AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
173 
Wonder if they could tell us something about one 
"Ellas," of Clark, Webster & Co.?— Chas. Elmer & Co. 
is believed to be alias J. Birch & Co., of ""Gold Cased 11 
Humbug-Time-Piece notoriety, (see July No., 1807). 
Julia has lost her $4.00. We visited the Champion Sew- 
ing Machine Co., to see one of their $4.00 machines, but 
could neither And the man nor see amachine. These peo- 
ple have always "just stepped out," and left everything 
in the hands of the "clerk 11 (! !) who, as a general thing, 
knows nothing Bradford, Van Delf & Co., Broad-st., 
had better make a lottery, and done with it, as their 
present scheme is no better. . . Beware of all Lotteries un- 
der guise of Pawnbroker's Sales, such as Perkins, Fisk *fc 
Co., Boston. — .V. B. There is a large class of swindlers in 
this city of which we will take for a type W. I. Wheeler 
& Co., dealers in Watches, Jewelry, etc. They sell tick- 
ets through agents ; the choice of one from a lot is $1.00. 
The holder of this ticket is entitled to a Watch or Set of 
Jewelry of some kind, by paying on presentation or 
through the mail the sum of $10.00, more or less, and cost 
of packing, &c. The probability is that a person sending 
the money to them will get something in return, but not 
what they are led to believe by their advertisements. 
This jewelry, which they claim to be "good gold and sil- 
ver,' 1 is neither gold or silver, in any proper sense, but 
the poorest sort of "sham. 11 Tbeir "Gold Duplex 
Watches " are not gold at all ; their " Diamonds " are not 
diamonds ; their solid gold rings are neither solid nor gold. 
Jewelry may be very well, if one is able and cares to wear 
it, but the false display made by this showy cheap stuff 
is in bad taste.... J. B. Peters & Son, 267 Broadway, 
Watches, &c. The Post-Office Department, believing 
these people to he acting under au " alias,' 1 '' have stopped 
giving up the letters to their address until they appear in 
person, and give satisfactory evidence to the effect that 
Peters is the true name. They have to-day, April 11th, 
"made tracks," and are nowhere to be found by us. 
Many people have sent letters and money to J. L. 
Peters, publishers of sheet music, intended for J. B. 
Peters & Son. These letters have been returned to the 
postmaster. Persons should avoid this error, for 
the first are respectable dealers, and the last 
named are, as Capt. Cuttle would say, " on the contrairy 
quite the rewerse."— The N. Y. Tribune publishes such 
stuff in the way of advertisements that we do not wonder 
at an occasional moral spasm in its editorial columns. 
It announces with much self-gratulation that the Gettys- 
burgh Asylum Swindle has closed its office, and refers 
those who invested their money, and got no returns, to 
the editors of those papers who have advertised the 
scheme. If any one is foolish enough to go to any paper 
for this purpose, we advise him to begin with the 
Tribune, as that ha3 done quite as much as any other 
paper to advertise the Gettysburgh Swindle to the public. 
Bees in May. By Wm. W. Cary.- 
Remove drone comb from the brooding chamber as much 
as possible, and supply its place with worker comb in 
movable comb hives. By the use of two or three pairs of 
clamps to a frame fastened by strings, or more expe- 
ditiously by small India rubber rings, even small pieces 
of comb may be turned to better use than in the melting 
pot. All drone comb in good condition maybe rendered 
useful in surplus boxes. Box hives in which bees have 
died during the winter, if the combs are good, use for 
your early swarms — a furnished house is better than one 
with bare walls. Leave nothing undone in the way of 
preparation for swarming, and keep a good supply of 
neat surplus boxes. Guard all empty surplus combs 
against the bee moth by occasional fumigation and in- 
spection. Some parts of the country are so little annoy- 
ed by this insect that hut little caution is necessary, while 
in others, the utmost vigilance is required. 
The Shenandoah Valley.— "E. T. B.," 
Vt. Probably there is no better location in the country 
for grain and stock raising. The climate is healthful, 
the soil good, and a large number of Northern people havo 
gone in there since the war. The time of lowest prices 
has probahly past in that Valley. Congenial society and 
security, good schools and churches, are worth paying for. 
Which Agricultural College ?— "A. 
N.," Westchester County. We are not able to advise you 
as to the best facilities for educating your son as a farm- 
er. You will find a list of these Colleges in the Agricul- 
tural Annual for 1868, with some account of their endow- 
ments and course of instruction. 
