THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
April  2 
2  16 
in  villages,  new  structures  are  built  largely  of  stone, 
though  at  a  much  greater  cost  than  ought  to  be  nec- 
cessary  on  one  of  these  farms  where  the  material  is 
already  at  hand.  Why  should  not  both  the  houses  and 
barns  built  in  the  future  on  our  rocky  farms,  be  more 
largely,  if  not  completely,  of  stone?  Many  plans  of 
wooden  buildings  of  beautiful  and  convenient  forms  are 
given  in  our  farm  papers  ;  why  not  also  designs  for 
others  of  stone  ?  Let  them  include  those  resembling 
some  of  our  old  homesteads,  that  in  a  local  or  family 
sense  are  historic.  Let  them,  if  possible,  combine 
somewhat  of  the  antiquity  of  the  old  castles  with 
beauty  of  form  and  convenience,  comfort,  sunshine 
and  healthfulness  within.  I  recently  saw  a  fine  house 
in  course  of  erection  in  the  city  of  Hartford,  Conn.  A 
large  part  of  the  upright  walls  was  of  rough  granite 
stones — just  such  as  would  tempt  even  a  good  New 
England  deacon  to  swear  when  plowing  among  them 
in  one  of  his  back  pastures,  and  to  mow  over  which 
in  the  meadow  would  make  life  miserable.  Yet  these 
stones  were  doubtless  brought  some  distance  to  build 
this  city  palace,  with  its  high  archways.  Why  should 
they  not  be  similarly  used  on  the  old  homesteads  where 
they  now  lie,  to  the  permanent  good  of  the  owners  ? 
This  would  be  another  way  of  disposing  of  some  of 
our  stone  walls  in  addition  to  the  use  of  them  for  the 
improvement  of  our  public  roads.  Better  homes,  barns 
and  surroundings  are  the  first  needs  of  the  farmer — 
roads  or  no  roads.  Will  The  Rural  help  the  matter 
On  ?  A.  WETMORE. 
|h _  _ sJ 
Some  Sheep  Talk. 
FEEDING  HAY  TO  DORSETS  ;  NURSING  LAMBS. 
At  Fig.  117  is  shown  a  sketch  of  a  sheep  rack  and 
trough.  I  have  tried  all  kinds  I  have  seen  in  this  and 
the  Old  Country,  and  I  have  found  none  I  like  so  well 
as  this.  The  great  objection  to  most  is  that  the  fine 
chaff,  hay  seeds,  etc.,  get  into  the  wool.  This  is  en¬ 
tirely  obviated  in  this  rack  by  placing  a  12-inch  hem¬ 
lock  board  along  the  top,  and  then  all  the  fine  and  best 
feed  will  fall  into  the  lower  trough,  which  is  used  for 
A  Handy  Sheep  Feeding  Rack.  Fig.  117. 
feeding  grain  and  ensilage.  All  my  racks  are  placed 
along  the  side  of  the  stable.  The  great  objection  to 
having  them  in  the  center  is  that  sheep,  when  fright¬ 
ened  or  roughly  handled,  are  liable  to  run  against 
them  and  be  injured. 
As  to  feeding  sheep  here  in  Lehigh  County,  Pa. ,  or  else¬ 
where,  the  best  method  depends  upon  the  breed.  If  I 
were  to  feed  my  Dorsets  before  lambing  as  suggested 
by  many  with  regard  to  other  breeds  in  The  Rural,  I 
would  lose  a  quarter  of  the  ewes.  If  I  can  get  good 
clover  hay  (feeding  Timothy  hay  to  ewes  always  re¬ 
minds  me  of  giving  them  a  pack  of  needles  to  swallow), 
it  is  all  I  want  them  to  have  before  lambing,  except  a 
mess  or  two  weekly  of  turnips  or  ensilage,  with  a  pint 
of  wheat  bran  and  a  little  linseed  for  each,  with 
plenty  of  fresh  spring  water  and  access  to  salt.  Many 
breeders  seem  to  think  that  sheep  require  very  little,  if 
any,  water  during  the  winter,  if  within  reach  of  snow. 
I  have  running  spring  water  in  every  stall  and  stable. 
I  have  never  known  breeding  ewes  to  do  so  well  as 
when  I  can  turn  them  on  pasture  fields  in  the  winter, 
where  one  thinks  that  they  hardly  find  anything,  and 
they  keep  moving  about  and  have  plenty  of  exercise, 
and,  on  their  return  in  the  evening,  they  are  full,  and 
what  they  have  found  keeps  them  from  getting  consti¬ 
pated. 
