AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
313 
trellis is wanted three such holes are needed. 
With a chalk line mark off the board into strips, 
say -} inch in width, which will give 11 slats or 
uprights. The width of the board can be varied 
at pleasure and fine or coarse work made as de¬ 
sired. The strips need not be over $ inch in 
width, and 1C, to 20 even, in number. With a fine 
toothed saw, split the board in the chalk marks, 
and put wires, cane, or rattan, in the small holes 
at B, and C. Spread these slats to any desired 
width, and the board is ready to be set up. It 
should stand two or two and-a-half feet deep in 
the earth, putting the spread in any direction de¬ 
sired. If the holes are no larger than the wires or 
other spreading rod, the slats will keep their po¬ 
sition ; otherwise small blocks may be wedged in 
to keep them apart, or a notched stickmay be used. 
Trellises of this sort are very convenient for 
pillar roses, corchorus, etc., and when painted 
green are quite attractive. It is better to take 
them down and house them during the Winter. 
Sweeping by Machinery. 
Broom corn is one of the crops that will soon 
be grown, if grown at all, merely as a curiosity. 
We shall tell our children that in former times 
tens of thousands of acres of the best land were 
devoted to producing a curious plant used in 
manufacturing sweeping brushes, and we may 
perhaps raise a few stalks as an ornamental or 
border plant, to keep alive the memory of a once 
useful production, but the days of the old-fash¬ 
ioned brooms are soon to be numbered. For 
some time past we have kept an eye upon sundry 
patent articles designed to take the place of brooms 
as dust gatherers, but have been waiting for some¬ 
thing to be brought out which should not only be 
superior to the broom in its operation, but also 
be sold at a price within the reach of the masses. 
That implement we have now found, and have 
proved its value by thorough trial. We refer to 
“Shaler’s Carpet and Floor Sweeper.” We may 
sum its merits by saying that, as compared with 
a common broom, it sweeps faster, sweeps much 
easier, sweeps cleaner, wears a carpet infinitely 
less, and better than all, it does not “ stir up a 
dust”—and is retailed as low as $2. We sus¬ 
pect it will wear long enough to do as much work 
as two dollars worth of brooms, at the rate the 
latter article is now sold. While a broom either 
presses the dust and lint down into a carpet, or 
flirts it up into the air to fall over the furniture, 
whence it is again brushed off to settle back 
upon the carpet, this implement quietly gathers 
up the dust, lint, hairs, pins, etc., and deposits 
them in a covered box. Well, well, this is talk¬ 
ing rather strongly—a paid for “puff”—some- 
Dody will say; but not so, we are only telling 
what we honestly believe to be the merits of the 
Sweeping Machine. We hail with the greatest 
pleasure any thing that lightens and facilitates 
woman’s labors—and man’s too. Had some of 
our mothers enjoyed the advantages of the recent 
sewing machines, and other modern labor and 
life saving implements, they might have been 
saved those mid-night hours of work, and instead 
of their having gone early to their graves, worn 
out with care and toil, we might now be enjoying 
their society and counsel. We look upon some 
of these recent inventions, such as the sewing 
machines, the sweeping machines, etc., as the 
most important event of this eventful era. Not 
only is life and health prolonged by them, but 
when the family work can be done in a fourth of 
the time, by their use, so much more attention 
can be devoted to the proper instruction and mor¬ 
al training of the rising generation. Our only fear 
is, that foolish customs and tyrannical fashion will 
multiply the work to be done in proportion to the 
increased facilities for accomplishing it. We hope 
not. But this by the way. . y-- ' 
To gratify the curiosity of those who have not 
yet had opportunity to examine the new Sweeping- 
Machines, we introduce here, illustrations and 
descriptions of one of them—the Shaler’s Patent, 
which we have now in use. 
Fig .1. 
Fig. 1 shows the sweeper in use upon a car¬ 
pet. A portion of the cover is removed at D, to 
exhibit the brush. The handle. A, is also short¬ 
ened to save room ; this is as long as a broom- 
handle, so that in using it the person stands erect. 
