1877 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
377 
in the water in the chest, and held in place by 
the cross bars shown in the engraving. The covers 
are thus fastened down, and the air under the rims 
of the covers, prevents the passage of any water in¬ 
to the cans. The water coolers are lined with metal, 
and fitted with inlet and overflow for using flowing 
spring water. These coolers are built with tight 
covers, to exclude warm air ana retard the melting 
of ice, when this is used to 
maintain a uniform tem¬ 
perature. A thermometer 
is inserted in the front of 
each cooler, in order that 
the temperature can be as¬ 
certained without raising the 
cover. This ' apparatus is 
very simple, dispensing with 
costly milk rooms, as but 
little sDace is required, and 
is thus well suited for small 
dairies where but one cow is 
kept. For larger one6, it is 
very economical of space, 
and costs very much less for 
pans than the shallow setting 
system. The temperature of 
the water in the coolers should be kept as near to 40 
to 45 degrees as convenient. At this temperature all 
the cream will rise in twelve hours, so that cans for 
one milking only are required. The skimmed milk 
is then perfectly sweet, and no acid is taken up 
with the cream. There is also an advantage in the 
fact, that being perfectly sealed against access of 
air, no disagreeable odors can be absorbed by the 
milk. This is a very important point, and it per¬ 
mits the keeping of the milk in places where it 
could not be done under other circumstances with¬ 
out tainting the cream. The cans are provided with 
a sliding outlet, which may be set as far above the 
bottom as the cream is deep, and the milk is then 
drawn off through the outlet, leaving the cream 
undisturbed in the bottom of the can. For making 
the best quality of butter from the perfectly gath¬ 
ered cream, by this system, the oscillating chum, the 
Davis’ Excelsior chum, shown at figure 3, is re¬ 
commended. This contains no comers, floats, or 
inside gear of any kind; it is therefore very cleanly 
in its operation, and very easily kept in good condi¬ 
tion. The peculiar dashing motion of the cream in 
this chum is found to produce a butter of the finest 
£>rain and texture, as there is no possibility of any 
rubbing or crushing movement, by which the grain 
is injured. The butter comes in grains, so that it 
can be readily freed from the buttermilk, or be per¬ 
fectly washed by pouring cold water into the 
churn, and moving it back and forth a few times. 
A full description of the cooler, can, chum, and 
the methods of using them, so as to make “ gilt- 
edged ” butter, is given in a little pamphlet, issued 
by the manufacturers, the Vermont Farm Machine 
Co., oi Bellows Falls, Vt. The pamphlet can be 
had on application to the above named Company. 
Exporting the Potato Beetle to Europe.— 
Last year we were too apt to smile at the fears of 
Europeans, that the Colorado Beetle might be ex¬ 
ported from this country along with barreled pota¬ 
toes. From our experience gained the present sea¬ 
son, we consider this danger as very imminent. In 
harvesting potatoes, we find many tubers eaten into 
by the beetles, as well as by the larvae, and hollow¬ 
ed out in some cases into mere shells. The cavities 
become filled with earth in the process of digging, 
and some of the insects are thus shielded from ob¬ 
servation, really within the tuber. Though they 
were watched, we could not prevent numbers of bee¬ 
tles from going into the pits with the potatoes, and 
when these shall be removed into the cellar, it will 
require more than usual care to separate the then 
dormant beetles from them. It is hardly wise to 
expect in the shipping of potatoes, under ordinary 
circumstances, that extraordinary pains will be 
taken to keep beetles out of the barrels, or to ex¬ 
amine the potatoes strictly. Consequently we may 
reasonably expect that thousands of beetles and 
larvae (for we have recently seen eggs deposited 
upon potatoes, while they lay upon the ground, 
waiting to be gathered), to be sent abroad with po¬ 
tatoes. A year ago we thought differently, and 
stated our reasons ; it is proper now to put our Eu¬ 
ropean friends upon their guard, that they may be 
extremely careful to examine both the potatoes 
that they import, and the packages they arrive in. 
A Cradle for Drawing a Boat. 
When it is necessary to draw a boat out of the 
water, a cradle should be used. This is very easily 
made out of some short boards and a piece of plank. 
