<±8 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[February, 
Mops in California.— Daniel Flint, of 
Sacramento Co., Cal., writes : "Last year I grew on five 
acres of ground 12,000 lbs. of No. 1 hops. The largest 
yield was on one and one-half acres, which produced 
4600 lbs., or a little over 3000 lbs. to the acre. My hills are 
planted seven feet each way, 8S8 to the acre, or 1332 on 
the one and one-half acres, nearly Sy 2 lbs. to the hill." 
A. CJood Crop of Clover Seed..— A cor- 
respondent in York Co., Pa., in reference to an article in 
the Agriculturist for January, states, that one of his neigh- 
bors, Mr. Joseph Irwin, raised 36 bushels of clover seed 
from 9 acres, and sold it for $9.15 per bushel. The first 
crop of hay yielded 20 tons, which he estimates at $10 
per ton, or $200. The seed brought $329.40, making 
$529.40 as the produce of the nine acres in one season. 
Comfort for Cows in "Stanchions/ 9 
—Our readers know that we have always objected to the 
use of Stanchions for fastening cows in stables on the 
ground of inhumanity, and because the cows' discomfort 
detracts from their value to their owners. Mr. L. Safford, 
Newtonville, Massachusetts, has invented and 
ented a style of 
Stanchion which, to 
a considerable ex- 
tent, obviates this 
objection, and, giv- 
ing the cows com- 
fort, adds to the 
profit of keeping 
them, while all of 
the conveniences of 
stanchions are re- 
tained. It is simply 
& contrivance by 
which each set of Stanchions is hung like a door, so that 
the cow can swing it half around and he at ease whan Bhe 
likes. "We heartily advise those using, or wishing to use 
stanchions, to address the inventor. — See advertisement. 
Meat for JFo wis to make them liay. 
— One subscriber asks, what food will induce fowls to 
lay? another asks about scrap cake ; another about hogs' 
lights and similar offal. To those we would say: It is 
the nature of fowls in good health to lay, and they cannot 
help it — the eggs will come. Scanty fare will reduce their 
laying propensity, and on very short commons, eggs cease 
altogether. Rich food promotes the tendency; certain 
seeds, like buckwheat, sunflower and hemp seeds in- 
crease it, and meat of any kind does the same. All this, 
however, forces the fowl into an unnatural state, and 
ordinarily shortens her life. The eggs, besides, have often 
a poor flavor. Occasional feedings of fresh meat, like the 
lights of hogs chopped fine, are very good in winter 
when the fowls find no insect food. They need, besides, 
hearty food in cold weather, especially if they are not 
kept in warm houses. In very cold weather, hens run- 
ning about and roosting in exposed places, will not lay, 
though richly fed ; their food goes to keeping them warm. 
Chicken Ailments — Gapes.- " Hoo- 
sier" writes as follows : I notice a great many articles on 
chicken ailments, especially gapes, but do not remember 
seeing lime recommended as a cure. In the summer my 
chickens, a fine brood of eighty or more, took to gaping, 
and every chick, least unto the greatest, went around 
squeaking as though they wished to discharge their "wind- 
pipes." I "tried the horse hair, feather, and turpentine," 
and almost everything I heard tell of, but nothing availed 
to stop the dire disease. Next I turned my attention to- 
ward the diet and drink. First, I removed the entire vil- 
lage to a clean grassy spot ; each time I fed them, I put a 
good quantity of lime in the feed, which was a mixture 
of cornmeal and wheat bran. The drinking vessels were 
cleaned thoroughly each morning, and filled with clear, 
fresh water, pretty well whitened with lime. In less than 
a week the chickens quit dying, and began to improve 
amazingly. Not another chick died after the first week 
of this new course of treatment. The tonic and anti-acid 
properties of the lime imparted an invigorating influence 
upon the systems of the chicks. Give fowls j>lenty of 
lime to eat, lime and ashes to wallow in. and they will 
never he lousy, nor lay soft-shelled eggs. 
