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HOW LONG SHALL EODDER BE CUT? 
MOOKE’S BUBAL NEW-YOBKEB 
AN ORIGIN AX. WEEKLY 
AGRICULTURAL, LITERARY AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER. 
Mr. S. Edwards Todd, in the Rural of May 16, 
complains that l “sneered” at his system of cutting 
fodder, tt is evident from his reply, that my criti¬ 
cism affected him deeply, or else he must have had 
the benefit of a Chinese education and been taught 
to regard noise as more potent than argument. He 
says:—“If E. W. S. perceives where my great er¬ 
rors lie it was his duty to blow the abused theory 
higher than gilderoy ever llew,” It is sufficient of 
this to say, that Chinese gongs and kite-flying liter¬ 
ature were never in my line. The subject under 
discussion is important, and it should be approach¬ 
ed with a sincere desire to arrive at the truth, and 
not to vanquish an opponent. 
It, certainly, was uot my object in writing upon 
this subject, to make a point, against Mr. Todd, but, 
to induce farmers to practice that better system of 
preparing dry fodder, which will compensate the 
animal for the los6of its nat ural food—grass 1 saw 
that Mr. T. must be taking them back to the days of 
his youth, when bull-plows aud straw-cutters fed by 
hand were in vogue, since no well constructed 
straw-cutter cau now be found, which cuts two 
inches long, unless made to order for some Rip Van 
Winkle. All the best straw-cutters with revolving 
knives, now made, cut from one-fourth to one inch 
long, aud the constant demand upon manufacturers 
has been for machines to cut shorter, not louger. 
Indeed, a machine with fonr knives on a cylinder of 
common size, cannot be made to feed fast enough 
to cut two inches long, aud if run with two knives, 
would cut no faster two inches long than four 
knives would cut one inch long. It is very doubt¬ 
ful if it pays to cut two inches long. The principal 
advantage is that it prevents animals from wasting 
fodder. Corn was formerly ground very coarse, so 
as to give the animal something to masticate, but 
now the best feeders believe that the finer it is 
ground, the more perfectly does the animal extract 
the nutriment. This constant progress towards ma¬ 
chines of a shorter cut, 3hows where experience 
leads practical men. 
Mr. T. says he has, for sixteen years, fed the straw 
cutter with his own hands — insinuating that I,have 
fed it, as Solomon built the temple, by other hands 
—but I cau assure Mr. T. if that is important to the 
argument, that I have generally fed my own straw- 
cutter without gloves, and sought, through many 
trials, a machine which would perform the best and 
most rapid work. But my experience in catting 
has proved, not that “ an hour or more is required 
to cut ft ton of hay two inches long,” as Mr. T. as¬ 
serts, but that in an hour and a half, a ton of hay 
may he cut one-quarter inch long by a two-horse 
power cutter, and in two and a half hours it cau be 
cut one-eighth inch long. This I tested by the 
watch, and if Mr. T. never saw the feat performed, 
I shall be happy to give him an occular demonstra¬ 
tion. And by increasing the power, the same ma¬ 
chine will cut much faster. To run a two-horse 
power straw-cutter, at full pay, costs about seventy 
cents an hour, aud at this rate it would cost to cut 
a ton of hay one-fourth inch long $1.05, and one- 
eighth inch long $1.75; but the farmer can run his 
own machine twenty-five per cent, less than this. 
Thus fall to the ground the remarkable conse¬ 
quences, which Mr, T. figured up on cutting a ton 
of hay one-eighth inch loDg— “sixteen hours” hard 
labor ! And he exultingly asks, “ Where is the far¬ 
mer who will do that?” 1 answer—no where! un¬ 
less it be an old neighbor of Mr. T.’s who still owns 
that old machine which performed that remarkable 
feat of cutting a tou of hay two inches long in an 
hour! 
