1877 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
315 
Onions simd Orasig-es.— The “Florida 
New Yorker,” is a monthly journal; edited by Col. J. B. 
Oliver, and published at 21 Park Row, N. Y. It is es¬ 
pecially devoted to setting forth the claims of Florida as 
a home for those who seek a mild climate, and always 
contains much that is of interest to those looking for in¬ 
formation about the State. We iearn from its last issue 
that onions have been found so profitable a crop, that 
parties are intending to cultivate them largely, and ex¬ 
pect to become competitors in the trade now' entirely in 
the hands of Bermuda growers. It is estimated that the 
onion is not only much more profitable than any other 
vegetable, but that it is “ infinitely more remunerative ” 
than oranges. The seed is sown in October, salt and 
ashes being the fertilizer used by some growers. 
An Example. A postal card from Ya. 
reads: “ Do you know of a firm in —j-Co., N. 
Y., called-. They offer great inducements in the 
shape of--. Are they reliable ? By answering 
the above in your paper, you will oblige a subscriber. 
W. A.”—We give this as an example of dozens, if not 
hundreds, of similar questions, and to show our readers 
that it is exactly the kind that we can not reply to in the 
paper. Had W. A. left his signature in a legible condi¬ 
tion, we should have dropped him a postal card, saying 
that we never before heard of the firm, but a line through 
his name prevents doing this. In any case, the request 
to “ reply in the paper,” is one that we can not comply 
with, as it is of interest to “ W. A.” only. Had we hap¬ 
pened to know that the concern was a reliable one, we 
should not advertise them as such in this portion of the 
paper. We wish our friends would remember that such 
purely personal matters can not be answered in the 
American Agriculturist. We need much more space than, 
we can find for replies of general interest, and this rea¬ 
son, if no other, would exclude them. But were it not 
for this, the fact that they are not matters proper for 
publication under any circumstances, would prompt ns 
to take the same course. When we are able to answer 
such inquiries, we cheerfully do so, at once, provided we 
have the full address of the writer. 
CSonfis and Goat% Msair. — “G. L. S.,” 
Kendall Co., Texas. There is a market for goats’ pelts 
in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, 
where they are largely used in the tanneries. There is 
only a restricted market for goat’s hair as yet, but it is 
quite probable that the use for this material will increase 
as the supply becomes larger and steadier. There is no 
book on the goat published in this country, but an Eng¬ 
lish work, “ The Book of the Goat,” could be procured for 
$1.50. This gives information as to breeding, feeding, 
and rearing these animals. 
Fertilizer for Potatoes.—“ L. T. R.,” 
St. Louis. It is impossible to say what is the best fer¬ 
tilizer for potatoes under all circumstances. The kind 
of soil has much to do with the choice. Upon heavy clay 
soil, barn-yard manure would undoubtedly be equal to 
any, but after some years of experimenting upon lighter 
soils, we find the best results, in every way, are gained 
from mineral fertilizers, such as superphosphate of lime 
and muriate of potash, or both mixed. The present season 
our best crop of potatoes is grown with the potato fer¬ 
tilizer of Bowker & Co., of Boston, prepared from the 
formula of Prof. Stockbridge. The portion of the crop 
manured with this fertilizer, (400 lbs. to the acre,) is bet¬ 
ter than that treated with good barn-yard manure. 
Crevecoessr Fo wls.—“F. W. S.,” Sarato¬ 
ga Co., N. Y. The Crevecceur fowls can be procured of 
the Fancier’s Agency, Courtland St., New York. They 
are scarce birds. 
Orchard Grass Seed.— “H. T. C.,” 
Woodstock, Conn. Orchard grass ripens its seed in 
June, and should be cut when the seed is easily shelled 
by rubbing a head between the hands. It.can be cut as 
any other hay, and thrashed either with the machine, the- 
flail, or by laying a thick bed on the barn-floor, and driv¬ 
ing a pair of horses over it. This last plan, although a 
very old one, is very cheap and effective, and there are 
times and places, when such rough methods may be used. 
Fretting for a Farm.— “F. C. L.,” St. 
Louis, Mo. We can not procure situations on farms for 
those who want them. These are difficult or impossible 
to procure, for the same reason that other situations are 
scarce. There are more laborers than places for them. 
Besides it is not so easy for a man that has been used to 
other business, to succeed at' farming. The time is past 
when a man could hew a farm out of the woods with an 
axe, and cultivate it with a hoe. Social conditions have 
changed, and people now would think this intolerable. 
