SVIAT3SH 1 
the necessary conditions are observed. The 
sap should he siruped down twice a day at 
least, and at each change the pans should be 
washed, and washed thoroughly. 
At the commencement of the season the 
under side of the roof of the sugar-house, 
together with the rafters and beams, should 
be swept, und all dirt and leaves removed. 
The reservoirs should be placed on the out¬ 
side of the building, or at least, in an addition 
built for their accommodation. In warm 
weather, if the reservoirs are in the main 
bnilding, near the fires and steam, the sup 
will be more or less affected, and sour sap is 
fatal to the production of the best sugar. 
In this vicinity a tub is used to gather the 
sap, in place of the hogshead formerly In 
vogue. The tub is made for the purpose, is 
about three feet in hight and diameter, and 
largest at the bottom, so that, it rnayjsct 
firmly on the sled. The top of the tub is 
sunk a little and has an opening a foot 
square, with hinged cover, in the middle, 
and a pailful of sap can be turned in in¬ 
stantly without spilling. The tub is a rranged 
with a faucet fora trough or hose connecting 
with the reservoir, and the load of sap dis¬ 
charges itself into the vats. The sirup is 
taken to the house, strained through felt or 
flannel, and poured into a high, conical tub, 
largest at the top, to settle, and next day is 
drawn off above the dregs into the sugaring- 
off pan. This is a square, heavy sheet-iron 
pan, made to order, and iB just the size of 
the top of the cooking-stove. No eggs, no 
milk or other foolery is put into the sirup, 
for it is a certainty that the scum, with a 
glow fire, will rise just as rapidly and thor¬ 
oughly without as with “yeast.” The sirup 
should be removed from the fire and strained 
through flannel, to take out the litnous sedi¬ 
ment, which can be most readily extracted 
before the sirup reaches the consistency of 
molasses. This point can be determined by 
the scales, a gallon of sirup at the right point 
for molasses weighing 10)4 or 11 pounds. If 
the sirup is boiled lower than this it will 
“grain" when cold. For caking the sugar 
traces so that they will draw even, and it 
will work well on a plow or any other load. 
LINES THREE AIR EAST. 
In this connection it may be well to give a 
inode of arranging lines for horses driven 
three abreast. The accompanying sketch 
shows such an arrangement, especially 
tribe ;” but regarding color, I prefer the Buff 
Brahmas; having both, I can form an esti¬ 
mate. In future, I shall keep no Other. 
Others agree with me, for White Brahma 
eggs command but $2 per dozen, whilst *3 
are paid for Buff. I find in packing that oats 
are preferable, andjthe eggs should be packed 
big end down. 
We have been abundantly supplied with 
eggs all winter, and sold many dozens whilst 
our neighbors have had to purchase. I at¬ 
tribute my success to the Rural New-York¬ 
er and full-blooded Buff Brahmas. I write 
knowingly about the Buffs, for they laid con¬ 
stantly whilst all others were idle. 
Ontario, Canada. J. Kobb. 
8UGAR-MAKING 
If the necessity of manufacturing a better 
article of maple sugar can be impressed upon 
the minds of the farmers of the country, it 
will add thousands of dollars to the market 
value of the product. A great proportion of 
the maple sugar sold each year is of a very 
inferior quality, and probably would not 
average 8 cents a pound. Late in the season 
—say in the latter part of April—almost any 
amount of this low grade of sugar—black, 
HOW I CONFINED MY FOWLS 
During the past year, I have only been a 
temporary resident in my present home, and 
although impossible to indulge myself in the 
convenience of a poultry yard, I could not 
give up the fowls, but was compelled to 
allow them to run at. large, which gave no 
particular trouble until tomatoes began to 
ripen ; then, for the safety of my “Trophys,” 
and to retain the good will of my neighbors, 
1 found it necessary to confine my chicks. A 
poultry yard wa3 decidedly out of the ques¬ 
tion under the circumstances, consequently I 
prepared a coop, 4x14 feet, one-half well 
sheltered, the other half only lathed, to allow 
the sun to penetrate that portion of it. Under 
this I placed round billets of wood for con¬ 
venience of moving. In this 1 placed 18 full 
grown fowls, gave gravel, cinders, lime and 
ashes, beside food as above. When the 
ground became foul, I rolled the coop a few 
feet, thus giving them fresh sod, and at the 
end of two months, when they could no 
longer harm the gardens, they were set at 
liberty. I found them not only much larger 
and fatter, but also far more healthy-looking 
than those of my neighbors who had not 
been so careful of their gardens as to confine 
their fowls. Aunt Lou. 
adapted to a raw team. After a team has 
been properly trained the lines a. b. may be 
dispensed with. 
lijjisE W 
TREATMENT OF MUCK 
Will you please inform me regarding 
some muck beds ? There are hundreds of 
loads that might be spread over ray farm, 
but which is the best way — to put it in 
heaps of a bushel about 25 feet apart on the 
mowing in the fall, and in the spring spread 
it, or to pile it up trader the barn-yard shed to 
lay a year before using it ? And then is it 
most profitable to use it on the tillage, or 
mowing as top-dressing ?— Fuel. F. Avkky. 
