me through your columns if goose manure 
(where a field has been used as a goose pas¬ 
ture) does not poison grass, and prevent it 
from growing the following season. Such 
has been my experience. If it does so affect 
a pasture, has any one any experience in ap¬ 
plying Rome sort of mineral fertilizer that 
will counteract such effects ? Will lime ou a 
diy, loamy soil do it 1 I should much like to 
to hear how those who keep geese keep up 
the growth of grass on their geese pas¬ 
tures. H. M. 
Western Pennsylvania. 
spending the afternoon in getting drunk. I 
do not want you to understand that every 
vineyard is a nest of drunkards, for this is 
Uot true. In the Napa and Sonoma Valleys, 
in the foot-hills of the Sierra, at Anaheim 
and elsewhere in the Southern country, you 
may find mauy men cultivating the grape 
and making wine in all soberness. But every¬ 
where, too, and in my own experience far 
oftoner, you will see the proprietor, or his 
sons, or his hired men, bearing the marks of 
strong drink; and too often, if you come 
unexpectedly, you will see some poor wretch 
in the wine-house, who, about. 1 o’clock is 
maudlin. 
Seeing all t his, I advise no new settler in 
the State to make wine. He runs too many 
brown paper laid between the vine rows. 
They do not trim out poor grapes from the 
bunches, because, as they assert, there are 
none ; but I suspect this will have to bo done 
for the very finest raisins, such as wou d 
tempt, a reluctant buyer. The bunches re¬ 
quire from 18 to 34 days of exposure in the 
sun to be cured. During that time they am 
gently turned from time to time, and such us 
are earliest cured arc at once removed to a 
raisin-house. Thus is fitted with shelves, on 
which the raisins are laid about a. foot thick, 
and here they are allowed to sweat a little. 
If they sweat tpo much the sugar candles on 
the outside, and this deteriorates the quality 
of the raisin. It is an object to keep the 
bloom on the berries. They are kept in the 
raisin-house, I believe, live or six wo ks, 
when they are dry enough to box. It is as 
yet custouuuy to put them in 25-pound 
boxes, but. no doubt, as more experience is 
gained, farmers will contrive other parcel-. 
Chinese do all the work in raisin-making, ami 
are paid $1 a day, they supplying themselves 
with food. There is no rain during the raism- 
makiug season, and consequently the whole 
out-door work may lie done safely as a veil 
as cheaply. 
POULTRY MANAG EMEN T CONTRASTED. 
Among the Live stock on a farm there are 
many who would not give a thought to the 
feathered creation; yet where fowls, of all 
the varieties, are well managed, there is 
nothing which gives f.o much comfort to the 
household, naught which is such a conven¬ 
ience in times of unexpected calls from 
friends or so really valuable to the family all 
the year round; besides, what notable farm¬ 
er’s wife but can at any season make twenty, 
thirty, or oven fifty dollars otf a reserved lot 
of some kind, if an extraordinary “ pinch ” 
or any occasion out of the usual way should 
arrive ? 
A great deal depends on the situation of a 
homestead and the contriving of everything 
to make the young and old of each species 
happy; for happiness is quite as essential to 
the turkeys, the geese, ducks and chickens 
as to the children; cud undue restraint, ir¬ 
regular feeding, bad and improper food, as 
also unhatund lodging, will bo as disastrous 
to the one as the other. 
The careful manager of a full stock of all 
the varieties comprised in a ro:-pectablo es¬ 
tablishment, will be particular to place the 
turkeys so they cannot worry the common 
hens; the geese so that they will not tyran¬ 
nize over the ducks, and so on with the rest, 
F.t the same time preventing the breeding 
portion from being annoyed by their own 
species; for the young broods do best when 
away from the regular haunts of the old 
fowls. 
At the present moment I know of two 
places where poultry have been raised and 
arc being raised. They are within sight of 
each other. The first started with 80 com¬ 
mon hens, 11 turkey hens, G Guinea hens, G 
Muscovy ducks and 10 pairs of old pigeons. 
