1859 . 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
977 
those who like this vegetable, may be treated 
precisely like the onion. 
Cabbages and Cauliflowers require more protec¬ 
tion to carry them successfully through the Win¬ 
ter. Prepare the bed and sow, the first of Sep¬ 
tember. Cultivate apd thin out the plants, so 
that they will fill all the ground, but not touch 
each other. When Winter approaches, make a 
frame, by nailing boards or planks together, of the 
size of the bed, one foot high on the front or 
south side, and two feet high on the back, with 
slanting or beveled ends to compare with the 
two sides. It is better to have several cross 
slats upon the top for shutters, or sash to slide 
up and down upon, after the manner of hot-bed 
frames. When freezing nights approach, place 
the frame upon the bed, and cover with boards, 
shutters, or hot-bed sash. Open them in the 
morning during pleasant mild days. They should 
be exposed to the weather as much as possible, 
when not freezing, so as to harden for severe 
frosts. When it is evident that Winter is setting 
in in earnest, bank up about the sides, stop any 
crevices, and cover the top with boards or shut¬ 
ters. If glazed sash are used, boards or shutters 
should he laid over them, as it is now essential 
to stop both cold air and light, leaving the plants 
to Winter in- a dormant state. Thus preserved, 
they will even then probably be frozen, but in the 
absence of light and sudden changes, the frost 
will finally come out so gradually as not to injure 
them. Frequent freezing and thawing is what 
destroys out-door cabbages. If covered as de¬ 
scribed, when they once get frozen they remain 
so for a long time. It may be best, when the 
mercury sinks quite low, to cover with old mats, 
straw, or sedge, to further exclude the cold air, 
and render them less subject to changes of tem¬ 
perature. During a succession of mild days in 
Winter, the covers may be partially removed to 
air the plants, and in Spring they should be un¬ 
covered at all suitable times,to harden off. When 
settled weather arrives, say about the first of May, 
transplant to the open grounds, and you will have 
cabbages and cauliflowers several weeks in 
advance of those sown in the Spring. 
-•--BOB—-- —- 
House Plants not Unwholesome. 
The notion is widely prevalent that house-plants 
are injurious to health. And the opinion has 
some show of science to rest upon. It is known 
that plants in a growing state absorb oxygen and 
give off' carbonic acid gas ; and that oxygen is 
necessary to the support of human life, while car¬ 
bonic acid is injurious. Hence the conclusion is 
jumped at, that all vegetation in a living room 
must be hurtful to the health. But, in taking this 
leap, these persons jump over another scientific 
fact, viz : that plants also absorb carbonic acid 
from the atmosphere, and throw out oxygen into 
it. From the humblest mosses up to the oak and 
palm tree, the world over, uncounted myriads of 
leaves are busy at work purifying the air, and fit¬ 
ting it for the use of animal life. The carbonic 
acid is decomposed in the leaves, the carbon go¬ 
ing to build up the structure of the plants, and the 
oxygen being set free and diffused through the 
atmosphere. 
This great process, it is true, is somewhat 
checked at night, and a small portion of carbonic 
acid passes off from the leaves into the air. For 
this reason, therefore, and for others, it is not well 
to sleep in rooms containing many plants ; nor is 
it necessary to do so. The fragrance of flowers, 
like all strong odors, freely inhaled, is not whole¬ 
some. But many flowers have no fragrance, and 
others have only a little; so that it is not neces¬ 
sary to exclude all plants from a chamber for this 
reason. In the case of plants without strong 
odors at least, if the pots and shelves are kept 
clean, and the foliage is vigorous and healthy, no 
harm will come from their presence in rooms. 
Nay, more, the daily care of such pleasing objects, 
the sight of their growth and blossoming, and 
their varied forms and colors, will tend very much 
to promote not only cheerfulness but health. 
Turn-Table Apple Parer. 
Not havisg the figures at hand, we will not 
venture an estimate of the number of apple par- 
ers patented during the last dozen years. We 
have examined at least twenty different kinds in 
that time and have heard of a large number 
not examined ; but not beyond two or three of 
these have appeared to he worthy of recommen¬ 
dation. The one shown in the above engraving 
was patented two or three years ago, we believe, 
and sold to a limited extent in New-England, and 
perhaps elsewhere. We obtained one of them a 
month since, and having tested it pretty thorough¬ 
ly, we think it is superior in several respects to 
any other implement of the kind, we have tried. 
