“The worthy Masters from almost every 
county in the State have honored ns with a 
visit during the week, and all of them speak 
in the most cheering terms of the prospects 
of the grand reformation now moving the 
State of Kentucky under the name of Pat¬ 
rons of Husbandry. The progress of the 
Order has been wonderful, and it is destined 
to sweep the State and accomplish an amount 
of good unequaled by any other movement 
of the nineteenth century. 
bed two feet wide by three in length and six 
inches deep and now the vines reach almost 
to the top of my green house, and form a 
perfect network of vine and foliage. New 
nhoots are constantly appearing from the 
roots, growing with wonderful rapidity, all 
of which leads me to think that as a rule the 
wautof sufficient room is the principal cause 
of failure where it occurs. 
This plant is generally known as “ smilax, 
although it is not one in ( ruth ; but It is hard 
to drive a popular name out of use even if it 
docs constantly mislead. The scientific name 
of the plant in question is MyrtiphyUum as- 
pwragoidea - from myrxlne, the myrrh** and 
phyllon, a leaf ; and the specific name aspa- 
ragoiden of course denotes asparagus-like, 
probably because the young shoots come up 
leafless at first, or because the minute, whit¬ 
ish flowers and reddish berries resemble 
those of the asparagus. “Smilax,” however, 
is a much easier name to pronounce and re¬ 
member, consequently may be considered 
preferable to the botanical or more scien¬ 
tific one. 
tNTOMOLOGICALtY fORTUNATE. 
D ec , 2.—It is an old saying that “ misfor¬ 
tunes seldom come singly,” but the reverse 
of this is equally as t rue, although we are so 
prone to believe that blessings come to us 
. .iii J _i 
DAILY RURAL LIFE. 
From the Diary of a Gentleman near New 
York City. 
PROTECTING HARDY PLANTS. 
Nov. 30.—We have many kinds of plants 
in cultivation generally considered perfectly 
hardy which are greatly benefited by a slight 
protection in winter. The strawberry is one 
which is seldom killed by cold, still there are 
few localities wherein it is not benefited by 
protection. The same is true of the rasp¬ 
berry and most other kinds of small fruits, 
and even the grape vine in moderately mild 
climates is not an exception to this rule. I 
have practiced the protecting of many kinds 
of hardy, ornamental plants, knowing that 
they would not be materially injured, but 
because it had a beneficial effect upon the 
growth the following season as well as in the 
production of fruit or flowers. This subject 
of protection of hardy plants was brought to 
mind by a friend asking me why I protected 
hardy Rhododendrons and some other simi¬ 
lar kinds of evergreens. 
It is true that the broad leaves of these 
plants will pass through the alternate freez¬ 
ings and thawings during the long winter 
and come out bright iu the spaing • but oc¬ 
casionally the flower buds which are formed 
the season previous will sometimes get in¬ 
jured if no protection is given, besids I have 
usually found that the leaves appeared bright¬ 
er than when loft entirely exposed to the 
cold blasts of winter. 
W here one has groups or even single plants 
of rare shrubs, it will cost but a trifle in ma¬ 
terial or labor to protect them, and frequent¬ 
ly by such means choice specimens are saved 
from destruction. With this object in view 
1 have planted the dwarf arbor vitfes, Re- 
tmisporas, yews, junipers, and similar dwarf 
evergreens in groups by themselves, and 
then in the fall, before the ground freezes, a 
few stakes are driven around the outside 
and among the specimens to keep the hay 
used for protection in place when put on at 
the approach of settled cold weather. The 
hardy and half hardy trailing plants, such as 
the ivies, honeysuckles, moneyworts and 
myrtles will come out all the brighter in 
spring if covered ever so lightly in winter. 
The rosea and smaller kinds of deciduous 
shrubs may also be brought into the same 
list of plants benefited by protection, but 
there is iu this case more danger of injury 
from applying too early than too late, pro¬ 
vided it is done at all. If done before cold 
weather, vermin may collect in the protected 
places or the buds may be forced into growth 
through an increase of temperature. 
THE SMILAX AS A DECORATIVE PLANT. 
It is rather strange that a plant introduced 
into European gardens from the capeof Hood 
Hope almost two centuries ago, should only 
within the last few years have become popu¬ 
lar as a decorative plant, I use the term 
“decorative” in its fullest sense, because in 
addition to its extensive use as a conservatory 
and window ornament , a lady now-a-days is 
scarcely considered dressed for an evening 
reception or dinner party without a few 
sprays of smilax entwined in her hair or arti¬ 
ficially arranged in the loops of her over¬ 
dress. 
Although I am a thorough believer in and 
an admirer of the good taste of the ladies 
generally, still I should fail in my duty did I 
not especially commend them for employing 
this beautiful and modest little vine in their 
adornment. Its small, thread-like but tough 
stems and delicate, firm green leaves, show 
no signs of wilting, even in warm rooms, for 
hours after cutting from the parent stem or 
root. As a window plant it has few superiors, 
especially for winter, because it may be 
trained to small copper or brass wire and 
form an elegant screen not surpassed in 
beauty with the most costly lace. The de¬ 
mand for smilax in winter has become so 
large of late that, florists devote entire houses 
to its culture, planting the roots in wide, 
deep beds, prepared especially for this pur¬ 
pose. 
