Wherever our com- plete machines have come into competition with those of Eng- lish, French, or other European manufacture, they have in variably proved themselves superior in point of simplicity, rapidity, and perfection of work. Corn Shellees. On farms where a considerable amount of corn is raised, a Corn Sheller is quite indispensable. It shells with great rapidity, and on many a farm would pay for itself in a single year. There are several patents, some of them adapted more espe- cially to hand, others to both hand and horse power. Some of them are adapted more especially to the small-sized ears usually grown in the Eastern and Middle States, others to the large ears of the Southern and Western States. {Fig. 60.) TRe Southern Corn Sheller is made expressly for the large forms and plantations of the West and South, where the corn is large. It is made both single and double, to shell one or two ears at the same time. National Hay Cutter. The advantage of cutting food for stock, though it has a1> various times been a subject of dis- 3ussion among practical men, is now very generally conceded. Wherever a large stock of cattle, or a large number of horses are kept, it is often good economy to feed out more or less of the coarse substances of the farm, like straw, corn, clover, second- quality hay, etc., mixing them either with the better qualities of hay, or with some form of meal or concentrated food. The form in which food is given to cattle is by no means a )'.•> FARM IMPLEMENTS. 141 matter of indifTerencc. Hay or straw, when cut short, or chafled, is taken up in a condition to j)revent any unnecessary expenditure of niusouhir force. As less mastication is requisite, if cut fine, less of the tissues of the body are expended in grinding down the food. Hay or Fodder Cutters are made to cut the feed of different lengths, according to the stock for which it is designed. For the ruminating animals, it may be less finely divided than for others. If for an ox, a cow, or a sheep, it is cut from one to two inches long ; for a horse it would be better economy to cut it from a quarter to half an inch. It is of the first importance that a machine should cut short, and with perfect regularity ; and to this end the hay or straw must be delivered to the knives with the same regularity, or the work will be impeifect Here is the great defect of the machines fed by hand. Next to a short and regular cut, strength, simplicity, and durability are to be considered. But besides the great economy of feeding cut fodder, which amounts to a gain of at least twenty-five per cent., under ordi- nary circumstances, in the food and the increased thrift secured, there is a positive advantage to be derived in the manure. Long stalks of coarse straw are often quite inconvenient to handle, and are liable to be troublesome in plowing. The use of some form of hay and straw cutter has, therefore, become almost uni- versal, and must be regarded as quite indispensable on every well-conducted farm. The National Fodder Cutter possesses many points of de cided superiority, and is very properly regarded as one of the best. It is manufactured by J. D. Burdick & Co., of New Haven, Connecticut, of several sizes, to suit the requirements of large as well as small farms, the former to be worked by horse or steam power, and capable of reducing a ton and a half £42 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. per hour, the latter easily worked by hand, aud cutting or chaffing from three hundred to one thousand pounds per hour. This Cutter unites the important elements of strength, ease of working, and safety, the knives being covered to protect the operator from accident. I know of no better machine in the market. {Fig. 61.) Excelsior Eoot Cutter. No farmer who keeps a flock of sheep or a stock of cattle, should neglect to cultivate a wide breadth of root crops ; and to feed them out judiciously requires the use of a good vegetable cutter. Neat cattle and sheep, when attempting to eat turnips, mangolds, carrots, potatoes, or pumpkins, in pieces so large that they cannot readily take them between the teeth, are extremely liable to get choked. Many a valuable animal, whose life might have been saved, has been sacrificed by a neglect to cat the roots. {Fig. 62.) The Excelsior Cutter is the best adapted to this work of any that I have any knowledge of. At the New York State Fair at Buffalo, it cut a bushel of potatoes fine enough for sheep in twenty-six seconds. It cuts pumpkins, turnips, and other roots, into strips of a size best suited to sheep and cows, and it does it with such remarkable ease and uniformity that a small boy or girl can cut a bushel of roots in a minute. The cylinder is hollow, made of hard iron, and the little gouge-shaped cutters are fastened to the surface, and slice off the pieces of the size of a man's thumb, or larger, the cutters being easily adjusted to cut the size desired. This simple and effective root-cutter is manufactured by J. E. Robertson, of Syracuse, New York. It has taken the first premiums at the Pennsylvania, the New Jersey, the New York, and other State Fairs, and, so far as •cnown, it has given universal satisfaction in practical use on the farm. Cider ^Iills. Many a small farm has a supply of apples 1-\'J. O'J. I'liT S TllUKt;ili;K: F'kj. go. Corn Shelleb. KARM IMPLEMENTS. 1 i5 and Other fruits, which, for want of adequate meana of econo- mising them, are of less value than they might otherwise be made. A hand cider mill is, therefore, a great convenience to the small farmer. "With it he can crush, and grind, and press his apples, his currants, his grapes, etc., and make them into cider or wine, at a trifling expense of time and trouble. (Fir, 63.) IIutcui.vson's Cider and Wixe Mill. The best mill which I have examined, is Uutchinson's patent — a simple and con- venient machine, of various sizes, that has often been exhib- ited, and taken premiums. This mill enables the farmer to produce sweet cider and wine at any time, and thus to save many fruits that would otherwise be lost. The juice comes out clear and sweet, and if from sound apples, will keep good a long time. The fruit is first crushed, and then ground into a fine pomace, without breaking the seeds, and discharged into the press beneath, to be pressed out at convenience. The press- ing is a simple and easy process. All the iron work, with which the juice would be liable to come in contact, is covered with a durable preparation that pre- vents all rust, and keeps clear and free from any thing disa- greeable. The screws are made of wrought iron, with a fine thread. The teeth of the grinder are not liable to clog. From eight to ten bushels of apples, grapes, currants, etc., can be ground by hand power in an hour. For simplicity, neatness, and compactness, I know of nothing of the kind superior to this ; and as it is always ready to make a quart, or a barrel, of cidei or wine, at any time, it is an article of great convenience. It is manufactured by the Peekskill Plow Works, at Peekskill, New York. If any farmer is desirous of knowing the extent and variety of agricultural implements, let him send one dollar to Messrs. 146 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. R.H. Allen & Co., 189 Water street, New York city, for their large illustrated catalogue, containing upwards of three hundred and eighty illustrations ; including plows, harrows, cultivators, seed sowers, harvesting implements of all sorts — wind, water, steam, horse, and dog powers — fans, shellers, and separators — corn, cob, and grain mills (which should be in more general use among large farmers) — hay, straw, vegetable, and stalk cut- ters—hay presses, churns, barrows, wagons, and trucks ; be- sides hundreds of little things of value and interest to the farmer. A careful perusal of this work will well repay the farmer for the time and cost. Messrs. Allen & Co. have long devoted themselves to the interests of the farmer, and we are indebted to them for valuable assistance in the preparation and illustration of this chapter. Care of Farm Implements. Nothing is more common than to hear the farmer charged with neglecting the imple- ments of the farm, by unnecessary exposure to the weather and careless usage generally. There is, no doubt, some ground for this charge ; and yet there is often a good cause for an apparent ne2;lect. The proper care and management of mowers and reapers have been alluded to on a previous page, and we have only a few general suggestions to add, in this connection, with regard to other implements. These are of two kinds — such as are used within doors mainly, and such as are used without. The former are not usually subject to exposure and injury to such an extent as the latter. Implements used in the field might be again divided into such as are required more or less at every season, and such as come into occasional use only. Those that are hable to be required at any season, must necessarily be more exposed than others; but they are, fortunately, of simple construction, and less costly, when they are to be renewed, Fi(J. Gl. XatiOXAL FODDKIl CL'TTER. Fig. 62. Excelsior Eoot Cutter. 10 FARM IMPLEMENTS. 149 tlian many of those that arc used for a shon liin'.- ui eertaiu seasons. The plow is, perhaps, more frequently used tlian most other implements, and it is subject to great exposure. When it wa^j made of wood, it was liable to rapid decay. It is still often in- jured by neglect, and want of housing after use. All plows should be cleaned before storing them away, and if pains were taken to brush over the iron work with a cloth moistened with oil, it would prevent rust, and prolong the period of usefulness. A tool-house is an obvinus necessity on every well-regulated farm, and all those tools that are but rarely required, should be kept there, and immediately returned after use. In fitting up this tool-house for the reception of miscellaneous implements, care should be taken to keep the floor as little encumbered as possible, in order to allow free access to every implement when it is wanted. A large class of small implements — scythes, wheels, saws, etc., are best hung against the wall, on nails. Small articles, not readily suspended, should have a place on shelves. Hoes and weeders, .and similar tools, are more accessible in framed stands. Plows, grubbers, etc., may be kept along the side walls. Ilave a specified place for every- thing. As often, at le;ist, as once a year, there should be a regular muster and examination of all tools. It may be the work of rainy weather. Collect into the tool-house every thing that be- longs there. Scrub and polish with sand and water, if needed ; oil such tools as will not be needed for sometime; mend any that show the need of repairs, and take to the blacksmith shop f)r carpenter such as cannot be done at home; and, when in good condition, return each to its place. Plow points get worn and broken, nuts and bolts are loosened perhaps, or lost, and a thousand little things require to be mended or replaced, which, j^50 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. in the hurry of the working season, have to be tolerated. It is economy to keep them, as they should be, in order ; and a day or two, at the close of the season, in a general picking up, mending, painting, oiling, and scrubbing, will save many a dollar, which will be required to buy new implements in place of tho.^e ruined by neglect. We have alluded to the wonderful development which me- chanical ingenuity has wrought in our agriculture. The mower, the reaper, and the thresher, are fit types of the ever restless and progressive spirit of the present age. A few, wedded to old prejudices and to early customs, may resist them as innova- tions, for a time, but their language is too powerful and per- suasive to be long unheeded. They promise for us a glorious future, in which they will accomplish, for us and for our coun- try, triumphs no less grand than the triumph of arms, fo^* they develop the means of supporting the millions of human beings, which the implements of war can only destroy. In the early ages of the world, men dug the earth, and sowed the seed, and reaped the grain ; but while the myriads toiled, without aspiration or hope, civilization was confined to the few, the mechanic arts languished, and the gigantic forces of nature waited the hand of a master to call them into beneficent ac- tivity. The river rolled on its resistless current for more than a hundred years after the Christian era without turning a wheel. The winds swept over the hills of Europe till the eleventh cen- tury, without giving motion to a single mill. The mighty power of steam lay hidden. FUj. or}. IllTCULNSON'S ClDEll MlLL. \; l-'t'J. t)"'. lOTTON -MaIIKKII Fl(tr IV., is well worthy the attention of grain growers. We hope the drill will ere long supplant hand sow- ing, as the reaper and njpwer are supplanting the cradle and the scytiie ; but meantime we must give directions for .sowing and covering wheat. In hand-sowing, always cast the grain all one way, and that away from the margin of thi*. field; calculate tlic width of one throw, and make it as even as possible; let the seed slip oft* the fingers, never through them. There are seve- ral hand sowing machines, which will do the work a little better than it can be done by hand. It is very diificult to burrow in grain evenly. The :eet of the teams will tread much of it in too deep, and much will be left on the surface uncovcreu. We believe the Rotary Harrow, manufactured by the American Agricultural Works, is the best for this purpose, although not equal to some other harrows for ordinary farm operations. Mulching winter wheat, when it gets but a feeble start in the fall, will sometimes save it from being winter-killed. If the 102 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. first heavy fall of snow is rolled, it will have a good effect. Never pasture grain in the fall, however well it may be started. Harrowing Wheat in the spring may be very beneficial if the wheat has been drilled in two inches deep. Instead of the ordinary coarse harrow, use a harrow with a large number of fine teeth ; the crust is then thoroughly broken up, and a mellow soil prepared for the secondary roots, which make their appearS,uce as soon as growth commences. Where the seed has been sowed broadcast, and harrowed in, a large proportion of it will be covered very shallow, and will be torn up in the process of harrowing. Spring harrowing offers opportunity also for seeding to grass where this is desired. Aside from this very early harrowing, no attempt should be made to hoe or cultivate the wheat crop. If the soil is drained, mellowed, and thorough- ly prepared as directed in these pages, it will not cake and harden so as to need the cultivator. If drilled in, the rows offer an opportunity to pass through the crop and pull the weeds and grass by hand, but they should not be hoed up, as the roots of the wheat will be injured by the hoe. Pull up every plant that appears among your wheat, and lay them in the rows for a mulch. The wheat is particularly sensitive in regard to weeds Chess and quack grass are its inveterate enemies, and should be destroyed without mercy. The Time to Harvest Wheat is just after the kernels have passed from a milky to a doughy state, which is about two weeks before it is fully ripe. There are various signs by which this is determined. One is by opening various kernels from different heads, and if the interior is thick or doughy, it is time to cut it. On the contrary, if it is still thin or milky, it will shrink after being cut, and will not give as much or as good flour. Another sign of the proper state for harvesting is when the GRAIN'S. Irty Straw turns yellow, eitlier from the head do^\•n wards, or fruin the root upwards, saj about two joints. If the straw between the two lower or upper joints has turned yellow on a majority of the stalks all over the field, cut at once. "When the grain has been drilled in, this ripening will be very uniform. If the grain is allowed to stand after this period, it will lose a proportion of gluten, which goes to the shell ; an family. As to the relative value of roots and corn, there is a great dif- ference of opinion. One farmer says, " I have formerly raised roots and put a thousand bushels or more of them into my cellar ; and when I have had to bring them up myself and feed them out in winter, I have asked myself the question whether I could not get along more easily by raising corn and feeding it to my stock. It is a very easy thing to get a thousand bushels of roots into your cellar, but it is some work in a cold morning to bring them up, chop them, and feed them out. Then another thing we have to guard against, is excessive cold ; roots, after they have been frozen, are unhealthy for any anijnal. I know of cows that have been made sick by eating carrots that had been frozen. There is no such trouble with Indian corn. That is the crop adapted to us. My experience IS that I can raise one hundred bushels of corn where I can raise one thousand bushels of roots." Another says : " The 196 ROOT CROPS. 197 most expeditious way of raising corn, after all, is to raise roots, A thousand bushels of roots, which can be raised as easily as a hundred bushels of corn, will buy three or four hundred bushels of corn. That is the reason I do not raise any grain. I cannot afford it. I raised none this year of any kind ; but a little less than a third of an acre of mangolds sold for enough to buy one hundred bushels of corn ; and I had enough French turnips, from live eighths of an acre, to buy two hj^ndred and fifty bushels of corn. Those French turnips cost ten cents a bushel, and, as I said before, that is the most economical way of raising corn, that I know of." Another says : " The com- parative value of the crops you can raise upon an acre of ground properly prepared for mangolds, is hardly the question. Nor is it the question whether fifteen hundred bushels of man- golds would not be better than one hundred bushels of corn, because you would not be likely to get, on such land, any thing like one hundred bushels of corn. But fifteen hundred bushels of mangolds are worth more to any man, for his cattle and sheep, than any one hundred bushels of corn that ever grew. There is no doubt about that at all. Turnips for growing cattle ; they are as natural to them as oats to a growing horse. A bushel of turnips for fifty sheep ; there is no better food in the world. I have tried it over and over again I would rather have it than a pint of corn for each sheep. You can easily figure which would cost the most." We believe roots to be necessary to the best estate of man and beast alike, and were the difficulties of raising them twice as great, we should still say, to the farmer who desires the best (and the most profitable because the best) mode, feed roots with your hay, grain, stalks, or straw. A larger amount of manure is required ; but the crop will return it or pay for it. A dry, warm cellar is requisite ; every farmer should have such a 198 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. cellar. They must be cut ; but root cutters are at hand and will cut all kinds of roots, pumpkins, squashes, etc. Of couise, we must have corn and grain for our stock, but on expensive lands near large cities, or on the lines of railroad, convenient to market, roots will be more profitable. Every farmer should raise roots enough to give his stock a taste every day they are stall fed. Dry hay and grain sustain life, but will not give the best results. . Five tons of turnips are certainly equal to one of hay for feeding purposes ; and, as certainly, ten tons of turnips can be raised to one of hay upon the same land. Eight tons of turnips are about equal to one of corn, and twenty tons of turnips to one and a half of shelled corn, is about the average of the crop. Enough has been said to show the value of root crops ; we now proceed to the method of culture. Turnips. Eobinson says, " The best soil for turnips is newly- cleared forest, or reversed sod, not too clayey ; but they will grow well on pretty stiff clay, if finely pulverized." Our ex- perience is, that the common English turnip (which is the easi- est of all root crops to grow) wants a light mineral soil, but, with careful preparation of the soil, will grow well upon any but heavy rich clay lands. Green manure should never be ap- plied to any root crops. Well rotted compost is the thing. Or, green manure may be hauled on in the fall, five to eight cords to the acre, and covered in ridges, and plowed in in the spring. Plow late for turnips, and sow not earlier than July. Early sowing causes them to get their growth before it is time to har- vest them, and the consequence is rot. October is the great month for root growth. Turnips may be sown to advantage as late as the last of July, after some early crop that has been very heavily manured, like the early potato, or strawberry crop. The turnip is not fitted for long keeping, and is only valuable for early winter feeding. The Swedes, White Globe, Yellow KOOT CROPS. 199 Globe, Purple-top. and Cow Horn, are all good varieties for field culture. EUTA Bagas are more valuable for stock than turnips, and are raised with more difficulty. They require a stronger soil, but substantially the same culture as turnips. They should be sown earlier, say about the middle of June, or first of July, at the latest. Theie are some twelve or fifteen different varieties in cultivation, but there appears to be no satisfactory decision as to which are the best. The Mangold is adapted to a wide range of cultivation, and a great variety of soils. The seed should be sown in May ; in other respects the cultivation is the same as with the other root crops. The Long Eed and Long Yellow are the best for deep soils, and the Globes for shallow soils. Carrots, we judge, all things considered, to be the best of all the root crops for the soil and for feeding, but the assertion that they are worth as much, bushel for bushel, as oats, is a simple absurdity. No farmer can afford to let his stock be without roots, but they can never take the place of grain. They are to be used in connection with gram. They are best suited with a warm light soil, Avell cultivated, as all soils for root crops should be. The land for carrots and for mangolds should be plowed as early as possible. Only thoroughly de- composed manure will do for carrots. The seed should be sown the last of May, or first of June. Plow, cross-plow, and harrow at intervals, before sowing. It does the weeding in advance. A field thus worked before sowing, will not only grow more and better roots, but with one third the labor of weeding. Carrots can be raised by almost any farmer for six cents a bushel, after he learns the most economical ways of domg it. We shall speak of these things under the head of General Cul- tivation of Koot Crops. The tops of carrots, if cut while they 200 tlOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. are still green, are very palatable food for stock. Every par- ticle is greedily eaten by cows, horses, and sheep. This is a strong argument in favor of late planting. The Long Orange we deem the best variety for field culture. General Cultivation of Boot Crops. Nothing but deep plowing will do for root crops. Fifteen inches deep is the shallowest j)lowing we can. commend for them. Give the roots a chance to run down straight and smooth. Eepeated plowings, and harrowings, dragging and rolling until the ground is mellow and free from clods, is the proper preparation of the soil, in connection with heavy manuring. Eoots cannot be made profitable without heavy manuring. Put on five to ten cords of good compost to the acre. The compost of muck and liquid manure which we have previously recommended, is especially valuable here. The selection of seed is of vital im- portance with this crop. The only sure mode of procuring good seed is to raise it yourself. Select good sized smooth roots, and as soon as the ground is settled in the spring, plant them out in rows. The seed stalks will grow with numerous branches, and the heads will ripen at different seasons. They should be out off as they mature. The husks should be rubbed or threshed off, some clear, dry, cold day in winter. The seed is cleaned by sinking. Put it all in a tub, fill with water, stir the seed slightly, skim off the chaff* and light seed, and turn off the water ; repeat this operation two or three times, and you will oply have full plump seeds, nearly every one of which will germinate and give a good root. Here is the first and great secret of raising large crops of fine roots. It can never be done without this careful selection of the seed. After washing, spread them out on a cloth. Let it dry three or four days, (unless it is to be sown at once,) turning it every day. Do not diy by a fire. We approve of drilling in all root crops. It is much ROOT CROPS. 201 more certain. Witli seeds selected and cleaned as we have described, you can sow just the number of seeds you want on an acre. If it is desired to have the roots one inch apart, twelve seeds to the foot can be dropped with great regularity. Many of these seed sowers also have an attachment by which guano, phosphate, or any fertilizer, can be sown with the seed. If the iroppings of the privy have been saved and composted, as directed in Chapter III., you have just the thing to sow with your seed. Some application of the sort is desirable. Four or five bushels of salt to the acre should never be omitted unless you have kelp or other sea mosses in abundance. Kefuse salt is as good as any ; when sown with the drill, less seed is required, and thinning is unnecessary. When good turnip seed * i.s drilled in, on well prepared grouud, one half pound per acre is enough. Too thick seeding is injurious. One pound to the acre is often sown broadcast, but that is too large a quantity. Mr. Ware, a successful cultivator in Massachusetts, drills three and a quarter pounds of carrot seed per acre. They germinate sooner if soaked, for twenty-four hours before planting, in warm water. The drills should be far enough apart to allow a horse cul- tivator between them. Constant weeding is necessary in growing root crops, although a large proportion of the weeding may be saved by previous thorough breaking up the so^l. When sown broadcast, they may be thinned by harrowing after they come up. This also tends to leave them in rows, kills many weeds, and loosens the crust. As soon as the weeds get started, go through with a horse hoe between the rows, and follo\v with the hoe or " weed killer." Never let the weeds get the start of the crop. Kuta bagas should be thinned ; this may be done by cutting up the plants with the hoe. With rows three feet apart, and plants on an average two inches apart, if the soil is plowed deeply so that the roots can find pasture, from twelve to fifteen 202 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. hundred bushels of turnips, ruta bagas, and even carrots, may be secured. Boots, as a rule, should be left in the ground as late as may be without danger of freezing. They may be topped in the field before the tops decay, by means of either the hoe or shovel. The tops are relished by stock. One great objection to this crop is the labor of handling. Much of this can be economized. Eun a subsoil plow beside the rows, and it will lift them so that they can be very easily pulled. Indeed, the ground should be so mellow that they can be pulled without difficulty. Gather them on a dry day in dry weather. Throw them between the rows and let the dirt dry on them. An hour or two will dry the * dirt so that most of it will shake off while loading them. Have a scuttle to your cellar, so» that you can slide them in by the cart load. After they are in the cellar, don't forget them. On cold nights (not freezing) open the windows and scuttle door ; in warm or wet weather shut them up as tightly as possible. A very successful farmer says, " If I am fattening hogs and want to give them meal and grain, I cook the roots and mix the meal in so that it is all cooked and steamed. I think, for fat- tening hogs, cooked meal is better than raw. But I will state that I have kept successfully, for years, store hogs and breeding sows, from November to March, with nothing at all but raw mangold wurzels. I don't approve of feeding raw roots to small pigs; but store hogs, weighing from one hundred and twenty-five pounds upwards, will thrive well on them." It is undoubtedly more desirable to steam roots for hogs than cattle. Cutting them up with a root cutter, or in small quanti- ties, chopping them with a hatchet, is usually sufficient prepa- ration for cattle. One half bushel of roots is a liberal allow- ance for each animal, allowing six pounds of grain, and twenty pounds of cut corn-stalks and straw. Where hay and grain ara ROOT CROPS. 203 very cheap, as in some parts of the West, large crops of roots are not profitable, but small crops, to give the stock an occasional bite, should, we judge, be raised even by western farmers. Potatoes. There is no need of urging the cultivation of potatoes, for the farmer wants these himself^ and will have them even if they cost him one dollar a bushel. In this country they are more generally used than any other article of food. The soils best suited to the potato, are the dryer and lighter soils. New land, or pastures newly cultivated, give the most certain and most abundant crops. In wet, undrained soils, or in those of stiff clay, they are not of as good quality, and are more liable to disease. Land that has been long cultivated, seldom produces good crops. No green or unfermented manure should be used on land intended for potatoes, within one year of planting. No stable manure should be used, until thoroughly rotted and composted with peat, muck, or sods. The safest applications are ashes, or plaster. Guano, or superphosphate, if sown broadcast and plowed in lightly, will prove beneficial. No application of strong manures should ever be made directly to the sets. We advise always planting in drills or ridges. Hill planting is only fit for gardening. The ground should be subsoiled at least to the depth of twelve or fifteen inches. The manure should be plowed in at this first plowing. The secvl maybe either put in with a drill, which makes the furrow, drops the sets at the required distances, and covers them ; or a light plow run through, making a furrow four to six inches deep, the sets dropped, and the plow run through again, to cover them. This is an expeditious and excellent method of planting pota- toes. For the smaller early sorts, the drills may be from twenty to thirty inches apart, and the sets from six to ten inches apart in the drills and covered three or four inches deep. For large 204 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. and later sorts, make the drills thirty to thirty-six inches apart, sets ten inches apart in the drills, and cover four to six inches deep, according to soil. If the soil is inclined to be heavy or wet, four inches is sufficient. There is a great variety of practice in selecting seed for planting. Large or small, whole or cut, the discussion has been going on for years. Our own experience, as well as our judgment, from all reading and observation, is that large fair specimens of any grain, fruit, or vegetable, are the best for seed. But if large potatoes are selected and planted whole, there are too many sprouts, and the crop will be small ; but if cut into pieces, having two or three eyes, there will be enough to give food to the young plant, without crowding too many roots to- gether. The great objection to planting cut sets can be obviated by cutting a week or two before planting, and allowing the cuts to heal over. As soon as the sprouts make their appear- ance above ground, harrow the field across the drills. This breaks up the surface, kills the weeds, and gives a good chance for the young plants to grow. A ligbt fine toothed harrow is best for the purpose. Such a one we recommend every far mer to have for harrowing his meadows, grain fields, corn fields, and potato fields, after the crops are up. This early harrowing saves much after cultivation. Cultivate with an ordinary cultivator, until the blossoms appear, then hill up with the plow. It is injurious to work the ground in wet weather, or when the tops are wet. In harvesting potatoes, a plow can be run on each side of the drill, and then the potatoes are readily forked out. Many far- mers plow out their potatoes, with the common plow, and others use a plow made for the purpose. Pick up and store, as rast as uncovered, and while the potatoes are still cool, as dry- ing and heating cause them to rot. Any method of storing ROOT CROPS. 205 potatoes, that keeps them from the light and cold, is sufficient. The great difficulty in raising the potato, is the rot, for which ihere is no remedy. Care in the selection of varieties, and in planting none but the best specimens of those varieties, may be of some value; care in the application of manures, and in the cultivation of the soil and crops, may mitigate the severity of the disease ; care in the harvesting and storing of the crop, may lessen its ravages, but there it remains, a most serious obstacle. The following varieties are especially recommended for cultiva- tion. Buckeye, early and productive. Dykemax, early and productive. Grows better in strong clayey soil, than any other we know. Mercer, early and of the finest quality, but not as productive or hardy as others. State of ]\Iaixe, quite early, of good quality, and moderately productive. Early Good- rich, productive, hardy, and a good keeper. The Early Rose we consider, in some respects, the best of all the early potatoes. It is ten days earlier than the Early Goodrich, very productive, of finest quality, and so far free from disease. Car- ter, once esteemed the finest of all the late varieties. Davis Seedling. "As a winter potato, or for extensive cultivation for market, is one of the best of all varieties." Hardy and productive. Jacksox White ; earlier than Davis seedling, commands a high price in its season, free from disease, and a good keeper ; one of the best for general cultivation Jexny Lind, very large, productive, free from disease, and keeps well. Peach Blow, handsome, hard}^, productive, keeps well, brings a good price in market ; but is really not of as good quality as any of the other late potatoes recommended Colebrook's Seedling, Pixkeye, and Gleasox, have each viesirable qualities for general cultivation. There arc many other excellent varieties, but none we believe better than those recommended above. As to feeding potatoes to stock, we be- 200 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. lieve other roots are more profitable to raise for that purpose, but all the small potatoes will come in play, in feeding; and if the farmer finds them difficult to dispose of, at paying prices, in the market, they are worth twenty-five cents a bushel to feed to stock, with hay at sixteen dollars a ton. Stock should al- ways have some roots, during the winter, and potatoes will answer the purpose. Sweet Potatoes are raised from sprouts or slips. Almost any corn land below 41°, will give a good crop. The slips are raised in beds, and transplanted, when three or four inches high, or any time before they commence running The slips are pulled, and the tubers left in the bed. Two or three crops of sprouts can be obtained in one season, from the same tubers. The soil should be deeply plowed, subsoiled harrowed, rolled, or dragged, and put in the most mellow condi- tion. Only well rotted stable manure should be used. Make ridges three feet apart, by turning two heavy furrows together Set the slips in these ridges, burying them nearly one half their length. The after cultivation consists in keeping down the weeds. They can be plowed out the same as potatoes. They should be dug before frost. For keeping at the North they must have a dry atmosphere of even temperature. At ordi- nary prices a large crop of sweet potatoes is very profitable. Other root crops will be treated of under the head of Market Gardening. CHAPTER VIII. SPECIAL CROPS AND ROTATION OF CROPS. ^/^fOTTO^, though, no longer King, is a most important ^ ' "li crop. As corn furnishes cheap food, so cotton furnishes cheap clothing. It is a child of the sun and flourishes only where it can have seven or eight months secure from frost, and be nearly free from rains for three or four months. Three classes of soils are suited to cotton. Soft or rotten lime- stone soils; the black soils of the Texas prairies, and the Alabama canebrakes ; and, best of all, the river bottoms or alluvions. The cotton region proper in this country is within the limits of South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, the northern part of Florida, Mississippi, the northern half of Loui.-iana, the southern half of Arkansas, and the eastern half of Texas; but wdthin these limits, with improved modes of culture, might be raised the cotton of the world. There are other small portions of the South where cotton can be grown, but not in profitable quantities, except at a high price — twelve to sixteen cents per pound. Not more than one half the cultivatable land of a plantation should in any case be planted in cotton. The remainder should be devoted to corn, roots, pasture and woodland. Perhaps a still better division is one third in cotton, one third in some green crop to be plowed under, and one third in grain, grass, and roots. Every culti- vated acre will thus have a chance to recuperate itself once in 209 210 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. three years ; aud as cotton is not an exhaustive crop, with a few fertilizers, this might be made sufficient. A satisfactory rule is one mule and one hand for every ten acres of cotton. The best mules for the purpose are fast walk- inc' mules, and quickness of movement is more desirable than great strength. The same is true of hands — a rather small but active hand is the best on the cotton plantation. The best mode of preparing for planting and cultivating a cotton crop is briefly as follows : Plow early; the last of February, if the soil will admit. Mark off the rows. Give the soil a month to settle. Eun a light harrow along the ridges. Follow with a marker, soak the seeds in some fertilizer, drop evenly two or three inches apart if by hand, four to six inches if by a drill ; cover one inch deep. As soon as the third leaf appears, with a shanghai plow, or a cultivator that can be run astride the rows, clean away the grass and weeds from both sides at once. Follow with the hoes, " chopping out " weeds and superfluous plants. Cultivate once in two weeks with plows and hoes till the plants interlock across the middles. Plowing. The planter of one hundred acres of cotton, with the necessary grain and roots, requires four or five large plows for preparing his grain land, and for making the ridges for his cotton. Cotton requires a deep soft bed for its long tap root ; but deep cultivation between the rows has been proved injuri- ous. At least ten small plows of different patterns are de- sirable. The scooter or bull tongue, for marking the rows where a drill is not used ; the scraper or sweep, for cultivat- ing the middles ; the shanghai, for clearing the rows at the first cultivation where a cultivator is not used; the shovel plow and the mould plow. In Chapter IV. will be found a description of the hest large plows, and Messrs. E. E. Allen & SPECIAL CROPS. 211 Co., of New York, or Messrs. Sinclair & Co., of Baltimore, will furnish, on application, special price lists of all plows, especially adapted to southern crops. We advise also the purchase of subsoil plows for grain and root crops. Buy one, and make an experiment, and we feel assured it will prove profitable. We would allude here to what is known as circle plowing. What we mean by this is best illustrated by turning a tub, measure, or round basket, bottom side up, tying a s\ ring to each handle, and so winding them around the basket or tub that they shall reach the top, each over the opposite handle from which they started. Thus we have a gradual ascent to the top in a half circle. On the light uplands where the soil i? mellow as an ash heap, it has been for years washing down the slopes until much of it is ruined. Circle plowing is the only remedy. First make ditches in the form we have described, so that they will take the water that comes pouring down the hill, and they will bear it away down a slope so gradual that no washing will take place. After a heavy rain send through the ditches and have the gulches filled up, and the earth thrown ^-ut. They will soon harden and protect the soil from washing. Conform the plowing to the slope of the ditches. Care and practice will render the marker very expert, and the rows will be nearly as uniform as on level ground. The plows should be started early in the spring, or rather the latter part of February, whenever the ground will admit. If the previous growth was cotton let what was a middle last year be a row this, and vice versa. On stubble or corn land, mark off the rows with a light plow, or scooter, follow in the same furrow and enlarge it with the shovel plow, drag the litter into this furrow and cover by turning two furrows over it. The custom 212 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. of lapping two furrows together, leaving the soil beneath thera unbroken, is shiftless, and unprofitable, as well as unworthy any enlightened cultivator. Leaving these ridges for a month or more to be settled by the spring rains, planting commences from the fifteenth of March to the tenth of April. Every day's delay in planting shortens the season by so much, and lessens the crop. Mark off your rows for planting with a light plow or a marker. The great object is to have the rows perfectly straight. A perfectly straight row is easily cultivated ; and when it is re- membered that for three months cultivation must be constant, you will see the utmost care here will be well repaid. The fol- lowing contrivance is simple but effectual for the purpose. It consists of a stick of timber Avith V shaped blocks fastened on one side, and a hoop-shaped handle on the other with which to guide it. It is drawn by one mule ; easily managed, and as the blocks are just the distance apart required for the rows, uni- formity is readily attained. {Fig. 65.) The one represented in the cut is sixteen feet long, and marks four rows five feet apart. Of course the size can be varied to suit the convenience. On light lands, or under poor cultiva- tion, from four to four and a half feet apart is the average dis- lance required between the rows, while under the best cultiva- tion, or on very strong lands, the plant grows so luxuriantly that six and even seven feet are desirable. Apply no manure directly to the plants, but sow broadcast, and plow in at the first plowing. The system recommended by Dr. Cloud, of Alabama, as condensed by J. B. Lyman, of Louisi- ana i.s so near perfection that we give it nearly entire. " First, by circle plowing let the planter prepare his lands so as to pre- vent washing, and retain in the soil all the salts, and all the fertilizers he may add. Now let him arrange for a rotation of crops, as follows : In his mind's eye divide the plowed land into SPECIAL CROPS. 213 three parts or tracts, one third cotton, one third grains and roots, and one third fallow, assigning to each farm laborer an equal amount of cotton and corn land.* "Calculate to have on the farm stock enough to consume all the food that grows on it; mules, horses, cows, sheep, poultry; and lay it down as a first principle that no manure is to be wasted. Provide stock pens, hollowed towards the centre, and also sheds for the stock. Let every animal on the place be confined at nisht in these enclosures, with an abundance of litter ; leaves and pine straw are better even, than wheat or oat straw. "Cotton requires potash and lime, wood ashes, plaster, slaked lime, or bones, will easily supply this demand. The ne- cessity for phosporic acid is imperative, in order to produce a healthy plant, and in all soils that are not alluvial, that is, where there is not a great abundance of fine vegeiablc mould, the de- mand for phosphorus is probably the reason why diseases of various sorts, such as the rust and the rot, attack the plant. In addition to lime and ashes some fertilizers containing the phos- phates must be used. Compost^ or barnyard manure and bone manure, weeds, muck, and peat abounding in vegetable matter, will supply them. (See Chapter IQ.) " Moisture is needed to rot any litter you may use. Scrape your yard on wet days, piling the compost under the sheds; sprinkle over the compost a little lime, ashes, poultry manure, etc. Guano and crushed bones are the most valuable of the condensed fertilizers. Obtain a few pounds of sulphuric acid, and after it has absorbed all the bones, sprinkle it on the com- post heap." Cotton seed is one of the best fertilizers of cotton, but it * We recommend, instead of the fallow, some green crop, not only to shnde the soil from the hot summer sun, but to help in enriching it. I'low under H^htly while still green. 14 211 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. should be applied to the preceding crop, and not to tho cotton itself. By the above system of Dr. Cloud, on many plan- tations, five hundred bushels of compost manure to the acre may well be made before March comes. Look at it. Straw, leaves, weeds, muck, peat, the droppings solid and liquid of your well fed stock, your poultry, and your family, what an in- exhaustible mine of treasures; and then the value of all these can be doubled by the addition of a few dollars' worth of lime, or by saving your ashes, and by putting sulphuric acid on your bones. Supposing then there are five hundred bushels for each acre of cotton. " Mark off the field with a scooter plow, (unless the old lines are visible,) the first line fifteen feet from the boundary, and the others thirty feet apart. On these lines or rows deposit the manure in heaps of ten bushels each. This is easily done by having the capacity of the cart twenty bushels and dropping half for the first heap, and dumping the balance for the second. In this way the manure is distributed at the rate of five hundred bushels to the acre. This will produce very thrifty plants, and the rows should be at least five feet wide." Cover the manure lightly at the first plowing. Planting. The seed should be soaked in a weak solution of stable manure, water and salt, and then rolled in lime, ashes, and guano— or in plaster, which is preferable, as the seeds then show more plainly in the drill. Thirty pounds to the acre is recommended; but with perfect seed, prepared as above, and evenly sowed by drill or by hand, one half this amount is abundantly sufacient. We have known twice this amount, or sixty pounds to the acre, sown, without producing plants enough for a stand. The seed to be used for planting should be the best, cleaned of fibre as much as possible, and carefully housed. The great piles of cotton seed lying about the gin houses through the winter, furnish very uncertain seed. "Im SPECIAL CROPS. 215 prove the cotton seed, and your staple is directly augmented in value. One advantage of this system of generous manuring, is the improvement of the seed, and consequently an increase in the length and fineness of the staple ; for an excellent quality and an abundant yield of cotton wool can no more be expected from seech that are dwarfish, than large clips of wool from sheep that are dwarfed." Having then good seed, in good condition, and prepared for planting, put it in with a drill, or cotton seed planter, if you can (beg, borrow, steal, or) buy one. These implements are now made to combine a small harrow, which goes in front of the ridge and breaks the crust ; a drill that makes a furrow for the seed; awheel that distributes the seed evenly at any re- quired distances ; and a scraper that follows, and covers them evenly, levelling the surface on either side. Fifteen to twenty acres of cotton per day can be planted with it. It can also be used to sow any kind of seeds. A common corn planter can be arranged to put in cotton seed much faster and better than it can be done by hand. If you can by no contrivance get a drill or planter, mark out the rows with the implement we have described on page 212; let the hands follow close behind it and drop the seed, three or four in a place, at distances of thirty to thirty-six inches apart, (under our system of manuring ; under the ordinary system, twenty to twenty -four inches apart,) in the drills. Cover with a drag made of a piece of plank, and drawn along the ridge. Here are four operations, requiring the whole field to be gone over four times ; when, with a cotton seed planter, costing only from thirty to forty dollars, the whole can be done at one operation. This, wnere time is so valuable, and every day's delay indicates the loss of a day's picking at the other end of the season, is a small item indeed. Ingcrsoll's is the best cotton planter we have seen, but it can be 21(3 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. improveu, and will be, if the demand for machines is such as to promise remuneration for the improvements. The planter can now for a fortnight leave his cotton field, and hurry up his other work ; about which time, under favorable circumstances, liis cotton will need Cultivation, which consists in keeping down all grass and weeds, and keeping the surface stirred. As soon as the third leaf appears, bar off, that is, run a light plow on each side of the row, close to the plants, cutting up the grass and throwing away the dirt from the row. A double plow is the best for this purpose — that is, two light plows on one beam, that will run astride the rows and do both sides at once. A cultivator, with the forward hoes taken out, will answer the same end. The poorest implement for the purpose is the single plow, which must be run on each side of the row. Here the advantage of perfectly straight rows is seen, as the plow can be run, by an expert plowman, close to the rows, without disturbing a plant. The hoe gang should follow immediately after the plow, and chop oat the grass and superfluous plants from the rows, leav- the plants in clumps of three or four, at distances of from twelve to thirty-six feet, according to the condition of the soil. This work should be done very rapidly. With one mule and one hand to each five acres of cotton, a week should suffice for this first operation. In about a week, or not more than two weeks from the day you commenced to " bar off,'' start in your small plows and '' moultV the cotton; "that is, let the plows throw the dirt up to the rows, the hoes to follow, thinning the plants to a ^ stand,^ and leaving every thing clean and smooth." This working should be very thorough and careful, the most so of any. The plants can all be cut away except the two most thrifty ones in each clump, and this is called a " stand.''' All the grass and weeds should be destroyed, and fresh earth drawn SPECIAL CROPS. 2U around the stand. Keep the ploAVS running until the middles are all broken out. Manag3 now to get over your ground once in two weeks with the scraper. This is light work, and the teams should be urged to a brisk pace. Eapid movements are now required. The common corn cultivator will answer tbe purpose on light lauds, where it is not necessary to ridge high ; but the "cotton sweep" is better. Any thing that kills the weeds, and tends to throw the earth up to the ridges, if kept moving rapidly, will answer the purpose. During the very hot weather of July and August, the teams should be in the field at the earliest dawn, and rest from eleven until two or three o'clock, the mules hav- ing shade and dry fodder. Or, better, if the planter has an extra mule or two, to let them work only half the day. At this season, buttermilk should be provided for the laborers. Nothing is more nourishing and cooling. One cow to Cv^ery three or four persons, should be a part of the stock on tvery cotton plantation. When the plants begin to interlock across the rows, haul off the cultivators and let it alone until the time for PICKING. This commences from the first of August to the middle of September, according to the soil, the season, and the cultivation. For at least four months, the chief business, to which every thing else must yield, is picking. Every available hand should be employed — for the hands required to cultivate the cotton will not suffice in picking time. We give below the gist of the directions recorded by Joseph B. Lyman, of Louisiana, the author of a most excellent statisti- cal and practical work on cotton. " Start the pickers as soon as you can see a half dozen open balls down the row. Each hand should have a bag and a basket, the bag fastened about the neck and adapted to the height and strength of the picker. Activity is now required, and women, with their quick fingers, 218 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. usually make the fastest pickers. The basket should be so arranged by the planter that the bags can be conveniently emptied when they attain a weight of twenty-five pounds. Every arrangement that tends to facilitate the work, or relieve the laborer, is to the credit and profit of the planter. Humanity, as well as interest, demands that every thing that can be done to lighten this monotonous task, shall be done. By many over- seers, there has seemed to be an entire disregard of the welfare of the laborers. Let there be refreshments at the baskets. Kindle a fire and have coffee boiling before sunrise, and when the gang come out of the rows give each a half pint with corn bread. It will give them strength for their work and is a pie- ventive of miasmatic disease, to which cotton pickers are par- ticularly liable from working from the cool morning air into the fierce heat of midday. In the heat of midday, provide a tub of buttermilk, or sweetened water, and give them a few minutes rest before they set in again ; the time will not be lost, for they will strike in with more spirit, and the expectation of another drink will quicken their movements on the way back. The month of October is the height of the picking season, and the planter must urge his hands to their best exertions. But let him not, in his pushing, encroach upon the hours of relaxa- tion and rest. His rule should be gather no cotton after nightfall, and pay high for fast picking, rather than for night work. " Sometimes it is well to divide the force into ' fast pickers' and the ' trash gang,' the former pressing rapidly through and gathering all the fair, clean cotton, that is hanging open on the upper branches, the others gleaning the ' trash cotton,' as all inferior or dirty cotton is called. There is no time so favora- ble for sorting this trash cotton as when it is first picked. The ' first picking' should never be allowed to become wet with Fij- 07, SPECIAL CROPS. 221 dew, but should all be picked before nigbtfall, and taken, while still warm and drj, to the sbeds, to be stored for a niontli or two before it is ginned. This increases the weight and gives it a better color." Ginning, Baling, and Marketing, hardly come within the scope of this book ; but, as we believe the past and the present systems to be wasteful and foulty in the extreme, we embody oome suggestions in regard to this part of the subject. In many parts of the cotton States, a community living within a compass of five miles, produce, in favorable seasons, five thousand bales. The number of persons in such communities averages about fifteen hundred. The average number of bales ginned, at each gin house, is not over two hundred. The average cost of the gin houses and equipments is five thousand dollars, or one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars laid out in gin houses and equipments. Now, instead of this arrangement, let the planters combine to put up a factory that will gin out this whole crop, bale it in the best manner for market, and, at the same time, manufacture eighty thousand yards of cloth for home use, which could readily be done in the four months that the gins are idle. The advantages of such a system are numerous. The planters would be saved so large an investment m machinery. Better machinery, better operators, and conse- quently better work would be secured, and at much less expense. It could be packed in the best manner by the best power presses, and baled with iron hoops, thus saving to the planter the old charges of one dollar and a half or two dollars per bale for repacking. After the principal part of the crop has been thus perfectly prepared for market and shipped, the power can be tlirown upon the spindles, and the remainder of the crop made first 222 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. into light cloths, for summer wear, and afterwards linseys for winter wear; and the worst of the cotton into bagging." We consider these suggestions well worthy the consideration of the cotton planters whose gins have been destroyed, whose capital is limited, and who desire not only to build up their own broken fortunes, but to bring the best and most lasting pros- perity to the South. INSECTS' AND DISEASES. The cotton louse is the first enemy of the young plants. Proper fertilizing and thorough culture fire a preventive ; but, where the louse appears, dry ashes and plaster should be dusted over the plants. It will destroy most of the insects and be always beneficial to the plants. The Cut Worm should be treated to a mixture of ashes ind lime in equal parts, and applied around the stem of the plant. The Cotton Moth is the great enemy of the cotton and should be fought with all conceivable weapons. Just at the time the first balls open a gray moth may be seen in small numbers flying about the field in the morning and early evening. This moth, an inch or more in length, is of a rusty gold color on the back, and a dull silvery white on the breast. There are two black spots on the wings, and two little horns projecting from the head. As we have said, there are but few of them, but unless they and their eggs are immediately de- stroyed an army of worms will soon destroy every green leaf of the cotton plants. The following methods should all be used without delay. Put the laborers into the field early every morning for a week, with paddles, and as the moths fly up from the leaves strike them down and kill them. Make a mixture of molasses, vinegar, and cobalt, and expose it on plates elevated in difi-erent parts of the field, one plate to the acre. Just at dusk build bonfires in diflerent parts of your field, and many of them, attracted by the blaze, will fall into it and perish. What SPECIAL CROPS. 228 few escape these three methods of destruction will deposit their eggs on the leaves. They cut the mid-rio or main fibre of the leaf, and bend it over, fastening it down with a slender thread, and within the shelter thus formed, deposit their eggs. After the moths disappear, which will be in about ten days after their first appearance, put your whole foice into the field and let every leaf thus curled up be gathered and burned. These leaves are readily distinguished after examining one sample. The planter may now feel at ease, for his enemy is destroyed. If not destroyed at this time, thete will appear in about a month an innumerable host of them, and in a few days a more innumerable host of worms. The Army Worm is a formidable foe. He eats every green thing in his track. An army of these worms marches in regular order, and the planter has time to prepare for them. When you hear of their ad- vance towards you, bring out your force and plow a trench about your place, beginning on the south and west. Let it be deepened with the hoe and spade to eighteen inches, with a smooth perpendicular wall on the inside up which they cannot climb. As soon as they make their appearance at this trench, put a patrol with plows and spades along tlic line, to ploAr under the pests, if they find any weak spots and make their way through. Straw and dry sedge grass laid in the ditch and burned will destroy many of them. The Ball Worm belongs to the corn field, but migrates to the cotton fields when the corn gets hard. There are three methods of lessening their ravages. The first is to build fires about the corn fields at dusk, during the first two weeks of July, when the moths are flying, and before they deposit their eggs. Millions will be thus destroyed, and as every pair destroyed would breed some five hundred or more ball worms, it is readily seen that this proceeding ie very effective. The second method is included in 224 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. the system of rotation recommended. Never follow corn with cotton or vice versa, but let a year intervene between these crops, in which either put in grain or roots, or sow some green crop to be plowed under. The Ball Worm must have either corn or cotton, and if he has neither he dies. The third method is to plant a few rows of very late corn among the cotton. All three of these methods should be used, as no one of thera is sufficient. "Rust," "Sore Shin," " Rot," "Blue Cotton," and all other diseases, so f\ir as we know, are in nine cases out of every ten the direct result of defective cultivation, and the only remedy is to return in the shape of lime, plaster, ashes, etc., some of the elements withdrawn from the soil by the crop. Cotton Seed. The principal value of cotton seed is as a manure, to return to the soil from which the cotton is taken. This is the only use to which it can be put in the interior, and should be carefully husbanded for this purpose. As we have before stated, it should not be applied directly to the cotton but to the previous crop. A small but constantly increasing portion of the cotton seed, will be used for making oil. It is in the process of making the oil, that the cotton seed cake is pro- duced. This cake is very nutritious to stock. Less than one- fiftieth of the cotton fields of the United States are under culti- vation, and enterprise and capital turned in that direction, must ultimately bring a large reward. From the '^ Southern i^bmer."—" Rice— Preparation and Cultivation. New land is preferred, free from grass seed, and the richer the more profitable, of course; if not rich, old or new, it is good economy to make it rich. "First, prepare by good plowing, if old land, deep and ihorough, harrow as fine as can be, then open furrows two to three feet apart, owing to quality of land; drill the seed, one to SPECIAL CROPS. 226 two pecks per acre, depending on number of rows, two oi' three feet distant being a guide ; cover with a wooden tooth liarrow, cotton coverer or roller, but about one half to one inch deep — best about one inch. When the plant is about two to three inches high, the two to four first blades 'bar off',' or run a cotton scraper as for scraping cotton, not deep, merely to shave off the surface; then, with a sharp hoe, scrape the entire surface, leaving it clean — cut off" all weeds, grass and rice. In a few days the rice will be up, and as the season has become warmer, the rice grows faster; a bull tougtie plow can be used near the plant so as to turn enough earth to it on each side as to cover the earth and mould the plant. AVhen some six inches high, pass the hoe through the row, leaving trenches about one foot distant. Keep clean with cultivator, sweep or shovel plow, stir from time to time to keep plant growing. To be harvested by the sickle and left for two 'days to cure, by shocking up ; open- ing out and shocking as good hay or fodder is made. Thresh by flail, by machinery, by the old plan of horse tramping on it, or by striking the heads over some pieces of wood." Tobacco Culture is, for the time being, a paying crop, but it exhausts the soil more rapidly than any other crop. Any methods of culture that leave this fact out of view are faulty ; as they enrich the land owner at the expense of all the fertility of his land. And when land is once exhausted of its fertility by the cultivation of tobacco, no process can make it profitable to cultivate them again for any crop whatever. For proof of this look at the exhausted and abandoned lands of Virginia and Maryland. So far as the system of cultivation, urged in the following pages, is different from others, it is because this idea is prominent, viz : any method of culture that steadily exhausts the land, is faulty and ruinous. Tobacco will grow on almost any soil 226 now TO make the farm pat. and in any climate that will produce corn, but a warm, mellow Boil, is its chosen home. The northern cultivator must secure warmth, by selecting an alluvial, sandy soil, or a light warm loam, and increase it by al)undant manuring. The southerner may depend more for warmth upon his sunny climate, and insist more upon depth :ind richness of soil. A heavy loam, or a soft clay, will do him "ood service., There are two exceptions to these rules, and thev are rank soils which produce a "strong" tobacco, and ex- posures subject to strong winds, where the plants will be broken and bruised. The preparation of the soil should be most thorough, as it not only increases the quantity, but improves the quality. We have seen two crops of tobacco, grown on adjoining farms, sell, the one for eight and the other for twenty- two cents a pound, the difi'erence being wholly in cultivation and handling. The one crop cost about fifty per cent, more to cultivate than the other, but it brought one hundred and seventy-five per cent. more. If the land has not been subsoiled for the previous crop, plow in the fall, and subsoil to the depth of at least fourteen inches, and the deeper the better. As early in the spring as the ground will do to plow, the manure should be plowed in. The oftener it is plowed, harrowed, rolled, plowed, crushed, and harrowed, the better condition it will be in for the growth of the plant. It is diflacult to tell just where this working of the soil ceases to be profitable, but our experi- ence is that six workings (including plowing and subsoiling in the fall) is the least to be recommended. This only provides for two plowings, one rolling, and one harrowing in the spring. -Manures are the life of this crop, and it is only by the most abundant manuring, that the fertility of the soil can be main- tained in Tobacco. On newly cleared land, where the soil is tilled with vegetable matter, and the brush has been burned SPECIAL CROPS. 227 on the land, three crops may be raised without manure, but no more tobacco should be raised on it, for at least three years, and it should be liberally manured for the intervening crops. Well rotted barnyard manure, ashes, and salt, are the three specifics for tobacco. Lime it must have, either in tne shape of ashes, gas lime, or superphosphate of lime. Salt at the rate of from three to six bushels to the acre, furnishes the soda re- quired by the plant. As for other manures, the cultivator must use what he can get. Twenty-five loads per acre of compost, of muck with solid and liquid manure, with twenty bushels of ashes and four of salt, is the plainest prescription we can make. Twelve loads (by loads we mean loads) of compost as above, with two hundred weight of guano, (salt and ashes added, as before,) is a good proportion. If the ashes are not at hand, two to three hundred weight of phosphate can take their place. Guano, on all crops, should be covered deeply, while superphos- phate should be left near the surface. Manure from the hog pen, where peat and muck have been supplied liberally, is a most excellent dressing. In feet any substances that will promote the growth of other crops, will benefit this. Green and strawy manure should never be applied directly to the crop, but first rotted and composted. No ashes, lime, or other fertilizer, should ever be sprinkled on the leaves of the plants. Preparing the Seed Bed should be attended to as early in the season as the ground gets dry. One tablesjDoonful of seed, if each seed produce a plant, would sufiice for an acre. But, as a precaution against all accidents, sow three tablespoonfuls of seed for each acre to be set in tobacco. Each spoonful of seed should have a square rod of land, so that a seed bed of three square rods is required for each acre in plants. The most approved method of treating the seed bed is as follows. Select a protected, sunny spot, the south side of a wood, or a southern slope, if possible, 228 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. near a brook, for convenience in watering. Cut off all weeds, grass, etc., close to the turf; pile up dry, well-seasoned wood, and burn the surface thoroughly ; clear off the coals, and spade in a quantity of manure about four inches deep. Eake in bone manure if handv. Stir up the seed in thiree times its bulk of pla.ster, and sow in a btill, damp day, or water as sown. Eake the bed lightly, not to exceed half an inch in depth, then roll, or tread down hard and even. Water the young plants con- stantly, if dry weather succeeds, always with tepid water, and never while the hot sun is shining on them, which rule applies to the plant in all stages of its growth. Cover the bed with brush until the plants are well out of the ground. The time for sowing tobacco seed, in the extreme South, is from the first of February to the first of March. In the ex- treme North it is two months later. Transplanting should be done, if possible, when the ground is damp, otherwise it will be necessary to water while trans- planting. Three feet apart, both ways, is a safe rule in setting the plants, and the earth should be pressed firmly about the roots. Great attention is necessary to the newly-set plants. Some, cover them during the heat of mid-day, others water them morning and evening until they get established. Many will fail, and should be at once replaced. If the ground is very dry, a little hole should be made for the plant, and a pint of water turned in. As soon as it has disappeared, set the plant. In a week or ten days after setting, cultivate and hoe. Ee- peat the operation as often as once in ten days, and keep the ground loose and clean till the crop is too large to be worked among. Soon after the plant is set, the cut worm makes his appear- ance, cutting off the stems of the young plants. Go through the field every morning, and where a plant has been cut off, SPECIAL CROPS. 229 dig open the hill and destroy the worm. This is the only- method we know of as being effectual. A few bushels of salt per acre will keep away many of them. These cut worms have no sooner been destroyed, than a greater enemy appears, in the tobacco worm, or " horn worm^'' a large green worm, which, if loft to itself, would destroy every leaf. The first preventive of their ravages is to destroy the moths, by fires and torches, dur- ing the last of May, as directed in Cotton Culture. The second is, to examine the under side of the leaves for the eggs, and destroy them. They are small, of a lignt transparent green. As soon as the worms begin to appear, get over the field every week and pick off and kill every worm, large and small. '•' Topping," consists in breaking off' the stalk about the time the blossoms appear. One third of the leaves should usually be topped off. After topping, break off all the suckers. Eepeat this last operation three times, at intervals of a week. Good practice differs so widely in regard to harvesting this crop, that it is useless to give more than the main points lo be kept in view. AVhen the leaves bend over to the ground, and are dotted with yellow spots, lose their fur, and look glossv, they are supposed to be ripe enough to harvest. The crop is greatly improved in quality by letting it stand two weeks longer ; but the risks are so great, that most think it wise to begin harvesting as soon as it will do. Hail, winds, frost.s, worms, and suckers, are only to be insured against by early harvesting. To cut so as to save handling is a great object. To cut two rows and lay them over together, is good practice. A hatchet or a cleaver which will sever the stem at one stroke is desirable. If handled before it is wilted, the leaves get broken and bruised , if left to wilt in the hot sun, they get sun- burnt. On this account, cutting is often delayed until the mid- dle of the afternoon, and left over night. Great care should be 230 HOW TO jrAKE THE FARM PAY. taken, iu liandling and hanging tobacco, not to hi uise, break, or tear a leaf. There are still great risks before the tobacco is finally cured. Where the crop is large, we believe fully in the utility and economy of curing by furnace heat. From five days to a week is all that is required to cure it, and the best quality and greatest weight is thus secured. Dr. Dorsey, an intelligent and experienced cultivator, in Cal- vert county, Maryland, writes to the Maryland Farmer: " Owing to the great uncertainty which always attends the curing, in the natural way, I adopted, several years ago, Bibb k Co.'s Tobacco Curing Apparatus, with which I have been entirely successful, not only saving my whole crop from injury, but greatly enhancing if not doubling its value. The 'Furnace' is so arranged, in a barn, as to take up but little room, the pipes running so near the floor the hands walk over them with- out difficult}'-, enabling the planter to fill every part of the building except a small space near the apparatus. The heat is distributed very uniformly throughout the barn by means of two distinct sets of pipes — one set conveying the smoke to the chimney or smoke stack, and the other distributing hot air, drawn ofl" from under a jacket thrown over the ' furnace.' This • jacket answers the double purpose of protecting the tobacco from scorching overhead, and holding for distribution the sur- plus heat at the furnace end of the building. Either wood or coal may be used in firing with this arrangement. My plan is to use wood (of any kind well seasoned) during the day, and up to bed time, when two or three bushels of coal are thrown in, which insures ample heat for the night. The door of the barn may then be locked, and the fireman retire." The peculiar color of the leaf is obtained by sweating Three or four hundred pounds are packed in a case and pressed. If quite dry, it should be moistened before packing. SPECIAL CROPS. 231 Hops form quite an important crop in some parts of tlie coun- try, and might in other parts ; wc therefore give a few directions by which any farmer may start a hop yard. The soil best adapted to hop growing is a loamy clay, underlaid with lime- stone, but they can be raised on any land that will produce a crop of corn. It should be thoroughly underdrained if at all inclined to be wet, as standing water is fatal to the plants. The position should not be exposed to the fiercest winds, neither should it be so sheltered that it will not get a constant supply of air and sunshine. Thorough preparation of the ground at first is good economy, as the plants are permanent. It should be plowed twelve inches, and subsoiled twelve more, or if it is old sward, the turf should be turned under and covered, and then followed by the subsoiler. In the spring, manure heavily, plow, cross plow, harrow, and cross harrov/ until the soil is mellow, and the manure thoroughly mixed with it Decomposed vegetable matter is preferable to barnyard manure. If the soil is destitute of lime sow a few busliels every year, as the plant must have lime, Planting. — The vines are not propagated by seeds, but by runners or sprouts from old vines. They are called "sets," and can be obtained in any quantity from old hop yaids, and sent by express. The "sets" should be taken up as soon as the frost is out, by loosening the earth about them, cutting them off near the main plant, and lifting them out so as to break or bruise them as little as possi ble. These should be cut into small pieces, with two or throe tiyes each. Mark off your field bo-th ways, and make the hills eight to ten feet apart each way. Let these distances be care- fully measured, as perfectly straight and uniform rows are u very great advantage in after cultivation. When places for hills are determined, put two or three sets in a hill, eyes up. 15 232 now TO make the farm pay. Cover from two to four inches deep, press the earth firmly about them, and mark the place with a stake. The male plants should be set at regular distances of eight hills and eight rows apart, making from eight to twelve male plants to the acre. They should be distinctly marked so that they can be known at a glance. Keep all weeds and grass out by means of plow, cultivator, and hoe. Any hoed 'crop can be cultivated between the rows the first year. Corn or potatoes are commonly planted. The old system of training to stakes sixteen to twenty feet high was clumsy and expensive. A much better and cheaper system is as follows : When your plants are three or four inches high, set a stake at each hill, eight feet out of the ground. The best and cheapest stakes are sawed one and one quarter inches square, and coated with tar. The tar preserves the stakes, and is offensive to the hop louse. The first year the vines are trained to these stakes alone. The second year the tops of the stakes are connected by twine and the vines run all over the top of the yard. At the maU hills, put a stout high pole, eighteen or twenty feet long, and let the male vine run up, so that its pollen may be distributed on the others. The cost of this method is one third that of the old method, and has great advantages in gathering the crop. The hop louse is the only insect that injures the plant to any great extent. They can be destroyed by thoroughly dusting fine plaster among the leaves and stems. If done early, say the first week in July, one application will generally rid the vines wholly of them, but if they appear again give them another. Burn the vines that are cut up in the fall. The work in suc- ceedmg years consists in keeping out grass, weeds, and worms. ' Tn spring, the yard, as soon as dry enough to work, must be SPECIAL CROPS. 233 grubbed. Hoe tlie dirt from the hill without injuring the crown of the root. "With a knife cut off all the old vines smooth, and any runners that are seen. Never tear them off nor cut them with the hoe. At the same time examine whether there are any grubs in the hill, and kill all found. " There are two kinds ^f grub, both which must be killed wherever found. Tie the vines as often as any stray from the poles, with soft yarn, but it should not be done on a cold da}', or in the morning, as then they will break. " AVhen the smallest vines have got a good start, three feet or more, select four vines, and bury the refuse vines at the foot of the stake with 1?wo inches of dirt, and never pull or cut them off, as is usually done. In a few days the leaves will rot, mak- ing manure, and the vines will make cheaper food for the grubs than those running up the stake. These vines throw out small roots, and help make the crop for the year, besides they are the best kind of 'sets' for a new yard next year. Mix air-slacked lime and unleached ashes, and put on about a pint to each hill." [Prize essay of H. 0. Collins.) When the vines get above the top of the stakes train them out on the twines, one in each direction, and keep them going as long, as fast, and as far as they will. After the frosts have destroyed the vines, cut them off close to the ground and throw two or three shovels full of compost on the hill. Where the vines are trained on high poles the vines must be cut down right in the growing season, in order to pick the hops, but by the horizontal system of training the crop can be reached from the ground. Picking begins as soon as the earliest seeds ripen. The crop is not in as good condition as it would be if it could have a little more time, but it is better to pick it two days too soon, than one day too late. When ri}>e, the seeds become hard, and are 234 now TO make the fakm pay. of a purple color. Some portions of the yard will ripen earlier than others, aud here the work should commence. Do not hurry the picking too fast at first, but after a few days, when fully ripe, put on all your force and secure the crop. The cleaner the hops arc picked the better price they will bring. A man who baa the reputation of picking his hops clean and putting them up nicely, will find sale for them, even if the market is dull. Get the best pickers; pay the best prices; feed the pickers well, and treat them well, and you will have clean hops. The most expensive part of the hop culture is kiln drying ; but large cultivators can afford it ; and if three or four smaller cultivators, owning contiguous lands, would combine to erect a kiln for their common benefit, they could readily compete with the larger growers. The kiln has usually four apartments, the stove room, dry room, store room, and press room. The kiln should have a good draft ; it is directly over the stove room, and separated from it by a slat floor, and a moveable wire or hemp carpet. The hops are spread on this carpet, twenty to twenty- four inc'hes deep, (except those first picked, which are green, and should not be more than twelve inches deep,) and fires im- mediately built in the stoves, of large seasoned wood, and kept up until the hops are all dry, usually eight to twelve hours. Next to the dry room is the sto^c room, which should be kept perfectly dark while the hops are in it. The press room is underneath the store room. The pressing and baling can be done on rainy days, from four to six weeks after drying. The Harris press is the best we know of for pressing and baling, but any screw press can be made to do the work. Hemp and Flax. Hemp can be grown on any good corn land with profit, and as the supply never equals the demand we consider it a sure and profitable crop. It has a long tap root and the soil should be plowed deep and subsoiled. The surlure SPECIAL CROPS. 235 sliould also be made very mellow and even, to receive the minute seeds. As soon as the ground is warm re-plow with a light plow, sow one and one quarter bushels per acre of care- fully selected and preserved seed, harrow it in and brush the surface smooth. Cut when the stalks turn yellow and the leaves begin to fall. Cutting hemp with a hemp-hook or grain cradle is very hard work, but there is no reason why a reaper cannot be made strong enough to do the work. Hemp is not a rapid exhauster of the soil, the leaves and stubble aftbrding a good supply of manure. An application of compost, one third barnyard to two thirds muck, peat, or leaf mould, would keep the land in good condition for years. A rotation, however, with corn, wheat, or clover, is beneficial. Flax can be raised to advantage in all parts of the country. There is always a good demand and a fair profit. It likes a fertile loam, deep and mellow, but will not flourish on wet lands. Underdraiuing is the first step on such lands, whatever crops you propose to raise. The most important point in the cultiva- tion of flax, is the preparation of the soil. It should be deep, mellow, but compact, smooth, and clean. ISIo farm crop requires more thorough preparation of the soil than this. Our remarks on the preparation of soil for wheat, apply to this crop as well and should be read here. As far as possible every weed should be eradicated in cultivating the previous crops. Potatoes, corn, or oats, are the crops recommended to precede flax; a good live years' rotation is grass, corn, potatoes, flax, oats ; for seven years, grass, corn, oats, potatoes, flax, clover, wheat. A third is com, oats, potatoes, flax, clover, wheat. Once in five years is as often as flax should be grown on the same soil. Thoroughly rotted manure, rich compost and vegetable matter, applied to the previous crops, is the rule in flax culture. Prepare the 23(5 now TO make the farm pay. soil as early in the spring as it will work without being sticky, leaving it as mellow and fine as the harrow, roller, and brush, can make it. Let it lie until the grass and weeds spring up all over it, and the leaves on the trees begin to unfold, then give it a thorouf^h harrowing to destroy these weeds, and while the ground is still fresh sow the seed as speedily as possible. Mark olV vour ground both ways, in " lands" eighteen feet wide, by drafifTing a, chain after yoa from stake to stake, across the field. This is a more important matter than you may think it, and should never be neglected. Soak the seed in warm water an hour or two, and then roll in gypsum. This is of great advantage in sowing these slippery seeds. Now sow around your " land," giving the seed an even, uniform cast. Only a small portion of seed should be taken at a time. A great difference of opinion exists as to the amount proper to be sown to the acre, from one peck to seven bushels being recommen- ded. If sown only for seed, one bushel, or even three pecks, may be sufficient ; and if sown only for the fibre, two and one half, or even three bushels, may not be too much ; but where loth seed and fibre are taken into consideration, which we strongly recommend, one and one fourth to one and three fourth bushels is the proper quantity. After sowing, brush in with a hand brush. Do not allow any team on the field. A brush harrow, drawn by two men, will brush the seed in evenly and none will be trodden down three or four inches deep, which is exceedingly injurious. If the ground has been worked as recommended, and the weeds conquered beforehand, the crop will need but little weeding ; but if, unfortunately, weeds should appear before the plants are a foot high, a careful hand, without boots, should go in and cut them up just beneath the surface, and bring them off the field. It is far better to destroy the weeds before the flax is sowed. If the seed has been evenly SPECIAL CROPS. 287 covered and the teams kept off, it will have grown very evenly and will ripen very evenly, wliicli is a great advantage. It wili be ready to harvest, when the stems turn yellow, and the balls brown, and the lower leaves are dead. If raised for the fibre, begin at once ; but if the seed is the only purpose, let ii stand until dead ripe. In harvesting, when the best fibre is desired, pulling is resorted to. "Each laborer takes a strip about four feet wide, and either spreads it in a swath behind him or throws it down in gavels. The flax is grasped just below the ball with both hands, and pulled with a quick jerk." Cradling and mowing are often resorted to, and if the ground is so level that the mower can cut it evenly one inch from the ground, nearly the Vv^hole of the fibre will be secured. Mowing is better than cradling. One great point is to keep the butts even. "Eippling" is the process of separating the seed from the flax. It is done by means of a rippling comb, as shown in the cut fig. 66, consisting of twelve rods of round iron, set in a block. Two ripplers, each with a boy to hand them the flax, can hatchel out seed very fast by this contrivance, which we consider much better than any kind of threshing. As the pre- paration of the ground is the most important item in the cultivation of flax, " Retting," or as it is sometimes called, rot- ting, is the most important in its jjrejoaration. It consists in keep inof it under water until fermentation softens the fibre. For this CD purpose a pool is formed, either by a dam, or by digging a pit and turning the water of a stream into it. In either case it should be but little deeper than the length of the flax, shoald be as tight as possible, to prevent leakage, and should '»e so arranged that all leakage can be replaced. Bain water is the best for the purpose. River water, that has been warmed in the sun, next ; and cold spring water, the least desirable ; the 238 • HOW TO makp: the farm pay. latter should always stand in the pool several days before tlie flax is harvested. The pool, if accessible on both sides, may be eixteeu to twenty feet wide, if accessible only on one side, eight to ten feet will be more convenient ; the size and ar- rangemoat of the pool being wholly a matter of convenience. The flax should be kept from the bottom by a layer of rails or boards. Where soft water is to be had, the flax could be set into the pool before it is turned on. The water should cover the flax about six inches. Put boards over the whole and hold them down by means of flat stones. After the water has been on the flax seven days examine it by getting into the centre of the pool and putting the hand down into the heart of the bundle ; if it feels hard and wiry, leave it another day and until it begins to feel soft, then repeat the examination thrice a-day, until it feels quite soft, when a bundle should be taken out and a lock of it bent several times across the forefinger ; when the woody part of the stem breaks, and the loose fibre detaches from the stem, it is on the point of decay and should not be left in the water longer. Take out carefully by hand and not with a fork. Never itse the same water tioice. It should n )w be spread out very thin on the grass, for a week, to dry, then bound in large bundles and housed. It is now ready for market, and will bring a good price. There are other methods of retting, but the above is the simplest and best. Any method that accomplishes the same result is just as good, as for as the flax itself is concerned, but the above is a safe, sure, con- venient, and economical mode, wherever a stream of water is at hand. A proper selection of seed is as necessary for the best success in raising flax as in raising wheat. Riga seed has been often pronounced the best, and we recommend with this crop, as we bave for others, that the farmer raise his own seed. He can do it SPECIAL CROPS. 239 cheaper and will be sure of fresh seed. Only the large, plump, briglit seeds, should be used. These can be separated from the others by means of the fanning mill. The seeds should be dried, immediately after threshing them out; by spreading them out and turning them often, giving them a free circulation of air, they will soon be dry enough to store away. Twenty-five bushels of seed are raised per acre, and it is worth from three to five dollars per bushel for linseed oil. The cake made from it is a most valuable food for stock and makes better manure than any other food. It should be fea in connection with o-rain Sorghum will grow successfully on any soil that will pro- duce a good crop of corn. The ground should be prepared m the same manner as for corn. It can be sown a little earlier than corn, and at intervals of two or three Jays, or a week. The seed should be soaked to the point of sprouting. Plant in rows three to four feet apart, and the hills twelve to eighteen inches apart in the rows. Each seed will send up several stalks ; when six inches high, thin out to four or five stalks. Cultivate the same as Indian corn, and hill up well around the stalks. If sown in drills, three feet apart, leave one plant to the foot. In drilling in seed, cover one and a half inches. After the plant has blossomed, and before the seeds ripen, strip uft" the leaves. They make excellent fodder. In ten days or a fort- night from the stripping, the cane will be in condition to malce syrup, and will remain so for some time. Freezing will ]iot injure it, unless it thaws afterwards. As soon as convenient, commence cutting up, and continue it, just as fast as you can possibly press the cane and boil the juice. Take from the field at once to the rollers, or mill, and press the juice the same day It Ls cut, and commence boiling at once. All who know how to manage maple sap, in making syrup, know how to man- age this. Those who have the patent pans for boiling sap, are 240 ^''>^^' t^-^ make the farm pay. fortunate. Those wlio have not, had better get them. Until they do, however, the juice can be boiled in the ordinary sap kettle. The question here arises, if it is profitable to raise sorghum for sugar. We do not think it is, or ever can be made so, except on a large scale. But we do believe it profita- ble for the farmer to raise it for making syrup, and for fodder f 'r his stock. It is a very simple process to make syrup from it, and the farmer may make a barrel or two, from a small strip of ground. Three hundred gallons per acre, has been pronounced an average crop, but even at two hundred gallons per acre, or two barrels from half an acre, it will prove profita- ble. It has been raised and made at a cost of sixteen cents per gallon, and we think that it miay be done by almost any farmer, at a cost of not over twenty-five cents a gallon. As a fodder for stock, sorghum hardly has its equal. For this purpose it should be sown in drills, two or three quarts of seed to the acre, and cut just before blossoming. It will imme- diately spring up again, and three crops may be cut during the season. It is very nutritious for cattle, who eat every particle of the stalk with avidity. Maple Sugar and maple syrup are such delicious, and withal such marketable articles, that we consider it worth while to know how to get the most and best. Never destroy a sugar maple, as long as you can get sugar from it. If you are clear- ing up, and cannot leave the young trees where they are, plant tliem out somewhere else. Plant them out in your orchard, or along your fences, or on some hillside. "Its form and foliage are beautiful ; its shade delightful ; its sap delicious and health- ful in all its stages; and its products profitable. Plant Maple Treesr We indorse the above quotation, and shall endeavor to give the most economical methods of making syrup and sugar. At some leisure time during the winter, get your SPECIAL CROPS. 24. 1 augers, spouts, buckets, barrels, pans, etc., ready, have your wood cut aud hauled to the " sugar camp." At the first sign of freezing nights, and thawing days, tap your trees on the sunny side, two feet or more above the ground, and if liable to be disturbed by animals, four feet above the ground. Make a hole with a three quarter or one inch auger, slanting upward, and not more than one half or three quarters of an inch into the wood at first. After a few days, it may be bored a little larger and deeper. " Boxing," or tapping, with an axe, is unmitigated folly. Use wood spouts, which are v;iy easily made of soft wood or elder. Select, every year, a spot removed from the last year's wound. Use large buckets. You will be much more likely to save all the sap. Four gal- lon tin pails, if taken care of, are the best and most economical, but common wooden pails answer a good purpose. Never use large and small pans, tins, etc., for you will be likely to lose a great deal of sap. The nails on which the buckets are hung, should be pulled out at the close of the season. Keep every thing clean. Collect the sap in tight barrels, and have a molas- ses hogshead for a reservoir. This should, for convenience, be set a little higher than the kettle or pans, so that the sap can be^drawn into them steadily, by means of a faucet. If you have used kettles in boiling sap, use them no more. Get sheet iron or copper pans. You can make them yourself, out of stove pipe iron. They save time and wood. A New Hampshire farmer says : " I have a brick furnace, and sheet iron pans, the whole costing twenty dollars. My son has done all the labor this season, at a cost of eight dollars. He used one and a half cords of wood, and made twenty-nine gal- lons of syrup, for eight days' labor." The sap, when boiling, must be carefully watched, and not allowed to overdo. When boiled in pans, it evaporates very rapidly^ and if not attended 242 now TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. to, will catcU you napping. When done it will be brittle ir' cooled suddenly on snow or ice. To clarify syrup, strain it through a cloth while hot, into a kettle, and when cool, add an C4ig and a half pint of milk well beaten together, for every five- gallons of syrup ; mix it, and put it on the fire, heat gradually to boiling, when all impurities will rise to the surface, and should be at once skimmed ofi'. This makes a beautiful syrup, and, when further evaporated, a very pure sugar. Thirty maples would supply almost any farmer with syrup and sugar, at much less expense than to purchase them at present prices. Beet Eoot Sugak. We use in the United States, yearly, four hundred thousand tons of sugar, three hundred and fifty thousand tons of which is imported. Instead of this, we should not onl}'- produce all we use, but become large exporters. This end can be aceomplished, if we will turn our attention to the sugar beet. The production of beet sugar, throughout the world, is now about six hundred and fifty thousand tons, or one fourth of the whole production of sugar. We have millions of acres adapted to the cultivation of the sugar beet. We have the best labor saving machinery of any country on the globe, and there is no good reason why we should not produce a million tons .of sugar annually, within ten years. We shall endeavor to show that it IS to our pecuniary, and especially to our agricultural interests, to do so. The cost of raising the beet cannot, under judicious cultiva- tion, exceed three dollars per ton, and we think that they can be raised for two dollars per ton. But taking the highest esti- mate, of three dollars per ton, there is left a large margin for profit, as one ton of beets will yield from one hundred and forty to one hundred and eighty pounds of refined sugar; about fifty pounds of molasses suitable for distillation; five hundred SPECIAL CROPS. 2 "6 pounds of leaves, an excellent green fodder; and five hundred pounds of pulp, worth one third as much as good hay. But this is not all ; the beet crop cleans and prepares the soil ; and, in a rotation, is one of the best preceders of any grain crop. The yield of beets, per acre, varies from seventeen to forty-two tons. We think that, with our improved methods, an average yield of thirty tons per acre can readily be secured, but taking the low average yield of twenty tons per acre, at live dollars per ton, is one hundred dollars, deducting the highest estimate of the cost of production, three dollars per ton, leaves .Kjrt}'- dol- lars per acre clear profit to the farmer. Considering the probability of a yield of thirty tons per acre, costing two dol- lars per ton, we have the possibility of a profit of ninety dol- lars per acre. There are, at present, but few manufactories of beet sugar in this country, but they would spring up on every side, if the farmers once determined to raise the crops, and made that determination known. Communities settling on the rich soils of the West, have this matter in their own hands. Let a dozen farmers, in any section of the country, agree with some capital- ist to supply him with beets, and a market will be at once created. It is for farmers to agitate this matter, in their daily conversation, in their visits to the city markets, in farmer.^' clubs, and through the columns of their chosen agricultural journals. The manufacture must be exceedingly profitable. It is carried on from September to March, a period when labor is easily commanded. It will employ the extra farm laborers, at a season when their services are not required on the farm ; thus incidentally conferring a permanent benefit upon ovcvy community, where such an industry is established. ' The estimated cost of workiujr one thousajid tons of beets is. 244 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. 1000 tons of beets @ 8r).00 $5,000 Labor 2,000 Other expeuscs 1,200 Total $8,500 Receipts. ICO.OOO lbs. sugar @ 10 cents .^16,000 7200 gallons molasses @ 25 cents 1,800 200 tons pulp @ S4 800 Total .$18,600 leaving a profit of over one hundred per cent, on the manu- facture, reckoning the sugar to be worth only ten cents per pound. But supposing such a quantity could be raised as to bring the price of raw sugar down to eight cents per pound, there would still be a profit of over fifty per cent, on the invest- ment of the manufacturer. Certainly this branch of industry cannot remain long unoccupied. We copy the remarks of Mr. E. B. Grant, upon the influence of tlie beet sugar culture, and then proceed to describe its culti- vation. "The effects produced upon agriculture in Europe, by the cultivation of beets, for sugar and alcohol, have been astound- ing, and the importance of the interest is now everywhere acknowledged. In the cane sugar countries, upon the territory surrounding a sugar establishment, no crop is to be seen but the cane, while the cattle and sheep are few. In the beet sugar districts, on the contrary, the fields are covered with the great- est diversity of crops, among which are, wheat, oats, rye, corn, barley, rape, flax, tobacco, and all the cultivated grasses. Every field is cultivated, close up to the roadside, and the stables are filled with fine cattle, sheep, horses, and swine. No farmer needs to be told which system is the best and most p'Uduring. " The amount of beets raised in France in 1865, could not SPFXIAL CROPS. 246 have been less than two million tons, producing at least one million tons of pulp — an amount sufficient to feed ninety thou- sand cattle, or nearly one million sheep, for one year ; or to fatten, in the winter months, nearly three times that number. It also furnished more than one million five hundred thousand tons of manure. "In an agricultural point of view, the effect produced by the culture of so much land in beets, and the application of the manure of so many cattle, with the consequent increase in the amount and value of subsequent crops, is perfectly apparent. The quality of wheat raised after beets, is better than that usually produced ; the ears are larger and heavier, the straw stronger, and not so liable to lodge ; the berry is larger and brighter; its specific gravity is also greater, weighing from two to three pounds per bushel more than ordinary wheat. " The effect of its introduction into the United States would be to produce results correspondingly greater than have at- tended it in Europe, for here the consumption of sugar, per capita, is nearly four times greater, and the value of lands is not a quarter of those in Continental Europe, while they are by nature far richer and more easily cultivated. The supply of coal is unlimited. The vast distances over which many farmers are obliged to transport their produce, render it difficult or im- possible to dispose of their more bulky crops at a profit. The introduction of sugar-making would give them another and most profitable crop, for which they would have a home mar- ket. It would enlarge the local demand for other farm produce, by interspersing a manufacturing with an agricultural popula- tion, to the great advantage of both. It would go far to change the present wasteful, and necessarily uneuduring system of agri- culture, and to substitute for it another, founded upon more correct principles." 0.[C) HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Soil and Climate. The cultivation of the sugar beet is not, like cane sugar, confined to any small section of country, but flo Irishes in all the varieties of climate to be found in the United States. Deep, rich soils, especially those abounding in vegetable mould, produce large crops of beets. The black soils of the West are well adapted to beet culture. Sandy ground, if rich, gives an excellent quality of beets ricb in sugar. Any soil that is dry, deep, and mellow, is suitable. A clayey, tena- cious soil, stony land, and mineral soils, should be avoided. Alluvial or bottom lands, overflowed yearly, are desirable, as they require no artificial manure. All grain lands are not only suitable, but are improved by the cultivation of the sugar beet. Manures should be applied to tbe preceding crops, rather than directly. The virgin soils of the West do not at first require manure, but the soils should be turned under, and one season's cultiva- tion, at least, precede the beet. Human ordure is perhaps the most effective fertilizer of this crop. There is an objection to the ordure of sheep and hogs, on the ground that the salts con- tained in them are injurious. "We are inclined, from all experi- ments in that direction, to conclude that the ordure of cattle should be preferred. Strawy manure, well rotted, is preferable to unferraented manure, or manure Vithout straw. Stable ma- nure, composted with muck, ashes, etc., as we have recom- mended for wheat and root crops, is as efficacious here. The only difference in the manures for this crop and any other root crop is, that salt must be omitted, as it reifders the sugar more difficult of extraction. Guano should not be used alone, but composted with bone dust and superphosphate of lime. Bone dust, wood ashes, and lime, form a most excellent com- post. Some fertilizers we deem to be absolutely necessary to the perfection of this crop for a series of years, for stable ma- Special crops. 2J7 nure will not supply all the elements taken from the soil Fieret Brothers, the model farmers of France, where the caUi- vation of the beet has attained its greatest perfection, have cultivated a farm of five hundred and fifty acres for thirteen years, growing oats, rye, hay, beets, and wheat, in rotation. They are sugar manufacturers, and fatten eight hundred head of cattle and three thousand sheep every year. They attribute their success to the immense amount of fodder and manure their ^' pulp" enables them to make, and to the improvement of the soil consequent upon beet culture. Their average crop of oats has increased, in this time, from forty-five and a half bushels to ninety-two and a half bushels, and the straw in proportion. The average crop of rye has increased from seventeen to thirty-four and a half bushels, and straw in proportion. Their average crops of wheat, for the time, have been thirty-six and a half bushels, of hay over three tons, and of beets twenty tons. They state that the cultivation of beets reduces the cost of cultivating the sacceeding crops enormously. They use lime and manures liberally, plow deep, and cultivate thoroughly the beet crop, and a single light plowing is sufficient to prepare the land for the succeeding grain crop, which is drilled in. The Preparation of the Soil, by deep plowing and thorough pulverization, is one of the main elements of sac- cess. The beet requires a deep^ mellow bed, that its long tap root may grow straight and smooth. If the soil is not mel- lowed to a sufficient depth, a part of the beet will grow above ground. This top, which grows above the surface, is not only A^orthless for sugar, but is injurious to the balance, and is cut off before the beets are ground. If the ground selected has been in previous cultivation, manure in the fall, and cover the manure about six inches deep. Follow this with a second plow- ing, as deep as possible, wdth a double Michigan plow ; or, what 16 248 now TO make farming pay. is belter, one deep plowing, from eight to twelve inclies, and a subsoil plow six to eiglit more. ir a crop of weeds make their appearance before winter, harrow, and cross-harrow, or dig them up with the cultivator. As soon as the ground is dry and warm in the spring, cross- plow it, and cross-harrow it. Grant advises that the last har- rowing be followed with a drag, or the harrow turned upside down, to smooth and level the soil. We think this operation rnust answer the purpose admirably. Sowing commences the latter part of April, or as soon there- after as the ground is warm and dry. The seed should be steeped for five or six hours in the following solution : Nine ounces sulphate of potash, and an equal quantity of sulphate of lime, in one gallon of warm water. Add to this five or six gallons of water, and cover the seed. After the liquid is turned oft', roll the seed in wood ashes, or slaked lime, or plaster of paris, or guano, until each seed is coated. Sow with a drill or seed sower, in rows, sixteen to eighteen inches apart, and six to eight inches apart in the rows. Cover not more than two inches deep. If there is any doubt about the vitality of the seed, sow bounti- fully, and thin out all superfluous plants. The object is to have the plants stand one foot apart after the final thinning. Their cul- ture and gathering is not materially different from that of other roots. The former consists in cutting or pulling all weeds, keep- ing the ground mellow between the rows, thinning to twelve inches, and transplanting superfluous roots to fill vacant places. The gathering can be done with a plow. The plow used in Europe, called an " awachem," is thus described by Grant : " A sort of plow with a share shaped like a cone, the section of which is an oval, somewhat flattened on the lower side, about three feet in length, seven or eight inches in diameter, and tapering to a blunted point. It is drawn by two horses, and will dig from SPECIAL CROPS. 