1870.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
•-W-I7 
200,000 people have paid in §1,000,000, of which the Li- 
hrary gets $375,000, the advertisers $125,000, and 62S peo- 
ple are reported to get $500,000, and 199,372 people get 
nothing— a very equitable transaction, is it not? to say 
nothing of the bad effects upon the morals of the country. 
If any one expects to get for $3.50 a good " Alu- 
minum Watch,' 1 he may expect to be swindled. No such 
watches are made A long advertisement sent out to 
the country papt-rs, to be paid after three months, offers 
among other things, "A beautiful English Silver, Solid 
Double Case "Watch, genuine English full plate jewelled 
movements, adjusted regulators, steel cut hands coit- 
r.Ecr and serviceable article, large or small size, in complete 
iiitnnixg order, with an elegant Gent's Yest Chain, 
Locket and Key, all complete, mailed free for... $5." 
No living mortal will do any thin-]: like what is here 
claimed. None hut green editors will insert such an ad- 
vertisement without cash in advance, and no one ought 
to insert it on any terms II. B. Foster, Beach St.,N. 
Y., offers to insure ever so many thousands of dollars 
■ to those who will buy Havana lottery tickets of him— 
hut you must send him a little money first. He won't 
deduct the price of the tickets from the great prize 
he is sure to send you. S. Fletcher &, Co., alias Samnel 
Fletcher, away up at no 70 West t25th St., writes just 
the same as Foster, and encloses the same grand scheme, 
substituting his own name at the bottom. Use their cir- 
culars, etc., for kindlings— before you are tempted to be- 
lieve a word of their plausible letters and lose any money, 
for 3'on will surely lose all sent to them (him) Hill 
& Co., up Broadway, arc informed that a great many peo- 
ple take their advice, and ' L hand their tickets over to 
some other responsible party," and the said many people 
think the Editors of the American Agriculturist jnst the 
said responsible party. So we have lots and lots of 3'our 
tickets on which you ofier us for $5.10 "Splendid Tea 
Sets, valued at $2S ;" li 6 Solid Silver Table Spoons and 
Solid Silver Tea Spoons, valued at $33," all for $5.10; 
also " Solid Gold Watches, double case, full jewelled, 
and patent lever movements," only $5.10 each ! ! 1 Where 
do you find green-horns to believe all this ? You must do 
so, or 3*ou would not keep sending out these tickets. 
Well, perhaps you collect fines enough, of 10 cents each 
for opening your tickets, to make it square. If so, send 
down thirteen of the Solid Gold Watches, eighteen of the 
Tea Sots, and eight gross of the ll Solid Silver Spoons," 
both kinds, and we'll open another couple hundred of 
your tickets, and strike a balance on fines and payments. 
Send down early— before Christmas, for we can't go up 
that nill after the articles, as tempting as you make them 
appear Rev. Edward Wilson, as he calls himself, 
keeps on offering to cure Consumption. Wc have shown 
him up too often to need to say more now. Every wise 
man and woman will throw his deceptive circulars into 
the fire at once, and do the same with the circulars and 
letters of the "Howard Association," the "Errors of 
Youth" man, the "Female complaint" doctors, the circu- 
lars to "Married Women," the retired and cured clergy- 
men, such as Joseph T. Inman at the Bible nouse, and 
all that class. They are sharp swindlers, all of them. 
Do n't send any two stamps for advice to Married 
Women Do n't send any money for anybody's Recipes 
for "Soap," " Vinegar," "nouey," or any other "Recipe'' 1 
advertised by circular or in newspapers. You'll be 
cheated if you do, our word for it An:l now, in imi- 
tation of San Francisco, comes a lottery to pay the Debt 
of the "Nevada School District "—but it has a look of a 
private swindling scheme and should be let severely alone. 
.- The "Prairie Whistle" is not exactly a humbug, 
for anyone who learns can imitate a great many animals, 
— wc have often seen it done. As few will learn without 
personal instruction, it is hardly worth while for any dis- 
tant party to invest 25c. in it Recipes. Again we 
caution our readers to carefully avoid sending money to 
Bellers of recipes, whether described in circulars, pam- 
phlets, books, or newspapers, and however large the 
promise of profits It is seldom safe to subscribe for 
new journals until you see them editoriully endorsed by 
respectable periodicals— especially if they be issued from 
some out-of-the-way place. Any number of these are 
started as pure swindles; thcynrc offered at very low 
rates, with great promises, steel plates, etc.; but after a 
number or two, the money is pocketed, the premiums not 
sent, and you can get no answer to inquiries We are 
sorry to see that the good people of Salem, O., have in 
their midst a man offering such things for sale, ns arc ad- 
vertised by Dr. Jesse Wright— things ostensibly for ma r- 
rieil people, but which are really incentives to licentious- 
ness among the young The "Empire Watch Com- 
pany " advertise watches, oroide gold, silver, etc., at. 190 
Broadway, and give as references G. P. Rowell <fc Co., S. 
