18S2 ] 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



47 



Questions to be Answered at Next Meeting. 



What is the licst niPtlini] to raise a gooJ crop of 

 corn ? Referred to Jolin J. lUisli. 



Slioulil wheat he harrowed in tlic sprhig? lie- 

 ferred to John H. Landis. 



Can commercial fertilizers be profitably used on 

 the potato cr p, and how can they he applied ? He- 

 ferJed to II. M. Engle. 



How should lime be applied ; on tlie surface or 

 plowed under? Referred to J. C. Linville. 



Tliere lieing no further business before tlie society, 

 a motion to adjourn was made and carried. 



THE POULTRY SOCIETY. 



At the niop.tlily meeting of the Lancaster County 

 Poultry Association on Monday morning, Marcli (Jth 

 the following were present : Secretary, J. B. Liehty, 

 city; Charles Lippold, city; John Schuni, city; F. 

 K. UillVnderdcr, city; W. W. Griest, city; A. S.^ 

 Flowers, Spring Garden ; J. M. Johnston, city; J. 

 B.Long, city; Henry M. Engle, ilariella; li. S 

 Garber, Mount .Joy. 



In the absence of President Geyer, Charles Lip- 

 pold presided. 



Amendments to the constitution, authorizing the 

 aniuuil election to be held in February instead of 

 January, and requiring the treasurer to report in 

 February and August the money in his hands and 

 at the February meeting make a detailed written re 

 port of receipts and expenditures, wtra adopted. 



A communication IVom T. Frank Evans tendering 

 his resignation as treasurer was read. The matter 

 was postponed until the next meeting. 



Fifty-nine members were reported in good stand- 

 ing. 



FULTON FARMERS' CLUB. 



The Fulton Farmers' Club met on Saturday, 

 March 11th, at the residence of Joseph P. Griest, in 

 Fulton township. 



Mr. S. L. Gregg asked the question, " Which is 

 the best paying crop for farmers in this section, 

 wheat or corn ?" 



Joseph P. Griest said that considering that wheat 

 was not 60 hard on the land as corn, and as it re- 

 quired less labor and brought more per bushel, he 

 thought it was the better payingcrop of the two. 



Day Wood : We generally put on more fertilizers 

 for wheat than for corn, but if we would manure 

 them alike, corn is the more certain crop, and while 

 it is seventy cents per bushel and wheat one dollar 

 and twenty-five, corn pays much the best. .Montil- 

 lion Blown and some others coincided with Day 

 Wood. 



Day Wood asked : " Is wheat going to advance in 

 price soon, or would it be as well to sell now ?" 



S. L. Gregg said he could not see what would 

 make it advance, unless there should come a I'oreign 

 ilemand. There is novv a prospect of a large crop. 

 The winter wheat looks well and they are already 

 sowing spring wheal in the West, where they are 

 likely to put in an unusual amount in consequence 

 of the early spring. 



Several others spoke of the reports being favor- 

 able to a large crop, and could see no reason for any 

 permanent advance in price. 



Montillion Brown asked : '• What kind of fertil- 

 izers are those present going to apply for corn?" 

 Nearly all answered, Sjuth Carolina rock. Thomas 

 Stubbs said he had good reports of the result of 

 using Orchilla guano in York county, and he would 

 try it. 



Melissa Gregg inquired : " Is a soap or meat vessel 

 built of brick or stone and cemented, satisfactory ?" 

 Joseph P Griest and Mary A. Stubbs, both reported 

 having them in use ior soap and they answered very 

 well. C. S. Gatchell said he had seen meat salted in 

 such a vesse and it answered well. 



Kebecca D King : " How many tomatoes can be 

 raised on an acre?" None of those present had had 

 any experience in field culture of this plant and 

 therefore could only guess at the amount, and the 

 guesses ranged all the way from 100 to 1,000 bushels. 



E. IT. Haines: "Do seedling peach trees live 

 longer than grafted ones?" Wm. P.Haines had not 

 found any ditTerenee. S.L.Gregg said he had not 

 noticed much dilTerenee, hut a neighbor of liis had 

 found the natural fruit to live longer and bear liettor 

 than the grafted. 