24 'J one and a half to one and three quarter acres per daj." Some improved implement of this kind for digging roots is needed, and will probably soon be supplied. The beet ripens, in the latitude of Illinois, about the first of September. The leaves turn yellow, wither, and begin to drop off. The longer the beet stays in the ground without freezing, or being soaked by the fall rains, the better. But if there are indications of rain or frost, secure your crop. It the rains take you unawares, as soon as they are over, and ine weather is dry, harvest the crop as speedily as possible. Beets, once frozen, should be left a few daj^s before being dug. Great care should be taken not to bruise, cut, or otherwise injure the beets, especially when they are to be kept any length of time before using. If some are to be used at once, and others preserved in the pits, select the ripest for preservation, and let those least ripe, and those grown in the richest soil, be always used first. The best way to preserve the beet is to keep it frozen. Let them once freeze, and then protect them from the rays of the sun, and they will remain frozen throughout our northern winter ; but as soon as they thaw, they must be used at once. The French pil-e them in huge piles, of a uniform depth of from five to eight feet, covered with straw in such a way as to shed the rain, ventilated by various contrivances — sometimes not ventilated at all. The outside beets are placed in perfectly systematic layers, one by one, with the roots in and the tops out ; the rest are thrown promiscuously into the interior of the pile. Another method, is placing them in pits dug in dry soil, two feet deep and twelve wide, and of any required length. If the bottom of the pit is inclined to be damp, a coating of dry sand is put on the bottom, and sometimes a ditch is dug all around the pit, outside the roots, and a little deeper than the pit. The roots are then thrown into the pit, and a wall of beets built 250 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. around them as before described. This pile narrows gradually till it reaches a lieigbt of six to eight feet. A wall of earth is DOW built around the pile, and its thickness increased as the weather demands. The upper three feet of the pile can be covered with six or eight inches of straw, until the earth is actually needed to prevent freezing. The sooner the beets are put in piles or pits after being dug, the better, as thej lose weight by exposure to the light. Beet Pulp is the residue of the beet after the sugar has been extracted, and is worth at least one third as much per ton as hay for feeding stock. It will keep for two years or more in good condition, and be alwaj^s relished by cattle. It is presei*ved by the Messrs. Fieret, to whom we have alluded, in the follow- i)ig manner : A ditch is dug in dry, hard soil, and the pulp trodden firmly into it, filling it two. feet above the surface. The whole is covered with two feet of earth. They fatten yearly eight hundred head of cattle and three thousand sheep. They will Ritten in one hundred days. They allow cattle eighty pounds of pulp, five pounds chopped straw, and five pounds oil cake, daily. The sheep are each allowed six pounds pulp, half pound chopped straw, half pound oil cake, and one pound chaff. Chopped corn stalks, and Indian meal, can be fed with the pulp to advantage in this country. The beet leaves are also an excellent fodder, and can be preserved in layers, with salt sprinkled between the layers ; and fed to milch cows with the pulp, they increase the flow of milk. Seed. A most important consideration is the selection of seed, both as to quality and variety. At present the seed must be imported. We recommend Messrs. B. K. Bliss & Son, of New York, as reliable dealers in seeds, and they will gladly answer all inquiries in regard to their cost, etc. But it should be the aim of the cultivator to raise his own seed. The White SPECIAL CKOPS. 251 Silesian seems to uuite the necessary qualities for the best sugar beet, which are a pear-shaped root, growing wholly beneath the surface of the soil when it has room to extend itself; a smooth surface, free from lateral roots ; a firm flesh, and medium size. The beets for seed should be chosen before they are piled or put in the pits. The most perfect specimens should be selected. Those grown in very rich soil are not as good for seed as those grown in a medium soil. iSTo beets should be selected any por- tion of which has grown above ground, nor any with a double or imperfect crown. Cut off the leaves within about an inch of the crown, and also the extreme end of the tap root. Dig a trench, as before described, and la}- tlie beets in carefully in layers, covering each layer with just sufficient earth to separate the beets. Form a conical pile three feet above the surface, and cover with a few inches of earth, increasing the covering as cold weather advances, to prevent freezing. All other roots require ventilation ; and although it is claimed by Grant and others that the sugar beet does not, we consider it safer to ven- tilate all piles or pits. This can be done by setting tiles on the top of the beets, at convenient distances, and stuffing them with straw, as is recommended for all roots. As early in the spring as the ground can be worked, set out the beets in a dry soil that has been deeply plowed and heavily manured the previous year. Set them in rows three feet apart, and two feet apart in the rows, mixing a couple of handfuls of bone dust with the soil when the beet is set. Set the crowns just below the sur- face, and press the earth closely about them. An inch of earth, and anotlier handful of bone dust on the crown of the plant, completes the setting. The French cut three or four longitudi- nal slits in the beet, commencing about an inch below the crown. We have no doubt that these cuts assist the plant, enabling it to throw out more and stronger roots, and consequently pro- 252 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. ducing more aud better seed. As soon as the beets sprout, weeding and cultivation must begin, and be kept up until the seed riiiens. Cut awaj weak flower stems, and when the seeds becrin to form, pinch off the tips of the stalks. Just before the seed stalks turn brown, cut them off near the ground, and dry them in some airj and sunny place. Thresh out the seeds in hot weather, blow out all the chaff you can, and spread them out until they are thoroughly dry, occasionally stirring them. Put into small sacks, and hang in a dry, airy, secure place, until they are two years old. Never sow one year old seed. Before sowing, the coarsest of the seed should be rubbed between two boards and partially crushed, or they will clog hfie sower, and the seed will not be evenly distributed. KoTATiON' OF Crops and Manures, the Adaptation of Stock to the Soil, and General Management of Crops. The theory of rotation is that the soil contains in a greater or less degree all the elements of plant food ; and that each crop extracts its own peculiar elements and no others. This is un- doubtedly true. Agricultural chemistry shoAvs,, by analyses, what elements are extracted by each crop. For instance. The results of various chemical analyses has shown that red clover is composed principally of potash, lime, and carbonic acid, and that the grain of wheat consists, for the most part, of phosphoric acid and potash, and the straw of silica. Potatoes are composed principally of potash, carbonic acid, and phos- phoric acid; turnips, of potash, lime, carbonic and sulphuric acids ; peas consist principally of potash, and phosphate of lime ; the grain of rye of phosphate of lime and potash; the straw of rye of potash and silica. M. Sprengel found potash, soda, and sihca, to be the principal ingredients in the grain of maize, and the stalks to consist principally of silica and lime. The ashes of the grape vine consists principally of potash, lime, and phosi>horic acid. SPECIAL CROPS. 25o Analyses also show the composition of soils, and are, in some measure, a guide in adapting crops to the soil, but the expecta tiou cherished, a few years ago, that chemistry would solve all the difficulties of agriculture, has not been realized. There are so many considerations besides the elements in the soil and crops, that chemistry can only suggest what the farmer must prove by practice. It is true that the intelligent farmer will always he aided, by a knowledge of the principal elements of the crops he cultivates, of the soils on which he cultivates them, and of the manures applied, but the rain and the dew, the air and the sunshine, which he cannot regulate, will often change his best planned results. All soils contain mineral matter and phosphate of lime suffi- cient for a crop of any kind ; but it is readily seen that if the same crop is removed, year after year, and no equivalenl returned, certain elements will become entirely exhausted. But if the elements removed can bo replaced by manures, or such a succession of crops raised that each element will be taken in its turn, allowing the soil an interval of several years to recuperate, the soil will retain its fertility. It is in this con- nection that the analyses of manures are valuable, and here that chemistry has done and is doing useful work for Agricul- ture. We give below the principal elements of various manures and fertilizers. A cord of leached ashes contains about 147 pounds phosphoric acid, 184 pounds silex. 41 " oxide of magnesia, 21 " oxide of iron, 196 " magnesia, 50 " potash, 1.057 " carbonic acid, 2,227 " lime. Average dung of a cow, for one year, contains 4.800 pounds genie, 37 pounds chalk, 677 " carbonate of ammonia, 24 " common salt, 71 " bone dust, . 15 " sulphate of potash. 37 " plaster. o-A now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. A family of six persons will ordinarily produce per day ubout eighteen pounds of excrement, liquid and solid; or, in one year, six thousand five hundred and seventy pounds, containing twelve pounds of chlorine, fifty pounds of salts, two hundred and twelve pounds of dry, organic matter. In the latter there will be forty-five pounds nitrogen. This is equal to fifty-five pounds of jmre ammonia, or one hundred and forty-two pounds of the carbonate of ammonia of commerce. See, in Chapter III., directions for saving and utilizing this valuable manure. The manure of fattening hogs approaches nearly to night soil. Sheep dung comes next in order. Horse manure contains, in one hundred parts, about 10. carbon, 3.28 carbonate of ammonia, 1.30 hydrogen, .96 other salts, 9.50 oxygen, Balance water. .60 nitrogen, But horse dung rapidly loses these valuable qualities, unless composted as directed in Chapter III. Guano should contain from thirty-four to thirty-eight parts phosphates, thirty-three to thirty-five parts organic matter and salts of ammonia, and sixteen to twenty-four parts water. One hundred pounds cow's urine contains forty pounds of ammonia, and eighty pounds of the most powerful salts ever used by the farmer ; its actual value, therefore, is nearly double that of the dung. One cord of loam saturated with urine, is fully as valuable as a cord of solid dung. See directions. Chapter III., for saving the liquid manure. The urine of the hog is still more valuable, containing one fourth more ammonia, and also phosphates of which the urine of other animals is destitute. We wish we could awaken, in the mind of the farmer, an alarm at the waste of these valuable^ products which is constantly SPECIAL CROPS. 255 goiijg on around liim. Two hundred pounds of Lones, yielding one hundred pounds of bone ash, contain, Pliospliiite of lime, 88.00 pounds. Soda 3.25 pounds. Carbonate of lirae.. 6.00 '• Alkuline sulphates Magnesia 1.25 " and chlorides 1.50 " This will require about eighty-eight pounds of oil of vitriol to reduce to super phosphate. The above analyses show, in a measure, the constituents of the various crops and manures, and may suggest the proper a})plication of the one to the other. It must be remembered, in this connection, that the crops can take up nothing but liquids; and the most powerful manures, unless readily soluble in the soil, are of no value to the crops. No application of manures, however, can preclude the neces- sity of a rotation of crops in order to the lest results. There are elements, both in the soil and in the air, that the nicest analyses cannot detect, and nothing but time can replace. A rotation of manures is also a necessity. The farmer who applies the same manure, whatever crop he may take from the soil, has yet to learn the first principles of rotation ; which are to replace, as nearly as may be, the constituents removed by the crop. There is also an adaptation of manures to the soil as well as to the crop. A soil already full of lime is not benefitted by more. Stock raising and mixed husbandry are essential requisites of a system of rotation of crops. Farmers must keep more and better stock if they would make farming pay. Says S. E. Todd: " When the agriculture of our country is characterized by that system of judicious management which will eventually |)revail — when our soils shall have been underdrained as they ought to be — when they shall be improved in fertility by manuring and more complete pulverization — when our farmers 25(5' now TO make farming pay. have learned how to save, to make, and to apply manure in the most profitable manner— and when they have learned to turn their ^rain into meat which will be worth as much as the grain, while the manure of the animals fed will increase the amount of the next crop nearly two fold— then we may not only reckon on our agriculture as being progressive, but as a system of farm- ing that 'will pay,' and be worthy of universal adoption." " "What then is paying farming ? We answer, it is that system of management in which our old worn out farms are renovated from their greatly impoverished condition, the DOor land ren- dered good and productive, and the good land rendered better, paying the cost of cultivation and the interest on the capital invested ; and leaving a profit to the proprietor, all from the resources of the /army "We want to sell the products, and, at the same time, make such a disposition of them that the soil will not be impoverished by removing crops from it. We want to keep our cake and eat it too, in a certain sense. For exam- ple : if a farmer raises one hundred bushels of Indian corn, his aim should be to use it up in such a manner that his soil will not be impoverished. The same is true of his other crops of cereal grain and grass. By feeding out one hundred bushels of corn in the most economical manner, and to the best kind of swine, cattle, or sheep, and by saving all their manure and apply- ing it to the soil where the corn grew, and by cultivating that soil in a most thorough manner, its fertility may be improved." " If a farmer desires to raise bountiful crops, of any kind of grain or grass, he cannot expect to be able to do it on a soil that has been exhausted of most of those substances which are required to produce that kind of grain. But by raising stock m connection with growing grain, by feeding' out a large por- tion of coarse grain to animals ; by husbanding all the resources for saving and preparing fertilizing materials for the soil ; and SPECIAL CROPS. 257 bj adopting a judicious system of rotation of crops which aro adapted to the soil and to the locality, the grain producing material which is especially adapted to promoting the growth of each kind of grain, will have time to accummulate in the soil, so that, whenever a given crop of grain or grass is to be grown, there will be such an abundance of it that not onl}' the stalks, but the grain, will be large in quantity and superior in quality. " In case a farmer keeps sheep, in connection with grain raising, he will want one or more cows, to furnish milk and butter. Then, lard will be very essential for culinary purposes, to say nothing of the value of pork for food. Then a span or two of good horses will be indispensable, and a yoke of good oxen. All these animals are absolutely necessary, even on a grain farm. Therefore, where such animals are kept, we have all the elements of a good system of mixed husbandry to begin with. And now, if every thing is arranged harnioniouslj', in connection with a judicious system of rotation of crops, pro- viding all the manure is made and saved, and properly applied, that can be; and if the soil is thoroughly drained, where it is too wet, and properly cultivated, and every operation per- formed in good time, and in a farmer-like manner, we may rest assured, that success will attend the eftbrt of the husbandman." " In order to come fully up to the standard and practice of a thrifty and successful cultivator of the soil, every farmer should calculate to keep some kind of stock, neat cattle or sheep, to consume, and to work into manure the corn stalks, straw, and coarse grain. It is, and always has been, and always will be, ' penny wise, and pound foolish' policy, to keep ^joor animaJs, or to keep animals looor. It has ever been a mysterj-, that I could not unravel, why multitudes of farmers could be so re- gardless of their own interests, as to allow their animals, which 258 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM I AY. come into the baruyard in a thrifty, fleshy conlitioii, in late autumn, to return to the pasture poor, in the spring. It is the worst policy on the whole farm, to allow animals of any kind to "TOW poor. A farmer should not attempt to keep one more animal than he can keep in a growing and thrifty condition. To keep too many half-starved animals, is a practice which de- serves the severest condemnation. I have always acted on the policy, that it is better to save a pound of fat or flesh, than to attempt to produce it. The kind of soil that a man cultivates in connection with the crops he raises, should determine, in a great degree, what kind of stock he should keep on his farm. If a man's soil will produce abundant crops of wheat, oats, corn, and grass ; then we may conclude that it will support thorough- bred animals of the largest size, whether they be neat cattle or sheep. If neat cattle, those that have a large infusion of Durham blood will be found quite as profitable, and doubtless more so, than any other breed." On a hilly, barren, and rather unproductive soil, Mr, Todd recommends the Devon cattle, and South Down sheep, or a cross between the Merino and South Down. (We have quoted thus at length from Mr. Todd, as expressing, better than we could do it, our idea of the principles of rotation and mixed husbandry, and we can give no better advice just here, than to advise every reader to procure Mr. Todd's book, " The Young Farmers' ManuaV\ notwithstanding its exorbitant price, and we can assure you that it will well repay a careful perusiti.) This system requires improved stock. A good cow, ox, or sheepi got by a thoroughbred male, is preferable in every re- spect to two poor ones, by grade males. They give more milk, more beef, more wool, and more mutton, in proportion to the food furnished them, and the manure voided is more valuable. SPECIAL CROPS. 259 Our advice to farmers is: Never, wlaen avoidable, put any am mal to a grade male, but always to a thorouglibred. Sheep will often, be more valuable than ueat cattle on the farm. A farmer can take care of sheep with less labor and ex- pense, and will get annual returns for wool and mutton, whereas neat cattle must be kept three or four years. Sheep will eat coarse grain and fodder, which for cattle should be ground. Neat cattle and sheep should not be pastured together, as the sheep will take advantap^e of them and get most of the fine, ten- der grass. Pigs should always form a part of this system of mixed husbandry, as they work over and make into valuable manure a great deal that would otherwise be lost. Consuming the productions of the soil on the farm is the key note of our system of agriculture, and the only system to be recommended for universal adoption. Neglect of this principle is one of the reasons why farming pays no better. " A mixed husbandry is a system of farm management, in which raising grain constitutes only a portion of a farmer's employment, while raising stock of some kind is a chief part of his busincbS. In other words, raising stock and growing grain on the same farm posesses decided advantages over that system of husbandry in which nothing but grain is grown or stock reared. A system of mixed husbandry includes all the good practices to which we have made allusion in this chapter. Every farmer must judge for himself what stock to keep, what crops to raise, and what system of rotation to pursue, we shall therefore only indicate briefly some of the systems of rotation, and the proper place of the principal crops in the same. The farm is divided into pasture, meadow, and tillage laud, the latter into four, five, six, or seven fields, according to the number of crops to be raised. As a rule, none but the pastures should be fenced off. (See " Fences T) The seven field system 20(.) now TO MAKE THE FARM FAY. does not make permanent grass lands, but gives several yeara to «'rass of each of the divisions of land, and gives one to corn, one to oats, and one or two to wheat. Supposing the rotation to begin with corn, a cleansing crop; it is followed by oats, which has the same effect in that respect us the corn crop, though not hoed. It makes a shade at midsum- mer, calculated to check the growth of weeds, and the stubble being short'lj after plowed, it has the effect of a hoed crop, and, with the previous corn crop, combines to leave the ground in condition for grass seeds. The oat stubble is manured at mid- summer, with the contents of the farmyard, and a good foun- dation is laid for a crop of wheat, and of grass following. Whether clover seed alone, or timothy or other grass seeds, be now sown, depends upon whether one or two crops of wheat are to be taken from the course. If two crops, then clover seed only will be sown the following spring. From this sowing, a crop of clover hay will be taken the next year, and a fallow prepared for wheat the coming fall. Upon this w^heat is sown timothy, or other grass seeds. The crops should nearly all be consumed on the farm, and the refuse returned to the soil. This is a system to be recommended. It makes variety in the crops; gives the soil the benefit of the preserving .effects of a long standing sod; devotes half of the period of rotation to ameliorating treatment, and returns not only the coarser pro- ducts to the soil, but feeds at home a large proportion of the grain. The following is a good six course rotation. First year roots heavily manured. Second, clover limed, and second growth plowed under. Third, wheat. Fourth and fifth, grass, two years. Sixth, corn, rye or oats. A five year course rotation First, green crop. Second, wheat. Third, grass. Fourth, roots Fifth, corn or oats. SPECIAL CROPS. 261 By this plan two grain crops are never raised off the same field in succession. The following is a four course rotation, whicS, in some localities, will do very well : First year, corn, potatoes, or fallow, manured. Second, oats. Third, clover. Fourth, wheat. The only objection to this course is that one grain crop, corn, is followed by another grain crop, oats ; but in the culture of maize the soil is, or should be, kept perfectly free from weeds, and being a dull crop, the land is generally in good heart for cereals. Of course the farmer must form his system to suit his own peculiar circumstances, but will do well to adhere to the princi- ple laid down. It will be noticed that we advocate wheat after clover, or more literally clover before wheat. We consider it good practice, as will be seen by reading the chapter on wheat culture. In many wheat growing districts the rotation is limited to wheat and clover, two seasons in clover and one in wheat, sheep and horses consuming the clover on the farm. This can only be good practice, however, in districts covered with lime- stone and plaster beds. Another plan is to raise wheat after potatoes, commencing the rotation with corn, heavily manured and thoroughly cultivated, following this with potatoes and barnyard manure, the third year wheat, and then two years in grass. We have heretofore spoken of turnips and wheat in Chapter Y. A crop of peas is one of the best to precede winter wheat; they take but a small proportion of the wheat producing material, mature rapidly, and when fed out to growing stock return full value to the soil. They leave the ground mellow and friable, but a dressing of well composted manure should be plowed in after the peas are removed. Wheat was formerly sown after Indian corn, but as it takes, in large measure, the same plant food, it cannot be called good practice. 202 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. The sugar beet is excellent to precede all grain crops. [See Chapter on Beets for sugar.) Corn on sod ground is the common practice, and we do not know that it can be improved 'upon. We are aware that corn is often raised on tbe same ground for successively five, ten, and even twenty years, but such a prac- tice is simple folly. AYe should not follow roots with corn a,s a o-erieral rule, although we have met with, good success on heavily manured land. The grasses are usually sown with and therefore follow grain in almost any system of rotation. The rule to be observed in all rotations is: If any crop takes up a large proportion of any given element from the soil, do not folloAV it with another crop requiring the same element. The rotation on prairie soils is often confined to grass, corn, and wheat, the grain being all removed, and the straw burned. This is an exhaustive process; and there should be substituted for it, at once, a more extended rotation, or at least a system of mixed husbandry, which shall consume a portion of the grain, with the hay, stalks, and straw, on the farm, and return them to the soil. The systems of rotation for cotton and other crops are given in connection with the culture of those crops. In conclusion, we would say, raise such crops, and in such quantities, that you can give each a full share of attention, re- membering that to get the best crops requires the best care, and make it your ruling principle that the best market for your crops is in the manger, the stall, and the piggery. ill lii' PART SECOND-STOCK RAISING. CHAPTER IX. HORSES AND MULES. 'N BEEBDING HOESES for farm use, quickness ot working, power to pull loads, and ability to endure constant daily labor, are the prime qualifications to be aimed at. Speed, draught, and endurance. We say sj^eed, for a horse that can harrow, or rake two acres while another is doing one, or that can go to mill, or market, in one hour, when it takes another two, is worth to his owner, other things being equal, twice as much as the other. In the choice of a stallion, then, for breeding good horses, the more blood compatible with thtj size required the better; the "pare blooded," high-bred horse, having greater quickness, strength, bottom, health, and vigor of constitution, as well as greater courage. Black Hawk, whose portrait forms the frontispiece to this chapter, is a good specimen of the roadster. {Fig. 68.) The blood should be on the side of the stallion ; breed up, not down. Never put a mare to a stallion of inferior blood. The stallion should be free from vices of temper and disposi- tion, as he will surely transmit these to his progeny. He will also transmit diseases and malformations, therefore these should 1)0 avoided. The general description for a stallion for the pur IT 2G."> 2(56 now TO make the faem iay. pose of the firmer is— sixteen hands high ; fore legs above the knee, and hind legs above the hock, long and muscular; below these joints, short and bony ; joints round and well set, short backed, well ribbed up, short in tbe saddle place, and long below it ; high withers, broad loins, broad chest, straight rump, a hic'h muscular crest, a lean well set head, broad nostrils, small curs, and a small clear eye. (See fig. 09.) A dark bay is the best oolor, an iron grey next, then black, and other dark shades. The mane and tail should always be darker than the hair of the body. The prevaiHng method of using stallions cannot be too strongly condemned. The unscrupalous owners ot stallions tax them to a degree ruinous to them and their progeny. No stallion should be used regularly as a breeder, until he is four years old. When three, he may be put to a half dozen mares, and his qualities tested, but too much must not be expected of his stock, at this age. If it is passable, keep him for a stallion ; with moderate usage his colts will be g. ^od until he is twelve or sixteen. But the present monstrous prac- tice of allowing stallions to serve from sixty to eighty mares in a single season of three months, rapidly deteriorates the stock. Twenty mares, or at most two a week, for the season, is all that any stallion can be taxed, without serious loss in the quality of his colts. And instead of being confined all the time in the .stable, eating heating food, and only seeing the mare when led out for copulation, they should be allowed to run together fur a day or two, in the pasture ; both the horse and ihe mare will enjoy this season, and the superiority of the foal will abundant- ly repay such an allowance. You will raise horses with much less disposition to be vicious. Our breed of horses will continue to deoienerate as lonar as o o the present exhaustive practice is continued. The only practi- cal remedy, that we now see, is for farmers to club together and HORSES AXD MULES. 267 purchase a stallion, or raise one among themselves, keeping him for their own breeding. This -coarse has been largely practiced in some communities, and a marked and most profit- able improvement in the stock has been the result. Ix THE Choice of the Mare, size, symmetry, and sound- ness, are to be regarded as essentials. ("Beauty from the dam ; temper and disposition, from the sire.") She should have a roomy frame, a little more than the average length from hip to shoulder, sloping hips, wide chest, deep girth, strong quarters, and particularly a wide deep pelvis ; permitting the passage of the foal into the world uninjured. She should be gentle, free from all vicious habits, and from all constitu- tional diseases or deformities, such as diseases of the lungs, Qyes^ or spavins, bad feet, or any bony enlargepients, as she will almost surely transmit these ill shapes, even if she herself is excellent. Never breed from a sulky, baulky, savage, or vicious mare, unless you wish to perpetuate the breed. It is true, these are often overcome by the sire, but the risk is too great to be advisable. Before putting her to the stallion, by careful usage and feeding, get her into the most perfect state of health, not over loaded with fat, but in a first rate condition. Her state at the time of coi- tion, will have a lasting effect upon the foal. Gestation should commence under the most favorable circumstances. There should be mhtual adaptation, between the sire and the dam, in both form, size, and all other important characteristics. The mare should be a little larger than the horse, unless the mare be too low, when she may be bred to a horse a trifle taller, but not of the leggy kind. A low mare to a leggy horse, to pro- duce height, is a mistake. Any great difference in size will usually produce distortions. If either is defective in any point, bo sure the other is perfect in that point. If the colt ie 268 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. desired for the farm, put the mare to a farm-horse, if for the carriage, to a stallion adapted for a roadster. If the design is 10 improve the breed, without special reference to either, a pure blooded horse will certainly, under our limitations, accom- plish the purpose. If your stock is good, you may breed in and iu, for two generations, but never more, that is with near blood relations, and if your stock is degenerated, cross it at once, with' some distinct strain of pure blood, to reinvigorate and strengthen the stock. Where stock has already been long inbred, breed up, by stinting the mares to the best thorough- bred stallion that can be found, broad chested, and strong loiued, about the height of the mare, but stouter. The fillies from this cross will be larger and stouter than their dams, and from them naay be bred again, still larger and stouter horses, by the same process. The Canadian horse, we think, all things considered, the best breed for the farmer, and if special care were taken to breed only from the largest and most perfect specimens, or to breed the mares to thoroughbreds of the Norman stock, the breed might be greatly improved. It possesses endurance, but needs a little increase in size, and decrease in weight, and increase in speed. Judicious breeding, with this object in view, will abundantly repay the breeder. We cannot close this subject without entering our strongest protest, against the abuse of the mare often practiced. She should never be put to the stud before she is three years old, and it is usually much better to wait still another year, that she may perfectly mature. Again; let her have more of the companionship of the horse ; a single connection does not satisfy her ; let them run together two or three days, in a retired pasture, the disposition of your colt will be enough better to warrant it. Thirdly, do not make her bring a colt every year, it is too great a tax upon her, and the HORSES AXD MULES. 271 colts will not be worth any more. Two inferior colts are no better than one first class. Again, don't try to get colts from a poor old, worn out mare, that after years of hard labor, has earned the right to rest. It is a cruelty to her, and the foal will be nothing but an abortion and a disgrace. The Mare intended for Breeding, should be subjected only to light labor, and this should be continued through the first months of gestation, taking care that she be not subjected to any strains, or great fatigue. When not required to work, if the weather is good, permit her to run in the pasture. When the weather is inclement, she should have shelter. Her food should be liberal and nutritious. Clover, lucerne, green corn, ruta bagas, and carrots, a few old and thoroughly dried oats, and steamed bran mashes, are the best food during gestation and suckling. She has two lives to support, and her food should be moist, easily digested, and nutritious. She should be carefully groomed, and most kindly treated, all through the period of gestation, if you expect from her a good dispositioned foal. During the last six or eight weeks she should be subjected to no labor, removed from all other ani- mals, allowed to roam at will, or taken out and gently exercised. As she comes nearer the time of foaling, keep her where she can be watched, and assistance rendered if any should be needed. When the period arrives, the time occupied by the mare in foal- ing is short, and her pain severe. We cannot approve of foal- ing in the field. Lead her in on to the barn floor, or under a shed well littered. Let all your actions and words be gentle and kind — a harsh tone is unnecessary, and may be injurious. Even the voice of a stranger, or of one of whom she is afraid, adds to the sufferings of the mare at this time. The hour of labor being near at hand, fasten a pair of light hobbles to the fetlocks of both hind legs, and ropes from them run between 272 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. the fore legs. This should be done by some one in wbom sh( recognizes I friend. Thej should be held firmly, to prevent her striking out at the attendant who assists the birth. After the birth, bring a pail of warm milk gruel, and leave the marc and foal to themselves. Entire quiet for two or three hours is the best medicine. After this, give her a meal of pre- pared food. Do not resort to purgations if she does not imme- diately expel the after-birth. Some writers recommend a qjiiart of ale once in three hours ; if, after the third dose, it is not expelled, inject cold water until it is. The colt is now the object of care. If the dam is in good condition, she will need no medicine. After a month or six TS'eeks, the labor of the mare should be gradually resumed, and the colt allowed to run with her ; but not yet on tbe roads. If the colt is strong, he may be weaned in six months — except that fall colts should not be weaned until the spring grass appears. The future animal is now in your hands, and will be about what you make him. Half the diseases, and all the vices of the horse, are the result of man's treatment of him. Unvary- ing kindness and attention now, are a thousand times better than the whip or the horse-breaker by and by. He should be coaxed to take morsels from the hand, petted and fondled. The lesson is soon learned, and he learns to regard men as friends, and to do their bidding. It is surprising how universally men repel the instinct of confidence and affection in the horse, and think it is more manly to assert their authority in harsb and threatening tones, which only awaken dread and fear. The colt should be warmly housed and sheltered during the winter. Thousands of good colts are injured for life by being compelled to stand out without shelter, and with scant food. Chopped feed moistened, bran mashes, etc., are even more necessary for the colt than for the mature animal. HORSES AND MULES. 278 If the colt is to be castrated, it should be done when he ia from four to six months old. "We would repeat here, that the supply of stallions is altogether too small, and urge upon farm- ers the desirableness of preserving entire their best male colts. Castrating, if done early, is a safe operation, and may be done by the farmer himself. Find the orifice through the lining of the belly ; trace it back to the testicle, a distance at this ago of only two or three inches ; bring down the testicle with the two forefingers. The vessels will bleed but little. Apply a little fine salt and turpentine, and the evil effects will be soon re- moved. The longer castration is delayed, the more difficult and dangerous it becomes. We have been, in all this chapter, considering the method of breeding good horses. Those who are satisfied with the poor, scrubby, inferior horses so common all over the country, which cost just as much to get, and just as much to keep, as a good horse, will probably continue the old method of breeding, hap- hazard, from broken down, half-starved mares — and when they get a colt, will ruin all his good qualities by neglect and un- kindness. Breaking and Training the Colt, on the present system, engenders nearly all the so called vices of the horse. The horse is not by nature vicious. Judicious training of the colt will break up any vices that may have been inherited. Within a week from his birth the training should commence. When you take a mash to the mare, seat yourself, and let her eat out of your dish, at the same time offering some tempting morsel to the colt, take advantage of his acquaintance to handle him a little pat his neck and 'gradually to handle him all over until you can lift his feet, handle his ears, and look in his mouth, without his showing any signs of fear. If you always act and speak kindly he will know no cause for fear. A few moments «^74 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. each day will suiricc to accomplish all this, and much more, be fore he is weaned. A bit made of a green stick may be held ■n his mouth by strings, until he will open his mouth readily to ake it, when the colt bit and bridle may be put in its place ; after this has been tried a few times he may be led about a little wiih it beside the dam, he may then be tied by it a few minutes at a time until he will stand easy. All this while it should be done gradually, and, without a harsh word or a blow, should oe done firmly. If the colt is inclined to resist any of the opera- dons, gently but firmly insist and persist until he learns that whatever you want of him he must do, and that instead of be- iua hurt, be is rewarded when he does what is wanted. He will soon learn that man is his master as well as his friend, and will never forget it ; no more will he ever forget abuse, or un kinduess. He should now be walked around with a bag over his back, first loose and then strapped on, then the stirrups attached and allowed to dangle, until the fear of any thing of the sort is re- moved. When he is a year old he may be reined up occasion- ally to the surcingle and allowed to mouth the bits, and ^f de- signed for a saddle horse the semblance of a man put on his back, or for a farm horse, the different portions of the harness put on. and taken off occasionally. During his second year he may be tied beside some steady horse, and taught to walk and trot, to be guided by the lines without the shafts, to be backed into the shafts, and finally to draw the buggy himself, all by slow, easy stages, and all the danger and difficulty of breaking a wild colt when he is wanted is avoided. If h*e is turned out to pasture, the person who car- ries him salt should, as often as once a week, give a few mo- ments to some portion of the above training. The common method of letting the colt run wild until he is HORSES AND MULES. 275 two or three years old, and then beginning his training, is un- natural, cruel, harmful in every way. A colt gentled in the way we have described is worth at the age of three years double the value of the unbroken colt. Neglected till he is three years old the colt can never he properly broken. He may be sub- dued to sullen obedience, but by the above method he may be made the willing servant of man, whom he has learned to regard as his friend, as well as master. Nothing but the most stupid dis- regard of the law of kindness can make this patient, docile and naturally obedient animal, vicious. But as there are some who will still persist in destroying this most valuable trait of character in their most valuable property, we shall give directions for breaking these already, half spoiled animals. The more high spirited and the mure valuable the colt is, the more likely is he to be spoiled, by trying to do at three years old the work that should have been done before he was one. He should be brought into the stable, and visited, and handled often, until he is somewhat used to it, then portions of the harness tried on ; if he can be accustomed to it without showing fear, lead him out into the yard, and make him turn to the right or left at the word or the reins. If he refuses to obey, which is quite likely, we know of no way but to whip him into subjection. When he does obey caress and reward him. If you succeed in making him obey heio, fasten him beside a steady horse with a light wagon, and make him go, peaceably if he will, forcibly if you must. If after all these operations he shies from the harness, tries to run from the wagon, or refuses to draw, do not give it up, but use every exertion to bring him to submission, and, finally, to the process known as taming. No horse properly gentled and trained according to the above directions will need taming, but as the majority of colts are 27,; now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. never trained a great many horses will have to be tamed, for which Rarey's Method is the best. It consists in fastening up the left fore leg, by a strap, buckled tight over the ankle, and the arm near the body, and the second strap attached to the right foot, run through the surcingle to the right hand of the tamer, while the left holds the bridle. See fig. 70. The horse is now harmless, and should be made to hop, when a vigorous pull with the right, will throw him on to his knees, where he can be held until he is ready to turn on his side, which he should be encouraged to do. These operations will take from fifteen minutes to three hours, according to the strength and spirit of the horse. ^When once fairly down, he should be caressed, handled, and a saddle or portions of the harness put on to him until he finds that none of them will do him any harm. This throwing should be repeated several times, until the horse readily submits, and allows his master to do whatever he pleases. By this method Mr. Rarey has tamed the most vicious of horses. How TO Stable, Feed, and Groom a Horse. No man has any right to torture a dumb animal. It is poor economy to breed disease and death, in so valuable an animal as the horse. Yet both these things are done in most stables. They are abodes of torture and death. Each horse should be allowed, at least, six by nine feet of stall room, that he may have room to turn about, change his position, lie down, or stand up, as he plea-ses, during the long weary hours that he is a prisoner. The partition between these stalls should be solid, only the height of the horse's chest ; the balance should be open work. In this stall he should not be tied by the head, as this prevents the change of position, of which we speak. He should be allowed the freedom of at least a six by nine feet cell. The present -nethod of tying a horse in a narrow stall, with the floor slant- 277 HORSES AND MULES. 279 ing backwards, is the cause of the diseases of the feet and joints, so common and so disastrous. It is desirable to have the floor slant backward to save the urine, but the horse should never be forced to sleep, or stand long, in that position ; if he has the freedom of the stall, he will choose his own position. We allow the horse nine feet, and there should be at least six more to the stable doors. No matter how many horses there are, no horse should have less than this space, and twelve feet in height. It is a thousand times better to have no loft at all over the horses, to give them the clear space to the roof, and light and air their stables from the roof; but as it will be im- possible to persuade most farmers to do this much for the health and comfort of the animal that serves him so faithfullv, we will say that no stable for a horse should be one inch less than twelve feet high, well lighted, and well ventilated. We do not mean by this that there should be cracks in the floor, and doors, and sides, by which cold currents of air are let in upon the poor shivering creature, but that there should be some regular outlet for the impure^ and inlet for i\ie pure air. If you still persist in having a loft over your stable, there should be left at least a space of three feet, between the loft and the back of the stable, and this space opening into the back of the stable and extending to a ventilator at the roof, will carry off one half the diseases that now affect your horses. The impure air that most horses breathe, is a most flagrant violation of all the principles of health. Shut yourself up in a contracted room for months, eat, drink, sleep, urinate, etc., in the close quarters, and how long before you would wish an end to your existence ? But the lungs of the horse are as sensitive as yours, his smell is keener, his eye is as tender. This brings us to the matter of light ; blindness in horses is in three cases out of four the result of dark stables. 280 now TO MAKE THE FAEM FAY. The borse can see in the dark, but not in total darkness. Nothing thrives without light. The stables should have the sunlight by day, and whatever light there is at night. If the best plan is adopted and the stables run to the roof, they can well be lighted by windows in the roof. But, however this may be, the light should come from above and behind the horse. A twelve feet stable will allow of a window over the door, for there should be a door, six feet wide and eight feet high, behind each horse ; this door should be cut in halves, both ways, making four quarters, either one or all of which can be opened or closed at pleasure. They should be wide and high, in order that there might be no danger of the horse hitting either his head, or his hips, in going out and in; it should be divided in order that in the summer the upper half can be kept opened, and a draft of cool air supplied. The stable should be cleaned out and aired every morning, and, if the horse stands in it at all during the day, at night also. The manure should not only be shovelled entirely out of the stable, but the floor should be thoroughly washed down with water, as recommended in the chapter on manures, not only to save the manure, but to save the eyes, nose, and lungs of the horse from the ammonia generated by tbe fermenting urine. This ammonia is the fruitful cause of many of the diseases of the horse. Not only should the impure air be as far as possible excluded, but the horse absolutely requires fresh air if you would keep him in a state of health. This can be secured by a very cheap and simple contrivance. An air-box, eight inches square, should be run through the whole length of the building, each end being open to the air, but protected by a screen of slats or wire. This box may be about even with the nostrils, and openings, an inch square, made in it in each stall. In most stables the mangers are too high. The horse naturally eats off HORSES AND MULES. 281 the ground. This brings us to the subject of Food. The pasture •is the natural feeding-ground of the horse. Tender, juicy gr:iss and twigs are his natural food. His teeth are soft, his throat, stomach, and intestines are sensitive. In feeding the horse, these plain facts are generally overlooked or ignored. No posi- tive rule for feeding all horses can be given ; but the foo'i should be soft, juicy, easily digested. It should be clean and sweet. Clean, fresh water should be always within his reach. The farmer's horse can and should have more or less pasturage. When the grass is green and tender, in the spring, the horse delights in it. In the warm summer nights, if possible, he should be permitted to roam at his pleasure in the pasture, rather than be confined in the heated stable, tormented by flies and other insects. The cool, dewy grass will be very beneficial to him. When confined in the stable in warm weather, the upper half of the stable door should be open, and he be free to thrust his head out into the night air if he choose, which he cer- tainly will. We have, in the chapter on breeding, referred to the food necessary for the marc and foal, and will only speak liere of the food of working horses. Too much hay and too little grain is the mistake in feeding working horses. For ordinary work, from eight to ten pounds of hay, (by which we mean the best of hay, properly prepared,) and twelve quarts of good heavy oats is amply sufficient for regular feed. They should be fed with a lock of hay and a half-pail of water on opening the stable ; and when the stables have been cleaned and aired, and the horse groomed, he should have the other half-pail of water, and, if going out, six quarts of oats, if not, four quarts, and, after these are eaten, four or five pounds of hay. Horses should be watered, if convenient, during the forenoon, and certainly at noon, when they should have four quarts more of oats, and when they return at night, should be 232 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. cleaned, watered, and have their oats and hay without foil. Two or three pecks of clean carrots, turnip^, beets, or potatoes, a few at a time, will be grateful to them, and invaluable in regulating the bowels and cooling the blood. A mash of stewed bran and oats once a week is not too much to ask for such a faithful slave and will tend to his health and usefulness. If he is to be put to severe work, the amount of grain must be increased and of hay diminished. The condition in which the hay and grain is given is another important consideration. The natural food of the horse is soft and j uicy ; hay, oats and corn are hard, harsh, and dry. One third less fodder is necessary where it is moistened and softened. All hay for the horse ought to be chopped and moistened an hour before feeding. Oats should be ground and mixed with the hay in the form of provender. Corn should never be given whole, unless steamed or soaked, and the same with oats. We repeat that this is economy, as two thirds of the amount will give the horse as much or more sustenance than before, and the teeth and digestive organs will last much longer. The best of the grasses for the horse is timothy, then herds grass and clover. The only grain suitable is the oat. Corn should always be used sparingly, as it works many disorders in the system, as do also rye, barley, wheat, and bran. If any of these are used, it should be ground, with oats for chopped feed. Some attention should be paid to the tastes of the horse. If, after long feeding with one continual round of the same food, he loses his appetite, make a change. Do not allow your horse to run down during the cold weather, it is then that he needs the best of food and shelter. If he works hard for you through the spring, summer, and fall, you owe him a good winter's keep, and you lessen his vigor, and shorten his term of usefulness, if you deny it to him. The natural age of the horse is forty years, and at twenty a horse HORSES AND MULES. 2^'6 should be in his prime. Steady and severe labor need not wear out the horse before this time, if he be properly cared for from the hour of his conception, through all the stages of liis exist- ence. This sounds strangely, because the carelessness and cruelty, the meanness and ignorance of man, has shortened by more than one half the natural term of his existence. The horse delights to be the faithful servant, slave, and friend of man. He will tax his strength and powers of endurance to the utmost, at the bidding of his master. Such faithfulness should be returned by kindness ajid attention. Harsh words, kicks and blows for every supposed offence of the unreasoning creature, are marks of a most contemptible character. In addition to stabling and feeding, Grooming the Horse is of more importance than is usually allowed among farmers. Grooming is hard, tedious, disagreeable business, and is, therefore, very much neglected. Daily grooming is absolutely essential to the health of the horse in his imprisoned state. The dust of the stable, and the mud of the street, will soon stop up the pores of the skin without grooming. Except in cold and stormy weather, the horse should be groomed out of doors between his feeds in the morning. Every portion of the body should be combed, and rubbed, and brushed, and in warm weather sponged. And here Ave would protest against the universal use of the curry comb. Some horses do not mind it, even like it, but to some horses with ten der skins it is an implement of torture, and instead of being glad to be groomed they shrink and shy, and perhaps kick ana bite, and are severely punished as vicious. Try the same im- plement on your own skin and see how you like it. When a horse is thus sensitive to the curry comb it should only be used to comb the mane and tail, and to scratch the legs, and a hair cloth and brush used for grooming. Savs Herbert, *' In ordinary 18 2S4 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. cleaning in the morning the head should be first dressed. The hair should be lifted and deranged lightly, not stretched or torn with the curry comb ; and then rubbed well, in all direc- tions, both against and across the grain of the hair as well as Kith it, until it is entirely clean from dust and dandruff. The tars should be gently stripped and pulled with the hand from the roots to the points; and the whole head should then be washed snftoothly and evenly as the hair ought to lie. The neck, back, shoulders, loins, croup, and quarters follow, the same plan being used, except that in dressing these parts, while the comb is used lightly and dexterously with one hand, the hrvlkh is employed in removing the scurf with the other. The flexures of the skin at the insertion of the limbs are parts that require especial care, as the dust is most apt to collect in these places. " This done the horse must be thoroughly wisped all over with bunches of dry straw till his coat is quite clean and glossy, when it may be gone over for the last time with a fine soft brush or a light duster." When he is broughi m from his daily toil and stabled for the night, the process should be care- fully repeated ; all mud, sand, and dirt must be removed from the legs and belly, and the legs rubbed by hand until they are warm. The horse should have a good bed of clean litter, straw, or sawdust, not deep, biit with room for him to lie in any position that stiits him. Most horses should be blanketed in cold weather, but to some horses a blanket is an annoyance and pre- vents rest. As rest is what the horse needs after his day's labor, he should be accommodated by allowing him to go without his blanket. The practice of singeing and clipping horses in the fall is abominable and dangerous. Just as his master is about to put on HORSES AND MULES. 285 his flannels and great coat his horse is deprived of the warm hair that has been growing for his protection against the winter chills, and disease is almost surely the consequence. The practice of clipping the fetlocks is undoubtedly bad, as the heel of the horse is tender, and when exposed is subject to many diseases. Nature has provided the fetlock as a protection, and as such let it remain. Never in grooming dash cold water upon the legs of the horse. Use water with a sponge; or after washing with soap and warm water, cold water may be turned on the back from a watering-pot to rinse off the suds ahd shut the pores. This should never be done in the stable where the horse has to sleep, unless there be u chance to air it and dry it before night. How TO Buy, Use, and Sell a Horse. It is useless to try to buy a very good horse at a very low price. People do not exchange gold dollars for dimes. A perfect horse, thanks to bad breeding, bad training, and bad care, is a rare thing, and is not parted with except for a fair equivalent. If the horse is well and sound, and is offered low, be sure he has been spoiled in training, and will fail you when you noed him most. Men will prevaricate and deceive in regard to a horse, who would not in other things — for such is the common custom — so the buyer must always judge for himself. The eye should be ex- amined from the front, with the head a little shaded. If there are any white, filmy spots, or streaks, on the eye, it denotes inflammation, which is likely to return, and detracts from the value of the animal. Next to the eyes, or rather before them in importance, is the condition of the lungs. Owing to our miserable stables, a large proportion of our horses are more or 'ess diseased in the lungs. Broken AVind will be detected by galloping a horse up hill 2-,; now TO MAKK THE FARA PAY. a huli.Jr.jd yards, and then jumping oat; apply the ear to the chest, and a double expiration will be heard. Thick AVind, roaring, and wljislling, are only the earlier stages of broken wind, and can be detected by the above process. Another rnetliod of detecting these defects, is to grasp the throat from the front, and compress it until he is forced to cough. A sound borsi? will cough once, and recover his wind with a clear, sonor- ous inhalation and exhalation. The diseased horse will utter a broken, rattling cough, and recover his breath with a long, wlieezing, laVjorious rattle. Defkcts ix the Legs and Feet cannot always -be dis- .-overed, but there are certain marks that surely indicate them. White spots on the knees show that the horse has broken his knees at some time or other, and as it is usually by falling, which is likely to occur again, the chances are that a broken kneed horse is a stumbler. Says Herbert, " In examining the legs of a horse, the purchaser should first stand with his face to the broadside of the horse as he stands on flat ground, and ob- serve whether he rests perpendicularly on all his legs, having the natural proportion of his weight on each leg stmightly, squarely, and directly ; or whether he stands with all his legs 8tradd4cd outside of their true aplomb ; or with all drawn to- gether under the centre of his belly, as if he were trying to stick them all into a hat; or lastly, whether he favors one. or more of his legs, either by pointing it forward, or by placing it in any position in which no weight at all, or a very small stress of weiglit, is thrown upon it. A horse may apparently favor one foot accidentally from a casual impatience or restlessness. He is not therefore to be rejected because he points a toe, once or twice. But if he seem to do so he should be constantly brought back to his original position, in which he must bear equally on each foot, wlicn, if he be found constantly to favor HORSES AXD MULES. 287 the same foot in tlie sanio manner, sometliing seri(^us must ha suspected which gives the liorse uneasiness and pain, tliough not perhaps sufTicient in degree to produce present lameness. If the toe of a fore foot be pointed forward it indicates disease of the coffin bone, almost incurable. If botli fore feet are thrown forward and botli hind I'cct thrown back it indicates founder. If with all his feet drawn together under him lie is used up. If his knees beid forward and his legs tremble he has been knocked up with hard work or hard driving. CuiiiiY IIocKS, or a protuberance at the commencement of the shank bone are objectionable in young horses. After tlic side view take a front view, and see that the horse is not bow legged or knock kneed. Sl'LENTS are small pieces of bone extending from the shanks, and if so near the knee as to interfere with the ac- tion of the joint, or so far back as to interfere with the sinews, will produce lameness. The Back Sinews sometimes give way, and although healed are never as good as new. Run the hand downward from the knee to the fetlock with the nail- of the thumb and middle finger in the groove between the bone and sinew. If the sheath be round, hard, straight, and even, well; but if there are knots, or soft places, something is wrong; if pinched at these places the horse will wince. lilNGBONE is a bony excresence around the foot, just above the hoof. It is one of the worst of defects. Sidebone is the same, only it extends but part way arj the shank bone (24), wiih the sessamoid bone (27, 28). The knee joint has seven, some- times eight bones. Back of, and just belo\7 the knee, is a small thin bone, extending down the front shank, nearly its whole length, called the splint bone of the foreleg (25, 26). Above the knee is the main bone of the leg, called the radius or the arm (15), above the arm the elbow (16), and still higher the humerus or shoulder bone (I'i). In the hind leg, the bones are the same until we reach the hock joint, which has six bones. The shank has two splint bones. Above the hock joint is the tibia, the largest oi' all the bones (38). The stifle joint is formed by the tibia, and the femur or thigh bone, which is next above (87). It is covered in front b}^ the knee pan or 2^<^l^'i^ (v). The six bones of the hips complete the bones of the legs. The bones of the head and neck are easily comprehended, by an examination of the skeleton. The bones of the skull, are thin plates locked or dovetailed together, to prevent displace- ment. The head and neck are joined at (e), by the ligament, known as whit-leather, and it is here, that Poll Evil and Fistula have their origin. The bones of the spine are linked together by lock-joints. The scapula or shoulder blade unites the fore- leg to the frame (13). Some of the above bones are solid, others hollow, while the ends or heads of all the bones that form the joints, and all the small bones of which the joints arc composed, are spongy, as are also the ribs, shoulder blades, and back portions of the jaw bones. It is in these spongy bones that diseases make their appearance. The movements of all these bones are governed by the mus- cles and tendons, the muscles all ending in tendons, and being joined to the bones by cartilages. The strength of the horse is in the muscles, and they should be full and hard. They are 294 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. composed of fibrine and albumen, the latter slieathing eacb muscle, preventing friction, loosens and lubricates the fibres, assists their growth, and renders them elastic and flexible ; and the food should be such as to give the largest amount of muscle. The horse is lined with membranes. They form a fine coat- ing over the bones, the brains, bowels, kidneys, heart, lungs, and line all the cavities of the body. The constr.uction of the skin, and the purposes it serves, are the sjmie as in other domestic animals, and will be treated of, as will other portions of the system, in the specific chapters ' relating to diseases. Diseases of the Bones. Big head and big jaw, are the result mainly of bad food and bad treatment, although water and climate favor its development. It is mostly confined to Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama, where the horse is fed through many months, often on corn and corn stalks, dirty, rotten, and mouldy, from standing too long in the field. Says Stewart, in the '■'•American Farmer's JSorse Booh,'' (the best authority on the horse in this country,) " On such food, two thirds of the horses at the South are compelled to live, and as a consequence, more than one half of them suffer continually from fever. No wonder they have Big head, and every other disease that horse flesh is heir to ; the only marvel is, that they are ever well, or indeed that they live at all. Tc feed them corn exclusively is bad enough, but when that corn i.s rotten, and eked out by mouldy fodder, the condition of the poor animals is deplorable." To Dr. Stewart belongs the credit of discovering the causes and applying the remedies to this disease. In its first stages, it may be detected by running the thumb up under the lip, beside the under jaw bone. The symj toms are, an enlargement of nasal bone, the skin and muscles of the head harden, and pulling the HORSES AST) MULES. 295 lips fails to move tbem ; there is a constant sleepiness wliilo standing, a drawing up of the feet, running eyes, stilY joints, hard, dry skin, and great diHiculty in voiding the dung, -which is hard, black, and dry. The appetite continues good. The treatment should commence as soon as the symptoms are dis- covered. It consists, first, in bleeding. "Where the disease is in its early stages, take three pints of blood at intervals of two weeks, in bad cases two or three quarts at intervals of a week. After bleeding, apply corrosive liniment, with a small mop, to the parts affected. The liniment should then be dried in with a hot iron held near the skin, but in no case allowed to touch. In mild cases apply for two weeks every other day. In severe cases, use it every other day of every other week, until diges- tion becomes improved, which is the sign of success. To relieve the other portions of the body, give the horse a, tablespoonful of stramonium three times a week, every other week, as Idng as it may seem necessary. Stramonium is the seed of the thorn apple or jimson weed ; it is the best known -horse medicine. The horse should be allowed rest, quiet, and good housing until fully recovered. Former methods of treating this disease by extracting teeth, burning, etc., were barbarous, and are now worse than useless. SwiNNEY, or inflamation of the shoulder or hip, is caused by a strain, and aggravated by diseases of the feet. The symptoms, at first, appear only in the feet and legs, but may be distin- guished from founder by the animal's unwillingness to lie down and his evident suffering when compelled to do so by exhaus- tion. There is great fever at the shoulder, the flesh becomes hard, and the skin adheres. At this stage apply the corrosive liniment three or four times a week, for a month or so, or until the symptoms disappear. The second stage of swinney is called big shoulder ; the flesh and tendons of the breast shrink 296 now TO make farming pay. and tbe bone at the shoulder joint grows larger. The feet are nearly always diseased, and no cure can be effected until the feet are restored to a more healthy condition, for which, {see Diseases of the Feet,) at the same time, apply the corrosive lini- ment to the shoulder, and loosen the skin by rubbing and pull- ing it daily. BoxE Spavin is an enlargement on the inside of the hock, below the joint, and is usually ruinous to the horse unless promptly treated. It is caused either by a blow or a sprain, and is transmitted by breeding. Undoubtedly, hard usage, improperly constructed stables, and other abuses, aggravate the disease. Never breed from a sprained stud or mare, and do not let the colt run too soon, or too much, on the roads. The symp- toms of spavin are so plain that the man who takes care of the horse, and does not discover it in its earliest stages, must be a very careless observer. The lameness is irregular ; the horse will step lame in the morning, or after standing for some time ; sometimes a bunch appears, but often not for many weeks ; the difliculty will gradually increase and the joint become stiff. On observing any symptoms of it, make an examination, and the enlargement may be felt by the hand. Give the horse rest at once, and apply the corrosive liniment four times a week every other week, as long as necessary. The blister and the applica- tion of mercurial salve is often beneficial, but all cutting, firing, or other barbarous uses are to be condemned. If not attended to, in its early stages, it readily becomes incurable. Lameness of the Hock should be treated with the corrosive liniment, and, in case it is broken, perfect rest is the only cure. Ring Bone occurs at the cof&n-joint, and admits of cure in its early stages, but not afterwards. It is often bred, and often caused by a bad formation of the legs. Eest and treatment, HORSES AND MULES. 297 the same as for spavin, should be given upon its Qrst appear- ance. Club foot is simply the worst stage of ring bone. Stifle or lameness of the stifle joint, as well as all bruises and injuries in the vicinity of the stifle joint or patella, induces heat and tenderness, which increase, if the horse continue to be used, to terrible suffering and permanent injury. Give immediate rest and an application of corrosive liniment every other day for a week or ten days. Splint is an enlargement on the splint bone, and usually interferes but little with the usefulness or comfort of the horse, except a little inflammation at first. Apply a lotion (see Remedies) to a pad, fastening it over the spot, and moisten often until inflammation subsides. When a splint inter- feres with a tendon or appears to be troubling a horse, give a few applications of the corrosive liniment. Stumbling is the effect of a bad formation of the joints and limbs and not a vice. Sway back is a deformity caused by riding a colt before it is strong enough to bear such a weight. There are various other bone diseases which require the skill of an educated veterinarian, and if a serious lameness cannot be traced to any part a veterinary surgeon had best be consulted. Most of these lamenesses are the result of misuse ; great care should be taken to prevent them. Loads should be moderated to the strength of the animal. The horse is not matured until eight years of age, and should never be taxed to his full strength previous to this time. The appointments of the stable should be such as to preclude accidents to the limbs. Diseases of the Feet are among the most injurious, as v/ell as the most painful, to which the horse is subject; and when it is discovered that there is any trouble with the feet, its cause should be at once discovered, and prompt measui-es taken for relief. Most diseases of the feet, if taken in their earliest 298 HOW TO MAKE THE FAKM PAY. stases, can be so fiir subdued, as to preserve the usefulness of the horse. This is not only economy, but mercy likewise. Navicular Disease, so called, is a disease of the small bone, forming the projection of the heel, and resting upon the frog. Severe bruises upon the frog, by stones, frozen earth, and the like, extend to this bone, and disease sets in. A horse appa- rently sound, suddenly becomes lame in one of the fore feet. No cause is discernible ; he points the toe out several inches, whether standing or travelling ; in travelling the toe is made to ' touch the ground before the heel; the horse favors that foot, at all times; no enlargement, or inflammation, are discovered. This is the first stage, and a cure is now wholly Avithin your power, if you act at once. In the coursfe of a week or two, the lameness, which was slight, disappears, and is forgotten, but ere long it appears again, with renewed violence. There is now an ulcer on the navicular bone, and, like an ulcerated tooth, is a most painl'ul affliction; the horse is in agony ; every step is con- centrated agony. The navicular bone begins to decay, the hoof shrinks, and fracture of the bone, or rupture of the hoof, end the usefulness of the animal. It often leads to rmgho7ie, foot evil, narraiv heel, thrush, greasy heel, hoof rot, sand crack, and other afflictions of the feet. As a prevention, the frog should be kept from the ground by paring the frog, and by refraining to pare down the hoof behind ; or, when necessary, putting leather under the shoe at the back, as is recommended by English farriers. The treatment, in the first stage of the disease, is simple enough. Put the horse in the stable yard, or in the stable, if it gives room for him to choose his own position at his pleasure. Feed liberally of grain, to keep up the vigor of the body, soak the foot an hour, in hot or warm water, every other night for a fortnight, and apply the corrosive liniment the intervening HORSES AXD MULES. 291' aiglits. After another fortnight's rest, tlie work may be re- sumed. But if the disease is neglected at first, and ulcers allowed to form, treatment becomes much more difficult and uncertain. The object now is to- form an abscess, and thus an outlet for the ulcerated matter. Apply the liniment to the frog, the bottom and back part of the foot, and also to the heel. Cut out any decayed matter from the bottom of the foot and appl^ the liniment freely. Continue this course until the foot re- covers, whether it be two months or six. If you can produce a discharge of the ulcerated matter a cure is sure. Keep his con- dition good. Give him a dose of sulphur {see Remedies) every other day for a week. If the treatment does not produce an abscess or subdue the lameness, after two or three months, Neu- rotomy is the last resort. The lioofs of the horse, like the nails of man, are a secretion, and are naturally hard and strong ; but when disease is present, in any part of the leg or foot, the secre tion becomes imperfect, and soft hoof, or brittle hoof, is the result. Any disease of the foot leads to others. This shows th»" necessity of instant attention, even to the slightest lameness. Cracked Hoop is one of the ailments from a feverish con dition of the feet induced by other diseases. Narrow he causes the front of the hoof to crack. When the hoof is not properly pared in shoeing, the hoof will crack in the quarters. Founder produces brittleness, brittleness produces contraction, and contraction is one cause of cracks. Cracks often extend to the sensitive part of the foot, the flesh grows into them and the pain of stepping on the foot must be intense. AYe advise, first, that the disease which causes faulty hoof be removed, and the crack will heal. In the meantime, if the crack does not extend to the flesh, carefully clean out all sand, dirt, etc., pare down the edges of the crack, and cover it with a bandage, smeared with pitch, so as to prevent any dirt froru 300 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. getting ill. Keep tliis on until the hoof grows over. The hoof will grow an inch in about ten weeks. The horse should not be put to hard labor. When tlie crack extends doum the whole hoof, and into the sensitive part of the foot, wash it out with the chloride of zinc lotion, {see Remedies^] until bleeding ceases, then bind the parts together by wires, as in sewing up a wound. Give the horse perfect rest until the union is complete, and then remove the wires. Dr. Dadd claims to have done the same thing successfully with waxed threads. The crack had better be covered with pitch, and a bar shoe worn. To prevent a partial crack from extending the wliole length of the hoof, draw lines with a red hot iron in the shape of a V, from the coronet to the crack. These lines should only be through the outer crust of the hoof. Hoof Rot is a very common and annoying complaint. English writers call it pumice foot; and some American writers, tender foot, but no horse's foot is tender unless diseased or injured. It often causes various other diseases of the foot and joints, and is as often caused by them. Its symptoms are a dry rot of the bottom of the feet, which appears chalky, and may be dug out with the knife. The frog sinks away, and the ankle joints are swollen at times, after long standing. If caused by some other disease, that must be first treated. The direct treatment for the hoof rot is, after cleaning out all the decayed matter from the bottom of the foot, pare down the frog and sides of the hoof and apply the corrosive liniment four times a week, for two weeks. Moisten the horn twice a day, with glycerine ointment. {See Remedies). Now shoe the horse with a dish shoe ; that is, a bar shoe having the web hollowed out like the sides of a dish ; the only part which touches the ground being the rim of the inner circle, or else with a light shoe, thick in the web, but narrow. A stopping, of leather or gutta percha, forming a HORSES AND MULES. 301 cushion for the yet tender sole, will enable the horse now to resume work. Corns, so called, are an accompaniment of hoof rot, or some other disease, which should be first treated. They are not properly corns, but consist of patches of blood or matter forced into the horn from above. When the hoof is cut away, a red spot is discovered, which will grow brighter the more the hoof is cut away. If not attended to promptly, ulcers are formed, and the confined matter finds an opening either at the heel, or the coronet, sometimes continuing around the foot and causing the hoof to drop off entirely. Cure the hoof rot, and as a general thing the corns will disappear. Stone Bruise, Nail Pricks, and bruises of the feet, should all be treated with a few applications of the corrosive liniment. The bar and shoe, and tow filling, to ease the pressure upon the injured part, are to be recommended. The best immediate remedy, when the liniment is not at hand, is water on a flan- nel bandage, and fastened around the fetlock. It should be kept wet. Narrow Heel, or contraction of the hoof, as we have seen, is a resultant from navicular disease, and always denotes a dis- eased condition of some other portion of the foot ; for so long as the foot is sound, it will secrete healthy horn ; and if there is no fever to dry it up, it will not contract. With the disappear- ance of the disease, the foot will again secrete healthy horn. When this is assured, the horn should be frequently rubbed with the glycerine ointment. The common practice of filling ' the foot with cow dung, is based on the idea that the foot should be kept moist, which is correct. But it can be much better accomplished by stuffing with wet rags, which also tend to keep the foot clean. The cow dung tends to produce other disorders of the feet. A soft pasture is nature's remedy for all ailments 302 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. of the horse's foot. In cold, stormy weather, however, the horse whatevei may be his condition, should have ^ dry stable, plenty of room, and good bedding. Founder, acute or sub-acute inflammation of the feet, {Lami- natis,) is, with one or two exceptions, the most common of all horse complaints. It is caused by bad usage. On examination of the feet, it is found that there is some other disease, generally hoof rot, and we have never seen feet, otherwise sound, attacked with founder — or, more properly, inflammation — which leaves tlie horse foundered. Keep the feet sound and healthy, and you need not fear founder. The immediate causes of inflammation in unsound feet, are various. Overheating, and sudden cooling ; a change from the cold and wet to the stable, where he stands in hot dung ; long standing in some mud hole ; a long journey on a hard dry road ; over-feeding after great exhaustion; or over- drinking when hot; — will produce inflammation which is likely to terminate in the feet. Inflammation of the lungs is some- times suddenly transferred to the feet. The symptoms are rest- lessness and frequent changing of the fore feet. There is an in- clination to lie down, but a fear of doing so, and three or four feints will often be made before he succeeds. He will lie quietly for awhile, and seem to be relieved. When he attempts to rise, the pain is so great that he falls back again upon his side. The nose is often laid upon the fore feet, as if to indicate the seat of the pain and ask relief. This is the first, or sub-acute stage. Remove the shoes as carefully as possible, cleanse the feet with soap and water, fasten a sponge to the sole, and bandage the feet with thick bandages. Keep these bandages wet with the arnica ' mixture {see Remedies) for several days. Give the patient gruel, scalded mashes, and boiled roots. Give daily a dose of sulphur and cream of tartar. Dilute the drink with cream of tartar. This is the ordinary form of inflammation, taken in its first HORSES AND MULES. 308 stages, and usually yields to the above treatment ; but some- times it progresses so far that the flesh quivers, the eyes glare, the nostrils are distended, the breath is jerking, the flanks are tucked up, the back is roached, the head is erect, the mouth firmly closed, the fore legs are pushed far forward, and the hind legs advanced to take the weight of the body, and the feet are constantly on the move. This is the acute stage. Eemove the shoes, bleed from the jugular vein from two to four quarts, according to the condition of the animal, and insert a pint of warm water into the veins by a large syringe. Pur- gation and perspiration will ensue, and the horse will be re- lieved. We do not often advocate bleeding, but believe this to be a case where it will always be beneficial. Now, drench the horse with hot salt and water, bathing his feet and legs with it, and rubbing them dry with a rough cloth or brush. Repeat the bathing and rubbing three or four times in the course of an hour; and after this apply turpentine, or the corrosive lini- ment, to the foot, just at the edge of the hair. Do not work the animal until well over the'attack ; and then proceed to cure the hoof rot, or other disease, which may have caused it. It often affords relief to split open the little knob, in the long hair, at the back of the fetlock. For an established founder, the following prescription is given by Dr. Stewart : " Flour of sulphur, one pound ; cream of tartar, quarter of a pound ; saltpetre, quarter of a pound; pulverized 'jimson' seed or stramonium, one pint. Mix, and make seven doses, giving one every day for a week.' At the same time, use the corrosive liniment on the feet. QuiTTOR is caused by wounds, bruises, pricks, neglected corns, etc. Pus, or matter, collects, and moves upward through the tissues for an outlet. It causes severe pain, but makes no sign until it reaches the coronet, when swelling begins. When this is discovered, remove the shoe, pare the sole, soak the hoof r,o.i now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. ill warm water for several hours, make an opening in the hoof below the simis, or swelling, and apply a poultice— the object being to get a discharge downward. If this does not succeed, slit up the sinuses or swellings, and inject tincture of blood root. If you secure a discharge from the opening in the sole, inject blood root, and the cure is soon complete. Canker, and Cracked Heels, or Grease, are only continuations or developments of a disease known as Thrush, which is usually caused l)y filthy stables. A horse who stands in filth all the time, will probably have, sooner or later. Thrush — and then, Greasy or Cracked Heel. As we have said before, the stable should not only be cleaned out and washed down in the morning, but, if the animal has been in the stable during the day, all filth should be removed, and a bed made of clean litter. Thrush and Grease are usually the signs of filth, and they are a disgrace to the owner, which should make him hang his head with shame. Thrush is sometimes caused by other diseases, but in such cases it appears in the fore foot ; while, in the hind foot, it is always, we believe, the result of inexcusable negli- gence. It is a foul discharge, which has the power of decom- posing the horn. It is known by its disgusting smell. It appears in the cleft of the frog. It should be treated by soak- ing pieces of cloth in the corrosive liniment and pressing them into the cleft of the frog and heel at night, removing them in ihe morning. Do this about five nights a week, until all smell is removed. Canker, as before stated, is a second stage of Thrush, the horn not only being decomposed, but fungoid or spongy horn being secreted. For treatment, c\.ft away all the poor horn, and apply the chloride of zinc lotion, adding enough . flour to thicken it. Fasten on a pad. Ee-dress daily, or every 1 other day, and at each dressing cut away all faulty horn. Any -jontrivance which will press the pad to the foot will answer HORSES AND MULES. 305 the purpose. Mayhew recommends putting ou the shoe and putting in wedges. Cracked Heels, called by English farriers Grease, is a dis- ease "which follows thrush, and can often be said to be only a continuation of it. It is the oozing out of the ulcerated matter attending disease within. Either the cofBn or the navi- cular joint is affected. The skin of the heel becomes dry and feverish, cracks open, and foul matter exudes. If not checked, the whole heel becomes a mass of putrefaction, lilthy and ofi'en- sive. Grease never occurs when there is a decent attention to the care of the animal. To let it go on after it is once discov- ered is shameless brutality, and should be a State Prison offence. A growth o^ funr/ics, or proud flesh, will commence from the sores, which will soon harden and become horny. During all this time the poor creature suffers untold agony. As a preven- tive of Cracked Heels we recommend clean stables, good bed- ding, rubbing the legs when the horse comes in from the wet, and a warm dry stable in cold and wet weather. The practice of dashing water on the heels and leaving them to dry as best they will, is a fruitful cause of diseased feet. When the legs are wet they should always be rubbed dry with a cloth, or a wisp of straw. As soon as cracked heels are discovered, or the heel becomes dry, hot and scurfy, wash with soap and water, and rub dry; tlien apply the corrosive liniment for three or four days. After this, iipply the glycerine ointment for the same length of time. If the disease is not discovered until the grease begins to exude and hang on the hair about the fetlock, cut off all the long haii, and pursue the same course as above. In either case, give the horse almost entire rest while operating on him, or a cure will be doubtful. An hour's moderate exercise daily will be benefi* cial. We will not o-ive directions for treatina; the worse stages 306 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. of the disease, for we cannot believe that any man ii telligent enough to read this book, will allow it to go on after it is once discovered. Diseases of the Glands and Nasal Membranes. Gland- ers is a fearful disorder, bred by filth, and spread by conta- gion. It is found mostly in the close, filthy, ill ventilated stables of the city, where impure air, water, and food, are more coniaton. From these it is transferred to the farmer's stables by various means. Horses purchased in the city and tjansferred to the country, carry the infection with them. The Hirmer's horse, put up at the city stable when he goes to market, or to court, contracts the affection. Eating, or drinking, after glandered horses, is often sufficient to transmit it. The snort of one horse to another will sometimes carry the infection even at a distance of several yards. The symptoms are running of one nostril, in nine cases out of ten the left; the fluid thin and transparent ; it increases, grows thicker, and more sticky ; its color changes towards yellow ; it becomes clotted with mucus, and long sticky white threads of mucus hang to the nostrils. This soon changes to a stream of filthy j9z<5, thicker, darker, and sonietitnes bloody. These are the first two and curable stages of the disorder. It is readily distinguished from other secretions running from the nose by its gluemess or stickiness, and in the second stage by its sickening smell. During these early stages of glanders, the horse loses flesh, the air passages are affected, the breathing becomes difficult, the glands swell, ulcers form in the nostrils, and the discharge, which was only from one nostril, extends to both, and sometimes to the eye. A gland adheres to the inside of the jaw; the nostril changes color and becomes pallid. As a consequence of this state of things the horse loses his spirits, appetite fails, the coat stares and is easily rubbed off, and the horse rapidly goes down. Unless taken now a cure is HORSES AND MULES. 307 impossible, for every bad symptom rapidly increases ; tumors form in the head, and Farcy, Avhich is only another name for the last stage of glanders, ends the miserable existence. The dis- covery of a cure for glanders by Dr. Stewart, entitles him to the gratitude of all owners of horses. Preventive measures should be taken against this disease. The ill ventilated and foul stable should be aired and cleaned, the manger washed out every day, and the drinking pail kept as clean and sweet as if for your own use. When the farmer puts his horse in a strange stable he should insist that the manger be washed out before his horse eats from it : when leaving a strange stable the nostrils should be sponged out. When the manure is thrown into a basement under or near the horse, powdered charcoal thrown upon it will not only save the ammonia and nearly double its value as manure, but will prevent this ammonia from entering the nose and lungs of the horse. A half peck for the dung of each animal will be sufficient. We give Dr. Stewart's treatment for Glanders. "Bleed in the neck vein, removing about three quarts of blood.* Have ready a strong decoction of tobacco, of which put one gill in a pint of warm water and turn this down the horse. It will make him very sick, but it will affect him much less than when in health, and thus used is not really dangerous. Wash out his nostrils with the tobacco decoction, weakened with water, as directed in the next section for staggers. Be at pains to reach as high up the nostrils with the mop as you can. The mixture must be as hot as he can bear it. Continue this treatment from two to four weeks, or until a favorable change is apparent. Use the mo]» , , t * We do not think Dr. Stevvixrt means to advise bleeding in the fir-i stage of the disease, but only when there is considerable inflammation, ul- ceration, and enlargement of the glands. At any rate two or three quarts of blood is a small loss to an animal having sixty to eighty quarts. 308 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. in the uose for eight or ten days ; drench with the tobacco mix lure two or three times at intervals of three days. Give the horse as much sulphur and resin as you can get him to eat, for the space of ten days. A full dose will be four ounces of sul- phur, and two of resin, both pulverized. Let the food be light and relaxing, grass if it is in season ;" if not, boiled roots thick- ened with shorts, and salted. A quantity of salt should be placed where the animal can help himself. "Attend promptly to disinfecting your stable. Fumigate it with tobacco-smoke while the horse is in it. Make him and all his companions in- hale as much of the smoke as you can. Fill the stable with the smoke until you can no longer remain in it yourself. Wash every part of it, and especially the mangers, with a strong de- coction of tobacco, and keep pounded tobacco leaves in every feeding place used by any horse that has been exposed to the disease." An occasional fumigation of the stable when any in- fectious disease is suspected, will act as a preventive. Blind Staggees is a disease known only on the newly cleared plantations of the Southern States, and is caused by eating worm-eaten corn. The worm leaves a peculiar and poisonous dust on the corn, which the horse inhales, the pas- sages from the eyes to the nose are closed, inflammation ensues, the poison is carried to the brain, and the horse goes deaf, blind, and raving mad. Cure is doubtful if not discovered before the mad stage. Bleed freely, give the tobacco decoction recom- mended for glanders, and, if possible, add a half pound of ei)som salts. While still under the effects of this medicine give two ounces of laudanum in a little warm water. Your object is to get the horse quiet, and to prevent spasms. Make a soft swab or mop on the end of a stick, and swab out the nostrils with the decoction of tobacco and warm water. This is to open the passages to the eye, and as soon as a discharge can be HORSES AND MULES. 309 eftected, the horse is out of clanger ; repeat the swabbing out every day until the cure is complete. As soon as a discharge is effected from the head, draw a blister immediately over the brain. If any one must feed worm-eaten corn, let it be swept and brushed to scatter the poison. Tobacco dust in the manger will act as a preventive.. Watch the horse under such circum- stances, examine the nostrils often, and if these little passages are closed, the nostrils inflamed, and the head hot, not a moment is to be lost. Prompt action is the only hope. Dis- temper, or Strangles, is another contagious disease, alto- gether too common. It is often designated as horse-ail. It appears in all horses, but usually in the colt, when taken either from his mother's milk, or the tender grass and fresh air of the pasture ; confined in a narrow, dark, dirty cell, standing and sleeping in its own filth, and fed on dry food. Such a change is sufficient to induce distemper. "We believe that it is always caused by some such violent change, and is spread by infection. It seems to be an effort of the system to adapt itself to the change. The symptoms are, in the first stage, a general derangement, some fever, quick pulse, a dry, hacking cough, sore throat, and running at the nose. This discharge can be distinguished from glanders "by always being white ; the neck soon becomes stiff, the throat becomes swollen, an abscess forms, the swelling is hard and hot, the lever becomes high, the breathing is oppressed, food and drmk are refused, the swelling comes to a head, and, being opened, the animal speedily recovers. The above symptoms are exceed- ingly suggestive ; first, of care in making the change from the pasture to the stable, from green food to dry, from the mother's milk to fodder, or any other great change in the habits. All change should be gradual. Second, it suggests what we liave 310 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. hofore urged, air, liglit, ventilation, and cleanliness in the stable. As a preventive, when one horse has the disease separate him from the rest, where they cannot possibly take his breath, and fumigate and wash with tobacco water as recommended after glanders-. Treatment. — Wash the neck and throat with a strong decoction of tobacco, as hot as the horse can bear it, two or three times a day. Give sulphur and resin, two pounds of the former to one of the latter. Contrive to make the horse eat a quarter of a pound of this every day, for several days. Give mashes, boiled oats, or green feed, but no corn. If the swelling continues, but does not soften, poultice with steaming mashes ; when it softens open it at once. Dr. Stewart recommends bleeding three pints, " then take and thoroughly mix together one tablespoonful of gunpowder, one of lard, one of soft soap, one of gum myrrh, and two of tar ; put a spoonful of this down the horse's throat, as far as you can, with a paddle or spoon, twice a day." Nasal Gleet is usually a continuation of distemper, or, rather of the discharge accom- panying distemper. We confess that we do not know its cause. The symptoms are an irregular discharge, often mixed with blood. It will sometimes cease for a few days, and then recur. The discharge changes color with the food. Leave the horse to himself, in an ordinary, dark, ill ventilated, filthy stable, and you will soon have an incurable case of glanders. If this is not desired, treat the same as for distemper, washing out the nose daily with the tobacco water, until the discharge ceases. Good pa.-;ture, if in mild weather, and good stabling, if cold or wet, are requisite. If stabled give some green food and roots, with daily out-door exercise. Diseases of the Eye are almost, if not wholly, unknown m the wild horse, being the result of the carelessness or cruelty of man. They are very seldom hereditary, as a blind mare will HORgES AND MULES. 311 prodace ciilts witli the best of sight. They are in no way con- nectecl with the teeth, as is often supposed. The term, "Natu- rally WEAK Eyes," so often used, is folly, as thei-e is no such thing as naturally weak eyes. The Creator has provided ever_y horse with perfect vision, and it is the ignorance or recklessnes:^ of man that destroys it. Other diseases of the head will some- times affect the eye; when the disease is cured, the eye will recover. There are three causes which account for nearly all cases of disease of the eye. The first is ammonia. The dung and urine constantly give out ammonia ; it is often so strong as to make you sneeze and your eyes to water, even when in the stable for a few minutes ; what then must be the effect upon the sensitive, tender eye of the horse, who stands in it hour after hour. It is the cause of three-fourths the cases of weak and diseased eyes. It can only be lessened by having the urine drained off as it fiills, by removing the dung, by daily washing down the stable, and by admitting fresh air at the head, and having ventilation at the back of the stable, for all which full directions have been given. The second cause which renders the first much worse is the want of light. Nothing thrives without light, and the frequent change from the dark stable to the glare of day, and vice versa, produces a very injurious effect. {See Construction of Stables) The third cause is from injuries to the eye, from hay seed dropping into the eye, from cuts of the lash, and blows about the head. The former is prevented by having no lofts over the stable, and by putting the hay where the horse can reach it without stretching up his head. The latter is prevented by kindness instead of cruelty. The general treat- ment for Weak Eyes, Simple Ophtha.lmia, or Inflammation OF THE Eyes ; Sore Eyelids ; and simple injuries of the eye, causing soreness or inflammation, is easy, and should never be neglected, as these simple affections readily become serious dis- 312 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM FAY. orders. When the eyelid is closed, and tears drop from it, attend to the case at once. Remove all the causes of the disease. Examine the c^'C and remove any hay seed or other substance that may have caused it. Bind a cloth over the eyes, and wet it with arnica and water, one pint of water to an ounce of arnica. Repeat this for several nights, sponging the eye several times a day with cold water. If inflammation is excessive, and white spots are sepn on the eye, indicating sores or abscess, bleed three pints, and use the eye-wash invented and prescribed by Dr. Stewart. {See Remedies.) The blood should now be attended to. Give two or three ounces of sulphur, every other day for a week, and every other week for six weeks. If inflammation does not decrease, bleed the inner surface of the eyelid, or the eye vein. Give no corn, but green food or roots. Specific Ophthalmia, or Moon Eyes, is a terrible disease, without cure. It is caused by the fumes of impure stables. Symptoms: — Swollen eyelids,, tears; the circumference of the ball is inflamed ; the horse cannot bear the lid to be lifted in the light, but will submit in the shade, the iris loses its bright color, and grows lighter; the whole eye is disorganized. *Soon these symptoms disappear only to break out again with renewed violence. Sometimes it atUicks one eye, sometimes both ; it changes from one eye to the other, disappears and returns, but continually grows worse, and finally produces total blindness in one or both eyes. To check the disease, and save one eye, should be attempted. The horse should have a roomy, well-ventilated stall, perfectly dark in front, but well lighted from behind or above. Open the eye vein, and puncture the interior of the lid. Put a cloth saturated with cold water over both eyes, at night, and if the eyelids are very much inflamed add one ounce of arnica to a pint of water, and keep the cloths wet with this during the forenoon. Give green food, or roots, but no corn, and but little hay. Give the HORSES AND MULES. 313 following preparation : Powdered sassafras, three ounces ; skunk cabbage, three ounces; gentian, three ounces; sulphur, two ounces ; elm bark, eiglit ounces; ginger, two ounces; salt, three ounces. Mix, and divide into twelve powders, giving one every night with the food. Let every farmer who has a horse attacked with this disease, raise or remove his loft, give venti- lation, light, etc. This will cost money, but the price of one good horse will pay for a good deal of carpenter work. The little washer, cosily stowed away in the .nner corner of ihe eye, called the haw, which serves to wash the eye and clean it of specks, dust, and grit, sometimes becomes inflamed and pro- trudes over the eye, in the form of a white hook, and is there- fore called a Hook, and is sometimes removed by persons who should knoAV better. This deprives the horse of his onlv re- source to keep his eye clean. When much inflaaied, prick it slightly ; pull the lids apart, and apply the eye wash two or three times a day, and the inflammation will disappear. The various affections of the eyes are the cause often of shy- ing, fright, wheeling, sudden starts, running, backing, turning out of the road, and all eccentric movements of the horse. He sees imperfectly, and, being timid, acts accordingly. Whipping in such cases is barbarous, mean, and cowardly, besides being worse than useless. Instead of further fear, confidence should be restored by kind words. If the oiuner always speaks kindly to the beast, he will soon learn confidence, and the sound of his voice, during fright, will do more good than the whip or the rein. When frightened, speak kindly before you draw the rein, then draw it gently, talking all the time, not in loud, harsh tones, but mildly. Diseases of the Muscles and Tendons. Poll Evil, and Fistula, are the same disease appearing in different places — Fistula on the top of the shoulder, just under 314 nO-^ TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. the upper portion of the shoulder blade, in the cartilage marked Q in the skeleton. Poll Evil occurs in the neck, just back of the ears near the point marked E in the skeleton. Both are caused by bruises against the top of a low stable, or the sides of a narrow stall— against the top of a low doorway, or against the sides of a narrow one. It is strange, that to save a few dollars, or a little space, men will thus allow their valuable property to ,be injured. These diseases are sometimes caused by blows ; by the saddle ; and, rarely, by rolling on a stone or stick. The tendon becomes swollen and painful ; the horse tries to rub the place against the sides of his stall, which only aggra- vates the evil. A sijiall swelling appears. Any person who watches his horses with any care, will discover the evil before it goes farther. When the above symptoms are discovered, put the hand to the places mentioned. There will be heat and ten- derness, even if the swelling has not appeared. At this stage, apply the corrosive liniment every morning for a week or ten days. If, however, there is a considerable swelling before it is discovered, or if, after applying the corrosive liniment as above, the swelling should continue, an abscess has formed, and prompt measures are required. The following is Dr. Stewart's valuable prescription : " Spread a thin coating of May Apple liniment (see Remedies) over the whole tumor every morning, washing it off at night, and then greasing the surface of the tumor. Con- tinue this three or four days, until pus begins to ooze out; increase the liniment, apply every other day, and let it be on a day and a night, but never longer. Always wash it off thor- oughly with warm soapsuds, and grease with any kind of grease." If the tumor is not made to discharge, cut it with a sharp knife, at its junction with the body. If the May Apple liniment is not to be had, apply a linseed poultice, or a poultice ^f equal parts of sugar, soap, and powdered bloodroot. HORSES AXD MULES. 315 Bog axd Blood Spavins, so called, are not spavins, and bear no resemblance to spavin. They are of the same nature as Wind Galls and Thorough Pin ; but where, and why, these diseases got their odd names, it is difficult to conceive. The spavins appear at the hock ; wind galls at the ankles ; thorough pin on the back part of the hock joint. Because they do not often cause immediate lameness, they are said to be harmless. But how would a man like to have liis injuries anO sores judged in the same way ? They are caused by severe strain, and by blows and kicks on the legs, such as brutal men often give. They should never be opened, as they cause a permanent running sore. Apply the corrosive liniment three or four times a week for three or four weeks, and if no improvement occurs, let them alone. When, however, they produce stiffness of /he joints, or infliimmation, apply the liniment until it disappears. CuRB is an enlargement on the back of the leg below the hock. Give rest, and corrosive liniment. It is a dangerous injury, and will often render the horse useless unless a long rest and treatment are given. Tetanus, or Lock Jaw, though not very common, is an ex ceedingly painful and dangerous disease. It is usually caused by wounds, bruising either nerves or tendons, such as prick in shoeing, nicking, docking, broken knees, galls, etc., etc. It is also caused by such abuse as hard driving and standing in the cold or wet. The horse first grows fidgety, the ears are set, the muzzle protruded, the head elevated, the nostrils remain dila- ted, the muscles grow rigid ; upon lifting the head, the " haw" projects over the eye; the tail is raised, the belly contracts, the legs are straddled and stiff, the eye is sunken, the whole body becomes hard and contracted, the jaws are locked, and agony and starvation make short work of the sufferer. If the svmp- 20 316 UOW TO MAKE THE FARM FAY. loms are discovered before the jaws become locked, make a mash by boiling a peck of bran in a gallon of water. The bran should be in a loose bag; and after boiling twenty minutes, bind this bag to the throat as hot as it can be borne; at the same time fasten a quilt, or a couple of large blankets, over him. Just before binding on the bag, give a quart of corn meal gruel. If you can thus produce perspiration, you will be likely to save locked jaw.' If, however, the jaw should be locked before action is taken, or become locked in spite of the means taken, resort must be had to bleeding and opiates. Bleed two quarts from the neck vein, then stop the flow for half an hour; then bleed three quarts again ; stop the flow, and again bleed three or four quarts. Never bleed continuously in any case. Now have ready the bran mash and quilt, adding a little to- bacco juice and camphor to the water. Dissolve a quarter of a pound of salts in a half pint of warm water, and add one ounce of laudanum. Turn this slowly down the horse's throat, by means of a tunnel or open horn inserted between the front and back teeth. After three hours, give the corn meal gruel ; and in three more, two ounces of salts. Give the gruel every six hours. In the mean time, let a pail of gruel stand where he can stick his nose into it with ease, and he will suck it up himself as soon as his sufferings abate. If all these measures should fail of relief, cut the scab from his fore leg, grate it fine on a coarse file, put a teaspoonful in each ear, and dust a little up his nose. Cramps, or spasms of the muscles, are caused by over-exer- tion during the day, and cramped confinement during the night. The horse loses control of his limbs; one moment they may be stiff and rigid, the next they may jerk and twitch with more or HORSES AND MULES. 