ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS-con«mi.ed 



Fattening Sheep. — J. A. inquires as to best variety of Swede turnip for fattening sheep- 

 His land is very loose, black alluvial flats of unknown depth, between high granite hills, and 

 subject to heavy frosts in winter. 



A?tswer. —Ra.pe instead of turnips is advised, as it is easier and cheaper to sow, and" gives 

 superior returns per acre. Rape can be sown at any time of the year, at the rate of 4 lbs. of 

 Dwarf Essex seed per acre, with i cwt. of superphosphate. 



Lamb-raising. — E.A.C. asks (i) whether the country about Dean's Marsh is suitable for 

 (a) lamb-raising, [b) growing lucerne and rape ; (2) v/hat is the best cross for lamb-raising in 

 same district? , . 



Answer. — (i) (a) Yes, but not off natural pasture. The ewes should lamb between the 

 middle of August and the first week in October, and there must then be crops of rape and oats 

 (mixed) ready in full growth for the ewes to go on to ; (b) it is too cold for lucerne, except 

 on special and limited patches. (2) Coarse half-bred, or three-quarter Lincoln or Leicester 

 ewes, with level-made, thick-fleshed and good-fleeced Shropshire ram. 



Sheep Lick. — -J. McI. writes — " Would you kindly recommend a sheep lick that will keep- 

 sheep in health while feeding on dry grass during the summer? Last summer I noticed some 

 of the ewes leave the flock and walk about in a dazed state. A shower of rain then came, and 

 a green shoot followed, with the result that the sheep began to get well immediately." 



Answer. — No medicinal agent will take the place of succulent fodder as a health main- 

 taining influence during dry weather. From your experience of the benefits of a flush of grass 

 the advantage should be obvious of providing a patch of lucerne proportionate to the size of 

 your flock for occasional grazing during the summer months. This fodder keeps green through- 

 out the summer. If sheep have access to coarse bag salt early in, and right througn, the summer 

 it will assist in preventing impaction and constipation. With large flocks it is the cheapest and 

 least costly to make available. 



Navel Rupture.— J. McI. asks how to cure navel rupture in foals. 



Answer. — Navel rupture in a foal is not a serious matter. It usually disappears as the 

 foal grows older, and it is not advisable to interfere with the rupture until about a year old. 

 The treatment of navel rupture will be given in a subsequent issue of the Journal. 

 Tanning Rabbit Skins. — S.N. A. wishes to know how to tan rabbit skins. 

 Answer. — The skins should first be treated by sprinkling salt over the flesh sides and 

 allowed to, stand for 12 hours. (They could be immersed in a strong solution of brine if the 

 pickling method be preferred.) After being treated with salt, they should be well washed in 

 cold water, and then fleshed — that is, all fat and other loose tissue should be removed. They 

 are then sewn together to form pouches with hair inside, and placed in weak wattle bark 

 solution. The wattle bark solution is made by boiling the bark and leaving the decoction 

 stand for. 24, hours before using it. The skins are left in the first bark bath for 24 hours, 

 then removed and allowed to drain. The strength of the tan is increased by the addition of 

 more of the bfirk preparation, and the skins replaced. After the lapse of another 24 hours, the 

 skins are taken out and allowed to drain. The strength of the tan is daily increased for 6 

 days more, and every day the skins are lifted out of the tan and allowed to drain. After 

 the skins are tanned and washed, the leather sides should receive a coat of dubbing. The skins 

 are then thoroughly worked and stretched and hung up to dry, and the fur cleaned and eveiily 

 smoothed out. Another method of curing skins is t"o treat them with salt and suli)huric acid. 

 Over 2 quarts of bran pour 5 or 6 quarts of boiling water, and then strain. Make an equal 

 quantity of salt water by putting into water as much salt as it will take up. Mix bran and 

 salt solutions and to each gallon of the mixture add i oz. of sulphuric acid. Then immerse 

 the skins, stirring them occasionaflv until tanned. Rabbit skins will tan in about 30 minutes. 

 When tanned, wash the skins in water, and hang in shady place to dry. When dry, work them 

 well. 



Hiving Bees. — J. W. writes — "Last week a fine swarm of bees left our hive and settled 

 on an apple tree. I waited until evening, and then shook them into a new box. Next morn- 

 ing they swarmed out and got away to the adjoining scrub. On three successive afternoons 

 they flew away, and I got them back. They went again, and I took no further action. 

 Please state (i) Could anything have been done to keep them? (2) Will the few left 

 (about 50) do any good? (3) What is a good practical book on bees? (4) We are 2,000- 

 feet .above sea level, and hitherto all our bees have died out, but this year they seem toi 

 have done well. Is failure due to the elevation? 



Answer. — (i) The swarm should have been hived within an hour or two of settling in- 

 stead of being left until evening. The box, though new, may have had, to the bees, some 

 objectionable odour about it. It may not have been shaded enough, or may have had too 

 small an entrance for hot weather. It is difficult to say what caused the bees to turn out 

 repeatedly, after being hivedj without knowing full particulars, but want of shade or ventila- 

 tion or some objection to the particular box used may have caused the trouble. (2) The 

 number of bees left behind is far too small to work up into a colony, even if they had a 

 queen, which apparentlv is not the case. (3) The best standard work on Bees is Roflfs 

 A. B.C. of Bee Culture, price, about 6s. 6d. It is, however, written^ for the northern 

 hemisphere, and only in a general way is applicable to Australian conditions. There is as 

 vet no Australian book on Bees, owing to the great expense of such a work in proportion 

 to the number of copies wanted. (4) The altitude is not the cause of the bees not thriving in 

 previous vears, for bees are successfully kept at much greater elevations. 



Correction.— In last month's issue in an answer to A.R. on the subject of Acute Cripples 

 or "Winton disease," the dose of Liquor Strychnine for hypodermic injection was given as 

 1 ounce. This was an error and was meant to be i dram, which dose should be given at inter- 

 vals of 3 hours for a couple of days and then increased to two drams or even half an ounce. 