Joseph C. Stubbs plants his peach trees in the 

 fence corners and allows the cattle to keep the tops 

 eaten oti for two or three years. He thinks that by 

 keeping the tops back until the trees are well rooted 

 they do better. He is opposed to cultivating peach 

 trees, and cited an instance where the trees in an 

 orchard had been cultivated, and they did not Uveas 

 long nor do as well as some that were planted along 

 the fence at the same time. 



Thomas Stubbs said he had not noticed any dil'- 

 fercnce between seedling and grafted trees under 

 similar treatment, but trees that come up alongthe 

 fences do better than cultivated ones. C. S. Gatcli. 

 ell had found seedlings to do much better for him 

 than the grafted ones. 



Priscilla Coatee said her husband had planted ten 

 acres in grafted peach trees and they bore five gooil 

 crops and one inferior crop, and then died. He look 

 the worms out of the roots twice each season, the 

 first time about the first of June and then in the fall 

 again and scattered some salt around the trees once 

 a year. 



After dinner the male portion of the meeting took 

 a look at things in and around the barn, where the> 

 found quite a ditference made in the stock since the 

 meeting here a year ago. The host was then feed- 

 ing cattle and his stables contained some very fine 

 fat steers, now he is dealing in horses and mules, 

 and this kind of stock has taken the place of the 

 former. We were shown a pair of gray mules, well 

 matched, and weighing 2,400 pounds, and several 

 smaller pairs, besides several horses, the good quali- 

 ties of which I leave the owner to tell to his custom- 

 ers when they call to see him. 



After reassembling at the house some criticisms 

 were made, generally favorable to the host. The 

 shed over the barnyard had been improved and a 

 field of wheat sown about the first of October had 

 made an extraordinary growth. 



Joseph P. Griest read from the Century Magaziu 

 a description of a machine which had been on ex.« 

 hitjiiion at the Atlanta Exposition, and which is in 

 tended to destroy potato bugs and other insects by 

 sprinkling poisons mixed with water on the plants 

 infested. It consists of a barrel, mounted on a cart 

 and having several elastic tubes attached, to the 

 ends of which are fastened muzzles of peculiar con 

 struetion for delivering the poisoned w..ter to the 

 under side ol the leaves of the plants. 



Montillion Brown read an article on protecting 

 o-rapes I'rom insects and also from the sun, in w'lieh 

 the writer recommends placing small paper bags, 

 such as are used by grocerymen, over the bunches as 

 soon as they are of the size of peas and tying them 

 around the stems. This led to some discussion on 

 the question of shading grapes from the sun. 



Joseph C. Stubbs said he knew of a vine that did 

 no good until it was allowed to grow under the eaves 

 of the house and then it yielded perfect fruit ; and 

 also of a Catawba vine that did much better after 

 being taken from a trellis and allowed to grow on a 

 tree. 



Priscilla Coates recited " Some Day." 



The following list of oiricers were selected to scrvg 

 the club for one year : President, Wm. King; Secre 

 tary, E. H. Haines; Treasurer, Lindley King; Li- 

 brarian, Day Wood. 



The next meeting will be held at the residence of 

 Lindley King, on '.he second Saturday in April. 



THE L1NN./EAN SOCIETY. 



Twentieth Anniversary of the Founding of the 

 Society. 



The society met in the room of the Mechanics' 

 Library, on Friday evening, February 'H, 1S<3. In 

 the absence of the President and both Vice Presi- 

 dents, Dr. Knight was called to the chair ; Dr. Davis 



in place as Secretary. After formal opening and 

 collection of monthly dues, the following donations 

 were recorded : 



Museum. 



A very superior specimen of Sulphurct of Iron, as 

 It occurs in coal beds. This specimen Is a transverse 

 section of an oblong mass live Inches In diameter, 

 and exhibited a brilliant fracture. Obtained and 

 donated l)y the ctirator^. • 



Library. 



