<*> 
JAS4. 24 
time; still it made a fine growth. There were 
from two to 10 stalks in a hill, it grew from 
eight to nine feet high. I have put away 56 
heads the seeds of which I think will grow. 
The flower seeds did well; there were 12 or 15 
different kinds that flowered this season. 
Every person that saw them admired them 
very much. w. R. 
Ottovillk, Putnam Co., Dec., 20.—The 
Washington Oats stood up well. I planted 
them in a rich garden soil in rows one foot 
apart and grains throe inches apart in the 
row. They produced from each grain from 
five to seven heads, from which 1 gathered 
about a half bushel of very nice oats. Some 
of the heads were IS inches long, with 100 to 
125 spikelets producing one to two grains 
each. I am very well pleased with the free 
seeds ; l would not give the oats I have for a 
year’s subscription to the Rural. The Rural 
Branching Sorghum did better than I expected 
The few seeds that germinated branched sur¬ 
prisingly, there being from 10 to IS stalks to 
a seed. I planted it on May 10 ; it grew slowly 
at first, by July 15 it was about three feet 
high when I cut it (except a few stalks left 
for seed) and the cattle pronounced it excel¬ 
lent. The second crop surpassed the first; it 
grew very fast from the butts I had left. I 
got a few heads of nice seed and I intend 
giving it another year’s trial. The asparagus 
did well; it grew to the hight of 27 inches. 
1 had a splendid bed of flowers ol all colors, 
single and double, beautiful to see, I saved 
some seed from them. s. b. p. 
Oregon. 
Tangent, Linn Co., Dec. 30.— The White 
Elephant potatoes are just splendid. I be¬ 
lieve they are an improvement on anything we 
have iu that line. lent my little one-and-one- 
half ounce potato into 23 pieces ; 23 hills grew, 
but unfortunately owing to a gate having been 
left open, the hogs made a raid on the elephants 
when nearly ripe. I don’t believe they hurt 
the hogs any, for the}- wanted to renew the 
battle; but my intervention secured me 20 
pounds of the tubers for seed. The Washing¬ 
ton Oats did not do so well on account of 
smut. If I hail put a solution of vitriol on the 
seed it would have killed the smut and the 
oats would have done much better. The 
pinks were the finest we had, and we have 
twelve carnation plants from which we an¬ 
ticipate some fine blooms next Summer. 
R. l. s. 
I’eiuisylyanln. 
Gibson, Susquehanna Co,, Doc. 30.—I had 
a poor crop of potatoes this year, but got 
about 20 pounds of nice White Elephants. 
The Washington Outs were very nice, and wo 
had some beautiful pinks. 1 am in hopes to 
have some fine carnation blossoms another 
Summer. The asparagus did well, and 1 am 
well pleased with the Rural Branching Sor¬ 
ghum. H. s. T. 
Mononoahela City, Washington Co.. Pa., 
Jan. 3. —The Cuthbert Raspberry grew finely, 
bore some berries last Summer, and we think 
them very nice. Of thd White Elephant Po¬ 
tato we had only one eye, and it produced 
four fine large Elephants and no “ babies.” 
The pinks grew, but I suppose not to perfection 
on account of the dry weather; but there were 
some very fine flowers. The asparagus came 
up finely and almost every seed grew of both 
kinds. ,t. l. s. 
Vermont. 
Troy, Orleans C'o., Dec. 36.—The Washing¬ 
ton Oats grew- finely, but were troubled with 
smut; they had splendid long heads, but just 
as they begun to turn the birds came and 
gathered the entire crop. The White Ele¬ 
phant did not thrive very well, yet it pro¬ 
duced three times as much from the same 
quantity of seed as any other variety I plant¬ 
ed; shall try them more thoroughly next 
year; I think they will do well in Vermont. 
