1880.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
527 
Tlie Poultry Shows.—The Exhibitions given 
in this list are devoted wholly, or in great measure to 
poultry. These shows come after the other fairs are 
past, and when farm work is not so pressing, are widely 
distributed through the U. S., and should be well attend¬ 
ed by all who take an interest in fine well-bred poultry: 
Rensselaer Co. Poultry Ass’n. ..East Albany, N. Y.Dec. 8-13 
Tolono Pet Stock Ass’n.Tolono, 111.Dec. 14-16 
Terre Haute Pet Stock A s’n..Terre Haute, Inti...Dec. 14-21 
■New Je sey State Society.Newark, N. J.Dec. 14-21 
Pottstown Pigeon Crab.Pottstown.Pa.Dec. 15-17 
Diet.of Columbia Ass’n.Washington, D. C..Dec. 15-22 
Eastern N. Y. Fanciers’ Ass’n..Troy, N. Y.Dee. 22-28 
White River Valley Ass’n.Anderson, Ind.Dec. 23-25 
Poultry & Pet Stock Ass'n.Germantown, Pa..Jan. 3- 6 
Logansport Poultry Ass’n.Logansport, Ind.Dec. 28-.1.1 
Wide Awake Poultry Club.St. Johnsbury, Vt..Dec. 28-30 
Windham Co.Brattleboro, Vt_Jan. 4- 7 
Southern Mass. Ass’n..New Bedford.Jan. 4- 7 
Saginaw Valley Ass'n..East Saginaw, Mich.Jan. 11-14 
Champlain Valley Ass’n.Burlington, Vt.Jan. 11-14 
Central Mass. Ass’n.Worcester, Mass....Jan. 11-14 
Springvllle Ass’n.Springville,N. Y.. Jan. 12-14 
•Cleveland Poul’y & Pet Stock.Cleveland, O .Jan. 12-19 
Western Penn. Society.Pittsburg, Pa.Jan. 13-19 
Western Poultry Club..St. Louis, Mo.Jan 12-19 
Lancaster Poultry Ass’n.Lancaster, Pa —Jan. 14-19 
Maecoma Poultry Ass’n.Mascoma, N. H—Jan. 18-20 
Vermont State Poultry Ass’n..Rutland, Vt.Jan. 18-21 
Union Pet Stock Ass’n .New Berlin, N. Y...Jan. 18-21 
Northern IndianaPoul’yAss’n.Fort Wayne, Ind.. .Jan. 18-22 
Grasses for Names.— The number of specimens 
•of grasses that are sent to us for determination, especial¬ 
ly from the South and West, indicates a general desire 
to know more about our native grasses, and that attention 
is directed toward the improvement of the pastures. 
*’ M. M. M.,” Manitoba. The grass is not a native, but 
is the Perennial Rye-grass, Loliumperenne, of Europe. It 
is regarded as a valuable pasture grass, but not so good 
for hay, as Timothy.. .The common ‘'Crab-grass,” Pani- 
■cum sanguinale, has been several times sent as Bermuda 
Grass, and now the “Mexican Drop-seed,” Muhlenbergia 
Mexicana, comes from “ H. M. D., Martinsville Va., who 
asks if it is not Bermuda Grass. Although the Drop-seed 
has long underground running stems, the portion above 
gTonnd is erect, while the Bermuda creeps along the sur¬ 
face. Besides, the flowers of the Bermuda are arranged 
upon short stems which are attached at the end of the 
upright stalk, and spread like the fingers of a hand, as 
shown on page 105, in May last ,. .D. Strang, Lincoln 
Co., Tenn., sends “ Tall Red-top.” Tticuspis seslerioides , 
a tall, coarse species, about which little is known as to its 
value. In the same parcel was the “ Proliferous Panic- 
grass, ’’ Panicum prolifei'um , which also came from “M. 
H. C.,” Clarksville, in the same State. This in moist 
soils grows 4 to 6 feet high, with broad leaves, large suc¬ 
culent stems, and bears copious panicles of seed. All 
that the writers upon grasses have recorded in relation to 
this species is that: “Cattle are very fond of it.” It 
seems to be deserving more attention than it has yet re¬ 
ceived. and we hope that our Tennessee friends may 
make the trials they propose and report results. 
Wild Hops in Manitoba.— A lady in Mani¬ 
toba, “M. M. M.,” wishing to have hops, gathered the 
•seeds from a wild vine, and obtained one plant which 
bore remarkably large clusters, some of which she sends, 
-and asks several questions. Seedling hops are not al¬ 
ways like the parent; half-a-dozen or more varieties are 
in cultivation, differing in color of vine, size, and shape 
of cluster, productiveness, etc. In cultivation, the old 
stools are divided, or sets, which are shoots with a piece 
•of root attached, are planted. Our correspondent says 
that only two of her seedlings bore, evidently not being 
aware that the plant has separated flowers—the staminate 
and pistillate being in different plants. In practice, 
about half a dozen staminate plants are set to the acre. 
