2 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[January, 
Contents for January, 1878. 
Among the Farmers, No. 24.—Old Novelties, The 
Chinese Yam—Cattle Disease, Inspection of Cattle- 
Capon Raising—Cross Breeding. 
Bee Notes for December. 
Building Homes. . 
Boys and Girls’ Columns.—Puzzle Picture ; Doctor’s 
Correspondence, Microscopes, The Wood Frog 
Learning to Draw, Card-hoard Work, Tracing Paper, 
Transferring, Seeing Through a Brick—Aunt Sue’s 
Puzzle Box—Aunt Sue’s Chats—Where Does the 
Wheat Go ?—A Distinguished Visitor from Africa. 
Cattle—Remarkable Jersey Cow. Illustrated.. 
Cattle—Shorthorn Cow. Illustrated.. 
Corn Mills—Useful Styles_ 
Evergreens—Small Trees fort 
Flowers—New Double White Violet.. 
Flowers—Tropseolums as Greenhouse and Window 
Forage Plant—“ Egyptian,” or “ Pearl Millet.”. III.. 19- 
Greenhouse and Window Plants in January_ ... 
Hints and Helps for Farmers—Crab for Shocking Corn, 
New Butter Worker, Preventing Cows from Going 
Through Hedges, Feed Box for Sheep, Separating 
Stock, A Bull Ringer..8 Illustrations.. 18 
House—Country House Costing $750 to $1,050..4 iff.. 12 
Household Department—Home Topics—Keeping a 
Dairy, Keeping Accounts, Beginning Poor, Begin¬ 
ning Arithmetic, Spoiled Bread, Simple Dessert 
Dishes, Hanging Basket for Cool Room, Work Table 
and Basket, Diphtheria. 3 Illustrations. .23-25 
Insects—The Onion Maggot. 20 
Kitchen and Market Garden in January.... 3 
Market Reports. 5 
Ogden Farm Papers, No. 95.—How the Losses were 
Made. 10-11 
Orchard and Nursery in January. 3 
Poultry Keeping—How to Begin. 19 
Science Applied to Farming, No. 37.—Agricultural 
Experiment Stations. 10 
Sheep—The Mnsmon. Illustrated.. 1 
Sloping-Toothed Harrows for Growing Crops .3 111.. 18 
Steam Pump for Irrigating or Domestic Use... 5 111.. 10 
Striking Cuttings in Water. 23 
Talks on Farm Crops, No. 11.—The Corn-Fodder 
Crops.... ................. 15 
Too Much Shade for Health.. ... 23 
Trees—Thick-leaved Elm.. ..Illustrated.. 20-22 
Trial of Farm Steam Engines ..... 19 
Why we Should Grow Wool and Mutton...17 
INDEX TO “BASKET,” OR SHORTER ARTICLES. 
A B C of Bee Culture.... 6 
Arab Colt Sold. 7 
Catalogues. 8 
Coal Tar and Ashes . .. S 
Description of Micro¬ 
scope ... Illustrated.. 33-34 
Fern-leaf M .ttoes. 8 
Garden Manual. 6 
Hessian Fly.. (i 
Insects from Spain.. 8 
Iron Mattress.... 6 
Lime Burning... 8 Watch-Case Time Table. 7 
Managing a Farm_.... 8.What Is a Cord ?. 8 
Meal, Dry or Wet. 8; What Scientific Men Say. 7 
New Jersey......... 6, W. N. Y. Hor-t. Soc. 7 
N. VV. Dairy Exhibition;. 7j Wintering Cows on Meal. 6 
Orchard Grass. 8 Winter Oats. 8 
Calendar for January. 
Pa. Fruit Growers’ Ass’n 6 
Personal Convenience... 8 
Please Observe. 6 
Portrait of Bishop Janes. 7 
Ringbone. 8 
Senders of Papers. 6 
Shorthorns & Durhams.. 8 
Shrinkage of Grain. 8 
Starch Refuse. 8 
Sundry Humbugs. 7 
Use of Microscope... ... 8 
Taking Out Stumps.—“ W. A.,” Lee- 
morn, Mo. It will certainly pay to take the stumps out 
of a field, so that a mower can be used. The gain in 
time and labor made would make it worth while to spend 
a dollar for each stump, unless they are very closely set. 
With giant powder, or even common powder, a stump 
may he blown out for less than this sum. 
Ciialvnnic Chains, Kelts, and other 
electrical appliances. We have numerous letters con¬ 
cerning various contrivances for applying electricity as a 
remedy, and we can only give a general answer. These 
things are not sent to us for examination, and we have 
no special knowledge of the different kinds now offered 
Electricity in some of its forms lias been found to be a 
useful remedial agent. Whether it is likely to be useful 
in any particular case, we can not say. We do not prac¬ 
tise medicine, and if we did, we should not give advice 
without seeing the patient. Electricity being an agent 
about whi h people, in general know but little, is one 
of the things made use of by quacks. Some of the 
pretended electrialappliances we have seen, are thorough¬ 
ly unscientific in construction, ami can have no more 
medicinal effect when applied to the body than a belt or 
pad of leather, or other inert substance. 
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AMERICAN AGRICULTUR 1ST. 
NEW YORK, JANUARY, 1878. 
