168 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[May, 
Lime and Manure.-" H. N. CL," Som- 
erville, N. J. When lime is spread ou a field just pre- 
viously mauured no barm is done. The effect is to cause 
the stable manure to be more rapidly decomposed, and 
consequently to act more vigorously on the crop and to 
be more rapidly exhausted, 
"Wanted an Estimate. — ''A Subscrib- 
er " asks how much lie shonld pay for the nse of seven 
cows for one year, lie finding the feed and having all the 
milk.— That depends much on the kind of cows. If 
they arc such as will give an average of 10 quarts of milk 
a day during the season of nine months, the owner of the 
cow should be entitled to one half nf the profit over the 
cost of feed. The feed and care of a cow fora year should 
be worth $50 ; the milk at 3 cents a quart would he worlb 
$S1 ; half the profit would be $15.50— a fair allowance for 
each party. 
Tobacco Culture as t© its Morali- 
ty.—"!. B. Y,," Meriden, Ct. There can not be the 
slightest objection to the culture of tobacco in a moral 
point of view, nor in an agricultural way if the grower 
uses sufficient caution to prevent loss of fertility to his 
soil. Morally the growth of tobacco is in the same cate- 
gory as that of tea, coffee, barley for malt, or hops, which 
are not necessaries of life. Agriculturally its culture is 
sound, when on the whole, the grower is permanently 
benefited; if he grows a crop or crops at a less profit 
during a course of years than by other crops it is not a 
good business; and farmers ought to make close and 
prospective calculations before they arc tempted by seem- 
ing present profits to give their land up to it. 
Taylor^ Cattle Food.— "We do not ad- 
vcrtis ■ preparations of this kind without being informed 
of their composition, and the fact that it appeared in our 
columns is evidence that we thought well of it. Since 
it was introduced, we have had considerable experience 
with it, especially in the case of one animal which ap- 
peared in a hopeless condition. Some of our best breed- 
ers think it useful in preventing abortion, and as it im- 
proves the tone of the animal's system this may be to a 
certain extent true. The food consists of tonics and 
stomachics ground up with corn ; and is in a form that is 
handy to use, as well as palatable to the animal. 
American Rubber Paint. — Of late 
years several substitutes have been proposed for the or- 
dinary oil paint. These have the advantage, among others, 
that they are mixed and ready for use. A given quantity 
— a gallon, for instance— will cover a certain number of 
square yards, and one has only to measure the surface to 
be painted, order the proper amount of paint, and put it 
on at his leisure. One of the successful paints of this 
kind is made by the American Paint. Co., which has been 
used with satisfaction by some of our associates, and 
■which is probably as good as any similar article now in , 
the market. 
IHlnted Sulphuric Acid.— "G. P. D.," 
Delaware Co., Pa. Water charged with sulphuric acid 
would make a valuable wash for stables if there were any 
■way of saving the liquid manure. Applied to a manure 
pile it would fix the ammonia which became disengaged 
from the fermenting mass, and produce a non-volatile 
salt of ammonia. 
Management ofCoUs.-F. F.," Blue 
Hill. Colts sometimes have a hereditary predisposition 
to founder, and a slight overfeeding with corn-meal or 
inattention to the general health may induce inflamma- 
tory action in the feet, which is known as founder. In 
such cases the stable floor should be spread with sawdust 
six inches in depth, kept moist where the fore feet are 
placed with cold water. Soft, cooling foodj as bran- 
mashes, and plenty of cold water for drink should be 
given, and cold water freely applied to the feet. The 
colt should be encouraged to lie down by having a good 
bed supplied, and not be forced to take exercise which is 
disagreeable to him. If a moist pasture can be procured, 
a run ct £rass would be beneficial. No bleeding needed. 
Sowed Corn for Fodder.— "A. P.," 
Charlotte, who says he has never seen any directions for 
harvesting fodder corn in the Arjriculti'riH, is requested 
to l«ok again ; he will not only find ample and repeated 
directions for this, but doubtless for many other useful 
things which he has missed. 
nomceopatliic Veterinary Prac- 
tice is a new work published by Boerick & Tafel, of 
New York and Philadelphia, which describes the treat- 
ment under this system of diseases of horses, and all other 
kinds of domesticated animals. For those who de- 
eire to follow this treatment, or for those who defcire to 
learn the proper management and care of animals in 
health, this book will be found valuable. Price, ?5. 
