346 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[August, 
viatecl and truncated at the end in the male, 
and only rudimentary in the female. . The sec-: 
ond is a livid yellow color, very glossy, with 
black antennae and eyes, and two parallel lon¬ 
gitudinal black lines on the shoulders. It seems 
to take to water pipes rather more naturally 
than the former. Otherwise their habits are 
very much alike, both species being fleet-footed, 
restless and sneaking—having insatiable appe¬ 
tites—not being at all particular as to their diet, 
‘lovers of darkness rather than light,’ fond 
of grand pow-wows on kitchen floors, and 
breeding by the hundred thousand. True Ish- 
maelites, ‘ their hand is against every man.’ 
“In New-Orleans I have found domesticated 
another (tropical) species, which does not yet 
seem to have a strong foothold in Hew-York, 
the Blatta gigantea, which is of a livid color, 
with a large quadrate blackish spot on the tho¬ 
rax. This grows to be over two inches in 
length, and is the kind about which mariners 
are wont to discourse. In this climate we have 
very little idea of the way in which they in¬ 
crease and swarm in the tropics, both on sea 
and land. On the land nature has provided 
many destroyers which keep down the surplus 
stock, such as ants, spiders, and many of the 
smaller animals. On shipboard, it becomes 
necessary now and then for every person to 
come upon the deck, or to go on shore, and to 
make an intense smoke between decks and in 
the hold, which kills every living thing within 
its reach.” H. ■ 
However interesting the facts about the ver¬ 
min, as regards their origin, etc., are, there is an¬ 
other class of facts which interests us still more, 
namely, how to get rid of them. We must, 
however, beg our readers to bear in mind that 
where filth, decaying matter, and such like 
things exist, it is far better that it should be con¬ 
verted into living organisms than remain to 
foul the earth and air, and pollute the dwellings 
of men; so by a providential ordering of things, 
there are insect scavengers provided, which 
multiply in proportion to the abundance of food 
they have, and which render innoxious vast 
quantities of matter which otherwise would be 
productive of disease and death incalculable. 
We may regard them then as good friends, 
though sometimes disagreeably familiar, and 
uncomfortably numerous. A house infested 
with roaches or croton-bugs, may be effectually 
cleared of them by exposing it throughout to a 
freezing temperature, which is easily done in 
houses standing isolated, the family leaving it 
for a few days in cold winter weather, allowing 
the fires to go out, and giving free ventilation. 
This is impracticable in cities, and often in the 
country, where this nuisance is spreading quite 
rapidly, brought in flour barrels, and provision 
cases of various sorts. Probably the next best 
remedy is what is known among housewives as 
“ dry green paint," to painters as “ Paris green.” 
This is arsenite of copper, an exceedingly poi¬ 
sonous substance, of a bright green color. The 
color is a great safeguard against its accidental¬ 
ly contaminating any thing eatable—which is 
the great danger with white arsenic, and the 
poison is so subtile that it affects the insects with¬ 
out their eating it, when dusted about in their. 
runs, in cracks of the wainscoting and floors, 
around water-pipes, etc. This poison should be 
used in no larger quantities than absolutely 
necessary, for when considerable quantities are 
about the house, especially if it is near warm 
flues, or hot water pipes, it might affect the at¬ 
mosphere so as to be injurious. The air of 
rooms painted or green-washed with it, or cov¬ 
ered with paper on which this was the -.coloring 
matter, has, in repeated instances, proved high¬ 
ly poisonous and even fatal. There is also an 
article very generally for sale over the country, 
as a rat-poison, the basis of which is phosphorus, 
rendered sweet and palatable, which these in¬ 
sects will eat, and which is certain death; but 
we place most reliance on the green paint, for 
this is lasting. It destroys also other insects. 
Chloride of Lime. 
, It is not generally known that the smell of chlo¬ 
ride of lime is particularly offensive to many kinds 
of animals, especially to the common fly, the gad¬ 
fly, and stinging flies of all descriptions, so obnox¬ 
ious in stables. A sure means to get. rid of these 
troublesome visitors is to place a vessel filled with 
chloride of lime upon a shelf, or a hoard suspended 
to the ceiling. This being done in the evening, and 
a window left partly open as an outlet for the flies, 
none, or very few, will be found in the room in 
the morning. The smell of chloride is by no means 
injurious to man or beast; on the contrary it is 
wholesome as an absorbent of deleterious miasms 
pervading the air. It need hardly be recommended 
to repeat the expedient at short intervals, say at 
least once a week, the more so as it will cost but 
a trifle and will give no trouble. 
In a room—kitchen, pantry or cellar—where chlo¬ 
ride of lime is kept, mice and rats will keep off, 
as indeed they will from any place where the arti¬ 
cle is used. We have seen the experiment tried 
very successfully in a large Inn at Nuremberg, long 
infested with rats and mice, all of which disappear¬ 
ed almost suddenly, not only from the house and 
outer buildings, but also from the stables aud yard. 
The use of chloride of lime is not less efficacious 
forpreserving plants from ants, caterpillars and oth¬ 
er insects. We have a cabbage field,cleared of this 
nuisance by the simple process of sprinkling the 
plants with a solution of chloride and water; which 
may be done by using a common hand broom or a 
paint brush. To our certain knowledge, a piece of 
ground sown with white cabbage was thus thorough¬ 
ly preserved from insects, while in theneighboring 
pieces the plants were actually destroyed by them. 
