3G6 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER: AN AGRICULTURAL AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER. 
NOV. 13. 
and it is with pleasure that I give the figures to 
prove the statement, of imperishable materials, 
costing for the same, twenty-fire cents per rod. 
First, the tile. They were procured at the fac¬ 
tory, less than three miles distant, for $10 per thou¬ 
sand and the usual discount of ten per cent, cost¬ 
ing, including cartage, when laid on the bank of 
the ditch, only one cent apiece, and thirteen of 
these will lay one rod. Good water-lime, for twelve 
shillings per barrel was brought the same distance 
the empty barrels fully paying for carriage. At 
the rate of one part of lime to three parts sand, 
one barrel of lime is sufficient for twelve rods, and 
at one-fifth of lime—which I found to be equally 
good the cost of materials is even less than 
twenty-five cents per rod. A larger portion than 
the latter of lime to sand is never used by one of 
our most skillful builders. I have made no allow¬ 
ance for sand, as it was found in abundance at the 
spring. T. C. P. will see, that with tiles not one 
half so much cement is needed as in the old-fash 
iened pipe, and if laid in a little frame, it is as 
smooth and uniform in size as a 4 by 4 inch scant- 
ling, and as likely to resist pressure as any wooden 
pipe of its size, and two men can make fifteen 
twenty rods in a day. Mr. P. will be more success 
ful than many if his wooden pipe, where it is laid 
in dry ground, does “last one generation, at least,” 
without repairing. He is favored with a large 
stream of water, but those families dependent upon 
water brought from a distance, do not ihink it 
more pure and healthful for passing slowly thro’ 
decaying pipe. 
With no motives other than the public good, and 
to answer many inquiries as to my experience in 
conducting water, to prompt these statements, I 
think no candid person will judge me desirous’of 
controversy. 
Palmyra, N. Y., 1858. 
U. J. F. 
Messrs Eds .-—Having noticed in the Rural of 
late several accounts, by different persons, of the 
weight of fleeces shorn from their sheep, the last 
clip, f thought I would like to make a few remarks 
upon the subject, and also send a statement of the 
result of my last sheep-shearing, which you are at 
liberty to publish if you see fit. 
I think your correspondents, generally, have not 
been at particular in their statements as they 
should be, if they wish their readers to form a 
correct idea of the comparative value of their 
flocks; for, if our best authorities are correct 
upon the point that sheep consume food in pro 
portion to their weight of carcass, it is just as 
necessary to know the actual weight and condi 
tion of that carcass, to judge of its real value for 
producng wool, as it is to know the weight of 
wool shorn. 
If the above be true, a sheep weighing 200 
pounds, aud shearing six pounds of wool, is worth 
for wool but one half as much as a sheep weighing 
100 pounds, and shearing the same amount of 
wool, and, besides that, the wool of smull sheep, 
if free from gum, is usually of a better quality than 
that of large ones. 
My sheep are Spanish Merino, and nearly all 
from stock selected by myself in Vermont. I 
have saved all the ewes from this stock for my 
own use, keeping my flock reduced by selling from 
my old stock, until now my flock are nearly ail 
pme hlood. You see from this that I have not 
had the opportunity of selecting which I shall 
have when my flock becomes entirely pure, and, 
of course, the average is not as large as it would 
be after taking out some of the lightest, shearers. 
My flock of ewes numbers 140. including year¬ 
lings, and, to show you that I am improving, I will 
give you a S' parate table for the yearlings. They 
were all well washed and in good store condition 
when sheared, and the wool free from gum. 
JiWES OVER ONE YEAR OLD. 
Average weight of caress*, ... 74 
per It), of wool .13 12 00 . 
fleece per head. 6—6 1-6 07 ,. 
YEARLING EWES. 
