destructive.is tlie painted Clytus, Clytuspieta. 
It is a beautiful beetle, velvet black, orna¬ 
mented with transverse bands of yellow, 
* and of the size and form shown 
in fig. 1. This beetle usually 
appears about the first of Sep¬ 
tember, but a few will some¬ 
times be a little in advance of 
this time. I caught one to-day, 
nnd this prompted me to visit a 
fig l, young locust grove uot far dis¬ 
tant and look for more. Upon cutting down 
a small tree and splitting it open I found 
scores of the pupa, as well as the perfect bee¬ 
tle, the entire stem having been bored full 
of holes and in all directions. There are a 
hundred or more trees in the grove, hut not 
one has escaped the ravages of this insect; 
nnd of course all are worthless for any prac¬ 
tical purpose. It certaiuly would be a dis¬ 
couraging business for any one to undertake 
the cultivation of locust trees in localities 
where this insect is abundant. 
farmers are inquiring for a compact and 
economical engine that, may stand in or 
near the barn, and lake the place of horses 
for threshing, grinding, cutting feed, minc¬ 
ing roots, sawing wood and grinding tools. 
The exhaust cau be further economized for 
cooking for animals. There is no engine 
constructed that has such claims upon 
farmers’ attention as the Baxter Vertical. 
So exact is its economy of fuel, that a com¬ 
mon size, scuttle of coal, weighing from 
twenty-five to thirty pounds will, in this 
Kk Ihtnralist 
of a iluraltst 
DISEASED GRAPES, 
THE PANGOLIN. 
DAILY RURAL LITE. 
T iiavk this day sent, you a box, by U. S. 
Express, containing specimens of diseased 
grapes, showing the condition of the crop 
as they hang upon tho vines at the present 
time; also a few of the leaves, Completely 
perforated by some insect. From one of 
these varieties (name miknown>covered with 
mildew, 1 have never gathered any 
ripe fruit. The vine is ten to twelve 
years old. The others. Concord, Di¬ 
ana ami Hartford Prolific, were first 
attacked ibis year with a disease, 
apparently ft sting in the fruit, in¬ 
creasing until the entire fruit, is de¬ 
stroyed, as you will see by the spe- 
>. cimen. Please let, these specimens 
be submitted to an experienced 
grape enltnrist arid report through 
. ■ the Rohm. New-Youkeu the cause 
&C of their decay and the remedy if 
Hi; there he any. Such information 
/• will he duly appreciated.—A, Bau- 
(L ■ ;/ i.ow, Binghamton, N. Y. 
HS if 1 j The leaves of the vines have been 
Br/’ I attacked by the grape vine Fidia 
■BW/// (Fulia vitieida, Walsh), but tho in- 
&a//J jury they have done would not 
Ugji cause the decay of the fruit. 
AWilijilj We have examined tho specimens 
sent very carefully and find no 
j marks of Insects on the berries, and 
conclude that they are affected by 
Sjfgfc what is generally known as “ black 
rot.” If the fruit hud been attacked 
1 h 0 grape curculio (Cceliodes 
ifflHwfijl inequality Bay), or even I he more rc- 
UlmHRjl ccntLy discovered grape, seed e.urcn- 
jjrajfflft lie, we should certainly have found 
evidence of the same. We can give 
fl Mffj p iJ you no remedy for this disease, al- 
fijfteWp though the free use of sulphur upon 
the vines early in the season will 
Wnffj sometimes appear to do good in 
wjlii/ checking its advance. 
This name is sometimes applied to all the 
species of Manis, but originally belongs to 
the M. pentadartyla,, or five-fingered Pango¬ 
lin. It is also called short-tailed manis, and 
in some parts of its native country (India) 
the people call itBujjcrkcit. Pangolin is its 
y of a Gentleman nenv New 
York City. 
Cutting Grass on I.awns. 
ixtej. 14.—A handsome, well kept, lawn is 
the foundation of beauty in any country or 
suburban residence. It. matters little how 
elegant the buildings, or how artistically the 
(rc es and shrubs are grouped, if they are 
surrounded with weeds or tall grass the ef¬ 
fect will he anything but pleasing. To make 
a good lawn is but the first step, either in 
cost or application of practical skill, it is the 
keeping of it in good order that brings out 
die contents of both pocket and brains. 