The same remedy is also applicable to fruit trees 
which may be preserved or purged from caterpil¬ 
lars, etc., by mixing a pound of chloride of lime 
with half a pound of lard; this will form a kind of 
paste, which should be wrapped in tar, and tied to 
the stem or to the thicker branches of the tree. All 
Insects will drop off almost instantaneously, nor 
will any be tempted to crawl up again. Even spar¬ 
rows will keep away if the leaves have been 
sprinkled as aforesaid. 
Experiments are being made as to the efficacy of 
chloride of lime compared with sulphur as a reme¬ 
dy for the vine disease, and the destruction of the 
aphis or vine-fretter .—Deutscher Telegraph. 
Material for Pickles. 
There is a prejudice against pickles, perhaps it is 
because boarding-school girls of a sickly hue, are 
said to dispose of marvellous quantities of them. 
Whatever the prejudice, it is not well founded. It 
is a blessed discovery that salt and vinegar will car¬ 
ry over something of the greenness of Summer in¬ 
to the barren Winter. Almost any vegetable pre¬ 
served in good cider vinegar, (not dilute sulphuric 
acid,) is a healthful condiment, and aids digestion. 
There is nothing better than the cucumber, and the 
vines are full of these now. Pick them while small, 
and preserve in strong brine. Cabbage makes a 
good pickle, but we cau keep this fresh through the 
winter, and use raw, which is better. Peppers, the 
thick-skinned squash variety, are almost indispensa¬ 
ble in the pickle jar. We would suggest onions, 
were not the prejudice against and the love for this 
Egyptian esculent universal. Then come mangoes, 
prepared from green fleshed melons, well stuffed 
with cabbage, horse-radish, nasturtiums, white 
mustard and spices. Tins suits.us a shade better 
than cucumbers. Beans in the pod,' peaches not 
quite ripe, butternuts and hickory nuts, in the very 
green state—and last, but not least, tomatoes' make 
good pickles. This list is extended by other recipes 
in this number; but these will enable the thrifty 
housewife to fill the pickle barrel. 
String Beans and Green Corn in Brine. 
It is not generally known that string beans can be 
kept in salt, the same as cucumbers. When of 
suitable size for cooking, pick and string them, and 
break in small pieces, as for ordinary boiling, and 
pack in firkins or stone jars, using a layer of salt, 
two inches in depth of beans, more salt, and so on 
until the vessel is filled, covering with a good coat¬ 
ing of salt. Over this place a board cover, kept 
down by a stone or other weight. The salt soon 
extracts sufficient water from the beans to cover 
the whole with brine, in which condition they will 
keep for a year, if required. To prepare them for 
cooking, soak in water over night, and if too salt 
freshen in more water before boiling. Green corn 
ears may also be preserved in salt, and when re¬ 
quired for use, soak till freshened, and boil. 
Cucumbers, for pickles, may be put in with the 
beans, thus saving an extra firkin; as they are 
pickled in precisely the same manner, freshening in 
water, and putting in vinegar, with or without 
spices before using. 
Various Recipes. 
Tomato Catsup.— Select well-ripened, 
smooth tomatoes, boil with a very little water un¬ 
til tender, remove the skin, and rub the contents 
through a fine wire seive to separate the seeds. To 
each bushel of the fruit add 2 quarts cider vinegar, 
2 lbs. salt, % lb. black and 2 oz. Cayenne pepper, 3 
grated nutmegs, % lb. allspice, 6 finely chopped 
onions, and 3 lbs. brown sugar; boil the whole for 
1 hour, stirring it frequently, and strain again 
through the wire seive. When cold, bottle and set 
awayin a cool place. It is readyfor immediate use, 
or it may be kept a year. 
Sweet I n fefiletl Quinces .-- 1 The most 
common use of quinces is as sweet preserves. They 
also answer a good purpose when sliced up and 
mixed in small quantities with apple-sauce, giving 
the whole a pleasant, aromatic flavor. They make 
a good pickle, also. Boil in vinegar with sugar, and 
add cloves, cinnamon, etc., to suit the taste. The 
best way is to pare and quarter them and cut out 
the cores. Boil 10 pounds of fruit, adding® pounds 
of sugar, and about 4 pints vinegar, one ounce of 
stick cinnamon, and % ounce of cloves. When 
well boiled, put in a jar and pour over the syrup. 
Baked Quinces. —This fruit may be baked 
like apples, adding syrup, or sugar and water, while 
baking. Certainly every one who likes a sour baked 
apple, will relish a baked quince. They are very- 
good simply baked, and eaten with powdered sugar. 
To l>ry Sweet Apples.— Bake as for the 
table, then dry in a brick oven. Theymay be soaked, 
heated, water dried away, and restored very nearly 
to the condition of a fresh baked apple. Stewed in 
more syrup, they make a much richer sauce than 
the common dried apples. 
Peach Jelly.— Pare well-ripened peaches 
and remove the pits; boil the.fruit until quite soft 
in water enough to cover it; strain through a coarse 
bag and add 1 lb. white sugar .to each quart of the 
liquid, boiling down until upon trial it stiffens when 
cooled. If it does not stiffen sufficiently, add a lit¬ 
tle isinglass. Putinjellyglasses, tumblers or bowls, 
and paste white paper over them. After setting a 
short time in the sun, preserve in a cool, dark place. 
351 :tcld(ewy Jain. —Blackberries, in almost 
any form, and wine made from them, are very 
.pleasant and wholesome, and besides are conceded 
to be good medicine for the “ Summer complaint,” 
and housewives aud nurses look out for a good 
stock of blackberry jam. It is easily made, and 
there is no difficulty in keeping it. To each pound 