When  the  ewe  has  lambed  I  place  her  and  her  little 
lamb  in  a  separate  apartment,  4x6  feet — of  these  I 
have  a  large  number.  Here  we  can  look  at  her  udder 
daily  and  give  her  any  other  attention  she  may  require, 
and  she  remains  there  until  her  lamb  is  about  a  week 
old,  or,  in  other  words,  old  enough  to  rough  it,  and 
take  all  the  milk  the  dam  will  have.  Then  she  and 
her  lamb  are  placed  with  others  of  about  the  same  age, 
and  the  ewes  are  given  their  first  grain  ration,  which 
is  increased  in  quantity,  and  gradually  they  get  ensil¬ 
age,  to  which  are  added  bran,  corn-cob  meal  and  lin¬ 
seed  meal.  Oats  are  too  costly  with  us,  otherwise  I 
should  mix  them  with  other  grains.  The  above  mixture 
is  fed  twice  a  day  with  as  much  clover  hay  as  they  can 
eat,  so  as  to  produce  as  much  and  as  rich  milk  as  the 
lambs  will  drink.  The  little  lambs  are  taught  to  eat 
(a  side  diet)  as  early  as  possible,  and  nothing  gives  me 
so  much  pleasure  as  to  see  10  to  20  of  them  in  a  row 
eating  a  mixture  of  good  ensilage,  with  crushed  oats 
bran,  corn-and-cob  meal  and  linseed  cake  and  the  best 
pickings  of  clover  hay,  and  I  am  not  surprised  in  the 
least  at  picking  out  a  pair  of  90-day-old  twins  that 
weigh  150  pounds.  It  is  great  fun  for  my  boys  to  pick 
out  the  lambs,  and  weigh  them  once  a  month,  and 
often  twice,  and  it  is  one  of  the  ways  to  encourage  them 
to  give  the  youngsters  the  best  of  attention. 
I  used  to  be  a  great  loser  of  lambs  from  two  to  four 
months  old ;  but  we  have  overcome  mishaps  of  that 
sort  by  giving  them  good  clover  hay  before  their  grain 
ration,  and  then  exercise,  salt,  water,  etc.  As  to  the 
quantity  I  give  them,  my  idea  of  feeding  lambs  is  the 
same  as  with  regard  to  milking  and  suckling  ewes,  and 
that  is,  to  give  them  all  they  will  eat,  but  at  the  same 
time  I  want  them  to  lick  the  corners  of  their  mangers 
clean,  and  when  it  gets  near  feeding  time  that  they  are 
all  wide  awake  for  the  next  meal.  Rations  on  paper 
are  good  in  some  respects,  but  judicious  judgment  in 
feeding  is  more  essential.  t.  s.  cooper. 
Mutton  and  Wool. 
A  few  weeks  ago  The  Rural  stated  that  what  this 
country  wanted  was  a  sheep  nearly  all  mutton  and 
with  but  little  wool,  or  to  that  effect.  This  is  a  broad 
country,  and  “  wants  ”  may  differ  according  to  locality. 
I  will  give  my  experience  with  a  few  sheep  here  in 
Oakland  County,  Michigan.  I  have  25  grade  Merino 
ewes.  They  shear  an  average  of  eight  pounds  of 
washed  wool,  which,  I  think,  will  pay  their  way  from 
start  to  finish.  Two  years  ago  I  raised  Shropshire  half- 
bloods  from  them  and  sold  them  for  three  dollars  each 
at  weaning  time.  Last  year  I  raised  the  same  and 
concluded  to  feed  them  through  the  winter.  I  sheared 
the  lambs  in  March,  getting  6%  pounds  of  wool,  which 
sold  for  26  cents  per  pound,  and  the  lambs  sold  in 
April,  when  11  months  old,  at  five  cents  per  pound,  or 
a  little  over  $5  apiece.  This  last  season  I  tried  a  Cots- 
wold  cross.  Twenty-five  lambs  were  dropped  about 
the  first  of  May  and  I  raised  them  all.  They  were 
weaned  in  September  and  fed  some  oats  in  stormy  or 
cold  weather  and  “  taken  in  ”  the  last  of  November 
and  fed  clover  hay,  four  quarts  of  corn  and  oats  and 
one-half  bushel  of  carrots  per  day.  They  were  sheared 
on  December  15,  averaging  an  ounce  less  than  seven 
pounds  per  head.  As  fast  as  they  were  shorn,  we  cut 
holes  for  their  legs  in  some  old  sacking,  brought  it  up 
and  lapped  it  over  their  backs  and  sewed  them  in  and 
put  them  in  a  warm  stable.  We  left  the  sacks  on  two 
weeks  and  only  let  the  sheep  out  for  grain  and  water. 
