168 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[May, 
readers we repeat the fact, as well as the equally useful 
one, that if the tarnips are fed immediately after the 
milking the next milking will be free from any disagree- 
able flavor. 
Horse Talk.— " Clip," Natick, Mass. We 
would not breed from a spavined mare ; the deformity, 
or weakness which causes spavin, is often constitutional 
and hereditary. The Turf, Field and Farm, published 
in New York, is a weekly journal devoted to the "horse 
interest " chiefly. 
Sorglmm.— "New Beginner," Ogecb.ee, Ga. 
Sorghum, or as it is sometimes called, China sugar 
cane, is planted and cultivated the same as corn. About 
two quarts of seed per acre is used. The hills are generally 
planted four feet apart in check rows. The yield of 
syrup is from 100 to 300 gallons per acre, but so far the 
manufacture of sugar from the syrnp has not been a suc- 
cess, on account of the difficulty of crystallizing it. 
The Northern Spy in >*ew Jersey. 
I. J. Blackwcll, of Titusville (N. J.) Nurseries, writes: 
" This is justly considered one of the finest apples to be 
found in our markets. In size, color, and quality it is 
all that can be desired. It seems to be a fair but not 
heavy bearer here ; and unfortunately in this section it 
ripens in September, and will not keep through October. 
The Tompkins Co. King is a September fruit, and the 
Rhode Island Greening ripens early in October, and will 
not keep through November. Many of the fine Northern 
apples lose their late-keeping qualities here. The Fam- 
euse or Snow apple ripened this year in August." 
An Egrs; within an Eg^.— "R. C," 
Philadelphia. Such cases occur now and then. "We 
have seen several, and they are frequently reported. 
Wheat Growing in Kentnclcy. — 
11 O. B.," Bogle Co., Ky. The practice of growing two 
crops of wheat in succession, then clover for hay, fol- 
lowed by clover for pasture, and again commencing with 
wheat, will soon wear out the richest land. On your best 
limestone soils you might by feeding the clover and 
spreading the manure thus made, and then pasturing and 
plowing under a good sod, raise one crop of wheat every 
third year, but we doubt if you can raise two crops in 
succession for many years. 
Comndnm. — "Will the gentleman who sev- 
eral months ago sent us specimens of Corundum kindly 
inform us what locality thoy are from? 
Renting- a Small Parni.-"J. O. B.," 
Pa. It is better as a general rule to rent a farm either for 
a money rent or for half the grain than to hire it worked, 
when the owner can not supervise it himself. Upon 27 
acres it will hardly pay to keep a pair of horses and hire 
a man steadily. There is not sufficient work to keep 
them from " eating their heads off," unless it is a market 
garden, and then there would be more than they could 
do. An ordinary farm of that size might make a living 
for one man, but it is too small to make any profit for an 
owner who has to hire labor. 
Bois d'Arc-A Louisville (Ky.) paper pub- 
lishes a long article on the wonderful qualities of the 
Bois d'Arc tree of Texas, and it is now going the rounds. 
If the article had only stated that what is called Bois 
d'Arc and Bodock in Texas is elsewhere known as Osage 
Orange it would have been more sensible. 
Forcing Rhubarb. — "J. B.," Chicago. 
It would be a waste of money to put up a house for forc- 
ing rhubarb in winter. A hot-bed will answer every 
purpose. As the tenderest stalks are produced in the 
dark, a pit containing a plenty of fermenting manure 
covered with boards will give as good results as a more 
erpensive arrangement. 
Report of Swine-Breeders' Con- 
vention.— " J. J. D.," Subina, Ohio. For this report 
apply to Col. F. D. Curtis, Charlton, Saratoga Co., N. Y. 
Remedy Tor Potato Blight and 
Rot.— "D. C," Berkley, Mass. We know nothing 
about this save what is given in the circular. The state- 
ment that insects are the cause of the potato disease is 
absurd, even if supported by the statements of members 
of Congress. We do not nse or advise the use of or ad- 
vertise any manures unless we know their composition. 
For South Carolina. — "R. A., 1 ' Laur- 
ens Co., S. C. Merino sheep are more suitable for South 
Carolina than Cotswold. The latter thrive better in a 
colder climate. Essex pigs would probably suit your 
climate best, Berkshire next v and the Poland-China 
would not be suitable. In size, these pigs rank in the 
order in which they are mentioned, the first being the 
smallest. The muzzle shown in the Agriculturist of Oc- 
tober, 1S72, if the best preventive of cribbing we know 
of. Morgan horses are generally dark bay or brown. 
