A LARGE DAIRY FARM 
thin, bnt not poor, and was sheared as sheep are 
usually sheared; the time one o'clock, P, M, She is 
a pure Infantado, aired by Mr. Gorby's Hannibal." 
Condensed Correspondence, Items, *fcc 
There are three men in Marion Co., Califor¬ 
nia, who are reputed to have the most exten¬ 
sive dairy farm on this Continent. The farm is 
situated on the coast at a place called Point 
Reyes Braueh, and consists of seventy-one thou¬ 
sand acres of land—ten thousand of which is of 
a character well adapted to the pasturage of 
sheep the year round. They have now nine 
thousand 6 heep on this ground, requiring no 
other care than herding at night time. It is the 
purpose of the proprietors to extend their dairy 
operations up to about four thousand cows. A 
cheese and butter factory competent to manu¬ 
facture the milk of a thousand cows Is already 
completed and others will be added as the stock 
accumulates to render them necessary. It is 
intended, when the whole plan i 3 perfected, to 
devote the milk of a thousand cows to the pro¬ 
duction of cheese, and that of three thousand 
to the article of butter. The capital and labor 
involved in such an enterprize must be of gi¬ 
gantic proportions. 
Sheep Shearing at Clarence. r<. \.—a lover oi 
K ood ehcep, cooked or nncooked-an appreciator of 
fe r 0 od wool, etiieoially in the form or shirts and stock- 
ings—I accepted an invitation to a sheep shearing at 
Col. 11.13. Ransom's in Clarence, Eric Co., N. V,, to 
witness the shearing of some American Merinos be¬ 
longing to W 13. Ransom, son of Col. U., and N*. E. 
Wbeslbr of Middlchiiry, Vt., a reputable dealer In 
blood sheep. Mr. Wheeler’s ewes were two years 
old, in fair condition. The wool was clean, and of 
good qnaillty. 
Carcase 
lb?. 
No. 1,. 66% 
“What About the Price op Wool?"— This is 
a question often asked now-a days, and is one of ab¬ 
sorbing Interest to many of our readers. From what 
wc can learn as to the condition and prospects of the 
marketwe think prices will advance, and that good 
wools, in proper condition, will command fair rates. 
The wools of this State, for example, ought to hrtng ) 
this season, from 50 to 75 or 90 cents, according to 
quality and condition. It is pretty well known that 
eastern wool houses are nearly or quite bare of both 
foreign and domestic wool, there being less on hand 
than at any previous period for several years—and 
foreign wool cannot now be imported for less than 53 
to 55 cents. Another thing to .be considered ie the 
fact that the machinery for manufacturing wool has 
been largely increased — probably doubled —within 
the past five years. It ia estimated that to keep this 
machinery in even moderate operation, a supply of 
ono-third more than all the wool grown in the United 
States will be required, Eastern Wool Circulars ex¬ 
press emprise at the high prices at which the market 
opens at the West, yet we reckon they will he more 
surprised before the close of the season — especially 
as they also report that “manufacturers are still 
quite free purchasers," “trade is good," “prices for 
fleece are well sustained," <fcc., &c. 
Shearing at East Pale?tine. Ohio.— The follow¬ 
ing list will show the result of the public Sheep 
Shearing at East Palestine, Columbiana Co., Ohio, 
May 12th. The fleeces fell short of their weight last 
year, which is said to be the case in general. There 
was a good turn out of those who had no interest in 
the sheep in competition: 
Sex, Age. Wt. of Wt. of 
owner. yra- sheep. fleece. 
lbe, lbs. oz. 
