THE LANCASTER FARMER- 



i09 



that farmers have orffanized. He was happy to say 

 that they are at hist organizing, and said that the 

 Institute now holding would have a tendency to 

 cause others to be establlslied in other portions of 

 the State. 



A very early attempt had been made to organize 

 an agricultural society In Lancaster county, but it 

 proved unsuccessful. In 182.5 another and more sup- 

 cessful attempt was made, from which time to the 

 present the garden of Pennsylvania— made so by the 

 industry of tlie Scotch-Irish and Germans — hastalten 

 the lead in agriculture If, in the early days it was 

 deemed essential for the farmers to organize, how 

 much more is it deserving of consideration now, with 

 oury,()00 farms, with our 480,000 acres of land, as- 

 sessed at $60,000,000, and yielding annually 89,000,- 

 000? Is not this of sufllcieut importance to demand 

 our attention ? 



This is not a manufacturing State, but an agricul- 

 tural State— the agricultural wealth representing 

 much more than that represented by the combined 

 wealth of all other industries. For this reason farm- 

 ers should organize for the protection of their in- 

 terests. 



Governor Pattioou, after alluding to the vast 

 improvement that had been made in the interest of 

 farmers, turned his attention to the subject of for 

 estry, saying that there was no pursuit that could 

 be made more prolitable— $700,000,000 representing 

 its value in the United States alone. This statement 

 he verified by statistics evidently gleaned by him 

 with great care. These statistics show that we are 

 falling behind in the production of timber. A rail- 

 road tie, he said, that it takes thirty years to grow, 

 will rot In seven years, and this fact alone shows the 

 necessity of replanting our forests. The Mexican 

 Government offers great premiums for the continu- 

 ance of its timber — how much more important is it 

 that we should protect the forests that are to protect 

 our children. The speaker urged all to take the 

 subject of foresting to their hearts and give It their 

 daily thought, and said the State looks to Lancaster 

 county to give her an example in protecting her 

 timber lands. In conclusion, the governor thanked 

 his audience for the attention given to his remarks 

 and congratulated all upon the success that has 

 attended the first Farmers' Institute ever held in 

 Pennsylvania. 



Man's Foster-Mother — The Cow. 



Willis P. Hazard, Esq., of West Chester, followed 

 with an interesting and instructive lecture on the 

 subject of "Cows." He started out by asserting 

 that in dairy districts will always be found greater 

 evidences of wealth and higher intelligence than In 

 any other farming districts. In many neighborhoods 

 the dairyman is rapidly becoming a commercial man, 

 for the reason that, as he averred, the creamery is 

 turning out butter of the best quality, and as the 

 quality increases so does the price. Creamery men 

 and milk producers and finding great competition in 

 oleomargarine, simply for the reason that it has not 

 yet been demonstrated that the latter article is in- 

 jurious to health. Laws may be passed to stamp it, 

 but who shall say any hotel or restaurant shall serve 

 it with Its stamp, or who shall say that the purchaser 

 shall not buy it if he desires to so do. 



He believed in encouraging the home market, for 

 the reason that it is the best. It was well, however, 

 to have a foreign market to consume the surplus, 

 because its retention would have the efl'ect of reduc- 

 ing prices. The present thoroughbred cattle, with 

 our ereat barns and cleanly stables, are in great con- 

 trast with the gaunt animals that used to feed about 

 our straw stacks. Formerly the cow that made 100 

 pounds of butter per annum was a rarity ; now there 

 are plenty that make 200 to 300 pounds. What we 

 want now is to have better farms and better cows. If 

 we can increase the amount of butter from 200 to 

 300 pounds per annum, we can dispense with every 

 third cow and thus save the cost of feeding one cow. 



Within a few years past the cow that gave 14 

 pounds of butter per week was a wonder, but now 

 the number of those cows runs into the thousands. 

