330 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



wooden tub — stir until the sugar is melted by the hot juice, then pour into 

 glasses or other vessels; when cold it will be found to have jellied most 

 perfectly. When currant jelly is thus made, it is of a bright color, and 

 not blackened and without aroma, as when the sugar and juicg are cooked 

 together. It should be remembered that water boils at 212'^, cvu'raut juice 

 at about 213°, while currant juice and sugar require 240°, and at this latter 

 temperature the more volatile portions pass up the chimney, while the 

 mass is darkened in color and frequently so disorganized by the heat as 

 not to form a firm jelly. 



The Cathead Apple of Maine. 



Mr. Edward C. Chase, of South Yarmouth, Me., commends very highly 

 an apple grown in that section, known as the Cathead apple. " It is the 

 best early apple in the country; is ripe by the first of September; color, 

 red; flavor, tart; and commands a high price in market. Tlicy arc but 

 little known out of this county." Mr. C. offers to semi scions, if any one 

 wishes to propagate them. 



Why Hens Eat Feathers. 



A poultrj' raiser says the cause of hens eating feathers is a want of 

 lime. He says: " In the discussion it was stated that the hens were well 

 fed, and supplied with fresh meat, and confined. Now, such feeding would 

 stimulate their laying qualities, and if in their confinement they could not 

 find lime for the shells of their eggs, their instincts taught them to take 

 the next best substitute, which was the feathers. Now, it should be known 

 to all who keep poultry, and especially when in confinement, that a supply 

 of lime, such as old plaster or pounded oyster shells, is absolutely needful 

 for their healthy existence and reproduction; and, when it can be obtained, 

 a portion of pounded slate, mixed with their soft food, will enrich the 

 flavor and quality of their eggs. 



Adjourned. JOHN W. CHAMBERS, Secretary. 



April 23, 1863. 

 Mr. Edward Doughty, of New Jersey, in the chair. 



Substitute for Coffee. 



Mr. H Butts, of Cambridge, Vt., describes a substitute for coffee, grown 

 from seeds found in a chest of tea: "The plant, while growing, looks like 

 the old-fashioned coffee bean, but it grows much taller, and does not taste 

 like it, and it makes a nice cup of coffee, that few can tell from Java. 



" The stalks are seven feet tall, filled with seeds from within a foot of the 

 ground to the top. It is as easily grown as corn; is planted in rows or hills, 

 like beans, one seed in a place, about the middle of May." 



Prof. Mapes thought the best substitute for coffee was okra seed. 



