1882.] 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



57 



pared with stoves and high ceilings. Nine 

 feet is, I think, an extreme height for the 

 ceiling of an ordinary country hou.se, say one 

 in wliich the largest room is not more tliun 

 twenty feet square, or of equivalent area. 



Besides, there are other numerous consider- 

 ations which tend to the saving of fuel and at 

 the same time increase the healthfulness and 

 comfort of a home. Some of these are the 

 material of tlie walls, their impenetrability to 

 air and moisture, "deafening" of the lloors, 

 which adds greatly to their warmth, good 

 joiner work aliCHit windows and doors, etc. — 

 A Farmer, in Arfierican Agriculturist. 



WHEN TO CUT GRASS. 

 Tlie method of curing gra.ss among farmers 

 varies, some drying it more than others. Too 

 much drying impairs the feeding quality of 

 the liay. In curing some put hay into the 

 mow while green in color, but not so green in 

 condition as to lieat. This method was deem- 

 ed the best. One day of curing of grass that 

 had been cut free from dew was ordinarily 

 enough to cure the grass. When or at what 

 stage of growth should grass be- cut for hay 

 was a question often discussed. It was gene- 

 rally conceded tliat early-cut grass made hay 

 of a better quality than that cut late. 

 Early cut fodder was more digestible than 

 late cut, the digestible nutriment being 

 the measure of value. Young plants were 

 richer in proteine than \ater cut, and there- 

 fore more nutritious, but no only the 

 quality but the quantity from a given area 

 had to be considered, which complicated the 

 problem. The proteine after the grass blo.ss- 

 oms was transferred to forming seeds, the 

 stem, or stalk. As the woody fibre was form- 

 ing, the proteine decreased in both leaves and 

 stalks. The older the plant tlie less digesti- 

 ble it was. The increase of quantity was at 

 the expense of quality. Seeds were not mas- 

 ticable, and for practical purposes hay that 

 was fully ripe was little, if any, better than 

 straw. If but one crop had to be cut the 

 cutting ouglit to be done when the plants be- 

 gin to bloom. The lecturer then went on to 

 give the results of experiments calculated to 

 show that it was more profitable to cut two or 

 three crops of young grass than one crop of 

 ripe grass ; in practice, however, it had to be 

 remembered that the fertility of the soil, the 

 length of the season and the cost of labor 

 were all elements that must enter into the 

 calculation. No general and inflexible rules 

 cotdd be laid down in these matters. Early 

 cutting favored quality, while late cutting fa- 

 vored quanty. The quality of rowen on sec- 

 ond crop varied in quality according to the 

 richness of the soil and the time of cutting 

 the first crop. If cut at a compara- 

 tively early date of its growth, and properly 

 cured, it is a valuable fodder for milch cows 

 and sheep. It requires more skill and care in 

 curing than the first crop, or it suffers loss in 

 quality. 



FEEDING POULTRY AND RAISING 

 CHICKS. 



One of the secrets of successful poultry 

 raising is the art of feeding properly, not 

 merely at regular intervals, but on the most 

 suitable food, and keeping the chicks growing 

 as rapidly as possible from the very start. It 



is very poor economy to stint the poultry, es- 

 pecially young growing stock, for when once 

 stunted, it takes a long while to recover, if it 

 does occur at all. For the first twenty-four 

 hours after the chicks eniorgc from the shell, 

 they shiiuld remain under the hen unmolest- 

 ed, both to dry and gain strength and hardi- 

 ness. They do not recpiire any food, as the 

 store nature provides will last over this time. 

 As the chicks hatch sometimes irregularly.the 

 older ones can be cared for in the Imuse until 

 the others are ready to be taken away, when 

 the hen and her brood can be removed to a 

 roomy coop, with a tight-board bottom and a 

 rain-proof roof. They should be fed five 

 times daily, but only just what they will eat 

 eat u]) clean. The first food should (U)nsist of 

 stale bread m< listened in water or in fresh milk 

 — the milk is decidedly i)re(erable. Do not 

 icet the food, as very moist or sloppy food will 

 cause sickness and a high rate of mortality 

 among young, tender birds. Keep the water 

 (for drinking) away from them until they are 

 six to eight weeks old, but if milk can l)c 

 spared, give them occasional drinks of it. 

 The too lavish use of corn meal has caused 

 more death among young chicks than has 

 cholera among grown fowls. Until the chicks 

 are half-grown, corn meal should be liut spar- 

 ingly fed, but after that time, when judicious- 

 ly used, is one of the very best and cheapest 

 foods for fowls and chicks. Nine-tenths of 

 the young turkey and guinea-fowls, which 

 die when in the "down" state, get their 

 death-blow from corn meal, as it is a very 

 common practice (because it is so "handy," 

 and suits lazy people so well) to merely moist- 

 en, with cold water, some raw corn meal and 

 then feed it in that way. Young chi('ks 

 relish occassional seeds of cracked wheat and 

 wheat screenings, while rice, well boiled, is 

 not only greedily eaten by the chicks, but is 

 one of the very best things that can be given. 