Sorghum Vinegai*. — "J. S. C," writes; 
"We have never succeeded in making vinegar from Sor- 
ghum juice without boiling ; hut if it he boiled away one- 
third or one-half, it will make good vinegar. We have 
made Sorghum vinegar for a number of years, and we 
make the best from the white skimmings and washings 
of the finishing pan. As soon as the juice begins to 
thicken up in boiling, or when it gets to be very thin 
syrap, a whitish scum rises, which, if saved and diluted 
with rain water, will make a number one vinegar. Vin- 
egar can he made from good Sorghum syrup, (one gallon 
of syrup to two of rain water), hut it will not work as 
quick and is no better than that made from the skim- 
mings. The reason of this I suppose is, that the skim- 
mings contain something that acts as a ferment. Keep 
the skimmings until the following Bpring, add about as 
much water as you have skimmings ; be Biire and leave it 
sweet enough, for the sweeter it iB the better the vinegar 
will he ; then, if it is too sweet to work well, add more 
water ; put it in vinegar or whiskey casks, and set in a 
sunny place to work. 
Prize Essays on Housekeeping-.— 
By reference to the Household department it will be seen 
that instead of a single first prize of $100, we have award- 
ed three such prizes. The names of two of the success- 
ful ones are given with the instalments of their essays ; 
the other is Miss Eva M. Collins, of Rochester, N. Y. 
191 olasses Cake. — By Mrs. Nellie Foster. — 
Take of Sorghum molasses 9 cupsfuls ; 1 cup of butter, 
melted ; yolks of 4 eggs, half cup of milk, 3 cups of flour, 
half teaspoonful of soda dissolved in a small quantity of 
the milk. Thoroughly stir as each article is added; 
whites of 4 eggs beaten. A very fine light molasses cake. 
Cooking Xripe. — Letty Ermine says : Dip 
the salted pieces of tripe in corn meal, and fry in butter. 
Let the butter (a small portion) be quite hot before putting 
in the tripe, and then it will become a handsome brown 
color. Another way is, to cut the tripe in very small 
squares or strips, and stew it in milk, at last adding a 
little butter, pepper and salt. 
Rice Pudding*. — L. Stanley, of Maine, 
gives the following recipe : Take one cupful of rice, 
boil it in a small quantity of water until tender; when 
done, it should be almost dry. Then add one cup of 
sugar, one cup of raisins, previously boiled 15 minutes, 
two eggs and three pints of milk ; salt and spice to taste. 
Door Mats. — Letty Ermine writes: "In a 
recent item upon ' door mats ' you do not mention one 
variety. Take any such pieces as might he used for rag- 
carpet — pantaloons, sacks, old flannels, pieces of baize, 
etc., cut into strips, and braid the easy three-strand braid. 
Sew this braid with carpet thread, in circular or oval 
shapes, to lay by the doors in the dining room, at the foot 
of the back stairs, etc. They are so firm, that they are 
not easily kicked up. A large oval is very agreeable laid 
by the dining room stove. By a trifling effort, the red 
flannel, and the brown and black clothes and green baize 
can be made into a veiy tasteful little matter.' 1 
Warts on Hands.— "Moorestown," N. J. 
These excrescences are sometimes very obstinate, and 
again disappear so readily that a number of absurd reme- 
dies have acquired a popular reputation. The surgenn 
disposes of them by means of various caustics, but these 
are not recommended for domestic use, unless one under- 
stands the nature of the articles and exercises proper 
oare. Perhaps the safest general remedy is strong acetic 
acid, applied to the warts every few days. 
To Color Brown. — By L. Stanley, of Maine. 
— Make a dye of common alder bark. First dip the ar- 
ticles in this, then wring them out and dip them into 
weak lye. This will make the color light or dark, accord- 
ing to the strength of the alder dye. It is a fast color. 
A C«o©a Paper Cutter.— Grandmother's 
Knitting-needle, if it is stiff enough. Try it on the Agri- 
culturist. It will not do so well on the last novel. 
Painting 1 Floors. — This is sometimes 
done in alternate squares or diamonds of different coloi'B 
to imitate variegated marbles. But if the floors are much 
used, the paint soon wears off in patches and looks bad- 
ly. One color we think in better taste, and the natural 
color of the wood, kept perfectly clean, the best taste of all 
jtlanufactnred. Manures- tnforma- 
lion Wanted from Farmers,— That there are 
some good " artificial fertilizers" made, we have no doubt; 
but we are quite sure that there is a very large amount of 
cheating in this line, besides a great deal of really worth- 
less stuff sold by innocent dealers who are working under 
false theories. One of the common frauds is the manu- 
facture of a good article until a reputation is established 
and "certificates" obtained, and then often adulterate 
or depreciate the fertilizer. In order to collect some 
information on the subject, we solicit from each of our 
readers who have used any kind of special or manufactur- 
ed fertilizer, a report on the results. Let us know briefly : 
1st, about the date of first using; 2d, the name of the 
fertilizer ; 3d the manufacturer's name ; 4th, the seller's 
name ; 5th, did it appear to pay ; 6th, did it pay so well 
that its use was continued more than one vear, and if so, 
how many years ; 7th, if still in use, is it as good as when 
first sold. "We want the failures all reported as well as the 
successes ; the manufacturers take good care to learn of, 
and give us the latter. The plainest fanner can write out 
brief answers to the above simple questions. We do not 
wantj these reports for publication in detail, but to gather 
some general results that will he given, if we can have 
full reports from all our readers. 