Fig. 2, is an end 
section showing the 
internal arrange¬ 
ment. The letters, 
A, B, C,. .a, b, c,.. 
used iq, the descrip¬ 
tion, refer to the 
same parts in both 
figures. The main 
body of the machine, B, shown by the double line 
in fig. 2, is a cast iron box, in form like a sheet of 
paper bent nearly into a coil, but with the edges 
turned in as at e, e. This leaves an opening at the 
bottom, through which a long cylindrical .brush, 
D, plays upon the carpet or floor. The handle, A, 
is fastened upon one side of this box. C, is a roller 
with a band of rubber running spirally around it, 
to prevent its slipping on the carpet. On the end 
of C, is a pully, a, from which an endless cord 
runs to the pully, c, on the end of the brush, D. 
At the front is a smooth roller, E, to make the 
implement move freely. 
It will now be seen that when pushed along, 
the roller, C, revolves, turning the brush, D. 
The bristles on D, pick up whatever dust, lint, 
etc., may lie in its way, and throw them over 
the turned up edges, e, e, dropping the gathered 
material into the box, B. This takes place wheth¬ 
er the implement be moved forward or back¬ 
ward. A lid at the top of the. box is opened to 
empty the box when filled. The bristles are 
placed spirally upon the cylinder, c, so that they 
enter the nap of a carpet nearly horizontally and 
pass under lint and dust, and throw them upward. 
This is a peculiar and important arrangement in 
the implement under notice. We have swept a 
carpet as clean as it could be done with an or¬ 
dinary broom, and then run the implement over 
it, when a considerable amount of dust and lint 
would be collected which was picked out from the 
nap. The bristles are too fragile to tear the n-ap 
but sufficiently firm to pick up the loose lint. It 
will bo seen that no dust can be raised, as the 
brush works entirely under cover. We have 
tried it upon hair, pins, needles and nails, and it 
almost invariably gathers these articles. 
The sweepers are made of different sizes, for 
different purposes, the most common size is 12 
inches in length, and the price about $2 at retail. 
They will doubtless soon be on sale generally. 
Best Mode of Preserving Fruits—New Style 
of Glass Jars. 
Our long-time readers know that we have ut¬ 
terly condemned, as unfit for human food, the 
old-style “preserves.” We have for several 
years tried to inculcate the fact that there is less 
tisk of loss, less trouble, and less expense, in pre¬ 
serving fruits fresh, or nearly in their natural state, 
than in stewing them down with sugar to a keep¬ 
ing condition ; while by the newer process they 
are vastly more healthful and more palatable. 
What we have recommended to others we have 
ourselves practiced with entire success and satis¬ 
faction. We are at this season constantly using 
the various smaller and larger fruits little altered 
from their condition when first gathered. The main 
thing is to put up the fruit freed from air, and 
then keep them from its contact. 
Formerly we depended almost, wholly upon 
what are called air-tight self-sealing tin cans. 
These have proved satisfactory, though there has 
always been the objection that with acid fruits, 
or when the closing has not been entirely perfect, 
there is apt to be a little corrosion of the tin, and 
a slight liability of the articles becoming colored 
or flavored with the salts of tin thus formed. 
With proper experience and care in putting up, 
there is no trouble in this respect especially with 
the less acid (or sour) fruits. We shall continue 
the use of at least a part of the tin cans we have, 
and, by the way, some which have been used 
three years are yet very good. 
We have found the style of tin can manufac¬ 
tured by Mr. Lockwood, of Stamford, quite con¬ 
venient. These are closed at the top with a 
little tin cup, into which cold water is poured for 
cooling the wax, and warm water for loosening 
it when removing the fruit. Some improvements 
in the top of the can are promised for this season. 
Everything considered, we think glass or well 
glazed earthen ware preferable in all cases, or es¬ 
pecially for sour fruits—for rhubarb (pie-plant), 
tomatoes and the like, provided convenient ves¬ 
sels could be prepared. We have suggested sev¬ 
eral plans from time to time to glass manufac¬ 
turers, but until this year have been unable to get 
just those we have deemed to be of the best form. 
Last year we tried common glass bottles with 
wide necks, flaring at the top, stopped with 
corks, and covered with cloth dipped in a prepar¬ 
ation of one ounce of tallow melted with onG 
pound of resin. These succeeded very well. Wa 
have peaches, strawberries,cherries, rhubarb, etc, 
now in good order. The glass is not corroded of 
course, and the fruit looks better in the transpa¬ 
rent bottles. We have this year procured a lot 
of Yeomans Fruit bottles, which are in just the 
form we recommended two years since, and tried 
to get manufactured but without success. 
Fig. 1, (next page), shows the form. It is similar 
to an ordinary wide-necked bottle, but the neck 
Fig. 2. 