M. Pettengill & Co., J. M. Bradstreet &, Co., Commercial 
\gents, etc. We can find no occupied building at 1% 
Broadway, tmd theabove named parties referred to, as- 
sure us that they know no such Company, and have given 
110 permission In refer to thorn Every advertising 
Cancer Doctorisfl humbug, sure Beware of all ad- 
vertisements of cures or medicines by an}' "Medical 
University." or "Institute," or " Infirmary." Every one 
of these issuing advertisements is a swindle, — a quack's 
dodge to gain confidence amongthe unwary Our space 
is full, with many swindles reserved for nest paper. 
Seven Kiiids of Oats Tested.— 
Jacob Dunton, of Philadelphia, writes as follows : " Last 
spring I purchased seven varieties of oats from reliable 
seedsmen, in quantities varying from 1 peck to bushels. 
I gave them equal culture, upon the same field, at Chest- 
nnt Hills, with the following results. I could see no dif- 
ference in the Norways, purchased from different parties. 
As the fancy sorts averaged about $3.50 per bushel, you 
will be able to judge whether it would be advantageous 
to continue to plant them. 
Common Oat3 
Prince Edward's Island 
New Brunswick 
Norway 
Surprise 
Nova Scotia 
Scotch Eotato 
Yield pom Welahis— 
1 bushel. lbs. 
32. 
32. 
32. 
7.2 
7. 
8.44 
7. 
7. 
Usefulness of Good Engravings. 
— • — 
Hardly a dozen years ago, a cheap lithograph picture or 
two, generally sprinkled over with flashy colore, consti- 
tuted the chief " works of art " to he found in a large 
proportion of the houses of the people. While these 
gave a certain degree of pleasure, they certainly did not 
tend to cultivate true taste. But the recent great atten- 
tion given to engraving on wood, copper, and steel, the 
advancement in clcctrotyptng, the remarkable improve- 
ments in chromotype, and the very rapid multiplication 
of illustrated papers, are bringing within the reach of 
the humblest homes an unlimited supply of very superior 
pictures. A few dimes will procure enough, or these to 
cover the entire walls of the rude log cabin, or the more 
Improved 9Eoofin$*'. — We have so many 
inquires in regard to composition roofing of various kinds 
that we arc constrained to say of the only one now ad- 
vertised by us, that we believe its claims to superiority 
are well founded. The Asbestos roofing consists of a 
strong canvas and a layer of felt, both saturated with a 
water-proof composition, which contains none of the 
dead oils of gas-tar, and hence does not rot. hut preserves 
the fibre in its full strength, besides a lining of manilla 
paper. The whole is compressed into a firm, elastic, 
leather-like material, which is very different 11....1 and 
vastly better than any other roofing we ever saw sold for 
use in the same way. 
Suiaflowei" Seeds tfbi" Morses. — " J. 
n. B.," St. Albans, Vt. Wc mentioned Sunflower seeds 
as a remedy for heaves upon the authority of a physician 
of our acquaintance, living at the West. He mixes the 
whole seed with the regular feed at night, beginning with 
a gill and increasing the quantity gradually so that at the 
end of a week the horse has a pint of them each night ; 
this is continued until the symptoms are relieved. 
Cannas snad C»la,diiiiiis.--"Ignorarjms, n 
Philadelphia. After the roots are dried off, put them 
in a box of dry sand and keep in a dry and warm cellar. 
Celery. — Mrs. J. D. "We have no work espe- 
cially upon the culture of celery. Henderson's Gardening 
for Profit gives a full account of the best method. An 
article from the same author will be found in the Agri- 
culturist for June last. 
Ma^vtfliorBiu— " T. F. S.," West Point, Miss. 
Hawthorn is raised from seed which must be a year in 
the ground before it will come up. But why bother with 
Hawthorn which has so many defects and but few good 
qualities, when you can have Osage Orange, Pyracanth 
Thorn, Macartney Rose, and others which are quite 
adapted to your climate. — Hawthorn loses its leaves 
early, grows very slow, and is a perfect harbor forinsects. 
Osage Orange.— II. S. Wood. We can- 
not advise you to try the Osage Orange in Vermont. The 
Honey-Locust would be a better Hedge plant. 
