55o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
August 17 
smaller stables and less manure. That is a strong 
probability. IIow will it affect this farm ? Can it be 
run successfully without manure ? Is there any 
home-grown substitute for it? There is an illustra¬ 
tion of the problems that confront farmers. If they 
wait until the manure supply is cut off before know¬ 
ing what to use in its place, of course, they will lose 
much of their advantage. Now is the time to experi¬ 
ment and learn what to use. Crimson clover promises 
well. At the time of my visit, it was just breaking 
through the ground five days after sowing. If, as 
seems very likely, this clover sown in late July and 
early August will make a heavy growth before frost, 
the manure question will be well on toward settle¬ 
ment. h. w. c. 
THE BEST SIZE FOR A WESTERN FARM. 
WIIAT ACREAGE IS MOST PROFITABLE ? 
^The Questions. 
What is the best-sized farm for the average farmer, one who is 
»ot a specialist, but who grows grain and fat animals, as nine- 
tenths of Western farmers do ? For such a man, what is the most 
economical size of farm ? Ten acres is too small, because there is 
too much waste of capital in teams and tools, and the proprietor 
is not given occupation all the time. One thousand acres is too 
large to be worked from one headquarters, and is usually divided. 
Where is the golden mean where the greatest economy is to be 
secured ? 
The Answers. 
Two Hundred Acres in Southern Illinois. 
A farm of 200 acres would bring best results in 
southern Illinois ; but for fat animals, I would sub¬ 
stitute dairy stock, bred for butter, as our land is too 
high in price to produce beef, with any profit at prices 
prevailing for the past four years. A farm of the 
above size, divided into four fields of about equal size— 
No. 1 for wheat, No. 2 for corn and oats, No. 3 for 
pasture, and No. 4 in clover and Timothy, which could 
be pastured in the fall—could sustain 40 to 50 head of 
dairy stock, and would produce on an average per year, 
1,000 bushels of wheat, and all the feed necessary for 
the cattle and horses, with the exception of bran, which 
must be bought. If the farmer himself is a good 
worker, he would need two hired men theyeararound. 
Hired help is dear in this vicinity, and it does not pay 
to run larger farms. h. c. e. 
St. Clair County, Ill. 
They Use Tools in Northern Illinois. 
The best-sized farm for the average Western farmer 
should be large enough to warrant the purchase of 
the best improved labor-saving machinery. Most 
farm tools have a very short season of usefulness, 
and to derive the greatest benefit from them, they must 
be run to nearly their full capacity. Then, again, it 
should not be so large that two men could not do all 
of the work with a few exceptions ; two men can 
work to better advantage than any other number as 
a rule, and if the farm be proportionately divided into 
pasture, meadow, corn and small grain, there will be 
plenty of employment throughout the year. It should 
not be so large that all coarse fodder can not be fed 
on the farm, even the corn fodder—not on the root, 
but in the barn. Any farm that has the corn husked 
standing, is too large for its operation, even in the 
great corn belt. With the help of the four-horse 
gang plow, harrow and disc pulverizer, the hay loader, 
corn binder and corn husker and shredder, the best¬ 
sized farm should contain about 200 acres, with two 
men to grow the crops during the summer six months, 
and the same two men to manufacture the greater 
part of the same crops into fat and fertilizer during 
the winter six months. dwight herrick. 
Illinois. 
Two 160-A ere Farmers. 
The most economical amount of land to be owned 
by one farmer, depends somewhat on its nearness to 
market; it depends on the man, and, again, it depends 
on its value. It is to be supposed, however, that the 
growing of grain and fat animals, can be successfully 
conducted on the land, which, of course, does not ad¬ 
mit of high-priced land. Under such conditions', the 
average farmer should own 100 acres, 120 of this would 
probably average tillable land, the rest woodland and 
waste. This amount could be worked with two teams, 
one hired man by the year, and one for seven or eight 
months during the summer. Properly worked, such 
a farm should amply provide for the profitable employ¬ 
ment of this help, besides the owner. c. s. 
Nasliotah, Wis. 
All things considered, 1G0 acres is about the size 
farm that the average farmer can work most economi¬ 
cally. There are many things to be done on a farm 
that one man can not do to advantage, and a good 
farmer can find all the work two men can do on* a 
grain and stock farm of 1G0 acres. Hut, as a rule, two 
hired hands are not satisfactory for reasons that the 
older farmers«will understand. With a family of boys 
growing up, a larger farm might be more desirable. 
Corning, la. j, g 
An “ Intensive ” Kansas Farmer. 
