JUNE 23 
seen, then, that the chance of destroying the 
straw by fire while threshing is out of the ques¬ 
tion. The next important consideration is the 
consumption of fuel, and hero, the makers claim, 
the “Monitor” shows to immense advantage. 
We have seen no figures of tests, but from the 
construction of the fire box and grates, wo 
are disposed to admit the claim. The steam is 
super-heated and is generated rapidly, and the 
vertical position of the dues must deposit sedi¬ 
ment iu a way that makes it the least trouble¬ 
some. If any of our readers have ever seen a 
locomotive boiler cleaned, they will appreciate 
this advantage. A glance at the illustration w ill 
show that the engine is easily and firmly set for 
work, as the front, wheels may be cramped at 
right angles to the rear wheels, and the springs 
may ho braced, so that a rigid resistance to all 
jar is attained. 
The working machinery is easily got at, and 
being for the most part vertical also, there is little 
danger of the piston wearing away the cylinder, 
thereby causing leakage aud annoyance. The 
steam being super-heated, also increases the 
unit of labor, without corresponding increase of 
water and fuel. 
A point to bo carefully considered, in all en¬ 
gines, is their construction. Messrs. C. Ault- 
man «fe Co., the well-known manufacturers of 
Canton, Ohio, who make the “ Monitor,” under 
Miller's patents, lyive had five years’ experi¬ 
ence ; having a name that is by no moans local, 
they put their reputation into their engine, by 
using the best attainable material with the high¬ 
est. class of mechanical skill. 
Air Oooks are used m all places where water 
may settle and freeze. 
The boiler is made of tho best Lake Superior 
chilled rolled Iron, and has a tensile strength of 
sixty thousand pounds to t he square inch. The 
Beams np and down the boiler are double riveted. 
It can he easily and completely cleaned in nil its 
pa,rtn. No cast iron whatever, is used in its con¬ 
struction. To prevent tho hot water in the 
boiler from being carried along by the steam in¬ 
to the cylinder, a dry pipe inside the boiler is 
used encircling it at the top and perforating with 
small holes, whereby the steam is drawn evenly 
from all parts of the boiler, and by pipe is carried 
downward through the water und outward 
through the governor to the cylinder. Tho 
feed-pipes are arranged so as to prevent conden¬ 
sation, and be protected from damage. 
The Fire Box llim is made of the host charcoal 
hammered iron. 
We have indicated the main features of this 
excellent engine, and would refer those seeking 
further information to the makers. 
The “Sweepstakes” Thresher made by this 
firm is too well and favorably known to need par¬ 
ticular mention. Successive seasons have seen it 
in the field abreast of competitors, and we have 
no doubt it will give a good account of itself 
this year, especially if its motions are accelera¬ 
ted by a “ Canton Monitor.” 
Idliorirultural, 
THE TIMBER OF BRITISH COLUMBIA. 
A correspondent of the Canadian Fanner’s 
Advocate, writing from the Pacific Slope of tho 
New Dominion, tells what ho knows about timber 
iu the region where ho resides, aud although it 
is often puzzling to distinguish trees and other 
plants on account of tho names locally given 
them, Still, in this instance, our roaders can 
make a close guess in regard to them, inasmuch 
as similar trees are found east of the mountains. 
The first of all is the Douglas Fir or Oregon 
Pine, which grows to a bight of 150 to 200 feet, 
is often eight foot through at the stamp, and 
carrying its tliickness well up. The wood is hard 
and chips badly; the greater part of the trees 
split tough, although a few here and there split 
freely. Ten-foot rails are worth 2c. each at the 
stump; fir cordwood is §3 a cord delivered on 
the river bank, or .*1.25 at tho stump. Fir rails 
make a better fence than cedar. The land upon 
which these firs grow is also covered with under¬ 
brush, aud is the poorest and dryest wo have; 
consequently, bush fires are very frequent, which 
accounts for the small quantity of vegetable 
matter contained in the Boil. 