Large hops are not of necessity the best, as their value 
depends upon the quantity of small resinous grains, called 
Lupulin, they contain; these are found at the base of the 
scales of the cluster near the seeds; and when the hop 
is rubbed between the fingers they adhere to them. The 
abundance of these, the character of the odor, and the care 
used in curing, as shown by the color of the hops, are 
-all considered in judging of their quality and value. 
American Apples Abroad.— The almost en¬ 
tire failure of the apple crop in Great Britain, and the 
great abundance in our own orchards, have led to the 
shipment of this fruit to an extent never before known. 
Formerly a few barrels of very choice apples were sent 
over, and these brought handsome profit to the shipper. 
This year the consignments have been so large, that 
some thousands of barrels were offered in London in a 
single day. There is some danger that the reputation of 
“American Apples ” (for they are seldom sold under any 
■other name than “American”), may suffer from the 
sending of fruit of indifferent quality. There is per¬ 
haps no apple that bears transportation better, or is a 
better keeper than the Campfield. It is a good-sized, 
showy red apple, hut it s sweet. In England, sweet 
apples are unknown, and not appreciated; the selling of 
a lot of Campfields, a few years ago, as Baldwins, did 
much to bring that excellent fruit into disfavor. If in 
the wholesale shipments now going on, varieties are sent 
that show that “ American ” does always stand for a 
firm-fleshed, rich and high-flavored apple, it will have an 
unfavorable effect upon the trade in future years. 
Practical Azalea Culture, by Robert J. Ilal- 
iiday, Florist, Baltimore Md. Sometime ago we noticed 
“ Camellia Culture,” and we now have a companion 
treatise on the Azalea, by the same author. Works upon 
a specialty are restricted in their usefulness to those who 
cultivate the plant upon which they treat, hut to such 
they are of great value, especially when, as in the present 
case they are by one thoroughly competent to teach. 
Stone Fences —Two Suggestions.— C. G. 
Tousey, of Dutchess Co., N. Y., sends to the American 
Agriculturist the accompanying sketch, and writes that 
he lias tried the following plan with entire success, on 
both wet and 
dry soil: 
“After the wall 
is laid, three 
plow furrows 
are turned 
against each 
side; the first, 
one foot away, 
and not to lie 
disturbed. Il 
stakesandrider Fig. I.-end OP WALL, 
are to be used, these are now driven. The earth of the 
other two furrows is used to make a stop bank, two 
feet high, against the wall, on each side, as in figure 1. 
This will keep both wall and stakes in place. If locust 
stakes are used, the fence will not need overhauling in a 
lifetime.”—We suppose Mr. T. sows grass seed to form a 
sod upon the bank —an important matter, for all stone 
walls maybe strengthened in the above method. Dry soil 
Fig. 2.—LONGITUDINAL VIEW OF STONE WAIL. 
expands very little in freezing, while a water-saturated 
soil, like water itself, swells and shrinks about one- 
eighth of its bulk in freezing and thawing, and this is 
what heayes fence posts, and throws down or disturbs 
stone fences or walls. A drain under a wall or on the 
side of it, that will keep the soil dry, will prevent dis¬ 
turbance by frost. The ditches above described are waste¬ 
ful of land, though they secure immunity from frosts, and 
also save their depth in the bight of wall required. 
Figure 2 shows a longitudinal view of the wall. 
Fisher’s Grain Tables.— This is a little work 
which will tell at a glance the value of auy number of 
bushels or of pounds of any kind of grain at a given 
price—in fact a “ ready-reckoner,” as applied to grain. 
Besides the grain tables there are others useful for farm¬ 
ers, and dealers in farm produce. Price by mail, 40 cts. 
Sending ns Papers.— It often happens that a 
letter comes to the Editors in which our attention is called 
to an article that appeared in a local or other paper, and 
informing us that the paper has been sent. Unless the 
paper is sent to one of the editors by name, or the article 
is conspicuously marked, there is little probability of our 
seeing it. The clerks who open the mail have many 
hundreds of papers to handle each day, and unless there 
is something to arrest their attention, such papers are 
likely to be passed over as regular exchanges. The bet¬ 
ter way is to cut out the article, mark the name of the 
paper and date upon it, and inclose it in the letter. 
Lice on Canary Birds.— “H. W.” An old 
German breeder of Canaries, whose management we used 
to watch with interest, when he suspected that a bird 
was troubled with parasites, would cover the cage over 
night with a piece of cotton flannel, the soft side down. 
In the morning the insects would be found gathered upon 
the flannel, which was scalded and ready to use again. 