The Rural Branching Sorghum w as planted 
the last of May. 1 think every seed germina¬ 
ted. 1 counted 15 stalks from one seed, but 
the stalks did not grow over three feet high. 1 
think the w eather whs too cool and cloudy. I 
had some Early Amber sugarcane that reach¬ 
ed the hight of nine feet, and the seeds were 
about half ripe when the frost nipped it. The 
asparagus seed I did not plant, as I had no 
good pluco for it. My wife planted about half 
the pink seeds und had 18 distinct colors. 
Ta ken all together, 1 am w ell pleased with the } 
Rural, seeds, and l mean to do my level best 
with the next lot. d. a. b. 
Virginia. 
Hamilton, Loudoun, Co.—The White Ele¬ 
phant Potatoes have done splendidly, and the 
Beauty of Hebron did better this year than 
any potato that l have ever planted. The 
sorghum was so affected by the drought that 
it did not ripen any seed. B. B. 
West Virginin. 
New Martinsville, Wetzel Co., Dee. 28. 
—The White Elephant Potato from 18 hills 
yielded 22% pounds, 40 medium tubers and 54 
small. Only about 40 per cent, of the Rural 
Branching Sorghum did finely. Saved some 
10 stalks that matured seed that will grow-. 
The Washington Oats grew four feet high and 
matured about one peck by measure. The 
dianthuses were very beautiful. Of the carna¬ 
tions, pieotees and pinks we have 40 fine plants 
that will bloom next year. F. s. s. 
Wisconsin. 
Reetjsburg, Sauk Co., Jan. 2 —The Rural 
seedsdid well. I raised 48 pounds of the White 
Elephant. The Washington Oats grew well, 
but smutted badly. Both varieties of aspara¬ 
gus grew well and I have some fine plants. 
Too far north for the Rural Branching Sor¬ 
ghum. The flower seeds especially pleased 
us all. d. G. 
(The '(Querist, 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name 
and address of the writer to insure attention ) 
LOUIS PASTEUR. 
R. M., Goshen, Term., asks who is Pasteur 
about whose microscopic discoveries so much 
appears in the papers of late. 
Ans. —Louis Pasteur is a French chemist, 
born at Drule, Dec. 27, 1822, so that he is now 
beginning his sixtieth } es r. In 1847 he took 
his degree, and was professor of physical 
science at Dijon from 1843 to 1849 , and after, 
wards chemist at Strasburg till 1*54, when he 
organized the new Faculty of Science at 
Lille. In 1857 he went to Paris as scientific 
director of the Normal School; subsequently 
he was elected a member of the Institute, and 
towards the end of 1863 he assumed the chair 
of geology, physical science nnd chemistry at 
the School of Fine Arts, and afterwards that 
of chemistry at the Sarbonne. In 1856 he 
obtained great celebrity and the Rumford 
medal for his researches on the polarization 
of light and other subjects. In 1850 a French 
prize was awarded to him for bis works on 
fermentation, and a Jecker prize in 1861 for 
his chemical labors. In 1873 he was elected 
an associate member of the Academy of 
Medicine, and in 1874 the government granted 
him a pension of 20,000 francs. About a 
month ago lie was elected one of the 40 mem¬ 
bers of the French Academy, in which he 
represents Science. Election to this body— 
the first of the five academies constituting 
the Institute of France—is the highest literary 
honor that can bo conferred on a Frenchman 
He is most widely known for his opposition 
toBastian’s doctrine of spontaneous genera¬ 
tion; for his researches in fermentation and 
with regard to what is known as the “germ 
theory ” of disease, which attributes epidemic 
diseases among men and epizootic diseases 
among stock— in fact all contagious diseases— 
to the presence in the blood of minute para 
sitic organisms. His latest researches in this 
connection have related to the terribly fatal 
disease of malignant anthrax—splenic lever 
—various forms of which are known as black¬ 
leg. black quarter, etc. For this he has dis¬ 
covered that, inoculation with prepared virus 
is a sure preventive—a discovery second only 
to Jenner’s discovery of vaccination as a pre¬ 
ventive of small-pox 
STEEL RAILS FOR RAILROADS. 
R. T. McN., Jackson, Mich., asks, when 
steel rails for railroads were first invented and 
introduced; are they faced with steel, or steel 
through and through; how extensively are 
they used. 