Vslies from Spent Tan-Bark, — "J. 
O. M.," Susquehanna Co.. Pa. The ashes from spent tan- 
bark are worth as much as the average of wood-ashes. If 
they are mixed with coal-ashes as they often are when 
burned beneath the boilers of a tannery, their value de- 
pends altogether ou the proportions in which they are 
mixed. The refuse matter from a tannery consisting of 
scrapings and trimmings of hides and lime with some 
hair is worth £"2 a load, which is its usual price. 
I*otatoe*— Early Peas. — " G., 11 Avon, 
Ct. It will depend much upon the season whether " Early 
Pose planted in the middle of July ,r will mature a crop. 
If there is the usual midsummer drouth the vines will 
have n poor chance to grow— ::o vines no tubers A? to 
the best early pea, a good strain of Daniel O'Rourke is 
perhaps as reliable as any. This pea has any number of 
names. each dealer calling it his particular " Extra Early." 
Proper Apfe for IS reeding;.— "C. C. 
McD.," Battle Creek, Mich. A mare nt two years old is 
too young to breed. She should be four years old. A Jer- 
sey heifer may be allowed to breed after she is a year old. 
but generally heifers of other races shonld be at least two 
year-* old. Jersey cattle are more precocious in this 
respect than others, and yet it is a question if it would 
not be better not to breed even from these so early. 
Chopped Oats and Corn.— "G. C. A," 
Marion Co., Oregon. If it were not for the amount of 
husk, oats wonld be about equal to corn as feed, weight 
to weirrbt ; but nearly one half( 14 / 33 ) of a bushel of oats 
is husk. In estimatingthc comparative value of chopped 
oa s and corn this must be taken into account. 
St. Titus Dance. — A " New Subscriber," 
Washington. N. C, who probably is not aware that all let- 
ters should be signed with real name. — St. Vitns dance is a 
nervous disease which generally follows distemper in 
young dogs. It consists in a twitching, more or less 
violently, of the muscles of a limb, or sometimes of the 
whole body, and not infrequently the animal dies mis- 
erably. The dog when affected slightly generally recov- 
ers in time if his general health is kept up. The food 
should therefore be of the most nutritious and digestible — 
rice, oatmeal, or bread, boiled in beef-tea strained from 
all bone or meat, should be given in moderate quantities, 
and overfeeding and disturbing exercise avoided. 
Irlanurr-Eatinpr Cows.— ( J. F. H.," 
Oswego Co., N. Y. Almost all cows during the winter 
season will cat the litter from the horse stables if allowed 
to do so, evr-n though they may be fed in the most abun 
dant manner. We never knew any harm to result from 
the practice. Hogs and fowls in the same way will con- 
sume the droppings of cattle, and fowls those of hogs, and 
hogs those of fowls. It may be one of the economies of 
nature that nothing should be lost or useless. In parts 
of Sweden the dairy cows arc regularly given the drop- 
pings of the horses a6 feed : but the practice is considered 
by some there as repulsive, as it is very naturally consider- 
ed here. 
Xlie Paragon Basket-Mr. J. R. Hel- 
frich has shown us samples of a berry basket, which he 
and other commission men think very superior. The 
two engravings show how it is made. Three strips of 
The soluble salts of zinc arc poisonous ; hence galvanized 
iron pipe should not be used for conveying, nor galvan- 
ized tanks for storing water that is to be used for drink- 
ing and cooking. 
thin wbite-wood form the bottom and sides of the basket ; 
the bottom hoop is dispensed with as well as the extra 
bottom piece. There is ample provision for ventilation, 
and the shape of the top is round, thus enabling the fruit 
to show at its best. 
Variegated Leares. — "S. W.,*' Fair- 
haven, Minn. The plant you send is not a Myrtle but a 
species of Spider-wort. Trade. tcantia repens ritlata. We 
can not tell why the leaves of this and a hundred other 
plants are variegated — wish we could. 
Galvanized Iron Pipe.— The term " Gal- 
vanized*' is applied to iron covered with a coating of 
zinc. The zinc protects the iron from being acted upon 
by water, but the xinc itself is acted upon and dissolved. 