Orchard Grass Seed.—“O. J. M.,” Jay Co., Ind., 
wishing to sow many acres to Orchard Grass, proposes to 
raise his own seed, and asks how to do it. It being im¬ 
portant to avoid the seeds of weeds, a field that hasbeen 
in some well cultivated crop should be selected, prepared 
as if for a crop of grain, and the grass seed sown in early 
spring. For hay, very thick seeding is required, but a 
bushel and a half of good seed will be sufficient for this 
purpose. The grass should not be cut until an examina¬ 
tion of the heads shows that some of the seeds have 
begun to ripen. The grass may be cut and treated in 
the same manner as ordinary hay, but it is much better 
to cradle it, and bind it in sheaves like grain. When 
cured, it is thrashed with a flail and the seed cleaned. 
Lip Salve. —“S. M. T.” This as sold in tlie shops 
is an ointment of white wax, spermaceti and oil of al¬ 
monds, colored red by Alkanet root, and perfumed with 
tlie oil of rose. It has no special curative qualities ; 
mechanically it protects cracked lips from the air, and 
thus relieves pain. Pure mutton tallow, if not so pleasant, 
as to its odor, will be equally effective. 
Grass Seeds.— There is no seed in respect to the 
quality of which so little care is given as grass seed. It 
is not unusual for farmers to gather up the sweepings of 
the hay lofts and sow them. Such rubbish, of course, 
contains some grass seeds, hut it is largely mixed with 
the seeds of weeds. It will pay every farmer who sows 
much grass seed to keep a portion of a meadow exclu¬ 
sively for seed hearing, and to carefully remove all weeds. 
To most persons grass is grass, without considering that 
grasses vary. Some years ago an English seedsman, find¬ 
ing some unusually large stools of Orchard-grass in a 
field, saved the seed and sowed them; he continued to 
breed, so to speak, from this stock, and now gets a fourth 
more for this seed than the common kind sells for. 
Stereopticons and. Magic Lanterns.— With 
the Magic Lantern a magnified picture is thrown upon 
a white wall or screen, where it can be seen by a large 
number. Slereopticon is a recent name for an improved 
Magic Lantern, and is a most excellent means of illus¬ 
trating lectures or for exhibiting views of scenery, build¬ 
ings, etc., merely as an entertainment. Having occasion 
to use a Stereopticon some months ago, we procured one 
of J. H. McAllister’s, which was most satisfactory in its 
operation. The improved Magic Lantern for family 
amusement is offered in our Premium List, and the 
Stereopticon is described among the advertisements. 
--o w - 
Bee Notes for December. 
BY L. C. BOOT. 
COMMENCING BEE-KEEPING. 
Those interested in our pursuit should spend some 
portion of their leisure during the winter months in 
acquiring information in regard to the most approved 
methods in the apiary. It is desirable that those who 
wish to commence bee-keeping should become familiar, 
not only with the necessary, hut the best fixtures, in 
order to begin intelligently, and to continue in the right 
direction. [The author modestly refrains from saying 
so, hut the Editors have no hesitation in stating, that the 
best work in the language is Quinby’s “New Bee-Keep¬ 
ing,” revised and largely re-written by Mr. Root. This 
gives the most recent methods and appliances in bee-cul¬ 
ture, and is a most complete guide to all the operations 
of the apiary. Post-paid from this office for $1.50.—Eds.] 
CAUSES OF FAILURE. 
Many beginners do not attach sufficient importance to 
this matter of preparation by reading, and often find it 
necessary to make many changes, thereby incurring 
much needless expense. Others become discouraged 
and drop the business in a year or two, when, if circum¬ 
stances had been more favorable, they would have at¬ 
tained, with application, reasonable success. It is a 
mistake for beginners to hope to reach at once, results 
equal to those who have had years of experience. Those 
who indulge in this idea, will be sure to meet with dis¬ 
appointment. It is a common mistake with modern 
writers upon bee-keeping to offer too glowing induce¬ 
ments to the inexperienced. 
In my opinion there are, at the present day, two dis¬ 
tinct classes, taking extreme ground in relation to our 
interests, both of which I conceive to be in error. One 
class endeavors to induce all, without regard tc fitness, to 
engage in bee-keeping, assuring them, by delusive 
statements, that it is the highway to prosperity. The 
other, on the other hand, says that the business should 
only be conducted by specialists, who devote themselves 
exclusively to it. I am often told that I am helping to 
instruct the public to produce snch quantities of honey, 
that those of ns, who make it a special business, cannot 
dispose of our own honey at figures that will make it 
remunerative. I admit that there may be some truth in 
this, if we are to be controlled by selfish aims alone, but 
I cannot believe that this is the proper view to take of it. 
The facts are these. All over this beautiful land, 
blossoms are secreting honey which is passing away and 
being wasted, at the very doors of those who might, with 
a proper understanding of the means, secure it as a 
wholesome article of food. Again there are those in 
nearly every community, who are keeping a few swarms 