Hence our wood-land is remaining unsettled, and people 
go to the prairies, where the land is already cleared, and 
a farm is made without so much labor. We do not ad¬ 
vise persons to leave a business in which they are suc¬ 
cessfully engaged, to enter into farming, merely because 
they have a hankering after a country life, or the passion 
for change grows strong upon them. “ Let well enough 
alone.” There is no life harder, or subject to more har- 
rassing troubles and “ botherations,” than that of a far¬ 
mer, who is industrious, and ordinarily fretful. 
A Liniment for Beast (and Men). 
—“ J. C. Y.,” Tazewell Co., Ill. The basis of the lini¬ 
ments in general use is alcohol, turpentine, and some of 
the essential oils. In many of these the stimulating 
properties of the alcohol, or the turpentine, are doubtless 
frequently more effective, than those of the various added 
ingredients. In some experience around oil wells the 
writer found the crude petroleum very useful in cases, in 
which liniments are generally employed, and since then 
has always kept a supply about the stable. We have 
also used a preparation of the crude petroleum, made ex¬ 
pressly for use in stables, by E. F. Houghton & Co., of 
Philadelphia. It is called Cosmoliue, and is an effective 
application for galls, wounds, and such eruptive sores, 
as “ grease in the heels.” 
Tobacco Culture.—“ F. S. H.,’’ Sterling, 
Kas. All the information about tobacco growing that 
can be gained from books, can be .learned from a small 
book published by the Orange Judd Co., and will be 
sent by mail for 25 cents. The headquarters of the 
Western tobacco business is at St. Louis. 
Feeding German Millet to Cows.— 
“ F.,” Ennis, Texas. Millet should be cut up in a frdder 
cutter, wetted and sprinkled with wheat bran, shorts, 
corn-meal, or cotton-seed meal, and a handful of salt for 
each cow, and fed. It will be consumed without waste. 
Sleeping Butter in Hot Climates.— 
“ W. E. F.,” Ennis, Texas. There is no way in which 
butter can be kept in warm climates without ice. All the 
milk coolers are managed with ice. A new system of 
setting milk, known as the Cooley system, is described 
in a small pamphlet by the Vermont Farm Machine Co., 
Bellows Falls, Yt. If ice can be procured, this method 
would be very valuable in Texas, as the cream can all be 
raised in six hours, or less. 
Cancerous Growths in a Bull.— 
“ P.,” Thomastown, Conn. The so-called “warts” which 
you describe as being as large as a hen’s egg, rough on 
the surface, soft, moist, bleeding, and foully smelling, are 
not warts, but cancers. They show a bad constitutional 
condition ; the bull is unsound, and should not be used 
for breeding. They may be touched with pure carbolic 
acid and cauterized, and if there were but a few, they 
might be removed with the knife. When in large num¬ 
ber, this operation would be too severe. At any rate, if 
repressed in one place, they would appear in apother. 
The animal, so far as can be judged from your description 
of its condition, is practically worthless. 
“ Sacrifice of Slieep ” ini Calitbr- 
ilia.—Much unnecessary commiseration and surprise 
are manifested in various quarters, at what is called the 
enormous sacrifice of sheep in California. Whole flocks, 
numbering thousands, have gone to the kettle, to be 
boiled down into tallow. This fate is considered pitiable, 
and as a great loss. On the contrary, where sheep are 
kept for wool alone, and mutton has no sale, this is the 
usual end of the sheep. When past the profitable age for 
shearing, it renders up itself for tallow. In Australia 
millions of sheep are yearly thus disposed of, and sheep- 
growers have become wealthy in the business. The chief 
end of sheep-keeping is profit, and there is profit in boil¬ 
ing down an old ewe or ram for its fat; this, and the pelt, 
realize a handsome profit. The kettles necessary for this 
operation, are of immense size, holding several hundred 
sheep at one time. After the fat has been skimmed from 
the kettles, the flesh and bones are fed to hogs, so that 
there is no waste ; the long boiling softens the bone, so 
that they are easily crushed. The pelts are salted, and 
packed for shipment to a market for tanning. 
Cure for Spaviit.- •“ P. T. J.,” Philadel¬ 
phia. Spavin is a disease which may sometimes becured, 
by the treatment exactly proper in each peculiar case, or 
all treatment may fail. Sometimes blistering is called 
for, and sometimes it is improper. There are different 
kinds of spavin. Bog or blood-spavin may be cured by 
cold dressing and rest, but it will generally recur on.a re¬ 
turn to work. Bone-spavin results in an alteration of the 
structure of the bone, and this form is frequently incur¬ 
able. In the case of a valuable horse, the services of a 
competent veterinary surgeon should be procured. 
Cotton Seed as a Fertilizer.—“ W. 
