fast as they were found! Neither were they 
satisfied with one meal but continued the good 
woi-k until not a beetle was left, and we harvested 
a fine crop. Now the secret was this: the Ban¬ 
tams had been a long time in confinement with 
but little animal food, and no doubt their appe¬ 
tites were particularly sharp for food of that 
nature and the Colorado beetle being the first 
they found, were tried and fouud to be satisfac¬ 
tory. Thus a taste was formed, the warfare 
continued and our potatoes were saved. I be¬ 
lieve that, unless some similar plan is adopted 
in order to educate the Guineas to the work, 
the disappointment to follow will he almost 
certain. 
GORDON SPANGLEO SEBRIGHT BANTAMS. 
In these days of “ big things ” our small breeds 
of stock seem to be neglected and falhug into 
disrepute. Especially does this seem to be the 
case with poultry. I have never bred but two 
of the many varieties of Bantams and one of 
them a long time ago, I will therefore write of 
the Golden Spangled Sebrights only. Visitors, 
when viewing them at home or on exhibition, 
say, “ Yes, very pretty, hut what are they good 
for? I always reply, “I have bred many 
kinds of pure, grade and cross-bred fowls but 
none that paid me so high a price for the food 
and care they received as these same little birds.” 
The Black Spanish and Hondans a re remarkable 
for the aizo of their eggs, still the Sebrights 
give larger eggs in proportion to their size than 
any other breed with which I have become ac- 
quaiuted. Moreover, under the present mode of 
buying and selling by count., if produced for 
market the price received for these eggs is the 
same as that for any others. The birds can be 
allowed the range of the garden and lawn, where 
they are very useful insect destroyers, doing but 
little damage as compared with a twelve-pound 
Brahma which scatters a hill of potatoes with 
one or two strokes of its great clumsy foot or de¬ 
vours the largest head of cabbage at one sitting. 
I am ready to admit that for the table, some 
other breeds are preferable, but for clear profit 
in eggs, at large to range where they please, or 
in a close coop, these Spangled Sebright Bau- 
toma are surpassed by none. I could give more 
reasons for preference, but perhaps this article 
is largo enough for so small a subject. I will 
therefore desist until our savants have settled 
the Brahma question which is now before the 
Ilun\r. readers. 
A SMALL GRAIN RATION FOR SHEEP. 
E. W. STEWART. 
The American farmer seems to think the 
necessity for grain feeding of sheep or other 
stock a calamity. He imagines that grain is a 
more expensive food and must, as compared 
with hay, always be fed at a loss. This opinion, 
as I have said, is based upon imagination, and 
not upon aualysis or experiment. The opinion 
has grown up from the habit by farmers of rais- 
fi ra >n for sale, and hay and other fodder for 
home consumption. They suppose it more prof¬ 
itable to sell the grain because it brings more 
per ton, and many times more per bulk. But 
let us see how the grasses, commonly used, com¬ 
pare with grains: 
Aft‘~m ay .Ifl 8--11.3130.0^.0 ti.2 
orX' l cfir’^. u ®. p :. atense) -l|;l ill IS:? S : ? H 
Blim Grass ( Poa prnt ensls). lo.u 8,2 .18.2 3l)h 2!s 
-.Ayimg 0 »f the six.! ij.do I0 ,o!aO.2 2^12^ £L4 
1 heso analyses show hay in its best state, 
except Red Clover, which sometimes shows a 
greater proportion of albuminoidos. They were 
made by Dra. Wolff and Voelcker. Now let 
us examine the various grains usually sold from 
the farm, under the belief that they are worth 
more to sell than to feed : 
Grains. 
Kye. 
Bariev.... 
Oals ..... ... 
corn".;.;:;;;: 
Buckwheat 
Bjax-seed. 
Oil cake... . 
wheat Bran 
Average 0 f all. 
M | w _ 
a* 5 2 •§* 
Isfg si 
a® <3? ««=> 
YVe give flax-seed, which perhaps is raised 
only over narrow belts of land, and is very little 
ncnvn, practically, as a feeding grain, but it is 
os excellent addition, in very small quantity, 
to the rations of wethers and dry ewes, and for 
ewes after lambing, as it is a very fattening 
food and keeps the stomach and bowels in as 
good health as grass. It is not safe to feed 
flax-seed to ewes in lamb, but a little oil-meal 
may be safely given. 
