538 
AMERIOAI^ AGRICULTURIST. 
[Decembeb, 
About Boy’s Christmas Presents. 
We do not refer in the heading to Christmas pres¬ 
ents for boys, but to those from boys. If one of 
our young readers were to give his uncle a present, 
we should much prefer it to be something he had 
made with his own hands, rather than some article 
bought with his savings. Girls are much better 
off in this respect than boys, as there are so many 
pretty and useful articles they can make with 
needles, knitting, crochettlng and sewing. Boys 
should learn to draw, and every boy can learn to 
use a pencil after a fashion, though all can not 
learn to draw equally well. A neatly executed 
sketch in pencil, or in water colors, makes a Christ¬ 
mas gift that is acceptable to any one, and espec¬ 
ially to an older person. Boys who are skilled in 
the use of carpenter’s tools, need not be at a loss to 
know what to give for a Christmas present. A 
carefully made, plain, small box, especially if the 
material is some kind of pretty wood, can be use¬ 
ful in so many ways, that it can hardly come amiss 
as a present to any friend. A boot-jack is easily 
made, and can be highly ornamented if you choose. 
A plain, strong one, has this advantage that it wiU 
be in frequent use, and thus often remind the re¬ 
ceiver of the giver. We were in the store of an im¬ 
porter of fancy wares not long ago, and saw there 
what seemed to us a capital thing for an oldish 
boy to make as a present for his father, or some 
friend. It was a farmer’s hat-rack, and a most ap¬ 
propriate one for the front entry (we know it is 
now called hall, but we like old-fashioned names), 
of a farm house. We drew a sketch of it for 
the readers of the American Agriculturist. The 
principal portion is an imitation square harrow; 
this has a diamond-shaped looking glass in the 
center, and the imitation, blunt, wooden teeth of 
the harrow serve to hold hats, coats, etc. Below is 
hung a double-tree, with two single-trees, mainly 
for ornament, but caps, etc., may be hung upon 
the ends. A scythe and fork, the handles crossed 
behind the harrow, and a sickle or grain hook are 
used as ornaments and give a rural appearance to 
the whole. As to materials, the one we saw was 
made of ash, but any other wood will answer, 
though some hard-wood with a well-marked grain, 
will look better than pine, unless it be Southern 
hard pine. The wood-work may be finished with 
linseed oil, or with shellac varnish. The teeth of 
the harrow should be of hard-wood, and not very 
sharp. They may be “ ebonized,” by staining them 
with black ink, taking care that they are tiioroughly 
dry before varnishing. The blades of the scythe 
and sickle may be worked out of any thin stufl’, 
that will not break readily, and then neatly covered 
with tin foil, which is fastened on with stiff flour- 
paste. The tines of the fork may be of stout wire, 
and all the ferrules should be of tin foil, painted 
black if you prefer. Lastly, do not forget to pro¬ 
vide a couple of strong rings, by which to hang 
the rack to Looks upon the wall in the front entry. 
Plants for Window Culture. 
Lovers of flowers often make a great mistake in 
selecting plants for their window gardens. They 
go to a florist, select plants that are in bloom, 
purchase and take them home, and are disappoint¬ 
ed to find that they never afterwards look as well 
as the day they set them in the window. Plants 
should never be purchased in flower. The con¬ 
ditions of high temperature and a moist atmos¬ 
phere, under which they were brought into bloom, 
do not exist in the window, and plants brought 
from a green-house, at once commence to dwindle. 
Aside from this, plants are often selected, which. 
Under no circumstances, succeed well in window 
culture. Many think a plant of no value unless it 
flowers. If amateurs could be content with an 
abundance of handsome foliage, with here and 
there a plant in flower, they would derive much 
more satisfaction from their attempts at window 
gardening. With a view to aid those who would 
undertake window gardening, we enumerate a few 
plants .that will be quite sure to succeed. In the 
first place, as to plants cultivated for their foliage 
only. The most valuable of these is Ivy. A plant 
of either English or Irish Ivy, to be trained up 
over the window, is most pleasing, or Ivy may be 
planted in a hanging basket, to trail over the sides 
and be twined up the handles. For plants of this 
kind in pots, the India Kubber Plant, {FicuseJastica), 
is one of the best. Its leaves are large and vigor¬ 
ous, while the reddish sheaths to the young leaves 
are almost as handsome as flowers. The Umbrella 
Sedge, Cyperus alternifolius, looks something like a 
miniature palm, is easily cultivated and very showy. 
