722 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER. 
Nov.  5 
cow  pea  is  its  superior.  I  very  much  doubt  its  coming 
into  general  use  in  this  State.  chas.  d.  wood. 
Connecticut  Station. 
Good  Where  Clover  Won’t  “Catch.” 
I  have  a  very  good  opinion  of  the  Soja  Bean  as  a 
“  soiling  crop,”  that  is  to  be  cut  and  fed  green.  On 
fairly  strong  and  fertile  land,  sown  in  drills  18  inches 
apart  and  at  average  intervals  of  three  inches  apart  in 
the  drills,  the  plants  have  reached  a  height  of  36  inches. 
Our  stock  eat  them  with  a  good  relish.  Compared 
with  the  Southern  cow  pea,  the  stems  are  more 
“  woody,”  otherwise  we  see  little  difference.  I  cer¬ 
tainly  think  it  of  sufficient  value  to  urge  the  farmers 
of  our  State  to  experiment  with  it  as  a  soiling  crop. 
For  cutting  and  curing  as  dry  fodder  I  prefer  clover. 
Many  of  our  New  England  farmers  find  it  difficult  to 
get  a  first-rate  “catch”  of  clover  every  time  and  with 
our  present  knowledge  of  the  value  of  the  legumes  as 
renovating  plants  I  would  encourage  the  growth  of 
as  many  and  as  great  a  variety  as  possible.  Oats, 
barley  and  Hungarian  are  all  grown  here  as  soiling 
crops,  and  I  think  we  can  very  profitably  add,  or  even 
substitute  “  Soja  Beans  ”  and  cow  peas. 
Rhode  Island  Station.  chas.  o.  flagg. 
Good  for  a  Massachusetts  Silo. 
this  table.  The  analysis  and  digestibility  of  the  Soja 
Beans  are  from  Mr.  Kilgore’s  unpublished  analysis 
and  determination,  and  the  composition  and  digesti¬ 
bility  of  clover  hay  from  Stewart’s  Feeding  Animals  : 
Product  of  one  acre. 
10,000  pounds  Soja  Beau  Ensilage. . . . 
3.000  pounds  clover  hay . 
Digestible  In  3,000  pounds  clover  hay. 
10,000  pounds  Soja  Bean  ensilage . 
10,000  pounds  Soja  Bean  ensilage . 
3,000  pounds  clover  hay . 
Digestible  In  3,000  pounds  clover  hay 
10,000  pounds  Soja  Bean  ensilage . 
Dry  Mat. 
Ash. 
Protein. 
.  2,580 
285. 
405 
2,623 
183. 
378 
235 
’  1,522 
161.6 
307 
N.  Free 
Crude 
Fat. 
Ext. 
Fiber. 
223. 
696 
971 
74.4 
1,189 
799 
Ratio. 
45. 
1,207 
5.6 
160. 
887 
4.1 
This  difference  is  not  very  great,  but  is  in  favor  of 
the  Soja  Bean  as  a  little  more  cheap  carbohydrate,  as 
straw  or  corn  stover,  could  be  fed  with  it  to  advantage 
to  bring  up  the  “  ratio”  to  the  “standard.”  Also,  if 
“  fat”  be  regarded  as  worth  2%  times  as  much  as  car¬ 
bohydrates,  there  would  then  be  the  value  of  more 
pounds  of  food  from  the  beans,  and  this  too  after  an 
allowance  of  23  per  cent  for  loss  on  the  bean  crop. 
Soja  Beans  can  be  ensiloed  more  easily  than  cured 
for  hay.  They  will  grow  in  favor  with  stockmen  with¬ 
out  doubt.  FRANK  E.  EMERY. 
North  Carolina  Station. 