When I first came here, 24 years ago, the only crop 
that could be sold to advantage, was corn and its fol¬ 
lowers—fat hogs and cattle ; so Father and I worked 
125 acres of corn, and in order to do this, we neces¬ 
sarily let all other crops, especially the garden, go, 
and we raised corn, to feed hogs, to buy more land, to 
raise more corn, to feed more hogs, etc. As I became 
older, and took up the reins of government, I rented 
1G0 acres, and confined my work to 160 acres, which is 
about right for the average Western farmer, provided 
he is allowed to keep a hired hand. If not, 80 acres is 
large enough. If one had his farm all fenced and 
cross-fenced with Osage orange hedge, and a machine 
drawn by horses to keep it trimmed, and all the im¬ 
proved farm machinery necessary, I think one man 
could successfully work a farm of 160 acres ; but he 
would have to hire help in ha3'ing and harvesting. 
The style of extensive corn farming is fast giving way 
to intensive, diversified farming. By the latter, I wish 
to call attention to just one simple thing, and that is, 
that a dead furrow in the West will not produce any¬ 
thing of value, and by simply running a subsoil plow 
once in the furrow, as much can be raised as on any 
other land. When dead furrows are 40 yards apart, 
there are 11 in a 40-acre field, 80 rods by 80 rods, or 
1 2-9 acre. This means 55 bushels of corn, which at 
25 cents, equals $13.75, or $2.75 more than a subsoil 
plow costs. Mr. Terry goes to great length in his A, 
B, C of Potato Culture, to tell how much trouble he 
went to to avoid a dead furrow, when, by simply 
going through once with the subsoil plow, he would 
have raised the best rows in the dead furrows. He 
also condemns the use of the subsoil plow. On my own 
farm, I raise Short-horn cattle (five cows and one bull), 
150 head of Shropshire sheep, 4 Percheron mares, 10 
Poland-China sows, turkeys and chickens, and for 
crops three acres of potatoes, three of melons, three 
of garden stuff, oats, flax, corn, millet and clover. I 
crate all garden stuff, and supply our local town with 
truck in crates, and save all commission. I kill and 
deliver to other farmers all the increase and culls of 
my sheep, cattle and hogs, am obliged to hire a hand, 
but think that I have intensive farming about down 
to a perfect system. c. j. n. 
Morantown, Kan. 
As They View it in Colorado. 
We have two farms of 1G0 acres each in the irrigated 
district, and one of over 4,000 acres in the Rainbelt or 
unirrigated country^ The size of the farm depends 
altogether on where it is. The size in this State may 
not be the proper size for a farm in one of the adjoin¬ 
ing States. Different parts of this State also require 
different sized farms for the average farmer. In the 
greater part of the farming country of Colorado 
(which is under irrigation), an average farmer owns 
from 80 to 160 acres. This amount will raise him con¬ 
siderable small grain and an abundance of Alfalfa or 
other hay crops. On a farm of 1G0 acres one can keep 
from 30 to 50 cattle (horses and milch cows), have 
some hay to sell besides his grain, enough corn for 
fodder or ensilage, a few potatoes, and some pasture. 
In the unirrigated or Itainbelt country, a farmer 
can make a good living on the same amount of land 
(160 acres) which will keep nicely the year around, 
about 12 to 15 head of stock. Alfalfa and other pro¬ 
ductive grasses requiring an abundance of water, can¬ 
not be grown here, so the farmers depend on corn 
fodder (which does well), oat and rye hay, some wild 
hay, and one of the most nutritious pastures found 
anywhere. The former farm (or place under irriga¬ 
tion) is worth the most, varying in price from $25 to 
$75 an acre. It requires more labor to attend to it on 
account of irrigation, besides a cost of from $100 to 
$200 yearly for water. The latter farm is worth from 
$6 to $12 per acre. It requires less labor and will pro¬ 
duce nearly as much clear profit, one year with 
another, as the former place. A. g. c. 
Elbert, Colo. 
A PAINT SHOP FOR THE FARM. 
WHAT TO KEEP IN IT ; HOW TO USE IT. 
( Concluded .) 
For a first coat on bare wood, or for painting an old 
fence or weatherbeaten barn, a mixture of one-third 
lead and two-thirds gilders' bolted w'hiting, in pure 
oil, tinted to suit, will give a prize-medal paint. Car¬ 
bonates, of course, never wear as well as the oxides. 
White lead and whiting carbonates will “ streak ” or 
fade out, while oxide of iron paints will not; neither 
will oxide of zinc, known as zinc white. But zinc 
oxide will crack or scale, while lead carbonate or lime 
carbonate will not; the plan is to use lead, two parts ; 
zinc, one part. The zinc will harden the lead just 
enough, while the lead will temper the zinc's hard¬ 
ness. For sea air, lead will not answer ; but lead and 
zinc, in the above proportions, will stand. For a 
finishing coat, outside, one-third whiting, the rest 
lead, will wear quite as well * as pure lead. The 
Swedish government gave a prize to the man who dis¬ 
covered that lead and whiting gave a better paint for 
use on ships’ bottoms than lead alone. The old Mis¬ 
sissippi Biver steamboats were formerly painted with 
this mixture, and it was the only thing that stood 
sulphurous smoke and other adverse influences. 