Now, if we compare the four grains most 
raised,—rye, barley, oats and corn,—we find the 
albuminoids to average 11.4 per cent., carbohy¬ 
drates 65 per cent., fat 4.4 per cent.; while the 
average of hay is 10 per cent, albuminoids, 40 
per cent, carbohydrates, 2.7 per cent. fat. This 
would make those four grains worth for feeding 
53 per cent, more than hay; but when we con¬ 
sider that the nutriment in these grains is more 
digestible, that it is contained in so much smaller 
bulk, and may be taken in addition to the bulky 
food and produce so much more rapid growth, 
it is safe to say that a pound of grain is worth 
75 per cent, moro than a pouud of good hay. 
And hay usually brings, in all our Eastern mar¬ 
kets, throe-fourths the price of grain per pouud. 
The great mistake made by farmers is that they 
do not often enough combino grain with hay 
and other fodder in feeding slieop. During the 
cold season sheep can only digest about hay 
enough to keep up animal heat and supply waste. 
Where, then, are the growth and fleece to come 
from ? The principal profit generally comes 
from the wool, and a bountiful fleece can onlv 
grow upon a sheep in fine condition. Young 
sheep must also make a good growth of body 
besides growing the wool, and if this growth is 
not made there will not be a profitable fleece. 
If farmers would but consider the fact that the 
principal cost of keeping sheep is in keeping 
them alive, without growth, and that the extra 
food which produce# the growth and the ileeco 
is but small, they would not withhold this small 
amount of grain which would give them a liberal 
profit. All the profit comes from the extra food. 
% Sluint-giTir. 
DOES IT FAY TO SELL BONE. 1 
Few farmers take into consideration the 
weight of bone, when dooidiug whether to raise 
large or small breeds of swine. Yet there is no 
element, of a virgin soil so completely exhausted 
from what we call worn-out lands, as is the 
bone formiug material, neither is there au ele¬ 
ment so difficult to restore. In the face of the 
fact that the continual drain of bone material 
from the soil, is slowly but steadily telling upon 
its productiveness, we must: First, make the 
demands upon the soil for bone material as 
small as possible. Second, restore all the 
fertilizers of this nature that are available. In 
order to lighten the demands upon the soil, I 
would advise breeding with two points constant¬ 
ly in view: First, small bone of fine texture, 
such as that found iu Berkshire, Essex, Jersey 
Bed, and some other breeds: Second, early ma¬ 
turity. These points must of course bo in addi¬ 
tion to those all good breeder? endeavor to ob¬ 
tain. Small breeds have the reputation among 
some breeders and shippers, of breaking down 
and becoming helpless when fat. This is be¬ 
cause the small breeds put on flesh more rapidly 
when young, and carry much more flesh in pro¬ 
portion to the weight of bone,than larger,slower- 
maturing breeds. Every farmer knows that 
when following the bow with slops and grass, 
pigs can be made to weigh from one hundred 
and fifty to two hundred pounds, with but iittlo 
corn, by good management. My experience is, 
that the limit of profitable feeding is reached at 
about two huudred pounds weight with earlv- 
maturing breeds. It costs the feeder, at least, 
ten times as much to grow oue pound of bone, 
as it does to grow the same weight of moat. 
The growing prejudice against the use of swine's 
flesh for food, would soon be removed by using 
the small, early-maturing breeds for family use, 
as with proper v;uietya>f other meats and well- 
lattened pig pork there could be no argument 
for a Christian to base prejudice on. My plau is 
to raise as much meat, and as little bone as I 
can; hurry my pigs into market at as early age 
as possible; and winter no hogs except my 
breeding sows. Enos L. Maiisu. 
-»■»»■ 
THAT MODEL PIGGERY. 
I think the pig-pen illustrated and described 
by Mr. J. W. Lano, in the Bubal of February 
16th, may well be called a “ModelPiggery.” My 
idea, in my inquiry, was to build a pea by dig¬ 
ging down two or three feet and laying up a wall 
five or six feet high. Put the pen iu this cellar, 
and havB the hogs ovorit, and have the whole so 
arranged that the manure could drop into the 
cellar below. This would bo high enough to 
allow a cart or sled to bo backed iu to draw out 
the manure. I think I understand Mr. Lano to 
say he keeps his hogs in the collar, and again 1 
think he doesn’t. Ho says his pen has a shallow 
cellar beneath for making and saving ma¬ 
nure, etc. : the floor and sides of each pen are 
firmly cemented for some three feet high ; and 
later ho says the foundation may be sunk two or 
three feet in the ground, the whole forming a 
tight, shallow cellar, the walls coming two feet 
above ground, (which would be five feet high.) 