I have heard many complaints in regard to 
the behavior of this plant when grown in 
pots as received from the florists, and I think 
the cause is mainly owing to not giving the 
roots sufficient room, as they seem to lie im¬ 
patient ot much constraint. It has never 
proved satisfactory with me when cultivated 
as a strictly pot-plant, but when given plenty 
of room for the roots to spread the stems 
grow rapidly to almost any desired length. 
Last September I planted a few roots in a 
GRANGE NOTES AND ITEMS 
lent motto : —“ Capital and Labor—Friends, 
not Enemies.” The number of the Bulletin 
before ub contains reports in regard to the 
condition and progress of the Order in twelve 
different States and Territories, and the 
statements made are certainly encouraging 
when it is considered that the National 
Council was first organized Jan. 14, 1874. 
The Bulletin contains only the names of the 
principal officers of the National Council, as 
follows ; 
President— WM. H. Earm% Worcester, Mass.; 
Secretary—J. Butterfield, Boston, Mass. (P. 
(). address, Worcester, Mass.) Extentivt' Gont~ 
mum- Win. M. Knrle, Worcester, Mww.; It. 1. 
Elliott, Chicago, fib: A. H. Kendall. Spring- 
Held, Mass.; Geo. It. KeaBley, Hartford, Conn.; 
Samuel R. Hcywood, Worcester, Mass. 
The receipt of this Bulletin reminds us that 
wc have omitted to notice the recent pro¬ 
gress of the Sovereigns of Industry in New 
York City and vicinity. We learn that sev¬ 
eral new Councils have been lately organized, 
and that both old and new ones are increas¬ 
ing in numbers and influence. Among 
others the Council at Yonkers is said to be 
gaining rapidly, and that such arrangements 
have been perfected that each member who 
has a family saves from two to four dollars 
a week in the purchase of provisions, cloth¬ 
ing, &c. As an instance, the Yonkers Sov¬ 
ereigns save S3 per barrel on flour. 
During the post month two public meet ings 
were held by the Sovereigns in New York 
City, and, though not largely attended, the 
result has proved beneficial to the Order by 
increasing its numbers, and spreading a 
knowledge of Us principles through the pro 
ceedings as reported in the daily papers. At 
the first meeting able addresses were made 
by Wm, H. Earle, Esq., President of the 
National Council, (of Worcester, Mass.,) Col. 
R,. J. Hinton of New York, and Mr. H. R. 
Mattkson, General Deputy of the Order, of 
Union Square, New York. The reports of 
the proceedings of the meeting, as given in 
the Sun and other city papers, have attracted 
wide attention, and in consequence the Editor 
of the Rural New-Yorker (who presided 
on the occasion) has received letters from 
several different States inquiring how to or¬ 
ganize Councils, &c. Such letters have been 
referred to President Earle and Deputy 
Matteson, whose addresses are given above 
_ an d we will, for the information of renders 
interested, add that those wishing to organ¬ 
ize Councils in this State or New Jersey, 
should apply to Mr. Mattkson, and in other 
States to Mr. Earle. These gentlemen will 
either personally attend to the organization 
of Councils or advise applicants as to who is 
authorized to do so in their respective locali¬ 
ties or States. 
The Iowa State Grange meets at Des 
Moines on the second Tuesday in December. 
The Kentucky State Grange is debating 
the feasibility of doing its own banking, as 
well as manufacturing agricultural imple¬ 
ments. 
Mr. Day, the Iowa State Agent, is reported 
to have estimated that that agency lias 
saved to the farmers of Iowa not less than 
$1,500,000 this year. 
The Nebraska State Grange holds its next 
annual meeting at Lincoln, Dec. 15, Grand 
Master Adams will be present at its sessions. 
A noTEL expressly for members of the 
Order of Patrons of Husbandry will probably 
be erected in Philadelphia before the opening 
of the grand Centennial. 
The Hosier Patron says that “a regular 
old-fashioned grange revival is now breaking 
out all over the State of Indiana, and the 
coming winter months will add twenty-five 
thousand new members to the Order. Keep 
it red-hot.” 
In many Granges an effort is being made 
to render their organization more complete 
and permanent, Some are building or rent¬ 
ing halls, furnishing them nicely, and orna¬ 
menting them with works of art; some are 
establishing libraries, and some are providing 
reading rooms. 
