1858. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



199 



value surpasses that of any other kind of oil 

 cake of which he has knowledge." He thinks 

 the cotton seed cake much richer in oil and albu- 

 minous matters than the linseed cake, — and that 

 three pounds of the cotton seed cake are equal 

 to four pounds of the linseed. 



Judging of the value of this new feed from 

 our own results, from the opinions expressed by 

 Messrs. Joiixsox and Jackson, and the high 

 terms in which it is spoken of by several persons 

 who have fattened oxen upon it, we are of the 

 opinion that persons feeding grain to cattle will 

 do well to try the Cotton Seed Meal. 



It is for sale, at present, by Messrs. Parke:)', 

 White & Gannett, Blackstone Street, Boston, and 

 Nourse & Co., Commercial Street. 



For the New England Farmer. 

 SUGAB MAKING. 



Mr. Editor : — A few days since I saw in the 

 daily Trihune a long editorial with the above 

 heading, containing so many things likely to mis- 

 lead one who is unacquainted with the subject, 

 that I have concluded to send you some of the 

 results of my own experience. 



The writer in the IVibiine says, "get ready, for 

 now is the time," and the only reason he can as- 

 sign for this, is the old saw, "better late than 

 never." Now the fall, (any time is better than 

 winter,) is the best time to build aixhes for the 

 boilfers, at least where stones are abundant, as in 

 this section of Bcrksliire. Good fine stones are 

 easily obtained here, and, while they are less ex- 

 pensive than brick, they are equally good in every 

 respect, and far more durable. I will describe 

 first the 



ARCHES AND BOILERS 



X would use. To evaporate ten barrels of sap 

 per day, I want two pans made each of two sheets 

 of Russia iron. This will make each pan about 

 forty-two inches square and six inches deep, 

 (five and one-half inches deep is just as good.) 

 These are to be set in an arch of the ox-bow 

 fashion, the distance between the side-M-alls of 

 the arch to be nearly as great as the diameter of 

 one of the ]5ans. A division wall should run from 

 the front of the arch to within nine or ten inches 

 of the rear, and be elevated just high enough for 

 the pans to rest upon it. This should divide the 

 space beneath the pans into two unequal com- 

 partments, the place for the fire occupying about 

 two-thirds of it. The remaining third, on the 

 other side of the dividing wall, (which, it will be 

 seen, should be as nan-ow as is consistent with 

 the necessary strength,) being connected in the 

 rear with the fire-place, will serve as a fiue along 

 which the fire will return to the front of the arch. 

 Here the smoke will escape by a chimney built 

 on one of the front corners of the arch, and raised 

 high enough to secure sufficient draft for a strong 

 fire, and to carry off' the smoke above the head of 

 the fireman. At the bottom of the arch a grate 

 should be laid (of fire-stone, if they can be easily 

 obtained) with a drain under it a foot deep, and 

 as wide as the fire-place. Into this the coals will 

 fall, and between the grate-stones the air will 



rush in to feed the fire above. Set your pans 

 eighteen inches above the grate ; the return flue 

 will need to be but about fourteen or fifteen 

 inches deep. It is desirable to use dry wood, 

 since the coarser the wood is, provided it will 

 burn fast enough, the less fuel will be required. 

 Of course, a shelter will be needed. Shut the 

 mouth of the arch with a sheet iron door, turn- 

 ing on hinges in a cast iron frame solidly built 

 into the stone work. If you wish to boil fifteen 

 barrels a day, add another pan, of the same size 

 as before mentioned, in the rear of the others, by 

 lengthening your arch, and set all of your pans 

 two or three inches higher for a larger fire-place- 

 Build all your fire, in either case, on the first five 

 feet over the grate. For smaller business, take 

 two pans of a sheet and a half each ; these will be, 

 when made, about forty-two by tv\-enty-eight 

 inches. Set them lengthwise, one behind the 

 other, building the fire under the first ; and sep- 

 arate the space beneath the second by a division 

 wall in a manner similar to that suggested above, 

 save that the chimney will in this case come on 

 the sifle in the middle of the structure. 



SAP TUBS. 



Those made of tin are too expensive, costing 

 about thirty-four cents apiece, and are too small, 

 even if they were cheap enough. I should lose 

 too much sap by running over, if I used ■ such ; 

 besides, I want a tub smaller at the top than at 

 the bottom, as they will hang better (more near- 

 ly level) on the spike, and catch less snow or 

 rain in case of storms. Those I use are made of 

 wood, hooped with iron, and painted on the out- 

 side. 



PREPARING TUBS. 



A rinsing in cold water is by no means suf- 

 ficient. You should scald them in boiling water, 

 rolling them round for a moment, and then take 

 out a quart or two and let it stand in them, as 

 the dairy women do, M-hen they scald their milk- 

 pails ; afterward scrub them M-ith a little birch 

 brush, and they are ready. If you would keep 

 them sweet as long as possible, turn them down 

 at the last gathering of every run, that all the 

 sap may run out, and nothing be left to ferment. 

 The freezing that occurs before the next "run" 

 will have a good eff"cct upon them. Some of my 

 neighbors have wondered why their sugar is not 

 of first quality — equally good with mine. They 

 could not believe but that all was right, except 

 the sap. Indeed, everything else may have been 

 as it should be, but the sap had been in tubs and 

 in "storage" containing acid enough to spoil the 

 sugar. It would only make molasses, and that 

 of very poor quality. Their tubs may never have 

 been entirely free from sourness since they were 

 first put out years ago. But it requires too much 

 attention to make good sugar, or much of it, for 

 every one who meddles with it to succeed either 

 in quality or quantity. 



VESSELS FOR STOR.\GE. 



Some people use cider barrels, and tubs in 

 which apples have been stored, and some of them 

 decayed. A cold water soaking is entirely inad- 

 equate to their purification. Boiling water is 

 needed. Fill your barrels partly full with this, 

 bung them up, and when they have stood long 

 enough to become cold, they are fit to be used in 