John Taggart,. ..Ram 2 106 19 2 
Robert Taggart,. 3 104 14 8 
A. L. Martin. ‘ ~ Jig 15 
Jeff. Billingsby,. “ ? 113 13 4 
John Taggart. 3 120% 19 11 
Thos. Hamilton. 2 &X 10 4 
A E. Leonard. 2 181 19 10 
r! Chamberlin,. ** 2 91 11 12 
G. W. Jnstison.. ‘ 2 118 16 8 
John Taggart,. 1 81% 9 4 
Joseph hayless,. “ 2 90 16 10 
Win. Harvey.. “ 6 126% 13 13 
Thos. Hamilton,.. “ 1 69 8 2 
Thos. Fftzslmons,. 4 112 15 11 
M H. Bayleaa,. “ 3 107 18 
John Nenn,.?.. “ 3 127 1113 
Jeff, Bllllngsby,. 1 65 10 5 
Joseph Baylesa,.. “ 1 83 15 4 
A. L Martin,... “1 97 16 15 
edited by henry s. 
To Correspondents. —Mr. 11axdall’6 address is Cort¬ 
land Village, Cortland Co., N. Y. All communications 
Intended for this Department, and all Inquiries relating 
to sheep, should be addressed to him as above. 
TRANSPORTATION TO BTATE SHEEP FAIR. 
Those who hold Superintendent's Certificates of 
having taken Sheep to and from the State Sheep Fair 
and receipts for Freight on the N. 1 . Central Railroad, 
are requested to forward them fo A. F. Wilcox, Fay¬ 
etteville, N. Y., for settlement. 
nENRY 8. RANDALL, 
Pree't N. Y. 8. S. B. & W. G. A. 
Fleece. 
Pi 8. OZ. 
10 15 
11 1 
10 9 
10 15 
18 4 
10 
9 15 
MARKETING DOMESTIC WOOL. 
Plan for haring our Domestic Wool brought to Market 
under a proper 8y$ttm. 
Tiik inauguration of such a system can only 
be arrived at when the Wool Growers shall have 
come to the conclusion that “ honesty is the 
best policy," and obtain by it at all times the 
full market value for their wool. Whether they 
will adopt the wiser pluu of shearing their sheep 
in the unwashed state, 
The above ewes had lambs by their sides. 
Mr. Ransom’s ewes and fleeces weighed as follows 
Carcass. Fleece, 
lbs. lba. oz. 
No. 1,. 82 11 
“ 2 . 82 % 12 8 
The Cheese Market.— Accounts from Little 
Falls and 8 t. Johnsville cheese tales for the past 
week, show no considerable variation in prices. 
The stock on hand Is not large, and the early 
made nearly closed out. Factory made cheese 
ranges from 18>£c to 19#c per pound. Private 
dairy products arc lower, ranging from 8 to 14c. 
Tub Cattle Plaoue in the United States! — 
The President and Secretary or the N. Y. State Agri¬ 
cultural Society have just Issued an importantcircm 
lar relative to the appearance of the Riuderpeat in 
this country. From it we take the following an¬ 
nouncement, advice and caution which should be 
heeded by farmers and others:—“ Wc do hereby make 
known the cxifctauce of rinderpest or pleuro pneu¬ 
monia among the cows in the stables of New York 
and Brooklyn, and earnestly advise all purchasers of 
stock to examine those which are ofTered for sale with 
reference to this disease. We also advise that In case 
the disease makes its appearance In any herd, the 
sick animal be Immediately and rigidly separated 
from the rest The period of Incubation of this dis¬ 
ease varies from forty to sixty days. It is well ascer¬ 
tained that this disorder is strictly infectious, as It 
never occurs where the animal has not come into 
contact with the diseased animals. * * The 
meat of animals suffering from plenro pneumonia 
is dangerous when used as human food. It is 
very probable that diseased herds which are now 
being excluded from the city, will be offered for sale 
at very low prices to farmers. This contingency calls 
for additional precautions on the part of purchasers." 