Later  Mr.  Emery  sends  this  note : 
Inclosed  find  root  of  Soja  Bean  grown  on  poor  red 
clay  soil,  showing  tubercles.  The  long  branch  was 
I  am  much  pleased  with  our  results  in  raising  Soja 
Beans  as  a  fodder  crop.  During  the  past  season  I 
have  raised  several  acres  of  them  ;  one  variety,  which 
was  bought  of  J.  M.  Thorburn  &  Company,  of  New 
York,  has  not  matured  seeds  thus  far,  yet  yielded  10 
tons  per  acre  of  green  crop,  with  24  per  cent  of  solid 
matter,  for  ensilage; ;  the  other  variety  matured 
abundance  of  seeds  and  yielded  from  se^en  to  eight 
tons  per  acre.  The  plant  is  much  liked  by  all  kinds 
of  farm  live  stock  ;  our  results  in  milk  and  meat  pro¬ 
duction  are  very  satisfactory  with  both  green  crop  and 
silo  product.  I  have  just  filled  a  silo  with  alternate 
layers  of  equal  weights  of  Soja  Beans  and  green  fodder 
corn  (kernels  glazing  over.)  Cost  of  production  in  drills 
(three  feet  apart)  is  not  more  expensive  than  of  any 
other  forage  crop.  The  convenience  of  securing  an  ad¬ 
ditional  (annual)  leguminous  crop  for  annual  rotation 
counts  for  much  with  us  in  the  support  of  our  dairy 
industry,  considering  the  present  condition  of  our 
pastures  and  meadows.  The  Soja  Bean  is  exceptionally 
rich  in  both  nitrogenous  constituents  and  fat ;  and  the 
entire  plant  from  the  time  of  showing  flowers  is  equal 
to,  if  not  better  than  any  other  leguminous  fodder  crop 
on  record. 
My  success  with  serradella  as  a  fodder  crop  during  the 
past  season  has  been  marked — 10  to  11  tons  of  green 
fodder  (18  percent  solids)  per  acre.  Our  cows  feed  for 
some  time  on  green  fodder  corn  (two  parts)  and  green 
serradella  (one  part).  My  former  satisfactory  obser¬ 
vations  are  confirmed.  A  silo  has  been  filled  with 
equal  weights  of  green  serradella  and  Hungarian 
Grass  (in  bloom).  c.  A.  goessmann. 
Massachusetts  Station. 
A  Valuable  Plant  for  North  Carolina. 
Our  experience  with  this  legume  now  covers  two 
seasons  on  soil  not  favorable  to  large  or  even  moderate 
crops,  yet  this  does  well  in  comparison  with  other 
crops.  Last  year  (1891)  two  acres  on  the  college  farm 
produced  23,430  pounds  of  Soja  Beans  as  cut  for  the 
silo  and  3,140  pounds  of  half  cured  hay.  The  ensilage 
was  rather  too  strong  in  odor  and  was  at  first  objected 
to  on  that  score  by  the  student  feeder,  and  by  stock 
as  was  suggested  for  the  same  reason.  The  driving 
horse  was  humored  and  fed  hay  while  this  ensilage 
lasted.  The  cows  soon  acquired  a  taste  for  it  and 
seemed  to  be  as  eager  for  it  as  for  any  other  food. 
Change  of  feeders  and  the  grain  feed  during  the  five 
weeks  the  Soja  Bean  ensilage  was  being  fed  prevented 
any  deductions  on  the  yield  of  milk,  though  at  the  end 
of  that  time  the  flow  was  quite  equal  to  that  at  the 
beginning. 
An  analysis  of  this  ensilage  followed  by  a  digestion 
experiment  showed  it  to  be  rich  food  and  easily  digest¬ 
ible,  although  nearly  “ripe”  when  cut  for  the  silo. 
Our  crops  have  been  planted  in  hills  18  inches  apart 
with  the  Centennial  corn  planter,  and  in  drills  with  a 
wheat  drill  with  the  rows  3  and  3\£  feet  apart,  so  that 
it  could  be  easily  cultivated.  On  our  soil  the  crop 
will  bear  closer  planting  without  crowding.  It  stands 
up  straight,  the  worst  fault  being  the  too  hard  con¬ 
dition  of  the  stems.  It  may  be  cut  with  a  mowing 
machine  or  self-rake  reaper  to  good  advantage,  and 
probably  the  new  corn  ensilage  cutters  will  handle  it 
as  well  as  corn. 
We  can  recommend  the  Soja  Bean  to  our  friends  as  a 
valuable  addition  to  profitable,  quick-growing  crops. 
If  the  college  crop  be  calculated  at  6.5  tons  per  acre, 
and  20  per  cent  of  loss  be  allowed  from  fresh  weight 
to  ensilage,  there  would  be  10,400  pounds  of  ensilage 
per  acre.  Taking  it  at  even  five  tons,  and  comparing 
it  with  1%  ton  of  clover  hay,  which  would  be  a  large 
crop  from  the  land  on  which  the  beans  grew,  we  find 
White  Podded  Adzuki  Bean.  Fig.  278. 
