202 
March 25 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
1 he presence of any one of these sources of error is 
fatally detrimental to the establishment of any worthy 
conclusions as to the value of any treatment tests. 
'1 he seven sets of tests, a to y inclusive, published in 
Ur. Thaxter’s report (loc. cit. pp. 156-157) from which 
presumably he draws the conclusions previously cited, 
are all open to the points of error, Nos. 1 and 2, as 
stated above. 
In my work I have found that seed tubers cannot be 
selected so smooth that there is a certainty of the 
absence of the disease, ^nd there is no certainty that 
he did not plant the disease in every check hill as well 
as in those treated. Furthermore, considering' the 
slight distance between the hills of a row, alternate 
hills being treated, there is little doubt, other condi¬ 
tions being normal, that these would receive infection 
from the immediately adjacent untreated hills. 
Experiment No. 1 of Bulletin No. 14, Rhode Island 
Experiment Station, together with its conclusions, is 
vitiated because of the fact that the experiment was 
open to the point of error No 1, while the unsatisfactory 
results indicated for Experiment No. 2 of the same 
publication : “ Trial of Bordeaux Mixture as a Remedy 
or Preventive of the Potato Scab,” are due most prob¬ 
ably to the third source of error named above; for 
when it is known that the disease when present is 
comparatively deep seated in the seed tuber, there can 
be little hope of destroying all germs upon the seeds 
by spraying them with a fungicide ever so effective as 
they lie dropped upon the ground in the row ready for 
covering. Furthermore, the cost of the solution and 
labor attached to such a treatment must of necessity 
be such as to preclude all thought of economic success. 
1 o spray the vines can but be a waste of energy, as the 
inception of the disease is from below. 
The Nature of the Disease, with a Statement of Some of 
its Positive and Negative Characteristics. 
As to the origin of the disease in a new crop, I need 
here only again affirm that it does not arise from any 
of the following named agencies, ofttimes cited by 
various writers as direct causes ; 1. Erosion or etch¬ 
ing by worms or insects ; 2, cracking or erosion by 
chemical or foreign substancesin the soil; 3, abnormal 
growth caused by excess of water in the soil; or, 4, 
abundance of stable manures; but that it is due 
wholly to the action of a parasitic plant organism of 
low ordtr which attacks the potatoes when in a grow- 
ng state, thriving upon and within the tissues, cells 
of the tubers (See Fig. 83). Because of the irritating 
action of the parasite, an abnormal tissue formation 
arises which eventual^ decays, and the result is the 
scab mark which so mars the potato. 
It has been demonstrated (Bulletin No. 4-loc. cit) 
that: 1. The character of the soil in itself, no matter 
what its texture—sandy, clayey, mucky, wet or dry— 
has nothing whatever to do with the origin of the 
disease: 
2. Diseased seed tubers will always communicate 
the disease to a new crop. 
3. The disease will remain in active condition in the 
soil from crop to crop 
4. The disease attacks other garden vegetables, 
notably beets and any refuse of an old diseased plant, 
such as vines, etc., may communicate it. 
It is necessary that these last three points be under¬ 
stood and remembered when contemplating a treat¬ 
ment for prevention. 
Treatment. —The corrosive sublimate treatment 
recommended in Bulletin No. 4, of the North Dakota 
Experiment Station, has had another years trial, not 
only at this station but by potato growers, and has 
proved effective in a degree beyond previous expecta¬ 
tion. 
Under date of October 10, 1892, T. B. Terry, of Hud¬ 
son, O., wrote as follows: “ I treated some 40 or 50 
bushels of badly scabbed seed as recommended, and 
have a crop almost perfectly smooth. * * * Crop 
from badly scabbed seed (untreated) worthless. As 
far as I can tell from one year’s trial, you have done a 
lot of good. Now how shall we kill the germs in old 
land ? ” As demonstrated in the work of previous 
years, it is found by the tests of this year that the 
amount of the damage done to the yield of the crop is 
very much in excess of that usually supposed. The 
disease attacks not only the tubers but the roots and 
bases of the vines, and the result is a shorter-lived 
vine, a greater number of tubers set upon the vines 
than under normal ccnditions,and, third, much smaller 
tubers; so that, aside from the actual damage in ap¬ 
pearance and culinary qualities, as noticeable in the 
samples shown in Figs. 79 and 80, there is a large re¬ 
duction of the yield. 
