1877. | 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
235 
lime or burned marl to the wagon-load. Keep plenty of 
muck on the top of the heap. 
Chicken. Cholera.— “ J. C. E.,” Morgan 
Co., Ohio. The cause of chicken cholera is undoubtedly 
a disease of the liver, and not of the intestines, until 
these become affected in course of time. To prevent it, 
the fowls should be kept dry, and have pure water, pure 
air, and not an excess of wholesome food. Corn, fed 
continually, is not wholesome; either wheat, barley, 
oats, or peas, should be given at least once a day. Over- 
ieediug, and forcing the fowls, tends to produce this dis¬ 
ease as much as anything. When first taken, a pellet of 
“blue pill,” the size of a duck shot, given twice in one 
day, followed by half a teaspoonful of castor-oil the next 
morning, has been found effective. 
Paralysis in Pig's.— “ J. B , ” Hosensack, 
Pa. High-bred pigs, especially Essex and Berkshires, 
are more subject to paralysis of the hind-quarters than 
pigs of the common kinds. The disease is due to a soft¬ 
ening of the spinal cord, and effusion from the surface of 
the affected parts, which occasions pressure, and conse¬ 
quent inaction of the nerves which start from the spinal 
cord. These nerves are connected with the digestive 
organs and the muscles of the hind parts, consequently 
these organs and muscles become partially or wholly 
paralized. When the paralysis is complete, nutrition is 
suspended, and the animal dies. The remedy is, to apply 
mild blisters, mustard plaster or spirits of turpentine, to 
the loins, give one dram doses of nitrate of potash, dis¬ 
solved in some bran slop, daily, and feed light nutritious 
food. Keep the animals warm and dry. 
Lcgi'lnting 15ackwards.-The North 
Carolina Legislature recently enaGted a law, by which 
any manufacturer or dealer of commercial fertilizers is 
compelled to pay a license tax of $500, under the penalty 
of indictment if he should sell, or offer for sale, any fer¬ 
tilizer without having paid the tax. A farmer who may 
bring into the State any fertilizer in evasion or violation 
of this law, is held to be guilty of a misdemeanor. 
Proper Food for Fowls.—“W. S.,” 
Memphis, Tenn. Corn is by no means a sufficient food 
for poultry. It is rich in starch and oil, but deficient in 
nitrogen, sulphur, and lime, all of which are contained 
in considerable quantities in eggs and feathers. If corn 
is the most convenient food, it may be used by having 
some of it ground coarsely, soaked in warm water, and 
a small quantity of powdered burned oyster shells, or 
bones, mixed with equal quantities of sulphur, salt, and 
ground pepper, and some chopped lean meat added to it. 
“ Sirazilinn Artichoke.”— A corre¬ 
spondent in Iowa asks where the “ Brazilian ” Artichoke 
can be had. It is bad enough for the plant to be called 
“Jerusalem” Artichoke, a name which is a corruption 
of Girasole , the Italian for sunflower, and it has no 
claims to the title Brazilian. In various works Brazil is 
said to be its native country, but as we have already 
stated, it is not known there, and Prof. Gray has shown 
that there is but little doubt that it is a native of our 
Western and Southern States. We have noticed that in 
some Western agricultural papers the plant is mentioned 
as the “ Jerusalem or Brazilian Artichoke”; this sup¬ 
plementary title is needless, and leads to confusion. 
There are several seedling varieties, differing in the 
shape of the tubers and the color of the skin; besides 
the common white,there are purple,red,and yellow kinds. 
“One Man’s Meat is another man’s poi¬ 
son,” is an old proverb that is frequently illustrated in our 
correspondence. Recently we have had a number of let¬ 
ters relating to cultivating, and getting rid of the same 
grass. We have been asked how to cultivate and how to 
destroy Bermuda grass so frequently, that this is no 
novelty, but it seems strange to get letters from Wash¬ 
ington Territory, asking how to get rid of “ Blue Grass,” 
while within a day or two we have inquiries from Eastern 
States, asking how to establish a meadow of it. In March 
wc described the Guinea-grass, which is much esteemed 
in Florida ; and letters have come from the South, asking 
where it can be procured. But a friend in Louisiana has 
quite too much Guinea-grass, and his letter asks how to 
get rid of it. All this shows what a wonderful variety 
there is in our agriculture, and that a plant is valuable or 
otherwise, according to circumstances. 
Tlie Hardin Metliod of Butter. 
Making.—The method of setting milk for cream, 
known as the Hardin Method, in which a close refriger¬ 
ating closet with ice and deep pans are used in summer, 
is becoming popularin both large and small dairies. Its 
economy of room is a great advantage, making the use 
of a special milk-house or room in small dairies unneces-. 
sary. Recent experiments, made by Eastburn Reeder, 
of Mount Hope, Pa., who has heretofore favored shallow 
pans, have resulted in favor of the deep pans and low 
temperature of Mr. Hardin’s method, and Mr. Reeder ad¬ 
mits the inferiority of shallow pahs, as compared with 
the deep pans. It is possible that the low temperature 
and close closet of the Hardin system may have some 
beneficial effect, at any rate the advocates of the deep 
can system are greatly reinforced by the results of Mr. 
