184 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
TO SUBSCRIBERS TO THE FARM AND GARDEN. 
Special Notice. —This paper completes the 
numbers which we shall forward to such of the 
subscribers to the Farm and Garden , as have 
not or do not renew. The first of December 
would complete the volume of that paper, which 
was stopped before the issue of the tenth num¬ 
ber, owing to the improper conduct of a person 
employed in transacting the business depart¬ 
ment of the paper. 
We have done what was in our power to 
remedy the difficulty, by sending a weekly pa¬ 
per of about the same size as the monthly, 
during the time of the subscription. Those 
whose subscription did not expire with the 
December number of the Farm and Garden, 
will continue to receive this paper without ex¬ 
pense till the first of January, or to No. 17. 
Some very few, whose subscriptions were for a 
long term, will receive this paper after that 
time till their subscriptions are amply made up. 
Allen & Co., Publishers. 
Back Numbers.— We still have files of the 
back numbers of this volume to supply to new 
subscribers, with the exception of Nos. 1 and 2. 
No. 1 we are entirely out of, and we have very 
few copies of No. 2. Such of our subscribers 
as have either of those numbers, (1 and 2,) and 
do not keep their papers on file, will confer 
a very great favor if they will remail them to 
us. We will reciprocate the favor in any way 
they may direct. 
We advise all to keep perfect files of the 
paper, to be bound or stitched together at the 
end of the volume, with an index which we 
shall then furnish. The volume will form a 
valuable one for future reference. We will 
supply any lost numbers, and we request any 
one who loses a number through the careless¬ 
ness of the mail, to give us immediate notice of 
the fact, and we will supply the deficiency. 
-- 
CREDIT TO WHOM CREDIT IS DUE. 
We notice, recently, that a number of our 
cotemporaries have copied icithout credit sev 
eral articles written expressly for this paper, 
such as “ How to Make Home-made Superphos¬ 
phate of Lime; ” “How shall we Advance the 
Interests of Agriculture ; ” Articles on “ Drain¬ 
ing ; ” “ Humbugs; ” “ Coal Ashes; ” “ Winter 
Fattening Unprofitable ; ” “ Planting Chestnut 
Trees; ” &c., &c. 
We highly value our exchanges, and carefully 
gather from them all we can to interest or 
profit our own readers, but our invariable rule 
has been, and^is, to do as we roould be done by, 
to always give credit for any article to that 
paper in which wc have good reason to suppose 
it first appeared. 
The American Agriculturist is generally 
largely supplied with original articles. Many 
of these are from our own pens; and as we 
have done heretofore, we shall continue to hold 
an open purse to those who write good articles 
for our paper. These arc, of course, freely open 
to the use of every other paper. All we ask is 
a simple recognition of the paper which has 
been at the labor or expense of originating 
them. 
Since writing the above, we notice that the 
Farmer and Mechanic copies our notice of Sil¬ 
vering Powders and Duplicate Writing Papers, 
and credits them to the Scientific American. 
This is a mistake we doubt not, and we only 
call attention to the fact to correct the mistake. 
The Farmer and Mechanic is a well edited 
paper, and is doing good service in advancing 
agricultural improvement. It is far from being 
like some journals we could name, so destitute 
of originality, as to need to borrow uncredited 
articles. 
We are glad to see a growing disposition on 
the part of public journals to give publicity to 
articles, showing up the character of the petty 
impositions that are practised by a large class 
of skilful peddlers, w r ho are palming off upon the 
community daily, to the amount of thousands 
of dollars, worthless and injurious twenty-five 
cent articles, under various names. We alluded 
in a former number to the character of tooth- 
washes, and during the last ten days we have 
frequently seen a man, within twenty rods of 
our office, doing a thriving business in selling a 
wash of precisely the character we described. 
If the dentists wished to increase their busi¬ 
ness, they could adopt no cheaper method than 
to make up a hundred barrels of these tooth- 
washes, and hire men to stand upon the corners 
of the streets, and give the article away freely 
to all who would take it. A few applications are 
sufficient to destroy a set of good teeth. 
Rancid Butter. —Under the head of “ Impor¬ 
tant Discovery” a statement—credited to a Paris 
Journal—is “ going the rounds,” to the effect 
that bad butter may be freed from all disagree¬ 
able taste and smell, and rendered as sweet as 
when first made, by simply washing it in water 
containing two or three drops of chloride of 
lime for each pound of butter. The butter is 
to be thoroughly worked over with the prepara¬ 
tion, and afterwards washed with pure water. 
