440 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[October, 
KEEP COOL. 
What Do You Sleep On? 
Do you sleep upon a feather bed ? We hope 
not. Years ago a feather bed was supposed 
to be an important part of a house-keeping 
outfit. If you have a feather bed, put it in 
the spare room, lock the door, and lose the 
key. A curled-hair mattress of the best qual¬ 
ity makes one of the most desirable couches, 
but curled-hair is expensive and all cannot 
afford it. The next best thing, indeed, almost 
as good, is afforded by that plant, so dear to 
every American farmer—Indian corn. Who¬ 
ever grows corn, need not lack for the most 
comfortable of beds. We are aware that 
ticks are sold filled with husks with the stem 
part left on. A bed of this kind is not the 
kind of husk bed we have in mind. To make 
the very best possible husk bed, save the husks 
from the green corn as it is daily used. The 
husks are coarse, and should be slit. An old- 
fashioned hatchel, where there is such an 
implement, answers well, but a substitute can 
be made by driving a few large nails through 
a board, and filing them sharp. Drawing the 
husks across these will slit them into shreds 
an inch or less wide. An old carving fork 
may be used to slit the husks. Then put them 
to dry in a garret or some airy loft. If the 
green-corn season is past, then, at the regular 
husking of the field crop, secure a stock for 
mattresses. Reject the weather-worn outer 
husks, taking only the thin, papery ones. 
What To Do With Cuts or Wounds. 
-O-- 
Farmers who live far from surgical aid, and 
those who go off on hunting and other excur¬ 
sions, are often at a loss what to do when 
an accident occurs. In many families some 
kind of a liniment or application is kept 
which is regarded as an universal remedy, 
but it is often the worst thing that can be 
applied. Tn all cases of wounds, recollect 
that nature makes an immediate attempt to 
repair damages, and the best thing we can 
do, is to give her a chance, and aid her. 
In the majority of wounds, where no impor¬ 
tant artery or vein is cut, all that we have to 
do, is to bring the edges of the wound together 
and hold them there, and if the wound is 
not a ragged one, healing will commence 
at once. Should, however, the edges of the 
wound be much torn, then use cold-water 
dressings, until surgical aid can be had ; these 
may be lint, or any soft cloths, wet in the 
coldest obtainable water and kept wet over the 
wound. Should an artery be wounded, the 
fact will be known by the blood coming out in 
jerks or spurts, and one must make use of 
such anatomical knowledge as he may have. 
Keep cool. If the wound is on a limb, apply¬ 
ing a compress somewhere between the 
wound and the body will stop the bleeding. 
Tie a handkerchief around the limb, and use 
a stick to twist it in such a manner as to bring 
a pressure on the artery. A wounded vein 
is much less difficult to manage. A bit of lint 
bound firmly over the wound will usually 
stop the bleeding. In all such cases, an 
abundant use of the coldest water is advis¬ 
able. Perfect quiet is essential; make the 
wounded person keep absolutely at rest, and 
having despatched a messenger for the near¬ 
est surgeon, apply cold-water dressing, avoid¬ 
ing the use of all “ Balsams,” “Pain-Killers,” 
“ Reliefs,” and the like, which are of a 
highly inflammatory nature, though wounds 
sometimes get well in spite of them. 
The Value of a Bit of Wire. 
All who use vehicles of any kind, and far¬ 
mers especially, should know the great value 
of a bit of copper wire in making a large 
variety of repairs. Indeed, its utility is not 
confined to the farm. We never set out upon 
a journey, or even on a short fishing excur¬ 
sion, without making sure that copper wire 
is placed among the essentials of the outfit. 
Perhaps the most convenient size for gen¬ 
eral use is No. 16—about the size of an ordi¬ 
nary knitting needle, but a size larger, and 
one smaller, will very often come handy. 