Joseph Bayless,.Ewe 1 49 7 9 
•> “ 1 67 8 5 
Robert Taggart. “ 1 44 8 5 
A. L. Martin, . “ 1 50 19 4 
Thos. Fitzsimons,. “ 4 65 6 12 
A. L. Martin,. “ 2 68 12 9 
[With the above report we received from Mr. A. L, 
Martin a sample of wool taken from the ewe last 
named. Of the ewe Mr. M. says: —“ She was bred 
by myself. Her dam was bred by Mr. Hammond of 
Vt., and was got by his ram ‘ Sweepstakes 1 She was 
got by Mr. John Stapleton's ram ‘Captain’ ol this 
county, bred by Victor Wrioht of Vt., and a half 
brother of Mr. Thomas Gorky's • Hannibal,' of this 
State.” We will forward the sample to Dr. Randall.] 
or continue to wash “ 9,. .73% 14 i% 
them, it is necessary, under either system, that “ 10 ‘. 92 11 
the shearing should be done carefully; the fleece R*u» Bed Jacket weighed 83 lbe., and sheared 1 
should then be skirted, that is, tear off all the lbe - 5 # ot clean ' bcaat1 ^' w0 ° 1 ’ 1 
yellow belly, breech and bead wool, and takeoff t J<wbt whi . Uj ,. r fl , u . oce wllJ bo fouml tha 
any dung-locks then iold up the fleece care- w -y f (ir more a fi@r cleansing, according to tin 
fully, without tying. weight of the sheep (82 lbs.) and by this test fleece* 
Make the wool into three grades, eay: Fine, must be tried. This fleece was long, fine, had a bean 
Medium and Common; pack each by itself; fhl crimp, very thick set, very even, and had jus 
then the skirtings (bellies, breech, head wool, about as much oil as was needed. Will ponderous fleece. 
locks, Ac.,) if there be enough, in a sack by itself, bn so good as to Inform the public what ia the use a 
or, if otherwise, in the end of one of the other ®ore grease than there Is any use In I Rod Jacke 
, . , , , , was from one of the beet flocks in Vt., of pure At 
sacks, and each suck properly marked. The W()(1(1 hloo<L M r. Ransom purchased his ewes of H 
buck fleeces should also be packed separately, F I)EAN V t„ and bred them to “ Little Wrinkly,’ 
audit would be advisable, if 6ueh an arrange- owned in Vt They were two years old and havi 
inent could be made all ovor the country, to lambB by their sides that promise well. Their woo 
pack only a certain number of fleeces (say forty) was clean aud handsome. 
in each sack, whereby the grower, as well as the Mi. Ransom deserves great credit for his onterplsi 
buyer, could easily ascertain the average weight In procuring such fine shuep at so great aa expense 
per fleece. There are few good sheep in his vicinity. Mr. Hah 
The skirting of the fleeces will greatly Improve , - ovr o{ Alden, Mr. Townsend of Pavilion, Mr. Lues 
their appearance, thereby securing a much better of Batavla > and rjlher Prominent sheep breeders wen 
price, and the classifying into grades will save ****%<ouriy enteriamed by Col 
\ / i ® ° , TUnbom, the firstwhit* male child born on the IJollam 
the heavy expense of opening, grading andre- rurcha ^ He opened hU eyea upon a vast and fertile 
packing idler being received in the Eastern region, stocked with wolves and no sheep, and hai 
market; besides preventing the possibility of Rvcd to sec It etockcd with sheep and no wolves, 
the coarse and fine fleeces adhering to each other Yet vigorous and active, what a change he has beheld I 
when being unpacked, leading to the qualities The honors of the house were performed by his wile, 
being more strictly sorted at the factories than a very agreeable lady, as active as a young woman-to 
when all kinds arc packed together. ^ thc lea8t of lt ~ H - T - B - 
I advocate the above system as it has proved 
to lbe satisfaction Of wool growers and manu- S™ep Shearing f Ho^om-Thc wool growers 