Mr. Todd expresses surprise that I should ask 
“ When and where hay or straw had been cut so fine 
that stock swallow without crushing it?” — stating 
that, before ten years old, he had “ often washed the 
droppings of horses fed on cut straw, leaving pieces 
of whole straw.” But is it correct to bier from 
this fact that catting was the cause of its passing 
through w hole ? Has he ever examined the drop¬ 
pings when the animal was fed on uncut hay or 
straw? If so, he has ofteu found pieces of hay or 
straw in the sjune condition, notwithstanding the 
animal must partially masticate it before swallow¬ 
ing. These pieces, of apparently whole straw, had 
been bruised by the teeth, but not sufficiently mas¬ 
ticated to be digested, yet again swelled to the nat¬ 
ural size. I have examined the droppings of my 
horses to see what effect cutting produced, and 
found much less undigested, when cut oue-foarth 
inch than when one inch long, and less when cut 
one inch than when fed nnent, and, leastof all, when 
cut and steamed. These examinations were made 
many times with different animals. But any one 
who will examine the droppings of horses fed on 
oats, will sometimes find oats apparently whole 
and, occasionally, so little changed that they will 
grow. This only 6hows that the oats need grinding 
and the hay mashing to a pulp, or cooking. It, cer¬ 
tainly, does uot show that the hay should be cat 
longer. The improvement yet to be mude is a ma¬ 
chine which will not only cut, but mash the fiber of 
hav and straw. We cannot do too much, in this 
direction, for the good of our animals and the sav¬ 
ing of food. 
13ut the most disingenuous statement made by 
Mr. T. is at the close of his article, where be repre¬ 
sents me as saying “that the val'ue of fodder is in 
proportion to the fineness of division.” The lan¬ 
guage used by me was, “We have cut fodder 
through the whole scale, beginning at an inch and a 
half aud coming down to one-eighth inch, and have 
found, practically, that the benefit is in proportion 
to the fineness of division.” Here, I say, as plainly 
CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOORE, 
With a Corps of Able Associates and Contributors. 
G. F. WILCOX AND A. A. HOPKINS, Associate Editors. 
Hon. HENRY S. RANDALL, LL, D., 
Editor of tlie Deportment of Sheep Husbandry. 
Special Contributors. 
P. BARRY, F. R. ELLIOTT, E. W. STEWART. 
H. T. BROOKS, JOHN E. SWEET, JAMES VICK, 
MRS. MARY J. HOLMES, MRS. L. E. LYMAN. 
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and $8.50 to Europe. The best way to remit is by Draft oj 
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payable to the Publisher may bb mailed at ms bisk. 
WT*AU Business Letters, Contributions, &c., should be 
addressed to Rochester until otherwise announced. 
HINTS FOR THE MONTH 
Cultivating .—This is the most important work of 
the month. It should be begun early, if the weather 
and state of the soil will admit. Break the ernst 
that forms after rains, and destroy the young weeds 
when they first emerge from the earth. We observe 
some farmers recommend using the harrow on corn 
fields even after the corn is up. We have never seen 
thi6 tried, but shonld hardly think it a commenda¬ 
ble practice ; but we have no doubt the harrow 
might often be employed advantageously just before 
Itie coin cornea up, especially if it has been a long 
time planted. A light harrow would probably not 
displace the seed from the hills; the only poiDt to 
be guarded against would be injury to the young 
shoot or plant. Bmall corn is the most difficult to 
cultivate well; as it grows larger the dirt may be 
thrown close to the stalks. Potatoes may be cov¬ 
ered as soon as. they emerge, and they will spring 
up again with renewed vigor in a day or two. 
The Compost Hect }),—The barnyards should be clean¬ 
ed up, and manure collected from every source, and 
piled to foim a top dressing for wheat in the fall. 
When wheat is ns high as at present, the profits of 
the compost heap are large. 
Implements.—Cut the rakes, forks and all harvest¬ 
ing tools ready. Bee that the wagons and racks are 
in repair,.and dean out sheds and barns. 
istacking,—If part of your crops must be secured 
in this way, select the sites and prepare good foun¬ 
dations. Bear in mind the wintering of stock at the 
stacks, and have them near water aud shelter. Much 
shelter from the stacks themselves may he obtained 
by forethought aud judicious arrangements. Stack 
covers ought to be provided as a safeguard against 
storms injuring the grain and bay before the stack 
is finished. Millions of dollars are annually lost to 
the grain growers of the West by careless stacking. 