.Moss wilt make its appearance in shady, 
moist places, and this must he killed out; 
( ],.y weather will scorch and bum the soft, 
fine grass, and stimulating liquids need to he 
applied to restore its beautiful color. Fre¬ 
quent mowing is, however, the principal 
requisite in keeping a good lawn, after it is 
once well established. This work should 
always be clone at a stated time—for instance, 
on a certain day or days of the week, and 
then permit of no deviation from this rule 
except in case of rain. The richness of the 
soil, as well as the season, whether wet or 
dry. will certainly have considerable effect 
upon the growth of grass, and the mowing 
must he varied accordingly. During dry 
weather 1 have found mowing once a week 
to answer very well, but the frequent show¬ 
ers of late, have compelled me to use the 
lawn mowers every four days instead of 
every seven. 
Ornamental Graved IMntits. 
Aug. 15.—My success in what are called 
“ornamental leaved plants," this season, has 
been so satisfactory that I shall try a greater 
number another season. A group of Cannas 
consisting of a dozen or more- varieties is 
one of the great attractions of my garden. 
In another bed I have a clump of EHanthus 
UnveniuB, a beautiful ornamental grass, as a 
center piece; this is surrounded by Arundo 
donax striata, or the striped leaved reed. 
The next row is of Caladium. esculentum, with 
leaves three feet long and two broad, the 
whole forming a group of a decidedly tropi¬ 
cal appearance. In other groups, the common 
castor oil bean {Ridnue) and its varieties are 
made to add something to the general dis¬ 
play. There are scores of such plants, that 
cost but a trifling sum, which may be used 
to give a garden a magnificent and luxuri¬ 
ant appearance during the summer and au¬ 
tumn months. 
l.ilipnt Dnlilin*. 
Aug. 16,—Years ago I thought that the 
large, elegant and symmetrical formed 
dahlia was ft most charming flower. It 
bloomed in late summer and autumn when 
other kinds of flowers were scarce, and it 
really seemed to be indispensable. I con¬ 
fess to have lost much of my old love for 
this plant, and I had thought seriously of 
discarding it altogether, hut the introduction 
of Liliput, or dwarf varieties, has made me 
change my mind. My collection of twenty- 
five choice sorts is now making such a 
pretty show, scattered here and t here among 
other border plants, that few persons could 
fail to admire them. Some of the most 
dwarf are not more than twelve to eighteen 
inches high, and full of the most exquisitely 
formed and brilliant colored flowers. The 
old style of dahlias were untit for bouquets, 
hut these little dwarf sorts may be used for 
this purpose and worked in artistically. 
A iio inn I an—A an I n. 
Aug. 17.—I regret having said anything in 
my “Diary” to offend so good an entomolo¬ 
gist as Dr. Asa Fitch, but at the same time 
I think he should have been a little more 
positive in his remarks on the Anomdas , and 
if Fabiucus was wrong, said so. Our ento¬ 
mologists have never been encouraged as 
they deserve, consequently we cannot com¬ 
plain if they do sometimes lack in knowledge 
regarding certain species. 
I’ears Cracking. 
A« 0 . 18.—If anybody can tell why certain 
varieties of pears crack and become worth¬ 
less, while others remain perfect, I wish they 
would. My Virgalieus and Beurre Diels are 
commencing to crack open to the very core, 
and tliis prevents further growth. The trees 
grow vigorously and are apparently healthy', 
! JUt ' iave nr *t given me ten sound, good pears 
in as many years. We have had all kinds 
of se; »sons during this time, — some very 
" et > ntlmrs dry, and those intermediate, be- 
een l * ,c two extremes, but these varieties 
‘‘ t,ic fi ear tire always worthless. If this 
lsease which affects certain varieties of iho 
i’\ :U is Climatic, ns often asserted. I should 
Hunk an < 
them, but 
arm implements 
THE BAXTER STEAM ENGINE, 
Some people are as much afraid of a steam 
engine as the old woman was of a gun, 
which she said would “ go off and kill some¬ 
body, even if it bad neither lock, stock or 
barrel.” But when it comes to the matter 
of a stout and compact and reliable steam 
engine for t he ship or farm, please examine 
the Baxter, a cut of which is hereunto affix¬ 
ed, and a description may he given in the 
style following —Tliis is an upright arrange¬ 
ment, and combines in small compass fur¬ 
nace. boiler, engine, governor, pump, gauge 
cocks, safety valve, steam gauge and water 
bottom, which is also heater and mud drum- 
The fire surfaces are entirely surrounded by 
water, except at the furnace door, the water 
bottom being a perfect protection from the 
fire on the floor. The boiler of this engine 
is tubular, but not in the ordinary sense of 
a vertical tubular boiler. Over the fire is 
a large combustion chamber, curving in 
for a short distance at the bottom, from 
which curvature fines descend all around 
the circumference of the boiler. Over tliis 
chamber, and around these Hues, is the water 
contained in the boiler. The heat, ascend¬ 
ing from the lire, strikes the upper part of 
the combustion chamber, and consequently 
gives the strongest, beat whore the most 
water is, and in this combustion chamber 
all the gases and smoke are completely con¬ 
sumed. The heat then descends through 
short flues, striking the water bottom, from 
which a connecting pipe leads to t he boiler, 
thus healing the water before it enters the 
boiler, by means of the descending heat and 
the radiation from the fire grate. Tho heat 
now ascends on the outside of the boiler, 
between it and the sheet iron jacket with 
which it is covered, and passes off at the 
chimney flue. 