Coifs Beurre Pcar.-"R. J. B., 1 ' Fair- 
field Co., O., writes: " Recently you said a good word 
for Colt's Bcurre pear. The quality of the fruit deserves 
it ; but it is ashy hearer, and tardy, on sandstone upland 
in S. E. Central Ohio, where Bartlctt, Flemish Beauty, 
Howell, Louise Bonne de .Jersey, etc., are satisfactory in 
theBQ respects. .To my taste, Flemish Beauty is superior 
to Coit, and is hardly surpassed by any other, indeed; 
but it will blight. What variety won't?" 
commodious home. An engraving will often convey 
more positive information than could be obtained from 
ten times the space of printed matter. Implements for 
the farm and the house are shown to the life by the en- 
graver's tool and printer's ink, almost as distinctly as if 
one looked at the objects themselves. Good pictures 
have a refining and elevating influence upon the minds of 
children as well as of adults. They arc silent educators 
that insensibly tell for good. Knowing and feeling this, 
our publishers give to the editors almost a carte blanche— 
an untrammeled discretion— in the matter of procuring a 
large supply of the best quality of pictures for both the 
American Agriculturist and Hearth and Home— not black 
blots, called pictures for want of other names, but really 
fine, artistic engravings— those that cultivate true taste in 
the eye and mind, and that both please and instruct. 
Good judges say that no superior engravings are any- 
where else printed. The cost depends upon the amount 
of work and artistic talent pnt upon engravings. The 
uncultivated eye may not at first perceive the difference 
between a rude cut costing $10 or §15, and one covering no 
more space that actually costs $100 to $200, or more; but 
the people are being educated up to this, and we shall try to 
do our part to promote this education. For the coming 
year the Agriculturist will contain pictures costing 
$12,000 to $15,000, and Hearth and Home those worth 
$20,000 to $25,000, and our facilities for printing them in 
the highest style are unsurpassed. These figures seem 
large ; but with 300,000 subscribers and more than a mil- 
lion readers, the cost is so divided as to be endurable, 
when it would be entirely impracticable with an ordinary 
circulation. The same holds true in regard to other ex- 
penses ; and this furnishes an explanation of the seeming 
impossibility of furnishing so large and expensive a paper 
at so moderate a price. The reader will readily see that 
the American, Agriculturist, and Hearth and Home, are 
beyond competition in the amount and character of the 
engravings and reading matter they can supply at a small 
cost, owing to their nncqualed circulation, and the 
superior advantages they can therefore afford. 
Bee Notes.— By M. Quinby, 
Bees that are to be housed should he allowed to fly un- 
til steady cold weather sets in. Stocks to remain ont 
should be sheltered from the wind, and stand where the 
sun can strike them every day. Only strong stocks will 
do well in old-fashioned wooden hives in the open air. 
When transferring bees and combs from wooden to straw t 
hives or otherwise, in cold weather, choose a nearly dark 
rsom for the operation. Hives in the open air must be 
thoroughly ventilated. They should be slightly raised, 
and an inch hole made through the center of the bottom 
board. Open holes in the top to give egress to the rising 
moisture and keep out rain and snow. Exclude mice by 
using wire-cloth, leaving just space enough for the bees at 
the bottom of the hive. — For wintering in the house the 
room should be warm. A large, cold room will require 
at least fifty stocks to keep up the requisite degree of 
heat. It must be dark and well ventilated. The moist- 
ure from the hives with movable frames will pass oil' 
through the passages made for the surplus boxes, and 
these should he left open. Box hives should have holes 
in the top open, and then be inverted on small sticks so 
as to secure a current of air between the combs. A dry 
cellar is as good for wintering bees as a room above 
ground. — Boxes intended for use another year should be 
packed away in a dry place. Hives and boxes partially 
filled should be allowed to freeze in order to destroy the 
eggs of the moth. 
Straw Hives for Wintering Bees.— For the 
benefit of those using the Quinby hive, or any other hive 
in which the frames are supported by the bottom board, 
I wish to say now that they may be arranged for winter 
with hut very little trouble, and combine all the advan- 
tages of tho straw hive, with many others, for out-door 
wintering. First, prepare the bottom board by Bccuring 
ventilation through it in such a manner that it will not 
become obstructed by any dead bees that happen to drop; 
thru arrange a pasBagO-way for the bees from near the 
center to the outside entrance ; next get out a strip, one 
inch by an iueh and a half, one foot long, and nail a strip of 
hoop-iron on one edge, "projecting one-fourth of an inch ; 
this will support the frames in the same manner as usual ; 
lay this across the bottom, and set one end of the frames 
on it, hooking fast to the hoop-iron, keeping the same 
relative position of combs, and all the frames will stand 
just the other way— across the hive — and be about four 
inches from every side of the hive ; cover the top of the 
frames with canvas, and then fill with soft straw, hay. or 
Chaff, or even dry sawdust, closely packed, even full ; 
open "lie of tho ventilators near the top, and all the 
111 i- hue will pass so very slowly through tho straw that 
most of the heat will be retained nenr the bees; and if 
they .'i!'.' in good condition to start with, they will ho not 
only Bttfe, but very comfortable all winter. 