In applying to grass la i draw out and 
spread it in the falL The only advantage in 
piling it under a shed in the fall is, that it 
may be daily mixed with the stable manure 
as an absorbent. Then it can be safely 
applied to any land or to any crop in the 
same manner as barn-yard manure is applied. 
Our own experience, so far as application to 
grass lands is concerned, is that it is more 
economical and just as profitable to haul it 
direct from the bod and sjiread (not pile) it 
over the surface. 
DOUBLE ARCH FOR BOILING SAP. 
dirty, and rank in taste—can be obtained here 
in Rutland for from 0 to 8 and 10 cents per 
pound, while the better product, like gilt- 
edged butter, always has a market, and if 
not engaged to regular customers, cau find a 
sale at any time at a remunerative price. 
Many of the best and largest manufacturers 
in Vermont engage their sugar to their cus¬ 
tomers jis regularly as they do their chick¬ 
ens, eggs, butter, or any other special pro¬ 
duct. Supplying regular customers in this 
way always results in a better and a higher 
product from yeai to year and more remu- 
nnd the system is to be 
nerative prices 
commended upon the fact that the producer 
and the consumer thus come together, and 
the responsibility for a good article rests 
where it propel ly belongs, with the producer. 
In making the higher cpiality of sugar, the 
one idea that should always guide and direct 
the manufacturer rests in the absolute neces¬ 
sity, first and lost, of the most fastidious and 
scrupulous cleanliness. This thought must 
not for one moment be lost sight of, for this, 
in a great degree, is the agent that sells sugar 
for 25, 30, and even 35 cents a pound, when 
the lower grades sell at 10, 15, and 20 cents 
per pound. Let the first step, then, be to 
scald in boil iug water all bucket?, vats, 
spouts. &c., and if the buckets are made of 
wood scald them in the usual manner, and 
dip them all in boiling lime water, rinsing off 
the lime with hot water. I have cleaned old 
wooden buckets in this manner so perfectly 
and thoroughly that not the least taint or 
odor other than the natural pine could be 
detected. Treat the vats, gathering tub, 
troughs and pails to the lime and thoroughly 
rinse them out. Tin buckets are the best, 
except in one particular, that is their liability 
to sour the Rap. They are easily cleaned, 
admit of covers, will pack in a small com¬ 
pass, last a lifetime, and are in every respect 
better than wood, except in the particular 
mentioned. I can commend most heartily 
the buckets and spouts made by C. C. Post. 
These buckets are made flaring to pack close, 
are indented on one side to fit the tree, and 
they will, therefore, hang level; they are 
suspended from the spout, require no nail to 
wound the tree, and are furnished either 
with or without covers. Post’s Bpouts are 
the best metallic conductors made. They 
are of cast-iron, galvanized ; are light, easily 
adjusted, and do not obstruct the flow of the 
sap from the outer grains of the tree, like the 
common wooden spout. 
Heaters are rapidly coming into use, and 
they are certainly a great aid to the sugar 
maker, utilizing, as they do, a great quantity 
of heat which otherwise is wasted. They 
will pay for themselves in one year to any 
manufacturer who has a product of 2,000 
pounds a year. Cook’s evaporators are much 
used, but are not as well liked by farmers 
generally as the theory of their working 
would lead one to expect. No one should 
POULTRY NOTES 
“hairs” followinga dipper when lifted from 
the boiling mass, or when a teaspoon fill in a 
saucer can be rubbed dry in a moment. To 
make the nicest, whitest cake9, take two or 
three pounds in a pan and stir briskly until 
the mass is as cool as it can he worked, then 
dip rapidly into tins which have bean dipped 
into cold water. Do not oil or butter the 
tins, as this gives a flavor which is not 
wanted, and, moreover, effectually prevents 
the very white, feathery appearance of that 
part of the cakes which comes in contact 
with the tin, and which is so noticeable 
where water alone is used. 
Rutland, Vt., Feb. 23. A. B. Caldwell. 
We reproduce in tliis connection a sketch 
of a double arch for boiling sap, where two 
pans are used, winch is very highly com¬ 
mended for its convenience and economy of 
fueL As the pans are set side by side one 
fire beats both, and at the same time they 
are independent of each other. The wood 
is put in at fire box B, closing the door at A. 
The fire is easily regulated when sirupiDg 
down in either pan. The walls should be IS 
inches high. Grates are indispensable ; they 
will more than pay their cost. 
