* 
lirirg fmslmnbrii. 
X. A. WILLARD, A. M , EDITOR, 
Or Iitiu Itujf, JUnKiui.n Coumtt, New Your. 
TEF, DAIRY 
In St. Lawrence County, N. V. 
During a recent visit to St. Lawrence 
county we found that, crops generally have 
been unusually large thin season. With the 
grain crops, corn excepted, there has been a 
more than average yield, and the warm 
weather in September bus resulted in bring¬ 
ing corn forward so that a much better crop 
will be harvested than was anticipated. The 
estinme given by farmers whom we met at 
the fairs, was that corn in St. Lawrence 
would give more than half the usual yield, 
while in some localities the falling o/F 
would be no more than a quarter or a third 
of an average crop. The oat crop has been 
very heavy and the grain excellent in quality. 
Tiie crop of hay has been exceedingly large, 
pasturage has been abundant throughout the 
entire season. The yield of both butter and 
cheese in this county will be much more 
than an average. The lands of the county 
are well adapted to dairying, affording sweet 
and nutritious herbage, with no lack of 
springe and streams of living water. 
St. Lawrence was formerly largely en¬ 
gaged in butter-dairying, and largo quanti¬ 
ties of butter continue to be made. Still 
cheese dairying of late lias made largo in¬ 
roads into the butter sections, and the two 
products are becoming more equalized. Lat¬ 
ter dailies, we Avcre told, have still the as¬ 
cendency, but as to the relative proportion 
of the butter and cheese dairies, or the 
number of cows in the aggregate employed 
for each, we were not informed. 
There are at present some eighteen or 
twenty cheese factories in the county. The 
number of cows from which milk is de¬ 
livered at these establishments varies in 
different localities from four hundred to one 
thousand. Soma of tho largest factories 
take tho milk of over 1,200 cows. At the 
Gouvcmour Towui Fair there was a large 
and excellent disalav of dairy products. 
Indeed there was more cheese and butter on 
exhibition than ia usually shown at our 
State fairs. We made a careful examination 
of the samples, both of butter and cheese 
shown, and were well pleased to find them of 
suoh good quality. Borne of the factory- 
make was perfect in flavor, and one sample 
of farm-dairy, for solidity and flavor, was 
really “ gill-edged." We regret that we are 
unable at this moment to recall the names 
of exhibitors in this department, as wo 
should have been glad to have made favora¬ 
ble mention of some whose samples of but¬ 
ter and eheete merited mere than a passing 
notice. 
We saw here, at the Convenient' Fair, a 
somewhat novel inveution in the cheese 
line—■" The combined paper cheese box and 
bandage.'” Tills device was exhibited by 
Sir. A. SI. CrLEV, Watertown, N. Y., and 
consists of heavy paper board formed into a 
hoop with a narrow edging of cloth at top 
and bottom. This hoop is to he placed on 
the cheese as it conies from the press, the 
cloth edgings lapping over the corners of the 
cheese like an ordinary bandage. It Is to 
remain on the cheese in lieu of bandage un- , 
til such time ns the cheese is fit for market, ^ 
when 1.ha covers are to be adjusted and the ( 
cheese shipped, thus serving as box and , 
bandage. Several samples of cheese cured in 
those hoops or boxes were on exhibition, and 
were of excellent flavor. . 
It is claimed there Is less loss of weight in “ 
cheese cured In the paper hoop, the cost of 
bandage 1-3 saved, less labor in taking care of f 
checso while curing, an I that there is a sav¬ 
ing in freight over tll| ordinary wooden 1 
boxes. The box appeared to be substantially 
made and covered on the outside with a l 
waterproof coating, but whether they will 
stand a sea voyage so its to ship cheese lu - 
good order abroad, remains to be tested. It 
is evident the time is not fur distant when • 
some material must be substituted for wood 1 
for cheese-packages, since tho timber for ] 
hoops is becoming scarce, especially in the 
central dairy region of New York. 
Considerable attention is now being given ; 
in St. Lawrence to the breeding of dairy , 
stock. The exhiluiun of stock, both at the , 
Gouvcrneur Fair and at the County Fair at 
Canton, was large and excellent, embracing 
thorough-bred Ayrshire?, Short-Horns and 1 
Aldcrneys, and their grades. There were ] 
one hundred and eixty-three head of neat 
stock on the grounds at Oouverueur, and as ! 
many, or perhaps more, at tho county fair. 1 
Mr. Morgan of Qgdcmbtirg made a good . 
show of thorough-bred Ayrshires at both ex- ; 
hibitlons. His herd is doing good service 
for St. Lawrence, and grades of this breed 
are becoming quite common in tho county. 