Orchard grass would probably be the most suitable grass 
for South Carolina. It needs a rich, dry soil. 
Hennery Wanted.-" C. C. M.," Green- 
wich, Ct. We do not know where there is a hennery on a 
large scale carried on expressly for the production of 
poultry and eggs for market. If any of our readers know 
of such a one we should be glad to learn of it, for our 
own sakes as well as for the information of our cor- 
respondent. 
Plant Trouble.-" Western Subscriber," 
111., is troubled by flics which deposit eggs in the earth 
of flower-pots; these hatch into small white maggots, 
which injure the roots. Try watering with perfectly 
dear lime-water. We have tried this in some cases for 
earth-worms without injury to the plants. Whether it 
can be used for all plants we can not say. 
Cancer in the Eye. — " S. W. L.," 
Oskaloosa. We know of no cure for cancer in a cow's 
eye except removal of the eye, which could only be done 
by a surgeon. 
Cabbages for Seed. — C. N. Brown. 
Cabbages from which seed is to be raised must have the 
stump preserved quite as carefully as the head. Some 
set them in trenches deep enough to hold the whole cab- 
bage, and when they are a little frozen cover them plen- 
tifully with litter to keep them at a uniform low temper- 
ature. Others open a furrow, and set in the cabbages in- 
clined one upon another in the direction of the furrow, 
and carefully cover the stumps with earth. When freez- 
ing weather comes on, earth is drawn up to cover the 
heads sufficiently to prevent freezing and thawing. 
Corn in Egypt,— G. W. Caunnack, Ash- 
ley, 111., which is down in Egypt, sends us some figures 
of his corn crops to work up. He says he shelled 20 ears 
and the corn weighed 13 '4 lbs. He plants four feet apart 
each way, with two stalks to a hill. He gets from one to 
six ears to the hill, and the corn weighs 66 lbs. to the 
measured bushel. From these figures we get the follow- 
ing: At 4x4 feet there are 2,722 hills to the acre ; allow- 
ing three ears to the hill as an average there would be 
8,166 ears. If 20 cars weigh 13' 4 ' lbs. there would be 
5,406 lbs. of shelled corn, at 56 lbs. to the bushel, equal 
to 9S bushels per acre. 
A Cultivating Harrow.-"W. E. M.," 
Clay Co., Minn. As the object of cultivating is to loosen 
and mellow the soil, as well as to destroy weeds, the use 
of a roller immediately after a cultivator or harrow would 
neutralize both these effects, and would therefore be 
unadvisable. 
Shrinkage of Corn. — "D. W. H.," 
TJtica, Mo. It depends somewhat upon the kind of corn 
how much shrinkage there will be in drying. A variety 
with a large cob would shrink more than a smaller vari- 
ety. Southern or Western Dent corn will shrink 25 per 
cent in drying, and flint corn about IS to 20 per cent. 
THree-Horse Clevis.— "F. C. Wriglit." 
The clevis of which yon send a drawing and description 
is patented. Persons making and using it are therefore 
liable to the owners of the patent right for infringement. 
Lncern (Alfalfa).— u J. K.," Wilmington, O. 
When a good plant has already a good name by which it 
is widely known, it only leads to a confusion of ideas to 
give it a new and incorrect name. The plant now fre- 
quently called "alfalfa 1 ' (its Chilian name) is liiccrn, and 
is widely cultivated in Europe as a green forage plant. 
It would doubtless succeed very well in Southern Ohio, 
but needs a deep rich soil for its profitable culture. It 
will stand several cuttings in a year, and last several years. 
The advertisement of the Rev. J. Copeland which yon 
scud to us is a genuine affair, and no humbug. 
Moles.— "M. A. S.," Warrenton, Va. We 
have not been very successful in getting rid of moles. 
The latest remedy we have seen is to make a dough of 
meal mixed with arsenic ; make a hole in the run, and 
drop in a pill a6 large as a marble ; then cover the hole 
to exclude light. This, if followed up, is said to destroy 
them— but we have not tried it. 