Brazilian Sugar Cane. — Mr. Charles J. 
Smith, U. S. Consul at Para, Brazil, has left at the Agricul- 
turist office a few specimens of Sugar Cane, 16 J4 feet high, 
and carrying a diameter of 2 inches to a hight of nearly 
10 feet from the ground. We never saw finer cane. 
Pears in California. — Daniel Flint, 
Sacramento, asks if any one can heat him in raising 
pears. In February he set a cion of the Bartlett, and in 
September following he cut off the limb and exhibited it 
at the State Fair. It contained 12 pears and weighed 19 
pounds. This will do, even for California, a State from 
which we look for great things in horticulture. 
Trouble with Strawberry Plants. 
— J. Arnold, Paris, C. W. We do not recognize the worm 
that killed your strawberry plants, from the description. 
Next year send specimens to B. D. Walsh, Editor Practical 
Entomologist, Eock Island, 111. He or some of his asso- 
ciates will be glad to study them up for you. 
Bait for ging-s. — L. Lang wo r, Rutland Co., 
Vt, says, that a spoonful of malt placed here and there, 
and covered by a flower pot or other dish to prevent their 
access to it, will prove very attractive to slugs, which will 
assemble around the bait during the night and may he 
killed in the morning. Next to malt, he has found grated 
carrots used in the same way to be the most attractive bait. 
Ufew Hand-weedcr. — Mr. Geo. P. Allen, 
of Woodbury, Conn., is the inventor and patentee of the 
little implement which we represent in the accompanying 
engraving. It is a scuffie-hoe, consisting of a thin steel 
blade, with two cutting edges. These edgeB consist of a 
series of acute teeth 
sharpened from the 
under side. Held 
naturally, by a man 
standing erect, the 
blade lies perfectly 
flat upon the ground, 
and raising or lower- 
ing the handle gives 
it a tendency to en 
ter, if shoved or 
drawn. The com- 
mon straight-bladed 
scuffle-hoe, though 
sharp, often meets 
with considerable 
resistance from roots of grass and weeds, and frequent- 
ly slips over them ; even hard lumps of soil obstruct its 
movement. This one readily passes through the»clods, and 
cuts any kind of roots with ease. It is especially adapted 
to hoeing among garden vegetables, carrots, onions, and 
other root crops in the field. We ourselves used one of 
these weeders last year with entire satisfactiou. 
Xlae Apple as a Pear Stock.— "T. J. 
P." proposes to set out apple trees the coming spring, 
and the following spring to graft them with pears. The ap- 
ple is not a good pear stock — the trees are generally short 
lived. We cannot advise our friend to proceed in this 
way, and we do not see any reason why he should not set 
out pear trees at once. The answer to the question "will 
pears pay?" will depend very much upon the locality, 
and no clue to the place is given to this in the letter. 
Shrul> for a «rave.-J. B. Bowman, 
Blair Co., Penn. Plants with white flowers are generally 
preferred for cemetery decorations. Among the best of 
these are St. Peters Wreath, Spircea hypericifolia, the 
Mock Orange PhUadelphus, and Deutzia gracilis. These 
are all readily obtained from the nurseries and are hardy. 
How Far Apart? — "J. W. B.," Iowa, 
wishes to set an orchard, and is told by some to set his 
trees 13 feet apart, and by others to put them at the dis- 
tance of two rods. Both may be right, as there is a great 
difference in the habit of trees. Two rods is I he old rule, 
and is applicable to all large-growing varieties, such as 
the Fall Pippin, Tallman's Sweet, etc., while the Red 
Astrachan and others may he set at half that distauca 
Those who advocate close planting claim that the trees 
protect one another. We cannot tell what your trouble- 
some vine is, from the description; send specimens 