. . . . of Richmond, Bristol and Livonia held a sheep shear- 
facturcrs in Silesia and Saxony for qmte a d in noneoye) Ontario 0O ) 0D tho 2l8t of May , 
number of years, they having established the 0 f which the following la a report: 
rule to deduct 10 per cent, from the Fall amount wt . of Ar0 of A(?c of Wt of 
of wool for locks, for which only half price is carcass, sheep, fleece, fleece, 
charged; or, in other words, 5 per cent, dls- Owner. lbs. m. d. Ibs, oz, 
■count on the fall value Of the fleece, ia taken as Gideon Pitts. . . . . . owe, la “ b ’ j 2 
an allowance for locks, no matter whether there fl. H. Goodwin,... “ 66% I8mi5d 13 15 16 6 
mnv be 10 or 15 nor cent of them A. Leach,.ram, Syrs 1120 16 9 
maj Ol iu oi io pu cent, oi tnem. Wm, R, Pitts.ewe, 04 2ym 12 12 2 
Respectfully, Jl. D. Tkllkami'F. A. M. Bccmau,— " 60 lyr2d 12 2 10 5 
„ . . flf Gideon Pitts. “ 76% lyr 12 12 10 
Remarks.—I n our issue of May 5th, we cx- s. d. Short,.ram, 91 lyr 12 13 
pressed our views, very unreservedly, in regard PUtV/.r. 1'.ewo/fi ?yM6d 12 ? 1 Is 
to intentional adulteration ol wool by the admix- JuhnP.Ray,.ram, 77 lamb, 13 15 12 9 
fun- of fureiirn substances —— esneeiiillv where Gideon Pitts,..... B8 10ni 20d 10 20 7 3 
iurt 01 lorugn suosiances espi.ciauy wulil Jo h Gilbert, , ** 113 12m 20d 12 20 17 
such adulterations arc concealed, or so far put J. c. short,... “ ' 
out of sight as to escape ordinary inspection. vFm* Trimmer 
All this we thoroughly detest. But Mr. Tell- Wesley Kay,..’ 
kamtp asks more. He asks growers to put their j^'^hort 18 ’ 
wooliu the extra condition in which it is sold s! D. Short]...! 
in the markets of Europe. We are quite ready w ; m R Vitta 
to give him a hearing, because we esteem him Gedcon Pitts,’, 
an honorable wool merchant, who would ho Aiden AdmnB,....rain,105 
glad to introduce reforms in our whole system J. C. Short,’..!!.!. “ 72 
of marketing wool. But until the buyers first, pj^celi &*luff ll0P ’ “ 105 
learn that “honesty is tho best policy "—until 
they are viillinf/ to make the price correspond with 
the condition of the article —vie apprehend it will 
he quite In vain for him, or any other person, to 
uxrgc growers to skirt their fleeces, classify them, 
or take any other measures to put them above 
the usual fair marketable condition. Tbc&e things 
will do in “Silesia and Saxouy.” Why? Be¬ 
cause in those countries a just discrimination is 
made in price between wools so prepared for 
market aud those pul up in inferior condition. 
But let the American grower do what Mr. Teli<- 
kampf recommends, and what would he his re¬ 
ward ? The agent buying on commission would 
eay to him: “Sir, your wool is in excellent 
condition —you deserve much credit —but I 
am only authorized to pay so much for any 
wool, and cannot exceed my instructions." 
The local speculator would give no more, on 
county wools can be 
Butter and lard should not be kept In the 
same apartment with kerosene, as all fats read¬ 
ily absorb and retain odors, and the fine aroma 
of butter may thus be seriously injured. 
Hogs as Workers. 
Every one on a farm must have noticed 
that hogs, during the spring months, are very 
industrious in rooting up the ground and ex¬ 
tracting therefrom various kinds of roots. An 
especial favorite la the poke root, which is dug 
up aud eaten with great avidity. In thia case 
the hog becomes a useful laborer and would de¬ 
serve unqualitted commendation, but for a pro¬ 
pensity to root in thc wrong place sometimes. 
In overturning and mixing up compost heaps 
they are very dilligent, and, when their labors 
arc restricted to the proper localities, they are 
highly beneficial. 