VINEYARD NOTES. 
Hu mao line Vineyard St a lien. 
Mr. E. T. Bykam of Grasshop¬ 
per Falla, Kansas, says that the su¬ 
mac is perhaps one of the most du¬ 
rable of all the small growing trees. 
He has tried it. for stakes in his 
vineyard with excellent results. If 
any other readers of the Rural New- 
Yorker have any facts derived from expe¬ 
rience with this wood which proves that it 
is durable when used for stakes we shall be 
happy to hear from them. 
Grnpe Rot mid Pruning;. 
Which do you think is boats for grape vines, 
to trim them or let them have their own 
way to prevent mildew. Please answer.— 
N. Out- linger, Loyal Oak. 
We should never think of producing a 
good crop of grapes without pruning, and 
know of few persons who do, with the im¬ 
proved sorts, without this care. We have 
always practiced pruning and training with 
the expectation that it would, in a measure, 
prevent mildew, but, at tho same lime we 
know that other vineyurdists think differ¬ 
ently and practice accordingly. 
arimrer 
CORN HARVESTER. 
GARDEN NOTES, 
ABOUT EISH PONDS. 
i f>T OtT 
Somebody sends us a marked Philadel¬ 
phia Ledger, in which it is announced that 
a clergyman has invented a corn harvester, 
which at the same time rids “ the farmer of 
the time-consuming nuisance, of husking.” 
This is what is said of it“ The machine is 
on two wheels and drawn by two horses. 
It operates on the outside row of corn, pas¬ 
sing continuously around the field, 'flic 
stalks in each hill are all cut off at once by 
two circular cutters, revolving towards each 
other, at tho front of the machine. The 
stalks arc carried thence, butts first, by re¬ 
volving arms and an endless apron to a pair 
of fluted rollers, which grasp Hie stalks and 
carry them rapidly through. The ears, how¬ 
ever, being too large to pass between the 
rollers, are pushed out, of the husks in the 
neatest and most effective manner. This is 
because the joint of the ear with the stalk is 
the weakest point, and easily broken by con¬ 
tact with the rollers. The ears fall into a 
hopper and are taken up by an elevator to a 
trough, whence they slide into a wagon that 
accompanies the machine, and carries the 
corn to the granary. The stalks, with the 
husks entire, ure passed between the rollers 
to a platform, and when sufficient for a bun¬ 
dle accumulate, it opens ami drops them 
on the ground ready for binding and stack¬ 
ing. The machine is provided with an ar¬ 
rangement by which the corn, when it has 
fallen, can be lifted off the ground and 
brought into contact with the saws. Pro¬ 
vision is also made for cutting the corn while 
green, and placing it in bundles without 
husking; that process to he the subject of 
another operation of passing between the 
rollers when the corn has become perfectly 
ripe. It is worthy of note that the husking 
is accomplished without shelling a grain of 
corn. One man and four boys, with three 
horses, have run a working model of the ma¬ 
chine, and cut and husked corn at the rate 
of ten acres per day, saving the stalks and 
husks perfect.” We are uot told who the 
inventor is. 
Marcynia. 
Inclosed find specimen of plant which I 
should like to have named. Also tell me 
wlmt it is good for. Tho one who gave me 
the seed said that the pods were used for 
pickles.— Mwa J. E. Morehouse, Seneca 
Falls, A'. Y. 
The name of the plant, is Martj/nia probo- 
xidm; it is also called Unicorn-plain, on ac¬ 
count of the peculiar form of the pods. It is 
a large, coarse-growing plant, with oblique¬ 
ly wavy-margined leaves, and large, whitish 
flowers, with purple and yellow spots. The 
flowers are quite fragrant, and are succeeded 
by long, crooked pods, which make excel¬ 
lent, pickles, if prepared before they become 
too old and tough. 
