488 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[November, 
A Maryland Corn House. 
“Young Farmer,” Glendale, Md., writes 
us : “ Enclosed find a drawing of a corn crib 
that I think is the best I ever saw. It is 15 
by 20 feet, with 8-foot posts, set 2 feet above 
the ground, on dressed stones or posts, with 
tin around them to prevent the rats and mice 
from getting in. The sills are 8 by 8; plates, 
Fig. 1. —EXTERIOR OF CORN HOUSE. 
6 by 6, well framed and braced. The main 
door is at one end. The shelling floor. 6 by 20 
feet, is in the middle, with the com bins, 4'/ a 
by 20 feet, on the sidds. The bins have slat¬ 
ted bottoms and partitions. Boxes for re¬ 
moving the corn at the bottom of the bins, 
are made by setting a board up edgewise, one 
foot from the partition, and securing it firm¬ 
ly by end pieces. There are no slats on the 
partition back of this board for 15 inches 
Fig. 2. —INTERIOR VIEW OF CORN HOUSE. 
from the floor, and the corn flows down as 
fast as taken out.”—The exterior of the corn 
house is seen in figure 1, and the interior 
view is given in figure 2, in which the form 
and position of the corn box is shown. 
A door l‘/ 3 by 10 feet is on each side above 
the bins, through which the corn is shovelled 
into the com house. These doors open out¬ 
ward, and are fastened inside with hooks 
and staples. The entrance to each crib, or 
corn bin, is at the end, and is closed with 
loose slats as the bin is filled. There is no 
loft or stairs in this corn house, the upper 
part being open for the free circulation of air. 
Eoftton and Electricity.— The Secre¬ 
tary of the Cotton Exchange, Vicksburg, 
Miss., writes us that Dr. L. E. Nagle, of that 
city, suggests the use of electric light to aid 
in suppressing the Cotton-worm. The par¬ 
ent moth is readily attracted by lights, and 
he thinks that the powerful electric light 
may be made the agent to destroy vast num¬ 
bers of them. Our correspondent says that 
the idea has been favorably received, and 
that it will probably be put to a practical test. 
Preserving Roots for Daily Use. 
Since heating houses by furnaces in the 
cellar has become common, the cellar is usu¬ 
ally too warm and dry for the proper keeping 
of roots. It is not desirable under 
any circumstances to use the cellar 
of the dwelling for storing large 
quantities of roots. If such a mass 
of vegetable matter has any effect 
upon the atmosphere of the house, 
it must be unfavorable, and this is 
certain if decay takes place, while 
the odor is often unpleasant. Roots 
in small quantities, to be at hand 
when wanted in the kitchen, may 
be packed in barrels or boxes in 
sand, and covered with it, or with 
sun dried earth. This will avoid 
unpleasant odors, and prevent the 
roots from shrivelling, but if the 
cellar is wami, growth is likely to 
commence, to the injury of the quality of 
the roots. Still, by bringing in from the 
general root-cellar or covered heaps, only 
moderate quantities at a time, this trou¬ 
ble may be avoided. Farmers may some¬ 
times find the market gardener’s method use¬ 
ful. A trench is dug in a place naturally 
well drained, or when it can be made dry by 
draining. This trench is dug three or four 
feet deep, about six feet wide, and as long as 
needed. The roots are then packed up across 
the pit, in a section about two feet long; then 
another section is built about six inches from 
the first, and the space between the two is 
filled with soil. The sections of roots are 
continued up to the top of the trench, and 
when it is finished, there will be a series of 
small filled pits, two feet long, separated by 
narrow walls of earth six inches thick. The 
roots are finally covered with about two feet 
of soil, finished so as to best shed water. The 
great advantage of such trenches over the usu¬ 
al large pits is in allowing a few barrels of roots 
to be taken out at a time, without disturbing 
the rest. We have known small quantities 
of them to be preserved in little root-cellars, 
made by sinking barrels or casks in the 
ground, in a place convenient to the kitchen. 
These should be provided with covers, and 
some boards laid over the top of the bar¬ 
rels will facilitate clearing off the snow. 
Kiiising Potatoes from Sprouts.— 
“ G. R. B.,” Woonsocket, R. I., sends us aquo- 
tation from an English paper which describes 
the growing of potatoes from sprouts as an 
experiment “just completed in England.” 
Mr. B. says this method of growing potatoes 
j has been practised for years on his father’s 
farm, where more acres of all the leading 
varieties are planted each spring from the 
sprouts ordinarily thrown away, than with 
the tuber. The yield from sprouts is quite 
up to that from whole or cut seed, and the 
product clean and smooth. The sprouts, 
which are produced by potatoes in a warm 
cellar in spring, from an inch to a foot 
in length, are dropped and covered the same 
as a potato. He takes care to have the tops of 
sprouts just above the surface, though he 
thinks that if completely buried, they will 
come up. We are surprised that the Agricul¬ 
tural Gazette (Eng.) should find this a novel 
method, as it has long been in use in parts of 
England. Where it is desirable to make the- 
most of a scarce variety of potatoes, the 
sprouts are encouraged, and cut up to make 
a plant of each joint, as if it were a Dahlia. 
A Log Lifter. 
— -<t>- - 
We have this description and illustration of 
a “log lift” from Mr. J. M. DeFord, Mercer 
Co., Ohio. He writes : I have, in sawing 
railroad ties, etc., found that the saw would be 
pinched so much that it was difficult to move 
it. To avoid this I invented a ‘lift,’ which 
proves just the thing desired. The piece, a, 
is 4 feet long, 6 inches wide, and 1 inch thick; 
b, 3 feet long ; c, 6 feet long ; /, /, 20 inches- 
long ; g, 4‘/ 2 feet. The posts are put together 
as shown in the sketch. Place the ‘ lift ’ above 
the log, where it is to be secured. Adjust- 
the lever, c, and with the weight of the body 
bring the log to the desired hight, and hold 
it there by slipping the end of the ratchet, 
6, in one of the notches on the upper side of 
the lever. The weight of the log on the- 
lever will cause the ‘lift’ to tip up. The 
arm, g, prevents this if carefully adjusted - 
before the log is raised. The foot, h, on the- 
arm should be fastened on loosely so that it 
will accommodate itself to the ground. The 
arm should be allowed to extend 3 or 4 inch¬ 
es below the foot, and made sharp so that it 
may sink in the ground and prevent slipping. 
A Scoop-Board for a Wagon Box. 
Mr. G. W. Barclay, Cedar Co., Iowa, writes 
us: “I find th e American Agriculturist an 
invaluable guide and adviser in all things 
pertaining to the farm. Each number con¬ 
tains something worth as much as the whole 
year’s subscription.”—Mr. B. sends a sketch of 
a scoop-board to be attached to the rear end of 
the wagon-box, to aid in unloading com in 
the ear, potatoes, coal, etc. The dotted line 
a, shows the position of the end-board; b, 
bottom of the scoop-board; c, hook and two 
eye-bolts. The hook is made of 3 / 8 -incli 
round iron, 2'/ 2 feet long, and supports the 
scoop-board, as shown in the engraving. The 
_ 
\ 
spll- 
^ b 
1 Ur— 
A SCOOP-BOARD FOR CORN, ETC. 
side of the scoop-board, a,is of the same length 
as the bottom, which extends into the wagon- 
bed. Oak or other hard-wood slats are secure¬ 
ly bolted or riveted to each side of the scoop- 
board, to fit into the grooves of the end- 
boards. In this arrangement there is no loss 
in the capacity of the wagon-box, and a right 
or left-handed person can use it equally well... 