Fef.d Box for Poultry. — The Poultry 
World has received a sketch and description 
of a feed box as follows :—Take a long box, 
ID inches wide and 4 inches deep, nail a lath 
8 inches long on each side at the ends, to 
keep the top board in place, aud 2 laths at 
POULTRY MARKER 
William Saville, an English breeder, 
has used the past season, the device for mark¬ 
ing poultry which we illustrate, with entire 
satisfaction. He snvs “ It eon be put on 
or taken off with the greatest ease by using 
two pairs of ordinary round-pointed wire 
pliers. It is made by letting fall one or more 
drops ol' melted solder on to a piece of stout- 
i s h copper wire. 
O The solder is then 
s tamped with a 
number by means 
of a die, and a cor¬ 
responding number 
entered in the poul¬ 
try-book. The size and unmberof the drops 
of solder, and likewise the thickness of the 
copper wire, can be varied at pleasure to 
suit t he size of the chicken or fowl, and any 
ironmonger will furnish a set of number-dies 
of the requisite size at a trifling cost. I may 
add that I prefer two drops of solder in case 
of the accidental defacing or loss of one. T 
do not find my marker incommodes the birds 
in the least, nor does it chafe or injure the 
feathering or color of the legs of Brahmas or 
Cochins.” 
each end, 7 inches long and S inches apart, to 
hold up the top board. Top board 1 inch 
thick, same width, and 1 inch longer than 
the box. Nail lath C inches long on the end 
of the board, projecting of au inch below 
the bottom of it, to keep the board from 
slipping off at the ends. Space, 3 inches from 
upper edge of box to bottom of top board. 
Partition boards nailed inside, 3 inches from 
each end, give small boxes, one for sulphur, 
the other for lime or burnt bones. 
Breaking up a Setting lien .—A friend of 
ours told us, the other day, how his wife cures 
hens of setting; and as it is a very novel 
way, we will repeat it for the benefit of 
others who are bothered with inveterate old 
setters. Tliis lady had a hen that was bound 
to set; the lady was bound she should not. 
She would shut up the old hen one day, aud 
when released back she would go to her set¬ 
ting. Patience finally gave out. Picking up 
some splinters from the chip-yard (some l our 
or five inches long) she bound them firmly to 
the lien’s legs, leaving only the hip joints in 
working order. Biddie was outwitted ; like 
the old Dutchman’s lieu, she would have to 
set standing up,— A Rural Reader. 
To Keep Eggs Fresh.—W. AY. Fisher asks 
“The best way to keep eggs fresh or lo keep 
their vitality in the spring of the year when 
taken into the house to wait for enough for 
setting.” He lost 50 last spring, though lie 
took great pains to keep in a coo), dry draw¬ 
er. Let our readers who have experience 
reply. 
Ceylon Jungle Fouls. —N. H. Merwjn is 
informed that we do not think any of these 
fowls have been introduced in tills country ; 
nor do we think they are in the hands of pri¬ 
vate breeders in England. They are under 
the control of the Royal Zoological Society 
of England. 
]'ulture-hocked Fowls .—S. N. n informed 
that there is a difference of opinion among 
American breeders as to breeding from Vul¬ 
ture-hocked fowls; but the majority, we 
think, discountenance it. 
HITCHING THREE HORSES ABREAST 
H. Clay McClure asks the most conve¬ 
nient way of hitching three horses abreast, 
to a plow. In 1871 W. P. Giles, Onondaga 
Co., N. Y., furnished the Rural New- 
Yorker with the accompanying sketch of a 
plan which he used and found, not only very 
POULTRY EXPERIENCE 
I have studied carefully and taken great 
interest in your Poultry department, as I 
am trying the experiment to find out person¬ 
ally if poultry will pay and in what quantity 
and all other points. All suggestions in the 
Rural New-Yorker have been carefully 
noted and acted upon. I had an artificial 
mother made somewhat after the design in 
Rural of Jan. 3. I had it made entirely of 
tin, so as to keep it clear of all vermiD, and 
at this date (Feb, 17) liav ■ i fine, healthy lot 
of Buff Brali mu chicks, which will be large 
enough to grace the table in May. I have 
not the incubator as yet, but will soou have 
one made. At present I allow the hens to 
hatch the eggs and then remove the clucks 
when two days old. It is highly necessary 
that hens should have some rest, so it is re¬ 
quisite to let them hatch one brood a year. 
I agree with W. M. Lewis, that the Brah¬ 
mas are the “ /ie plus ult ra of the feathered 
convenient, but the best he had ever seen ; 
besides it is not patented. The evener is 
made the same as for two horses ; the wliif- 
fletrees have each a long and a short arm, 
the Ion:, Mia being 24 inches lung and the 
short arm 12 inches. On the end of the short 
arm place a half circle, made of flat bar iron, 
M Ay M inch, with a hook at each end ; 
fasten to the end of the whiftietree by a 
bolt so as to allow it to play; hitch the traces 
as shown in the sketch. Be sure to get the 