817 less violence. Rub the legs with salt aud water, and, wheu dr}', with the corrosive liniment. Kheumatism is a common complaint. It mostly afifects the joints, shoulders, and hips, but often the chest also. It follows colds and chest affections. Driving a horse into a pond when heated, exposure to cold wind or rain, excessive exertion, and sudden changes, are all causes of rheumatism. It is more likely to attack a high conditioned horse than a lean horse. The symptoms are the same in cramps, but more marked ; the limbs swell, it flies from one part to another, and sometimes to the heart, where it proves fatal. Sometimes it settles in the feet and becomes founder^ again, it settles in the chest, and the horse is said to be chest foundered. Rub the legs with salt and water as for cramps, and give a quart of salt and water, as hot as the horse will take it. The bo\vel^ can be relieved by an injection of the same. Give two or three doses of " jimson seed." For spasms of the muscles, or twitching of the muscles in any part of the body, rub with salt aud water, and when dry, apply the corrosive liniment. In cases of String Halt apply the liniment to the hip, at the junction of the spine, and to the back part of the foot, daily, for a month. Give two doses of "jimson seed" the first week, and one dose a week for the next three weeks. If the string halt is confirmed there is not much use of touching it. When it first appears the above treat- ment often removes it or makes it less. Diseasks of the Skin and Ears. As all hardships first fall upon the skin, it is no wonder that it is often di.sL.asod. Scratches. This troublesome affection is caused by stable filth, helped hy a bad state of the system, the blood, and tl.o digestion. It makes its appearance on the back side of the foot, in the form of dry, scabby patches, which are very itchy, and the horse, scratching them with the other foot, extends 318 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. tliem upward to the fetlock, until they form a solid mass, oftcD i-aw and bleeding. It is readily discovered from the continual scratching of the horse, whence it is called scratches. Use the corrosive liniment, four times a week, until cured. Feed green food or roots, mashes, etc. For swelled legs or ankles, from whatever cause, apply the liniment as directed above. Surfeit is a gener d disease of the skin, indicating a thick and impure state of the blood. Little pustules appear upon the skin, and the oily secretion whose work it is to moisten and lubricate the surface exudes from them. Bleed the horse from two to four quarts, according to size and condition, give two doses of sul- phur and resin, rub the skin where the pustules have appeared, with an ointment of sulphur and lard in equal parts. Do this two or three nights, turn him to pasture, or let him have a week's rest, and he will be as good as new. Mange is a disease into which neglected surfeit will run. It is also caused by negligence, filth, lack of grooming, starvation, bad digestion, and bad condition generally. It is exceedingly contagious; any tiling it touches will carry contagion ; it is accompanied by a little insect, but whether the insect is the cause or the effect is not fully ascertained. The first symptoms are a scurf, or scabby eruption of the skin, usually about the mane, accompanied by ex- cessive itchiness. The skin becomes scaly, peeling off and leaving raw, red spots, often bleeding. The horse rubs himself as if he would tear the skin from his body, everywhere he rubs he leaves dandruff, scurf, or scabs to infect other animals, unless prevented. If the horse is in good condition, he has probably been in- fected. Wash the whole body in lime water. Make an oint- nient of one pint each corrosive liniment, sulphur, and lard and anoint the whole body, from the nose to the hoof; spread thin as possible, but see that every part is touched. If fair weather, let the horse out during the day, but keep him in, in HORSES AXD MULES, Si'J cold or wet weather, or n,t night ; in two days wash again with lime water. If the horse is in low, poor condition, give a dose of sulphur and resin every third day, for two weeks, and feed well with green feed, steamed oats, boiled roots, etc. The former treatment will be of little avail unless you now bring him into good flesh and condition. Hide Bound. This very peculiar disease is caused by the drying up of the secretions which make the skin soft and pliable, and the hair sleek and glossy. Any complaint attended with much fever, will do this. It is also caused by exposure, and by poor ventilation. The skin becomes dry and hard, adhering to the flesh ; the hai is rusty and staring, the digestion is usually very much impaired, and the excrement is dry, hard, and black. The blood is corrupt, thick, dark and feverish. Bleed ; taking two to three quarts, give a tablespoonful of "jimson seed" three times on every third day. Let the horse have sulphur and resin in his food, as previously directed. Grreen food, or roots, good stabling, fresh air, and rest will do the remainder. Stiff Complaint is only an aggravated case of Hide Bound. Warts. Seed warts are not of much account, unless they ap- pear where they will be likely to become chafed. Blood warts should be removed as soon as they appear. In either case grease the skin for three inches about the wart with tallow. Make a strong solution of potash, one and a half pounds to one pint of water. Touch the end of the wart with this, morning and evening, always applying the grease before doing so. Apply the potash every other day, always scraping off the dead matter before doing so. Do not let the potash touch any thing but the wart. After the wart is reduced apply corrosive lini- ment a few times at intervals of two days. Keep them grease il, but wash off the grease before putting on the liniment. Har- ness Galls, Saddle Galls, Warbles, and Sit Fasts, arft alJ 320 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. ailloreut .levelopments of the same thing, namely galhag by harness, saddle, shafts, etc. When such a gall is observed, wash cleau with cool water, and when dry cover with an adhe- sive plaster of common salve. If swollen and matterated, leave a slit in the plaster for the escape of the matter. In bad cases use the corrosive liniment until healing begins, then put on the plaster. When they harden like corns, leaving the edges sare, remove the hard portion with a knife and apply the chloride of zinc lotion until they begin to heal, then apply plaster as before. Scabby eruptions of the ears are to be washed with strong soapsuds, and anointed daily with the sul- phur ointment. Tumors appearing on different portions of the body should be treated at once with the corrosive liniment. Deafness, and most diseases of the ear, are the results of vio' lence, beating over the head, pinching and pulling the ears, etc. If tumors or swellings appear within reach of the little mop, apply the corrosive liniment. If within the ear inject small "^uautities of the eye-wash. {See Remedies.) Diseases of the Brain and Nervous System are usually fatal. Water on the brain ; hydrophobia ; epileptic fits ; phre- uitis or inflammation of the brain, and insanity are, so far as we know, wholly incurable. Dr. Stewart thus writes of Apoplexy : Apoplexy is caused by .a pressure of blood upon the brain. It is hardly recognized by the farmer, and he would probably bo surprised to know how many horses die of it yearly. The animal's death is usually attributed to some other disease, and the treatment pursued aids in hastening the result. Perhaps nearly one-fourth of those severe attacks of disease which go among the masses by the name of bots are really apoplexy." It is often mistaken for staggers or some other disease of the stomach. High feeding and little exercise are often the immo- diate cause, but these are not suiBcient to account for it without HORSES AND MULES. 321 Other and predisposing causes. Apoplexy is always cliaracler- ized by giddiness and wildness of motion, and nearly always by a staggering gait. Hence the reason why it is so frequently mistaken for "the staggers." Its severe symptoms in the next stage are profuse sweating, a trembling of the whole frame and especially of the knees ; a wild, wistful look and a twitching of the skin, and jerking of the ears. Youatt's description is perfect. 'The actual illness is perhaps first recognized by the horse standing with his head depressed. It bears upon or is forced against the manger or the wall, and a considerable part of the weight of the animal is evidently supported by this pressure of the head. As ue thus stands he is balancing himself from one side to the other as if he Were ready to fall ; and it is often dangerous to stand near him or to move him, for he falls without warning. If he can get his muzzle into a corner he will sometimes continue there motionless for a considerable time, and then drop, as if he were shot; but, the next moment he is up again -syith his feet almost in the rack {we think the last is a rare exhibition. 0. W. D.). He sleeps or seems to, do so, as he stands, or at least he is nearly or quite unconscious of surrounding objects. When he is roused, he looks vacantly around him. Perhaps he will take a lock of hay if it is offered to him, but ere it is half masticated the eye clo?;ea, and he sleeps again with the food in his mouth, soon afterwards he is perhaps roused once more. The eye opens, but it has an unmeaning glare. The hand is moved be- fore him, but the eye closes not ; he is spoken to, but he hears not. The last act of voluntary motion which he will attempt is usually to drink ; but he has little power over the nniscles of deglutition, and the fluid returns through the nostrils." These are the first stages ; foaming, gnashing of teeth, twitching, wild- ness and cmvulsions follow. As there is a pressure of blood 322 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. wliioh is fearfully cougested, bleeding must be resorted to. Take first a couple of quarts. In ten to twenty minutes as much more. Between these bleedings give a pint of hot salt and water, with a teaspoonful of cayenne pepper, and half an ounce of laudanum in it. If the horse is not weak from the bleeding, in ten or twenty minutes bleed again, until he shows signs of weakness. Mix one-half ounce each of gentian and tringer, and. four ounces epsora salts; make two doses. Give one four hours after the laudanum, the other twelve hours later. Give a warm meal gruel after this until the bowels are free. If the horse recovers, take pains to prevent his getting in high condition again, as he will almost surely have another attack. Palsy, or partial paralysis, is a rare disease, is not well understood, and no treatment is sure. Nervous spasms, in which the horse becomes frightened, agitated, and trembling, without apparent cause, are usijally treated with the whip, which can only aggravate them. Give the horse a little quiet, pat his head, talk soothingly to him, and a few minutes will restore his tranquillity. Relax the system by giving only soft food. Diseases of the Teeth and Mouth. — Few people com- pare animals with themselves, when called upon to care for their wants, but in most respects, physically, they are alike, and the same causes produce the same effects in each. As the child suffers in teething, and the aduh from toothache, so do the colt and the horse, under like circumstances. During suckling, the mother's milk prevents the evil effects of teething, but after weaning, the colt is liable to various diseases from this cause. The process by which the first teeth are removed, and replaced by the permanent set, is wonderful and curious, but we have not space to describe it. During all this period, or into th third year, there is always more or less soreness and inflamma- e HORSES AXD MULES. 82-3 tion. A tooth striving to push through the gums at one end, and to fasten its fangs :it the other, is a serious matter, and it should be aided in its upward course by cutting the gums. The mouth should be often examined, and wherever a tooth is try- to push its way through, with a sharp knife, cut from the bas(i of the tooth to the point. If this is not done, inflammation will often extend to the throat, the head, and the eyes. The inflamed condition of the mouth, constantly tends to sour stomach. The practice of putting out the colt to pasture, and leaving him for weeks to take care of himself, is to be severely condemned. In this time, he may lay the foundation, and we know that thousands of colts do thus lay the foundation of serious diseases of after life. The colt should be often visited, examined, and handled, if you desire a sound or reliable horse. Pasture is best for him in summer, but will not excuse neglect. In winter keep him warmly and comfortably housed, give provender, m t feed, a few oats, roots, and other light diet, but no solid, heating food. Keep a little salt where he can easily get at it, and occa- sionally put half a dose of sulphur in his feed. Good wood ashes, put often in the bottom of the manger, will neutralize the sour stomach. Toothache we believe to be very common among horses, not alone from decayed teeth, but from biting pebbles, grit, etc., in the food, and from hard substances getting between the teeth. The head is often carried on one side, or pressed against the wall, saliva dribbles from the lips, the food is allowed to fall from the mouth. One day the horse eats little, and is low spirited ; the next day he makes up for both, show ing the same condition as in men. If the symptoms continually grow worse, the teeth should be examined, and the decayed one removed. If the breath is hot and offensive, the saliva thick and stringy, give sulphur, four ounces; if possible, an ounce of "jimson seed." Put ashes in the manger, as directed for colts. 324 now TO make the farm pay. Green limbs of the poplar are most excellent in these cases, and will be eaten greedily. Scurvy of the teeth is only a form of decay, the decayed portion being left on the surface. Treat aa above, and when the stomach recovers its- healthy tone, the crust can be removed with a coarse file. The tooth should be sandpapered after filing. Before closing the subject of the teeth, we would say that the practice of feeding unground grain toyouiigcolts, before the permanent teeth are set, is injurious, not only at the time, but in after years. There are many abuses of the horse's mouth by bit and bridle ; and mouth and tongue are often chafed and wounded by those who profess to have feeling for brutes. Severe pulling and ^'- sawinrj^ on the bits, pulling up hard and sudden- ly, and all like practices, except w^hen absolutely necessary for personal safety, are to be condemned. Always say whoa, before yuu begin to pull on the bit, and then pull up steadily. Lampas us a disease, is only imaginary, it is an inflammation of the muscles in the roof of the mouth. The old resorts to burning, and caustics, are horrible. If the inflammation is severe, make a slight cut in the muscles, chse to the teeth, wash the mouth and gums with some cooling lotion, weak arnica and water, or weak chlorate of potash. Diseases of the Throat and Lungs are common in our climate, as well to horses as to man. But climate is not all. The horse has huge lungs, and absorbs large quantities of air at each breath; to breathe this air over again is injurious. When we take into our account, that in ninety-nine stables out of one hundred, the air is not fit for the horse to breathe at all, and that this air has to be breathed over and over many times for lack of ventilation, it is a wonder that any horse has sound lungs. Colds, m/uen^a, (<' pink-eye," "horse-ail," so-called by many Korse jockeys,) are produced in the horse in just the smne manner HOESES AND MULES. 326 as in men. Ileating and exposure afterwards ; a hard, wet drive without being properly dried, rubbed down, warmly housed, well bedded, etc. Such are the causes. Swelled THROAT. In this term we include, sore throat, enlarged glands, and laryngitis, or inflammation of the larynx. In all these developments of cold, there is more or less soreness, swelling, redness of the eye, an increase of mucus from the nose, dullness, stiffness, failure to eat, slobbering of saliva, etc. To discover laryngitis, apply the ear to the windpipe from the chest to the head ; as you proceed, carefully listening, up the neck you will hear a little gurgle, which increases to a wheeze or whistling sound. All these affections lead to bronchitis, consumption, and death. The place to stop them is here at the outset, the time is now, when first discovered. If a mild case, dussolve half an ounce of extract of belladonna in two quarts of water. Put half a pint in a bottle, hold up the horse's head, and turn it into the mouth ; let him retain it thirty seconds, drop the head, and it will run from his lips. Repeat this at least three or four times a day. Give no hay or whule grain ; only green food, roots, boiled grain, mashes, gruel, and such soft food should be given during any soreness or inflammation of the throat. If the attack is severe, or increases in spite of the above treatment, open the neck vein, and bleed two or three quarts. Prepare chloride of zinc, three drachms ; extract of belladonna, half an ounce ; tincture of capsicum, two drachms ; water, one gallon, and use as directed for the belladonna and water. Apply the corrosive liniment on the outside of the throat, not more than two mornings in succession. Cough is an accom- paniment to almost every disease of the throat and lungs. The first cough should be noticed, and its cause ascertained. The disease which causes it should be attacked. Dr. Stewart recommends the gunpowder mixture, (See Remedies,) and if he 326 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. v;iaads in stable, as much sulphur and resin as he will eat. Uudoubtedl}^ a piece of rock salt in the manger is beneficial in nil throat and lung complaints. Grass in its season, and soft food as above, are nature's remedies. Broken Wind, Heaves, roaring, wheezing, and various other difficulties in breathing, are all of one nature, and ought to be all classed as one. They are incurable in the present state of science. Such horses should never be driven hard, far, fast, or heavily loaded. Feed and water before starting, and never put them to work when the stomach is distended with food. Diseases of the Chest and Lungs. Chest Founder. Symptoms, stiffness of shoulders during action, pain in the breast when touched. Give hot salt and water, and wash the breast in the same. If on the second day the symptoms grow no better, apply the corrosive liniment, and give a pint of hot salt and water, in which mix half an ounce of ginger, and a drachm of tartar emetic. Bronchitis is one in the lisc of maladies that follow each other from cold to consumption. First cold, then enlarged glands, swelled throat, bronchitis, pneumonia, congestion, and last, consumption. When will men learn that care for their animals which shall prevent this train of maladies. Dr. Dadd thus gives the symptoms of Bronchitis. " Veterinarians recognize this disease under three aspects, viz.: — 1. "Acute, as when the horse is suddenly attacked with an irritable cough and sore throat, with the usual febrile symp- toms, sucli as quick, wiry pulse ; membranes of the ncse and mouth redder than usual, accelerated respiration ; great anxiety of countenance, etc., etc. 2. " Chronic bronchitis, which sets in after the acute has sub- sided. This stage is marked by a discharge of watery and some- HORSES AND MULES. 327 limes mucous fluid from the nose; and the act of respiration is performed with a vheezing noise. 3. '■ The third variety has been named the epidemic." Give two oances of Epsom salts, in a pint of salt and water, pretty warm ; while this do.-e is being prepared, wash the wliole neck and chest with a decoction of tobacco, weak, but hot. Now put one ounce each of gentian and ginger in a quart of water, and boil until one half evaporates. Divide this into four doses, and give night and morning. Continue these until improve- ment in the patient is perceptible. We also wish to cover the jnucous membranes. Slippery elm is the best possible article ; into two quarts of boiling water, stir just enough to thicken it, not quite as thick as cream ; make four doses of it, and give twice daily. Keep the bowels loose by means of warm gruels and mashes. Dadd says: "i^me /tW, scalded and set before the animal warm, answers two purposes, viz., that of relaxing the engorged surfaces of the nose and throat, and also has a relaxing effect on the bowels. If the bowels should re- main closed, inject warm soapsuds. Pneumonia, or inflamma- tion of the iungs, is the next stage of the disease; it is usually ushered in with a chill, (the horse shivering all ovei), succeeded by unnatural warmth of the body and coldness of the extremi- ties ; the pulse is quick, breathing short, quick, and hard ; a sure symptom is the icy coldness of the extremities. If you do not conclude to end these sufferings with the bullet, treat vigorously as recommended for bronchitis. Congestion is the last stage of pneumonia, and unless death follows immediately, the horse is spared for the finishing stroke of Consumption, for which we prescribe no cure, as there is none. Diseases of the Stomach and Bowels. The BoT is a natural inhabitant of the stomach of the horse. His history is as follows : The gadfly, that torment of the horse. 828 m>^^' TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. attaches hor eu'gs to his hair, tliey hatch, and the little grub is linked oft' hy the horse and swallowed. Sometimes several huiKlrod will thus be deposited in the stomach. They attach »hein.<«el\'es to the uppoi- part of the stomach, where they spend the winter anT, she gave one hundred and twenty quarts of milk, which made fifteen pounds of butter. In the first week of July, the yield of milk was one hundred and fourteen quarts, and of butter, eighteen pounds. In the first week of August, she gave of milk, one hundred and fifteen quarts, and of butter, sixteen pounds. In the first week of September her yield of milk was one hundrejl and seven quarts, and of butter, fifteen pounds. In July her aggregate yield of butter was seventy-nine pounds, and from the 1st of June to the 7th of October, on green food without grain, her butter amounted to two hundred and ninety- three and a half pounds, or an average of fifteen pounds and ninety-two one-hundredths a week, for eighteen weeks and three days. And this was no exception to her ordinary yield, nor was there any special effort made to feed her up to her utmost capacity. Pasture grass constituted her food in June and July, with pasture and a little green fodder corn at night in August and September. This cow is, pisrhaps, better than the average of animals of her breed ; but the same general characteristics are to be found in them all ; a rich and high quality of butter, and an abun- dance of it. She was drawn from life, and the engraving gives a very good idea of the form of the Jersey cow, and of her color, which is usually fawn and white, sometimes shading into a bluish gray, or mouse color, and darker. "Abraham" {Fig. 73.) of which we also give an engraving^ shows the color and the form of a good Jersey bull. He is owned by the city of Boston, and kept at the public institutions at Deer Island, in Boston harbor. He is represented as in rather high flesh, but otherwise is correctly drawn from life for this volume, and a capital likeness of one of the best breeders in this country. For the butter dairy, the Jersey cow must hold the first place iimong the well established breeds of this country. But she is t-^ I o Q o > CATTLE. SiJ* rather a large eater, and slie does not fatten to a good quality of beef when she is ready to be laid aside. That the breed does not make the best of working oxen, can hardly be regarded as any objection, when it is considered that human labor must be at rather a low ebb wherever it can be profitably associated with so slow an animal as the ox. The estimation in which the Jersey is hela as a dairy cow, is sufficiently shown in the high prices which she commands, and the readiness with which she sells. She has grown in popularity every year wherever her merits have become known, and this not merely among amateur farmers, or on the grounds of the suburban gentleman who wants a pet familv cow to orna ment his lawn and supply the small family witn milk, out m the hands of the dairy farmer who seeks profit rather than the gratification of taste or fancy. One or two pure bred Jerseys in a herd of ten " native" cows, will improve the butter qualities of the milk to an extraordinary extent. The same object may be attained at less cost, by an infusion of Jersey blood, secured by a cross of a pure Jersey bull and the common cow. It should be stated that the butter of the pure bred Jersey is rather too rich to keep well, and that to have it in perfection it should be consumed fresh. This is a fact too often overlooked, but which is perfectly well established and admitted by many who have had the largest experience with the pure bred Jersey. It may Avell be doubted whether any herd of "native" cows could be selected which would give such uniformly rich milk, and so highly colored and delicious butter. The Brittany cow has characteristics very similar to the Jer- sey. She is not remarkable for the quantity of milk she yields so much as for the quality of the butter made from it. In this respect she stands first in reputation among the breeds of France, Brittany butter being eagerly sought not merely for its superior 350 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM FAY. richness and beautifol color, but for a peculiarly sweet and "nutty" flavor wliicli it possesses to a greater extent than any other butter. This peculiarity is preserved in animals crossed with the Brittany, even to the third and fourth generation, an evidence of the antiquity and established qualities of the race. The a"-ent who visited the district of Morbiharn to select two lierds recently imported, saw cows of this race at Yannes, whose milk yielded four pounds of butter a day for some days in suc- cession. The Breton cow is small in stature, the average height being only about thirty-six to forty inches. She is a perfect dairy cow in miniature, with a remarkable symmetry of form, a short, fine, clean head, with sharp outline, a small muzzle, a bright eye, small ear, and slender horn. Her neck is thin, long and slender, with a free crest and little dewlap. She has a- straight back and prominent and well developed hind quarters. The ribs are well arched, the chest wide and deep, showing abundant room for the internal organs. The limbs are remarkably beau- tiful, the legs short, the joints small and well defined, the hoof small, dry and generally black. The skin is fine, soft, and yel- low, the hair fine and curly, the color black and white. A few are all Ijlack, and now and then a red and white one appears. This is the poor man's cow, the pet of small farms and scant pastures, hardy, docile, living and yielding a good product longer than most other races of domestic cattle, satisfied with little and with that little coarse, willing to shirk for itself around the house, or wherever she can find a morsel of food. She con- tinues often till twelve or fifteen years of age to yield well, los- ing only about a quarter of her greatest flow of milk at the age of sixteen or eighteen years. The Brittany cow is worthy of a high place in the butter dairy, either as a pure breed, espe- cially in regions of short pasture and limited fertility, or as a CATTLE. 353 gj'ade with our common stock, or with any of the well marked breeds. The butter will command the highest price in the market, while, from the small size and gentle dispositicm, the animal will be sought as a family pet. The Milk Dairy. In the milk dairj^, or where cows are kept for the production of milk to be sold in its natural condi- tion, the object is usually to obtain the largest quantity with less reference to the quality. And here not only the class of stock, but the whole system of feeding and management should be quite different from that adopted in the butter dair}-. We want an animal that yields largely in proportion to the food consumed, and that holds out ^\ell. In regions of great fertility where the pastures are naturally luxuriant, a few families of the Shorthorns and Shorthorn grades or crosses of the improved Shorthorn male, with well selected common cows of the coun- try, meet this essential featuie to a very high degree. The improved Shorthorns, as a breed, originated towards the close of the last century, the basis of it being a class of cows at that time to be found in the counties in the North of Eng-land, especially in Darham, Yorkshire, and Lincolnshire. They were noted as milkers, and remarkable for large size, which was due to the striking fertility of the region. So susceptible were these animals, in the hands of ".he skilful breeder, that they rapidly gained a high reputation, and to this day they have maintained their position, though, as a breed, they nave lost, to some extent, the strongly developed milking qualities of the old stock. This was, perhaps, the fault of the oreeder rather than of the breed. The abundance of nutritious food furnished to the young animal induced an early maturity, which led to the general practice of breeding for beef, rather tnan for milk, and to the consequent neglect of the dairy qualities. Some fimilies of improved Shorthorns have retained the 22 35-i HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. milking qualities, however, to a macli greater extent than others, and a few breeders have taken special pains to keep tlie dairv qualities in view. The " Sixtli Duke of Thorndale" {Fir/. 74,) one of the most perfect animals of this breed in the country, owned by George T. Plunkett, Esq., of Hinsdale, Massachusetts, traces his pedigree through a long line of rich milkers. The milking strain is concentrated in him to a re- markable degree. And so it is in " Aurora Second,'''' a superior cow belonging to IL G. White, Esq., of South Farminghain, Massach'usetts, the head of which forms the frontispiece to this chapter. For dairies wliere the production of milk for sale or for the manufacture of cheese, constitutes the leading object, some strains of the Shorthorn or Shorthorn grades are very use- ful in regions of abundant pasturage, or where the soiling sys- tem is adopted and practised. It is for the town dairy, or where cows are kept for the supply of milk to the cities, that the grade Shorthorn is chiefly sought In such cases the space the animals occupy becomes a matter of some importance, and the object is to make the most of it. And hence, in the London dairies, we find the old Yorkshire cow, essentially a Shorthorn, and the modern improved Short horn crosses are kept as the most profitable, though, in propor- tion to the amount of food consumed, they may not yield any more than animals of some other breed. The Ayrshire is another fixed and well established breed which has been frequently iraport-d into this country, and has exerted a marked influence upon the stock on our dairy farms. Ayrshire, to which the breed owes its name, lies on the coast of the Firth of Clyde, in the southwestern part of Scotland The climate is milder and softer than that of most other p^irt.j of the country, and well calculated for a dairy district. Here, about a century ago, originated a series of improvements \u 36S CATTLE. 357 dairy stock, which, though not remarkably promising at first, have made the name of Ayr as widely famous for its dairy cattle as for the sweet songs of its poet. Burns. It was not alone by the careful selection from the old native stock that these improvements were effected, but it is probable that more or less crosses were taken with breeds already esta- blished. A native race may be improved by careful, choice, and systematic breeding and selection, but the process is slow and uncertain, and offers less advantage to the enterprising- breeder, than the more promising one of using stock already improved to obtain first crosses. Just what the crosses were that led to the early modifications of the old Ayrshire cattle, it matters little. They were, no doubt, desultory efforts made without any clear idea of building up a famous breed on the basis of the old stock, which was small, ill-fed and ill-treated, supposed to have been derived originally from the western coast of France, the country of the Bretons. A better course of treatment, which prevailed after these early attempts, did much, no doubt, to change the general character of the stock of Ayr- shire, as it will any other. The Ayrshire cattle, now a well-established and well-defined breed, have long been distinguished for their remarkable dairy r[ualities, and for the quantity of milk they give in proportion to the size of the animal and the amount of food consumed. The form and structure of the cow, from the muzzle to tlie tail, indicates that she possesses qualities which adapt her, in an eminent degree, to the purposes of the dairy. Iler head is small, with a long and narrow muzzle ; her eyes, sparkling and lively ; her horns usually small, clear, and crooked, and set well apart at the roots. Her neck is long and slender, small towards the head and free, from the dewlap. Her shoulders are thin, her fore quarters light, and her hind quarters large and 358 now TO :\iake the farm pay. well developed, giving lier often a sort of wedge-shaped ajv pearauce, which, though it may not add materially to her beauty of form, is universally regarded, among dairymen, as a sign of a great milker. The engraving of " Flora,^^ {Fig. 75,) a prize Ayrshire cow, belonging to William Birnie, Esq., of Springfield, Massachu- setts, gives a very correct idea of this wedge shape, and the full development of the hind quarters, by which it is produced. It is the form of a cow of great capacity at the pail. The back is straight and broad behind, the dorsal joints loose and open, the carcass deep, the pelvis full and wide over the hips. The tail is usually long, small, and slender, and the legs sho^'t with firm joints. The udder is large, square, broad, extending well for- ward, not over fleshy, too low hung, nor too loose. The milk veins are large and prominent, the teats sometimes too small, pointing outwards, and set well apart. The Ayrshire is gene- 'ally a good handler, her skin thin, her hair soft, her whole figure compact ana well proportioned, having no objectionable amount of ofial. ''Honest John,'' {Fig. 76,) drawn by the same artist, and belong- ing to 'the same owner, shows the form and figure of an Ayr- shire bull. He is represented in too high flesh, a weakness of the artist, but otherwise the likeness is correct. He is dark red and white; the color of the breed, generally, is variegated, either dark or light red and white, often beautifully contrasted. Occasionally the color is all red. There is a tendency to nervousness in some of the Ayrshires, particularly in young heifers, but it seldom extends to vicious- ness. With mild and gentle treatment, frequent handling, and freedom from excitement, it is easily overcome. The cow is docile and managed without difficulty. It is now nearly forty years since the importation of Ayr CATTLE. 861 sliires into this countrj began. During that time the breed has considerabl}^ changed and greatly improved in appearance. The black muzzle, always objected to by the Ayrshire breeder, was then quite conmion. The color was darker, usually deep red or brown, flecked with white. More recently there has been a tendency to lighter colors, the red becoming of a lighter f?hade and less in extent, and the white forming the prevailing color in many good specimens. The form, too, is more sj^m- metrical, and more attractive to the eye. These changes haVe not interfered with the tendency to milk, and the animal is hardy, active, full of life and spirit, and remarkably well adapted to our cliip.ate and short pastures. She is a good milker, and seldom fails to yield a large quantity and a good quality of milk. It should be boi-ne in mind that no dairy cow could be ex- pected to do as well here as in the moist and mild climate of Scotland. Our climate is dry. A drizzling rain or mist in Ayrshire, keeps the grass green, succulent, milk producing. A dr}"-, hot, sultiy summer is seldom known there. Here it is the rule. No cow, in such a climiate, and on such food as we can offer her, in most part of the older States, will do as well at the po.il as in such a climate as that of Scotland, and we have no right to expect it. But a cow belonging to Mr. Birnie, the owner of "/"/orcv' with the milk carefully and accurately weighed, gave in April, after calving on the 25th of March, one thousand one hundred and twenty-seven pounds of milk ; in May, nine hundi'cd and thirty-four pounds; in June, one thousand and twent^'-iive pounds; in July, nine hundred and seventy-two pounds; in August, nine hundred and twelve pounds; a total in five .months of four thousand seven hundred and fifty-three pounds, on pasture feed or green hay and cornstalks. This was her own 362 now TO make the farm pay. « iceiqld of milk every month for the five moiitlis of the trial, and four hundred pounds over. Larger yields than this are recorded. One of the four Ayrshires originally imported into this country by the late John P. Gushing, Esquire, of Massachu- setts, gave in one year three thousand eight hundred and sixty- four quarts, beer measure, or about nine hundred and sixty-six gallons, at ten pounds to the gallon, be'ng an average of over ten and a half beer quarts per day for the whole year. And the first Ayrshire cow imported by the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture, in 1837, yielded milk from which was made sixteen pounds of butter a week for several weeks in succession, on grass feed alone. 'J'lie cow "t/rtm Armour,''^ imported in 1838 by Mr. II. H. Peters, of Massachusetts, gave in June, having calved on the 20th of. May, one thousand five hundred and twenty-four nnd a half pounds of milk, an average of fifty and five-sixths pounds per day. In July she gave one thousand six hundred and six pounds, or an average of fifty-one and five-sixths pounds a day. In August, one thousand four hundred and forty-one pounds, an average of forty-six and a half pounds per day. In Sep- tember, one thousand and forty-one pounds, or forty-seven and one-third pounds per day. The total product from June Isi to September 23d, a period of one hundred and fourteen days, Avas five thousand six hundred and tAvelve and one-half pounds, or an average of forty-nine and three-sixteenths pounds a day. During the second ten days of June she gave five hundred and twenty-one and one-half pounds of milk, or fifty -two pounds a day. During the second ten days of September she gave four hundred and sixty-two pounds, or forty-six pounds per day. Her milk was set for three days in July, and six pounds and three ounces of butter made from it. Iler weight, in good CATTLE, 865 order, was nine hundred and seventj-six pounds. Slie was in good pasture all the season and after, June 12th had tliree pints of corn and cob meal and three pints of bran, and, late in the season, in September, green cornstalks once a day. These yields of Ayrshire cows, wdiich might be multiplied, show the general characteristics of the breed. In her native country the Ayrshire is generally bred for the dairy and for no other object, and hence the cow has attained a just and world- wide reputation for this quality. Still she fats readily when her usefulness is over. She is hardy and does well on short and thin pastures, and so has proved herself very useful on a great proportion of the farms in the Eastern States, where a larger cow would not thrive. The Ayrshire makes a good cross with the common stock of the country and with the Shorthorn. The cross with the Jersey. is not to be recommended. With the Shorthorn her form be- comes a little more symmetrical, while there is no risk of lessen- ing the milking qualities of the offspring, if sufficient regard is paid to the selection of individual animals to breed from. As a breed, it probably unites, to a greater extent than any other except the Brittany, the supposed incompatible qualiiies of yit'lding a great deal of milk and beef in proportion to the food consumed, or cost of keeping. The Dutcli cow was early imported into the colonies iirsL established at New York and in New Jersey. It is probable that, even at that early day, the milking qualities of the raw were fully developed. The climate of Uolland, and the low, rich, and luxuriant pasturage, so moist, succulent, and milk- Droducing, naturally induced the milk -yielding capacities of the stock and a large growth of the animal frame. Trans- planted to our dry and warm summer climate, and to the expo- sure of our long and severe winters, the animal could haa'dJy 366 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. be expected to maintain her extraordinary power of secreting milk in so large quantities, and hence, though the Dutch race laid the foundation of the stock of the Middle States, its supe riority as a milker docs not seem to have been fully sustained. Nature has done more for the race of cattle along the marsh districts of Northern Europe, extending from the confines of Holstein around to the borders of France, a distance of some hundreds of miles, than art or the skill of man. The soil .s all of a low and sWalj character, formed by the accumulated deposits of successive ages. The whole country is intersected by slug- gish streams and still more sluggish canals, the banks raised so as to prevent the rush of the tide over the green and smiling farms. The land, of course, is extremely rich and fertile, a magnificent stretch of lowlands, much of it diked in with incredible labor from the treacherous sea, and covered here and there with low"*and comfortable farm-houses and a thrifty, honest, and hard-working class of farmers. The soil and the moisture of the climate are exceedingly well calculated to lead to an extraordinary development of the cultivated grasses and other forage plants so important in nourishing a large race of cattle. On such a soil and in such a climate we should expect to find the grass-feeding animals of all kinds attaining a size not generally found in other circumstances. There are some general characteristics to be found in all the cattle of this long and fertile stretch of m.arsh region, though they are divided into many distinct races, all due to local influ- ences, rather than to any systematic effort at improvement. The Dutch may be regarded as a type of them all. It belongs among the larger races of cattle, though its bony structure is said to be only a little above the average in weight. The head is usually small and fine, the horns of medium length, stout and inclined forwards, the neck long and sunken or curved, with CATTLE. 369 rather a large dewlap, the shoulders strong and thin, ihc rump large and broad, and the hind quarters generally "well deve- loped. The legs are long and the general form of the animal is rather thin than fleshy, sharp, and angular, and not generally well rounded. The color is almost invariably black and white, though red and white Dutch cows are often seen. The most striking economic character of this race is its milk- ing capacity, the product being more remarkable for quantity than richness, the milk being thin and watery, the characteristio of all the marsh races as compared with the highland or moun- tain races of continental Europe. The cows bring heavy calves, and the young stock on abundant food grows rapidly to great weights ; but it requires very rich food to effect it, and without this, the race does not justify its otherwise distinguishing qualities. For a milk dairy, in regions of rich and succulent food, the Dutch may be a profitable animal for the mere production of milk or cheese, but she is a large eater and a slow feeder, that is, she requires great expense to fatten in proportion to many other races and breeds. It is not an improved breed in the sense in which the term is applied to the Shorthorn, the Ayr- shire, or any other class of animal? built up by selection and great care. It is the common stock of a country and a climate where a small milker must be the exception, the whole course of feeding from the birth of the calf being naturally such as to induce an abundant secretion of milk. The term " Holstein," often used in connection with " Dutch," as applied to this race is wholly inappropriate, the Holstein races, of which there are several, being entirely different in many essential particulars. Dutch cattle have recently been imported, and efforts are being made to establish them as a dairy stock upon our soil. Other well established breeds or races of cattle might be S70 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. mentioned as having claims to the attention of the dairymau, and among them tlic Kerry, a small, hardy race of cattle from the mountainous districts of Ireland. It has been imported recently to a limited extent. Some families of the Devons have been bred in this country with special reference to the dairy, but, as a breed, it is not to be thought of for the purposes of the milk dairy. The milk, however, is of excellent quality. In its own country it has been bred more for beef than for milk- There are many well known races on the continent, in France, Switzerland, and Germany, whose dairy qualities have been celebrated for many years, but none of them have been im- ported to a sufficient extent to have influenced, in any perceptible degree, the general character of our stock. The common stock of the country owes its origin to a great variety of sources, which date back to the early importations for the colonies, before any systematic efforts had been made, even in the respective countries from which they came, to im- prove the breeds of domestic animals. From the West Indies, from Wales, from the southern coast of England, from Holland, and Denmark, and Spain, from every country which furnished its quota to establish a new colony in the new country, came the cattle for the early supply of the settlers, and an infinite mixture of races and breeds followed, just as chance or con- venience dictated. Hard and scanty fare, exposure to cold and danger, and starvation, left little to be expected in the way of improvement, and it is a matter of surprise that our " native" cattle came down to us as good as they were at the time when our importations of improved stock began, and more system prevailed in selection and management. As it is, many individual animals might be selected from our common stock, which would possess more than ordinary qualities as dairy cows; but they are the result of chance CATTLE, 371 rather than breeding. They do not constitute a race, breed, or family, the qualities of which are inherent, uniform, well established, and capable of being transmitted to their progeny. Many peculiarities, when once established in the animal sys- tem, become hereditary or readily transmissible from the parent to the offspring, and hence the natural foundation of races and breeds, or families. The term race, in domesticated and other animals, applies only to those of the same species, possessing, besides the general characteristics of that species other pecu- liarities, which they owe to local circumstances to which they have long been subjected, and which they transmit with cer- tainty to their progeny; and it is essential to the idea of a race that it shall liave possessed these characteristics from a time " whereof the memory of man runneth not to the contrary," that is, beyond the limits of authentic records. The term ^mJ, on the other hand, applies to a family of animals built up by a long course of careful selection till certain desired qualities became fixed, capable, and sure of being transmitted. The peculiarities of races are more inherent, fixed, and strongly marked than those of families built up or made artificially, or, in the language of the farm, the " bluuLf ' is stronger in the one than in the other. Our common stock may form a good basis of improvement, but good as it is, in many respects, it has defects which it is desirable to remedy. Two modes of improvement naturally suggest themselves to the mind of the enterprising farmer, either of which seems to promise good results. The first is that of selection from among our " native," or common cattle, of the best and most perfect specimens not known or suspected to be related to any of the well established breeds, and to use them as breeders, and so to build up a new and artificial breed aftei 372 now TO make the farm pay. the manner adopted by the early founders of the improved breeds in England. This mode of improvement is simple enough when applied to anv of the long established breeds. Indeed it is the only mode which preserves the parity of blood in such cases ; but to do it successfully with our common cattle would require great experience, a quick eye for stock, a mind free from prejudice, and a patience, and perseverance quite indefatigable. It would be necessary to pay great attention to the calves thus produced, to furnish them at all times, during their early growth, with an abundant supply of nutritious food, and to regulate it carefully according to their growth. And when it is considered that this mode would require a long series of 3^ears to arrive at any fixed and satisfactory results, owing to the fact that our " native" cattle, made up as they are of so infinite a variety of incongru- ous elements, do not produce their like, that the defects of an ill-bred ancestry will be continually " cropping out" for several generations, constantly thwarting the expectations of the ex- perimenter, it is not surprising that so few efforts of the kind have been made, or that those that have been made have attracted so little public attention. To be sure the objecti(m of time, and expense, and repeated disappointment should have little weight, if there were no more sure and speedy method of accomplishing the object. The second method is more feasible, and it is the one that has generally been adopted, and constitutes the basis of en- lightened and systematic efforts to improve our stock at the present day. It is to select animals from races or breeds already improved and brought to a high degree of perfection, and to use them in obtaining crosses or grades with our •native" cattle. A good selection of pure bred males, from breeds distinguished for their dairy qualities, and the use of CATTLE. 378 COWS remarkable for these qualities, will secure the desired results more surely than any other course. But a stop should genera,lly be made at the first cross, that is we should go back CO the pure bred sire of the same breed, to be used with the pro- geny of the first cross, and so on. Any other course will lead to confusion and degeneration, and is never advisable if it can be avoided. Dairy qualities do not, it is true, belong to any one breed in particular, but as they are dependent largely upon structure and temperament, which are hereditary, they are themselves transmissible through the male parent. Endless disappoint- ment has followed the raising of the offspring of .cows remark- able as milkers, simply because the qualities in them were accidental, the males not coming from cows of similar long established, high dairy qualities. Three or four years of labor and expense have been incurred, only to find that the offspring of such animals will not justify the outlay, unless equal care is taken in selecting the male, to which they are bred, with special reference to the same qualities, or qualities which we seek to obtain and perpetuate. The offspring of crosses, taken in this way, with a pure bred male and the common cow, will be grades, but grade cows are often better for the practical purposes of the dairy farmer than pure bred ones. Both parents undoubtedly have a great influ- ence in transmitting the milking qualities of the stock, and the skill of the breeder is displayed in the selection of individual animals from which to obtain crosses. This latter mode of improvement requires less skill, however, and less exact and critical knowledge of stock than the first. It IS easier to appreciate the good points of an minimal already greatly improved than to discover them lying latent in the ani- mal which we propose to use as the basis of improvement. This 23 37-i HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. method also has an immense advantage in the fact that results are more rapidly obtained, and the various steps of improve- ment more directly perceptible, from year to year. By the first method, that of building up a breed or family from judicious selection of both sire and dam from our common stock, the final attainment of success could hardly be expected in the ordinary life of man. By the second, every successive step may be one of progress and improvement, provided the selection of the male is judicious. And this selection should be made wholly with reference to the specific object we desire to attain. If it is a class of cows for the butter dairy, take the male from the breed distinguished for its rich milk, and its butter making properties, and adhere to such a breed through each successive stage of the effort. If it is cows for the milk or the cheese dairy, select the male from a breed remarkable for its large yield, and adhere to males of this character. This course, when the selection has been made with proper care, has seldom failed, and it offers advantages at the present time superior to any other. The special reason for a resort to the pure bred male, in crossing, is not so much that the particular individual animal selected has the desired properties united and developed in himself, as that they are hereditary in the breed to which he belongs. The moment the line is crossed, and the pedigrees or ancestry of the sire lost, uncertainty commences. The form of a grade or cross-bred bull may be even better, in individual cases, than that of the pure-bred one, but there is less hope of bis transmitting the qualities for which the breed to which he is allied is most noted. As already stated, we have the basis in our common cattle of the most excellent dairy stock in the world. Their defects are want of uniformity and uncertainty in breeding, to a uniform high standard of quality. They are CATTLE. 375 hardy, tlioroughly acclimated, capable of great endurance, and by the methods already indicated may become the most useful, the most profitable, and the most satisfactory cows on the dairy farm. The Family Dairy. For the family cow, where usually only a single one is kept for the limited supply which she affords, we need not resort to any established breed, to the ex- clusion of others. " Utile au riche, providence au pauvre," — useful to the rich, a blessing to the poor, — is the characteristic description of the Brittany cow, and it includes the essential requisites in a cow for family use. The man of wealth wants an animal to ornament his lawn, and he will select her for beauty, or because she is rare, and unlike tlie common cattic of the neighborhood. He wants a docile, gentle creature, that will become the pet of the family. A limited quantity of milk, of a rich and creamy quality, will meet his requirements, so far as product is concerned, and in these, or other respects, the Brittany or Jersey cow, or a high grade of either breed, will be unsurpassed. The man of more limited means wants a cow that will yield a quantity of good milk, large in proportion to the food consumed, docile, thrifty and hardy. A well selected grade Ayrshire or a " native," of medium size, will be as useful as any cow to be had. As no calves are to be raised in such circumstances, as a general rule, little regard will be paid to the selection of breed, but even here it is not to be overlooked, that the better the breed, the better price will the calf bring, when it comes to be sold, either to the butcher, or to be raised. The Raising of Calves. The mode of raising the calf has an important influence upon its qualities, and its usefulness, as a dairy cow. Here the object is not to force the animal, as in raising for beef, to early maturity. The quality of food, as 376 HOW TO .MAKE THE FARM PAY. well as the quantity and mode of feeding, are to be considered with reference to their elEfect, upon the animal structure. In most sections, where animals are bred for the dairy at all, the value of the milk, whether to be manufactured into butter or cheese, or to be sold in its natural state, is such as to make it necessary to adopt some system of economy. It is a com- paratively easy matter to feed the. calf, designed for breeding purposes, or for beef, by letting it run with the dam, taking all the milk 'it requires, and this method, with high priced stock, or in raising for beef, is the best economy, no doubt, but it is found to be too expensive where the dairy is an object of attention. Various modes have been adopted to lessen the ex- pense of raising stock for the dairy, and the effect which differ- ent kinds of food will produce on the animal economy, has been carefully studied. Strict care is necessary, not to feed the young so as to develop a tendency to great size, either of bone or of adipose tissue, or fat cells, and so we must avoid feeding too highly upon articles of a very stimulating nature. Most dairymen, therefore, have adopted the plan of taking the calf froni the cow at an early period, and feeding it from the dish by hand, up to the time of bringing it, to solid food. By this method the food can be easily modified, and the growth is not liable to be checked, as it often is when the calf is allowed to run with the cow to a certain age and finally taken away. As soon as the calf is dropped, the cow is alloAved to lick it dr}^ and the young creature to suck once or twice, which it will Ho as soon as it is able to stand— when the cow is milked clean, given some warm bran mash or gruel, and left for a day or two with the calf. After that, if the udder is all right, not inflamed or caked, the calf is taken away, and taught to feed by putting the fingers into its mouth and gently bringing its muz/Ae down to the milk in a dish. In the dairy districts of Holland, the CAITLE. 377 calf is generMllj removed at once to a shed by itself, and rubbed dry, without allowing the cow even to see it; and if the ud'ler is right, this is, perhaps, the better way. As soon as it is able to stand, it is supplied with the warm milk drawn directly from the cow. This it should have, in all cases, as its first food, since it contains certain medicinal properties admirably calculated to free the bowels and intestines from mucus and excrementitious matter. It should have the milk of the cow, m this way, three or four times a day, for a week or ten days at the least, what- ever course it is designed to adopt after that. The milk during this period of time possesses, as we have said, certain qualities which are necessary to the calf, and which cannot be efi'ectually supplied by any other food. In the third or fourth week, the milk for the calf may be skimmed, but warmed to the degree of fresh-drawn milk ; though, after that, less care is required to warm it and to give it the milk of its own mother, that of other cows now answer- ing equally well. If in spring, the calf at the age of six to eight weeks may ue tethered out upon the green grass, or put into a small enclosure near the house, and still fed twice or, better, three times a day, upon skimmed milk, with a mixture of half hay tea or gruel. If in winter, a wisp of clover, or other sweet hay, should be hung up over its pen within easy reach. This will soon lead the young aninjal to begin to eat solid food. The careful Dutch dairymen prefer not to turn their calves into grass till the age of ten or twelve weeks, and then even continue the skim milk or buttermilk several times a day. If the weather is chilly, they take care to warm the milk. The most important thing to be borne in mind, in the raising of calves, is neither to starve nor to overfeed. A calf should never be surfeited, nor fed so highly that it cannot be fed more S7S HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. highly as it advances. It should be kept growing thriftily, without n-etting too fat. Both extremes are to be avoided. At the same time the utmost gentleness should be observed at all times. Persevering kindness will overcome the most obstinate natures. The disposition of the cow is greatly modified, if not indeed wholly formed, by her treatment while young. Calves, therefore, should be handled frequently, led by a halter, ca- ressed, and made into pets. They will almost invariably beGi>me docile, and suffer themselves to be approached and handled in the pasture and the barn ; and it is the quiet temperament and confidence acquired by this course of treatment that constitutes one of the most important characteristics of the good dairy cow. With respect to hay tea, often used in this country as a par- tial substitute for milk after the calf is several days old, it is prepared by making an infusion from the best and sweetest hay, cut by a chaff or straw cutter into pieces about two inches long and put into a kettle and boiling water poured over it, when ii is allowed to stand two hours, carefully covered. After the first week of the creature's life, the proportions of the pure milk of its dam and hay tea may be equal. After the third or fourth week, two thirds of hay tea and one third of milk ;. and a few days after, three quarters hay tea and one quarter milk. It should be given at least three or four times a day, at the rate of about three quarts at each meal, to be gradually increased to fjur quarts as the calf grows older. This diet should be con- tinued till the age of ten or twelve weeks, when each meal may l)e reduced to less than a^quarfof milk with hay water — or skimmed milk or buttermilk may be substituted. At this age the animal will soon be able to take care of itself. It is im- portant that the hay tea should be made fresh at least every two days, as it will lose its nutritious quality if kept too long. This •jourse is adopted not as being better than milk, but simply as a CATTLE. 379 matter of economy in providing the most suitable and cheap substitutes. In Ayrshire, calves that are to be raised as dairy cows arf usually fed on whole milk for the first four, five, or six ■weeks, when they are allowed from three to five quarts at each meal, twice a day. Some never give any other food, while so young, except milk, and lessen the quantity as they begin to eat grass or other food, which they do at five or six weeks old; and at the age of seven or eight the milk is wholly withdrawn. If in winter, the milk has to be continued longer. A calf will not learn so soon to eat hay as grass, nor will it thrive upon it so well when it does eat it. Ilay tea is also used then, and linseed boiled to a jelly and mixed in the milk. Treacle, and other substitutes, are sometimes used, but milk, when it can be spared, is regarded as the best and most natural food. A method by which the expense of raising calves could be reduced in the proportion of two-thirds, as compared with feed- ing it all milk, was suggested by the Duke of Northumberland, in the following manner: Half an ounce of common treacle, or molasses, is well mixed with a pint of skimmed milk, when an ounce of finely-powdered linseed oil cake is gradually added, stirring it until thoroughly mixed, when it is to be added to the remainder of a gallon of milk ; the whole to be brought to the temperature of new milk, and fed to the animal. After a short time the proportion of pulverized oil cake may be con- siderably increased. Hay tea, oil cake, and oat meal will form the basis of substi- tutes for pure milk ; but the first few days the milk fresh from the cow must be given, and the gruel added gradually after- wards, till water is substituted for milk. Mixing oil cake with gruel is the secret of the success of this method, and the oil cake must be the best to be had. It may be prepared by taking 380 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. a largo six-gallon bucket and putting into it two gallons of scalding water; tlien add seven pounds of the fine oil meal Stir the oil cake and water together, and add two gallons of hay tea into which middlings, barley, or oat meal have been mixed. It requires but little calculation to estimate the comparative economy of these different methods. If we suppose the calf to run with the cow for six months, and to take eight quarts a day, which an ordinary cow ought to give for the first six months aftfer calving, we have the cost as follows: 8 quarts, at 2 cents a quart, for six months, . . . $26.88 8 " "3 " " " "... 40.32 8 " "4 " " " "... 53.76 There are few locations Avhere milk will not command one of these prices, either to sell or to convert into butter or cheese. If we take the first estimate, and add to it the cost of keeping during the first winter, we have the following as the cost at one year old : Amount of milk consumed . . $26 88 Hay the first winter 6 00 Boots, at the rate of half peck per day for 4 months, 3.05 Cost at one year old . . . $34.93 Take now the method of bringing up by hand as indicati-d, and say, 50 quarts of milk at 2 cents per quart $1.00 700 quarts of milk at 1 cent per quart 7.00 Pasture for fiv^e months 2 00 Hay during first winter 5.00 Roots for four months of first winter, half peck pel day, at 20 cents a bushel 3.05 Cost of one year old raised by hand . . $18.05 CATTLE. 381 Calling the second season's pasturing $5, and the second season's wintering $10, we have the cost, at two years, when the heifer ought to come in as a dairy cow, $33.00. This is, of course, only a general estimate. The price )f food, labor, and other incidental expenses vary so much in dif- ferent localities, that practical results in one section would not apply to others ; but it must be evident, that the feeding of the first year is not only the most expensive, but requires greater care and judgment. So far as it can be controlled, the period of dropping the first calf should be arranged to take place in the month of May or June, just before the greatest luxuriance of pasture feed. This will induce the largest possible flow of milk when the milk glands are in a condition of growth to be readily influenced by food. A greater development of the mammary or glandular system takes place now than if the animal came in on dry food, and it creates the capacity for large secretions of milk through the life of the cow. The capacity of the udder for holding milk will depend largely upon the character and abundance of the food during the first year; and a cow coming in for the first time in May, or early in June, will be worth more, as a milker, than she Avould be to come in at any other season. Feed, there- fore, so as to induce the largest possible flow of milk the first year. Feeding- and Management of Daiey Stock. No branch of the dairy can exceed in importance the feeding and manage- ment of stock. It will be found in practice that nothing comes out of the bag that is not first put into the mouth. The breed of animals may be the best in the world, and yet success in the dairy will depend very largely upon feeding, regularity, and general treatment. The feeding, or nutritive value of all the various articles of 382 now TO make the farm pay. food, lias been fully investigated, so that we know what constit- uents produL'c fat, what are heat, and what are flesli producing, what <^oes to build up the bony structure, and what enters into th.e muscular tissues; but while there is much of practical interest in these investigations, we are not to overlook the fact that, in actual practice, we have to deal with living organiza- tions, and that the most conflicting variety of circumstances often comes in to modify the results which theory would lead us to expect. Instead of the test-tubes and retorts of the labora- tory, in which a certain number of materials, under certain cir- cumstances, will invariably combine and form a certain substance, we now have the living animal, with its fine adjustment of ner- vous and muscular organizations, and we find that our results depend upon physiological peculiarities, upon likes and dislikes, upon circumstances over which we have not always a full control. Food relished one day will be rejected another. That which gives satisfactory results at one time will utterly fail at another. Under precisely the same conditions of shelter, food, and man- agement, so far as we can tell, the yield of milk will vary in the same cow ; and while one cow thrives on one kind of food, another will not. Let the system of management remain the same, and the quality of milk of the same cow will often vary, be rich and buttery at one time, and watery or cheesy at another. Many of those changes and variations, which introduce an element of uncertainty into our calculations are due to hidden causes, but there are others which we know more about, and which have an important influence over the nutritive value of food. Bad air, or want of ventilation in the stall, will reduce not only the quantity, but the value of milk. Fright or worry- ing by dogs, or fast driving, the irritation caused by flies in the pasture, any thing in fact, which disturbs the quiet of the ani- CATTLE. 388 mal, win have its injurious effect. And so f-he coi.dition iu which food is given will exert nearly as perceptible an influence as the kind of food itself. The most natural and the most commonly adopted method of feeding dairy cows, in the latter part of spring, through the summer, and the early autumn, is to let them run at pasture. This period will extend from four to six months, according to the locality and the season. Here the cows rely almost wholly upon grass. But it often happens, owing to droughts or over- stocked pastures, that an additional amount of food has to be provided to supplement the supply obtained in the pasture. This will consist, generally, of green food, cut from day to day, in the shape of green corn-fodder, or other culti7ated crops, as root tops, rye, green oats, or other forage crops. On many dairy farms, carried on for the supply of milk, the cows are supplied daily with a small amount of cotton-seed oil meal, wh"ch yields a large quantity of milk. When it is judiciously fed, not exceeding two to four pounds a day for each animal, it is attended with good results. The greatest judgment will be required in the winter or stall feeding of stock, and with respect to the diflferent modes pur- sued, the greatest diversity of opinion and practice prevails. While some feed exclusively upon hay, and often an inferior quality and quantity of hay, others feed roots, brewers' grains, and some variety'' of meal, and take the trouble to steam and cook the food,. so as to increase its nutritive qualities and render it rnore palatable. Good hay will undoubtedly form the basis of feeding on a vast majority of dairy farms, and, if furnished in suf&cient quantity, it is generally adequate to the supply of dry cows, or cows not giving milk at the time. For cows in milk, during the winter months, the root crop in some form, as that of turnips, Swedes, mangolds, or carrots, is a 384 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. most importaut addition, as they keep the system open and healthy, and promote the secretion of milk. And if the cows are not in milk, but are to calve in spring, the difference should be rather in the quantity than the quality of the feed. In feeding roots, the common English turnips, a sort of make- shift crop, to be sown after some early crop has left the land, is to be used first, and it helps to break the otherwise sudden change from green food to dry hay in November and December. The Swede will naturally follow, at the rate of half a bushel to a bushel a day, according to the size of the animal. The man- gold, which keeps admirably till late in the spring, and' improves in quality, should follow the Swedes, and will cai'ry the stock along to grass in good condition. All coarse fodder, cornstalks, swale hay and straw, should be cut in the straw cutter and mixed together. The roots, after being cut into slices, may also be mixed into this mass of cut food, when the whole may advantageously be put into a large close box, and a few quarts of shorts, middlings, or bran scat- tered over it. If now hot water is poured upon this mass, it will, after standing covered up a few hours, constitute a highly relished and nutritious feeding. This is a simple and cheap method of securing some of the advantages of steamino:. *-' DO Eegularity in the hours of feeding, and dll the operations in the cow-house, is of the utmost importance, and second only to a full and liberal supply of food. Indeed, regularity, cleanli- ness, and gentle treatment may be considered as the cardinal points of successful dairy management. These, in conjunction with judicious feeding, will insure the highest rewards to be derived from dairy stock. — G. L. Flint. Oxen. We know they are somewhat out of fashion, but we are convinced that where a farmer keeps more than one team, one of them had best be an ox team. You want horses to take you CATTLE. 385 to mill and to market, but for plowing and hauling on the farm a properly broken ox team is to be preferred. If the young oxen are trained to a quick step, in a light cart they will do their work as quickly as a horse team. They will stand more continuous hard work with less liability to disease, or accident. It is not hard Avork that worries the ox, but the continual whipping and bawling to which many "hands " treat them. An ox can be trained to go by the word just as well, and better than by the whip. Let us compare the advantages of the two teams. In the first place, the horses cost twice as much as the oxen ; their harness costs more ; they are more liable to disease and accident, to run away and smash wagon, harness, and their own necks. And when the horse is lamed and his service at an end, he is good for nothing but his hide, while the oxen, after two or three years' service, can be put in the stall for a few weeks, and men sold for enough to buy a young and vigorous pair to replace them. Some writers also claim that the ox costs less to keep, but we think he ought to cost just as much, and have juai as much and as good feed as the horse. Give him grain and he will give you work, manure, and finally beef. In this way oxen can be made to pay a profit, while the horses are wearing out. From six to ten years of age the oxen steadily increase in value, and -vvhen too old for service will bring a profit for beef. Lest we be misunderstood here, we repeat that where time is an object, as in going distances, the horses are to be preferred, and if a farmer keeps but one team it must be horses. The Devon's make, all things considered, the best cattle for the farmer. They are not large enough for the heaviest work, but no ox of his size equals him in strength, activity, perseve- rance, or willingness. A cross between the Devons and some 386 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. of tlic larger breeds, which retains all the excellencies of the Devons, \vith an increase of size, weight, and power, is what we think should be aimed at by breeders. The Devon is naturally medium as a dairy cow, giving a fair quantity of very rich milk, but when they are bred with a view to increase their size, strength, and beef qualities, as they should be, the milking qualities decrease. As a beef animal the Devon is in the first class. He fats readily, has- compact bones, and therefore a small amount of waste, and the flesh is of the finest quality, and well laid on. We recommend the Devons for workers, and for beef, but not for the dairy. The'IIerefoeds are the perfection of strength for a working ox, but of no account as a dairy breed. They have, therefore, never been very popular in this country, and are perhaps larger than is absolutely required for ordinary farm labor ; but this is not to their disadvantage, for they take on flesh readily, mature earl}^, and turn out splendidly on the butcher's block. As a cross with the Devons, or selected native cows, to produce working oxen, we think the Herefords will yet prove their superior quali- ties. The Ayrshires have been already spoken of as a dairy breed. They have not the characteristics of working cattle and do not put on flesh as fast as the Herefords, or the Durhams, neither do they consume as much feed. The Holsteins have not been fairly tried as working oxen, or as beef cattle, but we think grades with lighter and more active breeds will give good results. That they will take a leading place as dairy stock, we have no doubt. The Shorthorns, whose value as milkers has been discussed, are also superior as beef animals, putting on flesh with astonishing rapidity, and maturing at four years old. At that age they give one quarter less waste than any ordinary cattle of the same weight. •^ CATTLE. 389 Crossed witli good native cows or Devons, thej make excellent working oxen. Improved Stock is the aim of every enterpris- ing farmer. It costs no more to raise and keep a pure " Sbort- liorn" or "Jersey"' than a common scrub, but for any conceiva ble purpose they are superior. They will give more milk, more valuable calves, and when past service more beef, on the same amount of feed. It is not, however, within the means of many farmers to buy a herd of pure breeds at three hundred or four hundred dollars each, nor is it necessary. Get one bull and one cow of the breed best adapted to your wants, or else arrange with a neighbor to purchase the one and you the other. Breed your best grade cows to the bull and you will soon find a great improvement in your stock. i^Tow dispose of those animals that do not come up to your standard of excel- lence; cows that do not conceive readily, oi tlmt are liable to abortion, no matter how good milkers they may be ; breed from none of the grade bulls, but keep the bulls from the two pure animals first purchased for breeding purposes. It is perfectl}' safe to breed in and in, unless you discover some defect in the stock, when a cross can be made with some other pure bred stock. None but pure bred animals are certain of reproducing their characteristics in their progeny. A grade bull will some- times do it, but it is mere chance work, and cannot be relied upon. It will not do however, in these crosses, to breed the small cow to the large bull, but the small Devon or Alderney bull to the Shorthorn cow, or the large native or gi'ade cow usually produces good results. Breeding Cows, that is those kept for breeding choice stock, when they are discovered to be in heat should be immediately put by themselves until they can be introduced to the bull. This should be done in some quiet place with no other animals about, and above all, no crowd of men and boys, as is often the case. There should be no attempt 390 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. to force an acquaintance, no bustle or worrying them. After a once repeated service confine the cow in the stall until her heat fully passes off". Nine and one-half months is the average time of the cow, and after about seven months' pregnancy, milking should cease, and she should have good care, shelter, and warm beds, good food and a plenty of it. She now has two lives to support, and the quality of tlie calf will be greatl}^ aftected by the care now given. The cow should not be allowed to lay on fot, but kept up to a good condition. Mr. L. F. Allen in his recent publica- tion says: "A breeding and milk cow, in all her bodily condi- tion, should be gently and kindly treated. "She should never be driven at a pace beyond a walk. "She should never be jumped over fences or bars. " She should never be shouted at or worried in driving. "If they meet with objects occasioning fright or fear, let them leisurely survey the obstacles until fear is removed. " Never suffer the cow or the herd to be worried by dogs. . " Be gentle with them always." Bulls intended for stock raising should be well fed from their birth ; never fattened, but kept constantly and steadily growing. Oat meal, barley meal, and peas are better than corn meal, (in fact we recommend that no bull ever be fed on corn at all ;) these, with milk and grass until he is eight months, will insure great seminal and muscular vigor. Teach him to lead as early as possible, and when he is nine months old put a copper ring in his nose. Handle him often and gently, and in ninety- nine cases out of one hundred he will be gentle in return. Most of the viciousness of bulls is the result of either improper handling, or no handling at all. When once they become vicious there is little dependence to be placed on them, and their keeper must be on his guard. Never use a yearling bull CATTLE. 39 i unless it be on a single cow as an experiment. At two years old he may be used sparingly on twenty to thirty cows, and when three years old he will be vigorous, and ought to be good for al least five years' service of one hundred cows a season. When in service his feed must be the best, and he should be groomed and washed often. This is necessary to his best health, as is also daily exercise. The following from the " G'nmtry Gentleman^'' is so admirable, that we copy it and indorse it entire. VVorkhstg- Bulls. " 1 have one of Emery's endless chain powers to drive my hay- cutter. My bull is an Alderney two year old, weighing a little over nine hundred pounds. I put on the brake and had him led into the power, where he had a small feed of oats given him. While he ate these he was groomed and caressed. This was repeated two or three days in succession. Then, while he was eating, the brake was slacked a little, and as the floor moved down (slowly, so as not to alarm him) he stepped up to keep his muzzle at the oats. At the fourth lesson he worked an hour, and cut hay enough to last my stock — some eighteen head in all — two or three days. " We have not had the slightest trouble, and so much does he appear to like the exercise and the pleasant remembrances of the reward of good behavior, that 1 shall not be surprised if, when he happens to find the door open, he should go in and run the machine' on his own account. I intend to put up a circular saw and let him cut my fire-wood. " jSTow for the advantages. The pampering and confinement which makes a horse run away will, in time, make a bull devilish. The work I give him requires no harnessing ; it is only an hour's walk up a hill of thirteen degrees elevation. It gives him an outlet for his superfluous spirits. It keeps him ' in hand' and gentle ; it wears away the growth of his hoofs, 24 392 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. develops his muscle, and improves his health. Have I not a right to expect my herd to be benefited by such management ?" Bearing Calves has been spoken of in connection with dairy stock, but we have a few words further to say. They should always have enough food to satisfy their hunger, enough pure water always at hand to satisfy their thirst, a comfortable, warm, dry, and well bedded shelter, to which they can help themselves whenever the weather is bad. For whatever pur- pose the calf is to be raised, for beef, for work, or for the dairy, these things will pay. If for veal, calves should have their mothers' milk for four weeks, with meal added if they will take it. We do not mean by this, that the calves should be allowed to run with the cows and look out for themselves. The teats are not evenly milked by the calf, and one or more of them are likely to become worthless. The constant sucking also lessens the future flow of milk. Males, not intended for breeding, should be castrated young. Heifers intended for beef should be spayed. Steers should be early accustomed to be fastened together. Any time after six months a little gentle training may be commenced. It is less labor to train them now, and they will be more tractable and docile than if left to be two or three years old. When they are first put into the cart, they should be driven around the inside of some lot, next to the fence, which prevents them from turning out in that direction, while you stand on the . inside to keep them to their track. Never put steers to a great heavy cart, unless your object is to make them slow. Put them to a light cart and teach them to step quick, to walk fast. Feeding Stock is the most important operation, in improved farming; for the farmer feeding all his crops to his stock depends upon them to turn it into manure and beef. He calcu- CATTLE. 393 lates to see his returns come in from the sale ol his beef, mutton, and pork, and desires to know how his haj and grain must be fed to make the most meat. Of course, we take it for granted that he has breeds that will fat, for some breeds wil] not, no matter what you feed them, and others will only fat on such enormous quantities as tend to ruin the producer. We have seen a great, big headed, paunchy ox, fed for - three months beside a grade Devon, eating full one-third more, and gaining less than one-half as mi^ch in the three months. Get a breed that will fat, and then keep them growing^ summer and winter. It is wretched policy, east, west, north or south, to let any animal lose a pound of flesh. That pound of flesh has cost you money, and it will cost you money to replace it. A man who for any reason is obliged to pay twice for a piece of property, is reckoned unfortunate, but many a farmer volun- tarily pays six or eight times over for the same fifty pounds of flesh, and wonders why farming does not pay any better. My friend, when you get a pound of flesh, keep it. It won't cost one-half as much as it will to replace it. If pasture get scant in the fall, so that animals have to trave all day to satisfy their hunger, they will soon fall off in flesh. The farmer should piece out the pasture by feeding cornstalks, root tops, pumpkins, etc. Winter feeding, and care, is where many farmers fail. Feeding stock of any kind from stacks is miserable policy. Hay thus fed will not go more than one half as far as when fed under shelter. The cold and wet cause the cattle to eat more, and yet they do not thrive on it. Much is trampled under foot and wasted. Says Mr. Allen: " The con- sequence of all this is, that, through irregularity of feeding and carelessness of distributing their food, and want of shelter, the cattle lose flesh every day, and be their condition what it may, on coming into winter quarters they go out 'spring 394 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. poor.' Better keep ten head only, and keep them well shel- tered and well fed, than one hundred in this shiftless, cruel way. It will be profitable, while on every ill-kept animal you will lose money, and the manure of the animals thus fed will be worth bui little more than so much clay." Stall Feeding. For milk cows and fattening stock, stall feeding the year around is certainly advisable. The experience of every stock raiser who has ever given it a trial testifies that the pi'ofit is at least double. There is no doubt of it. If we could persuade every stock owner to adopt this soiling system, we should feel that we had done as much for our country as Fulton, Eli Whitney, or Blias Howe. It would increase the agricultural wealth of the country in a tenfold ratio. It would in five years pay the whole national debt. It is the only true economy in stock raising. In our soiling system we include stall feeding, cutting and steaming food, and the husbanding of manures. Its advantages are first, A saving IN fences. All the fences required (and all there ever ought to be on any farm) will be a good-sized yard to exercise them in. Now a man having one hundred and fifty acres of pasture often divides it into six lots. To fence these lots costs not less than one thou- sand dollars; the interest and repairs on which every year will be sufficient to pay a man for doing all the extra work of soil- ing fifty head of cattle. Can't you invest your one thousand to better advantage. Again, each of these fences takes up land. Your one thousand dollars worth of fence takes up from three to four acres of land, A second consideration is the saving of land. Four acres each, or twelve head to fifty acres of land, are required by the pasturing system, and often six acres each, or only eight head to fifty acres. Put this fifty acres under culti- vation, and it will keep twenty-four head as well, yes, better than it now keeps eight or twelve. We have already seen that CATTLE. 395 the saving in fences will pay all the extra expenses of soiling, leaving one thousand dollars to be invested in the additional stock 1 that can be fed under the new system. "We venture to say that , one and a quarter acres in hay and grain for winter soiling, and three quarters of an acre in green crops for summer soiling, will be sufficient for any stock. We have statements from a large , number of reliable men who practice soiling and no one of them ^ allows over two acres per head. It will thus be seen that the ' same number of acres can be made to feed twice or three times as many head of cattle by the soiling system. Third, is the sav- ing in manure, and this is the most important consideration of all. Manure is valuable even on the virgin soil of the prairies. No amount of manure is wasted when applied even to these. As we have already seen, the soiling system enables the farmer to keep double the number of animals on the same amount of land ; it will also double the value of the manure of each animal, thus making four times the amount of manure to return to the fields. No land will ever become '' exhausted" under such a system, but will constantly increase in fertility. A fourth consideration is that there will be a lari>e extra product of milk, butter, or beef; enough to pay for the labor of soiling. Directions for Soilixg. For summer feeding an open shed may be used, connected with a yard or lane. The sheds should be divided into stalls, and ev'ery creature should have its own place, and never be allowed to feed anywhere else. They will soon learn to take their own places without crowding or hunching each other. Their feeding hours should be regular and often, at least four times a day. The sheds should, of course, be provided with mangers, and the stalls with stanchions, as it is desirable to have the animals stand in them all but two or three hours in the day, when they are out for exercise. b96 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. The crops for summer soiling are winter rye, wliicli comes first, and can be cut in May, and is excellent to let them down from dry to green food; next clover and otlier grasses in succession ; then rye again, for rye will furnish several cuttings during the season; then early sowed corn, oats, sorghum, and other crops. Corn should be sown every fifteen days, until the first of August, or even later. For fifty head of cattle, we would advise the following summer crops : Five acres winter rye, twenty acres of corn, sowed at five different sowings fifteen days apart ; seven acres of red clover, and five acres of Timothy, or oats. Each animal should have enough, but no more than they will eat up clean at each meal. As each animal always eats at the same place, the feeder can easily manage this. Plenty of pure water is indispensable to the best results, especially with milk cows. Free access to pure water will increase the flow of milk. The best arrangement we have ever seen for this purpose was a double manger, or rather a pretty wide manger, (lower down than is customary,) and a partition through the middle, from end to end. Either half of this manger could be filled with water, at any time, from a pump outside the building. This having water always at hand is a most important matter, and adds to the profits of the dairy. If open sheds are used for summer soiling, they should be so arranged that the team can be driven along in front of them, and the fodder passed from it to the stalls. If feeding is done in the stable, which is best for milk cows, at least, the team can be driven in on the floor. In winter all feeding should be done in the stables, and here much will depend on cleanliness, air, pure water, and constant care. Eemember that you are saving enough to pay for a great deal of labor and attention. Summer is the best time to fatten beef, CATTLE. 397 but you must keep up jour stock in the winter also. In coming down from green food to dry, care must be exercised that the change is not too sudden, especially with milk cows. As the green food grows insufficient, cut some early cured hay, and mix a little meal with it. Keep up not only the amount, but the quality of the milk. Cutting and Cooking Food foe Stock now engages our attention. There are six cogent reasons why this should be done. It saves the labor of mastication, which s severe work for cattle, as their teeth are only calculated for eating grass. The" finer fodder is cut the better. However fine you may cut it, it will still require more mastication than green grass. While cutting renders it fine, wetting it renders it more suc- culent, and cooking it softens the fibre ; it therefore is all available as food, and the same amount cut and steamed will go twice as far as in the natural state. Theie are thousands of reliable statements to prove this, and yet, either from indif- ference, indolence, or unbelief, the multitude of farmers still go on feeding uncut hay and stalks, unground grain and whole roots to their stock. A third great advantage of cutting and steaming is, that every thing can be made palatable and used. The profit in this direction is equal to the cost. Half hay and half straw are by this means made fully as good as clear hay uncut. Coarse hay, badly cured hay, straw and cornstalks are eagerly devoured by the most dainty stock when cut and steamed. This shows that even poor fodder cut and steamed is more palatable to the stock than the best uncooked : this is the cow's argument in its favor. Twenty pounds of good hay cut and steamed will keep a cow in better condition than thirtj' pounds uncut and uncooked. Says Mr. Allen, on this point : " If the food goes into the animal at blood heat, so much of the animal heat as has to be 398 now TO make the fakm pay. expeudod in warming that otherwise cold food after entering the stomach, would be saved to go into flesh; for the animal heat has to be created by this food, and is therefore expended in producing it, and cannot to that extent, of course, make fat or flesh. So also would be saved the amount of food expended in producing the muscular strength and work of the jaws in grinding; for this power has to be furnished from some source, and we hold that the power so produced in the internal system of the animal itself is the dearest possible way of making it. Cooking or warming the food is, therefore, a great economy, much more, we consider, than its additional expense." The trouble with Mr. Allen, and a dozen other writers on this subject whom we might name, is that they follow with long and elaborate descriptions of cooking apparatus, boilers, pipes, etc., which frighten away those who would like to trj^ the experiment. After a man has once tried it and found what an immense improvement it is, he does not hesitate to invest any reasonable amount of time, labor, and money in perfecting it. A CHEAP PEOCESS is what is wanted at first. The following is simple: Line your feed-box with tin or sheet iron, cut your feed, turn on a gallon of boiling hot water for every two bushels of feed : shut on the cover tight, and leave it from two to five hours; it will keep warm over mght. Where more than five animals are to be fed it will pay to have a power cutter. A horse power is a convenient thing to have for a great many purposes on the form. By it hay, straw, stalks, and roots can be cut with very little trouble. A set-kettle just outside the door will heat the water. This can be covered tightly, and a pipe run from it to the feed-box ; this will keep the feed cooking as long as the water is hot. When roots are to be fed, they should be cut up and put into the box with the feed. It is good practice to mix a little bran, meal, or raid- CATTLE. . 399 dlings \\ith the feed; it seasons the whole and saves hay. George A. Moore, of Buffalo, New York, says: "I think i cutting and steaming combined insure a gain to the feeder of at least thirty-three per cent. The manure resulting from feeding steamed food is worth double that from feeding in the ordinary way." This man feeds eighty head and cooks their feed. Hundreds of dairymen and stock-raisers are trying it, and pronounce it at least one-third more profitable than the ordinary method. We now proceed to the Diseases of Cattle, and their treatment. Inflammatory Diseases. Inflammation of the stomach causes numerous symptoms of restlessness and evident pain. The animal lies down, points its head towards the belly, and often strikes the belly with the foot. Give a slippery elm drink every two hours ; inject warm soapsuds. Keep up these reme- dies for several days. Feed on gruel and other light feeds. Inflammation of the bowels is not readily distinguished from inflammation of the stomach, except by a greater rigidity, and evidences of more severe pain. Wring out a horse blanket in hot water and apply to the bowels, and inject clysters of soap and water, as in inflammation of the stomach. Inflammation of the Lungs is indicated by cough, dul- ness, and cold extremities. The mouth is hofc, and the animal is reluctant to move. Apply flannels saturated in hot vinegar to the legs and feet. Give half a pint of thoroughwort lea every hour. Inject warm soap and water. Inflammation of the bladder, kidneys, womb, or urinating organs is indicated by a frequent desire to urinate, and also to void the excrement ; but small quantities are dropped, and the animal is in increased pain ; the loins shrink from the touch. The slippery elm drink and soapsuds injection should be used, and a wet blanket kept 400 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. on the abdomen. It should be kept warm by frequent wring ing in hot water. Inflammation of the Brain. The symptoms and treat- ment are the same as described for the horse. Inflammation of the Byes. Use the eye wash directed for the horse. Dysentery, Diarrhcea, Gripes, and Colic, are in- flammator}^ in their character and results. They are caused by sudden changes either in temperature or in food. In calves, flour milk gruel, with a little chalk, is usually all that is required. A gill of castor oil should be given if the former does not give relief; and if still obstinate, inject the warm soap and water. Give grown animals a pint of castor oil, or, if not to be had, substitute sweet oil or melted lard. Gruel and slippery elm drink, in all these complaints, is a most excellent laxative. Diarrhoea may often be checked by the following dose : one gill of finely pulverized charcoal, one ditto fine salt, diluted with melted lard. If this does not check it, double the dose. Bloody Murrain is caused by leeches, which the animal sucks up from muddy water. Cattle should always have pure and, if convenient, running spring water. Mange is a contagious disease of the skin, caused by filthi- ness, in connection with improper feeding. We never knew it to generate on a cleanly, well-kept beast, but if once generated m a herd it will soon spread. The diseased cattle should at once be put by themselves. The symptoms are a dry scurf about the roots of the hair near the tail, and spreading from that part all over the body, causing severe itching and violent rubbing. Give sulphur one ounce, slippery elm two ounces, char- coal one gill, lard sufficient to mix. Make into six doses, and give two a day in the feed. Prepare an ointment of spirits of turpentine one pint ; sulphur three quarters of a pound ; and oil sufficient to reduce it to an ointment. Rub in gently. This CATTLE. 401 ointment will keep for moutlis, if new butter, without salt, is used instead of oil ; and for all diseases of the skin in cattle, sheep, or hogs it is the best thing we know of. Pleura Pneumonia, Einderpest, Contagious Typhus, and other modifications of the same contagious diseases have from time to time swept off thousands of cattle and are likely to do so again. The symptoms are fetid breath, hot mouth, unnatural heat and redness in the vagina and rectum. Soon the lower lip, on the inside, will be covered with pin-head blisters, and a thick fluid will begin to run from the mouth. The ani- mal will hold its head to one side and have a pitiful look. When discovered, kill every infected animal without a mo- ment's delay, bury all their excrement, and every thing that has been in their stalls. Isolate the rest of the herd, and kill them as fast as a sign of the disease appears. Pui a box of chloride of lime where every animal will have to step in it some time in the day, and see that every one that comes into the yard steps in a box of the same when they go out. Hooven is caused by eating too greedily of green food, which, clogging in the stomach, ferments and generates gas, which distends the stomach and often causes death. Give two ounces of ammonia (hartshorn) in a quart of soft water every fifteen minutes. A flexible tube passed down the gullet will often allow some portion of the gas to escape. Cloths wrung out in hot water and applied to the body, and vigorous rubbing with the hand, often assist the work. An injection ot warm soap and water, at short intervals, is also to be recommended. Prompt, vigorous, and persevering measures are to be kept up I until the animal is relieved or dies. But do not add to the load already in the stomach any physic or nauseating doses. Lice or Fly Bites should be treated by rubbing grease and Scotch suufl* into the skin. 402 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Choking often occurs wliere farmers do not cut up their roots, or where cattle get to the apples or potatoes unbidden. The best practice we know of, is to strap up one fore foot and make the animal hop. The obstruction will soon be thrown up. Another plan is, to have a rod about three feet long, with a greased swab on one end, and, one man pulling out the tongue, another forces the swab quickly down to the obstruc- tion. The Diseases of Dairy Stock are few, where properly cared for ; but garget, milk-fever, and slinking, are by far too common. Garget is an inflammation of the udder. One or more teats become swollen and tender ; the milk cakes in the bag, and in time the flow will cease. When first discovered, put the calf to the mother several times a day. The udder should also be washed frequently. Give a physic of Epsom salts and molasses. Dissolve one-half to a pound of salts in a quart of boiling water, add a teacup of molasses, and give before it gets cold. Slinking the Calf [abortion) is quite common among high fed cows, but the causes are not yet known. It usually occurs from the fourth to the sixth month of pregnancy. If the cow is uneasy and feverish, excited and timid, remove her from the rest, give her a dose of salts and molasses in gruel or a mash. A cow that has once slunk her calf is not reliable to breed from again, but with a valuable cow we should always make a second trial, but never more; dispose of such cows and get others. We think something can be done in the way of prevention. In the first place, when near calving time, and for some weeks after calving, the cow should not be exposed to cold rains or drink very cold water. Ice cold water given to a cow, just before or just after calving, has often caused the loss of the ani- mal as breeder. Again, we are of the opinion that hard water CATTLE. 403 has something to do with it, although it is by no means suffi- cient alone to cause it. Keeping the bull with the cows is, we are satisfied, a frequent cause of abortion ; it should never be allowed. Eating frosted grass must be very bad for the cows, whether it aids in procuring abortion or not. When there is frost on the grass, keep the cows in the yard until ihe sun dissolves it. If one cow suffers abortion, the whole herd often follow from sympathy. The smell and symptoms are known to them by instinct, and hae an injurious effect upon them. They will smell of the sick cow and her droppings, and then run bellow- ing about, and soon follow her. Therefore, on the first symp- toms, the diseased cow should be removed from sight, smell, or sound of all others, and kept until all is over. And if the cow drops her calf in the field, the foetus should be removed far away and buried, and the cow removed from the herd. Any putrid or offensive matter, fright, or sudden change of feed will in some cows produce abortion. Puerperal or Milk Fever. All cows are subject to more or less fever at calving, which in a day or two, or perhaps in three or four days, increases ; the cow loses her appetite, becomes dull, rolls the eyes, and looks wildly at her flanks ; she loses the use of her hind legs, and if down cannot rise. If the cows are watched, as they should be, the first symptoms will be discovered. If so, give the dose of Epsom salts and molasses. If the fever is high, and the hind legs are already stiff, add half an ounce of red pepper, or ginger, or caraway, or quartei of an ounce of each to the salts and molasses. If the disease has gone so far that this dose does not give relief, give another, doubling the quantity of ginger, pepper, etc. At the same time that the first symptoms are discovered, the soapsuds injections, wet cloths, etc., must be also attended to. These are of as much 404 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. importance, and often more, than tlie internal remedies. After recovery has commenced, good gruel, mashes, etc., should be furnished, always warm. Cows and cattle are subject to fevers of greater or less intensity, but all requiring prompt treatment. Symptoms of Simple Fever. Nose dry and hot ; rumina- tion dull ; breathing quickened ; horns hot ; feet and limbs often cold ; bowels usually constipated. Salts and molasses, with a continued use of wet blankets, will usually relieve fever at this stage; but if symptomatic fever ensues, and the above symp- toms become aggravated, the eyes red and staring, the animal uneasy, and in such distress as to moan frequenth', one quarter of a pound of sulphur and half an ounce of ginger must be added to the above dose. In both cases soapsuds injections will assist in relieving the bowels. Typhoid fever is usually accompanied with some diarrhoea. No salts or other physic should be given in this case, but the water treatment must be used rigorously, and red pepper or ginger given in gruel ; one quarter of an ounce of each, or half an ounce of one in oatmeal gruel is the proper method of administering it. These fevers cause heat in the horns, called by some " horn- ail," " horn distemper," etc., and such resort to boring the horns. Now this is all folly. There can be no disease of the horns ; it is only the result of fever and inflammation elsewhere. When the cause is removed, the " horn-ail" will also disappear, and not till then. Loss of the cud is a symptom of indigestion. Give a slight dose of salts and molasses with a little ginger and sulphur. Operations. Castrating. We quote from "Allen on Cattle." " First grasp the scrotum in the left hand, and bring the testicles down to the foot of the bag ; then with the other hand and a sharp small knife cut a perpendicular slit in the rear of each testicle, close to the bottom, a^d long enough for the CATTLE. 405 released testicle to pass througti ; then cut through the skin and the inner case enclosing it; push out the testicle, and gently draw the cord attached to it out one or two inches, and 3ut or scrape it ojBf, and the work is done. Then put in a little salted soft grease, and push it upwards towards the belly." In hot weather apply a little turpentine to the cut edges to keep off the flies. In cold or stormy weather house the calf. If the scrotum becomes inflamed, open again and press the matter out. From three to six months old is the proper time for the operation. Spayixg is the same process performed on the heifer, and where the stock is to be fatted it is a profitable operation, as they make better beef and fatten more readily. Another object of spaying is to secure a uniform flow of milk the year round. For this purpose ii is done from four to six weeks after the calving, when the milk is at its fullest flow. Where a regular quantity of milk is desired all the year, and the raising of stock is no object, spaying becomes desirable. A veterinary surgeon will spay a herd of cows in a very short time, at a small expense, and Avith little danger. Only about one per cent, are lost in the operation. Diseases of the Feet and Limbs should be treated as described for the same diseases in the horse. CHAPTER XI. SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. r^ ' . " ^lltlllE have searclied a number of volumes for all possible information upon sheep husbandry, and have found most of that contained in this chapter included in two large volumes by the Hon. Henry S. Eandall, LKD., to whom we here acknowledge our indebtedness. We advise all Dock masters, and especially ..any who are just entering the business, to purchase Mr. Randall's volumes. We have before alluded to thesprofitsof keeping sheep on grain farms^ and we are fully of the opinion that many more might be kept to advantage in the Middle, Northern, and Eastern States. A farmer can turn his money quicker in sheep than in cattle. They pasture better, and there are thousands of acres of worthless, briery, bushy pastures, that can be made fertile by turning in a flock of sheep. The common breeds of poor blood, long legs, large heads, and slab sides will not pay ; they consume more food than the improved breeds, do not get fat, and neither the carcases nor the wool will bring as good price, often not more than one-fourth as much. The market for mutton is increasing, and near large cities, or convenient to the railroads connecting with cities, the mutton may be made the main point. But in the interior, and espe- cially in the West and South, wool must be the chief object When wool is the main object the Merinoes have no competitor. 406 Flrj. 79. Mekixos. Fig. 80. Mektno Eaves. 