1870. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



235 



"With a suggestion from an English paper of 

 good repute among farmers — the Mark Lane Ex- 

 press, — we leave "C. L. S.", and all who suffer 

 from the extorrionate prices of beef, to "settle 

 back" on whichever dilemma they may choose : — 



We do not eat the flesh of rats, but we do of 

 pigs, and yet pigs are among the dirtiest feeding 

 animals of the whole creation. Most people are 

 tond of ham, roast pork, sausages, &c., the flesh 

 Ota well-fed pig. And why should not the flesh 

 of a good far, corn fed rat be palatable and good 

 meat ? Who has ever seen a fresh skinned rat 

 without remarking on the delicate looking nature 

 of the flesh ? We certainly have never tasted it — 

 indeed should require some very strong testimony 

 as to its flivor before doing so; and yet one can- 

 not help thinking that a nice, plump young rat, 

 fried or roasted, and served up with good gravy 

 and other condiments, would make a very deli- 

 cious dish. 



LAMPAS— HORSE DISTEMPER. 



As one of the readers of the Farmer, I wish to 

 inquire, 1. The besi way to treat colts that are 

 troubled with lampas ? Should burning ever be 

 resorted to ? 2. The best way to treat horse dis- 

 temper or horse ail ? Jason Powers. 



West Burke, Vt., March, 1870. 



Remarks. — Lampas is a term used to signify a 

 tumefaction or swelling of some of the lowest 

 ridges or bars of the palate, in the vicinity of the 

 upper nippers. It may arise from a variety of 

 causes. In colts it is caused by congestion, qp an 

 excess of blood in the part, in consequence of local 

 irritation from teething. 



Sponge the parts affected three or four times a 

 day with a weak solution of alum, or an infusion 

 of witch hazel, bayberry bark, or some other as- 

 tringent; and if the swelling does not subside 

 speedily, make a few slight incisions across the 

 bars with a sharp knife. Burning should never 

 be resorted to. 



If by horse distemper, friend Powers means the 

 febrile disease of horses associated with the for- 

 mation of matter between the jaws and about the 

 throat, and which by some writers is called epi- 

 demic catarrh or influenza, and by others strangles, 

 the best treatment consi=ts in applying large, soft 

 and warm poultices to the swellings beneath the 

 jaws, and steaming the nostrils two or three times 

 a day with vapor from boiling water. As soon as 

 the swellings become soft i)y the accumulation of 

 matter, they should be freely opened with a knife 

 or lancet. Laxative or loosening medicines may 

 be given if need be, but nothing should be done 

 to reduce the animal's strength. The food should 

 be boiled oats or barley, or soft mashes of wheaten 

 bread, brown bread, &c. If there is reason to fear 

 that the disease has been communicated by con- 

 tagion, separate the healthy from the diseased an- 

 imals, secure cleanliness and good ventilation, 

 and wash the mangers and parts contiguous with 

 a solution of carbolic acid, or carbolic soap, 



FILM ON THE EYE. 



I would like to inquire through the columns of 

 the Farmer for a remedy that will remove a lilm 



from a creature's eye. Have used tobacco juice 

 and fine salt with no good effect. The injury is 

 recent and supposed to have been done by a blow 

 of some kind. A Subscriber. 



Waitsficld, Vt., Feb. 8, 1870. 



Remarks. — Pound and rub alum into a powder, 

 making it as fine as flour. Fill a common goose 

 quill partly full with it, and from that blow it into 

 the eye. But if the eye is bruised by a blow, that 

 is another matter, and the alum would probably 

 do no good. 



Bl'NCHES ON THE NECK AND BACK OF AN OX. 



Last spring one of my oxen that had been tied 

 next to a farrow cow, in the stable, and kept 

 near her much of the time wnen they were 

 in the yard, was troubled with hard bunches 

 and scales all over his neck and back, which itched 

 l)adly. I gave him saltpetre, &c., but nothing 

 helped him till he was bled, when he apparently 

 got well and did well through the whole season. 

 This v'pring his skin is in the same condition 

 again. As it is too early to bleed him, can you 

 suggest some other remedy that can be applied now ? 



Do you consider it hurtful to a hor.-e to eat 

 meadow hay, — not living upon it entirely, but 

 picking over the orts left Ov the cattle ? J. b. b. 



Tuftonboro', X. H., March, 1870. 



Remarks.— If it will be a good thing to bleed 

 your ox at all, we cannot see any good reason why 

 he may not have his blood shed at one season of 

 the year as well as at another. But we believe 

 there is a better way ; and would advise you to 

 feed him plenty of carrots, turnips, or potatoes, — 

 carrots are the best ; wash him all over with warm 

 soapsuds once a day ; card him well twice a day ; 

 and give him, once a day, a tablespoonful of a 

 powder composed of sulphur two parts, cream of 

 tartar two parts, and saltpetre one part; or, if you 

 prefer, give him a tablespoonful of epsom salts 

 every day, instead of the powder. 



We should not suppose it would hurt a horse to 

 eat what he would of meadow hay or orts, if he 

 was not starved to it. 



BLIND STAGGERS IN HOGS. 



I would like to know what will cure the blind 

 stcgaers in hogs, and what is the cause ? 

 Becket, Mass., March, 1S70. P. Wilson. 



Remarks.— To know what will cure blind stag- 

 gers in hogs, we should first know something of 

 the cause that has produced the affection ; for that 

 disease, like many others, is not always the effect 

 of one and tbe same cause. 



If the animal is constipated, physic him with 

 sulphur, or with sulphur and cream of tartar. If 

 the pores of the skin are closed by an accumula- 

 tion of dirt, wash him with warm soap suds and 

 keep him clean. If the natural issues on the fore 

 legs are closed, open them by washing and rubbing. 

 If he is too fat and plethoric, like some men and 

 women, physic him and give him less food. Very 

 fat men and women, are diseased men and women, 

 and are very liable to have vertigo, which is but 

 another name for "blind staggers ;" and vertigo is 

 a premonitory symptom of apoplexy. As with 

 men and women, so with hogs. 