Reeder’s experiments. During the fall and winter the 
use of ice for cooling, or fire for warming the milk, is 
unnecessary in the Hardin system, and those who have 
adopted it will be spared the trouble and expense of 
these additional appliances to the ordinary method of 
setting milk for cream. 
'File Tribune Horticnttiirally mtd 
Agriculturally.— The “ N. Y. Tribune ” has long 
been a source of amusement by reason of its horticul¬ 
tural items. A collection of those published during the 
past six or eight months would be quite as funny as 
anything in Josh Billings’ “ Alminax.” On March 14 it 
informs us that “ Florists are said to have been 100 years 
perfecting the Lily of the Valley,” which will be news to 
florists. Some time ago it informed us that “ Sago 
palms, now so much desired for in-door decorations, are 
natives of Southern Egypt,”—to which we would say, 
firstly, that, however much the Sago Palm might be “ de¬ 
sired,” it would be very difficult to gratify the desire, as 
we do not know of any on sale in the country; secondly, 
that it is not a native of “Southern” or any other part 
of “Egypt,” and, thirdly, that the plant that this writer 
is evidently trying to talk about, is not a palm at all.—Its 
agriculture is as droll as its horticulture. It says: “Not 
in all climates can spring wheat be raised [which nobody 
can deny]. But the golden grains which lie hidden in 
the ground through a long and dreary winter, bring forth 
not the less richly when the glad spring-time comes.” 
That is very pretty talk, but mighty poor farming. We 
wonder if the “Tribune” folks have the seed of that 
wheat with “golden grains,” and stays all winter in 
the soil. In the same number with this absurdity it sets 
forth the value of its Weekly, which, of course, has all 
the best things of the daily, as a rural paper.— Later. 
The above was crowded out last month, but we do not 
regret it, as it allots us to add information which “is 
important if true.” The “ Tribune ” says: “ Kale is the 
most plentiful salad now in the market.”—Kale salad! 
The “ Tribune ” is the only paper that had the news, and 
probably the only one in which this could be published. 
Heavy Fleeces. —“M. J. P.,” Salem Co., 
N. J. The Merino sheep produce the heaviest fleeces, 
some of them yielding 18 to 30 pounds of wool, in the 
yolk. The Cotswold yield the next heaviest fleeces, these 
being from 11 to 18 pounds. The best market lambs are 
a cross of Southdown with Merino, and the heaviest 
lambs a cross of Cotswold with Merino. 
Heavy Hegs in Aew .Jersey.— A cor¬ 
respondent from Burlington Co., N. J., gives the follow¬ 
ing weights of hogs, recently slaughtered in his neigh¬ 
borhood, as follows: Richard Harrison, living near Reck- 
lesstown, slaughtered 28 hogs, which weighed as follows: 
505, 575, 575, 577, 577, 579, 579, 579, 583, 585, 585, 595, 595, 
603, 605, 605, 619, 619, 629, 635, 639, 655, 665, 677, 709, 715, 
735, and 749—making an aggregate of 17,338 pounds, and 
an average of 619 3-14 pounds. Joseph Carter, on the 
farm of Anthony Bullock, in the same neighborhood, 
killed 20 head, weighing as follows: 561, 565, 579, 591, 
597, 601, 625, 649, 655, 665, 677, 695, 705, 705, 713, 721, 737, 
774, 865, and 905 pounds. Total weiaht, 13,565 pounds. 
Average, 678J-lbs. The five heaviest weighed over 4,000 
lbs. Some of the last lot were 21i months old. 
Stable Floors.— “ A.C.,” Franklin Co., Mo. 
Plank floors are not injurious to horses’ feet, if not too 
slanting. The floor should not slope more than one 
inch in 6 feet, which will give plenty of drainage. This 
will not strain the tendons, by throwing undue weight 
upon the hind legs. But if the rear half is of plank, and 
sloping, and the floor beneath the fore feet of earth, the 
front maybe made lower than the rear, which will be the 
best form of floor. No earth floor can be kept clean. 
Gathering Lncern Seed.— 1 “ C. D. J.,” 
Brighton, Mich. Lncern may be cut for seed at any time 
when the seed is ripe. It is not cut as clover is, once for- 
hay and a second time for seed, but is kept for cutting 
fodder or hay for many years .continually, and not per¬ 
mitted to seed. It should, if manured, last eight or nine 
years when thus cut, but if allowed to ripen seed, the 
plant would probably be exhausted much sooner. The 
seed for an acre costs only $6 or less ; 8 to 12 lbs. being 
used, at 50 cents a pound. 