It is simple in construction, is made entirely of 
iron, and can be readily attached to the side of a 
table or shelf It is small and compact withal, 
and may be put into a box 4£ by 6 by 8 inches, 
without taking it apart. The most important 
thing, however, is, that it works well. We have 
tried it on gnarly apples, and found the flexible 
or movable knife to adapt itself admirably to the 
irregularities of the fruit. This knife cuts upward 
instead of downward or horizontally. Simply 
turning the crank revolves the apple on the fork, 
and carries the knife round the fruit against which 
it is kept pressed by a spring. A cam, under the 
turn-table, throws the knife lever outward as soon 
as it has completed the paring; it then goes 
round, and back to the starting point, ready for 
another apple. By continuing to turn the crank, 
the apple will be sliced into thin parings, if de¬ 
sired, for drying or cooking. The implements are 
not expensive, as they are wholesaled so that 
they can be retailed at $1 each with a fair profit. 
DRYING AND PRESERVING APPLES 
will now be in order, and we advise those who 
have a supply of this fruit, which can not be 
marketed to advantage, to dry as many as pos¬ 
sible. There will be a demand for them, not only 
in cities and villages, and in new sections of the 
country where hearing trees are not yet secured, 
but also in many localities where the cro-p has 
failed. Remember that it pays to prepare and 
dry the fruit carefully. Clean, well pared, well 
cored, and carefully dried apples, sell for double 
the price of those poorly prepared. Two shillings 
worth of time and care in preparing a bushel will 
not unfrequently add a dollar or more to its mark¬ 
etable value. Apples may be quickly dried by 
shaving them wholly into thin parings, on an im¬ 
plement like that des¬ 
cribed above, or on any 
common parer, and 
spreading them upon 
plates or earthenware 
“Apple 
as it is some¬ 
times called, is a conve¬ 
nient article. It is made 
by preparing the fruit as 
if for sauce, and then, af¬ 
ter cooking, spreading it 
thinly on earthen dishes 
and drying it in the hot 
sun, or in ovens kept at 
so low a temperature as 
to avoid all danger of 
scorching. The thin 
dried sheets thus pre¬ 
pared will keep a long 
time in a dry room, and 
he ready for use when¬ 
ever they are wanted by 
simply soaking them. 
For home use, we have latterly preserved our 
apples in air-tight bottles or cans. The fresh ap¬ 
ples are pared, cored, cooked, and seasoned ready 
tor the table, then put hot into the bottles, and 
corked and sealed. This we find better by far, 
and even cheaper than the dried fruit; and it has 
the advantage of being always ready for use—six 
or twelve months after putting up. 
A Talk about “Cancers.” 
A subscriber in Indiana County, Pa., with the 
best of motives, doubtless, sends the following 
recipe, which he thinks will prove beneficial to a 
multitude, anil he “ hopes its publication will ena¬ 
ble persons to prepare the article themselves, and 
thereby avoid the liability to be imposed upon by 
a spurious article 
“ Gather during the month of August a quan¬ 
tity of sheep-sorrel—no definite amount. Sort 
it, stalk by stalk, removing the roots and dead 
leaves, and all foreign substances. Pound on 
a smooth board to merely mash ; put into a 
small sack or bag, and squeeze out the juice 
with the hands into a pewter dish ; set the 
dish where the sun will shine upon it all day, 
covering, on taking it in at night; as it dries 
around the edges, work it in towards the center, 
until it can be rolled into a ball, when it will be 
ready for use. Spread it nicely over a piece of 
muslin the size of the sore, and apply it. Let it 
remain 48 hours, then remove, wash the sore, and 
apply a new plaster. Ordinary cases of two or 
three years’ standing will be cured with from three 
to five or seven applications. When the sore 
has been eaten out, cure it up in any manner 
thought fit. If the cancer is entirely destroyed, 
the sore will heal, otherwise it will not. The 
preparation should be kept in a glass vessel with 
a mouth wide enough to take out the salve easi¬ 
ly, but keep it stopped to exclude the air.” 
The above we submitted to a medical friend 
who writes: “ This recipe has, perhaps, been 
handed down through certain channels, from a 