407 SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 409 Common breeds, put to a pure bred Merino ram, produce u grade averaging at the lowest calculation one pound heavier fleeces. And if these and their progeny are continually bred to a pure blood Merino, the same increase will continue. In fact no ewe should ever be bred to any but a pure blooded ram, when the services of such a one can be obtained. The Cotswold is a large, fine mutton sheep, and will shear from ten to sixteen pounds of wool. The carcass often weighs over two hundred pounds at two years old, and will be worth several cents more per pound than the common breeds. When near a good market the Cotswolds are as profitable as any breed we know. The South Down, for both mutton and fleece, are fully equal to any other breed. They do not shear quite as heavy a fleece, nor market so heavy a carcass as the Cotswolds, but both fleece and carcass are worth more per pound than the Cotswolds. This breed is ready for the butcher at any time from three months to five years old, giving as much weight for their feed as any other. Th< buck can be profitably introduced into any flock where it is not especially desirable to keep up pure blood for breeding purposes. The Leicesters are only mutton sheep, but near large markets they can be raised with great profit, as they put on flesh very fast. They shear six to eight pounds of fleece. The introduction- of the Cotswold ram to this breed greatly improves the animal for breeding purposes. We will briefly state the points of a good fine woolled sheep. A stout, vigorous body of medium size for the breed ; a thin, loose, elastic skin of a rosy color ; a regular skin, except folds about the neck, (the folds once so much in fashion, all over the body, were of no use, and interfered with the shears) ; fleece of even length and thickness all over the body ; a thick, short- ish coat on the hind legs and over the top of the head, and 25 410 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. also covering the scrotum of the ram. Exceeding fineness of wool is not desirable in the American market, The wool should be " true," that is the same size from root to point. The cuts of the different breeds in this chapter give a good idea of their points. Breeding should always be accompanied by a purpose to improve the flock, and all ewes of inferior form or fleece, having any serious defect in constitution or habit, should be " culled" and sent to the butcher. The owner should keep a constant watch of his flock, and if large, select the ewes with reference to the rams to which they are to be bred. We surmise that no breeder will allow the ram to run indiscriminately with the flock at or near coupling time. If there is a difference in the size of the rams, select the ewes with reference to the size, not breeding a small ewe to a large ram. When you get a good ram, a sure lamb-getter, who stamps his good qualities on his stock, keep him and breed in and in, until you have a whole flock with his good qualities. There is no danger from breeding in and in, if the ram is perfectly sound, but if any defects begin to appear in his get, change him at once, and stamp out the defect by disposing of all that have it, no matter how good they may otherwise be. " Keep none hut the hest^ That motto is the sheet anchor of sheep husbandry. It costs something to be served by a full blooded ram, but the profits are sure. A flock of a hundred common ewes worth four hundred dollars, served by a common ram worth, perhaps, ten dollars, will bring an equal flock, but worth no more than their dams. But serve this same flock with, a full blooded ram worth one hundred dollars, and every lamb at six months old will be worth at least one dollar more, and at every shearing their fleece will be worth more; every lamb they drop will be worth Fi(j. 81. Meiuxo Ram. Leicester Ram. Owned by Juriau Winne, of Albany Co., N. Y. 411 SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHEK DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 413 still more and so on, the profits of the transaction increasing every year. Eams at eight to ten months old, if very strong and healthy, may serve five or six ewes ; in the second year thirty or forty, in the third year, one hundred. After this, if properly managed, every strong, healthy, well-cared for ram may serve one hundred and fifty to two hundred and fifty ewes in the coupling season of six weeks. This is on the supposition that he serves each ewe but once. When the foolish practice is adopted of allowing the ram to run with the ewes, forty to fifty are enough for a ram, and two rams should never be put into a flock together. Eams properly used, and never overtasked, are good until their seventh or eight year. When in service the ram should have oats with his hay, and a few roots, oil cake, and extra care. Spring Management of Sheep. When changing the flock from dry feed to grass, let them out only a few hours each day for several days, keeping up in part their dry feed. Tagging, is cutting off the wool about the vent, from the roots of the tail, down the inside of the thigh. It should always be done before the flock is turned out in the spring. Ewes with lamb should be held on their side by a helper, and always handled very carefully. If the pastures contain burdock, this- tles, beggar ticks, etc., they should be cut, gathered, and burned before the sheep are turned out. Lambing time varies widely with different flock-masters. The aim should be to have the lambing season from about the middle of April to the middle of May. The ewe averages about five months in pregnancy. The flock-master should make himself very familiar with the ewes for some time before lambing, so that he can handle them without diflS.culty. Never a harsh word or action among sheep. Lambing requires a well littered, clean, well ventilated room, whether stable or shed. If the days are warm and pleasant 414 HOW TO .AIAKE THE FARM PAY. the sheep should run in the yard, but at night should be shel tered. More harm than good usually results from going around in the night. If their accommodations are such as they should be, all lam^^dropped will be found right side up in the morn- ino-. No assis^nce should be given in lambing, until the ewe shows signs of exhaustion in her efforts to expel the foetus, when a little gentle assistance may be rendered by taking hold of the feet of the lamb and giving a gentle pull when the ewe makes an effort to cast it. The lamb should come with a fore foot each side of the nose. If it comes in any other shape, it should be pushed back into the womb and the attempt made to get it in position. If new born lambs are acknowledged and licked by the dam, do not interfere. If the lamb appears weak, or for any reason does not suck, put him to the teat, milk a little onto his nose, and rub his back about the roots of the tail. Be very gentle, never get out of patience, even if the little brat is stupid ; persevere, and you will succeed. Do not feed with a bottle or spoon until you are sure he will not suck. If the difl&culty is with the teats of the ewe, put the lamb to anothei ewe that has plenty of milk, until you can get the teats right. In cold weather the lamb will sometimes be found chilled ; it can neither move nor swallow. Wrap it up in a blanket and put it either into an oven or into water as hot as is comfortable for the hand ; rub it dry at once, and, if still too weak to suck, as soon as it can swallow, give a teaspoonful of spirits in warm milk. Strong tea will sometimes do, if you have not the spirits at hand. If any lambs have to be brought up on cow'? milk, let it be new milch cows. Such lambs are apt to become costive; the evacuations are difficult or cease, and the lamb becomes dull and sleepy. An injection of milk and molasses at blood heat should be given, two ounces at a time, until the bowels are moved. Give six teaspoonfuls of thoroughwort or Firj. S3. South Downs. FUj. 84. Sheep Shearing Machine. 413 SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 417 boneset tea. We shall often recommend injections, and would say that no flock-master should ever be without a syringe. The lamb is to be held up perpendicularly by the hind legs, the fore feet just touching the floor, for a moment during and after the injection. If a healthy looking lamb does not suck well, examine his teeth, and cut the gums where any are press- ing through- Watch the lamb and see that his dung does not pin down his tail over the vent. If so, remove the dung and rub the vent with chalk, or dry clay. If a lamb purges too freely, give a teaspoonful of chalk in milk. When the lambs are born with swelled neck, bind a woollen cloth around the neck and soak it in camphor. If the lambs are otherwise im- perfect, cull them and get them out of the flock. Ewes after Lambing- should be allowed rest, quiet, and the best of feed. If any of the ewes do not seem to give milk enough for their lambs, separate them from the rest and give them oatmeal gruel, roots, bran slop, etc. When the teats have been cut off by the shearer, open them with a knitting needle, following with a hot needle ; insert only far enough to secure an opening. A young ewe will some- times refuse to let the lamb suck , she should be held until the lamb has once drawn his rations. If the udder is inflamed or caked, wash in hot water until a flow is secured ; in the mean time putting the lamb to a ewe that has lost hers, or has milk to spare. A ewe with a good supply of milk, who loses her lamb, should have another, if there are twins or extra lambs, but if she is to be dried off, she should be fed on dry feed, and milked once a day for a week, and two or three times the next week. Every flock should have a dozen or two of pens for a hundred or more sheep. These should be three or four feet square, and high enough so that a sheep cannot jump out. Whenever a ewe disowns a lamb, or is wanted to adopt a lamb. 418 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. the ewe and lamb should be enclosed in one of those pens. If in the dark and away from the others, all the better. If a lamb dies, take off the skin from the body and wrap it around another lamb and the mother will adopt it. For some time after birth the dam recognizes its own lamb only by the smell Docking Lambs is best done when two weeks old. The lamb is held on a block, the skin of the tail is shoved towards the body, and the tail is cut with a chisel. It only needs to be left long enough to cover the anus and vagina. If the lamb bleeds too much, tie a cord tightly around the tail for ten or twelve hours. If the weather is warm and the flies are about, rub a mixture of tar, butter, and turpentine on the parts. When docking, is a good time to count the sexes and put a little mark on the males. Castratiois" should be done be- tween the second and sixth week. The operation should be done carefully, the spermatic cord cut, not jerked out, and tar, butter, and turpentine applied to the parts. "Washing Sheep is under many circumstances dangerous and inconvenient. Wherever it is so, we advise shearing without washing. Wash- ing is not wholly safe before the middle of June, in the latitude of Pennsylvania, and as it is often desirable to shear long before that time, the sheep must either go without or be washed in chilling cold water. When washed, the object usually is to see how little of the dirt can be got out and yet have the fleece sell for washed. The unwashed wool of a clean, careful breeder is worth more, often, than the half washed wool of careless ones. Any man who buys wool ought to be able to judge pretty accurately as regards shrink- age. In washing wool the wool should be wet and left to soak for a little while, then the sheep are dipped and the wool squeezed, then dipped once more, or put under a fall of water When the sheep are brought to the washing the hoofs will be SHEEP, SWUSTE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 419 found to have grown out of shape, curled under, etc. Washing softens the hoof and frees it from dirt. Have a strong sharp knife and pare off all these irregularities and also a part of the sole, if very thick. The long toes are usually clipped with nippers. Shearing may be done from one to two weeks after washing, or as soon as the fleece is so far filled again with oil oi yolk as to be silky and glossy ; seven ivarm days will accom- plish this better than fourteen cold ones, and three hot days better than either. Says Mr. Eandall : " Shearing should always be done on smooth, clean floors or platforms, with the sheep penned close at hand. If the weather is fair, it is best to drive only enough sheep into the pen at once to employ the shearer three hours, the rest remaining in the pasture to keep them- selves filled with feed. A hungry, empty sheep is more impa- tient, and the shears run around its collapsed belly and sides with more difficulty. The bottom of the pen should be kept clean with straw, stalks, or corncobs; corncobs are the best. If there are any sheep in the pen dirty from purging they should be the first taken out. They should be carried a little aside from the shearing floor and the dungy locks cut away. "When the catcher catches a sheep in the pen he should lift it in his arms clear of the floor, instead of dragging it to the door, and thus filling its feet with straw, manure, etc. At the door of the pen he should hold it up with its back resting against his own body and its feet projecting toward the shearer, who should be there to clear its feet of filth, and with a small broom to free its belly from all dirt, before carrying it to the platform." Shearing is a nice operation and not \yeli done by a novice. R. M. Smith, of Manchester, has invented and patented a machine for shearing sheep, and good authority pronounces it successful in doing the work rapidly and well. Messrs. R. H. Allen & Co., the great implement manufacturers of New York 420 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. city, are preparing to manufacture them on a large scale, Selecting and Marking can be done at shearing time. The breeder should have a box of type, or large letters cut in the ends of blocks of soft wood. The following brands are conve- nient. The initial? of the owner's name, and in addition a B for those that are to go to the butcher, for very choice ewes, and the initials of each of your rams for marking the sheep after they are topped. At shearing time the owner should stand by and examine each sheep and decide what mark should be put upon it. At no other time can the decision be made so well ; the shape, sizo, and weight of fleece are now seen. Breeding qualities are also to be taken into account. All im- perfect sheep should be drafted out of the flock, if perfection is desired. Where all are to be sold, only the initials of the owner need be branded, but choice sheep may well be marked, and perhaps an extra price can be obtained. The branding is done with a mixture of lampblack, turpentine, and oil. Oil and turpentine boiled, and lampblack stirred in while boiling, is another mixture, to be applied warm. Some have a series of figures and stamp the age at every shearing. Those who make breeding their business have an elaborate system of marking and registering. A little copper plate, fastened to a ring in the ear, is a neat and simple contrivance. The plate contains the mitials and a number ; opposite that number in the owner's book a description of the sheep is placed. After shearing, the sheep should have shelter at hand until they are able to endure the cold rain storms which often occur in June. TiCKS can be killed by dipping the sheep in tobacco water. Make enough to cover a good sized lamb and strong enough to kill any ticks you pull off and throw into it. One man holds the fore legs and nose and another the hind legs, and then dip the sheep into the tub or box. Set it into another tub or box, squeeze out the SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 421 "wool, and you will not be troubled with ticks. After sheep are sheared the ticks go to the lambs, and there is no excuse for not exterminating them. If you do not, they will exterminate your sheep. At shearing time the horns will often be found growing towards the eye or cheek ; they should be cut back with a small fine saw. Maggots penetrate into sores on sheep and cause death. The tar, turpentine, and butter, applied to all cuts made at shearing or to any wounds made afterwards, will prevent this. Dung about the vent generates maggots and should be removed, and the above application made. Educating Rams should be begun early. They should be visited and handled until they are perfectly docile. Two grown rams should never be allowed to run together. A choice ram can be mated with a couple of wethers in a good inclosure, from which there is no possibility of escape. They should be taught to lead before they are six months old. A ring put through the horn is by far the best method of securing rams. Fences around sheep pastures should be sound but need not be high, until the sheep learn to jump, when no ordinary fence will keep them. If the fence is sound and tight, and they are always taught to go under the bars instead of going over them, there will be no trouble. But only teach one sheep that it can jump over or crawl through, and you soon have a flock of jumping sheep. Salt, Tar, Sulphur, Alum, etc., are often given sheep iu their summer pastures, but none of these except salt can be necessary for a healthy sheep. Salt they must have ; once a week is often enough to give them a taste. If lumps of rock salt are kept in their troughs they will lick them whenever they feel the need. If salt is thrown upon weeds, thistles, clumps of coarse .grass and bushes the sheep will eat them to get the salt. "Water and shade are both beneficial in the 4.22 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. sheep pasture. Sheep that have been feeding in a pasture where there is water should not be turned into a pasture with- out water. It is a good plan to have temporary sheds even in summer pastures ; if an unusually inclement storm comes on they will take refuge and save enough in strength, heat, and fat to pay for the sheds. Weaning and Fall Feeding. Weaning should seldom be delayed after the lambs are four months old, and if sweet, tender pasturage is ready for them a month earlier it is advisable to take them off then. The great point to be aimed at is to keep thera growing rapidly until winter. In no case should they be allowed to go backward, or even remain statiouary. " Well Summered is Half Wintered " with any kind of stock. The ewes should be removed to a dry pasture ; if possi- ble, out of hearing of the lambs, who should be in care of wethers or old crones that have no lambs. As soon as pasture begins to fail or frost nip the grass, begin to feed oats, shorts, bran, and roots in small quantities. A tablespoonful of oats to begin on is enough for each lamb. Before winter sets in increase to a gill, or its equivalent in bran, and have a little hay in the rack under their sheds. The crones they are with will teach them to eat it. Shelter should be provided for all sheep pastures. Sheds opening to the south and west answer the best purpose. Fall Feed and Shelter for Ewes intended for breeding is one of the most important items of sheep husbandry. For various reasons they should come into winter in good condition. Unless they do, it is dif&cult to keep them up through preg nancy, if they take the ram at all, and when lambing time comes their poor condition is shown in the number of poor and dead lambs. As soon as the pasture grows at all scant, or the frost SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 423 injures the grass, feed them pumpkins, turnip tops, cornstalks, and turnips. If any ewes still remain thin, separate them, and feed still better, giving a little grain. Shelter should be convenient of access in all storms, and there should be hay in the racks fof them to nibble. But does all this pay, says farmer "Behindhand." Yes, and it is the only way to make large profits out of sheep. A poor flock brings a small percentage of profit, but a first rate flock brings a large percentage. A flock brought to the winter in good condition will take the ram readily, few will miss, and it will take but about one-half the time to serve them. They go through the winter much better, especially if it is severe, and drop their lambs within a few days of each other, being in uniform condition, and the lambs partake of the good condition of the ewes. Coupling The ewes selected for the service of a particular ram should be kept by themselves, and the ram let loose among them ; when a ewe is served she should be drawn out of the flock and the initials of the ram stamped on her. As soon as the ram has served six or eight he should be returned, and the ewes sent to the field. The served ewes should be kept apart for thirteen days, when they can be turned in again to the ram. Tlie old method of allowing one or more rams to run with the flock will never be revived again among breeders of any intelligence. Teasers have also been discarded. The ram requires extra care and feed for a month before and during the coupling sea- son. No corn should be given, but oats, peas, beans, a little wheat, and the choicest of hay. No excess of food should be given, but just what he will eat up clean at each meal. Earns, we repeat, should at all times be kept separate from each other and from the rest of the flock. Preparing for winter, the flock? 424 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. should be divided after coupling, into lots, not to exceed one hundred Merinos, or fifty South Downs, or twenty-five of the larger mutton breeds. The sheep in each flock should be nearly uniform in size and strength. Feeble sheep and lambs should be put in a hospital by themselves, or disposed of at any price they will bring. Winter Management of Sheep. Sheep should have winter shelter in whatever portion of the countrj;- they may be kept. It saves the lives of some, it saves loss of fat from expo- sure in all. There is also a saving in food ; for sheep sheltered during cold storms will not consume as much food, and will consume it more economically. Wet and dried, hay loses not only much of its palatableness but some nutrition. In the South these shelters need only be of poles or slabs covered with turf or straw. Set up crotched poles, ten feet apart and four feet high ; lay long poles in these crotcher, and set up slabs slanting against this frame. In all States south of forty degrees, open sheds are sufficient, and the sheep will flock to them on the approach of a storm. But north of that sheep barns with open yards are much to be desired. The plan {Fig. 85) will give an idea of an economical structure for a good sized flock. It consists of three two-story buildings, the one across the end eighty by twenty, the other two one hundred and twenty by twenty feet. These are divided on the first story into eight stables, a, a, a, each twenty by forty feet, which will accommo- date sixty Merinos, though fifty each is the largest number tliat has been wintered in them. The stables are all connecied by doors, e, e, e, and a door, d, d, d, opens from each into a com- mon yard, C ; each stable has also its separate yard, extending for two hundred feet on each side of the buildings, and entered by the doors, b, b, b. The lower end of the common yard is fenced off by a movable fence, indicated by the dotted line. SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 425 Fi(j. 85. Plan of Sueep-Baen and Yards. 426 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. This yard is a hospital yard, shearing yard, coupling yard; docking, castrating, tagging, and many other operations are per- formed here. It is always kept clean, and deeply lined with good litter. The second story of the end building lias one room used for storing hay. The second stories of the two long build- ings are divided into two rooms each, one each for grain, hay, •uid straw, and one is used for storing any fodder. There is a good root cellar underneath one half, of one of the long buildings At g, y, ^, are half hogsheads, sunk to within one foot of the sill bottoms, and supplied with water by troughs, connecting with the pump, F. This arrangement is not quite satisfactory, as it is liable to freezing in extreme cold weather. At A is a ram pen. "We consider the best features of this plan to be the common yard, and the separate yards connecting with each stable. These buildings can be made of light stuff, at a small expense compared with the value of the stock which can be stored in them from year to year. These barns abundantly accommodate a flock of from four hundred to five hundred Merinos and their winter food. A farmer, who commences with a flock of fifty, can put up the end building first, and add the others as his flock increases, but we think that, substantially, this plan should be kept in view. Each stable has one small window and one sliding window, (not glass,) so that they can be ventilated at any time without opening the doors. The sheep barn, whatever its construction, should be on dry ground, and have yard room and ventilation. Pure air is beneficial to all animals, and the practice of leav- ing the dung in the stables all winter is a bad one, though very common. Three times, at least, the stables should be well cleaned out. The time of a thaw is, on several accounts, desi- rable for this purpose. Gypsum should always be sown on the •.mnure before covering it with fresh litter, both to disinfect tha SHEEP, SWIXE, AXP OTHER DOMESTIC AXIilALS. 427 manure and preserve its good qualities for the soil. A few cords of seasoned peat, filled in each autumn, and hauled out in the spring, collect the urine, and make a more valuable manure, cord for cord, than ordinary barnyard manure. Sheep should not be closely confined all wmter. A run on the snow in the middle of a mild day is exceedingly beneficial. And if the snow^ is off a couple of hours' nibble at the grass will do more to keep the system in good condition that any nostrums, such as tar, alum, etc. Especially on the ewes with lambs this short hour of relaxation, whenever the weather will admit, is of incal- culable benefit. Says Randall, " I urge letting out breeding ewes on the fields for this limited time each day, (when the weather admits,) because no animal more intensely craves a por- tion of green food in winter, and I consider nature or instinct a first-rate judge of its own wants ; because the small portion of green food obtained from the fields can exert no injurious effects in any direction whatever, while it prevents the costiveness peculiarly incidental to pregnancy, and, by keeping the bowels in an open and regular state, has a strong tendency to avert all unhealthy action or agencies ; because the travelling about and digging for green feed affords a most necessary and healthful exercise ; and, finally, because a neglect ' of these ordinances which nature has inculcated,' for the guidance of the pregnant ewe, has been followed by wide-spread disaster." For those who feed turnips, as every sheep owner ought, onco a week for exercise is all the escape required. A sled load of hay can be drawn off a half a mile or so, and the sheep allowed to follow it out and back. Winter Feed. Sheep require about three per cent, per day of their weight in hay or its equivalent, that is, two pounds for a sheep weighing sixty-five to seventy-five pounds ; three pounds for one in the vicinity of one hundred pounds, etc. 26 JOS HOW TO MAKE TlIK FARM PAY. lAi. IN r.ii clover, cured bright, is undoubtedly the best feed for shcop, but economy requires that they should also consume the straw ami stalks of the farm. We would say hero, that every ithoep itwnor, who has any laud adapted to turnips, should raise ihom lor hiiJ sheep. We should as soon think of going without potatoes iu the family, as raising sheep without turnips, or some other roots. Turnips, as far as they can be fed, are far cheaper than hay. The following amounts are equal to one hundred pounds of meadow hay, composed of clover, timothy, June grass, etc. 90 lbs early cut red clover. 40 1 bs. to oO lbs. wJi mo •' pea vines. 360 ' rye straw. 300 " turnips. 250 ' oat straw. 40 " peas or beans. 200 • ' barley straw. 60 " com, buckwheat, or oats. barl ey, 300 ' wheat straw. « ■ * a s a i 3 ' a g ■§ o — "" o o a S - - It is not economy to feed any one of the above alone, not even the best hay, but as in our own ibod a variety is both more palatable and more healthful. Eegularity in the hours of feeding and in the amount given are also ver}'- essential. It is usually desirable to feed a large proportion of straw during the first two or three months of winter. Two and a half or three pounds of straw is equivalent to one pound of hay, but that amount of straw could not be digested properly, so a portion of the food must be in more concentrated form. This is accomplished by feeding three pounds of straw, equal to one pound of hay, and one pound of grain, bran, meal, or oil cake, equal to two pounds of hay. One pound of roots added to the above makes a most excellent feed. John Johnston writes: "I generally buy my sheep in October. Then I have good pasture to put them on, and they gain a good deal before winter sets in. For the last twenty-three years, I have fed straw for the first two or two SHEEP, SWIXE, AXD OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 42 D and a half months, with a pound of oil cake, meal, or grain to each sheep. When I commence feeding hay, if it is good early cut clover, I generally reduce the quantit}'- of meal or grain one half; but that depends on the condition of the sheep. If they are not pretty fat, I continue the full feed of meal or grain with their clover, and on both they fatten wonderfully fast. I have fed buckwheat, a pound to each per day, half in the morning and half at four in the afternoon, with wheat and barley straw." As the breeder wishes to avoid fat, the grain can be wholly dropped, when the clover is substituted ; but if the sheep begin to fall off, it should be resumed iu small q^uantities. The oats and waste hay left in the racks by the sheep, if put into a sepa- rate rack and sprinkled with brine, will be eaten by the sheep for the sake of the salt. Prairie Management of sheep is essentially different from that heretofore described. In the newer States land can be purchased at one dollar and twenty-five cents the acre, and vast pastures without claimants can be pastured, rent free. The following letter will show how the thing is done. " To Hon. H. S. Randall. About the 29th of last July 1 started from Calhoun County, Michigan, with two droves of sheep, about seventeen hundred in each drove. M}'' sheep stood driving remarkably well, and arrived in northern Iowa about the 10th of September. I found good feed, and about the time winter set in my sheep were in fine order. I sold three hun- dred, and prepared winter quarters for the remaining three thousand. I erected my sheds two miles apart, where water was convenient. I succeeded in getting a grove at each place, and built my sheds fronting the grove and parallel with each other, about five hundred feet long. I built them of poles and posts from the groves, and covered them with straw. The front posts wer^^ about six feet above ground, and the back 430 now TO MAKE THE FAllM TAY. ones about four. I employed Irishmen who were in the habit of using the spade, and covered the back side with dirt, and then with sod, which made them very warm; being open in front, this was very important. The sheds were thirteen feet \v <•]■'. and I cut them up twenty-two feet apart, with board s which ran out in fropt of the sheds about fifty feet, making yards and shelter for fifty sheep." Here are sheds with only the cost of putting them together, and three months of feeding free. The writer goes on to state that he bought the best hay he could get, bought corn in the tiold, cut it and shocked it while the fodder was green, and hauled it after the ground froze. He also got some oats and some .shorts. He fed the sheep what hay and corn fodder they would eat, and fed a bushel of grain (one quarter oats, one quarter corn, and one half shorts) to each fifty sheep daily. Thoro are a vast number of acres in the West and Southwest where such a system on a large or small scale can be carried on. And on many improved farms in the interior of any of the Western •States, where it takes one bushel of grain to haul another to market, it will prove much more profitable to feed the grain to sheep and raise wool, which costs only four to six per cent, to take to market. Summer Feeding on the prairies south of forty degrees commences in April. The sheep are not coupled until December, and lambs do not begin coming until May, when pasture is good and the cold storms over. Lambing "on the range" is a laborious operation, for all the lambs dropped during the day •ire to be got into the fold before night without separating them from their dams. Mr. Randall recommends strong pens to hold a half dozen sheep each, strong enough to keep out the wolves, so constructed that they can be hauled to any part of ihe range. Any lambs dropped late in the day might be put SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 431 into these for the night. If covered with brush they will be a protection from the storm. We can see how a half dozen such pens would be convenient in numberless cases, paying iheir cost every season. The lack of water is the great objection to prairie husbandry, and there is no use of locating a range unless water is to be had the year around. Turnips sown broadcast on the inverted sod will give green food in abundance. Indian corn is the chief feed in addition to hay, and often almost wholly substituted for it. Its cultivation on the prairie soils is easy and cheap. One man with a pair of horses, planters, and cultivators can take care of fifty acres of corn, which will often yield eighty bushels per acre, and nearly double the fodder we get in the Eastern States. It should be cut and shocked before frost, and drawn to the sheep as wanted : two men with a team will feed three thousand sheep. One acre of corn with the fodder will feed twenty sheep through the winter. Wheat straw brined will be eaten for the salt. This is the cheapesi way to furnish salt, and the best way to dispose of wheat straw, much of which is now wastefully burned. Washing, and shearing, and most of the operations of sheep husbandry are the same under all circumstances. Care and culling are desirable everywhere. Says Hon. Samuel P. Boardman, in regard to sheep husbandry "on the range," as prairie husbandry is called: — "A man should spot long legged and bad shaped sheep, broken mouthed ind old sheep, light shearing sheep, bare bellied and thin fleeced sheep ; ewes with spoilt or partially spoilt bags ; ewes which are known to be poor nurses, and whose lambs, for a year or two, are known to have been given to other ewes to raise ; wethers which are three years old, and which shear so light that the butcher had better have them ; and, if trying to breed common, coarse sheep into fine wool, all the coarse, hairy hipped sheep. No man will ever get a first rate, even 432 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. projitabk flock of slieep, who does not make a practice of yearly culling. Before turning bucks off the floor, daub them well behind, and under the horns with pine tar. This will prevent the flies blowing them, which they frequently do in hot, damp, weather, being attracted by the stench. If fly-blown, and not attended to, the maggots will kill them. In case maggots, from any cause, get 'a lodgment, scrape them all out, and rub the parts with turpentine. The Diseases of Sheep are few compared with those of other animals, and where sheep are well kept, according to the rules we have laid down, foot rot and scab are the only diseases to be feared. The face sometimes gets sore, or the lips swell and crack, but if the lips are rubbed with lard or common pot grease, (both without salt,) the soreness will disappear. Sore or inflammed eyes should be treated with the eye wash pre- scribed for the horse. Grub in the Head is a troublesome and perhaps, occasion- ally, fatal disorder, but not to such an extent as is generally supposed. In mid-summer a gadfly attacks the sheep and lays her eggs in the nostrils; these soon hatch into grubs, and burrow into the head to spend the winter. Prevention is better than cure in this case. Plow occasional furrows through the sheep pasture, about the first of July, and the sheep when attacked will run their noses into the fresh earth to escape the fly. About the same time smear the bottom of the salt trough with tar to the depth of two inches and sprinkle the salt over it. The tar they get on their noses repels the fly. Colic in sheep is shown by twisting the head, stretching, frequent lying down and rising again, and other symptoms of pain and uneasiness. An ounce of Epsom salts dissolved in warm water with a teaspoonful of essence of peppermint should SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 438 be given to a grown animal, and half that dose to a lamb. Thoroughwort or boneset tea are the next best remedies. Malignant Catarrh has been often mistaken for grub in the head. It will never attack sheep kept in a well ventilated stable, and as we have recommended. We know of no satis- factory treatment for sheep whose whole internal structure has been debilitated by lack of fresh air, impure odors, etc., and it is only such that are subjects of this disease. Abortion among sheep is not common, and is usually caused by some injury, crowding, kicks, a butt from a ram, fright, etc. It sometimes results from internal causes, however. We consider moderate exercise and a limited supply of green food, or turnips, an almost certain preventive, except in case • of accidents and injuries. Two abortions in succession is suf^cient excuse for sending the finest ewe in the flock . to the butcher. The ewe that aborts, with the lamb, after-birth, etc., should be at once removed from the sight and smell of the other ewes. Garget, or inflammation of the udder, is treated the same as in cows. Fomentation in hot water, and a purga- tive of Epsom salts two ounces and ginger one drachm, are the simple remedies. The Scab is a contagious skin disease, like mange iu othei animals. The sheep becomes very restless, rubbing itself against whatever comes in its way often pulling out its wool with its teeth in its distress. All affected animals should be separated from the flock as soon as the disease is discovered. Every one should be examined for the little red spots on the skin which denote the scab. If the disease appears when the wool is short, scrub the bodies with a stiff brush, and dip them into the tobacco decoction described for ticks. If they are in long wool, as is usually the case, mix lard, tar, and sulphur, in the proportion of one pound of lard, a half pound of sul- 434 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY plmr, uii'l one-quarter pound of melted tar. Rub a little into the head ; then make a part in the wool from head to tail, and rub n httle in with the finger wherever there is any redness. C/ODtinue this all over the back and sides. We also recom- mend for this and all other skin diseases, insects, etc., the cresylic soaps and cresylic sheep dip before mentioned. Diseases of the Feet, such as are produced by sand, gravel, frozen mud, hard travelling and the like, require first iht* clciining of the hoof from all substances which cause dis- e:u-e, the cutting away of the outer portion of the horn, and the application of a coat of tar and turpentine. HouF Rot is the most common and most dangerous of all the diseases of sheep in this country; we shall therefore give Mr. Randall's description and treatment in full : — " TliL" horny covering of the sheep's foot extends up, gradu- ally thinning out, some way between the toes, or divisions of the hoof, and above these horny walls the cleft is lined with skin. Where the points of the toes are spread apart, this skin is shown in front, covered with soft, short hair. The heels can bo separated only to a little distance, and the skin that is in the cleft above them is naked. In a healthy foot it is as firm, sound, smooth, and dry as the skin between a man's fingers, which, indeed, it not a little resembles, on a mere superficial inspection. Tt is equally destitute of any appearance of redness or of feverish heat. " The first symptom of hoof rot, uniformly, in my experi- ence, is a disappearance of this smooth, dry, colorless condition of the naked skin at the top of the cleft over the heels, and of its coolness. It is a little moist, a little red, and the skin has a slightly chafed or eroded appearance, sometimes being a very little corrugated as if the parts had been subjected to the action )f moisture. And on placing the fingers over the heels it wiU SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 435 be found that the natural coolness of the parts has given place to a degree of heat. The inflammation thenceforth increases pretty rapidly. The part first attacked becomes sore. The moisture — the ichorous discharge — is increased. A raw ulcer of some extent is soon established. It is extended down to the upper portion of the inner walls of the hoof, giving them a whitened and ulcerous appearance. Those thin walls become disorganized, and the ulceration penetrates between the fleshy sole and the bottom of the hoof. On applying some force, or on shaving away the horn, it will be found that the connection between the horny and fleshy sole is severed, perhaps half way from the heel to the toe, and half way from the Inner to the outer wall of the hoof The hoof is thickened with great rapidity at the heel by an unnatural deposition of horn. The crack or cavity between it and the fleshy sole very soon exudes a highly fetid matter, which begins to have a purulent appear- ance. The extent of the separation increases by the disorgani- zation of the surrounding structures ; the ulceration penetrates throughout the entire extent of the sole ; it begins to form sinuses in the body of the fleshy sole; the purulent discharge becomes more profuse; the horny sole is gradually disorganized, and finally the outer walls and points of the toes alone remain. The fleshy sole is now a black, swollen mass of corruption, of the texture of a sponge saturated with bloody pus, and every cavity is filled with crawling, squirming maggots. The horny toe disappears; the thin, shortened side walls merely adhere at the coronet ; they yield to the disorganization ; and nothing is left but a shapeless mass of spongy ulcer and maggots. At- tempts to cure the disease, the state of the weather, and other incidental circumstances cause some variations from the above line of symptoms. When the first attack occurs in hot weather, the progress of the malady is much more rapid and violent. 43«) now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. The fly sometimes deposits its egg in the ulcer, and maggots appear almost before — sometimes actually before — there are aiiv cavities formed into which they can penetrate. The early appearance of maggots greatly accelerates the progress of dis- organization in the structures. " Tlie fore feet are usually first attacked, sometimes both of them simultaneously, but more generally only one of them. The anima'l at first manifests but little constitutional disturb- ance. It eats as is its wont. When the disease has partly run its course in one foot, the other fore foot is likely to be attacked, and presently the hind ones. When a foot becomes consider- ably disorganized, it is lield up by the animal. When another one reaches the same state, the miserable sufferer seeks its food on its knees; and, if forced to rise and walk, its strange, hob- bling gait betrays the intense agony it endures on bringing its ulcerated feet in contact with the ground. There is a bare spot on the under side of the brisket of the size of the palm of a man's hand, but perhaps a little longer, which looks red and inflamed. There is a degree of general fever, and the appetite is dull. The animal rapidly loses condition, but retains con- siderable strength. Nowhere else do sheep seem to me to exhibit such tenacity of life. After the disappearance of the bottom of the hoof, the maggot speedily closes the scene. Where the rotten foot is brought in contact with the side in lying down, the filthy, ulcerous matter adheres to and saturates the short wool of the shorn sheep ; and maggots also are either carried there by the foot, or they are speedily generated by the fly. A black crust soon forms, and raises a little higher round the spot: it is the decomposition of the surrounding structures,— wool, skin, and muscle,— and innumerable maggots are at work below, burrowing into the living tissues and eating up the mise- rable animal alive. The black, festering mass rapidly extends, SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 437 and tlie cavities of the body will soon be penetrated, if tbe poor sufferer is not sooner relieved of its tortures b}'" death, "The offensive odor of the ulcerated feet, almost from the beginning of the disease, is so peculiar that it is strictly pa- thognomonic. I have always believed that I could by the sense of smell alone, in the most absolute darkne!L^\' TO MAKE TUE FARM PAY. iiblc, as ill cold weather the ulcers of ordinary virulence dis- chari'C no matter to inoculate the healthy feet ; and thus at the time of applving the remedy there are no cases where there has been inoculation not yet followed by the actual disease. I think that the vitriol required for the above one hundred siieep was about twelve pounds, and that it cost me fifteen cents per pound. The account then would stand thus : — Twelve pounds of vitriol at fifteen cents, one dollar and eighty cents ; labor of three men one day each, two dollars and twenty-live cents; total four dollars and five cents — or about four cents per Bheep. " Many years after the above took place, I treated a flock of diseased lambs in the same way — except that they were put into a larger tub which would hold five of them, so that each stood in the hot fluid from twenty to twenty-five minutes : and again the cure was perfect. They too were handled just as winter was setting in; were wintered alone; and were turned early in the spring into a flock of about one hundred and fifty which had never had hoof rot." As Mr. Randall has himself treated upwards of five thousand sheep with this disease, we need no better authority. Broken legs are treated with cold water and simple splints bandaged to the legs. From four to six weeks is required to firmly heal a simple fracture below the knee Fractures above the knee make a case for the butcher. Dog bites and other wounds should be fomented with warm water until clean; the wound, if possible, sewed up, and a poultice applied. Flax- seed, slippery elm, or bran make a good poultice. The poultice NoTK. We are indebted to Messrs. N. P. Boyer & Co., Parkesl)urcr, Chester County, Pennsylvania, for the cuts of Merino Sheep, Figs. 80 and 81. i - o Fig. 80. Suffolk Boar. WW^^ im ^ft^^v£^^^=^-= JPt^. 87. Improved Prince Albert. 445 SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 447 should be changed twice daily until inflammation is over. An oiled or greased cloth, over the place will be all that is required after this. Hogs fill an important place in our plan of mixed hus- bandry, because they will convert into manure and pork much that would otherwise be unconsumed. But few farmers at the East raise as much* pork as they might with profit, and the markets are supplied with Western pork. The reason why they do not make it pay is, that they do not manage right with their hogs. In the first place, there is no use in feeding a long, thin, slab-sided breed of pigs, even if they are given to you. Get a good sow of some first rate breed, or else breed the best common sow you can find to a thoioughbred boar and raise a good breeding sow. Manage so as to have two litters, one early in the season, and the other long enough before winter to have them get well agoing. Good pigs are always in demand, and it is just as easy to get six to ten good pigs as the same number of poor runts that will never fat. And the same amount of food fed to a good pig will m^ake twite as much meat as to the other. The only difference in expense is the first cost of the boar or sow, and one litter of pigs will pay all the differ ence in expense between a pure bred Chester, Suffolk, or Berkshire, and the lank specimens oidinarily used for breediug. "What is the Best Breed ? is a question often asked ; but there are several so good that it is difficult to answer. Where the " Chester White" is known, no other breed can compete with it. It is, according to our notion, nearer perfection as a hog than has ever before been arrived at. Its outline is beauti- ful, its disposition gentle, its habits quiet and contented — not disposed to roam and fret, so that the food it consumes goes to the formation of flesh, and is not spent in running after mischief. It is not a gross feeder, but, like all other animals, requires its ^3 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. food at regular intervals. This care and attention is never lost on it. There is no other breed that enjoys better health. If kept and properly cared for until twelve or fifteen months old, it will yield from five to seven hundred pounds of pork. What otiier animal will yield so much in so short a time, from so small a beginning, with such a small outlay of capital ? The Berkshires are a larger breed, fatten well in propor- tion to theit food, and are excellent breeders. No one can go amiss in purchasing d Berkshire. The Suffolks, and the im- proved Prince Albert Suffolks especially, are good. The Essex, Cheshire, Leicester, and Polands are much better than the " no breed." The China is fit only for crossing with some of the large coarse breeds. Such a cross improves the China in size and the larger breeds in quality. But in buying a sow or a boar for breeding, do not be satis- fied with its being called a Chester, or Suffolk, or Berkshire, (unless you buy of some responsible breeder,) but see for yourself that the animal has the good points of the breed. These points can be seen by close examination of the cuts we give in this chapter from photographs of hogs owned and bred by Messrs. N. P. Boyer & Co., Parkesburg, Chester County, Pennsylvania. Breeding. The sow goes from fifteen to seventeen weeks with pigs. At the end of the fourteenth week she should be watched considerably, and if she appears to be suffering, restless, wander- ing about collecting straw, etc., coax her into a sty by herself, where you can take care of her and the pigs. This sty should have cleats nailed on the sides a foot from the floor, under which the pigs can escape, or else the sow may lie on them. It is not best to interfere to take away the pigs unless she seems likely to crush them, but it is well to be where you can watch her without being seen yourself. When the farrowing is over and F'uj. 89. Chester White Boar 441 SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 451 the after-birth is dropped, remove it at once, for if she eats it she will be likely to eat her pigs also. If she should commence to eat her pigs, give her a half pint of spirits and make her drunk. If she is not too fat she will manage without lying on her pigs. For a week or two before farrowing she should be fed on cooked meal and milk, and this should be continued for some time after. If roots are given, they should be cooked also. If convenient, turn her out an hour or two every day into grass. If a farmer has a few lengths of adjustable fence always about his premises he will find it handy on many occa- sions. He can fence in a few rods of grass for pigs, calves, or lambs, as required. After ten or twelve days the pigs can be let out with the sow. Frequent feeding is better for the sow than large feeds. If she is weakly, or seems to have too many pigs for her milk, make a mash of whey and bran, or skim milk, meal and bran, and teach the pigs to eat as soon as possible. Messrs. N. P. Boyer & Co., large breedora of improved swine, say, in their " Stock Journal." It sometimes happens that sows, especially with a first litier, refuse to acknowledge the maternal relation ; and, like some of our own species, endeavor to discard their ofl'spriug. When a case of this kind shall occur, after the sow has ceased labor enter the pen quietly and catch the sow, placing her upon her side, and whilst one person at her back, with his knees gently pressing upon her to keep her down, and a hand over her to each set of feet to keep her from struggling, another one places the pigs in position at the teats, which they sometimes refuse until the nipple be wet with new milk, when they readily take hold and require little invitation afterward. After the pigs have sucked they must be removed before letting go of the sow, if she still remains belligerent, or she may injure them in her haste to rise and get away ; but if she utters that short and con- 4:,2 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. tiuuous lively grunt that sows are known to do when their pigs are sucking, it shows that she is becoming reconciled, and little danf^er may be apprehended. But sometimes it will be neces- sary to repeat the coercive process, which must be done as gently as possible, and a second trial rarely fails to induce the sow to take to and become reconciled to her young brood Whilst I have known them to become reconciled and passive upon the fii*st trial, so as to continue quietly permitting the pigs to suck, after the attendants have retired, I have, in a few cases, had to apply compulsion a third time before the sow would succumb ; but this is rare, as a second trial scarcely ever fails to succeed." In any case, begin when they are two weeks old to give them warm milk, and gradually thicken it with boiled vegetables or bran. They should have a little trough of their own, under their railing, where the sow cannot get at it. If another litter is wanted in the fall from this sow turn the boar in to her, when she is out in the yard away from her pigs, a week or ten days after farrowing. She should not suckle her pigs more than six weeks after taking the boar. When you get pigs, Avhether you raise them or buy them, keep them growing all the time. This is the secret of success in making pork. If a pig is allowed to stop growing it takes twice the time and twice the food to get liim started again. There is nothing equal to milk to give pigs growth. Let them have oat meal, corn meal, and wheat bran in equal quantities, always cooked. Scalded food will fotten them all one-third more than raw. Never feed any grain whole. ^^.nv the pigs grass and clover. Many farmers just keep their pigs on slops, grass, and whole grain until autumn, just enough to " keep them along," and then crowd them in fatten- ing. This is the reason they do not make it pay. With a good breed that will fat, nothing they eat is lost upon them, it all SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 453 comes back in pork. So grain should always be ground and steamed for bogs. Tbej will make full one-third more tat on the same quantity. A box like that described on page 398, will answer the purpose. See our remarks on cooking food for cattle. The same remarks apply here. J. Y. Mapes, of Elmirjv, says : " Instead of whole grain it is much more economical to grind and cook it either by boiling or steaming. In winter, boiling is much better than steaming, for the reason that it takes con- siderably less fuel to boil a small quantity than to steam it ; and farther, that you can boil merely what is wanted for a feed at a time, and give it moderately warm, which renders it very grate- ful to the animal in extreme cold weather. I am wintering thirteen hogs, weighing from one hundred and forty pounds to five hundred pounds, by feeding the lot on twelve quarts of cat meal, boiled thoroughly with cut hay or cornstalks, and diluted to thirteen pailfuls for a mess three times a day, which makes a veiy fine porridge, adding about a pint of salt to each mess, making for the whole thirty-six .quarts of ground oats per day. If the same hogs were kept on whole corn or any other grain it would, pro- bably, cost five times as much, and they would be in no bettei condition, while they would be much more liable to disease. " This kind of feed is very fine for sows suckling pigs, because it keeps them in good heart and gives a large flow of milk. It is also very fine for pigs just weaned, as they will leave butter or skimmed milk to eat this. It is, probably, more nutritious than buttermilk. " In the summer season hogs and pigs should most certainly have access to a good field of clover, both as a matter of economy and of health, as they will keep in good condition and grow rapidly thereon with but little or no other feed. Thus by a rigid economy, both in winter and summer, hogs may be kept as a matter of profit as well as any other class of stock." 454 now TO MAKE TEIE FARM PAY. Uof's turned into the orchards, as recommended in the chapter on Fruit Culture, will not only be of benefit to the or- chard, but will pick up considerable forage. Thej are very fond of acorns, beech nuts, etc., and will fat on them faster than on any other food. It is not good economy, however, anywhere to let hogs run in the woods much, for they will run off their fat. A very large hog raiser in Kentucky says : — " First, we bought the best, thinking the only true economy was in having the hog that made most meat and grease in the shortest time, from the food we provided. And we never per- mitted them to get poor; finding it cheapest to feed a fat hog and keep it so than to save by stinting, and then bringing np. "Secondly, we never permitted our hogs to roam, keeping them under fence; believing it cheaper to provide food than to run them upon Uncle Sam's property, or any other body's, and pilfer for a living. We provided pastures, water, small grain, peas, pumpkins, squashes, potatoes, pindars, corn, etc. Of course, we say not that we had all at once, or all of the time, but we have had six acres of squashes, six acres of pindars, hauled in ninety ox loads of pumpkins, etc. We never relied on corn alone, it was too expensive. We had pastures of divers sizes and of the various clovers and grasses," The western firmer depends largely upon corn of course, after the pasturing is over, but we think the suggestion of pump- kins is a good one. The piggery is an important consideration, and in the following plan and explanation will be found our ideas upon this matter. {Fig. 90.) The heavy lines represent a building fifteen by thirty feet and two stories high. The upper story is divided into two rooms ; in one is stored the meal, bran, etc., required for feeding. In the other is a set kettle for cooking the food. A pump runs from this room to the barn well, and water is therefore handy. SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 455 c o o o o 1 c ""^ o -m o y a o o a ,'' \ u o y < / • a-^' < > "n^ * o o '>v y Cb o o CL N ,' -.'■ o 1—' o *-*^ c o c c / ~ , o c — {Fig. 90.) Having a fire liere, this is used for a work room in winter, and all sorts of little odd jobs of mending, etc., are done in cold weather. This heater is also very handy at butchering time. P is the passage way, and S the stairs leading to the second story. A^ a, a, a, are for feeding pens, each having an entrance to yards, C, C, 0, C. These feeding pens have solid floors, of matched boards and slant so that all the urine runs into the yards. Each pen has two slide windows made of boards, one opening into the yard, C, and the other at the end. The troughs which run along next the passage way are square boxes of solid, seasoned, oak plank, with oblong holes in the top for the pigs to eat through. This keeps each pig in his place and prevents them getting their feet in the trough- The feeding places at the corners are represented in the cut. The side of the trough towards the passage way opens on hinges for the purpose of cleaning. The yards outside the pen, represented by the light lines, were dug out two feet, and a stout board fence built. Three feet of peat were then filled in, and this is taken out each year and re- thaced bv fresh. It is almost the best manure made on the 458 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. f:irm, soaking up all the urine from the animals. Over the parts inside the dotted lines, and marked C is a roof of rough boards, matched so as to shed all the raiu and keep a dry sleep- ing place for the hogs. The whole yard is kept well littered with straw, leaves, etc., and never gets muddy. There is a gate in each yard, not represented in the cut. Diseases of Swine. Diarrhcea. Change the food and mix in tlie morning's mess a teacupful of powdered chalk for a full grown aniiiKiI. lIoG Cholera. The principal symptom is almost constant evacuations of a dark color, of a fetid odor, and containing much bile ; the extremities are cold. If one hog has these symptoms give each of the others three times a day, in their feed, a tablespoonful of the following mixture. Sul- phate of iron, one part; cinchona, two parts; charcoal, two parts ; flour of sulphur, twelve parts. (One pound of sulphur two ounces each charcoal and cinchona, and one ounce sulphate of iron, will make six days' doses for one hog.) Continue to give for six days. Fever. Symptoms. Eyes red ; skin, lips, nostrils hot and dry; great tliirst and poor appetite. Bleed a large hog a quart, and smaller ones in proportion. Bleed from one of the veins in the ear, or in the fore leg, just above the knee. Feed nourishing food often. If the bowels are closed inject warm soap and water. Cracking of the skin, mange, and other cuta- neous diseases are to be treated with a mixture of lard and tar.^ In cases of mange keep the hog without food for half a day, and then give from one to three ounces of epsom salts in a warm bran mash. After this give a tablespoonful of sulphur in each meal, until the sores heal. Measles. Symptoms. Red eyes and pustules about the Also Cresylic soap, before recommended for cows, sheep, etc. SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 457 throat. Give no food for one day, then give sulphur with each meal. Cases of Colic are best treated with doses of warm water, and injections of warm soap and water if possible. Rheuma- tism, stiffness of the limbs, and unwillingness to move. Keep the animal on boiled diet given warm. Wash the limbs and shoulders in hot water, put him in a warm clean place and give sulphur and cinnamon half and half, at each meal. Sometimes the fore legs will be stiff from the stopping up of the little open- ings on the inside of the fore legs. Scrub with soapsuds and a corncob, until all scurf is removed, then soak in hot water, and finish by rubbing in a little lard. Cleanliness. It may sound strange to some when we say that cleanliness is necessary to the health of the hog. N'o animal will keep cleaner if you will give him a chance. He wallows in' mud, but would prefer clean water, he roots in filth, but prefers fresh earth, turf, and leaves. He eats, sleeps and evacuates in the same room, only when you oblige him to. Give him a place to eat, a place to sleep, and a place for rooting, etc., and he will keep his sleeping apartment cleaner than any other domestic animal under the same circum- stances. The hog should have a clean, dry, well floored, well littered place to sleep. When in a closed room it should be cleaned out every morning, just as much as the horse stable ; it should have a slide at each end, so that it can be ventilated all day. All the diseases of the hog are bred of the dirt, wet, filth and bad air to which he is forced. The trough should be washed down daily. Our plan for the piggery shows how these things can be done. Castrating should be done at six or seven weeks old, before the pigs are weaned. The operation is the same as described for calves. Spaying is also done about the same age, when the sow pigs are not required for breeders. It is also done when sows are to be fatted. AVhen sows abort, or protrude the womb after farrowing, or eat their pigs, thej 458 now TO MAKE THE FAKM PAY. should l)c spayed and fatted. The animal is laid on the left side aud firmly held by the assistants. An incision is then made, and the fore finger inserted until it finds the ovaries ; these are drawn out of the opening and both cut off at once. The womb is returned and the wound sewed up, and rubbed over with a little lard. Care should be taken for a few days after spaying that they get neither wet nor cold. Goats. The goat is destined before many years to be an im- portant member of our family of domestic animals, and a source of wealth both to farmers and manufacturers. Already preparations arc on foot for manufacturing the durable and brilliant fabrics so long imported from Cashmere; already rich worsted stuffs and richer drdss goods have been made in this country, and we are promising ourselves, our daughter shall have a Cashmere shawl from an American loom on her wedding day. And it will be well for enterprising, far seeing men to make an investment in this direction. The Cashmere or Angora goats, from whose silky hair Buch lustrous articles are manufactured, are hardy, healthy, and prolific. There are already some three or four thousand of them in various parts of the country, and they have proved their adaptation to the various climates of the United States. They will thrive in bleak, cold, mountainous regions or in the tropics. Says the " Wisco7isin Farme?," " The goat, generally, ifl as cosmopolitan as the dog, or the sheep. He is found amidst thesnows of Norway and Siberia, on the burning sands of Africa, and in the flowery and poetic vales of Turkey and Cashmere. The finest varieties of the wool bearing goat live in different countries and latitudes, from Persia on the thirtieth to Silesia on the sixtieth parallel north latitude; from China in the east to Asia Minor in the west; even the most valua- ble and delicate varieties, in the bleak, cold, mountainous SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 459 climate of the Himalayas, Thibet and Eassia, feeding on shrubs and the scanty vegetation of those sterile regions; also in the warmer climates of Persia, Turkey and Cashmere. There- fore, since this natural habitat embraces all the degrees of lati- tude, including the United States, and has a similar variety of climate, mountains, etc., reason and common sense teach, that every variety of the wool bearing goat will thrive in most parts of the United States, particularly in the mountainous and more barren portions, as well as in any region on the globe, while abundant experience has established the fact, that wherever this goat has been introduced, he has flourished as well as the sheep." All the evidence at hand shows without doubt that the goat thrives with less care and on more scanty herbage than ■ the sheep, and is especially adapted to the mountainous grazing re- gions of the Northern States. In New England, where the wool would be at the door of the mills of Massachusetts and Con- necticut, we can imagine no addition to the farm stock which would be productive of more wealth than the goat. Their flesh makes the nicest of meat, their milk is worth twice that of cow's milk, and often gives twice as much cream as the richest cow's milk. Goat's milk is often ordered for children and the sick by our best physicians, and its peculiarly nutritious and healthful qualities have long been known and acknowledged by the medical fraternity. For many ^'ears to come their wool will be much more valuable than that of the sheep, while they can be kept at less expense, and will pay a large proportion of their keep in milk. An extensive breeder in Ohio writes to the Ruratisi : " For a number of years I have been somewhat extensivelv engaged in breeding these Cashmere and other breeds of goats. I have found the Cashmere especially healthy and hardy, and have de- 28 4(50 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. rived the greatest satisfaction from the attention I have be stowed upon them. They are very prolific, well adapted to our climate, and are profitable, not only for their wool, but for their skins, which makes the most beautiful furs for the use of ladies and children. Their flesh is superior in flavor to that of truiton. " I have now on my farm upwards of one hundred and fifty head, nnd I can state with certainty that it costs no more to raise and keep two good goats than one sheep. " Dogs are not inclined to molest them. They are not partial in their choice of food, and will live on any kind of herbage. They are very domestic in their habits, and readily seek their proper shelter at night, and evince a ready instinct to seek shelter from a coining storm." These are great advantages, not the least of which is that they will defend themselves against the dogs, whose ravages are so destructive among the sheep. The fleece of the Cashmere goat weighs from four to nine pounds. They seem to improve in this country both in size and weight of fleece. Says the authority before quoted: " The skins of the mature animals are dressed for robes, which sell for from fifteen dollars to twenty-five dollars. The skins of the young are dressed for furs, colored or not, and command often fifty dollars each, for such has been the progress of Ihe wor.sted manufacture within the last ten years, that machinery already exists in this country and Europe upon which tnis fleece can be made into every fabric to which it has been applied in the East, with equal success and far greater dispatch At present the main effort should be directed towards import- ing perfect specimens of the wool bearing animals, and crossing tbem upon the common goats already in the country. By this means the latter are so much improved as to be in the third or SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 461 fourtli generation scarcely distinguishable from pure breads. Says the American Agricultwist : " Rocks that goats will not climb, foliage that they will not eat, bark that they v/ill not gnaw, are things hard to find. Still, these propensities to overstep bounds, and do what we would rather they would not, may all be controlled, and their silky fleeces made available to the comfort and pleasure of man. We have been much inter- ested in examining samples of the fleece of different pure blooded and grade animals of this breed, if so it miiy be called, as well as the animals themselves, and are convinced from tho diversity of form in the animals, and of fineness of the wool ov hair, that there is in the stock great capacity for improvement. These goats impress their characteristics with great certainty and power upon their offspring, when crossed with common goats. The fleece consists of the long, often very tine, silky hair, and beneath it, very close, fine wool, which coats the animal in the winter season, and affords a most efiicient protec- tion from the cold. By careful breeding, doubtless either of these kinds of fleece may be increased in quantity. The fine Cashmere shawls are made from the soft, fine wool; and, though experiments in inl^roducing the fine haired goats of Cashmere and Thibet into Southern India, to produce this fine fleece, have failed, yet the Cashmere introduced into this country, and their descendants, are said not to deteriorate in this respect." A still further recommendation of these animals is that they are not subject to rot, grub, and other diseases, to which sheep are liable. The cut we give is from a goat owned by Messrs. N. P. Boyer & Co., of Parkesburg, Pa. {Fig. 91.) The Dog. • The late H. W. Herbert published a work, of six hundred and sixty-three pages devoted to the breeding, break- ing, training, and diseases of dogs, yet the number of worthless ours has continually increased. There is nothing so worthless 4(V2 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. as a worthless dog, and yet they are counted by miDions. The Commissioner of Agriculture estimates the yearly cost of the dogs in this country at fifty millions of dollars, for a set of good for nothing, thieving, sheep killing, mongrel curs. It is a shame to our civilization. And not only a shame and a I0S.S, but a great disadvantage to the sheep interests. These do"-3 annually destroy two million dollars worth of sheep. It is often a great drawback to sheep raising, especially mutton sheep, near large places. At least nine out of every ten dogs should be at once killed by process of law, and the remainder put under bonds of at least five hundred dollars each to keep the peace. Then every dog owner will be responsible for the damage done by his dog, and no one can keep a dog, that is not responsible ; the trouble now is that the owners of the half starved pack that destroy the sheep usually have no property but the dogs, and no damages can be recovered. This is one of the hindrances in the way of raising pure bred sheep, for the dogs might destroy the work of years in a single hour. Thus one department of greatest importance is kept back by these mongrels. We call upon fanners to see, each for himself, every representative to the legislature or assembly from his section, and urge the passage of more stringent laws, in regard to dogs Let a ten dollar tax be instituted and collected. Let any one be permitted to kill any dog on which the tax is not paid and soon there will be ii thinning of these hated ranks. We do not advocate the killing of good dogs, of good breeds, with good qualities. No one admires such a dog more than the author, who would like to see the ranks of good dogs increased. But such dogs are the rare exceptions. The so-called watch dog, if of any service in that capacity, is usually an ugly, vicious brute, and is no protection against a regular burglar or thief, for such will give him chloroform even throucrh barred and bolted Fuj 01. C vsiniERE Doe. -^3sSS«.!^~I Firj. 92. Shepherd Dog. 463 SHEEP, SWIXE, AND OTHER DOMESTIC ANIMALS 465 doors. And the bulldogs and other watch dogs are among the most destructive when they once get into the sheep pasture. The full blooded Newfoundland and St. Bernard, or a cross between the two, may be made of great service to the farmer, and seldonr. of themselves attack sheep, but as soon as you begin to cross them with any thing else, unless it be the shepherd dog, you spoil them entirely. We would not have a cross from a Newfoundland, St. Bernard, or shepherd dog and a bulldog, about our premises much more than we would a rattlesnake. The Shepherd dog is the most valuable of the whole family of dogs. A writer in the Western Rural thus describes them : " The Spanish shepherd dog is said to belong to the same family as the St. Bernard spaniel. Like the dogs of this breed, he possesses great intelligence and sagacity, combined with courage and endurance, properties that are invaluable in a country infested by thieves and wolves. " The Hungarian, French, and Mexican shepherd dogs are evidently of Spanish origin. In Mexico the pups are suckled by ewes, and become so much attached to the flock that they never leave them, except when compelled by hunger to visit the ranche. In the sheep districts of New Mexico the shep- herd's dog not only defends the flocks from the attacks of wolves and other beasts of prey, but contends to the death with the Indian marauders who endeavor to take the sheep by stealth or force; "The Scotch shepherd dog or colley is a light, active animal, of great sagacity and of incalculable use to the shepherds in the Highlands of Scotland and other mountainous pastures. Mr. James Hogg, the ' Ettrick Shepherd,' says that a single shep- herd and his dog will accomplish more in gathering a flock of sheep from a Highland farm than twenty shepherds could do 4B6 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. without dogs ; iu fact, without tliis docile animal, the pastoral life would be a mere blank. It would require more hands to manage a flock of sheep, gather them from the hills, force them into houses and folds, and drive them to market than tlie profit of tlic whole flocks would be capable of maintaining. "Although the sheep husbandry of the United States differs materially in many particulars from that of the Highlands of Scotland, 'the colley is pretty extensively diffused in this oxjuntry, and is valued very highly by the farmer, shepherd, or drover. In a communication to the American Agriculturist, Mr. T. C. Peters, of Darien, New York, says : — ' I think the shepherd dog the most valuable of his species, especially for tbe farmer. Our dog Jack, a thoroughbred Scotch colley, has been worth one hundred dollars a year in managing our small flock of sheep, usually about seven hundred iu number. He has saved us more than that in time in running after them. After sheep have been once broken in by and become used to the dog, it is but little trouble to manage them ; one man and the dog will do more than five men in driving, yarding, etc. Let any man once possess a good dog, he will never do without one again. The sagacity of the shepherd's dog is wonderful, and if T h.ad not seen so much myself, I could scarcely credit all I read about them.' •'The English sheep dog, or drover's dog, is a tailless animal, larger, coarser, and stronger than the cclley. It is very easily trained, and seems especially adapted for working among cattle, keeping the herd from straggling when on the prairie or the road to market, and acting as an aid to the farmer in the man- agement of his flocks and herds." We consider it always well to allow the ewe to suckle the pups. In training these dogs for service they should be taught to SHEEP, SWINE, AND OTHEPw DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 467 follow behind the flock, running to this side and that, to start up lagging sheep, to run over the fence and head ofl:' runaways, to stand in front and hold them at bay, but never to worry :hem, bite them, or in any way frighten them. These dogs thus brought up with the sheep, are the best drovers that can be found. The sheep learn to obey them without fear, and they drive the sheep without harming them. We have known a slut of this breed to nurse and raise a lamb whose dam had died. Such a race of dogs, well trained, whi/3h only requires practice, for they take naturally to the business, would be of great advantage in herding large flocks " on the range," and we call the attention of flock-masters to their merits. The Diseases of Dogs are numerous, but are not at all necessary. The present style of promiscuous breeding is the source of most of them. Keep your breeds pure, and at once kill a diseased slut and castrate a diseased dog, and diseases will lessen. Distempee is the more common of these diseases. The first symptoms are dulness and loss of appetite, purging or vomiting, running from the eyes and nose, and a short cough. The animal becomes very sensitive to cold, seeks warmth, and is constantly shivering. The bowels generally become consti- pated. All these and other symptoms increase, the eyes and nose are obstructed by the discliarge from them, and the clog fiist wastes away. But there is often a lapse of two or three weeks between the first symptoms and the last, in which time it is often supposed that the dog is recovering. When the dis- temper is mastered the dog will at once begin to fatten ; ii he does not the disease is only dormant. As soon as the s^'inp- toms are discovered all flesh must be forbidden, and skim milk and bread given. When the bowels are constipated inject warm soap and water. For the very largest dog make the following into twenty -four pills, and give three daily : Bella- 468 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. doniia, twenty-four grains; nitre, four scruples; gentian, four drachms ; giuger to mix. One eighth of the above is sufficient for a lapdog. If diarrhoea sets in, give a teaspoonful of chalk three times a day. If fits set in, kill the dog at once. Dis- temper is not contagious, but epidemic. Mange is another common ailment of the dog, the result either of poor condition, filth, or contagion. Eub with lard and sulphuF. If in poor condition, give beef tea strong, and good gruels ; the object being to get him in flesh as soon as possible, without overloading his stomach. If the dog is in very high condition, very fat, reduce him to a diet of gruel, and get oflf his surplus flesk. J: "J. '-' r^jT Fl(j. 94. Sumatra Games. \ Fi(j. 03. GA3LE Cock. Fig. 9G. Clipper Game. 470 CHAPTER XII. POULTRY AND BEES. jAEMERS usually keep a little Poultry, and yet but few are aware that they are the most profitable stock on the farm. The farmer can well keep a liberal supply ot fowls by feeding them three or four months in the year; the remainder of the time they will forage for themselves. They will, if given the range of the barnyard, the orchard, the stubble field, or the tobacco plantation, secure worms, irrubs bugs, and scattered seeds from April to November, sufficient to keep them in good flesh and return their owners from three to six dozen eggs each, to pay for the privilege. We coiisider that a flock of hens or turkeys turned into the orchard or tobacco field ^\ ill pay for their winter's keep in destroying worms and insects. If the hen only lays fourteen weeks out of the fifty-two, (which is less than the average for two, three, or four year old fowls,) say one hundred eggs at three cents a piece, you have three dollars for her keep, and a little pile of the strongest manure, besides her services among your insect enemies. But what will it cost to keep her through the winter. A peck of grain will feed a large hen about three weeks; so if you feed four months, you will feed six pecks of grain. Will any other animal return you so much for so small an outlay ? But this is not all ; you still have the hen either to put in the pot, send to market, raise yen 471 472 now TO make tue faem pay. a brocxl of chicks or give joii another three dollars worth of eggs- The raising of poultry on a large scale can be made profitable anywhere within a day's roach of any of our large cities. We uro templed here to condense a little account of poultry raising on the farm belonging to the Metropolitan Hotel, of New York. The farm is located in West Chester County, and about twenty acres of rough land, worth little for tillage, all devoted to poultrv. The undergrowth is allowed to grow ; the turkeys have the woods to range in, and there is a pond for the ducks and geese. During the summer they are all allowed to range at will ; but fowls once accustomed to a roosting and laying place will usually return to it. For Avinter quarters, there are two houses. Lime and plaster are used very freely to absorb the ammonia, and compost the droppings. The sloping shelves under the roosts are swept every week and newly sprinkhsd with lime. All this valuable manure is barrelled and applied to corn, producing the biggest corn in the country, and sixty tons of hay froni twenty acres. We quote from the Neiu York World: — "The eggs pay for food and attendance, leaving the sales of poultry clean profit. Mr. L. says he can produce a thousand pounds of poultry cheaper than he can the same weight of mutton, beef, or purk. He finds as much. i)rorit from turkeys, and often greater tlian from hens. They often require more attention, but some years ho has fifty to sell, for which he gets five tlollars each, besides a great many more, for which he gets .Tom one to three dollars. Just now he has three thousand young chickens, several hundred young turkeys, two hundred hens laying every day or hatching broods, and handsome pla- toons of ducks and goslings, probably about four tliousand in all, of d .mestic fowls, each of which, on an average, is, or will POULTRY AND BEES, 475 be by Thanksgiving, worth a dollar. Deduct from this the cost of two hundred bushels of grain, and the hire of an attena- ant, to whom he may pay two hundred and fifty dollars a year and board, perhaps more. They eat up the grasshoppers, grubs, worms, eggs of insects, larvae, beetles, snails, katydids, and June bugs, so clean that his farm is less beset wdth pests than most others about him. He has apples when others are ruined by the borer, the caterpillar, the tent worm, the canker worm, or the curculio." This looks like a hazardous business, but it is not, and there are hundreds of rough farms in the vicinity ot cities where u flock of five hundred fowls, to begin with, would soon become a vast army of producers. Since writing the above we have read a somewhat elaborate article in a western paper to prove that one hundred a year is all that caji profitably be raised together, yet the above poultry farm has been carried on for years with unbroken success. The best points in Mr. L.'s system are, free range in summer, cleanliness at all times, liberal feeding and warmth in winter, and a change of cocks every spring : and these things can be secured by every farmer. We will try to give a few plain directions for farmers. First, get a cock of some good breed for everj^- twelve hens. Secondly, build a poultry house for the winter protection of the fowls, for nests, for a roosting place, and for the sake of the rich ammonaical manure they will drop. The droppings will soon pay for a good poultry house. "We recommend the follow- ing plan. {Fig. 97.) This is ten by thirty feet, and eight feet above ground, with a roof sloping one way. It can be built up against a shed or other building, the shed answering for the backside of the poultry house. In the first place a cellar is dug six feet deep, and the bottom filled one foot with cobble stones, rammed down hard; afoot of the earth thrown out is 476 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. a O, {Fig. 97. tliera rammed down upon the stones, and a foot of good gravel, fine, on top, as a floor. This secures permanent drainage, cleanli- ness, and the gravel is indispensable to the health of the fowls. The floor is three feet below the surface, which secures warmth in the coldest weather. The house may now be built as directed. Castaway boards are just as good as any thing, for it is not the looks you are after, but the profits. Ten or fifteen dollars will build such a house on many farms, and twenty-five dollars will pay for it anywhere. The slant lines near the entrance repre- sent the roosts, which are five feet from the floor and two feet above the level of the ground. Underneath these roosts is a slanting shelf, which is swept every week and coveied with lime. Don't omit this, whatever shape you put your poultry hou.se in. The squares at the opposite ends represent the nests, which are ranged in tiers, commencing on the bottom. There are three tiers, allowing three feet for each tier ; forty-five nests in all. After the hens come off with their broods, the nests are scalded out with boiling water and lime. The hens should be act as nearly as possible about the same time, and when they come off twenty to thirty chicks given to one hen to take care of, and the other hens treated to a cold bath, and shut up for a few days, when they will commence laying again. Cracked I'-oro is the best and most economical feed for fowls, but they Fifj, 100, Beaioia Pootkas. 2f Fig. 101. TTniTE Brah3ias. 477 POULTPwY AND BEES. 479 should never be kept on any one kind of food ; oats, kitobcu scraps, buckwheat, bonny clabber, sunflower seeds, and other changes should be made. Never feed all they will eat, but stop when they cease to be greedy for the food. Lime, burned oyster shells, and the shells of their own eggs will assist them in forming new shells. Give chickens plenty of room and plowed ground to scratch in. If you do not want the hens in the plowed land, fasten the coop near it and let the chickens run. But it is better, after the first week or two, to let them all run, calling them to the house at least once a day to make them feel at home there. What are the best Breeds ? We have already advised the purchase of cocks of some good breed, and we will now give the characteristics of the best breeds. Says a poultry raiser writing to the Prairie Farmer: " Our common barnyard fowl, with good care, will lay one hundred and forty eggs each year, and give them time to rear each a brood of chickens. A Black Spanish vnll lay one hundred and twenty eggs, but does not set at all. A Leghorn fowl will lay two hundred eggs in a year; this breed does not set till three years old. Hamburgs (Grolden Pencilled) will lay from two hundred to two hundred and forty eggs each year, but does not set till three years old, and sometimes not even then. Bramah fowls will lay one hundre4 and forty eggs, and bring up two broods of chickens each year. " The average cost of keeping fowls, of all kinds, with corn, at one dollar per bushel, and small grain in that proportion, wiL be not far from one dollar and twenty-five cents each per year." We indorse the above estimate of the Hamburgs, their refusal to set being no objection to them if you have Cochins to set their eggs under. The game cock put upon common fowls of good size is one of the best investments we ever made in poultry. Their chicks make great layers, are hardy, always 4S0 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. keep u\ good flesh. There is nothing like the game cock, for keeping order in the flock and for keeping hawks, cats, skunks, and all other enemies at bay. The black Spanish fowls are good layers, but do not make good meat, and are not to be recommended. The Dorkings are good, and no one can be amiss in purchasing a few eggs and raising a cock of tliis breed. The Cochin' crossed on the common fowl improves the latter, but we should prefer investing our money in something else. The Bramahs are much better. The Polands are also good layers but, like the Hamburgs, do not set. The Leghorns also como in the same class, but are of smaller size. We hope that no one of our readers will ever have the " hen fever." Wo recom mend no one to buy a stock of any of the above fowls. But what we do recommend to every man that cultivates an acre of ground is, improve your stock by an admixture of some one or more of the above breeds. Make it a rule to get a new cock every year. If your fowls are too small, get a large breed. If poor layers, get a Hamburg or a game cock. If they are not hardy, and none of them make good mothers, get a game or a Bramah. It will pay; having been surrounded by poultry more than ten years, we insist that it will pay. The Diseases of Poultry are caused by breeding, filth, im- pure water, lack of gravel, and close confinement. Pure water is absolutely essential to the health of fowls. When ranging in the summer they will go to running streams or the barn- yard trough, but in the winter they suffer for lack of fresh water. In the plan of a poultry house, given in a picceding page, A is a pipe on the bottom of the coop three feet below the level of the ground, running into a keg set in the ground, with an outlet on the other side. This pipe comes from the barn- /ard trough, and as long as there is water in it the hens are supplied. As this poultry house is built against one of the Fiq. 102. Silver Hamburgs. Fig. 103. White Dorkings. 481 POULTRY AND BEES. 483 barnyard sheds only twenty feet from the pump, the operation was easy. A box of wood ashes set in the coop and changed every week or two will keep the fowls pretty free from lice. Gravel and sand on the floor keep their digestion good. Camphor in the water or mixed with meal dough will cure gapes in chickevih. Rubbing the heads of chicks with lard and sulphur before they are a week old will prevent gapes, killing the worms that cause it. Roup is the most dangerous disease attacking fowls. The breathing becomes hard and distressed; through the mouth instead of the nostrils. The fowls affected with it should be removed from the rest and, if of no special value, killed. Ii it rs desired to save them, feed with stale bread soaked in spirits, boiled and mashed potatoes, and hard boiled eggs chopped fine, and give them a clear, airy but Vv'arm place. As they begin to improve, chop fresh meat fine and give them every daj. The great cause of disease is yet to be considered ; it is the continual use of the same cock or his descendants. A new cock should be introduced every year, or there can be no just expectation of health or large returns of eggs. Turkeys are also a source of profit near all large places. The bronze turkey is the most desirable, and it would be well if a cock or a pair could be introduced into every ^arm in our more thickly settled States. Many farmers object to them in the meadows, but if they can get at plowed ground, orchards, tobacco fields, or stubble, they will not tangle your grass. The hen turkey is a wanderer and will naturally seek to hide her nest. This can be prevented. Says Saunders, a poultry breeder: " About the middle of March, generally speaking, tho female commences laying; she indicates the coming event bj^ a peculiar cry, by strutting about with an air of self satisfaction, and often prying into out of the way places, evidently in quest of 484 now TO make the farm pay. a secret spot for incubation. She should now be closely watched, and some management is required to induce ber to lay in the nest assigned to her. The nest should be prepared witb straw and dry leaves ; it should be secluded, and to incite her to adopt it a nest egg should be placed in it. When her uneasi- ness to lay is evident, she should be shut into the barn or shed wlicre her nest is prepared, and let out as soon as the egg is laid." The turkey is a persistent setter and often persists in staying on her nest when she is suft'ering for food and water. She should bo removed occasionally, and during the last ten days the eggs should be lightly sprinkled with water while she is off. This sprinkling applies to the eggs of all fowls. After hatching, the chicks should be sheltered for a few days, when they will look out for themselves. AVater is their great enemy, for a thorough ducking often kills them. After the hatching appears to be all over, chop up some hard boiled eggs and feed the brood. Bread crumbs wet up with milk or curd, or oat- meal dough, will answer after this. Water should be put in a very shallow dish for fear of ducking the chicks. Turkeys nor any other fowl should ever be allowed on the hay, or in the stables, when the horses are there. Fattening Poultry for market is a very simple operation. Not more than two weeks before they are wanted shut them up in coops with just room to stand comfortably. Mix a dough _ of meal and milk, just thick enough so that you can make it into rolls. Roll it into crams about the size of your little finger, (smaller for small pullets,) put it into the bill and help it down. If the cram is dipped in milk it will go down easy. We would say here that all fowls should be fed as soon after light in the morning as possible, for they worry for their food and lose their fat if they have to wait. At midday put a little Fig. 104, Grey Dorkings. .r.-iP --^^m "■■'-=^^w*■«•=--^^*e^ Fig. 106. Wild Turkey. 4SS POULTRY AXD BEES, 487 cracked corn or oats where the cooped fowls can reach it ; also keep water and sand within their reach. At night cram again, unless the crop is still partly filled, in which case the bill must be held up, some warm water turned, in and the bill closed. In this way inside of two weeks the largest fowls can be made very flit at a trifling expense. This feeding should never b > continued more than two weeks. For twelve hours before poultry is killed neither food, or water should be allowed. Ducks can be raised by any one who has an acre of waste land, with a stream or a pond at hand, but it is useless to at- tempt to keep them in close quarters or without plenty of water. They are good layers, and drop a large egg with very rich meat ; their eggs are very heavy, and when eggs come to be sold by the pound, as they ought always to be, ducks' eggs will bring a high price. The Eouen and Aylesbury are the finest breeds for eggs and poultry, and a pair of either of them will soon raise a flock, as the eggs are set under the hen. One drake should be allowed to every six layers. Geese also require water and pasture, but will not pick up all their living, as the duck will when it has a good range. Geese must be fed morning and night with grain. When set- ting, the female should have food and water convenient. Like the duck and the turkey, the eggs require about four weeks to hatch, and should be sprinkled several times in the last ten days. The Bremen or Embeden geese are large, (weighing often fortv- five pounds per pair,) quiet, fat readily, not as likely to stray as others, and the most profitable for market. The Habits and Management of Bees present the most interesting study we have ever attempted. Upwards of twenty Note. The cuts of fowls in this Chapter are from poultry owned by N P. Boyer & Co., stock breeders, Parkesburg, Chester County, Pa. 4S3 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. volumes have been written and published in this country alone concerning them, and the half has not jot been told. We shall aim .siniplv to give plain, practical directions, which all can un- derstand for takino- care of bees so as to make them profitable. Certain well established facts must be well understood before .ludertaking Bee keeping. 1. There are three kinds of bees in every prosperous hive, viz., the queen, the drones, and the workers. 2. The Queen Bee is the only perfect female in the hive. She is the mother of all the others. No swarm can prosper without a queen. She is readily distinguished from all the others by her long bodj^-, short wings, and yellow abdomen. [See No. 6, Fi 493 POULTRY AND BEES. 495 the nectar of the blossoms. The number of plants that supply honey on a large scale is limited. As the honey undergoes no change at the hands of the bee, but is the same when deposited in the combs as when sipped from the blossom, there is necessa- rily a great difference in the quality. It is especially desirable that there should be a succession of honey producing plants; for the yield of surplus honey depends upon the length of the honey season, and not upon a large quantity at any one time. The main stay of the bees is clover ; but its season is so short that it cannot be depended upon for a supply. The following is a succession of honey producing trees and plants; any one within a mile or two of such a succession is in a most favorable posi- tion for bee keeping. The willows are the first to give their supplies in the spring ; then follow the sugar maples, fruit trees, the dandelion, the tulip or poplar tree, the linden or bass wood, the locust, seed onion, red, white and Alsike clovers, buckwheat, berries, thistles, etc. The first four, with the buckwheat, clover, and beriies, form the main supply. We venture to say that there is no farm in the country but what will readily yield sufiicient supplies for a few colonies of bees. Under the head of miscellaneous items will be found an article in regard to Alsike clover, which, while it is better for general cultivation than red clover, is the best possible pasturage for bees. 11. Hives. It is safe to say that one half m bee keeping depenis upon the hive and the other half upon careful, intelli- gent management. The bees will do their part if they have a chance. In the old fashioned management the bees were hived in square box hives, and kept there through the season. At the end of the season the old colony was murdered and robbed. A small amount of poor honey mixed with brood was obtained, and but little pure, clean, unmixed honev could be had. Each swarm 30 40() now TO MAKE THE FAKM PAY. hnd to begin anew to build comb, and as some forty to sixty pounds of honey was required for comb, the honey season was nearly over before the bees could begin to store surplus honey. There was no way to examine the comb ; all was in the dark And at hap-hazard, and bee keeping was unprofitable. This is all changed. The Eev. L. L, Langstroth has invented a hive, the intelligent use of which renders success certain. Bee keep- i tig is now a safe and profitable business. The main principle in the Langstroth hive is the movable frame, as shown at Fig. 110. Suppose the top which is turned up in the figure to be taken ofi^ and also the six honey boxes and the board under them ; you have now the whole interior of the hive open to you. The frames, J, are hung inside the hive from front to rear, and instead of attaching their combs to the hive, they will build tliem in these frames. As each one of these frames can be removed and replaced at pleasure, all the operations of the bees are under observation and control, which is the secret of success in rearing bees. The second advantage of this hive is the honey board, or the board between the top of the hive and the honey boxes. {See Fig. 110.) This board has several holes, which are kept covered until the lower hive is pretty well supplied with comb, brood, and honey. They are then removed, and the bees are allowed to fill these upper boxes with their surplus honey. Any one of these boxes can at any time be removed and an empty one put in its place. We advise every farmer in this country to buy a Langstroth hive with the right to make and use them, and bee keeping will become both a pleasure and a profit. There are many other advantages in using the Lang- stroth hive, which may be hinted at as we proceed. Sprin-g Management. March. Bees which have been re- moved from their stands for the winter may, some calm, sunny lay. this month be replaced for^^e summer. It should be I Fig. 111. Bees and Comb. POULTRY AND BEES. 499 done in the middle of the day, and the top of the hive at once removed, allowing the sun to shine directly on the bees. Clean hives, dry and warm, should be at hand, and the combs with all the adherino; bees put into one of them. With the Lang- stroth hive this is so easily done that there is no excuse for neglect. The hive in which the bees were wintered can now be washed, scalded, and made ready for another colony, or for a swarm by-and-by. In making this change from one hive to another, the condition of the bees can be ascertained. If they have lost their queen, there will be no young brood hatching ; and they must either be united with another colony, or brood, or queen cells furnished them from some other colony Avho have them to spare. If they have brood, they should be supplied with water and rye flour. They cannot raise brood without water, and by feeding rye flour you may gain from ten days to three weeks in the hatching of the brood. A sponge saturated in sweetened water, and put over one of the holes in the honey board, is the best plan for supplying water. The following most interesting communication from Messrs. Ijangstroth and Son explains the feeding process, "As soon as the weather permits the be&s to fly and discharge their accumulated f^ces they are ready to commence breeding with vigor ; and experience demonstrates the advantage of now beginning stimulative feeding, to encourage the spread of brood. It is not the abundance of old stores of honey or pollen that , tempts to early breeding, (though their scarcity will prevent it, unless the deficiency is supplied,) but it is the sense of something coming in that encourages the bees to hasten matters. There- fore we supply them with this encouragement ; and where the hives have plenty of honey, it is an open question with ud whether in pleasant weather the Jiour alone is not all the btimulus required. Let us tell you, readers, how we feed it 500 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. As soou as the bees begin to fly freely in the spring we pre- pare one or two boxes, sixteen by twenty inches, and six inches deep. Put a good layer of clean straw in the bottom, spread the flour on the straw, and set the boxes in some quiet, sunny place, in or near the apiary. To start the bees to work, we put n few drops of honey or sugar syrup on a comb in each box ; once started, tliey will keep at it until the blossoms appear. The bees quickly "get the hang of the operation," and it is amusing to see them collecting the flour — the boxes being nearly black with bees, and the whole air resounding with their " joyous hum. They moisten the flour with honey from their .stomachs and take it up with their jaws and front legs ; then, hovering in the air over the box, transfer it to the baskets on their hind legs, then away to the hive. We had them thus at work (Itahans) one bright, still day this month, when the thermometer was at twenty-six degrees ! To-day (March 12th) was constantly showery, yet, with the covers over the boxes propped open to admit them, they have carried in fully ten pounds of flour, working until it was dark. This suggests putting the boxes in a shed opening to the south, if such a one is at hand, where they can work under cover. Our only fear has sometimes been that they might carry in too much flour, but the combs show no especial accumulation of it, and it is evident that they use it almost as fast as gathered. " Wheat flour and oat meal will do, if rye is not to be had. See that your bees have enough honey left over to last them until blossoming time. A little feeding will bring forward ten thousand workers to assist in the honey harvest, as soon as the first blo.ssoms open. The hives should be protected from the high winds as much as possible, and yet be open on two sides at least to the direct rays of the sun. We should recommend that the bees be placed where they are to stand for the summer, POULTRY AND BEES. 501 as soon as they are set out in tlie spring. We prefer tliat no two hives should have an entrance less than one rod apart. If it is desirable to place hives nearer than this, turn the entrances in different directions, and do not change their positions after the bees have marked it. Thousands of bees are lost from getting into the wrong hives when the hives are too near together. While the hives should all be of exactly the same size, the fronts may be painted different colors, or set in irregular order so that each bee may readily distinguish his own." April will usually bring some sunny da3's and a few blossoms, but if your stocks are strong and you have fed as directed, your increased and increasing brood are consuming a large amount of honey. As you went through the hives last month you saw the state of each colony. If any had more brood comb than honey they will now require feeding. A little judicious feed- ing is desirable, even in well supplied hives. It encourages the workers, both to early swarming and to storing surplus honey, A mixture of equal parts of honey and sugar is the best for feeding. Southern honey will answer. Boil and remove the scum; when it cools- turn into an empty comb, or into saucers, and put them in the place of the honey boxes. With a Lang- stroth hive you can take out a frame and oomb, and insert another containing the feeding mixture. If you feed in saucers, chop up straw and sprinkle on the surface of the mixture, or your bees will be drowned in it. As soon as the blossoms are abundant remove the feed. [Sei Winter Management for further remarks on feeding) Every bee that you keep alive now will bring you in golden treasures bye and bye. The supply of water should be continued, as the bees are still maturing large numbers of brood. May. Have hives ready for swarming. As the weather be- comes warmer the increase of bees in the hives is amazing. 