430 
AMERIOA^r AGRIORLTURIST, 
[OCTOBEIt^ 
speculator is very fortunate if his lands be not heavily 
taxed for the construction of these school buildings. In 
fact, the actual settlers regard the lands of the absent 
owners as legitimate game in this matter of school 
taxation. It is frequently the case, that the lands of 
these absent owners are made to pay all — or nearly all— 
the school taxes for the entire district. “If these specu¬ 
lators,” the settlers often argue, “are to receive thehen- 
efits of our iinprovements in the rapid advance in value 
and selling price of their own unimproved lands, it is 
only fair and just, that these lands should pay all 
the taxes we can put on them by hook or by crook.” 
Itmigra^tlou to Oregon anil Waslaington 
’ 'JCerritory.— During tlie past spring there lias been 
considerable emigration (following the line of the Nor¬ 
thern Pacific K. R.), to Eastern Oregon and Washington 
• Territory. Oregon now has ii population of two hun- 
' dred thousand souls. Wc are assured that there are de¬ 
sirable Government lands to be obtainc’d in the counties 
of Crook, Wasco, Umatilla, and Lake, any one of which 
counties is larger than the State of Rhoile Island. In 
Lyons and adjoining counties, improved farms can be 
purchased at from twenty-five to fifty dollars per acre. 
Small fruits and orchard fruits of all kinds succeed well 
in Oregon. As a general thing, the population already 
on the ground, is very desirable, composed of people of 
])luck and energy, who have dared to breast the storms 
and adversities of frontier life. This State of over sixty 
thousand square miles, is rapidly growing, and promises 
to eventually become one of the greatest in the galaxy. 
A New Biidusti-y iai Oresosi.—Hop Culture is 
receiving much attention among the farmers of Oregon. 
For the last three or four years, the hop crop has been 
very large, and promises to become a leading industry in 
this State, where an equable climate, together with frec- 
idom from insects and diseases, invites its development. 
The summers are not too hot, and therain-fall is not too 
Jarge; so that judging from (he experience of the past 
four years, the crops will ripen to perfection. Our Ore¬ 
gon friends should recollect, that the extent of hop cul¬ 
ture will depend upon the number of pickers obtain- 
abie, and if they plant too largely in a sparsely settled 
district, a share of the crop may have to go unpicked. 
Rapid G-rowtla.—One November day we rode out 
to the t.erinimis of a railroad extending from St. Paul to 
Manitol)n. Here was a saw-mill, a few rude structures 
along the banks of a stream, and a Justice of the Pe.ace 
holding court in a tent. A broad plateau stretched out 
on either side, and from all appearances here would be a 
capital site for a village. I suppose we had enough 
funds along with us to purchase the entire site. Now, 
after less than seven years, the city of Crookston with 
many thousand souls is to be seen hero, and all is bustle 
and activity. We shall next month describe the astonish¬ 
ing growth of places which we visited in Dakota during 
this trip through the Great Northwest. D. W. J. 
Chat with Eeaders. 
Mulberi'y Trees.—J^. Me Crone, Trumbull Co., Ohio.— 
The trees may be set out in the fall or spring. In either 
case, the trees should have a year in which to get establish¬ 
ed, before the leaves are gathered for feeding silkworms. 
Gooseberries.— C. F. Alton, Jackson Co., Ill., has 
gooseberry buslies which bloom, but the fruit drops before 
it is ripe. If the bushes are of foreign sorts, they rarely 
succeea. If native varieties, try severe pruning. 
A Wee«l from Arkansas.—W. Cf. Wood, Little Rock, 
Ark., sends us a specimen of a plant which he says, “ is ‘ tak¬ 
ing’ this whole country—woods, farms, hills, bottoms, and 
prairies. Cattle eat it with avidity. This specimen is from 
a house-yard, or lawn, with a clayey soil, and enriched only 
by chance droppings of manure.”—This plant is the Branch¬ 
ed Knotgrass, Polygonum ramosissimum, more common 
westward than elsewhere. It is closely related to the Knot¬ 
grass, or Door-weed (P. aviculare), so common everywhere. 
which is not an aggressive weed. Being an annual, it should 
not be dilficult to exterminate it with hoed crops. 
licatber Scraps and Saw-dust.—IF. T. Piper, Suf¬ 
folk Co., Mass.—Saw-dust is useful as an absorbent in 
stables, but of little or no value in itself. Leather trim¬ 
mings, besides being of use as an absorbent, add to the 
fertilizing qualities of the manure by their slow decay. IVe 
should pay the c<’St of carting the leather-dust rather than 
take the saw-dust free of charge. 
