road-beds. Generally from 12 to 15 hours 
after the heaviest rains, we were told, the 
roads are perfectly dry. There had been 
heavy rains shortly before our reaching Lin¬ 
coln, and in driving aboat the town and a 
short distance in the country we were sur¬ 
prised to see the roads in such good coridi’ 
tion for travel. 
Prof. A., in explaining the causes of the 
peculiarities of the soil, says they are chiefly 
due to the fact that the carbonate of litno 
has entered into slight chemical composition 
with the finely comminuted silica. The car¬ 
bonic acid in vain water dissolves the carbon¬ 
ate of lime, which then readily uuites with 
silica, but not to such an extent as to destroy 
its porosity. Though the particles of silica 
are microscopically minute, they have pre¬ 
served their granular structure. There is 
not sufficient impalpable, clayey matter 
preseut to render it compact and coherent, 
and therefore water percolates through it as 
readily as through sand, but not rapidly. 
Owing to this same peculiarity, ponds and 
stagnant water are rarely found within the 
limits of the Lacustrine deposit*. 
THE NATIVE GRASSES. 
There is a great variety of native grasses, 
some of which are exceedingly nutritious 
and palatable to stock. Among them may 
be named the following : -Atopy:urus aris- 
tulatus, Agrostis vulgaris, Buchlue Uaety- 
loides, Poo serolina and annua, Fextuca 
tenet la and ovina, Promos racemosus, 1'ont- 
cutn fltiforme agrostoides and the Sorgum 
nutans. This Inst, Prof. Augury says, grows 
with great luxuriance, is eagerly eaten by 
stock, is exceedingly nutritious, and could, 
be thinks, he profitably introduced at the 
East as a soiling, crop. The plant is being 
tested at the University, and Prof. A. kindly 
promised to send us seed, so that an experi¬ 
ment night bo made to see how far the plant 
was adapted to the soil and climate of Now 
York. Prof. A., who has made a catalogue 
of the flora of Nebraska, estimates some 30 
species of grasses which are generally dif¬ 
fused over the State, and which are espe¬ 
cially relished by stock and are regarded as 
extremely nutritious. 
THE DAIRY. 
Mr. Henry Woods of Dakota County and 
formerly from New York says he can make 
50 per cent, more money from the dairy in 
Nebraska than in New York. Cows are 
worth from $30 to $50 each, and require to 
he foddered from November to the 1st of 
May. 
There are two cheese factories in Dakota 
County, near Sioux City, about 100 miles 
uorth of Omaha. There is a large factory 
taking the milk of COO cows in Woodbury 
County. A large factory is also located at 
Syracuse, Otto Co., east of Lincoln, and one 
about three miles west of Lincoln. Cheese 
sells generally at from 15 to 25e. per lb., and 
butter at 30c. 
THE GRASSHOPPERS. 
But thei'e is one feature in regard to the 
State which deserves attention and which 
Should very properly be noticed in this con¬ 
nection, and that is the grasshopper invasion 
aud the liability to be infested with this 
plague from time to time The habits of 
this insect do not seem to be very well un¬ 
derstood. Wo passod over a considerable 
portion of the country which was devastated 
last year by the grasshopper, but so far this 
year, over the section referred to, very little 
damage has been done, in the region from 
Plattsmouth to Crete, and then on from 
Omaha west, farmers and others well in¬ 
formed whom wr met put the loss at a mere 
trifle—say 3 to 5 per cent., and in many 
places the loss this year is so small a*> to be 
scarcely worth mentioning. Vast numbers 
of grass coppers were seen fr m day to day 
flying at a great flight over the country, and 
they had been thus passing for a month or 
more. Their depredations this year seem to 
be confined to the four counties in the south¬ 
east corner of the State, where the crops, so 
far as we could learn, had been pretty gen¬ 
erally cut off. Tn the section traveled over 
by us some of the fields of grain showed 
marks of their ravages on the outer edges 
only. In the vicinity of Lincoln and at other 
places the corn had been eaten off some 
weeks previous to uur visit, but the plants 
had sprouted again and the stalks were from 
2 to 3 feet high, and a good crop will be har¬ 
vested. At Fremont and other places along 
tlie line of the Union Pacific Road in Eastern 
Nebraska where we stopped the farmers had 
brought in specimens of vegetables and crops 
grown. All the vegetables—potatoes, peas, 
onions, beets, turnips, &c.—showed an im¬ 
mense growth. Stalks of com from 6 to » 
feet high, in some iustunces, w-ere exhibited, 
which, considering the time of year (July 8), 
was in marked contrast with vegetation in 
the East. 