Tho trees that fall down rot so slowly that the 
cultivation of these lands is very expensive. I 
have seen trees which must have been down 
twenty years, and were as sound as the day they 
fell. It is not known how long it takes a tir 
stump to rot, for a number of them around New 
Westminster, cut iu 1802, arc still sound, aud 
seem likely to remain so for years to come. Haw¬ 
ed fir lumber is from 812 50 to 815 per thousand 
at tho mills. There is a kind of fir which growB 
in swamps, and !•> distinguish it from the Doug¬ 
las Red Fir, it is * ailed Black Fir. This kind of 
timber is scarce, and rarely over eighteen inches 
through. It iB b <<1. and will not rot iu water. 
The Cedar (Tin.; i iHymitea) is certainly the 
most useful kind .,1 timber the farmers have 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
here. It grows to a great size, for I have seen 
some twelve feet through. It is very plentiful, 
and on this account is generally used for house 
f itubers aud fouces. It is very easily split, and 
a man can get out about 150 12-foot rails in a 
day. Cedar shingles are worth 82.50 to 83 per 
thousand delivered, and rails ljj'c. each at the 
stump. 
bo called rosewood. Its color certainly does not 
look much like a rose ; so we must look for some 
other reason. Upon asking, wo are told that 
when the tree is first cut, the fresh wood pos¬ 
sesses a very strong, rose-liko fragrance—hence 
the name. There are half a dozen or more kinds 
of rosewood trees. Tbo varieties are found in 
South America and in the East Indies and neigh- 
TTIE CANTON “MONITOR” ENGINE. 
There is but little Oak growing, aud that only 
in some parts of Vancouver Island. 
The Sprnco grows principally in swamps and 
on the banks of rivers. Homo of it splits very 
well, but it is not much used, as it is more liable 
to rot than fir or cedar. A Bprnco stump takes 
about six or eight years to rot. Tho avorago 
size of spruce is three foot through, 
Hemlock grows oil fir lands, and makes very 
good piles for salt water, as tho worms do not 
readily attack it if the bark is left on. It is softer 
than Canadian hemlock; tho average sizo is two 
feet through. No hemlock and but very little 
spruce is sawed into lumber, and there is no sale 
for tbo bark. Barrels are made of rod tir aud 
butter kegs of spruce. 
The Willow or Poplar is soft and too brittle 
for basket work. There is a large tree growing 
on the banks of tho Frazer called Cottonwood, 
but I think it is a kind of willow. 
Thera is a sort of Balsam, but tlio growth is 
limited. The tiees are sometimes four feet 
through ; tho wood is soft, splits easily, and is 
used for rails. 
Maple is plentiful. Tho wood is not so hard 
as tho Canadian variety. Carta and other agri¬ 
cultural implements aro made from it. No 
doubt, if greater means of intercommunication 
existed between bore and Ontario, wo should 
import all our agricultural implements from 
there. No niuplo sugar is mode hero, owing to 
the mildness of our winters. 
We have White l’iuo in small quantities, aud 
tbo wood is similar to that of the Canadian va¬ 
riety. Tins lumber is worth 825 por thousand at 
the mills. 
The Alder grows on low lying lands, and is on 
an average one foot through. Valuable for fire¬ 
wood, charcoal and furniture. This kind of fire¬ 
wood is often 84 por cord delivered. The alders 
grow very thickly; sometimes as many as one 
hundred trees are found on an aero of ground. 
The slumps rit out in four years, and these 
alder bottoms are our very best agricultural 
lauds. It is necessary to mention that little culti¬ 
vation cun be done on them until the stumps rot. 
Birch is not plentiful in tho lower country; 
tbo bark is not so tough or the wood so hard as 
tho Canadian. 
Beach aud Hickory do not grow here at all. 
That finishes tho troes; and all the common 
sorts a farmer is likely to notice are mentioned, 
I think. Now tho underbrush, and first is 
The Crab Apple, and very plentiful it is. It is 
never more than one foot through, and very 
rarely that. YYe use it for many purposes where 
hard wood is required; as axe-handles, rnaulB, 
spokos of wheels, Ac. 
The Vine Maple grows in great abundance, 
and is not often as large as the crab apple. It 
makes good ax-handles, as it is tough. 
Wo have also lots of berry hushes, such as 
Bed aud Blue Huckleberries, Wild Raspberries, 
Wild Gooseberries, Wild Black Currants, Hal- 
lnonborries, Blackberries (two lands), Wild 
I’lums, Hall-lallberries, and a lot more I cannot 
remember. I almost forgot tho Wild Cherry, 
which grows on a tree the same size as the Al¬ 
der. There are Bearberries and Dogwood. 
