182 BOARD OP AGRICULTURE. 



Dr. Riggs. My man strip the tobacco right at ray horses' 

 heads, and I see them every day offer it to my horses, but I 

 do not see them take it. 



Mr. Lyman. I do not mean when it is cured, I mean in 

 the gr^n state. Give them some green leaves nest summer 

 and see. 



Dr. Riggs. It is very possible. I never experimented in 

 that line. 



Mr. Hubbard. Have you ever been seriously troubled 

 with the cut-worm, shortly after the tobacco is set out ? I 

 did not know but your practice of plowing in green crops 

 might save you from that pest. 



Dr. Riggs. It does in a great measure. They will work 

 on this green stuff underneath until the tobacco is out of the 

 way, or until they have run their course. We were so little 

 troubled with them last season that we hardly had to reset a 

 plant. Some years we are troubled a little more than others, 

 but we have noticed that since we liave plowed in the rye we 

 have been troubled less than formerly. 



Mr. Hubbard Can you give any explanation of the prev- 

 alence of white veins in tobacco, which are very objectionable 

 to dealers, and destroy the value of the crop, almost ? 



Dr. Riggs. That is a fanciful objection rather than a real 

 one. When they can operate in that way upon the raiser, 

 they do so. But I cannot account for those white veins. 

 Some growths will be thicker than others, and will have tliose 

 white veins, especially when tlie plant is growing very rank and 

 heavy. Perhaps it may be owing to the use of certain kinds 

 of manure, as, for instance, hog manure. Hog manure pro- 

 duces a pretty thick leaf with us, and tlie color of it is rather 

 a dark hue, approaching to black. We can only use swine 

 manure as it is mixed with the other. We make them the 

 instruments of turning it over and manipulating it in the 

 barn cellar or in the pen. I never heard any one account for 

 those white veins. We have never been troubled much with 

 them, except in the case of a great growth of tobacco several 

 years ago, where we put on an immense quantity of manure. 

 Then we were troubled with white veins somewhat, and the 



