I860.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST 
381 
keeping. During the night, the family were alarmed by a 
terrible noise in the barn. Some one was screaming and 
shouting, “Murder! Help!” and apparently engaged in 
a struggle for life. The farmer hastened to the spot, fol¬ 
lowed by the organ grinder and other inmates of the 
house, and found the tame bear with a man in his em¬ 
braces, hugging him tightly, while the poor fellow strug¬ 
gled frantically to escape. The bear was muzzled, and 
could do the man no serious injury, though he was far 
from comfortably situated. Upon examination, it proved 
to be a dishonest butcher, who had come to the barn to 
steal a fine calf. In the darkness he had stumbled over 
Bruin, who had seized him and held him fast. The organ 
grinder learning how matters stood, called out, “ Hug 
him, Jack,” and the bear, enjoying the sport, continued to 
squeeze him unmercifully, until the farmer thought he 
had been sufficiently punished, when he was released. 
The story soon spread abroad, and the butcher left the 
town to escape the ridicule to which it subjected him. 
-.©-*--, - 
Premiums tor Boys and Girls. 
Our young friends will find in our Premium List for 
1661, on another page, some things that will specially in¬ 
terest them. The most valuable are the Dictionary and 
Cyclopedia Premiums, though every premium offered 
is worth working for. A large number of boys and a few 
girls have each received a splendid copy of the large Dic¬ 
tionary, and two boys have each earned the Cyclope¬ 
dia, (15 large volumes,) this year. Let all our enterpris¬ 
ing boys and girls go to work and gather subscribers— 
they will thus not only benefit our circulation, and intro¬ 
duce a good paper into many new families, but they will 
also benefit themselves. The boys and girls of a neigh¬ 
borhood might join their efforts, and get a Cyclopedia 
to be owned in common, and kept at the school house. 
Read over the premium list, and see if you can not take 
hold now, (while the extra numbers are offered to new 
subscribers,) and earn one or more of the premiums. We 
expect to give aw ay a lot of Dictionaries, Cyclopedias., 
etc,, to boys and girls. Who will have one 2 Who w'ill 
get the first, and who the second ? 
Into which are thrown all sorts of paragraphs—such as 
Notes and' Replies to Coukespondents, with Useful or 
interesting Extracts from their Letters , <$'£•> —to be drawn 
from whenever we have room left here. 
Breaching under the lt Third Head.”— 
An eccentric preacher once began his discourse thus : 
“My brethren, my sermon naturally divides itself under 
three heads. Under the First, I shall talk about things 
that you know, and I know. Under the Second head, I 
shall talk about things which I understand, but you do 
not. Under the third head I shall preach about certain 
things which you do not understand, nor I either.” There 
is a good deal of preaching under the “ third head ” now¬ 
adays, and quite as much out of the pulpit as in it. The 
temptation to this sort of preaching is quite strong among 
agricultural and horticultural editors, and as for that 
matter, among all editors, for they are sometimes at their 
wit’s ends, to know how to respond to the many inquiries 
addressed to them, in such a way as to maintain a credit 
for knowing everything. We are daily losing our ambi¬ 
tion to sustain such a credit, and so when we fail to 
promptly respond to certain difficult questions put to us by 
our readers, if they can find no better excuse for our si¬ 
lence, we hope they will attribute it to a reluctance on 
our part to “preach under the third head ” 
Experiment in feeding' Swine.—“L. E. 
T.” proposes that farmers who intend fattening a number 
of swine this season, should try the following experiment, 
and publish the results. Select four porkers of the same 
breed, age, and as near the same weight as may be. Con¬ 
fine them in separate pens—let each be weighed, and the 
weight recorded at the time of shutting up. Feed No. 1 
with shelled corn ; No. 2 with ground corn ; No. 3 with 
whole boiled corn ; No. -With cooked corn meal. Keep 
an exact account of the quantity fed, and the cost of 
cooking, extra labor, etc., and when the hogs are dressed, 
compare the results in weight and cost of pork. Such 
experiments have been made, here and there, over the 
country during past years ; but our correspondent thinks 
if one hundred farmers could be induced to try it the 
same season, and communicate the facts to the public, it 
would so settle the question in favor of cooked food, that 
it would be generally adopted. 
Seedling' mulberries. —Mr. Smith Tuttle, New- 
Haven Co., Conn., has exhibited at our office specimens 
of a seedling mulberry which is worthy the notice of 
nurserymen and amateurs. The fruit averages about an 
inch long, is of a deep black color, and possesses a fine, 
vinous, sub-acid flavor, which must make it a favorite 
for eating fresh and for cooking. Mr. T., says the tree 
is very hardy and thrifty, and yields abundantly, the 
season of fruiting commencing in June and extending to 
September. Two other sorts, one much resembling the 
common native, the other somewhat like the Black Eng¬ 
lish were shown by Mr. T. Their flavor was, however, 
inferior to the sort first described. 