It don’t pay, 
Pastures. — Btoek revel in fresh, sweet food this 
month. No one complains of short pasture iu June, 
but beware of feeding too close. July and August 
will demand much. Feed clover fields first and let 
the herdsgrass and old pastures accumulate food for 
the dry months. They carry it better than the 
clover. Sow corn in drills for the horses and cows 
in August and September. Plant cabbage for late 
full and early winter feed. Missing hills iu the com 
and potato fields may be set with cabbage. 
Stock need little care this month. See that they 
have plenty of water and salt. It is the best month 
in the entire year for hoises to run to pasture, En¬ 
deavor to improve your stock by breeding to supe¬ 
rior animals. 
Haying will be begun with the clover fields this 
month. Cut clover early, before it is fairly in blos¬ 
som if you intend growing seed afterward. Better 
cut clover too early than too late. Be careful and 
not over dry it. It will bear stacking or putting in 
the mow in£an apparently greener state than either 
red-top or timothy. 
should he kept from seeding. 
Working /loach .—This work properly belongs to 
June. Highways are uot always improved by work¬ 
ing. Hills should not be made higher by turnpiking 
them on the top, nor should sod and mucky earth 
be thrown into the road bed. The best way, in a 
great many localities, is to deepen the ditches, and 
scrape down the road bed smooth and to a bard 
foundation. Turnpike iu hollows. See that the 
bridges over water courses are safe and durable. 
Hoots ,—It is hardly too late to sow beets and car¬ 
rots for stock. If they have not been attended to, 
it will yet pay to devote a piece of choice ground 
to their culture. You want some carrots for the 
t horses in winter time, and the beets for the cows 
next March and April. It is seasonable to sow 
\ turnips. 
F The Hop Yard .—Tying up the viues and tilling 
U the soil is the chief work for this month. Be sure 
L to put the vines on the poles so that their twining 
S' will follow the sun, aud keep them tied up until 
& eight or ten feet high. It is said that plaster dusted 
j, over the vines is the best thiug to use against the 
u hop louse. It shonld be sown freely on their first 
\ appearance. 
It is hardly necessary for us to endeavor to con¬ 
vince American farmers of the utility of a machine 
designed to do, with the aid of one horse and a 
driver, the labor of twenty men in turning and 
spreading grass to facilitate its curing into hay. Its 
advantages are apparent, to every hay maker, and 
the one herewith illustrated is claimed by the man¬ 
ufacturers to be “constructed upon entirely new 
principles, combining all the features requisite to 
make a successful tedder, avoiding the objections 
apparent in others andbaving peculiarities rendering 
it far superior to anything heretofore iu use for the 
purpose, The machiue is mounted upon two wheels, 
and furnished with 16 spring forks, ingeniously at¬ 
tached to a light reel. The forks are made to revolve 
rapidly, and will thus do great execution, even 
while the horse is moving on a slow walk. It is 
impassible to clog the machine, it cau be backed, 
runs noiselessly, and readily passes over any obstruc¬ 
tions that a horse-rake will, without damaging it, 
and without effort on the part of the driver, who 
has no levers or handles to operate, he having 
merely to drive his horse. In 'fact no shill or labor 
is required in operating this mV'hfne, and a boy ten 
years old answers this purpose as well as a man — 
the operator having nothing to do except to sit on 
his seat aud drive his horse with both hands free to 
handle the reins. The movements in operation be¬ 
ing rotary, continuous and uniform, the hay maker 
will never complain that it shakes itself to pieces 
before it is half worn out; while running so very 
light in all its parts, the wear is slight, and the ma¬ 
chine will last many years. 
“One of the strong recommendations of the 
American Hay Tedder is its great ease of draught, it 
being but light work for one horse. In fact the 
draught is by actual test but 150 lbs. in the heaviest 
grass. Another excellent feature is, that it is com¬ 
posed of but few pieces, and those not liable to get 
out of order — so that it may be worked for whole 
seasons without requiring repairs. Its novelty, sim¬ 
plicity, ease of draught , and the admirable manner in 
which it'performs its work, clearly demonstrate it 
to be a perfect hay tedder, it was thoroughly tested 
the past season, and every farmer who has seen these 
machines in the field testifies to their successful op¬ 
eration iu any place where the mower and horse-rake 
can be used to advantage.” 
