136 



POPULAE SOIEIsTCE NEWS. 



[September, 1888. 



female or pistillate floweis. At the base of 

 each flower is seated the pistil, containing the 

 ovule, or immature seed ; while surrounding the 

 pistil are a number of little grains, which con- 

 sist principally of the lupulin, or active prin- 

 ciple. The grains are embedded in a yellow 

 powder containing an essential oil, which gives 

 to the hops their peculiar flavor. Air-dried 

 hops contain about 0.8 per cent of this oil. In 

 old hops the oil is sometimes oxidized into 

 valerianic acid, which is the cause of the cheesy 

 odor thej' often possess. Hops also contain 

 from two to five per cent of tannic acid. This 

 is useful in brewing, as it precipitates the 

 albuminous matters of the malt, and serves to 

 clarify the beer. The lupulin, which must not 

 be confounded with the essential oil, occurs 

 with a resin known as hop resin. It is soluble 

 with difficulty in pure water, but dissolves to 

 a considerable extent in the beer. 



The quality of beer is largely dependent 

 upon that of the hops. They require a rich 

 soil and a sunny exposure. They must not be 

 gathered until the seed is perfectly ripe, as 

 only then are the lupulin and oil fully devel- 

 oped. They are carefullj' dried at a tempera- 

 ture of about 100° F., and packed in bags. 

 They are sometimes subjected to the vapor of 

 burning sulphur, to preserve them ; but the 

 practice is an objectionable one, especially as 

 old, inferior hops are occasionally treated in 

 the same way, to give them the appearance of 

 freshness. 



The medicinal principle of hops, lupulin, 

 possesses narcotic and sedative properties, 

 and is considerably used where such effects 

 are indicated. A " hop pillow " is an old- 

 fashioned remedy for sleeplessness, and every 

 farmer's wife knows the virtue of a hop poul- 

 tice. In England there is a superstition that 

 the dust from freshly' gathered hops, falling 

 into the mouth, is a cure for consumption. 

 Charles Dickens, who lived in a hop-growing 

 district, speaks of the number of death-stricken 

 consumptive wretches who, joining the gangs 

 of hop-pickers, and " sleeping in the fields, 

 amid the dew and damp, get well surelj' and 

 speedily." 



Many substitutes for hops have been em- 

 ployed for flavoring beer, such as wormwood, 

 aloes, quassia, and picric acid. It is said 

 that strychnine is sometimes used for the pur- 

 pose, but this is probably untrue. All the 

 substances mentioned above are inferior to 

 hops, and their use constitutes an adulteration. 

 Hops themselves are not especially injurious ; 

 and if the same could be said of the alcoholic 

 constituent of beer, there would be little objec- 

 tion to its general use as a nutritious and 

 wholesome beverage. 



of leaves, weeds, sticks, chips, coru-cobs, and 

 other materials too immerous to mention, — largely 

 the proceeds of a thorough overhauling and rak- 

 ing-over of the various yards. A lot of cast-off 

 boots and shoes, old bones, and many bushels of 

 oyster-shells were gradually added to the heap 

 when in full blaze, and the raoister part of the Tak- 

 ings and rubbish was reserved for placing on the 

 outside of the great mass of fire, as a cover and 

 damper, to prevent over-rapid and complete com- 

 bustion. The heap kept smouldering for several 

 days and nights. The burnt oyster-shells around 

 the outside were gradually slacked by repeated 

 rains and occa.sional applications of water from 

 the garden sprinkler, while the inside yet remained 

 a red-hot, glowing mass. 



" What is the result of all this ? For one thing, 

 the premises had a thorough cleaning, and every 

 thing around the house and in the yards — hen- 

 yard included — looks 'as slick as a whistle.' 

 This is one advantage. The other is more sub- 

 st^tial; namely, fifteen wheelbarrow loads of a 

 most valuable fertilizer and insect repeller, con- 

 sisting of a fine quality of unleached ashes, shell 

 lime, burnt bone, soot, charcoal, etc., the whole 

 impregnated with creosote, and rank with the 

 smoky odor so repulsive to insects. A\'here this 

 material is freely incorporated with the soil, few 

 insects will care to come or stay, while plant- 

 growth is especially healthy and thrifty. Sift the 

 fine dost over radishes, turnips, cabbage, etc., and 

 the jumping striped flea-beetle will bid you 

 good-by at once. If I cannot succeed in raising 

 radishes that are free from the maggot any other 

 way, I never fail to do so when applying a gener- 

 ous dose of the ' roast of rubbish ' to the soil 

 before sowing the seed. But it is a powerful fer- 

 tilizer, and should be well mixed with the soil, or 

 applied as a top-dressing around the plants. Too 

 much of it should not come into actual contact 

 with them, as it is liable to scorch them. I cart 

 it to the garden as wanted, and put a small shovel- 

 ful around the melon, squash, and cucumber vines, 

 the egg and tomato plants, etc. It does good 

 wherever put. 



" Every farmer can make such a 'roast,' and 

 most of them even larger and more valuable than 

 mine. Not everybody has oyster-shells to dispose 

 of in this way, 'tis true; but they are not indis- 

 pensable. Save all the bones from the household 

 dead poultry or other farm animals. There is 

 always plenty of rubbish accumulating in the 

 course of a season : all this should be gathered, 

 and utilized for the great annual auto-da-fe. ' ' 



A "ROAST OF RUBBISH." 