- ♦♦ ♦ ■ — 
ROSEWOOD. 
It has puzzled many people to decide why the 
dark wood so highly valued for furniture should 
boring islands. Sometimes tho trees grow so 
large that planks four feet broad and ten feet in 
length can be cut from them. These broad 
planks are principally used to make the tops of 
piano-fortes. When growing in the forest, the 
rosewood tree is remarkable for its beauty; but 
such is its value in manufactures hb an orna¬ 
mental wood, that some of the forests where it 
ouee grow abundantly, now have scarcely a single 
specimen. In Madras tho Government has pru¬ 
dently hall great plantations of this tree sot out, 
in order to keo > up the supply. 
Tho best known rosewoods are from Brazil 
and other parts of .South America, and aro from 
different species of and and Macho- 
rium, of tbo order tcyiiiidnosoz : they are im¬ 
ported in SOml-cylludfloal slabs about. 12 feet 
long and from 12 to 22 inches in diameter. Af¬ 
rican and Burmese rosewoods are from species 
of plerocar/rus of tbo same family. 
Jfnhstrial topics. 
LIGHTNING ROD SWINDLERS. 
The causes of the fears of mankind form an 
enigma which our most aeuto philosophers have 
failed to solve, and no matter how brave a man 
may appear to bo, if wo search long enough we 
are sure to find Unit he has a timid point some¬ 
where, and, quite frequently, this is manifested 
in a most absurd maimer. 
There is many a one who could face death at 
the cannon's month, and never shirk duty even 
in the most trying moments; or show the least 
concern for his own safety even when his life 
was in peril, and yet the sight, of a dentist's 
forceps, or the touch of some harmless reptile or 
insect will cause his cheeks to blanch and his 
sturdy frame to shake like an aspen. With 
those well-known peculiarities of human nature 
before ns, we aro not at all surprised that thou¬ 
sands, yes, millions of men and women, other¬ 
wise brave, tremble and stand in awe of heaven’H 
artillery as exhibited during almost every sum¬ 
mer shower. It is useless to tell thorn that their 
ohances of being injured aro one in a hundred 
million, for the innate cowardiBo is thoro, and 
that persons have been struck by lightniug is 
enough to make them not only fear it but en¬ 
deavor to guard against injury from it. It is an 
old saying that “ it iB an ill-wind that blows good 
to no one,” and the fear of lightning has made 
many a man rich and given employment to thou¬ 
sands, and this, we fear, with littlo good to those 
who havo sought protection iu various Ostensible 
safe-guards. Of course wo aro not disposed to 
dispute tho utility of lightniug rods under certain 
conditions, but as ordinarily constructed and 
put up, they are as likely to do harm as to ward 
off the electric fluid. But it is not so much the 
weakness of men who seekprotcction from light¬ 
ning by the use of rods of any description, which 
calls so loudly for denunciation as the swindlers 
who not only work upon the fears of farmers 
aud their wives until they get au order for a rod 
hut then proceed, by somo rascally trick, to 
obtain live times what tho Baid rods and fixtures 
aro worth. 
These swindling operations havo been going 
on for so many years that one might supposo 
that everybody had heard of them, and conse¬ 
quently that all would be on their guard against 
their trickery. But no. Every season thero is 
some now form or development of the samo old 
tricks. Ono of tho latest is reported from Michi¬ 
gan by a correspondent of tho Western Rural, 
who says: 
I would like to call the attention of tho public 
to lightning-rod swiudlera that aro now traveling 
through Michigan swindling the people. Tbo 
plan is this: Two sharpers, with tiuo “riggs," 
go head and get contracts to put up lightning 
rods, and offor to give to the person a policy for 
ten years iu old /Etna against, lightning. Thoy 
figure the cost with tho former, and if ho demurs 
hey will fall to a very low figure, rather than 
lose the chance of getting his name to a paper. 
Their plea is, they want to get a start in tho 
town, and want him to give them a swoommond 
when tho work is doue. Home moo have given 
them their names. The agents then leave, and 
hi a few days ageut No. 2 comes along with tho 
rods and a contract, which ho proeoeds to fill. 
