882.] 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



127 



a horn up, scrape on the under side just enough to 

 make it trrow fiieler on that side. A very barbarous 

 way to turn a liorii is sometimes practiced, tiy sear- 

 rinir wilii a hot iron on the side toward wliidi tlie 

 boru is to lie turned Tliis prevents tliu {jrowtli of 

 the horn on tliat side and the jrrovvth upon tlie otlicr 

 side turns ttie horn. The horn.<i may he pnlislied l)y 

 rubbkia: tliem with fine sandpaper, and then witli 

 pumice-stone and oilinj; tliein. But tliis artillcial 

 main'pulation of liorns is seldom necessary. Tlie 

 horns of well-fed cattle will ;rcncr:tlly u:row in come- 

 ly shape il let alone. The hair is sometimes oiled to 

 give it a glossy apjearanee, Ijut tin- best gloss is put 

 upon the hiiir by rich and appropriate feeding. Na- 

 ture, under proper conditions, does this work best. 



The Best Farm Horses. 



What class will tie the most profitable to raise is a 

 question of interest to nearly e\ci'y farmer. Trot- 

 ters may be set aside. The care and skill I'equired in 

 training, even when the eolt has all the advantage 

 of pedigree is such as would make serious inroads 

 upon the time and patience ol all but a fortunate lew. 

 So the trotter may be set down as not a jirotitabie 

 horse for the farmer to breed; but carriage and heavy 

 draft horses are. Both of these kind are scarce in all 

 our large cities, and the demand for them greater 

 than the supply; hence prices are always renuinera- 

 tive. For some years to come no sort of farm 'slock 

 will be more profitable than these two classes of 

 horses. The carriage horse requires a good share of 

 thoroughbred blood in him, else he will show a de- 

 flcieucy in style, spirit, action and endurance, quali- 

 ties that constitute the chief value of that class. For 

 draught horses'the native breed is entirely too small. 

 To remedy this delect we must employ the best types 

 of imported stallions. The writer has watched with 

 interest the importations of foreign stock, as tele- 

 graphed over the country for the last few years, and 

 gives it as his judgment that the Clydesdale has 

 been the favorite, and represents the best type of im- 

 ported stallions. What seems singular the heaviest 

 shipment of these horses have almost invariably 

 been for the Eastern or Western States, where they 

 seem to be in high favor. Karely has a shipment 

 for Ohio been recorded. Skipping the details of 

 their anatomy, appearance and peculiarities, we can 

 say that no breed of heavy draught horses is more 

 valuable on the larm, either as pure breeds or to 

 improve our native horses, and this has been a 

 rendered verdict in both the East and the West. 



Draught Hc-ses. 



There has been such a demand made upon West- 

 ern Pennsylvania for draught horses the past few 

 years that farmers who have been fortunate enough 

 to breed heavy horses have found it decidedly to 

 their advantage when their stock was brought to 

 market. The supply is not yet up to the demand for 

 heavy draught horses, and we see as a result that 

 there is a tendency on the part of breeders to meet 

 this demand. The question with the average farmer 

 and breeder is not so much as to what he may preler 

 but what is the most advantageous, the most prolita- 

 ble horse to breed. For ordinary farming purposes 

 in a comparatively level country a horse weighing 

 1,200 pounds is perliaps in most respects the most 

 desirable animal. But as farmers raise four or five 

 times as many horses as they themselves use, the 

 question of breeding simply is, what is the most 

 marketable horse! In selling cattle to the butcher, 

 he pays according to the weight — the heavier the 

 steer the higher the price. Two pounds of beef are 

 worth twice as much as one pound. In draught 

 horses this rule docs not hold good, the advantage 

 being on the side of the heavier'horse. When a 1,300 

 pound horse sells at ?1.50 or 12i< cents a pound, a 

 1,700 pound horse sells at §300, or nearly eighteen 

 cents a pound, making a market of forty per cent, 

 premium over tlie lighter in favor of the heavier 

 horse. It is not dithcult to see, therefore, which 

 is the most advantageous horse to breed lor market. 

 It is simply a question ol dollars and cents, and is 

 readily seen by any one. — I'eimsylvauia Farmer. 



Is Horseshoeing Useless. 

 A recent issue, of Frar.cr's Maqazinc contains an 

 article by Sir George W. Cox, in which he estimates 

 that the English custom of horseshoeing costs the 

 nation as much as 814,000,000, whicir might be 

 saved if the horses were allowed to go unshod. lie 

 quotes the authorities fromXenophon, who marched 

 his horses from Cunaxa over the Armeniau high- 

 lands to the walls of Trcbizond, down to the "free 

 lancers" of the present day, and contends that it is 

 safer, cheaper and better to let horses go unshod 

 over the hardest roads, and especially in the slip- 

 pery streets of London. He estimates that, over 

 twelve milliou dollars would be saved in larriers' 

 bills alone. And he ealeulates further that the work- 

 ing lite of a horse would be trebled by the chansje to 

 that a horse which is now worn out at twelve would 

 live to twenty-six. The figures seem somewhat 

 Btarlling, and have hardly been sufficiently proved to 

 be trustworthy. Meanwhile it is«aid that a medical 

 man in Waterbury, Conn., has not put shoes on his 



horses for two years, driving them themwiiitcr,'sum- 

 mer, spring ami autumn with bare feet without any 

 trouble. The doctor's theory is that nature has pro- 

 vided tiirthe horse; that a horse can travel over all 

 kinds of roads; that the hoof will be moist, antl that 

 the frog coming to the ground keeps the hoof prop- 

 erly spread, and free from founder and other dis- 

 eases. 



