116 



THE ILLINOIS FAEMER. 



April 



themselves, the occasional damaged leaves on the 

 buts, and they also usually peeled off the bark 

 from the entire stems ! The substance thus con- 

 sumed taste strongly of tobacco, and will readily 

 produce a decoction strong enough to kill ticks. 

 Mr. Baker has known a neighbor to do the samo 

 thing — and he proceeded on the the theory that 

 the sheep would not cat what was not useful to 

 them. They have abundance of hay and other 

 feed, and are not, therefore, induced by hunger 

 to indulge in this strange appetite. We shall 

 await the final result of this curious experiment 

 with interest. — Rural N. Yorker 



WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 



On the vexed question of what is the weight of 

 an Enplish bushel of wheat, Mr. David Ogdt-n, of 

 New York, ^ends the Department of Agriculture 

 the following : 



"I find on pages 22 and 23 of your last report a 

 letter from C. W. Atkinson, respecting the weight 

 of the English bushel of wheat. He is entirely 

 mistaken in his postscript. Wheat was formerly 

 sold in Liverpool, and is yet in Loudon, at '70 lbs. 

 to the bushel, or at 560 lbs. to the quarter of 8 

 bushels. I will give you an example In 1856 I 

 shipped 10,836 bushels of wheat, at 60 lbs. to the 

 bushel; it weighed 650,160 lbs. It was sold in 

 Liverpool for 9,278 bushels, at 10 lbs. to the bushel, 

 and weighed 649,460 lbs. In this country we sell 

 corn at 56 lbs. to the bushel ; in England corn is 

 sold at 480 lbs. per quarter of 8 bushels — 60 lbs. 

 to the bushel. " 



But we recur to this subject principally for the 

 purpose of saying that Congress recognizes the im- 

 portance of acting upon it, for the House of Repre- 

 sentatives, at the present session, has added to its 

 standing committees one on weights and measures. 

 The Constitution of the United States confers on 

 Congess the power "to coin money, regulate the 

 value thereof, and of foreign coins, and fix the 

 standard of weights and measures;" but so long as 

 it allows State legislatures to declare how many 

 pounds shall constitute a bushel of any commodity 

 it fails to meet this requirement ; for the words 

 that it "shall have power" mean that it must ex- 

 ercise it. And, surely, few subjects of legislation, 

 in times of peace, deserve more speedy or better 

 matured action than this. 



Green Pickles — Beware of them — Thet ark 

 Always Poiso.\ocs.-Dr. Gerard Avink publishes in 

 the Hochester Democrat and American a very sen- 

 sible article upon the folly of the common practice 

 of greening pickles, and tells how to detect the cop- 

 per, which he says is a "beautiful and simple expe- 

 riment, within reach of everybody.'. It may be 

 conducted thus: Cut a greened pickle into small 

 pieces, and put them in a glass of rai'i water, add- 

 ing ten to fourteen drops of sulphuric acid; put the 

 bright blade of a knife or any bright steel surface, 

 in the liquid twenty four hours, and if the pickle 

 contains copper it will be found upon the steel 

 blade, as though it had been coated by the galvanic 

 process. All pickles greened in brass or copper 

 kettles, show this result. The green color conies 

 from verdigris, which is a deadly poison. The 

 quantity usually taken with pickles does not often 

 kill, but it produces disease. Such pickles are 



furnished to our soldiers in large quantities. Why 

 are they colored ? Only to please the eye, and 

 make them represent green cucumbers. A poison- 

 ous pickle may be eaten upon a full stomach, it ne- 

 ver should be upon sm empty one. They should 

 never be allowed among saiatary stores. 



The Cold of January 



Mr. John Hill, of Peterburg, Menard county, 

 lends us the following report from Toulon Stark 

 county : 

 January 1st, 30 degrees below zero. 

 2d, 23 

 3d, 18 " 

 " 4th, 7 " " 



" 5th, 14 " " 



" 6th, 21 " " 



" 7th, 15 " " 



" 8th, 22 " " 



" 9th, 7 " " 



" 10th, 3 " " 



" 11th, 2 " " 



He adds : " 5^0 head of sheep perished under 

 the suow-diifts in Menard county. All young pigs 

 that were not very well protected died, either 

 from the snow drifting or from the cold. Twenty- 

 five per cent, of the sucking calves were lost. 

 Many fat hogs, and those partially so, were smoth- 

 ered beneath the snow or died from piling — that is, 

 piling on top of each other. " 



From Hennipcn county, Mr. William Darley 

 writes: " The peach trees in this county appear to 

 be all killed by the severe cold weather of the first 

 of January. Also some varieties of the apple. " — 

 M^ort Com. of Ag. 



The World Going by Steam. 



In the darksome depths of the fathomless mine 



My tireless arm doth play. 

 Where the rocke ne'er saw the sun decline, 



Or the dawn of the glorious day. 

 I bring earth's glittering jewels up 



From the hidden cave below, 

 And I make the fount ains's granite cup 



With a crystal gush o'erflow. 



I blow the bellows, I forge the steel, 



In all the shops of trade; 

 I hammer the oar and turn the wheel 



Where my arms of strength are made. 

 I manage the furnace, the mill, the mint ; 



I carry, I spin, I weave ; 

 And all my doings into print 



On every Saturday eve. 



I've no music to weary, no breast to decay, 



No bones to be "laid on the shelf :" 

 And soon I intend you may all go and play 



While I manage the world by myself 

 But harness me down with your iron bands, 



Be sure of your curb and rein ; 

 For I scorn the strength of your puny hands. 



As the tempest scorns the chain. 