 It frequently happens that damaged lots of 

 rice, or low grades of it, can be bought, at 

 low figures, in the cities. As it increases so 

 much bulk in cooking, it is not an expensive 

 food for young chicks, even at the regular re- 

 tail price, though it would not, ordinarily,pay 

 to feed it to full-grown fowls very liberally or 

 very frequently. In the absence of worms, 

 bugs, etc., during early spring, cheat) parts 

 of fresh beef can be well boiled and shreded 

 up for the little chicks, but care mu.st be taken 

 not to feed more frequently than once in two 

 days, and only then in moderation. This 

 feeding cm meat shreds is very beneficial to 

 young turkey and guinea chicks when they 

 are "shooting'' their first quill feathers, as 

 then they require extra nourishment to re- 

 pair the drain on immature bodies. — Ameri- 

 can Ayricidturist. 



VEGETABLE CONDIMENTS. 

 The best of all is watercress, and consider- 

 ing how easy it can be grown it seems aston- 

 ishing how few people raise it, and how few 

 have it on their tables. It can be produced 

 o the best advantage on the banks of a spring, 

 brook, as a supply may then be obtained at 

 almost any season in the year. Grown on 

 the banks of a stream of this kind it will be 

 crisp and firm and require no care. It may 

 also be grown on the banks of lakes or of 

 streams of tolerably clear water. Experi- 



ments recently made in England show that it 

 can be produced in any garden if pains be 

 taken to apply considerable water to the 

 plants whenever the ground becomes dry from 

 lack of rain. It may be propagate<l by plants, 

 which are easily transplanted if kept moist, 

 or by planting the seed, wliich is kept by 

 nearly all large dealers. The flavor of the 

 leaves aiul stalk is pungent and very agreea- 

 ble. The plant is promotive of health, and 

 is recommended for curing impurities of the 

 blood. It requires no preparation for the 

 table, and is eaten with the addition of a 

 little salt. The common garden cress, or 

 "pepper grass" which resembles watercress 

 in flavor, but is more pungent, is a desirable 

 con<liincnt early in the spring, when the leaves 

 and stalks are (juite tender. Celery is in most 

 respects the favorite of all the vegetable con- 

 diments. It requires, however, more skill 

 and care to raise, blanch and store it than 

 most people are willing to bestow. Lately 

 great iniproV(^ments have been made in its 

 cultivation. It is no longer found necessary 

 to .set the plants in deep trenches, which are 

 gradually filled up as the leaves extend. 

 I^evel culture is now generally adopted and 

 dwarf varieties grown, which require very lit- 

 tle banking up. Onions may be classed with 

 condiments, although they are generally 

 ranked among food plants. Radishesare very 

 desirable condiments and are very easily pro- 

 duced by any one who has only a very small_ 

 amount of land to cultivate. The quicker 

 they are grown the more brittle they are. It 

 is desirable to have a succession of them from 

 early spring till winter. The first crop can 

 be raised in hot-beds. Subsequently a few 

 seeds should be sown every week. Tliey may 

 be dropiied a few inches apart in rows when 

 flower and vegetable seeds are planted. The 

 seeds germinate quickly, and the roots are 

 large enough to pull before the other plants 

 attain much size. 



TRICHINOSIS. 



Few diseases have created more alarm both 

 in this country and in Europe than the one 

 caused by that insinuating parasite, the 

 Trichina Spiralis. Although its ravages were 

 little known, or at all events attracted little 

 attention until a comparatively recent period, 

 the people of both hemispheres have taken 

 the alarm, and half the nations of Europe 

 have legislated against the importation of 

 that food which is generally suppo.sed to be 

 the medium of its introduction. How long 

 the "pork worm," as it has been called by 

 way of distinction, has infected the swine of 

 this and other countries will probably never 

 be known. It may have existed for many 

 years, unsuspected and undetected ; but a 

 dread of its efl'ccts has been aroused which it 

 is to be hoped will not abate until men shall 

 cease to subject themselves to its insidious at- 

 tacks, or discover an eflectual remedy to 

 overcome its deadly effects. 



Up to the present time the trichina spiralis, 

 we believe, has been found exclusively among 

 the animals used for food — in the flesh of 

 swine. Inasmuch as this meat is more or less 

 freely eaten by a large majority of the people 

 this country, it would seem to follow that 

 most persons are liable to be attacked by 

 trichinosis. Fortunately there is an un- 