S.,” Montgomery, Ala. The hulls of cotton seed contain 
in their ash, which is about 7 per cent of the dry hulls, 
23.73 per cent of potash, and 7.88 per cent of phosphoric 
acid. The whole seed gives 4 per cent of ash, and the 
ash contains from 27 to 36 per cent of potash, and 36 per 
cent of phosphoric acid. Cotton seed, freed from the oil 
! and husk, contains 7 per cent of nitrogen, 2 per cent of 
potash, and 3 per cent of phosphoric acid. The whole 
seed contains 3!4 to 4 per cent of nitrogen. It is worth 
as a fertilizer from $25 to $40 a ton. Guano is worth 
about $60 a ton at the place of import. Cotton seed 
should be composted with earth, and when used as a fer¬ 
tilizer, should be kept as near the root of the plant as 
possible. It should therefore be well mixed with the 
surface soil for about three or four inches in depth. To 
harrow it into the ground would be the most effective 
method of using it. 
Charcoal — Burned. Bones.— “ J. J. 
H.” Charcoal is entirely useless as a fertilizer. Burned 
bones are nearly all phosphate of lime and valuable.* 
Wood ashes benefit land always and everywhere. 
Keg'ai'dinp,' Clover Seed.— “W. J. V.,” 
Kent Co., Md, To decide if it is most profitable to save, 
the clover for seed, or to turn it down as a fertilizer, the 
question of comparative value should be considered. It 
the soil is good, and a fair crop of seed can be expected, 
it will certainly pay better to harvest the seed, and buy 
fertilizers with part of the proceeds. If the soil is poor, 
the crop of seed might be worth much less than the value 
of the clover plowed Under. Every case must be judged 
by its own circumstances. Generally, if there is any pros¬ 
pect of seed, it may be most profitable to save it, as 
clover seed always bears a very high and profitable price. 
“ SSig.Heatl ”—Disease oftlie Bone 
of tine ESead.—“ J. H. N.,” Clay Co., Neb. This 
disease, ( Osteoporosis), is incurable. It is an ulceration 
and decay of the bone which result in its gradual de¬ 
struction. The final result may be protracted by oc¬ 
casionally injecting a weak carbolic acid, four grains of 
crystallized acid in one ounce of water, into the opening. 
Etc Careful with Artificial Fer¬ 
tilizers.— It is necessary to exercise care in the use of 
artificial fertilizers, most of which are poisonous, if taken 
in any considerable quantity. Cases frequently occur; in 
which cows, sheep, or culves, pasturing upon a meadow 
which had been recently dressed with nitrate of soda, 
have been fatally poisoned; poultry have picked up scat¬ 
tered grains of muriate of potash; horses have licked 
bags of other chemical substances, and fertilizer bags, 
having been thrown into water to steep and cleanse, have 
poisoned the water, and caused the loss of valuable ani¬ 
mals. As the use of these necessary fertilizers increases, 
it must be remembered, that most of them are-poisonous 
to animals, and proper caution be therefore exercised. 
Misease of tl»e Blood.—“6. W. B.,” 
Wayne Co., Tennessee. Eruptive diseases such as 
strangles, farcy, and grease, denote an impure condition 
of the blood. In all these cases the best treatment is, to 
give sulphite of soda, in half-ounce or one ounce doses, 
at discretion daily, or every two or three days, according 
to circumstances. This should be given in the food at 
night and continued for two or three weeks. In the 
mean time the food should be nutritious and easily 
digestible. Cora should be given in great moderation; 
oats, barley, and bran, being the principal grain. 
Wiiedmills for Grinding- Corn.— 
"L. W. W.,” Lewes, Del. Wind-power anay be very 
profitably applied to milling purposes under certain cir¬ 
cumstances, as in localities where the sweep of the wind 
is not obstructed by hills or woods, and where water or 
other power would be less convenient or more costly. It 
is difficult to say which is the best wind-engine, as each 
| of the standard patterns has some peculiar excellencies. 
It would be best to procure catalogues from the manufac¬ 
turers who are mentioned in the American Agriculturist 
monthly, and choose from taese that which will suit best. 
Cement Concrete for Buildings.— 
“ A Reader.” Sandstone will make a very good material 
for a cement concrete. It should be broken into pieces 
from the size of an egg up to that of a pint bowl; angular- 
fragments are to be preferred to round pieces. As it is 
almost as strong as solid stone, when well rammed down 
and thoroughly set, no blocks at the corners are needed ; 
nevertheless they may be used if some square blocks that 
will bind well can be procured ; round stone would’ be 
worse than none. A wall two feet thick, is strong enough 
for a large building. The proportions to be used are: one 
part of cement, four parts of sharp, coarse sand, and as 
much stone as will bed solidly, with the spaces between 
filled with the mortar. This is usually about 7 to 11 
times as much stone as cement. There is no disagreeable 
smell about it. See American Agriculturist for December, 
1874, for full particulars as to building cement houses. 