Average weight of carcass,.54—6 oz. 
per Ih. of wool.. 9- 6 oz. 
wool per head.. 6—12 4-5 oz 
Two yearlings weighing, one 62 Jbs., and the 
other 68 11)3, sheared respectively, 8 11-1G and 9 and one of nry experiences is that I lose from one 
5-16 &s., being about 1 lb. wool to 6 of carcass. fourth to three-fourths, and one year ago last win- 
wholk flock, including YEARLiNos. ter four fifths of all my swarms. It will readily be 
Average weight of wool per head,. 6-9 0!E . perceived that increasing my apiary is rather slow 
of carcass per lb. of wool ..12-3 oz. business. The fact is that my bees are running 
It should be remembered that my bucks and out — the common phrase among unsuccessful cul- 
wethera are not included in the above. turists in this as well as some other departments of 
Livonia, N. Y, 1858. John s. Bkhciikr. rural affairs — but I am one who is not satisfied 
with the result hitherto, and have studied not a lit- 
30RGHUM SYRUP. | tle and desiie to study more the cause of myffailure 
and the remedy. I think now that my study has 
Eds. Ruhal:—I f your columns are still open for not been entirely in vain respecting the causes or 
this subject, you will be likely to have some flatter- canee of the great destruction of this profitable 
ing accounts of sweet sucoess in the manufacture and industrious insect 
of sugar and molasses from the Chinese Sugar The first cause to mention is the great changes 
tane in onr State. In this town we have mills in in the temperature of the atmosphere and its ef 
operation that arc turning out barrels of splendid feet on the bees. I have known the mercurv to 
syrup. The proprietor of one informs me he can rise 40° in the short space of eight hours viz from 
rnami act.nre mo Asses for the growers of the cane G° below zero to 34° above, and a change of 25 c is 
14 cents per gallon, aud intends to enlarge his of frequent or of almost daily occurence This to 
facill ies Hod ftdvertute to that .fleet before another bee., or .Imilar ta.ectt, be, lo eav the lit 
,.l«at,ng ,ea,oo. The ,,r.p is alre.d, a.le at very unfavorable Bee-ieeper, hLe Zer.ed thal 
°TZ y e *“ 0 "- Ani * Whe ” <=°»«£a I- lb. hive tor afe„ 
nt „ days by a low temperature of the air and then hv 
Now, all that is wanting is for the farmer to a change of atmosphere can get out that they will 
toorlrrewUn 
for this with but an ordinary cron. The pppH fnr ® oucea t>y 
...» ... , 3 p rae seed tor frequent atmospheric changes. Another effhrt of 
* <b.t the bees are 
THE APIARY-WINTERING BEES. 
Eds. Rural: —Wintering bees is the great deside¬ 
ratum, and, 1 would add, the “ ne plus ultra ” of keep¬ 
ing, or rather their management in this changing 
climate. I would be willing to pay a heavy bonus 
to learn the art or secret of wintering bees suc¬ 
cessfully in this locality—it would be a fortune in 
a few years to any one engaged in this rural 
pursuit. 
I have kept bees for some fifteen years or more, 
front, bevel each edge one inch back. Dress 
out Btrips of board one half inch thick, and one 
inch wide—to represent a bar of iron—fit one strip 
to each space between posts, space off and bore as 
above. Make a half circle of plank ten inches in 
diameter to bend rods over. Get quarter-inch 
round iron ten feet long, cut in the centre, and 
bend over the plank, paint rods and half-inch 
strips black, the balance of the fence white, before 
putting fence together. When the paint is dry, 
nail the half-inch strips on the centre of bottom 
rail. The base board should be one foot wide, bev¬ 
eled and nailed firmly to the posts and along the 
bottom rail one inch from the top. The corner 
and gate posts should be ten inches square, with 
casing, molding and caps, and when finished these 
posts should be eight inches above the rods. Bore 
one hole close to corner post on line with the 
others in the top rail Take a bent rod and cut off- 
one leg so that it will come half way through top 
rail, put the other leg in hole ten inches from post. 
Now take a rod four feet and a half long, and bend 
on a four-inch circle—place one leg in first hole 
from post and the other in third hole. Now take 
a rod, place one leg in the second hole and the 
other in the seventh, and so on. It will be neces¬ 
sary to cd* three rods to each small post 
Make the gates like the fence, running a rod, of 
three eighths iron from corner to corner, with a nut 
on one end to tighten rod. 
As to the cost, any man of ordinary ingenuity can 
put it up himself, and the cost of the material will 
be about three dollars per red. 
Middlebury, Conn., Oct., 1858. F. W. Cabswkll. 
