262 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[September, 
plum weevil, which deposits its eggs there. You will see 
frequent allusions to it in the former numbers of the Agri¬ 
culturist, and it is fortunate that this is its first appear¬ 
ance in your locality. 
'Tlie S.*e»cli Borer.— “H. S.” Have you 
tried coal ashes spread on the soil over the roots? A 
surer remedy, however, is to first dig out the borers with 
penknife or wire, then fill the holes with powdered sul¬ 
phur. Afterward, surround the trunk with tarred paper. 
WIsisle oil —Wliat is it ?—J. A. 
Arnold, Saginaw Co., Mich. This is a residuary product 
in the purification of the crude whale oil as it is brought 
in by the whalemen. It is a black, oily soap, often called 
“black-soap.” If dissolved in hot water, the oil partly 
separates; it should therefore be soaked in cold water 
and then when dissolved, it carries the superfluous oil with 
it. It has a disagreeable odor, adheres better than other 
soap and is very cheap. Of course it must be obtained 
directly or indirectly from the whale oil depots. It is 
kept on sale by Eastern implement and seed dealers. 
Cosil 'Tin- lor Plants awl ISngs.- 11 A. 
P.,” Vt., tried it around cabbages; it killed them. Aneigh- 
bor tried it around melons ; it killed them. He put the 
pumpkin bugs into the tar ; it did not kill them. Rather a 
dangerous weapon, safer at the muzzle than at the breech! 
Ant Mills in Flower Beds.—“ S. F. D.,” 
Peru. We should scatter them with salt. They do not 
relish soap suds and liquid manure. 
Remedies lor Striped Bug's.— 11 A. 
F.,” Bakersfield, Vt. A box with a glass cover, or milli- 
net cover—A powder of four parts plaster and one of 
Peruvian guano, put on with dredging box, immediately 
after every rain—Strong quassia water, put on with 
sprinkler—Dead clams, or any other offensive animal mat¬ 
ter— A chicken coop close by—Toads—Thumb and fingers 
applied every morning when the dew is on—Frequent 
watering with liquid manure. We have faith in all these 
remedies, especially the last four. 
Obtaining; the Agriculturist under 
Difficulties. —A subscriber in Washington Co., Iowa, 
in sending his dollar for the Agriculturist, says, that to 
obtain the money, he went two miles into the timber, chop¬ 
ped a load of wood, and hauled it ten miles to market. 
We are gratified at finding the journal so highly appre¬ 
ciated. It ought to be a good paper when such sacri¬ 
fices are made to obtain it; we try to make it so, and 
shall keep trying. 
Squirrels! Caraiivei’ous.— A lady sub¬ 
scriber affirms that she saw the common striped squirrel 
or chipmunk carry off a chicken, and moreover killed 
one in the act. This fellow burrows in the earth, and it 
may be that his habits are different from the rest of the 
tribe. The fact is new to us. 
tiopliei-3.— 1 Thomas Biekerton, of Douglass 
Co., Kansas, is much troubled with gophers, and suggests 
that the hydropult, or some similar thing, be used to in¬ 
ject “ some inflammable material, with plenty of sulphur” 
into their burrows. Suppose you subject your idea to a 
practical test, Mr. B., and publish the result. We have 
also a suggestion to make. From repeated trial it has 
been found that wheat prepared as follows, will poison 
rats, mice, crows, etc.; Dissolve one drachm corrosive 
sublimate in one pint alcohol, and add one tablespoonful 
of molasses. Pour this upon- four quarts of wheat, and 
let it stand covered until the wheat has absorbed the de¬ 
coction, then spread out and dry, when it is ready for use. 
Why may not gophers be poisoned by corn prepared in 
Seen! Wlseat.—“ A. S. P.,” Edinburg, Ohio, 
has increased the weight of his wheat two pounds in the 
bushel by selecting the ripest part of the field for seed, 
and screening for the largest kernels. He approves of 
soaking in brine and rolling in plaster or quick lime. 