The management at this place was about as 
follows ;—The women walked around every 
morning and evening calling “ Biddy I biddy! 
chick I chick ! ” throwing first corn and 
then wetted meal, never looking to the right 
or left to sec whether old hens, turkeys or 
Guinea fowls ate up the. food; and the broods 
of young chickens got next to none. The 
eggs were looked up two or three times a 
week and sometimes not so often; every 
species laid and were set in hay-iuows, man¬ 
gers, &c., and Commenced sitting ou about 
13 eggs; but others would be laid to them till 
30 would be there, and some would be put 
under other liens. The result of this has 
been about three dozen eggs per week, be¬ 
sides what have been broken and spoiled by 
the general casualties attending the situa¬ 
tion ; about 80 chickens from at least 50 sitting 
he'-H, two or three hatchings making up a 
lyroori; 8 young turkeys from the 6 old hens, 
and Guinea birds, in proportion. The 
pigeons do the best; yet the 80 old pigeons 
have only about 20 nests, and those and the 
floor of their room is three inches or more 
thick with dried dung; and the floor of the 
room has as many nests as the pigeons cun 
agree upon. In other buildings, those not 
liking to fight for a place in the crowded cute, 
find corners, <fcc., and bring forth young giv¬ 
ing a better return than the other feathered 
creatures. 
The second place alluded to is a long way 
from being perfect, as the nremises are not 
so convenient, there being no farm buildings 
and consequently no shelter beyond where 
the fowls roost. This place had nearly as 
many common fowls, 3 turkey liuus and 12 
ducks. These had nests made cltiefly by 
placing old dour ban-els about, and the 
young chickens were fed every two or three 
hours, from sunrise till they went to rest; 
eggs looked up every day; sitting hens’ eggs 
all marked and every one looked under each 
day; fowls never called, but old ones fed 
morning and evening, always at one time; 
results not so good as might have been, as a 
fox took over 40; vermin and hawks more 
than that number, and a heavy thunder 
storm drowned several turkeys, &c. How¬ 
ever, 380 chickens survive or have been used 
for the table; 37 young turkeys and 102 
ducks; the eggs having averaged over ten 
dozen per week — fifteen dozen some weeks; 
the chickens sold, made 85 and 86 per dozen, 
and the eggs 20 cents and upwards per dozen 
(40 cents at the start). The food consumed 
has been about the same at both places, the 
pigeons being great eaters—from 1% to 2 
bushels of com per week at each place. The 
range is unlimited at either place. 
A Working Farmer. 
POULTRY NOTES. 
Hatching Cold Eggs .—A correspondent of 
the Scientific American says:—A hen having 
left her nest lor two days and a night, 
after silling within two or three days 
of the time of hatching, and the eggs A 
being perfectly cold, out of curiosity '£ 
I determined to try an experiment. I 
removei I them to a garret room, winch r?V 
was very hot, the thermometer in the fflj 
coolest part of the house being at. the 
time 95* Fah. On the third day from 
the time the eggs were left by the ," 
hen, t hey hatched by themselves, and j jr 
the chickens are now running about j i 
the yard, quite strong and hearty. I Jjf 
would like to know if any one ever 
met with such an incident. ||j|j| 
Extraordinary Urn story .—We find 
the following story circulating ;—A f 
staid and respectable female fowl in 
Pulaski, Tenn,, has for years —the story rj 
says fourteen—laid and incubated with & 
admiral success. Now she 1ms indeed w 
suffered a change. She is growing to 
look exactly like a rooster. Her cornb JI 
has become greater and brighter. Her JM 
tail feathers are growing out with a Jam. 
brilliant luxuriance. She struts about 
with all the importance of n juvenile •=§! 
rooster, and although she has not yet 
found voice and crowed a shrill clarion, 
such a demonstration is expected by 
everybody every morning. 