CONDENSED CORRESPONDENCE. 
Lemons in Rennet —Will Amelia please answer 
through the Rural whether she puts the whole of 
the lemon in rennet for cheese? Would not the 
juice of the lemon have a tendency to sour the 
curd? By so doing she will oblige a constant 
reader of the Rural.—Louisa, Dundee, N. K, 1858. 
Another Cure for Garget.—A cow for which 
I paid $85 came from her pasture wuth her udder 
caked “as hard as a brick.” I milked her as well 
as I could, getting but little milk, it being so thick 
that I had to puli it out with my fingers. I then 
made a strong decoction of wormwood, thickened _ 
little with Indian meal and rubbed it in thoroughly 
with the hand. I repeated it in the morning, get¬ 
ting away all the coagulated milk possible, and at 
night found my favorite as well as ever._R. B. 
8toddard, Wethersfield, N. K, 1858. 
RUBAL MATTERS IN NORTHERN OHIO. 
Messrs. Eds: —T do not know how extensively the 
Rural is taken in Ohio, bat I am afraid not enough 
for the general good of its citizens. It appears to 
me that we must go out of the State to procure the 
best family paper, as the Rural is the first sought 
for among several different papers taken in my 
family. 
Permit me to say a few words for Northern Ohio. 
We recently returned from our State Fair, held at 
Sandusky City, which passed off very pleasantly, 
with a fine display of good stock, but not as many 
fine cattle as we have seen heretofore at Borne of 
our exhibitions, and an excellent display of fine 
horses. In all other departments the exhibition 
was fine. Floral Hall, as well as the whole Fair 
Grounds, gave great credit to the citizens of San¬ 
dusky. 
A word in regard to the crops in this part We 
had a fair crop of wheat, with very light oats 
and barley, and about one-half the amount of corn 
that is usually planted. We see the necessity of un¬ 
derdraining this season, which is driving many of 
our farmers to it. Had our corn and wheat lands 
been well underdrained this season, we would 
realize more than enough to pay the cost I have 
just completed an underdrain of forty rods with 
small flat sand stone, set in such Bhape as to leave 
a narrow passage at the bottom. Some of the 
readers of the Rural say that such a drain will 
Potato Experiment.— The result of an experi¬ 
ment in planting potatoes was exhibited at the 
Fair of the New London Co. 8ooiety, at Norwich, 
Conn., which possesses some interest. An equal 
number of sets from the stem and frnit ends were 
planted separately on the same soil, with the same 
quantity and kind of manure, and received exactly 
the same treatment in every degree. The stem 
ends gave fourteen and one quarter (14*) pounds, 
while (what are usually called) the fruit ends, yield¬ 
ed only seven and three-quarter (7|) pounds. This 
includes everything on the roots; the smallest as 
well as the largest. The variety, Dover._O. W. 
Conn,, 1858. 
About Millet.— Seeing an inquiry in the Rural 
of Oct 23d, about growing millet, I would say to 
the writer thereof that he managed right, and 
would have had a good crop if the seed had’been 
good. I got duped the same way last spring I 
bought four bushels of millet—enough to sow 
eight acres. Bag No. 1, was three-fourths millet 
and one-fourth pigeon grass; while bag No. 2 was 
three-fourths pigeon grass and one-fourth millet 
I got twelve loads from the piece, such as it was. 
Millet will grow on any kind of land that is clear 
of water. You can’t have the land too deeply 
plowed, or too rich—the richer, the better it will 
grow. Yield from one to three tons per acre,—J, 
F., Huntley, Illinois, 1858. 
Side-Hill and Level Land Plows. —As I have 
not seen any reply to the inquiry of my neighbor 
“ A” in regard to side-hill and level land plows in 
the Rural of August 14th, I thought I would offer 
a suggestion or two in replying to his wants. 1st, 
Tn regard to “Barnaby’s and Moore’s Patent” I 
know nothing. 2d, As to side-hill plowing and 
side-bill plows I do profess to know something and 
by experience, and to which I will briefly remark 
that I consider Lockling’s Patent Side-Hill (wood 
beam) the best in use for clay land. I also consider 
it very good for level land with one exception, that 
is, it cuts rather too narrow a furrow. They are to 
swer a better purpose than tile; but would not tUe I ** " “ 08t °{ our hardware ^rea. Price, 
ft t f he f C ° lt !! ati011 aad barv esting is no more confined to the hive on chilly days even in the 
as much as oats. Much of the seed in this county Another effect is to chill Z I 
has ripened perfectly. The leaves may be cured a , Deyoung brood and to 
for win-er fodder or fed green. On the whole the mini h the" ° f new bee * aad di- 
"V*» t*P Sorghum c «rato“r £Sl n °' t “tota 
*-? 
