248 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Aug. 



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scarlet, some crimson, some yellow, orange, white, 

 &c, with a mixture of the two colors. These 

 have hardly become well known before we have 

 another improvement, obtained by the German 

 florists, in double flowers, as double as the rose. 



These double varieties are in fact charming ob- 

 jects, and may well claim a prominent place among 

 the novel things of recent introduction. The flow- 

 ers are perfectly double, about the size of a twen- 

 ty-five cent piece, and a bed of them in full bloom 

 presents a gay appearance, not unlike that of the 

 beautiful ranunculuses, or the little Burgundy 

 rose, so that the Germans call them "Portulaca 

 roses." 



The portulacas love a warm and rather light 

 soil, and a dryish situation, to flower well. They 

 need not be planted early, unless in a frame or 

 hot-bed, as the seed will not grow freely till the 

 ground is warm. About the middle of June the 

 plants begin to appear in the open ground, and 

 grow with great rapidity, soon covering a large 

 bed, and making a dazzling display, with their 

 many-hued flowers, from July to frost. 



The double varieties, like all other double flow- 

 ers, cannot be relied upon with certainty to pro- 

 duce all double flowers, but the larger part of 

 them will be double, and the single sorts may be 

 pulled up and thrown away or transplanted, unless 

 it is desired to retain them in the same bed with 

 the double kinds. 



Indian Corn. — A correspondent of the Prai 

 rie Farmer, after a few remarks on the culture of 

 corn, waxes eloquent, as follows, on the value of 

 this grain : 



With a nominal cost of seed, a range of two 

 months for planting, it waits for the sick and the 

 absent — may be harvested almost any time without 

 expensive machinery, is almost indestructible, de- 

 stroys worthless plants, gives about as much rough 

 feed for all domestic animals, and is unequaled 

 for fattening purposes. The buxom girls and stal- 

 wart sons of the West deem it the staff of life 

 when made into bread, and when made into whis- 

 key many think it life itself. It supports the poor 

 man's family, the rich man's flask and the mer- 

 chant's trade. It is the basis of an immense trade 

 in beef, the main pillar of our national prosperity, 

 the golden fleece of America, the staple of the 

 West, the pride of Illinois. From its partial fail- 

 ure last season we more fully appreciate the ines- 

 timable value of this splendid gift of the Great 

 Spirit to the Red Man, the jewel of our rich in- 

 heritance. 



About Milking and Talking. — A corres- 

 pondent asks : "Does it affect the quantity of 

 milk a cow will give if conversation is carried on 

 between milkers when milking?" We do not 

 think there is any doubt about it — especially 

 where the dairy is made up of young cows, We 

 would not have a loud-talking m^ker in the sta- 

 ble. And it would be better without doubt, if 

 conversation were entirely tabooed when milking. 

 We remember some years ago, a dairyman assert- 

 ed at a meeting of a farmers' club, that he had 

 discharged a man because he would talk and inter- 

 rupt the milking in his dairy, and that in three 

 days the increase in milk was equal to the man's 

 wages. Such are important facts, if established. 

 — Bural New Yorker. 



FIRE-FLIES. 



'Tis June, and all the lowland swamps 

 Are rich with tufted reeds and ferns, 

 And filmy with the vap'rous damps 



That rise when twilight's crimson burns; 

 And as the deepening dusk of night 

 Steals purpling up from vale to height, 

 The wanton fire-flies show their fitful light. 



Soft gleams on clover-bloom they fling, 



And glimmer in each shadowy dell, 

 Or downward, with a sudden swing, 



Fall, as of old a Pleiad fell ; 

 And on the fields bright gems they strow, 

 And up and down the meadow go, 

 And through the forest wander to and fro. 



They store no hive, nor earthy cell, 



They sip no honey from the rose; 

 By day unseen, unknown they dwell. 



Nor aught of their rare gift disclose ; 

 Yet, when the night upon the swamps 

 Calls out the murk and misty damps 

 They pierce the shadows with their shining lamps. 



Now ye who in life's garish light, 



Unseen, unknown, walk to and fro, 

 When Death shall bring a dreamless night. 



May ye not find your lamps aglow ? 

 God works, we know not why nor how, 

 And one day, lights, close hidden now, 

 May blaze like gems upon an angei's brow ! 



"The Round Table." 



PURE WATER FOR STOCK. 



A good draught of good water is, probably, as 

 refreshing to beasts as it is to people. But in the 

 month of August, nearly all domestic animals suf- 

 fer for want of good water. Sheep will thrive far 

 better if they can have access to pure water. 

 Teams will endure the heat far better if they can 

 have plenty of pure water ; and if milk cows must 

 drink stagnant water wherever they can find it, 

 how is it possible for them to give their usual flow 

 of good milk. It is impracticable for them to do 

 this. 



Some people allow water to stand in troughs, 

 day after day, many times, and compel their ani- 

 mals to drink it all up. Did such people ever 

 drink water from an old dirty slop pail, after it 

 had been allowed to stand in the sunshine for two 

 or three days ? Let them try the experiment of 

 drinking such water, and wait for the result ; and 

 then they will be prepared to express a correct 

 opinion, whether or not such water is as good for 

 stock, in the sultry days of August, as pure cold 

 water would be. 



Water troughs and water tanks should be 

 cleaned frequently, during the hot days of August 

 and fresh water pumped into them several times 

 during the day. 



Milk cows require a vast quantity of pure water 

 in hot weather, in order to produce their usual 

 flow of good milk. — Country Gentleman. 



Stone Houses. — The writer of an essay on 

 "Country Houses," printed in the Baltimore 

 Farmer, concludes that, "As to the economy of 

 stone, we believe, at the present prices of himber, 

 it is quite as cheap, if not actually cheaper than 

 wood ; and as to the comfort of houses built of 

 stone, when compared with those constructed of 

 wood, the odds are altogether in favor of the 

 stone." 



