56 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[February, 
of handling, one man can raise very large stones. 
A strong plank, or a frame made of two planks, 
fastened together side by side, is laid against the 
wall, resting at the upper end upon loose posts 
properly placed, or some other sufficient support. 
A deep groove is cut in the upper end of the plank 
or frame. A low frame or carriage of planks, 
mounted upon rollers or small iron wheels, is pro¬ 
vided, and a pair of strong handles are fixed to the 
front, as seen in the engraving. The stone is rolled 
up on to the carriage, which is pushed up the plank 
or frame until the forward roller or wheels drop 
into the groove. It there remains, while by means 
of the handles the carriage is tipped and the stone 
turned on to the place where it is wanted. By 
previously preparing its bed, the stone may in 
many cases be dropped, so as to need but very 
little change of position. 
A Crupper-Pad for Horses. 
A correspondent asks for a method by which he 
can prevent a horse from carrying its tail upon one 
side, and also prevent it from clasping the reins be¬ 
neath the tail. He suggests “nicking” the tail. 
We can not advise the 
operation of “ nicking,” 
which consists in cutting 
the skin and muscles up¬ 
on one side of the tail, and 
tieing it over to the cut 
side, until the cuts heal, 
when the skin, being 
drawn together, pulls the 
tail permanently over to 
that side. A different form 
of the operation causes 
the tail to be carried up in 
a style that is supposed 
to be more graceful, and 
prevents the horse from 
.clasping the reins when 
crupper-fad. driven. As a preventive of 
both of these habits, the pad shown in the accom¬ 
panying illustration is often used by horsemen, in¬ 
stead of the cruel and unnecessary operation of 
“nicking.” This appliance is made of leather, is 
stuffed with hair or wool, and is about three inches 
in diameter at the thickest part, gradually tapering 
toward each end, where it is fastened to the crup¬ 
per-straps. It should be drawn up close to the 
roots of the tail, and by exerting a pressure beneath 
The Management of Young Bulls. 
“A Young Breeder” wants a method of disci¬ 
plining his bulls so that they may be made more 
docile and manageable. To do this it would be ad¬ 
visable to work them occasionally in a one-horse 
tread-power. They should be used to this when 
young, and thus being 
made amenable to re¬ 
straint, there will be 
no “ breaking ” needed 
afterwards, and conse¬ 
quently no trouble. We 
have used a Jersey bull 
in a tread-power in 
which he worked with 
more steadiness than a 
horse, and twice a week 
he served a very useful 
purpose in cutting the 
fodder for the stock. 
Nothing more was need¬ 
ed than to lead him by a rope from the nose-ring into 
the tread-power, and tie him short so that he could 
not get too far forward. He was very quiet, not at 
all mischievous, and was a very sure stock bull; and 
besides this, the value of his work was at least 
equal to the cost of his keep. Where there is no 
tread-power, a substitute may be found in the ar¬ 
rangement here illustrated. Set a post in the barn¬ 
yard, bore a hole in the top, and drive a two-inch 
iron pin into the hole. Take the wheel of a wagon 
that has an iron axle, and set it upon the top of the 
post so that it will turn on the pin as on an axle. 
Fasten a strong pole (such as a binding pole for a 
hay wagon) by one end to the wheel, and bore two 
holes in the other end, large enough to take the 
arms of an ox-bow in them. Fix a light-elastic rod 
to the wheel, so that the end will be in advance of 
the end of the larger pole. Yoke the bull to the 
pole, and tie the nose-ring to the end of the elastic 
rod, in such a way that a slight pull is exerted upon 
the ring. Then lead the bull around a few times 
until he gets used to it; he will then travel in the 
ring alone until he is tired, when he will stop. Two 
hours of this exercise a day, will keep a bull in 
good temper, good condition, and excellent health. 
We consider this more valuable than many of the 
patented appliances for gates, and expect it will be 
widely used. Lest any difficulty should hereafter 
occur through any patent-right claims that may be 
presented for any gate made upon this plan, it 
would be safe to keep a copy of the present num¬ 
ber of the American Agriculturist with this illustra¬ 
A Self-Acting Device for Shutting Gates. 
The following description, accompanied by a 
very neat drawing of a self-acting gate-closer, has 
MANNER OF EXERCISING A BULL. 
It, the tail is carried in a raised position, and is not 
thrown over to one side. If it is, a few sharp 
tacks may be driven into the inside of the pad. 
been sent to us by F. Friedrich, a subscriber in 
Wisconsin. The device is not patented, but is 
freely given to the public by our correspondent. 
SELF-SHUTTING GATE. 
tion for future reference. The gate may be of any 
kind that is hung upon hinges. The device may 
be applied to single or double gates, and to light or 
heavy ones, by simply changing the weight of the 
shutting-bar. The shutting-bar (6) is 5 to 8 feet 
long, one inch thick, and should be made in the 
form shown in the engraving, so that the weight 
will be mostly at the farther end from the gate. 
The bar is fastened to the gate by a half-hinge (a), 
which should project from the gate two to four 
inches ; the heavier the gate, the farther the hinge 
should project from it, so as to make the weight of 
the bar more effective when the gate is nearly 
closed. To the lower end there is screwed an iron 
bolt, in which is a slot two inches long, which gives 
room for play upon the half-hinge. The bar is 
fastened to the gate-post by a chain or rope (c), 
which may be lengthened or shortened at pleasure. 
A guiding bar ( e ) is fixed to the fence so as to have 
play-room of two to three inches, in which the 
shutting-bar may work up and down freely. The 
mode of operation is as follows : When the gate is 
opened, the hinge, which is several inches from the 
heel-post of the gate, pushes the shutting-bar back¬ 
wards. As it is held by the cord or chain, it cannot 
go backwards, but is forced to rise in the space be¬ 
tween the guide bar and the fence. The hight to 
which it rises is regulated by the length of the cord 
or chain. When the gate is released, the weight of 
the shutting-bar operates at once, and as it is held 
by the cord, it must push upon the gate so as to 
close it. A self-operating latch (d) should be used, 
so as to fasten the gate when it is closed. This de¬ 
vice can be used for doors as well as gates, and will 
be most useful for those people who are afflicted 
by visitors who have that very common but very 
annoying habit of leaving gates and doors open as 
they pass through them. 
Fish Scrap as Food for Sheep. 
Some of the Maine farmers have been in the hab¬ 
it of feeding “porgy chum,” or the scrap left 
from the manufacture of fish-oil to their sheep, and 
extravagant statements have been made as to its 
value for that purpose. As a test, Prof. Farring¬ 
ton, of the Maine State Agricultural College, di¬ 
vided a flock of ten lambs, and fed half of them 
with hay and what scrap they would eat, and the 
other half with hay and a quantity of corn equal in 
weight to the scrap eaten. The five corn-fed lambs 
gained 48 lbs. in weight in four months, and the 
five fed upon scrap gained 47% lbs. in the same time. 
The quantity of scrap eaten was only one pound per 
week for each sheep. It is concluded, therefore, 
that the fish scrap is equal to corn for feed. The 
analysis of the dried fish, freed from moisture, as 
determined by Prof. Geo. H. Cook, of New Jersey, 
is as follows: in 100 parts there are of organic mat¬ 
ter 78.30, (this is said by Prof. S. W. Johnson, to 
contain 7 to 8 per cent of nitrogen, lime 8.67, 
phosphoric acid 7.78, silicic acid 1.33, potash 1.54, 
soda 1.02, magnesia 0.67, and chlorine 0.69). This 
analysis shows it to be of considerable value as food 
for some of our farm animals which may be in- 
