DEC 16 
for rye, if spread upon the surface, and in¬ 
sure a crop and a good catch of clover. 
Plaster comes in again as a natural and pay¬ 
ing stimulant for clover, and it should be 
sown on it after the rye is harvested, and 
again the next Spring. This dressing of 
clover at the rate of one or two bushels to 
the acre, according to the means of the 
farmer, should never be neglected. The 
fattened therein they will make it quite pro¬ 
ductive. Shut up in a pen and yard they 
will convert a large amount of muck into 
good manure. A pig is a good investment 
for a poor man, and the adage applies to a 
poor farm with increased force. The value 
of hen3 as assistance for the pocket and to in¬ 
crease the corn crop on a poor farm mu3t not 
be forgotten. Hen manure is the most valua. 
Parsons's Prolific. Prom Nature.— Fig. 468. [See Page S46.] 
the hills was very heavy, and we should com¬ 
mend Parsons’s Prolific for general trial. The 
five heaviest weighed four pounds five ounces. 
Quality not yet tested. Seed was planted May 
19, and dug Sept. 27. 
The above potatoes wore planted in drills or 
shallow trenches four inches deep, the width 
of a spade, and three feec apart—only one 
piece (two eyes) dropped every foot as meas¬ 
ured by a knotted cord stretched over the 
drill. The pieces were lightly covered with 
soil and pota to chemical fertilizer strewn over 
them at. the rate of TOO pounds to the aci'e. A 
hand cultivator was ran between the rows as 
often as was needed to keep the soil mellow, 
until the growth of thevmes prevented. The 
first beetles were picked off by hand—the 
grubs killed by the use of Paris-green—one 
tablespoonful to a patent-pail of water—ap¬ 
plied twice with tufts of straw bound at one 
end for a handle. [To be continued.] 
♦ ♦ ♦ - 
RENOVATING A POOR FARM. 
COLONEL K. D. CURTIS. 
If the owners of poor farms possessed suf¬ 
ficient means they could improve them the 
soonest by the purchase of barnyard manure, 
ashes and other fertilizing material; but as 
they are generally not able to do so they must 
resort to other means less expensive, to make 
their fields productive. Buak wheat, rye and 
clover are the natural crops for a poor farm; 
while cows, pigs and hens are the best animal 
aids. A team and wagon, with some im¬ 
proved farming implements, are also neces¬ 
sary. With these auxiliaries there must be 
industry, economy and painstaking. In the 
Spring as much corn should be pat in as can 
be well manured, together with a few acres 
of oats. Fodder corn must not be omitted. 
The preparation of the ground for these crops 
should be thorough, and if the land has here¬ 
tofore been skimmed over, and the subsoil is 
adapted to this kind of treatment, the plow¬ 
ing should be deepened, so as to bring to the 
surface new earth which has not had its fer¬ 
tility exhausted. On sandy soil this would 
be a mistake, as the fertile soil is nearer the 
surface; on mucky laud it would be unwise 
to turn up the sour and clammy under layers 
until the land had been thoroughly under- 
drained, which will improve all wet land; 
while on clayey and loamy ground deep plow¬ 
ing will increase the fertility and the ability 
to resist drought, by renewing the surface 
and pulverizing the land to a greater depth. 
The seed oats should be wetted with manure- 
water and as much plaster (sulphate of lime), 
should be put on them as will stick to them. 
Grass seed should lie put in with the oats. 
When the oats are nicely up plaster should be 
sown over them. A little manure can be made 
to go much further by putting it in the hill, 
and the corn will be much better if frequently 
cultivated. Weeds are a curse to any farm, 
and especially to a poor one. The seed corn 
should be treated the same as the oats and 
dressed with ashes, if procurable, on the hills, 
and also with plaster on the growing plants. 
As soon as the Spring crops are put in 
energetic preparations should be made for 
getting in a field or two of buckwheat. No 
crop will so cheaply or effectually subdue 
rough land and make the soil friable, and no 
crop will grow with less manure, uuless it is 
rye. The land designed for buckwheat 
should be plowed as soon as possible so as to 
cause all the weeds and clods to be rotted and 
in a condition to make plant food,* Cultivat¬ 
ing the ground occasionally will hasten this 
work and improve its condition. With this 
crop plaster should be used freely on both the 
seed and the growing grain. Plaster is recom¬ 
mended because no one fertilizer is so cheap 
and generally available. Buckwheat is 
adapted to all kinds of soil. In ordinary sea¬ 
sons the buckwheat may be taken off, and 
the ground sown with rye, or it may be left 
till Spring and the ground be in good condi¬ 
tion for oats or another crop of buckwheat. 