There is also another species, which is a 
native of Mexico, but now quite common in 
cultivation. It is known as (lie Sweet Scent¬ 
ed Marlynia, (.1/. fragrant j and is not so 
coarse growing as the former, and the flow¬ 
ers are a showy violet purple, and vanilla 
scented. _ 
I'runinir SiiiHLth Vine*. 
A subscriber asks if pinching off t he ends 
of squash vines will aid in increasing the 
size of tho fruit. Wo have never experi¬ 
mented very thoroughly in this direction, 
hut have always believed that checking die 
growth of vines by pinching off the ends of 
lending shoots, did increase the size and 
hasten the maturity of the fruit. Iu a meas¬ 
ure at least, tlie forces which produce fruit 
and those producing the vine are antagonis¬ 
tic,—that is, if the vine grows too luxuriant¬ 
ly, less fruit is produced than it only a mod¬ 
erate! grow th is secured. It too much is pro¬ 
duced, then the vine fails and none comes to 
maturity. This same principle is often ob¬ 
served among fruit trees, the most luxuriant 
are least fruitful. Carrying this idea with us 
into the vegetable garden, we may so manip¬ 
ulate vines that almost any required size or 
number of specimens of fruit can be pro¬ 
duced at will and as desired. 
I have a fish pond 120 by 60, three feet 
deep. Except at the edges, tlie trees and 
shrul is do not. yet afford shade. There arc 
some two hundred little creek tish in it; 
they were put in. The frogs (not hull frogs, 
but a small yellow species.) seem to have 
taken possession and tilled it, with tadpoles, 
and frequently a green scum is abundant. 
There are ten springs in it, but the water is 
now very warm on top. (Jan you tell me 
how to get rid of the frogs and tadpoles? Do 
they damage the young fish ? Does the 
spawn and the green scum injure the lish ?— 
Thomas Whitehead, Amherst C. H, Va. 
Amherst 0. if , Va. 
The water in your fish poud is becoming 
filthy from a want of motion. You should 
open an outlet and allow' the stagnant water 
to run off and give the springs a chance to 
fill up the pond with a fresh supply. Many 
a choice spring has been suppressed by 
forming a pond over it, tlie weight of water 
above preventing their overflow. In situa¬ 
tions of this kind it is far better to make a 
long race or ditch where there will be a 
more or less rapid current, than to make a 
stagnant pool, in which few species of fish 
will thrive for any considerable time, al¬ 
though such a situation is an excellent one 
for breeding frogs. We do not think the 
frogs’ eggs or the scum (which is a plant), as 
you call it, will injure the fish, although 
neither should he present, nor would be, if 
the water was kept in motion. 
By this mode of generating steam, the ca¬ 
loric has been so thoroughly taken up and 
utilized that the hand may, with impunity, 
be placed on the pipe leading from the en¬ 
gine to the chimney flue. It, will be readily 
understood that this peculiarity of construc¬ 
tion gives large economy in fuel and the 
generation of steam. The engine resting on 
lop of the boiler; the cylinder bead being at 
one and the same time the bed plate of the 
engine and cover of the boiler, it naturally 
results that the cylinder is suspended within 
the steam dome. Of course no condensation 
can take place, because the cylinder is just 
as hot as the steam; consequently mily dry 
steam is being w orked; and, as is well under¬ 
stood, dry steam affords more power within 
a given compass than that which is saturated 
with moisture. 
Tints it will be seen that the Baxter En¬ 
gine possesses all the best points of steam 
engineering, so compacted together as to give 
results never before attained iu the construc¬ 
tion of any motor. 
Mr. Lyman, the well-informed agricul¬ 
tural editor of the N. Y. Tribune, says of 
the Baxter Steam Engine:—“ A great many 
A Tumi' IIiiinminu Bird. 
Mu. Donaldson of Cincinnati lias so thor¬ 
oughly domesticated a humming-bird that 
upon going into his garden the bird will 
immediately alight upon a shell in his hand 
and sip the sugar-water within it, no matter 
how many persons may be standing around 
him at the time. 
it does not appear to,—at least 
110 season has exactly suited them in my 
grounds. J 
IiOciiMt Borer. 
-1 "gust 19 .—There are several insects that 
tack our common locust tree (.Robinia 
^'".acacia), but in this vicinity the most 
il. it ” JV 
/vl II 
■Ml 
'liTlUiiiv 
* 
