LOADER AND RAKES. 
Protected by the only Original Patents. 
Tills machine I* guaranteed to tmt up morn hay in 
lem timc.anil at I cm; than half trie coat hy any other 
km wn method. Otic Kicker and two Rnk<* operated by 
live employer, will in one day ultc from 20 to 30 
acres oinay perfectly clean from the nwaui left by 
tbs mower, mid pitch the same on the atm-lc or wagon, in 
better condlUc® than twice the force can windrow and 
COCkthe name. It eeldom get* out of repair, hut if it 
should any farmer ran repair it. No Farmer can 
afford to do without it, Write for price lists 
terms and circular atving full information. 
4CML HAV HARVESTER CO.. Mfs.. Poo rift. I1L 
gltw guMiraliotl.s. 
A AMERICAN 
Extensively illustrated.; 
I.AI'IRS a.ld Gl STI-EMKN 
WxjirEPlolmnillcft Book 
that sells itself, titer 800 
Pages and 100 Sketches. 
Permanent work and ex¬ 
tra inducement*. Ajiply 
early for sxiiimlvo terri¬ 
tory. BRADLEY & CO. 
66 N. 4th St. Phlta.. Pa. 
for ti)cJ)oung. 
FRUITS, BIRDS AND INSECTS. 
HE cherry question is tecora- 
2) /£p£> ing a perplexing one as the 
sparrow crop increases. I 
have seen, this yenr. large 
$ trees of Early Richmond 
£ entirely stripped of a heavy 
| crop of cherries lief ore they 
were thoroughly ripe. I 
Jj had one tree each of Ohio 
(lj yJ Beauty and Napoleon Bi- 
garreau, which fruited this 
year for the first time. To 
C \ G)Z test the fruit of these, i took 
q) o the precaution to tie a few 
k up in paper, and wrap a 
couple of clusters in mos¬ 
quito netting; hut when I came to get my 
fruit, 1 found the birds had discovered my 
secret—they bad broken open and eaten those 
wrapped in paper, rind destroyed those cover¬ 
ed with the netting hy picking at them. I am 
afraid the cat bird and robin belong to this 
same gang. 
The one bird tbut, delights me altogether, is 
the little wren, which never does any harm, 
is ever busy after insects, and running over 
with music. He trills a little song every time 
he alights, no matter how short his flight. I 
think another year I will make huge bags out 
of mosquito netting, which I can purchase 
new at 85 cants per piece of 182 square feet. 
Two pieces of this would make a bag 12 feet 
in depth and 22 feet in circumference; by 
putting these upon my plum trees as soon 
as done blossoming, and letting them remain 
until the cherries begin to color and then 
placing them over the cherry trees, I could 
save the cherries, and also m v crop of plums 
from the curculio. Jarring the trees will un¬ 
doubtedly give one a crop of plums where his 
trees are isolated; but. where one has upon 
each side of him neighbors w ho each have 
plum trees within 25 yards of his, and who 
take no precaution to check the ' little Turk,” 
I think the efficacy of jarring very doubtful 
and hardly worthy of trial. 
The aphis, heretofore, has been one of my 
most troublesome enemies; the lice would 
congregate in large numbers upon the tips of 
the cherry and apple trees and gooseberry and 
currant bushes, und entirely stop their growth. 
I could destroy them with a solution made by 
steeping tobacco rlust in hot water, but a new 
lot would invariably lie found at the old stand 
in the course of a week or so. The ants are 
always found in company with these lice, and 
I doubt net help to spread the pests; but 1 no¬ 
ticed a lively little creature, that 1 readily 
ascertained to be the larva of the Lady-bird; 
||* the way these little fol- 
^ jv . lows clean up a colony 
/vy.Tv, of lice, makes one’s 
^g3j;v heart warm towards 
jf' them I think they iu- 
ef '* tend w clear the prein - 
a b m ises of the lice, aud I 
believe I will not be 
I.ADY-BIItll. FI*. 1260. . ill , • r 
troubled ngum for a 
year or two at least. Fig. 261, a, shows the 
larva, natural size; b , the chrysalis attached 
to a leaf stem; c, shows the teetle. It. is in the 
larva form that the Lady-bird feeds on the 
aphis; its color then is black, orange aud 
brown; the beetle is an orange red, spotted 
with black. 
By studying this illustration the cousins can 
become acquainted with a friend w hom they 
now may not know as such, and are perhaps 
destroying. 