The universal window plant of Paris is Aspidistra 
lurida variegata, which has no common name. Our 
florists supply it, and it is an excellent plant for the 
window. The plant known as Wandering Jew, 
Aaron’s Beard, and by many other names, is Saxi- 
fraqa sarrnentosa. It throws off runners, which 
hang over the pot or basket in a graceful manner, 
and though it sometimes blooms, the flowers are 
not showy, and its chief beauty is in its variegated 
leaves. Among plants to flower in the window, we 
place first the Chinese Primroses. If plants are to 
be procured from a florist, select those that do not 
yet show their flower buds. They will flower for a 
long time. Some of the Begonias, such a&B.fuscM- 
oides and B. multiflora, are free-flowering, and of easy 
culture. The so-called Crab’s-claw Cactuses {Epi- 
phyllum) are excellent window plants, as are A'edwm 
Sieboldii, the Cigar Plant (Cup/iea), and Cyclamens. 
Gas Tar and its Uses. 
In the manufacture of illuminating gas from bi¬ 
tuminous coal, a large quantity (amounting to 
about eight per cent of the coal), of a thick, black, 
strong-smelling liquid is collected, known as gas 
tar and coal tar. This is a very complex substance, 
and by distillation yields several oils, etc., leaving 
behind a solid pitch, called coke-pitch, and incor¬ 
rectly asphaltum, true asphaltum being a natural 
product. Gas tar, as it comes from the gas works, 
is used for various purposes, among others, for 
the preservation of timber, especialiy fences and 
fence-posts, for the making of roofing compo¬ 
sition, and in laying what are called asphalt walks. 
We have had complaints, that it appeared to be of 
little value in preserving wood, and several have 
inquired as to the proper method of using it. It is 
not unlikely, as there are diflferent kinds of coal 
used in gas making, that the tar varies greatly in 
its properties. In England, where it is much more 
used than with us, one writer recommends as fol¬ 
lows : Three gallons of coal tar, in an iron kettle, 
is set over a slow fire and allowed to simmer for 
about an hour. This should be done in the open 
air, as there is danger of its taking fire. After it 
has simmered for this time, add a handful of fine 
quick-lime, and stir well together. Remove from 
the fire, and add a quart of benzine or naphtha, or 
sufHcient to make it work well from a brush. The 
coal-tar thus prepared is applied to fence-posts and 
other wood while hot. The vvriter says: “ Two 
coats will do, and will make any kind of wood 
proof from all weather for years.” Another writer 
advises to make use of the tar as it comes from the 
gas works, adding enough benzine (from half a gill 
to one gill to each quart of tar), to make it work 
like thin paint. It is to be applied with an old 
brush to the wood, which should be perfectly dry. 
Chrysanthemums as Window Plants. 
Those who treat Chrysanthemums exclusively as 
garden plants, fail to get all from them that they 
are capable of doing. In most seasons, when left 
to bloom in the beds, severe freezing makes an 
Fig. 1.— LARGE CHINESE. Fig. 2 .— POMPON. 
end of them long before the flowering is over. If 
the plants, or a sufficient number of them, are 
potted when the buds appear, they will make most 
showy window plants, and keep in good condition 
for a long time. Their season may be greatlj' pro¬ 
longed if they are kept in a room in which there is 
no tire. After the flowers have passed their prime, 
cut the stems entirely away, and keep the pot in 
the cellar, or in a frame, until spring, when the 
roots can be planted out again. Those who know 
only the old garden form of many years ago, will 
be surprised at the great improvement that has 
been made in the chrysanthemum. The forms of 
the original large-flowered Chinese kind, (fig. 1), 
are so numerous, that they are separated into 
classes or groups, according to the form of flowers, 
and we have the anemone-flowered, the recurved, 
the incurved, and other groups. The set with very 
small flowers, figure 2, known as pompons, do not 
make such a show as the large-flowered kinds, but 
they are exceedingly neat and pleasing. The Jap¬ 
anese chrysanthemums (fig. 3), are of compara¬ 
tively recent introduction. The florets of these are 
much longer than in the others ; this gives them a 
tassel-like appearance, quite unlike that of the 
forms of the Chinese. Some of these flowers are 
so graceful, that they are used as cut flowers in 
bouquets and other floral work. The chief fault 
Fig. 3.— JAPANESE CHRYSANTHEMUM. 
with chrysanthemums as window plants, is their 
Light, their tall stems tending to lose their leaves, 
and become “leggy” below'. This can be pre¬ 
vented, and the habit of the plant changed, by 
pinching the growing stems, when they are at the 
desired hight. This will cause each of the stems 
to branch, and form neat, compact, bushy plants. 