PhaBeolus  radiates. 
“pulled”  out,  and  may  have  had  tubercles  farther 
out,  but  they  seem  to  be  clustered  at  the  base  of  the 
stalk. 
R-  N.-Y. — The  tubercles  are  plainly  visible.  Our 
readers  will  remember  that  the  latest  scientific  theory 
is  that  these  tubercles,  or  little  warts,  are  active 
agents  in  the  assimilation  of  nitrogen  by  the  legumin¬ 
ous  plants.  This  would  indicate  the  value  of  the  Soja 
Bean  as  a  green  manuring  crop. 
Clover  Needs  a  Nurse,  Soja  Bean  Doesn’t. 
1.  I  unhesitatingly  recommend  our  farmers  to  ex¬ 
periment  with  it.  2.  It  will  produce  more  feed  to  the 
acre  here  than  clover,  and  do  it  in  half  the  time  re¬ 
quired  for  the  latter.  We  cannot  start  clover  with 
any  other  crop  ;  when  the  so-called  “  nurse  crop  ”  is 
harvested  the  young  clover  is  killed  by  the  scorching 
sun.  This  is  so  generally  the  case  that  but  few  exper¬ 
ienced  farmers  in  central  Kansas  and  westward  ever 
attempt  sowing  clover  with  wheat  or  oats,  or  any  other 
crop.  And  the  first  year,  even  when  seeded  by  itself, 
it  seldom  affords  much  hay,  and  it  is  unwise  to  pasture 
it  for  fear  of  killing  it.  The  Soja  Beans  we  have  yield 
a  full  crop  of  feed  during  three  months  of  the  summer. 
They  are  harvested  and  the  ground  can  be  put  in  fall 
wheat,  by  the  time  the  clover  crop  is  fairly  estab¬ 
lished.  Moreover,  the  Soja  Bean  can  be  grown  where 
clover  cannot  get  a  foothold  on  account  of  the  heat 
and  drought.  3.  So  far  as  tried,  I  have  found  it  best 
to  grow  it  in  rows  about  30  inches  or  a  little  more 
apart,  and  let  the  plants  average  one  to  every  two 
inches  in  the  row.  I  cultivate  them  until  shortly 
before  the  blossoms  appear.  I  have  so  far  had  no 
difficulty  in  curing  them  as  I  would  a  heavy  crop  of 
clover.  Whether  it  is  better  to  cure  it  as  hay  or  to  put 
it  in  the  silo  is  yet  to  be  determined  by  experiment.  4. 
I  see  many  reasons  why  it  can  be  made  a  profitable  crop 
throughout  this  Sfate,  and  throughout  the  West,  but 
especially  in  the  region  where  the  corn  crop  and  tame 
grasses  are  uncertain.  [i*rof.]  c.  c  georgeson. 
Kansas  Agricultural  College. 
A  FARMER  VETERINARIAN. 
RECORDS  OF  AN  EVENTFUL  LIFE. 
One  of  the  quaintest  and  most  original  characters 
among  men  is  T.  C.  Miles,  or  “Farmer”  Miles,  as  he  is 
familiarly  known  in  every  State  in  the  Union,  as  well 
as  in  Europe.  As  a  specialist  in  certain  lines  of  veter¬ 
inary  surgery  he  has  no  equal,  and  The  Rural  gives  a 
sketch  of  the  man  and  his  labors,  which  cannot  fail  to 
interest  all  alike. 
He  was  born  in  Frankfort,  Ky.,  and  his  father  was 
a  farmer  and  an  M.  D.  also.  Young  Miles  grew  up  a 
farmer  boy,  as  he  himself  happily  phrases  it,  “in  grass 
knee  deep.”  His  father  owned  some  700  acres  of  land 
and  grew  Durham  cattle,  fine  hogs  and  saddle  horses. 
There  were  no  buggies  then — his  father  literally  lived 
in  the  saddle. 
When  a  young  man,  Mr.  Miles  moved  to  Illinois, 
where  he  secured  1,800  acres  of  rich  virgin  soil,  part  of 
it  prairie  and  part  timber.  Here  he  married  and  began 
life  on  his  own  account.  The  first  10  years  he  spent 
in  getting  his  land  into  cultivation,  and  renting  it  out. 
