1880.] 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



73 



ployed all the year round ; and all the better 

 if such lielp be married, and can be comforta- 

 bly domiciled in tenant houses on the ground. 

 Advantage can thus be taken of every turn of 

 good weather to get the work done at the 

 proper moment, to the great benefit of the 

 subsequent croj). Moreover a man regularly 

 employed is likely to take more interest in 

 his work than one, who knows he is but tem- 

 porary, and the rmi)loyer has more chance to 

 bear patiently with the man while both arc 

 learning one another's ways. 



There is, beside the absolute question of 

 labor at this season, another which always 

 troubles one, namely, that one of wages. Tlie 

 carpenter for instance who gets in the city 

 $2.50 to 83 per day, has to pay perhaps $W 

 or 818 per month for house-rent, wliile pro- 

 visions of every kind have to bo purchased, 

 and often at high rates. Even the smallest 

 scrap of fuel has to be bought, and there is 

 nothing but what costs hard cash to get it. A 

 hand on a farm, especially if he is comforta- 

 bly tenanted, has less rent, less expense in 

 provisions, and less demand on his wages in 

 every way, and this should always enter into 

 calculations as to the worth of services. Even 

 when the single man is boarded in the family, 

 it is still about the same. Sixteen dollars 

 per month and board in a family on a farm is 

 better for the hand than $1..50 without any 

 other privileges, in a city, as any single young 

 man who has tried the difference can readily 

 testify to. 



It is not therefore a fair comparison between 

 the actual cash of the city and the cash wages 

 of the country. Nominally less, the result is 

 generally greater, and this result should be 

 the basis of calculations. There is no doubt, 

 however, that we lose much by transitory 

 labor, and it will be wise for all who can to 

 make such arrangements as will enable the 

 laborer to be steadily employed the whole 

 year. — Germ antoion 1 elajraph . 

 ^ 



NEATNESS AT THE BARN. 



It is not necessary for the farmer to build 

 a highly ornamental edifice in order to have a 

 neat and attractive appearance in his barn 

 and about his barnyard. Specimens of neat- 

 ness and purity are sometimes seen where the 

 owner could afford only cheap and imperfect 

 structures. The management depends on the 

 man, not so much ou the character of his 

 buildings. Nevertheless, when the owner 

 takes the pains and incurs the expen.se of fin- 

 ished erections, he will be more likely to feel 

 an interest in keeping every thing in and 

 about them in good condition. 



It must be confessed that there is great 

 room for improvement in the majority of 

 farmers in this country, although much pro- 

 gress has been made, and a number — happily 

 a large number — are models in this respect. 

 We have seen barns and stables kept as neat 

 as a parlor. Some men think this is attended 

 with too much trouble and labor — like the 

 boy who combed his hair once a month, and 

 finding it difficult and painful, was unable to 

 comprehend how any one could endure to do 

 it every day. It is not the process of clcaniwj 

 that we reconnnend, but keeping clean. A 

 nurseryman was asked how he killed the 

 weeds in his So-acre grounds. "I do not kill 

 them," was liis answer; "I allow none to 

 enter or grow." 



We mention a few examples of deficient 

 care in this particular. Among good mana- 

 gers, the common recommendation and use of 

 manure cellars is a frequent cause of foul air, 

 which more or loss pervades the building, in- 

 jures the sweetness of the hay, and compels 

 cattle and horses to breathe noxious odors. 

 Manure should never be kept in a barn base- 

 ment without the constant use of ab.sorbents, 

 in the shape of straw, chopped stalks, sand 

 or dry peat, to hold all the etHnvia. The 

 difficulty will be much lessened as farmers 

 learn the advantages of drawing and spread- 

 ing manure in winter, as we have frequently 

 recommended. But care is necessary, even 

 for the small daily accumulation. 