The boards are cut to the pattern of the engraving, 
so that when three thicknesses are bolted together, 
CRADLE FOR A BOAT. 
the joints shall be broken and not come opposite 
each other. The cradle should be made to fit the 
boat tightly, midway between stem and stern, so 
that when it rests upon it, the boat will be 
evenly balanced and firmly held. The cradle is 
mounted upon two wheels, which may be made of 
hard wood plank. A piece of two-inch plank may 
be sawn out for the axle, and the upper part of the 
cradle firmly bolted to it. Such a cradle as this 
may be made light or heavy, and, if desired, may be 
furnished with iron wheels, so that it will sink in 
the water. It can then be run down under the boat, 
and that be drawn upon it. By hauling upon the 
ring-bolt in its stern, the boat can be drawn up 
out of the water, and easily moved on land. 
When it is desired to lift a boat out of the water, 
and suspend it in a boat-house, all that is necessary 
to be done, is to fix two strong hooks, or rings, in 
the top of the house, and a ring-bolt at each end of 
the boat. A pair of double-sheaved blocks is pro¬ 
vided for each end of the boat. The blocks are 
hooked to the rings in the house and to those in the 
boat, which is then drawn up, one end at a time, 
alternately, until high enough. If two persons are 
in the boat, both ends may be hauled up at once. 
The loose end of the rope is fastened to the ring of 
the boat, or to a ring or a cleat at the side of the 
boat-house. Then the boat remains suspended. 
The inquiries of several are answered by the above. 
Preparation of Sumach, for Market. 
Sumach is used for tanning morocco leather, dye¬ 
ing, etc., and as the best quality brings a high price, 
(at present $112.50 per ton), there is much inquiry 
as to the possibility of utilizing the sumach which is 
so common in this country. There are not only sev- 
| eral different species of sumach, but the quality, or j 
amount of tannic acid varies greatly in the same 
species ; the variation is due to differences in soil 
Fig. 1.— MILL FOR GRINDING SUMACH. 
and climate, and is also affected by the methods of 
preparation. Of course the value of the product 
in the market depends wholly upon the quality. 
Thus we find quoted in the “ Shoe and Leather Re¬ 
porter,” the journal devoted to the American tan¬ 
ning interest, the following quotations, viz., $115 ; 
$112.50 ; $110 ; $107.50 per ton, for grades of Italian, 
Sicilian, Spanish, and French, and $62.50 to $60 for 
Virginian sumach. The great difference between 
the extremes of these quotations, is owing in a 
measure to the careless method of preparing Ameri¬ 
can sumach for market, through which much waste 
or refuse is mixed with the ground leaves and small 
twigs. Allowing for this defect, the price is regu¬ 
lated by the quantity of tannin contained in the 
sumach. The foreign article is the richest in this 
respect, having from 32 to 34 per cent of extract, 
and 16 to 161 per cent of tannic acid. The best 
American contains more than half this quantity of 
tannic acid, but yet brings in the market only half 
the price of the foreign. Not all the American 
sumach is fit for the tanner’s use. That only of a 
strip of territory comprising parts of Virginia, Ten¬ 
nessee, and Missouri, is rich enough to be available. 
Whether or not that of more northern localities 
will ever be sufficiently valued to become an article 
of commerce, remains to be seen. If by any sys¬ 
tem of culture, the American species can be so im¬ 
proved as to be of use in morocco tanneries, it may 
afford many persons employment in growing, cul¬ 
tivating, and preparing the plant for market. 
The .species of sumach grown in Europe, is Rhus 
Fig. 2.— INTERIOR OF SUMACH MILL. 
Coriaria. Those used in this country are the Stag¬ 
horn Sumach, Rhus typhina, which has velvety 
branches, and grows 10,15, or more feet high. The 
Smooth Sumach, Rhus glabra , by far the most com¬ 
mon species, with quite smooth branches, and the 
Dwarf Sumach, Rhus copallina, with dark-green and 
very shiny leaves, are much smaller, growing from 
2 to 8 feet high. The leaves of all these are com¬ 
pound, i. e., have 9 to 31 leaflets, or small leaves, 
arranged in pairs along a common leaf-stalk, or 
petiole, with an odd one at the end. The leaves 
and small twigs are gathered in July and August, 
