92 



NEW ENGLAND FAKMER. 



Feb. 



smeared him well from nose to tail with kerosene 

 oil and let him go. In a short time every rat disap- 

 peared, and I have not seen one, or any signs of 

 one, about my pixmises since. Perhaps my suc- 

 cess in routing these "enormous pests" may en- 

 courage "E.M. E." to persevere in his battle with 

 the "vai-mints." H. T. Berry. 



South Bombaxj, N. Y., Dec. 10, 1867. 



Remarks. — An "exchange" says that a little soft 

 potash spread near their holes will make their feet 

 smart, and as they seek relief by licking them, 

 hoth mouth and feet will become sore, and the rats 

 will abandon the premises in disgust, and warn all 

 the rats in the neighborhood not to "put their foot 

 in it." 



STIPLED COLT. 



What is the best treatment for a colt, six months 

 old, whose stifle joint easily gets out of place ? 

 Can a stifle shoe be safely used ; or, can straps, to 

 keep the jjarts in place, be safely used in colts, so 

 voung, without inducing deformity in growth ? 



Paris, Me., Dec., 1867. e. 



Remarks. — Dr. Dadd says that in days of yore, 

 it was customary to apply the stifle-shoe, but he 

 thinks the practice is injudicious, highly injurious, 

 and at the present time is scarcely ever advocated 

 by men who do their own thinking, and who prac- 

 tice in accordance with the principles of common 

 sense. He recommends bathing constantly with 

 some astringent, a solution of alum will answer. 

 Sometimes, however, it will be necessary to shave 

 the hair from the part and apply a strengthening 

 plaster composed of pitch, tar and rosin— equal 

 parts ; these are to be melted in a tin or iron vessel ; 

 and when the mixture is sufficiently cool, it may 

 be spread on the region of the stifle by means of a 

 knife, and then covered with a thin layer of wool 

 or cotton batting. 



On page 495 of the Monthly Farmer for 1867, 

 we replied more at length to a similar inquiry. 



PLOUGHING IN manure. 



In a communication to a late number of the 

 Farmer, signed H. Poor, I find an endorsement 

 of the old fogy doctrine, that "harrowing in ma- 

 nure is a fatal error." I would like to ask Mr. P. 

 if he has had as much experience in harrowing in 

 manure as in ploughing ? Those who have, are 

 staunch friends of tlie harrow. The idea that it 

 drie'. up is a "fatal en-or." 



Does he know of any way by which land can be 

 manured higher than by putting a pile of manure 

 on it and letting it lay over winter ? Men familiar 

 •with the lands at the west say that the Lord grows 

 taller grass and keeps his land in better condition 

 than we overwise mortals do, but that he never 

 owned a i)lougli, and does it by top-dressing, h. 



November 5, 1867. 



MILK FOR butter, FOR CHEESE, ANB THE CITY. 



At the meeting of the Milk Producers' Associa- 

 tion, the question was asked, What quantity of 

 milk was required to make a pound of cheese ? By 

 a published statement, I learn that from nearly 100 

 trials, it was found that two gallons of milk pro- 

 duced one pound of butter, or two pounds of 

 cheese, as the average for the season. If tlii s state- 

 ment is correct, will it not pay the farmers better 

 to build l)utter and cheese factories, than to make 

 milk for Boston market, as good butter has aver- 

 aged about 40 cents per pound, and cheese about 



15 cents, the past season ? There are some advan- 

 tages to the farmer in favor of factories. As the 

 milk is all produced from the farm, and mostly in 

 the simimer, no extra feec],is required, as in mak- 

 ing milk in the winter; and there will not l)e any 

 sour milk returned to the farmer, as is done on 

 milk routes for the city, when milk is too plenty 

 at market, and no neglect to furnish more than 

 two-thirds of the number of empty cans required, 

 whenever it suits the middle-men so to do, and no 

 cans to wash and keep clean, when cleansed at the 

 factory. This will, I think, pay the farmer as well 

 as selling the milk to the middle-man at whatever 

 price he is pleased to name. But as there are two 

 sides to every story, will those who see the oppo- 

 site side of this please give it as it appears to them. 

 A Milk Farmer. 

 Roxbury, Mass., Dec. 30, 1867. 



Remarks. — A table of the statistics of forty-one 

 factories, which used the milk of 18,779 cows, 

 yielding 6,356,412 lbs. of milk, showing an average 

 of 9.68 lbs. of milk to one lb. of cheese, is given 

 in the Second Annual Report of the American 

 Dairyman's Association, for 1866. A gallon of 

 milk, large measure, is equal, we believe, to about 

 10 lbs., and of wine measure about 8 lbs. 



In his address before this association, in 1865, 

 Mr. X. A. Willard says, that fi'om experiments 

 made at the Orange County Milk Association, 

 where butter and skim cheese are made from the 

 same milk, it appears that 28 pounds of milk, dur- 

 ing the summer, yield one pound of butter and 

 two pounds of skim cheese. 



THE ORWELL, YT., CHEESE FACTORY. 



I noticed in a late number of the Farmer in- 

 quiries of A. J. Mitchell, of Lempster, N. H., 

 about cheese factories. As we in Acworth are 

 contemplating l)uilding one the next season, it was 

 just the thing we wished to see. In your remarks 

 in regard to the cheese factory iri Orwell, j-ou 

 stated that from 300 cows, this season, were made 

 60,000 pounds of cheese, which is only 200 pounds 

 of cheese to each cow, from June 17, to October 

 22. Now, as my New York friends tell me that 

 one gallon of milk will make one pound of cheese, 

 those cows would hardly average seven quarts of 

 milk daily. Is there not some mistake ? For, at 

 eleven cents and seven mills per pound, there 

 would be an income of only $23.40 to each cow, 

 which is not $40 to $80 each, as my New York 

 friends talked to me. Please to inform us through 

 your columns if there is not some mistake, for 

 we are desirous to know the truth, which ought to 

 prevail. Josefh Hayward. 



AciDorth, N. n., Dec. 24, 1867. 



Remarks. — As the statements alluded to were 

 those of a correspondent of another paper we are 

 unable to verify them. But it appears to us that 

 you have overlooked some of the facts, which are 

 plainly stated in the article criticised. In the Re- 

 port of the American Dairyman's Association, for 

 1S66, it appears that of the three factories in 

 Oneida County, which mention the date of com- 

 mencing and closing operations, one began April 

 1, and closed Nov. 25, another April 9, to Nov. 3, 

 and the third April 10, to Oct. 30. In Herkimer 

 County, the factory at Frankfort commenced mak- 

 ing cheese March 26, ana closed November 23. 

 In Lewis County, one factory bc^an March 16. 

 Perhaps the average of those reported would be 