No animal is so badly abused as the pig, in 



being thrust into apartments which are per- 

 mitted tf) become iiolluted from neglect. The 

 hired man, to whom we gave the pigs in 

 charge, thought it ;i great hardshii) that we 

 required him to clean their lloor thoroughly 

 twice a day. But he ultimately found it 

 much the easiest in the long run, as each 

 daily cleaning was a mere nothing. Pigs 

 are naturally clean, if they are only permitted 

 to be so, and when comfortably provided for, 

 thrive belter and fatten faster; and one would 

 think the farmer would prefer to cat such 

 pork to that taken out of a mantn-e hole. 



Sweep the barn floor often, sweep out the 

 horse stalls at least twice a day, provide 

 clean and dry litt<>r for all animals, give them 

 pure water, let their food be sweet and nour- 

 ishing, avoid all fetid acx'umulations, shelter 

 your barn yard from cold winds by evergreens, 

 and keep every sipiare foot of ground about 

 your building free from offensive rubbi.sh, and 

 you will not only preserve more self-respect 

 for this care, but will enjoy the i)le<i8urc of 

 giving comfort to the living creatures mider 

 .your control, and what is not least in the 

 eyes of money-making managers, you will de- 

 rive a greater i)rofit, preserve your buildings 

 from decay, and have a place that will sell at 

 a higher price if you should wish to dispose 

 of it. 



BEEF AND MUTTON. 

 While there has been a falling off in prices 

 in America in nearly all the range of agricul- 

 tural products in the last few years, beef and 

 mutton have maintained their.s. Since 187.5, 

 when the exportation of meats to England 

 commenced, there has been no special change 

 in values. The average export price of fresh 

 beef since 1875 has been about 9^ cents the 

 year through. It was the past summer on 

 the average one-half cent higher than the 

 summer of 1878. But it is always lower from 

 the first of May to October than in the other 

 cooler or winter months, from October 1st to 

 May 1st. Thus, while the average through 

 the year has been for four years, about i)\ 

 cents, it goes down to 8J, or a trifle less in 

 mid-summer, and in July last was 8|. Yet in 

 .July, 1878, it was 8i, a difference of a half 

 cent in favor of 1879. This steadiness in 

 prices of fresh beef, amid all the depression 

 in England for the last three years, shows 

 that the trade will, in improved times in that 

 country, insure a rise of the average. In all 

 probability the lowest prices have been seen. 

 The iron trade of England is improving, and 

 the shipping movement is largely increasing 

 there. This means general improvement in 

 trade. Yet in the nature of things there can 

 be no agricultural improvements in England 

 until rent, taxes and all i)resent charges on 

 land an<l its productions .shall be made. Eng- 

 land, with her abundant, eilicient, and cheap 

 shipping will place the agricultural jn'oducts 

 of every clime in her ))orts at less than she 

 can under her present system grow tbeni, and 

 especially wheat, barley, oats, beans, and in- 

 deed even liay. Her wealtli in ships has 

 doomed her land to low rates both in selling 

 laices and in renting values. It is only a 

 (piestion of time when she will realize it, and 

 act on the inevitable. On a proper .system 

 England can feed twice the jieople which her 

 land now does, and the soonei-she gets to that 

 system the better. Then her land will be pro- 

 ductive and her people better ofl. But this 

 implies a downfall of her present system, and 

 the land-holder of this period will fight the 

 change, until the force of new circumstances 

 shall defeat him. — Kentucky Lire Stock Kecnrd. 



VALUE OF BUTTER PACKAGE. 



The following is from a paper read at the 

 National Butter Association: 



We have come to a period in the history of 

 butter making in this country which must, of 

 necessity, be considered on broad grounds. 

 So long as the traflSc relating to it was a home 

 •huckstering business, not yet grown to the 

 necessity of prominent identity, it did not de- 

 mand a commercial status, like other articles, 

 which were largely exported, well comprend- 



cd, and intelligently reported by all the mar- 

 kets of the world with which this country 

 has to do ; eonseiiuentiy each locality, so to 

 speak, could afford to indulge in its own pecu- 

 liar twangs and local livsles. bo as to be suita- 

 ble and popular alike tor the liome and export 

 trades. 