The tests of 1891, as reported in Bulletin No. 4, 
showed a net gain of half a pound per hill in favor of 
the corrosive sublimate treatment as against untreated 
seed of like character, while theonumber of tubers set 
upon the vines was, on an average, five less per hill 
than in rows heavily diseased. 
The results of this summer's work, when averaged 
for all tests of the treatment, show an average gain of 
a fraction over half a pound per hill in favor of the 
treatment and 99.33 per cent of total product void of 
disease; while the untreated seed of like character 
(see Fig. 79), and weight gave a product in which less 
than one per cent of sound tubers were found (see 
Fig. 80). 
Fig. 83 shows the character of the product obtained 
by the use of the corrosive sublimate treatment. 
A number of other promising treatments were tried 
at the same time and under the same conditions as 
the corrosive sublimate test, the details of which will 
appear in a future bulletin. Fig. 82, shows a repre¬ 
sentative set of three hills from a Bordeaux Mixture 
treatment. Suffice it to say that after no treatment 
which at all lessened the percentage of disease did the 
yield fall as low as that of the highest yield from un¬ 
treated seed. 
In all these tests, soils that had never known a pre¬ 
vious potato crop or a fertilizer were used, subjected 
to equal conditions and planted at the same time. The 
seed used was Early Ohio tubers of like weight and 
amount of diseased surface as could be obtained, 
representatives of which are photographed in Fig. 79. 
Method of Application. —Dissolve corrosive subli¬ 
mate {mercuric bichloride) in water at the rate of two 
ounces of the chemical to 15 gallons of water. Soak 
the seed potatoes in this solution 1 % hour, cut and 
plant as usual. From this it will be seen that no plant 
disease which is successfully combated is susceptible 
to so simple a treatment, one so easily carried out. 
Caution. —Mercuric bichloride is a strong poison—be 
as careful with it as with all other poisons. The solu¬ 
tion should stand some time before it is used, to insure 
Drawing of two distorted cork cells seen In surface section below the 
ragged surface of a "deep scab.’’ showing the filamentous ramification 
of the parasite In the cells, and aggregate masses of septated parts of 
the same In the corners of the cells; a, 'he celt wall, b, the parasitic 
filaments. Original. X about 700. 
complete solution of the chemical which should be 
thoroughly pulverized before it is added to the water. 
Plant only on ground known to be free of disease. 
In regard to the question asked by Mr. Terry: 
“ How should we kill the germs in the old land ? ” no 
answer can now be given as to any effective means. 
The great bulk of experimental efforts at prevention 
of the disease for the past 15 years has been of such 
nature—i. e., the application of substancesin the hills, 
etc.—that one might expect to be able to draw some 
affirmative conclusions. No substance, as applied, has 
up to date shown any regularity of preventive effect. 
Furthermore, the germs of the disease by laboratory 
tests have shown themselves capable of withstanding 
treatment which would be destructive to ordinary 
living tissues, such as the roots of the higher plants, a 
capability which militates heavily against the hope of 
treatment by way of the soil. And if the scab or¬ 
ganism possesses saprophytic capabilities of living 
upon the humus and decaying vegetation of the soil, 
as present knowledge admits to be quite possible, the 
disease may continue to exist in a given plot of soil for 
an indefinite time. Certain it is that we have definite 
records of its apparent persistence during periods of 
from one to five years without the intervention of a 
potato crop. Knowing the persistent tenacity with 
which the disease keeps its hold upon the soil, potato 
growers should hesitate before they introduce it by 
planting disease (scab) bearing seed tubers. 
At present as a means of freeing old potato plots 
from the germs, we can only hope that a rotation of 
crops may prove effectual. To this end root crops, 
such as beets, as well as potatoes, should not be 
cultivated in this ground. Theoretically cereals or 
grasses would seem to be the proper things. 
North Dakota Experiment Station. 
HENS THAT PAY FOR THEIR LODGING. 
CARE THAT GREASES “ THE EGG MACHINE.” 
The Old Mother Hen Forever. 