We are sorry to say, we believe the above 
news “ is too good to be true.” When a process 
is discovered for restoring decaying vegetables, 
and putrescent animal matters, we shall then 
have some hopes of making rancid butter fresh 
again. Butter is an animal or organic produc¬ 
tion, and rancidity is the result of a change in its 
composition, brought about by the natural pro¬ 
cess of decay. This decaying process may be 
prevented, but after it has once taken place there 
is no hope of discovering a process to restore it 
to its original state. Such a process, were it 
practicable, would be worth millions of dollars to 
the discoverer and to the country. There is no 
season of the year when a million pounds of 
rancid butter could not be purchased, and by 
restoring it to the condition of new butter, each 
pound would be enhanced in value at least five 
cents. Each million pounds would in this case 
be worth $50,000 more than before its restora¬ 
tion. But as above stated we have no hopes 
that any one will ever discover any process for 
doing this. 
-*9 l- 
How to Administer Chloroform to Bees.— 
We believe Mr. David Smitm, of Scotland, was 
the first to recommend the use of chloroform to 
stupefy bees, when it is desirable to examine 
the hive for moths, or to remove honey from it. 
From various sources we learn this method is 
quite practicable. Some have used too large a 
quantity. Scarcely a quarter of an ounce is 
needed for a full size hive. The operation should 
be performed early in the morning, before any 
bees have left the hive, and before they are in 
active motion. A bright, calm, sunny morning 
is the best. The operation is very simple and 
easily performed. 
Spread a cloth upon a table or large board 
near the hive; set a shallow plate in the middle 
of this and pour into it nearly a tablespoonful 
of chloroform, and set the hive quickly and care¬ 
fully over it. After fifteen or twenty minutes 
the bees will become entirely insensible, and 
most of them will have left the hive and lie in 
a heap upon the table. On this account, to keep 
them from falling into the chloroform, it should 
be covered over with a piece of wire gauze, or 
what will answer equally well, place several 
small sticks across the plate and spread over 
them a piece of netting or open cloth. 
After the bees have become insensible, the hive 
can be removed and examined, and the honey 
taken out if desired. The hive is then replaced 
over the bees, the edges being keptraised a little 
from the table by small blocks, so as to allow a 
free circulation of air. They will gradually be¬ 
come sensible, and ascending into the hive, will 
resume their work without having suffered any 
injury. The next morning the hive can be re¬ 
turned to its old place. 
We suppose common sulphuric ether will an¬ 
swer equally well with chloroform, but a larger 
quantity and a longer time will be required. 
We think this use of chloroform a valuable 
discovery, and one deserving the attention of all 
bee-raisers. 
- • •• - 
Lice on Cows. —We have frequently seen it 
stated that water in which common potatoes 
had been boiled will destroy lice upon cattle. 
This hardly seems reasonable, but several per¬ 
sons have testified to its usefulness, and a cor¬ 
respondent of the Southern Planter says he 
has several times tried it with signal success. 
The remedy is simple, and is probably worthy 
of a trial, as it is easily made and can do no in¬ 
jury. Tobaccojuice is more certain to kill them; 
melted lard, or fish oil is also very good ; but 
if cattle are well kept, lice will scarcely ever 
molest them. 
- • o * - 
CIDER APPLE-SAUCE. 
This is known by the name of Apple Butter 
in many parts of the country, and especially 
among the Germans of Pennsylvania, Western 
New-York, and Southern Ohio. As it keeps 
well during the entire year, and is highly rel¬ 
ished by most persons, it is put up in large 
quantities for the market in some places; and 
we believe it would be more generally made, 
were all acquainted with the method of making 
a good article. Properly made, it bears trans¬ 
portation to almost any country, and it should 
be found in every city market. We have kept 
it for years, and found it as good as when first 
made. It even improves by age. Our process 
of making is as follows. 
From six to twelve gallons of new cider are 
taken for each bushel of apples — the quantity 
of cider used depends upon the quality of the 
article we intend to make, and the length of time 
we wish it to keep. The cider is taken as soon 
as made, and boiled down to one half of its ori¬ 
ginal bulk; the apples, entirely freed from skins 
and cores, are then put in, and the whole kept 
boiling over a brisk fire, with constant stirring, 
till the whole is reduced to a pulpy mass, about 
as thick as hasty-pudding; it is then removed 
from the fire before the stirring is discontinued, 
and when cold it may be put into jars or wooden 
casks. It is little liable to ferment or sour; should 
this chance to take place it should be boiled 
again. When ten or twelve gallons of cider are. 