Bermuda Coffee and Other Products. 
"A. O." writes, March 31st. "I inclose a grain or two 
of Bermuda Coffee, which grows spontaneously in this 
parish at Walsiugham and Payuter's Yale. I thinkcoffee 
could be cultivated more esteusively here. It "rows 
quickly and bears well, and its quality is equal to that of 
Java. At any rate, it could be grown in sufficient quantity 
for our Island demand. '•Indigo also grows wild, and 
likewise other valuable plants, medicinal chiefly. 
"Owing to the severity of this past winter, our three 
staple productions, onion*. "tomatoes, and potatoes, arc 
late in the market, but during the month of April larger 
shipments will be made. The Trophy Tomato, if good, 
does well— is tin- finest fruit produced, and sells for high- 
est price. Early Rose potatoes meet with ready sale for 
the home market, arc first-class eating potatoes, are dug 
usually during February and March. 
" Some of our people are prejudiced against the White 
Onion, and by legislative enactment endeavor to prevent 
the importation of White-Onion seed— and granted $1000 
to buy it up, and have destroyed what was on hand. 
Now this is an error, the white onion by some being pre- 
ferred. This onion is what you term the yellow onion, 
not the silver skin variety." — The coffee sent was very Gne 
in appearance, but it is a plant the quality of which is 
largely determined by soil and climate, and only actual 
experience can determine the practicability of its culti- 
vation. We thank our correspondent for his good words 
in regard to the Agiictdtini-st, and shall be glad to hear 
from him again. 
Catalogues Received. 
The following catalogues have been recived since our 
last list: 
Nurserymen.— W. C. Strong, Brighton. Mass J. W. 
Cobnrn & Co., East Chester, N. Y. .. F. Trowbridge, 
Now Haven, Ct.. Fruit and Ornamental Trees J. A. 
Vaughn, Carver, Mass Geo. Pinney, Sturgeon Bay. 
Wis., Evergreen and Forest Tr es F. K. Phcenix, 
Bloomington. 111. 
Florists.— Geo. W. Campbell, Delaware. Ohio... L. B. 
Ca c e, Pichmond. [nd .. .W. F. Porter. Warren. Ohio 
F. K. Phcenix, Bloomington, III. 
' /;.— Win. Newton, Henrietta, N. Y. . .L. D.Scot & 
Co., Huron, Ohio, Seed Potatoes. 
Fowls,— 'S. B. Perkins. Salem, Mass. 
Coniptons Surprise Potato and other 
Novelties 
'■T. F," Cheshire Co., X. H., writes that he thinks 
that instead of giving a notice of Comptou's Surprise Po- 
tato, or allowing the advertisement of ir to appear. -,e 
ou^lit to class it among the humbugs. It is the business 
of an editor to let his readers know what is going on in 
the world. When he gives the authority for a statement 
that seems extraordinary, he gives his readers an oppor- 
tunity to judge whether they will believe it or not. We 
go upon the principle that our readers are capable of 
judging for themselves in such matters. This Mr. Comp- 
ton appears to be perfectly sincere in bis statement, and 
his neighbors testify to his truthfulness. Which would 
T. F., as a long-time reader, have us do ? Tell him that 
there is a potato for which such claims are made, giving 
him our authority for the statement, and distinctly stat- 
ing that we know nothing of it of our own knowledge, or 
ignore it altogether? We do not see that any one is 
obliged to buy the potato unless they choose to risk their 
money in trying an experiment. Had we waited until 
we had tried the potato, we should be largely blamed, 
provided it turned out valuable, for keeping all knowl- 
edge away from our readers. As to showing it up as a 
humbug, we are very careful not to call a thing a humbug 
unless we feel able to convince a jury that it is so. We 
have a distinct recollection of being taken to task for 
publishing what we did in favor of the Early Rose pota- 
to when it was sold at a higher price. Yet the introduc- 
tion of that has been worth uncounted millions to the 
country. It is our intention to keep our readers ad- 
vised with regard to novelties in agriculture and horticul- 
ture. With regard to things that are untested by us, we 
give the source of our information, and leave the matter 
until we can record the results of our own experience. 
