£ 60 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[SEPTEMBER, 
Mog Cholera.—We have received a treatise 
read before the Rhode Island Medical Society, in which 
the author, Edwin M. Snow, M. D., gives the result of care¬ 
ful post mortem examinations and other information 
gathered from a study of the matter. lie decides it to be 
of an epidemic nature, depending upon some unknown 
cause in the atmosphere, which becomes active in induc¬ 
ing the disease when animals are found in the right con¬ 
ditions to receive it. These conditions he names as im¬ 
pure air arising from filth, and particularly from crowded 
pens, combined with unhealthy food and the want of pure 
water ; all of which may easily be remedied, and the ani¬ 
mals thus be kept from taking the infection. He thinks 
that no treatment is of any value,'when a hog is attacked. 
Prevention alone is recommended. He also advances the 
opinion that “ pleuro pneumonia ” in cattle is of the same 
nature, if not the same disease, varied by the nature of the 
animal affected. 
Water of Roiled Potatoes for Slogs. —Wis¬ 
consin Subsciiber. We do not think there is much foun¬ 
dation for the very common belief that the w'ater in which 
potatoes are boiled is injurious to animals ; but unless the 
potatoes are boiled so as to mash, or break open the skins, 
the cooking water will contain little or no nourishment, 
and it is better to throw it away. If the skins burst 
open much, considerable starchy material will dissolve in 
the water, and it will then be worth using with other food. 
Killing Toads and Rloody Milk.— What boy 
has not been told that if he throws stones at toads and 
frogs, the cows will give bloody milk ? It will do no 
harm if all the boys in the land believe the story, unless 
it operates upon them generally as it did upon a boy about 
our own size and age, wiio had an undue share of curiosi¬ 
ty in his composition. He would not have thought of 
hurting the toads, but for an irresistible desire to investi¬ 
gate the “scientific accuracy” of the report, and so he 
sometimes stoned the toads, in hopes of seeing how 
a pailful of bloody milk would look.-The editor of the 
N. E. Farmer, makes a very neat response to an inquirer 
who asks his opinion. He says ; “Yes—we believe in it, 
in this way—and in no other. Any person who will 
throw clubs and stones at toads, frogs, and other useful 
creatures, and wantonly murder them, will be quite like¬ 
ly so to abuse his cows as to make them give bloody 
milk.”—So thinks the American Agriculturist. 
Rees in War. —A good story is told of the at¬ 
tack of a band of Indians during the Revolutionary war, 
upon a block house on the Mohawk river, N. Y., occu¬ 
pied by a farmer, his wife, and two boys. The house was 
strong and could not be easily entered. The wife and 
boys loaded the rifle and two shot guns, and the man killed 
several Indians, but finally had his arm broken by a ball 
through the port hole. The boys kept firing the guns as 
fast as they could, but the Indians went to a closed side 
of the house and commenced digging under the walls. 
A swarm of bees had been removed to the chamber for 
safety, and the mother took this hive to an upper window, 
and pitched it out, the bottom falling off, and letting the 
whole swarm out upon the marauders. Their stings were 
too much for the Indians, and believing from the contin¬ 
ued firing that the house was still well occupied, they 
took to their heels. 
Selecting,- Seed Corn.—Henry Gaylord, Cheshire 
Co.,.Conn., inquires whether the upper or lower ear of a 
stalk bearing two equal eais, would be most likely to 
give the best produce. The upper ear is usually the best 
developod, and we should therefore generally prefer it. 
Has any Agriculturist reader experimented in the matter? 
Spring Wlicat. —A sample of very fine Spring 
wheat, called the “ Mammoth Long Bearded,” has been 
shown us by Thos. Carpenter, of Westchester Co., N. Y. 
The heads are 5 andC inches long, well filled with a large 
flump berry. It was sown early in May, and promises 
to yield 25 to 30 bushels per acre. 
Wheat from Illinois.— Nameless variety received 
last Spring from J. M. Jackson, Winnebago Co. Seed 
rather shrunken. Sown April 15, on good warm soil; 
harvested July 30. Yield small; itwastoo dry to allow of 
tillering much, if indeed any Winter wheat sown in Spring, 
will tiller well. The crop is of better quality, than the 
seed. The kernel resembles the Red Mediterranean, if it 
be not ills same. The beard was spotted, like mildew, 
and riot blue or black as described by Sir. Jackson. 
irish Oats, — Seed from J. Headings, Lawrence Co., 
Pa., said to weigh 45 lbs. to bushel, and yield 50 to 60 
bushels to acre, and to require poor soil to prevent lodg¬ 
ing. The small parcel received did not produce enough 
to try the weight of a bushel. Sown April 15 ; grew four 
feet high with strong stalks, and large heavy heads. 
Ripe Jul; 28. Kernels large and heavy. Promises well. 
Earlj Potatoes — Early Sovereign Potatoes, 
are on our Exhibition Table which were dug the last of 
June, from potatoes planted April 27. 