Saw-dust and Tan-bark as Fertil- 
izers.— "A Subscriber.'" These substances are used as 
absorbents rather than for their manurial qualities; never- 
theless, both contain enough to make them moderately 
valuable when decayed. Their chief beneficial action on 
the soil is mechanical— lightening up heavy soils, and 
giving sandy ones greater ability to withstand drouth. 
Excellent and Unpatented Bee- 
Feeder. — The bee-feeder shown in the accompanying 
engraving is one long used by Mr. Wm. Gary, and 
through him by his friends. As things go, one is surpris- 
ed that it is not patented, superior as it is to the patented 
ones with which we are familiar. It consists of a wooden 
box 0x4, 3 inches deep outside, made of half-inch stuff, 
tacked together and the joints made tight with paint 
skins, and painted on the joints inside. There are two 
partitions (a, b.) crossing the box. The sides, one of 
which is not represented, are higher than these partitions 
and higher also than the ends, and they are grooved, so 
that a pane of glass will slide in and form, the cover or 
top. The partition a does not touch the glass, but a space 
is left large enough for the bees to pass between. The 
ass rests upon the partition &, but does not cover the 
little bulkhead c, into which the syrup is poured, and 
which is not accessible to the bees. This partition does 
not go quite to the bottom, so that the syrup flows under 
it, and into the middle chamber d. The bulkhead e, which 
like the other is one inch wide, is the vestibule into which 
the bees enter through a hole which may be seen in the 
cut, but as the partition rests on the bottom, the syrup 
will not flow through. The central chamber is the feeding 
room, and it is divided lengthways by strips of stiff, rough 
veneering, set in saw kerfs, half an inch apart and not 
going quite to the floor. These prevent bees falling into 
the fluid and drowning, as they would otherwise do. Mr. 
Cary says: "The feeder holds about the quantity of syrup 
or honey which an ordinary stock will take up in one 
night, which is the safest time to feed. From its con- 
struction it will he seen to fill the requirements of a good 
feeder, as given in the April number. A modification of 
this feeder, made partly of tin, is preferable, and made by 
the quantity is not expensive. 11 
Manuring; in the Hill.— "A. C. S," 
Maine. It is always desirable to give an early start to 
corn, or other hoed crops. The principal objection to 
the old practice of dropping a shovelful of yard manure 
from the cart tail to each hill, is the great expense for 
labor. Concentrated composts used in small quantities 
in the hill are quite as effectual in promoting early 
growth, and require less labor. A good superphosphate, 
dropped iu the hill at the rate of three hundred pounds 
to the acre, will pay very well. TJnleached ashes also are 
economical, dropped in the hill or at the first hoeing. 
Pure bone-dust, one to three hundred pounds to the acre, 
will make a great difference in the yield of corn. Peru- 
vian guano, mixed with six or eight times its bulk of 
peat or sifted loam, makes an excellent compost for the 
hill, and there is no objection to its use, but its high 
price. Fish guano, mixed with half the quantity of peat 
or earth, will pay abundantly. 
Darwin's 4»reat Work.- The Variation 
of Animals and Plants Under Domestication. By Charles 
Darwin. Authorized edition, with a Preface to the Amer- 
ican edition by the Author, and one by Professor Asa 
Gray. The most perfect edition yet published. The 
American edition of this remarkable work is now ready. 
An idea of its scope, though an incomplete one, is 
given on page 177. The first English edition was exhaust- 
ed in a week, and a new one called for; in the reprint, 
Mr. Darwin included some additions, and sent us the 
sheets as soon as they were printed, together with many 
additions in manuscript. As these reached us just as our 
edition was iu the hands of the binder, we were obliged 
to place them on pages prefixed to the work. If the Am- 
erican reader will mark in the text where these additions 
come in, he will have the work revised by the author up 
to the latest moment, and a more complete copy than 
even the latest English edition. Mr. Darwin, not know- 
ing that Professor Gray had made a preface to the Amer- 
ican edition, sent us one of his own, which puts his esti- 
mate of his own work so neatly and modestly that wc chose 
to insert it. The book presents the most remarkable col- 
lection of facts concerning our domestic animals and 
plants yet brought together, and for this alone it is 
of the highest value. Not the least interesting portion of 
the work, to the thoughtful reader, are the speculative 
views of the author. In these the great problems of in- 
heritance, reversion, influence of external conditions of 
life, development, and the like, are put in a new light 
with remarkable clearness and force. The philosophical 
results derived from the discussion of domestic nnimals 
and plants find an application in all animals, inc J, iding 
the human species. While the work will be not interest- 
ing only, but useful to every one engaged in propagating 
animals or plants, it commends itself none the less to the 
intelligent reader,who will find abundant food for thought, 
and to men of the medical and other learned professions, 
who cannot fail to be instructed by its contents. In two 
neat volumes, of over 500 pages each, illustrated. Bymaj] 
for $6— less than half the price of the imported work. 