"Statutesof the United Slates," In three volumes, 

 Imperial octavo, 61)0 pages, exclusive of copious In- 

 dices to each volume. 



" Messages and Documents," foi- 18S0 and 1881, 

 pp. 10.59. Uoyal octavo, from Deparlment of In- 

 terior. Also from the same, " Circulars 4 and a," of 

 the Bureau of Education. Koyal 8vo. of 2-')0 pages. 



Report of Silver Commission, vol. 2, pp. .511. 



Proceedings of American Philosophical Society, 

 from June to Drcenibor, 18S1, from the society. 



Report of the Departnunt of Agriculture for 1880 

 67.3 8vo. p.iges, copiously illustrated. 



Report of the Silver Commission, vol. 1, pp 511, 

 octavo. Hon. A. Ilerr Smith. 



Bulletin of St. Louis Public School Library, and 

 Sunday Book Caialoiriie and Circulars. 

 Historical. 



Two envelopes containing 24 biographical, histori- 

 cal and scienliQc scraps. 



Anniversary. 



This was the twentieth anniversary meeting of the 

 society, and it is lamented that it was so |X)orly at 

 tended, especially since evening meetings were 

 adopted in order to suit the convenience of those who 

 alleged that they could not attend a meeting held 

 during the day. Dr. Kathvon read a paper on the 

 arigin and histo'-y of the society, which, on vote 

 was requested to be pul)lished. 



Science Gossip. 



After half an hour's pleasant intercourse under 

 this rule of order, the society adjourned to meet on 

 the last Saturday in March, of which notice will be 

 given by the Secretary. 



History of tho Society. 



Dr. Rathvon's paper was as follows: 



Mr. Pkf.sidest: The first stated meeting of the 

 l,inns?an Society was held in February, 186.', just 

 twenty years ago. Prelimin.iry meetings had been 

 held in January, but on the Sth of February its 

 organic laws were adopted, its first board of ollicers 

 elected, and the days and hours of its meetings 

 fixed. It p.i.ssessed nothing save the unmanifestcd 

 intents and purposes of its members, aud these con- 

 sisted exclusively of the Committee on Natural 

 Science, of the '' Athen.xnni and Historical Society." 

 orthut nucleus but three now reside in Lancaster — 

 namely. Prof. Wickersliani, J. B. Kevinski, and the 

 narrator. Prof T. C. Porter was the first president, 

 and continued in otli "C until his removal Irom Lan- 

 caster in 1>> — . J.ieob SMulfer was the first record 

 ing secretary, and continued in olHec until his death, 

 in' March, i8*i0, and 1 have t)een its first and only 

 treasurer. Those who seemed to be most earnest in 

 its organization, have cither removed to other locali- 

 ties, have died, or have become lukewarm. Among 

 those who have died, were some of its most active 

 members and correspondents. Although I was a 

 member of the original committee which finally cul- 

 minated in the orga.'izilion of the Liunvan, I must 

 confess that I was little more than passive in il, for 

 1 had a lortaste that It meant labor, and would in 

 terfere with the complete unity of my specialty in 

 natural science. I had been a member of the 

 " .Marietta Lyceum," as early as 1-H7, and of the 

 " Lancaster Conservatory of krXs and Sciences" in 

 1810, and I had seen both of these institutions dis- 

 banded for the want of working members. 



Institutions of this kind need a goodly number of 

 wealthy patrons, who are lit»eral men of leisure, as a 

 sustaining element, as it is in England, France aud 

 Germany, and to some extent in our larger towns 

 and cities, especially in .Massachusetts — notably, 

 men like Peabody, Thayer and Dr. Morton. 



As it is, in this country, they are generally com- 

 posed of mm who are compelled to earn their bread 

 bv the sweat of their faces, and hence they are 

 obliged to abate their energies, to meet their secuUr 

 obligations. 



When the LinntEan Society was first organized, its 

 object was the.development of the natural history of 

 Lancaster county and adjacent territory. This 

 seemed to tie theobject at least of the few original 

 members who participated in its organization. I 

 hardly think they fully comprehend the magnitude 



