378 
AMERICAN AaRICQLTURIST. 
[October, 
■when fuUy grown, dried in the shade, thrashed 
with flails or beaten with sticlcs, and then raked 
over to get rid of any too large branches. This 
work is generally done by the negroes and the poor 
class of white people. This partly prepared article 
is then sold to the owners of mills, where it is 
ground, sifted or bolted, and bagged for sale. 
When finished it is, or should be, a fine, light- 
greenish powder, entirely free from stalks and 
woody matter. The mill used for grinding, (fig. 1), 
consists of large stone wheels, shod with iron, 
which are make to traverse in pairs around a stone 
bed, upon which the half prepared sumach is 
spread. As this is ground it is scraped from the 
bed into spouts, by which it is conveyed to the 
sieves, or boiling apparatus somewhat similar to 
that of a grist mill. The scraper is arranged so as 
to change its position when it is desired to grind 
the sumach finer, by pulling up a rod by the handle 
shown in the upper part of the engraving. The 
mill is enclosed, to keep in the fine dust, and ap- 
pears from the outside as at A, figure 3. The mo- 
tive power of the mill is usually below, and works 
the elevator and bolts {B, M) by means of the gear- 
ing which is represented in figure 3. The finished 
sumach comes down the spout, C, into the bags in 
which it is packed for sale. These are gunny bags 
holding about 4 bushels. At the present time there 
is no encouragement for any person in this country 
outside of the localities mentioned, to go into this 
business, excepting in an experimental way to test 
the value of the product, and any cheap method of 
preparing the sumach may be improvised. 
The Storm Glass. 
An article or instrument knowTi as a " Storm 
Glass " has been more or less in use for eo many 
years, that it is difiicult to trace its origin. It is a 
glass tube, 8 or 9 inches long, and about i or J inch 
diameter, containing a liquid, in the bottom of 
which is a whitish sediment. It is claimed that the 
increase and motion of this sediment in some man- 
ner indicates the kind of weather to be expected. 
We had not heard of the thing for many years, un- 
til last winter, when inquiries concerning it came 
in great numbers, and we soon found that some one 
was offering this, or what is essentially this, as a 
■weather indicator, under the name of the "Signal 
Service Barometer." Wishing to give an answer at 
once to our correspondents, we applied to a gentle- 
man widely known for his knowledge of, and re- 
searches in, meteorology, for some account of it, 
and reference to some work which would give its 
history. The reply was, in substance, that the con- 
trivance was very old, and the glass being quite 
■worthless as indicating the weather, he had for- 
gotton all about its origin. We then made two or 
three of the glasses, and soon after two of those 
made for sale came to hand, and they have been 
■ander observation for several months. Directions 
for making the "Storm Glass" are given in vari- 
eus works, and though the proportions vary slight- 
ly, they are essentially the same : 2i drms. of Cam- 
phor are dissolved in 11 drms. of Alcohol, in a long 
tube like that already described, or an old-fashioned 
tall and narrow Gerpian Cologne bottle will answer. 
Then dissolve 38 grains each of Saltpeter and Sal- 
ammoniac, in 9 drms. of water, and add this solu- 
tion to the camphor solution, and shake well. The 
mouth of the tube may be closely corked, or a small 
hole may be made in the cork ; we have not been 
able to see any difference in those closed either 
■way. After a while, the upper portion of the liquid 
■will become clear, leaving more or less sediment at 
the bottom. In looking up the matter, we found 
hy inquiring of the proper oiBcer, that no instru- 
ment of the kind was known in the U. S. Signal 
Service. Naming a storm glass, like tlie one des- 
eribed, or any thing resembling it, a " Signal Ser- 
tfce Barometer," is calculated to convey the im- 
pression that it is used by the Signal Service, which 
fe not the case, nor is it in any proper sense of the 
word a " Barometer." We have watched our vari- 
ous glasses, and find the sediment in feathery crys- 
tals, sometimes half or more filling them, and at 
other times occupying only an inch, or less, at the 
bottom. We had much sediment during perfectly 
mild weather, and little during the most fearful 
storms. One glass in the room would show perfect 
tranquility, while one outside, but a few feet off, 
would indicate gi-eat commotion, whereas if the 
thing like the barometer, was affected by atmos- 
pheric pressure, there should be no appreciable 
difference between the two glasses inside and out. 
We noticed that the inside glass would, by much 
sediment, indicate a storm in the morning, but that 
after a few hours the storm in the glass would clear 
up, though the weather outside remained unchang- 
ed, a circumstance that we found to be not uncon- 
nected' with the making of fires and the warming 
of the house. After some months of daily obser- 
vation, during the most changeable season of the 
year, we could not find that it indicated anything 
except that in cool days there was more sediment 
than in hot ones, and since hot weather has set in, 
no matter how fierce the thunder storms, the glass 
maintains the utmostcomposure — still, if one wish- 
es to get up a storm to order, in a hot July day, he 
has only to set the thing in the ice box ; there will 
soon be a great commotion of the elements — inside 
of the tube. That some times the disturbance 
within the tube may take place at the approach of 
a storm is very probable, as a change of weather is 
often accompanied by a lower temperature, but so 
far as we can see, the change in the contents of the 
glass are entirely due to the fact that the solubility 
of the materials is affected by a slight change in 
temperature ; when it is cool, crystals form, and ap- 
pear as feathery clouds in the liquid, but as soon as 
it gets a little warmer, these crystals dissolve again. 
The storm glass is, in our opinion, of no use what- 
ever as indicating what the weather will be, nor 
does it even correctly show what it is. 
Storage of Corn Fodder. 
A moderate estimate of the yield of corn fodder, 
would be one ton for every ten bushels of corn. 
