1870. 



NEW E2nGLA2^D farmer. 



351 



ing, else we could not smell it. Such parti- 

 cles may be very minute and of little value. 



It is not necessary to dry grass so much that 

 it cannot be moved without crumbling and wast- 

 ing. It should be prepared for the fork and 

 then dried more if necessary. However, it were 

 better to lose a few crumbles in handling it 

 than to lose the whole by being got in so damp 

 as to heat and mould in the barn. It is not 

 necessary to dry grain for the bin as thoroughly 

 as we should were it to be ground for coffee, 

 in order to have it keep afrer putting it in a 

 dry place ; yet who would think of putting 

 grain in a bin so damp as to have it heat 

 there ? Or who would lay away dried apple 

 when so damp as to mould and rot ? 



Joel Hersey. 



Williamstoiiin, Vt., Jmie, 27, 1870. 



For the Xeto England Farmer. 

 THE LSNTIIi. 



The Journal of Agriculture and Transac- 

 tions of the Highland Agricultural Society of 

 Scotland, gives the following account of this 

 plant : — 



"The lentil is a New British crop. We 

 spoke in the Journal of Agriculture for July, 

 1851, of that ancient vegetable, so often men- 

 tioned in the Bible, so prolific and above all 

 so nutritious, which M. Guillerez, a French 

 professor in our city, has acclimatized by his 

 unwearied efforts at great cost and without 

 any other reward than the gold medal of this 

 society. In 1851 M. Guillerez •^aw his disin- 

 terested efforts repaid for the fourth time 

 ■with a success beyond his most sanguine hopes. 

 From a spot sloping to the north and exposed 

 to all winds, at the back of South Queens 

 Ferry, he gathered two and a half bushels, 

 weighing 167 pounds, from five and three- 

 fourths pounds sowed, although the rain in Au- 

 gust spoiled a great part of the crop, which 

 was then budding. The lentils, sown between 

 rows of beans, have produced on an average 

 80, 25 and as much even as sixty-one for one. 

 Besides he had a splendid crop of beans, and 

 also cabbages, cauliflowers, salsify, beets and 

 leeks all flourished most beautifully. The 

 lentil rows were propped up by stakes. If 

 the lentil crop had not been injured by the 

 heavy rain of August the product would have 

 been an hundred fold. M. Guillerez tried 

 them as forage. He cut them off twice and 

 they grew to the height of four feet." 



The American Institute of the city of New 

 York, says : — "It is now some years since we 

 recommended the cultivation of the lentil in 

 our Farmers' Club meeting. We were in- 

 duced to do it in consequence of the represen- 

 tations made by a distinguished officer of our 

 government, who had suffered from dyspep- 

 sia for many years. Having seen an account 

 of the wonderful cures performed in Paris by 

 a new vegetable medicine called Erva-lentil, 

 be bought some at a dollar a package cf about 



a quarter of a pound, eat It, as directed, in 

 the form of a porridge and got perfectly 

 well. On some investigation we learned (bat 

 this famous medicine was flour of lentils. 

 We sought f jr the lentils, found some at a 

 grocer's, whose stout, healthy app- arance 

 caused us to ask if he lived on lentils. He 

 replied that he sent to Germany for them for 

 his own use, and had been restored by them 

 to sturdy health, from a wretchedly low con- 

 dition. He sold some of them to us at ten 

 cents a quart. We distributed them fre- 

 quently among the members of our club at 

 their meetings. Further accounts are con- 

 tained m our Transactions published by the 

 State. We still urge young America to add 

 to his list this valuable grain. It is partially 

 introduced Into Europe — more in Germany 

 than anywhere else." N. Wright. 



Brokenstraw, Chautauqua Co., N. Y., 1870. 



FEEDING AND "W^OEKIKG HOESES. 



Where one has smooth land that can be 

 mown wiih a machine, it is a great mistake to 

 twrn working horses out to pasture In summer. 

 There can be no question that land will pro- 

 duce more food when the grass or clover Is 

 allowed to grow until it is in flower, than If 

 constantly cropped down as it grows. With 

 a good mower, tedder, rake, and unloading 

 fork, the expense of getting the hay into the 

 barn, if it Is a good crop, need not exceed 

 two dollars a ton. In the summer let the hav 

 be cut into chaff and soaked in water for twelve 

 or twenty-four hours, and the horses will eat 

 it almost as readily as they will fresh grass. 

 With the proper boxej for .-oaklng it, the la- 

 bor is very slight. I used to chaff my hay 

 with a horse-machine, cutting up enough at a 

 time to last for several weeks ; but I question 

 If it Is not better, after all, to cut It every day 

 by hand, as it Is wanted. One of Gale's Cop- 

 per-strip machines will cut in two or three 

 minutes all the hay a team will eat at a meal ; 

 and If (he knives are sharp, it is mere child's 

 play to turn it. The object of soaking the 

 hay chaff instead of merely moistening it in 

 the ordinary way, is to soften it and allow it 

 to ■ bsorb water -just as we soak dried apples 

 before cooking them. Of course, we must 

 not use more water than (he hay will absorb, 

 as in such a case It would wash out the sugar 

 and other soluble nutritive matter from the 

 hay. It is true that If the water Is used for 

 soaking the next feed of hay, the sugar would 

 not be lost, provided it did not ferment. A 

 little experience will enable any one to regu- 

 late the matter. Horses so fed, with a little 

 grain, will fill their stomachs sooner and have 

 more time to rest, and ,vill be able to do more 

 work than if turned out into a pasture — and 

 in (he morning you know where to find them 

 and can eat your breakfast with dry feet. But 

 the horses must be well groomed, especially 

 at night, and the stables properly ventilated 