As much is being written about the profits of poultry 
raising, perhaps my experience might be of interest 
and help to some struggling along the weak side of 
the business. The breeding and raising of fine stock 
constitute no more of a science than the successful 
breeding of fowls. 
January 1892 found me with 200 laying hens and 
pullets, most of them the little Brown Leghorn “ egg 
machines.” I raise all my birds, finding it more satis¬ 
factory, as it generally takes from six weeks to two 
months of heavy feeding to get them in laying condi¬ 
tion. This delay in late fall and early winter, when 
eggs bring the highest prices, takes a big slice from 
the profit side of the account at the end of the year. 
I endeavor to have all chicks hatched ou^ by the last 
of May, and get out every one possible in April. 
Leghorns will do better hatched late than the heavier 
breeds. Thus far I have used the old hen for both 
incubator and brooder, having at times as many as 40 
hens sitting at once, and never less than four at one 
time. Then there are not a lot of small broods strag¬ 
gling along a few days apart. When chicks are 24 
hours old, the quietest hens are selected and given 15 
to 25 chicks, the number depending on the weather 
and the breed hatched. These are placed in large, 
airy, clean coops in which the floor is covered with 
coarse sand. There is no possibility that skunks will 
dig under, while the place is dry, warm and easily 
kept clean. A board is put in front of each coop at 
night with a large stone against it. 
When grass starts the coops are placed in the 
orchard ; and later I find no place so nice as the corn 
field. Here they have fresh earth and are sheltered 
from the hawks and the direct rays of the sun. For 
the first two weeks the chicks are fed five times per 
day. The soft feed is very nearly like Rankin’s 
Mixture. The dry feed at first is oat meal, and, later, 
cracked corn and wheat, and a little ground bone is 
given every few days. Fresh water and grit are kept 
by them always. When old enough to broed them¬ 
selves, the mother is put back in her pen, and will 
soon be laying, often doing so while with her chickens. 
When half grown, the cockerels are separated from the 
pullets, housed and yarded while the latter are given 
very large coops. The Leghorns soon forsake theirs 
for the trees, where through all kindsof weather they 
roost until October. Raised in this way, they are as 
hardy as crows and can fly about as high. 
Winter is Made a Pleasant Time. 
Winter-quaiters are as warm as matched boards and 
tarred paper can make the walls, with heavy felting 
tarred and sanded for the roof. I have no ventilators 
because I have no use for them. Each pen 11x12 feet 
accommodates 20 hens, and has a full-sized door with 
a large window on the south side. The door is open 
every pleasant day unless the mercury is somewhere 
near zero, and the hens are out on bare ground, 
where I keep as large a space as possible cleared of 
snow. Biddy knows herself when it is too cold and 
will dodge back into the house out of the wind. The 
floors are covered with four inches of clean sand every 
fall and meadow hay to the depth of several inches is 
kept upon that. When damp or dirty, it is raked out 
and fresh is put in. Into this their noon and night 
rations are thrown so that they have to work for their 
living. The roost shelves are cleaned every day in 
summer and every other day in winter unless the 
weather is too cold. Once a week in summer the 
roosts are washed in kerosene, so lice and mites find 
no harbor there. Neglect in these matters is the 
cause of so much vermin in poultry houses. 
Menu at a Hen Restaurant. 
In the feed-room are two iron kettles, the larger 
one for cooking vegetables. The morning feed is 
mixed at night in the smaller kettle by putting in the 
required amount of water and cooked vegetables 
brought to a boil, when the mess is thickened with a 
meal mixture consisting of two parts of co n and one 
of oats ground together, two parts of shorts and 
three of fine middlings, all thoroughly mixed. In the 
morning this is cooked almost like brown bread, and 
is fed warm I use at tbe rate of five pounds of cut 
bone for each 100 fowls, at times using half as much 
of it, and substituting animal meal for the other half. 
Twice each week one quart of pulverized charcoal is 
added to the soft feed for my flock of 350, and I find it 
the bestcondition powder” I know of. At noon a 
gill of wheat is scattered in the litter to keep them 
busy. At night equal parts of corn, wheat and oats 
are fed, buckwheat being sometimes used in place of 
the two latter. In cold weather warm water is given 
them in clean pans of galvanized iron. Oyster shells 
are always by them, and green food, in the shape of 
rutabagas, cabbages and mangolds, are given them to 