CHEESE-MAKING-CHESHIRE METHOD, 
There is, perhaps, little substantial difference 
in the mode of making chccBe here and in Eng¬ 
land, still a few remarks about the Cheshire 
mode of proceeding may not be out of place. 
The cows are not turned out to graze, bnt are 
fed and cured for in their stalls, and milked there. 
This is done twice a day with much uniformity, 
at 5 A. M. and 5 P. M. The cheese is always 
made In the morning, lienee the evening’s milk¬ 
ing, which is placed in pans or coolers during 
the night, will require skimming before beiug 
mixed with the warm milk of lbe morning. 
When the cream iB removed from the night’s 
milk about half of the latter is warmed to a 
temperature of 100 degrees, and added to the 
balance of the cold milk. To this is then added 
the new milking of tho morning and the whole 
well stirred about in the cheese tub. The cream 
Is then mixed with warm milk and poured into 
the cheese tub and the whole sufficiently agitated 
to render the solution of a uniform character, 
while its temperature is raised to about 85 de¬ 
grees. The anuato, or coloring matter, if an 3 ' 
is used, is mixed with the milk before the rennet 
is added to it. A half au ounce is deemed suf¬ 
ficient to color a seventy pound cheese. The 
rennet Is now added, when the milk is left un¬ 
disturbed till coagulation takes place. 
When the curd is thus formed, it is broken up 
and then allowed to stand about a quarter of an 
hour. It is then pressed down with a pan, forc¬ 
ing thc whey into the latter till a large portion 
of the liquid is removed. Again the curd is 
broken by the hand, a breaker or curd mill, and 
allowed to settle into a mass by the removal of 
another portion of the whey aud the gathering 
of the curd to one side of the cheese tub, when 
a considerable weight is placed upon it. The 
whey, thus forced out, is also removed and more 
weight added till the mass become compara¬ 
tively dry. Again it is broken up and renewed, 
and greater pressure employed for about six- 
hours. The curd is then cut into small sections 
or cubes and seasoned—a pound of salt for 
every forty pounds of curd. The mass, thus 
manipulated, is ready for the cheese cloth, hoop 
and the press. The pi-eesure applied should be 
sufficient to start the whey freely and be increas¬ 
ed by degrees as circumstances require. Skew¬ 
ering the cheese is sometimes practiced to give 
a more rapid and perfect egress to the whey. 
The cheese wiLl be formed iu about six hours, 
when it is taken from the hoop and the edges 
paired off. These pairings are sometimes re¬ 
turned to the mass by making an incision in it 
and inserting them therein. 
Willow Raising.— Mr. Z. Bused of N. U., an in¬ 
telligent, practical farmer, and formerly an agricultu¬ 
ral editor, gives the Boston Advertiser au interesting 
letter from Watcrbtiry, Vt,, on thc subject of Willow 
Raising and Peeling in that locality. After speaking 
of a machine for peeling willow*, Invented by Geo. 
J. Colby of Waterbnry, and the profits of willow 
growing, Mr. B. adds:—“Willow raising Is to be an 
Important branch of our national farming. 1 say 
what I do, advisedly, and as an agricultural man look¬ 
ing to the advancement of our agricultural interests. 
I have raised willows at the rule of S tons to thc 
acre, which now would he worth $200. The drawback 
is In peeling. Mr. Colhy has once offered $10,000 for 
thc best willow peeler invented within three years 
after date of offer. This shows of wbivt importance 
he, as an old willow raiser, considers the subject. 
Thou-finds of acres of what is now worthless land, 
producing no available crop, might be converted Into 
willow plantations, giving a net income of $50 per 
acre. Shall this interest then be disregarded, or shall 
it be fostered aud be ‘kept before the people?’ ” 
A Change of Products. 