At the County Fair. , 
Arriving at the grounds only on the last 
day of tho fair, when a portion of the stock 1 
had been removed, we missed seeing stock i 
from the herd of T. L. Harris, Esq., of Mor- - 
ley, and also that of other breeders, which had 
been on exhibition. We saw enough, how¬ 
ever, to convince us that St. Lawrence is 
determined not to bo behind any county in 
the State for good, useful stock, and that, 
With a soil peculiarly adapted to the dairy, 
she is to be one of the leading counties of the 
State, both as to quality and quantity of 
dairy products. 
That farmers in this county arc progres¬ 
sive, is very plainly indicated by the im¬ 
mense gatherings of people at their fairs and 
the excellence of their exhibitions. 
-#-*-♦-- 
FROM MAJOR H. T. BROOKS. 
Tlic Dairy in Allegany and Wyoming 
Counties. 
X. A. Willard, Esq.: — I have long in¬ 
tended to thank you for aid and comfort 
rendered to the great dairy interest, and to 
express my hearty sympathy in all efforts to 
extend and improve this branch of industry. 
Experience and experiment must determine 
what our several localities are adapted to. 
Success depends upon doing the right thing 
in the right way, at the right time, in the 
right place. 
New York seems to be the place for mak¬ 
ing but ter and cheese. The country about 
Rochester is distinguished for grain and fruit; 
the rest of the State, with its showers and 
dews, pure water, and fresh, sweet feed, an¬ 
swers the description of a good dairy coun¬ 
try, while the warmer and drier Southern 
and Western latitudes do not. 
There has been great apprehension that 
the butter and cheese markets of the world 
would bo overloaded by productions stimu¬ 
lated by high prices; hut this year’s experi¬ 
ence seems to afford evidence that the demand 
will continue to cover the supply. At any 
rate, it seems evident that the good dairy re¬ 
gions, as compared with the rest of the world, 
and good dairy people, as compared with 
“ tho rest of mankind,” are so small and so 
few, ns to prevent, in tlic main, over-produc¬ 
tion of a superior article. 
Sheep can bo fed and shorn by a semi- 
barbarous people, in semi-tropical climes, 
and their wool sold to the great damage of 
our friend Geodes’ fine-wool flock; but bar¬ 
barians ain’t agoing to cut your Little Falls 
folk9 out of their butter trade at the Astor 
House and the Metropolitan. 
Illinois may undersell the Genesee Valley 
in corn, and run down the price; but, till the 
face of that country changes, Illinois will 
not drive Orange county butter out of the 
market. 
I am satisfied that there is no branch of 
New York fanning that will suffer less from 
outside competition than dairying, and hence, 
where tho locality favors it, nothing, in the 
long run, win pay better. 
It Is of immeasurable importance that 
dairymen make the most of their natural ad¬ 
vantages, and enter the markets of the world 
with butler and cheese as perfect as the art 
of man can create. Nothing pays as well as 
the extra care Unit secures the best article, 
and establishes the best reputation. It takes 
a great many pounds of hay and grass, and 
a great deal of milking, to make up tho 
money that is lost by a little dirt and acidity, 
A recent journey through Allegany and 
Wyoming counties surprised me by tlic ex¬ 
tent of the dairy business. Cans and milk 
wagons lined the roads, and there were two 
cheese factories to one tavern, which, not bo- 
ing dry, greatly delighted me. Seeing a 
huge new building at Black Creek, Allegany 
Co., I went in, and meeting Mr. Josepii 
Tnc ax he showed me a splendid array of 
fine looking cheese. lie is President, and 
salesman, and informed me that he had sold 
Sept. 4th all that were ready for market at 
fifteen and n quarter cents per pound, while 
several previous sales had been made at 
twenty cents and over. lie informed me 
that there was a growing confidence in the 
dairy business, a disposition to enlarge, and 
a higher appreciation of the factory system. 
This faetory sends its wagon9 round ami 
gathers up the milk of four hundred and 
fifty cows, the expense of gathering being a 
general charge on all the patrons, so that 
those near by fare no better than others more 
remote. 
I next called at the Oramcl factory, owned 
and run very successfully by G. W. Ste¬ 
phens, a very intelligent Yankee, who set¬ 
tled here a few years ago. n« has greatly 
benefited this neighborhood by investing 
liis capital in the cheese factory and opening 
to his neighbors an easier way of making 
money. Many men of means might, in their 
respective neighborhoods, do the same, and 
like him they should insure success by em¬ 
ploying cheese makers'of superior skill and 
integrity. 
