wise insect. The house must, of course, be 
ventilated during the warmest, part of the 
day; and to do this the doors and ventila¬ 
tors are opened, and the bees, being attract¬ 
ed l)^' the fragrant flowers, fly in, but not 
knowing enough to go out the same way, 
perish in great numbers. If my loss in bees 
should continue at the present rate, there 
would be few or none left in a few weeks; 
and t he question to be settled is, whether I 
shall keep bees or green-house tlowers. Of 
course netting could be placed over the ven¬ 
tilators and screen doors used; but tlie bees 
would be very likely to find an entrance, 
even if such precautionary measures were 
adopted. Something must be done quickly; 
ties in the way of reaching an honorable po¬ 
sition in society. There is, however, one 
fault which most young men have, and it is 
that they aspire to positions which men of 
ago atid experience now occupy. 
DAILY RURAL LIFE 
Cleaning up the Lawn.— Feb. 19.- It 
Is really surprising what a quantity of ma¬ 
terials will accumulate about ouc’b house 
and lawns in winter. The snow is now gone 
and the ground bare, save the sticks, leaves 
and other debris which have accumulated 
from different sources. I even find many 
email stones on my lawns which would cer¬ 
tainly interfere with the lawn mower, be¬ 
sides small brandies 
that have been broken 
from the trees during 
heavy storms. These 
mild days which fre¬ 
quently occur during — 
the latter part of winter 
should be taken advan¬ 
tage of for clearing up 
the lawn, garden and 
barnyard. If this kind 
of work is not done now, 
it is very likeiy to be left 
undone, when spring 
conies with its impera¬ 
tive demands upon our , ■' 
time. I am also having f 
the manure in my barn- ^ 
yard forked over, the ' 
coarser materials, such 
as corn stalks, thrown > X 
into a separate heap, _ r - ■'‘ 
where it can be either _ = 
drawn out separately 
and plowed under, or 
left to decompose until ' 
next fall. Ily the wu}’, 
I have heard farmers 
complain about corn- " - 
stalks being a great, nui- ~ A', 
sauce on account of their <L ^ JEM 
Slow decomposition. It . JmSik 
is true that, they are not - Jn fflg r 
bo readily handled as " 
straw, but if put into a 
heap, and loaf mold or 
muck added, thej' make fir' 
excellent, manre. If the 
compost heap is forked ^ ^ 
over once a ru o n t h 
during summer, it will 
be thoroughly decom¬ 
posed by fall, and be in 
a suitable condition to apply to any soil or 
crop. The first, time the heap is forked over 1 
the men will call it a “ tough job; ” but its ] 
fibrous nature will soon break down, and 1 
then it can be worked over as readi 13 - as al- 1 
most any other compost. * 
Arrival of the Blue-Bird— Feb. 20. —A c 
Blue-bird ( Stalin , stalls, Jiaird) came near 1 
my 0 IH 00 to-day and warbled forth a few c 
notes—perhaps to let me know that spring 
was coming. Probably some one may think j 
that those scientific names are entirely un- 
necessary; and so they are to those persons (; 
who are satisfied in calling every bird who ,, 
has bine feathers a Blue-bird. But it so j 
happens that there are a great many birds ], 
of this kind besides the several species of (l 
Stalls. The West and Southwestern Blue- j, 
bird (S. Mcxtcana) is quite distinct from „ 
our Pastern species; and the ltocky Moun- j, 
tain Blue-bird (S. Avctica) is different, from 
building, remembering that the deeper 
the manure the stronger and more lasting 
will be the heat. Eighteen inches is a good 
depth, but two feet is better; and be care¬ 
ful to have the heap of equal consistency 
throughout—not light and loose in one 
place and compact in another, for (his would 
result in an unequal heat. The manure 
should be made firm, but not packed or 
tramped down. Make 
the bed at least a foot 
longer every way than 
the frame, and when the 
surface is made level, 
P l *t on the frames and 
sash, and the whole 
should bo made to ap- 
pear as shown in the ae- 
, % company ing i 11 u s t r n- 
tlon. The outsides of the 
fe, frames are banked up 
with manure, and the 
Si - book side raised a little 
to give the sash sufficient 
inclination to carry off 
the water which may fall 
upon them in showers. 
This inclination may al- 
,••.* » 80 he secur ed l> 3 ’ making 
0 the front board of tho 
tranies narrower than 
t ha back; but when t im 
frames are banked with 
yZT ^r_.—- manure this can be douo 
~ -t* — by raising the back side 
~ . »- five or six inches and se- 
; curing it in this position 
-j ;The noil may he put fin 
_ Y " immediately, or delayed 
>> .V a day or two until t ho 
' V N \j ,'V i unmuro is quite hot. 
'^s^y.Vd'i J .\ Y flood, rich, friable soil 
A should bo used, and put 
-on to the depth of live 
or six inches. Sow no 
_ seeds until it has become 
warmed through to the 
surface. 
Sowing Seeds.—To¬ 
matoes, radishes, 1 e t- 
tuce, peppers, in fact 
«U kinds of vegetables 
desired early, may be sown in the hot-bed. 
Sow the seed in drills five or six inches 
apart, running crossways of the frame, be¬ 
cause it is more convenient to use a narrow 
hoe among the plants while standing in 
front of t he. bed, than if the rows run in the 
opposite direction, it is also desirable to 
EARLY VEGETABLES 
' r ■ i vt: ■ r 
HOT-BKIJ FK A M K 
To My Correspondents,— Feb. 23 .—A 
number of 3 r oung men who have evidently 
read my “Diary,” in the Baikal Nkw- 
1 obkeii, write mo to ask if 1 cannot em¬ 
ploy them on my farm, or in some way 
where they can learn something of “ Rural 
Life.” I should be happy to aid all such 
aspirants for a knowledge of things “ natu¬ 
ral,” but regret my inability to do so. But 
there is room for all who may wish to wor k, 
or obtain a knowledge of such subjects, and 
any young man who has the requisite indus¬ 
try and perseverance, will meet few diffioul- 
1 "X v, are goou ana economical sizes 
for this (purpose; if larger, U 103 ' are more 
liable to break, and the sash will bo corre¬ 
spondingly weaker on account of lessoning 
the number of longitudinal bars—there be¬ 
ing, of course, no cross-bars, as in common 
window-sash. Frames on which tho Hashes 
are to rest can be made of any common 
boards or plank, a foot, or moro in width, 
nailed together, with a post or block in 
each corner, to increase the strength. 
