764 
KER 
NOV. 27 
the fungi in check, moisture will do good 
rather than harm. 
nish from her food. Eating pure lime will 
not always accomplish this. Each article 
she feeds upon, whether flesh or vegetable, 
has in its ingredients a certain amount of the 
carbonate of lime, and in the wild, natural 
state with but few eggs to lay in a season, 
it was easy for the hen to store in her body 
all of this material necessary to meet her re¬ 
quirements; but In the present artificial state, 
with a large quantity of eggs to lay in a year, 
she needs some artificial aid in order to supply 
this extraordinary demand for shell material. 
It was fonnd to be true of apples kept upon 
shelves in the cellar that they gave off more 
water by evaporation in a given time when 
they were green than they did afterwards, as 
they bee ime riper. It appeared also, rather 
remarkably, in a trial between 
apples whoso stems bad been 
broken off and those whose 
stems had been left uninjured, 
that the latter lost rather more 
bj» evaporation than the for¬ 
mer; the inference being that 
there is no barm in breaking R * 
the stalks of apples in the pro- 1 
cess of gathering. 
Olher experiments were made ■ - - ■ 
to determine how much Influ¬ 
ence the natural varnish on the 
skin of apples has upon their I 
preservation. To this end, the | 
waxy covering was removed 
from a number of apples by ■ | fmamm 
gently rubbing them with a • 
mixture of alcohol and ether, 
then wasbmg them with very fi 
dilute potash lye and finally 
with much water. It was found 
that apples thus treated lost five i —J 
per cent, more of their weight, 
by evaporation, in a given time 
than apples which had been left 
in their natural condition and 
Bimilaily stored. As regards 
this point, Sorauer is in full ac- 1 
cord with the popular conviction that the un¬ 
hurt skin of an apple is to be regarded as the 
chief protection against decay. He found that 
apples whose waxy coating had been left un¬ 
harmed did not decay for a long time after 
he had smeared them with mold, although 
they were left all the while In a moist and 
warm place. 
Still other experiments were made to test 
the question whether there is any advantage 
in packing apples, layer by layer, with straw 
or sand, Four kinds of apples were packed 
away in glass vessels, half of each lot In chop¬ 
ped straw and ihe other half in dry Band. It 
appeared not only that the sand was decidedly 
preferable to the straw, but that the use of 
straw is not to be commended. Although 
there was no lo9s through decay of the apples 
packed in the straw, they nevertheless shriv¬ 
eled more than apples which were lying free In 
the cellar, and they acquired a musty taste 
from the straw as it became damp. The use 
of dry sand, on the other hand, seemed to be 
advantageous, since the fruit packed in it re¬ 
tained an uncommonly fresh appearance and 
excellent flavor, and promised to keep, in good 
part, until July. The sand-packed apples lost 
only about half as much water by evaporation 
as those which were lying free upon the 
shelves; they were almost wholly free from 
moldinesB, and when one of them happened 
to decay It did not infect the others. Even 
those apples which had been bruised did not 
decay any more rapidly than the sound fruit, 
provided that the ekin bad not been broken. 
Other apples were wrapped in tissue paper and 
compared with those left uncovered, both in a 
dry chamber and in the cellar. No advantage 
was derived from the paper excepting in the 
dry room, for in the cellar mold developed 
itself more rapidly upon the apples wrapped 
ICE HOUSES 
The season approaches when some prepara- 
yrxrrs 
m p.rr*frJ 
R.K'-Y.ak 
nnf 
PLAN OF COUNTRY VILLA.—FIG 387. 
tion for storing a sufficient quantity of ice for 
j the family use during hot weather may be 
The appearance of an article 
BROODER.— FIG. 38b. 
When hens have not a wide range they should 
be supplied with lime in some form. The 
best mode in which this can be supplied is in 
the shape of old mortar or plaster crumbled, 
or of oyster shells brokc-n fine with a hammer. 
Some writers advise burning the shells first 
to make them brittle and easily broken, but 
this will be found only an extra trouble by 
the close observer, as a hen will require sev¬ 
eral limes ihe amount of burnt shells that she 
will of fresh ones. The best way to break 
them is to have a keg with both heads out; 
place it over a flat stone; lay the shells on the 
stone and either drop a heavy stone on them, 
or make a pounder with a handle to it like 
those with which pavmg stones are beaten 
down in streets. The keg prevents the pieces 
of shell from flying away and being lost. A 
hen eats these pieces with great avidity, 
which is a very good proof that they are use¬ 
ful to her. If pure lime is fed It should be 
first air-slaked to prevent it from being too 
strong and daugerous to the bird. Burnt or 
broken bones answer quite as well as lime or 
shells. 
considered 
upon the subject of ice houses in connection 
with dairying in the last issue, affords an op¬ 
portunity for suggesting the preparation of a 
house and the storing of at least a small quan¬ 
tity of ice. As will be seen by reference to 
Mr. Stewart’s article upon the Dairy Cow, 
there is no very elaborate or expensive outlay 
necessary. The only requirements are that 
there should be perfect drainage and ventila¬ 
tion, and that the walls be rendered non-con¬ 
ducting by the use of leaves, straw, charcoal, 
saw-dust, tan-bark, or other substance, and 
that the Ice be closely and compactly put in 
with some non-conducting material around 
the layers and upon the top. There Is, 
perhaps, little need of anything between 
the layers, provided the Ice be closely 
packed, for If a stream of water could be so 
conducted as to trickle upon it and freeze the 
mass into one solid body, it would be as well. 
In many instances a mass of ice is piled up 
squarely over an excavation or upon a plat¬ 
form upon the top of the ground, raised so as 
to iusnre drainage, and the house afterwards 
built around It. When once the effort is made 
and the pleasure of a glass of ice water and 
other uses of ice are once experienced during 
waim weather, the family will net afterwards 
willingly be without the cheap luxury. 