From a summary in the Wcllsville Free 
Press I learn that there are about twenty- 
five factories in Allegany county that will 
make the present year 2,000,000 pounds of 
cheese worth ntlcast $300,000; and the value 
of butter shipped from this county exceeds 
that of the cheese. 
In Wyoming county I called at the Lilli- 
bridge factory, Pike, and at tlic Empire fac¬ 
tory, East Pike. Both these factories are 
well managed and are doing well. They set 
their milk at night and skim it in the morn¬ 
ing, making a very superior article of butter; 
the morning milk is not skimmed, and the 
cheese sells for nearly as much as other 
cheese, being well adapted to a Southern 
market, ami suiting some tastes about as 
well as the richer Cheese. They realize so 
far as much or more from their milk than do 
those who pursue the other method. 
Mr. Parker, an enterprising patron of the 
Empire factory, speaks highly of their suc¬ 
cess, and believes that this section is destined 
to grow rich out of the dairy business. 
In Gainesville I callcd.at the Oatka facto¬ 
ry, owned and run by Ira Pap.kep. & Son. 
It is very successful, though a small factory, 
and shows that the factory system works 
well, even where only five or six cheese can 
be made in a day. 
It may he a very good thing for the -women 
to Tote, but suffrage can hardly be worth as 
much to our female brethren as butter and 
cheese factories. Machinery having done 
little for housekeeping, it is a glorious era 
that lightens tho endless cares and per¬ 
plexities of the kitchen by withdrawing 
the dairy. 
The factory system creates a demand for 
honesty and fair dealing. It teaches the 
great lesson of fraternity, co-operation and 
oneness of interests. 
I was more than delighted on being as¬ 
sured, when I reached Warsaw, the enter¬ 
prising county seat of Wyoming, that the 
dairy interest is eminently prosperous in this 
county. Mr. Lewis, son of TurMAN Lewis, 
one of the pioneer dairymen of Western 
New York, who did much years ago to es¬ 
tablish the high reputation of " Orangeville 
cheese,” and the large produce firm of Bris¬ 
tol & Hibbard assure me that butter and 
cheese making in Wyoming county is a great 
success, and the business constantly enlarg¬ 
ing. Canada cows are purchased here largely, 
and give good satisfaction. Feed is good, hay 
abundant, and the dairy produce in Western 
New York must considerably exceed that of 
last year. Hugh T. Brooks. 
<pe Ijcrhsmatr, 
ABORTION IN COWS. 
“ W,” in Rural, October 9, holds to an 
early drying in cows to prevent abortion. 
His ground seems well taken; but, unfor¬ 
tunately, there is one serious objection: 
there are cows that, give milk the year round 
—we have them ourself—yet they never 
abort; while there are those that go dry 
throe numtli9, and slink the calf. 
There is no difference to speak of in the va¬ 
rious dairies iu and outof the infected districts 
with respect to this matter. In most dairies 
there are some cows that run near to the 
calving time, and others a month or two re¬ 
moved, and frequently more. Yet these 
cows are all alike attacked in the infected 
districts, and exempt in the rest. 
The thousand and one reasons for abortion 
that have been given have all, without ex¬ 
ception, exploded. The evil is yet a secret. 
That it is contagious seems likely. This, we 
believe, is held by the veterinarians. But it 
is not strongly—that is, rapidly, infectious; 
it spreads slowly and widens its circle grad* 
millv- Thus, in the districts north of the 
river (Mohawk) the disease has been confined 
for years, operating, however, slowly. Last 
winter it stepped over and attacked the herds 
on the south side, and quite seriously. Pre¬ 
viously there had been a few cases. 
Whether this is pure contagion, is not 
known. The thing certainly has a local 
character. There is a communication by 
some means of the disease, and it is not the 
ordinary means. The atmosphere seems to 
be the seat. 
Is it not more likely then than anything else 
—is it not all but a certainty—that the disease 
is communicated by parasites or some invisi¬ 
ble influence ? Thus cholera, the Texas dis¬ 
ease ill cattle. Have we not here something 
analagous? Will not this account for the 
endemic character ? 
The cattle are the same as oilier cattle so 
far as is know-n. The treatment also is not 
at variance. The soil is the same, or much 
the same, varying with the spread of tire lo¬ 
cality. If tho cattle and the soil, and the 
treatment of both exhibit nothing, is it not 
all but forced upon us to believe that the 
only remaining source, the air, is the cause 
of it'? And this cause is invisible. It cannot 
be in the changes of the atmosphere, in the 
extremes of heat and cold, for these we have 
elsewhere and have had. There must be an 
inscrutable something else, then. 