'Theory of Keeping Eggs. —Our theory of 
keeping egg is to keep the yolk well inclosed 
within the glair, or wliite, of the egg. llow 
to tin it is the question. Simply imitate 
mother “Biddy,” when sitting, by turning 
the eggs over daily, or once in two or three 
days at most. We have never had any 
tremble in keeping eggs from October to 
May; and I think they would keep one or 
two years, if necessary. We simply lay them 
in something that will hold from one to two 
dozen, and fasten so they can be turned 
without much trouble.— l. y. 
NELLY T.’S SHEPHERD DOG 
Nef.i.y T. writes the Ruhal New-Yorker 
that she has a shepherd dog which is sorely 
afflicted ; uud from her description of the 
condition of this poor fellow, we suppose he 
lias the mange badly. She wants to core 
him and we want to help her. Now if she 
will go to a drug prescription store and got : 
quantity of resin ointment (ung. resini) suffi¬ 
cient bo annoint the dog thoroughly, and 
enough sublimed sulphur (sulph. sub.) to 
make the resin ointment very thick, and 
enough oil of juniper (ol. junip.) to make the 
whole of proper consistency for annointing 
the dog, but not loo thin, and applies this to 
the animal, taking pains to rub it into the 
skin well, mul applies this once one day, and 
washing the dog thoroughly the next, and 
then applying the dressing again until it has 
been applied and t he dog washed three times, 
wc tli ink the poor dog will feel better. At 
any rate we would wait and see; but if he 
begins to itch uud be uneasy again, go over 
with the whole process once more. 
Meantime, the place where the dog sleeps 
should be a clean place. If ho sloops in a 
kennel il should be thoroughly cleansed,*«and 
it should not be too close. If straw is gi»*Ji 
him to sleep on, it should never be fiuney 
straw. Oat or rye straw is best. Then the 
dog should not, be allowed to eat any meat so 
long as he remains diseased. He should only 
have vegetable, food. When he gets well do 
not give too much meat, nor feed him 
enough of any thing to gorge him. On the 
other haigl fie should never go hungry. Too 
much or too little food, too close or confined 
a kennel, or a dirty or.e, or a filthy bedding 
will cause mange. 
If NELLY succeeds in curing her dog, will 
she not let us know- ? 
Ladies’ Work-Basket.— See page 111 . 
risks, with children and laborers, even if he 
himself escapes. Fortunately, no one need 
make wine, though every man may raise 
grapes; for it is now a fact established by 
sufficient and practical trial, that raisins, 
equal in even respect, to the boat Malaga, 
cun be made, iu California from the proper 
varieties of grapes, and can l ie sold for u price 
which will very handsomely pay the maker, 
and with a much smaller investment of capi¬ 
tal and less skill. The vineyard owners 
already complain that they cannot always 
readily, sell their crude wine at a paying 
price; but the market lor carefully-.nude 
raisins is, as I am told by the principal fruit 
dealers in San Francisco, open and eager. 
To make wine requires uncommon skill and 
care, and co keep it so tiiat age shall give it 
that merit which commands a really good 
price, demands considerable capital in the 
! necessary outlay for casks. While the skill¬ 
ful wine-maker undoubtedly gels a largo 
profit on his vines, it begins to bo scon hero 
that there ia an over-supply of poorly-made 
wine. 
PROGRESS OF RAISIN-MAKING. 
