50 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[February, 
Batting Rams.— The bntting of an tigly ram, and 
especially of one just storting out in the business, is not 
to be winked at. Too many valuable and otherwise 
harmless animals have been made intolerably ugly by 
boys, and sometimes older persons, teasing them in but¬ 
ting while they were young. To cure a ram that is con¬ 
tinually on the defensive is not an easy task. The fol¬ 
lowing has been suggested as a remedy, founded upon 
the fact that when a ram butts, he steps back a few feet 
to prepare for his work. Two long poles are attached to 
REMEDY FOR BUTTING RAM. 
the horns, one on each side, to drag on the ground, as 
shown in the engraving, the backing up of the ram will 
be so interfered with by the poles, and it will upset him 
so much that his butting intentions will be modified or 
diverted. In a short time one stick will be sufficient, and 
after a while the cure will be effected. This treatment 
will he employed only when the ram is specially valuable; 
else he had better be fattened and pass into mutton. 
Apple Trees In Kansas.— R. Stauffer, Nemaha 
Co., writes that the warm weather last autumn caused 
the young apple trees to bloom and push their leaves; 
also that Borne trees have the bark killed upon one side 
of the trunks. It would be for the future good of the 
trees that have bloomed to cut back the shoots to strong 
buds that have not started. The injury to the bark is due, 
as he suggests, to the sun in'winter, and maybe prevented 
by shading the trunks ; this may be done by loosely wind¬ 
ing a hay or straw band around them, or by binding a few 
corn-stalks upon the sunny side. Another method is to 
tack two light boards together like an eaves trough, and 
secure this against the trunk during winter and spring. 
The Ohio State Horticultural is one of the 
societies that always have interesting annual meetings 
and the accounts of the one held at Canton, Stark Co., in 
December last, show that in spite of rain and mud, there 
was this year the usual good time. The election resulted 
in the reappointment of the former corps of very ex¬ 
cellent officers, among whom are Doct. John A. Warder, 
North Bend, of Pres’t.; Geo. W. Campbell, Delaware, 
Treasurer; and M. B. Bateham, Painesville, Secretary. 
Lanterns in the Barn.— Caution is always 
necessary when kerosene is burned, but never more so 
than when used in the barns and stables. A candle well 
secured within a frame of glass for use in the barn, is 
cheap, handy, and, above all, comparatively safe, even if 
it should fall from its support. Do not use any lantern 
in the barns and stables if it can be possibly avoided. 
Mending Harness. —When a harness breaks it 
always is just at that time and place when the break is 
of the greatest inconvenience. There are two ways of 
meeting this matter. 1st, by keeping the harness in good 
repairs, that no weak spot may exist when the trying 
time comes ; and second, to be prepared for a break, 
should it come, by carrying a coil of strong copper wire 
either in the pocket or in some place in the vehicle, and 
a knife for doing the necessary cutting and punching of 
holes. A good teamster should be an expert in meeting 
all “break downs,” by being able to overcome them. 
Doing Chores.— Much time is lost by farmers in 
doing the chores. This loss may arise from several 
causes; often in the arrangement of the farm buildings, 
and that of the stock ; “ things ” are not handy. The 
hay that is fed to the sheep is sometimes on the other 
side of the barn, and must be carried a long distance by 
the forkful. This is but an illustration of what may be 
the case with the corn, litter, and especially the water. 
Even if the arrangements are perfect, there must be a 
method in doing the chores: a time as well as ■place 
“Pine Straw,” which is not properly straw, but 
the dry, fine, needle-shaped leaves of the pine trees, 
makes only a fair absorbent for liquid manure, as it is so 
resinous and woody. For the same reason these leaves 
are not easily decomposed and can not rank high as an 
element in a compost. When any other kind of leaves, 
straw, leaf mould, or muck, can be obtained, but little 
time should be spent in gathering pine straw. If they 
are at hand in abundance, it will pay to use them. Their 
best use is as fuel, though they burn too rapidly. A few 
years* ago some one proposed, by means of a powerful 
press, to make them into blocks to be used as fuel. 
Whether this was tested or not we have not learned. 
Pood and Digestion. —The value of a food does 
not depend entirely upon the amount of nourishing in¬ 
gredients it contains, and a chemical analysis, while it 
may, does not of necessity show the exact feeding value 
of fodder, roots, etc. It may be that in the influence that 
the food has over the digestion its greatest value lies— 
stimulating it to healthy and vigorous action, etc. Thus 
turnips are a poor feed in themselves, worth only $2.80 
per ton as far as the food elements go ; but they are worth 
much more, as a matter of practical experience, in the 
relish they give the stock for dryer and more substantial 
food. Another reason may be found in the fact that in 
much food—especially the different kinds of fodder—the 
nutritive portions are in the cell of the plant—shut up as 
it were in little wooden cases. The chemist who takes 
all needed time for an analysis, can work at the fodder 
until he gets out all the nutritive matters there are in it, 
and use various methods of doing it. On the other hand, 
in the laboratory of the animal’s stomach the fodder can 
remain bnt a limited time, and only the same process is 
used for all kinds of food, hence the animal may not be, 
and generally is not, able to remove all the valuable 
ingredients that the chemist has shown it to contain. 
