342 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



level as possible, and throwing out all sticks and stones and rubbish as we go 

 along. On perfectly level and clean soil the planting may be done with a seed 

 drill. The furrow must bo made equally deep all along the row, and must be cov- 

 ered so that when finished there is the same depth from the surface down to the 

 seed all along the row. You must not leave the seed four inches deep in one place, 

 three inches in another, and two in another. You may think it makes no differ- 

 ence, but it does. The peas only two inches deep will come up first, will blossom 

 and mature peas first, and if at any time before maturity you have a drouth, they 

 will dry up and bear less than those planted deeper. At the time when the main 

 crop is just ripe to pick, those shallow planted will be past their prime, and getting 

 mixed in with the good ones will spoil the whole, and our peas when brought on 

 the table will not be fit for the gods or even we poor men to eat. Again, when 

 planting, if your furrow is marked with ups and downs, the peas you drop will 

 run down into thick clumps and come up that way. Inside the clumps of vines the 

 peas will mature slowly, and then you will have a mixture of ripe and unripe peas, 

 and those taken from the inside of the clump will not be as good in quality as 

 those picked from the outside. Evenness of planting, both as to the depth and 

 quantity of seed, must be observed or you cannot have fine green peas. 



PRODUCING MILK FOR THE RETAIL TRADE. 



P. H. DAVIS, ST. JOHNS, AT CLINTON COUNTY INSTITUTE. 



To maintain the flow of milk during the summer drfeuths it will be necessary \o 

 supplement the pasturage with other green feed such as rye, oats, and peas, and 

 corn sown and planted at intervals, so as to form a succession from July until the 

 cows are stabled in the fall. Care, however, must be taken that the change from 

 dry feed to green rye is not too abrupt or there may be a perceptible flavor caused 

 by the rye; but if the change be made gradually it will be found an excellent pro- 

 ducer. Having given the cow the food that will give good wholesome milk, see to 

 the stable that it is so warm that it will never reach the freezing point when the 

 thermometer reaches zero outside, well ventilated that the offensive odors may 

 readily pass away and not contaminate the milk when drawn from the cow. Let 

 the cow spend the nights in the stable from the flrst of these cold raw nights in 

 the fall, often as early as the latter part of September, until the warm, balmy 

 nights of late spring, and the entire day, with the exception of an hour or there- 

 abouts during the most severe weather of winter. 



There is another difference between taking care of milk for the retail trade and 

 the factory or creamery. Not but what it should have just as good care in one 

 place as in the other, but the retail milk man has a personal reputation to make 

 and maintain on good milk that will keep sweet the longest possible time. To 

 secure this, every step from the cow to the customer must be along the pathway of 

 cleanliness. The cows' udders must be cleaned by the use of a dry cloth or brush. 

 As soon as the milk is drawn from the cow it mast be strained, not only through a 

 wire sieve strainer, but through cloth strainers, and then cooled and aerated as fast 

 as possible by stirring, dipping and pouring, being sure that it is first cool before 

 closing the cans tightly. 



GOLDEN OPPORTUNITIES. 



MRS. A. F. DOYLE, BAD AXE, AT HURON COUNTY INSTITUTE. 



Are our boys and girls of the present century heedlessly fioating with the stream 

 of time without one thought of what gran^ achievements may lie in their power? 

 Can we not say some word that will inspire them to grasp every opportunity for 

 the higher and nobler education, that they may do all in their power to help the 

 world in its upward progress, that they may be able to cope with the disappoint- 

 ments and adversities which in the very nature of things they must meet and can 

 only overcome by right living and right doing? Let us be awake, be earnest as a 

 great army ready to face the storm of battle at the command of its officer, so we, as 