EMIGRATION. 
Emigration this year to the State has been 
light on account of the “scare” of the 
grasshopper plague. Improved farms can 
be bought on better terms this year than 
formerly, and the R. R. offers.large quanti¬ 
ties of desirable lands on very moderate 
terms. 
There are various opinions in regard to the 
future incursions of the grasshopper, many 
believing that the country will not be in¬ 
vaded by the insect except at long intervals, 
and that by persisting in fighting them, 
burning straw so as to make a dense smoke, 
crops can in a measure be saved Otiiers 
talk more discouragingly and think there is 
little or no prospect of saving a crop when 
once invaded by the insect. All agree, how¬ 
ever, that much more knowledge is needed 
concerning the habits of this pest, and that 
with tin's knowledge means will be devised 
for averting calamity from its ravages. We 
arc. quite unprepared to give any opinion in 
regard to this question , but granting that 
tho country could be freed from the grass¬ 
hopper plague, there are few sections of the 
West, it seems to us, better adapted to stock- 
growing and the dairy than in the eastern 
half of Nebraska. We shall refer to stock- 
growing as practiced in t he State in a subse¬ 
quent article. 
cow is well fed and in good condition, there 
will be plenty of food for the formation of 
the lacteal glands and hence a plentiful pro¬ 
duction of milk, and that the composition of 
these would not be easily affected by varia¬ 
tion of the composition of the food within 
ordinary ranges?; and henee, why it should 
he so difficult by changes in the food to 
effect, any change in the composition of the 
organic substance of the milk. 
Again he saj'S, “Temporary changes in the 
composition of milk often follow changes in 
the food. But when experiments are re¬ 
peated and long-continued and when the 
milk is subjected to repeated and rigid analy¬ 
sis, these changes are generally found to dis¬ 
appear.” 
In summing up the practical inferences 
which arc to be drawnfrom the experiments 
of these investigators, Prof. Atwateh says 
they would be substantially as follows : 
fu leed milch cows the largest amounts of 
the richest fodder may be very wasteful. 
Too meager fodder is still less economical. 
Here, as elsewhere, a fair mean will be found 
the best. As regards the effect of different, 
foods on the composition of the miJk we may 
not hope by variation in the fodder to change 
acaseine (cheese) cow to a * butter cow.' We 
must, rathor depend for the quality of tho 
milk, the relative richness in fat and caselne, 
its special fitness for butter makiug or cheese 
making upon the peculiarities of different 
breeds or different individuals, uud for quan¬ 
tity upon the peculiarities of the animals 
themselves, or in a few words, for quality of 
milk, select proper breeds; for quantity, good 
milkers. Suit the food to the animal and 
feed well but not over-richly.” 
Tho question discussed by Prof. Atwater 
is one of tile most important in connection 
With dairy farming, and wo are glad that 
his address, now printed in tho Report of the 
Secretary of the Connecticut Board of Agri¬ 
culture, is in an available form, where farm¬ 
ers can road and study the principles an¬ 
nounced and compare them with the results 
obtained in their own practice. 
DAIRY NOTES ON NEBRASKA 
LETTER FROM A RURAL EDITOR. 
We crossed the Missouri River at Plafcts- 
moutb, going southwest to Lincoln, the capi¬ 
tal of the State, and tlience on to Crete aud 
returning to Omaha, thus getting a very 
fair idea of this section of the State. From 
Omaha westward our route was by the U. 
P. Road. The surface of Eastern Nebraska 
is rolling or gently undulating, and the abun¬ 
dance of streams of clear, sweet water in 
certain sections of this part of the State 
make it '-'ell adapted to stock growing and 
the dairy. Tho soil is deep and fertile, and 
all crops usually cultivated in the Middle aud 
Eastern States are grown here with wonder¬ 
ful facility. At Lincoln we met Professor 
SAMtrEL Acghey of the State University, 
who gave us valuable information concern¬ 
ing the geology and natural grasses of the 
State. He says the Lacustrine deposit is one 
of the most remarkable geological deposits 
in the world, and is found over the greater 
part of the territory drained by the rivers of 
Nebraska. It is found along the Platte from 
its mouth almost to its source. The pure 
Lacustrine deposits begin on the Platte at 
the Bluffs and extend north and south to a 
great distance, and in most places to the 
furthest boundaries of the State. The only 
exception along the Platte Is the narrow 
fringe of sand hills that extend along the 
south side of the river from near Columbus 
westward. 