th» ocBbiany grown days of the late spring months prevent hatching, 
b. and consequently swarmiDg is delayed very late, so 
much so, that the late Bwarms cannot possibly 
Eds. Rural: — Judging from the sneering tone 8 ather hone y enough for their winter store, and 
of certain communications in your paper in regard Btdrvation the result. These are some of the 
to the Sorghum, or Chinese Sugar Cane, I conclude causes * think of my failure in managing bees— 
the remedy is not so easy to find or discover, but 
I am in hopes to get some hints in the Rural from 
more experienced hands. 
at the North. 
Macedon, N. Y., 1868. 
that it has failed to meet the expectations of its 
cultivators in your State. Here, on the contrary, it 
has been a splendid success. Nearly every farmer 
has raised a little, and with the rude, home-made 
wooden mills to grind the cane and the cook-stove 
to boil down the juice, the product has been about 
eight barrels per acre of very fine syrup. Many 
have also made good sugar from it, while others 
have failed in this. We shall expect to export, in 
a few years, sugar and molasses to you, if, indeed, 
the crop cannot be grown in New York.— Hal, Syc¬ 
amore, De Kalb Co., Ill , 1858. 
CEMENT vs. WOODEN WATER-PIPE. 
Eds. Rural:— As your contributors are mostly 
strangers to each other, they should receive state¬ 
ment-, necessarily brief, with charity, until the 
whole of the facts are known. 
L S. Bobbie A Co., mistake the motive for 
comparing a certain pipe to their wooden wa¬ 
ter pipe in its capacity, aud of imperishable ma¬ 
terials. “Of course entirely disinterested,” say 
they, No, interested. Not as inventor and manu¬ 
facturer, but as every farmer should be in the 
health of his family, and comfort of his domestic 
animals. 
I thank T. C. Uetehs for his suggestions in the 
Rural of Oct 23d. I have no intention to “mis¬ 
lead,” no interest at stake, and far be it from me to 
deceive. A good cause needs but truth to sustain it. 
A few years since, wishing to know the cost of 
cement pipe, I made similar inquiries to Mr. 
Peters, and came to a like conclusion—that it was 
too expensive. Bat I have found by nsing both 
tile and cement that a pipe, both efficient, durable, 
and cheap can be made, aud that, too, by any one 
with sufficient common sense to make him a good 
farmer. I have ever guarded against misleading, 
As you like short articles I will close for the 
present, hoping to allude to the subject again in 
another communication, for there is material 
enough for more than one short newspaper article. 
Apiary Cottage, Cat. Co., N. Y., 1858. T. L. 
DOOR-YARD FENCE. 
Eds. Rural: — Permit a subscriber to give, 
through your valuable paper, an answer to Mr! 
E. H. Wright's inquiry concerning the best and 
cheapest door yard fence. 
I have just performed the ceremony of what 
disinterested passers-by (whose judgment in regard 
to beauty and symmetry is beyond question,) call 
a happy union of Mr. Black Iron witn Miss White 
Pine. They are to be supported in future by Old 
Red Cedar, the Father of woods in durability. 