DESIGN FOR COUNTRY VILLA, 
We give herewith a very neat and complete 
design for a first-class country villa, which, 
constructed of wood, comes within the reach of 
those possessing neatly laid out grounds and 
desiring a moderate-sized and moderately ex¬ 
pensive dwelling. 
As will be seen by reference to the plan of 
first floor, the shape has been selected for the 
purpose of utilizing space without construct¬ 
ing a large frame, and is therefore in part 
oval or circular rather than entirely square, 
affording a more picturesque appearance in 
keeping with rural scenery, and adapted to 
the presence of foliage aud drives as found at 
country seats and country places. 
At the same time the good arrangement of 
the rooms and their individual comfort and 
convenience are greatly promoted, while to the 
appearance of the whole there is given such 
character and picturesqneness as will add 
greatly to the value and attractiveness of the 
property. A special and somewhat new fea¬ 
ture is the location of a conservatory in front 
of its first landing of stairway in octogon end 
at the right and dressing-room below. The 
library is In the rear of main hall, and at the 
right of back hall, which includes the back 
stairway. The parlor occupies the front of 
the bouse at left hall, with dining-room, but¬ 
ler’s pantry, store room, china closet and 
dumb-waiter in the rear. The plan is ar¬ 
ranged for kitchen in the basement, although 
It can easily be included on principal floor, if 
desired. The second floor contains three bed¬ 
rooms, bath-room and five closets. Two or 
three rooms may also he included in the attic 
plan. 
The coBt of the villa, according to the estimate 
of Messrs. Bleknell & Comstock, architects. 
No. 194 Broadway, N. Y., who furnish us the 
illustrations, is about 1*3.000 
PRESERVATION OF APPLES 
PROFESSOR F. H. STORER 
BOOK FARMING 
A set of experiments made recently in Ger¬ 
many, by Sorauer, are interesting as bearing 
npon the question, brought forward on page 
784 of the Roiul, whether Winter apples ean 
best be kept in a dry or a damp cellar. The 
results of these trials clearly corroborate the 
conclusions set forth by Dr. Hoskius in your 
issue of November (ilh. Sorauer premises that 
while there is no louger any doubt in men’s 
minds that light and warmth had better be 
excluded in order that apples may be kept fresh 
and be hindered from becoming over-ripe, there 
is still a wide diversity of opinion as to whether 
damp or dry air ! s most, favorable for the pres¬ 
ervation of the fruit. To test the qnestion. he 
experimented upon several kinds of apples, 
particularly the “ Wiuter Golden Pearmaiu." 
Three separate lots of the apples having been 
weighed out, one lot was spread on shelves in 
an ordinary fruit cellar, another lot was kept 
in air from which moisture had been pretty 
thoroughly removed by means of chemicals, 
aud the third lot in air that was completely 
saturated with moisture. Ou re-weighing the 
several lot* after the lapse of some time, it was 
found that the apples kept In the air of the 
cellar hid lost three and a half per cent, of 
their weight; thOEe kept in dry air almost eight 
per cent.; while those kept in air saturated 
with moisture had lost hut little more than one- 
half per ceut- it could r.ot be perceived that 
auy advautage was gained by using the dry 
air. Ou the contrary, the apples kept in the 
dry air shriveled more than the others, aDd 
manifestly ripened more rapidly, so that in the 
later months of the experiment they were less 
sweet than the others, aud a larger proportion 
of them decayed. Not a few of them became 
rotten ripe, and this in spite of the fact that, as 
was naturally to be expected, ratter less 
We came here about two years ago from 
Ohio, to see if the climate would give me any 
relief from asthma. I had been afflicted for 
several years and have been improving since I 
came here until now I am almost cured. I 
bought a poor, worn-out farm of 150 acres, 
CATALOGUES, ETC., RECEIVED 
History of the Massachusetts Horti¬ 
cultural 8ociety from 1829 to 1878 —This 
octavo volume of 575 pages is, both in matter 
and treatment, a model for future works of 
the kind. The collection and orderly arrange¬ 
ment of the great mass of antiquarian and 
other information contained within its covers, 
display a praiseworthy degree of painstaking 
ability. Its typographical exeeutiou, too, is 
not unworthy of the excellence of its coutents. 
Tie paper is good, the type huge, clear and 
restful to eyes wearied with the smaller print 
of ordinary books and newspapers. It is a 
work which should fiud a promiueut place in 
the library of every lover of horticulture, not 
only in the State with whose horticultural pro¬ 
gress it maluly deals, but all over the country, 
for although the Horticultural Societies of New 
York and Pennsylvania were established before 
that of Massachusetts, yet the latter has done 
more for the horticulture of the entire couutry 
than any similar association in the laud, aud 
the history of its career during the first half 
century of its labors embraces a large variety 
of topics of nearly as much iuterest to horti¬ 
culturists everywhere as to those of the old Bay 
State. 
More interesting to the general reader than 
even the history of the Society is an lntroduc- 
A COtfJiTKT^VILLA.JCOSTIXG ABOUT $3,000. 
in paper than on those which were lying free, half cleared, t 
It seems plain that the main points to be knew nothing: 
considered in Etoring apples are. to keep the a carriage-oia 
temperature of the room so low that the fungi acre of land It 
which cause decay cannot flourish, and to working in tb 
have the air of the room moist enough to hin- cd as soon as 
d -r the fruit from shriveling. If the store- taken agricult 
house were warm, moisture would doubtless the lart 20 y 
be Injurious, since the conditions would be theory of eu< 
favorable for the propagation of the hurtful paper I have » 
nngl; but if the room be cold enough to hold the Bubal, 
if 
j'l 
J. 
1 