Ans. —Steel rails were first rolled in Eng¬ 
land in 1857, and so greatly were they found 
to surpass iron rails in durability that, in spite 
of their much higher cost, the demaud for 
them greatly exceeded the capacity of the 
mills to make them, until the invention of 
Bessemer's process of producing them from the 
puddling furnace reduced their cost aud great¬ 
ly increased the demand for them. By this 
process the melted pig-irou is converted di¬ 
rectly into stool. Tho process consists, first, 
in molting tho pig-iron; second, transferring 
the molten metal into the “ converter,” where 
it is subjected to the action of a blast of air; 
third, pouring the finished product iuto a 
ladle; fourth, pouring from ladle into mold. 
The metal when solid, but while still hot, is 
worked by rolling or hammering into the de¬ 
sired form. Bessemer secured his first patent 
in England on October 17, 1855, for a process 
of blowing air or steam through molten pig- 
irou in crucibles until the metal was decar- 
bur ized to any desired extent. Several other 
patents were taken out by him subsequently, 
but it was not until 1867 that this sorb of steel 
was used on railroads in this country. Since 
then it has been used almost exclusively. Only 
3,000 tons were produced hero in 1867, against 
19,000 tons of all other sorts of steel; while in 
1874 there were 176,579 tons of Bessemer steel, 
against 47,481 tons of other steel. Of this pro¬ 
duct 144,944 tons were made into rails, and 
since then the amiual production and importa¬ 
tion of Bessemer steel rails have increased 
enormously. The rails on the railroads are 
solid steel, made almost entirely by the Besse¬ 
mer process; although a small amount of im¬ 
ported rails are made by the Uehatius and 
Martin processes. For light traffic the heads 
of the rails only are often made of steel, 
which is then always Bessemer, as this can be 
welded to the iron much more easily than 
ordinary cast steel. 
AILING APPLE TREES. 
G.M., Dah!green, III., says his apple trees, 
four years from the nursery, are all dying. 
They leafed out last Spring and looked well, 
but iu about one w eek the tips of the branches 
began to die; the leaves turned yellow; the 
disease extended down the tree; the bark 
turned black; half the affected limbs are dead 
and on about half the body of each stricken 
tree the bark is black aud bursting, while the 
sap is running out. He also had about 30 trees 
two years from the nureery, that looked fine 
when first set out. They were planted in the 
Fall and leafed out in the Spring, but duriug 
the Summer htilf of them perished. On the 
rest the bark dried up on the south side, the 
wood began to decay, and several of them 
have died, and he asks what ailed his treesand 
how to save those left. 
Ans. —The disease is new to us and to sev¬ 
eral experienced pomologists whom we have 
consult d. We calinot accouut for it unless 
there is something in tho soil which is unfa¬ 
vorable to the trees. Probably the best way 
would be to dig them all up and plant young, 
healthy trees in another plot of laud some 
little distance from where the present orchard 
stands. 
COW-PEAS. 
J. J. M., W hippany, N.J., asks, 1, whether 
COW-peas are a good, safe green food for 
cows; 2, should they be sown alone or with 
oats; 3, what quantity should be sown; 4, 
how long after they are sown until they are 
fit to cut: 5, where can they bo obtained. 
Ans. —1. Yes. 2. Alone. 3. There are 
many different kinds of cow-peas. Some of 
them would not answer your purpose. The 
chief kiuds have been well tested at the Rural 
Faim, and from these tests we should recom¬ 
mend you to try the following varieties: 
Whippoorwill or Java; COnck Pea, which 
produces r.lie greatest amount of vine, though 
it does not ripen its peas; Little Black, Tory 
Pea, Early Favorite. The seeds should be 
sown in drills not less than six feet apart. The 
seeds may be dr opped every six inches in the 
drill and then hoed out to one foot apart or 
more. The vines will cover the entire surface 
and will continue to grow until frost. 5. We 
procured our seeds from W. B. Jones, of 
Herndon, Ga., though some of the seedsmen 
offer them. The price is fiorn one to two 
dollars per bushed. 