A new year now begins which promises to he one 
of eventful interest to the agriculturist and all 
others engaged in productive industry. For many 
years the nation has been undergoing a severe pro¬ 
cess of liquidating debts, casting off fictitious ideas 
of values and, to use a common expression, “com¬ 
ing down to hard pan.” At the outset of this re¬ 
vulsion, which was inevitable after the previous 
years of an inflated and deceptive prosperity, farm¬ 
ers were the first to suffer, and the most seriously 
afflicted. Nearly every one was in debt for borrowed 
money or for property, machinery, implements, or 
stock. Prices of produce first fell, but the cost of 
all things needed for the farm and household, to¬ 
gether with the price of labor, kept up, and farmers 
had more than their share of adversity. Along with 
the business troubles, came unfavorable seasons, 
fatal disease among stock, and the “ hateful grass¬ 
hopper,” with other pests. But out of adversity grew 
an improved condition which now appears to have 
placed the farmer beyond the reach of trouble, and 
to promise him in the future a lengthened season 
of prosperity, should no untoward accident occur. 
After the disagreeable experiences of the past years 
we now have good reason for congratulation. We 
are emboldened to act once more with the usual 
native enterprise of the American people. Circum¬ 
stances of all kinds favor this. The bottom has 
been reached. For the past 20 years the prices of 
many things which the farmer purchases have not 
been lower than now. Labor is lower than ever 
before. Hundreds of thousands of laborers are 
waiting for work, yet there is work for every one. 
What a change for the better would it he if all this 
labor could be turned at once to productive account! 
Considering the vast amount of work that is waiting 
to be done, the necessary improvements of roads, 
fields, buildings, tools, implements, and other things 
upon which the prosperity of agriculture depend ; 
the vast field in fact which is opened up by the ab¬ 
solute need for the best and highest culture of our 
soil, and the most profitable exercise of the farmer’s 
art, one is amazed as he ponders over the results 
that might and would be attained were all this 
labor employed and all these improvements set in 
operation and made. What fruitful fields, where 
now are barren wastes or worthless weeds ; what 
wealth, where now is poverty ; what populous vil¬ 
lages, where now are wretched hamlets ; what com¬ 
fort and enjoyment where now misery and destitu¬ 
tion prevail. Here is the labor and there is the 
work to be done ; what keeps these apart, and hin¬ 
ders the desirable result? Certainly every farmer 
in the land can do something at this time to change 
all this, and hasten the looked for prosperity. 
Hint* for Work. 
Planting and Sowing may be done in many of the 
Southern States. Where the season admits of it, 
potatoes may he planted this month, and will ripen 
in June. It is only necessary to cover the sets 
deeper than in summer planting, and if a frost is 
probable, draw earth over the young plants with the 
hoe. Oats sown this month will do as well in most 
eases as those sown in the fall. 
The Hessian Fly is active in the South at this 
season, while dormant in the colder North. Any¬ 
thing that will disturb the larva in its operations 
will be beneficial; as will also any fertilizing appli¬ 
cation that will strengthen the plants. Rolling the 
wheat, sowing 5 bushels of salt, or 50 bushels of 
unleached wood ashes, or 10 bushels of soot per 
acre, have all been found of use in destroying the 
insects and in stimulating the growth of the wheat. 
Breaking Up the Land , for the main crops of cot¬ 
ton and corn, should be begun this month. Secure 
laborers for the year. The planter can now select 
the best help, while later he must take just what he 
can get. The best laborers don’t wait long to be 
hired, and those who look out first are best served. 
Fences are to he Repaired or made, and much drain¬ 
ing may be done, both in the Nortli and South. 
Hired Labor is Cheap; for a few dollars, and by 
exercising judgment, one can now get more work 
done than he could for many years past. The 
laborer who stands idle when he may earn 50 cents,, 
is unwise ; a little is better than nothing. 
What May be Done?— Stone maybe got out and 
hauled into heaps where it may be wanted for sale 
or for use. A well may be dug in the bam yard. 
Posts and rails may be got out in the rough, hauled 
to a convenient spot, and piled up to dry. Slabs 
from a saw-mill make excellent fence posts, and can 
usually be purchased very cheaply, and these may 
be drawn home. Springs may he cleaned out and 
walled up. Rocks may be undermined and toppled 
into large holes and buried. To a willing worker, 
there never comes a time when there is nothing to 
be done ; and much may be done now to prepare 
for the busier period which will soon be at hand, 
Wintering Horses. —Working horses, 25 years old, 
are very rare, and yet at this age a horse may be 
vigorous and useful. The duration of a horse’s 
life is 30 years, if he is well eared for, and in his old 
age moderate work may he expected from him. A 
large proportion of horses are ruined before they 
are 5 years old by over work, improper feeding, 
neglect, and abuse. Neglect and improper feeding 
find more victims than over-work, for if a horse in 
his prime is properly fed and eared for, he can. 
scarcely he hurt by steady work. 
Feed Should be Given regularly as to time and 
quantity. A horse has a comparatively small stom¬ 
ach. Five pounds of cut hay, and three quarts of 
ground feed, should make a full feed for a large 
horse. Horses that are worked on the road at more 
than a walking gait, should have the hay reduced 
to 3 pounds and have 4 quarts of the feed. If the 
feed is moistened with water, give no drink until 
an hour after feeding, and none Immediately before. 
Good Grooming is necessary to good digestion 
and health. The functions of the skin are very 
important. The skin is an excretory organ as well 
as one which affords covering and protection to the 
muscular tissues. Cleanliness of the skin is as 
necessary for the health of a horse as for that of a 
man. The skin exfoliates or throws off in scales 
the used up portion, and this dusty matter should 