A good Patron is close-mouthed. He locks 
up his secrets when he leaves the Grange 
room, and no picking of locks is allowed 
during the week. What he saves in dollars, 
little Influence in the matter. For Instance, 
a few years since a well-known naturalist 
discovered a quantity of old bones of several 
extinct species of animals, and he was so 
elated over his good fortune that he was 
heard to exclaim, “Now, I would not ex¬ 
change place or position with any crowned 
head of Europe ! ” Ho fell that the honor of 
being first to dcsoribe the animal to which 
those bones belonged was greater than to be 
King or Emperor. Who shall pretend to say 
that he over-estimated the value of the dis¬ 
covery ? 
Bonner paid over *30,000 for Dexter, but I 
would not accept of this horse as a gift if 
obliged to keep him, simply because 1 have 
no use tor a fast horse and my taste does not 
run in that direction. One man will rnn the 
risk of losing his life and spend thousands of 
dollars going to and from some wild region 
of country in search of old bones of extinct, 
races of animals, while another will do the 
same thing for a bug. butterfly, or other rare 
specimen in some branch of natural history, 
the real value of which depends almost en¬ 
tirely upon the knowledge or taste of the 
possessor. 
The present week has been a lucky one for 
me, “entomologlcally ” although the names 
of the insects obtained may be either a dead 
or a live language—meaning much or little, 
according to the reader’s knowledge of this 
branch of natural history. There are doubt¬ 
less men who will say that it is all “ bosh ” 
to consider such insignificant things of any 
value, and the same class would appreciate a 
perfect skeleton of a Macrosaurus valldis or 
other extinct species of animal, according to 
the number of pounds of bone-manure they 
would make. But here are the names of a 
few of my treasure First on the list is a 
specimen of Amblychila eylindriformis, 
found on the Western plains, an insect which 
1 mentioned two weeks ago as causing quite 
a “scramble” among certain collectors in 
New York City. The second is a specimen 
of Rosalia funebris, Lec., a rare, “ longi- 
com ” beetle found in Oregon, belonging to 
the same family as our common apple-tree 
borer (Saperda Candida). It is over an inch 
long, Iwhite, beautifully ornamented with 
black. A lady residing at Corvallis, in the 
same State, sends me a small collection in 
which there are several quite scarce species, 
and another—a subscriber to the Rural 
New-Yorker, at Dallas, Texas,—sends about 
2,000 specimens, among which are several 
hundred species, quite a number of them 
rare in collections. 
But it is not alone among the beetles that 
I have found treasures this week, for in some 
of our home-bred moths and butterflea a few 
scarce things have been discovered, especial¬ 
ly among the former. For instance, in look¬ 
ing over the “ take” of the season I find speci¬ 
mens of Rcmerophila unitaria, Herrick ; 
Panopodu comeieosta, Guenee ; Phragma- 
topia rubricosa , Harris ; Rhodophora flor¬ 
id a t Guenee, and several other species 
equally a> scarce in t his region of country. 
The above names convey to the minds of 
those who know the insects just as clear an 
idea of the specimens as pig, cow, horse or 
sheep, does to those who are acquainted with 
these animals, consequently they are just as 
important for the purpose of conveying or 
giving information. 
WANTS TO MIGRATE 
I noticed in the Rural ot Nov. za tnat a 
gentleman of Cattaraugus, N. Y., wants to 
migrate to some warmer clime, and wants 
a farm, with plenty of timber, water and 
buildings, and where a good man, with $100 
or $200 capital, would be appreciated. Now, 
as winter is coming on, it might be well to 
let him know immediately where to go. I 
remember in Lanman’s travels of the Missis¬ 
sippi River he gave descriptions of farms 
along the banks. Among them he men¬ 
tioned one before which was nailed a board 
on a stump, with the following inscription : 
“ This farm for sale-price $1.50.” Now this 
is just the place, and Ku Klux will not hurt 
him, for they are small, very shy, and seldom 
caught. F • M * 
Fredericksburg, Va. 
A GRANGE TROUBLE 
A western papea says :— i he teiegrapn 
dispatches have recently given intimation of 
a defalcation on the part of C. S. Quisenbury, 
Treasurer of the State Grange of Missouri, at 
Kansas City. The most recent information 
is furnished by the Evening Dispatch of St. 
Louis, which saj s that at the recent meeting 
of the State Grange at Kansas City, Mr. 
Quisenbury was called upon for the whole 
sum in the treasury, $20,000, it being wanted 
re invest, in a manufactory. It then came 
NOTES AND QUERIES, 
Texas Thriving.—A gentleman direct from 
Texas, largely interested in its prosperity, 
and who, though a Pennsylvanian, has lived 
in that State many years, tells us that the 
progress making there in the development of 
its material resources is something astonish¬ 
ing, especially to the older settlers. A class 
of live, enterprising immigrants are arriv¬ 
ing who are by example stirnula' :g the ut¬ 
most industrial activity. 
Surprise Valley, California.—“ An Old 
Subscriber” writes that he “wants all the 
THE PATRONS IN KENTUCKY. 
The Southern Agriculturist, an able a»< 
outspoken advocate of the Order, speak 
thus hopefully of the prospects in Kentucky 