The American Rotary Plow.— “E. 
W. D..” Bloomington, Ill. The plow referred to is as 
yet only an experiment, and we know little of its merits, 
except from newspaper reports gi ven by interested parties. 
Bommcr’s Method of Managing’ 
Manure.— “D.,” Bloomington, Ill. The method of 
making manure described in Bommer’s pamphlet, pre¬ 
serves everything of value in the materials used, and 
saves all the ammonia; it also works up waste materials 
into a condition for profitable use. The method is appli¬ 
cable everywhere, in the West as well as in the East. 
Preserving Corn-Fodder.—“C. G.,” 
Guilford, Ct. The whole process of preserving green- 
fodder by ensilage, is intended to prevent access of air to 
to mass. The success of the plan wholly depends upon 
this. If air is admitted, all is lost. Any plan, therefore, 
that does not exclude air, will fail. There is no better 
method than those described in the American Agriculturist 
of June, 1S75, and October, 1873. The latter is a very 
simple, easy, and cheap method. 
Bee Notes for June. 
BY L, O. ROOT, MOHAWK, N. Y. 
Just what the operations for the present month should 
be, will depend upon the honey-producing plants of the 
different localities. In most sections in this latitude, 
this will be the best time to expect swarms, and the best 
colonies, if left undisturbed, will probably swarm before 
the last of the month. In my own apiary, I endeavor to 
have my swarms nearly equal in strength. This may 
easily be done, by taking combs of brood from the best 
ones, and changing for combs from lighter colonies. 
The necessity of having hives and frames uniform in 
size is here very apparent. The combs not containing 
brood, which are taken from the weak colonies, should 
always be placed in the center of the heavy ones. 
During the season of 1874, I continued this process of 
equalizing and building up swarms, until the 20th of Ju¬ 
ly, before which time no surplus honey was taken. At 
this date. Basswood commenced blossoming, and I took 
an average of 100 lbs. from a hive during the remainder 
of the yield. Other years, a large part of the surplus 
honey would be taken, before the date in which the yield 
began in ’74. I mention this to show the necessity of 
each beekeeper understanding his own locality, and the 
forage he may expect from time to time. I also desire 
to show the absurdity of the very common practice of 
some writers of fixing the date when swarms shall be 
made, boxes put on, etc. My advice would be, make the 
swarms when colonies are strong enough to spare them, 
and put on boxes when bees will commence work in 
them. One season it may be in June, another in July. 
Questions and Answers. 
“ Is THERE NO WAY TO PREVENT SWARMING ?”—Where 
the honey is taken from the hive with the extractor, I 
seldom have them attempt to swarm. If run to box- 
honey it is more difficult to prevent it. Removing the 
old queen, and furnishing them with a new one, will 
have the desired tendency. Natural swarms may be pre¬ 
vented if artificial ones are made in time. Full direc¬ 
tions for this operation, may be found in Quinby’s 
“ Beekeeping,” page 183. [Price $1.50, post paid, by the 
Orange Judd Company.] 
The Bee-moth.— “ Is there any preventive for the moth 
or miller? ”—“If bees were placed 20 or 30 ft. above the 
ground, would the miller affect them as much as if they 
were nearer the ground?”... .The best preventive is to 
keep swarms strong in bees. It is a generally acknowl¬ 
edged fact that the Italians defend themselves from the 
moth much better than the natives. I have never known 
a good strong swarm to be much disturbed by the moth. 
Swarms usually become reduced from some other cause, 
when the moth takes advantage of their weakness, 
and is charged by the inexperienced with being the pri¬ 
mary cause of their destruction. The fact that to secure 
strong swarms, a position near the ground is preferable, 
is proof that it would be a hindrance rather than an ad¬ 
vantage to raise them, to avoid the ravages of the moth. 
A Room eor Bees.— “I have fixed a room for bees 3 
ft. high, 4 ft. wide, and 5 ft. long, on the east side of a 
wood shed, and just under the roof. I have left a hole 
15 in. square through which to take the honey out. I de¬ 
sire to put the first swarm in it and prevent swarming.” 
.... There is an impression that a place arranged as above 
is very desirable for bees. There is no reason why bees 
can be better prevented from swarming, in such a place, 
than in a properly arranged hive. If a place of this kind 
is to be used, a door should be made at one side, large 
enough for a person to pass in, and closed-end frames, or 
a hive should be so arranged that the space the bees oc¬ 
cupy may be enlarged or contracted at pleasure. My 
opinion is, that one reason why bees do not swarm when 
placed in one corner of a room as above described, with 
no means of confining the warmth to the brood-cham¬ 
ber, is the fact that they are placed under so many dis¬ 
advantages, that they cannot get strong enough in num¬ 
bers to swarm. 