Two trees of early peaches, which I have 
growing in the poultry-yard, had their main 
brandies cut liack last. Spring about one half 
of last year’s growth, leaving the side shoots, 
and only trimming the middle of the tree suf¬ 
ficiently to admit plenty of sunshine. About 
the first week in June I spent a half hour upon 
each tree, picking off fully one half the fruit. 
I found it took grit to pull off what then ap¬ 
peared to be such a promising crop; but I jier- 
severed until no t wo specimens could lie 
found nearer thau 8‘£ to four iuehes apart 
upon the stronger limbs, and four to six inch¬ 
es upon the side shoots, and now, after the 
fruit has swollen to nearly Its full size. I find 
the limbs beginning to bend beneath their 
load or evenly distributed fruit, while the 
trees are in fine condition and new shoots al¬ 
ready two feet in length. 
RUFUS W. SMITH. 
LaDY-BHID. Fig. 260. 
/TV ^ F" n MilIIIII und Hom'd for 3 live 
VAk F^ young Men or J ad lea, In ear li county. 
Vj/ TO take orders Tor Hie Lives of 
BLAINE and CLEVELAND. 
Address P. W. ZIEGLER & CO.. Philadelphia, Pa. 
A Tail of Horror. 
AGENTS WANTED—For the Lives or 
BLAINE & CLEVELAND & 
LOGAN, HENDRICKS, 
In 1 Vol. by T. W. Knox In ! Vol. by Hon. A. Babscm. 
Authorized, Impartial. Complete, the 1>>< and Cheapest- Each 
vol. aeOposes, *!..%«. SO per out. t,, Agents. Outfits Free. 
llAUTFOltn ri BUSHIMi t o., Jlurtford, Conn. 
AGENTS WANTED for the new book 
“ Of Ik r AMO 17 * WOMEN'." Ju»i mmpUtectiw EUzabcth 
Shusri rMl'A Jfarum JUtrUaul , and 1 S other Eminent 
Writers. 7’A. f/rnrn/r>Y hook of the ape. OS^Agcul* sell 1 0 to 
Zll u duv. Send tot Circulars. Extra Term*. .Specimen Plate, 
etc..to A. J>. WORTHINGTON »V CO.,Hartford. Conn. 
fam ou s an d'o Eels i v /e BATTLES 0 F T H E W 0 R LD. 
By CAPT. KING.U. S. A. HISTORY FKOM THE BATTLE-FIELD. Shows how Nations have been made or 
destroyed In a day.—How Fame or Disaster has turned on .» single Contest. A Grand Book for Old and Young.—Saves 
Time Aids the Memory.— Gives Pleasure and Instruction. Maps and Fine Illustrations. Agents Wanted Everywhere. 
C5* Write at out* for full description and terms. Address J. O. MoCCRDY Jk C'O., Philadelphia, Pa. 
NOTES BY UNCLE MARK, 
Wjc are getting some good reports of the 
early fruits and vegetables from the Cousins; 
they are well written and interesting. Let us 
have reports from others; those who have uot 
kept a record of the early crops can begiu 
now, and report the rest of the season. 
Another remedy for Foison Ivy has been 
THE RUSAL HEW-TOSKER. 
HOME MUSICAL IMAM. 
sent by C. H. M.; it is to chew the leaves of 
the ivy after being poisoned. It is quite pos¬ 
sible this would cure on tbehomoepathic, simi- 
lia ftimilibux curantur, principle. For myself, 
I would fear additional poisoning from follow¬ 
ing this prescription. 
A file of the Rural would be a good begin¬ 
ning for an agricultural library for any boy 
or girl. If your parents do not keep the 
papers, see if they will not let yon have them. 
Blips of geraniums taken now. will make a 
good growth before cold weather, and be 
ready to bloom uext Spring, when put. out in 
the ground, if they are kept thrifty through 
the Winter. 
The aphide that trouble pot plants are green, 
and the tender new growth on plants often 
becomes completely covered with them before 
they are noticed. These lice are often called 
the ants’ cows, because the ants follow them to 
gather a honey that exudes from their bodies; 
there is a white aphis that, attacks the roots 
of plants; the ants follow this also. 
LETTERS FROM THE COUSINS. 
