1892 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER. 
589 
tists.  Most  of  us  are  sensible  of  an  influence  that 
seems  to  emanate  from  the  person  of  one  approaching 
us  and  which  has  an  effect  of  attraction  or  repulsion, 
of  pleasurable  stimulus  or  the  reverse,  as  the  case 
may  be.  We  often  feel  a  degree  of  this  from  the  near 
approach  of  an  individual  whom  we  do  not,  the  while, 
either  see  or  hear  This  alone  justifies  the  opinion 
that  the  old  are  benefited  and  the  young  correspond¬ 
ingly  enfeebled  when  their  bodies  are  in  close  prox¬ 
imity  for  hours,  as  when  sleeping  together,  w.  G.  k. 
Stable  Comforts  for  the  Dairy  Cow. 
How  much  exercise  does  the  winter  milker  need  from  December  15 
to  April  15? 
What  should  be  her  stable  comforts  to  Induce  her  to  do  her  best? 
1.  I  am  a  young  farmer  and  have  never  had  the  exper¬ 
ience  required  to  answer  these  questions,  although  I 
milk  a  winter  dairy.  I  do  not  consider  it  necessary 
for  a  cow  to  be  turned  out  of  doors  to  exercise  during 
the  time  mentioned  if  she  be  kept  tied  in  the  barn  in 
what  are  termed  half-box  stalls.  If  she  is  in  stan¬ 
chions,  I  think  she  would  do  better  if  turned  out  of 
doors  a  short  time  each  day,  in  fair  weather ;  on 
stormy  days  she  should  be  kept  in. 
2.  In  the  first  place  there  should  be  a  warm  barn  in 
which  the  mercury  would  not  get  below  40  or  42  de¬ 
grees.  I  would  use  Dutch  halters,  half-box  stalls  and 
lots  of  straw  and  good  water  out  of  a  well  fresh  twice 
a  day.  I  would  also  milk  regularly  and  feed  well. 
m.  w.  LAIRD. 
If  the  cow  is  provided  with  a  well  lighted  and  ven¬ 
tilated  stable,  in  which  there  is  never  any  frost,  and 
a  good  bed  of  straw  with  plenty  of  good  feed  and 
water,  she  need  not  see  the  outside  of  the  stable  dur¬ 
ing  that  time.  I  have  observed  that  exercise  for  cows 
during  the  period  mentioned  is  always  advocated  by 
men  whose  barns  are  so  well  ventilated  that  it  is 
necessary  for  the  cows  to  go  out  about  once  a  day  to 
become  warmed  up  and  put  their  blood  in  circulation, 
and  they  generally  have  to  go  so  far  for  water  that 
they  either  freeze  or  go  without  it,  though  they  may 
need  it — a  thing  they  will  often  do.  a.  l.  wales. 
So  far  as  absolute  results  are  concerned  in  obtaining 
milk  from  the  cow  in  winter,  providing  her  environ¬ 
ments  are  right  for  health  and  comfort,  I  do  not  be¬ 
lieve  that  she  needs  much  exercise.  Where  cows  are 
in  full  flow  of  milk  they  rarely  take  any  more  exercise 
than  they  are  obliged  to.  If  in  pasture,  they  will  eat, 
lie  down,  chew  the  cud,  digest,  eat  again.  The  func¬ 
tion  of  milk  giving  seems  to  call  for  as  much  quietude 
as  possible.  My  own  idea  is  that  cows  should  have  all 
the  sunlight  possible  and  on  warm  days  in  winter,  I 
like  to  see  them  turned  out  for  a  short  time  in  the  sun¬ 
light  ;  but  never  if  the  sun  does  not  shine. 