HALES’S PAPER-SHELL HICKORY NUT. 
II. B. S’., Rockport, Ohio, asks, 1, what has 
become of Hales’s Paper Shell Hickory Nut 
described in the Rural some five or six years 
ago; 2, will the plants grown from the seeds 
of Pyretlirum loseum be likely to stand the 
Winter iu latitude 42 degrees north. 
Ans. —1. Plants of Hales’s Paper Shell 
Hickory Nut have been propagated by J. It. 
Trumpy of the Kissena Nurseries of Parsons 
& Sons Co., Flushing, L. 1., N. Y., but not in 
sufficient quantity or of large enough size as yet 
to warrant the proprietor iu offering young 
plants to the public. To reproduce a variety 
of this kind, propagation by grafting can 
alone be employed with satisfactory results. 
Graft ing varieties of hickory nuts has always 
been accomplished w ith the greatest difficulty. 
The growth of the young hickory plant is 
also extremely slow. 2. We believe so. 
Miscellaneous. 
1. H. B., Windsor, Ohio, asks what ought 
good pasture lard, valued at $25 per acre, rent 
for thereabouts and how large an area ought 
an 800-pound, two-year old steer have for 
grazing in Summer. 
Ans. —The amount of land required for a 
steer to feed on during the Summer depends 
upon its character and condition. An acre well 
seeded and rich will produce more pasture 
than six which are poor. On rich land which 
would cut three tons of hay, one ucre is ample 
to summer a steer, grazing six months; on 
ordinary pasture laud, three acres would not 
bo more than enough. The rental price must 
be determined by the amount of gras- which 
the land would yield. Two dollars per acre 
for land valued at $25 per acre would be a 
fair price, with a proportionate increase ac¬ 
cording to its productive capacity. 
M. P. B., Peoria , Kansas, wishes to get 
from the Rural, Black Mexican Corn in¬ 
stead of the Rural Flint and Dent varieties. 
Ans.—T he choice of com lies only between 
the two varieties we offer. Of course, it would 
be wholly out of the question for us to try to 
send to each subscriber whatever other plant 
or seed he might want instead of any of those 
offered by us. Each reader who wishes some¬ 
thing else can see that if ull our other sub¬ 
scribers followed his example, the labor en¬ 
tailed on us in granting the request would be 
so excessive as to render ^impracticable, The 
rule therefore must be absolute— without a 
single exception —that wo send out only what 
we offer in our Free Seed Distribution. 
S. IL, South■ Glastonbury, Conn,, intending 
to plant a few grape-vines for family use, 
asks which are the four best varieties for that 
latitude, omitting the Concord, which he has; 
good keeping varieties alone are to be named 
in the order of their merit. 
Ans. —The above is a kind of question that 
we never like to answer. It is easy enough to 
name tho grapes preferred, but whether they 
will thrive in a given place of which we 
know nothing can only be ascertained by 
trial. The Duehesse keeps w T ell and is of ex¬ 
cellent quality. Brighton, Lindley, Wilder, 
Lady Washington, Victoria (Miner) may be 
mentioned for trial. 
W. M.F., St. Michael's, Md., asks, 1, what 
was the reply of the Prentiss Preserving Co. 
to Dr. Warder’s exposure of the “Ozone” 
matter; 2, what in Mr. Marvin’s opinion is the 
value of burnt soil for potatoes and other 
crops in comparison with commercial fertili¬ 
zers; 3, the best red wheat for that section. 
Ans, —1. The reply of the Prentiss Company 
was such that we did not think it would help 
our readers. 2, Mr. Marvin wall no doubt 
answer should this meet his eye. 3. We do not 
know of any better than Red Mediterranean 
at present. 
J. D. D., Chester, Neb., living in latitude 
40°, north, half a mile from the northern line 
of Kansas and about 150 miles west of the 
Missouri River, asks whether it would be 
worth while trying the wheat of the Rural 
Free Seed Distribution there in Spring—for 
the last three years Winter wheat has not 
amounted to anything there. 
