0 
Bj# y o» 
te Berthmm. 
HOL8TE1NS AS DAIRY STOCK. 
We have frequent inquiries concerning 
the Holstein, or Dutch cattle, for dairy 
purposes, There can be no doubt that the 
Holstein cattle have proved superior for 
the dairy in Holland; indeed, the record of 
milk yielded from oowb iu the herd belong¬ 
ing to Prof. Rhode of th- Royal Ag. College 
at Eldena, as detailed by our German cor¬ 
respondent. and heretofore given ill these 
columns, is most remarkable, and we have 
no acoounts of any cows that have surpassed 
the yield therein stated. Now, while the 
testimony is abundant and undoubted that 
the Holland cows iu theft* own native coun¬ 
try are remarkable as large milkers, it may 
be well to caution dairymen that single 
cows, or a particular lot of oow9, from any 
breed cannot be taken as the average of 
that breed in regard to milking qualities. 
Every dairyman knows that among the 
common cows of the country animals are 
not unfrequently found that yield enor¬ 
mous quantities of milk. Due allowance, 
therefore, must he made iu considering nil 
remarkable yields of milk from special cows, 
or lots of cows, even though it bo a matter 
of fact beyond question that the breed in 
general is distinguished as great milkers. 
We say this because dairymen are some¬ 
times induced to purchase from certain 
breeds of cattle for the dairy on account of 
having seen a record of some onormous 
yield of milk from single animals of the 
breed. Bat failing to obtain anything like 
suoh returns, tfa.ey have been very much 
disappointed, and have abandoned the 
breed altogether, in selecting stock for 
the dairy the soil and general surface of 
the farm, as well as the special purpose for 
which tho stock is intended, must. be. taken 
into aocount. And this brings u* to the 
question as to whether the Holstein cattle 
are adapted to the dairies of New York. 
It has been charged that t.he Holstein cat¬ 
tle, originating In a. moist climate, and in a 
oountry distinguished for Its low. level sur¬ 
face, can not be well adapted to our hot, 
dry Summers, our severe Winters, and up¬ 
on our high, undulating, or more uneven 
lands. Mere speculative theories of this 
kind amount, to but little. Experience and 
experiment must determine the matter. 
We oaunot say what the future may be iu 
regard to this bx*eed in New York; but so 
far as the Holsteins have been tried t hey 
seem to thrive iu oar climate, and do well 
upon oar rich and gently undulating soils. 
We have a letter from G Emm'S. Milder, 
Peterboro, N. Y, bearing upon the point 
in question. Some two or three years ago 
Mr. Miller made au importation of Hol¬ 
stein cattle for the purpose of testing their 
adaptation to the soil and climate of Cen¬ 
tral New York as dairy stock, and he writes 
us, under date of March llth, that he has 
just completed the annual record of milk 
given by the three imported cows, “ Dowa¬ 
ger,” “Crown Princess” and “Frauloin.” 
The following table gives the age and 
weight of the cows, the number of days in 
milk, and the whole quantity yielded in 
Age 
Name. y’rs. 
Weight 
Sept. 22,’71 
Days 
in milk 
Milk in 
lbs. 
Dowager. 7 
1,215 lbs. 
1 214 
8,305 
Crown PrincesSi 6 | 
1,270 “ 
358 
10,091 
Fraulein. 6 
1,235 “ 
215 
7,893‘4 
. 36,889Vi 
Estimating the product of these three 
cows in oheese at the rate of ten pounds of 
milk to the pound of cheese, and we have a 
yield of 2.688 pounds of cheese, or 896 pounds 
to the cow. The yield of “ Crown Princess ” 
on the same basis would be 1,069 pounds. 
We call this record an exceedingly good 
one. 
Mr. Miller says that “Dowager” aver¬ 
aged 38 4-5 pounds of millc per day for seven 
months; “Crown Princess,” 43 2-5 pounds 
for eight months, and “Fraulein” 32 1-5 
pounds per day for the same period. The 
greatest weight of millc given in one day 
was 74V£ pounds, by “Crown Princess;” 
“Fx-aulein” 70 pounds, and “Dowager” 
58 pounds. 