But any industrious person who has the 
right kind of grapes can make raisins ; and 
raisin-mawing, which 18 months ago had still 
a very uncertain future in this State, may 
now safely be called ono of the established 
and most promising industries here. Last 
year I ate excellent raisins in Los Angeles, 
and tolerable ones in Visalia; but they sell 
very commonly in the shops what they call 
j “dried grapes,” which are not raisins at all, 
, but damp, sticky, disagreeable things, not 
good even in puddings. This year, however, 
I have seen iu several places good native 
raisins; and the head of the largest fruit im¬ 
porting house in Ban Francisco told me, the 
other duy, that ono raisin maker last fall 
sold the whole of his crop there at 82 per box 
of 35 pounds, Malagas of the same quality- 
bringing at thesame time but 82 37‘. 3 . There 
is a market for all well-made raisins that can 
be produced in the Statj, fie said, and they 
are preferred to the foreign product. At 
Folsom, Mr. Bug by told me he had made, 
last year, 1,700 boxes of raisins, and that he 
was sat 1 ' lied with the pecuniary return; 
and I judge from the testimony of different 
persons that at seven cents per pound raisins 
will pay the farmer very well. The Malaga 
uud the Whit® Muscat arc the grapes which 
appear here to make the best raisins. No¬ 
body- has yet tried the Seedless Sultana, 
which, however, bears well here, and would 
make, 1 should think, an excellent cooking 
raisin. 
For making raisins, they wait until the 
grape is fully ripe, and then carefully cut oil 
the bunches and lay them either on a hard 
clay floor, formed in the open air, or on 
WHAT TO DO WITH CALIFORNIA 
GRAPES. 
Charles Nordhoff, writing from Cali¬ 
fornia, says, in the Tribune ;—I have now 
seen the grape grow in almost every part of 
California where wine is made. The temp¬ 
tation to a new settler in this State, is always 
■ strong to plant a vineyard ; and lam moved, 
by- much that I have seen, to repeal here 
publicly advice I have often given to indi¬ 
viduals:—Do not make wine. I remember 
a wine cellar, and, cheaply built, but with 
substantial and costly casks containing (be¬ 
cause the vineyard was badly placed) a mean, 
thin, fiery wine ; and on a pleasant, s nny 
afternoon, around these casks a group of 
tipsy men, hopeless, irredeemable beasts, 
with nothing much to do except to encourage 
each other to another glass, and to wonder 
at the Eastern man who would not drink. 
There were two or three Indians staggering 
about the door; there was swearing and 
there was a pretentious 
SPLICE FOR A FISHING ROD 
A hpokthman lias devised the splice here¬ 
with illustrated for a fishing ro\ He says: 
I have now a new splice, which may be call¬ 
ed the “shoulder and collar wedged spliced 
joint,” and for permanent, or glued up and 
tied joints, it appears to me to be firs! rate 
where the cane or wood is of sufficient thick¬ 
ness to allow such a joint to be made. 
The spliced rod is shown in the accompany¬ 
ing sketch ; also the wedges for the hole, a. 
The ends of the wedges are to be cut off 
when the splice is firmly wedged. If the 
splice is to be glued up as a permanent one, 
it must be closely tied with wuxed silk or fine 
filthy talk inside ; 
tasting of this, that, and the other cask, by 
thread, and varnished. If used as a movar 
ble one by the riverside, a slight y tapered 
ferrule must embrace the rod from h to c, 
fully covering each end of the joint. 
This splice, also, might be used in the 
joints of a rod not permanently glued up and 
t ied (all being secured by a sliding fermle), 
f the fisherman chose to be at the trouble of 
punching out the wedges at the end of u day’s 
fishing. The tighter the wedging and firmer 
the splice ends are fixed into the corners of 
flu* top and bottom shoulders, the better. 
For movable splices, I question whether such 
would not lie improved by a thin facing of 
copper or brass; and even metal wedges 
might be advantageously used if properly- 
made of tine exactness to tit the squaro hole 
in the center of pho splice. 
Needle Cushion.—S ee page 111. 
a parcel of sots, who in their hearts would 
have preferred “forty-rod” whisky. And a 
little way off there was a house with women 
and children in it, who had only to look out 
of the door to see this miserable sight of hus¬ 
band, father, friends, visitors and hired men, 
GOOSE MANURE AND GRASS. 
IV ill not some of your correspondents 
who have had experience or observation, tell 
