34 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Jan. 



much so as liis heart, lungs, eyes or ears, and 

 equally inseparable, except by the surgeon's knife. 

 The colt before it is foaled and the horse at five or 

 twenty years of age have the same number of bots 

 — oOO, "neither more or less." They are "placed in 

 the stomach to take up the food as it enters that 

 organ in a rough and coarse condition, and to 

 grind and convert it into chyle and gastric juices 

 for the digestive organs !" Thus bots, in effect, 

 save the horse the time and labor to which ani- 

 mals are subjected that chew the cud. Instead of 

 being injurious, therefore, bots are an essential and 

 an economical part of the digestive apparatus, and 

 one might as well attempt to physic away a horse's 

 kidneys as his bots. 



The theory of veterinary writers that bots are 

 hatched from the nits or lice on the legs of horses, 

 fintis little favor with Mr. Rarey. He says that 

 horses in warm climates where the Gad fly is un- 

 known, and in stables where it is not admitted, 

 have as many bots as those exposed to it. He 

 regards the idea that a bot changes to a fly as ab- 

 surd and contrary to the laws of nature, and de- 

 clares "it is impossible to make a fly out of a 

 .vorm." 



If the last remark of our correspondent is a fair 

 specimen of his knowledge of natural hi^^tory, we 

 think he is hardly qualiticd to assume the position 

 of teacher, and should advise him to review the 

 evidences on which he bases his "new ideas" on 

 the subject of bots in horses. 



TO PRESERVE THE I'ERTILITY OF TPLAND FARMS. 



In the New England Farmer, October 31, 1 

 read the report of the discussion by the Irasburg, 

 Vt., Farmers Club of the question, "How can an 

 uphind farm be cultivated and kept from running 

 down ?" 



1 propose to answer that question from my own 

 experience. Arrange the stable for cattle witli a 

 trench behind them, sufliciently tight to hold water, 

 sixteen inches wide and four inches deep. Then 

 put iu the trench muck or loam, at tUe rate of a 

 wheelbarrow load to live or six animals every day, 

 and clean the stable daily into the barn cellar or 

 under a shed, where it will l)e out of the weather. 

 If hogs are kept upon the farm, put a cellar under 

 their pen and supply that with muck, and clean it 

 out as cfien as it gets thorougly wet. For cacli 

 pen of two hogs that are lull led witli inilk, use 

 a cart load of muck and as much bedding cveiy 

 week. As much muck or loam should be placed 

 under the outhouse and sink-spout as will save all 

 the liij'iids there. The barnyard snould have muck 

 enough to save everything dropjjcd in it in the 

 shape of manure. It all this is fiUthiuUy done, 1 

 know, from about a dozen years' expeiieace, that 

 any guod land will produce hay and satisfactory 

 crops, and increase in fertility as long as this sys- 

 tem is followed. 



The right application of manure T think very 

 imponaut, but 1 suppose no man will v/ish to be 

 told lunv to do that. W. S. Grow. 



H'entboru' , Mass., Xov. 9, 1SG8. 



Plemarks.— Why do you think so ? There is 

 scarcely any operation in farming on which prac- 

 tice and opinion are more unsettled than in re- 

 gard to the application of manure. In England 

 some farmers steep their manure in water, and by 



means of pipes or casks apply it in a liquid form. 

 Some get it out in the spring, others in the fall. 

 Some shovel it over two or three times, others ap- 

 ply it as it comes from the barn. Some plough it 

 in, others prefer the harrow. Some cover it deep- 

 ly, others lightly. Some applj' it in the hill, others 

 broadcast it. If your farm is constantly increas- 

 ing in fertility from its own resources, under your 

 system of manuring, we can warrant you as atten- 

 tive a set of readers for what you please to say of 

 your mode of applying it as your remarks above 

 on making will secure. Probably the knowledge 

 j'ou now possess would have been worth considera- 

 ble to you twelve or lifteen years ago. Will it not 

 be equally valuable to those who arc now young, 

 or who are lacking the experience yon have had ? 

 Please give us your views of the right way of ap- 

 plying manui'e. 



SAUSAGE MAKING. 



Will you please to tell me, through the Farmer, 

 the best mode of making pork sausage. By so do- 

 ing vou will creatly oblige Marinda. 



Pittsburg, N. H., Nov. 4, 1868. 



Remarks. — We hand this request over to the 

 wore en folks who know how to make good sau- 

 sages. But as there are different ways of doing 

 the same thing, and as probably the great object 

 of Marinda, who, we presume, has her own way, is 

 to learn how others perform the operation, wc 

 copy from the Country Gentleman some directions 

 which were given by several housewives in reply 

 to a similar inquiry. A lady in Missouri says, 

 "The fat portion of the pig should be mixed with 

 the lean at the rate of one" pound to four, if desired 

 to be very rich ; if not, use less of the fat. Pass 

 the lean meat twice through the sausage mill; 

 chop the fat very fine, as grinding reduces it to a 

 paste and it is lost in frying. Those who like it 

 smoked can stuff it, but an excellent way to pre- 

 serve it until spring, say June, is to fry it in balls 

 the size of an agg. When done, lay it in jars, cov- 

 ering with melted lard, and tying down with 

 strong paper." This lady says a larger quantitj^ of 

 sage is needed than an unpracticed hand would 

 suppose, but instead of giving the amount of sage 

 salt, red and black pepper she uses, she advises 

 each one to fry and try until it suits those who 'are 

 to eat it. The tenderloin makes belter sausages 

 than the lean of other parts. ' 



Another one says, "Sausage to suit a dyspeptic 

 cannot be made without stuffmg. The small en- 

 trails of hogs must be well cjeaned and scraped 

 until all the lat is removed, turned and soaked in 

 brine twenty-four hours ; pour over the prepared 

 meat hot red pepper tea sufQcient to moisten the 

 mass, then stuff them and hang in a smoke house 

 and smoke two days only, with cobs or hickory 

 wood." 



The main art and secret, this writer says, is to 

 proportion the seasoning so that no one article will 

 predominate. But as to the amount of seasoning, 

 these authorities differ somewhat. A correspon- 