Peas from -Rlicliigan. —Two parcels from II. B. 
Hubbard, Saginaw Co., Mich. Planted April 15 ; cooked 
July 22. Resemble the old Marrowfat we used to grow 
attheWest; haulm 4 feet high ; yield freely ; flavor above 
medium, preferable to the “ Great Eastern,” with which 
they w-ere compared. 
The ILargest Apple Tree in America (?)—A 
correspondent of the Louisville Journal, claims that the 
largest apple-tree in America is growing upon the farm of 
Thomas K. Adams, in Rockcastle Co., Ky. It was plant¬ 
ed in the year 18C0 by Wm. Canifax, and now measures 
15 feet around the trunk above the ground, and at the 
hight of four feet is 12 feet in circumference. It forks at 
the hight of five feet, one branch measuring 7} feet, and 
the other 5 feet, 5 inches in circumference. The branch¬ 
es are said to extend 65 feet each way from the trunk (?) 
“ The fruit is of excellent quality, resembling the Queen 
Apple ; it keeps well in Winter.”-This is a pretty large 
statement, especially in regard to the diameter of the top— 
130 feet across, or 400 feet around it! though we are not 
prepared to question its accuracy. There are plenty of 
apple trees much older than 61 years. If any one knows 
of a larger tree, or one almost as large, will he please send 
the accurate figures to the American Agriculturist, to be 
recorded ? 
Low Brandling Apple Trees.— J. T. Moxley, 
Sheboygan Co., Wis., says the best trees in his orchard, 
branch at the ground. He raised the trees from seed and 
afterwards grafted them. He proposes to start a nursery, 
by planting the trees as far apart as hills of corn, allow¬ 
ing them to branch near the ground. This will take a 
large amount of room. It will answer very well to set 
them in rows 4 feet apart, and 1£ to 2 feet from each 
other in the row. 
Early Decay of Ajiple Trees.—J. W. Freley, 
Windsor Co., Vt. The black spots on the bark of your 
young trees, mostly on the south side, were probably 
caused by the freezing and thawing of the sap, which 
ruptured the sap vessels. A w-arm spell in Winter starts 
the sap on the sunny side, and a sudden severe freezing, 
aided somewhat by a hot sun in the Summer, does the 
mischief. The remedy is, to let the trees branch low as a 
partial protection. Another plan is to bind the trunks with 
cloth or even a few thicknesses of strong paper, during 
the freezing season. 
Iflaiizauito Shrub.— Mr. II. S. Senter, of Mercer 
Co., Ill., wdio has had ample facilities for observing this 
shrub near the head waters of the American River, Deer 
Creek, the forks of the Yuba River, and the Feather Riv¬ 
er, California, confirms Mrs. Bowman’s statement in the 
August Agriculturist, page 241, with the exception that 
he found it in all the above localities, and almost on the 
summit of the Sierra Nevada mountains, among lofty 
trees, and on good soil as well as on the scrubby pine 
slopes. He thinks it must be hardy, and if our nursery¬ 
men had it for sale, m-any returned Californians at least 
would early secure one. The beautiful red berries are 
eaten by whites as well as Indians. We shall be glad to 
receive seeds from some of our California readers. 
Cutting Timber. —The Maine Farmer says, better 
pay one-half more to have timber cut in Summer than in 
Winter. The editor states that he has rails on his fences 
which were split a few years ago. Those cut late in Win¬ 
ter, or Spring, have become nearly worthless by decay, 
while those cut in mid-summer, dried thoroughly, and are 
hard and sound. (See article on page 270 of this paper.) 
Grapes in Dwellings.—D. D. Cotto, Montgomery 
Co., O. Foreign grapes will not succeed well in the dry 
atmosphere of a living-room, unless the foliage be often 
cleansed and sprinkled. Grape leaves delight in an 
abundance of moisture from dews and rains. This is 
supplied in a grape house by syringing and sprinkling the 
floors, exposing water in tanks or evaporating pans, etc. 
Blow far apart to Plant Grapes.—P. P. Wig¬ 
gins, Kendall Co., Ill. Cultivators are not agreed upon 
this point. We would advise planting Concord, Isabella, 
and other strong growers, 8 feet apart if to be trained 
as you propose, upon the renewal system, from horizon¬ 
tal laterals as shown on page 241, August Agriculturist. 
This will give two bearing and two new'shoots, one foot 
apart, on each side of the main stem. 
ILarge Grape ILcaf.— Rev. C. A. Hay, Dauphin 
Co., Pa., sends to the Agriculturist office a leaf of the 
Oporto grape vine, 16jk inches wide and 18 inches long. 
It grew in the open ground. 