At a recent Convention of farmers held in 
Illinois, one gentleman proposed a change from 
grain growing to that of wool. As a reason for 
thi 6 he stated that one season he sent forward 
to the Eastern market, by way of Chicago, a lot 
of corn which, when sold, brought less than thc 
expenses of storage and transportation by the 
sum of $27,00. lie then changed from corn to 
wool and sent forward the year’s product, for 
which he received $9,800, while the expenses of 
transportation were only $392. The freight on 
the same value in corn would have been $3,000, 
Here was a large gain certainly, by a change ol 
products,—but the question naturally arises 
whether, if tbi 6 transition from one product to 
auother, were to become general among farmers, 
the wool business would not be over-done in its 
turn, rendering another change necessary. 
Gates in Chickens,—(L.) In answer to ytmr in¬ 
quiry we can give no better remedy or preventive for 
gapes In chickens than the following from Mr. Be- 
ment: — Strip the vane from a small quill feather, 
except half an inch from its extremity; this should 
then be dipped In spirits of turpentine; and the 
chicken being securely bold by an assistant, the feath¬ 
er so prepared is passed ueatly down through, the 
small opening of the windpipe, which Is readily seen 
at the base of thc tongue, and giving it one or two 
turns will generally bring up and destroy tho worms. 
The turpentine at once kills the worms, and lte ap- 
llcatlon excites a fit of coughing, during which those 
that were left by the feather are expelk l. This mode 
of application requires some dex; uny, aud at times 
the irritation proves fatal. We therefore suggest the 
shutting up of tho chickens in a box with some 
shavings dipped in spirits of tuip mine, when the 
vapor arising from the extended saitfice produces, in 
most cases, an equally beneficial result. Creosote, 
used in the same manner, has been found most extra¬ 
ordinarily efficacious. 
ewe, 
rum, 
Will Tell of It. 
The editor of the Farmers’ Pearl, (Mo.,) in 
lecturing his patrons, for certain short comings 
in their farming practices, gives a portion of 
them this w-arning:—“ We intend soon to make 
a trip out among the farmers of Missouri, and 
where we boo the house, barn, barnyard, and 
pig 6 ty, all in one yard w-e will tell of it. Where 
we find the gate swinging open for want of a 
latch, or leaning against the fence for want of 
hinges, or the barn door full ol rails for want of 
a door, or the fence torn down whenever there 
is a team to be driven in or out of the yard, or 
field, we will tell of it. Where we find pigs 
rooting up the garden, the sheep and rabbits 
barking the orchard, or the cattle or horses 
turned in to browse upon it, we will speak of 
it. Where we see your farming tools laying out 
all winter to rot and rust, and your wagon not 
run under the shed, when you have a shed to 
put it in, we will speak of it. It is not right." 
Tuscarawas Co. Sheep Shearing. — Report of a 
public shearing held on the Tuscarawas Co., Ohio, 
Fair Grounds, May 8,1866. 
Wt. of Wt. of Wt.of 
owner. Sex. Age, carcass, fleece, carcass to 
lbs. oz. lbs. oz. 1 lb, wool. 