In  this  work  he  used  six  yoke  of  oxen  to  a  large  plow. 
The  leaders  were  smaller  than  the  others,  but  were 
specially  well  broken,  and  they  laid  out  the  work,  of 
which  their  stronger  followers  took  the  brunt.  Rais¬ 
ing  stock  was  largely  practiced  and  there  was  neces¬ 
sarily  much  work  in  the  way  of  animal  surgery,  but 
there  were  no  surgeons.  Young  Miles  had  a  natural 
taste  for  such  work  and  did  his  own,  and,  as  his 
amateur  skill  became  known,  much  for  his  neighbors. 
As  he  made  no  charge  for  his  work,  he  very  naturally 
had  plenty  to  do  and  he  became  very  skillful.  To  use 
his  words,  “  a  farmer  would  bring  me  a  ridgling  and 
say  to  me,  *  Cut  or  kill  this  animal.’  I  always  did  one 
and  sometimes  both,  but  I  was,  from  the  first,  very 
successful.” 
It  was  in  this  way  that  he  started  and  from  it  he 
has  grown  to  be  the  most  successful  operator  in  his 
specialties,  that  of  spaying,  castrating,  caponizing, 
etc.,  there  is  on  the  footstool  to-day.  His  methods 
are  his  own  and  though  he  makes  no  secret  of-them, 
but  very  few  of  those  who  follow  him  ever  reach  a 
tithe  of  his  skill.  He  is  in  constant  demand  all  over 
the  Union  and  has  been  equally  successful  in  Europe, 
where  he  won  a  recognition  which  was  the  greatest 
possible  tribute  to  his  skill. 
“  How  did  you  get  your  sobriquet  of  ‘  Farmer 
Miles’”  said  The  Rural. 
“  was  given  me  in  derision  by  some  of  the  veter¬ 
inarians.  Mr.  Going,  then  editor  of  the  Spirit  of  the 
Times,  spoke  very  highly  of  some  of  my  successful 
work,  whereupon  some  of  the  regularly  graduated 
veterinarians  attacked  Mr.  Going,  denounced  me  as 
only  a  ‘  farmer,’  etc.  They  called  me  Farmer  Miles 
and  somehow  the  appellation  stuck,  and  I  am  Farmer 
Miles  from  Maine  to  California,  all  over  England,  in 
Scotland,  Ireland  and  in  a  part  of  France.” 
“  When  did  you  first  go  to  England  ?” 
“  In  1878  ;  I  intended  to  stay  two  weeks  but  staid  a 
year.  I  was,  as  I  am,  a  very  plain  sort  of  fellow, 
lame  from  an  accident,  and  not  polished  in  society 
ways.  My  English  brethren  gave  me  a  most  decided 
cold  shoulder — I  could  not  get  a  chance  to  show  what 
I  could  do.  They  looked  on  me  as  an  ignorant,  un¬ 
couth  Yankee,  and  snubbed  me  mercilessly.  Finally, 
I  published  a  card,  a  challenge,  which  attracted  some 
attention,  and  one  day  Prof.  Wm.  Pritchard,  at  the 
head  of  the  Royal  Veterinary  College  of  London,  in¬ 
vited  me  to  dine.  I  accepted  his  invitation  and  we 
dined  alone.  I  managed  to  impress  him  with  the  idea 
that  there  were  some  things  I  could  do  and  the  result 
was  that  he  invited  me  to  operate  on  three  ridglings  in 
the  near  future.  He  invited  two  or  three  veterinarians 
to  be  present  and  we  quietly  went  to  a  farm  to  do  the 
work.  I  suppose  he  did  not  want  many  present,  as,  if 
I  proved  a  failure,  he  did  not  want  it  to  be  too  much 
talked  about.  ” 
“  Well,  how  did  it  turn  out  ?  ” 
“  Oh,  it  was  a  great  success.  I  used  my  American 
appliances  for  throwing  and  controlling  the  horse, 
which  were  infinitely  superior  to  their  clumsy  methods. 
I  operated  on  two  of  the  ridglings  in  a  few  minutes — 
did  not  spill  a  tablespoonful  of  blood  from  both,  and 
then  offered  to  give  five  pounds  to  any  of  those  pres¬ 
ent  who  would  operate  on  the  third,  in  anything  like 
