1882 .] 
AMERICAS' AGRICULTURIST. 
105 
secretion is, and that the energy of the milk 
gland suffers whenever any error is made 
in the feeding or care of the animal. We 
have reason to believe that the varying en¬ 
ergy of the action of the gland may impart 
varying properties to the milk. A slight de¬ 
rangement in the animal may not change the 
relative amount of the different proximate ele¬ 
ments of the milk—ash, casein, sugar, etc.— 
that is, an analysis would show nothing ab¬ 
normal, yet the qualities or properties of 
those elements may be seriously affected, e. 
g, the casein may be more or less perfectly 
dissolved, the fat globules may cohere in 
numbers, etc. We cannot get good milk 
unless the function of the milk gland is en¬ 
tirely undisturbed, and degeneration of the 
tissue goes on to its last stages without check. 
Very probably the quality of milk suffers 
whenever the food or drink disturbs diges¬ 
tion, or its taste is not pleasant, or the gen¬ 
eral care of the animal is defective. That 
an animal cannot feel well, and cannot 
produce normal milk when for days and 
weeks it has no dry bed, or when its flanks 
are covered with a crust of manure, needs 
no proof. The author is inclined to attrib¬ 
ute the tardy and incomplete rise of cream 
to an abnormal and unhealthy state of the 
animals,produced by errors in feeding or care. 
Bracing a Ladder. 
Mr. W. D. Morton, Lapeer Co., Mich.,writes: 
f H “ In using a ladder, the side 
^=^1 swing is disagreeable, especi¬ 
ally when it is made very 
light. A young mechanical 
friend mentioned that such a 
ladder could be stiffened by 
drawing in the middle, until 
the upper end was parallel, and 
bracing the lower end with 
£-inch stuff, as shown in the 
accompanying engraving. It 
was altered, accordingly, in a 
very short time, and I was so 
astonished and pleased at the 
difference in stiffness, that I 
wish all who have occasion 
to use a ladder, to have the 
benefit of it. It is really worth 
trying. Where the braces 
cross, they should be nailed 
to one another with a few 
wrought nails, clinched. The 
steps must be let into the side 
pieces Winch, and well nailed, 
making a tight fit, and the 
braces should be nailed to the 
Bteps where they cross them.” 
There should be upon every 
farm one or more ladders long enough to 
easily reach the tops of the highest buildings. 
A Barrel Roller. 
Mr. G. W. Stonecypher, Dawson Co., Neb., 
sends a sketch of his home-made roller, which 
he describes as follows The roller is made 
of two coal-oil barrels, filled with soil or 
sand to give them weight. An iron shaft 
passes lengthwise through the center of each 
barrel, upon winch they revolve. Two bent 
bars of iron connect the ends of this shaft 
with the tongue. Another bar, forked at one 
end, connects the middle of the shaft with 
the tongue. The hoops of the barrels should 
be nailed on ; the earth in the barrels needs 
to be kept moist by occasionally adding a 
little water. A single barrel may be arranged 
in much the same way. Such a roller can be 
used as a “ marker” by fitting circular pieces 
A BAKREI. ROLLER. 
to the ends of the barrel, or wherever it is 
desired that the lines be made, placing 
projecting hoops the proper distance apart. 
Lime and Limestone. 
We gave our views of the uses of Lime and 
Limestone in February of last year. So many 
new readers however have seen the claims 
made by those who are interested in advocat¬ 
ing the use of ground Limestone as a fertil¬ 
izer, and have forwarded inquiries, that it be¬ 
comes proper to say something at this time. 
In the first place, limestone, marble, calc-spar, 
chalk (of rare occurrence in this country), 
marl, and oyster, and other shells, are all 
essentially the same in composition, however 
they may differ in texture, form, and other 
particulars. They are all different forms of 
the Carbonate of Lime; that is, they consist 
of the alkaline earth, lime, in combination 
with carbonic acid, and in the case of shells, 
with animal matter. As a general thing, we 
only know carbonic acid as a gas. It has a 
very weak hold of the lime, for if we drop a 
fragment of limestone into strong vinegar, 
the acetic acid of the vinegar will unite with 
the lime (forming Acetate of Lime), while 
the carbonic acid, being set free, will be seen 
to pass off in small bubbles. In this case we 
free the lime from its carbonic acid, by pre¬ 
senting to it a stronger acid, that of vinegar. 