But lo! und behold! when tho work is done tho 
contract, proves to ho different from what was 
agreed upon, and the man is holdeu for tho 
whole amount, which is boyond all expectation. 
11' you refuse to take tho rods, No. 2 claims to 
have nothing to do with the matter, only lo put 
up the rods. Ho says that if you refuse lie will 
send the contract to Mr. Lothrop of Detroit, for 
collection. Well, tlioro are not many farmers 
who want to enter Into a lawsuit. I want to 
warn everybody against lightning-rod men, for 
if you havo anything to do with thorn, they will 
swiudle you if they can. 
-+ ♦ » 
AGRICULTURE. 
Agriculture is one of tho oklost as woll as 
ono of the most honorable of occupations, and 
to the young man who contemplates deserting 
tho old honieistead, I would say, “ Think twico 
before you do it.” Can you not got as good a 
living, take as much comfort and bo as sure of a 
homo on tho farm as anywhere else ? Can yon 
not mako your wife as happy there as in tho 
city, and, if blessed with children, are not tho 
intluonoes on a farm a great deal better than iu 
cities ? Besides it is a much healthier place. 
Fruits can be bad fresh from the tree, vegetables 
also in all their erispnosB and, as far as I can seo, 
I havo yet to discover a placo where a man can 
take more comfort than on a farm, surrounded 
by the growing crops and animals. It is trno 
thero aro hard days’ work to bo performed but 
what is tho occupation that does not demand 
them ? I have tried various ones, and tho farm 
is the best, of all, according to my taste. I toll 
yutt, young man, thoro is something onnobling 
about agriculture. How I delight to go out in 
my garden and fields and see how the crops 
grow. It infuses now life and energy into my 
veins; and it is also a groat enjoymont to pet 
aud oare for stock. I love agriculture and 
always did. I can recollect, when only a small 
boy, how I used to look at pictures in agricultu¬ 
ral papers and rood in the weeklies about rural 
mutters, as woll as search the house for old 
fanning papers and rood and reread them. 
I would advise all young men who have a taste 
for agriculture to pursuo it by all means; for 
they can enjoy life better thoro than anywhere 
olse. If you have not enough money to pay foe 
a largo farm, ho careful to uot get too deep in 
debt. Purchase a Bmall tract and enlargo your 
acres as your capital increases, until you get a 
sufficient number; but I would not advise the 
purchase of a very largo farm, anyhow—never 
over ono hundred acres, and fifty would be 
better. My idea is from twenty to fifty, or if 
near a city or largo village, a good liviug can ho 
got from loss. “A small farm woll tilled,” iB 
far better than a large one half tilled. 
Many young men will uot engage in farming 
for the lack or capital to purchase a large farm, 
but near a city or village or on tho line of a rail¬ 
road, a first-rate living can he got Bom a very 
few acres, if rightly cultivated. Then why, for 
the lack of capital, neglect to go to farming, If 
you witfh to. Thorn nfO thousands of acron of 
land which can bo bad cheap, near villages and 
on the lino of railroads, and any man can, if he 
choaeB, engage in agriculture, and that without 
going to the Far West to do so. It does not 
malic much difference iu what State a man lives, 
after all, if he is only contented. l'Jbat seems to 
bo the main point, and if tbo old homestead is at 
your command take it or even a part of it; if 
uot, then purchase some land where convenient. 
There are good farming lands in all of the 
States and also disadvantages; one place can 
not havo all the good qualities. But wo have 
better markets in tho Fast and, as a general 
thing, onr acres produce as much as at tho West, 
so my idea is, stay and farm where you are. 
Empire State, June 12, 1877. Clifton. 
--—■»•»-»—--- 
N. Y. STATE FARMERS’ ALLIANCE. 
The Executive Committee will meet at the 
house of the Hecretar/, In Warsaw. N. Y., at 12 
o'clock, M., ou Thursday, Juuo 2»th, to make 
arrangements for the annual meeting to be held 
at Hvracuso on the 5th of September Any sug¬ 
gestions communicated to tho Heeretary, will re¬ 
ceive the careful attention of the Committee. 
F. P. Root, Hweden, N. Y., President; C. H. 
Damm, Warsaw, N. Y., Becroiary. 