Keep the Stable Clear of Flies. 



One of the greatest hindrances to thrift during hot 

 weather is llie aMnoyance caused by Hies. This is 

 true both in the field and stable. In the former we 

 cannot, in any considerable degree, control them, 

 but in the latter we can. The better class of stables 

 shotdd be provided with screens. By this mode, 

 fumigation l)eing practised to drive the Hies out, the 

 stock may be quite well protected. The placing of 

 small vessels of chloride of lime about tlie ceiling 

 will sometimes answer the purpose of keeping them 

 out of the building. If a decoction of hjeopodiiiin 

 (sometimes called wolf's claw), which is the largest 

 of the European mos.-es, be placed in a bladder, the 

 neck being supplied with a quill nozzle, by means of 

 which the liquid can be sprinkled whire the Hies ae- 

 cumulaie; early in the morning, the eHeet u|)0ii the 

 tlies \\U] soon tie seen; as it (juile promptly tleslroys 

 them. This article is also used to destroy vermin. 



Remedy for Side Hole in Cow's Teat. 



Make the edges of the opening raw with a sharp 

 knife, or cauterize with a pointed stick or nitrate of 

 silver. The hole may then be closed with strips of 

 adhesive plaster, or better yet by a coating of "collo 

 dion," which can be oblained of any photographer, 

 if the nearest druL'gist does not keep it. In milking 

 be careful not to displace the dressiug — and it will 

 perhaps be better to draw the milk with a tube for 

 several days. If theopening in the teat is not quite 

 small, it may be necessary to close it by a stitch just 

 through the skin with a fine thread. In most eases 

 the scratching of the edges of the opening with a 

 knife and the application of collodion will however, 

 be sullicient. 



Care of Horses. 



The following abridged observations of a French 

 writer are deserving the atteution of all who have 

 horses under their care : The same quality of oats 

 given to a horse produces dill'ercnt effects, according 

 to the time they are administered. I have made ex- 

 periments on my own horses, and always observed 

 matter not digested, when I purposely gave them 

 water immediately after a feed of oats. There is de- 

 cidedly, then, a great advantage in giving horses 

 water before grain is fed to thenu There is another 

 bad practice I observe, that of giving grain and hay 

 on their return to the stable, immediately after hard 

 work. 



The Stock. 



Give all the stock a bedding, and especially the 

 working oxen and horses. The cows will prove the 

 better for it, so will the yearlings; to the swine a 

 warm place and dry bed are indispensable to profll. 

 Remember the zero weather we have in winter, and 

 how much comfort we can bestow upon the ani- 

 mals dependent upon us, by a little timely care. 



Poultry. 



Poultry Gossip. 



An Indiana man has a bronze turkey cock, nine 

 months old, which weighs :>1\; pounds. 



An occasional, or rather, even a frequent white- 

 washing of tlie hen house will make the air there 

 sweeter and purer than would otherwise be the case. 



The Board of Health of New York city will pro- 

 bahly take a hand in the question of undrawn poultry. 

 It is to be hoped they will show more sense than the 

 aldermen. 



The art of caponizing roosters does away with the 

 worry over the sex of eggs. Experts can do this 

 work for ten cents a piece, and capons are of more 

 value than hens. 



Four uairs of prize ducks at a ree->nt English fair 

 weighed as follows: 1st, 19 pounds .5 ounces; 2d, 19 

 pounds 1 ounce; -Sd, IS pounds 1.5 ounces; 4th, 18 

 jotinds 10 ounces. 



Hens that lay few eggs, or eggs that will not hatch, 

 are sometimes very earnest and persistent sitters. 

 Terhaps they comprehend their weakness and desire 

 to make amends in a useful way. 



A healthy hen, sitting early in the season, can be 

 made to keep richt on and incubate a second batch 

 of eggs if her first hatching is removed in time and 

 given to another hen. Sometimes this is very desira 

 ble when sitters are scarce. 



A New Jersey man recommends keeping eggs in 

 whilcwasb. We should think that tliis would be 

 hard on the shell. If they are to be kept away from 

 the air and cool, why not keep in water without lime 

 or anything else? lias any one tried that? 