Oats are not adapted to a poor farm, because 
they are very exhaustive to the soil aud no 
more should be grown than required for the 
feeding of the teams. The chief considera¬ 
tion on a poor form is to get it in a condition 
to grow clover. This can be best brought 
about by growing it with rye. The prepara¬ 
tion of the rye ground cannot be commenced 
too early. Plowing twice would be better 
than once. 
Dui iug the Summer as much time as possi¬ 
ble should be spent in making a compost- 
heap. A compost heap is the poor farm’s 
bank. The wagon should make on it daily 
deposits. Sods from the road side, clods and 
weeds from the fields, leaves from the woods, 
rubbish from the fences, slops aud soapsuds 
from the house, and all sorts of litter and 
brush should be taken to it and the latter be 
burnt. Ditches should be dug aud cleaned 
out and the contents carted to the compost- 
heap. A moderate amount of muck may also 
be added. The Summer’s accumulation in 
the compost-heap will fit more or less land 
clover should never be left longer than to i 
harvest one crop before plowing under, and it 
should be followed either by rye in the Fall 
after the one crop has been gathered, or by 
corn in the Spring. Following the clover 
with rye and clover again i9 the best plan to 
improve the soil rapidly. Buck wheat should 
be used as a subduing agent and a pioneer crop. 
The more corn a farmer can raise the more 
stock he can beep, aud stock on a farm is a 
most important factor. A few cows can be 
kept at first, although the pasture may be 
scanty, and they will help to furnish the 
ready money which is always required. The 
owner of a poor farm should know the value 
of soiling. A little effort in this direction 
will fill out his scanty pasturage and make 
his cows pay a large profit. He can save the 
manure and, by using it to grow fodder corn, 
can make with it fodder enough to feed the 
cows a considerable part of the season. The 
rye can be put to good account in the same 
way, and the clover also. The capacity of 
the farm for keeping cows in this way, cau be 
made to increase rapidly. This is the true 
economy of feeding. The keeping of cows 
provides for the keeping of pigs. With the 
help of clover and sweet fodder corn they may 
be kept growing through the Summer. Con¬ 
fined in a field comparatively barren, and 
l tie fertilizsr within the reach of the farmer. 
It should be carefully saved in a dry hen¬ 
house and frequently mixeii with plaster to 
absorb the ammonia, a volatile alkali and the 
chief manurial constituent. 
There should also be some specific crop • 
which requires little land, to furnish an in¬ 
come while the farm is being improved— 
something which other members of the family 
can take care of. Strawberries or other 
small fruits fill this demand the best of any¬ 
thing. Everything which is vegetable or 
animal is manure, and when decayed, will 
furnish food for vegetation. Knowing this, 
the owner of a poor farm can employ his 
spare time in Winter hauling muck and bogs 
which he can pile up, and when they are dry 
he cau burn them and with the ashes have a 
ready and most valuable fertilizer. Acres of 
land that may not have produced scarcely 
anything can be manured in this way and be 
made to yield good crops, Old logs and de¬ 
caying wood from the forests may be added to 
the muck aud bogs and increase the supply. 
The details of putting in crops have not 
been gone over, for it is assumed that sugges¬ 
tions in these respects are not required. 
Thorough tillage is more necessary on poor 
land than on rich. This is a primary prin¬ 
ciple, and coupled with it is the importance of 
manure which must be made cheaply, as I 
have indicated, by using every available thing 
which the furm can supply. The combina¬ 
tion of these farm gatherings, including an i- 
mal excrement, will increase the general 
value of the compost by chemical changes. 
Burning changes the condition more rapidly 
and makes the crude material available at 
once. On a poor farm no attempt should be 
made to grow crops without the prelimin¬ 
aries of thorough tillage and manure, or the 
labor will be wasted and lead to discourage¬ 
ment. Better let the land lie idle until due 
preparation can be made so that there may 
be reward for effort. 