PECULIARITIES OF THE IAGUSTRIHE DEPOSITS. 
One of the peculiarities of these Lacustrine 
deposits, says Prof. A., is that they are per¬ 
fectly homogeneous throughout and almost 
of uniform color, however thick the deposit, 
or how far apart the specimens have been 
taken. The following analysis is of two 
specimens of these deposits, the first, from 
Douglas County, near Omaha, aud the sec¬ 
ond, from tho bluffs near Kearney J miction, 
and will give its general composition : 
No. 1. No. 2. 
Insoluble (Mlleious) matter.... S128 81.32 
Fetric oxytle. 3.88 3.87 
Alumina........... 75 .75 
i-arbonuUi of lime..... 6.07 6.00 
I’bosphnto of limo. 3.58 3.63 
Carbonate of magnesia. 1.23 1.28 
Potash.27 .23 
Soda...,..15 .16 
Moisture... 1.09 1.08 
Organic mutter..... 1.07 1.IM 
THE COMPOSITION OF MILK RESULTING 
FROM VARIATION IN FEEDING. 
At the meeting of the Connecticut Board 
Prof. Atwater 
of Agriculture last winter 
of Wesleyan University, gave an address em¬ 
bodying the results of late European experi¬ 
ments on the feeding of cattle. Prof. At¬ 
water is well prepared to speak on this 
question, having spent some time at the 
Agricultural schools in Germany and being 
familiar, from personal observation, with tho 
manner in which the experiments referred 
to are conducted. Of late there has been 
much discussion in regard to feeding for the 
production of milk and it will be of interest 
perhaps to our dairy readers to know some 
of the points set forth in this address. Prof. 
Atwater, in referring ti tbe experiments 
conducted in Germany, says “The general 
plan is to feed cows for a period of Iwo or 
three weeks or so with a certain ration, and 
then to alter the latter so as to make it larger 
or smaller, or to put In more fatty matter 
and less albuminoids, more albuminoids and 
less fat. The fodder and milk are both meas¬ 
ured and analyzed. A large number of such 
feeding trials have been carried on by Kueu.y, 
Wolff, Fleisqiucu, Stqhman,\ and others. 
As the result of several series of experi¬ 
ments continuing through several months, 
conducted with the greatest accuracy and 
involving many hundreds of analyses of fod¬ 
der and milk, Kuehn concludes that as soon 
as the amount of the ration exceeds a certain 
maximum, an increase is ndthout effect upon 
the quality and exorcises only a slight influ¬ 
ence upon the quantity of the dry substance 
of the milk produced. This principle, fli-st 
enunciated by Kuehn, lias been confirmed 
by several experiments of similar character 
made by Wolff and Fleisher. 
“ As the result of their work these diff er¬ 
ent experimenters,” says Prof. A., “come to 
about this conclusion ;—By increasing the 
ration up to a certain point, the yield of milk 
may be increased, and not only the total 
yield but also tlie richness of the milk, the 
amount of dry substance—fat, cuseine, su¬ 
gar, &<*.—-may be thus increased. But at 
the same time the composition of this dry 
substance, the relative percentages of fat and 
caseine remain the same even though the 
proportion of fat or albuminoids in the food 
may be changed. It is very important, how¬ 
ever, to notice that the amount of milk yield¬ 
ed and the variations produced by tlie food 
differ greatly with different breeds and in¬ 
dividuals. That is to say, if lam feeding my 
cows a moderate ration I may by adding 
thereto, get more quarts of milk per day and 
more caserne and butter in a quart. But I 
may not expect to get a one-sided increase 
by using more nitrogenous rations. When 
tiie fat is increased or decreased tho caseine 
changes in like proportion.” These results 
are very easily explained by the theory of 
the formation of the milk lately propounded 
by the well-known physiologist, VoiT. This 
theory, which seems quite well supported by 
facts, assumes that the milk is not merely 
filtered from the blood through the lacteal 
glands, but is rather a product of a metamor¬ 
phosis of the glands themselves, “ The milk,’ 
says Voit,’ “ is essentially this organ lique¬ 
fied by fatty degeneration.” 