502 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. Drones begin to come out, and if any swarms were witliont a queen, and you gave them brood comb from other hives, you will have young queens. If they are not impregnated within fourteen days, take them out and destroy them, and give another brood eomb from some other full hive. You can tell readily whether the queen is fertile, for she will then begin laying eggs in one of tbe central combs. If the bees now begin to gather much honey, put on a honey box and give them access to it, and tbus let them use the lower hive mostly for brood. If, after commencing to gather honey, they are shut off by a long cold spell their numbers are so immense and so active that they will soon consume all their store, and feeding will again be necessary. But if the weather is good, and the fruit blossoms abundant, colonies treated as we have advocated will often swarm, or be ready to swarm. (We shall treat of both natural and artificial swurms under the head of June Management.) Bees will only swarm when honey is abundant in the fields, no matter how , large and crowded the colony, or how large the stores. As fast as they fill the surplus honey boxes and seal over the cells, re- move the boxes, and put empty ones in their place. Foi- making artificial swarms, queen bees should be raised. It is well to commence this about the first of May in this latitude, (Pennsyl- vania.) Late in the afternoon of some warm day, take a comb with worker eggs, and young bees just gnawing out of their cells, and put it with all the bees that are on it into an empty hive. A pint of bees are enough to take with it. If you do not secure this number on the comb, shake them off from another comb into the empty hive. These bees will at once begin to raise a queen. They should be fed with honey and water. In about three weeks this little colony will have a fer- tile queen for use in artificial swarming. Summer Maxagemext. Jme is the great swarming month, POULTKY AND BEES. 503 and with the Langstroth hives the farmer, who has a dozen colo- nies, may take a swarm from each ahnost any day, and thus have swarming over. But we will speak first' of natural swarms. The common idea that the young bees go off leaving the old bees in the hive is a mistaken one. As we have before stated, the average life of the bee at this season is not over two months, and the oldest of the bees in the hive must be the ones to swarm, for the very young bees are not yet ready to leave the hive. The natural, swarming instinct, is so strong that great care and many precautions are often necessary to prevent overswarming. The indications of a first swarm from a hive are not very distinct. The swarm is to be led off by the old queen, and young queens are reared to supply her place. An old queen will seldom ven- ture out with a swarm except about the middle of a fair still day. If, on such a day, when the other colonies are busy gathering stores, one colony seems to be idle, but few bees leaving for honey, there is probability of a swarm. If the inside is now examined, and queen cells are found sealed over, the bees intend to swarm at once. We say intend, for they often delay after all their preparations are made. A sudden failure in the supply of honey blossoms, or a sudden change in the weather will often delay them. Before leaving, each of the departing bees fills the honey sac with honey, a large swarm sometimes taking six or eight pounds. As soon as they get well out of the hive they will usually cluiiter on some limb, and it is a good plan to have the bee hives in plain sight of some low trees. A still better plan is to have three or four pieces of board hung up in sight of the hives, with a large black cluster painted on each of them in imitation of a swarm, with a new clean hive set under each. Take a board twelve inches lonsc and six wide, make a circle or an oblong on it, and drive in a dozen small wooden pegs inside this circle, leaving their heads 504 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. out half an inch. Now paint the circle black, drive a liook into one end of the board, hang it on a low limb in plain sight from the hives, and you will catch a good proportion of your swarms on them. Uave one in each of four directions. Every swarm clustering on one of these can be hived without dif&cuity, by unhooking the board, putting it down on a sheet, setting the hive over it, and taking the hive, inclosed in the sheet, to the stand. On no account ring bells, drum on pans, shout, shoot, or make any such disturbance. Its only effect can be to drive off the swarm. If they rise high in the air, and make a bee- line away, throw the rays of a looking glass upon them. When they cluster on a limb, jar them off into a basket, and tip them down on a sheet before the hive, which should be propped up to receive them. If they alight on the body of a tree, they can be dipped off with a tin cup and turned on the sheet before the hive. If they do not all go in readily, take a spoon and scoop them in. If a little piece of comb is fastened with wax on the frames, they will usually take- to their new home more readily, and often begin work within an hour. As soon as they are all in, remove to their permanent position. Do not leave them long where they are hived, for some will leave for honey when they discover comb, and will be lost when they return and find the hive gone. We speak of dipping, scooping, jarring, and shaking bees as if they had no stings. Well, bee-keepers per- form all these operations, with no protection, without being Btung. The bees are filled with honey, and will not make an attack. The only danger of attack is from some improvident bee who failed to fill his sac, and is, therefore, ill natured. We advise all who are timid and those who suffer severely from a .sting to wear a bee hat and rubber gloves when handling bees. The bee hat is made by sewing a strip of cloth to the edges of a common stiff brim hat, long enough to button under the POULTRY AXD BEES. 505 coat. Over the face sew into the cloth wire gauze ; if just coarse enough to prevent the entrance of a bee it will not obstruct the sight, A little sugar and water sprinkled on the bees at any time will make them docile. Have a sprinkler with a fine rose spout, put in sweetened water, lift off the cover of the hive, and, before they recover from their astonishment, give them a sprinkling, and their animosity is all gone; you can takeout their combs, brush them oft", cut out pieces of comb, and do just as you please with them, so that you do not squeeze them, which indignity they will resent. Many men open their hives and examine their bees without even this precaution. In every case great care should be taken to make no sudden, quick motions about the hives; not to jar the combs, but lift each one slowly and carefully ; not to breathe on the bees, which will instantly rouse their anger, when not dosed with sweetening; and lastl}'-, not to crush any, by either inserting frames, adjust- ing honey board, honey boxes, or cover, or in any of the opera- tions of hiving. Second Swarms are more clearly indicated tlian first swarms. The second swarm comes out from six to ten days after the first. If you listen at the hive in the morning you will hear the piping of the queen. It is different from any other sound ever heard in the hive ; it sounds like pee/, peet^ several times re- peated. When this is heard a swarm may be expected within two days, and usually the next day, if the weather is good and honey abundant. The third swarm will come oft" within four days after the second. These swarms, after the first, grow smaller, and are likely to come out at any time of day ; they are also more likely to go a distance before clustering. We should lay it down as a safe rule that third swarms should be returned. Hive them in the usual way, and the next day return them to their old quarters. AVhere there are large crops of 506 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. buckwheat, second swarms form large colonies, and will often make very strong stocks. One swarm from each stock, how- ever, is usually the better plan for any except experienced ,'ipiarians. If any of the swarms do not prosper, they can be united before winter. Keep your stocks strong, even if you allow no swarming. Two weak stocks will perish, when, if they were united, they would make good stocks. In the Laug- stroth hive the swarming can be controlled, and one, two, or three swarms allowed, as desired. Artificial Swarming. The advantages of being able to control swarming are numerous. The three principal ones are, that it obviates the necessity of watching the bees all through the swarming season, prevents the loss of swarms, and secures ^ust the number of divisions desired, and no more. If it is not desired to increase the number of hives at all, the queen is pre- vented from leaving the hive, and the colony kept in the same hive for several successive years. This makes very strong stocks, and, if plenty of room is given for storing surplus honey, usually nearly two-thirds as much will be secured from this one hive as if it h-^d been made into two. It wall be oeen by referring to Fifj. 110, that plenty of surplus room can be given to the bees in the movable comb hive. A second hive, with the bottom off, can be set over the main hive, instead of the honey boxes, if desired. At the entrance of the hive are seen two little blocks ; these can be arranged so as to prevent the exit of the queen, while giving free access to the workers , and by this means swarming is controlled. When drones begin to appear, and queen cells have been constructed, is the proper time for artificial swarming. Have ready as many hives as you intend to make swarms. In arranging the frames {see frame b, Fig. 110) in these (which we shall call new hives, to designate them from the occupied hives, which we shall call old hives) POULTRY AND BEES. 507 leave space for t\\ o frames, vacant. If you have plenty of good worker comb fasten it in the frames with wax. The bees are delighted to find such treasures in their new quarters; they serve also as guides in building new comb. Never put drone comb in the frames, but if good, save it to put into the surplus honey boxes. Having your new hives all ready, you wish to open a hive and take out a part of its bees. If there are any clustered about the entrance give them a puff of smoke. A tin tube in the shape of a cigar, but longer, is needed in these ope- rations ; in it put a burning chip, or piece of dry, decayed wood, or a burning puff ball, or any thing that will make smoke. Now take off the top of the hive, uncover a hole in the honey board, and puff in two or three whiffs of smoke. Carefully loosen and lift off the honey board, give the bees a gentle sprinkling of honey water or sweetened water, and you can do what you will in the hive. Experienced bee keepers omit the smoke and only Sprinkle the bees. Now with a knife carefully loosen each frame from the side of the hive. Gently move those in the center nearer together, so as to give plenty of room to lift out the end frame first. If it should be fastened to the side cut it ofi' with a sharp knife. Slowly and steadily lift out each frame and shake the bees from the comb on to the sheet in front of the new hive. Get the bees once started into it and all will follow. If you see the queen, which you will be likely to do, be sure that she goes into the neiu hive, and all will be well. Put about three-fourths of the bees and one or two com.bs, with both brood and honey, into the new hive. See that you leave queen cells in the old hive. As you have put two frames from the old hive into the new hive, you will make their places good either with empty frames or frames with worker comb in them. This whole operation is readily accomplished inside of ten min- utes, after a little experience. l\o\v close up the entrance to the 508 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. old hive and remove it to the most distant stand from its former position, facing its entrance in a different direction. Keep it closed (e.Kcept the ventilating holes) until the evening of the next daj. Put the new hive where the old one stood before. T/te old hive must always be removed to another and different 'position, and the new hive placed where the old one stood. A variation of the above mode for those who are afraid of the bees is to puff the hive full of smoke, remove the top and honey board from the old hive, and the bottom from the new hive. Set the 7iew hive on top of the old hive. Drum with two light sticks on the sides of the old hive, at the same time puffing an occasional whiff of smoke into the entrance. The bees will, after filling themselves with honey, ascend into the upper hive, when they may be treated as before. This is a more uncertain method, and should not be practised by any one who can muster up courage enough to handle these harmless little insects. In a week or two after making the swarms, examine all the colo- nies and see that each has a fertile queen. This may be ascer- tained by examining the combs for fresh laid eggs. If imma- ture bees are at any time found on the bottom or about the en- trance to the hive it is a sure sign of a fertile queen. If colo- nies that have queens are raising others, it is a sign that they intend swarming, and the queen cells should be cut out. Juhj is often a swarming month in bad seasons, and swarms sometimes fill their hives and make some surplus honey. Shade is very necessary during the heat of summer, and also free ven- tilation. Give plenty of room to old colonies for surplus honey, and also to new colonies as soon as they get the hive nearly filled with comb. If there is a surplus of drone comb remove it, for drones are great consumers. After your young queens begin to lay, shut out the drones by means of the entrance blocks. This can be done about one o'clock on some fine day, POULTRY AND BEES. 509 wlien a large number of these idle gentlemen are out airing. As long as there are plenty of supplies the workers will allow these worthless fellows to, live and eat their hard earned stores. Angust is usually the season of the second honey harvest. The second clover crop and the buckwheat now furnish sup- plies. Bees will sometimes so prosper on buckwheat as to swarm again while it is in blossom. In other cases the supplies will fail in this month, and bees will be tempted to robbing other hives. This is disastrous, as bees once succeeding in rob- bing another hive will seldom return to honest labor. Robbing often occurs when the hives are first put out in the spring. If feeding is commenced and stopped before honey is abun- dant, the weak colonies are likely to be robbed. In opening hives and sprinkling bees Avith sweetened water or honey water, a temptation is given to neighboring colonies, and an attempt will often be made to rob the favored hive. A strong colony with a queen will never be robbed. If hives are a suita- ble distance apart, as we have recommended, the chances^-that robbing will be atempted are decreased. A strong colony with a queen will defend itself so vigorously against the robbers that the attempt will be speedily abandoned. Thousands of bees are however killed in these en30uuters, and it is best to keep all hives Avell apart, all stocks strong, all colonies supplied with a queen, all that are destitute of stoi'es in the spring well fed, to prevent their making any attempt at robbing; and keep any colonies that may be weak closed up when the honey harvest suddenly fails. The blocks will enable you to so arrange the entrance that but one bee can pass at a time. If you discovei that a swarm is being robbed in spite of this precaution close up the entrance entirely. The robbers will soon cluster in large numbers on the outside of the hive. Now sprinkle them with clear cold water and they will leave. The weak colony 510 now TO MAKE THE FAEM PAT. should now citlier be joined with anotlier, or supplied witli a fertile queen. Some directions for supplying a queen will be in place here. Three weeks are gained bj supplying colonies with a queen when lost. The queen is most frequently lost when going out for impregnation, and as she has destroyed all the unhatched queens and there is no worker brood, the loss must be repaired by the keeper. The indications of loss are plain, and when young queens are a week old the hives should be glanced at morning and evening. The bees run about on the hive, fly away a short distance and return, and all is confusion within and without the hive. This swarm should now be given some worker brood from another hive, or better still a fertile queen. (See our direction for rearing extra queens.) The bees will receive her if she is covered with honey water. When queens survive their second year it is best to remove them to give place to a younger and more vigorous one. In using the Langstroth hives brood comb can be obtained at al- most any time. The bee keeper who allows his stocks to remain without queens is too careless to succeed. F.VLL Management. September. The fall flowers which are in blossom this month aflbrd often large quantities of honey, but some colonies now seem averse to storing it in the surplus honey boxes, but will crowd the hive full of honey, and leave but little room for brood. When such a state of things occurs remove some of the full combs and insert empty ones. If the cap.s of the cells are sliced off with a sharp knife and the combs laid over a pan and kept warm a little while a large share of the honey will drain out, and the same combs can be returned again and again to be refilled. Odoh^r. Any stocks now found without a queen should be joined to a weak colony. Weak colonies should be joined POULTRY AND BEES. 51 i until all are strong. Put two or tliree of tlie fullest honey combs in the centre of the hive. If any stocks have not a large supply of honey feed them, the last of this month, or the first of next. Cut a hole through the centre of each comb near the top for winter passage. November. "Last season I had three swarms of bees. In November two of them died, leaving no honey in either hive. On examination, I found the third swarm alive, but their honey was nearly gone. Being anxious to preserve my stock, I de- termined upon an experiment in feeding. I obtained twenty- three pounds of Southern honey for this purpose, costing seven- teen cents per pound. My hive was of the Langstroth pattern. In place of the surplus box, I put a box containing a part of the Southern honey. As the bees emptied the box, it was re- filled, until in three days they had disposed of the twenty-three pounds. The swarm wintered well, and from the fifteenth to the thirtieth of last June the bees swarmed three times. Dur- ino; the summer and autumn, I took from the old swarm two boxes of honey, weighing eighteen pounds, and from the first new swarm six boxes of honey, weighing fifty-eight pounds. The four hives are large and are now filled with comb and honey — fifty pounds or more in each hive — making in all two hundred and seventy-six pounds of comb and honey. Last season, one of the most disastrous +o the bee keeper of any I have ever known, my neighbors' bees all died, one of them los- ing twenty-two swarms. Forty-four swarms died in our neigh- borhood last autumn and winter, most 'or all of which, in my opinion, might have been saved by feeding." — Cor. N. E. Farmer. Mrs. Ellen S. Tupper, of Brighton, Iowa, one of the best apiarians in the country, says : "In the fall in every apiary some weak stands will be found. Some will have too few 31 512 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. bees, Others too little honey. I unite these and never have any difficulty. "I alarm the bees in both hives which I wisli to unite, then leave them a few moments to fill themselves with honey. I then put one of them over an empty hive, (my hives hav*3 movable bottoms,) take each frame out, and shake or brush the bees into the hive below. When all are out, set the other in its place and proceed in the same way. The bees, all brushed to- gether thus into an empty hive, are too much frightened to quarrel. I then arrange all my frames containing honey in one hive, and set it over the one in which the be^es are. They all go up rapidly and take possession of the frames like one colony." Winter Management. December. The later in the season the bees are able to fly out, the better ; the bee keeper must therefore be governed by the weather and the climate. If the bees are to be housed it is best to leave them out until winter is fairly settled. A cold snap or even a heavy snow storm will not injure them, but continuous freezing weather will. The best place to winter bees is undoubtedly a dry cellar. Next to this is a building with double walls, the spaces being filled with sawdust, tanbark or charcoal dust. An even temperature is the main object. Darkness and steady cool air tend to keep the bees quiet. When removed to winter quarters the lower entrance should be left open and wire cloth placed over the holes in the honey board. This gives upward ventilation. After the bees are removed to their winter quarters, let them alone ; all light and disturbance are now harmful. It is some times well to bury bees for the winter, if you have a dry, sandy 8oil: the trench should be made larger every way than the liivea and the spaces filled with straw. With a little care, bees z.^^^ ^>- wintered out of doors. If there is a winter entrance POULTRY AND BEES. 513 near the lop of the hive the lower entrance can be nearly closed. The honey board should be removed and a straw top put in its place, over which put the regular top. Drive stakes around the hives and pack in straw. All but the front of the hive should be thickly covered, with straw. The entrance should face the southeast. We have seen colonies thus packed buried in a snow bank half the winter and come out in good shape in the spring. In January^ breeding is again commenced. In November and Decemher there is no breeding, and but little activity in the hive, but now active preparations are com- menced. Supposing the bees to have been closed up on the first of December, about the middle of January the bottom of the hives should be cleaned of all dead bees and the bees that are housed supplied with water. Eemove the wire cloth from one of the centre holes in the honey board and put in its place a sponge filled with sweetened water. Cover the sponge with a tumbler. Again in about a month the hive should be cleaned, and if any of the stocks have exhausted their stores they must be fed. We have thus far spoken only of management in the mova- ble comb hives, and have recommended only Langstroth's. It is the only one with which we are perbonally familiar, but \(e are assured on good authority that che '■^American Hivc^^ is equally meritorious. Box Hives will still be largely used, at least until th« great superiority of the movable comb hives is felt, and we will give a few directions for managing them. The shape of the hive should be long from front to rear, fifteen inches deep, twelve inches wide, and twelve inches high. About these proportions will be found to be the best. Inch boards unplaned are betier than planed. The timber should be thoroughly seasoned and \rwy carefully put togethei. The hive should set into a 514 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. groove in the bottom board and not be f\xstened to it. Two or three half inch sticks crossing each way in the centre of the hive help to support the combs. One-quarter inch from the top of the hive fasten slats four to six inches wide, of one-half inch stuff leaving cracks one-quarter of an inch wide between them. Over the top put a cover projecting on all sides and Hastened to the hive by small hooks. You have then both a movable top and bottom board, and a honey board, which is as near a Langstroth's hive as you can come in a box hive. If you already have box hives, bore holes in the top and put on a cover like the one turned back in Fig. 110. It is seldom well to take honey from the brood chamber ; with holes in the top of the hive you can set on surplus honey boxes and get your honey clean and clear as in the movable comb hive. Nearly all the directions for feeding, watering, natural swarming, and wintering, which were given for the Langstroth hive are applicable to the box hive thus constructed. Artifi- cial swarming is much more difficult and uncertain. The box hive must be turned bottom upward. This is accomplished by smoking the bees. "When it is ascertained what colonies are in condition to part with a swarm, the new hive is prepared as before directed, ;ilso a square. box just the size of the hive. Turn the hive bottom upwards after smoking the bees ; set the box over it and rap steadily on the sides of the hive, giving them also an occasional wliift" of smoke. In ten or fifteen minutes turn the bees that have gone up into the box out before their new hive, remove the old hive to a new place, and hct the new one on its stand as previously directed. Italian Bees are, on many accounts, much better than our common bees. Italian queens are sent in little wire cages to all parts of the country. The common queen is removed and ;he next day the Italian queen, cage and all, inserted in'a hole, POULTKY AXD BEES, 515 «ut into one of the combs. The next day she can be released from her confinement and the bees will usually receive her. The hive will soon be filled with Italian bees. "We have often given directions in this chapter without giving reasons, and made statements without bringing proof. For full explanation and proofs which will satisfy the most sceptical, we refer the reader to the large works of Langstroth and Quinby upon bee culture. In the mean time follow our directions if vou desire the best success. ^ » ■-3 114 115 116 117 118 BUDDESTG AND GRAFTING, 119 120 121 122 Pruning. 123 Setting the Cutting. Flij. 124. The Layer. 523 / PART THIRD-FRUIT CULTDRE. CHAPTER XIII. ORCHARD CULTURE. THEIFTY, PROFITABLE OECHARD is within the reach of every farmer, by as plain and simple means as a crop of potatoes or any other farm crop, and we shall try to rob this exceedingly plain subject of some of the mystery that has been thrown about it, and give practical directions for accomplishing so desirable an object; beginning with the NuESERY, for every farmer may as well be his own nursery man. Select for the nursery a warm, dry spot, perfectly dry, plow it eight or ten inches, subsoil it ten or twelve inches more, spread on three inches of compost of muck and manure thoroughly rotted, {see Manures,) harrow and cross harrow it in, then cross plow it under. If to be planted in the fall, the pomace from the cider press may be planted for apple stocks. Break it up fine by raking with an iron rake. If planting bo deferred till spring, the seed must be separated from the pomace by a coarse sieve, and the sifted pomace repeatedly washed until clean seeds alone are left. Spread the seeds thickly on boards, and stir until perfectly dry. These seeds should be packed in slightly moistened sand, in tight boxes, and kept through the winter in a dry, cool place, and planted at the earliest moment in the spring. Pear seeds will have to be 519 520 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. collected more carefully, or bought of the seedsman , but we recommend the purchase of a few bushels of pears. They can be cut and dried, and when cutting them to dry t^e seeds can I'eadily be saved. ^ ""■ Cherries should remain on the tree until perfectly ripe, then put into tubs and the pulp washed off. All other things being equal the autumn is the best time for planting all seeds. If they are to 'be preserved until spring, they must be packed in moist sand. They should be sown in drills three feet apart. Cover oue inch deep with earth, and another inch with leaf mould from the woods. These few precautions will secure you a vigorous growth of shoots. For peaches, apricots, and nectarines, the stones should be kept in layers of sand. Put a layer of sand in a box, then a layer of stones, and expose them to the action of the frost through the winter. They should be examined a fortnight before planting time, and if they have not begun to crack, give them a wetting ; if they do not open by planting time, crack them on a wooden block with a wooden mallet. Fruit stones should be planted^deeper than seeds, say three inches, and the rows three feet apart as before, and covered with leaf mould. This prevents evaporation, retains heat and moisture, and does not exclude the air ; and heat, moisture, and air are the three requisites of germination. These preparations are simple and easily made, and will insure good stocks. Plum stocks must be gotten from horse plums, or some other native species that reproduces itself from seed. Otherwise it is to be treated the same as the other stone fruits. In all these operations it should never be forgotten that one good vigorous stock is worth five poor ones ; and the temptation to drop the seed too closely, and thus crowd and stunt the plants, should be ORCHARD CULTURE, 621 resisted ; and as soon as thej appear above tlie surface, if too thick, they should be thinned out, and when four or five inches high, all the feeble plants should be thinned out, and only those left which are vigorous. The weeds must not be allowed to grp^ in the nursery, but the cultivator must be kept running between the rows, which have been left three feet apart for this purpose; and the hoe must supplement the cultivator. These seedlings will often make a growth of from four to six feet before the winter. Three feet is enough, so that they thicken and are vigorous. If the seeds are planted in the fell and all the above conditions complied with, the seedlings will be ready for transplanting one year from the seed. If not planted until spring, or if not thoroughly cultivated and un- sparingly thinned, they will have to be carefully covered for the winter, and left over for another year. There is only one proper time for taking up all seedlings, and that is the autumn. Begin at one end of the row, run your spade slanting under the roots, pry them up a little, and then pull them out with the hand. These seedlings can be packed away in the cellar, covering the roots and half the stalks with sand or mellow earth, or they can be heeled in, in some dry place protected from the frost, and taken into the house to be dressed when out door work, is over. Another method of obtaining stocks is by Cuttings, {Fig. 123,; or shoots of one year's growth, cut in the autumn, or spring before growth commences, and planted in the soil. Under the ordinary circumstances of the farmer, this method can be applied only to such species as throw out roots readily, such as the grape, quince, currant, and gooseberry. In making cuttings it will be better if a small portion of the older wood can be taken off with the shoot. If cut in the autumn or early winter, they should be kept in damp mould in the cellar until the frost is 522 1H>W TO M.VKK THE FARM PAY. out of the grouud in the spring. Three-fourths ot the shoot should be under ground, with one or more buds above ground, they may be bid in a slanting position, which will bring them nearer to the heat and air. The soil should be pressed closely • the cutting. A third method of obtaining stock is by .... ..RIXO, (see Fig. 124:,) or bending down the branches of the plant and covering a portion with earth. The advantage of this method over the preceding, is that the new plant is nouri.shcd ty the mother plant until it has taken root. Layer- ing should be done in the spring, and the new plant cut from the parent in the autumn. Make a slight excavation in the soil near the plant, bend the branch down into the place, make a jjniall cut on the underside, and fasten it in its place. Sprinkle a very little earth over it at first, and more as it sprouts. The end of the branch, shoot, or twig thus layered should be fastened up straight. A fourth method is often successfully adopted with the quince, called Mound Layering. The plant is cut down early in the spring, nearly to the ground, leaving only a few buds at the base. During the summer, shoots will grow from each of these tuds. In the autumn, the earth is drawn up around the base of the plant, so as to entirely cover the old stump; another season, each of the shoots takes root, and in the autumn, strong stocks are ready for the knife. Wc repeat that all stocks, whether from seed, cuttings, or layers, should be taken up in the fall and protected, and the Dressing done in the house during the winter. This consists in trimming the roots and cutting back the stem. If the tap root is long and there are but few branching roots, the tap root mu.st be cut back to within a few inches of the stem ; if there are branching roots, they should be trimmed; if but few and short roots, the ends should only be smoothed off; in the case r.f^v..^. nnd cuttings, only those roots that have been mutilated OKCIIARU CULTURE, 525 will need to be removed. All injured roots should be cut off. All these operations, and all cutting of trees, should be done with a very sharp knife, in order that the cuts may be perfectly smooth. As this cutting of the roots lessens the power of the plant, the stem must also be cut back to keep the balance. It is always safe to cut it back one-third, and if it has grown tall and thin with but few buds or branches, it will often need to he cut back two-thirds of its length. If the tops are not cut back the plant will not grow the first season, and thus a whole season will be lost. At the time of dressing, the stocks should be divided into two classes, to be planted separately in the nursery rows ; the most vigorous, both in root and stem, will be ready to bud the first season, while the feebler ones will have to wait over until another. Here will be seen the advantasfe of that O thorough preparation of the soil, cultivation, and thinning which produces strong stocks. The work of dressing and selection having been done in the winter, the stocks will be ready for replanting as soon as spring opens. The soil of the nursery should be thoroughly prepared as directed for the nursery. If the soil is pretty dayey it will answer for t^e apple, pear, quince, and plum stocks ; but for the stone fruits, consider- able sand must be worked into the clay. The rows should be three and a half feet apart, and eighteen inches apart in the rows. The plot being ready, and the dis- tances measured, a trench shokl be made deep snough and wide enough to hold the roots without crowding. The roots of each plant should be dipped in a tub of mud and set in the rows, and perfectly pulverized earth pressed tightly about them. But few plants should be taken out of their winter bed at a time, and the roots should be exposed as little as possible. Plants with a single straight tap root may be set with a dibble, or sharp stick two or three inches in diameter; but care 526 HOW TO :srAKp] the farm pay. must be taken that the earth is pressed compactly about the 8tem. All the Cultivation" necessary in the nursery is that every Aveed shall be kept out and the ground between the rows be kept mellow by the cultivator. This should be furnished with .1 short whiffletree and long traces, so that cultivation may go close to the rows without injuring the stems. The most vigor- ous of these stocks will be ready for Budding the same season, twenty-one mouths after planting the seed or putting down the layer. Budding, is inserting the bud of one tree under the bark of another. It is done most successfully from July to Septem- ber, when the trees are in their most vigorous growth. The buds should be fully developed and the bud on the end of the shoot, called the terminal bud, perfected. In budding the peach the terminal bud is the best. The buds are cut smoothly off, a very little of the wood being taken with them. {See Figs. 113 arid 116.) A cut is then made in the stock in the shape of a T, the bark lifted, and the bud slipped under it. {See Figs. 114, 115, and 116.) The tree should then be tied, leaving only the bud exposed. Bass-wood bark makes the best bandage, but husks, or even clotb, will answer the purpose. If in two weeks the bud begins to swell, it has taken, and the bandage may be removed ; if it has not taken, the operation may be tried again the same ^«.•asoD, or the stock left over to be grafted in the spring. It is u.sually best to bud near the ground. When a number of buds are cut at once, they should be stripped of their leaves and packed in damp cloths, moss, matting, or sawdust, and in a cool cellar, several days. If ordered from a distance, they should be used as soon as received. All suckers, or robbers, as they are termed, being shoots that appear on the stem below the bud, should be removed. The following spring after budding the stock may be cut back, as shown in Fig. 117. ORCHARD CULTURE. 527 The second method of propagation is by Grafting. This differs only from "budding, in that it is the insertion of a stem with several buds, called a scion, into the wood of the stock. Scions should be cut in the autumn or winter, after the fall of the leaf, from healthy, vigorous trees, and buried in dry sand, on the north side of a wall or building, and a mound made over them to shed the rain. The three common methods of grafting are shown in Figs. 118, 119, and 120. The main points in either are, that the cuts be perfectly smooth, that the inner bark of the scion and the stock fit perfectly on one side, that they be pressed tightly together, and that the whole be covered water tight. The latter is accomplished by the use of grafting clay or wax. Grafting clay is made by mixing one-third clear, fresh horse dung with two-thirds clay and a little hair, thoroughly be-aten together. Grafting wax is made of tallow, beeswax, and resin, in equal parts. A larger proportion of tallow makes it more pliable ; a larger proportion of resin and less tallow makes a composition in which rags can be soaked and tied around the graft. It is sometimes put on warm with a brush, or, if too stifi' for that, worked in with the hands; any way to make it water tight. Grafting can be performed on quite large limbs; and if the farmer has vigorous trees bearing worthless fruit, a few dollars spent in grafting, and a little time in pruning, will prove abundantly profitable. EoOT Grafting is extensively practised by nurserymen upon apple and quince stocks, as it can be done in the house in Ihe winter. The seedlings, or cuttings that are to be root grafted, are taken from their winter bed, a few at a time, grafted, and at once returned. The stem is cut off at the collar, or the point where it emerges from the ground, and the graft inserted in the same manner as upon the stock. {See Figs. 118 and 120.) When :f2S U )\V TO .AIAKE THE FARM PAY. .<»ct in the nursery rows only the graft should be left above ground. These trees in the nursery, now require but little time or attention ; it is only important that the ground be kept mellow I>y frequent cultivation, that the weeds be kept down, that shoots ihat appear on the old stump be rubbed off, and that the tree be kept upright. If exposed to high winds, or inclined to a crooked growth, the new shoot should be trained to a stake. Let us now take a note of time. The^rs^ year was devoted to the growth of the stock from the seed, layer, or cutting ; the second year to the transplanting of the yearlings and the budding of the most vigorous growers. The third year, early in the spring, those trees budded the second year should be relieved of the stocks, {see Fig. 117 ;) those that failed' to take the bud should be grafted. The second quality stocks, not vigorous enough to be budded last year, should be headed down to within three or four inches of the ground. In the autumn of this year the second quality stocks are to be budded. The fourth year we commence a systematic Pruning, which is to be continued during the life of the tree. Pruning is resorted to for various purposes. 1st. Pruning to direct the growth from one part of the tree to another, as from the top to the ba.se. This is accomplished by pruning the more vigorously growing parts, and thus directing the sap to the other parts. 2d. To renew the growth of stunted or feeble trees, by pruning them back to a few buds and throwing the whole vigor of the tree into these few. 3d. To promote fruitfulness, by pruning after the foliage appears in the spring, thus checking the growth of the wood, which promotes the formation of fruit -Ith. To regulate the growth and shape of the tree. 5th. Root pruning, to lessen the dimensions of trees and promote fruitfulness. We ^hall give directions for p.runing each variety of fruit in future Fig. 125. Fig. 126. Setting out the Yixe. Planting the Vine. Fig. 127. Pruning Sheaks. Fig. 128. Grafting Chisel. F'kj. 120. Pruning Saw and Chisel. Fig. 130. Pole Pruning Shears. Fig. 131. Fruit Ladder. 32 '52» V ORCHAKD CULTURE. 531 pages, but will here give the general principles and prac- tice OF PRUNING. The time for pruning varies with the climate, variety of fruit, and the object to be attained. Perfectly hardy trees may be pruned at any time between the fall of the leaf in autumn and its reappearance in spring. This may always safely be done in the South and Southwest. More tender trees, north of the forty- third degree of latitude, should be pruned in the spring, before growth has commenced. Trees that throw out shoots rapidly, like the peach, may be pruned just before midsummer; but if limbs of any size are cut, the wound should be covered with a preparation of shellac and alcohol,* or with grafting wax, thinned and applied with a brush. The exceptions to the above general rules in regard to the time of pruning are, that trees which grow wood and leaves vigorously, without fruit, are pruned back after the leaves are grown; and the pruning of young trees during the summer by pinching, of which we shall speak hereafter. The amount to be pruned also varies with circumstances ; but we are sure that one thousand trees are pruned too little, for every one that is pruned too much. As a general rule, one-half of each year's growth should be cut away before another season's growth commences. This increases the strength and vigor of the tree, induces earlier fruitfulness, and promotes longevity A well pruned fruit tree will bear sooner, more freely, better fruit, and for a much longer period than an unpruned one. These are objects worth accomplishing, when fruit is in such great demand and at such remunerative prices. The cut should be made with a very sharp knife. Haggling defeats the objects * Mix enough shellac in alcohol to make a preparation of the consist- ency of paint, and apply with a brush. 5:^2 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. of pruning. If tlie limbs are so large as to need a saw, the cut sliouia aftorw.inls be pared perfectly smooth and covered with the preparation of shellac. The cut surface should be as small as possible, and always iu single shoots just beyond a bud. {Fig. 121.) The peach and grape should have a little roore wood above the bud than represented in this cut. By elaborate sv.«!tom3 of pruning and training, a tree may be made to grow in an form desired, and the curious specimens in the gardens of many horticulturists of France and England, and a few in this country, are the admiration of all beholders. We speak of this hero only to show that the unsightly and ill shaped trees com- monly seen in farmers' orchards are advertisements of either the i_';iorance or indilference of their owners, as the shape of the tiv..' is entirely in the hand of the cultivator. This shaping >hoii!d commence in the nursery, according to our plan, the .-■;c')ftd season after budding, or the fourth year from the seed. Tliii trees have had a whole season of growth and will show very marked differences. All will be too tall and spindling, and the tops must be cut back one-third to one-half, and the other branches trimmed so as to give the desired shape to the tree. The best shapes for each fruit are given in connection with the treatment of that fruit. The shape of the tree during this its last season in the nursery is governed by pinching off the ends of the shoots: a few minutes each week spent among a thousand youn-.,' trees iu the nursery will sufTice for correcting any bad Iinbit,s of growth. If the top shoots up, at the expense of the side brar.chcs, pinch off the terminal bud, if shoots form too low, pinch them; if shoots appear in wrong places, pinch them oft; keeping in mind always the shape desired. This is usually done with the thumb nail, but a pair of nippers may be used to advantage. The main point in this process is not to let the trees spindle nor develop on one side at the expense of the ORCHAKD CULTURE. 538 Other. In the autumn of the fourth year, or two years from the bud, the trees should be transplanted to the orchard. This is sometimes done one year from the bud, but the safer and better way is to wait till the second year. Orchards should be underdrained, unless very dry. A fruit tree will never be productive with stagnant water about its roots. It should be thoroughly prepared to the depth of twenty inches by subsoiling, manuring, harrowing, and cross plowing, as described in the directions for preparing the nursery. In addi- tion to the compost of muck, manure, leaves, night soil, etc., an application of fifty bushels of ashes or lime to the acre will be advantageous and, if the soil be destitute of lime, necessary. Does this preparation look like too much cost and labor ? Eest assured it is the very cheapest way of producing fine crops of fruit, which will surely return the outlay many fold. Never set trees in holes without thoroughly preparing the whole soi'l. If you cannot spare the time and labor to prepare an acre in this thorough manner, pre})are one-half or one-quarter of an acre, and leave the rest until you can prepare it. The scarcity of fruit is due to the liole system. If the young trees have been properly pinched back, they will not need much pruning when transplanted. Cut back only enough of the head to balance the loss the roots have sustained. When raised in the farmer's own nursery this loss of roots should be small ; when they are transported to him from a distant nursery the roots will be nearly all cut off for convenience in transportation. This is one of the reasons why we advocate the home nursery. The roots of the tree extend as far in each direction as the height of the tree, and where the ground has been kept mellow by culti- vation, there will be but little difficulty in getting them up nearly entire. Every wound should be pared smooth with a sharp knife ; the roots searched for borers, and dipped in mud 534 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. before replanting. A trench should be dug in the already pre mred ground, of such width and depth as to accommodate all the roots in their natural position. The tap root if l«ng may be considerably shortened, say one-half its length, taking care that enoufrh shall be cut from the top to balance the loss. If transplanting is done while in leaf, the leaves should all be re- moved. The tree should be set at the same depth as before its removal. One person should hold the tree in the required |K>sition, while another throws in the finely pulverized earth about the roots and turns in water to settle the earth. It is essential that the earth should be closely packed about each root, and puddling is the surest way to accomplish it. If trans- planted in the autumn, a mound of earth should be drawn around the stem, both to stiffen it against the wind and to pro- tect it from being girdled by mice. Otherwise it should be fastened to an upright stake in such a way as not to chafe the bark. Watering young trees after transplanting, as usually con- ducted, is injurious. Watering the tops with a sprinkler or hose at evening, during severe droughts is the most effectual ; but keeping the ground mellow about the roots and mulciihstg is usually sufli- ci'.-nt. Spread a thin coating of hay, straw, or coarse litter aV.out the trees, and it prevents evaporation and the drying of tiie surface soil. It is also a protection to the roots in winter, and tljcrefore is to be recommended for all trees at all seasons of transplanting, and for tender trees, like the cherry, peach, and apricot, is almost indispensable. If the roots become frozen and thawed again in contact with the air thej are spoiled, but if well buried, filling all the cavities before thawing, they will be uninjured. In transplant- in.-, carefully prepared labels stating the variety should be i:ept on the trees, and a record made in some book of whai ORCHARD CULTURE. 535 trees are in each row. The following table shows the q umber of trees or plants required to the acre at given distances apart: 40 feft apart 28 33 " '• 40 25 " " 70 20 " '• 108 15 " •• 194 12 feet apart 302 10 " " 436 8 " " 680 6 " " 1208 4 " " 2720 The rule for guidance should be to allow space enough at least on two sides of the tree freely to admit the sun and air. Note. The pruning saw and chisel and pole pruning shears {Figs. 129 and 130) will be found exceedingly useful in cutting high limbs, removing the wolts of worms, cutting off fruit in the tops and on the outermost branches of large apple trees, etc. They can be had of any dealer in implements. CHAPTER XIV. APPLES, PEARS, AND QUINCES. 'he apple will grow upon almost any soil, but, as a pro- perly planted and cultivated apple tree will bear for one hundred years, the selection of soil and situation is wor- thy of careful attention. The soils best suited to the apple are limestone soils, strong clayey loams, and sandy loams. A too sandy loam may be modified by a dressing of clay. And both clayey and sandy loams, if destitute of limestone, should be liberally dressed with lime, before planting the trees, and occasionally afterwards. Never plant an orchard in wet land, until it is underdrained. The northern slope of a hillside is the best position for the apple in the Northern States, and the bottom of a valley is the worst for any fruit in any section. If it is the intention to cul- tivate grain on the same ground with the apple orchard, the trees should be planted forty feet apart. We believe the better way to be to plant them twenty to thirty feet apart, according to the natural size of the tree, and cultivate nothing but hoed crops between the rows. Rye should never under any circum- stances be grown among fruit trees; and clover only to be plowed under, or fed on the ground. The ground should always be kept mellow, and for three reasons we recommend high manuring and root crops in the orchard. The cultivation of root crops keeps the ground mellow; the manure which es- APPLES, PEARS, AND QUINCES. 537 capes the crop, will be caught by the roots of the trees and thua saved. The crops can be kept from growing near the trunks of the trees. • The pinching and pruning process must be kept up to maintain the proper shape of the tree. For the standard apple tree in the farmer's orchard the lowest limbs must be six feet from the ground, and all buds below this should be rubbed off or cut off after they get started. The lower limbs should oe the largest and longest on the tree. The tendency of growth is towards the top. If any of tbe upper limbs outstrip the lower they must be cut back. The better shape for the standard apple is the vase shape, leaving the inside of the tree quite open. A few hours each season will suffice to regulate the growth of quite a large or- chard, and this care makes all the difference between a moss covered, scraggy tree, and small, mealy, crabbed fruit ; and fine trees with large, fair, and well ripened fruit. The heads of most apple trees are allowed to become so full of limbs that, the foli- age shades all the inside of the tree, and no fruit ripens except upon the outer branches, while if the surplus branches are kept cut out the whole tree will produce fruit. Eoot pruning in con- nection with manuring is of great importance when there is too vigorous growth of the wood without fruit. Dig a trench around the tree as far from the trunk as the extension of the branches, cutting off the roots with a very sharp spade or a knife, and fill the trench with thoroughly rotted compost. We have seen most wonderful effects following this treatment of trees. If repeated every other year, we believe most apple trees can be made to bear every year. We have certainly seen a small orchard treated in this manner bearing one hundred bushels, when every other orchard in the vicinity was nearly barren. To rejuvenate an old apple orchard, prune and graft one-third of the top each year, and apply manure to the roots. 538 now TO make the farm pay. Scrape off all the coarse bark from the roots to the branches, and wash the trunk in strong soapsuds. Says K. L. Pell, Esq., of Esopus, New York, a very successful culturist : " For several years past I have been experimenting on the apple, having an orchard of two thousand bearing Newtown l'ij)pin trees. Three years ago, in April, I scraped all the rough bark from the stems, washed all the trunks and limbs within reach with soft soap, and trimmed out all the branches that crossed each other." In the latter part of June " I slit the bark by running a sharp pointed knife from the ground to the first set of limbs. In July I placed one peck of oyster shell lime under each tree, leaving it piled about the trunk until November, when it was dug in thoroughly. The following year I collected from these trees seventeen hundred barrels of fruit for market, besides the cider apples. The trees were then manured with stable manure, composted, and the succeeding autumn they were again loaded with fruit, while the trees not so treated were quite barren." This is the experience of many others who have tried this process in a less thorough manner. Pigs and fowls may be turned into the orchard before the fruit ripens, and after the crop is gathered ; they will eat the windfalls, and destroy thousands of worms by their rooting and picking. Sheep are less valuable in the orchard, as they only eat what is on the surface. If the orchard is plowed very early and clover sown, when the clover is pretty well grown, a litter of pigs may be turned in, and with a little additional feed will grow fat on the feed an.l the windfalls while they grub about the roots, destroy the worms, and leave their valuable droppings to enrich the soil We say to every farmer plant an apple orchard; it will be a i^urce both of pleasure and of profit. Six years from the planting of the seed you may begin to gather enough for your APPLES, PEARS, AND QTJIXCE3. 539 own consumption, and in ten years a full supply. If properly cared for, for ten years, you may safely calculate on fifty years of productiveness, and we have seen twenty bushels of apples gathered from a tree one hunderd and thirty years old. To aid you in the selection of varieties we give a list of the best and most successfully cultivated, as collated from the re- ports of the various Pomological Societies of the country. The month named after each variety shows the average time of ripening. Best varieties for the whole country: Eed Astra- chan, August ; American Summer Pearmain, September ; Early Harvest, July, August; Gravenstein, October, November; Baldwin, late fall ; Khode Island Greening, late fall. {Fig. 135.) Select varieties for the North Eastern States in addition to above. Golden Sweet, August ; AYilliam's Favorite, August ; Sops of Wine, August ; Early Joe, August, September ; Porter, September ; Fall Pippin, November ; Hubbardston Nonesuch, December ; Ribston Pippin, Eoxbury Russet, late ; Fameuse, November; Tallman's Sweet, November; Northern Spy, about Noveml»er ; Rambo, late ; Westfield Seek No Farther, Novem- ber, December. Select varieties of the Middle States: Early Harvest, Red Astrachan, Early Joe, Primate, August; Sweet Bough, August ; Jersey Sweet, September, October ; Porter, Fall Pippin, Gravenstein, Belmont, November ; Twenty Ounce Pip- jiin, (for market,) November; Rhode Island Greening, King of Touipkinji County, November; Fameuse, Mother, November; Tillman's Sweet, Ladies' Sweet, Baldwin, Northern Spy, Roxbury Russet, late fall. Select varieties of apples for Northern Indiana, Illinois, Northern and Central Ohio, etc. Summer Apples ; Early Har- vest, Carolina Red June, Benoni, Early Pennock, High Top Sweet, Red Astrachan, Keswick Codlin, Hocking. Autum:n Apples: Autumn Strawberry, Bailey's Sweet, Dyer, Haskell 540 now TO MAKE TIIK FAKM PAY. Sweet, Duchess of Oldenburg, Lowell, Maiden's Blusb, Rams- dell's Sweet, Fameuse, Fall Pippin, Fulton, Mother, Rambo. Winter Apples: Winesap, Rawles Jannett, Dominie, Jona- than, Carthouse, Westfield Seek No Farther, White Winter Pearmain, Minkler, Tallraan Sweet, Northern Spy, Swaar, Bul- lock's Pippin, Eamsdell's Sweet. Select varieties for Southern Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Ken- tucky, and Missouri. Summer : Early Harvest, Red Astrachan, Carolina Red June, American Summer Pearmain, Large Yel- low Bough. Autumn : Maiden's Blush, Buckingham, Rambo. Winter: Rawles Janet, Ortly, Yellow Bellfiower, Winesap, Rome Beauty, Newtown Pippin, Ben Davis, Pryor's Red, White Pippin, Jonathan, Bullock's Pippin. Select list for Virginia and adjacent regions. Carolina Red June, Gravenstein, Belmont, Fall Pippin, Yellow Bellflower, Smokehouse, Rambo, Smith's Cider, Maiden's Blush, Loudon Pippin, Limber Twig, Fallawater, Pryor's Red. Select list for Georgia and adjacent regions. Early Harvest, Red June, Horse, Bachelor, Meigs, Disharvon, Gree«i Crank, Mangum, Kentucky Streak, Nickajack, Shockley, Stevenson's Winter. There are many valuable varieties left out from the above lists, the aim having been to give such list as should give a succession of marketable fruit, and productive and hardy trees. This omits the Coggswell, highly prized in Maine; the Spitzen- burgh, grown extensively on the line of Rhode Island, Con- necticut, and Southern New York the Early Strawberry, mod. erately good in all localities ; the Late Strawberry, a very pro- ductive early autumn apple of the West; the Broadwell, a fine winter sweet apple in Ohio; the Pomme Grise, a Canada apple ; and a thousand others that are favorites in small localities. The above lists will however answer the practical purpose of the farmer. APPLES, PEARS, AND QUINCES. 541 It onlj remains to speak here of gathering and prescrviuor the fruit. The more care that is expended upon these two opera- tions the better the prices that will be obtained. The fruit that is picked bj hand should be kept separate from that shaken from the trees. If the tree lias been cut back and not allowed to Note. — The subjoined table gives the leaihng varieties of apples, their season, the special use to which they are best adapted, the localities where their cultivation has been tried and proved successful, and the localities for which they have been especially recommended. While the list of profitable varieties is by no means complete, eacli of the varieties is, beyond question, safe in the localities for which it is designated. Name of Variety. Am. ^nninier Pearmain.. Astnicliiiu lied Baldwin Belmont Bellefleur Yellow Binioiii Bullock's fippin C:iroliiia Red June Dominie Duchess i.f Oldenburg.... Kaily Harvest Karly Joe.. iOarl y S t ra wberry Fall a water (■•all Pippin Faniense Gulden Sweet (Jravensteiu II nbbardston Nonesuch.. .Icrs('y Sweeting Jonathan i\\u'^ of Tompkins Co l/ii-^e Yellow Bough Alaiden's IV.n-'h Monnionlli I'ippin New York I'ippin Newtown I'ippin Northet n Spy reek's Pleasant Porter Piambo Kawles' J a not It. I. Greening Hibston Pippin Koxbnry Rnssot Sniifli's'Cider Spitzenbnrg Ksopus Summer R.ise.. Tolman'.s Sweeting Vanilervereof New York. \Vestfi,ld AVino Sap Williams' Favorite S. E. S. W. E. W AV. S. w. E. S. w. E. A, E. S. S. S. w. L. A. E.W. E. A. E.A. E. W. E.A. W. E.W. S. A. L.W. L.W. L.W. L. W. W. A. W. L. W. ^^^. E.W. r,.w. w. w. S. w. w. w. L.W. S. T. K.M. M. M. M. T. T. T. T. K.M. M. T. T. T. .M. JI. K.M. T. M. K. M. M. K.M. K.M. M. M. T. M. T. M. T. M. M. t. M. K.M. M. T. K.M. M. M. M. T.. ■" E. S. — Early Summer. S.- Early Winter. W._Winter. L. X — 'rried and proved successful. -Summer. E. .4.— Early Autnmn. L. A.— Late Autumn. E. W.— W.— Late Winter. T.— Table Variety. K.— Kitchen. M.— Market. — Especially recommeuded in the locality named. 542 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. throw out long, slender branches, the gathering will be much easier. Do not use the common ladder, placing it against the branches, but have a folding ladder, [Fig. 131 ;) also a long bandied picker with a bag attached. [See Fig, 130.) Fruit carefullv gathered, and packed without bruising, will keep in a dry place until spring, when it will bring the largest price. "Whereas, if it is shaken fj'om the tree and bruised, it must be sold at once when prices are usually at the lowest. We have known this very thing make a difference of twelve hundred dollars in the price obtained for the apples from an orchard of a little short of one acre. Pears axd Quinces. Pears require nearly the same soils and situations as the apple, but more poi'ous. Different varie- ties require different soils. All require lime, and if it is not naturally in the soil, it should be supplied. The following table shows the soils in whicli a few of the standard varieties do the best. In clayey soils : Andrews, ^ Ho^vell, Bartlett, Louise Bonne de Jersey, Beurre d'Anjou, Lawrence, Beurre Superfin, Merriam, Beukre Langelier, Onondaga, Brandywine, Rostieser, Belle Lucrative, Seckel, ■^^'^^^^^> Vicar of "Winkfield, Doynne Bussock, Winter Nelis. All the above varieties, except the latter. Winter Nelis, are benefited by a large admixture of sand in the soil. The follow- ing varieties grow best in a sandy soil without clay: Beurre d'Atjemburg, Duchess d'Angouleme, Beurre Bosc, Flemish Beauty, Beurre Diel, qlout Morceu, Dearborn's Seedling, Urbaniste. APPLES, PEARS, AND QUINCES. 548 "Whatever the soil, it should be thoroughly and well cultiva- ted. The pear on its own roots will not well bear transplanting after three or four years of age, unless it is root-pruned every year, or at least the year before transplanting ; but on the quince it may be transplanted at almost any age. But though in gardens and in market culture the pear is usually grown on the quince as a dwarf tree, for the purposes of the ordinary farmer, to whom we speak, we advise budding on pear stocks. At three years from the bud they should be removed to the orchard. The early autumn is the best time for this, and if done before the fall of the leaf, the leaves should be stripped off. When transplanted, great care should be taken to retain as many as possible of the small fibrous rootlets, as these furnish life to the tree. The same directions given for transplanting the apple apply to the pear, except that the trees should not be more than twelve feet apart, which will allow Hve hundred trees to an acre. Every farmer can find at least one fourth of an acre to devote to the culture of the pear, which will allow for one hundred and twenty-five trees, and will be a source of enjoyment and profit. One need not now wait a lifetime to obtain the fruit, for six years from planting the seed is ample time for the first crops of this delicious fruit, and we know of thousands of pear trees that have borne for over fifty years. "VYe once knew a tree three years from the bud to set over four hundred pears; all bui about twenty-five were picked ofi", but this shows how quick 1}^ the fruit will mature, if treated properly. Pear trees set twelve feet apart and pruned to the pyramid form, will have plenty of room for a number of years, and as they become too thick the poorest trees can be thinned out. The pyramid form is very easily obtained if the trees are kept down, as the pear should be, to within twelve feet in height. In the pear orchard no calculation should be made for horse cultivation, and the 544 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. lowest brandies should not be over three or four feet from the cround. Dwarf pears on quince stocks are cultivated much lower. All agree that the pyramid is the best shape for the pear and each pruning should have reference to this shape. No grass or grain should ever be allowed in the pear orchard, but all root crops are beneficial as for the apple. A small strip can be flowed by*the use of the short whiffletree, but most of the cultivation must be done with the spade, digging fork, and hoe. The pear must not be allowed to bear too early or too profusely. It requires a great deal of courage to pick off half the young fruit from a tree, but that which matures will be the larger and finer, and the exhaustion to the tree not so great, even if the weight of fruit is the same. The tree is exhausted not by the amount in weight of fruit that it bears, but by the number of specimens in which it perfects the seeds. Fruit growers will do well to bear this in mind. For market or kitchen gardens the pear should usually be cultivated ON" QuixcE Stocks. The quince is a valuable tree of itself, but as a stock for the pear, it is of the greatest importance. It is usually propagated by layers when cultivated for its fruit. {See purje 521.) The soil for the quince should be deep, and rich, and well cultivated. The common method of setting the bush and letting it take care of itself hjusi as ridiculous as for the farmer to leave his corn in the same way. They should be pruned aimually, and never allowed to grow bushy. As they are usually near the house, they should be treated to frequent doses of soapsuds, and the soil about their roots kept mellow. Quince trees treated in this way will yield enormous crops i^ proportion to the size of the tree. The Orange Quince, of which we have a beautiful illustration in the colored plate, is the favorite for the garden. For stocks for the pear a different mode of propagation is practised, as described and illustrated on 1 previous page. APPLES, PEARS, AND QUINCES, 545 The stocks thus obtained are budded just above the collar. Pears on quince stocks will usually have to be obtained from the nursery, and we advise purchasing only of reliable nuisery- men, and obtaining assurances that they are not on the common quince, which is worthless for stocks, but on the Angers Quince. Buy the best that are to be bad; a few cents makes but little dif ference here, but v/ill make a vast difference in the final results. If, however, the attempt is made to grow your own stocks, select to bud on the quince only such as have proved successful when thus grown. Many pears will not grow on the quince. The standard varieties that are best adapted for the quince are: Bergamotte, Easter Beurre, Beurre d'Anjou, Flemish Beauty, Beurre Superfin, Glout Morceau, Beurre Diel, Louise Bonne de Jersey, Beurre Giffard, Kostiezer, Brandywine, Urbaniste, Belle Lucrative, Vicar of Winkfield. DucHESsE d'Angouleme, In the Southern States the Madeleine, Julienne, ^-V hue Doynne, Lawrence, Seckel, and Tyson can be added to the above list; and for the Western States, the Tyson, Seckel, Kirc- land, Noveau Poiteau, Doynne Ette, and Bloodgood. The pear on the quince should be planted with the collar from two to four inches beneath the surface, for the quince serves as a root, never as a stem. Here has been the cause of the failure of tens of thousands of dwarf pears. If the quince stock is above the ground it is more liable to be attacked by insects ; it is liable to be broken off by high winds, at the joint, and the pear, growing more vigorously, produces a deformity ; while if placed from two to four inches below the surfixce, it is strong, healthy and free from borers, while the pear itself will 3.^ 5-16 HOW TO MAKE THE FARJI PAY. ia time take root beneath the surface and grow upon its own roots. Under the proper treatment it comes into bearing on the (luince in one-half the time needed on its own roots, can be more readily trained to a pyramid form, so desirable in the pear, and we think is just as long lived. We at least know of trees on quince stocks that have been in bearing over forty years. Twelve feet apart is ample space for planting these trees ; and where ground is scarce, if it is sure to be thoroughly cultivated, annually manured, properly pruned, and the young trees thinned of their first crops, six feet apart in the rows, and rows twelve feet apart, will answer. Summer pinching of the terminal buds is the best method of pruning these trees. If the leader shoots up too vigorously, pinch it off; if any of the upper shoots get as long as the lower ones, pinch them off; if buds appear where you do not want limbs to grow, pinch them. This is much better than to wait until the wood is matured and pruning must be done with a knife; but if you leave it until then, be sure your knife is like a razor. Cut just above a bud. Prune in the spring those branches you wish to have grow vigorously, and in the summer those whose growth you wish to check. Where trees are slow to come into bearing, prune in the spring, pinch through the summer, and root prune early in the autumn. The pear, unlike other fruits, bears from a permanent spur ; after the fruit has been picked, if this spur is cut back new fruit buds will start at its base. The germs of these buds can be seen at the time of gathering the fruit. The wood buds are readily distinguished from the fruit buds, as the latter are full and I'lump, while the former are usually pointed. Wood buds can be converted into fruit buds by bending down or breaking off the shoot just above the bud. This distinction between wood and fruit buds should be kept constantly in mind when pruning APPLES, PEARS, AND QUINCES. 547 the tree. Old pear trees are reinvigorated by the same process of grafting the tops, already described, for the apple. Thinning the fruit, as we have hinted, is often necessary. Says Thomas W. Field, a successful cultivator of the pear: " Good soils, fine cultivation, healthy and vigorous trees, and all the other requisites of pear growing will often fail of producing fine fruit, if all that sets is allowed to remain on the tree. The fruit of the Bartlett, Dearborn's Seedling, Louise Bonne de Jersey, and many other varieties will set in such quantities that, if thinning is neglected, not one-half will reach the- full size or acquire their best flavor. Besides, these varieties yield fruit so early that the trees would be ruined by this precocious fruitfulness. Two years after planting, these varieties will com- mence bearing, and not more than a dozen specimens should be allowed to ripen annually the first two years of bearing. The period for thinning is when the pears are from a half to three- quarters of an inch in diameter; for, as many fall soon aftei forming, it is not until then the healthy and perfect ones can be distinguished. Not more than one-half the thinning should be done at once, and the others may be allowed to remain until wo can ascertain the imperfect fruit to be removed. There are but few of the finer varieties that are not improved by gathering before they are fully ripe. Not a few have been discarded as unworthy of cultivation, which by early picking improve so as to rank among the first in excellence. Several varieties rot at the core when left upon the tree until fullj^ ripe, whicli will keep for weeks if picked earlier. Among these are the Flemish Beauty, BeurreDiel, and Louise Bonne de Jersey. The true test of the proper condition for gathering is, the cleav- ing of the stem from the spur when slightly raised. Some varieties indeed should not be left even so long as this. The fruit should never be picked early in the morning while the 54S HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. dew is on, nor in a wet or cloudy day. When it is necessary to pick it in sucli weather, it should be exposed to light and air until completely ,dry. Pears picked in the middle of a sunny day are superior in flavor and keep better. Early gathering ai>plies only to the summer and autumn varieties ; late keeping winter kinds should be allowed to hang as long as the frosts will permit. A dry, cool room should be used for the storage and ripening of fruits, and there should be nothing in the room from which the fruit can absorb flavor. The two beautiful spe- cimens in our colored plate are the Bartlett and Louise Bonne de Jersey. The following table gives the varieties of the pear best adapted to the different sections of the country. The abbre- viations are the same as in the table for apples, page 541, with the addition of Q, which denotes those proved to be most valu- able on quince stocks, and therefore adapted to the home garden. Name of Variety. Dartlott UoUe Lucrative Beiirro Bi>so Bourie D'Aijjou Beurre Diel lieurre Easter I Beurre GifTard I Beurre Superfin BloodgoiKl Brandy wioe Buffum Dearborn's Seedling Doynnc Bmissock Doynue D'Ete Doyrine White Duchess D'AiiKoulenie...., Flemish Beauty , • llout Morccau Lawrence liouise Bonne de Jersey.. .Madelaine Oiiondnga Roatieser Sockel Tyson Urbauiste Vicar of Wiukfiuld Winter Nc4i3 E. A. E. A. A. L. A. A. W. E. S. A. S. E.A. A. S. E.A. E. S. A. L. A, A. K.W. E. \V. E.A. E. S. A. S. A. S. A. E.W E.W X|X XjX X!X xx,x X X X X XIX X X i CHAPTER XV. PEACi £S, PLUMS, CHERRIES, AND APRICOTS. |LL these fruits are within the reach of, and may be profi- tably cultivated by the farmer. Especially should {^Qiy^ farmers' boys, not yet fit for the heavy work of the farm, ^ devote much time and attention to the cultivation of these delightful fruits. We will try to make the directions for their cultivation and care so plain that any bright boy can understand it. The Stocks for these fruits are easily raised from seeds. Plump, fair, and healthy fruit should be selected, and after the flesh has been used for the table the stones should be washed clean, spread out, and thoroughly dried. "When dry, pack them in sand, in boxes, a layer of sand, then a layer of stones ; this box should then be buried on the north or west side of a wall or building, just below the surface, and a mound made over the top that will shed the rain. Here they will be subjected to the frosts of winter and will germinate. Just before the ground is ready for planting in the spring take them up, and carefully '3racking with a wooden mallet on a wooden block such as have QOt opened, put them back in the ground for a couple of weeks, 3ut not so deep as before, and without the mound, as the ivarmth and moisture will now assist them to sprout. In two veeks, or as soon after as the ground will admit of planting, take 549 550 IIO^V TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. them uu rmd plant in ground prepared according to the direc- tions given for preparing the nursery. The Peach grows best on its own stocks, but hardy, late o-rowing varieties, like the Gorgas, Crawford's Late, Late Eare- ripe, and otlier sorts of late varieties make the best stocks, and the stones (or seeds) should be selected from these late varieties. When opened the second time, those that have sprouted should Be immediately planted in drills from one to three inches deep ; a light thin soil requiring greater depth. The balance unsprouted should be moistened, and put back for another two weeks. As these trees are to remain where planted for two years they should be at least eighteen inches apart in the rows, and the rows three feet apart, to permit cultivation. If cultivated, that is the ground kept mellow, the weeds kept out, and an occa- sional top dressing of liquid manure given, sixteen months* from planting the seed you will have strong, healthy, vigorous young stocks on which you can bud whatever variety you choose of this most delicious fruit the world has ever seen. The time for budding, if on some late growing stock, as re- commended, is in September. The process of budding is de- scribed on a previous page. In the spring succeeding the budding, the trees should be transplanted to the orchard or garden, the same directions given for transplanting the apple and pear applying to this and all fruits. From eighteen to twenty-four feet apart is the proper distance for peach trees. The same careful after culture, of the * Some cultivators have recommended budding the same season the seed i«= planted, but the stocks are then so small that it is a more difficult ope- ration for the inexperienced. We prefer to cut back the head of the tree 'he 6rst season, and thus induce the growth of a vigorous stem before baddinof. 11 PEACHES, PLUMS, CHERRIES, AND APRICOTS. 551 soil with root crops and top dressings is necessary to the per- fection of all fruits^ and to the fruitfulness, health, and longer life of all fruit trees. The peach requires a light, sandy, warm soil. If too sandy an occasional top dressing of peat, clay, muck, or loam will amend it. The pruning of the peach is, after the preparation of the soil, the most important part of its culture. The sap tends more strongl)'' to the extremities of the shoots than in any other fruit, so that left to itself the peach forms a long stem and long scraggy branches ; while north of Virginia it should never be more than twelve feet high, (eight feet is still better,) with its lower limbs not more than three feet from the ground. This height and shape is easily secured by what is termed, shortening in, pruning. For this purpose pruning shears are much better than the knife. The fruit is borne only on wood of the last year's growth, and consequently another great object always to be kept in view, in pruning the peach, is to keep each part of the tree furnished with an equally distributed number of bearing shoots. Take a yearling tree in the spring, and cut it back to within two or three feet of the ground. Below this cut a number of shoots will spring, of which three (or at the most four) are to be allowed to grow to form the main branches. All other shoots appearing during the season mzisi he rubbed off. The next spring these three shoots should be cat back about half their length. From the shoots that will soo.u appear upon these shoots select two or three, and rub off all others from both stem and branches. This process is to be con- tinued every year, by cutting off at least half tne growth of the preceding year. Prune just beyond a bud as directed on page 532. The fourth year, and often the third, trees thus treated will 5:,2 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. begin to bear. They should, liowever, be allowed to ripen only a few specimens the first year the fruit sets, and at least one- half the fruit should be thinned from even moderately bearing trees. If a tree Avill ripen two hundred peaches it will surely PERFECT one hundred. One hundred large perfect peaches will briufT in the market double the price of two hundred small ones. A cultivator of eight acres of peaches employs ten to fifteen men from eight to ten days picking off the fruit, when about the size of a filbert, and gets two dollars a bushel for his peaches, more readily than his neighbors get fifty cents for the same varieties. Fig. 122 shows the proper shape for the peach ; and it is as tonishing what a hardy, thrifty, productive, and longlived fruit it becomes under this system of pruning, which is accomplished with great rapidity with sharp shears and a little fruit ladder on the principle oi Fig. 131. We have thoroughly pruned a dozen large six years old trees in less than an hour, and are sure that we could prune a hundred average trees a day. Can any intel- ligent man hesitate to adopt such a system, when so much can be gained by so small yearly outlay. Old trees whose vigor has been checked by borers at the* roots should be searched in the spring, and the worms de- stroyed. Says the author of "Ten Acres Enough:'' "Ten well grown bearing trees which I found in the garden were harboring one hundred and ninety worms among them when I undertook the work of extermination. I bared the collar and roots of each tree as far as I could track a worm, and cut him out. I then scrubbed the whole exposed part with soapsuds and a regular scrubbing- brush; after which I let them remain exposed for a week. If any worms had been overlooked the chips thrown out by their operations would be plainly visible on the clean surface at the PEACHES, PLUMS, CHERRIES, AND APRICOTS. ;53 week's end. Having tracked and cut them out also, I felt sure the enemy was exterminated, and covered up the roots, but first using a swab of common tar, applying it all around the collar, and some distance up." These trees were also trimmed, and for years have produced generous crops of luscious fruit. The same operation on nur- sery trees, when transplanted, will deter the worms from taking possession of the tree. Swab the stem from where the roots branch out for about twelve inches up the stem. Prevent the borers from getting in, and if they are already in, make all haste to get them out. Varieties of Peaches adapted to the latitude of the Northern New England States, Northern New York, etc. : * Bergen's Yellow F. Y. M. George I\^ F. TV. E. Cambridge Belle F. W. M. Cooledge's Favorite.. F. W. E. Crawford's Early F. Y. E. Crawford's Late F. Y. L. Early York F. W. Y. E. Grosse Mignonne F. W. E. Large Early York....F. W. P]. Morris White F. W. M. Old Mixon Free F. W. L. Old Mixon Cling! C. W. L. Varieties of the Peach adapted to Southern New England States, Southern New York, New Jersey, etc. : Barrington F. W. E. Bellegrade F. W. M. Cole's Early Red F. W. E. Cooledge's Favorite... F. W. E. Crawford's Early F. Y. E. Crawford's Late F. Y. L. Druid Hill F. W. L. Early Newington F. W. E. Earl^ York F.W. V. E. George IV F. W. E. Gross Mignonne F.W. E. Heath Cling C. W. L. * Abbreviations. F. Freestone. C. Clingstone. V. E. Very early. E. Early, or previous to September. M. Medium, or previous to Septem- ber 15th. L. Late. V. L. Very late. W. White Oe.^h. Y. Yellow or yellowish. 654 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. Large Eauly yoRK....F. W. E. Old Mixon Free F. W. L. Morris Wuite F. W. M. Rodman's Cling C. W. Y. L. NODLESSE F. W. M. Royal George F. W. E. For Pennsylvania add : Troth's Early Ked....F. W. E. Ward's Late Free..F. W. V. L. MoLDE.v White F. W. L. Red Rareripe F. W. M. For Kentucky, Vir Cole's Early Red.... Crawford's Early.... Druid Hill Cooledoe's Favorite. Crawford's Late Early Tillottson...F. Early York F. Grand Admirable Haines' Early Heatii Cling Large Early York... Late Red Rareripe.. Old Mixon Free ginia, Maryland, Delaware, etc. : ,F. W. E. Rodman's Cling C. ..F. Y. E. Scott's Nonpareil — .F. W. E. Troth's Early ..F. W. E. George IY ..F. Y. E. Grosse Mignonne W. V. E. Hale's Early W. Y. E. Kenrick's Heath. ..F. .C. W. L. Large White ClIxNG.. ..F. W. E. Morris White .C. W. L. Old Mixon Cling .F. W. E. Royal George .F, W. M. Smock Freestone • F. W. L. Yellow Rareripe For Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Barnard F. Y. M Cooledoe's Favorite...F. W. E Crawford's Late F. Y. L Early York F. W. Y. E Grand Admirable C. W. L Heath Cling C. W. L Lemon Clingstone C. Y. L Malta F. W. M Cole's Early Red F. W. E etc.: . Crawford's Early.... . Early Tillottson...F. . George IY . Grosse Mignonne . Large Early York... . Leopold Clingstone.. . Morris White , . Old Mixon Free . Rodman's Cling C. W. Y. L. .F. Y. L. . F. Y. E. F. W. E. F. W. E. F. W. E W. Y. L ,C. W. M. F. W. M. .C. W. L. .F. W. E. ..F. Y. L F. Y. M. ,.F. Y. E W. Y. E. • F. W. E. • E. W. E .F. W. E. F. W. M. F. W. L. W. Y. L PEACHES, PLUMS, CHERRIES, AND APRICOTS. 555 Troth's Early F. W. E. Yellow Rareripe F. Y. M, Old Mixon Cling C. W, L., For the Soutliera States : Smock Freestone F. Y. L. Ward's Late Free..F. M. V. L. BEST EIOHT VARIETIES. Chinese Cling F. ^Y. Y. E. Early Tillottson...F, W. V. E, La Grange F. W. V. L. Stump the World F. W. L. Bough F. W. 1u Heath Cling C. W. L. Large Early York....F. W. E. Serrate Ispahan SECOND BEST. Early Chelmspord....F. W. E. Crawford's Early F. Y. B. Crawford's Late F. Y. L. Harker's Seedling Pvoyal George F. W. E. Georgia Cling Horton's Delicious C. W. L. Large White Cling... C. W. M. Late Admirable F. W. L. Montgomery Late F. W. E. Fay's Early Ann...F. W. Y. E. The American Pomological Society have approved the fol iowinor varieties, in the order named: Crawford's Early, Crawford's Late, Old Mixon Free, Large Early York, Morris White, George IY., Cooledge's Favorite, Early York, Heath Cling, Grosse Mignonne, Old Mixon Cling, Troth's Early, Sturtevant, Ward's Late. Smock Freestone, Cole's Early Red, Haines' Early Red, Lemon Cling, Barnard, Jacques, Rodman's Cling, Stump the World, Yellow Rareripe, Bergen's Yellow, Columbia, Druid Hill, Grand Admirable, Hall's Early, 556 ' HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Kenrick's Heath, Bellegaede, Late Red Rareripe, Early Tillottson, Scott's Nonpareil, Hill's Madeira, Tippecanoe Cling, Large White Cling, Yellow Alberge, Malta, Van Zandt's Perfect, Royal George. (We give representations of Crawford's Earlj and Early York in our colored Fruit Plate.) Surely, from such a list as the above, every mouth should be supplied with this delicious fruit. The Plum is propagated by budding the choice varieties on the common wild Canada Plum or the blue Horse Plum. Two French plums, the St. Julien and Myroholan^ are also used for stocks. A strong, rich, clayey loam is the best soil for the plum, — a porous or sandy soil harboring so many insect ene- mies. The same rules of careful planting and after cultivation apply to the plum as to the pear. The plum should be budded in August or September. It is a vigorous grower, and each year's shoots should be cut back one-half at the spring pruning, or else should be pinched back through the summer. It bears its fruit on spurs on wood two years old or more, which spurs fihould be cut back, after the fruit is gathered. The best plums for general cultivation are: Washington, Coe's Golden Drop, Green Gage, Imperial Gage, Lombard, Smith's Orleans, Prince's Yellow Gage, Jefferson, Bradshaw, Lawrence Gage, and McLaughlin. Several other varieties are successfully grown in New York State, as the Columbia, Dam- son, Duane's Purple, (also successful in New Jersey and Ohio,) Huling's Superb, Monroe, Peach Plum, and White Magnum I^onum or Egg Plum. The Imperial Gage Plum is represented in our colored plate. PEACHES, PLUMS, CHERRIES, AND APRICOTS. 557 The Cherry is budded on tlie Mazzard Cherry for a stock, for about two weeks after midsummer, and is a doubtful opera- tion, if performed at any other time. The fruit grows on spurs, like the plum, and the tree requires no pruning, save to shape the head. The following is a select list of cherries, in the order of their ripening, the first being about the tenth of June, and the last about the first of August : Early Purple Guigne, Early Eichmond, Belle d'Orleaxs, Elton, Governor Wood, Black Eagle, Coe's Transparent, Yellow Spanish, Black Tartarian, Dormer's Late, Mayduke, Belle Magnifique. rockport. The Apricot is budded on its own and on peach and plum .stocks. The plum is preferred, and is best adapted to heavy soils. The soil should be deep and dry ; the situation should be on the north or west side of a wall fence or building. It is a delicious fruit, that ripens at least a month earlier than the best early peaches, and deserves to be much more generally cultivated. All directions given for planting and pruning the peach apply to this fruit. The best are, the Breda, Early Golden, Moore Park, Peach, Large Early, Eed Masculine, (the latter valuable only for its earliness,) and the Golden Nectarine, represented in our colored fruit plate. CHAPTER XVI. DISEASES AND INSECTS INJURIOUS TO FRUIT. ^?HE DISEASES OF FEUIT TREES are mostly the "■^ijl result of either neglect in cultivation or the ravages J^^ of insects. A thrifty, strong, growing tree is but little ^^ liable to disease. Thorough drainage, deep cultivation, and such manuring as is given to other crops will prevent nine- tenths of the diseases of the fruit tree. The Blight of the pear, apple, and quince has not been traced to its cause ; but the remedy is to cut off at once all dis- eased parts and burn them. This blight spreads rapidly, and it is economy even to cut off the whole head of several valuable trees, rather than incur the loss of the whole orchard. Stag- nation OF THE Sap is mostly caused by barrenness of the soil and water at the roots ; the remedies are therefore underdrain- ing and manuring. Winter Killing is the result of the expo- sure of the stem to the sun. A few warm days in the latter part of the winter starts the sap and the buds, and the succeed- mg cold weather freezes both. A northern exposure is therefore the best for such fruits. The shorter the stem the less liable is the tree to this mishap. Warts on the plum and cherry should be cut off and burned as soon as they are discovered, ■ and the wound covered with the preparation of shellac before .■; recommended. The Mildew will not appear on the peach in a deep dry soil, if they are well mulched, manured, and cultivated 558 I DISEASES AND INSECTS INJURIOUS TO FRUIT. 559 as recommended. Stone fruits are liable to become gummed, vvhicli is a troublesome and destructive complaint. "When any large limbs are pruned from these trees the wound should be covered with shellac. In the cherry it is often the result of tight bark, and a longitudinal cut in the smooth bark will remedy it. All the diseased parts should be scraped off and the place covered with shellac. The Yellows in the Peach is usually the result of neglect in cultivation. Trees affected with it should be immediately destroyed, and the balance ma- nured and cultivated. Nearly all other diseases of fruit trees are caused by insects, the study of whose characters and habits is one of the most interesting in which we have ever engaged. The limits of this book will only allow us to describe those most destructive, and give plain practical directions for their destruction. "Wado not give the hard scientific names, which, though of utmost import- ance to the naturalist, only confuse the practical farmer. The Borer is common to most varieties of fruit. The eggs from which they are hatched are laid by a moth or beetle,* in the tender bark just above the surface of the ground, commen- cing about the last of June. The eggs speedily hatch, and the worm remains for a long time just under the surface of the bark, and then eats its way through ana through the wood. The remedies are three in number, and should a^T he used, if complete success is desired. It is of the utmost consequence to destroy as many as possible of the original insect that lays the egg. This is done by building fires in the orchard in the early evenings in June. These insects, as also the caterpillar, moth, and many others injurious to vegetation, fly abroad at this time, * The apple tree borer by a striped beetle and the peach borer by a wasp-like moth. 5(30 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. :ire attracted by the blaze, and fall easy victims. The old bark should be scraped off in the spring for twelve inches above the ground and two inches under, and if there are borers in the tree their holes will be discernible. Eun a needle or a wire into these holes and destroy their occupant. Swab this portion of the stem with tar, or wash it thoroughly with strong soapsuds. Burn the old bark scraped off. Put a peck or two of lime or ashes around the stem of the tree in May, and keep it there until October, when it should be distributed under the tree. The Tent Caterpillar is a terrible foe to our apple or- chards. The eggs from which they are hatched are laid in rings around small branches, mostly in July, by a reddish brown moth. Each ring consists of three or four hundred eggs. They are hatched with the unfolding of the leaf the next spring They immediately begin to form a web or tent (whence their name) and to forage on the young leaves. They do not leave their nests until about nine o'clock in the morning, again at noon, and just before night. They increase rapidly in size, and if neglected devour every green thing within their reach. The first thing to be done is to have every wild cherry tree cut down and burned ; as this is the original chosen home and breeding place of this caterpillar. Then this little circle of eggs should be sought for at the time of fall or spring pruning, scraped off', and burned. If any escape this cleaning, as soon as their webs begin to show upon the tree, if where they can be reached, strip them off at once with the gloved hand, and crush them under foot or burn them. With a long handled mop soaked in strong soapsuds wet the nests that are out of reach of the hand. The mop should be thrust into the nest, breaking it open the soapsuds will kill every worm it touches. This operation is best performed in the morning, before the caterpillars leave their nest, and should be repeated every few days until no more I DISEASES AN'D INSECTS INJURIOUS TO FRUIT. 561 appear. Lastly, thousands of tlie moths, and thus hundreds of thousands of eggs, can be destroyed by building fires in the or- chards as before recommended. Not only use these preventive means yourself, but urge the same upon all your neighbors. The Canker WoR:sr is by many confounded with the tent caterpillar, but is of a different habit, and requires different pre- ventive measures. The female moth of this species is wingless. They begin to come out of the ground early in the spring, and crawling to the nearest tree deposit their eggs upon the branches, and then die. The eggs hatch about May first to fiheenth, and the worm immediately commences its ravages, which are often fearful. Vv'lien they attain their full growth they are about an inch in length, from whence they are often called inch worms. They attain their growth in about four weeks, when they drop or crawl to the ground and descend into it until another season. To prevent these operations is more difficult than with the caterpillar, but an application of melted rubber around the trunk will prevent most of the females from ascend- ing the tree. A band of grafting clay about the trunk and covered with tar will answer the same purpose. The orchard infested with canker worms should be plowed up in the fall, and the pigs and poultry turned into it. Bark Lice are often found on young trees in great quantities; they should be washed off with a strong solution of soapsuds. If found on old trees, the old dead bark shoula be all scraped off and soapsuds scrubbed into every crack and crevice with a brush, as high up as you can reach. The Apple Worm is hatched by a small gray- winged moth, which appears in great numbers the first warm evenings in June, and lays its eggs in the blossom end of the fruit, where soon hatches the little grub which eats its way into and spoils the apple, causing it to fall prematurely to the ground. Soon after 5(32 now TO make the farm pay. it falls the worm makes its escape, either into the ground or under the bark of the tree, until the following spring, when the young moth again emerges. It will be readily seen that the first thing to be done is to destroy as many as possible of these moths, by building fires in the orchard at the time of their ap- pearance. When convenient, turn the pigs and poultry into the orchard as soon as the apples begin to fall, or pick up the fallen fruit every 'day, and feed it to the hogs, or burn it. Thus the worms are destroyed before they leave the fruit. An old cloth placed in the crotch of the tree when the fruit is falling will attract many of the worms, and they can be readily destroyed. The old bark should be scraped off every spring, until yor are rid of all worms at least. Pear trees are subject to severs' insects of the bark, Avhich must be removed by scrubbing with a stiff brush and a solution of potash, one pound to two gallons of water, or whale-oil soap, one pound to three gallons of water , these washes should not be applied so strong when the tree is in full foliage, and may be made stronger after the fall of the leaf. The Slug is another enemy of both the pear and cherry It resembles the snail, and eats the leaf. Soapsuds or strong tobaccco water will destroy him. The CuiiCULio is the great enemy of the plum species, and often attacks other fruits. It is a small brown insect, which makes a crescent shaped incision in the fruit, and in it deposits its eggs. This is done mostly in May and June. The grub is .soon hatched, and eats its way to the stone, when the fruit drops from the tree, and the grub escapes into the ground. These troublesome little insects appropriate to themselves whole or- chards of fruit, first the apricot, plum and cherry, then the apple, pear, poach, and other fruits. The apricot and plum being first attacked, the work of destruction must commence Mere. When the Curculio first makes its appearance in DISEASES AND IXSECT3 INJURIOUS TO FRUIT. 563 numbers, place a sheet on the ground under the tree, aud strike the trunk with a wooden mallet, (cover the head with cloth so as not to bruise the bark,) and thej will fall, all curled up, and apparently lifeless, when they can easily be collected and de- stroyed. Repeat this every morning for a week. When the fruit begins to fall gather it up .every day and destroy it, or let the pigs do it for you* On account of the curculio, the soil for the plum should be heavy clay, and never cultivated ; the harder the ground under the tree the less chance is there for the burrowing and hatching of the grub. Paving under the trees or a coating of mortar prevents this. In all this work of destroying our insect enemies we are aided by the numerous birds of the orchard and the garden. They should therefore be encouraged in every possible way to take up their abodes with us. The English Sparrows are to be especially recommended for this purpose. If every farmer would place one or more pairs of these little friends in his orchard, they and their rapidly increasing progeny would soon save many dollars worth of fruit from the insect destroyer. Their wanton destruction by thoughtless men or boys is not only cruel, but costly. *A careful fruit grower informs us that ho drives a spike into the tree just under the largest branch, and strilies the spike when he wishes to jar the tree. CHAPTER XVII. CRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. ^THE CORNER STONES OF GRAPE CULTURE are "; l|! underdraining, deep and thorough preparation of the y^^. soil, horizontal training, and renewal pruning. Under- ^(s draining has been already fully described. The subse- quent operations are treated of in this Chapter. Vineyard Culture. The soil in which the grape will not grow is hardly to be found. Limestone soils are best, as they need the least preparation. A loose, friable soil, whether it be sand, gravel, or loam, is rather to be chosen, than clay or muck, although even these may be reclaimed. The situation should be one protected from the north winds. This may be secured by planting on the southern, eastern, or southeastern slope of a hill ; or, if this cannot be secured, a belt of woods at the north will answer the purpose; but where neither of these can be had, a belt of evergreens should be planted across the northern end of the vineyard, at least thirty feet from where the vines are to stand. The valley of a small stream is unfavorable, •while the valley of a large stream, or the vicinity of a large body of water, is desirable. Whatever the situation, the soil must be made perfectly dry and open by underdraining. The Preparation of the Soil is a matter of the utmost importance, and it should be borne in mind that this is not an ordinary crop, and does not require an annual preparation, but 504 GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 565 it is one that requires but one planting in a lifetime, while it will reward us with annual harvests. Many of the new soils in our Western States need no manures ; but a soil not naturally adapted to the grape, or partially exhausted, will need various additions. If the soil is not surcharged with lime a liberal dressing of it will always be beneficial. When the soil is sandy or gravelly, it will require an abundant dressing of barn- yard manure, muck, leaf mould, or the plowing under of green crops. Muck and leaf mould are especially valuable on such, soils, and thousands of acres of almost barren, sandy soils, in the Eastern States, by the application of leaf mould from the adjoining forest or muck from the neighboring swamp, might be made to bear most luxuriant and profitable crops of the grape. Such soils, thus amended, are easily worked, are already underdrained, and produce the richest quality of fruit. Whatever the soil, it should be plowed and subsoiled to the depth of twenty inches, and manured with a compost of peat or muck and leaf nlould, with old well rotted stable manure. This compost should be made several months before it is applied, and thoroughly forked over frequently before using. Ashes, lime, bones, or charcoal will always prove a valuable addition. A few soils will do without any application but a top dressing of lime, harrowed in ; others will require a light dressing of fifty loads to the acre, and from this up to two or ihree hundred loads. Where the barnyard manure cannot be obtained, the compost may be made without it, adding lime ashes and a bushel of salt to every ten loads. This compost should stand at least six months, and be frequently forked over. Whichever compost is used, it should be applied after the plow- ing and subsoiling, and cross plowed in, then harrowed and cross harrowed, as complete pulverization is of the utmost im- portance to the young vines. "Will all this pay?" We 56t; ^o^Y to make the farm pay. answer that tliere can be no doubt but that it will pay mist abundantly. After the preparation of tlie soil and planting of the vine, the expense of culture is small, while the crops con- tinue and increase. Propagation' from Seeds and Layers, but principally KiJOM Cuttings. The seeds are cleaned and sown exactly as described for the pear. This process is not common, but is both interesting and profitable. Grape Vines are usually bought of the nurseryman, but for several reasons we recon-i- mend the raising each man of his own. Of course, the first vines must be procured from some other source. Select two or three varieties which you wish to cultivate, and order two or tliree vines of each kind. Prepare a border three feet deep will! leaf mould, etc. Set the vines as described elsewhere. {See Fig. 123.) Only one shoot should be allowed to grow the first season ; all others must be rubbed off. Train this cane to an upright stake six or eight feet high. It is not best to let it grow higher than this ; pinch off the top if it does. In the autumn cut it down to four buds, and in the extreme north protect the vine with straw thiough the winter. Two of the buds only should be allowed to grow in the spring. If any fruit clusters appear, pinch them off; also all laterals above the first leaf and all tendrils: the object is strong wood. Pinch the tops as before, if they grow above the stake. In the au- tumn one of these canes should be again cut down to two buds, and the other about one-third its length ; if the cane is six feet this will leave four feet. If it is desirable to protect the vine, it can be bent down and covered with straw or earth. These four feet canes wc intend for layering, and the wood cut off for cuUirigs. The length of wood cut from these ten vines, sup- posing the canes to have been only six feet long, will be forty feet, whicfi will make from one hundred to one hundred and GRAPE CULTUEE AND WINE MAKING. 5G7 twenty cuttings. Eacli cutting should have at least two Luds. {See Fig. 123.) The cuttings will be from four to six inches in length. These cuttings should be packed in boxes in moist sand or damp moss, and buried out of reach of frost, or put in the cellar. In the South thej may be set out in the fall, and wc have set them out in Massachusetts in the fall, and protected them until spring with heavy coatings of manure and mulch; but the safest way, as far north as this, is to pack them away until spring. The cutting bed sliould be prepared early in the fall. Supposing we have one hundred cuttings, we want a bed two rods long and four feet wide. This should be trenched two feet deep and the compost worked in to the depth of eighteen, inches. Six inches of the compost with two pecks of ashes will make a good bed. In all these applications leaf mould is especially valuable. The trenches for the cuttings should be a little deeper than the length of the cutting and nearly perpen- dicular on one side. {See Fig. 123.) The cuttings should be placed from three to four inches apart in the trench, and the trenches two feet apart. Fig. 123 shows the position of the cutting when set. The top of the bud, however, should be about one inch below the level of the surface. The earth should be pressed carefully, but closely, about the cuiting at the bottom, and more loosely about the upper bud, which should be just covered. This will leave the trench an inch lower than the surface. After the bud has made a shoot of two or three inches the trench may be filled, covering the bml one inch and mulching the ground on each side the rows. These cuttings will make a growth of from three to six feet, and should be kept tied to stakes to help the ripening of the wood. In the autumn they should be transplanted, but not yet to the vineyard. [See Transplanting) The third method of propagation is by layers. We left a cane 5o8 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PA^. four feet long on each of our original ten vines, for Layering. This ia the most certain method in use, although the nuniLer of pkntJ obtained is not so large. We would say here that un- lc58 the vine makes a very vigorous growth, it is better to delay layering until the third season, cutting hoih canes back to two buds instead of one, as recommended above. When, however, it is decided to layer the vine, uncover it, if coyered, as soon as the fn)sts are passed, and^when the buds j^et well started dig a trench from the vine six inches wide, from four to six inches deep, and long enough to receive the cane, wliich should be bent down to the bottom of the trench, and fastened there by hooked pegs or fiat stones. The vine should lie flat in the bottom of the t,rench. {Fig. 124.) Let it remain until the shoots have grov/n three or four inches, then rub off those not wanted. Four shoots for a four feet vine is a good rule to follow in this selection. Drive down a stake by the side of each and draw an inch of soil into the trench. In ten days or a fort- night a little more dirt can be drawn in, and so on, until the whole trench is filled. Never fill the trench when the vine is layered in the spring, v.& it will be likely to cause rot. Each of the shoots should be trained to a stake, and no one cane al- lowed to take too much of the sap. If one shoot gets the start of the others it must be pinched off. Hoe the ground frequently through the summer, or else mulch it to keep down the weeds, and absorb the moisture. The other cane that was cut down to two buds .should be allowed to produce two or three shoots only, and all laterals, tendrils, and fruit clusters taken off', unless you wish to perfect a few bunches to test their quality, when only two shoots should be allowed to grow, and a single bunch of fruit allowed to m;iturc on each one. It is not best to make layers and take fruit from the same plant. Layers can be taken from the parent vine in the fall or the GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 569 following spring. Eemember in taking up and cutting the layers that the roots should be towards the parent vine, so that • the sap will not have to go backwards. The further treatment of these layers will be treated in remarks on transplanting This same process of cutting down one cane and layering another can be carried on so long as vines are wanted, provided that every year the plant makes a vigorous growth of wood, but if it does not it should have a year of rest. It is now three years since we planted the original ten vines, and we have at least one hundred and fifty vines ready for transplanting. Not only will you have better plants, and at a less cost, than when procured from a nursery, but you will have practical experience of the habits of the vine that will be of value to you in future cultivation. Transplanting should be done in the autumn, after the fall of the leaf, except with tender varieties and extreme northern latitudes. The vines, whether layers or cuttings, should be taken up very carefully with a spading fork, preserving all the roots if possi- ble. These roots can then be cut carefully and evenly. A small portion of the roots, if well covered with fine fibrous root- lets, will answer the purposes of the plant. If transplanted in the spring the stem cane should be cut down to two buds, if in the fall four should be left from which to select two in the spring. Whether to be planted in the fall or no, it is better to take up the plants, and cut back the head and roots in the fall, which is also much the best time to get plants from the nursery. These plants should be heeled in for the winter, which consists in covering the roots and most of the stem with mellow earth and straw to protect from frost. In transplanting, the roots should be left exposed to the air as little as possible. The trench should be dug before the vines are taken up. 570 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. This trench should be eighteen inches wide, three deep on one Bide and five on the other, and tlie vines set in it, as in Fig. 125, three feet apart. The benefit of this transphanting to the nur- sery a year before the final transplanting to tne vineyard will be [?reat and lasting. The soil in the nursery should be pre- pared just as directed for the cutting bed. Well grown layers mav sometimes be transplanted at once to the vineyard, but will be permanently benefited by a second transplanting. They should daring this season in the nursery be trained to upright stakes, and all laterals and tendrils pinched oft'. And as we shall have occasion to speak often of laterals and tendrils we will explain what we mean. A lateral is a small branch which grows from the axel or arm pit of the leaf, close between the leaf and the stem of the vine. It will not do to take it out wholly, but when it has made two or three leaves pinch off all but one ; if it starts again, pinch again, leaving one more leaf. A tendril is a curling stem which grows opposite a bud or leaf, without fruiting, and should be cut off. After standing one season in the nursery comes their final transplanting to the vineyard. We speak of the cutting bed nursery and vineyard, as of three separate places, but the two former may well bo in a corner of the latter. The holes for the plants should be dug before they are removed. The rows should run east and west six feet apart, and the plants four feet apart in the rows. If in after years these should be found too close, an arm can be cut off to give the desired room. If the roots upon the vines when taken from the nursery are circular, as is usually the case with cuttings, the holes should be circular, SIX inches deep at the edges, and two or three deep in the centre. If the roots are all on one side, as is often the case with layers, the square hole will accommodate them, the tips of the roots being placed lower than the base. {Figs. 125 and 126.) GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 571 The same rules for cutting back roots and cane apply liere as before. The soil should be pressed closely about the roots and protected from the frost by straw. Unless the trellis is set before planting, a stout stake eight feet long should be driven firmly into each hole before the vines are set. The roots should be carefully spread out before covering them. In fall planting a little mound should be raised about the stem to protect tho lower buds ; in spring planting this is reversed, and a hollow left about the stem, to collect the rains, which shoukl be filled, and the ground mulched as soon as the vine gets well started into growth. Five years have now passed since the purchase of the first vines. Let us review them. The first year we grew a single cane on each vine, which when cat afforded us say thirty cut- tings. The second we grew these thirty cuttings, also twenty canes on the ten vines, which made us say one hundred cuttings. The third year we transplanted the thirty cuttings to the nur- sery, grew one hundred more cuttings and forty plants by layer- ing, and made, if we saved the wood cut from all the vines at transplanting, over six hundred cuttings; the fourth year we transplanted one hundred and forty plants to the nursery, and grew the six hundred cuttings. At the end of tho fifth year we have eight hundred plants in the vineyard, (one hundred and seventy of them having been there a year, and borne a sample cluster of fruit each,) an indefinite number of plants in the nur- sery, and several thousands in the cutting bed, if we made all the pruned wood into cuttings. It may be well to do this, for grape growing is contagious, and some of your neighbors will by this time have the fever, and you can supply them with better plants at a less price than the nurseryman. Encourage all your neighbors to go into it and give them such advice as you can, for the business cannot be overdone, and the more 572 110\V TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. there nre raised in a given locality the more readily will you find a market for them. Parchasers M'ill come where the goods ftrc. Pi;iMN"i AXD Traixixg. Pruning commences as soon as the vine begins to grow, for the pinching off of the laterals, tops, tendril.s, buds, or shoots is pruning. But pruning for the pur- poses of training, only commences with the second year of the vine in the vineyard. We shall give three methods of pruning and training the vine, in the order in which we value them. The best system we have ever seen is the horizontal arm train- ing. Tlie/r5^ year in the vineyard the vine is only allowed to grow one upright cane, which is cut back in the foil to four buds, two of which are allowed to gvovr the second year. In both cases they should be kept tied to a stake and all laterals, tendrils, etc., pinched as before directed. A single cluster of fruit may be allowed to grow on each strong cane the second year, as a sample of Avhat may be expected in abundance by and by. If the cane makes a strong, vigorous growth of from si.K to ten feet, cut each cane back to four feet, and bend the ends down to the ground on opposite sides of the stock and fasten thoni with hooked pegs. The Teellis should now be built, if not already done. If done before planting the vines, it obviates the use of the stake and is ready whenever wanted. The best Ibrni of trellis is that with upright instead of horizon- tal wires. A ten or twelve foot post is set in the ground between the vines, which for this purpose should be eight feet apart in the rows. Cross bars are nailed across, one twelve to fourteen inches from the ground and the other at the top, say six to eight feet from the ground. When the vine is taken up in tlie spring, stretch the arras along the lower bar and make a mark on the bar where each shoot is to grow; drive a nail into ^ the bar at the mark and one into the upper bar directlv above GRAPli CULTURE AND WIXE MAKING. 