86 



THE ILLmOIS FARMER. 



March 



Fork vs. Spade. — The time honored s-pade is 

 falling into disuse. Look at yonder son of Erin, 

 as he drives the shining blade into the moist 

 loam, and heaves out a square compressed mass, 

 two sides of which are smooth and compressed as 

 possible. If you are standing near or working 

 by his side he will hit it a rap and crumble the 

 top of it a little, while the mass probably remains 

 intact. 



The ground will be leveled off with a rake, and 

 the lump will bale slowly, and remain likely 

 enough hard and impervious all summer, if the 

 ground is not deeply worked again. When spad- 

 ing is done in very dry weather, it is not liable to 

 the same objection in degree, yet it leaves the 

 soil always more or 1p3S lumpy. 



How different it is with the use of the fork. — 

 The spading fork is found of various forms in 

 the shop. We prefer one of narrow tines, rather 

 long and very thick, made of good steel. A good 

 quality of steel is very important, for often a 

 single tino striking a stone or stick has to take 

 instantly the whole force of the blow or shove. 

 The tines should be thick, as considerable pry- 

 ing power is often required — and they should be 

 narrow, that the earth may be no more compress- 

 ed than is necessary. 



A fork like this may be driven much deeper 

 with the same force. It will lift the earth quite 

 as readily as a spane, and without packing it. 

 If roots of trees, bulbs, or anything of the kind 

 are present, there is little probability that they 

 will be injurtd, if care is used, and the ground 

 may be loosened sufBciently in many cases with- 

 out lifting the earth at all, in a way to bear the 

 roots. 



The fork, in fact, may be used whenever the 

 spade can be, and a shovel is not more desirable 

 — we do not claim for it superiority in shoveling 

 sand or g-avel — and it may be used in many 

 places where a spade can not be used. About 

 trees, in raspberry, currant or vine borders, es- 

 pecially will the fork be found of incalculable 

 fcervice, and the spade should be banished forth- 

 with. 



— A Good Hit. — Some one, at an entertain- 

 ment in Paris, being asked how he was pleased 

 with the French beauties, who happened to be 

 rather highly rouged, said, "I am no judge of 

 painting." 



~—~ 



— Thin — An Irishman remarked to his com- 

 panion on seeing a lady ; " Pat, did you ever 

 see a woman so thin as that before?" "Thin," 

 replied the other, " botherashon," I seen a wo- 

 man as thin as two of her put together." 



Funny. — During an examination a medical 

 student being asked " when does mortification 

 ensue? " he replied, " when you pop the ques- 

 tion, and are answered, " No." 



— "Will not the tax ou carpets require up- 

 holsterers for collectors? 



Osier or Basket Willow. — A correspondent, 

 writing to " Field Notes," says, " with your per- 

 mission I will give a few facts relative to the 

 cultivation, growth, market and profits of the 

 Osier Willow : 



"It is now five years since I commenced the 

 growing of the willow, and I am satisfied that it 

 pays better than any other crop ; and as there 

 are thousands of acres that are now laying use- 

 less that might yield from two to three tons per 

 acre, which now sells for $100 per ton — say 

 $200 per acre, or more, cash. Now what is to 

 be done? I will tell you : Ditch your land, if it 

 is too wet for good grass, then plow and prepare 

 it as you would for a crop of corn, and do it well, 

 as it has to be done but once. Procure your cut- 

 tings of the best kind, the purple or "salix vam- 

 inalis, set the rows three feet apart, cuttings one 

 foot in the row; plant by a line, hoe them well 

 the first year to give them a good start. Your 

 fi-st crop will be worth but little, yet will pay the 

 expens'es if you have a basket maker to work it 

 up ; the second year will yield about one third 

 of a crop ; and the third year you may expect a 

 pretty good crop, and after that a crop as long 

 as wood grows. 



"I will now give you the figures, say on one 

 acre : Hoeing in June, well done, $5 ; cutting 

 and binding, $12, (this may be done betwixt No- 

 vember and Ap: il) ; sitting in water till they will 

 peel, $12; peeling by machine, $20; freight, 

 iJnIO ; commission, truck, storage, etc., $10; to- 

 tal $69. Now call the crop, say two tons per 

 acre, at four cents per pound, $170 — which is 

 $40 less than they fetch this year, and from $80 

 to $90 less than I have ever sold any before this 

 year — and this leaves $91 for the use of one 

 acre, ready cash ; and when I consider that this 

 is only one branch of farming, and that almost 

 the whole can be done when other branches do 

 not crowd, and that it is also a quick sale cash 

 business, at much higher figures than the above, 

 I do wonder that there are not more farmers 

 ready to commence the business." J. J. 



-••»■ 



To THE Boys. — I wish just to say to the 

 young men of the farm, not to forsake it for 

 other pursuits because it may not seem to some 

 as respectable as to be a city clerk, or a 

 traveling peddler for some quack nostrum ; and 

 not be ashamed, at any time of life, of honest 

 manual labor. Leave off supposing that it 

 takes only Patrick cr Hans to work the old 

 homestead. No such thing boys ; it needs 

 brains — head work — in short, just such quick, 

 active intellects as are posseseed by a majority 

 of our native born Yankee blades. " Why, we 

 supposed any dummy could carry on a farm !" 

 No, sir — no such thing ; and the sooner you 

 disabuse yourselves of such foolish ideas, the 

 better. Better by far pursue a healthful hon- 

 est occupation, if w th only a moderate income, 

 than leave it for the uncertainties of another, 

 above all things eschew idleness — better, I was 

 about to say, make a mistake than do nothing. 

 Make your mark in the world in some way. 



