1881.1 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
193 
gome parts of Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, 
and the Gulf States, the wild turkey is still 
frequent, but less so in the western parts of 
Virginia and Pennsylvania. Some also are 
said to exist in the mountains of Sussex 
Co., New Jersey. He said, with suitable 
game laws, he had no doubt they could be 
(restored to any part of the country, where 
(there were extensive forests, and nut-bearing 
trees were plenty. But the perpetuity of the 
wild bird was of small importance in com¬ 
parison with the breeding development of 
the domesticated bird. The turkey stood at 
the head of all our poultry birds for size, 
beauty, and usefulness. No other bird paid 
:so well, where there is a good range, and he 
thought, as he rode over the country, he 
•could mark the homes of the most thrifty 
farmers by the size of the turkey roosts, and 
the number of turkeys. They picked up 
their own living more largely than any other 
domestic fowl, and in the destruction of in¬ 
sects, they are a very important factor. He 
was glad to see the increasing interest in the 
■turkey crop, and he hoped all the poultry men 
and women,who were present, would contrib¬ 
ute their experience to the general stock of 
information. Hookertown stands high in the 
Boston and Providence markets, for its large- 
sized and well fattened turkeys. The best 
show of dressed turkeys he has ever seen, was 
in Quincy Market, Boston, last Thanksgiv¬ 
ing. Still there was room for improvement. 
Uncle Jotham Sparrowgrass rose, with a 
heavy thump of his cane upon the floor, and 
said he thought the best improvement that 
could be made on turkeys was to send ’em 
back to the woods where they came from. 
“ I used to raise turkeys some, when I was 
over on the Island, but I gin’ it up long ago, 
as a bad crop. They are tender things when 
they are young, and when they git bigger, 
and begin to stroll, they always keep a man 
in a peck of trouble. They wander off to 
the neighbors, and are death on cabbage and 
turnips, and that makes hard feelings. They 
get mixed with other folks’ turkeys, and if 
they all happen to be bronze, there is no tel¬ 
ling which from tother, and however you 
divide, there is hard talk, and sometimes a 
quarrel that lasts years. They tangle the 
grass, break down the oats, rob the rye and 
wheat fields, and eat their bodies out in corn, 
several times, before they are fit for market. 
If you want peace among neighbors don’t 
raise turkeys.”... .Deacon Smith spoke upon 
The Importance of a Good Kange. 
“There is some truth in what Mr. Spar- 
xowgrass has said, but it is applied to thickly 
settled regions, where farms were small and 
market gardening was followed. The turkey 
wanted a good deal of room, and should not 
be bred in the near neighborhood of villages, 
or where the larger part of the farm was oc¬ 
cupied with hoed crops or grain. It came in 
-appropriately with dairy farming or stock- 
raising. A large part of the profit of raising 
these birds consisted in their ability to get 
the most of their living from the pastures 
and woods, from June until October. In a 
region of large farms, the evils spoken of 
could be mostly avoided. They were very 
tractable, and by suitable attention they 
could be kept within reasonable limits and 
would come home to roost with as much 
regularity as hens. They wanted large pas¬ 
tures, and woodlands to roam in, especially 
-forests of nut-bearing trees, the various oaks, 
the chestnut, and the beach. They were very 
useful in destroying insects, and of great 
service in orchards in devouring windfalls, 
and in preventing the growth of worm-eaten 
fruit. The turkey crop is so profitable that 
there is generally no difficulty among large 
farmers in having a good understanding 
about raising them. They will agree to keep 
birds of different breeds or colors so that 
they can be easily separated when the flocks 
get mixed, and to report the estrays when 
they give trouble, or to drive them home. 
A Suitable Breeding Yard 
is also veiy desirable, and will forestall many 
of the difficulties that attend the business. 
This yard should be near the house, and if 
you plant it with fruit trees, it will be all the 
better for the fruits, and the turkeys. Apples, 
pears, plums, and peaches, are suitable fruits 
for such a yard, of a quarter or half an acre. 