A CORRESPONDENT of The Farm and Fireside 

 says : — 



" I have just finished my annual ' roast of rub- 

 bish.' Upon a foundation of pieces of partly 

 decayed rails and sticks of timber, arranged in 

 the form of a grate, and placed in a convenient 

 spot of the back-yard, a fire was kindled, and fed 

 with the trimmings of fruit-trees, great quantities 



year was nearly $500,000,000. This is $20,000,000 

 more than the value of our annual wheat -yield; 

 while it closely approximates that of our corn-crop, 

 which is the most valuable of our farm products. 



To support this immense dairy-herd, 100,000,000 

 acres of pasture-land are required, worth .|250,- 

 000,000. It is easy enough to see, therefore, that 

 the 4,000,000 farmers in tlxis country are an im- 

 portant element of our national welfare and pros- 

 perity. — Holsleln-Friesian Register. 



WHAT THE COW GIVES US. 



American dairy interests are startlingly enor- 

 mous. They represent an investment of nearly 

 twenty-five times the entire bank capital of the 

 country ; that is to say, the bank capital is a little 

 less than $971,000,000, while the dairy interests 

 amount to more than $3,000,000,000. 



Of course our readers cannot swallow such fright- 

 ful figures in a lump, and we will therefore arrange 

 them in several smaller, but still heroic, doses. 



The number of milch-cows is estimated at 21,- 

 000,000. They give each an average of 350 gallons 

 of milk annually. This would make an aggregate 

 milk production of 7,350,000,000 gallons, a minia- 

 ture ocean, a fair sized-Niagara. Four thousand 

 millions are used for cheese, and the remaining 

 2,650,000,000 pass through the adulterating hands 

 of the milkman and gi'ocer, and down the throats of 

 60,000,000 men, women, and babies in this land of 

 freedom. 



The quantity of butter manufactured and used 

 is about 1,350,000,000 lbs., and of cheese 6,500,000 

 lbs. The v^lue of_our dairy products for the last 



HORTICULTURAL HIN'IS. 



Gardening is the handmaid of civilization ; the 

 more enlightened a people become, the more do 

 they study the securing of better health, comforts, 

 and luxuries. Horticulture provides these. 



Handsome Foliage. — The experience of some 

 horticulturists is, that blooms are at the expense 

 of fine foliage. Particularly is this the case with 

 the fancy-leaved geraniums. Coleuses' lose in 

 beauty if permitted to seed. 



Hedges of Roses have been adopted on some 

 European railways to screen the lines from drifts 

 of snow, and thus prevent blocking. They have 

 proved immensely serviceable. 



Rain-Proof Flowers for the Autumn. — A 

 correspondent of the Horticultural Times writes, 

 " If I had space, I could make out a fairly long 

 list of subjects suitable for flowering in the autumn ; 

 but here is a list of three that will disappoint no 

 one if they grow them well. The first is Rudbeckia 

 Newmani, a hardy herbaceous plant, the flowers of 

 which are composed of a single ray of golden 

 florets encircling a black disc, a very striking plant 

 in a mass, which neither wind nor rain injures. 

 The purple sage (Salvia-herminum) is another plant 

 that defies wind and rain. The flowers are insig- 

 nificant, but the purple spots which are formed at 

 the points of the shoots is the part which furnishes 

 the color. It is an annual, and is well adapted for 

 growing in masses. My next favorite autumn 

 flower is Tagetus Signata Puviila, a well-known 

 form of dwarf marigold, with golden-yellow flowers. 

 Everybody should grow plenty of this if they want 

 a bright garden in the autumn." 



Heliotrope Flowers in AVinter. — The 

 heliotrope with fair management is one of the most 

 profuse and steady flowering-plants for either the 

 window or conservatory. It may be had in bloom 

 every month. To have a supply of winter and 

 spring bloom, the plants should have been started 

 from slips in June. They should soon after have 

 been given three-inch pots, and a place in full air 

 until the approach of frost. During the summer 

 interval they require frequent stopping, for indu- 

 cing the usually preferred low bushy form, with 

 an abundance of flowering shoots. An occasional 

 shift should also be resorted to, remembering, 

 however, that rather close root quarters is a gain. 

 During the flowering stage the plants should have 

 from 50° to 60° of heat ; and about once a week, 

 or when in full bloom twice a week, they may 

 with benefit receive liquid manure at the roots. 

 The plants, like the flowers themselves after cut- 

 ting, do better for not being crowded together or 

 with others. In dealing with that common pest 

 of such plants, the green-fly, care must be taken 

 that the foliage be not injured with the usual rem- 

 edy, — tobacco-smoke. This remedy may with 

 safety be applied in moderately strong volume if 

 the simple precaution of syringing or otherwise 

 completely wetting the foliage just previous to 

 starting the fumigation is observed, otherwise the 

 plants would be liable to become badly burned. 

 The heliotrope delights in a comfMst consisting of 

 three parts of fresh loam or decayed turf to one 

 part of rotted manure, with a good sprinkling of 

 sharp sand added. 