It cannot be emanations from the soil, as 
these would have affected stock before, and 
would be confined to established limits. 
But instead of that there is a regular spread¬ 
ing as of a slow contagion. When we say 
emanation from the soil we moan of mias¬ 
matic or kindred character. 
Our glasses may aid us here. Has this 
thing been tested in this way? And what 
objections, if any, are there to this theory? 
F. G. 
ABOUT FANCY PIGEONS —II. 
The Carriers. 
In continuing our remarks upon pigeons, 
we cannot let pass without a brief notice the 
above variety. In the “ good old times,” 
before the advent of steam and the telegraph, 
we heard and read much in praise of this 
breed of birds, but since then they have 
been lost sight of, as things that were; still 
they may be found on the Continent, where 
they have been retained a9 a " home pet.” 
The thorough - bred carrier is of a dark 
blue color. The head should he long and 
straight, and flat on tlic top; the beak should 
be straight, long and thick ; the wattle should 
he broad at the base, short from the head to 
the bill, and leaning forward; the eye should 
be large, round and uniform. In olden 
times these birds were much Bought after for 
the purpose of carrying messages, which was 
done iu this Aviso:—The letter or message 
desired to be sent is written upon thin, light 
paper and rolled up the size of a goose quill 
and fastened between two of the tail feathers, 
where it is secured by a piece of fine binding 
wire, which is pushed into the shafts of both 
feathers and securely fastened so that, tlic 
bird carries it Avithout the least incon¬ 
venience. The flight of these birds h very 
swift; as an instance, it is recorded that a 
carrier-pigeon taken out by tho Arctic dis¬ 
coverer, Sir Joiin Ross, in 1830, from its 
dove-cot in Scotland, was let loose at Wel¬ 
lington Sound, within the Arctic Circle, 
October Gth, and readied its former home in 
Ayrshire in seven days, having flown two 
thousand miles across the. Atlantic. Another 
case is cited that at a prize match, some 
years since, ninety Carriers were scut from 
the French capital for Antwerp, at scatii 
o’clock in the morning, and by noon of the 
same day thirteen of them reached Antwerp. 
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sw- A- - la. r: 
sitisSs®! 3 - 
mm* 
THE IUTNT PIGEON. 
A friend makes a good,- timely and not 
inappropriate suggestion relative to the Car 
rier Pigeon, which is that they would prove 
invaluable to have on board of sea-faring 1 
crafts, so that iu case of any serious accident , 
they might bo despatched as a harbinger to 
notify the friends of those on board of the 
danger. It would prove far more valuable 
than throwing overboard letters enclosed in 
bottles. Had the ill-fated steamer President, 
whose fate Avas never known, had one of 
these winged messengers on board, how 
mueh it Avould have relieved the anxiety of 
friends and the public in regard thereto. 
And, more recently, Iioav much satisfaction 
would it have given had the steamer United 
Kingdom, Avhich left New York on the 19th 
of April last, been thus able to communicate 
Avith the shore before she Avent down with 
all on hoard. So, also, aa itlx regard to the Sir 
John Franklin expedition, instead of the 
message lately found inclosed in a bottle after 
twenty-foaryears wanderings, it might have 
been known, if these little messengers had 
been employed, as they were by Sir Joiin 
Ross, in a feiv weeks! The suggestion is a 
good one, and should be heeded. 
The Kitut Figeous. 
Beeton says there are several varieties of 
Runts—the Roman, the Leghorn, the Span¬ 
ish, and the Friesland being among the num¬ 
ber. The largest nnd easiest to manage are 
the Romans—the next are the Leghorns. 
The Spanish are the smallest variety. The 
Frill-back is another favorite breed, though 
rather scarce, which is invariably AVbite or 
cream-colored, and the peculiarity of plum¬ 
age, from which its name is derived, consists 
of its feathers curling upwards, so that tho 
point of each stand out, and the Avbolc has 
the appearance of a plaited frill, They are 
a distinctive breed, and somewhat resemble 
many of our common doves. 
The Dove-House Pizcon. 
These pigeons arc very prolific, and if well 
cared for will rear from eight to ten broods 
in the year. They are easily domesticated, 
and with the exception of tho Tumbler, no 
breed is so capable of being made docile. 
The general color of their plumage is a 
blackish slate color, tho great Aving coverts 
being tipped Avilh a bluish tint, so as to 
give them the mottled aspect from Avhich 
they derive their name. The necks are 
glossed Avith green and purple reflections, 
the rump slate-colored, the tail barred Avith 
black, the external leathers on each side has 
a bluish white mark on the outer web. 