The brush from trimming the trees may be 
left in piles, for the turkeys to make their 
nests in, or a large shed may be built upon 
one side of the yard fitted with nests for 
laying and setting. If this shed has a floor 
and sliding doors in front, it may be made 
proof against vermin, rats, skunks, weasles, 
cats, dogs, crows, foxes, etc. It will be found 
very convenient not only in hatching, but 
in protecting the young birds against storms, 
The common practice of leaving turkeys to 
select their own nest, in the woods or by the 
road side, is exceedingly wasteful. Preda¬ 
cious birds and foxes very frequently destroy 
both old birds and young. With a very little 
more care, a young brood of turkeys may be 
made as safe as a young brood of chickens, 
for two weeks after hatching, which is the 
most critical part of their lives.” 
Hookertown, Cl., ! Yours to command, 
April 10, 1881. ) Timothy Bunker, Esq. 
A Cistern for the Barn or Loft. 
A cistern is most frequently built in the 
ground, and in March we published one 
among the many plans of an underground 
cistern that we have given from time to 
time. But there are cases when it is not con¬ 
venient to build beneath the earth’s surface, 
and an elevated cistern in the bam or else¬ 
where may be constructed. Such a cistern 
may be put up at a moderate cost in the fol¬ 
lowing manner : If possible locate the cis¬ 
tern in the south-west comer of the barn, 
as there it will be more exposed to the sun 
than elsewhere, and therefore warmer—an 
important matter in winter. The cistern 
must be supported upon a frame of timber 
which must be strong in proportion to the 
; weight to be sustained. Hard-wood timber, 
10 by 10 inches, is heavy enough for a cistern 
twelve feet square. There should be three 
cross sills, two end sills, and eight posts, as 
shown in the engraving. The floor and 
sides of the cistern or tank should be made 
of grooved and tongued plank two inches 
thick, and each joint must be thoroughly 
tarred when it is put together. The comers 
will need to be well fitted and carefully 
caulked. An overflow-pipe should lead from 
near the top of the cistern to a drain below. 
The gutters or leaders from the barn must 
be arranged to conduct the water from the 
roof to the cistern. The water for use is 
taken from an outlet at the bottom of the 
tank. We have seen cisterns like that here 
described in use, and know that in some 
cases they are preferred to those under¬ 
ground. Not the least advantage is, that the 
water flows to all parts of the barn and to 
the yard, etc., by its own weight, and the 
labor of pumping, necessary with an under¬ 
ground cistern, is in this way avoided. 
Forwarding Melons and Other Plants. 
Probably every one who has a garden in 
the Northern States, wishes, for one reason 
or another, that the season had been a little 
longer. Melons, especially, are apt to be 
caught by the early frost, and the promise of 
a fine crop blighted. It is easy to length¬ 
en the season, but it must be done at the first 
rather than the last end of it. This may 
readily be done by those who have hot-beds 
and cold frames, with which to forward the 
plants. This term “forward” is a conveni¬ 
ent one, and is applied by gardeners to what¬ 
ever hastens the ordinary growth. Melons 
and various other plants may be forwarded 
in the farm-garden at a very slight expense. 
That the sun warms the earth dining the day 
is a well-understood fact, that this heat, or a 
portion of it, is lost during the night, is 
equally well known. Now, if a portion of the 
earth in which plants are growing be warmed 
during the day, and we prevent it from los¬ 
ing this heat during the night, it is evident 
that such plants will have a great advantage 
over those without such protection. All our 
melons, cucumbers, squashes, and other; 
plants of that family, come from tropical or 
warm countries, and in order to yield the 
best returns in our northern gardens, need 
every advantage we can give them. Every¬ 
one may not find it convenient to start his cu¬ 
cumber, melon, and similar seeds, on pieces 
of sod, or in pots, in a hot-bed or frame, but 
he may greatly hasten, or forward the same 
in the open ground. All the expense or 
trouble required is, to make a lot of frames, 
one for each “ hill,” of six or eight-in. boards, 
and a foot square. It may be more conveni¬ 
ent to get boxes from the store, at little or no 
cost. It makes no difference if the boxes are 
somewhat larger than the size named; the 
object is to get a box without top or bottom. 
Over such a box or frame, tack a piece of thin 
muslin or cotton cloth, and the thing is ready. 
Sow the seeds in the usual way, and every af¬ 
ternoon, when the day begins to be cool— 
soon after 3 o’clock, usually—turn thes* 
frames over the “hills.” This will hasten 
the germination of the seeds, and when the 
plants come up, continue to protect them in 
this manner. If a cold windy day occurs, it 
will be better to leave these covers on than to 
expose the plants to the weather. This use of 
the covers or frames may be continued until 
