158 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[September, 



is 321 feet. The "burnt tree," prostrate, is 

 estimated to have been 300 feet high when 

 standing and ninety-seven feet in circumfer- 

 ence ; it measures thirty-nine and a half feet 

 across the roots. "Hercules" is ninety-five 

 feet in circumfercMice, and 320 feet high. Tlie 

 "pioneer's cabin," brolcen off 150 feet from 

 the ground, measures thirty-nine feet in di- 

 fl,meter, but, owing to its being hollow, and 

 its surface uneven, its average is not iiuitc 

 equal to tliat. Fourteen other trees average 

 291 feet higli, and seveuly-eight and a lialf 

 feet in circumference. It is estimated from 

 the number of concentric layers of wood in 

 these trees, each layer of which is supposed 

 to be tlie growth of a single year, that their 

 age is almost 3,000 }'ears, considerably younger 

 than the one on exiiibition. This grove is also 

 described in an amusing mamier by T. \V. 

 Hinchlifl", in his "Over the Sea and Far 

 Away," 1876. From his account tlie trees 

 occupy a belt 3.200 feet long and 700 feet 

 wide, which contains from 00 to 160 qnisoias 

 of the largest size ; the highest is 32.5 feet, 

 and the diameter of one (which I think must 

 be the "big-tree") is twenty-seven feet. At 

 six feet from the ground, lie says, the survey 

 party counted the rings of this section, anil 

 found the number to be 1.2.5.5 ; this tree, he 

 thinks, is one of tlie finest in the grove. 



UNCLE SAM'S CROPS. 



At no former period of the national history 

 have American farmers had so much reason 

 to feel proud of the results of their toil as at 

 the present time. In round numbers the 

 money value of the exportations of bread- 

 stuffs alone from this republic, during tlie 

 fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, appears to be 

 $277,000,000. This, therefore, is the great 

 leading export of the country, far surpassing 

 the highest aggregate ever received for the 

 cotton crop, which was .'$233,000,000. It is 

 true that tlie year just closed was in many 

 respects an exceptional one, in consequence 

 of the threatened and actual famines in 

 Europe. France, which usually produces 

 enough breadstuffs for her own people and a 

 surplus for the English markets, was oblised, 

 durinK the past fiscal year, to pay to Uncle 

 Sam $70,000,000 in gold for a stock of wheat, 

 to avert the danger of f;\mine in that country! 

 Altogether the importations of coin and bul- 

 lion at New York alone, during that fiscal 

 year, were over .f85,000,000. 



It is very important, however, that our 

 readers .should oljserve that this enormous 

 exportation of breadstufts from the United 

 States has been rendered practicable by the 

 vast increase of cultivation and production. 

 To thiii result the a;reat railway system of the 

 country has contributed to an extent that we 

 can imperfectly cxiiress. Russia, Turkey and 

 other countries of the old world can and do 

 lu-oduce large cro|)s for exportation, but .they 

 are deficient in that all-pervading .system of 

 transportation from the interior l;o the sea- 

 board, which is the iiride and boast of America. 

 It is well known that the corn crop is a staple 

 product of all our States and territories, ex- 

 cept Alaska. But it is not so well known' that 

 wheat also is produced successfully by the same 

 wide range of country. The Southern wheat 

 crops, which were not important before the 

 war, have become more and more so of late 

 years, thouirh it is admitted, as a matter of 

 course, that the wheat product is the great 

 staple of the Nortli and West. As to the 

 ability of our country to export such a sur- 

 plus stock regularly every year as the bread- 

 stuff shipment to which we have above refer- 

 red, we may remark that the exportation of 

 the preceding year was valued at »201,000,- 

 000 ; and it is believed that the trade of the 

 current year can easily be made to reacli a 

 total of at least $250,000,000. 