A Silo Question.—P. W. Evan^, Columbia Co., N. T., 
writes, that their silos are thirty-seven feet, and the pres¬ 
sure is so great, that it causes the juice to exude from the 
corn fodder, and collect to the depth of several inches. He 
asks, how it would answer to cut up old hay and use it to 
absorb the liquid. Wc think that cither old hay or straw 
may ho cut up and used in this manner with excellent effect. 
Pyretlirum fon Ants.—Mrs. IValJo Piper, Plymouth 
Co., Mass., writes us that she finds the “ Persian Insect Pow¬ 
der ” very effective in destroying red ants. Sprinkle the 
powder on the shelves where lard, sugar, cake, milk, etc., 
are kept, even on the sill of the open window, and the ants 
will disappear as by magic. It looks slovenly to see the 
powder scattered over the shelves, but it is much preferred 
to the ants, either red or black. 
Unfruitful Orebard.—J. 77. Kellogg, Rensselaer Co., 
N. Y., has a young orchard lying near a pond, w'hich three 
years ago gave a heavy crop, and since has borne very little. 
—The lack of fruit may be due to one of two causes. The 
trees may not have had time to recover from the effects of 
over-bearing, or the orchard may he so near the pond that 
the soil is too wet. In the first case, good cultivation will 
bring matters right in time ; in the other it is a question of 
drainage. 
A Grass from Oregon, is sent by F. Hargi'saves, 
Douglas Co., Oregon, who asks us to give its name and say 
if it would make a good pasture gi'ass.—The specimen is 
Agrostis exarata, a species very abundant on the Pacific, 
varying from three inches to as many feet In hight, accord¬ 
ing to the soil. It has much the appearance of the Florin, 
or White Bent-grass of Europe and the Atlantic States. 
The value of the grass in cultivation Is just one of those 
points which those on the ground should determine. Mr. 
Hargreaves can do the farmers of his and the adjoining 
States a good service by experimenting in this direction, 
with the probabilities in favor of a successful result. Try 
this grass and report to us upon it. 
Needle Grass.—“ Tbe Stickin.”-F. D. Hayes, 
Lancaster Co., Neb., sends us specimens of the seeds of the 
grass, known by the name here given, which is als® called 
“ Porcupine-grass.” The grass, Stlpa spartea, grows two 
to four feet high. The seed, consisting of the grain inclos¬ 
ed ill a tough chafl’ is about the size of an oat. At its lower 
end it has a hard, sharp point, and at the other end la a 
strong, stiff, wiry, twisted awn, or bristle, from three to 
seven Inches long. According to Mr. Hayes, the grains 
when they drop soon work out of sight, except the tall. 
Others have complained of the injury which these sherp- 
pointed grains inflict upon sheep. Mr. Hayes writes, that 
the men often come in complaining of “ the stickln ” which 
works through the clothing into the skin. 
Posts for the Vineyard.—F. Riedinff, Ottawa Co., 
Ohio.—The posts whicii come from Michigan as White 
Cedar, are no doubt Arbor Vitas, that tree being known as 
White Cedar all through that portion of the West. The 
mature wood of the tree is very durable. Red Cedar,Black 
Locust, Osage Orange, Post Oak, and Mulberry make the 
most durable posts. Probably the most ready way to in¬ 
crease the durability of posts, is, to char moderately the 
portion which goes into the ground, and then dip it in boil¬ 
ing coal tar. Small stakes, soaked in a saturated solution of 
Blue Vitriol (Sulphate of Copper), dried, and then soaked ] 
for a few hours in lime water, are made durable, but we 
have not tried it upon posts. Soaking seasoned posts in I 
crude petroleum would no doubt help to preserve them. ! 