Ans. —We hope that aH of our readers so 
si tnated will sow our parcels of wheat in the 
Spring. The experiment, requiting so small a 
piece of land, can do no harm. 
IT. Fitzpatrick, Meriden, Mich., asks, 1, 
what sort of corn is suitable for muck land; 2, 
the address of some ship builders on the At¬ 
lantic coast, as he has some ship knees for 
sale. 
Ans. —1. We are not aware ’hat any partic¬ 
ular kind of corn will do better on muck land 
than others. 2, We know a number of build¬ 
ers of iron ships, but no builder of wooden 
vessels. Information sent to the abovfi ad¬ 
dress will doubtless be thankfully appreciated. 
President B. L. A rnold, Agricultural Col¬ 
lege, Corvallis, Oregon, Fends some heads of 
Black-bearded Centennial wheat as improved 
by cultivation in Oregon, and inquires whether 
we have ever seen better heads. 
Ans, —We have seen upwards of 50 differ¬ 
ent choice specimens of the Black-bearded 
Centennial. Those sent by President Arnold 
areas large and plump as any. We would 
ask if the flouring qualities have been ascer¬ 
tained at the college ? 
J. J, P., Nashville, Tenn., asks what is the 
best use to which tobacco stems may be ap¬ 
plied ; would they be a good application for 
fruit trees if dug in about the roots; are they 
good for land to be planted to vegetables; and 
what particular vegetables will they help 
most. 
Ans. —In the absence of experience we pre¬ 
sent the above questions to our readers for 
answers. 
B. I). N,, Sherburne, N. Y., asks, 1, whether 
the American Book Store, of this city, is reli¬ 
able; 2, how to tell the age of a hen. 
Ans. —t. Yes. 2. Whoever can give a 
trustworthy rule for telling the age of a hen 
will be a public benefactor, even if he does 
greatly injure the “ Spring chicken” trade. 
Whom shall we hail as a public benefactor in 
this line f 
C. IF. S., North Springfield, Pa., asks 
whether the roots of Blue Grass are easily 
killed by cultivation, or are they like those of 
Quack Grass—immortal. 
Ans. —We have never experienced any 
trouble iu this respect. Our inquirer need 
have no fear. 
3’. IF., Utica, N. Y., asks whether S. L. 
Allen & Co., of Philadelphia, who advertise in 
the Rural, are quite trustworthy. 
Ans.—Y es. 
N. S, A., Kingman, Kansas, asks where 
can he get root cuttings of Bermuda Grass. 
Ans.—P. J. Berckmans, Augusta, Ga. 
-- 
Communications Received for the Week Ending 
Saturday, Jan. 14, 1883. 
W. F. B.—J. H. F.-T. T. Xj.—J, S. B.—J. J. D., 
Nebraska. Wo print no German edition.—J. D. 31.— 
B. L. A.—E. W. T —J. P,—F D O.— M. B. P —W. J. 
B.—N. R.. thanks for your vood notes—C. T. T.— P.E. 
T.—N. H. D.-F. B.-P B. 31.—A. S. W.-W. J. F.—V. 
E. C.—Communication from ClintOD. N. Y., no name; 
thanks.—J. B. S -C. D —G. W. IL—A. R. A.—W. II. 
P.—I. N.— J. B. C. The Rural, sells no seeds or plants 
whatever.—E. T —J. C.-J. L. W.-J. B.—A. 31. P.— 
A. W. B. We do not sell seeds or plants —A. B.-C. 
D. W.-E. A.—N. U. R.-J. G.-I. N. L.-J. H.-H. S. 
—31. W.—H. S..-T. B. T.-W. F. -31. W-F.-J. 31. Mel. 
-E. S.-A.O. S.—R. 31. B.-J. P.-B. A. 3IeL.—A. 31.— 
31.—I. A. J.-A. L. 31.—S. J. H.—V. J. H.-R K.—L. L S. 
—31.A. R.-E. L. H.-T. J. S.—R. S. S.-J. B.-H. A. 31. 