Special Humbug Notice. — With ail 
our care, we have been humbugged ourselves. The wolf 
sometimes gets the sheep's clothing so nicely fitted that 
it takes some time to discover him. The wolf in this 
case is S. G. Sheaffer & Co., Hanover, Pa., and the decep- 
tive fleece is the advertisement headed: U A beautiful 
puzzle picture," which appeared iu the February issue of 
the Agriculturist. The facts are these. The advertise- 
ment was offered, the picture was sent to ns, and regard- 
ing it as a harmless way of advertising a photographic 
establishment, and at the same time affording some 
amusement, the notice was admitted. We have 6ince 
found out that this is all an ingenious way of introducing 
a lottery scheme. We can only make reparation to uur 
readers by denouncing S. G. Sheaffer & Co. as among the 
meanest sort of humbugs. As they have gained access 
to our columns by such representations as the regular 
humbugs are too respectable to try, we will not insult the 
11 regulars " by putting this interloper among them, but 
give him all the benefit he can derive from a special notice. 
When to Cut «rass.— " P. H.," Florida, 
N. Y.— The tendency in the practice of the best farmers 
is to earlier cutting. If cut when in full bloom, it makes 
the sweetest and most nutritious hay. It takes longer 
to cure it, hut its higher value pays for the extra labor. 
Lime in Stables.— ISad I>octrine. 
— " Practical Farmer,'" a good friend of the Agriculturist, 
m a note on Horse Stables, advises the use of slaked lime, 
to remove the bad odors, nc says, about one quart three 
times per week will be enough for four horses. " It will 
stop all offensive smell and destroy all noxious gases." 
His own experience corroborates his views, and he rec- 
ommends the mingling of lime with the manure.— This 
is very unsafe advice. Lime in contact with moist animal 
substances not putrid, forms soapy compounds which do 
not readily decompose and throw off bad odors — but 
When decay has set in, as in the manure pile, lime will 
rapidly liberate ammonia, the most valuable ingredient 
of the manure, and it will be lost. So, after a while, also, 
the soapy compounds will he decomposed, and their am- 
monia escape. Gypsum is far preferable to lime, but not 
so active. Sun-dried and sifted loam, thoroughly dry, 
would, we think, be equally cfiicient with lime, and 
certainly no more costly. 
Useful Household and Farm Ar- 
ticle*. —In our premium list we offer many things pleas- 
ing and ornamental, and others really almost indispen- 
sable, which can easily be obtained by a little effort, and 
will continually add to the comfort and prosperity of tho 
farmer. A fine modern plow in place of an old-style, cum- 
bersome one is an addition to the farmer's wealth. Fre 
quently the use of a a barometer would save many dollars 
in prompting in the getting of the hay before a raiu storm. 
A good mower should be owned by every farmer. It will 
save his back and his money. Scales should be used in 
every house and barn. The proverb says, "Deliver all 
things by measure and weight," and it ought to be heeded. 
Have Fairbanks 1 Standard Scales in the kitchen, and 
prove which grocery man gives weight, and buy of him. 
Weigh butter and everything sold, and not mistrust that 
you are cheated. Weigh the chickens, and see which 
kinds are thriving and profitable. Have a Fairbanks in 
the barn, and weigh the pigs, and stock, and grain, and 
hay, and fertilizers, and thus know what is paying, and 
what is not. A little practice in this line will pay a hun- 
dred fold in money and satisfaction. These articles can 
he had by helping your neighbors by getting them to 
subscribe for the Agriculturist, which you can do. 
A Lady-s Experience. — With such an 
extensive correspondence, we are obliged generally to 
give the substance of a whole letter in a single line. Had 
we room we should be glad to give the writer's style, but 
we cannot often indulge in this. A lady, who signs her- 
self "Mouse-Ear," writes from herplace on the Hudson so 
pleasant a letter that we give it entire, as a specimen of 
the many pleasant things we might print did space allow. 
She thus speaks of her last year's experience : "It may 
well be that many of yonr lady readers could tell more 
about the past season, than myself— its floral triumphs, its 
experimental discoveries, its small leafy disappointments 
here and there. For I am not rich enough to try all the 