As  to  stable  comforts,  I  would  suggest  the  abolish¬ 
ment  of  the  stanchion  and  the  rigid  length  of  floor  in¬ 
volved  in  a  drop.  I  would  tie  the  cow  with  a  halter, 
giving  her  3%  feet  of  space  in  width  and  separate  each 
cow  from  her  neighbor.  I  would  then  secure  if  pos¬ 
sible  as  perfect  ventilation  as  could  be  provided  while 
preventing  the  freezing  of  the  manure.  I  would  give 
the  cow  sufficient  bedding  for  her  comfort,  and  would 
rigidly  see  to  it  that  the  stable  was  well  sprinkled 
with  land  plaster  morning  and  night.  This  is  from 
the  standpoint  of  the  largest  production  possible  of 
winter  milk  with  no  other  considerations  involved. 
Editor  of  Hoard’s  Dairyman.  w.  D.  hoard. 
I  have  been  dairying  the  whole  year  round  for  the 
past  10  years.  At  first  I  used  to  think  my  cows  should 
be  let  out  to  water  twice  a  day  for  exercise,  but  the 
longer  I  continued  at  winter  dairying,  the  more  clearly 
I  found  that  the  less  cows  go  out  in  the  cold,  the 
better  the  results,  and  when  my  old  barns  were  burnt 
two  years  ago,  I  resolved  to  build  a  more  convenient 
one,  which  would  be  warm  and  comfortable  for  the 
stock.  This  I  did  and  fitted  it  up  with  swinging 
stanchions  of  the  latest  and  most  comfortable  pattern, 
and  during  the  past  two  winters  I  have  found  that 
my  cows  do  better  and  give  better  returns  when  kept 
in  their  winter  home  from  December  1  to  April  15, 
without  being-  let  out  except  occasionally  on  very 
warm,  sunny  days  for  about  20  minutes  for  exercise, 
and  they  are  always  glad  to  get  back  to  their  warm 
stalls.  I  do  not  think  that  cows  need  as  much  exercise 
as  some  people  think.  Give  them  a  good,  clean  stall, 
with  plenty  of  room  and  of  pure  water  at  a  tempera¬ 
ture  of  about  50  degrees  twice  a  day,  and  a  variety  of 
good  grain  and  coarse  feed,  and  they  will  show  you 
how  contented  they  are.  Now  I  put  my  dairy  cows 
in  the  stable  about  the  last  of  October  at  nights,  and 
after  about  the  first  of  November,  or  the  15th  at  the 
latest,  I  do  not  let  them  out  oftener  than  once  a  week, 
and  then  only  for  a  few  minutes,  and  they  are  glad  to 
come  in  their  stable,  and  enjoy  it.  Three  times  a  day 
I  feed  cut  corn  fodder,  dry  cured,  as  green  as  I  can  secure 
it,  from  November  1  to  April  15,  or  longer,  if  I  have 
enough;  then  good  clover  hay  until  I  turn  them  out. 
To  each  cow  I  feed  about  14  pounds  of  grain,  composed 
of  bran,  oats,  corn-meal,  oil  and  cotton-seed  meal 
mixed.  This  I  give  dry,  half  in  the  morning  and  half 
in  the  evening  after  each  milking.  This  is  the  best 
feed  I  can  use,  as  it  produces  the  best  results  for  butter, 
and  I  give  my  cows  a  lick  of  salt  every  day  after  I 
feed  their  grain  in  the  morning.  There  is  running 
water  from  a  good  spring  in  the  barn.  About  six 
of  the  cows  have  been  kept  in  the  stable  in  this  way 
for  the  last  five  years,  and  they  are  as  healthy  and  in 
as  fine  a  condition  as  anybody  could  desire.  I  try  to 
give  them  the  best  of  care  and  every  comfort  so  as  to 
get  the  best  butter  yield  per  year.  Last  winter  they 
were  kept  more  closely  in  the  stable  than  in  any  other, 
and  gave  the  best  butter  yield,  and  came  out  this 
spring  in  fine  condition.  john  c.  m’clintock. 
Regulations  for  Stable  Comforts. 