To keep the farm buildings in repair costs no small 
sum ; but the better this is done, the less will the cost 
be. Cheap paints will reduce this cost. If the barn is 
to be painted, do it when other work is not pressing, 
say, in the winter, between the end of corn harvesting 
and March 1. Freezing will not hurt paint, though a 
frosty night air blowing on fresh paint will. The 
paint will thicken, but do not thin it, unless by set¬ 
ting it on the stove. Linseed oil will freeze only at 
18.4 degrees F. below zero. Painting done in cool or 
cold weather has a better chance for long life than 
that done in warm or hot weather, though it is prob¬ 
able that white lead paint will give better results if 
put on in summer ; that is, it seems then less liable to 
form oleate of lead, or lead soap, which is the cause of 
those streaks and of lead-chalking. The most durable 
paint for the barn, however, is one made with oxide 
of iron or ochre for its base. Iron paint and white 
trimmings look well, though an ochre-ycllow trim¬ 
ming i6 prettier and warmer, while iron paint body 
color and tea-green trimming are more aristocratic 
looking. Put on two coats of paint, both somewhat thin 
rather than heavy. Start at the top and work down. 
Never leave off unfinished, but “square up,” so that 
a “lap ” will not show. Mix enough paint at a time 
to do for a coat over the entire job. Have a coal oil 
barrel to mix in, and dip out with a handled dipper. 
Hang the pot of paint to the ladder with an S-shaped 
hook. 
Pine knots in boards need not be treated if oxide of 
iron or any very dark paint be used ; but for ochre or 
other light colors, the knots and all resinous places 
must be coated with shellac. Use cheap brown wyod- 
alcohol shellac on rough work ; one thin coat will 
answer. Let the wood be quite dry before painting ; 
let a new building stand a year. After the first qoat 
is on, let a month pass before applying the seqond 
coat, unless less time must answer—two days will do. 
Putty all nail holes and cracks—a good job of putty¬ 
ing is equal to one coat of paint—putty on top of the 
priming or first coat. 
Ochre varies in its composition, naturally and arti¬ 
ficially. As a rule, ochres contain less than 40 per 
cent of iron ; Oxford ochre gives ferric oxide (iron), 
21 per cent ; Welsh crude ochre, 21 per cent; Irish 
crude, 27 per cent ; Derbyshire crude, 77 per cent ; the 
latter, prepared, 34 per cent; and so on, two from 
France showing 21 and 24 per cent ferric oxide, and 
three from South Australia, 38, 11, and 5 per cent. 
American ochres vary fully as much. The best French 
ochre is costly, too much so for barn painting, hence 
the low-priced Virginia ochres must do. These are 
as “cheap as dirt,” and often much better than the 
lower grades of the French ochres. Genuine Oxford 
ochre is the best in the world, being two-thirds bet¬ 
ter than the French. Pure ochre is very permanent, 
though the light blackens it, under cover. They 
are also often adulterated with clay, which has a 
great affinity for water, unless drowned in oil. Lime 
injures its covering power, as does barytes, also 
Sienna is an ochre, also, composed of ferric oxide, 46 
per cent; water, 18 to 27 percent; manganese (a drier), 
2 per cent, with some silica, alumina, magnesia, etc. 
Our cheap American siennas give good results as pig 
ments, and the sienna color is quite soft and pleasing, 
being a much browner yellow than the ochre proper. 
Sienna and white lead give a very pretty barn or 
house color. Cheap, dry ochres and sienna should be 
bought by the barrel, at a cost of about 1% to 2 cents 
per pound for the former, and about four to six cents 
for the latter. Gilders’ bolted whiting should also be 
bought by the barrel, at about two cents per pound. 
To mix, throw, say, 100 pounds of ochre into an oil 
barrel, and add about three gallons of linseed oil, 
allowing this to stand for a day, to soak. Then break 
up with a long-handled paddle, and add oil sufficient 
to reduce the mixture to a thin cream condition. Add 
no Japan driers until it is in the paint pot, ready to 
use. Ochre and oil are both good natural driers, and 
need very little Japan to assist (say 1-16 as much 
Japan as oil). Never add Japan before being ready to 
use the paint. Iron paint is not a “natural” drier, and 
needs more Japan, especially if used very thin, or the 
weather be damp or cold. In damp weather, ochre 
paint needs more driers, owing to its affinity for mois¬ 
ture. Always stir the paint in the barrel or paint pot 
before using. 
If ready-mixed paints are preferred, and they cer¬ 
tainly save in time and trouble, neither of which, 
however, is a factor if the former is abundant, and 
you wish to learn how to mix paint, be sure to read 
carefully and follow directions on the can, which are 
usually full and explicit, and correct .as to facts. If 
you choose to disregard these willfully, don\ blame 