Misllett’s H®edigree Wiaeat.— 1 There is 
no denying the fact that Mr. Hallettis producing extra¬ 
ordinary results in his experiments with wheat. We have 
: ecu with our own eyes some of these results, and can bear 
witness that the large engravings of wheat heads we pub¬ 
lished last year are even less in size than those we saw 
and measured the present year. Some complaints have 
been uttered respecting the money-making account to 
which Mr. H. is turning his experiments, but he is clearly 
entitled to good remuneration for the expense of his ex¬ 
periments. He has shown, and is continually strengthening 
the proof, that as with animals, so with grains, improve¬ 
ments in the yield, and in the size and production of the 
heads and kernel, can be made to an indefinite degree by 
selecting extraordinary specimens for propagation. Thus, 
if one desires to secure short straw, long, well filled heads, 
etc., he has only to select and propagate each year indi¬ 
vidual plants strongly marked with the peculiar features 
it is desired to develop. The kernels from a large head 
this year will produce one or more larger heads next 
year. The largest one of the second crop will produce 
one or more still larger heads the next year, if the soil be 
very good ; and so the improvement may be carried on in¬ 
definitely. We advise our more enterprising readers to 
experiment in this direction, not only with wheat, but with 
oats, rye, and other grains. A few years will develop an 
extraordinary product, which may be multiplied at pleas¬ 
ure. In this way may be secured greatly improved seed— 
to the benefit of the country, and to the pecuniary profit 
of the patient experimenter. 
Indian Memp Bark for Bands.—A 
subscriber of the Agriculturist who has tried it, recom¬ 
mends this material for tying up tomatoes, etc., to trellises. 
Orchard Grass.— 11 A. K. McC.,” Ckambers- 
burg, Penn. This is a superior pasture grass, especially 
when mixed with red clover. It should not be sown 
alone—for it does not make an even sward—except for 
seed, in which case about two bushels are required to 
the acre. When sown with clover, one bushel per acre 
is sufficient, and in either case is best sown early in Sep¬ 
tember. The clover should be sown in March following. 
Wintering Cabbage Plants.— 11 D. 
C. Johnson.” To get extra early cabbages in the Spring, 
prepare the ground the previous October, choosing a dry, 
warm spot; set out the plants a foot apart in drills, and 
get them well established by November. When hard 
frosts begin, put on a layer of straw or other porous lit¬ 
ter across the drills, so as to keep off the winter sun, and 
to prevent constant freezing and thawing. Early in 
Spring remove the straw and work the soil. The plants 
which live will be the earliest in market. 
Tlie Royal Cheese Beaten.- 11 S. S.,” 
of Locust Valley, L.I., says a cheese once sent from Ne w- 
England to the President of the United States, weighed 
3000 pounds, was twelve feet across, and could not be 
got into the hold of the sloop that conveyed it. If the 
cheeses were bigger in those days, the sloops certainly 
were smaller. When and where was it made. 
To Prevent Milk Moulding.—H. B. 
Craig, Franklin Co., Pa. Milk will not mould in clean 
vessels, in a clean, well-ventilated dairy room. It is very 
apt to do so in warm weather in close, damp rooms, es¬ 
pecially if they need whitewashing and are not in every 
respect perfectly clean and sweet. Soap and water and 
the scrubbing-brush, with whitewash often applied to 
walls and ceiling, are an effectual remedy. 
Peas au«i Beans for Mogs.—“E. S.,” 
of Dwight, Ill. These are much more used in the South 
than with us. The chief advantage of sowing peas is 
that it saves labor and gives a change of crop and of food. 
Good Slieep.—T. T. Griffith, Md., has live 
sheep that sheared forty pounds of wool, and two lambs 
that dressed 102 pounds at three months old. 
A Morse Roiad, made by puddling with 
clay, should be the last resort for water, even for animals. 
A cistern under the barn is better. A well is better. Wa¬ 
ter brought in by a pipe is better. Warm, stagnant water, 
gathered from the surface, cannot be. much better for 
horses than for men. We plead for the poor dumb brutes. 
Ingenious Mellsodol Blaltf.er-SBreal*:- 
inu; a Colt. —J. C. M., of Lafayette Co., Wis:, 
communicates the following plan, giving the credit of its 
invention to John L. Brown of the same county : “ Tie a 
rope around a hay stack, then fetch your colt up to the 
stack, and tie his halter to the rope ; there will be no dan¬ 
der of his hurting himself, or finding an : unpleasant cus¬ 
tomer when he comes up to the scratch and gives in beat.” 
A .Hew IkisBj tor Slock.— It matters lit¬ 
tle what the new dish is, only let it be something new. 