 Such is the demand for this kind of cows that they 

 rise rapidly in price. Take a 11 pound cow and you 



get butter that brings twice as much as that pro- 

 duced from a 7 pound cow, while the calves of the 

 former sell for greatly larger prices. For dairy pur- 

 poses the speaker recommended three breeds — the 

 Channel Island, the Guernseys and the Jerseys. All 

 of these are good, but it was also important to get a 

 good registered bull and breed from him. In se 

 iecting a cow pick out one with a good constitution, 

 round barrel, large milk veins, large udder oi 

 proper shape, the four quarters conforming witli one 

 another, and with a rich, mellow hide covered witli 

 silky hair. 



Farmers and Public Affairs. 



.lacob .M. Frantz was the next speaker. He took 

 the aflirmative side of the question, " Should farmers 

 interest themselves in public affairs?" W. H. 

 Brosius,John C. Linvillo and Ephram Hoover held 

 the same view as did Mr. Frantz. 



In closing the debate Governor Pattison said he 

 who serves himself well serves the State best, and 

 urged upon all farmers to take as much interest in 

 the affairs of the State as they can with profit to 

 themselves. There are many farmers who have 

 noble thoughts sometimes at home, which they 

 should put on record. Put them in the shape of 

 questions to the Stale Board of Agriculture, and 

 they would give the world the benefit of the thought 

 that would otherwise Iiave been lost. 



Mr. H. M. Engle appealed to the farmers present 

 to become members nf the Lancaster County Agri- 

 cultural Society. 



Judge Livingston, %vho was present at the sessions 

 of the Institute, being called upon, said he would 

 like to make some extended remarks, but must re- 

 frain on account of a severe attack of neuralgia. He 

 would add a little to what Gov. Pattison said by 

 advising farmers to prepare their thoughts and 

 questions carefully and present them to their loca' 

 clubs, to get the various views of the members. 

 Then send them to the State Board of Agricultural. 



In answer to a question Mr. Hazard said there was 

 no difference between the Jersey cattle so-called and 

 the Alderneys — they both came from the same 

 island . 



On motion a vote of thanks was tendered Dr. 

 Wickersham for the valuable assistance rendered by 

 him towards making the Institute a success. The 

 doctor responded by assuring all that the meeting 

 had been a success, even though the number in at- 

 tendance was not so large. Still, as this was the 

 first one of the kind over held in the State he had 

 every reason to be satisfied with the attendance on 

 tills occasion. He hoped the members would labor 

 to make the succeeding ones still more successful, 

 and he expected to live to see the time when the 

 Court House would not be large enough to hold the 

 people who would gather at a meeting of the 

 Farmers' Institute. 



LINNiEAN SOCIETY. 



Linnsean met in their rooms on S.^t.u^day, June 28, 

 18S4, at 2)i P. M., the president, Hon. J. P. Wicker- 

 sham in the chair. Minutes of previous meeting 

 were read and approved and dues collected 

 Donations to the Museum. 



From Mr. George Miller, proprietor of the restaur- 

 ant at No. 25 North Queen street, a very large 

 hornet's nest, which he obtained from a friend in 

 Earl township. The nest measures 18 inches in 

 length and 40 inches in circumfurenct : and is the 

 " Home without Hands" of the " American Hornet" 

 — Vesjm maculata. As we have a number of species 

 of fexpa, but only one of them is popularly called a 

 hornet, therefore the prefix " American" can only 

 be properly applied to the common name of this in- 

 sect, especially as one species has received the name 

 of Americana^ which has been regarded as the 

 American variety of the foreign species Vuhjarix. 

 This latter insect is commonly called the " Yellow 

 Hornet," on account of Its yellow color alternating 

 with dark brown or black ; the Maculata being 

 white or black ; sometimes called the " White" or 

 " White faced hornet." The Americana also builds 

 a spherical paper nest on bushes, but it is usually 

 much less in size than that of the white hornet. 



This yellow hornet must, however, not be con- 

 founded with the l'<it/)ii ^'iTmaiiicn, commonly called 

 "Vellow Jacket," which builds its nest under ground. 