Now, if Mr. Lano keeps his bogs in this cellar, (as 
I think he does, since he says he throws the ma¬ 
nure out of the windows,) what does he mean 
when he says the pens are cemented some three 
feet upwards ? Now, if I am wrong, or in other 
words, if the hogs are kept above the cellar, how 
does he get a cemented floor and wall for each 
pen over the cellar and how does he get the ma¬ 
nure into it. Will Mr. Lano please explain ? 
L. Lehman. 
-*-*-4-- 
THE PIGGERY IMPROVED. 
In your plan of a model piggery, on page 105, 
of date Feb. 16th, I notice iu the extension, 
which is 26x20, more room allowed for bins than 
is needed. By leaving out bins a aud 6, putting 
up a crane so arranged as to swing over the boil¬ 
er, aud thence to banging hooks or poles, intro¬ 
ducing a movable cleaving table, guttering the 
floor so as to allow the blood and water to flow 
outside tbe building, and adding Borne other 
little convoniencies that would readily suggest 
themselves, a convenient room for slaughtering 
hogs would be added to the plan. By means of 
the crane, hogs could be scalded, carried to the 
table, hung ready for dressing with none of the 
bard lifting so common to Buch labor. 
I would also add a large cistern into which all 
the water from the building should he conducted, 
with a pump so provided with tube3 or hose that 
water could bo pumped into the boiler or used 
to cleanse the pens and floors. e. l. m. 
fftcriiuini. 
LOCKED-JAW IN HORSES. 
Will tho Rural please inform me whether 
locked-jawiu horses and muleB can bo cured, 
and how this disease affects the system ? 
Atlanta, Ga. c . d. 
Ans. —Locked-jaw in horses—and the same 
remarks are equally applicable to the guileless 
mule — is frequently curable, especially if 
treated iu the early stages. It is usually the re¬ 
sult of some severe injury to the nervous sys¬ 
tem, the most frequent causes being, piercing 
the sole by “ picking up ” a nail or a prick in 
shoeing, and the operations of docking, prick¬ 
ing, castrating, etc. When the resnlt of wounds, 
it is technically called traumatic, w&en caused 
by disorders of tbo stomach, hots, and worms in 
the intestines or unknown causes, it is termed 
idiopathic. Yet another distinction —when it is 
confined to the head and neck it is styled tris¬ 
mus,-but when extending to all parts of the 
body it is called tetanus. The usual symptoms 
are rigidity of certain muscles, especially of the 
lower jaw, completely locking the jaws together; 
one or both sides of the neck are rigid, the head 
iu the former case being turned to oue side, and 
iu tho latter stretched stifily out. the nostrils di¬ 
lated, the eyes retracted with the haws thrust 
over them, the oars eroct and fixed and tbe 
countenance horror-struck; the gait is stiff 
aud straggling, the manner of standing fixed 
and rigid. As the disease advances, control of 
the muscles throughout the hotly is lost, aud 
they become stiff and rigid like those of the 
head and neck. The action of the pulse varies a 
good deal, the bowels are generally costive, and 
the urine often scanty. Among the best veterina¬ 
rians thero is a good deal of disagreement as to 
the most effectual methods or treatment, as 
each seems wedded to the mode which, in his 
practice, has secured favorable results. Some 
object to purging as tending to weaken tbe aui- 
mal when strength is most needed, aud blood¬ 
letting is now almost universally abandoned. 
The Dost results, however, have generally fol¬ 
lowed a free evacuation of the bowels as early 
as possible. 
For this purpose a pint of castor oil and six 
or eight drops of croton oil should bo poured 
down tho throat by means of a syringe and tube. 
If tho jaws are too firmly locked to admit of 
this, a solid aperient, suoh as a ball of aloes 
whose action is strengthened by a couple of 
drachms of calomel instead of the erotou oil. 