That the American Hay Tedder is highly approved 
is apparent from the numerous strong testimonials 
receivedTrom large and successful farmers, giving 
evidence of its good performance under varying 
conditions, aud of making large‘pecuniary addition 
to the value of the hay crops on which it was used. 
It is manufactured by the Ames Flow Company, 
Boston, Mass., to whom inquiries for price, or other 
particulars, should be addressed. 
bummer Fallowing .—When the object in view is 
clearing the land of weeds, plowing should he done 
soon as possible. Cultivate or plow as often as the 
weeds start. If the chief end in view is to fertilize 
the soil and prepare for a good crop, it is better to 
defer the plowing until a large growth or vegetable 
matter can be turned under. Then cultivate the 
surface, or sow buckwheat on it, and plow once 
more a couple of weeks before seeding time. If 
buckwheat is sown it will smother weeds and fur¬ 
nish a large bulk of vegetable growth to plow into 
the soil. 
common all over the country. The best way to 
prevent its attacks is to keep the timber greased as 
soon as felled. The time of felliug has nothiug to 
do with it. If you wish further particulars you will 
find an exhaustive article on the subject in the 
fourth number of the now defunct ‘Practical Ento¬ 
mologist.’ My friend Walsh is, however, in error 
in stating in that article that the grab has legs, for 
I have bred many of the beetles this sprmg from 
legless laryie. Harris, on p. 97, gives a fair figure of 
it, and if yon wish further corroboration, turn to p. 
116 of Emmons’ report of the insects of your State.” 
Southern Bush Clover. 
B. D. L., Eatonton, (la., sends ns a sample of 
seed of the Lispcdesa striate or bu&h clover, with the 
following remarks:—“This clover, which made its 
appearance in our section. Middle Georgia, some 
seven or eight years ago, is rapidly spreading over 
all our lauds uot in cultivation. It is called by 
some ‘ shamrock ’ or ‘ trefoil, ’ and some have 
classed it with Darby and Gray (botanists) as the 
Lespedexa striata or bush clover. Where it came 
from none of our farmers cau tell; some say it 
made its appearance in thiB county (Putnam) after 
a severe dry storm seven or eight years ago. It is 
an annual, reproducing itself from the seed, which 
fall as soon as the plant is killed by frost. It is 
very prolific, producing a great many seed; if it 
doe6 not grow but a few inches high it will produce 
plenty of seed to reproduce itself the next spring. 
It resembles lucerne. In rich ground it will grow 
twenty to thirty inches high ; in poor laud, or 
where there iB little soil, it covers the grouud like 
a mat. It comes up early, and grows very fast; by 
coming so early it gets the start df other grasses 
and weeds, and to use a common expression, it is 
1 choking ’ out all other weeds and grass. It is a 
fine renovater of the soil, and easily destroyed by 
being plowed up.” 
Br.one liming, 
J. B., Schuyler Co., N. Y., asks: — “Can one 
make a drain with good flat and round stone and 
have it as durable as tile ou both fiat and side hill 
laud ? How should the throat for the passage of the 
water be laid so it will not till up ? ” 
On side hills, where the fall is very rapid, the 
stone may he throwu in loose, but on nearly level 
land this will not answer, as the ditch will become 
choked. If you have both round and flat stone a 
good way is to lay round stone on each side of the 
ditch at the bottom, leaving a way for the water be¬ 
tween aud cover with flat stone; then fill in the 
ditch with loose ones a foot or so. if you have 
plenty of flat stone dig the ditch rather narrow and 
lean them against the side leaving a triangular open¬ 
ing for the water underneath, and fill in above with 
stone. If stone are plenty and of good shape it will 
probably pay to use them, but we think tile make 
the most durable drains. 
Making Tomato Vinegar. 
In reply to a query on this subject, published in 
our Club recently, Mr. S. H. Kriuelbauoh, Agri¬ 
cultural Editor of “The National Platform,” Des 
Moines, Iowa, writes us as follows:—“In your col 
umns of the 9th May, 1868, I see an inquiry from 
•J. D. T., Norfolk, Va,, concerning tomato vinegar, 
and for his benefit, and all others who may have use 
for it, I here relate my process for manufacturing 
that article: 
“Take oue bushel of ripe tomatoes, wash them 
in an open tub, and add one quart of molasses that 
weighs eleven pounds to the gallon, and thoroughly 
mix the whole together, in which condition let 
the tub stand several days, not neglecting to fre¬ 
quently, stir the mixture in it. YVheu a decided 
vinegar odor is given off, the juice should be 
strained from the pomace and put into casks, and 
let stand uutil the process la completed. Vinegar 
thus made is equal to the best, aud to succeed in its 
manufacture only requires faithfully following out 
these directions.” 