As the general treatment and manner of 
feeding stock has much to do in the yield of 
milk, we append remarks of Mr. Miller 
touching this point. He says: 
“ ‘ Crown Princess ’ began her record 
April 27, 1871. The first week she had five 
quarts of grain and dry hay each day: 
second week six quarts of grain and hay; 
third week, six quarts of grain and pasture 
during the day. May 18, pasture night and 
day and four quarts of grain. From June 
5th to September 5th she had nothing but 
pasture. September 5th began feeding 
four quarts of grain per day; Oct. 25th, six 
quarts; Dec. 21st, four quarts, and milked 
once per day. Record stopped January 9th, 
1872. 
“ * Fraulein 1 s * record began May 10, 18il. 
She bad the same treatment as ‘Crown 
Prinoess.’ 
“ ‘ Dowager’s ’ record began June 19, 1871. 
We had a hard time with her bag, and kept 
her on Bhort rations three or four weeks 
after calving. The pasture that these cows 
had was very poor; twenty-six acres of it 
ia hardly enough to pasture eight cows. 
“ ‘Crown Princess ’ dropped a heifer calf 
March 4, 1872, and ‘Fraulein’ will calve 
about the 20th of March. They drop their 
calves about til’ly days earlier in 1872 than 
in 1871, and this accounts for their short, 
season in milk. ‘Dowager’ was giving at 
the close of this record thirty pounds of 
tnfik por day, and she will pot, calve till 
September, 1872.” 
Accurate records of this land from reli¬ 
able sources are of interest and value to 
dairymen. They show that dairying with 
cows that yield on au average nearly 900 
pounds of cheese to the cow is a paying 
busiuess, even though cheese be sold at a 
less price than last year. X. A. W illard. 
NOTES FOR HERDSMEN. 
Molassou as Cattle Food.—Of all possi¬ 
ble occasional additions to the ordinary 
feed of milch cows, M. Footing of Dirsch- 
auerfelde finds that none has so marked an 
effect in increasing the yield of milk as com¬ 
mon molasses. The quantity given by him 
to each cow was a half litre daily, and the 
consequent increase iu the yield of milk 
varied from a half litre to one litre per cow, 
at times when a decrease to about the. same 
amount is ordinarily looked for, viz., in the 
four to eight weeks before calving. At 
other periods the increase was greater, 
caHcrlft jxiribus. The cost of each portion 
was less than a penny—the article being 
procured in bulk from a neighboring sugar 
manufactory. The mode of giving it to t he 
cows was by mixing it with their rape-cake 
in water. 
Thirst and Cold Water Injuring Cat¬ 
tle.—A dairyman of Holland Patent, N. Y., 
writes to the Utica Herald that one clay last 
March was bo rough with rain, sleet aud 
wind, that his cows Would not. go to water— 
the watering-place being about thirty rods 
from the barn, and not a very good place at 
that. The next clay, those that did not get 
water the day before, were very thirsty, 
and drank heart ily of very cold wa ter , and 
during the day two of them aborted. He 
thinks the cold water caused them to abort, 
and in corroboration of this theory he refers 
to a case of a townsman who had eighteen 
cows abort after having been deprived of 
water two or three days, and then allowing 
them to drink all they would. 
Water for Fattening Animals.— A Ger¬ 
man physiologist asserts that animals which 
are being fattened, particularly oxen, should 
not be encouraged to drink much water, 
for the reason that, as has been found by 
experiment, the absorpt ion of water gen¬ 
erates carbonic acid to excess, and tram¬ 
mels the formation of fat. 
|3om olo gitiiil. 
P0M0L0GICAL GOSSIP. 
Selling the Box with the Fruit.—The 
fruit growers of Pleasant Valley, Solano 
Co., Cal., have made a sensible resolve, we 
think. They have decided to ship their 
fruit iu a uniform-sized box, the box to go 
with the fruit and not to be returned. Why 
will not Eastern fruit growers be as sensi¬ 
ble. This returning fruit packages is a nui¬ 
sance to all concerned. We never could dis¬ 
cover t hat there was any economy about it. 
CUTTING TIMBER-* THE MOON THEORY.’ 
Cherry Currants in California.—L. 
O. Wilcox, Santa Clara, Cal., has 60,000 
plants growing, most of them bearing. Last 
year he sent to market. 1200 to 1500 quarts 
daily. His plants were put close together 
in rows; thus the fruit was not sunburnt 
as in an adjoining county. Nor have they 
suffered from frost. He plants all small 
fruits on ridges, so that by the aid of water 
from an artesian well he can produce heavi¬ 
er crops than without the water. lie evi¬ 
dently believes in close planting for that 
climate. 