should be introduced iuto the mouth; and if 
both of these are impracticable, copious injec¬ 
tions, either of castor oil and turpentine, or soap¬ 
suds, should be employed. After evacuations, 
injections of meat broth and flour gruel may be 
beneficially used to strengthen and stimulate 
the animal. Chloroform has been highly recom¬ 
mended by some, as well us opium and blister¬ 
ing the back from the head to the tail; but the 
latest practice tends towards tho rejection of 
these modes of treatment, although their use 
is still strongly advocated by some of the most | 
successful practitioners. Any disturbance is I 
extremely injurious to tho afflicted animal, and 
he should therefore be placed apart where he 
may have plenty of air, little light, and no sound 
or visitor to disturb him. Place, where he can 
easily reach it, n bucket of cold, thin flour or 
oatmeal gruel, which should be renewed every 
day and kept sweet. Some of this he may be 
able to suck through his teeth. Whatever 
wounds or injuries have caused tho trouble 
should be examined, any extraneous matter re¬ 
moved. If tbe horse has been pricked in the 
foot, take off the shoe ; enlarge the outer orifice 
of tho hole where the nail entered with the 
point of a knife, remove any foreign body, and 
having cleaned tbe part, use as a poultice: hem¬ 
lock bark, lobelia and slippery elm, equal parts, 
moistened with boiling water, with a handful of 
soft-soap added. Generally when the disease 
terminates favorably, the change occurs on the 
fourth or fifth day, although there are many 
cases where it ran its full term of 16 days with¬ 
out killing the animal. In all cases, care should 
be taken not to suffer the starving wretch to 
Ijortiniltural, 
OUR NATIVE NUTS. 
O. W. IDELL. 
There is one pecnliar feature connected with 
our native wild fruits, which I have studied with 
interest, and yet have never been able to explain, 
that when Nature has given ns one or more va¬ 
riety iu abundance, these are the ones most 
likely to be neglected. Yet. I might, say, with 
truth, that Nature has forced this fact upon us 
—that so far as the nut-bearing trees are con¬ 
cerned, their timber is among the most valuable 
of all tho forest trees, and we plainly see how 
well they are adapted to the soil and climate for 
cultivation ; still so far. we have failed to recog¬ 
nize this truth or take advantage of it. 
All of us are aware of this one fact, that our 
forests are being destroyed rapidly. The nut¬ 
bearing trees are the first to be cut down, and in 
a few years they will become scarce and very val¬ 
uable, while the nuts will disappear from our 
markets unless our citizens begin to cultivate 
these serviceable trees. 
When I was a lad. there was but little demand 
for our native nuts outside the family that gath¬ 
ered them. They could not be sold at the coun¬ 
try Btore, but now few such places refuse to pur¬ 
chase them, while the majority advertise for 
them. Iu a measure the same state of affairs 
existed in regard to the timber, there was but 
little demand for it. 
With mo it is questionable if any material im¬ 
provement can be made in the nnt of the walnut 
tree by cultivation, sufficient to make it popular; 
but I do believe that it will pay to grow the tree, 
for the nuts will pay all outlay of cost, and the 
timber is oue of the most valuable and popular 
woods of the day, on account of its beauty and 
being so well adapted for ornamenting onr 
homos. The Hickory is increasing in value year¬ 
ly, and always meets with ready sale in the mar¬ 
ket. The Chestnut ns a nut-bearing tree, is val¬ 
uable. and tbe nnt is susceptible of great im¬ 
provement by cultivation ; consequently those 
who are tbe first to begin to cultivate them will 
necessarily meet with success. Be that as it 
may, there are but few farmers in this country 
who canuot well afford to devote some portion 
of them cheap lauds to this experiment, and 
should they even fail to improve the quality of 
tho nut, the timber will repay them for their 
trouble aud expense. 
On looking into the history of the walnut tree, 
I find that Several speeios different from ours, 
are grown in other countries and, iu everv in¬ 
stance. it is considered one of the most val¬ 
uable trees, for every part is made use of by the 
inhabitants. Such was the demand for the tim¬ 
ber by France in 1S00, to make gun stocks, that 
12,000 trees were required for that purpose. I 
find the curious fact connected with this tree iu 
a Gornmu province, that no young farmer was 
permitted to marry till he had brought proof 
that he was the owner of a stated number of 
these trees. 
Our native species, the Juglans nigra, Is the 
common Black Walnut. Iu 1862 it was shipped 
to Europe for propagation, and is now thorough¬ 
ly appreciated there for its good qualities. The 
increased demand for this wood in our country 
is already so great that all parts are searched for 
it, and even tho church and door yards of our 
own State are invaded, and this valuable ties 
cut down and carted to tho saw-mill to meet 
the demands of fashion or necessity. 
Tho leaves are so strongly impregnated with 
alkali, that iu foreign countries, they are some¬ 
times gathered and burned for manure. The 
husks of the nuts yield a strong dye that was 