I  am  thoroughly  convinced  that  by  far  too  large  a 
number  of  winter  milch  cows  have  too  much  out-of- 
door  exercise  and  exposure.  They  need  very  little  of 
the  former  and  none  of  the  latter  when  comfortably 
housed  for  the  winter.  A  few  hours  once  in  two  or 
three  days  in  the  sun  on  the  sheltered  side  of  the  barn 
or  tight  high  yard  fence  are  sufficient.  I  would  not 
allow  them  to  be  out  in  a  storm,  especially  rain  in 
cold  weather.  I  think  it  better  for  them  to  go  a 
longer  time  without  exercise  than  to  have  it  under 
such  circumstances.  Stable  comforts  almost  do  away 
with  the  need  of  exercise  ;  if  a  cow  has  these  she  will 
give  as  large  returns  of  milk  in  winter  as  in  summer. 
1.  Provide  a  warm  stable  with  no  drafts  of  cold  air. 
That  the  'person  in  charge  should  be  warm  enough 
with  his  coat  oft'  is  a  good  rule  to  go  by.  2.  There 
should  be  plenty  of  room  for  each  cow  in  her  stall,  the 
size  of  which  should  vary  according  to  that  of  the 
animal.  3.  The  bed  should  be  mjde  of  clean  litter, 
knee-deep,  and  then  a  little  more  might  be  added. 
The  advantage  of  this  cannot  be  emphasized  too  much. 
4.  The  stables  should  be  clean.  No  stock  can  do  their 
best  in  a  filthy  stable.  No  man  is  fit  to  care  for  them 
who  allows  such  a  condition.  All  dirty  bedding  and 
filth  should  be  removed  night  and  morning,  and  re¬ 
placed  with  fresh,  clean  straw.  5.  The  stable  should 
be  well  lighted.  Cows  need  light.  6.  The  cows  should 
have  clean  and  moderately  warm  water  twice  a  day. 
7.  They  should  get  a  bushel  of  good  ensilage  night 
and  morning  with  what  nice  mixed  clover  and  Timothy 
hay  they  will  eat  up  clean.  I  always  feed  bran  liber¬ 
ally  at  all  times  of  the  year  for  milk,  but  in  winter 
some  heartier  kinds  of  mill  feed  are  desirable  in  con¬ 
nection  with  it,  such  as  corn  meal,  or  linseed,  or  cot¬ 
ton-seed  meal.  Regularity  in  care  and  feeding  is  a 
very  important  element  of  success.  So  are  quietness 
and  gentleness  in  and  about  the  stable.  I  find  when 
these  rules  are  carefully  observed  in  minute  detail, 
that  any  cow  will  be  willing  to  do  her  best.  And  if 
in  10  months  out  of  12  (which  is  as  long  as  a  cow  ought 
to  be  required  to  give  milk)  any  one  fails  to  produce 
6,500  or  7,000  pounds  of  milk  let  the  butcher  have  her. 
_  a.  d.  mills. 
What  Fertilizer  For  Prairie  Soil  P 
B.  B,,  Farmingdale,  III. — 1.  On  the  black  prairie 
loam  of  Central  Illinois,  what  would  be  advisable  as  a 
special  fertilizer  for  an  old  patch  of  blackberries?  A 
neighbor  who  has  used  bones  very  freely  under  his 
grapes  reports  a  very  heavy  crop,  free  from  rot,  with¬ 
out  spraying.  Is  there  anything  in  this  fertilizer  that 
should  enable  the  grape  to  resist  the  disease  ?  2. 
Should  the  “  akebia  quinata  ”  sold  by  Eastern  nur¬ 
serymen  be  the  same  as  that  described  in  The  Ameri¬ 
can  Garden  of  March,  ’91,  by  Prof.  Georgeson,  who 
says  “the  fruit  is  usually  three  to  four  inches  long  and 
two  in  diameter.”  Here  the  fruit  is  as  sma’l  as  a  pea, 
nor  does  the  leaf  correspond  with  the  description  and 
illustration. 
Ans. — 1.  We  would  advise,  first  of  all,  a  trial  of 
phosphoric  acid  as  in  acid  superphosphates  or  South 
Carolina  rock  dissolved.  This  would  be  assuming  that 
the  land  needs  phosphoric  acid  only.  If  so,  the  nitro¬ 
gen  of  raw  bone  flour  would  not  be  needed,  and  there¬ 
fore  be  a  needless  expense.  Insufficient  food  is  often 
the  cause  of  plant  disabilities,  and  such  plants  are  the 
first  to  succumb  to  insect  injuries.  In  other  words, 
strong,  well-fed  plants  are  enabled  to  resist  diseases  of 
all  kinds.  2.  The  plant  inclosed  is  not  Akebia  quinata. 