573 it, and stretch number sixteen galvanized wire between the two points. Tliis trellis is cheaper and bette^^ than the horizontal wire trellis commonly used. Cheaper, because number sixteen wire can be used instead of number ten, which gives one hundred feet to the pound, while number ten gives only twenty feet lo the pound. Better, because the wires are just where you want them to train the shoots to. When the vine is taken up in the spring, fasten the two arms along the lower bar and select three or four buds on the upper side of each arm. If the vines have grown strong, the buds will be from four to six inches apart, in which case nearly all the buds on the upper side will be left ; all others should be rubbed off. AVhere there is a bud missing on the upper side an under bud may be trained up to fill its place. As soon as these shoots get long enough they should be tied to the wires. Each one of these upright canes will usually set a few bunches of fruit. If the vine is very strong and vigorous, each may be allowed to" bear three or four bunches. When these upright canes have grown about two feet, they should be stopped, by pinching off their ends, say from two to four leaves beyond the last bunch of fruit; they will soon start again, and after a few inches growth should be stopped again. All the laterals should be pinched the same aa on young vines. At the winter pruning, these canes are to be cut down to three buds, two of which are to be allowed to grow the next season. This is the sixth year from the cutting, and the fourth year of the vine in the vineyard, and one of the canes from each spur may be allowed to ripen all the fruit it will. The principle of pruning now is to let one-half the vine bear one year and the other the next. From each spur on horizontal arms let two canes grow every year, and rub off all others aa soon as they appear. The cane that bears this year should be cut clear away, and the other cut down to two buds. 574 now TO make tite taum pay. Never let the same cane bear twice, nor let one cane grow taller than the others and rob them of their nourishment. {Fig. 183 explained on page 60-i,) represents this system of horizontal ftrm tniining and alternate renewal The Objections urged against grape culiure are, that the preparation of the ground is toe expensive ; the cost of the vines too great; the trellis too expensive; pruning too complicated; the life of 'the vines too urtcertain; the time before the returns come in too long ; and the market too uncertain. Every one of these objections arises from an entire misapprehension. The grape does not require large quantities of barnyard manure oi fertilizers ; if it did it would pay to give it all it required to the amount of one thousand dollars per acre ; but its wants are very simple, being confined to a little lime, and plenty of leaf mould and muck, which can usually be had for the drawmg. Can it possibly cost over one dollar per load ? Allow one hundred loads to the acre, and you have a cost of one hundred dollars. Add to tliis the cost of plowing, subsoiling, cross- plowing after the manure is put on, harrowing and cross- harrowing, and you have an acre prepared for a crop that will bear for fifty years. We say nothing about underdraining, because a soil that is too wet should be underdrained, whatever crop you put on it. Again, tens of thousands of acres in every Eastern State which arc almost worthless for any other crop, if prepared in this way will at once increase in value tenfold, and will make returns in grapes that will astonish their owners. The cost of plants is a heavy item when they are bought at the nursery, but, by the plan we have recommended, from ten vines you can in four years raise all the plants you will want for an acre, and sell cuttings enough to pay the whole expense The demand for plants is immense and increasing, and must GRAPE CULTURE AXD WIXE MAKIXG. 07o increase for years to come. The grape fever is on the country, and nurserymen, to supply the demand, are using everything hi the shape of grape wood to make phints from. They are no doubt doing the best they can under the circumstances, but even by their forcing they cannot begin to supply the demand, and we cannot blame them if they get theii own prices. They can make better plants, and cheaper than you can, but they icill not do it as long as they can get full prices for everything that has a root to it. You can manage to raise all the plants you need and make the cuttings pay the expense. The trellis will be the next item of expense, but by the plan we have recommended you get a much better trellis for your money, than by the old plan of horizontal wires, which neces- sitated the use of number ten wire. Six hundred posts to the acre will be the largest number 3'ou can possibly need, even for the moderate growing varieties, and ought to be had for sixty dollars. If the ends are tarred or charred before they are set, they will last a long time. Cedar posts are considered the best when they are to be obtained. Tins will necessitate twelve hundred cross bars an inch thick by two and a half or three inches wide, and eiglit feet long. In the Eastern States, where everv farmer owns timber land, these can be got out with but little actual outlay. An acre trained and trellised as we have recommended will require three hundred pounds of wire, which at twenty cents per pound (the highest price we have ever paid) will cost sixty dollars. Use galvanized wire, as it lasts much longer than the common annealed wire. Pruning is not complicated nor dif&cult, but as simple as the alphabet, and a boy may do the fall pruning of one hundred full grown vines in a day. Take, for example, a vine Avith two arras of five feet each, and five spurs on each arm, and two 576 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. canes to each spur, just twenty cuts with the pruning shears are required to prune this vine. We allow two minutes to each vine of this size, or thirty an hour. Cut away the cane that has borne the previous season, and cut the other down to throe or four buds. The vines are free from leaves. niul the place to cut is easily discerned. It is the summer pinching of the laterals, tendrils, and tops that requires the most trouble, but this is exceedingly simple, as we have already pliown. In a mild climate, pruning can be done at any time between the foil of the leaf and the starting of the sap ; in the Middle State.-?, either in the fall or spring, and only in the extreme Northern States must be delayed until February or March. Neither is the life of the vine uncertain, unless abused. There are many cases of vines on record that have borne for over one hundred years, and some that have borne for upwards of four hundred years. A selection of hardy varieties and winter protection, while young and tender, will secure fine crops of grapes, in our extreme Northern States, and nothing but the utmost negligence will produce the death of the vine, south of Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Iowa. Excessive bear- ing while young will so weaken the vine that it will be winter killed, north of these boundaries, and winter protection is a decided benefit south of them. A very simple method of pro- tecting the vines, is to bend down the arms after the fall pruning, and shovel on earth enough to hold them down, then run the plow through and throw a furrow slice over them, going through again, and covering any tliat the plow has failed to cover. This is all work, but all crops require work, and this one will pay more abundantly for every care than almost any other. The time before the returns from actual sales of grapes come in, is longer than for ordinary crops, but the salei GEAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 57? of cuttings, if properly managed, will usually more than pay the expenses of cultivation, and the first full crop of grapes often pays the whole cost of preparation, trellises and all. We give below the yield of a vineyard within our knowledge, for ten years after planting. 1857. 2| acres cuttings sold $240 1858. Cuttings planted for an additional 2 J acres, but valued at 400 1859. Cuttings planted to grow plants for sale. Grapes sold 468 . 1860. Plants sold 600 Grapes " 870 Wine " 344 1861. Plants " 500 Grapes " 1,120 1862. Plants " 660 Grapes " 704 Wine " 980 1863. Plants " 840 Grapes " 1,512 Wine *" 730 1864. Plants " 300 Grapes " 412^ 1865. Plants " 5 acres in bearing 1,1(^6 Grapes " 5,120 Wine' " . 3,500 1866. Plants " 1,100 Grapes " 600 Wine " 7,400 For the ten years ^29,506 or an average of nearly three thousand dollars per year, and fourteen thousand two hundred, or over seven thousand dollars per year, for the last two years, which yield may be safely calculated upon for years to come. Mr. George Hussman, a large grape grower at Herman, 35 57S HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Missouri has realized from two and a half acres the first five years after planting $23,305.80 The plants and trellis for the 2J acres cost .... 1,277.00 Five years labor at $500 per year 2,500.00 Interest on capital 600.00 Leaving a clear profit of $19,028,80 for the first five years. This is a profit of over fifteen hmadred dollars per year per acre. This is large, but we think, with the information we have given, any farmer can clear an average profit of one thousand dollars per acre from his grape crop. The last objection, if a real one, would be fatal to the whole [ scheme. But it is the most absurd of the whole. There is market for one hundred pounds of grapes to every pound that is grown. Even the poorest varieties, picked before they are ripe, bring from fifteen to twenty-five cents per pound, and no one gets enough. As grapes are improved in quality, by the better systems of cultivation, and the introduction of better varieties, the old customers will increase their demands, and thousands of new ones will spring up on every side. Ten years ago, the acres of grapes in this country were not over four thousand, now they are as many million ; but the demand has increased faster than the supply, and never was there such a pressure as now. At the same ratio of increase, ten years from to-day there will be four billion acres of grapes. If such an increase were possible or probable, we say that ten years from now the product of that number of acres would be as surely in demand as the present product; for if every citizen were glutted with fruit, we have still the wine to fall back upon, wliich we can make for home consumption, and even for export at immense profits. The amount paid for imported wines is enormous, and we can make a much better article at home II GEAPE C¥LTURE AND WINE MAKING. 679 Our opinion is, that if pure grape wine could be made as plenty as whiskey, men would drink it instead, and thus the terrible evil of intemperance be very much lessened. We say to every one who has a square rod of ground, plant a vine. A second system of training we will call the "Lakeview" system, as it is practised at " Lakeview," Ohio. The post is set before the vine is planted, and for the first two years the vine is trained to the post. Four canes are grown each year, after the first, only two being allowed to bear. The third year, slats are nailed from the top of each post to near the bottom of the next, say one foot from the ground, and the two canes not allowed to bear are trained on these, wliile the bearing canes are trained to the post. The cutting back is the same as in the other system ; the two canes that have borne being cut out, and the two that are to be the bearing canes next year cut back to three or four buds. The advantages of this system are that vines are saved, and also the stakes on which in the other sys- tem the vines are trained the first two years. But we consider that it has too many disadvantages to come into common use, except as an expedient where capital is scarce. Still another, and the most slovenly and wasteful sj'-stem that can well be contrived, is that of simply training each vine to a cedar stake. It involves the purchase or growing of three times as many vines, without a corresponding increase of fruit. The system of pruning is the same ; two canes bearing each year. There may be an endless number of modifications of the first system, of some of which we shall speak in Garden Culture. The cultivation of the grape in the vineyard consists in keep ing the ground mellow and the weeds down. A cultivator shduld be run through the rows as often as once a fortnight, and the hoe used freely in stirring the earth and killing the weeds, where the cultivator will not reach. The soil should . 5^0 HOW TO MAKE THP] FA»M PAY. nol bo worked when wet, nor so deeply near the vines as to cut the main roots. The best implement we have ever seen for killin^^ the weeds is a hoe known as Allen's Weed Killer. (See cut elsewhere.) For stirring the soil about the stems, a pronged hoe is used. A good plan for plowing, and at the same time covering the vines, is to prune soon after the fall of the leaf, and then, lay down the vines lengthwise of the trellis, and fas- ten them with a peg or stone. Pass down with the plow as near the vine as you can without cutting the roots, and throw a furrow slice over the vine, come back on the other side of the row, and cover the othfer vine ; continue this until all tne ground between the rows is plowed, leaving a trench in the middle. Go through and see that the vines were well covered. In the spring, begin at the trench, and turn the earth back and away from the vines. Manures should not be applied so long as the growth is vigorous, but as soon as it begins to decline apply more manure. A compost, such as we have previously discribed, should be on hand for use, and should be applied after the fall plowing. Ashes and lime in moderate quantities are always beneficial. If you once let your vines run down for lack of food, you can never recover your loss. The food they ask for is plenty and cheap, but they must have it. Bone dust, guano, etc., applied as a top dressing, will soonest reach the plant, but will not make good the lack of the compost. In an exceedingly poor soil, where it is not possible to secure at first, the requisite amount of compost at once, two quarts of bone dust and a shovel full of manure may be put at the root of each plant, and one cane allowed to grow ; in the fall cut it back to two buds, and again allow only one cane to grow. If It makes a growth of ten feet, cut it back to four, and layer it as before described. When the young plants are a foot hig 'Iraw in an inch or two of soil, with a little more bone dusd I GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 581 Four canes are allowed to grow from*tliis four foot layer ; they should be staked, and pinched as described for other plants, and no fruit allowed to grow the first year. Cut these canes back to three buds, and allow two canes to grow the next year, one of which may bear a few bunches of fruit ; subsequent pruning is the same as described for horizontal arms. The reader will see that the object of this treatment is to get strong roots before allowing the plant to bear. More time, and double the number of plants are required to obtain the same amount of fruit, which will not be so good ; it is only recommended there- fore for very poor soils, where the compost cannot be secured to begin with. \ Gathering, packing, marketing, and keeping are important matters in grape culture. The grape will only ripen on the vine ; and as the public taste becomes educated on this subject, they will insist on having ripe fruit. When ripe, the stem will shrivel, and soon the grape will begin to shrivel about the stem. The bloom on the grape is a token of its ripeness. In the de- scriptions of varieties we shall give the tokens of each variety. The grape will increase in weight, beauty, and flavor by being allowed to ripen perfectly on the vine, and, even if one or two weeks later in the market, will bring a higher price than the unripe grape. For wine, they should be left on as long as the frosts will permit. Nearly all the grapes now in cultivation color at least two weeks before they ripen. When gathered it should be done as carefully as possible. They can be gathered quickest and best by means of scissors which hold them after they are cut. Cut the stems as long as possible and lay them in a shallow basket. They are packed for market in shallow boxes; the method being to cut out with small sharp scissors imperfect grapes, and spread the bunches out on a table. Turn the box bottom upwards, take off the 582 now TO make the x^'arm pay. ' bottom, put in a sheet oil thin white paper or a lajer of grape leaves ; pack iu whole bunches of grapes, as closely as possible without jamming them or rubbing off the bloom ; fill up the vacant places with parts of bunches, and, lastly, with single grapes, until the whole space is filled ; then put on another layer of paper or leaves, and continue the layers until the box is filled. The art of keeping grapes is just beginning to be understood in this countr}'-, and we are just learning what varieties will keep. For this purpose they must be thoroughly ripe, care- fully gathered, all unripe, imperfect, or decayed berries picked out, spread out on a dry floor or shelves for a few days, and then packed in boxes, with paper between the layers. The bunches should not be allowed to touch each other. They should be put away in a cool room. The lids of the boxes may be left up a little, until it gets too cool. In this way some of our grapes may be kept until spring, when their greatly in- creased price will repay the trouble of preservation. A warm, damp atmosphere will spoil the grape, however carefully packed. The Garden Culture of the grape requires some modifica- tions of the foregoing rules, but in all its essential principles is the same. There are but few gardens in either city or country where there may not be found a sunny spot large enough to accommodate a few vines ; and when the owner gets a grape : that suits him, he can reproduce, modify, and cultivate to suit! himself. The first requisite here, as before, is drainage. If it cannot be obtained by draining the garden or yard into a sewer,] dig a trench with one end two feet deep and a gradual descent] to the other end, into which should be thrown broken bricks,! rrockery, or stones, to facilitate the drainage. Fill this trench with a mixture of the original soil, old manure, leaves if poa- GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 583 sible, and charcoal. Often the only gunnj spot is covered with a pavement; this is just ths place for the vine. Dig your trench along the side of the walk, or even partly under it, plant your vines outside the walk, grow one good strong cane the first year, and in the fall carry it under the pavement to where it is wanted. The pavement will absorb quantities of heat, and also retain the moisture of the soil. A southern or eastern exposure is best here also ; but a northern exposure, if at the side of a building which has the sun half the day, will answer well. Do not place the roots at any less distance than two feet from the building in any case ; neither train the vine directly against the building, as it will injure both; there should be at least a foot of space between the trellis and the building, to allow a free circulation of air. The pruning is the same here as in the vineyard, one cane bearing this year and another next. The training may be done in a thousand forms, to suit the taste of the owner. The horizontal arms are to be preserved. In the vineyard we commence these arms at one foot from the ground ; but they may be commenced at ten feet as well, only the process must be more gradual. The upright cane may be extended to ten feet in two years, and the two canes for arms grown the third year, the vine meanwhile being allowed to beai moderately, and all summer pinching to be faithfully attended to ; or a single arm may be used, if the vine grows at a corner of the building or trellis, only observing that when the bearing canes are established the alternate pruning must be done, and no fruit allowed to grow below the arms. If fruit is wanted all the way from the ground to sixty feet high, it may be had, but a number of vines will be necessary. These can be planted, at least four feet apart, in different parts of the garden or yard, and the canes brought under ground, or under a pavement, to the point where they are wanted. Let the arms of one vine cover 5S4 now TO MAKE THE FARM TAV. th« 6r«t tbrtHJ foct, another the second three, and so ou until the •M. rod. ki. Fig. 133 illustrates our meaning. These m nn planted four feet apart. Two are not allowed , ' hea until they reach the second trellis; then vith horizontal arms as before. For the third, ,!th trellis, if it is desirable to have vines so high >hould be set four and eight feet from the trellis and brvugbi underground to the point on the trellis where they are It is better to run them through tile pipe, to pro- V .r taking root all the way. If they should do so, the growth would be likely to be so vigorous as to defy all attempts ai mining. By this nicthotl four vines, covering a space tvelvc by sixteen feet, have borne an average of eight hundred .ally. Tlie same method applies to arbor culture. • ».. .-..v.-r tlio top and sides of a grape arbor from Whore there is room for neither trellis nor arbor, there may -om to put down one or more stakes, to each of which a ^■"'•' • ' ' 1, and good results secured. Either the *''■•* "' ' ■ '.o grow two canes the first year, and com- Ijcaring the second year, or the stem gradually •^1 to eight or ten feet and side canes grown for fruit. - caac, when the cane bears the second year, at the " '. 8ca»on one of the canes is cut to two buds ' •' -• y^^i and the other cane cut entirely away, «>d -a the next year. In the other case, the single can. ;he first season is cut back to say three feet, {Fxj. 182.) and the topmost bud allowed to grow the second »ea*on, all others being rubbed off; this cane is then cut back I- • -^ :•'::. three feet of the former cut. We have now a cane high: the two lowest buds, one on each side, are Wiowed to grow the third season, and one to bear fruit; these w GRAPE CULTURE AND WIXE MAKING. 587 are cut back according to the alternate system we have so fully described, and the main cane is only allowed to lengthen from twelve to eighteen inches. The top should be kept pinched oft' all summer. The fourth season two more side branches may be started about one foot above the others, and treated in the same way. Fig. 132 shows this vine at the end of the fourth season, as it is to remain, and the cross marks (2, 2) show where it is to be pruned. Another method of pruning and training is shown at Fig. 134. By some of these methods every one can have at least one vine, and most can have more. An occasional wash of strong soapsuds will be beneficial, if the soil is kept stirred and mellow. Fourteen Cautions, Before treating of varieties, diseases, etc., we wish to caution our readers: 1, Against using green manure, either in the preparation of the soil or after culture. 2. Against working the soil when wet, either in preparation or after culture 3, Against planting vines too shallow in light or gravelly soils, or too deep in heavy ones. (Let the base of the roots be four inches beneath the heavy, clayey soil, and twice that depth in porous, gravelly soils. Allowance must be made for the settling of the earth, the natural spring of the earth, and the natural spring of the plant. If in a border, it should be higher than the surrounding level, to which it will sink.) 4. Against allowing secondary roots to grow from the stem above the original roots. (The earth should be drawn away from about the stem during the second season, and if any of these roots are discovered they must be cut off.) 5. Against cutting any of the main roots in any of the operations of culture. 6. Against covering vines in the winter wholly with straw or barnyard litter. (The vines should first be covered with earth, as the straw furnishes a shelter for mice.) 7. Against too late spring pruning after the sap has started. 8. Against putting down 6$8 UOW TO MAKE TUE FARM TAY. loo long horiiontal nrms where the plants arc not vigorous. ^Rxtend ihein grailimlly.) 9. Against allowing young vines to bmr beyond thoir ability. 10. Against allowing laterals to grow loo long before pinching. (Pinch when the first leaf ..„ t'. .. ! itoral is about an inch in diameter.) 11. Against .«} canes from the horizontal arms to grow too long, (two or thre« feet is liigh enough, two being the better. \\ :his height, pinch out the top; it will soon start a^'a;.., :iu-l when grown another six inches, pinch out the top of iho new growth.) 12. Against allowing one cane to grow higher than another unless the growth of wood is too rank, when one or two canes may be allowed near the main stem M safety valves. 13. Against tying the vines too tightly. 14, Against applying manures, except in the fall. If applied in tlic spring or summer, it \vill produce a rank growth of wood which will not ripen before winter. Selection of Varieties. We have now much better vari- eties, and more numerous than ever before, but great caution an«t be exercised in selecting. We advise every cultivator to try every new variety that is slronr/hj recommended, by the planting of one or two vines, but never invest any large amount of money in planting any new variety, no matter who i- it. After a grape has been fruited for five or six v«--ir-. \u .iijT<.T._Mit parts of the country, with nearly uniform ■ncecaH, and has also succeeded well on a small scale in your own hMd^ the investment will be safe. We hope and believe that the next ten years will give us double the number of ex- 1 . . ■< I 'tf \ AKIETIE8 that are excellent in the localities named. AUr^yruiac, coIor dark purple, with a light bloom ; flesh ten- der, jnice 8wee^ skin thin. If held up. to to the light when npc, the color will be uniformly deep ; if tinged with red, they GRAPE CULTURE AND WIXE MAKING. 5^9 are not ripe. V iiie hardy and vigorous as far north as Lake Champlain, where it originated. Eipens very early. AUen^s Hy- brid; color amber green, with pearly bloom, and spots of claret when fully ripe; flesh tender; juice sweet, spirited and vinous; vine too tender for general cultivation, but worthy of much care as a garden and table variety. Eipens September. Alvey, color black, with a heavy blue bloom when ripe; flesh tender, without pulp; juice sweet and vinous; vine not hardy enough foi open air culture at the North, but good at the South ; ripens in September, and makes a delicious red wine. Concord, black with heavy blue bloom. (,Sc'e Colored Fruit Plate.) Flesh tender; acid at centre; flavv.rfoxy; vine hardy and vigorous over a larger extent of territory than any oiher grape ; ripens middle of September. Not a grape of the best quality, but its beautiful appearance, hardy growth, and pro- ductiveness render it the most popular and widely cultivated of all our grapes, and the most profitable market variety grown ; better further West and South than in New England; "grown in Missouri ; it makes a fine light red wine."* Cultivators should try to secure a better grajpe, with the same good qualities in the vine. Clinton^ dark purple with pale blue bloom ; flesh juicy, acid until after frost, it then has a spirited vinous flavor ; a very strong grower, hardy and productive ; makes dark red •wine of fair quality. If kept late, makes a good table grape Do not plant in a rich soil. Cassady, greenish white, with white bloom ; skin thick ; flesh pulpy ; sweet, of fine flavor ; vine hardy, but so late a ripeuer that it is not very valuable in the northeast; in the southwest very productive; makes a good white wine. Creveling, dark purple, with but little bloom ; flesh tender; juice sweet, except at centre; vine hardy, healthy, * Eussmaiis " Grapes and Wines." •.,, now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. •live A fjiir wine ;,'rape. Early. Catawba, dee^p Tcd, :n; flesh pulpy; juice sweet, vinous; vine vigorous Aud productive, but not hardy ; late. This grape has been more cxtcnwvelv used for wine than any other American grape, and •jII do well in favorable localities on the shores of Lake r.-:--. ('Ut in the interior is not to be recommended for cultiva- tion. DrhuYtrf, beautiful dark red when fully ripe ; skin thin : flesih tender; juicy, sweet, brisk, vinous; vine very hardy and n^odcrately productive ripens first of September. Wherever the soil is light and warm, it is the best grape for extensive culti- vation. It is delightful for the table, and makes a superior white wine, which sells for from five to eight dollars per gallon. Diana, pale red, with but little bloom ; skin thick ; flesh tender, meaty; juice, sweet, rich vinous; vine hardy and productive when properly cultivated ; ripens last of September. This is one of our best grapes, and deserves careful cultivation for a t.nblc and market grape. It requires a deep, dry soil, not rich. but occasionally dressed with lime. It should not bear until the fourth year, and must be covered north of New York City, and protected somewhat in all the Northern States. It is the I—. V.,-cpeT of all our grapes, and therefore is valuable; it will :i good raisin, and also a good wine. Elsinburg, black, bluixh white bloom; flesh tender and melting; juice sweet and ▼incus; vine hardy and healthy; last of September. This is a very nice little grape, the only objection to it being its small ■iie. Hartfonl Prolific, black or dark purple, with blue bloom ; »kin thick ; flesh tough : juice sweet and somewhat sprightly and vinous; vine hardy, vigorous and productive; first of September. This is the best market grape of the early varieties on account of its earliness and large yield ; makes a ftiir wine Vines must be kept pinched back through the summer. Her- V»w^, blue black, with light bloom ; skin thin ; flesh tender and mim^'' Fiy 13(3. GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 593 melting ; juice sweet, refined, sprightly, vinous; vino not hardy at the North, but does well in Southern Ohio and farther south, being healthy and productive ; ripens late. One of the finest of Southern varieties, both for table, market, and wine. 7ona, pale red, small, deep red veins at first, but growing dark red when fully ripe {see Colored Fruit Plate) ; skin thin ; flesh tender, with but little pulp; juice and flavor all that could be asked for in a grape. Not fully tried, but promises well. This is a seedling by that indefatigable cultivator, Dr. C. W. Grant, who claims for it superior hardiness, productiveness, and earliness. It is a fine table grape, makes delightful wine, has the qualities of a long keeper and good raisin grape. We hope for the sake of its worthy cultivator and for the sake of American grape culture that it will prove all that is claimed for it; but we would caution cultivators against investing largely in it until they give it a trial It has been condemned on short acquaintance by Missouri culti vators. Israella, dark purple, light bloom; skin thin; flesh tender ; juice, sweet with pleasant flavor ; vine hardy, vigorous, and productive ; ripens early. We do not consider this grape quite as good in any particular as the Hartford Prolific. Isabella, dark purple, light bloom ; skin thick ; flesh tough, acid at the centre ; juice sweet and sprightly what there is of it ; vine un- certain. Not a good grape, but for a long time was almost the only market grape. Where they can be grown to advantage, it is a profitable market grape. We advise you .leither to destroy or to plant a vineyard of Isabellas. Martha, pale yellow, white bloom ; pulpy, but sweet ; vine hardy, healthy, vigorous, and productive; early. The best of the white grapes for general cultivation. Makes a fine white wine. N'orton^s Virginia, black, thick light bloom ; skin thin ; flesh tender and melting to the centre; juice sweet, rich, spirited, vinous. Ilardy, healthy, and very productive, south of Ohio, but not adapted to Northern 594 HOW TO MAKE TJIE FARM PAY. cuUivaliou. Makes a fine, dark red wine. Will not grow rc.idily from cuttings. Emphatically a wine grape. Union Wlajf, dark purple, blue bloom ; flesh pulpy, juicy, sweet, but •iot sprightly; vine tender v/hen young, but grows hardy, . and productive; ripens October. Not a first quality . ii very large and handsome, and, therefore, a very able "marjcet grape. The following are Southern wine grapes: — Taylor, or Bullitt, I '^n; Lenoir; Blaml; Wilmington; Scuppernong ; Cunningham, ' '. None of them are suitable for Northern cultivation 1.. :.. . -n air. Tlie following are well worthy of further trial, and it is more than probable that several of them will yet prove fxcellent. Walter, lyes' Seedling, Rebecca, York Madeira, To Kallon, (liable to mildew and rot,) Miles, Anna, Rogers Hybrids, numbers "'" four, fifteen, ami nineteen; Alexander, Diana Hamburgh, . • lan, Maxtawney, Rulander, (makes a most delicate and Yaluable wine,) Bho'J^s Black, (one of the most productive,) Arnold t number one, Black Hawk, Dana, Detroit, Hyde's Eliza, M '^rr $ Hybrids. There are many new varieties constantly intro- duc«l, which should be purchased with great caution. Insects injurious to the Vine are not so numerous or de- ■tractive as those attacking some other fruits, but they are still, more than plenty, and on the increase. They consist of caterpil- ■ "8, lice, etc. The first object to be kept in view is the • .. 'U of the moths and other egg-laying insects, before - '*y ^^^^^ «gg8; by fires in the vineyard, orchard, or garden about twilight, at the time of their appearance, which is mostly from the middle of June to the middle of July. Vast numbers ■ be destroyed, and with every female are destroyed '• V lo two hundred eggs. The second main point is to •arefully pick off at the early summer pruning, all nests, webs, GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 595 etc, and destroy them by scalding or fire. The third is the dusting with sulphur, lime, etc., throughout the season. For this purpose every one who has any considerable number of vines should have a pair of bellows. The rose bug, or "rose- chafer^'' is the worst enemy of the vine, because it can be de- stroyed by neither of these three contrivances. They show themselves as soon as the blossoms, which they soon destroy, unless checked. The only way with these and several other beetles we shall name, is to have a large cloth stretched on a frame, set it under the vine, and shake it briskly ; they will fall and can be scraped up and scalded or burned. Mead, in his work on the Grape, says : " They are too stuptd to know when they are dead ;" therefore the work must be done thoroughly. If repeated daily for a week, this operation will greatly mitigate the pest. The May Beetle, or Cockchafer, must be destroyed in the same way. Where they are very numerous, a flock of poultry should be permitted to follow the plow and cultivator, and they will devour numbers of the larvoe which are turned up from the ground. About daylight is the best time for rapping them from the vines. The vinechafer and steel blue beetle ; threaten to be- come very destructive to the vine, and a determined effort should then be made to exterminate them ; this can be done, both by twilight fires and by rapping them off the vines into the sheet. The Vine IIopper, or ihnps, appear in June, and if numerou.s aie very destructive, sucking the- juice from the leaves and causing them to turn yellow ; the remedy is to dust the leaves with a mixture of two parts of sulphur and one of caustic lime. [f done early on a still morning it will nearly all adhere to the leaves and kill the insects. Two persons going through the vineyard at night, one with a torch and the other beating the vines, will destroy vast numbers. The Red Spider, which 36 606 now TO MAKK THE FARM PAY. AppMra on the under side of the leaf, and the Aphis, or louse, which appears on the ends of the young shoots and tender l'I-: MAKIXG. 507 appearing on the green berries. As soon as His discovered, dust with lime, which will in some measure stay its progress. Wine Making in this country, is yet in its infancy, but is destined to become an extensive and profitable branch of pro- duction. Grapes for wine should be fully ripe. Grapes that can well be gathered for market the middle or last of August should be left a month longer for wine. A little frost will not injure them. Those that are fully ripe the last of September can be gathered and made up then, and those bunches not ripe will ripen the sooner if the others are picked off. All unripe berries and all that have begun to decay should be cut out. The grape scissors before described, which both cut and hold the bunches, are the best for this purpose. The utmost clean- liness must be observed in gathering and assorting the grr.pea and in every operation connected with wine , making, as the chief value of the wine is flavor, and a very little negligence will spoil the flavor of a batch. Before giving the process of making wine we will explain the terms used. Bottles should be of very tough glass, and thoroughly cleaned with coarse sand; oleaning with shot is very objectionable. Casks for fermenting wine, should be large, say four hundred gallons, but the vintner must have all sizes. The large casks should be of well seasoned oak staves, about five feet long and one and a half or two inches thick, bound with iron bands, perfectly smooth inside, with a door on one end large enough to let in a boy to wash it out. When new they should first be washed in lime water. After the cask is emptied, let in a boy to scrub the side thoroughly before filling again. Cellar. Any good cellar, kept free from frost, will keep the wine the first winter, and if it. clears well, it can be sold before warm weather ; but a good cellar is a great convenience where any large quantity is to be made. Three considerations 1U)\V TO MAKK THE FARM PAY. RTO imporlanl in building a wiuo cellar : it sliould be in'a dry ip. 'uld be sunk in the ground and the walls built hoUuu-, lo bccure the utmost evenness of temperature ; and it •liould bo provided with means of thorough ventilation. A 9ln\'r in it is sometimes desirable during fermentation. A side- . ruble 'location, so that a team may be driven into Cj.. .-siiiNij may be done in any manner that will not break .;,.. ...,.,1. Where a quantity is to be crushed, two wooden set in a square frame and turned with a crank; and cog wheel, is the simplest contrivance. A very good mill with «lono rollers, screws, etc., can be purchased for about fifty dollars, but not large enough for the largest vintners. The crushing and prcssihg room is usually built directly over the ocllar, and holes left in the floors over each cask for drawing off the must to the cellar. This is a much more convenient trraogement than to carry it in buckets. CrvAGE, is fermentation on the skins. ! "' v;\TioN', Vmor(3 and Acetous. Vinous fermentation is ■ and natural fermentation which produces wine; ftoetoua fermentation commences after vinous fermentation is and produces vinegar ; it is sometimes caused by the '^' ' '*f foreign substances into the must ; great care •^ "fore be exercised in picking and crushing the fru FCRMKNTINQ V.vTS. These should be proportioned to the size of your casks. When the must is to ferment long on the husks, « false bottom should be provided to keep down the husks. It •hould be perforated with holes and fastened in its place. There should be an inch tube in the cover of the vat for the 9Mcape of gas. Flvin-o, or Clarifying. When the wines are not clear it GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 599 may be done by adding the whites of a half dozen eggs beaten to a foam with a little of the wine, to each forty gallons. Stir up well, and close tight for a week. Gallizing, so named from Doctor Gall, who first reduced it to a science, is adding the proper proportions of sugar and water to grapes that from any cause are too acid. See page 601 for a description of tiae process. Grape Mill. {See Crushing.) Husks ; the skins. Lees ; the sediment after fermentation, adhering to the bottom and sides of the casks. The crust or salt that collects on ihe side of the cask is cream of tartar in a crude state, and is of value. Must; the juice of the grape before fermentation. Marc ; the mixture of crushed grapes, skins, seeds, and stems before pressing. Eacking; the transferring of wine from one cask to anoiher, leaving the lee^ See description of process, on next page. Saccharometer ; an instrument for determinino; the amount of sugar in the must. Stemming ; the stems of the grape contain a large amount of acid, and it is often desirable to remove the larger portions of them before crushing. This is done by drawing the bunches through teeth attached to boards, with grooves for conveying the juice flowing during the operation. To make light colored wine, the grapes gathered can be pressed and put into the casks the following evening. Place the crusher above one of the fermenting vats, and crush them as fast as they come in from the vineyard. When not crushing, cover the vat with a stout crash cloth, and par- ticularly as evening comes on, to exclude all insects. In the evening the free juice is drawn off into the cask, and the maro I'.iVl \U,W TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. J. ^ nressed and the juice added to it. The press • largo enough to accommodate the day's gathering. Mjd press, with grooves, hopper, etc., can be purchased for about fifty dollars. While pressing, the edges of tlie cheese I be cut and put on top, in order that the whole may be ' ;!ly dry. i-k:s should be filled and refilled, as^a portion evapo- rales during fermentation. The must from the press is usually allowed to run into a large funnel filled with oat straw and pass ill a hose to the casks in the cellar. I «) make dark wines the must is fermented on the busks. The crushed grapes are in this case put into the fermenting vat with false bottom. After the vat is three-fourths filled, the false l»<^jttom is put in, pressed down so as to be covered about eight -. and the cover put on. Two or three days' fermentation ;a ,', temperature of about sixty degrees is usually sufficient. But here the judgment must be exercised. If a very dark wiuo is desired the grapes .should be stemmed, find can tl:ien be allowed to ferment eight or ten days, when they are pressed and ruo into the casks as before. .If the casks are kept filled during f * 'i-m the yeasty part will flow out at the bung. In .uled, under fermentation, a vacant place is left, and a :' sand put over the bunghole, the husks sinking to the Iwttom when fermentation ceases. The wine is then racked. ■ ■•• cask being set lower than the full one, a siphon with 1 a short arm is inserted, the finger being held over ■' '^<^ long ami until it is inserted in the cask. There arc also various apparatus sold for the purpose, which large vintners will do well to purchase. The lees will, if distilled, make good brandy. The first racking is usually done, not later than January, and a second racking after the second fermenta- '.ion. -vl,;,.)! often goes on all summer. GEAPE CULTURE AND WINE MAKING. 601 It sometimes occurs, owing to a short "or wet season, that the grapes contain too Jarge a proportion of acids, the saccharine matter not having been fully developed; this deficiency is remedied by Gallizing. "When fully ripened and perfected on the vine, the must contains, in five hundred pounds : sugar, one hundred and twenty pounds; acids, three pounds; water, three hundred and seventy -seven pounds; in all, five hundred pounds. But in an inferior season five hundred pounds will contain: sugar, seventy-five pounds; acids, four and a half pounds ; ^/ater, four hundred and twenty and a half pounds ; in all five hundred pounds. To bring this inferior must up to the proper standard, there is to be added one hundred and five pounds of sugar and one hundred and forty-five pounds of water. The amount of sugar in the must is determined by the saccharometer, which is indis- pensable to the vintner, and can be obtained in any of our large cities. The amount of acids is determined by the acidmeter but as this is not yet common in this country, we here transribe the process of Mr. George Ilussman, of Herman, !Missouri^ one of the largest vintners of the country : — " Last year was one of the most unfavorable season:) foi the ripening of grapes we have ever had here, and especially the Catawba lost almost nine-tenths of its crop by mildew and rot ; it also lost its leaves, and the result was that the grapes did not ripen well. When gathering my grapes, upon weighing the must I found that it ranged from fifty-two to seventy degrees, whereas, in good seasons, Catawba must weighs from eighty to ninety five degrees, I now calculated thus : if normal must of Catawba should weigh at least eighty degrees, and the must I have to deal with this season will weigh on an average only sixty degrees, I should add to this must about one half a pound of sugar {1.0 the gallon) to bring it up to eight}^ degrees. But now I had the surplus acid to neutralize yet. To do this I calcu' ,;,,'^ HOW TO MAKK THE FARil PAY. .. : n . %.ii in a normal must of Catawba, or a must of • .1 jtcasons, l)iere is yet an excess of acid, I can safely •. on there being at least one-third too much acid in a must UuU weighs but sixty degrees. I therefore added to every one V ..,:? of must forty gallons of soft water, in which I : ved eighty pounds of crushed sugar, (half pound ,; which brought the water, when weighed after . _• the sugar in it, up to eighty degrees. Now I had yet to add twenty pounds, or one half pound to each gallon of •:al mwtl, to bring this up to eighty degrees. I thus j r.«-'-i iii.stcad of one hundred gallons, one hundred and fifty gallons from the same quantity of grapes ; and the result was a wine which every one who has tasted it declares it to be ex- coUent Catawba. " Dr. Gall recommends grape sugar, but I have found crushed ! "' :■ answers every purpose. I think this sugar has the :. -. _: over grape sugar that it dissolves more readily, and in cold water. It will take about two pounds to the gallon of water to bring this up to eighty degrees, which will make a wine of suflicient body. The average price of sugar :t twenty -two cents per pound, and the cost of thus ' an additional gallon of wine, counting in labor, !i capital, etc. will be about sixty cents. When the wine can be sold at from two to three dollars per gallon, the •r will easily perceive of what immense advantage this < to the grape grower, if he can thereby not only im- . . ■ ...;; quality, but also increase the quantity of the yield. But tills is only the first step ; • after the most powerful pressure xiaks still retain all- the ingredients of wine, except sugar and water, which being added, a ^ood quality of wine is pro- > - Mr. Ilussman : "I have also practised this method - - ■*-•-•' *^i'e la.st season, and the result is that I have fully GRAPE CULTURE AND WIXE MAKIXG. 603 doubled the amount of wine of the iSTorton's Virginia, and Concord. I have thus made twenty-five hundred gallons of Concord, where I had but one thousand and thirty gallons of original must; and twenty -six hundred gallons of Norton's Virginia, where I had but thirteen hundred gallons of must; and the result is that many of them are better, and none inferior to the original must. My method in making such wines was very simple. I generally took the same quantity of water, eighty gallons of water to husks that had produced one hundred gallons of juice, and added two pounds of sugar to the gallon. The husks after the first pressing were put at once into the vat and pulled apart and broken, and the water added. Fermenta- tion commenced at once, and was allowed to go on for twenty- four hours, when they were pressed again as dry as possible. The must was then treated the same as the original. But let us glance a moment at the probable influence this discovery will have on American grape culture. It caiMiot be otherwise than in the highest degree beneficial, for when wo simply look at grape culture as it was ten years ago, with the simple product of the Catawba as its basis, yielding an average of two hundred gallons to the acre, of inferior wine, and look at it to-day, with such varieties as the Concord, yielding an average of one thou- sand to fifteen hundred gallons to the acre, and, by gallizing, two thousand five hundred gallons of uniformly good wine, can we be surprised if every body thinks and talks of raising grapes." Mr. Hussman's experiments have proved very success- ful, and we hope the day is not far distant when good wines will take the place of bad brandy and whiskey, and the evils of intemperance be mitigated. Gallized wines are treated in the same manner as other wines After the second fermentation is fully over, it can be bottled, for which purpose is needed a small funnel, a small faucet, a 004 HOW Tt) MAKE TlIK FARM PAY. cork proRs, and a mallet. The corks should be scalded, and afterwards soakeicgh- ton^s Seedling are the only varieties of the gooseberiy proved to be worthy of cultivation. [See Colored Plate) The Craxberry has of late assumed so much importance, and its cultivation is so little understood, that we shall give more full directions for it. LocATiox. The borders of ponds, marshts, and the sea- shore have proved the best suited to the growth of the cran- berry. In fact ninety-nine one-hundredths of all the cranber- ries grown in the country are in such locations. There are thousands upon thousands of acres of low, wet, swampy, and sandy lands, in all sections of the country, utterly worthless for general cultivation, that are admirably suited to the cianberry; and when we remember that they yield from one hundred to four hundred bushels per acre, and sell for from two dollars to six dollars per bushel, it is no wonder that ..any owners of such worthless tracts are putting in cranberries. Soil. The best soil, if soil it can be called, is heach sand; uext to this is common satid, and then j^cat and sand, which is the (MO now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. common soil of bogs and marshes. They will run wliollj to vines if the soil is rich. PuKi'AHATiox OF SoiL. If the Site selected is the sea-shore, or salt-marsh subject to overflow, a dyke must be built to pre- vent the land being covered with salt water. This can be done by digging a trench about the patch and using the earth thrown out for embanking. After two years' standing to freshen it, it will be ready for planting. If it has not been overflowed by &ilt water, neither the dyke nor the freshening will be neces- sary. If on the shores of a fresh water pond, overflowed in winter and uncovered in summer, you have just the spot needed, without preparation. If on the shores of such a pond, and not overflowed, bring it down as nearly to the water level as may be, and if a stream runs through or near it, that may be used to overflow it. Raise an embankment, and keep it covered with water through the winter. (See Flowing.) If the place selected is a swamp or marsh, commence by digging a drain all around the piece when it is driest, using the earth thrown out as an embankment, and providing an outlet, if possible. This will drain the piece so that the top, to the depth of one foot or more, can be cut ofl'. This is most valuable manure, and well worth removing from your marshes, even if you do not purpose a cran- berry patch. After this is removed, stop up your outlet and flow your patch, if possible. If there is any sand to be had within hauling distance, haul it onto the ice during the winter, and in the spring your patch will be ready for planting. If the sand is not handy, let it stand a year, and the action of the weather will disintegrate it; otherwise it will not be fit for planting. If possible, plow and harrow it. Planting. The plants can be set either in the fall or spring. If the ground can be plowed through the winter we prefer fall planting, otherwise we delay until spring; for if not plowed the SMALL FRUIT CULTURE. 611 frost will throw out the newly planted vines. There are various methods of planting. The first is the old method of sod planting, that is, the planting of a sod with grass, weeds, vines and all This is a very poor method. Another and much better method is to separate the vines from the sod and plant them in drills or hills, a half dozen spears in a place, with the tips just above the ground. They should be firmly pressed in. Where the vines can be obtained in large quantities they can be cut about two inches long by a common hay cutter, sown oi^the surface, and well harrowed in ; or they may be sown in drills two feet apart. All these operations must be performed in spring and early summer, unless the ground can be plowed. Care should be taken to get fruitful plants, as many that ap- pear vigorous are barren. The better way is to carefully ex- amine the beds from which the plants are to be taken at the fruit- ing time, and observe what portion bears the be.'5t crop. After Culture. Where the plants are in hills or iu .trills they can be hoed the first season, after which they will cover the whole ground and mat together so that hoeing will be im- possible. If the weeds and grass are kept down the first year, all that will be necessary in after years will be to go over the patch two or three times during the growing season and pull up the large tufts of grass, briers and weeds, by hand. Nothing else but the cranberry will grow very luxuriantly .in clear sand, and if the top has been taken off the marsh as recommended but few weeds or grasses will appear which cannot be eradicated by the first season's warfare, and the vines will soon take pos- session of the whole. Flooding, as we have hinted, is the great aid to cranberry culture. The power to flood or drain at will insures most profitable returns. With an embankment and a water gate at the outlet this may be accomplished. Flood before the ground 37 612 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. freezes hard in the fall, aud leave the water on until all danger of spring frosts is past. North of New York city two feet of water is desirable, south of there, one foot is sufficient. The patch that is flooded is not likely to be attacked by the cran- berry worm; the danger of winter freezing is avoided; the danger from frost after vegetation has commenced in the spring is done away. In a season of extreme drought the water can be set back onto the patch, and the crop saved. If there are indi- cations of frost Ijgfore the fruit is ripe it can.be covered with water until the cold snap has passed. Almost any one of these advantages is sufficient to justify the ordinary expenses of an embankment and a water gate. If the fruit rots, it is probably too wet, and should be raised by an addition of sand to the sur- face. It can be applied on the ice, and the plants will soon grow up through it. Gathering, Packing, and Marketing the small fruits are important items, and can be very much systematized. Women aud children are usually employed as pickers, and if a succes- sion of fruits is raised a better class of help can be secured, as they have employment for three months instead of one. For this and other reasons we recommend a succession of small fruits, rather than that a man's whole capital should be staked on one kind. A good succession can be arranged with straw- berries, raspberries, currants, blackberries, and cranberries. The fruit should be gathered in dry weather, and not until after the dew is off in the morning. The usual course of large growers is to erect a tent or shed in the field, to which each picker brings the fruit and receives a ticket for the number of baskets. Formerly each grower must provide himself with a large number of baskets, in which to send his fruit to market, but this is obviated by the Free Fruit Box of the Burlington Manufac- turing Company of Burlington, New Jersey. {Fig. 187.) J Fig. 135. Khode Island Greening. ... X in CO o 5° u. f- < < :3 u. ^ ox, manufactured by N. Hallock, Queens, Queens County, New SMALL FRUIT CtJLTURE. 617 York The Gothic free fruit box, made of veneer, is sent in flats ready to be put together, for ten dollars per thousand. A very common basket is made by D. Cook, New Haven, Connecticut. J. B. Smith's grape box, made at Ansonia, Connecticut, holding about five pounds of 'grapes, is also suitable for the small fruits ; price, sixty dollars per thousand. All these, and many more, are patented. Flower Culture will be confined to the farmer's wife and family, but the farmer, if he be a true lover of nature, will be always ready to lend a patch of ground and an occasional hour with the hoe or spade to the flower-garden; himself and his family will be better for the sight of the flowers, and they will be more closely attatched to the home thus beautified. We can give but a few plain brief directions for flower culture. The best soil for the cultivation of flowers, is a mixture of loam, peat, leaf mould, and sand. If peat cannot be had, decayed turf can be used in its stead. Leaf mould can always be had in the country by covering a pile of leaves with earth in the fall, and letting them rot for a year. Prepare a pile every fall, and you will have a constant supply of the most valuable manure for your flower-garden, vineyard, or nursery. The children should be encouraged to gather all the leaves possible in the fall for these purposes. So small a space as is occupied by the flower-garden, should be spaded, hoed, and raked until it is thoroughly pulverized to the depth of eighteen to twenty-four inches. Flower seeds should not be planted until the earth begins to be warm. If the soil tends to be too cold and heavy, add sand to it. One great mistake in planting flower seeds is to plant too early and too deep, so that the seeds never feel the warmth of the sun, and decay without germinating. No definite rule can be given 613 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. in regard to depth of planting all seeds, but the very small seeds should be sown on the surface, and a little finely pulver- ized earth sifted over them, and pressed gently with a board. Seeds of the size of the cockscomb and amaranth should be planted a little deeper ; balsams, asters, etc., from one quarter to a half an inch in depth ; sweet peas, four o'clocks, lupins, morning glories, etc., from one half to one inch deep. The ground should be kept moist by light sprinklings, and as soon as the tender plants appear they should be shaded from the direct rays of the midday sun until they are well rooted. All plants should be kept clear of weeds, and the ground frequently stirred about their roots. First on the list of flowers stands the rose. To produce the most perfect roses prepare a trench, or, if for one vine, a hole two and a half feet deep, filling the bottom with broken bricks, crockery, etc., for drainage, and the balance with an even mixture of earth and manure. Roses are best planted in the fall, but as far north as the New England States the planting of all tender varieties must be delayed until spring. New plants are procured by layering, as directed for the grape, or by cuttings ; or, as in many cases, b}' taking up and dividing the roots of a growing plant. In plant ing the nicest care should be observed in placing the roots. When planted in the fall they will usually be benefited by a winter covering of leaves or stable litt,er. Cut out all old and decaying wood in the spring. One gardener of our acquaintance recommends two hundred different varieties of the rose for general cultivation. The only remark we shall make in regard to selection, is, select a succession of varieties that will bloom through several months, and, as far as may be, select different colors; from that most beautiful of all roses, the white rose, to the dark, purple, sometimes called the black rose. The flowering \lmond i<3 a Jiardy shrub, loaded in blossoming time with pretty SMALL FRUIT CULTURE. 619 pink flowers ; it is easily cultivated from suckers or layers. The syringa should be grown in every yard, both for its pure white blossoms and its fragrance. It will grow from cuttings in any good garden soil. The lilac, spirea, woodbine, and honeysuckle are all worthy of a general cultivation, which can readily be done, as they require but little care if properly planted in the be- ginning. The gladiolus, dahlia, tulip, and like flowers require more care, as the bulbs must be taken up in the fall, and re- planted in the spring ; but their beauty warrants the use of some time that might otherwise be wasted. The bulbs are taken up as soon as the frost touches the plant and kept dry on a shelf in a cool place, or by packing in dry sand ; and about the first of May should be brought out and sprouted in a warm spot, when the tubers should be divided. Each tuber that has a bud will bear a plant. They should be planted out in groups three and a half inches deep, and a stake driven beside them, to which they should be trained. The peony is hardy, and requires only to be covered with I straw through the winter to put forth vigorously on the first ( approach of spring. The althea or hollyhock, is a neglected i but beautiful plant, we think more desirable than the dahlia. ,:! The seed should be sown in May, one-half an inch deep, and when the plants have put out six or eight leaves, transplanted. By saving and planting the seed of the double varieties, a mass of beautiful flowers of many colors is produced every season. China asters are to be highly recommended. The ground for these, as for all flowers, should be dag deep and well manured. They are sown in beds from the first to the tenth of May, and come into bloom in August. The verbena is the most beautiful of all garden flowers for massing in beds ; it is however difficult to keep through winter. We can only name a few of the many plants included in the 620 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. lists of nurserymen and florists, but it is well not to be de- ceived by high sounding names into buying common and in- ferior plants. There are enough well known plants like those we have mentioned to make a little paradise around every home. We come now to speak of a few indoor plants. If you have a south or east window that you can spare through the winter, you can raise the most beautiful plants. In cities where the light is excluded, and the dry furnace heat chokes the plant by day, and the gas by night, it is difficult to raise good house plants, but in the country, if you will, you can have them to perfection. "Whatever they are, the soil should be the compost we have described. Whether in boxes or pots, the bottom should be covered with broken bits of crockery, and there should be a hole for the escape of the water. When the roots fill the box or pot, the plant should be taken out and a part of the roots cut off, or the plant should be transplanted where it will have mo're room. House plants, and plants in the garden, should be watered only with soft water, and the watei should be applied to the leaves rather than the stem. Tht geranium stands first among house plants ; it is propagated b} slips, and the common fault in its cultivation is crowding Give it light and air on all sides. The same may be said of nearly all indoor plants, which include the cactus, calla, crys anthemums, verbenas, and the various dwarf roses. PART FOURTH. EUEAL AECHITECTURE-LANDSCAPE GAEDENING-MAEEET GAEDENDIG" FAEMEES' GAEDENS-AND MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS. CHAPTER XIX. RURAL ARCHITECTURE. ARM BUILDINGS are, in a sense, the measure of the farmer's thrift ; for the farmer who " makes his farm pay" will see to it that his comfortable house and capacious barns give evidence of his prosperity. The House is often the last object of >he farmer's care, but it should be the first ; for though he is not much in it, his wife and children are, and if he has due regard for them he will see that every thing about the house is as comfortable and convenient as his means will allow him to make it. Any thing that will lessen the labors or increase the comfort of his wife, any thing that will increase the attractions of his i'HoME to his children, is worthy of his careful attention. The location should be the most convenient, healthful, and pleasant spot on the place, well set back from the road, and if possible near a lake, brook, river, or never failing spring of water. A house near the public highway is subject to many anoyances, which can be avoided only by setting it back three Dr four hundred yards. The Foundation should not be slighted in any respect. Lay- ng the timbers on boards is a miserable practice. Make the 'oundation strong, going below frost with the excavation for C2l 622 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM TAY. the wall, and taking special pains to have the corner-stones i large and solid. Size of Timbers. A small stick of timber of the right shape is better than a big stick. In old houses the amount of timber is sufficient to build three or four just as strong. Much depends also on the form of joints in making a frame stiff. A three inch by four joist would be weak and insufficient, when the same lumber in a joist eight by one and a half inches would be strong enough to support a great weight. Make the rooms high between joists ; ten feet for the lower rooms is none too much, for low, close rooms are a constant source of disease. Put two ventilators in each room, about eight feet from the floor; fresh air will lessen your doctor's bill. The timbers of the frame and all the lumber used should be wel' seasoned. The farmer cannot be too particular about this More bad-looking and unsatisfactory jobs are made by neglect iug this particular than any other. Nothing detracts from the ! market value or the comfort of a house more than great crack. and shrinkages in the doors and floors. We have advocated setting back the house ; this will leave a large plot of ground between the house and the road, which should be filled with trees and shrubs. Nothing looks better here than a variety of well-trimmed fruit trees. In such a space the farmer may raise large and small fruits sufficient for a supply the year round, besides furnishing sauces, jams, preserves, and mild wines. If the walk to the house passes under several grape arbors it will add to the attractiveness of his place. Elsewhere will be found instructions for covering these arbors with luscious fruit. Fig. 138 represents the ground plan of a very conveni ent farnv house. Y is the verandah, running across the whole front of the house, h is the hall, with doors opening into botl parlor and sitting room. S, front stairs. S, sitting room. P RURAL ARCHITECTURE. 623 parlor, c, chimney, h, bed room. K, kitchen. A, back stairs. The cellar stairs are directly under these, en- trance at E. The kitchen opens into the sitting room and bed room, and also directly into the pantry, p, and the passage way, W, leading to the dairy, d At o is a side door with a little porch. W. R. is a wash room, ; and W. S. a wood shed, beyond which lean be connected any other build- ings required. There are four good chambers with closets over the main building, and the back buildings can be made one and a half stories, and several more sleeping rooms secured, if desirable. Fig. 139 is a iiitle more compact, and, in one or two respects, more de- 3irable. The verandah is on the side, ind a hall, hh, extends the whole dis- :.ance from the front to the side en- hance. This cuts off the sitting room irom the kitchen, making it colder in . vvinter time as well as cooler in sum- Fig. 138. :ner. /, front stairs; c, back and cellar stairs. The main •ooms are in the same position as before ; but the wash room, vV", and wood house, H, are more compact. This plan gives six •chambers. Fig. 140 is a laborer's cottage, such as every farmer vould do well to have for his hands. L, is the living room ; B, )ed room; P, pantry; S, stairs; K, kitchen; W, wood house. 5uch a house is cheaply built, as follows : Put up a simple w.s. ! W.R. d w p ^ u^ K 3 — — s p II = fHiTfm^s^ V 524 now TO MAKE THE FABM PAY. f frame and nail plank siding on, up and down. The planks should be of about equal width. Batten inside and out with inch stuffthree inches wide. To the inside batten nail the lath. A .good cellar is the most cheaply constructed of any apart- ment in the house, and the others will see little comfort without it. The cellar bottom should be laid in cement or gravel. Gravel and tar floors are not only good for cellars, but for stables and walks. The right way to make these floors is as follows : — Take a sufficient quantity of small stones, one or two inches in diame- ter, put them in a pile, and pour over them enough coal tar to coat them all, mixing them meanwhile with a shovel ; then spread them over the floor, and rake to a level. They should make the floor about three inches thick. Now a quantity of coarse gravel should be coated with the tar, which can be done by pouring in a pile, making a hole in the top of it, pouring in the tar, and mixing with a shovel. There should be enough coal tar to coat both the stones and gravel, but no more, as it would require more time for the floor to harden. The gravel should be spread over the stones two inches thick. The whole should then be rolled with a heavy stone roller, till the floor is perfectly compact. The corners, where the roller cannot be used, should be beaten down with a mall. While the rolling, and mailing is going on the surface should be strewn ovei broadcast with fine gravel or sand, to take up the surplus tarj This process should continue till the surface is too dry to sticl to one's shoes in walking over it. This kind of floor is watel proof, frost proof and rai proof, and is, therefore, the best of anj The only objection to it, is that it emits a strong smell for some lime ; but this smell is healthy, and also helps to keep rats clear away from the barn or house. a w w B = X: K h 7i 1 S Fig. 140. Wig. 139. Plan of Farm House. Plan of Laborer's Cottage. 'Vgf. 141. GRorND Plan of Barn represented in FKONTispmcii 3S 625 RURAL ARCHITECTURE. 627 By the same process as the above, there cau be made the very best door-yard walks, sidewalks, and street crocssiugs. Not even the continual passing of teams over the street cross- ings, nor the heaving and subsiding of freezing and thawing mud hurt them. It only grows harder and more enduring con tinually. The smell soon passes away in the open air, and is no more trouble. We have given elsewhere plans of a sheep barn, {Fi,g. 85,) a a piggery, {Fig. 90,) and a poultry house, {Fig. 97.) Fig. 1-il, is a ground phin of the burn represented in our steel engraved frontispiece, a, a, a are the doors seen lu the engraving, leading into the barnyard, s, s, the stalls for cows and cattle, r, is the root cellar, ^, the grain room, and c, the cooking room. The barn is in a side hill and the root cellar, cooking room, and granary are nearly all under ground. The stable floors are made of gravel and coal tar, as described above, and have gutters running to the yard and connecting with the manure well. There is a cistern under the cooking room which is always kept filled from the roof troughs, and the stables are kept washed down. " A large amount of liquid manure is saved, and is used as directed in Ghapttr III. This cistern also furnishes a supply of water the year round. The roofs of a large barn forty by sixty, will furnish three thousand barrels of water annually, which would require a cistern hold- ing two hundred and forty barrels to be drained monthly. Farmers often build small cisterns, and drain a large roof surface into them, keeping them constantly overflowed. « A roof twenty by thirty will average one hundred and twenty barrels of water per month. The following, which we found in a Western paper, exactly expresses a great need at the West. " Farmers in the West have not learned to appreciate the im- portance of barns, and the annual loss to them in consequence 38 t}2S now TO .MAKE THE FAKM PAY. is immense. But the deficiency of this important farm appen- dage is the natural result of the circumstances which attend the settler in a new country. The little capital that he sets out with is generally all required to secure his land and erect the humble tenement for himself and family. He may provide a rough shed of poles for his work horses, but his cattle must seek shelter in winter under the trees or behind fences ; and his grain is threshed out in the field, as soon after harvest as circumstances will admit. His hay is stacked up near his sta- ble, and thus, from what he is at first compelled to submit to from necessity, the habit of neglect is formed, and, in after years, when the circumstances will admit of providing sucli conveniences, he has arrived at the conclusion that they are not necessary. , " In travelling through portions of Pennsylvania, we have often been struck with the evidences of the foresight and economy of the earrly Dutch settlers, in providing barns of capacity sufiicient for the protection of most of their hay and grain, their horses and farm stock, while their dwellings for themselves and families are small and of the most humble style. " The loss sustained by the Western farmers for the want of suitable barns, amounts to many millions of dollars annually. Besides the injury to his hay and grain crops, he labors under great inconvenience, and is subject to heavy losses in feeding his stock during winter ; and, besides this, his animals require much more food to maintain them in order through the winter thftn when they are comfortably sheltered. If they do not re- ceive an extra amount of food, to keep up the animal heat during the long, cold winter, they consume the fat that they have accumulated through the summer, to supply the deficiency of food. Heat is maintained from one of these two sources, bj a sort of combustion, analogous to the fuel in a stove, or the oil JOil' RURAL ARCHITECTURE. 629 in a lamp. If the fat is exhausted to make up for the deficiency of food, the animals are turned out in the spring, poor and emaciated ; and if they survive the trying month of March, they will consume one half the summer in restoring the flesh they have lost. This is no fancy picture, but one that may be ' almost everywhere witnessed around us. " Besides these losses and the numerous inconveniences the farmer is subject to in preparing the food and taking care of his stock, for the want of a well constructed barn, arranged with all the improvements of the present day, he loses an im- mense amount for want of shelter for his crops. In 1855 there were ■ millions of bushels of wheat in the United States, either totally lost or greatly injured by exposure in the shock to the rains. This injury was so extensive, that in many sections of the country sufficient wheat — that had not been sprouted — could not be procured for fall sowing ; and the query was made in almost every agricultural paper, whether sprouted wheat would answer for seed." A Rat Proof Corn Crib may be built by laying pillars of 3at stones twelve inches square, two feet high, and capping .hem with smooth flat stones two feet square. An Ice House is not only a great advantage, in connection yith the dairy, but there are many ways in which it adds to he comfort and economy of housekeeping. The ice house ould be wholly above ground, and never less than twelve feet uare on the inside. The walls should be double, with twelve ch space between them, filled with sawdust or tan bark. A uble row of posts, ten feet long and set two feet in the ound, answers as well as any thing else for a frame. We could wish that more attention was paid to the position farm buildings as affecting their looks. If they are arranged out a hollow square, and partially hid'len from passers by 630 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. fine shade trees, it will be an advance upon the common, bare irref^ular haphazard appearance usually presented. Such at- tention to looks will pay, if you or yours should ever wish to dispose of the property to a man of taste. We have already spoken of trees and arbors intervening between the house and the road. We hope this suggestion will be heeded. An osage orange hedge, in place of a fence, will add to the attractiveness of such a plot. To any one who would really like to build a tasty house, or alter an old one with but little extra expense for ornament, we recommend a perusal of Mitchell's, (" Eural Studies,") Wheeler's, Todd's, Woodward's, or Allen's works on Eural Architecture. CHAPTER XX. MARKET GARDENING AND FARMERS* GARDENS. AEKBT GAEDENING can only be carried on, on a large scale, within a few hours reach of large cities, but near all villages and incorporated towns there is always a moderate demand which is seldom fully supplied. And even if there were no demand beside that of the farmer's own table, a variety of fresh vegetables is so desirable, so whole- some, and so cheaply secured, that we should say to every farmer, keep a well stocked garden. A good garden well stocked and well tended, in connection with the farm, is acknowledged by all experienced in domestic economy to be the most profitable portion of the farm, accord- ing to the expense and care required. Yet it is a portion which has been, and is, too much neglected by most farmers in this country, much to their loss, in both health and comfort. The time necessary to its successful culture is often wasted or lost in running to the store for articles that might not have been aeeded, had there been a good garden to go to instead. Half an acre devoted to garden purposes will, if properly cultivated, farnish a large family with a considerable portion of heir living from spring to midwinter, or till spring comes igain ; and instead of the more heating meats, stale bread, and )ld potatoes, to which so many farmers' families are confined in fcivinter and spring, we have a successive and refreshing variety ■ 631 g32 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. of good, wliolesome, fresh vegetables, fruits, salads, berries, etc. ; and wlien the warm weather of spring comes, and the system requires a less stimulating, more cooling diet, we have a variety offered to tempt the appetite, which can be procured at so little expense or trouble, in no other way. Not only should the garden contain, and have cultivated in* it, the more common vegetables usually grown on the farm, but all the choice varieties, as also fruits, etc., desirable for family use, that can be grown in the climate. The garden spot should, when a choice is to be had, have a gentle descent or slope towards the south, ag this exposure is preferable on many accounts to any other. The effects of a slight frost are more readily recovered from, if the air gets gradually a little warmed before the direct rays of the sun strike the plants that may be touched. Protection ought to be afforded a garden from cold northerly winds, if in no other way, by tight high board fences, it is better if protected by woods, high hills, or buildiiios. When the half acre is selected, it should be subsoiled or trenched, and, if at all inclined to hold water, it should be drained. {See Chapter /., for advantages of draining.) Peter Henderson, in a work on market gardening, records an instance of eight acres, the products of which were increased two thousand dollars a year by drainage, which cost five hundred dollars. It would seem as if a word to the wise on this subject ought to be sufficient. Next to the draining and deep plowing is the manuring, which should be liberal. The great advantages to be secured are earliness, large yields, and extra quality ; none of these can be secured without plenty of manure. A half acre intended for a garden should receive ten cords of good compost. Here is just the place for liquid manure, on tht MARKET GARDENIXG AND FARMERS' GARDENS. HSS growing crops. The garden being near the stables and yard, should receive many barrels of liquid manure during the season. Eack subsequent season this heavy manuring should be con- tinued, but the compost should be varied. If manure from the hog pen is composted this year, use horse manure the next, night soil the third, etc. Rotation of maix'.ires is often as essen- tial as rotation of crops. Cold Frames. One-half the enjoyment and two-thirds of the profit in raising garden stuff is in having it early in the season. This is accomplished by means of cold frames or hot beds. The cold frame consists simply of plank, set on edge around the garden beds, and covered with sash. Two or three weeks can be gained by the use of these in growing early vege- tables, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc. Cold frames and hot beds should face south, or southeast, and be protected on the northeast and northwest by a tight board fence. We would advise every man to have a small hot-bed for forcing a few early plants. Dig a trench four to five feet wide, two feet deep, and ten feet long. Board it up with any old plank to eighteen inches above the level of the ground, making the portion above ground pretty tight. You can nail slats across the frames in any shape, to receive your sash. The heating mate rial is fresh horse dung composted with its equal bulk of leaves. Draw them to the vicinity of the hot-bed and mix them in a conical heap, until they heat, which will be shown by the escape of vapors, when the heap should be turned over and leil for the second heat. When this takes place fill the trench, treading down the compost till it is even with the surface. Now put on the soil six inches deep. A portion of the surface soil that was thrown out, mixed with one-third the quantity of old hog manure, will be the best. Market gardeners use straw mats for covering their hot- 63-i UOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. beds, but an old carpet or blanket or coverlid will answer the purpose. There is no part of the country where a variety of plants may not be started in March, by ihe use of the hot-bed. Potatoes, A few early potatoes should be grown in the farmer's garden, as those usually eaten after the first of June are absolutely jinwholesome. The farmer may also use his garden to test the qualities of any new sorts before he invests largely in them. Ashes in the drills, covered with one inch of earth, form a most fertile bed for the potatoes. We recommend the Early Rose for garden culture, as the best early potatoe ever grown in this country. Beets should be sown only in a deep rich loam. Clay or gravel is not suitable. None but well decomposed manure should be used, with the addition of ashes and a little salt. An ounce of seed will sow over one hundred feet of drill very thickly. Two crops should be sown, one as early as the ground can be worked, and the other six weeks later, for fall and winter use. The drillB may be one foot apart, and when the plants get two nches high, they should be thinned. These little plants make the best of greens, and if a large bed is gradually thinned will furnish a daily dish for two or three weeks. The market gardeners make these small beets and tops pay for the labor of thinning the crop. Six inches apart in the drills is the distance at which they should stand, when the thinning is completed. They should be kept free from weeds, and for this purpose, and for all the operations of the garden, " Allen's weed killer" will be found a very efficient implement. The long smooth blood beet for the late crop, and the early blood turnip rooted beet for the early crop, are the two varieties we recommend. The seed is good two years. Carrots will usually pay about double the profit received MAKKET GARDENING AND FARMERS' GARDENS. 635 from potatoes as a market crop, and for the farmer's garden a few may well be sown in the poorest spot in the garden, as rich soil is apt to make them rank. Sow the Early Horn for the first crop, and thin, the same as directed for beets. The Long Orango is the best for later sowing and winter keeping. Turnips for winter use should be sown about the first of August, but a few " purple top strap leaved" sown in May, or the first of June, afford a desirable addition to the summer table. For winter keeping, the White Dutch, Finland, Yellow Dutch, and White Purple Top are recommended. [See Chapter VII.) Onions, though discarded from society, are too good to be banished, and we advise a bed of onions in the farmer's garden, by all. means. The mode of cultivation is described on another page. The Parsnip is exceedingly desirable, as they may be left in the bed over the winter, and afford fresh vegetables as soon as the frost is out in the spring. The free use of the parsnip at this time is most beneficial to the system, after the somewhat limited fare of the late winter months. Its cultivation is the same as for the carrot and other vegetables of this class. Plant in rows one foot apart, and thin to four inches. A half ounce of seed is sufficient for a hundred feet of drill. The Eadish is much esteemed in cities, and is desirable in every garden. It gives a relish to other articles of food, other- wise rather insipid. A light rich soil, deep and finely pulverized, will grow radishes in six weeks from tlie planting. Sow in drills an inch deep and six inches apart. Thin to two inches apart after they are well up. A drill six feet long sown in the hot-bed the first of March, another in the cold frame the first of April, a third in the open garden the first of May, a fourth, fifth, and sixth, at intervals of a month, between the rows of asparagus, will furnish your table daily from April to October. QS6 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Asparagus. It is so easy a matter to secure a good bed of asparagus, that wo should think every farmer's garden might be provided with one. The preparation of the bed requires some labor, but when it is remembered that it will last for twenty or thirty years, it seems small indeed. Lay out a bed in the warmest, mellowest part of the garden. Throw out all the soil to a depth of two feet ; throw in a layer of well rotted compost, and then a layer of the soil, forking the two over in the trench. When filled a little above the level, mark rows icross the bed an inch deep and twelve inches apart. Soak the seed in milk over night, and drop in the drills an inch apart. When the plants are two or three inches high, thin them out to nine inches apart in the rows. In the fall cut off the stalks aud add six inches of compost, half manure and half soil. Add another dressing in the spring, and each succeeding spring. Xorth of New York the bed should have a fall dressing to pro- tect the plants from the frost. No plants should be cut for the first three years. Salt should be put on whun the bed is made, and with each spring dressing. Celery. Sow in April in the cold frame, or May in the open ground. Thin and weed the plants until July, when they should be transplanted to rows three feet apart. When they attain twelve or fifteen inches in height, bank them up with earth from between the rows, pressing it closely about the stalks. As the stalks increase in height, add more earth. For winter u.se leave the stalks in the rows until there is damper of freezing, then remove to the cellar, covering all but the tops with dry sand. Never plant any of the large kinds. Incom- parable Dwarf and " Boston Market" are the best in all respects. Lettuce. The universal cultivation of this plant leaver little to be said. It may be sown at various times from April MAliKET GARDENING AND FABMERS' GARDENS. 637 to July. When transplanted or thinned the plants should stand one foot apart. The seed only requires to be covered with one-fourth inch of soil. The Early Curled Simpson for early sowing and the Curled India for late sowing are the best varieties for garden culture. Peppers should be sown in the hot-bed in March, or the cold frame in April, and planted out as soon as the ground gets thoroughly warm, in rows two feet apart, and eighteen inches apart in the rows. The Squash Pepper is the most productive and the Sweet Mountain the largest and mildest flavored. Ehubarb or Pie Plant is exceedingly convenient for making pies at a time when nothing else is available. Five heads will supply a family of twenty persons. All that is required is to set out a piece of root and it will grow. Dig the soil deeply, manure it richly before putting out the plant, and fork in a quantity of heating manure every spring. Market gardeners apply one hundred tons of manure to the acre, and realize an average jirofit of three hundred and fifty dollars per acre. Tomatoes, in this latitude, may be planted in the cold frame in April, or the hot-bed a month earlier. They are now in uni- versal favor, and an early crop is always in the market at gooc. prices. A few plants will suffice for an ordinary family, and these can be started in a box, in some warm, protected spot. The ground, if in good fertility, should not be enriched for the plants, as they will run to tops. The old early smooth red, and the later large red and large yellow, are as good as the modern varieties. Beans are, perhaps, as generally cultivated as any garden crop, and yet but few cultivate them rightly. They contain a larger proportion of nutriment than any other plant or vegeta- ble, and as a garden or field crop deserve more attention than they get. All beans require a light, mellow soil, loell enriched. i338 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. A wet, cold soil, or a barren soil, is no more fit for raising beans than for wheat ; and the product of an acre in beans will sup- port life nearly twice as long as the product of an exactly similar acre of wheat. The Lima is the best garden bean ; but the ill success of many gardeners in raising them has brought it into disrepute. There is no trouble, however, if rightly managed. Dig the spot intended for Limas the last thing in the fall. Set down your poles as soon as the ground will do to work in the spring, three feet apart each way. Grease your beans, by turn- ing on to them melted fat (not hot) of any kind, and plant six to a hill, with the eye down. If all the beans sprout, pull up two, leaving four plants at each pole. The greasing prevents their rotting, which has been the great objection to them. The Dwarf Bean is planted in drills twelve inches apart ; two inches deep and six inches apart is about the right distance to drop the seed. If the drills are directly underlaid with hen manure or night- soil compost, the growth will be rapid and the yield large. For string-beans, the Indian Chief is preferred. The Concord and Rhode Island Butter bean are desirable for shelling. Beans should be hoed often, but never when the leaves are wet. It is best not to plant them until the ground is warm, as they are not hardy like peas. A succession may be planted from May to August, and the table constantly supplied with corn and beans. "We shall speak of the culture of beans and peas as a field crop in another place. Peas may be sown as soon as the ground can be worked in the spring, even if it freezes up and is covered with snow after- wards. If the ground is trenched two feet deep in the fall, it will be several days earlier in the spring. Warm, light soils, moderately enriched by stable manure or bone dust, are best adapted to the pea ; but if the ground has been manured the year before, no further manure is desirable. For the early MARKET GARDENING AND FARMERS' GARDENS. 639 crop SOW the Daniel O'Eourke or Tom Thumb. Get some in just as early as you can, and then sow a few every two weeks until July. The early kinds will need no brush. The best varieties for later planting are the Champion of England and the Marrowfat. In planting peas, soak the seed in warm water from twelve to fourteen hours before planting. The rows oi the smaller kinds may be six inches apart, but the large kinds should not be less than twelve inches apart, and three inches apart in the rows, for garden culture. Sweet Corn needs no recommendation — every body uses ii , but farmers' gardens usually get but one planting ; whereas if a few hills were planted every two weeks from the first planting, there would be a constant succession of "roasting ears." Stow ell's Evergreen, and Early Darling, are two excellent varieties Pop-corn is also desirable, as it affords, without expense, an evening treat throughout the year. The winter evenings arc- made bright and cheerful for the girls and boys by means of pop-corn, molasses candy, and such simple pleasures ; and who can tell what influence these bright home scenes may have in turning the young away from sinful pleasures, the bar room, and the gaming table. The Cabbage requires a rich loam, and lime. Pound up your oyster and clam shells as fine as may be with a sledge nammer, and put them into the soil, but, until they are de- cayed, apply lime and barnyard manure Sow the seed in the cold frame, or, after the ground is warm, m the open garden. Transplant to rows two and a half feet apart, and two feet apart in the rows. The frequent application of liquid manure to these plants will produce an astonishing growth. In the gar- den is a good place to try the value of the liquid manure we recommended in Chapter III. ; and you will soon see that ono half your manure has been going to waste, at a great loss. (J40 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. The Wakefield and Early York are tlie best early varie- ties, and the Drum Heads and Savoy the favorite late kinds. These last are not planted until May, and transplanted in July. The Cucumber, though tabooed by the Doctors, is still a fa- vorite, and if used for nothing but pickles, is still almost indis- pensable. Every good housewife appreciates a jar of cucumber pickles. I'he holes for planting cucumbers should be dug about eighteen inches deep, and filled with a mixture of soil aud rotted manure. A shovelful of night soil in the bottom of the hole will do wonders. Fill up the hole to two or three inches above the level, and in this raised mound plant a dozen seeds, covering them an inch deep with fine dirt, patting it down with the spade. When the plants are up, thin them down gradually to the four strongest ones. The White Spined and Early Frame are the best early varieties, and the Early Cluster where pickles are the main object. Squashes and Melons should be planted in the same way as cucumbers. A few early melons might be started in the hot- bed, then transplanted to the cold frame, and finally to the gar- den. After the hot-bed is disused, a hill of cucumbers, melons, or squashes might be planted in it. The Hubbard Squash should have a place in every garden, as most delicious pies can be made from it all winter. A few watermelons and musk- melons can be raised in almost every garden, and are an inex- pensive luxury. If any one is entitled to such luxuries it is the farmer surely. Thyme, Sage, Summer Savory, and Sweet Marjorum should also be grown in the farmers' garden for the accommo- dation of the housekeeper in her seasonings. The Thanks- giving turkey or the Christmas goose cannot be just right without them. All stufied and baked meats are improved by their use. The seed is sown in May, in rich, mellow soil, and MARKET GARDENING- AND FARMERS' GARDENS. 641 the plant kept entirely free from weeds until they are trans- planted in June or July. Set twelve inches between the rows and eight inches between the plants. Keep down all weeds by the frequent use of a rake. In September, cut every other plant. Having now given directions for the home garden, we wish to speak of those crops which it will pay the farmer to culti- vate as " field crops" for town or city market. And we would say here, that a wide field is open to Southern cultivators in supplying the Northern markets with early vegetables and fruits, melons, etc. Any crop that will ship and that can be brought to New York City a few days before it can be grown on Long Island or in New Jersey, must pay enormous profits. New York will pay extravagant prices for having an early supply. Nothing will so well pay the Southern people on the coast, or rivers, or railroads, as to devote their energies to the early production of garden crops. Market Gardening may be so conducted as to be very profitable, but the cultivator cannot calculate upon extraordi- nary profits with ordinary cultivation. Constant attention and large outlays are required to secure large crops and large profits. Two hundred and fifty dollars per acre is the lowest estimate at which we put the cost of producing the most profita ble crops, and, as a rule, the man who can spare but five hundred dollars on his crops should cultivate but two acres, and in that proportion for a larger working capital. Some few farmers may, perhaps, get good profits from a few acres with less outlay. An average profit of four hundred dollars per acre has been realized, for ten years, by the market gardeuers about New York, where competition is greater than anywhere else in the country. If the soil has not been drained the expense will be 642 HOW TO MAKE THE FAKM PAY. greater ; but drainage is a permanent investment, more perma- nent and more certain than any other the farmer can make. Seventy- five to one hundred tons of manure per acre is used by the regular market gardener, who raises two or three crops on the land thus manured, Mr. Henderson makes the follow- mg estimate of expenses and receipts per acre. EXPENSES. Labor $300, horse labor $35 $335.00 Seventy-five tons manure 100.00 Eent, seeds, and tools 70.00 Cost of selling 100.00 $605.00 RECEIPTS. 12,000 Early cabbages at five cents per head . . $600.00 14,000 Lettuce at one cent per head 140,00 30,000 Celery at two cents per head 600.00 $1340.00 Leaving a profit of $735.00. " A crop of early beets or onions, followed by sweet herbs or horseradish, would have given about the same results." Three hundred dollars per acre seems a large sum for labor, but it comes back with interest. One half of this amount for labor and fifty tons of manure might serve for the farmer, as he will not be likely to crowd the crop to such good advantage as the regular gardener. The manure is prepared by the hogs, as follows : A manure yard is laid out, dug out two feet deep, and enclosed by a board fence six feet high. The green manure is thrown in pretty evenly; also, refuse chips, muck, peat, sods, bone shavings, and all animal and vegetable matter. Enough hogs are kept in it to keep it constantly worked over, and these hogs are fed the MARKET GARDENING AND FARMERS' GARDENS. 64.3 refu-ie vegetables, tops, etc. Peruvian guauo ;iud bone flour are the best fertilizers ; but the farmer can make manure cheaper than to buy it, and we refer him to Chapter III. Henderson relates the following : " It is a grave blunder to attempt to grow vegetable crops without the use of manures of the various kinds in about the proportions I have named. I never yet saw soil of any kind that had borne a crop of vegetables that would pro- duce as good a crop the next season without the use of manure, no matter how rich the soil may be thought to be. An Illustra- tion of this came under my observation last season. One of my neighbors, a market gardener of twenty years' experience, and whose grounds have always been a model of productiveness, had it in prospect to run a sixty-feet street tArough his grounds. Thinking his lands sufficiently rich to carry through a crop of cabbages without manure, he thought it useless to waste money by using guano on that portion on which the street was to run, but on each side sowed guano at the rate of twelve hundred pounds per acre, and planted the whole with early cabbages. The effect was the most marked 1 ever saw ; that portion on which guano had been used selling off readily at twelve dollars per hundred, or about fourteen hunJiod dollars per acre, the other hardly averaged three dollars per hundred. The street occu- pied fully an acre of ground, so that my triend actually lost over $1,000 in crop by withholding $60 for manure." Another fact stated by the same gardener is, that head crops, as cabbage, lettuce, etc., should be followed by root crops, and vice versa. If our Southern friends will commence careful cultivation and heavy manuring, with a view to bringing large early crops into our Northern markets, they will find it abun- dantly profitable. The crops to which their attention should be thus devoted are beets, cauliflowers, radishes, cucum- bers, peas, beans, sweet corn, onions, lettuce, tomatoes, early 39 (544 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. -quashes, early potatoes, sweet potatoes, cabbage, and melons. To these the Northern farmer can add asparagus, carrots, tur- nips, spinach, rhubarb, horseradish, and watercresses. We shall describe the approved methods of culture adapted to both North and South. The culture of carrots, turnips, beets, potatoes, and sweet potatoes has been given in the Chapter on roots. The main object now being earliness, larger quantities of manure and more thorough and careful cultivation should be given, and two crops taken from the same soil yearly. It is better to cul- tivate five acres thus liberally than to give ten acres ordinary cuhivation. The implements required are Allen's cylinder plow ; the subsoil plow, the marker, (see Fig, QQ^) as in cotton culture, only with small teeth and but six inches apart ; the har- row, with fine teeth on one side and short coarse ones on the other ; a hand roller for covering the seed ; the digging fork with flat tines ; the scuffle hoe ; Allen's " weed-killer" hoe, {Fig. 50 ;) a steel or iron tooth rake ; a seed sower, {Fig, 48 ;) and a dibbler. The latter is made of a crooked stick, two or three inches in diameter, and the point shod with iron. Asparagus. Sixteen to eighteen thousand plants are set to the acre, requiring five to six pounds of seed. One pound of seed then will produce plants enough for one -sixth of an acre, and you can regulate your sowing accordingly. The plants are first sown in a seed bed, and transplanted the second season. The ground should be thoroughly prepared.* Drop the seed in rows one foot apart. The " marker" makes them only six inches apart, but every other row can be omitted. Keep the plants * To avoid repetition, we shall suppose that all ground for vegetables will be plowed deeply and sub-soiled and (unless we state otherwise) heavily manured also. Fifty tons of stable manure per acre, or its equivalent in fertilizers, is the smallest amount we shall designate. Any exceptions to these rules will be noted, as we proceed. MAEKET GARDENING AND FARMERS' GARDENS. 645 carefully hoed and clear of weeds all the time during the first- season's growth, and they will be ready to transplant the second year ; otherwise you must wait till the third year. Transplant as early in the spring as the ground is in working order, setting the plants in two-feet rows, and eight inches apart in the rows. The trench, or drill, in which they are set, should be wide enough so that the roots can be spread out, and deep enough so that the crown of the plant shall be covered about two inches. Sow one hundred pounds of refuse salt per acre on ihe beds in the spring. Fork in five hundred pounds per acre of super- phosphate of lime. {See Garden Culture.) Do not gather any the first year, and only moderately the second ; after that cut until it begins to spindle. Cut it always below the surface and with a slanting cut. One thousand dollars per acre clear profit is often realized from this crop by the market gardeners. It always meets a sure sale at remunerative prices. Beans. As we have before stated, the bean is the most nutritious of all vegetables, and is profitable food for man and beast. They bring a good price, and the market is never full. The common white bean can be grown on any corn land, and needs no more manure and less labor than corn. They should be sown at about the same time as corn, in drills from two to two and a half feet apart, and from three to six inches apart in the drills. If a seed sower is used and the seed distributed evenly, three pecks per acre is sufficient. Cover the seed with the roller.* As soon as the plants get two or three inches high, go through with a cultivator and hand hoes, and clean out every vestige of weeds. When the weeds show again, repeat the process. At the next cultivating turn up a light furrov/ against each side of the row. Beans may be harvested by mowing or cradling them when * All seed had best be rolled after planting. H46 HOW TO MAKE THE FABM PAY. most of the pods are ripe, and before thej begin to open ; they should then be thoroughly dried, and threshed on a clean floor. Care must be taken to avoid loss from scattering during the drvins, and they should, if possible, be sheltered from rain during this curing process. Where the crop is small, the pods are usually gathered by hand. In either case they must be very thoroughly dried by exposure to the sun or to the heat of a drying kiln before they are put up in bulk, in bags, barrels or boxes; for if any moisture remains in them they will be certain to heat and become mouldy and worthless. They should therefore always be kept spread out thin on a dry floor until they are completely cured. The White Marrow ^ve consider the best for field culture, although the Eed bean is the one usually cultivated. The White Kidney and China Eed Eye make good field crops, although not gften zo gtown. !?orty bushels per acre can be raised on good corn land with the same manuring and cultivation required to produce a good corn crop. The bulk of the Southern crop is shipped to New York in the green state for string beans, and meet a rapid sale at high prices. With increased attention to the crop it could be readily doubled and brought into market a ? few days earlier. Cauliflower and Broccoli are substantially the same thing under different names; the latter being planted for fall use. and the former for the summer market. Any soil that will grow early cabbages, will also grow cauliflower ; but the latter being a more valuable crop will repay extra jnanuring and preparation. Watering in dry weather, even by hand, is ad. vantngeous. The gardeners of Charleston, Savannah, and Nor- folk have a great advantage in raising these vegetables. The seeds are sown in September or October. In four or five wrecks trajasplant into cold frames, and plant out in March or April. MARKET GARDENING AND FARMERS' GARDENS. 