Mr. Wright, here is a description of just the 
fence you want, as well as every other gentleman 
of taste. Take red cedar posts six feet long, four 
by four, and two by four. Bet firmly, eight feet 
apart, and three feet above ground. Spike on the 
top of the posts, strips or rails of two-inch pine 
plank sixteen feet long and three inches wide, so 
as to project one-half inch each side, and beveling 
the edges, on top, one inch back. Space off four 
rods two inches, from centre to centre,—being 
careful to bring the rods which come on the posts 
exactly in the centre — bore with a quarter and 
sixteenth-inch bit. Saw out on the back side of 
the post, eighteen inches from the top, a block two 
inches wide, one and one-half inches deep, to 
receive bottom rail. Saw the bottom rails, from 
sixteen feet plaDk, four inches wide, and notch to 
fit the gain in the posts so as to make a face in 
be better on sandy soil? Also, would an under¬ 
drain prove effectual laid with small hard headp, 
thrown promiscuously in clay subsoil? Is there' 
not danger of its filling? Will some of the readers 
of the Rural antver? Also, Bhould meadows 
with smooth bottoms be broken up when the crop 
begins to fail? Such I discover is the case with 
some of mine, especially in the dryest parts of the 
field, where it is the best plow land. How can it 
be brought to in the most profitable manner when 
your land is sufficiently drained to admit of plow¬ 
ing if neoessary? I have a meadow that was bro 
ken up and reseeded. The first year it cut two tuns 
per acre; second, one and a half; this year, one 
tun per acre. What shall I do with it? It is good 
soil for wheat and corn. p. r. Otis. 
Maple Grove Farm, Erie Co , Ohio, 1858. 
POTATO EXPERIMENT. 
Agricultural Lectures, Ac.—As we frequently 
have letters inquiring for the right persons to 
deliver Addresses and Lectures on Agriculture 
Ac., it has occurred to us that we might be of ser! 
vice to all parties interested by giving a list of 
those who are qualified and willing to act in that 
capacity during the ensuing winter. Therefore" 
if our readers will aid us in this matter by giving 
the addresses of gentlemen prepared to enter the 
arena as lecturers on Rural and kindred subjects 
we will ere long give a list containing the infer! 
mation so often desired by friends connected with 
Ag. Societies and other associations. 
There are among our contributors and cor- 
respondents quite a number of persons admirably 
qualified for lecturing on practical and scientific 
subjects, but we cannot say whether they will 
accept invitations. What say Hon. T. C. Peters 
of Darien, Maj. Brooks of Wyoming, and a score 
of others. We suggest that the two gent'emen 
named be called, for they are eminently capable. 
Cleansing Soils. —An agricultural exchange 
very truly remarks there is no Beason of the year 
when so much can be effected in the way of cleans¬ 
ing the soil from spurious vegetation as in the fall, 
alter the removal of the crops. By scraping the 
soil and removing the rubbish, a vast quantity of 
sends will be removed and destroyed, as well as 
as [ roots, all of which are too commonly permitted, 
in the present lax aud impeifected system, to re¬ 
main to annoy the farmer, and perplex the opera- 
tions of the successive year. Great watchfalnesa is 
required to keep down those vegetables which 
poison and impoverish the soil without returning 
any profit, and no one who cultivates even a rood 
of soil, should Deglect it. A few hours’ labor, and 
a slight expenditure of cash, will, at this season, 
effect more than days of effort in the spring will 
accomplish, even with the most scrupulous care.— 
ADy one who adopts this plan, will at once perceive 
its advantages. 
Eds. Rural:— While on a visit to A. Woolcot, 
Esq., of East Bloomfield, a few days since, he gave 
me the result of a new mode of cultivating pota 
toes, as follows:—Last spring he received from a 
friend one potatoe, having sixteen eyes, which he 
cut into as many pieces, and planted one piece in a 
hill. Each piece grew and threw up one stalk 
only. When the stalks reached three or four 
inches above the ground he put the spade under 
each hill and raised it up so as to let the air under¬ 
neath, and thus left it to grow. After a few days 
new tops began to appear, so that each hill pro¬ 
duced from three to seven stalks as large and 
thrifty as was the first They were cultivated by 
hilling up after the common manner. I assisted 
him in digging and weighing. The product from 
the sixteen eyes, from a common sized potato, was 
ninety-three pounds —one bushel and a half and three 
pounds, large sized for the variety. I believe it 
was of the hind known as Pale Reds-propagated 
by Mr. Goodrich at Utica, in ibis State —each hill 
produced from three to sixteen tubers—the three 
largest potatoes were in one hill where was placed 
the smallest piece of seed, and this hill had but 
three stalks of tops. The yield from each hill was 
large for the amount of seed. The amount of tops 
was larger than the average of hills where four 
times the amount of seed is used. Mr. W. is con¬ 
fident that the raising of the hill and admitting 
air was the means of the large tops—and he has ap¬ 
plied the same process to a part of his ruta bagas 
and tomatoes, which show a much larger growth 
than those that were left to grow after the com¬ 
mon method. Ki H 
Wheatland, N. Y., 1858. 