In connection with this subject we are 

 tempted to ask those persons who deprecate 

 the enormous increase of our investments in 

 manufacturing pursuits, where the fai'mcrs of 

 the country are to look for profitable markets 

 if their agriculture is to be stimulated to such 

 stupendous proportions as would be inevitable 



if the millions of people in America who are 

 now sustained by mining and manufacturing 

 shall be turned tillers of the soil ? We can 

 not conceive it possible for American farming 

 to be increased more rapidly than it is at pres- 

 ent witliout great injury to the farmers, and 

 without reducing the farm laborers to a con- 

 dition of aliject penury, in consequence of 

 the deficiency of inofititble markets for the 

 crops. Fortunately for tlie country, the pre- 

 valent sentiment is very decidedly in favor of 

 building up extensive, prosperous and increas- 

 ing home markets as the principal and best 

 reliance of the American Itirmers now and at 

 all times, leaving only the surplus to be ex- 

 ]wrted to foreign countries. — Germantmon 

 Tcleyraph, 



AUTUMN WORK IN THE GARDEN. 



The summer will soon be gone, but tlie 

 glorious autumn is yet to come, witli its soft, 

 smoky, soothing atmospliere, its gilded foliage 

 and ripened fruits. Eacli season has its 

 pleasures, but none crowded so full and run- 

 ning over with enjoyment as the autumn; 

 every season has its opportunities and duties, 

 and tliose of the fall are numerous and im- 

 portant. What a good time, in the pleasant 

 fall weatber, for arranging beds of herbaceous 

 plants, such as hollyhocks, delphiniums, 

 pcBonies, &c. Roots can be divided without 

 injury, and generally with great benefit to the 

 health of the plants. Lilies, and all hardy 

 bulbs, can also be removed and replanted as 

 soon as the leaves begin to ripen. Plants 

 that are somewhat tender in the North, such 

 as tritomas, pamiias grass, &c., and any other 

 tender plants that it would be desirable to 

 save over tlie winter, may be secured in pits 

 or cool cellars. A simple pit is made lay re- 

 moving tlie earth for say two feet, over which 

 is placed a hot-bed frame and sash. Even 

 boards or mats will answer for a covering. 

 Give air during fine weatiier. 



General improvements in the garden should 

 be now made, for our springs are short and 

 unpleasant. Dig up and put in order every 

 vacant bed, as it will not only facilitate spring 

 work, but do the soil good and liave a neater 

 appearance than if left rough and weedy. 



All bulbs and plants that die down to the 

 ground in autumn, may Ise protected by cov- 

 ering the surface of the earth with leaves, 

 manure or straw, but plants that retain tlieir 

 leaves during winter will not bear this kind 

 of protection. A few evergreen bouglis 

 thrown over the bed, a little straw between 

 the i)lants, or some light, open covering of 

 tliis kind, is all they will bear without danger 

 of smoUiering and rotting. 



If \ou want a lawn, and the ground is clear, 

 it is Ijest to prepare it at once, and sow Ken- 

 tucky blue grass witli a little clover, or lawn 

 grass, which is simi)ly blue grass and white 

 clover, with a few other nice grasses, using 

 at the rate of four busliels (?) of seed to the acre. 

 Sow in September and the autumn rains will 

 give it a good start. Before winter sets in 

 give the yauns grass a light dressing of ma- 

 nure, and by the first of June you will have a 

 good lawn if the soil was in fair condition. 

 In preiiarinn- soil for a lawn see that the sur- 

 face is liglit, for it is hard to make the young 

 grass come u!> in a bard soil tliat will bake on 

 the surface. Aft(!r tlie grass once gets started 

 there will be no trouble. If the soil is stitt' 

 and likely to bake, after sowing the seed and 

 raking it in, cover the surface with aljout an 

 inch of manure, and let it remain until tlie 

 grass is well up. then rake off a little of the 

 coarsest. — Vick''s Jimrnal 



COL. SCOTT'S MODEL BARN. 



An Amerimn rejiorter in his rambles over 

 the county, ran across "Woodburn," the 

 beautiful residence of Colonel Thomas A. 