Easter Flowers. — It is estimated that the 
floral decorations in the New York City churches on 
Easter Sunday cost a total of upwards of thirty thousand 
doilais 1 A small portion of these only are purchased by 
the funds of the churches, the greater part being volun- 
tary gifts by wealthy attendants. 
Mole or I>rain IMovr.— " G. E. S.,'" 
Union Co., Pa. R. H. Allen & Co., Water St., New York, 
make a plow that loosens the subsoil at a depth of 14 to 
18inob.es, which they call the Miner subsoil plow. .The 
use of this plow, which can be drawn by two horses, 
will probably be as satisfactory in drying the surface soil 
as the more costly and heavier mole plows. 
Hitching: Horses.— "H. B. A." It is not 
safe to hitch a horse to a weight. We would not hitch a 
colt in that manner. The heavier the weight the nearer the 
approximation to safety, until the weight is so heavy that 
the horse conld not move it. The flatter the weight the 
better it would be, and 50 lbs. would probably be safe 
under ordinary circumstances. A firm post as high as 
the horse's head is the safest thing to hitch to. 
Bee-StiEags.— "W. A. B., 1 ' Bridgeport, Ct., 
writes: "The best thing I have ever tried for bee-stings 
is to first pull out the sting, and then take a small tube. 
the end of a hollow key for instance, and firmly press 
round the sting for a short time. The reasons for its 
action, I think, are two : first it presses out the poison, 
second it bruises the flesh so as to partly stop its spread- 
ing. It must be done very quick to do any good. I have 
tried it, and a good many other remedies, and this has 
done the best.' 1 
Stals'e Floors. — "H. B. M.," Providence, 
R. I. A plan of laying a stable floor which is water-proof, 
solid, and permanent, is described in the Agriculturist of 
November, 1873. page 415. 
Pwre Butter for 3 cts. a Pound. — 
"J. K." If farmers, who should know all about butter, 
can be induced to believe that it can be made in any 
other manner than from cream, or by the nse of powders 
or any other mixture, and to pay $1 for the Eecret, they 
richly deserve to be swindled, because they become, by 
trying to make butter in such a way, nothing butter than 
swindlers themselves. 
!.iee upon Chickens.— "Mrs. S. A. P.," 
Alpine City. Chickens are everywhere subject to these 
parasites, which when numerous are frequently fatal to 
the chicks. The remedy is to grind up some sulphur and 
lard very fine, and rub the ointment upon the chicks* 
heads and beneath their wings. Severe heat in a dry 
climate is a cause of many troubles to young chickens. 
In such circumstances they should be provided with 
shade, plenty of water, and green food, such as lettuce, 
chopped cabbage, etc. 
Butter from Suet.— "S. D. J.," Wil- 
mington, Del. It would be nselcss to give the process 
for making suet into a substance resembling butter, be- 
cause it is subject to a patent, and therefore conld not be 
used withont paying for the patent right. Whether the 
process is worth paying for or not is a question we can 
not answer. 
Preserving: Meat in Summer. — 
The refrigerator has come to be indispensable to the 
comfort of the household. Soft butter, sour milk or 
cream, tainted meat, and dry, shrunken bread are no 
longer tolerated in any family whose means enable them 
to procure a refrigerator. In these, as in other things, 
there are some requisites necessary for perfection. That 
perishable articles may be kept from spoiling during hot 
weather, the co«led atmosphere in which they are kept 
should be dry. Moisture rapidly produces taint and de- 
composition, and it is because of the abundant moisture 
in ice-houses that meat or butter so soon spoils in them, 
and that vegetables become moldy. Mold is generated 
with rapidity only in moist atmosphere. In dry air the 
mold plant can not grow, neither can flesh, fruit, or 
vegetables spoil. For these reasons the refrigerator 
should be so arranged that the inside air, while it is 
cooled by the ice, should not be in contact with it. A 
refrigerator upon this principle is made by A. M. Lesly, 
of New York, and is known as the " Zero/' The ice is 
in an upper chest, from which water, as the ice melts, 
passes through a charcoal filter, and is collected in a 
reservoir, from which it is drawn by a tap in the front. 
Upon one side of the ice chamber is a deep chest for milk 
or bottles of liquid. Below is a close chamber, which 
has no communication with the ice above ; consequently 
the air in it is dry. What moisture it may have contained 
is deposited upon the cold walls of the ice-box, from 
which it trickles through a pipe in which is an air-trap, 
and ifl discharged into a pan placed underneath. 