S7.50 to 8,00. If neighbor “ A” now differs any from 
my opinions, 1 will try and convince him if he will 
bat make me a visit daring the coming plow sea¬ 
son,— B., Alfred Centre. N Y, 1858. 
Prevention Better Than Cure —I saw in the 
Rural of Sept 25tb, an article on breaking heifers, 
which I consider very inhuman, to say theleaBt of 
it. Kindness to the animals under onr care is al¬ 
ways the best I will give you my way of breaking. 
Fasten them by the head so that they can’t get away 
next take up the fore foot on the side that you 
milk-have a strap with a buckle on one end, and 
buckle the foot up tight to the fore-arm, so that 
the heifer can’t get her foot to the ground. Doing 
so, she can’t kick if she trieB, and doeB away with 
the necessity of a man standing, gad in hand, to 
whip and abuse the poor animal. I have practiced 
the above way of breaking heifers for the last ten 
years, and have never known it to fail. As men’s 
wages are high, and timber scarce, I conld not 
afford it. If Mr. 8. D. A. will try the above, he will 
save time, beef, and milk.-J. p„ Huntley, Illinois, 
Oct., 1868. 
Sorghum in Cincinnati —The last issue of the 
Cincinnati Gazette gives an account of the experi¬ 
ments of Col. Warring (a farmer residing a tew 
miles distant from that city,) with the Chinese Su¬ 
gar Cane, the results of which we condense as fol¬ 
lows:—“On the 20th of last May Col. W. planted 
between one and one-half and one and three- 
fourths acres, from which he has finished manu¬ 
facturing syrup, with a yield of 440 gallons. The 
cost of refining and clarifying is about nine cents 
per gallon. With the mill and evaporators used 
by him, (expense $300) and employing two men, 
three boys, and a pair of horses he can readily 
turn out two barrels of syrup daily. The seed he 
feeds to hogs, and considers it valuable for its 
fattening properties; the strippings make excellent 
provender for milch cows, and they eat it with 
avidity. For these two purposes he considers this 
portion of the product fully pays for crushing.” 
The Hog Trade of the West. — The Cincin¬ 
nati Gazette has an article on the prospects of the 
traffic in swine during the ensuing packing season, 
and from the survey of the whole field of produc-' 
tioD, concludes that the increase of Indiana, Illi¬ 
nois, Iowa, Missouri and Tennessee, will, in the 
aggregate, range from fifteen to twenty-five per 
cent, in number without any material decrease or 
increase from last, year in the average weight 
Hogs have passed through the summer in good 
condition. The corn that is now being fed to them 
is of snperior quality — much better than that used 
last year, and the animals promise to come forward 
in good order. The conclusion arrived at may be 
stated in brief, as follows:—1, Very light stocks of 
old products on the 1st of December. 2, An in¬ 
creased consumption in 1859. 3, No material dif¬ 
ference in the average weight as compared with 
last year. 4, An increase in number, in the total 
crop of, say twenty per cent 
Salt for Manubial Uses— We $re glad to 
hear of many experiments going to'test the value 
of salt as a manure. Trusting, as we do, in its 
success, whenever judiciously employed, we would 
recommend more extended experiments, and 
wider list of crops to which it should be applied, 
believing that it will pay, not only on wheat, but 
on grass, corn, potatoes, Ac. In the hands of tho 
rough farmers the question must soon come to a 
decision. 
Many, no doubt, now fully convinced of its value, 
are deterred from its use by the cost of the article! 
By such as are situated near salt works, experi¬ 
ments can be carried on with the “bitterns” or 
refuse salt and lime gathering on the surface of the 
boilers. It costs nothing at the works, aDd large 
quantities can be had on applicaton. The expense 
of transportation would be but trifling anywhere 
along our canals, and we would be glad to learn of 
extensive experiments through its application. 