We  cannot  tell  from  the  dried  leaves  what  it  is.  Akebia 
quinata  has  five  small  leaflets  in  a  whorl,  and  the 
fruit  is  as  described  in  The  American  Garden  re¬ 
ferred  to. 
The  “  Old-Fashioned  ”  Potato  Bug1. 
C.  F.  G.,  Brookvllle,  Ind. — Is  there  any  remedy  for 
the  “  old-fashioned  ”  potato  bugs — the  long  fellows — 
two  varieties,  black  and  striped  ?  I  never  see  any  ref¬ 
erence  to  these  pests  in  The  Rural,  and  as  pests  they 
far  surpass  anything  we  have  to  contend  with,  as  they 
come  in  countless  millions  and  absolutely  eat  up  our 
gardens,  weeds  and  all.  The  various  insecticides — 
Paris-green,  kerosene  emulsion,  etc. — which  I  have 
tried  have  no  effect  on  them,  as  they  eat  them  too  and 
thrive  on  them.  What  can  we  do  with  them  ? 
Ans. — A  method  of  destruction  that  is  in  very  gen¬ 
eral  use  is  to  drive  them  into  windrows  of  straw  and 
kill  them  by  burning.  They  are  rapid  runners,  and, 
although  they  have  well-developed  wings,  they  will 
generally  run  instead  of  flying,  [prof.]  .t.  h.  comstock. 
Hen  Manure  and  Ashes  vs.  Chemicals. 
S.  J.,  Quakertown,  N.  ./. — I  can  get  nitrate  of  soda  for 
$50  per  ton  and  superphosphate  for  $35  to  $40.  Now  1 
can  get  hen  manure  for  20  cents  and  unleached  wood 
ashes  for  20  cents  per  bushel ;  are  the  first  or  the  last 
two  the  cheaper  for  onions  growing  on  land  with  a 
clay  subsoil  and  a  top  soil  inclined  to  be  loamy  ? 
Ans. — At  the  prices  named,  we  would  use  the  hen 
manure  and  the  wood  ashes  if  of  good  quality.  The 
trouble  in  buying  the  last  two  is  that  one  does  not 
know  what  they  contain,  while  the  other  two  are  sold 
on  a  guaranteed  analysis  and  one  knows  just  what  he 
is  paying  for.  If  the  hen  manure  and  ashes  are  of 
average  quality  you  will  make  a  bargain  at  the  prices 
named.  If  you  are  to  buy  a  large  quantity  we  would 
advise  you  to  send  samples  to  the  State  experiment 
station  for  analysis.  If  you  use  these  articles,  do  not 
mix  them.  Plow  in  the  hen  manure,  making  it  as  fine 
as  possible,  and  then  broadcast  and  harrow  in  the 
ashes.  You  cannot  use  too  much  for  onions. 
Tiles  That  Fill  from  the  River. 
H.  S.,  Nichols,  Conn.— If  tiles  be  laid  in  land  so  low 
that  they  are  filled  by  the  rise  of  the  river  semi-an¬ 
nually,  will  they  do  any  good  ?  Will  they  be  disturbed 
and  made  useless  ?  If  not,  will  they  pay  for  the  ex¬ 
pense  ? 