After  shearing,  we  increased  the  grain,  giving  four 
quarts  night  and  morning,  all  corn,  and  all  the  fine 
clover  they  would  eat.  I  sold  them  on  March  10  for 
six  cents  per  pound  ;  they  averaged  106  pounds ;  the 
wool  was  two  inches  long  and  I  think  that  had  I  kept 
them  until  a  year  old,  they  would  have  shorn  seven 
pounds  or  more  per  head.  I  did  not  feed  over  half  as 
much  grain  as  is  usually  fed  to  fattening  sheep  ;  but 
carrots  and  good  hay  did  the  work.  Six  cents  is  the 
top  of  the  market  here,  but  might  seem  a  small  price 
tc  Seders  near  the  Eastern  cities,  alonzo  borden. 
ANSWER  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 
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What  “Chemicals”  for  this  “  Clover  P” 
Q.  E.  D.,  New  York. — I  have  a  tough,  old  meadow  to 
be  plowed  up  this  spring,  and  corn  and  potatoes  are 
to  be  planted  there.  My  way  has  been  to  plow,  and 
then  harrow  with  an  old-fashioned  square  harrow, 
but  when  the  job  is  done  the  ground  is  in  a  bad  shape, 
for  the  harrow  tears  up  some  of  the  sod  in  spite  of 
careful  work.  I  have  a  light,  one-horse  Acme  harrow, 
which,  though  it  does  splendid  work  in  the  garden 
patch,  fails  on  the  plowed  sod,  not  being  heavy 
enough.  I  have  become  a  convert  to  Brother  Terry’s 
clover  idea,  and  hereafter  will  arrange  for  a  clover  ro¬ 
tation — clover  two  years,  then  corn  one  year,  potatoes 
one  year,  followed  by  late  cabbage,  and  then  clover 
again.  Grain  is  out  of  the  question,  as  it  does  not  pay 
me  to  raise  it.  My  specialties  are  truck,  sold  at  retail 
from  my  own  wagon  to  regular  customers ;  small 
fruits,  also  “peddled;”  poultry  and  eggs,  sold  from 
the  wagon.  I  am  three  miles  from  a  thriving  city  of 
15,000  population,  which  takes  all  I  can  raise  at  good 
prices,  but  as  I  have  a  farm  of  100  acres,  only  a 
few  of  which  are  fit  to  cultivate,  I  usually  raise  two  or 
three  acres  of  potatoes,  and  five  or  six  of  corn,  to  help 
my  feed  bill.  Besides  my  fruit  and  truck  patch,  I 
make  butter,  and  raise  calves  and  pigs.  Two-thirds 
of  my  land  is  rough,  upland  pasture,  which  can  never 
be  brought  under  the  plow.  My  plow-land  is  smooth, 
as  level  as  a  floor,  and  free  from  stones,  and  it  can  all 
be  mowed  with  a  machine.  About  manure :  At 
present  I  do  not  make  enough,  and  must  buy.  Com¬ 
mercial  fertilizers  I  have  little  faith  in.  One  year  I 
tried  a  825  brand  ;  the  next  a  high-grade  special  at 
845  per  ton.  On  the  potatoes  one  worked  as  well  as 
the  other,  but  on  the  corn  and  truck  both  failed  to 
give  me  anything  like  the  crop  that  the  barnyard  and 
hen  manure  gave  side  by  side.  My  land  seems  to  want 
potash,  as  the  wood  ashes  from  the  house  stoves  give 
extra  good  results.  Seedsman  Gregory  advises  a  com¬ 
post  of  bone  dust,  Canada  ashes,  mixed  with  loam  and 
sprinkled  with  water,  so  as  to  heat  a  little,  I  suppose, 
and  shoveled  over.  He  reports  it  as  being  good  for 
cabbages.  The  Canada  ash  men  want  me  to  buy  a 
car-load — twelve  tons — and  the  cotton-hull  ash  fellows 
are  about  as  bad.  I  cannot  afford  twelve  tons  at  a 
time,  costing  about  8150.  Some  of  the  station  reports 
show  that  the  ashes  vary  greatly,  so  that  a  man  may 
be  justly  doubtful  as  to  whether  he  is  getting  his 
money’s  worth  or  not.  How  would  it  do  for  me  to 
make  a  compost  of  bone  dust,  muriate  of  potash,  and 
plaster  as  the  absorbent  ?  Or  would  kainit  be  better 
than  the  muriate  ?  What  do  I  need  to  add  to  these  in¬ 
gredients  to  make  a.  complete  fertilizer  ?  What  quan¬ 
tities  should  I  use  in  the  mixture  ?  The  Connecticut 
Station  gives  a  formula  in  place  of  ashes — muriate  of 
potash  or  kainit,  bone  dust  and  oyster-shell  lime. 