Many farmers seem to think it enough to provide fodder 
sufficient in bulk to last through the winter, regardless of 
its variety. Every winter shows observing men that do¬ 
mestic animals become cloyed on the best of food, if 
confined long to one article. It is so with man. He 
craves a variety, and he must have it if he would contin¬ 
ue in good health. Notice how seamen on long voyages 
are subject to attacks of scurvy or other maladies ; and 
that chiefly because they are confined to nearly the same 
bill of fare, week after week. Experiments have been 
tried on dogs and cats and other animals, and it has been 
found that they sicken, languish and die, if kept an undue 
period on one kind of food. Obviously, the true course 
for the farmer is to lay in both enough and a variety of 
fodder. Hay to succeed stalks, and then roots to vary 
both, and meal to vary that, and so on. This will carry 
them safely and pleasantly; through the long confine- 
ment of winter. * 
HooiVBound Morses. —A subscriber in 
Pleasant Valley, Pa., asks for a remedy. Dr. Dadd says, 
“A run at grass, in a soft pasture, the animal having 
nothing but tips . on his feet, is the best treatment.” Poul¬ 
ticing with soft soap and rye-meal is also recommended. 
This disease is often caused by paring away too much of 
the bars which support the heel, in shoeing. 
Heavy CalF.—B. R. Prince, of Suffolk Co., 
L. I., writes to the Agriculturist that one of his neigh¬ 
bors, Mr. Henry Tuthill, had a calf slaughtered when a 
few days less than fifteen months old, which weighed 
666 lbs. It had never been weaned from the cow, and 
never drank any water. Breed not stated. 
Saw-dust fair Redding-.—“Farmer,” of 
Winnebago Co., Wis., writes : “ I have used pine saw¬ 
dust, and have noticed no bad effect on the hoofs of my 
animals, but on the contrary it appears to be a benefit. 
The only question with me is, whether it is a good article 
for manure. There appears to be a great difference of 
opinion in relation to the usefulness of pine saw-dust. 
Some are of the opinion that it is injurious to land on ac¬ 
count of the pitch which it contains, while others think it 
injurious only when used fresh from the mill. Many of 
us farmers live in close proximity to saw-mills where we 
can get the dust for nothing, and if we were assured that 
it is a good article for land when well mixed with manure 
it would be of great benefit to us.” 
'Taming IFisIies. —T. M. F.,” Franklin, 
Ind., writes to the Agriculturist that some of the fishes in 
a pond on his grounds will come to him on hearing his 
whistle, eat from his hands, and allow him to take them 
from the water. 
New Straw as Manure.— “ B. M. F.,” 
Horsham, Pa. The absorbent capability of straw is an 
addition to its value, provided it can be used—i. e., if you 
have any liquid or fresh manure to compost it with ; it is 
more easily plowed under, and rots sooner than when 
used dry. We know of no implement that will turn dry 
straw under better th*> the common plow. This is effec¬ 
tual if one follow with a fork to fill the furrow with straw. 
Eaves-troiigh Tile.— “J. S. C.,” of Had- 
donfield, N. J., says he tried them for ten years. With a 
constant flow of water they are durable. 
Saline iBicrustrations on tlie Soil.— 
One of our subscribers writing from Salt Lake City, Utah, 
says: We have many valuable tracts of land spoiled by 
the rising of a whitish efflorescence to the surface, (com¬ 
monly called saleratus by the people). Can you inform 
the readers of the American Agriculturist in Utah, how 
to neutralize these alkaline deposits which destroy many 
crops?” The only remedy we can suggest is deep drain¬ 
age. Thus in the season of heavy rains we might*hope 
to remove the excess of salts so far that during the dry 
season (for in Utah the rainy and dry seasons prevail as 
in the tropics), capillary attraction will not be so likely 
to bring it up to the surface. Drains should be 4 feet deep 
and no further apart than is consistent with the most 
thorough draining of the whole soil. 
A Garden fdyringe.— “ J. A. A.,” Saginaw 
Co., Mich. Any tinner can’make a garden syringe—take 
a copper or tin tube 2 inches in diameter, and solder on 
a head punctured with moderately fine holes; fit a piston 
or plunger to it with another head, wind the piston with 
tow and it is ready for use ; it may cost $1. 
Iron or Wooden Rollers lor Cane 
Mills.— Mrs. F. G. Dickson, Kankakee Co., Ill. By all 
means use iron instead of wooden rollers for cane mills. 
The mills should be very . strong, with iron rollers and 
iron cogs. Iron will not impart color to the juice while i t 
is being crushed out. 
Farm Mills.— F. H. Williams, Franklin Co., 
Mass., and sundry other persons, ask for information as to 
the practical working of the “ People’s Mill” formerly 
advertised in this paper. We know nothing from expe¬ 
rience, having only seen it in operation at fairs and where 
offered on sale. We judge it better adapted for grinding 
feed than makingjJne four for family use. The grinding 
plates are of iron and easily and cheaply replaced when 
worn so as to be ineffective. Shall we hear from some 
uninterested person who has had this or any other good 
portable farm mill running satisfactorily for some time? 
