9 
25 
i 
shall be small, after which it may be gradually 
increased until the animal has all she will eat. 
Shingles are said to last much longer and 
are prevented from warping in dry weather, 
thus causing a leaky roof, if they are covered 
with a whitewash made by adding slacked quick¬ 
lime to a moderately strong brine; some would 
add sand or whiting to the whitewash, but the 
advantage of doing so is doubtful. If the white 
color is objected to for the roof, any painter can 
give instructions for changing to any tint de¬ 
sired., from a flaming red to a delicate stone 
color. Some prepare their shingles by dipping 
them in the wash before laying, but this entails 
extra labor, and is but little, if any better, as 
all that is needed is to protect that part which 
is exposed to the weather. 
Dr. Oemler in his recently published “Truck 
Farming at the South,” says Onions may be 
sown at any time in the fall, the weather being 
favorable but there is nothing to be gained by 
such very early planting. In the latitude of 
Savannah and northward the young plants of 
October and November sowings may be exposed 
to injury from heavy rains, or, notwithstanding 
the very hardy nature of the onion, from severe 
freezing in December. The crops from seed 
sown about January 1st, escapes these damages 
and comes in early enough for the better demand, 
and growing through a shorter and -warmer 
period wiil require a less extended care. 
It is our opinion that to successfully withstand 
the winter in the north, the seeds should be 
sown about the time of sowing winter wheat, 
so that the young plants may become firmly 
rooted. A slight covering will then protect 
them during the winter and they will be ready 
for an early start in spring, keeping pace with 
spring planted “setts.” 
Theories based upon single experiments are 
of but little value. Agricultural experiments 
to be worth much to the farmer must cover many 
year’s tests under varying conditions. Bulletins 
of single experiments are often curious and in¬ 
teresting, but not safe guides to the practical 
farmer. Thus it is the practice among experi¬ 
menters to plant a certain crop in rows side by 
side upon similar soil and in a similar exposure, 
to apply different fertilizers to each row, and 
to test their efficiency by weight or measure at 
the end of the season. The differences in yield 
are then supposed to represent the differences in 
the values of the various fertilizers. The un¬ 
certainty of such a trial, unless continued for 
several seasons, has been rendered apparent by 
Prof. Beal, who has grown various vegetables 
in rows side by side, giving each row the same 
manure and the same treatment, and weighing 
the yields. These yields were found to vary 
much, in many cases more than has been re¬ 
ported by experimenters upon fertilizers. Con¬ 
tiguous rows of onions twenty or thirty reds 
long, all receiving the same treatment, often 
varied several bushels in yield. Here is an 
“error of experiment” which is seldom taken 
into account. 
With pressed bricks, cement pavements and 
fire-proof inventions, the age of raw material 
for building is fast passing away. At the West 
they are now making boards and beams out of 
straw. Its toughness, its firmness in holding 
nails and screws, the ease with which it can be 
cut, the fact that it can be bent by heat and 
shaped in dies, all recommend it to carpenters 
and builders. It seems to be a non-conductor of 
heat and electricity. It can be rolled up into 
pipes of great strength and light weight, and is 
available for a range of uses for paneling pur¬ 
poses for which we have no equivalent. 
In his “Truck Farming at the South,” Dr. 
Oemler says the business of producing vegetables 
for shipment has gradually developed to as¬ 
tonishing proportions, principally in the vicinity 
of the larger cities of the South. One of the 
results has been that land within three miles of 
Savannah, for instance, has risen in value one 
hundred and fifty per cent within the last 
twelve years. Of course failures occur in this 
as in every other pursuit, but when favorable 
conditions of soil, situation, etc., exist, sober, 
economical, industrious and intelligent farmers 
who attend closely to their business can make 
this a most profitable branch of agriculture. As 
an instance of successful truck-farming he cites 
a case within his knowledge of three brothers 
who commenced to farm on their own account 
seven years ago near Savannah. They had a 
borrowed capital of one thousand dollars where¬ 
with to operate their first crop and make a pay¬ 
ment on account of their purchase of land. 
They have not only been able to pay for the 
land in full from the proceeds of their crops, 
but have acquired in the aggregate two hundred 
and seventy-five acres, making at various in¬ 
tervals cash payments ranging from one thousand 
five hundred dollars to nine thousand one 
hundred dollars. Besides this they have ex¬ 
pended various amounts in buildings, and other 
imprbvements, and have cash on hand and a 
bank account. One of the brothers has also 
invested in railroad stocks, and the elder of 
these has lately purchased a house and lot in 
town, for four thousand five hundred dollars, 
while there is not a mortgage, or lien of any 
kind on any of the property of the brothers. 