How  about  oyster-shell  lime  ? 
Ans. — It  is  impossible  to  do  good  work  on  a  turned 
sod  with  a  spike-tooth  harrow.  Any  one  of  the  coulter 
harrows,  however,  will  mellow  the  surface  without 
turning  up  or  disturbing  in  any  way  the  plowed  sod. 
My  preference  is  the  two-horse  Acme  harrow,  but 
others  claim  the  same  effectiveness  for  the  Cutaway 
and  the  disc  harrows,  neither  of  which  I  have  tried, 
having  been  perfectly  suited  with  the  Acme,  which 
seems  to  well  deserve  its  name.  The  one-horse  im¬ 
plement,  if  loaded,  would  probably  answer  the  pur¬ 
pose.  As  regards  the  fertilizer,  it  is  impossible  to  say 
anything,  not  knowing  how  much  of  it  was  used,  or 
what  kind  of  fertilizer  is  referred  to.  It  does  not  fol¬ 
low  that  the  soil  needs  potash  because  wood  ashes 
have  been  found  useful.  Ashes  contain  much  more 
lime  than  potash,  and  as  the  potash  is  generally  quite 
small  in  quantity  it  is  more  than  probable  that  it  was 
the  lime  that  did  the  good.  In  using  any  fine  fertil¬ 
izers  it  is  a  waste  of  time  to  wet  them,  or  to  mix  earth 
with  them.  If  any  water  is  useful  it  would  be  to  pre¬ 
vent  dust  from  them  in  the  spreading,  and  the  dust  is 
pungent  and  disagreeable.  Nor  is  any  useful  purpose 
attained  by  heating  bone  dust  by  means  of  fermenta¬ 
tion  induced  by  moisture.  All  this  will  occur  fast 
enough  in  the  soil.  Ashes  do  vary  very  much,  all  the 
way  from  containing  six  per  cent  of  potash  to  none  at 
all.  On  this  account  it  is  better  to  procure  the  potash 
salts,  of  which  muriate,  containing  50  per  cent  actual 
potash,  is  the  cheapest  and  the  best.  There  is  nothing 
in  oyster-shell  lime  that  is  not  in  the  common  stone 
lime  except  a  trace  of  phosphate,  which,  however,  is 
insoluble  and  practically  not  worth  anything.  The 
stone  lime  is  commonly  used  and  the  shell  lime  only 
where  it  is  the  more  convenient.  The  shell  lime  is 
generally  more  easily  slaked,  but  by  careful  exposure 
to  the  air  and  a  shower,  and  not  getting  it  too  wet,  the 
stone  lime  is  slaked  and  made  impalpably  fine  with¬ 
out  any  trouble.  Plaster  would  not  act  as  an  absor¬ 
bent  in  the  mixture  mentioned,  for  there  will  be  noth¬ 
ing  to  absorb.  It  is  useful  in  making  composts  in 
which  ammonia  may  be  liberated,  but  only  then. 
Kainit  is  a  potash  salt  that  contains  much  less  potash 
than  the  muriate,  and  if  it  is  used  the  quantity  must 
be  increased  in  proportion.  For  a  complete  fertilizer 
I  would  chose  300  pounds  of  superphosphate,  150  of 
muriate  of  potash,  and  50  of  nitrate  of  soda.  This 
would  contain  phosphoric  acid,  lime,  sulphuric  acid, 
potash,  magnesia,  nitric  acid  and  soda.  But,  as  a 
rule,  I  would  prefer  to  use  a  mixed  standard  complete 
fertilizer,  prepared  for  the  special  crop.  h.  stewart. 
Varieties  of  Pears  for  Eastern  New  York. 
O.  O.,  Yorktoum  Heights,  N.  Y. — What  varieties  of 
pears  would  it  be  advisable  to  plant  in  northern  West¬ 
chester  County,  N.  Y.,  for  market  ?  We  have  no  home 
market  for  fruit,  but  send  it  to  commission  men  in 
New  York  city.  I  wish  to  set  about  100  trees.  Would 
it  be  well  to  set  quinces  with  them  ?  I  have  some  Law¬ 
rence  Pears  which  do  not  grow  smooth,  but  bear 
black  spots ;  would  it  be  advisable  to  cut  off  an  old 
orchard  and  set  it  out  again  ?  The  old  trees  are  very 
much  decayed  ;  but  the  ground  is  good,  as  it  is  used 
for  a  hog  run.  What  varieties  should  be  included  in  200 
trees? 
Ans. — Bartlett,  Seckel,  Clairgeau  and  Anjou  are, 
generally  speaking,  profitable  pears  to  grow.  The 