Spring Harrowing Wheat.—Drills. 
E. A. D,, Point Albino, (what State?) writes: 
“ A great deal of winter wheat was killed through 
this section after the snow went off this spring, by 
freezing, and the prevalent chilling east winds. Be¬ 
ing interested in anything that will improve and 
preserve our wheat crop, I should like to learn 
what is the best kind of harrow to use on wheat in 
the spring. Also, what is the best grain drill, and are 
they adapted to working in gravelly or stony land ? ” 
We think our inventors aud manufacturers of 
agricultural Implements ought speedily to give 
wheat growers an implement for cultivating or 
horse-hoeing drilled wheat in the spring. The 
machiue should cover as much ground as the drill. 
This culture is extensively practiced with the best 
results in Great Britain, but we do not know of a 
single machiue of the kind in this country. At our 
fairs we have never seen an implement designed for 
hoeing or cultivating wheat. That this work might 
be done, and with the heat results, no intelligent 
agriculturist will question. Wide drill culture and 
horse-hoeing are the great improvements we need 
for the wheat crop—the great cereal of the country. 
An ordinary, light, forty-tooth burrow we have 
found well adapted to harrowing winter wheat in 
the spring. In regard to drills they work well in 
gravelly land, but fast or very large stone are, of 
course, an impediment. 
Cement for Brick Walls. 
A [Subscriber, Miamiville, Ohio :—“ In answer 
to an inquiry in your paper of April 25 ,1 will say 
that hydraulic cement and sweet milk make ‘a 
good wash for brick work, to prevent it from crum¬ 
bling ’ Mix the cement and milk until the wash is 
about as thick as whitewash, stirring all the time, 
and apply immediately with a brush. Two or three 
coats applied in this way will make a strong, de¬ 
sirable covering for brick, stone or wood. It will 
not scale off if there is no whitewash under it, and 
it ean be painted any color, or striped to imitate 
stonework.” _ 
Sawdust — Gas Lime. 
N.“ 8. H., Woonsocket, asks: —“ Would you rec¬ 
ommend sawdust as bedding for cattle?” How 
much gas house lime should be put upon an acre 
of land V what is the best method of application ?” 
We have frequently advised the use of sawdust 
for bedding stock; it is convenient for that purpose 
and may he turned into excellent manure. We in¬ 
vite some of our Club readers who Have experi¬ 
mented with gas lime to give ns an account thereof. 
We believe the application of this substance to land 
is not always satisfactory. Let our readers enlighten 
one another. _ 
Remedies for Cracked tloof. 
“J. C.,” Cortland Co., N. Y., writes in reply to 
an inquiry:—“Put on a heavy shoe; weld straps 
on the middle of the shoe, aud bring them over the 
central part of the hoof to within half an inch of 
each other. Connect them with a bolt that can be 
screwed up from time to time so as to keep the 
hoof close. Cut the hoof across the crack, in the 
edge of the hair, at least a sixteenth of an inch 
deep, and apply white pine turpentine once a day.” 
Powderposting ot Hickory Timber. 
C. V. Riley, State Entomologist of Missouri, 
criticises a recent statement in the Rural of the 
cause of powderposting of hickory timber. We 
accept the correction ot our statement, although 
the latter was made on the authority of an octo¬ 
genarian friend, an acute and patient observer. 
But bug-ology is an intricate study; there is many 
a mooted question in it,—its doctors ofteu disagree, 
aud its known facts at best are but outposts to the 
vast Unexplored region which lies beyond. Mr. R. 
says:—“ Powderpost of hickory timber is wholly and 
6olely caused by a yellowish white grab—the lame 
of the banded hickory borer, Cerusphorus ductus, 
(Drury.) It is an abominable nuisance, and quite 