But if instead of using another acid to dis¬ 
place the carbonic acid, we place limestone, 
in any of its forms, in a strong fire, the car¬ 
bonic acid will be driven off by the heat, and 
there will be left, simply Lime. This is called 
Quick Lime, or Caustic Lime, and by chem¬ 
ists Oxide of the metal Calcium, or Calcium 
Oxide. Lime, then, is limestone without its 
carbonic acid. All the forms of limestone 
are very little soluble in water ; lime itself 
is more soluble, though but slightly so, re¬ 
quiring at ordinary temperatures about 700 
times its own weight of water, yet it gives a 
marked alkaline taste to water in which it is 
dissolved. Lime in this condition, as Quick 
Lime,or when combined with water, “slaked” 
as it is called, is much employed in agricul¬ 
ture. A small portion of lime is required by 
plants, but the chief use of lime, when ap¬ 
plied to the soil, is to bring the vegetable 
matters contained in the soil into a condition 
in which they can be used as plant food. 
This application of lime as a fertilizer has 
long been followed by farmers, and in many 
cases with the most beneficial results. With¬ 
in a year or so, great claims have been made 
for ground Limestone, especially by the 
makers of mills for grinding it ; some of 
these have asserted that it was superior to 
burned lime, and superior to nearly all other 
fertilizers. The question which most in¬ 
terests farmers is, has limestone, however 
fine it may be, any value 
as a fertilizer ? To this the 
answer would be both yes 
and no. Upon a heavy 
clay soil the carbonate of 
lime, or limestone in any 
form, appears to have a 
beneficial effect; it makes 
such soils friable and open, 
so that water and air may 
penetrate them. While its 
action upon the vegetable 
matter in the soil is far less 
prompt and energetic than 
that of quick lime, yet its 
presence, affording a base with which any 
acid that may be present in the soil may 
unite is often beneficial. To extol ground 
Limestone as “ the great fertilizer of the age,” 
to even claim that it is equal to lime itself, is 
a mistake. Both have their uses. It should 
be borne in mind by inquirers about the 
value of ground limestone, that many soils 
already contain more lime in this form than 
can ever be utilized, and need no addition. 
Early Spring Chicks. 
BY D. Z. EVANS, JR. 
In breeding poultry, no matter whether 
they are the high-priced thorough-bred stock 
or not, the main idea with all is usually one 
of profit, and the proper way to commence 
as well as carry it out, is to try to make a fair 
profit, even if all the surplus stock is sold in 
the open market at ordinary fowl-meat prices, 
and not at the usual advanced prices obtained 
for fine, pure-bred stock. Where this is done, 
there is rarely, if ever, any reasonable cause 
for dissatisfaction. Where a person has the 
conveniences, there is no way in which as 
much profit can be made from poultry as 
breeding extra early spring chicks, those 
which are ready to market with early Aspara¬ 
gus, and weigh from two to four pounds 
per pair or more. There is always a large 
demand for these young “broilers,” and at 
prices which are not merely entirely satisfac¬ 
tory to the breeder, but astonishing to those 
who are new to the business. As they are 
marketed when about three months old, they 
have cost but little for food, and pay double 
and treble the profit they would if kept until 
fall and then sold in the market at a dollar 
apiece, which price is much above the aver¬ 
age. Aside from this, the loss from accidents 
and sickness, which is no inconsiderable 
item, between the ages of three months and 
eight or nine months, is avoided. 
A special house or room is to be devoted 
to the use of the young chicks, and must be 
artificially heated, the temperature being- 
kept comfortably warm. The utmost care 
and attention should be paid to cleanliness, 
while the feeding must be regular and fre¬ 
quent. The setting hens do not require a 
warm room, but the young chicks do, as soon 
as ready to be taken from under the hen. 
The floor of the house should be kept covered 
with fine, dry sand, and the heat in the house 
may come from a coal stove, which maintains 
a more equable heat and is less dangerous 
than a wood fire. The best food for the 