Ans.— It  may  be  thought  that  tiles  so  laid  may  be 
filled  by  sediment  carried  into  them  by  the  back  water 
and  this  has  been  urged  as  an  objection  to  the  tile 
draining  of  such  land,  and  to  favor  the  use  of 
open  ditches  instead.  But  I  never  believed  it,  as 
it  seemed  to  me  to  be  improbable.  When,  about 
20  years  ago,  I  was  draining  a  large  swamp  that  was 
overflowed  by  a  stream  at  its  foot  every  spring  and 
fall,  I  made  some  tile  drains,  and  left  open  ditches  on 
the  rest  of  the  land.  Three  years’  backing  up  of  the 
water  made  no  deposit  in  the  ditches,  and  the  tiles  ran 
clear  and  free.  Then  I  laid  the  rest  of  the  tile  and 
filled  the  ditches.  Ten  years  after  the  tiles  were  flow¬ 
ing  all  right,  and,  though  I  have  not  seen  them  since, 
the  present  owner  tells  me  that  there  has  been  no 
trouble  with  them  and  they  are  all  right,  and  to  see 
the  field  no  one  would  think  it  had  ever  been  a  swamp 
where  cows  used  to  sink  out  of  sight  in  the  mire 
holes.  With  this  experience  I  feel  free  to  say  that 
H.  S.  may  be  quite  easy  in  regard  to  the  behavior  of 
such  drains  as  he  describes,  and  they  will  certainly 
pay  for  the  expense  of  laying  them.  In  the  spring 
when  the  stream  lowered,  my  drains  poured  out  full, 
and  in  two  weeks  the  land  was  dry,  though  previously 
a  soft,  spongy  morass.  H.  stewart. 
Plums  Breeding-  True. 
L.  H.,  Herkimer,  N.  Y. — An  old  farmer  friend  once 
said  to  me  :  “I  plant  a  pit  from  this  old  blue  plum 
sometimes  call  the  Horse  plum,  and  it  produces  a  tree 
bearing  exactly  the  same  fruit.  I  plant  a  pit  from  a 
Washington  or  Golden  Drop,  and  I  get  the  Lord  knows 
what.  Why  is  this  ?  ” 
Ans. — The  problem  seems  a  difficult  one  to  those  who 
have  not  looked  into  it.  The  blue  plum  is  a  fruit  with 
an  ancestry  running  back  hundreds  of  years.  It  has 
ancestors  galore,  and  its  type  is  thoroughly  fixed  by 
generations  of  planting.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
Washington  or  Golden  Drop  has  no  ancestors  at  all. 
Both  are  freaks  or  sports,  and  all  the  Washington  and 
Golden  Drop  trees  in  existence  are  bits  or  pieces  of  the  , 
original  sports — handed  down  and  perpetuated  by  the 
grafting  or  budding  process.  Only  one  Washington 
plum  tree  was  ever  produced  from  seed.  To  obtain 
trees  bearing  similar  fruit  is  possible.  If  one  should 
shield  the  trees  when  in  bloom  from  cross-fertiliza¬ 
tion,  plant  the  pits,  select  only  fruit  which  was  per¬ 
fect,  plant  pits  from  these,  and,  when  the  trees  fruited, 
select  only  those  fruits  which  might  chance  to  be  re¬ 
productions  for  planting  again,  the  thing  might  be 
accomplished  in  50  years — it  might  take  500,  but  it  is 
possible  on  the  lines  indicated. 
Miscellaneous. 
“  Winter  Fife"  Wheat. — G.  W.  K.,  Fishersville,  Va. — 
Jones’s  Winter  Fife  is  alluded  to,  we  presume.  We 
doubt  if  it  will  outyield  Fultz  or  if  the  straw  is 
stronger,  but  it  will  make  a  far  better  flour. 
“  Subscriber,"  Ripley,  N.  Y. — The  insects  were  sent 
to  Prof.  J.  II.  Comstock,  who  says:  “They  appear 
like  immature  squash  bugs  ;  but,  as  no  adult  specimens 
were  sent,  I  cannot  determine  the  species.” 
Grasses  Named. — P.  W.  J. ,  Pontiac,  Mich. — The 
grasses  sent  for  names  are  :  No.  1,  Panicum  crusgalli — 
Barn-yard-Grass  ;  No.  2,  Panicum  sanguinale — Crab  or 
Finger-Grass ;  No.  3,  Eragrostis  poseoides — Strong- 
scented  Meadow  Grass  ;  No.  4,  Panicum  capillare — Old 
Witch  Grass. 