These pigeons are used at shooting-marches 
in England, and are known to English 
sportsmen by' the name of 11 Blue Rocks," 
“ Duffers,” and “ Rockies.” J. Brace. 
-♦-*_*- 
FATTENING FOWLS FOR MARKET. 
As the time approaches for fattening and 
preparing fowls for market, it Avould be Avell 
to note a feAV facts relative to the process to 
be used, also the proper varieties of FoavIs to 
fatten—those which bring the highest prices 
in the market. It may not he aatIJ known 
by the breeder that it is not always the 
largest fowls that sell the readiest and bring 
the best prices; such, however, is the fact. 
The epicurean looks long and Avell before 
lie makes his purchase, liis selections arc 
made not so mueh as to the Aveight of the 
carcass as the choice of breeds. The flesh 
of the large breed of fOAvls is coarse and 
Rtring}', while that of the smaller, short- 
legged breed is BAveetcr and more nutritious. 
Our advice to those preparing fowls for 
market is to select from their broods the 
short, yellow-legged kinds of whatsoever 
breed they have. It is generally conceded 
that the Dorkings are tho best table fowl; 
but even the common native breed are 
equally as good ua the Dorkings, if not bet¬ 
ter, if well ’fattened, which cannot be done 
without some little trouble and painstaking, 
which, however,will be repaid in the end. 
Mode of Futteninar 
There arc almost as many modes recom¬ 
mended for fattening foAvls as there are 
breeds, and every one imagines liis process 
tlic best. Wc have fattened fowls thoroughly 
in a fortnight from tlic time avc cooped 
them for that purpose, in tlic foIloAving 
manner .—Put the foAvls into coops as usual, 
but where they can get no gravel. Keep 
corn in their Iced boxes all the time, nnd 
also give them corn meal dough, well cooked, 
once a day. For drink give them fresh 
skimmed milk, with a sprinkling of char¬ 
coal AVell pulverized in it. With this feed 
they will fatten in ton or tAvelvo days. If 
they are kept over that time they should 
have some gravel, or they will lull away. 
We have tried the above mode lor several 
years and never knew it to fail. Of course, 
it must be understood the fowls sl ould be 
kept perfectly dry and the coops clean. 
The English mode is to keep tho fowls 
separate, alloAving to each bird as much 
space as can be spared; spread the ground 
with sharp, sandy gravel; and take care 
i that they are not disturbed. In addition to 
their regular diet of good corn, it is recom- 
' mended to make them a cake of ground oats 
: or beans, broAvn sugar, milk and mutton 
suet. Let tlic cuke lie till it. is stale, then 
crumble it and give to each bird a gill, morn¬ 
ing and evening. 
Feeding Houses. 
Our mode of feeding houses or coops is to 
have them made so that they aa ill be at once 
warm and airy, Avith earthen floors, aycII 
raised, and capacious enough for the accom¬ 
modation of from twenty to thirty-five foAvls; 
the floor, if desired, may be slightly' littered 
with straw, but the Jitter should be frequently 
changed and great cure taken to secure 
cleanliness, for fear of vermin. As Ave have 
before said, the coops should ho AVtil supplied 
with feeding troughs which should always 
be kept/uM offend, and ivhicli can be got ut 
handily by the fowls. Perches should also 
be placed but a few feet from the ground so 
they can bo reached Avithout much effort ; 
those made in the form of stairs, having the 
poles one above the other, (slanting,) are the 
best. Fowls cooped in this way may bo 
fattened in a short time and to the highest 
pitch, and be preserved in a perfectly healthy 
state. There is no necessity, in our opinion, 
to confine fowls in dark coops and practice 
the art of cramming to fatten them properly; 
the practice ia an abomination, and should 
not be followed by any breeder of common 
sense. J- Plane. 
-»♦»-- 
A Question. -Will soroo one “who knows” 
all about the subject practical Iy, give directions 
lor building the best form of house, or houses, 
for raisin* and keeping poultry for commercial 
purposes-size of house, form, arrangements, 
number of hens per house; whether best to heat 
up during winter to secure most eggs, etef 
Rusticus. _ t f > _ 
Cross of Spanish and Brahmas.—H. D. HORTON, 
East Saginaw, Mich., writes us that ho has 
crossed Brahma cock with Black Spanish bens, 
with good results. The fowls resulting me 
large, dark gray In color, good winter layers, 
hardy. The cocks, some of them, weio t ► 
finest formed and handsomest he ever saw. 
---*-<*+- 
Fowls intended to be kept over the winter 
should now be selected from the flocks and 
placed by themselves. 