The wire may be made into a small coil, or 
it may be wound upon a spool, or even a 
stick. Before it is coi'led or wound, it should 
be made ready for use by straightening out 
any kinks or crooks there may be in it. This 
is done very quickly by making one end of 
the wire fast to any convenient strong nail; 
then take one turn of the wire around a 
smooth stick of hard wood—a hammer handle 
answers well—and by walking backwards, 
allow the wire to slip tightly on the stick. 
This will make it perfectly smooth, when it 
may be wound up. A coil or roll of the wire 
should be put, in every carriage or wagon, and 
every mower, reaper, grain drill and other 
farm machine be similarly provided. Even 
the plow-man, if he values time, will take 
care to have a piece of the wire either at¬ 
tached to the plow or in his pocket. He can 
then mend a trace chain without spending 
several hours in going to have a loose-link 
put in ; and even a broken whiffle-tree may 
be made serviceable in a few minutes. There 
is scarcely any part of a harness that can not 
be mended by the use of the wire, and often 
so completely that no further repairs will be 
needed. The number of breaks in farm and 
household implements of various kinds, 
which may be remedied and the article made 
as good as new by the proper application of 
copper wire, will be found surprisingly large, 
when one gets in the way of using it. A 
friend of ours who was making a journey in 
his own carriage broke one of the springs 
when a'long way from home ; this was soon 
mended with the wire, and the spring was 
so serviceable that it was used in this condi¬ 
tion after reaching home, until it was con¬ 
venient to have it repaired by the blacksmith. 
In repairing an article of wood or metal, 
the wire should be wound around it in close 
coils, each pulled taut in the same manner 
that sailors apply yarn in “serving” or 
“ woolding.” In mending harness, long 
stitches may be made with the wire.—“An¬ 
nealed ” iron wire is cheaper and stronger, 
and as useful, if protected from rusting. 
Remember That 
Farias, Implements an<3 Machines 
rust out much more than they wear out. 
Therefore, whenever a tool or a machine, 
whether a hoe or a reaper, is laid by for any 
time, it should be protected from injury 
by rusting. Take half a pound of lard, add 
to it a piece of rosin half the size of a hen’s 
egg, and melt them over a slow fire. This 
may be done in an old tomato or fruit can, or 
in some other convenient vessel. When com¬ 
pletely melted, remove from the stove, and 
stir with a stick until cold. This makes a soft 
ointment which may be applied with a cloth, 
or brush, or a swab made by wrapping a bit 
of cloth around the end of a stick or a piece 
of shingle. Whatever metallic tool, or part 
of a tool put away for the winter, if smeared 
with a thin coating of this, will be perfectly 
protected from rust. Not only the coarser 
implements of the farm, but knives and lorks 
not often used in the household, may be pro¬ 
tected. A mere film is all that is required. 
Nothing pays farmers better than a little 
care rightly bestowed upon their implements. 
Farmer’s IBoots, when damp, as they 
often will be in winter, and taken off at 
night, will often shrink in drying, and be very 
stiff and difficult to put on in the morning. 
If the boots, when taken off, are filled with 
oats, this will prevent shrinking, and they 
will dry in their proper shape. 
To Jlalte Hoots Water-Proof.— 
There is probably nothing better for the 
farmer in doing his winter-work than a heavy 
cow-hide boot made pliable and water-proof 
by the following composition, which has been 
in use by the fishermen on the New England 
coast for over a century: Melt together, Tal¬ 
low, 4 oz.; Rosin and Beeswax, of each, 1 oz.; 
when melted, add a quantity of Neatsfoot Oil 
equal to tne whole. Apply this to both soles 
and uppers, rubbing it in well before the fire. 
Tlie Woodwork of Farm Imple¬ 
ments. —Crude Petroleum, which is very 
cheap, is much better than any paint for the 
woodwork of almost all farm implements. It 
should be added so long as any is absorbed. 
Keep Cool. Do not be worried by Trifles. Read the American Agriculturist, and be happy. 