Some deodorizer under hen roosts is a very impor- 

 tant matter, both lor health and economy. Cover the 



droppings every mornlnir with sawdust, road dust, 

 dry muck, plaster, dried clay, or anylhlug that will 

 act as an absorbent, and the dangers of cholera will 

 be slight indeed. 



A defender of undrawn poultry claims that It le a 

 full crop which spoils dressed poultry, and not the 

 Intestines. Chickens should be made to fast at least 

 twelve hours In advance of butchering. No doubt 

 that is good advice, but to clean out all the uneata- 

 ble "innards" is better. 



Poultry is not sale in a house Infested with rat«. 

 These crealun s when hungry— and they seem to b« 

 hungry most of the time — will even pull chickent 

 and small fowls from the roosts at night and kill 

 them. They will also rob hatching hens of their 

 young Judicious care will make a hen house rat 

 proof. 



Poultry does not sell according to Its low price In 

 market, but, like good butter and fresh eggs, ac- 

 cording to its quality. Still so many people In the 

 great cities are so accustomed to poor, Havorless, In- 

 sipid poultry, that the first-class article, freshly killed 

 and drawn, would not be recognized at first. There 

 Is education in such matters as well as In the fine 

 arts. 



Somebody in the interest of Incubator manufac- 

 turers avers that city people can raise chickens (in 

 the liack parlor probably) by ineansof incubators by 

 getting eggs "from the grocers and farmers near by," 

 and that even two hundred chickens can be raised 

 "by special care in a room fifteen feet square." All 

 right ; let them try il. The parties sending out this 

 advice must have had experience as lightning-rod 

 agents. 



Ducks can be raised with more certainty than 

 chickens and turkeys. Sink a tub for them in some 

 out of the way place and keep water in il, and that 

 is enough as regards water. Or a sort of basin may 

 be excavated in the ground, and this can be cemented 

 easily so that it will hold water until the next win- 

 ter's frost cracks it. But ducKs are great gorman 

 dizers and will destroy more flowers and flower beds 

 and grass about the lawn than chickens, so this 

 trouble must be guarded against. 



Feather and Egg Eating. 



Fowls in confinement are apt to contract vicious 

 habits, chief among which is feather rating. It is 

 often necessary to confine fowls in certain portions 

 of the season, if not the whole year, and during this 

 perioJ of inactivity they learn this bad triek, which 

 they seldom give up. One leaches another, and 

 they soon denude the bodies of the cocks, and then 

 begin to pluck one another. Feather-eating begins, 

 in the first place, from a lack of something better to 

 do, and at length an appetite is acquired. Cocks are 

 rarely or never guilty of it. Fowls that are confined 

 should be well supplied with vegetable and animal 

 food. This prevents much mischief. When milk 

 may be had. a basin given daily is of great benefit 

 in supplying the lack of vegetable and animal food, 

 and at the same time givin;r occupation. When 

 fowls are at large they gather innumerable insects 

 and other wild i'ood. When confined they are shut 

 off from this, and feither-eating is learned. 



Another habit equally bad, if not worse, is that of 

 eating eggs. The fowls learn this in eonflnement by 

 scratching in the nests, from a lack of something 

 better to do. After the eggs are once broken they, 

 of course, eat them, and thus the taste is formed. 

 Any nest material like hay or straw, invites the hens 

 to scratch, which is second nature to the fowl. To 

 avoid this, give pleiiiy of occupation outside of the 

 building where they root and lay. The fowls should 

 have yards, and be allowed to ruu there. Let them 

 labor a little for food. (Jive them fresh food each 

 day, and allow them to pick their corn from the cob. 

 This they will do if tlie grain is dry and shells easily, 

 thus giving employment. The eggs, however, should 

 be brought in two or three times a day, so that the 

 breakage may be avoided. By 2 o'clock in the after 

 noon the most of the hens have deposited their eggs, 

 and since tliey have not the privilege of L'oing abroad, 

 they look for something else to do. Almost anything 

 that <ilfers they are willing and ready to do. 



Habits thus formed are seldom forgotten. The 

 better way is to prevent the formation. I have seen 

 fowls so given to feather-eating tliat nothing short 

 of death would cure. Any preparations applied to 

 the feathers has no effect whatever. I think some 

 limes it may be brought on through the means of 

 vermin on the Ijody, the presence of which is dis 

 covered liy the hens when at test. I do not think 

 that it is always the case, but cocks, as a general 

 thing, are more infested with vermin than the hens. 

 They do not wallow in dust like the hens. A pretty 

 sure way to teach the fowls bow to eat feathers is to 

 leave the plucked ones from the dead birds about 

 where the living ones have access to them, more 

 especially if they are pen feathers. This habit is ac- 

 quired by all breeds, but the rapid layers and non- 

 sitters are the wors.t. They posses an almost irre- 

 slstilile appetite for animal food, and it is this appe- 

 tite and the gratifying of it that gives us so many 

 eggs. 



That fowls require a great deal of care when 

 made thourougly profitable is readily admitted by 

 all that have once bad the experience. The practice 



