TUB 



AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 



Gleanings. 



A correspondent writes to the Dmly Express, 

 stating that he knows of a well-managed and 

 productive farm, within twelve miles of London, 

 entirely tilled and managed bj' Italians. The 

 farm hands received 8s. a week wages, exclusive 

 of board and lodging. They have a room for 

 recreation, and are forbidden to attend the 

 village alehouse. 



The Breeders Gazette, Chicago, gives the 

 following formula for a liquid brand, instead of 

 fire-branding cattle : — " Barium sulphite and 

 eoal tar, preparably thinned by equal parts of 

 potash and water and spirits of turpentine each 

 equal in measure to the original composition." 

 The branding iron must not be sharp, as in the 

 case of fire-branding, but about one-fourth of 

 an inch thick. 



One of the famous John Mytton's numerou-! 

 frolics was to start an impromptu race with 

 four of his own cart-hoises, ridden by himself 

 and three of his friends, barebacked. Before 

 starting Mytton posted a wagoner at a spot on 

 the " course " where the slope was steep, and 

 gave him orders to cry Whoa ! " as the horses 

 passed him. The man did so, with the result 

 that two of the friends were unshipped by the 

 abruptness of the stop to which their clumsy 

 mounts came on hearing the familiar order. 



,^ ^^^®P imported into New South 



Wales arrived in the year 1788, when a flock of 

 twenty-nine Indian sheep were brought from 

 Calcutta. They were not a very promising lot, 

 small and unsightly, having large heads, 

 Roman noses, drooping ears, narrow chests and 

 shoulders, with high curved backs and very long 

 legs ; having, moreover, coarse and frequently 

 black wool mixed with hair, the latter pre- 

 ponderating." They throve marvellously, and, 

 being judiciously crossed with sheep of a better 

 stamp imported from England, the hair gradu- 

 ally disappeared and gave place to a fleece. The 

 first consignment of wool from Australia arrived 

 m 1806, the shipment weighing 24:51bs. 



Mr. J. T. Critchell, in the Melbourne Pastoral- 

 tsts Review, gives the approximate number of 

 sheep m the world, as the result of enquiries 

 made to our Board of Agriculture, the Agent- 

 Weneral for South Africa and Canada, the 

 Consul for the United States, and other autho- 

 rities, as follows : — 



Australasia ... ... 92,000,000 



Europe ... ... 105,000,000 



Asia ... 53,000,000 



Africa 13,500,000 



United States ... ... 42,000,000 



Canada ... ... ... 4,500,000 



Argentina ... ... 80,000,000 



Other S. American States. 40,000,000 



Total 490,000,000 



The Victorian average of sailk production per 

 cow is only about 3,0001bs., whereas in other 

 countries it averages from 6,0001bs. to 7,5001bs. 



The breed of Texas cattle, famed owing to its 

 association with the picturesque figure of the 

 " cow-boy," is fast becoming extinct, and the 

 Texas steer and the cow-boy will soon be known 

 only in history. These sinewy, long-horned 

 cattle are disappearing before the rapid in- 

 crease of better class stock. The great length 

 of horn was a conspicuous characteristic of the 

 Texan steer. One of the most famous of the 

 long-horned animals in recent times is Geronimo, 

 whose horns measure 9ft, 6in. from tip to tip ; 

 he is said to be thirty-six years old. 



Experiments at several experimental stations 

 in America have shown that too deep cultiva- 

 tion is injurious to maize. The first cultivation 

 should be rather deep, but during subsequent 

 workings the ground should be st rred as little 

 as pc sjible. Simply pulverise the crust and kill 

 the weeds. The roots of the corn extend 

 laterally but a few iuches beneath the surface, 

 and wlien ihe cultivator shovels expose or tear 

 througn them, injury is done the plant. The 

 object of cultivatiou should always be kept in 

 view, to establish and maintain a dust or soil 

 mulch, and to ki 1 the weeds that would rob the 

 corn plants of food and moisture. 



A correspondent in the Live Stock Journal 

 points out that one of the most remarkable de- 

 velopments of the nmeteenth century in the 

 farming liue is '' the reduction of the age at 

 which the cattle are sent to the butcher, in the 

 early days of the century many farmers never 

 thought of selling their cattle until they reached 

 the age of five years, and we not unfrequently 

 read of them being retained until they were six 

 or seven years old. With sheep it was the 



same "Baby ' beef has been 



and may be sneered at, but it has come to stay. 

 We have not yet reached the limit in this direc- 

 tion tither, aud the next generation will see the 

 average age of fat cattle still further reduced." 



Mr. Howard Saunders, in " Across the Andes 

 and down the Amazons," tays he never under- 

 stood why the vaqueros of Central America, 

 when at work latsoiug cattle, always fastened 

 the end of the lasso round their horse's tail in- 

 stead of to a ring in the saddle, until he saw 

 an accident on a mountain path A team of 

 mules passed his party ; these muies were tied, 

 the head of one to the tail of that in fr@nt, and 

 so on, and as Mr, Howard Saunders passed, one 

 of the mules kicked cut viciously, missed its 

 footing, and went over the precipice There it 

 hung, scrambling in the vain endeavour to get a 

 footing, while the mules to w hich it was fastened 

 stood like rocks on the path above till the men 

 succeeded in passing a lasso round the hanging 

 b. ast and diawiug it up. 'J he tail was cut to 

 ihe bone, but the mule was otherwise unhurt. 

 'Ihe incident shows the remarkable strength of 

 the equine tail. 



