1870. 



NEW ENGLA2sT) FAKVIER. 



91 



some kinds of work he could do as much as any 

 one. I myself paid him two dollars per day to 

 work thniutih'jut haying time, it being dry at the 

 time and he could do as much at that as any one. 

 Whf^n not at work for others or on his own crops, 

 he was clearing his land of stone, brush, &c., and 

 otherwise improving it. Early in the fall I per- 

 suaded him to draw a quantity of muck from ray 

 swamp and put into his barnyard, which more 

 than doubled the quantity of manure, a part of 

 which hi! applied to his meadow and the rest to 

 his planting ground, of which he cultivated no 

 more than he had manure for. He also set out a 

 large s-trawbf rry bed in his garden, from which he 

 sold, the .vccond year, nineteen dollars worth of 

 berries. He has used considerable plaster on his 

 meadow and pasture, which has had a good cfi'ect. 



To m ii\i^ a limg story short, he has gone on im- 

 proving his hind until he now keeps four cows 

 and one horse on his little farm of twelve acres, 

 and he t'Ctually sells more from his place than one 

 of my neighbors does irom tifty-thrce acres, and 

 his pKi -e w 11 now bring him him sixteen hundred 

 dollars. He has perhaps laid out two or three 

 hundred dollars in repairs to the buildings, includ- 

 ing his own labor, — be having done all ihe work 

 him'>elf. It is true that farm produce was higher 

 then than now; t)ut you will obierve that the 

 most he liad to sell was his butter and his own 

 labor when not employed at home, and these are 

 two pro mcts that have not as yet been ntFected by 

 the (le. line of prices, and they will probably be 

 about thj last tilings affected thereby. I think 

 that ".Scriibber' may take courage from this 

 man's experience, and remember ihut energy and 

 perseverance will aecompliuh very many seem- 

 ingly impossible things. 



If a cri( pLd soldier can accomplish such things 

 on tvyelve acies of poor land, what ought we, who 

 have oar health, to do on our hundred-dcre farms ? 

 Truly more than any of us do. I confess that I 

 have learn tl many things of this man, and his 

 methods of farming; and the reason I write this 

 is that others may profit by his experience, if they 

 will. B. 



Oak Hill, N. T., Dec, 1869. 



BTOOKIXG CORN SO A8 TO CURE THE FODDER. 



In the Farmer of Dec. 18, Messrs. "E. O. and 

 H. M. D." a^k how to cure corn fodder. I find it 

 a very easy mat:cr to cure it perfectly. Take a 

 stout f'mjuth pule, about twelve feet long and 

 three inciics in diameter at the largest end, put 

 two Icg-i in the large end with an inch anger, ihree 

 feet eight inches long, and three feet apart on the 

 ground ; bore an inch hole three feet from the 

 legs horizontally through theimle; fit a pin two 

 feeflo.g, so that ic will go through half its length, 

 and you have a stooking horse. Go into the field 

 between the seconel and third rows, cut and set 

 up btf ire and behind the pin, on both sides of the 

 horse, about twenty bids, which make a stook large 

 enough. When enough is set up, take in one 

 hami a good strong double band of rye or oat 

 sti'aw, jiut both arms around the stook and fetch 

 it together tight as possible, turn ov, r the tops 

 and bmel dov n clo^e to the ears tight as you 

 can. in tying down the tops, be careful not 

 to move the buts from the ground. If corn 

 is cut up before too ripe, before it falls down 

 and becomes crooked every way, and is set up 

 up firmlv, pointing a little to the centre and placed 

 equally on all sIlIcs, and each stalk standing on 

 the ground, it will save and cure perfectly, so that 

 any quantity can be packed in a mow without 

 heating. The whole operation depends on the 

 workman; it a man undertakes it that don't care 

 for the difference between a hill of corn l*ing 

 down and one standing up, he won't make it 



stand. If some lies half way down and sora9 

 stands up, or if as much again is set up on one 

 side of the frame as on the other, and all twisted 

 round, it certainly wil' not stand; and if it don't 

 stand, it won't cure. If the operation is well done 

 success will be sure. But there are many that 

 pretend to stook in this way, that can't make a 

 stook stand any how. As I before said, it all de- 

 pends on the workmanship of the one who puts up 

 the stonks. W. S. Grow. 



Weiiboro', Mass., Dec. 20, 1869. 



SWELLED SHEATH IN HORSES. 



My father once had a valuable hor>--e that was 

 troubled in the same way as Mr. Griffin's, of Annis- 

 quam, Mass., mentioned in Farmer of December 

 18, and cured him by washing and digging out the 

 sheath with the fingers, u--ing casttle soap and 

 water blood warm. After that give the hor.-e gen- 

 tle ex' rcise. If the first opor.ition fails to cfiect a 

 cure, wash it out ae'ain in a w( ek or ten days. 



Kensington, iV. H., Dec. 20, 1S69. J. H. 



I raised seven kinds of potatoes this year, viz.: 

 Jackson Whites, Orinos, Stevens', Davis' Seedling, 

 Goodrich Seedling. Prince Albert or Iri-h Pippins, 

 and a few Early Rose. The Jackson White and 

 Orino were hardly worth digging, being very 

 small and rouch. The Iri^h Pippins were poor 

 and watery. The other kinds were extraordinarily 

 good. The Stevens' are better for fall and early 

 winter eating. Goodrich and Davis' seedlings are 

 good keeping varieties; good table potatoes for 

 spring and summer. A neighbor, whose farm ad- 

 joins "mine, says his Jackson Whites were very 

 good — the best variety he raised. Another neigh- 

 bor claiiHS the Irish Pippins are the best he raised.- 

 I planted half an Early Rose, but did not get an 

 extraordinary yield. C. Martin planted fitteen 

 i Early Rose which produced eight bushel, but they 

 rotted so badly that he removed them from his 

 cellar. Two-thirds decayed soon alter digging. 

 J. House planted less than one bushel of the Uhiii 

 or Cailian Pink, which produced seventeen bushels 

 of grand eating potatoes. 



potato washer. 

 While speaking of potatoes, I would recommend 

 the potato washer. Have used one six months. 

 Ic washes potatoes well in less thin five minutes, 

 which would take twenty minutes at least to wash 

 by hand. It is a greithelp to a farmer's wife, and 

 is also convenient lor washing potatoes for hogs. 



THE BEAN BRAGS. 



I have made no count of beans raised this year, 

 but last year I raised a stalk from one bean which 

 bore 230 puds, wh».h from actual count; and esti- 

 mate contained 14U0 beans. This shows what the 

 Thousand and One bean can do. 



A GOOD PORK BARREL. 



For a small family that uses but little pork, a 

 large stone jar — thcv can be had that will hold the 

 salting pieces of a 200 pound pig— makes a capital 

 pork barrel. Park tightlv with'plenty of salt, aad 

 always keep a little salt above the brine. 



chicken?. 

 Last sprinfj we had six hens of the Brahma 

 breed ; sold $6 50 worth of eggs, and raised thirty- 

 six chickens, of which twenty-six were sold for 

 .'Si25 00, at twenty cents per pound. Have a good 

 hen house, and think it cost no more to keep ihem 

 shut up than it does to let them run alter they get 

 big enough to damage the gaiden and grain crops 

 near the house. Give them plenty of water. 

 Forty hens will drink a pailful in a day when eat- 