 Scott, near Darby, and would like to say a 

 word about Mv. ' Scott's new barn and' its 

 many conveniences. The barn was completed 

 in March last and cost nearly ten thousand 

 dollars, and in architectural style cannot be 

 excelled. The carriage or coach room is at 

 the extreme eastern portion of the building, 



and has capacity for nine coaches. There are 

 about eight vehicles in it, which cost from 

 1800 to $1,500 apiece. The coach house has 

 six large windows with shutters, and the 

 ceiling has fancy tissue paper, " fly catchers," 

 nicely arranged and cut in a tasty and beauti- 

 ful manner. The harness room has twelve 

 separate cases with glass fronts, and not a 

 particle of dust can get to any of the harness. 

 There js telephonic communication from the 

 harness room to tlie mansion house, from 

 whence the coachman's order are received. 

 A peculiar beam with projecting crosses is 

 used as a harness holder, ih cleaning and 

 blackening. Tlie stable has accommodations 

 for twelve head of horses. At present it has 

 ten horses, two donkeys and one pony. The 

 ten upright posts, near the horsef, and form- 

 ing a part of the stalls, are carefullv covered 

 with straw plaits, for about ten feet up from 

 the ground. Tlte flooring of the entire Urst 

 story of the barn is of granite, but immediately 

 under the horses are wooden false floors, laid 

 upon the stone. These come out, and are 

 cleaned twice a week. Just at the edge of 

 the false floor is a perforated iron strip about 

 a foot wide, an level with stone floor, which 

 allows all liquid to pass through. Just back 

 of this is a straw plait about a yard wide and 

 which is covered with loose straw, forming 

 bedding. Just back of this plait a pretty 

 cocoanut carpet is laid, and is kept as clean 

 as though it were in a parlor. It is put down 

 at 8 A. M., and taken up at 5 P. M. An iron 

 watering trough is placed against the wall, 

 still further back. The "fly-catcher" paper is 

 neatly arr.^nged overhead' in all the stable. 

 In front of the h(n-.ses is a space five feet wide, 

 and from here the horses are fed. Spontings 

 come down from the various bins in the 

 second story. These are fitted with a patent 

 gauge attachment which measures just four 

 quarts of feed. There is one large stall set 

 apart for a sick horse. In the ujjper story I 

 found a bath-room and water-closet, nicely 

 lighted with gas ; four bed rooms, elegantly 

 furnished, and numerous bins, admirably ar- 

 ranged for the purposes intended. Joseph 

 Staddon, formerly coachman for Baron Roths- 

 child, London, has charge of the stable. The 

 stable is built of brick and finished throusriiout 

 the interior with yellow pine, oiled. — Media 

 American. 



THE DEADLY HONEY BEE. 



It is a disadvantage of civilization that it 

 shows us the dangers to which life is ex- 

 posed. Every year presents us with a new 

 peril, and the latest is always the least ex- 

 pected. Frenchmen of science are now 

 preaeliiug a crusade again.st the industrious 

 race of liees. Not only are tliry destructive 

 to proiierty, but they a"re actually dangerous 

 to human life. The Perfect of the Paris 

 police has been appealed to. M. Delpech has 

 drawn up a formidable brief and is iirecise in 

 his statements and clamorous in his demands. 

 It seems that bee-keeping is lucrative in the 

 neighborhood of Paris, and that so also is the 

 distillery of spirits :ind the refinery of sugar. 

 Mon^over, wherever there are sugar works 

 the bees are active and abundant. At Say, 

 for instance, the loss attributable to them is 

 estimated at £1,000 a year. M. Delpech gives 

 fiicts and figures. At another refinery the 

 number of bees killed daily amounted to 22 

 gallons full. He himself saw a large glass of 

 .syrup drank uj) in two hours. As to loss of 

 life he is equally circumstantial. He gives a 

 full list of people who died of bee stings in 

 tlie course of the year. Most of the cases 

 occurred in America, but many are furnished 

 by France and some by Germany. The death 

 is very painful, and in some cases extremely 

 sudden. At Chemnitz, in Hungary, a peas- 

 ant, stung while cutting a branch of a tree, 

 died on the spot. At Chester, in Pennsyl- 

 vania, a farmer examining some hives, was 

 stung, fell at once into a state of syncope, and 

 died within a quarter of an hour. In another 

 case 25 minutes elapsed between the wound 

 and its fatal consequence. M. Delpech ac- 

 cordingly appeals to the Perfect for the pro- 