Refuse lime from Kilns—Strawberries.— 
T. J. Naphens, Tippecanoe Co.,Ind. The refuse lime from 
a kiln—the air-slaked we suppose you mean—has con¬ 
siderable value, though not equal to fresh, water-slaked 
unless there are ashes enough to make it as good or bet¬ 
ter. On your six inches of black loam it will doubtless 
be useful in preparing it for strawberries, especially as 
there is yellow clay subsoil, which should be loosened a 
foot or more deep and a little of it mixed with the surface 
soil, if the latter be light. The amount of lime must de¬ 
pend upon the damp or sour character of the sunace 
soil, and the poisonous character of the yellow earth 
below. Autumn is the very best time to subsoil; the frosts 
of Winter will then benefit the loosened soil. 
JLate Strawberries. —Subsequent to our note last 
month, we saw a lot of the Austin Seedling in market 
July 22, long after all other sorts had disappeared. 
Everbearing Raspberries. —Amos Heater, Ma¬ 
son Co., Ill. Many of the so-called “ everbearing ” rasp¬ 
berry plants, are almost never bearing—at least they yield 
too little fruit to be of much value. We prefer a full cro) 
of any fruit in its season, to a few late dribblings. 
Wild Fruits in lotva.-J. W. Smith, M. D.. 
Floyd Co., Iowa, sends to the American Agriculturist, 
specimens of wild currants. They are common in parts of 
N. England, and are not considered valuable. He says 
that w'ild gooseberries, plums, crab apples, black and 
red raspberries abound, from which he very properly con¬ 
cludes that cultivated fruit will suceeed in that locality. 
Calioon’s Rliubarb. —D. Smith, Bristol Co., Mass. 
This variety is of mammoth size, but is devoid of the fine 
flavor found in the Linnaeus. It is at best only adapted 
for wine making. The Illinois State Horticultural Socie¬ 
ty, within whose limits it originated, have most emphati¬ 
cally declared it “ worthless.” 
Heliclirysum, or Fadeless Flower. —Among 
a choice collection of seeds presented to us last Spring 
by Mr. H. B. Lum, of Sandusky, Ohio, was a package of 
Helichrysum, mixed varieties. It is called Immortelles 
in France, and the Golden Sun, or Straw Flower (Stroh- 
blume) in Germany. The flowers cut when in full 
bloom, retain their form and color for years, closing in 
damp and opening in dry weather. Worked in wreaths 
and placed upon graves, they present a beautiful show in 
the dead of Winter. They are used very generally for 
this purpose in Europe, and we have seen a few of them 
in Greenwood Cemetery. They are also beautiful in 
permanent wreaths and bouquets for the house. This 
plant is of very easy culture, and should be much more 
widely introduced. 
liiipinus Kamis.-A beautiful wild flower from 
California. Seed received from Wm. L. Dunkun, Yula 
Co. A choice annual, of dwarf habit; spikes of azure 
blue flowers, tinged with white ; leaves like the wild lu¬ 
pine, a little hairy ; stem branching, 16 to 18 inches high. 
Our seed sown April 10, was in bloom July 16. Mr. D. 
says it grows best on high land. It produces with us a 
succession of abundant flowers. The comparative scar¬ 
city of fine blue flowers, as well as the intrinsic beauty of 
this plant, makes it a valuable addition to the garden. We 
would be glad to obtain a supply of seed for distribution. 
Poppy—FinK—€ rmmelyna ( cwleste ).—Seeds 
of each received from J. S. Whitlock, Washtenaw Co., 
Mich. The poppy (Papaver Somnifcrum.) proved very 
fine and double, but was not fringed as described.—The 
Pink (Dianthus carthusianorum ) resembled the Chinese 
pink (Dianthus Chinensis ), but with colors less variegated. 
The Commelyna coeleste seed we are sorry to say did not 
grow ; from the description it must be desirable, as are all 
long blooming blue flowers. 
Soap Weed (?)—From Yula County, Cal., Mr. Wm. 
L. Dunkum, sends us some seeds of new plants, includ¬ 
ing one called there the “Soap Weed” which grows 
spontaneously in every variety of soil and location. It is 
a bulbous plant, and appears to be biennial or perennial. 
Not having flowered with us as yet, we can not classify 
or name it, and can find no description in botanical works 
which corresponds to it. The root is like the wild onion 
and the leaf resembles the small leafed Iris. Mr. D. says 
it is held in repute as an excellent remedy for “ Foison 
Oak,” and all eruptions of the skin, and particularly for 
inflamed eyes. The root is bruised, then stirred with a 
little water until it forms a lather very like soap suds. 
This is used as a wash for the afflicted skin or eyes. Can 
Prof. Thurber, of Mich. Agr. College, name this plant for 
us ? It appears to be an entirely new plant, not yet known 
to the Botanical or Medical world. 
Successful Draining. —James V. Edcleu sends a 
detailed account for which we have not room, of the suc¬ 
cessful draining of a swamp, with ditches partly filled with 
cord-wood, covered with coarse hay, sods, and earth. 
He says the work was undertaken in consequence of arti 
cles on the subject in the American Agriculturist. 