The corn crop will this year doubtless reach at least 
one thousand millions of bushels. This would give 
100,COO,000 tons of fodder, worth for feeding pur- 
poses, if well cured and saved, at least $5 per ton. In 
the aggregate this is S500, 000,000. This large sum 
could easily be made for the country out of the crop 
of corn fodder, by wisely saving, and economically 
using it. But no produce of the farm is so injured 
in the harvesting, and storing, or so wastefully 
used as this. At the present time wc might con- 
sider how corn fodder can be properly saved. 
First, the corn should be husked as soon as possi- 
ble, and the fodder firmly tied up in easily handled 
bundles or sheaves, which should be carefully set 
up in stooks, and these should be well tied at the 
top, and well spread at the bottom, so as to keep 
the inner part dry and well aired. In this state it 
will cure thoroughly in two weeks after husking, 
and will be then ready for stacking, or putting 
away in the mow. By using the ventilators, shown 
in the American Agriculturist for September, there 
will be no danger of mildew, and the fodder will 
come out of the mow or stack in the winter, bright 
and green, nutritious and digestible. The good 
qualities and value for feeding will have been much 
enhanced by early cutting, as already advised. 
The Short-Horn Cow for the Dairy. 
The period of excitement which has just passed 
away, has had the injurious effect of distracting at- 
tention from the advantages possessed by the Short- 
horn cow for the dairy, and has presented her as a 
fancy animal. It may be that during the past few 
years, cows of this breed have not been bred so 
much with a view to the dairy, as to their possession 
of certain points, and pedigree ; and it has worked 
injury to them, that in every herd one might see 
"nurses" of other breeds employed to help bring 
up the calves. A cow that cannot support her own 
calf, has no excuse for existence, although her 
pedigree may be long and her form may be all that 
" fancy painted " it. There are some such Short- 
horn cows, but fortunately these are a small minori- 
ty of the breed. As a rule, however, it must be 
acknowledged that we rarely ever find farmers' 
wives prejudiced in favor of the Short-horns. This 
is probably because their husbands have been in- 
duced to buy " a grand cow," having bulk only to 
recommend her, and to lose their own judgment aa 
to the proper qualifications of a good milker, in ad- 
miration of the proportions of the animal, and In 
expectation of the fine calves she would raise. But, 
nevertheless, the pure Short-horn, sometimes, and 
the grade frequently, are excellent dairy cows, and 
in addition, have the valuable quality of quickly 
fattening for the market. That the Short-horn cow 
has a good record as a milker, may be seen by refer- 
ence to the different volumes of the American Herd 
Book. Cows are there mentioned which gave 30 
quarts, and even more, daily, for a length of time ; 
and which made 3 and even 3 pounds of butter per 
day. There are herds of pure Short-horns, kept 
specially for the dairy. One in Herkimer Co., N. 
T., owned by the well known dairyman, Harris 
Lewis, has a wide reputation. One of the largest, 
and most profitable milk dairies near the city of 
New York, that of Mr. A. W. Powell, of UnionviUe, 
N. T., consists of grade Short-horns, and we know 
that the milk of this dairy is unsurpassed by that 
of any other cows. To make the Short-horn popu- 
lar for the dairy, it only needs that breeders who 
have neglected the milking quality of their cows, 
should retrace their steps, and that this chief use 
of a cow, should be the first consideration in breed- 
ing, for a cow that is a poor milker, fails to give 
the larger portion of the profit she ought to be 
made to yield. It is no disparagement to any other 
breed, that the Short-horn should be held first as a 
milking, as well as a beef animal. It has its place 
to fill, in which no other breed can be so profitable, 
and the other breeds find places where the Shoit- 
horn could not be kept with profit. There is no 
reason why the Short-horn should not be made to 
desen'c this reputation without exception, as now 
it only gains it in comparatively few instances. 
When breeders fully learn, as they are beginning to 
discover, that they must make their stock popular 
with farmers, and dairymen, before they find the 
best market and make their business the most 
profitable, then this will be done, but not before. 
Cats and Moles. — During several years we have 
tried the various mole traps that have been offered, 
but never yet succeeded in catching a single mole. 
This year a couple of cats have taken up the mat- 
ter, and without any instruction have proved them- 
selves very efficient mole-catchers. They patiefflly 
watch the runs, and when the motion of the earth 
shows that a mole is passing, they dig it out with 
great rapidity. Every f^w days a mole is brongbt 
to the house, the cats appearing to know that they 
do good service, and wish it to be recognized. We 
have not seen them attempt to eat the moles, but 
they seem to catoh them for the fun of it. 
The "Echo Farm" Barr 
A view of the bam of J. Ratchf ord Starr, of " Echo 
Farm," Litchfield, Conn., is given on p. 373. The 
building is laid out in the form of a quadrangle, 
enclosing a yard which is sheltered upon three 
sides, the other being enclosed by a fence with a 
gate. The internal arrangement of that portion of 
the barn occupied by the stock, is the feature which 
seems to us to be worthy of special notice. This 
is shown in the left hand side, in the rear of the 
main building, and runs at right angles with it. 
Attached to this part are yards in which the cattle 
may have exercise when not at pasture. The 
ground plan of this wing of the building is shown 
at figure 3. It is 191 feet long, and has an entrance 
hall at one end, and also a spacious can iage-room, 
17 X 35 feet, through which the chimney. A, passes. 
The next apartment is the wagon-shed. Here is a 
large closet, (C), and a waste water pipeand reser- 
voir, {S). The horse stable is next. This is 30 
feet wide. It contains a feed bin, (S), a water tank, 
(F), and a hay shoot, ((?). Then comes the root- 
cellar, 20 feet deep, with a solid stone wall around 
it, and furnished with double doors. The calf sta- 
ble is next. This is furnished with 31 separate 