Curry the Cows.— No animal of the farm will 
show signs of neglect so soon as a cow. The coat gets 
rough and dirty, and the bones stand out with irregular 
and peculiar prominence. On the other hand, as a mat¬ 
ter of course, good care gives the opposite appearance, 
and the creature is neat, clean, and plump. There is 
much in a good supply of wholesome food, but it, with¬ 
out occasional rubbing and currying, will not make the 
cow look and feel comfortable. It pays to curry the cows. 
(Basket Items continued on page 75.) 
Bee Notes for February. 
BY L. C. ROOT, MOHAWK, N. T. 
During this month bees require but little care; 
while they should be left as nearly quiet as possible, the 
bee-keeper in the meantime may be actively engaged. 
In travelling through the country, 
I observe that not one bee-keeper 
in ten has taken enough interest 
in the business to advance beyond 
the use of the old-fashioned box- 
hive. This fact is almost beyond 
comprehension, when we compare 
this manner of keeping bees with 
the better methods of the present 
day. It would be difficult to in- 
numerate in a single article the 
merits of a movable comb-hive 
with each comb built in a separate 
frame, as compared with the old 
box-hive with crooked immova¬ 
ble combs, the condition of which 
can be but very imperfectly ascer¬ 
tained. With such movable 
frames, the bee-keeper may avail 
himself of the advantage to be 
gained by using artificial comb- 
foundation, thereby securing 
straight worker combs. When 
desired, such combs may be lifted 
from the hive and their exact con¬ 
ditions ascertained. The bees may 
also be brushed from them, and by 
the use of the Honey Extractor the 
honey may be removed and the combs returned to the hive 
to be refilled. The power we obtain by the use of these 
frames to control swarming, is enough to command the at¬ 
tention of every bee-keeper. Many have said to me that if it 
were not for the trouble bees would give them during the 
swarming season, they would keep a few swarms. A 
minister of my acquaintance disposed of his bees from 
the fact, as he said, that they were sure to swarm on Sun¬ 
day. All such annoyances may be avoided if the mova¬ 
ble comb- hivo is used understandingly. Do not make the 
mistake which so many have made, in thinking that sim¬ 
ply securing a movable comb-hive, and placing a swarm 
of bees in it, will result in any marked advance over the 
old way. We should understand these advantages be¬ 
fore attempting to profit by them. The facility with 
which the timid are enabled to perform the necessary 
operations in advanced bee-culture is likewise a great 
improvement upon the practices of earlier days. Close- 
fitting rubber gloves, a modern bee veil and the Bellows 
Bee Smoker, will enable the most timid to handle bees 
with perfect safety. The particular object of these re¬ 
marks is to induce the beginner in bee-keeping to spend 
these winter months, when not crowded by the busy 
season’s operations, in investigating these improved 
methods of our pursuit. After deciding upon the course 
to be followed, all needful preparations should be made 
before the busy season opens, in order that no time 
need be lost when the harvest once fairly begins. 
Cutting Fodder and Litter. 
With a fodder-cutter of the right kind, it may 
even pay well to cut the litter used for bedding 
cattle. This has been tried by the writer with ad¬ 
vantage by means of a simple arrangement. A 
machine which will cut straw or coarse hay in 
longer lengths than is usual for fodder, is prefera¬ 
ble to any other; cutters are now made that can be 
changed so as to alter the cut from half an inch to 
an inch and a half by the mere moving of a cam. 
This may be used for cutting feed or litter. A 
“ Common-Sense Fodder-Cutter ” was procured and 
fixed in the middle of the second floor in the cow- 
barn. A trap-door on each side in the floor made 
it easy to drop the cut straw on one side to the 
standing stage below, where the cows were tied 
up ; and also to drop the cut hay or fodder into 
the feed-box on the feeding floor, without moving 
the machine. A plan of the arrangement is shown 
at figure 1. With the cutter referred to, a whole 
sheaf of straw may be cut at once into chaff li in. 
long for litter, and if straw is used for feed, the cut 
could be changed to i or 1 inch instantly, the 
knife passing through 4 inches of straw or hay 
with the greatest ease. Either hand or power may 
be used, and a wind-mill attached to the end of the 
barn would furnish a very cheap and effective 
power for the purpose. One peculiarity of the cut¬ 
ter mentioned, in addition to its automatic and in¬ 
stantaneous change of cut, is that It has a direct 
cutting action, and a draw motion is given to the 
knife by its peculiar scythe-blade shape. At figure 
2 we give an engraving of this particular machine. 
There are many other good fodder-cutters, some 
of which have been described and illustrated in 
these columns from time to time. Considering the 
large number, and the excellence and profitable¬ 
ness of these machines, it is very clear that farm¬ 
ers should avail themselves of their use, to cut 
fodder, and in many cases to cut even their litter. 
Fig. 2.—THE COMMON-SENSE FEED-CUTTER. 