Fox’s Seedling Pear is a new Califor¬ 
nia seedling of excellent quality, brown, 
obtuse pyriform, of medium size, rather 
coarse flesh, but with a very rich, sugary 
flavor. Bro. Meehan takes it to be a strong 
rival of Duchess of Bordeaux. 
A writer in the Rural New-Yorker of 
the 30th of March, says“ I have been try¬ 
ing to find out, for the last twenty years, iu 
which one of the twelve months It is best to 
cut timber in order to have It remain sound 
and free from the attacks of insects.” And 
then, to prove that he belongs to the scien¬ 
tific order, he goes on to state, “ of course, I 
have read ail the moon theories, and sim¬ 
ilar nonsensical stuff, handed down from 
superstitious granddaddies ; but facts to 
prove any of the moony assertions are ex¬ 
tremely scarce.” Aud then proceeds in a 
lamenting tone on the difficulty or impossi¬ 
bility of ascertaining the proper or best 
time of cutting timber. 
For many years past I have frequently 
seen similar productions, especially in agri¬ 
cultural papers; and, as I have bad long ex¬ 
perience among timber, aud on the farm, I 
have as frequently thought of giving the 
public the beuefit of «ome of the knowledge 
I have acquired in a long, practical and 
somewhat laborious life, but have as often 
been deterred by the circumstance of my 
not being In the practice of writing for the 
public press, and so allowed tbe duties of 
my calling to urge me on in the business in 
which 1 was more Immediately engaged : 
but the communication above referred to, I 
confess, has somewhat excited me, and, 
though in mature life, I have resolved to 
bring out and give to the world the benefits 
of my long experience on this very import¬ 
ant matter. 
When but a lad, perhaps now nearly sixty 
years ago, I applied myself to tbe study of 
German books, which my parents were fa¬ 
miliar with, and learned from a recipe I 
found in a German almanac, “ ou the best 
time for cutting timber,” that it was “ in the 
dark of the moon,” and the very* best time, 
the dark of the moon in the month of 
August.” Having had ample opportunity 
of making experiments, T have proved, to 
my satisfaction, and that of many others, 
that timber felled on the aforesaid time 
never becomes affected by insects or worms, 
nor does it. become brittle in seasoning, but, 
on the contrary, remains tough, and ap¬ 
pears somewhat oily. 
Now, Mr. Editor, do not be startled when 
1 tell you, and the thousands who read the 
Rural New-Yorker, that the sap of trees 
ascends with every increase of the moon, 
and descends with every decrease of tho 
moon, ami at its full and at its dark it will 
neither ascend nor descend, but will spread 
in a circular form. 1 have no doubt but 
that the moon has the same effect on all 
vegetation, but I have never tested or ex¬ 
perimented on any but standing trees. Tho 
proper time, or season, for testing or ex¬ 
perimenting on this matter will now soon 
come, when any person disposed to investi¬ 
gate my theory will have the opportunity 
of doing so; and perhaps I may as clearly, 
and in as few words, state how it can be 
done, by stating how I gained my knowl¬ 
edge on this question. 
When a youth, living on the old home¬ 
stead, about fifty y*ears ago, we (my brother 
and myself) cleared an addition to our then 
improvement, and as timber for firewood 
had become an object, wo left quite a num¬ 
ber of small oaks standing; but to make the 
best of them, we peeled or stripped the 
bark off them, upward, as far as convenient, 
for tanning purposes, in tbe mouth of June, 
when it peeled readily. There was then, as 
there always is at that, season of the year, a 
new wood, or soft substance, forming be¬ 
tween the bark aud the hard w*ood, through 
which the sap flowed or passed rapidly (but 
with greater force in its ascent than in its 
descent), and marring this soft substance, 
it received a bluish color from the ax. 
Sometimes I threw dust or spit tobacco 
juice on it; in either case it absorbed suffi¬ 
cient coloring to see very distinctly which 
way, up or down, according to the time of 
the moon, the sap was passing. 
Since then, I removed to the farm I now 
reside on, then covex*ed with timber, and 
for many years chopped a new lield each 
Spring; and at tho time the bark peeled I 
would frequently strip off a piece of bark 
from a standing tree of any kind (some, 
however, peeled more readily than others), 
without cutting into the tree or too much 
marring the new soft wood forming; aud, 
as I had opportunity, would show my work¬ 
ing hands aud neighbors that the sap as¬ 
cended or descended, invariably, with the 
increase or decrease of the moon. 