647 The Northern gardeners do not get their crop in mayket until June. The sale is limited, but it pays fifteen hundred dollars per acre. Cabbages. It is a fact not generally known that cabbages are the largest and most profitable crop grown by the market gardeners at the North. The seeds are sown in September and the plants carefully wintered in cold frames, yet they pay a handsome profit. But at the South, where the temperature does not fall twenty degrees below the freezing point, the seed can be sown in the open ground in October, and planied out on the first opening of spring. Put out the plants in rows twenty-four inches apart, and sixteen inches apart in the rows. Set the plant down to the first leaf, so that all the stem will be covered. Between the rows, lettuce plants can be set out twelve incnes apart. The lettuce will all be off in six or eight weeks, before the cabbage is large enough to occupy the ground, and the cabbages are ofi' soon enough to plant a second crop. A crop of cabbage and lettuce so raised will often bring one thousand dollars per acre. Late cabbage is a crop the Northern farmer can raise; the soil and cultivation is not so important. Sow the seed in May, and plant out in July inirows three feet apart, and two feet apart in the row, and work the crop with the cultivator or light plow. On Long Island they are set out after a crop of peas or early potatoes have been removed. Eight to twelve tons of stable manure is put in the rows. As the early cabbages are raised at the South and shipped North, so the late cabbage grown at the North are shipped South. Both early and late varieties are named in " Oardea CuUureP Early Sweet Corn can also be raised to advantage at the South for the Northern market. Where the planting can be commencod in April the crop, if highly manured, can be brought n48 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. forward yide2ei]| MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION. 663 and thawed during the winter. In localities where the weather in winter is very changeable, all kinds of hardy trees seeds may be safely preserved in the following manner: Select a tight, strongs box ; in the bottom of this place a thin layer of sand ; on this put a layer of seed ; then a little more sand, and so on alternately until the box is full ; nail on the cover, and then bury the box in the open ground, covering it a foot or more deep. A dry, sandy knoll is the best place, if handy ; if not, set the box on the ground, and make a lai'ge mound of earth over it. The common sweet chestnut is generally thought to be a difficult seed to keep through winter, but, buried in saud as I have described, it will usually be as fresh and sound in spring as when first gathered from the tree. I have also preserved the chestnut and similar seeds by packing in damp moss, and then placing them in a cool cellar. Rats and mice are very fond of most kind of tree seeds, and they should be placed beyond the reach of these pests of the farm and garden. Value of Different Kinds of Timber. — It is scarcely neces- sary for me to call your attention to the fact that forest tree cul- ture can be made a profitable business, even more so, in many lo- calities, than any of our ordinar}- farm crops. Neither will you expect me at this time to designate the best species of varieties for culture, inasmuch as soils, locations and markets differ very widely, and each may demand a particular kind. For instance, the common white birch is usually considered one of the most worthless species of native trees ; still, near some of our manufac- turing towns, where its wood is used for making spools, it com- mands a much greater price than oak, hickory, chestnut and many similar kinds of timber. Even the much despised alianthus for some locations and soils is a most valuable tree. It grows rapidly even upon poor light soils ; and although it does not attain a ver}' large size, still its wood is well adapted to many other purposes besides that of fuel. There are man}' other similar instances that might be named where the local value of a species is far a)bove its general one. But all these things will be learned in time, and the most we can expect at present is to call the attention of the masses to the importance of the subject, for we know full well that when our people become aware that there is a rich field open to them they are ready to occupy, and make it yield a full return. We have to regret that the art of planting forest trees has not re- ceived that attention from our people which its importance de- mands. It may be said that, as it is a branch of horticulture, it is en- couraged by nurserymen and all others who are engaged in the cultivation of trees. But I do not believe that arboriculture will ever reach the high position which it deserves until it is stu- died and encouraged as a separate profession. Witli your per- mission, I will at some future time give a few practical hints as to 1 064 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. the best methods of growing the different kinds of trees, as well as a list of the most valuable species and varieties. About (Jatiikrtno Nuts — Timber Grovting, etc. — Black and white walnuts should be gathered as soon as they fall from the trees, and planted at once, as follows: — Draw furrows six feet apart and three or four inches deep, drop the nuts from two to luur feet apart in the row, cover them four or five inches deep and Ntep on each one, or what is better, roll with a common two-horse roller; this packs the soil and prevents them from drying out, so that the frosts of winter will burst the shells, and most of them will come up the ensuing spi'ing. Should any of them fail to pome the first season, they are very sure to come the second. Besides these, the chestnut, and horse chestnut, and the beech nut may be obtained at a trifling expense from the States east of us, where the timber abounds, and the trees produced without any diffi- culty, if you are careful to prevent the nuts from becoming dry, by i)lacing them in moist earth or sand, and keeping them secni- - from mice and frost till the time for planting in the spring ; then plant the same distance apart as other trees, and cultivate two or tiiree seasons so as to keep down all weeds ; or, wdiat is better, as soon as the trees are up a foot or two, mulch thoroughly with straw or slough hay. All trees, fruit, or forest thrive much lietter for mulching, as all trees in their natural positions, in groves or large tracts of timber, are annually mulched by the falling leaves, which keep tlie ground moist about their roots, except in long continued droughts. If we imitate nature in this respect, we shall doubtless find trees flourishing just as well in a prairie as a timbered count ly. In addition to the above named, or any otfcer of our deciduous fui-est trees, every man wants evergreens in proportion to his means to purchase, ami the room to be occupied. But, in the second place, where do we want trees? If our location admits our building on the north or west sides of the road, we want thick bells of timl)er north and west of our buildings, — evergreens, if we can aflbrd them, as being altogether a better wind-break thnn deciduous trees ; but, at all events, plant trees, and plant them ..o close (two or three rows wotild be better than one) that after a few years they will prove a pretty effectual barrier to the cold blasts of winter, furnishing a grateful shelter to man and beast. If you havii to build on the east or south side of the road you camot have the same amount of shelter without obstructing 'the view of the road ; but even in these situations, by no means the most desirable, by setting your buildings farther back from the road, if on the east side, plant north of your buildings a belt of trees as thick as they will grow, with rather more in front of the house than would be admissible if the house fticed the east or south; likewise, if your house is south of the road, plant your trees plentifully on the west, but on the east and south of youi MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION. 665 buildings plant few or no trees, especially near the buildings, for it is a fact well known to physiologists that all animals, human or brute, require plenty of fresh air and sunshine in order to a full development of their physical frames and the enjoyment of vigorous health. Indeed there can be no doubt that many an individual has passed away in the morning of life, and now fills a consumptive's grave, who, with plentj' of pure air to breathe by night and by day, with suitable exercise every da}'" with nothing to shield them from the sun and the wind but the broad canopy of the skies, might have lived to a good old age in the enjoyment of health and strength. I rather like the idea expressed in my hear- ing a few years ago, by a gentleman recently a graduate of one of our Eastern colleges, now pastor of a church in a flourishing town in an adjoining count}^, who said, if going to build a residence for himself, he should want it to face the northeast, southeast, or southwest, so that the sun might shine some part of each day in every room in the house. This may be considered eccentric or extravagant by some, but the suggestion seems to me worthy of consideration. Pardon this digression. Furthermore, we want belts of forest trees, evergreens, (if we can afford it,) to protect our orchards, and if our orchards are large, rows of evergreens interspersed among oin- api)le trees, and every man who has forty acres or more of land, wants a grove more or less for the sake of the fuel and timber it will afford, and for the protection it will give his growing crops a? well. Should any object to planting trees as thick as recom mended, let them remember that after ten or twelve years, if they appear too much crowded, it will be very convenient to cut out from the thickest plt\ces occasionally, as needed, and trees planted as thick as they can grow to advantage will be much more valuable for timber, growing taller and straighter. If it be true, as we read in the Good Book, that "parents ought to lay up for their children," surely no more imperative duty rests upon the present inhabitants of our beautiful prairie country than to plant trees for shelter, for fuel, for timber. For, treat the question of timber as we may, it is a fact that should be impressed upon tlie mind of every man, that as the population and wealth of the country increases, the want of machinerj-, particularly agricultural imple- ments, increases in a much greater ratio. In the States east of us, where most of the timber is obtained for the manufacture of these articles, I speak advisedly when 1 say that the quantity is rapidly diminishing, and in many places it has quadrupled in value in the last twenty 3'ears. Would it not be well to pause and ask ourselves the question : Where are we to obtain the necessar}' supply for these piirpot> ; number two, one pound seven and a half ounces ; number three, one l)ound three and a quarter ounces. It will be seen that there was a difference of nearly one-half a pound between number one and three, and yet the price asked for them V)y those who had them for sale was the same. It may be said that this is an ex- treme case; we admit that it may properly be so considered, but if we take the weights of nnml)er one and two, we find a differ- ence of nearly three ounces, or a little more than twelve per cent As great difference is frequently found in the weight of oats, corn, wheat, and other grains, and this disparity is largely increased where the measurer is skilful at his l)usiness, we should be glad to have the opinion of practical farmers on this subject. Damp St aisles. — When I lirst came to the farm which I now hold by purchase, I found the stables built under large trees and near a spring of water, with a northern aspect. My horses were soon in poor condition, with long and rough coats, and almost always lax in tlieir bowels, nor could I get them up by extra food or lighter work; but my cows suffered the most, for they were always sick. Their milk fell off and their butter was'poor, and of a bad color and taste, and four of them slipped their calves before time. When the spring came they left their winter quar- ters in a worse state than I had ever seen them, and two of them died from scours on going to pasture. On inquiry I found that tlie tenant who had left had always been what the neighbors termed unfortunate in his horses and cattle, and from that cause ^72 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. more than any other he had not been able to make both ends meet. The truth flashed upon me in an instant, and in a very little longer time than it has taken me to tell my story. I had commenced pulling down the stable, the unhealthiuess of which bad been, I was convinced, the cause of all the evil and the loss; and it was no more than two days before there was not left one stone upon another of the whole fabric. I now set to work and creeled another on higher ground, removed from water, and clear from the, shade of trees, with a southeast aspect, and dry capa- cious yard ; and from that day I have had neither sickness nor borrow in my out door household, ^f}' horses live on less food, are always sleek and in good condition, and my cows are a credit to their keep. Our butter brings two cents a pound more in market, and for the last year our sales are more than doubled from the same number of cows and the same pasturage, and no more premature calves. Instead of watering my cattle as hereto- fore, at the spring under the trees — the water cold, with a deadly taste and bad color — I sank a well and put in a pump ; and at a long trough in the yard for the summer, and another under shelter for the winter, my cattle slake their thirst without setting up their coats, as they used to do after drinking at the hole under the trees. Even when the weather was warm they were accus- tomed to shake all over, as if they were in a fit of ague after drink- ing their fill of this water ; and to this, with the bad aspects of the stables, I attribute all the sickness and misery which I have experienced amongst my cattle and horses. To PROTECT Horses from Flies. — Take two or three small handfuls of walnut leaves, upon which you pour two or three quarts of cold water; let it infuse one night, and pour the whole next morning into a kettle and let it boil for a quarter of an hour; when cold it will be fit for use. No more is required than to ujoisten a sponge, and before the horse goes out of the stable, let tliose parts which are most irritable be smeared over with the liquor, viz., between and upon the ears, the neck, flank, etc. Not only the lady or gentleman who rides out for pleasure will derive benefit from the walnut leaves tluis prepa-red, but the coachman, the wagoner, and all others who use horses during the hot, months. The Teeth of a Horse as an Indication or Age. — At five years of age a horse has forty teeth— twenty-four molar or jaw teeth, twelve incisors or front teeth, between the molars and uicisors ; but usually wanting in tiie mare. At birth only two nippers or middle incisors appear. At a year old, the incisors are all visible on the first or milk set. Before three years, the permanent nippers have come through. At four years old, the permanent tlividers next to the nippers i are cut. 4 MISCELLANEOUS IXFORMATiOX. • 673 At Pve, the mouth is perfect, the sccoikI set of teetli having been c^'inpleted. At s-jc, the noUow under the upper, called the mark, has disap- peared iVom tne nippers, and diminished in the dividers. At s-cven, tne mark has disappeared from the dividers, and the next tettn or corners are level, though showing the mark. At eigdt, the mark has gone from the corners, and the horse is said to bo aged. After this time — indeed good authorities say that aftei Ave ,years — the age of the horse can only be conjec- tured. Bai, the teeth gradually change their form, the incisors becoming loand, oval, and triangular. How TO ViT Collars to Houses' Shoulders. — It is very im- portant to have a collar fit nicely and snugly to the shoulders of the horse. It enables him to work with a great deal more ease, and to apply a great deal more strength. It prevents -galling and wounding, as the friction is avoided. Collars are so made, or should be so made, as to throw the chief force on tlie lower part of the shoulder. The horse can apply but little strength on the upper part, and for this reason breast collars are coming greatly into vogue — as the strength is exerted on the lower part of the shoulder. But we started oat to tell our readers how to make a new collar fit the shoulder of the horse. The collar should be purchased of the proper size; just before putting it on the first time, immerse it in water, letting it remain about a minute, and immediately putting it on the horse, being careful to have the hames so adjusted at top and bottom as to fit the sho\ilder, and then pufthe horse to work. The. collar, by being wet, will adapt itself to the shoulder, and should dry on the horse. "When taken off it should be left in the same shape it occui)ied on the horse, and ever after you will have a snug fitting collar and no wounds. — Valley Farmer. Devon Cow^s — Butter Making. — We have said elsewhere that the Devons are not a dairy breed, but that they sometimes make excellent dairy stock is proved by the following: D. H. Prest, of Ontario, having seen Mrs. Cragg's statement about her butter pro- duct in the " Rural,''^ sends a communication giving his experi- ence in butter making. Four 3-ears ago, having purchased a Devon cow, it was resolved to test the value of the purchase by keeping an account of the butter made from her milk. The first week's cream was churned hy itself, and produced fourteen pounds of butter. The milk stood from morning till night, ajid from night till morning, and was skimmed and fed to the calf before it got sour. That calf, when a heifer two years old, was milked separately' like the dam, and produced in a week ten and three-quarter pounds of excellent butter. Another heifer, from the same mother as the last, came in also at two years old, and in the second week in March produced ten and eleven-sixteenths pounds 674 . HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. of butler, which was sold at fort^'-seven cents per pouhd. Our correspondent adds : " I was not trying to beat any one, but only testing the character of the Devon cows as compared with others I had on hand. I think I could better this by a good many pounds should I make it my study." Carrying Milk. — In France, milk is packed in small tin cans, easily moved b}' one man, and by a simple contrivance the stopper screws close down upon the contents of each can, so the motion of the railway cannot chui'n the milk in transitu. The cans are then placed in covered wagons, and in summer are wrapped in cloths, which are watered from time to time so as to piomote cool- ness by evaporation. The result of this care, which costs but little, is that the milk supply of Paris is proverbially excellent. Agricultural Fairs were intended to be and are a good thing when properly conducted, but the prominence now given to fast horses and trotting is disgusting, and injurious to the interests of agriculture. Read the following : What proportion the trotting horses bear to the number of horses, or what their proportional value may be, I am unin- formed. Their value is considerable, I am aware, but that their raising and training is proportionally pecuniarily advantageous to the farmer I am unprepared to believe, or that the " horse trot" at our agricultural fairs is of greater advantage to the farmer than all other interests combined, I am equally unpre- pared to admit. For farm purposes, a somewhat different style of horse is needed, as also for all general purposes, from the t'rotting horse. Yet as there is a taste and demand, which will be supplied, for trotting and fast horses, farmers will endeavor to breed those having that quality to recommend them, and with this enterprise I have no fault to find, neither would I desire to be understood as finding fault with the agricultural society or its managers for olieriug premiums in the aggregate greater for trotting horses than for all other interests, for they have that privilege ; l)ut, as the trotting horse interest is of minor importance to agri- culturists, a corresponding value ought to be attached to it by our agricultural societies. If we are to have the inevital)le "horse trot," let us have that as a distinct exhibition, not mix it up with exhibitions of farm; stock pro|)er and products. As to the advantage to the farmer of breeding fast horses, with that object only in view, I might bring the expressed opinion of m:iny eminent agriculturists and writers; but it is unnecessary^ and 1 refrain, believing that the intelligence of the farm commu- nity will eventually regulate this matter, by Holding fairs devote* 'o the true interests of agriculture. ' W. H. White. /Vlsike Clover — Allow me to advise my bee-keeping friends MISCELLAXEOUS INFORMATIOX. 675 who are farmers to cultivate the Alsike clover. For while it is, for pasturing or haj' purposes, decidedly preferable to red clover, it full}^ equals it in the secretion of honey, and far surpasses the white. Its cultivation would, therefore, greatly increase the forage for bees, which is very desirable. I have ever contended that no plant can be cultivated with profit for bee-pasturage nlone — that bee-keeping is profitable from the fact that bees gather w-hat would othei'wise run to waste ; 3'et the bee-keeper ma}' often cultivate a crop that, while it proves remunerative as such, will, at the same time, increase the pasturage for his bees. Perhaps nothing will better meet the wants of the bee-keeper in this respect than the Alsike clover. 2s ot only so, but the farmer who does not keep Ijci's would find it to his advantage to sow Alsike clover instead of red clover, as will be seen from the following account of the experience of the Shaker family, near Albany, Xew York, furnished to the '' The Counfrij Gentleman,'''' by Mr. Chauncy Miller, a member of that famil}' : " We'find the Alsike clover a very superior grass in the follow- ing points : " 1. For its value as a hay crop on a great variety' of soils, being of a growth, in height, varying according to qualit}' of soil, from ten inches to two and a half feet, and yielding from one and a half to three tons per acre ; thus comparing with our best red clovers. "2. For fineness of stalk or haum. " 3. For its multitude of sweet flowers, blooming, perhaps, three or four times as much as red clover, making, when in bloom, literall}^ a sea of flowers. "4. Its adaptation to heavy soils, clay, or .leavy clay loams, as well as sandy soils, not being so liable to heave out by frosts in winter and spring as red clover, on account of the root being more fibrous, partaking somewhat of the character of the white clover. " 5. To all farmers who keep bees largely, the crop wonld be of ^reat value, for bees can work upon the flowers equall}- as well as apon wdiite clover, the blossoms being about the same size, and irecisel}' of the same habit as the latter, but much more abundant u honey ; bees are as fond of the flowers as of mignonette, and, n its season of flowering, which lasts about six weeks, are con- ;inuaUy upon it, from dewy morn until dusk}' eve. • " 6. To those farmers raising clover seed for market, the Vlsike clover, in our opinion, would be of great value, as it ;eeds enormously, and the seed threshes easily, by flail or aachine, leaving a beautiful quality of hay, the stalks retaining heir greenness when most of the seed is quite ripe." According to tlie above, it would be advisable for farmers to ultivate it whether they keep bees or not. That the above is not 'verdrawn is fully proved by those who have tried it in Canada. 4i (J76 now TO makf: the farm pay. II. M. Thomas, of Brookliu, Ontario, had it grown to a much •rreater heiulit than tliat mentioned in the above extract, in places measuring four and a half feet. It is abundant in seed, vicldiu'T from live to eight bushels to the acre ; after threshing, the haum is equally as good, and is bj'^ man^^ considered better for cows than red clover ha3\ In this count}' (Ontario) many able and intelligent farmers are ordering seed, being well satisfied that it is, for all purposes, superior to red clover. So great is Lhe demand in the United States that the seed is retailing at one dollar and ninet}^ cents per pound, at the Rochester seed store, though I believe, with us, it sells at thirt}'- cents a pound, or Ufteen dollars a bushel. J. H. Thomas, Chinese Yam. — Having fully investigated the character and merits of this yam, I have some positions to announce in regard to it, which I should have much hesitation about advancing, if 1 were not well assured of their triumphant verification by my country- men. I assert, that this esculent, by its concentration of each useful property, transcends in importance every other edible vegetable of the earth, and that it is destined to supersede the tropical and unreliable potato in all northern climates. The com- bination of its admirable properties as food for man constitiite it also the most estimable vegetable boon, and the most nutritious aliment, for man and domestic stock, which God and nature, in their all-pervading beneficence and benign provision, have bestowed upon the inhabitants of our globe. I shall discuss all these points on a future occasion in the ample sense to which they are entitled. The present article is intended solely to impart such practical facts and advice in relation to the plant as will aid those who are now commencing its culture. I desire, however, to make known that there are more than fifty varieties of various colors and forms, and varying in length from seven inches to two feet. Characteristic Points. — This yam is a native of the northern limits of the temperate zone, and will flourish in the coldest regions of our country, and of the British territories, and will endure, everywhere, the winters in the open ground. Its produce is more than double the crop of any potato, and it never rots. It will flouri.sh best on the now useless sandy lands of New Jer.sey and Long Island, and of the entire coast range, and it will also succeed on any other soil but a stiff clay. It does not require replanting annually, but reproduces abundant crops from theifrag- ments and small tubers that are left in the earth. There can " ~ no fragment, howevci diminutive, that will not vegetate. Froi tul)ers, the roots attain ten to twelve inches in length, and' wei£ four to six ounces. From sections of the root, such as used ft the regular crop, the roots attain eighteen to twenty-four inches length, and weigh from half a pound to one and a half pound! and often more. A plantation of this yam, is in China termed "i permanent magazine of food," and the roots may be dug fresh fo MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION. 677 use dail}', from early spring to winter, thus furnishing new yams continuoush^ It is more palatable than the best Mercer or any other potato. Its taste and flavor are intermediate between the finest potato and arrowroot, of an exceedingly delicate farinaceous character, and, like the potato, it is devoid of all insipid sweetness. It is free from any ligneous or fibrous substance, and possesses the peculiar property of not being subject to rot or deca}^ but will remain perfectly sound and excellent in a dry state for a year, thus rendering it exceedingly valuable for long sea voyages, and for the prevention of scurvy. It is much more nutritious than an}' other edible vegetable used by man, and more so than wheat or any other grain. It is the only vegetable of all the earth which combines an ample portion of azote, the grand constituent of animal substances which imparts vigor to the muscular power of man and beast ; and it is by the possession of this essential equiva- lent in this esculent that the use of animal food is rendered un- necessar}'- by the Chinese and Japanese nations, whose immense populations comprise nearly one-half the inhabitants of our globe. The culture of this most estimable and productive of all vege- tables, on the sandy soils of the south side of Long Island and throughout the sandy region of the Atlantic portion of New Jersey, which are of a character precisely adapted and congenial to its growth and development, and where the crops will consequently be much greater than in other locations, must impart a value to those lands which no one has j^et anticipated ; and they may soon command higher rates than any of the firm soils of the north side of the Island or of the upper section of Xew Jersc}'. Preparation of the Soil. — The ground for planting tubers should be rendered mellow and permeable to the depth of fifteen inches, and for roots to the depth of twenty inches. Old decayed stable manure, or, decayed peat or wood mould, should be mixed moderately throughout. Over-manuring is injurious, and pou- drette is unsuitable. Planting. — The season for planting is as soon as the freezing , has ceased and the ground has become settled. • Tubers. — These should be planted in a double row — the rows twelve inches apart, and the tubers ten inches apart in the rows. Roots. — The sections of root should be about one and a half inches in diameter. They should be planted in a douljle row — the vows fifteen inches apart, and the roots at twelve inches apart in the rows. There is no plant whose culture is more simple and easy than '';at of this yam. , Its extensive cultivation promises to our country a vast and inexhaustible resource, derived from such soils as have hitherto been most unproductive and unpi-omising. It will supersede and far more than replace the failing and uncertain crops of the potato, with the addition of this potent and comprehensive fact, that this 073 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY esculent will suceeed and yield ample and relial)lc crops through- nut all the northern sections of the country. — Canada Farmer. Stacks for Hay and Grain. — In a stack for \\Q.y or grain care bliould be taken, as in the construction of a house, to have a good r>undation. Great quantities of both hay and grain are annually lost bv lack of attention to this matter. Sometimes the hay or grain becomes frozen to the ground ; at other times water is carried up far into the stack. It is often the case that the stack has no better foundation than some brush, coarse weeds, poles or straw ; and not unlVoquently the stack rests directly on the ground. It is no wonder that farmers who commence their stacks in this manner complain of great waste of hay or grain in the stack. In England great care is taken in providing a good foundation for stacks. Ordinaril}' there is a permanent inclosure for a stack- yard. The stack foundations are also permanent. Sometimes stone pillars capped with broad flat stones are used, which not only protect the stack from moisture but from vermin. Iron rails and pillars are also used for the same purpose. In this country it is hardly necessary' to go to so great an expense to secure a good foundation, since lumber is comparatively cht-aj) and plenty here. It would ahvays be well, however, to l)uild the stack on timbers or poles placed on the ends of posts which should project about two feet above ground. A set of such foundations would last for years. The shape of a stack for either hay or grain should be nearly that of an Qgg, the small end up ; the bulge in a rick should occupy the same position. Care should at all times be taken, in stacking grain, to pack the heads of the bundles some inches above the buts, so as to protect the grain from rain. For the better ventilation of stacks some farmers recommend to place a barrel on the foundation, gradually raising it as the stack goes up This will insure a draft through the whole length of the stack. An excellent covering to the upper portion of the stack may be made by working in a small amount of long straw or tall grass, letting the endsliang over on the outside. This may be put in at intervals of a few feet apart from where you begin to taper, and it will Ije of much use in protecting the grain beneath. — Agri- cultu rails t. The Farmer's Grindstone. — There is no tool so essential to the farmer as a good grindstone ; and a very correct idea may e formed of the management of the farm by the appearance of Lliis homely but useful article. If the neighboring saw or edge tool faotory has furnished one of its cast oti' " hubs," which is hung on a wooden shaft and suspended in the crotch of a tree, or in a" fence corner, you may rest assured that such a farm will not pro- • duce four hundred bushels of potatoes, or forty bushels of wheat to the acre. But such cases are rare now-a-days, as this article has kept pace with the wonderful improvements in mowing i MISCELLANEOUS IXFORMATIOX, 679 machines and farming implements generally. The old fashioned unfinished stone, with square hole and uncertain grit, has been superseded by the finished stone, with self-adjusting shaft, friction rollers, and treddle ; so that one person can turn the stone, and grind any ordinary tool without assistance. In olden times, the only grindstones in use came from New Castle, in England ; and, although very good for some purposes, they were not suitable for farmers' use, the grit being too coarse. The Nova Scotia stones were next introduced, and found to be a great improvement on the New Castle. The Ohio grindstones are very largel}- used by the farmers and others throughout the West, although our Penn- sylvania farmers prefer a good blue Nova Scotia stone ; but recently a most excellent article has reached us from the shores of Lake Huron, having a fine, sharp grit, leaving a fine edge, and cutting prettj'^ fast. Hoping these remarks ma}- induce our farmers io give this important tool the attention it desei-%'es, a few hints how to put it in order may not be out of place. 1st. Always keep your grindstone under cover, as exposure to the sun's rays hardens the grit and injures the frame. 2d. Don't let the stone run in water, or stand in water when not used, as this causes soft places where none exist ; but allow the water to drip from a water-pot — an old white lead keg will answer — fixed above the stone, and stop it off when not grinding. 3d. Clean off all greasy or rusty tools before sharpening, as grease or rust chokes up the grit ; and always keep the stone perfectly round b}' razeeing it off when necessary; and finally, every farmer should have a good grindstone of his own, always ready for use, and no one should be so improvident as to waste the cost of a stone by running to his neighbors to grind his tools. — Cor. Farm and Fireside. Farm Laborers are at present very unsatisfactory and unrelia- ble ; and this is in part the farmer's fault. If the farmer would encourage the hiring of married men, even at a small increase of wages, and provide these men with comfortable houses at a small rental, keeping them employed the year round, he would find it to his profit. We give elsewhere a plan of a laborer's cottage, (Fig. 140,) which can be built for from four hundred to six hundred dollars, and the farmer can charge the interest of the money for the rental. The better class of labor he would be able to secure by such a course would well pay for the trouble. We heartily commend the following, by L. A. Iline, from The Euralis/ : Farmers are now provided with the necessary hired help^ and are pushing the work of the season. Probably about half tne cultivators of the soil for a business and a livelihood perforin their own work without hired hands. The other half have from one to four, and in some cases more, men employed at monthly wages. fiSO now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. In behalf of these men we now address a few words to their employers. The larger part of them will be worked during the bcasuii, and ou the approach of winter will be dismissed. They arc receiving on an average about seventeen dollars per mouth and board, which for eight monlrhs' time will amount to one hun- ched and I'orty-live dollars. During the balance of the year they will find but little, and many of them absolutely nothing to do. Thev must get through as best they can until the next spring. Many of them will go to the towns and into the cities hoping to procure &u occasional day's work, or at least find a more agreea- ble variety amid which to kill time. Temptations are on every hand, and few of them will have a dollar left or decent clothes in the following March, when they will again be seeking for places ou the farms. This condition is very discouraging and humili- ating. It is well calculated to break the manly spirit, induce reck- lessness, and increase the vices and the crimes of the coiyitry. What we would suggest, is the obligation on the part of the em- ployer to furnish work for their men the year round. If a profit has been made out of their labor during the summer, they can be worked during the winter at slightly reduced wages without loss to the emplo^-er. There is much good time for work during the winter, and considerable labor preparations for the next busy sea- son can be performed. In consequence of a lack of hands, much goes to waste during the winter that might be saved. The manure heap might be largeh' increased b}'^ keeping the stables and yards Well cleaned up, and large quantities of muck, leaves, rotten wood, sod, or rich soil from the ravines for composting. A hired man could in this service alone more than make his wages for the intel- ligent farmer, by working no more than half the time. Then there is ditching and underdraining, which can be performed better in the winter than any other season, especially when the ground is not too severely frozen. It would pay to haul leaves or straw and spread along the lines of ditches, to prevent the ground from freezing, so that digging can go forward at any time. There are very few days too cold to work with comfort. Most farmers can make ditching profitable, and while the ground is soft and water will run is the time to do it. There is plenty of work that a farmer may provide for his men during the winter. It is cruel and de- structive of the public interest to employ men during the summer, and turn them out with nothing to do during the winter. It would be a good plan for those who have one hundred acres or more to build one or more cottages, in which laboring men with families can permanently reside. This will be of great benefit to b(Ah the employer and the employed. It will give a fair rental to the farmer and afford the laborer something like a home, in which his family can be comfortable, and be encouraged to be respectable. It would give the employer the advantage of the same hands from year to year, and thus avoid the trouble and the risk of trying new men e^ery summer. MISCELLANEOUS INF0KMA1I0N. . 681 Indeed we are convinced that the farmer cannot afford to dis- miss his hands in the fall. This practice leaves work undone that should be performed before the spring season opens, in order that the best advantage may be taken of tlic first days of good weatlier for getting in oats, spring wheat, and barley. When the winter has been devoted to rest and the " chores," there is such a rush of every thing to be done that much is lost by being behindhand with every thing. We hope that all employers will take these hints into serious consideration, and trace out the arjrumeut at length, which we have not now time or space to complete. Even if nothing could be made out of hired help in the winter, moral considerations de- mand provision for the men the year round. But there is no doubt on the subject of proiit out of such labor. Those who ha "e intel- ligence ought to act on elevated principles, and have some regard for the welfare of otliers ; they can make it paj', because intelli- gence is the capital that always yields a profit. How TO OBTAIN W'aTER ON THE PRAIRIES. DrIVE WeLLS.- -In many instances these have given great satisfaction, in others par tial, and in others have proved a failure. It is certain that these results are accidental ; the mere subjects of chance. While we have a high opinion of the value of this sj^stem of ob- taining water, we have some suggestions to make on the mode of putting it into practice. In the first place these pumps have been mostly in the hands of what are known as pump peddlers, who have charged enormous prices for putting in the pumi)s ; though always, to their credit, ready to warrant a supply of watei', and, so far as we know, have carried ou.t their contracts faithfully. Lut the high price charged has been ample to protect them against loss. In one extreme case that has come under our ol)servation, the pipe was driven down into the band of blue clay to the depth of one hundred feet, without reaching water, when the pipes could neithei be driven down nor withdrawn, and the whole proved a loss to tht contractors. Some persons have taken the precaution to bore a hole of the size of the pipe and projecting bands. This is cheaply done by welding a two inch, or what is better, a two and a half inch auger to a common square three-fourth inch rod. An irou handle of sixteen inches, with a square hole punched in the centre, a trifle larger than the rod, so that it can be made to slide up oi down readily, will enable one to stand at the surface to turn it. When the auger has been bored down to the top of the rod, say six inches, it must be withdrawn. This is done by taking hold of one end of this handle, which by pressure against the sitles of the rod prevents it slipping, and it can be drawn out, when not at a very great depth. Additional lengths can be welded to the rod as desired, or the rod can be put together by cap joints similar to those in the pipes, always, however, with a ke}- to prevent uncou- pling when under the necessity of turning it back. With this gS2 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. latter arran£;eiuent a deep hole can be bored without the expense of a hiijh scartbUl, which is necessary when the wiiole is welded togi'ther. We have several reasons for preferring the use of the auger, the most prominent of which is that of cheapness and certainty of re- sults. We take no risk in this case. Suppose we put down a well of twenty-five feet, which may be considered the average depth of what we call shallow wells. We bore down fifteen feet and strike a small stone ; our only remedy is to begin again. If we drive down the rod, we have to do the same. While the driving requires a large amount of labor, the boring is easily done. There is no battering of the threads on the pipe, to be fixed up so they will pass for the time, but really of no value, and in time to disap- point us. All know that success with this kind of well depends upon stri- king a strata of sand or gravel. In boring through clay it adheres to the auger, while the sand or gravel will not do so ; I)ut in pass- ing through the strata again into clay, it at once adheres, and we are at no loss in regard to the result. If we have been careful to note the thickness of the sand or gravel strata, we shall be at no loss in regard to the exact position to locate the perforated point. In fact we do not need this point at all ; the open end of the tube is just as well, for we must pump up the sand and soil that is mixed with the gravel bed, in case of gravel or the sand in the sand strata immediately surrounding the pipe. If we pump up a ouliic foot of sand we have space for a cubic foot of water, and this forms the reservoir of our water supply. It is not probable that we shall displace a very large quantity of sand, and unless the supply of water is abundant we can only raise the water when the reservoir is filled above the small holes in the pipe. Therefore, if we had the end of the pipe thrust to the bottom of this cavity, it would be better than the long point perforated with holes for six- teen inches of its length. At least so long a space should not be exposed to air. With a limited suppl}^ of water, as must be thej case in most of these wells, we must wait until they fill up, tc renew tlie pumping ; whereas, if the reservoir was large, we woulc have an abumlant suppl3^ In driving down these pipes we may pass the water supply, oi thin shft't of sand that contains it, and, driving into the blue clay J cut it oirfoiriplctely, and thus make a failure; but with the augei no such l)lundci- need occur. We therefore recommend, in evei'2 case where these pipes are to be used, that they be put down bj the aid of an auger. When the supply of water is not abundant, or when it is ol tained in the seams of the clay or from small veins, as is most generally the case, we must have a large reservoir to hold a supply for use; and in this case there is but one way to obtain it, and tha^ is by sinking a well. But there is no need of wallintr this well tc MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION. 683 its full depth, but we may complete our reservoir of the desired size, and arch it over and fill all above with clay, after having put in the pipe and coating it with coal tar. Ordinary wells are sunk of the diameter of four feet ; the brick work y'lU occupy eight inches, leaAang three feet and four inches, — a very convenient size to get down for the purpose of cleaning out or for repairs. If a well of this size is walled up, say six ftet, we shall have a reservoir sufficiently large for all practical purposes, say of fifteen barrels. By enlarging the well at the bottom, which is practicable in a stiflTclay, the space could be doubled, if desired. In arching over and filling above with clay we have several ad- vantages, which these gas-pipe pumps give us. There is no danger from rats, mice, or rabbits getting into it, nor will autumn filfit with leaves ; consequently it will need no annual cleauings to keep the water pure, but at all times will be reliable. In the next place it will be free from surface water, the slops of the kitchen, or, if near tlie barn, the drippings of the barnyard. These are all de- sirable qualities, but yet there are some others. An iron pump costs little, if an}^ more than a wooden one, but the cost of brick walls that can be dispensed with is something to consider. To wall up a four foot wall of twenty-five feet will require two thou- sand two hundred and fift}' brick; for six feet with arch, six hun- dred and fifty, making a difference in favor of the gas-pipe well of one thousand six hundred brick. These brick at the kihi are worth at least sixteen dollars, often more, and, taking the average dis- tance, to haul them would cost not less than nine dollars ; which makes a saving of cash and labor of one dollar a foot, or twenty dollars for a twentj'-five foot well. This twenty-five dollars would build a small cistern or do something towards a large one. We may oflfset the filling in of clay against the walling up of brick, and then we have no trouble about making the platform mouse and frog proof, nor is *lie water fouled by the rotting of the pump stock. In either '.-■'fie the digging of the well is the same, but the saving of brick v" Tuore than sufficient to pay for an iron pump and pipe. Well buckf^ts, well sweeps, and windlass are thus swept away by this new invention. In this case wc need no perforated point, and we simpl}' have the pump, which costs from six to eight dollars in Chicago, and twenty feet of mpe, (the pump making five feet,) which will cost thirty cents a loot, if of one and a quarter inch pipe. These pumps and the pipe utc sold b}' large quantities in Chicago, and by several houses, and the prices given arc for single pumps and accompany- ing pipe. At wholesale thc}^ cost fifteen to thirty per cent, less, according to amount of invoice. The pipe in in lengths of from four to seven feet, and to obtain pipe of the required length one length must be cut and a new thread worked on it by hand. The wholesale men do not fit these yumpR ■ they simply sell so many pumps and so many bundles of 084 now TO MAKE THE FARM I'AV. pipe, containing a given amount of feet, while the retailer fits the joints, cuts the pipe to the given length, and packs them in suita- ble condition for siiipping by freight or express. The i)unip peddlers purchase at wholesale, deliver and put the jnimps in the wells at a given figure per foot. When one of these pumps comes from the city, the farmer must have the tools to put it togctlier. A small iron vice, costing ten or twelve dollars, is almost indispensable on a farm. This, with a good monkey wrench, will be ample for the purpose. A pump of twenty-five feet will cost about as follows : Pump $r.50 Twenty feet oi' pipo, ^0 cents 6.0U Cart.i^c and jiuekage 50 S14.00 To this must be added freight ; and in case one prefers to drive the pipe, he will need in addition a perforated point, costing two to two and a half dollars, and also a driving plug, costing two dol- lars, a pair of grappling tongs, and a wrench. By comparing the above prices with those of the local pumpman, any person will know how he can best attain the end desired, and the relative cost — Prairie Farmer. CHAPTER XXII. DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES P wHat use is a crop of wheat, or potatoes, or a flue ^ f,oe of beef or mutton unless we know how to cook thjji? They maj' be made in extreme cases to support life, i at their value is only known when they are properly cool .(d. ^^ This Chapter then is as important to the farmer as any in the book, and although he may not read it himself, his wife and daughters will draw from it information that will increase both his comfort and his health. An intelligent domestic economy is that which teaches when to cook, what to cook, and how to cook it. The three objects of food are to supply the lungs with heat, to make muscular power, and to supply bone and brain. About five-sixths of our food goes to furnish heat to the lungs. Constant exposure to cold, then produces a necessity for a large supply of those articles of food which furnish heat for the lungs, whiK; intense and protracted muscular action makes necessary a siipph of muscle producing food. The good house wife should \u\ovi how to adapt food to the various conditions of her household. The articles of common food producing the greatest proportion of heat, are hog fat, mutton fat, olive oil, butter, white of eggs, fresh milk, bolted wheat, roast beef, veal, oat meal, peas, potatoes, and beans. The common foods giving the largest amount of muscle and strength producing substance, are eggs, unbolted wheat, animal fibrine or lean meat, animal caseine from beans, rice, milk, venison, dried beef, roast veal, cabbage, oats, barley, and potatoes. Those articles of food which contain in themselves both properties in large proportion are eggs, wheat, rye, corn, and oats, when made into liglit bread or otherwise prepared for food ; the lean me?-t of the deer, ox, sheep, and hog, and, lastly, milk. Milk contains a large portion of oil, and therefore does not readily digest in some stomachs, but if such persons will let their milk stand for twelve hours and skim off" the cream, they can then drink the skimmed milk with impunity'. We have placed wheat in this list ; but, as it is at present prepared, nearly all the nutrition is bolted out of it for the sake of making very white flour. This is a grievous mistake, and we are glad to know that the de- mand for unbolted wheat is steadily increasing. A loss of about 685 686 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. fioenty-five per cent, of the cost of fine wheat Jlour is incurred in separatinrj from it its best and mo?t nutritious ingredients. The time required for digestion is anotlier important consideration, for if any nutritious substance takes too long to digest its value is impaired. It also decides what should be eat at night, as it is injurious to lie down for sleep with undigested food upon the stomach. The following articles of food digest in one hour : Boiled rice, boiled pigs' feet, boiled tripe. In one hour and a half, boiled trout, barley soup, sweet apples, venison steak, and sago. In two hours, tapioca, broiled beef liver, boiled salt codfish, sour apples, raw cabbage with vinegar, and skimmed milk. In from two to three hours, poultry, lamb, hashed meat and vegetables, green beans, parsnips, potatoes, and boiled beef. In three hours, raw 03'sters, soft boiled eggs, beefsteak, salt pork, mutton, bean soup, apple dumpling and corn cake. In from three to four hours, roast mutton, corn bread, sausage, stewed oysters, roast beef lean, cheese, fresh baked wheat bread, turnips, hard boiled and fried eccgs, beets, and boiled corn. In four to five hours, boiled salmon, roasted poultry, beef and vegetable soup, fried pork, boiled cabbage, and boiled pork, receutl}' salted. Roast pork and beef suet require over five hours to digest. It will he seen here what a difference is made by the mode of cooking. Pigs' feet soused and boiled digest in one hour, while roast pork requires five hours and a quarter. Raw cabbage and vinegar will digest in two hours, while if the same cabbage is boiled it requires four hours and a half to be digested. The three most desirable general articles of food, in strict accordance with these conclu- sions, are venison, which contains nearl}^ the largest per cent, of strength producing substance and 3'et digests in one hour and thirty minutes ; rice, which contains a very large proportion of heat producing substance and digests in one hour; and milk, which contains both and digests in two hours and fifteen minutes. Upon these articles of food, life and health can be maintained as long as upon any other three known. But as venison cannot be supplied in large quantities, beef, mutton, poultry and eggs must supply its place. In addition to the substances named, the system requires lime, potash, and bone forming material, and it is merci- fuU}- provided that a wide range of both animal and vegetable, food is provided for us. The roast fresh pork, of which most of! us are .so fond, is proven to be an indigestible and unnecessary dish, while salt fat pork is essential to the working man who iu cold weather is exposed to the cold air. Grain, frui't and vegeta- bles, with mutton and beef, are much better for summer consump- tion than pork in any shape. "Wheat bread and milk are, abova all things else, the proper food for growing children, supply- ing phosphates for the bones, muscular power, and brain pro ducing material. Ripe fruits and berries, eaten with the regular i DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 687 meals, are most ^vliolesome and useful iu the economj- of the system. Cooking Meats. — Beefsteaks should never be fried, but always broiled on a gridiron with narrow bars. A bed of coals is easil}' made by burning round sticks of hard wood. The heat should always be intense when the steak is first put over the fire and be gradualh" reduced, either l\v withdrawing the meat or sprink- ling ashes over tlie coals. Rare done beef is much more nutri- tious and digestible than when the red color is all cooked out of it. The fibre of beef is worthless ; it is only the juice that is of any aA'ail in nourishing the body. Roast beef requires a slow, stead}', but not too hot fire. Beef for soup should be out in small pieces and put over a slow fire in cold water ; let it stand over the fire for four hours without boiling, then add your vegetables and seasoning, and let them boil from half an hour to an hour. Stuffed Beefsteak. — Prepare a dressing of bread scakied soft and mixed with !>' -'iUy of butter, a little pepper, salt, sage, a little onion, and an egg. Lay it upon one side of a round of steak, cover with the other, and baste it down with needle and thread. Salt and pepper the other side of the steak and place in a drip- ping pan, with half an inch of water. When baked brown on one side, turn and bake the other. Watch closely that it does not burn. A Beef or Veal Pie. — Take the cold pieces, after baking, and make a light crust, like tea-biscuit, only a little shorter, lay the crust around the dish, not on the bottom ; then season your meat with salt and peppei", and buWer between each layer ; add water to make it moist with gravy, then lay on the cover, and bake three-quarters of an hour. It makes a fine dish occasionally. Savory Beef. — Take a shin of beef from the hind quarter, saw it into four pieces, put it in a pot, and boil until the meat and gristle drop from the bones ; chop the meat ver}- fine, put in a dish and season it with a little salt, pepper, clove, and sage, to your taste ; pour in the liquor iu which the meat was boiled, and place it away to harden. Cut in slices and eaten cold. To Prepare Mince Meat. — Housekeepers may, if they choose, prepare their meat for mince pies for the winter's use at one time, and that time may be when they are making sausage and headcheese, and doing up the other work after butchering. Boil your meat tender — I think oue part of pork to two of beef is a good proportion ; when cold chop fine, and season with nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, and alspice. Put in some boiled cider ind molasses, and sugar enough to make it fit for use. Set it ou the stove and let it simmer half and hour, stirring it occasion- illy. Then remove from the fire and put it into a stone jar ; 30ver closely and set iu a cool place. When wanted for pies (588 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. i ♦akc one-third of (his prepn.re(V meat, and two-thirds chopped apples, and water and unboiled cider enough to make the mix- ture as moist as you v.ish. And chopped suet if you like. When your mince meat is thus prepared, it is no more work to make mince pies than any other pies. Mrs. E. S. Sandford. Roast Mutton requires about an hour and a half to cook well ; it should be basted with the drippings. To boil a leo; of mutton, dust it with flour, wrap it in a towel, throw it in boiling water with a little salt, pepper and herbs, and move it occasion- ally while boiling. Broiled chops, should be sprinkled on both sides with pepper and salt, dipped in melted butter, laid on the gridiron over a hot bed of coals, and turned two or three times while cooking. As will be seen by the table on a succeeding page. Mutton is more nutritious than any other flesh, and quite digestible. To Fry CniCKEXS. — Cut up the chickens and let them lie in salt and water twenty minutes, drain and season with salt and pepper ; prepare six eggs well beaten, and five crackers, rolled fine, stir well together ; roll each piece in this, and fry brown in hot lard. To Roast Turkey. — Wash the turkey very clean, and let it lie in weak salt and water over night. When ready to put to roast, rub it dry in the inside, and sprinkle in a little pepper. Make a stuffing of two-thirds wheat bread and one-third corn bread, rubbed fine, and softened with butter and beaten 3'olk of egg, and seasoned with salt, pepper, parsle}^, and celery. Mix the stufiing well together, and fill the turkey. Rub the breast of the turkey with salt, pepper, and butter. Tlave water and lard in your dripping pan, and baste often. It will require three hours to roast. Pea fowl and Guinea fowl are roasted and dressed in the same wa^-. Cranborr}^ sauce is almost indispensable with this dish. Celery, too, usually accompanies it. Fried Liver and Bacon. — Cut the liver rather thin, say about half an inch thick, but first soak it in warm water aljout one hour ; chop a quantity of parsley, season it with pepper, and lay it thick upon the liver ; cut slices of bacon and fry both together, but put the bacon first into the pan; add a little lemon pickle to the gravy made by pouring the fat out of the pan . flouring, and adding boiling water. To M.VKE Sandwiches. — Rub a teaspoonful of mustard flod into half a pound of sweet butter ; spread this mixture upon thii slices of bread. From a boiled ham cut very thin slices, anc place a slice of ham between two slices of bread prepared as above; cut the sandwiches in a convenient form and serve. Some cho} the trimmings of the ham or any other cold meat very fine, anc lay them between the .slices of prepared bread. This is a gooC lish for lunch or evening entertainments. DOMESTIC ECOXOMY AXD FAMILY EECIPES. 689 Chicken Pie. — Cut up the chickens iuto joints, and season them with salt, pepper, and parsle3\ If thej^ are old, paiboil them a few minutes, and save the water to put in the pie. Make rather a rich paste, and cover the bottom and sides of a deep dish v,'ith it. Then put in alternate layers of chicken, six hard-boiled eggs cut in slices, butter, pepper, celer^^, and a little flour from your dredging box. Fill the dish two-thirds full of cold water, and add half a teacup of cream or milk. Put on a top paste, and close the pie around the edge, and make an opening in the middle with a knife. Recipes for Cooking Tripe. — We find in the " Utica Herald''^ the following recipes for cooking tripe — a dish which is greatly relished in some lamilies. 1st. Make an egg batter the same as for pancakes, oniy a little thinner ; take some pickled tripe, cut it in pieces four or five inches square; lay it in the batter while you are preparing the spider or griddle with butter or pork fat ; when sufficiently hot, drop the pieces of tripe in ; cook brown on both sides ; season according to taste while cooking ; when mcel}' browned it is done. Served up hot. 2d. Take pickled or fresh tripe, roll in Indian meal ; prepare the griddle or spider the same as No. 1 ; brown it nicely on both sides; season to taste, and serve it up the same as above. 3d. Broiled Trijoe. — Broil the same as you would beefsteak ; season with butter, pepper, salt, etc. You can use either Irosh or pickled tripe for this. 4th. Take fresh tripe, place it in an earthen jar, and pour over it new sour buttermilk ; covqi- it up ; let it stand t\vent3^-four hours ; take it out and cook either in batter or Indian meal, or some prefer it fried without either, with the exception of a little butter, seasoning nicel3^ 5th. Tripe Stexo. — Take fresh or pickled tripe, cut in small pieces, then slice up some onions, potatoes and turnips ; put all in a pot together, with sufficient water to cover ; boil slow and season to the taste while cooking ; when the vegetables are done take it out and serve up hot. 6th. Spiced Tripe. — Take fresh tripe, cut it up in pieces four or five inches square ; take an earthen jar, put in a layer of tripe, then sprinkle a few cloves, allspice and peppers (whole) over it ; then another layer of tripe, then spice, and so on till the jar is full ; take good cider vinegar, scald it, pour over it, filling the jar full ; cover it up and stand it away in a cool place for a few days until it tastes of the spice, then serve it up cold for supper or any other meal you wish. It is an excellent relish. Pigs' Feet. — Boil four pi^'s' feet until the bones drop out. Draw out the long bone and place them in a dish to cool. Split each foot, take the liquor in which it is boiled, add the juice of a lemon and some salt, and turn over the feet. They may be dipped in batter and fried in salt pork. 690 nOU' TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. MiMCED Fowl. — Take the remains of a roast fowl, and cut oflF aii the white meat, whicli mince finelj', Avithoiit an}' skin or bone ; but put the bone, skin and et ceteras into a stewpaii, with an onion, a l)lade of sage, and a handful of sweet herbs tied up ; add nearly a pint of water ; let it stew for an hour, and then strain and pour off tlie gravy, putting in a teaspoonful of sauce. Take two hard- l>oilcd co'gs and chop them small ; mix them with the fowl; add salt, pepper, and sage, according to taste ; put in the gravy ; also half a le^^spoonfal of finely-minced lemon peel, one-table spoonful of flour, made into a smooth paste with a little cold water, and let the whole just boil. To every twelve pounds of meat take three tablespoontiils of salt not much heaped, three tablespoonfuls black pepper, eight tablespoonfuls of sage, and a teaspoon half fall of red pepper. To Make S.\usages. — Thirty pounds of chopped meat ; salt, eight ounces ; pepper, two and a half ounces ; two teacups of sage, and one and three quarter cups of sweet mai'joram. Pass the two last through a fine sieve. Thyme and summer savory may be substi- tuted for the latter. Preserving Sausage Meat. — Pack the meat in a jar until nearly full, then fill the jar up with melted lard ; cover with a linen cloth, then tie a brown paper over the top. To Make a Pot-Pie. — Make your sponge as 3'ou would for biscuit, only shorter; when 3'OU do it up let it get just liglit, put- ting into the batter a little saleratus and salt ; when light take it on to the board, and cut it in pieces like biscuit, only let them lie and rise without kneading them at all. When the meat is tender there should be enough water to come just over the meat. Season it well with salt and pepper, and dissolve flour in cold water, and stir in enough to thicken it well. If the meat is very lean fry it in butter, and when boiling hot lay the crust in over the surface and shut it up close, and not allow it to be opened again in half an hour, when it will be ready for the table, and as light and nice as sponge. Oyster O.melets. — Allow for every six large oysters or twelve Rmall ones, one egg. Remove the hard part, and mince the remain- der of the oyster very fine ; take the yolk of eight and the whites of four eggs, beat them until very light, then mix in the oysters, with a little pepper, and beat all up, thoroughly ; put in the frying- pan a gill of butter, and move it about until "it melts ; when the butter boils in the pan .skim it and turn in the omelets, stir it un til it begins to stiften, fry it a light brown, lift the edge carefully and slip a round-pointed knife under; do not let it be overdone, but as soon as the underside is a light brown turn it on to a very hot plate ; never fold this omelet over, it will make it heavy. If you want to brown it highly you can hold a red-hot shovel over it* Eggs And Potatoes — Remove the skins from some boiled Irish DOMESTIC ECONOMY AXD FAMILY RECIPES 691 potatoes, and when perfectly' cold cut them up in small pieces about the size of a grain of corn, and season with salt and pepper. To a quart of potatoes thus prepared, take the yolks of six eggs, and the whites of three, and beat them well together. Have some butter in a frying-pan, and when it is melted, put in the po- tatoes. When the}' are quite hot, stir in the eggs, and continue stirring so as to mix them well with the potatoes, and until the eggs are set. Then pepper, and stad them to table in a hot dish. A Bengal Omelet — Take half a dozen fresh eggs, beat the whites and yolks up well together in a clean basin; chop half a dozen young onions fine, a little fresh parsley, and add a tea- spoonful of catsup. Mix it all together, and fiy them after the form of a pancake. When done brown take a fork, roll them up, and send to table. How TO Make Egg Balls. — Boil four eggs hard, take out the yolks and pound them, add to them a few bread crumus, and pep- per and salt, and the yolk of one raw egg ; mix them all well to- gether, take them out, and with flour on your hands roll them into balls ; boil them two minutes. Ego Toast. — Soak some slices of stale bread in cream or milk, but not long enough to become soft ; then dip them in beaten egg with a little salt, and fry brown. Fish gives, generally speaking, about two-thirds as much nutri- ment as meats, but having no juice like meat, is not a muscle pro- ducing diet. It is more appropriate for women, students, and those who waste but little muscle. To cook fish, a wire broiler that folds together is absolutely essential, and such a broiler is much the most convenient of any for broiling steak or chops, and for toasting bread or crackers. To Broil Fresh Fish, rub on them a little butter and salt, and hold them over a quick bed of coals, as for beefsteak, so as to crisp the outside quickly without burning. Squeeze a few drops of lemon juice over them before eating. The small fresh water fish are best fried. Cut slices of pork, and let them soak over night. When the fish is to be cooked fry the pork crisp, roll the fish in corn meal, wheat flour, or powdered crackers, and lay them in the pan. As soon as one side is crisp either reduce the fire or sprinkle a little ashes over it. Nothing but the best pork fat is suitable to fry brook fish in. Salt Mackerel should be soaked two days in cold water with the flesh side down. Just previous to cooking lay it in a dish, and cover it with hot milk. Rinse it with cold water and wipe dry with a cloth. Broil the same as fresh fish, and squeeze a lemon over it just before eating. To Cook Salt Codfish. — Cut into pieces two or three inches s([unre, dip the pieces in batter, and fry with butter. The batter i.s made by mixing two eggs with grated crackers. Another and 42 092 now TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. very simple way to cook salt codfish is to pick it up into small ))icces nt niijht, and allow it to soak over night. In the morning rinse with fresh water, ami set it over the lire just covered witli coM water. Just before this water boils turn it off, and put milk in its jilace. As soon as the milk is hot stir into it wheat flour, or grated cracker and butter. When these have boiled a few min- utes stir in beaten 'eggs, from one to six, according to the amount of fish. To Make a Chowder. — Lay four or five slices of salt pork in the bottom of the pot ; let it cook slow that it may not burn ; when done brown, take it out, and lay in fish cut iu lengthwise slices, then a la^'er of crackers, sliced onions, and ver}'' thin sliced potatoes, with some of the pork that Avas fried, and then a la3'er of fish again, and so on. Strew a little salt and pepper over each layer; over the whole pour a bowl full of flour and water well stirred up, enougli to come up even with what 3'ou have in the pot. A sliced lemon adds to the flavor, A few clams improve it. Let it be so covered that the steam cannot escape. It must not be opened • until cooked, to see if it is well seasoned. — Skilful Housewife. To Cook Oysters, take them from the liquor, add to the latter if strong a little water, and season to your taste; or milk may be "added instead of water. Bring this broth to a brisk boil, and then add the oysters, letting the whole boil two or three minutes longer. Scalloped Oysters Take a quart of oysters, separate them from the liquor, and crush a pound of ci'ackers. Put a layer of crackers on the bottom of a dish, tlien a layer of oysters, and so on, seasoning each layer with salt, butter, and lemon juice. Pour the oyster liquor over the whole, and bake forty-five minutes. Kmckerhockeii Pickle, for Beef, Hams, etc. — Take six gallons of water, nine pounds of salt, three pounds of coarse brown sugar, one quart of molasses, three ounces of saltpetre, and one of pearlash ; mix and boil the whole well, taking care to skim off all the impurities which rise to the surface. This constitutes the |tickle. When the meat is cut, it should be slightly rubbed with fine salt and suffered to lie a day or two, that the salt may extract the blo(jd; it may then be packed tight in a cask, and the pickle having become cold, may be turned upon and should cover the meat. A follower, to fit the inside of the cask, should be laid on, and a weight put on it in order to keep the meat at all times covered with pickle. In the spring the pickle must be turned off, boiled with some additional salt and molasses, skimmed, and when cold returned to the cask. Corned Beef— Put the beef into cold water for twentv-four hours, to draw off the blood. Let it drain well before putting it into the brine. Take one gallon of salt to eigjit gallons of water, one-half a pound of saltpetre, a quart of molasses, a pint of sugar and one or two pods of red pepper. Boil and skim it, and wher I DOMESTIC ECON'OMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 693 perfectly cold, pour it over the beef. If the weather is warm, add one quart of salt to the above. If the pickle sours, pour it olf, boil, let it cool, and pour over the meat again. Keep the meat under the brine by weiuhts. To Keep Meat Fresh. — Simply immerse it in buttermilk. This will keep it for several days, when the milk should be changed, and fresh milk substituted. In this way beef, veal, etc., can be kept for several weeks, and it will be as sweet and fresh at the end of that time as when first put in. Our butcher furnished us with the receipt. The whole neighborhood is now saving its meat in this way. It is equall}'' eflicacious in the hottest weather. — F. G., in Rural World. To Keep Meat Fresh. — The following i^lan is recommended : Cut the meat in slices, pack in a jar in layers, sprinkle with salt and pepper, just enough to make it palatable. Place on the top a thick paper or cloth, with salt half an incli thick. Keep this on all the while. Meat, it is said, can be kept three weeks in the summer in this way, and the last will be as good as the first. To Make Tough Beef Tender. — To those who hare worn down their teeth masticating poor, tough beef, we will say that carbonate of soda will be found a remedy for the evil. Cut the steaks the da}- before using into slices about two inches tnick, rab over them a small quantity of soda, wash the next morning, cut into suitable thicknesses, and cook to notion. The same process will answer for fowls, legs of mutton, etc. To Preserve Eggs. — You have only to rub them in lard while fresh, making sure that every portion of the surface has been smeared. This closes the pores of the shell and excludes the air. Eggs will keep all winter if served in this way. Preserving Sweet Corn. — Boil the green ears a minute oi two, just to harden the milk, then cut from the cob and spread on a cloth in the sun for two days, taking it in at night ; it will then keep an3'where. When cooked, it is better to soak it a few hours, and boil in the same water. In cold weather all that is wanted for a week or two may be wet. It cooks quicker and tastes better. A little milk and flour boiled in it is almost as good as cream. Cooking Vegetables. — The potato should be steamed rather than boiled. If new and tender brush olf the skin with a stitf brush; if old scrape it off with a knife; put them into a strainer over a kettle of boiling water. The water must keep a steady boiling for twent}"^ minutes and upwards, until the potatoes are steamed through. If the practice of boiling is still continued, let the potatoes stand a few minutes after turning off the water with a cloth over the top of the kettle. Xever put a tight cover over the potatoes to keep them warm ; it condenses the steam in them and makes them soggy. Potatoes for Bre.\kfast. — Take the mashed i)otatnes loft from I dinner the day before, mix them smooth with a little hot milk and 694 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. butter, put tliciii l)v spoonfuls into an iron biscuit pan, previously healed, muiI brown tlioni in a hot oven. The}' are very light and nice. FuiK.n PoTATOKs. — Cut in tliree slices; have hot lard on a brisk Ore and let them be entirely covered by the lard until fried. Blots' Potato Cake. — Steam your potatoes and mash them. To ever}' quart of the mashed potato add the yolks of three eggs, three ounces of sugar, and a little grated lemon rind. Stir in three ounces of hot melted butter and the whites of the eggs. Put ou tlie fire long enougli to heat the whole through and mix thoroughly, then take it off and bake it for half an hour in a hot oven. Goon Way to Cook Onions. — It is a good plan to boil onions in milk and water ; it diminishes the strong taste of that vegetable. It is an excellent way of serving up onions, to chop them after they are boiled, and put them in a stew-pan, with a little milk, butter, salt and pepper, and let them stew about fifteen minutes. This gives them a fine flavor, and they can be served up very hot. Fried Aspar.\gus. — Four tablespoonfuls of flour, salt, cold water, stirred together iii a bowl to a thick batter. Beat two whites of eggs to a stifi" froth, and stir in with the rest. Throw tht- tops of asparagus in boiling water, with a little suet, till half done. Then throw them in the batter, hook them out and fry with hot fat. How TO Bake Apples. — Bake without breaking the skin. Bake from three to five hours. When the pulp is perfectly tender break the skin ; if that is silken, like the cuticle of the hand, you have your fruit done. If you break the skin baking, the heat and moisture will escape, and your apple will dry. The peel prevents evaporation, and is a good conductor of heat. Bake on paper and there will be no dishes spoiled or needed to be wasted. Cauliflowers. — Separate the green part, cut the stalk close, let it soak a while in cold water, tie it in a cloth, and lay it in boiling milk and water, observing to skim it well. When tender, which will be in an hour and a half or two hours, take it up and drain it well ; send it to the table with melted butter in a boat. Broccoli is ccoked in the same manner. Asparagus. — Cut when two or three inches long, wash and place the heads all one way, and tie in bundles with thread or twine. Have your water boiling, with a little salt, and lay it in, keeping it boiling half or three-quarters of an hour, according to its age. Toast two slices of bread, moisten it with the water in which the asparagus is boiling, season with salt, and lay on a small platter or dish. Then drain the asparagus a moment, and, laying the heads inward, spread it on the toast, pouring over it melted butter and pepper. Beets.— Wash them clean with a cloth, rubbing them well. Be careful not to cut them, unless they are very large, and then you DOMJiSTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 6^0 may cut them in two, not si)littinart r. Nichols, in his Chemical I.<«lurc«, gives the following as the method of bread making ein|>loycd in his family : Sift live jionnds of good Ib.nr and put it into an earthen pan suitable for mixing and kneading. Have ready a feruu'ut of yeast, prepared as follows: — Take two potatoes the siie of the fist, boil them, mash, ami mix with half a pint of i)oiIing water. A fresh yeast cake, of the size common in tin- market, is dissolved in water, and the two solutious mixed together and put iu a warm place to 698 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. ferment. As soon as it commences to rise, or ferment, which re- (juires a longer or shorter time, as the "weather is warm, or cokl, pour it into the flour, and, Avith the addition of a pint each of milk and water, f(jrm a dough at night, and allow it to stand until morn- ing in a moderately warm place ; then mould and put it pans, and let it remain until it has become well raised ; then place it in a hot oven and bake. The points needing attention in this process are several. First, the flour must be of the best quality; second, the potatoes should be sound and raeal}'^ ; third, the yeast cake is to be freshly pre- pared ; fourth, the ferment must be in just the right condition; filth, the .kneading should be thorough and effective ; sixth, the raising of the dough must be watched, that it does not proceed too far and set up the acetic fermentation, and cause the bread to sour; seventh, after the dough is placed in pans, it should be allowed to rise, or puff up, before placing in the oven; eighth, the tempera- ture of the oven, and the time consumed in baking, have much to do with the perfection of the process. Jennie, F. Haze.n, a newspaper correspondent, describes the fol- lowing as the method by which her mother made bread ; it is new to us : She took an earthen pitcher and put into it a pint of new milk, a teaspoonful of sugar, one of ginger, a little soda and salt; then poured out of the teakettle into this a half pint of boiling water. When it was cool enough to hold lier finger in it comfortably, she stirred in flour enough to make a thick batter, set it in a kettle of warm water, and put the kettle where it would keep warm. After it had stdod two or three hours, she atlded two large spoonfuls of flour and stirred it rapidly for five minutes. When the rising was up to the top of the pitcher, she warmed three quarts of good sweet milk, turned the rising into it, and stirred in flour to make a sponge. Covering it closely and setting it where it was warm, she left it to rise again, which it proceeded to do in the course of half an hour, at the end of which time she kneaded it into loaves and set it to rise for the last time. When it was baked the crust was of a rich golden brown, and we considered it the treat of treats to liave it broken while it was hot, and to receive from her hand a great piece, well buttered. Bread by Steam. — A choice loaf of bread may be made by pre- paring the dough in the usual way, and then setting the loaf to be baked into a steamer, and bake in this manner by steam for fifty minutes. When taken out, dry a few moments in the oven, and it is then as bciiutiful a loaf of bread as need be eaten, — being with- out crust. We need hardly add that the dough must be good, or the bread will not be. ' Potato Bread. — Sift four pounds of flour into a pan ; boil onej pound potatoes, skin, and mash them very carefully through the (iolander ; mix this with equal quantities of milk and water, stir DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 699 with a knife ; add a tablespoonful of salt, a cup of yeast, and beat well. • Brown Bread, — Three pints of coarse corn meal scakkd with four pints of boiling water; when cool add two pints of coarse rye meal (not flour); mix thoroughly; put in stone ware pots, cov- ered ovei", and place in an oven cool enough for the bread to warm slowly for two or three hours; after which bake slowly for f corn meal, one teaspoonful of soda, one tablespoonful of melted u shortening, one Qgg, and sour milk or buttermilk enough to make |K it pour easily; steam three hours, remove, and bake one hour. ' Family Indian Loaf. — Two quarts of scalding hot skim-milk, \i one tablespoonful of salt, one quart of corn meal stirred in b}- hand- i fuls, two-thirds pint of sifted rye. meal; stir thoroughly, then add W, one cup of cold milk, stirring smartl3\ After standing twelve min- ^ utes, bake five hours in a cast iron basin covered with anotlier basin d Hard Biscuit. — Two pounds of flour, two pounds of butter, two !»f eggs, half teaspoonful of salt ; rub the flour, butter, and salt, then {tf add the eggs and as much milk as will mix it into a stilf dough; i| knead well, roll it out quite thin, cut with a round cutter, prick them |it with a fork, place them on tins, and balie crisp in a moderate oven, ia Biscuit. — Two quarts of flour, one tablespoonful of butter, one >t teaspoonful of soda, half teaspoonful of salt; mix with -cold water, f!f and beat well. I' Johnny Cake. — Bub two tablespoonfals of butter into a quart rji of corn meal : add a small teacup of molasses to a teaspoonful of ^ brown ginger; pour on slowly sufficient water or milk to make a \'\ soft dough. 13ake in shallow pans, in a hot oven. !:| Egg Bread. — Three quarts of milk a little sour, seven eggs, two [| ounces of butter, a teaspoonful of saleratus ; add corn meal to \i make a stifli' batter. Bake by a brisk fire. Corn Batter Bread. — Six tablespoonfuls of flour, three of*:,] corn meal, and a little salt ; make it a thin batter, with four eggs and milk. Bake quickly in shallow pans. Yictoria Buns. — Two ounces of pounded loaf sugar, one egg,j one and a half ounces of ground rice, two ounces of butter, one an(^ a half ounces of currants, a few thin slices of candied peel ; flour. Whisk the egg, stir in the sugar, and beat these ingredients well together ; beat the butter to a cream, stir in the ground rice, cur i DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 701 rants, and candied peel, and as much flour as will make it of such a consistency that it ma}' be rolled into seven oreiirht halls. Put these on a buttered tin, and bake from half to three-quarters of an hour. They should be i)ut into the oven immediately, or they will become heavy ; and the oven should be tolerably brisk. New England Johnny Cake. — Take one quart of buttermilk, one teacup of flour, two-thirds of a teacupful of molasses, a little salt, one teaspoonful of saleratus, one egg (beat of course). Then stir in Indian meal, but be sure and not put in too much. Leave it thin, so thin that it will almost run. Bake in a tin, in any oven, and tolerably quick. If it is not first rate and light, it will be be- cause you make it too thick with Indian meal. Some prefer it without the molasses. Rolls. — Take a pint of milk and scald it, then add half a cup of butter while the milk is hot ; whenthis is cool, add half a cup of sugar, and half a cup of yeast. Pour this mixture on to two quarts of flour, and let it stand until the next morning, thui knead it and let it stand in the pans until it is risen properly. French PvOLLS or Twist. — One quart of lukewarm milk, a tea- spoonful of salt, a teacupful of yeast, and flour enough to make a stiff batter. When very light add a beaten egj:, and two' table- spoonfuls of butter, and knead in flour until stitf enough to roll Let it rise again, and when ver}^ light roll out aud cut in slvipa and braid it. Bake thirty' minutes on buttered tins. How Good Rusks, which we find at first class hotels are made. The recipe is direct from a cook in one of the best hotels in the West. Two tea cups of sugar, two-thirds of a cup of butter, two eggs. Beat these well together, add one pint of sweet milk and one of good lively' yeast, and flour sullieient to make a soft sponge. Set it where it will be warm. Next morning knead in more flour aud let it rise again, then mould into biscuits, aud Avheu light bake them in a moderate oven. Rusk. — Three pints of flour, two eggs, one cup of sugar, and a tables])oonl'ul of butter. Beat the eggs and sugar well together, and add the butter ; mix in the flour with warm water, in which a cake of j-east has been dissolved ; put in a place to rise. "When well raised, knead in a teacup more of flour and make in small rolls. Bake a light brown. Be careful not to burn them, as the sugar would cause them to burn easil}'. Corn Rusk. — Take one pint of corn meal and scald it with onu quart of milk, a half a teacup of lard or butter, a little salt, three eggs, yeast enough to make it raise ; then stiflen it with wheat flour ; let it stand and raise about three hours ; then roll and let it raise again ; bake it and eat warm. Corn Meal Rusk. — Take six cupfuls of corn meal, four of wheat flour, two of molasses, and one teaspoonful of saleratus : 702 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. mix the whole togethor and knead it into dough ; make two cakes, bake three-quarters of an hour. Common Doughnuts. — Two cups of sugar, one and a half of milk, two eggs, one nutmeg, two teaspoonfuls of cream of tartar, one of soda. Plain Corn Cake. — One quart of sweet milk; three eggs; tea- spoonful of salt. Anothe?' Way. — Two cups of sour cream ; two cups of sweet milk or water; one tablespoouful of sugar; one teaspoonful of salt ; one teaspoonful of soda ; a handful of flour stirred in with the meal. SteameI) Corn Bread. — One pint of sour milk ; one half cup of hard or finely chopped suet; one cup of molasses ; one teaspoonful of allspice ; one teaspoonful of salt ; one teaspoonful of soda. Leave the batter quite thin. Steam one hour and bake the same. Fruit Johnny Cake. — Two cups of sour cream ; two cups of sweet milk ; two tablespoonfuls of sugar; two eggs ; one teaspoon- ful of salt ; one teaspoonful of soda ; one cup of chopped raisins ; one cup of chopped citron ; a handful of flour stirred in with the raeal. Sally Lunn. — One quart of flour, four eggs, one gill of 3'east, a little salt ; mix with milk to a stiff batter, and add a piece of melted butter ; pour into a buttered baking pan and lot it rise over night. It makes a delicious warm bread for breakfast with plentj' of butter. Indian Meal Cake for Breakfast. — Pour enough boiling water in a pint of corn meal, to make a stiff dough ; dissolve in a little hot water, half a teaspoonful of saleratus, and stir it in the meal with a teaspoonful of salt, two eggs well beaten, a table- spoonful of butter ; stir the materials well together, and bake it in tin pans for half an hour in a quick oven. Serve it hot. Parsnip Fritters. — Boil six parsnips tender, then skin and mash them ; mix thera with two eggs well beaten, and two tea- spoonfuls of flour; make up in small cakes and fry them in a little lard or beef gravy ; make boiling hot before the cakes are put in ; a little salt should be added. Missouri Corn Cakes. — Sift three pints of corn meal, .,dd one iublespoonful of lard, one of salt, and a teaspoonful of soda in a little warm water. Make it to a dough with milk, then add gradually' a pint of hot water, beating it for half an hour. Bake on a hot griddle. Pastry. — Pies are the least desirable articles in our bill of fare, as the pastry is often indigesiible in spite of all the care and skill that may be exercised. Aunt Smith's Recipe for Pie Crust. — To a quart of flour a teaspoonful of salt ; measure equal quantities of water and lard.* * In all cases butter is preferable to lard in making pastry. 1 DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPE3. 703 Put tlie 1. utter into the flour and work it in with the hand, i^radu- ally adding the water. Work in the flour slowly, and keep the paste soft. Another rule: One pound and a half of flour, and luilf a pound of butter wet with cold water till it makes a stiff paste. Work it well and roll it out several times. Another rUe : Take equal weights of flour, butter, and sugar; rub the flour and butter together, mix in the sugar. Apple Pie.— Stew the sliced apples in a very little water, when nearly done add butter, sugar, aud spice. When cold place them in the paste with an upper crust, and bf.ke till the crust is done. Squash and Pumpkin Pies.— Cut the squash into pieces the size of two fingers, and stew in just enough water to cover them. When soft strain through a sieve. Add from one to four eggs, (as you have them,) to each quart of milk. Sweeten either w?th sugar or molasses, aud season with ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, and a little salt. Have your oven hot, and bake till the centre rises up. We consider these about the only pies suitable for daily use, Mince Pies. — Three and one half pounds of chopped beef to seven pounds of chopped apples, two pounds of sugar, one pint of best molasses, one ounce of nutmeg, a pound of suet; cider, citron, raisins or currants to your taste. Imitation Apple Pie. — Use raw pumpkin instead of green ap- ples; slice thin; add equal parts of vinegar and water, thicken with wheat floui', season to suit the taste, and bake thornughl3'. It requires more salt and longer baking than apple pie, buJ, when done is in no respects inferior. Mock Custard Pie. — Take a heaping spoonful of flour, mix smooth with a little water or milk, pour on boiling water, proceed- ing as if making starch, (corn starch may be used instead of flour to good advantage ;) make as much of it, b}'' pouring on more or less water, as will be half enough for your pie; add a piece of liutter the size of a walnut, a half cup of sugar, an egg well beaten, after having cooled the starch by adding a half cup of cold milk or more. Flavor highly with nutmeg or lemon. This '^as the taste cif a cream pie to a considerable degree A little practice is needed to enable one to judge as to the quantity of water to use. When eggs and milk are scarce, it is a good deal better than no cus- tard pie. Crackeu Pie. — Eight crackers pounded fine, on which pour boil- ing water to soften, eight tablespoonfuls of vinegar, eight of sugar, one lemon; if too stiff add water. A Good Lemon Pie. — One cupful of boiling water, one cupful of sugar, one tablespoonful of corn starch, one lemon ; place be- tween a rich paste. Crumb Pie. — Mince any cold meat very finely, season it to taste, and put it into n pie dish ; have some finely grated bread crumb**, 704 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. with a little salt, pepper, aiid nutmeg, and pour into the dish any nice gravy that may be at band ; then cover it over with a thick layer of the bread crumbs, and put small pieces of butter over the top. Place it in the oven till quite hot, and, should the bread crumbs not be sufficiently brown, hold a salamander over them. Wasiiingtox Pie. — To one tablespoonful of butter add one cup of sugar, half a cup of milk, two cups of flour, one egg, one tea- ipoonful of cream of tartar, half teaspoonful of saleratus. This i\ill make two pies. When cold divide with a thin knife and add -he jelly. Lemon Pie. — The juice and grated rind of one lemon, one cup of water,'one tablespoonful of corn starch, one cup of sugar, one egg, and a piece of butter the size of a small egg. Boil the water, wiit the corn starch with a little cold water, and stir it in ; when It boils up, pour it on the sugar and butter ; after it cools, add the egg and lemon ; bake with under and upper crust. To Make Lemon Pies. — Take the yolks of thi-ee eggs, one and a half cups of sugar, one cup of water, one tablespoonful of flour, the juice and rind of one lemon ; chop the peel, stir all up toge- ther ; bake as custard ; then beat the whites of the three eggs to a froth ; add four tablespooufuls of sugar ; put on the top, bake until done. Delicious Lemon Pies. — The juice and rind of one lemon, one cup of sugar, the yolk of two eggs, three tablespooufuls of flour, milk to fill the pie plate ; line the plate with the paste, pour in this custard, and bake until it is done. Beat the whites of two eggs, add four tablespooufuls of powdered sugar, spread over the pie, and brown lightly in the oven. Lemon Pie. — Two teaspoonfuls of flour and one of butter rub- bed together, one cup of sugar, one egg, one tablespoonful of water, and the juice and grated peel of one lemon. This will make the inside of one pie. Bake in a crust of pastry, either barred across the top or with plain cover. Cake. — The following are Mrs. Laura E. Lj^man's general di- rections for making cake : — " First of all, let them aterials be each in their kind first class. Lard is never, at any time, a good sub- stitute for butter ; and good cake cannot be made from poor butter The sugar need not necessarily be crushed loaf or perfectly white a good article of cake can be made of light brown sugar. The quality of flour is of chief importance, as flour that will make pal- atable broad will not make good cake. The eggs should be well beaten ; the fruit should be carefully prepared. Raisins should be seeded and chopped fine; then rubbed in flour and dried, whicl will prevent their sinking to the bottom. Citron should be cut ii small, thin slices. The materials should all be collected in a wan room some time before mixing together. An earthen bowl is the DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 705 best article to mix cake in. Generally the butter and sugar are stirred together until white ; then the etrgs are added, then the flour, then the spice, then tlie saleratus is dissolved and added. The cream of tartar should be sifted with the flour. Put in fruit last. Have your pans well buttered or, what is much better, lined with white paper buttered. Move the cake as little as possible, and never jar it while baking. Most kinds of cake require a quick oven, but fruit cake is best with a moderate heat. The cake is done when a straw may be run into the heart of the loaf without any dough sticking to it." Sponge Cake — Two Recipes. — Take ten eggs, — be sure tliey are fresh. — beat the whites and yolks separately. "When llie whites are beaten to a froth, add one pound of One white sugar, tliree- fourths of a pound of sifted flour, the grated rind of one lemon, and half the juice. Stir rapidly fifteen minutes, pour into butterene of sour milk, one of molasses, one teaspoonful of soda. Cinna- Dou, cloves, allspice, mace, one or all, as 3'ou fancy. One iialf )Ouud of chopped raisins, or same of Zante currants ; two ounces )f citron sliced thin, if you like it, but it is very good without. Phis is a good cake, and it will keep moist a long time. Molasses Pound Cake. — One cup of butter, one of brown ugar, one of molasses, three eggs, one tablespoouful of ginger, wo tablespoonfuls of cinnamon, a cup of cream, of tartar, and our enough to make batter about like pound cake. Bake in a oaf. Cottage Cake. — One cup of butter, two cups of sugar, tliroe ups of flour, three eggs, one cup of milk, one and a half nutmeg rated, half a teaspoonful of soda, the same of cream of tartar, oth of which dissolve in the milk. Portugal Cake. — Put one pound of sugar, one pound of fiesb utter, five eggs, and a little mace in a bread pan; beat it with our hands till it is very light and looks curdling, then put in a ound of tlour, and half a pound of currants very dry; beat them )gether, fill the pans, and bake them in a slow oven. I 43 70S HOW TO MAKE THi: FARM PAY. Nut Cake — Beat two cups of sugar and two-thirds of a cup of butter, and two epgs together for fifteen minutes. Mix two tea- spoonfuls of cream of tartar in three cups of flour, and add it to the sugar, butter and eggs. Then dissolve a small tcaspoonful of saleratus or soda in a cup of milk, and stir it all well together. Pour it into a broad pan thnt has been well buttered. Sil't sugar over it, and then cover it with the meats of walnuts. Bake it twenty minutes. CocoANUT Cake. — Peel the cocoanut and cut into thin slices cut these again crosswa^'s into threads half an inch long; put ai pound and a quarter of brown moist sugar, a teacuprul of cold Avater and the sliced cocoanut into a saucepan, and boil for some tini( over a slow fire, stirring frequently to prevent it burning. Wrincj out a coarse kitchen cloth in cold Avater, and lay it over a larg«j dish, drop a tablespoonful of the mixture at intervals on the daraj cloth. This is the way cocoanut cakes are made in Jamaica, an( they are extremely nice. Chocolate Cake. — One pound of sugar, one of flmir, and hall a pound of butter; four eggs beaten separately until very light half a pint of milk, one teaspoonful of soda, and two of cream o: tartar. Bake in tAvo cakes. Beat three cups of powdered suga with the whites of three eggs, add chocolate to taste; spread layer of this icing between the cakes and on the top and side! Cocoanut cake can be made in the same manner by substitutin half a grated cocoanut for the chocolate in the icing. Delicate Cake. — One and one half cups of white sugar, or half cup of butter ; rub these to a cream ; add one half cup of swet milk, in which dissolve one half teaspoonful of soda, and tAvo cuj of flour, in Avhich rub one teaspoonful of cream of tartar ; add little salt and flavor with vanilla, lemon, or nutmeg. Beat tl whites of four eggs to a stilf froth, and add last. Bake slow an hour in a moderate oven. The recipe Avill make a tv/o qua basin loaf, and if the proportions are folloAved exactlj^ a beautif cake will be the result. Cocoanut Cup Cake. — Two cups of rolled white sugar, one ai a half cups of butter, one cup of milk, oi.e teaspoonful of so< dissolved in a little hot water, four eggs well beaten, nutmeg rose water, the aa hite part of one cocoanut, grated ; flour to make stiff batter; beat it well, and put it in buttered pans an inch tlii in a quick oven. When done frost it, and cut in pieces. Ice Cream Cake. — Tavo cups of white sugar, tAvo cups of fld ^ix eggs, two teaspoonfuls of cream of tartar, one teaspoonful soda dissolved in tAvo tal)lespoonfuls of hot water. Stir the flo .^ngar, and cream of tartar Avell together ; 1 reak the eggs in tl mixture, then the soda and Avater. Beat them Avell together ab( fiA'e minutes. For the cream, take one pint of milk, one and a half cups 'h DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES, 70U sugar, half a cup of flour, two eggs. Boil the milk, beat together the sugar, eggs, and flour, stir in a little millc, when the milk boils stir in this mixture. Salt a little, and flavor to the taste. Let both the cake and cream get perfectly'' cold, then cut the cake open and spread the cream between. Tricolored Cake. — Take one spoonful of finel.y powdered white sugar, nearly half a cupful of butter, half a cupful of sweet milk, the whites of five eggs, a teaspoonful of cream of tartar, half a teaspoonful of soda, and orange-flower water to flavor. Beat the sugar and butter together until it is creamy; mix the cream of tartar with a cupful of flour, stir it gradually with the mixture, alternatel}'- a little flour, then a little milk, (leaving only about a thimbleful of milk to mix the soda in,) until the whole is well mixed ; have the whites beaten to a firm froth ; mix evenly ; at the same time put in the flavor; and, for the last thing, stir in the soda, dissolved in the reserved milk. The mixture should be as stiff as batter for muflins. Butter two square tin pans, put paper inside, after they are buttered ; then put in the mixture evenly, and bake as quick as possible without scorching. Take just half of the above measure, substituting brown sugar in the place of white sugar, and flavor with the juice of half a lemon and the peel of the half lemon grated, or extract ; bake this in one pan. Xow take five yolks, light brown sugar in the same proportion as for the Avhite cake, and have two or three ounces of sweet almonds lilanched and chopped fine ; mix smoothly, and bake in two pans the same as above. When all is done, and the cake is cold and firm, shave the tops of the cake smoothly and evenly, with a sharp knife, (the bottoms of the cake will not need shaving unless they are too brown to look well without ;) put them together with fine jelly, so that they will stick firm — the pink cake in the centre, and the yellow at the top and bottom — and frost if you like. Cut it in any form ; it is the prettiest cut in finger pieces ; that is, cut it in slices an inch or an inch and a half wide, then in squares. Dried Apple Cake. — Three cups of dried apples soaked over night. Chop the apples, and simmer them fifteen minutes in two •ups of molasses. Then add one-third of a cup of butter, two -'Ligs, half a cup of sugar, five cups of flour, half a cup of milk, wo teaspoonfuls of soda — spice to your taste. Allow the apples ind molasses to cool before adding the rest. Rice Cake. — Quarter of a pound of ground rice, quarter of a •ound of finely powdered white sugar, five eggs. Beat all well (igether till it froths; pour quickly into a tin lined with buttered Kiper. Bake three-quarters of an hour in a moderate oven. SoTTR Milk Cake. — One cup of butter, two of sugar, two of our milk, half a cup of molasses, five of flour, one teaspoouful of oda ; raisins and spice. fe "^iO HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PA^. Tongue Toast. Take a cold smoked tongue that has been well boiled, and grate it with a coarse grater, or mince it fine ; mix it with cream and beaten yolk of egg, and give it a simmer over the fire- havino- first cut off all the crust, toast very nicely' some slices of broad, and then butter them rather slightly ; lay them in a fiat dish that has been heated before the fire, and cover each slice of toast thickly with the tongue mixtm-e spread on hot, and send them to the table covered. This is a nice breakfast or supper dish. For tongue you may substitute cold ham finely minced. Soft Molasses Gingerbread. — Dissolve two teaspooufuls of soda in a half pint of milk, add a teacup of butter or lard ; mix with a pint of molasses, a tablespoonful of ginger, a pint of flour, and a couple of beaten eggs. Fresh lemon peel, cut very fine, imi)roves it. Ginger Cake. — One "•'d of molasses, one cup of sugar, two- thirds of a cup of butter, one cap of sweet or sour milk, two eggs, one teaspoonful of soda, ginger to suit your taste. Make your l»atter as thick as a common cup cake. Hard Gingerbread. — Two cups of flour, one of chopped suet, one of raisins or any other dried fruit, one egg, two tablespoonfuls of molasses, one teaspoonful of soda, one cup of new milk, spice to suit the taste. Steam one and a half hours. Eat with liquid sauce. Ginger Crackers. — One pint of molasses, one cup of sugar, six ounces of butter, cloves and ginger to taste, flour enough to roll out and cut. Rich Gingerbread. — Melt together three-quarters of a pint of molasses and a half pound of butter, and pour them hot on a pound of flour mixed with half a pound of sugar and three-quar- ters of an ounce of ginger. When the paste is quite cold, roll it out with as much more flour as will prevent its adhering to the l^oard, and bake in a slow oven. Ginger Cookies. — Two cups of molasses, two-thiixls of a cup of butter or lard, one teaspoonful of soda, one teaspoonful of alum, dissolved in two tablespoonfuls of hot water and one teaspoonful of ginger. Add the alum after stirring in all the other ingredients. To Ice a Cake. — ^For a good-sized cake use eight ounces of finely sifted sugar, put it into a mortar with four spoonfuls of rose-water and the whites of two eggs, beat and strain it well, and whisk it ; then, when the cake is nearly cold, lay on the icing evenly with a feather. Put it in the oven to harden. Hard Molasses Gingerbread. — One cup of molasses, half a eup of butter, a large teaspoonful of saleratus, a little salt, a tea- spoonful of ginger, same of cinnamon ; roll it about an inch thick ; bake quickly. This is not really hard, but it is good. Sweet Potato Custard. — One pound of potato mashed and sifted tine, one-half pound of sugar, a small cup of cream, and one-fourth DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 1l[ pound of butter ; four eggs ; nutmeg and lemon to suit the tistf If you have no cream, put half pound of butter. This makes two large custards. Cookies, No. 1.— One cup of sugar, one eg^, one-half cup of but- ter, one half cup of lard, one-half cup of sweet milk, one-fourth teaspoonlul of soda, and flour to harden. Roll thin, bake quickly and sprinkle with sugar. * ' Cookies, No. 2.— Three cups of sugar, three and a half cups of ; cream, one cup of water, three eggs, two teaspoonfuls of saleratus; salt and season to taste. ' Cookies, No. 3— (A superior article.)— One teacup of white su- gar, half a teacup of butter, one egg, two table spoonfuls of butter- milk, one teaspoouful of soda, with nutmeo-. Soft Gingerbread.— One egg, one cup of cream, one cup of mo- lasses, one teaspoouful of soda. Mix quite soft. Boston Gingerbread. — One pound of butter, one pound of sugar, one pint of molasses, one pound of flour, six eggs, one gill of cold water, one teaspoouful of soda, one quart of fruit citron and raisins. Drop Cake for Breakfast. — Half pint of milk, four eggs, one pound of flour, and add a little salt. Apple Cake. — Two cups of stewed dried apples boiled in two cups of molasses. Drain off the molasfees (for the cake) from the apples, add two eggs, two teaspoonfyls of soda, four cups of flour, one cup of butter, one cup of sour milk. Spice of all kinds. Then add the apple (which was drained as above). The apples shuuu' be soaked the night before stewing for the cake. Orange Snow BallSi — Wash well half a pound of Carolina rice, put it in plenty of water, and boil it rather quickly for ten min- utes, drain, and let it cool. Pare four or five small oranges, and clear from them entirely the thick white inner skin, spread the rice in as many equal portions as there are oranges upon some pudding or dumpling cloths; tie the fruit separately in tiiese, and boil the snow balls for an hour and a half. Turn them carefully on a dish, and strew plenty of sifted sugar on them. Cinnamon Cakes. — Beat up six eggs with three tablespoonfuls of rose water, put to it a pound of sifted sugar, a dessertspoonful of powdered cinnamon, and enough flour to form it into a paste ; roll it out thin, and cut it into any shape you please. Place them on paper and bake them. Remove them from the paper wh.'u done, and keep dry. Peppernuts.— Take four eggs and beat them light with one 'jound of sugar; then take half a pound of butter, beat it up with <^Rgs and sugar; one gill of milk, one nutmeg, half an ounce of saJeratus, and flour enough to make a dough sti.f to roll out. 712 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. ^ Marvels. Dissolve one teaspoonfal of soda or saleratus in a cup of milk. Season with nutmeg or cinnamon. Make it slift' with flour. Roll it very thin. Cut them round, as large as a cookey, and fry them. Sift sugar over them while hot. MuDGE Cakes. — Three eggs, half a pound of sugar, one cup of butter, one pint and a half of flour, rolled thin in sugar. Doughnuts. — One cup of sugar, two eggs, three teaspoonfiils of melted lard, one cup of sweet milk, two teaspoonfuls of cream of tartar, one teaspoonful of soda, one teaspoonful of salt ; add a little nutmeg. Knead all together and fry in hot lard. Apple Custard. — One pint of good stewed apples, half a pint of cream, the eggs beaten light, sugar and grated nutmeg to taste. Stir the ingredients together, and bake in a sliif paste in a mode- rate oven. Bread Cakes. — Break the bread in small pieces and soak in cold milk; Avhen soft, add one teaspoonful of saleratus, one "^f salt and flour, for a good batter. CoRX Starch Cake, No. 1. — One cup of corn starch, one of butter, one of sweet milk, two of sugar, the wliites of six eggs, one teaspoonful of cream of tartar, and a half teacupful of soda. Flavor with lemon or vanilla. CoRX Starch Cake, No. 2. — One cup of butter, two of sugar, two of flour, one of cornstarch, one of sweet milk, whites of seven eggs, one teaspoonful of soda, two of cream of tartar. Mix tlie but- ter and sugar well together, put the soda in the milk, the cream of tartar in the corn starch, add them to the butter and sugar, then put in the flour and eggs, stir ten minutes, and bake in a moderate OA'eu. Straavberry Shortcake, No. 1. — Mix some dough precisely as 3'ou would for biscuit. Bake in one cake, on a round tin. When it is baked, split it open and butter it well. Have your berries pre- pared with sugar, and cream also, if 3''ou like ; pour them upon the lower crust of your cake and place the upper one over them. Strawberry Shortcake, No. 2. — One cup of sour cream, half a teaspoonful of soda, flour sufficient to make a stifl' dough. Roll it out large enough to cover a large pie tin. Bake it in a quick oven. When baked, split it open and spread it with butter ; take a pint of strawberries, cover them with sweet cream, sweeten them to your taste, spread them on the lower crust, and put the upper crust over them— and you have a dish fit for a wedding. Waffles. — One quart of sour milk, one cup of cream, two tea- spoonfuls of melted butter, three eggs, and a little salt. Let the irons be well heated before baking. Buttermilk Waffles. — One quart of buttermilk, two eggs, one small teaspoonful of cream of tartar, one large teaspoonful of soda, and flour to make a batter. DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 713 Eaised Waffles.