Artificial Stone.—ff. R. BrofteeJ;, Grayson Co., Texas. ' 
—So late in the season as this, it will not be safe to attempt j 
making artificial stone with any but the very best hy¬ 
draulic cement. The best no doubt is the imported “Roman” 
cement. This will set at once, and become hard and imper- I 
vious to water, so that the frost will not crumble it. In the 
spring American cements may be used, imxed with more or i 
less lime, according to their quality, and that of the lime. [ 
The Roman cement is mixed in small quantities, very thin, | 
and intimately mingled at once with fine, sharp sand. This I 
mortar, while still liquid, is mixed with coarser sand 1 
and clean and sharp graved, and is placed in the mould, 
larger stones being laid in at the same time, and the wholq i 
tamped, jarred, and leveled, before it has time to set. The I 
moulds must he made tight, well battened, and clamped, to 
prevent warping, and so as to he easily taken apart. ; 
Ripening Pears.—//. Lloyd, Chester Co., Pa.—The ' 
Duchesse d’Angouleine is a mid-autumn variety, and should j 
be gathered while still hard, before it shows any signs of 
ripening, and be kept in close barrels or boxes In a uniform i 
low temperature. When the pears change color and he- f 
come soft, they are in condition to be eaten. An exeellant ! 
method with small quantities of these and other pears of 1 
the season, is to place them in a single layer upon a blanket, j! 
and cover them with another In a cool place. The Vicar of r 
Winkfleld, though usually regarded as a cooking pear, may, I 
by proper treatment, be made a very acceptable dessert 
fruit. Let the pears hang until danger of frost; gather 1 
and pack in tight boxes or barrels, and on the approach of -j 
cold weather ta e them to a dry cellar. Look to the fruit ,'l 
in December and .January, and if some specimens are ripen- i, 
ing. remove the fruit to a warm room, where it will soon ; 
come into eating condition. j 
Cranberry Culture,—Adam Fisher, Kavdy Co., West i 
Va., and others, have asked us to give information on the j 
subject of cranberry culture. The culture of the cranberry J 
is, from beginning to end, peculiar. It can only be success- ii 
fully undertaken in certain localities, and every step Is ' 
quite unlike those in the cultivation of any other fruit crop. 
Useful information could only be given in the American • 
Agriculturist in a series of articles, and these would not be 
in a convenient form for frequent reference. In view of 
the difficulty of treating such special cultures in a useful ii 
maimer in the paper, we have published in the pamphlet J 
form, treatises upon Onions, Tobacco, Hops and others. 
The culture of fruits is treated in several bound volumes, I; 
among which is “ Cranberry Culture,” by Joseph J. White, ' 
a volume of 125 pages, and one of the most complete special 
treatises, of which wc have any knowledge. From the selec- , 
tion of the location, to marketing or using the fruit, it Is full 
on every point. One who undertakes to grow cranberries, ' 
especially if a novice, needs a guide like this, to which he , 
can frequently refer in order to meet each of the many ob¬ 
stacles that may occur from time to time. 
Legal Protection for Orchards, Etc,-V.Neicmark, 
Sohino Co., Cal., asks us: Has the owner of an orchard, j 
vineyard, or melon patch any rights, which the public In 
general or the small boy in particular are hound to respect? ! 
—At the old common law the taking of anything which is ' 
attached to the soil, like apples or grapes, was not a larceny. 
That offence, which is the wrongful taking and carry¬ 
ing away the personal property of another, was not held to 
embrace the taking of real property. But now both in ' 
England and in this country statutes have been enacted, 
enlarging the common law doctrine so as to meet the re¬ 
quirements of a more advanced age ; and in most of the 
States there are provisions for the very case inquired about 
by Mr. Newinark. For example in Michigan, a clause of the 
statutes reads as follows: “ Every person who shall wilfully 
commit any trespass by entering upon the garden, orchard, 
or other improved land of another without the permission 
of the owner thereof, and with intent to cut, take, and carry 
away, destroy or injure the trees, grain, grass, hay, fruit, or 
vegetables there growing or being, shall be punished by im¬ 
prisonment in the county jail not more than thirty days, or 
by fine not exceeding twenty dollars.” It is fair to presume 
that there is a similar provision in the statutes of California. 
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