A? the mouth of August has frequently 
been a busy season with me, if I required 
timber for rails, stakes, posts, or building 
purposes, 1 would send a man, or two, to 
fell such trees as might bo required, at the 
proper time of the moon, and then would 
sometimes, to suit my convenience, let 
them lay for several years before working 
them up; even then 1 would find the green 
bark inside of the dead or dry bark—still 
green, though somewhat dried; but in no 
case have I found insects or worms inside of 
the bark. 
To such of your readers as are interested 
in providing good timber, and ave unac¬ 
quainted with these facts, this communica¬ 
tion may be of importance. I may, per¬ 
haps, on some future occasion, send you 
some of my experience on "the flax ques¬ 
tion.” Our Canadian Government, for 
some years back, has spent thousands, yea, 
tens of thousands, of dollars, In employing 
lecturers to teach the farmers the culture 
of flax! and on wheat turning to drips or 
cheat by improper culture; (I will not say 
that it will turn to drips, for I never saw it 
do so; I will simply give my experience.) 
Alsoon Its turning to smut.- -Peter Fisher, 
Port Nelson , Horton Co., Out. 
We shall be glad to hear from Mr. Fisher 
at any time.—E d. Rural. 
-*--*-♦- 
ARBORICTJLTURAL NOTES. 
Sub-Irrigation of’ Treea. — A corres¬ 
pondent of the Pacific Rural Press suggests 
the following mode of sub-irrigating trees: 
When the tree or vine i? ready to be placed 
in the pit which has been excavated for it, 
have ready at hand two or more buckets of 
coarse gravel, or enough so that when 
poured into the side of the pit the column 
of gravel will reach from the surface to the 
bottom of the roots; then fill the remain¬ 
ing space to within four inches of the top 
with the 6oil intended for the support of 
hte plant; being careful in so doing not to 
disturb the gravel, but in such a way as 
to leave a trenoh around the outer rim of 
the excavation, which will hold two buckets 
at least of water. The water poured into 
the trench will flud its way down the col¬ 
umn of gravel, and the air be excluded ; in 
fact, trial has proven it far better than a 
wooden spout, or an open hole of any kind 
for getting the water down and preventing 
evaporation. 
Planting Currant Cuttings,—A corre¬ 
spondent of the American Farm Journal 
gives the following method of setting cur¬ 
rant cuttings: — “Cut your cions as long 
as you can get them. Take a penknife and 
cut out every eye as high up as you want to 
Btart the top (don't leave an eye for roots, 
for they won’t root); stick them the usual 
depth, say about four or live inches, in the 
ground; they will not send out any blows. 
If your cions are tall and slender, stake 
them and tie up to keep straight. Prune 
the top to suit your taste. The fruit will 
be of a larger and finer quality than if culti¬ 
vated iu the ordinary way.” 
ie 
1 
iscman. 
NOTES FOR HORSEMEN. 
Mare Giving Milk.—I have a valuable 
mare which I purchased last April’ She 
was then represented to me as having just 
weaned a colt—milk flowing easily from her 
bag. 1 put her to a good horse through the 
season of 1871. and she had no colt—milk 
continuing to flow from her teats, upon the 
least pressure, sill through the summer, and 
docs so now. 1 am trying her still to horse 
—commenced in April—and she continues 
to take him. I am afraid she will not breed. 
Let me know what are her prospects for 
getting with foal, and what had I better do 
to insure that end.—W. W. Waring. 
We never knew of such a case before, and 
cannot advise. 
Inquiries for Horsemen,—A subscrib¬ 
er wishes to know what will cure a horse 
which has small, hard bunches on the body, 
resembling those made by tho bite of an 
insect; also, a Lumor on a mare, so bad in 
places that it causes the hair to come off. 
Club-Footeil Horse. —Can you or any 
of your readers inform me how I can cure a 
valuable horse that is getting full-footed, 
or, as it is sometimes called, club-footed?— 
A Constant Reader. 
Farcy ltemedy.—I once cured a mare 
affected as John McMullin describes, by 
simply bathing the affected part tw*o or 
three times a day with sour buttermilk.— 
Jerome. 