Northern Muscadine Grape, etc.—P. 
Bloomstrand, Plymouth Co., Mass. This grape is too 
foxy for even northern culture. Better plant Concord, 
Hartford Prolific, Diana, Delaware, or Rebecca. Leather 
shavings are good for mulching, and especially for put¬ 
ting in the trenches, under the vines. 
Wine Grapes for Kansas.-" R.” Dauphin 
Co., Kansas. The Isabella and Catawba are two well 
tried grapes for wine making. The Concord is gaining 
favor for the same purpose, and is largely grown in some 
parts of Missouri. It may safely be recommended. We 
would also advise a trial of Hartford Prolific and Diana, 
—as preferable to the Clinton.—Grape cuttings root the 
year they are put out, and the vines are usually cut back 
in the Fall or Winter, so that a “ two year old vine ” may 
have a “ three year old root.” The two year old vine 
will bear sooner than the two year old root. In trans¬ 
planting, it is better to cut back most of the vine so as to 
get a strong new shoot the first season. “ Bright’s Grape 
Culture ” (50c.) will give you much valuable information. 
Planting' a Vineyard.—' Wm. A. Traker, Hunt¬ 
ingdon Co., Pa., will find pretty full chapters upon grape 
culture in our former numbers. Most cultivators prefer 
planting, say about five feet apart, and tie each vine to a 
stake. If planted in rows five to six feet apart, and trained 
upon trellises, set the vines about eight feet distant in 
the row. Roots planted in the Spring will come into 
bearing soonest, but cuttings may be put in at the same 
time, for planting out another year. 
Bojirre Giffard IPear. —J. J. Vanderbilt, of 
Kings Co., L. I., left at our office, August 7, some very 
fine specimens of this really delicious, early pear, which 
were grown on the quince. An illustration and descrip¬ 
tion will perhaps appear in our next issue. 
Hoses Failing. —E. E. Jones, Va. It is impossi¬ 
ble to tell why your favorite rose tree sheds its flowers, 
without examining the plant itself. Perhaps it was bud¬ 
ded or grafted upon another stock, and consequently 
short lived. Or its effort last season may have induced 
decay. A fruit free or even a flowering shrub will fre¬ 
quently yield an extraordinary crop one year and decay 
the next. It is belter to renew flowering shrubs and 
vines occasionally by bending down a branch to form a 
layer. This should be done while the plant is healthy. 
Marvel -of Peru (Four O’clock). —H. N. 
Richardson, Chittenden Co., Vt. In our northern latitude 
th'is plant has become an annual, and it is not worth 
while to try to keep the roots through Winter. We suc¬ 
ceed in getting a bloom from Spring sown seeds, by the 
10th of July, and they continue in flower until killed by 
frost. They ripen seeds abundantly during the Summer. 
Hibiscus Described. —W. R., Broom Co., N. 
Y. This is an annual, not very erect, say 18 inches 
high, with somewhat feathery or downy foliage, and 
blooms from June until frost. Flowers 1 to 2 inches 
across, single, of straw color, with a brown or purple 
center, quite pretty. The seed capsules are nearly round, 
and covered with hairs. 
Nasturtiums at the South.—R. F. Clute, 
Chickasaw Co., Miss., states, that the Nasturtium seed 
he obtained of us, and also that bought of seedsmen, vege¬ 
tated well, and produced fine plants with abundance of 
bloom, but grew to a bush form, instead of a vine, as is 
usual, and produced no fruit. Have others at the South 
noticed similar results ? 
'transplanting Hyacinths and Tulips. 
—G. W. Murphy, Alleghany Co., Pa. These need not be 
reset every season. Once in three years is sufficient. 
When they are to be transplanted, lift them earlyin July, 
keep in a dry place and plant again about the middle of 
October. 
Carnations from Seed.—H. H. Huntress, Hills¬ 
borough Co., N. H. The production of a really fine car¬ 
nation from seed, is not an easy matter. It may take 
years of trial, but choice new varieties are obtained in 
this way. The ordinary cultivator will do better to ob¬ 
tain roots, or layers from such colors and forms as he fan¬ 
cies. The same may be said of the gladiolus. 