In this view, it is easy to see that when the 
CONCERNING FISH AND FISH CUL 
TUBE. 
Shad in the Hudson river liad become 
nearly extinct until the Fish Commissioners 
of New York caused it to be stocked with 
100,000,000 per year for several years ; the con- 
sequenco is that they have not been so plenti¬ 
ful and cheap for forty years as now. The 
rascally pot house netters, however, take 
every opportunity to stretch their nets sur¬ 
reptitiously across the third of the stream re¬ 
served to let them come up the river to 
spawn. Seth Greeu, that veteran piscicul¬ 
turist, is now stocking the river with stur¬ 
geon in immense numbers, that, in a few 
years will go through their nets as if they 
were a piece of gauze. The Hudson river 
sturgeon grow to an immense size, attaining 
frequently to the length of ten or twelve 
feet, and weighing from four to live hundred 
pounds. Another gratifying practical result 
of fish planting is that in the Potomac where 
black bass were entirely unknown until it 
was plan ted, they are now caught In strings of 
from thirty to sixty, weighing from two to 
four and half pounds, in a day’s fishing. 
This breeding of flsh and stocking all the in¬ 
land lakes and rivera is simply a question of 
food lor the people as much as raising grain, 
beef, pork, etc. The United States make an 
annual appropriation of $30,000 to procure 
fish from foreign waters which aro unknown 
to us, and to change the breed of such a 3 we 
have, which is as much required as to change 
the breed of everything from the human race 
to potatoes. Almost all of the States have 
now efficient fish laws, and very many make 
liberal appropriations to stock all the public 
lakes within their borders, under the super¬ 
vision of their boards of flsh commissioners, 
as well as the rivers. Canada does the same. 
—Correspondence Chicago Journal. 
Lo*h by analysis.. .. 59 1 
From the above it is seen that over 80 per 
cent, of this formation is silicious matter, 
and so finely comminuted in this matter that 
the grains can only be seen under a good mi¬ 
croscope. So abundant are the carbonates 
and phosphates of lime that in many places 
they form peculiar rounded and oval con¬ 
cretions. Vast numbers of these concre¬ 
tions, from the size of a shot to a walnut, 
are found almost everywhere by turning 
over the sod, and in excavations. When 
first exposed they are soft enough to be 
rubbed fine between the fingers, but they 
gradually harden by exposure to the open 
air. This is the chemical character of the 
Lacustrine deposits over the whole length of 
the territory drained by tile Platte and its 
tributaries, the exceptions being only those 
narrow belts on streams where the sand 
hills intrude on these deposits. On the 
whole the soli has such a happy mixture of 
materials, the natural drainage is so superior 
and water can be so readily obtained, that 
this valley would seem to offer strong in¬ 
ducements to those seeking good lands at 
the West. Prof. AoGHEY says the soil, from 
its elements, forms one of the richest and 
most tillable in the world. It can neve.- be 
exhausted until every hill aud valley which 
compose it are entirely worn away. Owing 
to the wonderfully fine comminuted silica of 
which the bulk of the deposit consists, it 
possesses natural drainage in the highest 
degree. However great the flood of water 
that falls, it soon percolates through“this 
soil, which in its lowest depths retains it like 
a huge sponge. 
HOT EASILY AFFECTED BY DROUTHS. 
When the drouths come, the moisture, by 
capillary attraction, comes up from below, 
supplying the needs of vegetation in the 
dryest season. This is the reason why over 
all this region, where the deposit referred to 
prevails, the native vegetation aud culti¬ 
vated crops are seldom dither dried out or 
drowned out, especially on old breakings and 
where deep 
NOTES AND QUERIES 
Stocking Fish Ponds .—Almost every neigh¬ 
borhood has some pond or stream which, if 
stocked with suitable fish would furnish rec¬ 
reation for young or old men besides adding 
to the variety on the table. New York State 
furnishes fbh for stocking- all public waters 
free of charge, and it costs only a trifle to 
procure stock for private ponds. 
It has been Ascertained that a mature or 
full-grown pair of brook trout will yield 
from eight hundred to three thousand eggs, 
while a like pair of bees will yield from 
twenty to forty thousand eggs. 
I luge i9 practiced. Along the 
Platte the blift:; aro in general much more 
gentle in their ascents, though sometimes 
they are quite precipitous even where the 
tops of them expand into the beautiful, 
gently-rolling prairies which are so charac¬ 
teristic of Nebraska. The soil makes good 