Apply salt to your orchard, farm, and garden crops 
and report the result — G. W. H., Cortland JV. Y. 
Oct., 1858. 
Cobble-Stone Buildings. —Reading in the Ru¬ 
ral of the 24th of July, an inquiry in regardj to 
cobble-stone buildings, and seeing no reply from 
any one, as I have had some experience during the 
past twelve years, I thought I would give what in¬ 
formation I could, in hopes it might benefit some 
one who may wish to build, especially if they are 
as green as I was when I commenced. Good 
coarse lake sand is the best—any clean sand, how¬ 
ever, will do, after sifting the same as for brick 
mortar. One bushel of slacked lime to three 
bushels of sand, will make good mortar, but I prefer 
more lime, as it will look whiter. It should be 
mixed much stiffer than for other stone woik._A 
Subscriber, Bedford, Mich., 1858. 
Propolis, or Bee-Gi.ue.—I t has been said by 
the greatest Apiarists of this State, that no modern 
writer on bees has been able to detect them in the 
act of gathering this substance, and the reason is! 
as they suppose, because there are so few bees 
gathering it. Near my bees there are a few trees 
cahed the Balm of Gilead, and during the latter 
part of July and the month ef August, I have fre¬ 
quently seen bees perched upon the branches, 
collecting a substance resembling propolis, aDd I 
am pretty well satisfied that it is. The reason they 
do not collect it in the month of June, is because 
the buds of these trees are not formed—the gum 
being on the buds—but in August I have seen it 
so thick, that I could get a teaspoonful in a Bhort 
time. Now, if any one doubts this, they can get a 
few slips of this tree, and set them in a good spot 
a short distance from the bees, and if he does not 
see bees collecting it, then there are no bees, that 
is if he has twenty or more swarms. A person 
having one or two swarms, might not see them in 
the act, as there would be so few collecting it—L. 
A. A spin wall, Ireland's Corners, Alb. Co., N. Y. 
Experiments with Underdrawing.—A fair test 
of the value of underdraining is furnished by the 
Country Gentleman, in some experiments made and 
reported by Mr. Thomas, of Cayuga Co. The land 
was a medium between a heavy clay and a light 
loam; the drains were about three feet deep 
and two rods apart, with tabular tile, two inches 
in diameter—the cost being 40 cents a rod, or $32 
per acre. The crops grown the present year were 
corn and spring wheat, and the increased product 
of each, compared with like crops on the same 
land undrained, would repay the expense of drain¬ 
ing in three years time. VYhat farmer can make a 
better nse of his capital than to expend it in this 
improvement. * 
Cleveland Beef in Good Repute—A late 
issue of the Cleveland Herald says the contracts 
for Beef to supply the British army and navy have 
been made. Proposals for seven thousand tierces 
were advertised for and were awarded as follows: 
Col. N. M. Standart, of Cleveland, three thousand 
tierces; Cragin A Co., of Chicago, five hundred 
tierces, and tbe balance between Adams, of Balti¬ 
more, Albkroer, of Philadelphia, and Dominick, 
of Cincinnati. The prices agreed for the Cleve¬ 
land packed beef are higher than for that packed 
at either of the other cities. The average price is 
£2 less than that of last year. Cleveland thus 
stands at tbe head of the United States in the 
quality of its beef. 
Poultry and Eggs —Fowls like the warm south¬ 
ern aspect, where they can huddle together in the 
sun during the middle of the day. Provide them 
such a place and plenty of food, such as corn, cob- 
meal mixed with scalding water, or hot potatoes, 
with occasional feeds of the flesh of youDg calves, 
plucks of sheep, and constant access to pure water, 
gravel, old mortar, oyster or clam shells, and bones, 
all broken finely, and they will yield eggs in abun¬ 
dance through the cold weather. 
Large Yield —Mr. S N. AllEn, of Greece, in 
this county, produced the past season 281 bushels 
of potatoes from C bushels of seed. Variety, the 
Purple Mercer. The potatoes were cut fine- 
having two to three eyes in a piece—two pieces in 
each hill. Planted about 10th of June, on light, 
sandy soil—part of the ground barley stubble, and 
part clover and timothy sod. Used some six 
loads of barn-yard manure. 