 Tlie European " Hornet " — i'espa Vrabro — dUI'ers 

 very much in its nesting habits, as well as in its 

 coloration, from the American hornet; sufficiently, 

 at all events, to constitute a distinct species, and not 

 merely a variety. For instance, the European species 

 does not build its nest out in the open air, and sua- 

 jjended from a branch, but on the contrary it builds 

 In hollow trees or other sheltered places. Although 

 it covers its nest externally with its own manufac- 

 tured paper, instead of one or two apertures of en- 

 trance and exit. It has from twelve to twenty or more. 

 Tlie case is the same with the foreign species Vul- 

 garis. The American insect builds a globular nest in 

 tlic open air, and tlie foreign species does not, it 

 builds underground. 



The cells in the nests of hornets often number 

 thousands, and yet on the approach of winter the 

 males die, the females disperse, and the elaborate 

 home is abandoned never to be reoccupied. The 

 females that survive the winter, solitary and alone, 

 found an entirely new colony and build a new home. 

 I have often found the female hornet late In autumn, 

 or early in spring, occupying a cavity under an old 

 and deeply embeded log or a stone. Sometimes alto 

 in decayed wood. 



The first thought in the direction of making 

 piper, doubtless, must have come from the example 

 of the " iiornet," but wliether it did or not, the 

 hornet may legitimately claim priority to man, and 

 not only the hornet, but also the "wasp" (Polistei 

 fiixctttU!-, etc.) On one occasion we watched a 

 hornet for some time, gnawing off the surface of an 

 old rail. He was very busy in his work, but not too 

 busy to notice our approach, for he turned around 

 and faced us, seeming to say, "pass on, lam en- 

 gaged now, and will not be interrupted," and we 

 felt it convenient to pass on, rather than to pick a 

 quarrel with him. 



A specimen of "Peewee" (_f!ayornis fuscut) do- 

 nated l)y J. M. Westhaeffer. Mr. W. found this 

 bird on the pavement in East Orange, dead, and as 

 it was still warm and limp, he supposed it had fallen 

 from the tree under which it was found only a short 

 time previously. 



Birds are frequently found under similar circum- 

 stances, and it would be of some interest to know 

 the cause of it. 



Mr. Geo. Flick, taxidermist, donated a fine speci- 

 men of the " Pouter Pigeon." 



S. M. Seuer donated an old style fireman's hat of 

 about 1840. This kind of one was worn by the 

 members of the Friendship Fire Company; also a 

 bottle containing berries and foliage of the coffee 

 tree (Oaffei Arabica) from the tree in Horticultural 

 Hall, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. Mrs. Gibbons 

 exhibited a cluster of plums of the variety called 

 "Wild Goose Plum." Dr. T. R. Baker donated 

 specimens of alum rock found in digging a well at 

 Highville, Lancaster county. This is a variety of 

 shale containing sulphate of alumina, and is rare in 

 our county, in fact this is the first occurrence of It. 

 Mrs. Zell exhibited a glass goblet of genuine maple 

 sugar from the Interior of New Hamijshirc. This is 

 of a delicious flavor and was enjoyed by the members 

 present, who sampled it until the glass was empty. 



Donations to Library 

 consisted of United States Patent Gazette, Vol. 27, 

 Nos. 10, 11, 12, 13, and Index to Vol. 2(i ; American 

 Journal of Meteorology, Vol. 1, No. 1, for June, 

 1SS4; Proceedings of Academy of Natural Sciences, 

 Philadelphia, January to Aiiril, 1W84, Part 1; 

 Farmer for June, 1884 ; TAwman Bulletin, a ten- 

 page paper, for May, 1884 ; Uibliothcqiie Entomo- 

 logique. May, 1884, from Ed. Andre, Paris; The 

 Slate Trade Journal, Eastou, Pa., Vol. 1, No. 1 ; 

 Prospectus of Publications of the Wyoming History 

 and Geological Society, Wlikesljarre, Pa. 



Sketch of the Life of James G . Birney, by General 

 William Birney, from the author ; descriptive pamph- 

 let of Gliues' Patent Slate Roofing Paint ; summer 

 excursionist Vermont Central Railroad ; Universitr 