We now conic to the point so well under- 

 stood by many of our advanced western 

 creamery men who have for .some time realized 

 a reward for making the finest butter in the 

 world, generally very free from deleterious 

 substani'cs, ;ind for adopting a style of pack- 

 age of the most popular character, in all of 

 the i)rincipal markets to which our dairy pro- 

 duct is transported, namely, the fifty and 

 sixty pounds Welsh tub. 



We feel (■onstrained, right here, to further 

 compliment these crearriery men for their 

 intelligence, skill and achievements, and 

 recommend the butter making dairymen of 

 the entire we.-;t to organize and do likewi.se, 

 by which we shall arrive at that most desired 

 end, namely, high quality, unifoimity of 

 quality, desirability of packuge, .ind uniform- 

 ity of package; thus reaching that compre- 

 hensive regularity and reliability so much 

 needed in the i)reparationof all articles which 

 must necessarily have a wide commerce at 

 home and abroad. 



The variety of quality and variety of pack- 

 age has heretofore rendered the butter trade 

 a mystery, save to a few in daily contact with 

 it. If all of the butter manufactured in this 

 country could be made in creameries under 

 the most api)roved .scientific system, and by 

 law compelled to be |)acked in tubs of uniform 

 style an(i size, holiling fifty or sixty pounds 

 net, we are fully of the opinion that our 

 foreign commerce in this article would be 

 doubled in a short time. 



CRABS AND THEIR HABITS. 



Dr. W. K. Brooks, of the biological depart- 

 ment of the Johns Hopkins University, deliv- 

 ered the first of a series of three lectures in 

 Hopkins Hall recently, on the structure, 

 habits and developments of the crab and 

 the oyster. The lecturer's subject was 

 "Ttie C'r.ib, its Ilaljits and Ucvcloi)menls." 

 After drawing on a board in view of his au- 

 dience a sketeli of the crab. Dr. Brooks pro- 

 ceeded to explain the structure of its claws, 

 fins, etc. In the rock crab, he said, the fir.st, 

 second, third and fourth fins are alike. In 

 the edible crab, however, the fourth tin differs 

 from the others in that it is used for locomo- 

 tive purposes rather than for offence, defense, 

 or gathering the food. The fourth fin, it has 

 been said, is used by tiie crab for opening oys- 

 ters, hence its being likened to an oyster 

 knife. On the back of the crab is found a 

 peculiar shield-like shell, which protects the 

 gills, usually called by fishermen "dead men." 

 This shield in male crabs is sharp, spear- 

 pointed and small, in females it is more 

 rounded and larger. The teeth of the two 

 large claws of a crab are rarely ever exactly 

 alike. Usually one set of claw-teeth is blunt 

 and rounded, generally used to crush food- 

 fish, in.sects, etc., and the other is sharp and 

 used to cut and tear with. In every other re- 

 spect the crab is jierfeetly .symmetrical. 



The shell of the crab, like the human skel- 

 eton, is the frame-work u|)ou which all the 

 other structure depends. There is this dif- 

 ference between a crab-shell and a humau 

 .skeleton, however: While the human body 

 grows the human skeleton grows wilji it, but 

 the crab-shell never grows. It increa.ses in 

 size, breadth, etc., by the addition from time 

 to time of little li(iuid particles natural to the 

 crab, which pour from it very much as per- 

 spiration jiours from tlie human body. The 

 claws and fins of a crab are .so constructed 

 that if moved oblicpiely they will be fractured. 

 They are, therefore, always moved backward, 

 forward, up and down or circuitously. It is 

 a common belief among fishermen that crabs 

 always .shed during a full moon. It sounds 

 rather singular, but yet this idea, he thought, 

 is based u|)on fact, and they were all aware 

 that the tide flows during a full moon. Yet 



