I iin ' b u T ii K N P ij A N T E ±i. 



279 



If this remedy is successful, we shall call this ' 

 brief editorial the hest essay that has been writ- 

 ten on one branch of cattle distemper. 



A WRINKLE ^^EOUT THE AGE OF 

 HORSES. 



A few days ago we met a gentleman from Al- 

 abama, who gave us a piece of infofmation in 

 regard to ascertaining the age of a horse, after 

 .he or she has passed the ninth year, which was 

 new to us, and will be, we are sure, to most of 

 our readers. It is this : after the horse is nine 

 years old, a wrinkle comes on the eyelid at the 

 upper corner of the lower lid, and every year 

 thereafter he has one well defined wrinkle for 

 each year of his age over nine. If, for instance, 

 a horse has three wrinkles, he is twelve ; if four, 

 he is thirteen. Add the number of wrinkles to 

 nine, and you will always get it. So says the 

 gentleman ; and he is confident it will never 

 fail. As a good many people have horses over 

 nine, it is easily tried. If true the horse' den- 

 tist must give up his trade. 



We believe the best judges have a rule, which 

 they rely on as infallible to the age of fourteen. 

 The horse has six incisors, "nippers" asi^hey 

 are conimonly called — the front teeth. They 

 have each a dent in them just like the dent in 

 gourd seed corn, and are hence called gourd 

 seed. At four years old, the front pair at bot- 

 tom lose the gourd seed, become smooth ; at six 

 the next two — one on each side ; at eight, the 

 next pair, which completes the bottom sett. At 

 ten, the front upper pair becomes smooth ; at 

 twelve, the next pair ; at fourteen the last pair. 

 After this the " wrinkle" may come into play. 



Another indication upon which we are told 

 the late Wm. R. Johnson relied, to ascertain the 

 age of the horse, was an inspection of the ter- 

 mination of the lachrymal duct, which opens 

 into the sepium, or cartilaginous di^nsion of the 

 nose on each side, an inch or two above the nos- 

 tril. Any one on examination . will easily find 

 thpse orifices ; but it requires a good deal of prac- 

 tice and a nice eye to apply this test. It is said 

 that it enlarges with the cge of the animal. 



SEYMOUR'S BROa'dCASTER AND DRILL- 

 ING MACHINES. 

 It will be seen in our advertising columns, 

 that Thos. Branch & Sons, of Petersljurg, have 

 for sale these very valuable agricultural imple- 

 nuHits, as have also Messrs. Baldwin & Card- 

 well of this city. 



We have tried both the Broadcaster and Drill 

 and have recommended them repeatedly. It is 

 unnecessarj^ therefore to say more about them 

 now than this : We are frequently asked if the 

 Broadcaster will sow guano? We have stated pub- 

 licly, and do so again, that it will not sow damp 

 guano, and that no machine will. The jaws of 

 the broadcaster will choke and rust, and so will 

 the iron on the manure rod. If they are kept 

 clean of rust, it wdl sow damp guano provided 



it is WELL PULVERIZED. 



There is a machine for sowing guano, which 

 is said to pulverize and distribute it perfectly. 

 We have heard of one sold by Montgom.ery & 

 Brother, of Baltimore, makers of the wheat-fan. 

 But they are not the owners or inventors of the 

 machine. We made an efibrt to get one and try 

 it, but the agent would not warrant it, and we 

 declined the purchase.' The price is $80, and 

 the -man who makes a machine of that cost for 

 that purpose, and will not warrant it until it be- 

 comes established, does not deserve to be en- 

 couraged. 



LIME AS A PREVENTIVE OF SMUT IN 

 WHEAT. 



A very excellent farmer told us, a few days 

 ago, that water-slaked lime — two bushels to 

 every hundred bushels of wheat — would prevent 

 smut from appearing in wheat. It is to be dust- 

 ed over the bulk, a small quantity at a time, and 

 thoroughly incorporated with the bulk. It de- 

 stroys the smut and also keeps off the weevil. 

 If necessary, the Wheat may be run through the 

 fan to cleanse it of lime when sowed. If soAvn 

 by machinery, either drill or broadcast, as all 

 wheat ought to be, there will be no occasion to 

 fan it. 



As it is reported to us by one good farmer, re- 

 commended by another, and approved, as we see 

 in a late number of the Southern Farmer, by 

 the practice of Mr. Batte of Prince George, also 

 we believe a good farmer, we commend it to 

 the use of those who may appreliend rust in 

 their wheat another year. 



AGRICULTURAL AND COMMERCIAL 

 REVIEW. 



The wheat liarvest Las now been completed 

 throughout the United States, and at last ac- 

 counts, was progressing in Great Britain and 

 the Continent with a continuation of very fa- 

 vorable weather, and encouraging prospects of 