J. B. Deardorff. .E 2 76 12 10 10 7 1-6 
W. C. Deardorff, E 4 80 11 2 7 1-5 
“ E 1 65 8 7 2 7 2 3 
“ E 4 69 8 9 9 7 2-9 
w “ E* 1 -12 8 10 8 4 
J.B. Deardorff,..E 2 61 8 3 7 1-2 
»> “ E 2 65 4 9 0 6 7-9 
n “ R 1 93 10 8 8 9-10 
C. Slingluff,.R 1 67 8 8 12 7 2-3 
J. Waddington, E 1 44 7 4 6 
i* “ R 2 80 12 11 7 7 
J. Watkins.E 1 40 8 8 2 6 
« “ E 3 S3 12 7 3 11 3-7 
T. Nelson.E 2 63 12 9 10 7 2-9 
*• E 2 70 12 9 2 7 2-8 
«i E 2 82 4 9 12 8 1-2 
H. Moshier,.E 1 43 4 6 11 6 1-2 
“ E 1 42 4 7 6 
“ E 3 72 12 9 15 7 1-3 
J. Deis.R 4 132 8 16 7 8 1-16 
Geo. Riker,.E 1 56 12 9 14 5 2-9 
»> E 1 61 12 9 11 6 1-3 
John Coventry, .E 1 47 9 5 5 
'• “ E 1 67 12 5 8 12 1-3 
“ “ E 1 47 12 8 4 5 3 4 
“ “ R 1 60 12 4 10 11 
“ “ R 1 61 4 4 14 8-8 
Slingluff & Lewis R 1 67 11 6 
“ “ R 4 110 4 17 9 7 
J. Heagle,..R 1 102 4 13 7 7 2-3 
W. Page.R 1 51 8 14 5 3-4 
J. Carton. H 4 117 12 14 1 10 1-2 
AVm. Warford, E 2 57 8 10 2 6 3 5 
p. Dels,.E 1 70 4 11 15 5 7-8 
A. F. Olivin,_R 2 94 10 15 8 1-2 
I. Swyhart.R 3 93 13 8 7 
S. Holmes,.E 3 86 8 10 4 8 3-7 
W B. Gray..It 2 82 10 9 7 4 5 
G. B, Deardorff.R 3 lot 8 1313 7 1-3 
J J. M’Goy.E 1 53 4 11 15 4 1-2 
R. Evens.'_K 3 118 12 14 10 8 1-9 
N. Swearinger, .R S 129 12 10 13 7 3-7 
J. Patterson,.E 4 86 4 5 8 15 3-5 
•• E 4 82 5 1 16 1-3 
Moffit&MatheaeR 105% 15 4 C 3 4 
* Suckled lamb. 
The undersigned Committee being appointed to 
weigh carcasB and wool, at Tuscarawas Co. sheariiig i 
beg leave to report the above as being correct. 
Dr. McPherson, 
J. Walton, 
Dr. J, Slimgloit. 
Committee. 
The above report is sent ns by Mr. W. Ueardortf 
of Canal Dover, who calls our attention to the year¬ 
ling ewe marked *, and adds —"If yon can find a 
greater percentage of wool to weight of carcass, I 
1 should like to see it reported. The condition was 
Vermont Farmer. — The Vermont Record, an ex¬ 
cellent weekly published byD. L. Wilukbn, Brattle- 
boro, Vt., has recently been changed from a 16-page 
quarto to an 8-page double quarto (about the size 
of the Rural,) aud part of the paper is now devoted 
to Agriculture under the heading of Vermont Farmer, 
with this affix to the title—“Vermont is the Leading 
Agricultural State iu New England, producing the 
most Horses, Sheep, Cattle, Butter, Cheese, Wheat, 
Oats, Hay, Hops, Wool aud Maple Sugar.” The por¬ 
tion of the paper thus devoted to Agriculture Is well 
filled, and we wish the combined Record and Farmer 
augmented prosperity. $3 a year. 
Ox Yokes. 
A farmer recently asked through the col¬ 
umns of the Country Gentleman for directions 
how to make a good ox yoke of a medium size. 
An answer was given through the same medium 
to this effect : The yoke should be four feet four 
inches long — the sweep in the center being up¬ 
ward instead of downward as in ttie common 
ox yoke. The staple to pass through this cen¬ 
ter sweep horizontally instead of vertically — 
throwing the pressure of the draft upon tha 
top of the neck and shoulders of the ox instead 
of the wind pipe, as the downward sweep of 
the yoke and a vertical insertion of thc staple 
tend to do. Wc have never seen a yoke made 
as proposed, but the principle of construction 
seems to be the true one. For logging and tim¬ 
ber purposes, however, we think that a consid¬ 
erable dimunition in the length of the yoke 
would be an improvement. For quickly repeat¬ 
ed heavy daft6 with a chain, as in clearing new 
land and moving timber, the oxen should not 
be widely sundered by the yoke as they derive 
greater steadiness when their bodies closely ap¬ 
proximate each other. For plowing or draw¬ 
ing the cart or wagon the long yoke is certainly 
the best The horizontal insertion of the staple 
into the yoke, seems philosophically correct, 
and no doubt will prove to be 60 in practice. 
the ground that 
sold for only so much in market." Both 
agent and speculator would give their highest 
price for unskirted and unclassified wools. 