- 4 -«-*- 
Agents are solicited to send for the new 
Posters and Premilt,in Lists of the Rural 
New-Yorker. Its standing—enterprise and 
originality will be found materially to aid 
them in their endeavors to secure subscrip¬ 
tions, All progressive farmers that value 
the teachings of experience and research 
support the Rural New-Yorker after one 
year's trial. 
©p Poulin) Pori). 
THE L.ANG3HAN FOWL. 
I notice a communication on page 517 from 
Dr. A. 8. Stonebraker, of Texas, in regard to 
the Langshan fowls in which he says: “Ex¬ 
perience has taught me that the Rural was 
wrong in its opinion of the Langshans;” 
which opinion was to the effect that “the 
Langshans are only the Black Cochins under 
another name: and as yet have done nothing 
to merit p ipularity among those who keep 
fowls for profit, excluding those, of course, 
who breed and sell them to the fanciers for 
$20 to $50 a trio.” Now Dr. 8. admits that in 
8ept., 1881 he was entirely ignorant of the 
jLangshau fowls and his experience is there¬ 
fore less than a year old. Nevertheless, he 
does not hesitate to charge on that short 
experience that an old-established journal 
like the Rural New-Yorker was mistaken 
in its opinion. Now the Rural does not 
need any defender iu such a small matter as 
this, but as there is “ a great controversy” 
about this ques ion, perhaps 1 may be per¬ 
mitted to say a word in defence of its opin¬ 
ion. Dr. 8., says “Experience teaches us that 
they, the Langshans, are distinguished for 
size, weight, eg'-production, beauty of plu¬ 
mage, and general formation of the fowl, be¬ 
ing in that respect entirely distinct from the 
Black Cochin, and, lastly, for hardiness they 
cannot be excelled by any breed or variety, 
as they withstand the effect of hot or cold, 
wet or dry weather without auy perceptible 
change.” I ask who “ its'’ may be in this con¬ 
nection; if not Dr. 8. himself then he is quot¬ 
ing from some one else, perhaps from that 
curious work known as the “Langshan Con¬ 
troversy,” which, after having been read and 
re-read, seeoi s c > me to contain words very 
much to this effect. If Dr. 8. is relating 
his own very short experience, he hazards a 
good deal on the strength of that when he 
says this variety is not excelled by any breed 
or kind; because Dr. S. must then be well ac¬ 
quainted with poultry of all sorts as well as 
Langshans and must be an accomplished 
poultry breeder; but then if so why should he 
need to ask the Rural, iu Sept. 1881. as to 
the character of the Langshans. The fact is 
Dr. 8 , is a new disciple of the Laugshaa faith 
and as such is too enthusiastic, I fear, as most 
young converts are. 
Now I will give a few points tending to show 
chat these two birds are not distinct at all and 
that oneeanuot “tell t’other from which,” not 
even with a pair of glasses. First they are 
both black, and the Cochin is not reddish 
rusty black, as stated by Dr. 8., but, as de¬ 
scribed in the American Standard of Excel¬ 
lence, a deep, rich, glossy black free from 
golden or reddish feathers; second, they are 
both large and hardy birds and the Black Co¬ 
chin reaches as heavy a weight as any of the 
Asiatics; third, beauty of plumage is a matter 
of taste, but as these birds are both of a glossy 
black, it would be difficult to say wherein 
one was distinguished from the other; fourth, 
iu their general formation I aver that the 
Langshan is not entirely distinct from the 
Cochin, but so nearly like it in all respects 
that both have been judged in one class (as 
Cochins) and prizes have been awarded to 
the Langshans, so called ; as Cochins. Fur¬ 
ther, they are not recognized as a distinct 
breed in the Standard of Excellence. Fifth, 
the Cochins are as hardy as any birds and do 
not change perceptibly—to use the words of 
Dr. S.,—in hot or eold or wet or dry weather; 
and here 1 might suggest that one writer’s 
experience only, and in Texas, is not a fair 
test of the hardiness of the Langshans, al¬ 
though I admit they are as hardy as any, and 
so are Cochins. Sixth, if the statement of 
Dr. 8. that “the Langshans have not been 
Outline Sketch of the Queen of the Valley Potato. From Nature. Fig. 469. 