Norway Spruces Dying in Winter.—IL 
L. Pratt, Middlesex Co., Conn. As your trees lived 
through the Summer, it is likely there is something in 
the soil not congenial to them. Perhaps there is too 
much moisture. Or, possibly, the trees barely survived 
during the Summer and vitality was about expired at 
the commencement of Winter. With good roots and 
careful transplanting even into a poor soil, we seldom 
expect to lose a Norway Spruce. 
Cleaning Carrot Seed.— H. D. Todd, New- 
Haven Co., Conn. After the carrot seed has been cut 
and thoroughly dried, rub it out by hand, or pound in a 
box or barrel if in large quantity. When shelled, 
pick out the coarser portions, and lightly fan, or winnow 
the remainder. A gentle breeze will carry away the 
chaff and leave the good seed behind. A coarse sieve is 
a good thing for winnowing these and other light seeds , 
the branches, leaves, etc., remaining in the sieve. 
BSaltl Kabi, Brussels Sprouts, etc.—W. 
Dyer, Steuben Co., Ind. Kohl Rabi gets woody when 
matured. It is better to use the bulbs when a little larger 
than one’s fist. Cut in quarters, and boil until tender, 
then pare and serve with butter precisely as turnips. 
Broccoli and Brussels Sprouts are more like cabbages. 
They are better in the Fall and early Winter, than after 
having been kept a long time. Boil a sufficient number 
of the little heads, or “buttons” in a cloth, until suffi¬ 
ciently cooked, and serve as cabbage or cauliflower. 
A “ Whopper.”— Not the story, of course, but 
the squash-vine.—Amos Heater, Mason Co., Illinois, 
writes: “I planted seeds of the Mammoth Leghorn 
Squash, received from the Agriculturist office last Spring, 
and the hail and frost left me but a single vine. That on# 
has grown to cover If acres of land! and I will have at least 
a two-horse load of squashes from that one plant!!!” 
Call this way neighbor, when the crop is gathered; we 
shall have a spare hat for you. 
Blue Grass for Pasture.—J. A. Parks, Jack- 
son Co., Mich. Blue grass (Poa pratensis) will grow on 
almost any soil. It succeeds best, however, on limestone 
lands—the blue grass pastures of Kentucky, where such 
soils predominate, have obtained world-wide celebrity. 
At the North, and on soils of other character, timothy is 
generally preferred for pasture. 
Sawdust for Manure.— M. A. Allen, Warren 
Co., N. Y., inquires if saw-dust, principally pine and 
hemlock, w hich has been accumulating at the bottom of 
a pond some twenty years, would answer a good purpose 
to manure a sandy loam which has been “run” until 
clover will not “ take ” upon it. He says the deposit of 
saw-dust and mud can be placed upon the land at twelve 
cents per load. It will pay well to draw it out. Let a 
large pile be made ; apply half a bushel of lime or leached 
ashes per load ; fork it over occasionally and mix with it 
stable manure if any can be obtained. Plow it in lightly, 
and mix it well with the soil by thorough harrowing, and 
clover can hardly fail to “take.” 
New Insect on It ye.— Some time since we re¬ 
ceived from Mr. Daniel Steck, Lycoming Co., Pa., speci¬ 
mens of stalks of rye showing the work of an insect new 
to us, and of whose ravages we have not previously 
heard any complaints. Eggs are deposited immediately 
above every joint of the stalk, where they soon hatch, 
and the presence of the larva causes the growth of a 
fleshy excrescence. This interferes with the develop¬ 
ment of the grain, and also weakens the stalk, often 
causing it to fall to the ground about the time of blossom¬ 
ing. Mr. S. states that many fields in Lycoming and ad¬ 
joining counties have been greatly injured in this man¬ 
ner. We forwarded the specimens received, to an expert 
Entomologist, but have as yet heard nothing from them. 
We shall be obliged for further particulars as to the ap¬ 
pearance and habits of the parent insect, with any infor¬ 
mation that may be given as to the best means of pre¬ 
venting its ravages. 
Bose Bug's on Grape Vines.— A. B. Brum¬ 
baugh, Huntingdon Co., Pa. The bug you complain of, 
proves, by the specimen sent, to be the Rose Bug, which 
is frequently very troublesome to the grape vine, eating 
away the bloom and tender buds. As they are little 
affected by lime, soap or other substances, hand picking, 
or shaking them into dishes of hot w ater, or upon sheets, 
to be burned, are about the only remedies. This seems 
like a great task, but when daily followed up, they will 
soon nearly disappear. We have observed they were 
much more troublesome where the ground was not dis¬ 
turbed, than where it was cultivated. They pass the 
Winter in the soil to reappear in Spring for their ravages 
upon rose bushes, grape vines and cherry trees. 