What then is the holder of skirted, &c., 
wools to do if he refuses to sell at the same 
price ? He knows if all the clip is bought out 
of the neighborhood but his own, the local 
agent’s accounts with his employer closed, and 
the local speculators stopped buying, that it 
will not pay any new buyer to come after his 
separate lot, and that therefore there is a strong 
chance of his being compelled to keep it thro’ 
the year. And what better can he expect the 
next year? One resource would indeed remain. 
He could forward his clip to tho city market. 
But we ask in all candor, it any holder of a small 
or ordiuary sized lot ol' wool ever found it any 
more profitable to send it separately to market 
on his own account, than to sell it even to local 
agents or speculators 
We wish to submit a respectful proposition to 
Mr. Tellkamff and others who think as he 
does. Continue your missionary labors, gentle¬ 
men, but first introduce your proposed reforms 
at horn, among the buyers. Make it remunera¬ 
tive to put wools in extra condition, and then 
you can with good grace nrge sellers to put 
them iu that condition. 
Buckwheat for the Hop Louse.— T saw in a Chi¬ 
cago paper that by sowing buckwheat among hops it 
would use up the lice, which almost entirely destroyed 
the hop crop of this section last season. Please tell 
ns through the Rural what you know about it.—H. 
A. Grover, Mo. Cohocton, Hleuben Co., N. Y. 
We know nothing about it. Do any of our corres¬ 
pondents ? If buckwheat sown in the yard is a rem¬ 
edy for the hop-louse it would be worth a great deal 
to have the information disseminated. But we do 
not believe such is the case. 
CUTTING GRASS FOR MILCH COWS, 
Mr. Scott, a highly successful dairyman of 
Vermont, bus all his hay in thc barn by the first 
of July. Mr. Lewis, a prominent dairyman of 
Herkimer county, fully endorses thc practice of 
Mr. Scott. He said, on a late occasion, that he 
had demonstrated from actual experiment that 
such hay was iu every way better for milch cqwb 
thau hay, as ordinarily harvested, aud au addi¬ 
tional feed of meal. Indian meal was bad in its 
effects. He had formerly fed it, and its use had 
aiways given more or less trouble with 6 tock. 
It was a iruiU'ul source of garget and other in¬ 
flammatory diseases. Since he had abandoned 
the use of grain and depended upon the hay 
made from early cut grass, nicely cured, his eaU 
tie had escaped the various troubles to which 
t hey were subject on the other course of treat¬ 
ment, and their condition as to flesh was all that 
could be desired. He thought farmers in time 
would come to see the advantages of securing 
hay of this character, since it approximated very 
nearly t o grass in pastures, and contained all the 
elements for the development of milk, flesh 
aud muscle in connection with a high degree 
of health. 
Killing Alders.— (W. U. N.) Some people believe 
there is a particular day in summer wheu if alders or 
other shrubs or weeds are cut they will invariably be 
killed. You may notice, however, that the believers 
iu this theory have plenty of these pests on their 
; nor can they ever tell their neighbors 
premises 
when to cut and surely destroy the weeds. So you 
may conclude it ia a humbug. Perhaps you will find 
on auother page the information you desire about the 
horse pitchfork.^_ ^ _ 
Ohio State Fair.— it has been decided to hold the 
Annual State Fair of Ohio at Dayton, commencing 
on the 26th of September and ending on the 28th. 
Dayton ie a thriving city, in the Miami Valley, con¬ 
taining a population ol' ahout thirty thousand. 
Tanning Skins.— A. W. O. wishes some one to 
inform him through the Rural hew to tan dry hides 
with the fur on. 