— One quart of milk, two eggs, one tablespoon- ful of lard, one tablespoonful of butter (or two of butter), one-half teacup of corn (or of Graham) meal,one-half teacup of yeast, one tea- spoonful of salt, and flour enough to make a batter ; bake when light. Aywther.—Oue quart of milk, five eggs, one and a quarter pou^ids of flour, one half pound of butter. Beat well together. If you make before time to bake, put in one spoonful of yeast. Sift on cinnamon and sugar ; one-half teaspoonful of soda, and one teaspoonful of cream of tartar. Bake immediately. AVaffles should be wet with milk or sauce as fast as baked. Plum Pudding. — One pound of raisins, one pound of currants, one pound of suet, and two and a b-i.lf pounds of flour, with one pound of sugar, three eggs, and a tab.espoonful of ground allspice, one ounce of candied lemon, one ounce of orange" ^eel. Prepare, these ingredients as usual, and boil this pudding at least seveu hours. Always place an old plate at the bottom of a saucepan in Avhich a pudding is to be boiled, and do not imagine that a plum pudding can be overboiled. We never knew any in- stance of this, but we have known many a pudding perfectly dry in the centre for want of a sufticient quantity of water, or too small a saucepan in which to boil it ; and we have also known a rich plum pudding appear at table in the form of a ver}' thick soup, for lack of being firmly tied when put into the pudding cloth for boiling. Never omit to dip your pudding into a pail of clear, cold water for about throe minutes, when, taking it up for being dished ; this renders it firm, and prevents the cloth adhering to it. Bread Pudding. — Take light white bread and cut in thin slices. Put into a pudding shape a layer of any kind of preserve, then a little slice of bread, and repeat until the mould is almost full. Pour over all a pint of warm milk, in which four well-beaten eggs have been mixed ; cover the mould with a piece of linen, place in a saucepan with a little boiling water, let it boil twenty minutes, and serve with pudding sauce. Country Pudding.— (Easily made.)— Put a layer of stale bread crumbs in the bottom of your pudding dish, then a layer of tart apples, sliced thin. Sprinkle a little sugar over the apples, add another layer of bread crumbs, and another of apples, until your dish is full. Crumbs should form the top layer; pour a custard (made same as for pies) over it, and bake one hour. Eat wiiu sweetened cream. Poverty Pudding.— Soak your bread in milk the night before usino- ; when ready, butter your pudding-dish, and place in a layer of the bread. Have a dozen apples pared and sliced, and place a layer of apples on the bread, another layer of bread, then of apples,\and so on, till your dish is filled. Let the last layer be bread aud bake it an houi. To be eaten with sauce. 7U HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Minute Pudding. — One quart of milk, four tablespoonfuls of Hour, stirred up with a little milk, then stirred into the boiling milk. Take from the fire and pour into a dish ; beat four eggs and stir in while hot. After it becomes a little cool, sprinkle over the top one cup of white sugar, and a little grated nutmeg ; pour over that one cup of wine. Blackberry or Huckleberry Pudding. — Dissolve a teaspoon- ful of soda in half a teacupful of very warm w^ater, stir in one pint of molasses, a teaspoonful of cinnamon, one of allspice, a quart of huckleberries ; then stir in flour, and make it quite thick, about as thick as pound cake. Tic in a pudding bag, and boil two hours and a half; serve with wine sauce. Baked Apple Pudding. — Two ounces of butter, quarter pound of pulverized white sugar, quarter pound of boiled apples, the yolks of three eggs, the whites of two eggs, the rind and juice of one lemon. Mix the whole well together, and bake it in a pulf paste one hour. Sweet Potato Pudding. — One pound of sweet potatoes, boiled and mashed fine, or grated while hot; six eggs well beaten, three- quarters of a pound of sugar, the same of butter, a grated lemon rind and nutmeg, a wine glass of brandy ; line the dish with paste. When baked sprinkle the top with fine sugar. Rice Pudding. — Soak three ounces of rice in cold water for an hour ; then throw away this water. Cover again with fresh water, place on the' stove, and let it soak until quite soft; then add one ounce of sugar, two eggs well beaten, and then gradually mix with three-quarters of a pint of milk and half an ounce of butter. Mix all well together, and bake in a gentle oven. Rice Pudding. — Half a pint of rice boiled ; drain off the water, and let the rice get cold ; two ounces of butter, four ounces of sugar, one quart of rich milk, five eggs beaten very light, a table- spoonful of nutmeg and cinnamon. Stir all togetlier. Baked Chicken Pudding. — Cut up two j-oung chickens ; season them with popper and salt and a little mace and nutmeg. Put them into a saucepan with two large spoonfuls of butter, and water enough to cover them. Stew them gently, and when about half cooked, take them out and set them away to cool. Pour off the gravy, and reserve it to be served up separateh^ In the mean time make a batter, as if for a pudding, of a pound of flour stirred gradually into a quart of milk, six eggs well beaten, and added by degrees to the mixture, and a very little salt. Put a layer of chicken in the bottom of the pie dish, and i)our over it some of the batter ; then another layer of chicken and some batter, and so on, having a cover on the' top. Bake it till it is brown. Break an egg into the gravy which you have set away, give it a >)oil, and gend it to the table, in a sauce tureen, to eat with the l)uddiug. This is a rather expensive dish for people of moderate DOMESTIC ECOXOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 715 means to indulge in, but it is presented to all to use or not u^e as they may see proper. " ' Baked Indian PuDDiNG.—Eoil a quart of milk, stir into it gradually, three gills of Indian meal and half a pint of molissc*' and let it cool. Butter a dish, put into it half a pound of I.ecf suet, chopped, and a spoonful of salt ; then turn in the puddin^r and a quart of cold milk. Stir it up well, add a pint of cold milk! Bake four or five hours. Lemon Custard.— The lemons grated, one pound of suo-nr. eight eggs, a piece of butter the size of a walnut, Beat the yolks, sugar, lemons, and butter together, the Avhites to a froth, which are not to be added until ready for the oven. Bake on pie crusts. Solid Custard.— Half a box of gelatine boiled in one quart of milk, and pour, while boiling, over eight eggs and tight spoonfals of sugar well beaten together. Flavor to taste, and put in moulds in ice. To be eaten with cream and sugar. Apple in Jelly. — Peal and quarter some good apples, and take out the core ; cook them with just enough water to cover them, some slices of lemon and clarified sugar, until they are soft. Take out pieces of apple with great care, so as not to break them, .and arrange them in the jars ; then boil the sirup until it will jelly, and pour it over the pieces of apple. Lemon Butter — Fine. — One pound of powdered white sugar: six eggs, leaving out the whites of two ; the juice and grated rind of three lemons ; one quarter of a pound of fresh butter. Boil these together till as thick as honey. One teaspoonful is enough for a tart or cheese. Will keep well if tied up in jar.^, covered with paper dipped in the white of eggs. Canning Fruit. — This we call a very simple process when rightly understood. We always have an abundance of the small fruits put up in glass jars. We think the trouble less, the fruit better, and less expensive, than by the old process of preserving in sugar, pound for pound. We use the Spencer jar with a japanned cover, and a rubber ring around its edge. We heat the fruit to a boil in a bright tin pan; have the jars filled with quite warm (almost hot) water to warm them ; pour out the water, and dip the boiling fruit rapidly into the jar, until it comes slightly above the shoulder in the inside of the neck of the jar. The end of a string, .about one-eighth of an inch in diameter, is dropped inside on the fruit, retaining the other end in the hand. Now crowd in the cover down on to the shonUler, at same time withdrawing string, nnd the work is done. Any extra juice or air will follow oat with the string. Those who fail in putting up fruit to keep, do not exclude the air. This is done by having the fruit hot, and by being sure to fill the jar, so that when the cover is pushed down a little of the juice will be pressed out with the string. You may sweeten the 716 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. fruit or not, just as you please. It is not necessary in order that it may keep. Neither is it necessary to put the fruit jnto the jars to boil. It necessitates extra trouble, and often loss, by the breakage of the jars. Different Methods— Peaches, Apricots, and Pears. — As yon peel, halve and seed them — drop them into cold water to prevent discoloration ; then fdl jour jars as full as they can be filled ; prepare j'our sirup in the proportion of one pound of white say:ar to a quart of Avater ; boil j'our sirup five minutes, then pour it on your fruit; let the jars he filled with the sirup up to the neck ; as soon as each jar is filled, screw on the cap agaiust the rubber, so that all air maj' be excluded ; then place 3'our jars in the boiler with cold water to the neck of the jars, and then let them boil fifteen or twenty minutes (keep your jars from striking each other when boiling) ; then take them out, screw down the cap firmly with the baud, and as soon as the fruit has cooled, the wrench should be applied ; theu put them away in a cool place. Another Way to do I'eaches. — Place your sirup on the fire, and throw in j^our fruit, after preparing as above. Let it reniaiu in the hot sirup until it is thoroughly heated tlu'ough; tlieu fill your jars ; be sure your jars are warm before putti)ig in tlie hot fruits; then pour on the sirup (screw tliem up immediately, each one as you fill, as firmly as you can with the hand), and as they cool off apply the wreiicii ; then place them in a cool place. Strawberries, llAsrBERRiES, Blackberries, and Cherries. — Sirup same as peaches ; let the sirup be cold befoi'e pouring it on the fruit ; then fill your jars with berries as full as possible ; pour on the sirup, if cold, to the neck; screw the cap down to the rubber ; place the jars in the boiler with cold water up to the neck, and boil fifteen or twenty minutes ; then take them out ; screw the cap firmly with the hand (as the fruit cools apply the wrench). Plums and Currants. — Sirup, two pounds of white sugar to one quart of water; boil five minutes (plums are best with tlie skins taken off) ; have your jars warm, then fill them up with the fruit; pour on the hot sirup; screw on the cap firmly with the hand as soon as you fill each jar, and as they cool oil" apply tlie wrench. Quinces. — Sirup one and a quarter pound of sugar to one quart of water ; parboil them in water soft enough to run a broom whisk through theui ; fill your jars with them; pour on the sirup while hot ; screw down the cap when cool ; place them in a boiler of cold water up to the neck, and boil fifteen or twenty minutes ; take them out ; screw the cap firmly with the hand ; *wheu cool apply the wrench. The water that tlie quinces are parboiled in may be used for jelly. Tomatoes.— may be prepared as for stewing; let them boil twenty minutes; fill your jars (have the jars warm before you fill DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 717 them ; screw on tlio cap firmly with the hand as you fill each jar • as they cool ai)ply the wrench. Do not season them until thev -mv used for the table. Preserved Strawberries.— Pick oflT all the stems, and to everv quart of fruit add a quart of sugar; mix well with the sufjar anil put them over a slow fire till the sirup commences to fonn. then pour them over a hot fire, and let them boil quickly for fifteen minutes, skimming it well. Put them boiling hot into stone jars, seal up tightly. Preserved Apple.— Core and pair a dozen good sized apples and cut into eighths ; make a syrup of a pound of sugar to a half a pint of water; let it boil, and put in as much apple as can be boiled without breaking; remove them carefully when tender; after all are done, add a little more sugar, boil up^ and flavor with vanilla or lemon, and turn over the apple. Preserved Cherries. — The bright red cherry is the best. Do not take off the stems ; wash and drain them, weigh them, and allow three-quarters of a pound of sugar to a pound of cherries ; put them into wide mouthed bottles, cork them tightl}^, place the bottles in a kettle of water, cold, (keep the bottles apart to prevent them fi'om striking,) put tlie kettle on the range, and let it boil for nearly three hours. As the water boils away, replenish it ; after the bottles are taken from the water and cooled a little, cement the corks closel}' and put in a dry place. Marblehead Preserved Peach. — Take a peck of ripe peaches, stone and pare them, allow a bowl of white sugar to a bowl of peach; put a layer of peach into the stone jar, then a layer of sugar, and so on till they are used up. Let them stand for two days ; drain off the sirup, boil and skim and turn over the i)cach, let them stand for two days; drain off the sirup, scald and skim, and again return to the peach, and it is fit for use. Preserved Quinces. — A pound of sugar to each pound of quince (after paring and quartering) ; take half of the sugar and make a thin sirup ; stewing a few of the quinces at a time till all are finished, make a rich sirup of the remaining sugar and pour over them. To Seal Preserves.— Beat the white of an egg; take good white paper (tissue is the best), cut it the size you require, and dip it in the eag, wetting both sides. Cover your jars or tumblers, carefully pressfng down the edges of the paper. When dry it will be ti^ht as a drumhead. Apple Jam.— Weioh eaual quantities of sugar and good sour apples; pare, core ami chop them fine; make a sirup of the sugar, clarify thoroughly; then add the apples, the grated P^^^-^l «» ^7 or three lemons, and a few pieces of white ginger, l^oil till the apples look clear and yellow. This resembles foreign sweetmeats ; 718 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. the ginger is essential to its peculiar excellence ; it will keep nice for years. Apple Sweetmeats. — To twelve pounds of sweet apples add four pounds of sugar, one pint of vinegar. Put the vinegar and sugar together to dissolve, then put in the apples, with lemon, ginger root, cloves, etc. Pie Plant. — The pie plant may be dried for winter use like any other fruit. Prepare as for cooking, and set in a moderately warm oven or near a fire till thoroughly dried. To prepare for use, scald in two waters, and cook the same as dried peaches. Apple Sauce. — Let your stock of apples be picked over several times in the course of the winter, and all the defective ones taken out. Let the good parts of these be pared, and if not used for pies, be made into apple-sauce. Boil it in a preserving kettle, and to a pailful of cut ai)ples put one sliced lemon. After the apples are tender, add a pint bowl of brown sugar, and boil them gently fifteen minutes longer. Toward spring, when apples become tasteless, a teaspoonful of tartaric acid, dissolved in a little water, should be added to this quantity of apple. Currant Jelly. — Pick fine red, but long-ripe currants from the istems ; bruise them and strain the juice from a quart at a time through-a thin muslin: wring it to get all the liquid ; put a pound of white sugar to each pound of juice ; stir it until it is all dissolved ; set it over a gentle fire ; let it become hot, and boil for fifteen minutes; then tr}' it by taking a teaspoonful into a saucer; when cold, if it is not quite firm enough, boil it for a few minutes longer. Black Currant Jelly. — Boil the currants till the juice flows, then strain through a jelly bag, and set it over the fire for twenty minutes, after which add half a pound of sugar to a pound of juice, and boil for about ten minutes. Raspberry Jam. — Pick them carefully, take equal quantities of berries and sugar, stir it continually ; put the fruit first into a sauce-pan, and when the v/atery particles are evaporated add the sugar, simmer slowl}'- fifteen or twent}^ minutes. Boiled Cider Jelly. — To each pint of boiled cider add one pound of sugar and boil ten minutes. Tiiis will make a beautiful jell}' for tarts. Currant Wine. — Take perfectly ripe currants, mash and strain ; to each quart put two of water cdid three of sugar ; stir the whole well together, and let it stand twenty four hours without stirring ; then skim and set in a cool place where it wUl ferment slowly. When it becomes clear it is fit to bottle. This will be good in the course of six months, but is much improved by being kept two or three years. I have currant wine two years old, made according' to the above recipe, which is far preferable to Madeira in sickness. Raspberry Wine. — Bruise the finest ripe raspberries with the DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPEs " I M back of a spoon ; strain them throngli a flannel bag into a stout; jar ; allow one pound of fine powdered loaf sugar to'one qnart of juice; stir these well together and cover the jar closely. Let, it stand three days, stirring up the mixture every day ; then pour off the clear liquid and put two quarts of sherry wine to each quart- of juice or liquid. Bottle it oflT, and it wilf be fit for use in a fortnight. By adding cognac brandy instead of sherry the mix- ture will be raspberry brandy. — Germantoicn Telegraph. Blackberry Wine. — To one quart of juice add two quarts of water and three pounds of sugar ; the berries to be mashed cold, and the juice expressed and strained ; the sugar dissolved in the water and strained. The whole then mixed in kegs and placed in a cool cellar; the bung-hole to be left open until fermentation has nearly ceased, then closed tight and left standing until the ensuing April, when it should be carefully drawn and bottled. Raspberry Tineg.\r. — Pick the raspberries and place them in vinegar over night, sufficieiit to cover them. Then strain tlirouo-h a cloth, adding one pound of sugar to one pint of the juice. Boil •.ind skim until clear; and when cool bottle and coik, setting in a cool place. Black Currant Vinegar. — Pour three pints of vinegar on five pounds of very ripe black currants, stir them twice a day for three days, then squeeze and strain off the juice, boil it ten minutes, add one pound of loaf sugar to cver}^ pint of juice, boil and drain it about twent}' minutes longer, and bottle it when cold. To Make Good Vinegar. — One pint of strained honey and two gallons of soft water. Let it stand in a moderately warm place. In three weeks it will be excellent vinegar. Pickles, — Mrs. W. T. Warrensville, Ohio, gives the following directions for preserving pickles from scum : Pack the cucumbers, or whatever is to be pickled, in a jar or tub, pour a weak brine upon them, and let it remain three daj's. Pour off the brine, ami pour on boiling hot vinegar enough to cover the pickles, and let them stand twenty-four hours. Pvcboil the vinegar, and pour on as before. Do this three times, letting the pickles stand twenty- four hours each time. Then throw this pickle away, and add enough fresh vinegar to cover the cucumbers, or whatever is to be pickled. Add a small lump of alum the size of a marble^ to a gallon of pickle ; half pound of sugar and spices to taste. Bring to a boil, skim, and then turn upon the pickles while hot. Let them stand, well covered, for ten days, and they are ready for use. Peaches, pears, sweet apples, etc., are served in the same way. ex- cepting the use of brine. The author of this recipe has pickles two years old, preserved in this way, as free from rot and scum as when first put down. Pickled Cabbage.— A correspondent of the Country Gentle-^ man says : " Jn response to the inquiry, ' how to pickle cabouge . 720 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. I send the following, which my folks have tried several 3-ears, and I know to be good, and is liked b.y those who have eaten it. It keeps well a year, and how mnch longer it would keep I am unal)le to say. If one is not over nice in regard to the form in wliich it is served, I think it will suit the palate of any who are fond of the like pickle. Take any quantity of well formed cabbage heads, and thick-meated squash, or bell-peppers, and chop them fine and mix. Use about one-third pepper, and two-thirds or more of cabbage after being chopped ; for each gallon take one heaping teaspoonfnl of ground cloves, about half the quantity of ground cinnamon, half a teacupful of whole mustard seeds, and two tablespoonfuls of fine salt; mix thoroughly and place it in a stone jar, and pour over it scalding hot cider vinegar; cover and set in the store room, where it will keep cool and not freeze. It will answer to use after twenty-four hours. Small green tomatoes or other vege- tables may be added, if desired, and pickled whole. One who does not like to be at the ti'ouble of stulfing peppers wdll here find an excellent substitute. The vinegar should not rise above the cabbage, only well saturate the mass. Sweet Cucumber Pickles. — Take cucumbers when fully ripe, pare them, cut lengthwise, and take out the seed. Put them into weak brine over night. In the morning, drain them, boil till ten- der in weak vinegar and water, drain again, and put into jars, and turn over them the sirup, hot. For the sirup, or " sweet pickle," allow to each pound of fruit (?) half a pound of sugar; and one pint of vinegar to each four pounds of fruit. Boil the vinegar and sugar a few moments, then add mace, cinnamon, and cloves, to 3'our taste ; let it boil, and skim well. This pickle is as good for cantelopes, peaches, or other fruit as for the above. To Pickle Beet Root. — This vegetable makes an excellent pickle, and from the brightness of its color has a very pretty effect in a glass pickle-dish or jar. AVash the beet perfectly; do not cut ofi"any of the fibrous roots, as this would allow the juice to escape, and thus the coloring would be lost. Put into sufficient water to boil it, and when the skin will come off it will be suffi- ciently cooked, and may be taken out and laid upon a cloth to cool. Having rubbed off the skin, cut the beet into thick slices, put it into a jar, and pour over it cold vinegar, prepared as fol- lows : Boil !i quart of vinegar with an ounce of wdiole black pep per and an equal weight of dr}' ginger, and let it stand until quite cold. The jar should be kept closely corked. Cauliflower Pickles. — Break them into neat branches, put them in a white cloth, (nothing stains more easily ;) boil them very slightly in salt and water. Spread them to cool. Pack them in jars, and pour over them vinegar, prepared as follows, and then seal up tight. Grind three ounces of coriander seed, and one ounce of white mustard seed; pound and then grind one ounce of white DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY EEGIPES. r2i ginger root. Boil the whole in three quarts of the best cider vinecrar m a porcelain or bright tin kettle, and strain over the cauliflo\\^V. Pickled Eggs.— Boil the eggs until done; when cold shell them and cut them in halves lengthwise ; lay them carefully in large mouthed jars, and pour over them scaldin^r vinc'rar \vell seasoned with whole pepper, allspice, a few pieces°of mn^ev and a few cloves. Wben cold tie up clo.scly, and let them 'Itund -i month. Ihey are then fit for use. Uith cold meat they are a most delicious and delicate pickle. Tomatoes For Winter Use.— After skinning perfectly ripo tomatoes, cut out any green around the base. I think leaving in this hard green core is the immediate cause of the loss of°the fruit. Place them in a bell-metal kettle over the fire; season with salt as if for immediate use ; then allow them to coM)e to a boil ; while hot, put in stone cans or small mouthed gallon jars, cork and seal. If proper judgment be exercised you"' will liover lose one jar. Do not use tin. Tomato Catsup.— Scald and peel your tomatoes; then place them in a kettle to boil. When done, cool and strain them through a sieve ; then add pepper, salt, and cloves. Scald them again, and add one tablespoonful of brandy to one i)int of the catsup ; place in bottles, cork and seal while hot, setting it in a cool place. To Pickle Pears. — Steam your pears until quite done ; then to three pounds of pears add one pound of sugar, and vinegar enough to cover them. Put the vinegar on cold. Mace, cloves, and cinnamon to 3'our taste. Keeping Cider Sweet. — When fermentation begins in a barrel draw^ oflf the liquor into another, straining through flannel. Pnt into the cider three quarters of an ounce of the oil of sassafras and the same of the oil of wintergreen, well shaken up in a pint of alcohol. But one difficulty is found, and that is — tiiat it is so palatable that people will not let it keep long. To Make Summer Drinks. — To make root beer, take a quan- tity of sarsaparilla roots and sassafras bark and some liops, and boil till the strength is extracted. To three gallons of liquor, after it is strained, add one quart of molasses and a cup of yeast. After standing in a warm place eight or ten hours, strain again and bottle. It will be fit for use the following day. For Ginger Beer, take one pint of molasses and two spoonfuls of ginger, put into a pail to be half filled with boiling water ; when well stirred together, fill the pail with cold water, leaving room for one pint of yeast, which must not be put in till lukewarm. Place it on the warm hearth for the night, and bottle it in the morning. For Spruce Beer, take three pounds of sugar, iour gallons ot water, one ounce of ginger, a little lemon peel, or essence of lemon, 722 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY, and a little essence of spruce to give it a flavor. Stir all togetber warm it a trifle ; add a cupful of good yeast. When fermented, bottle up close. Mead is made by dissolving one part of honey in three of boil- ino- water, flavoring it with spices, and adding a portion of ground malt, a piece of toast steeped in yeast, allowing the whole to fer- ment. Washing Made East. — Hub the clothes in two waters, use plenty of soap ; then after wringing dry, place in a tub, and pour on clear boiling water to cover tliem. Let them remain until cool enough to bear the hand ; wring and put out to dry, using no hard water about them. This saves nearly half the usual work, besides the steam from boiling, which is very unpleasant, especially in winter. Bar soap should be cut into pieces of a convenient size, and laid where it will become dry. It is well to keep it several weeks before using, as it spends fast vtdien it is new. Good soft soap can be made in the following manner: To one pound of saponifier (to be had at the groceries or drug store) add three gallons of rain water. Set it boiling and then put in four pounds of soap fat, (any ofi'al fat saved in the kitchen,) or tallow. When the solution is clear and the fat all combined, which is seen by the disappearance of all latty eyes or spots in the liquid, add twelve gallons of soft rain water, and when cold your soap is read}'^ for use. The " saponifier," being concentrated lye, is better than wood ashes and potash, and is by no means dear. Arthur's Home Magazine saj's that a little alum dissolved in hot water and thrown into a tub of soapsuds, will precipitate the soap and dirt to the bottom, and leave the water clear and soft enough to be used again. Or the alum may be put into boiling suds, permitting the scum to boil over and leave the water clear, soft, and as useful for washing clothes as it had originally been. A Thousand Dollar Recipe. — Take one pound of sal soda and half a pound of unslacked lime, put them in a gallon of water and boil twenty minutes ; let it stand till cool, then drain off and put it in a stone jug or jar. Soak your dirt^'- clothes over niglit or till they are well wet through, then wring them out and put on l)lenty of soap, and to a boiler of clothes well covered with water add one teaspoonful of washing fluid. Boil half an hour briskly ; then wash them thoroughly through one suds and rinse well in water, and your clothes will look bettor than the old way of wash- ing twice before boiling. This is an invaluable remedy, and we want every poor, tired woman to try it. To Remove Stains.— Table linen or any white clothes that have coflee or fruit stains on them, before being put into soapsuds, should have boiling water turned on them, and remain in it till the water is cold. If they are put into soapsuds with the stains DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 723 on they will be set by it so that no subsequent washin-^ ^vlll re move them. ° To Wash Calicoes.— Put wheat bran in a bag, boil and take half the water to wash in. half to rinse in ; use no soap. This will cleanse without fading, and stiffen them without starch. Iron on the wrong side and they will look as if just out of the store. To Clean Cloth Garments. —Upon the collars and wristbands of coats rub benzine plentifully, and after 'some ten minutes ruh on goap. Have ready some hoi: water and a sponge ; wash tho- roughly, and rinse in warm water. Then get some clean suds, and with a brush go over the whole garment, brushin-- it in the right way of the cloth. Pull and stretch them into sliape, and hang them up to dry. Washing Scarlet Flannel.— A handful of flour mixed with a quart of cold water and boiled ten minutes. Add it to the water you have ready to wash in. The articles will require many rin- sings in clean water after being washed in this mixture ; but if carefully don"*, the most brilliant scarlet will lose none of 'its brightness. If flannel is soaked in pure cold water before making it up, it never shrinks at all. Get a washing trough fdled from the pump, and in this the flannel is placed. As soon as it sinks to the bottom it is taken out and hung up, without any squeezing. It drains itself, and does not lose the appearance) of new flannel when dry. To Starch Cuffs and Collars. — To make them look glossy as when first bought, add to the starch a little gum arable dissolved in warm water. Iron wet, with a cloth over them. To prevent the iron from sticking, stir a little salt in the starch while hot. A Clothes Line Keel is a great convenience, and easily made. A strong box nailed to the end post, or against the building, with a crank through it, is all that is required. P\asten one end of the line to the crank in the box, and you can always have your lii.e in good shape when washing day comes. Preserving Furs. — Ladies are often anxious about keeping fur? free from moths during the summer months. Darkness is all that is necessary. The "miller," from whose eggs moths are hatched, only moves in light; the moths themselves work in darkness. Hang the furs in a very dark closet, and keep the door shut ; keep It always dark and you can have no trouble. But, as closet doors are sometimes left open, the better way is to enclose the articles loosely in a paper box; put this in a pillow case, or wrap around with cloth, and hang up in a dark closet. Camphor, si^ices, or perfumes are of no use; continual darkness is suflicient. And do not take out the furs in June or July to give them an "airing," for even then cometh the enemy, and it may be that in fifteen min- utes after exposure it has deposited a hundred eggs. If you cou- 44 724 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. sider an airing indispensable, give tlie furs a good switching and put them quickly back. — Country Gentleman. How TO Wash Furniture. — Mahogany may be washed in vei-y weak suds made of hard soap, and immediately rinsed and rubbed dry with a clean cloth. Some think water must never touch fur- niture, but once or twice a year ; this method may be used to ad- vantao-e ; it makes the articles look as if newly varnished. White spots made by heat, on varnished furniture, may be removed by rubbing with a flannel cloth saturated with coal oil. I have often done so with perfect success. It is much easier than the old hot paper plan. How TO Wash White Paint. — As little soap as possible should be used with this, and that in the water and not on the cloth. It not only makes the paint yellow, but, after a little while, removes it altogether. A friend of mine, noted as a housekeeper, would never allow either soap or hot water to be used on paint, except in case of grease. Cold water and a scrubbing brush were her weapons of offence in waging a warfare with dirt ; but I should rather pay for painting once in a while, than expend as much strength and time as such a process requires. However, it gives a very fresh look to paint, and saves soap and fire, if one is in- clined to try it. For greasy spots prefer a little soda (carbonate) iu the first water, to be immediately rinsed off and wiped dry. Rust on Dinner Knives — Cover the steel with sweet oil, well rubbing it on ; let it remain forty-eight hours, and then, using un- slacked lime, finely powdered, rub the knife until all the rust has disappeared. How TO Clean Tin. — Xever use lye to clean tin ; it will soon spoil it. Make it -clean with suds, and rub with whiting, and it will look well, and last longer. Cleansing Wool. The Maine Farmer gives the following re- cipe for cleansing wool of gummy matter : — Take one pound of saleratus to twelve pounds of wool, dissolve in water not quite boiling hot, then put in the wool and stir occasionally for one hour ; take it out and squeeze it thoroughly, or, what is better, run through a close wringer, rinse in cold water, and spread on grass ground to dry. This process will remove all dirt from any kind of wool, and make it much better for custom work. Restoring Color to Silk. — When the color has been taken from silk by acids, it may be restored by applying to the spot a little hartshorn or sal volatile. Cleaning Windows.— If the sash are to be cleaned, it is done with a small brush or soft cloth, as you would any other varnished or painted wood. If you wish to clean the glass by washing in water, have a tub of moderate soapsuds and another of clean water beside you. Wash the window first in the suds, and then riuse DOMESTIC ECOXOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 725 thoroughlj in the pure water; set tbe windows away to drair and dry without wiping. When dry, rub thoroughly with soft i,ai)er and your window will be faultless. If there are any spots of paint or putty on the glass, put strong soft soap, or soda wet into paste for a few minutes, to remove it. A mixture of whiskey and water will cleanse glass nicely. Whitinor spread on the glass wet and rubbed off when dry, will also clean it well, and is easily practised when you do not wish to take out the sash. How TO Wash Graining.— Take clear warm water, a clean white cloth, and wash a small place, and wipe dry with another clean •white cloth. Do not wet any more space than you can dry imme- diately with your cloth, as it must not be left to dry in tlie atmo- sphere. It must be rubbed dry ; hence the necessity for perfectly clean white cloths. If the paint has been neglected until very much soiled with greasy finaers, or specked with a summer's growth of flies, a very little hard soap may be put in the first water, and then rinsed off with clear water; "but avoid soap if you possibly can. Family Glue. — I make my glue in the following way: — Crack up the glue and put in a bottle ; add to it common whiskey ; shake up, cork tight, and iu three or four days it can be used. It re- quires no heating ; will keep for almost any length of time, and is at all times read}^ to use, except in the coldest weather, when it will require warming. It must be kept tight, so that the whiskey will not evaporate. The usual corks or stoppers should not be used. They will become clogged. A tin stopper, covering the bottle, but fitting as closel}' as possible, must be used. Coating for Iron. A mixture of three parts of lai-d and one of rosin, melted together, is one of the best coatings for all steel or iron implements. The lard makes the rosin soft, while the latter is a sure preventive against rusting. The mixture is good for i)lows, hoes, axes, and implements, as well as knives and forks packed away. Preserving Shingles. An "old farmer" recommends sprink- ling shingle roofs once a year, either in spring or fall, with slacked lime. He also says new shingles can be made to last much longer by soaking them for a few days in thick lime water, well stirred up. Tooth Powder. — Powdered chalk, half an ounce; one drachm of powdered myrrh, the same of orris root, two of powdered bark. Mix all together. This dentifrice is good for both the teeth and the breath. A Candle to Burn all Night.— When, as in cast of sickness, a dull light is wished, or when matches are mislaid, put finely pow- dered salt on the candle till it reaches the black part of the wick. In this way a mild and steady light may be kept through the night b}^ a small piece of candle. How TO MAKE Good Butter.— Good butter requires cleanli- ness to the highest degree. Que drop of water iu a pan ol milk 726 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY, causes fermentation. It also requires intelligence. Tlie cream must be removed at just such a period of the fermentation of the milk. If taken too soon, before the milk has clabbered, it has a bitter taste ; if allowed to stand until spots form upon it, it loses its sweet flavor ; if left until it wheys, it is nearly worthless. So it requires a practised eye to skim it at the exact moment, to re- tain all its sweetness and flavor. A dairy containing three cows ^hould have its milk skimmed morning, noon, and night. A stone pot is the best receptacle for the cream, as tin is not easily kept sweet. Every time fresh cream is added, stir the whole contents from the bottom. Put a large tablespoonful of salt into the first cream that goes into the pot, and mixing it daily tends to keep it all from moulding. If possible churn twice a week. Churn early in the morning before the kitchen fire is lighted, or, if this is inconvenient, churn down cellar, so that the cream will not become too warm. Cream should be at a tempera- ture below sixty degrees when put into the churn, as beating it always increases its temperature. In the end much time and labor is saved by purchasing a small thermometer, on purpose to test 3^our cream : fifty-six or fift^'-eight degrees to commence Avith will bring your butter in fifteen minutes. Butter making in our family' is a most easy process. Three cows are kept. The butter never fails to come in fifteen, often in ten minutes. Churn, cream jar, and pans are all washed before breakfast ; and the butter worked over and salted. There is a great dispute with good butter makers upon the question of wash- ing butter in water. I think that water washes out the sugar of milk, which supplies all the sweetness of the butter; without it the butter is tasteless. So I use large lumps of ice which do not melt easily. As soon as the butter is thoroughly separated from the buttermilk, reverse the crank, and draw on all the milk, turn- ing the crank slowl}' ; work it in this way twenty minutes, and the labor of working out the buttermilk is much expedited. Then put in small pieces of ice, which quickly hardens the butter, so it is easil}^ removed from the churn. Have large pieces of ice in the butter-l)0wl, lay the butter on them, and allow it to remain until cold enough to work without sticking to the hands. Scald the butter-paddle, then put it on the ice for a while, and work the but- ter thoroughly with it. "Work the butter until the little water melted from the ice runs clear ; then add salt to suit the taste. A tablespoonful heaping full of salt to each pound is a good rule ; but tastes differ. For keeping butter one j^ear sweet and good, take two pounds best Ashton dairy salt, one pound of white granulated sugar, one pound of saltpetre finely powdered, sifted through a muslin sieve. Mix all these well together, keep in a jar, and put one and a half large tablespoonfuls to one pound of butter; mix this well with the butter, and it will keep perfectly. There is nothing deleter!- DOMESTIC ECONOMY AND FAMILY RECIPES. 727 ous in this compound. The saltpetre is in too small quantities to prove injurious; but it prevents the butter from turning raiuid. While the sugar supplies the required sweetness, the salt rulains its flavor, and the result is the best of butter the following May. In the summer season, if it is wished to keep butter perfectly Bweet and fresh, make it in balls, print them both sides, (if large,") then put a layer hardened in ice into the butter crock, place over it a clean cloth, dipped in ice water ; then another layer of butter cakes, another cloth wet in ice— so on until the crock is filled. Make a brine of two quarts of water, two pounds of Ashton salt, one pound of granulated sugar, one pound of saltpetre; dissolve, and strain it through a cloth to remove all impurities. Fill the crock to the brim, put a plate over the upper cloth, and a very clean stone on the plate. Then cover tight, and the butter will be as good in six weeks or two months as the first day. Indeed, if not used daily it will keep till next August. If you do not fill the crock the first time, pour otf all your brine, put another layer of cakes, another of cloth, until filled, then strain the brine through a sieve into the crock. It must be kept filled, or moist- ure and mould w^ould gather on the sides. The advantage of the cloth layer is, that each layer of cakes is kept from tlie air, and not disturbed until the upper layer is removed. Prepare the brine, keep it in a stone jar, — be sure to keep the plate, with a stone for weight, on top of it, — and your butter will keep sweet for weeks. The brine will not need renewing for a long time; ■when.it does, boil it, and skim, and it is again ready for use. Large bunches of sweet clover tied up and laid upon the milk shelves, or hung in the windows of the dairy, take away any musti- ness, and give a very sweet odor to the place. To put down butter in firkins, be sure to select hard wood firkins, then soak in sour milk or strong brine for several days. When one is to be used, rub it well with fine salt all al)out the inside of it, and scatter salt on the bottom before putting in the first layer. Then pound it down well, — some use a pestle to pack it tightly, — if little crevices are left the butter will not keep as •welL If you cannot fill your firkin at once, fill it to the brim with strong brine, pouring it off when more butter is added, and filling up again, unless the butter fills the firkin. Put a cloth tightly over it, scatter salt over the cloth, and pour on brine. If salted with the saltpetre compound, your butter is good for one 3'ear. If in winter, when the cows feed chiefly on hay, a little colornig is needed to take away the tallowy look of the butter, carrots wdl impart it, and they are sweet delicious food. Take two large sized carrots, clean thoroughly, then with a knife scrape oil the yellow exterior, leaving the white pith, soak the yellow part m boilincr milk for ten or fifteen minutes. Straiu boiling hot into 728 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. the cveam ; this gives the cream the desired temperature, colors it nicely, and adds to the sweetness of the butter. Packing Butter in the Summer. — A Yermont butter-maker writes to the New York Fanners' Club, concerning packing butter to keep : Pack it in well soaked tubs or firkins ; put a little damp salt in the bottom and place it in a cool dry cellar, on a bench of wood eiohteen inches from the cellar bottom and the same from the wall. Stone or earthenware does not keep butter well, as the moisture from the surrounding atmosphere in warm weather, con- denses on such vessels and soon effects the butter. Put no salt on or between the layers. Fill to within half an inch of the top. Place a clean wet cloth over the butter, pack the edges down with a knife, and then spread thinly wet salt over the cloth. Having made and dealt in butter for some time, I can say the above mode of packing and keeping butter will be useful to many, and cause a smile of delight to the buyer. To Deodorize Milk. — It frequently occurs in the Spring, when the farmers are feeding their cows upon ruta-bagas, or turnips, that the milk becomes so strongly impregnated by their disagreea- ble taste and odor as to be unfit for butter making. To obviate this, put a pinch of finely powdered saltpeter into every gallon of cream. A little saltpeter worked into butter that has become sour, or rancid, will render it sweet and palatable. I CHAPTER XXni. THE F A M I L Y P H Y S IC I A N. iISEASE comes alike to all, and many friendly forms, are hurried away, that with the knowledge of some simple remedies might have been spared to us. When first attacked by disease, some simple remedy will accomplish what a few hours later the most powerful medi- cine xcill fail to effect. The treatment therefore prescribed in this chapter will be first, preventive, or such as shall tend to prevent attacks of disease ; second, arrestive, or such as shall arrest disease in its first stages ; and lastly, curative. We consider the first the most important of all. The preven- tion of disease should be the study of the parent and the teaclier, as the cure of the disease is the study of the physician. The foundations of disease are often laid in infancy, and with infancy we shall commence our instructions. The care of tin; infant is the loving task of the mother, and we are therefore sure that we have only to show what is the right course to be pursued and it will be joyfully taken. The mother is willing to sacrifice any thing or everything foj her children, and yet few mothers take the time and trouble to study the causes, nature and treatment of the simple diseases of infancy and childhood. It is the testimony of every physician with whom we have met that tens of thousands of little ones are lost through the ignorance of the mothers ; mothers, too many of them, who'^were accomplished in music, languages, literature, and the teachings of the schools, but ignorant in that highest and most sacred trust ever imposed upon woman, tlie care of cliildron. And it is not so difficult a thing as may be supposed ; there is no unfathomable mystery about the little form, but the laws ot its life and well being are so plain that every woman of ordinary in- telligence may master them by a few hours' careful study each " The youncr mother falls into that very natural and frequent error of supposing that the first sign of discomfort that a babe 1^9 730 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. exhibits, the first wail that comes from the darkened chamber, is an indication of hunger, and crams the little stomach with food not supplied by nature. Does she in this commit the simple error of over feeding the child ? Far graver is the mistake. Within the first three days' when the infant requires scarce any thing but sleep and quiet, she may lay the foundation for an infancy tormented bj'^ colic and a mature life cursed with dyspepsia. Every physician who has been much in families will testify that where one has during these first days of life siiflTered for lack of nourishment, ten have been injured by over feeding." — Li/man^s Ph.ilo.' or obviate indigestion and gripes, keep the infant in as' nearly an u right position as possible while feeding either from the breast bottle. 15. Take the child from the breast frequently while suckin^r holding it away for a minute or two. °' 16. Expose the child as early as possible to the fresh air- if properly clothed in flannels the air will only do good. ' It. Do not keep the room at an excessive heat, and then take the infant from it into cold air, but let the air Ijlow freely into an adjoining room, then close it up and take the babe into "it. 18. Wash a strong child in cool water, and a weak one in tepid water. 19. Keep the child perfectly clean, and as quiet as possible. 20. Never make the infant laugh heartily. It is very pretty to see the baby laugh and hear its giggle, but it is also dangerous. 21. Place the infant on its right side when asleep. 22. Rub a young child all over night and morning with the hand, to promote the circulation. 23. Encourage the child to stretch, and thrust out its limbs, and to crawl about, thus promoting the circulation and strenirth. 24. When the child is in good health, and has cut four teeth, wean it at nine months old, but if after weaning it should be attacked with an3^ serious disease, it may require the breast again. 25. Avoid frights, tight bandages, patent medicines, frequent feeding in the night, close air, and sudden changes. Teething is usually accompanied by more or less inflammation and other troubles. If the bowels are closed, give a little castor oil. Let the diet be lessened and diluted ; if the child is sucking, the mother should take little beside liquids, gruels, etc. If the gums are red, swollen, and painful, lance them. The cut will soon heal, and will in thousands of cases prevent convulsions or other serious consequences. Difficulty in passing water at any time may be overcome by flaxseed tea. For sore e^^es, use a wash made of equal parts of slippery elm and peach leaves. Thrush. — The symptoms of this disease are, Avhite specks upon the tongue and lips, with dribbling of saliva, hot mouth, disa- greeable breath, etc. These specks increase, fall off', and show ulcers. The pain often prevents sucking, the child grows emaci- ated, and of course fretful. Wash the mouth with a decoction of golden seal, sweetened with honey, and sprinkled with powdered alum. If the golden seal is not at hand give sage instead. If the bowels are loose give Prescription No. 1. For chafing, wash the parts With Castile soa]? and dust with powdered starch or slippery elm flour. For stoppages of the nose, rub some animal oil about the roots of the nose. 732 ■ HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Convulsions or Fits. — When the child is in a fit, unfasten the clothes, raise the head, and do not let it lean back or fall forward ; give fresh air, rub the body with the hand, place the child in a warm bath, at the same time applying cloths wet in cool water to the head and face. Give an injection of molasses and warm water ; repeat this injection several times at intervals of fifteen minutes. Every family should have a syringe. Elastic syringes are the best, and cost not over one dollar and fifty cents. Worms, — The certain evidences of the presence of worms in children are, paleness, itching of the nose, starting and grinding of the teeth during sleep, irregular appetite, fetid breath, hard swelled belly, swollen upper lip, sore mouth and nose, one cheek Jlushed, itching of the anus, drowsiness, and nervous starts. The treatment should be both to remove the worms and give vigor to the stomach. The best remedy' to have always on hand is pre- pared as follows : — Take of fresh black alderberries one pint, cedar or juniper apples (recent) one pound, bruise them, and soak in a quart of alcohol for fourteen days, then strain and add one pint of molasses. Give a teaspoonful three times a day to children upwards of one year old. As soon as purging is accomplished, reduce the dose, and continue for two or three weeks as a tonic. Summer Complaints are best treated by Prescription No. 1 ; but often nothing has been provided beforehand, and this neg- ligence renders other expedients necessary. Pain in the stomach and bowels is evidence of the possibility of some severe attack, and something had best be given the sufierer. Ginger is always at hand. Pour half a pint of boiling water upon two tablespoon- fuls of ginger ; add sugar and milk, and let the patient drink it hot. Or two tablespoonfuls of gin may have a tumblerful of hot water and a little sugar mixed with it. At the same time flannels wrung out in hot water and laid over the stomach and bowels will assist in the relief. The trouble with us as a people is that we let all slight aff"ections go, and think we cannot spend time to be doctored for a cold, a colic, or a diarrhoja. By this foolish course many valuable lives are lost, many hours of pain and wretchedness are endured, and injured constitutions and impaired powers are the result. We therefore rank arreative treatment as next in importance to preventive. To arrest the progress of disease in its first stages is wisdom. A diarrhoea is readily ar- rested in its first stage by a few doses of " chalk mixture," to be obtained of any druggist, or even by a dose of ginger and molasses, but if left to run on, it may soon become dysentery and death. The diet should be reduced at once when cholera morbus, colic, or diarrhoea are present. Take some simple remedy to check the disorder, reduce the diet suflicient to give the stomach an opix)r- tunity to recover, and the chances are as nine hundred and ninety- nine to one that you will be saved further trouble. Cherry brandy THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 733 and all decoctions of the black cherry, and also of the hlackherrv are good in summer complaints. When there is a constant aripina in diarrhea, an injection is better than physic. Make an iiij^c" tion of a tablespoonful of castor oil, two of molasses, and a pint of warm water. '■ Infantile Remittent Fever is distinguished by its appearance at night and disappearance during the day. Give the child a little rhubarb and magnesia, bathe the skin in warm water, keep the feet warm and the head cool, and for a regular drink give an infusion of slippery elm and peach leaves. Roast onions for a foot draught is usually better than any otlier, and always readily obtain'ed. Prescrij)tion No. 1 should be given, if the bowels are very much out of order. Give catnip tea when the fever is on, and ai)ply onion poultices to the pit of the stomach for vomiting,' giving also parched corn or oatmeal coffee. Scarlet Fever, or ''Canker Eash,'^ is one of the most fatal of all children's diseases, and all symptoms should be carefully watched, so that the most prompt action can be taken on its lirst appearance. The mother who gives over the care of her children to another may have this disease in full force before she is aware of it. " It commences with chilliness succeeded by heat, quick pulse, languor, thirst, more or less headache, redness of the eyes, and sore throat, with some difficulty of swallowing. In two or three days numerous specks or patches of a fieiy red color appear about the face and neck; within twenty-four hours this red erup- tion extends over the whole body. In about four days a gentle moisture appears on the skin ; the eruption gradually disajipears, and the scales fall off. But often the above symptoms are more violent, and vomiting, pains in the back, wildness, ulcers in the throat, and difficult breathing accompany them. The first thing to be done, when the spmj^toms are plainly discovered, is to give an emetic. The eruption cannot be mistaken for measles, on ac- count of its fiery color. For an emetic for children we consider nothing equal to Frescription No. 2. A mixture of the sirup of ipecac and the sirup of squills is also effective; but, if these are not at hand, boneset tea, thoroughwort tea, or any herb tea that will produce nausea and vomiting, should be resorted to at once. The next step is to produce a profuse perspiration. Sometimes the hot drinks given for an emetic will accomplish this ; if not, give sage or catnip tea, or any warm drink that will force out the perspiration. Hot water to the feet, sides, etc., will assist in pro- curing perspiration. After it is secured, and while the i)aticnl is still sweating, give a cathartic,— castor oil, senna, mandrake, or any other catliartic, if these are not to be obtained. If these reme- dies do not break up the fever, they must be repeated the next day. For the sore throat in scarlet fever, use sweet oil and camphor in equal parts, bathing the throat with it three or four times a day, 784 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. wrapping the throat in flannels wrung out in hot water after "bath- ing it. The room should be frequently purified with chloride of lime, by turning on a little vinegar. Scarlet fever is infectious, and children should be kept away from the sick-room. Measles. — Symptoms. Chills, fever, and other fever symptoms ; quick breathing, hoarseness, drj^ cough, flushed face, eyes red and watery, sneezing and discharge from the nose. In three or four days red spots appear, usually on the head first, and extend over the body. Give an emetic, and a constant drink of slipper}' elm tea and hone3^ If the eruption does not appear within the time specified, give a gin or whiskey toddy, and apply mustard poultices over the abdomen, feet, ankles, and wrists. If the bowels are very costive, give a mild warm injection of Castile soapsuds, or molasses and water. When there is tightness across the chest, which the slippery elm and hone}' do not relieve, apply a mustard poultice to the whole chest. Great care must be exercised in regu- lating the diet and preventing exposure until a cure is perfected, for a relapse is attended with great danger. Lung Fever. — Symptoms. The usual S3aiiptoms of fever, with pains in the chest, constant difficulty in breathing, distressed cough, swollen cheek or lips, etc. Give an emetic, and, if neces- sary, repeat it the second and third day. Bathe the body with warm water several times a day. Apply hops to the chest and mustard to the feet ; or, in the case of infants, apply onion poul- tices to the feet, back, and breast. A constant drink of slippery elm or liquorice tea must be given. In severe cases Dr. King recommends the following: Slippery elm, two ounces; lobelia leaves, one ounce ; bloodroot, two teaspoonfuls. Add to these one quart of boiling water, cover tightl}', and allow it to keep for an hour. When cold, strain it and sweeten with honey or mo- lasses. Give a teaspoonful every hour or two. Keep the bowels open. Croup is one of the most dangerous of the diseases of early childhood ; and its appearance is usuall}' first indicated by the child suddenly waking from sleep with a hoarse, metallic cough, followed b}^ a hissing sound as he draws in his breath. The voice is hoarse, often reduced to a hoarse whisper; there is a sense of distress in the throat, the child struggles for breath, the head is thrown back, and the hand often put to the throat as if to remove the obstruction. Prompt action is required, as death is the sure termination of the disease, unless checked. Give Prescription A'o, 2 every few minutes, until the child vomits freely. If you have not this prescription at hand, give some other emetic without delay, — sirup of ipecac, onion sirup, almost any thing that will produce instant vomiting. At the same time apply cloths wrung out in hot water to the throat and upper part of the chest, renew- ing them before they cool. As soon as the breathing is easier. THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 735 smear a piece of muslin with lard, sprinkle it with snnff, and keep It on the throat and upper part of the chest until all the symptoms are removed, changing it two or three times a day. Keep up an expectoration by giving goose oil on sugar. During an attack of croup a child may be put into a warm bath and kept in it ten or fifteen minutes. Keep the feet and body warm. Through the day let :he drink be flaxseed tea, or slippery elm tea, and \\1th a little lemon juice in it. Keep the bowels open. Have every thing ready for an attack the second night, and proceed upon tlie first* syinp- toms of its return as directed above. Hooping Cough. — Give an emetic, the Prescription No 2, if pos- sible ; keep the bowels open ; put a plaster between the shoulders. Let the child go out in pleasant weather, during the warm part of the day, and exercise moderately. Let the diet be the most nutri- tious that can be easily digested, — boiled chicken, cliicken broth, beef tea, etc. Let the sleeping room be ventilated in some way without the air blowing on the bed. If possible, remove the child to some other vicinity, as a change of air often eflects a cure with- out other means. " The most frequent of all the complaints which the housewife or mother is called upon to relieve is a cold. This affection, if taken in time, can be cured with ver}^ little trouble and the most simple medicines ; neglected and allowed to fasten upon any important organ of the body, the most disastrous results ensue. " Colds are caused by a check to the insensible perspiration ; therefore the first thing to be done is to restore perspiration.'' (Here let us caution all our readers against taking cold. We quote from the "American Family Physician.^'') ''Cold is uiidoubtedly the most common cause of disease. To experience the injurious consequences of cold does not require that one should remain in a cold atmosphere until chilled through ; it is equally })ernicious to pass suddenly from a very warm apartment to a cold one, espe- cially if the former be dry and the latter damp; to stand for a time upon a cold pavement or floor, or upon snow or ice, until the feet become cold ; to remain standing in a cold, damp place for a long time ; to remove the coat or vest when in profuse perspiration, even in midsummer, or in winter to toast the feet by a warm fire and then to get into a cold bed." One seldom takes cold while in active exercise, even if thinly clad, in cold weather; but a moment's cessation may produce that result. One is not as likely to take cold if the whole person is exposed at once to the cold atmosphere, as when, through some open door, raised window, or insidious crack, a draft comes which cools only one portion of the body. Children take cold by being taken from the chair, crib, or bed and placed on the floor. I hero is always a cooler current of air near the floor, loung girls lay the foundation of most terrible sufterings, and often death, by ex- posing themselves during the menstrual period. ^Ve urge upou 736 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. mothers that, putting aside all objections, thej^ fully instruct their youno- (laughters as to the dangers from cold feet, wet feet, cold bathst and°cold draughts at this time. Flannel under garments prove the best possible protection against the evil consequences of the sudden changes we have referred fo. When the first symp- toms of a cold are discovered resort may be had to some active and long continued exercise, or the feet may be soaked in warm water, warm herb drinks taken, wet cloths applied to the body, and perspiration thus produced. The two points upon which we insist are, that perspiration shall be produced, and that, after having been thus sweated, the patient sliall remain for at least twenty-four hours in an even temperature. To "take a sweat" at night and go about one's business in the morning is usually a hazardous pro- ceeding. One would think we might spend at least one day in caring a cold, for, if it be the first day, one will be amply sutficient. We can point to the cases of those who thought they would wait till Sunday, but when Sunday came were beyond the reach of earthly aid, and say, Beware ! Fevers. — Symjotoms. The general symptoms of all fevers are prett}' nearl}^ the same, thouijh the}' ma}^ vary in severity ; they may be named in the following order : — 1. Languor or dullness ; perhaps a dull headache and unplea- sant dreams. 2. Chills more or less severe, with more or less thirst, small pulse and quick breathing. 3. White coat on the tongue; perhaps nausea or vomiting. 4. Fever or quick pulse, with increased heat of the body. 5. Thirst. 6. Tongue coated brown or black. 7. Bowels costive, urine di- minished and high colored. Tr^eatmenf. As a general rule, all fevers may be successfully treated alike in their ditterent stages. By the following treatment, if promptly and energetically used, nearly all cases of fever will be broken up at their commencement, and the further services of the physician will not be required. The first thing to be done is to give an emetic. We have men- tioned several on previous pages. Continue the doses until vom- iting is secured. It will frequentl}'^ occur that this alone will break up the fever, the pulse will become natural and the skin moist. If not then, resort must be had to profuse sweating, for which also we have given directions; any one of the warm drinks named with warm wrappings, hot bricks, bottles of water, etc., will bring out the perspiration. As soon as the sweating is pro- fuse give Frescription No. 3, or some other cathartic, if this IS not at hand. Senna, castor oil, mandrake, and many other articles may be used to move the bowels. Repeat tlie dose once m three hours until an operation is secured. Every thing has now been done that is likely to be of service, and the "fever is usually THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 737 broken off, but if not, the same course must be pursued the next day. Fever and Ague, treated as above, will yield in its first stacres but il long continued, Prescrvpiion No. 4 must be given liet\\'een the sweat and the ne«t chill. Take also the followino- tonic To half a pint of strong coffee add two tablespoonfuls of lemon juice and half a gill of good brandy or whiskey. Drink this when the chill IS about to come on; or wild cherry bark one ounce, inner bark of white oak one ounce, fresh horseradish root one ounce, seneca snake root one ounce; add cinnamon, cloves, and sulphur, each one half an ounce, good cider two quarts ; steep for three hours. Dose when cold a wine glass full three times a day. Typhus Fever requires the same treatment as prescribed for fevers in general, the only additional directions being that tlie bowels be kept regular by mild injections. Only one operation daily is desirable. Give a tonic as follows: Take an ounce each of white oak bark, chamomile flowers, boneset leaves, and scullap leaves ; turn on them a quart of water, boil twenty minutes ; add a pint of vinegar, and sweeten to the taste, allowing the patient to drink freely of it. Buttermilk is a harmless and refreshing drink in this disease. Typhoid Fever is treated the same as the above. Brain Fever. — The peculiar symptoms of brain fever whieh distinguish it from other fevers are, confusion of ideas, i)ain, full- ness and heat in the head, redness of the face and eyes, light and noise distressing, ringing in tlie ears, delirium, etc. No delay is admissible when these symptoms are discovered, but a dose of cathartic medicine should be given at once, the patient bathed in warm water, and a perspiration induced. Keep the head cool by healing lotions, cloths wet in cold water, or vinegar and water, changing them often. Appl)'^ mustard poultices to the feet and ankles, and along the lower part of the back bone. Keep the room dark and quiet, no visitors being allowed. Inflammation of the Eyes, Weak Eyes, etc., will be relieved the application of the eye wash described on page 336. Quinsy Sore Throat. — Symptoms. Flashes of chills and heat, difficulty in swallowing and breathing, hoarse voice, swelling of the thro'at and almonds of the ears, swellinj^-s in the throat, which burst and discharge. Treatment. As soon as the disease shows itself give an emetic ; after it has operated give a cathartic. In severe attacks sweat the patient. Steep some bitter herbs in equal parts, vinegar and water, and allow the patient to inhale the vapor. Take equal parts of hops, mullen leaves, and Saint John's wort leaves, steep them in vinegar and water; to every quart of the decoction add two tablespoolifuls of salt. Let the patient inhale tiie vapor from this decoction, apply the herbs as a poultice to tiie throat, and 738 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. V give a tablespoonfnl of the decoction every two hours. Let the patient drink freely of buttermilk, vinegar and water, lemonade, or orano-e juice. After the tumors burst gargle the throat with a tea of sage and hyssop sweetened with honey. Bronchitis is accompanied by chillines* and fever, a Tiard, dry, painful cough, pain and soreness at the upper part of the breast bone, more or less raising of phlegm, and pain aci'oss the brow, in- creased by coughing. The treatment is the same as for fevers, in addition to which give Prescription No. 5, to relieve the cough Keep the patient warm and on a light diet. A drink of flaxseed or slippery elm tea, with the addition of lemon juice or vinegar is beneficial. Catarrh. Influenza. — Symptoms. Sneezing; weight and pain in the head, especially the forehead ; difficult breathing ; stopping of the nose, and a feeling of pressure at the base of the nose ; eyes red and watery ; sore throat, dry cough, aching limbs, fever, phlegm and discharges from the nose and eyes. Keep warm, dry, and quiet. Soak the feet daily in warm water, drink warm lemonade, spearmint tea, etc. Reduce your diet to warm gruels, and pursue this course until cured. You may thus escape per- haps those fatal diseases of the throat and lungs which carry so many thousands to their graves. Persons subject to colds and catarrh should bathe the throat and neck, and create a friction by the use of a brush or crash towel, sponging the whole body with salt and water. Diseases op the Lungs are the result of neglected colds, catarrh or bronchial, difficulties, and it is a part of wisdom, espe- cially with those who inlierit any tendency to consumption, to at- tend scrupulously to any affections of the throat. Of late 3^ear3 we have concluded that medicines poured into the stomach for the healing of the lungs are seldom of any benefit. Pure codliver oil may sometimes be of temporary service; but modern medical science treats the lungs b}^ inhalation. Of course whatever is in- haled goes directly to the lungs, the seat of the disease. Medi- cated vapors of various kinds are superseding the use of drugs in diseases of the lungs. Among the best of these remedial agents we place that known as " oxygenized air.'^ Oxygen being the food of the lungs, a large proportion of it is inhaled, and the effects in all throat and lung diffiulties are speedy and favorable. The writer having both seen and experienced its good effects, confi- dently holds it up to inspire the hopes of those who feel consump- tion fastening itself upon their systems. Offices where this " oxy- genized air" is administered have been established in all the larger cities, and we trust will be speedily extended to every town, village, and borough. Diphtheria. — Symptoms. Intermittent fever; sore throat; de- pression; difficult breathing; tonsils and other parts of the THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 730 throat swollen and covered with a white coating; urine abundant • bowels constipated at first, followed by diarrheoea. ' Treatment. An even temperature, a well ventilated room and the most perfect quiet are desirable. If the patient be in full strength/svhen attaclced, first give an emetic, but if weak this must be omitted. Move the bowels lightly with mild cathartics Cleanse the throat and apply nitrate of silver to all the swollen parts in the throat. One drachm of nitrate of silver in an ounce of water is the proper proportion. Apply the solution everv day. Sprinkle in the throat often the following mixture one 'table- spoonful each of salt and vinegar, mixed with a teaspoonful of boiling Avater; this may also be injected up the nostrils when they are getting filled up. Feed the patient the most nourishing drinks as beef or mutton tea, eggs and wine, wine whey, ale, boiled milk, etc. Pleurisy. — Symptoins. Ordinary fevei symptoms; pinching pain on one side, increased by breathing, wnich makes the person breathe quick and short; often a dry, hacking cough. Sweat the patient profusely, then keep the affected side covered with a hot fomentation of bitter herbs, changing them as soon as they get tepid. Boneset, tansy, catnip, hops, wormwood, hoarhound.or Saint John's wort may be used as they can be procured. Great care should be taken for several days to guard against exposure. If after the sweat pain and difficulty of breathing rema-n, give an emetic, followed by a cathartic, If the cough remains, give an ex- pectorant of wild cherry and bloodroot, or Prescription No.2. Inflammation of the Stomach. — Gastritis. — Symptoms burn ing pain at the pit of the stomach, increased by pressure or by swallowing; nausea and frequent vomiting, thirst, fever, dejection, prostration, and costiveness. ^Apply mustard poultices to the feet, the pit of the stomach, and along the whole course of the back bone. When these have produced redness without blister- ing remove them, and apply to the pit of the stomach hot fomen- tations of bitter herbs, hops, and lobelia leaves, or hops and jimson leaves, changing them before they become cool. In addition tc» this, if the symptoms should still continue severe, bathe the whole body in weak lye-water, drying with considerable friction. If the bowels are constipated, inject molasses and water, or boneset ami molasses ; but never give physic. Let the patient drink freely of ^^um arabic water, or slippery elm and pe&ch leaf tea, or barley \vater. Quiet, fresh air, and an equal temperature are desiralile. As soon as recovery begins give hourly a teaspoonful of French brandy, unless it should prove too stimulating. The diet sliould be light for some time. Inflammation of the Bowels.— Symptoms and treatment same as above, except that the pain is in the bowels, and the poultice must be applied to the bowels instead of to the stomach. (Jive an injection at once. 45 ^ 740 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Dysentery. — Is an inflammation of the lower or large intestines, and the symptoms are different from any other inflammatory dis- ease. Symptoms. Frequent bloodj^ stools with considerable ph'lef m ; gripings ; bearing down and a more or less constant desire to stock or strain ; natural excrement in small anft)unt and, when present, in hard, small balls ; more or less fever ; loss of appetite ; nausea and vomiting ; stools ver}' oftensive ; urine scanty and liigh colored ; and great prostration. Treatment. In nine cases out of ten dysenter^^ can be cured by injecting a quart of warm water into the bowels, and, as soon as this has passed, immediately injecting again a solution of twenty grains of nitrate of silver to one ounce of water. This course should be repeated immediately after every operation from the bowels ; three or four injections generally'' effect a cure. If the pain and inflammation are severe apply mustard poultices and hot fomentations, as directed for inflammation of the stomach. Injections of slippery elm tea and laudanum, two tablespoonfuls of the former to half a teaspoonful of the latter, should be given, if the nitrate of silver is not at liand, or flaxseed may be used in place of slippery elm. Slippery elm tea flavored with cinnamon may be given for a drink. The juice of ripe fruits, cherries, or blackberries is beneficial. Dysentery may be cured by taking moderate exercise dail^'^, keeping the skin clean, using nourishing but easily digested food, («ee former Chapter,) keeping the bowels regular, keeping out of the damp night air, and using moderately fresh ripe fruits. Inflammatory Rheumatism. — Symptoms. Fever, severe pain, swelling of the joints, shifting pains, increased by moving about. The first thing to do is to caiise pi-ofnse sweating, after which a gentle perspiration should l)e kept up by the use of warm herb teas. A poultice of bruised jimson leaves or hops and lobelia leaves should be kept on the painful parts. Keep the bowels regular and open by mild injections. Apoplexy. — A person struck with apoplexy suddenly falls un- conscious, and breathes slowly and as if snoring. Instantly raise the head ; remove every thing from the neck; if necessary, remove him to where he will have i)lenty of fresh air, and while one person pours a stream of cold water upon the head and neck, another should rub salt upon the head and temples. If the patient does not quickly revive under this treatment, whip or rub the soles of the feet so as to produce redness. Give a cathartic injection. Sun Stroke should be treated in the same way. Give free fresh air, raise the head, and pour water upon the head and neck. A cloth in the top of the hat, kept Avet, is a protection against sun stroke. Asthma Phthisic— Persons subject to asthma should keep on !»and jimson leaves wliich have been soaked in a solution of salt THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 74]^ petve and dried. Smoking these in a pipe, and at th», same time toasting the feet at the fire, will almost immediately relieve asth- matic attacks. Hearxjjurn, caused by acidity of the stomach, is relieved by taking a teaspoonful of chalk or saleratus in a tumbler of water. Cholera Morbus is usually a sudden attack of griping pains followed by purging or vomiting, thirst, and heat, succeecled by cold sweat. Apply a mustard poultice over the bowels and the pit of the stomach. To a tumblerful of water add a teaspoonful of saleratus and twenty drops each of laudanum and spirits of camphor. After a little quiet give a dose of castor oil. CosTiVENESS. — Some persons are constantly inclined to costive- ness, which in time is the cause of various diseases. To such persons we must secure a daily discharge from the bowels, even if at times they have to reduce themselves to a liquid diet. Cheese, spices, pickles, and other articles tending to constipation should be avoided, and ripe fruits, figs, honey, and other laxative articles of food used in their stead. If a day goes by without a passage from the bowels, the next morning inject warm soapsuds. Headache is most frequently caused by constipation or indiges- tion. Man}- persons who now sufli'er almost conscantl}^ from headache would be relieved if they would use the means described under the head of Costive^iess for keeping the bowels regular. Late suppers and also improper food at supper is the potent cause of much pain in the head. We have little sympath}'^ for headaches caused by such foolish indulgences. Every person who can read may know what food it is proper to eat, how to have it cooked, and when it is proper to eat it. An hour of indulgence at the table, followed by a night and a day of sick headache, is a sijecics of enjoyment we do not appreciate. PrescrijAion No. 6, if given as directed, will usually relieve sick headache. Nervous headache requires exercise, cold baths, dieting, regularity in the bowels, and some tonic, as a teaspoonful of French brandy hourly for a week 01 ten days. Dyspepsia. Indigestion.— Dyspepsia is attended by a groat variety of unpleasant symptoms, such as oppression in the stomafch, variable appetite, uneasiness, nervousness, low spirits, acidity of the stomach, vomiting, foul mouth in the morning, heartburn, an all gone feeling, even when there is no hunger, a sinking feeling, or fluttering at the pit of the stomach, etc. Dyspepsia renders the person liable to succumb to the first attack of fever or any acute disease. The best cure for dyspepsia is not to have it, which is accomplished hy ohexjing the plain laws of health in regard to eating, drinking, sleeping, exercise, etc. Eat digestible food at proper times, masticate it thoroughly, exercise regularly in order that it may digest, drink moderately before or after eating, but never while eating, and you will no^ liavo 7'i2 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAT. the clyspe] sia. To those who already feel its symptoms we say exercise daily in the open air, eat mutton, fowls, and beef, boiled, broiled or roasted, but never fried. Avoid pork, fish, and any food that requires over three hours for digestion, {see table in previous chapter,) eat fresh ripe fruits and vegetables, (baked or stewed prefe-rred,) give up the use of pastry, tea, coffee, and tobacco; bathe the surface daily with cold water, seek cheerful society and take either pirescription No. 7 or No. 8, as is most convenient for you. If your case is so confirmed as to resist these remedies, take No. 9. ' Scrofula can be successfully treated only by internal remedies. No. 10 is an easily procured and effectiA'e remedy. To the tumors that have not discharged, a poultice of yellow dock, or burdock, pounded, and made with corn meal and vinegar, may be applied. After the tumors discharge, wash them in Castile soapsuds, to Avhich a little whiskey has been added. Apply to them an ointment made as follows : Scrape a carrot into fresh cream, beat them together, and strain through a cloth. Piles are the result of a constipated condition of the bowels, which must first be removed. {See Cosliveness.) Mild laxatives and injections should be used. If the piles descend into the anus, frequent sitting in cool water will relieve them. Castile soap, added to the water or used as a wash, is beneficial. Sitting over a hot decoction of bitter herbs and steaming the parts will often prove successful where other remedies fail. The ointment prescription. No. 11, it is advisable to keep always on hand, when any person in the family is subject to piles. For any of the lesser scratches, bumps, burns, bruises, bites, stings, sprains, swellings, etc., to which members of the family are liable, we consider nothing equal to tincture of arnica, which should be kept in every family, secure from the reach of children. Dilute it with water, half and half In cases of sprains or severe inflam- mation, apply wrappings of cotton cloth and keep them wet with the arnica. To Recover Persons when Suffocated, from Drowning, Hanging, Breathing Gas, or any Other Cause. — Treat the person immediately, and in the open air, except in freezing wea- ther. To clear the body of water, place the patient face down, with one arm under the forehead. To excite breathing, turn the body on to the side, and apply hartshorn, snuff, or salts to the nos- trils. Rub the face warm with a towel, then dash cold water in it. To imitate breathing, place the patient again on his face, folding blankets or clothes and placing them under the chest. Now roll the body from the face to the side, repeating these turnings delib- erately, efficiently, and perseveringly about fifteen times a minute, occasionally varying the side. Every time the body turns upon the face make quick, earnest pressure on the back, between and THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN 713 below the shoulder-blades on each side, ceasing the pressure im- mediately before turning the body on the side. After breathing is restored, apply hot flannels, bottles of hot water, hot bricks, etc to the pit of tlie stomach, armpits, thighs, and soles of the feet • rub the limbs upward energetically with flannels or toweling. As soon as the power of swallowing returns, give a teaspoonfiil of warm water, then small quantities of other warm drinks or spirits. Do not give up because signs of life do not at once appear. Persons who have been under water for twenty minutes have often been resuscitated by a vigorous application of these measures, and cases are recorded where no signs of life appeared for three hours. To Keep from Drowning.— It is not necessary that a person should know how to swim to bo able to keep the head above water. Any persons who fall into the water may, when they come to the surface, keep the head above water by the following" simple rule. Keep tne feet in motion just as if you were going up stairs, and keep the hands underwater. You cannot sink if you follow these directions. If you throw your hands out of the water you will be sure to sink. If where there are waves, when the wave comes draw in your breath, shut your mouth, and keep up the treading until it has passed over. The Use of Liquors. — Cider, used moderately in connection with the ordinary meals, is a refreshing and beneficial beverage. The same may also be said of the pure juice of the grape ; but the use of whiske}', gin, brand}'^, and other intoxicating drinks, except by the aged and feeble, are exceedingly pernicious to health. Many a strong and vigorous man has been brought low by the use of ar- dent spirits. Others have gone safely through life, boasting that the Indulgence did not injure them ; but the physician sees the sins of tne latner reproduC'Sd in the diseases of his children to the third and fourth generation. We add our voice to that of those who proclaim "there is death in the cup." Exercise, — We have spoken of exercise as being indispensable to good health, for both men and women. No class of men get more or better exercise than farmers ; and if they would attend diligently to the other laws of health, they might be longer lived and happier men. Many farmers are subject to dyspepsia, on ac- count of the improper use of food and drinks. Many are struck down with fevers and inflammatory comitlaints, caused by check- ing the perspiration too suddenly when engaged in active exorcise. But while farmers get plenty of exercise, farmers' wives and daugh- ters are apt to get too little. It is true they get plenty of hard work ; but active out-door exercise is as necessary for their health as for that of their husbands and brothers. Constant conhnement over the stove, the wash-tub, and the sewing basket, will rum the constitution and the spirits of the strongest and best woman liv- ing. We say to farmers' wives and daughters, get out of doors 744 HOW TO MAKE THE FAEM PAY. daily, if possible. Take upon yourselves the care of the poultry and" the bees. Cultivate tlie kitchen garden. Go to the pastures and the woods, for berries, roots, herbs, and flowers. Take na- ture's invigorator, pure, fresh air. We will give some rules for exercise especially adapted to women, but not inapplicable to the rest of mankind. 1. Exercise should not be carried to excessive fatigue, or the object will be defeated. Persons not used to active exercise should begin moderately and increase the amount of exercise as it can be borne. 2. The clothing worn during exercise should be loose and easy; the shoes should be larger than those worn at other times. 3. Exercise should never he taken upon an empty or full sto- mach. If some time has elapsed since eating, take a cracker or a piece of bread. With this precaution, an hour before breakfast is usually the most beneficial time for exercise. Horseback riding is a beneficial exercise for those who enjoy it, but walking is, all things considered, the most natural, complete, and healthful exer- cise. Running, jumping, skating, and swimming, when modera- tion is exercised, are all healthful varieties of exercise. Dancing is one of the most delightful and beneficial modes of exercise, when conducted in well ventilated rooms or out of doors, and at proper hours. It exercises not only every portion of the body, but aifords pleasant recreation for the mind, which is often of as much service as the former. But the modern practice of dancin^^,* in closely packed and ill ventilated rooms, far into the night, is luirtful and pernicious in the last degree. Gymnastics are a series of exercises so graduated, as to bring in play every portion of the body. Calisthenics are a series of /ight gymnastics designed for ladies and children. But women living in the country have no need to resort to these contrivances for exercise. With God's free air about them and the garden, the orchard, the hills, and the woods on the right hand and on the left, they have the means for health within their reach, and great will be their condemnation if they do not present themselves and their children with sound bodies, and vigor unimpaired. Steep. — Rest is required for both mind and body, and sound *leep is the most perfect rest of both. For manj^ reasons night is the only proper time for sleep, for persons in the enjoyment of health. Sleep for such persons during the day, is not only un- necessary but absolutely hurtful. The custom of taking sleep after tlie mid-day meal, is injurious. A state of quiet ease for an hour after dinner is undoubtedly beneficial, but when ease ia allowed to become unconsciousness, positive injury is done. There can be no healthy sleep, night or day, with undigested food upon the stomach, consequently Jio food .should in any case he^laken into the stomach for at least two hours before retirin(j to sleep. The violation of this rule has been, as any physician can testifj'-, the cause of an unmeasurable amount of ill health, sutler- THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 745 ing and death. The time for sleep is also important, from nine to live being, for adults m health, the most desirable. Whatever time IS set for retiring, none but the most ur.'s. taken in an infusion of slippery elm, will serve as an ex])ectoraiit in Asthma, Pleurisy, etc. We advise every family to keep a bottle of it on hand tightly corked or sealed. No. 3. Compound Poivder of Jalap. Senna half an ounce. Jalap two drachms. Ginger half a drachm. A valuable purgative. No. 4. Sulphate of quinia and Prussiate of iron each three grains, mix for a dose. Fever and ague remedy to be taken be- tween the sweat and chill. 746 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. No. 5. Mix equal parts of honey, sweet oil, sweet spirits of nitre, and lemon juice or vinegar. Tliis mixture is for tlie relief of tightness and cough in Bronchitis, Catarrh, Lung fever, etc. Dose — a teaspoonful, to be given as often as required. No. 6. For sick headache. Super carbonate of soda, half a drachm, prepared charcoal one drachm, paregoric one fluid drachm, water a fluid ounce ; mix well together and give when the dim- ness of vision comes on, and repeat every fifteen minutes until re- lieved. Rest, darkness, and quiet, are indispensable. No. 7. Golden seal, black alder bark, Solomons' seal root, two tablespoonfuls each, boiling water one quart, mix, steep six hours, strain, sweeten to suit the taste. Dose — a tablespoonful every three hours, or four times a da3^ No. 8. Beef gall a gill, golden seal, boneset, prickly ash berries, blue flag root, each a tablespoonful in powder; mix in one pint of whiskey, and let it stand for ten days, shaking frequently. Dose — tablespoonful three times a day, to be increased if the bowels do not move regularly every day. The above prescriptions are for indigestion, the former being intended for its first stages, and the latter for more confirmed Dyspepsia. No. 9. Blue flag root, mandrake root, and dog's bane, one ounce each in very fine powder. Blood root fine, half an ounce, red pepper fine, two drachms, saleratus one ounce. Dose — half a teaspoonful in water three times a day. This is for long standing obstinate cases of Dyspepsia, in which costiveness and distress at the stomach are prominent symptoms. No. 10. For Scrofula. Fnlsegrape, dog's bane, burdock root, Hnd yellow parilla root, eacli in cof^i'^e powder, one ounce ;. sdd three quarts boiling water ; boil slowly down to two quarts, strain, add four pounds sugar, then bring to a boil for a few minutes, and skim off the scum that rises to the tf-;*. Keep in a cool place in tightly corked bottles. Dose — half a gill three times a day. No. 11. Ointment for Piles. Take fresh horse chestnuts and slice them up fine, steep them one hour in lard just sufficient to cover them. Strain out the lard and when cool it is fit for use. Rub it over the tumors and up the anus at night and morning. No. 12. Slippery Elm Poultice. A tablespoonful of powdered slippery elm, to which add hot water enough to thicken. This is a poultice for boils, tumors, etc. Slippery elm makes an excel- lent poultice for burns, bruises, and sores of all sorts. No. 13. Cold Cream for chapped hands and lips, cracks and skin diseases. Spermaceti ten drachms, white wax one drachm, oil of almonds two fluid ounces; add to this four fluid drachms of glycerine, in which three drops oil of roses have been mixed; stir constantly until cold. THE FARMER'S CALENDAR OF MONTHLY WORK ON THE FARM JANUARY WORK. Prepare for the coming season by reading and laying out your plans. Determine what implements, seeds, roots, potatoes, trees, etc., you will want for planting and order them in good season'. Secure the best seed. A few dollars for wheat or oats, that will yield ten bushels more to the acre than you are now getting, and heavier at that, will prove a good investment in the end. Farm Hands. — We have previously advised that farm hands should be kept the year round. A great deal of work is neglected In the winter for want of help. Now is the time to cut fire-wood and get out timber, fence sLuff, bean poles, etc. A Work Shop, provided with the most important carponter3'» painters', and metal workers' tools, is what every farmer should have. Let it contain a bench with vice, nails, screws, a hammer, hatchet and drawing knife, saws, planes, chisels, centre bits and stock, and other carpenters' tools, paints, pots, and brushes, of two or three sizes ; assortment of files, cold chisels, monkey wrench and other wrenches, a hard-wood block which will do for an anvil, a soldering iron, sh • "s of tin, wires, rivets, etc.; besides a good stock of boards and timber of various kinds. Add to this a few simple articles of the harness makers' kit, such as awls, wax, thread, rivets, with "set" punches, and leather. Instruct the boys in the use and care of the tools. It will develop mechanical in- genuity. Thus provided, many a profitable day's work may be done. Bidld^'noH. — Lay out all yo-:r plans for new buildings and alter- ations or repairs of old ones, and get out the necessary material to be seasoning. Nothing makes a worse job than unseasoned timber. Remember that manure wintered under sheds is worth double that wintered in the open air, and if you havn't shed room enough calculnte to build more in the spring. It is poor policy to let form buildings run down; keep every board nailed tight, foundation stones firm, doors on their hinges, etc. Orchard.— 8ee that fences and gates are tight, to keep out all domestic animals. Sprinkle young trees with blood to keep away rabbits, and tramp the snow around the trees to prevent the worK- in^ of mice. Make surface drains where needed. Cut scions when the trees are not frozen, label carefully, and keep in a cool rpillar are readily remove them now at any cost or trouble. ^^^ 748 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. Stoch. — Stables, for econora}' of fodder, should be warm as pos- sible ; for the health of stock they should be comfortable, clean, and well ventilated. Clean out daily, and sprinkle a mixture of plaster and muck over the floors. Give cows, young cattle, and workino- oxen a few hours, in the yards in the middle of warm days, and a foddering while there. Beeves, that are being fed for market, sliould be less exposed. Clean the stables, and litter freshl}' while the cattle are out of them. Sheep should have well littered yards and sheds, water as regularl}'' as any stock, and regularity in feeding. Tlie flocks should be so divided that the strong shall not get more than their share. Oil-cake is a safe and profitable feed for all fattening and milK stock. Keep all stock well fed and in good condition; suppl}?^ with water and salt regu,- larly. It is economy to cut and cook all food for stock in the winter. It paj's in keeping up the stock better. It pays by sav- ing at least one-third the fodder, and it pays in the manure. Upon horses, neat cattle of all grades, and swine, the regular use of the curry-comb and card will be found to paj'' well. Let no stock run clown in flesh. Spring j^oor cattle are a disgrace to any farmer, as well as a loss. Every time a pound of flesh is lost and replaced it costs mone}^ Fowls should be provided with warm, light quar- ters, and furnished with powdered shells or bones. The great difficulty with eggs now-a-da^'S is their thin shells. Hens must have bones in abundance, and then the}' will form thick shells. Manures should be deposited with muck or peat under cover. Save all the liquid manure and pump it over the comport. Send your men and teams into the swamp and get out a quantity of peat or muck. FEBRUARY WORK. Plannin;;;- is the great thing now. The difierence between the successful cultivator, who makes his farm pay, and the unsuccess- ful one who is always running behind, is, that the one plans care- fully and the other does not. Decide now what crops to plant, and where to plant them. Mxick. — In man}^ localities peat and swamp muck can be dug out and hauled now better than at any otlier season of the year. Upon many muck bogs teams cannot go with safety during the summer or fixll, on account of their mirj- character ; but after the ground freezes, teams can go over them anywhere at pleasure. It will pay to get out a large supply now, and' haul it to the vicin- ity of the farm yard. Sledding out Manure should be attended to Ijefore the snows become too deep. The farmer, as well as the cattle, need to work a little every day, and whenever everything is favorable it is better to do this work. If it can Avell be done, ^ cover up the heaps so made ; but it is not easy to do so. Some cover with THE farmer's calendar. 749 poor hay to prevent the constant freezing and thawm- of the ma- nure, feand or loam, if it can be obtained, is very Trood Onl, well composted manure should be hauled out, unless it can' be wel protected. It is a most excellent time, when there is snow on ihe ground, to haul such manures on to the meadows where wheels cannot go except in mid-summer. Drains can still be dug to good advantage in many places TI.e ground is seldom frozen more tlian a fe^^' inches in^deptli and in many situations good work can be done in di hogs at work in the manure. Sows, near farrowing, should be put alone ; kept quiet ; fed raw roots, (potatoes or beets are best), and the pens abundantly littered ; do not let them get too fat. and feed no animal food. Sheep.— FvovidQ dry and sheltfred yards and sheds. Hemlock, or other evergreen boughs, fed occa- sionally, are gratefully received. A run on the snow in the middle 750 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. of a mild day is exceedingly beneficial. And if the snow is off, an hour's nibble at the grass will do more to keep the system in good condition than any nostrums, such as tar, alum, etc. Especially on the ewes with "lambs this short hour of relaxation, whenever the weather will permit, is of incalculable benefit MARCH WORK. Head loork is better than hand icoi^k. Head work often saves hand xcork. Head loork always makes hand work more efficient. The difference between ''farmer thrifty^'' and "farmer behind- hand^^ is nine times out often in head work. Carefully laid plans seldom fail ; hap-hazard plans seldom succeed. General Work. — Buildings may be repaired and painted inside or ou*^^. As soon as settUc^ spring weather comes, cellars should be cleaned out and white-washed, sinks and drains opened and cleaned, foundations examined and repaired if moved by the frost. Replace fences, stone walls, foundations of buildings, gate-posts, etc., heaved b}^ the frost. Set fences, and repair them wherever they need it. Dip posts in gas tar, and roll in sand before setting. Pick up stones loosened by the frost ; blast and haul off or bury heavy ones out of the way of the plow. Plow as soon as the ground is dry. Sow spring grains as soon as it is warm. Put in a crop of peas, or peas and oats. Peas alone, in drills, on good soil, will be off in time to plow for wheat, or for turnips to follow'. Cut biennial weeds, docks, thistles, etc. Grub up fence rows and corners where shrubs or briers have got a start. If you have never done it before, do not neglect this spring to grade your barn j-ard to one corner or to the centre, and sink an oil butt or hogsaead lo save the liquid manure The urine of your animals is worth just as much as the solid droppings. When you can afford to throw these away then 3'ou can afford to allow the urine to run to waste, 'and not till then. Harrowing and Rolling meadows and winter wheat, as soon as the frost is out, is an operation that pays. The ordinary long- toothed harrow should not be used, but a harrow for this especial purpose, with a large number of short, fine teeth. The roots of grains and grasses are raised to the surface by the constant and severe freezings of winter. By passing the roller over the field in the spring, the roots are pressed down into the soil, so that the}' can at once take hold and grow. It is frequentl}' the case that the use of the roller in wheat fields and meadows in the spring will apparently double the number and size of the plants. Spring Wieaf. — On underdrained land that has been thoroughly plowed in the fall, spring wheat can be sowed, as soon as the frost IS out, two or three inches deep. It will only need harrowing and THE farmer's calendar. 75 1 cross harrowing. Clover can be sown even on a licrht snow Ashes operate as manure upon the wheat, even in the limited qnantity of eight bushels per acre. They push the wheat forward several davs and in time to escape the hot, sultry days which often prevail about the time of tlie "heading out" of the wheat; and ihuy strengthen the stem, giving it substance and solidity. Roads, Drainings, efc— March is the month to make and repair farm roads, lay culverts of wood or stone, and change the grade of paths, yards, etc., while the ground is loose from the^coinin'^ out of the frost. Prepare channels for surface water; and if tliey will wash into gullies, protect them and spread the streams over the surface. Guard against washing in grain fields or fiiU plowed land. The location of springs may be easily seen by the thawing of snow in spots in the fields, and the places which most need underd rain- ing are easily determined. Much underdraining may be done ■while the land is still too wet to plow: and much damage may be done by plowing wet soil. Stock. — Increase the feed and exercise of farm horses, and groom well, to prepare them for hard spring work. Keep all horses, but especially mares with foal, sharp shod for fear of slipping on ice patches. Turn unused horses loose an hour or two daily, one at a time, lest in play they kick each other. Groom oxen and cows and feed well, to prepare the oxen for work. Do not tax them too heavily at first; if unused during winter their necks and feet will be tender. Look to cows at calving time, giving personal attention and aid if required. Feed some roots daily, both before and after calving. Remove the calf at once if it is to be taken away, and milk the cow dry; otherwise let the cow lick the calf clean, allow it to suck, and then milk the dam dry at once. See that all cows are milked dry, twice a day, and it is best to milk young cows three times a day. It increases the tendency to secrete milk. Increase the amount of meal fed to fattening animals, that they may ripen up the faster as soon as they get grass. Throw sods every few days to the hogs and poultrj^' if confined ; if possible, let the latter run. Keep sows with young i)igs warmly housed. Isolate breed- ing sows, give warm, well strawed pens. Feed raw potatoes or other roots, sprinkled with a little meal, daily, to counteract any tendency to constipation. Charcoal dust promotes good digestion. Clover hay is good, healthy food, and a few sods will be turned over and munched with grent relish. Protect all young stock from severe weather, rain, or wind. Separate breeding ewes and all feeble sheep from the others, and give extra grain, or roots. Give early lambs especial care. Provide abundant water and salt lor all animals, and watch the health of all, removing those that are in any way ailing, to comfortable but isolated quarters. If short of fodder make it up by cutting and cooking what you have with roots and grain. /52 HOW TO MAKE THE FARM PAY. APRIL WORK. The Plow, the Harrow, the Roller, and the Clod Crusher will be in order this month. The Clod Crusher is an impleiBent no farmer would willingly do without after he had once tried it and Avituessed its eftects. It pulverizes the ground more thoroughly than the harrow can, and its use is often of as much benefit as an extra coating of manure. The most thorough possible pulveriza- tion of the soil is one of the secrets of large crops. In plowing, deepen the soil a little ; turn sod over flat ; move the soil only wlien dry enough to crumble; prepare the ground thoroughly' for crops both by manure and tillage. Work no wet soil. No amount of harrowing will restore land to the condition it should be, if it be plowed while wet, and dries in hard clods. Spring Grains. — The earlier the spring grains are put in, the bettei'. Oats and wheat should go into the ground before the 20th, if it is possible to get the land into suitable condition. There are great advantages in drilling in all grain. However good condition the land may be in, it is very useful to give it a top dressing of some concentrated manure, like gnano, superphosphate, ashes or line compost. It gives the seeds an earl}' and luxuriant start, causes a larger and stronger growth of root and of stalk. Apply it after the grain and grass seed are sown, and harrow or roll it in We cannot take too great pains in la3ing down land, to get a smooth and even surface, in preparation for the mowing machine and other implements. Early potatoes on warm mellow land, a sandy or gravelly loam, may be planted now. Manure well with well rotted compost. Do not cut the slices too small, and after being cut let them lie a day or two in the sun for the cut surfaces to harden a little before planting. The potatoes iised as seed for the main crop to be planted early in May will bear cutting finer. The Garden. — If 3'ou expect to sell what you grow, remember that the earlier you can get a good vegetable or fruit into market, the more you will get for it. Let j-our aim be, therefore, to grow things as earlj^ as possible. But do not confine yourself to early things. The garden will furnish more solid comfort and return more money, for what it costs, than any part of the farm. Now is the time to lay the foundation of a good garden to last during the entire season. Deep culture is the specific against drought. Deep culture and thorough drainage are the secrets of premium crops. Remember this now and practice it. Sheep. — April is yeaning time, and the ewes and lambs require a great deal of attention. Give ewes, at ^-eaning time, warm sheds and sunny yards, and be ever on the lookout for chilled or feeble hxmbs ; wrap such in warm sheep skins, give a few spoonfuls of uanii milk-punch, and lay them near the kitchen fire. If far gone. THE farmer's calendar. 753 give a warm bath with brisk but gentle rubbing until dry, warmin-. by the hre or with liot bricks; those apimrently neai^ aendTifi usually revive and do well. When fodder is scarce it is a -It temptation to many fanners to turn their sheep out, for thev wi 1 eat a great deal of the drying grasses that grow amon^ clumps of bushes m_ hedge-rows and among the stones in the cow pa^urcs :No practice can be worse for the summer pasturao-e Tlie onlv proper pasturage which sheep can have at this season is in bu'^h pastures which were cut over in summer, where tlie youn- SDrouts of the bush are just starting fresh and green, and in law^ns where tussocks of orchard grass or other coars'e tilings disfi Most hay is cured too much. If the barn is properly ventilated hay may be put in quite green, and will be relished like grass all' winter. On small farms where the horse-fork is not used, much hard labor may be saved by building up one-half of the hay-mow at a time. For instance, with the first hay drawn, fill oneeiid of the bay, up as far as the big beam, then rake down the side, and while this part is settling fill the other half. The two parts being filled at different times, will not settle alike, and of course will not unite, so there will be no use of a hay-knife in winter. The principal benefit of this plan is in lessening the hard labor while unloading. One-half of the mow being lower than the other, the top of the load may be thrown on the highest part, and the balance below, which saves pitching over the big beam. There is still another advantage ; the greatest heat caused b}' foi mentation is always in the centre of the mow, and the seam here gives escape to the gasses. Top-Dressing Grass Land. — The best time to apply manure nf any kind to grass is just as it is recovering from liie shock of cutting. Carting and spreading manure on grass land is the best rainjMlay work to set the hands at during the summer months. Toads are very useful in the garden. 'Yh&y destroy large numbers of insects. A toad will swallow the largest specimens of tomato w'orms. Carr^' every toad you find about your premises into the garden. Green Fodder. — Sow corn in drills or broad-cast at intervals of two weeks. Millet makes excellent fodder. Sow twelve quarts to the acre about the middle of this month. Rye and oats m.iy be both sown for fodder to good advantage. Sorghum is superior to corn for green fodder. Sow in drills two or three qu.arls t<» the acre, and cut just before bh)ssoming. It will soon spring up again, and three crops may be cut during the season. Clover, corn or buckwheat can be sown now to turn under for manure. Greasing Wheels.— Tha wheels of all wagons, carts, carriages, mowers, etc., should be oiled, but great damage is often done by oilin