Dear Uncle Mark:— l will now send in 
my Summer’s report. Spring opened quite 
early, hut kept rather coo! until June. The 
crops around here are looking fine. Mother’s 
garden is nice this year; she has done uearly 
all the planting, hoeing und weeding that 
have been done in the vegetable garden. Tic- 
peas received from the R N.-Y., are earlier 
than the other kindssowu, or w ould have been 
earlier, but. the fowls destroyed most of them 
before we knew’ what they were doing. We 
have beans, cabbage, tomatoes, carrots, beets, 
parsnips, melons, and other vegetables in the 
garden. The oats are doing finely; corn is 
also nice. 
1 have been attending school this Summer 
aud have not had much time for out-door 
work. There was an examination, and that I 
dreaded, but I passed much tetter than 1 ex¬ 
pected, viz.: grammar, 100 per cent.; arith¬ 
metic, 'JO: geography, 00; botany, 07; physio¬ 
logy, 05; civil government, 95. I was uot 
examined in spelling, reading, and writing. 
Botany’ is the most intere4ting study. 
Many thanks for those flower seeds; they 
were sown in beds about six feet in length, 
aud almost all of the seeds Sprouted up; aud 
among them there was altogether a strange 
yet beautiful variety of plants, several of 
which are in blossom now, Tne poppies, I 
must say, are the most beautiful that 1 have 
ever seen; eight or nine varieties have blos¬ 
somed. We had a teautiful lot of pansies this 
year; there were all shades, from the pure 
white to the King of Blacks, crimson, purple, 
golden, blue, aud copper colored. Sometimes 
nearly all the colors would be found in one 
blossom. One plant had flowers one half a 
deep purple, or crimson, aud the other black; 
but. L could find no two alike. 
Small fruits arc very abundant this year; 
that is, iu the berry line. The red raspberries 
w’ere never before in such abundance, and are 
as large as medium-sized strawberries; the 
bushes tend nearly to the ground under the 
load of fruit. Father says he never saw such 
terries. I don’t think there will ever be such 
again. 1 wish, Uncle Mark, you could have a 
dish of those large raspberries with cream. I 
am sure you would enjoy r them. To my taste 
they are much nicer than strawberries. The 
black raspberries are unusually fiue, aud so 
are the huckleberries. 
Cherries were fine, not withstanding the 
frosts aud severe Winter. Most of the trees 
being of a rather tender variety, it did not 
seem probable that they would staud 2S deg. 
below zero; but instead of being dead this 
Summer, they were loaded with fruit. Mauy 
of the cherries were stuug by the curculios,but 
they do uot show except on close examiua- 
Dear Uncle Mark:—I thank you very 
much for the address. I have found the other 
Bertha Cross to be only a Rural Cousin. Many 
thanks for the sets! also; those which came 
up arc growing nicely. The hay crop is not 
as good as that of last year; other crops are 
looking well. This Summer we have 28 cows 
and make butter, averaging about 14234 pounds 
per week! we sell it at wholesale for 27c. per 
pound; those who retail their butter get 80c. 
We have 12 calves which we feed skimmed 
milk and fiue wheat middlings. W e will have 
a great many blackberries and raspberries, 
hut have hud no strawberries Wc have had 
many pets, but find goats to be the most, troub¬ 
lesome; 1. at least, have found that^hey like 
peach trees and geranium blossoms very much. 
We have a coon, but he isn't very tame yet. 
Your niece, bertha e. cross. 
Berkshire Co., Mass. 
This Is the general name of an unrivalled collection 
of Bouno Vot.i’Mics of Vocal or Instrumental Music, 
nlilce In slmpe, binding an<1 price, but uot otherwise 
connected. Each hook ha* 'Mi to 250 pages, Sheet 
Music size. Collectively they coulain 1.WXI pieces, the 
best of at least 50,1X0 pieces, und ure therefore choice 
collections. 
Uniform price, each, Hoard-; 82,50 Cloth; 
$.f (Jilt. 
Vornl. I list rumenn«l. 
Gem* of English Kong. Mu ideal Favorite. 
Gems Of Scott ish Sung. ('losti-r of Gems. 
Gems of tie ■ man Song. Of m* of Strutts*. 
Gems of Sacred Song. Gen h of the Iiauee. 
Beauties of Sacred Song. Welcome Uome, 
Frail v’h Album of Song. Pearls of Melody. 
Moore'S Irish Melodies. Plano at Rome, liuets. 
Mlustri 1 Songs. Orgau at Home. 
Operatic Pearls. Reed Organ Melodies. 
Operatic Gems. Home Circle, Vol. I. 
Silver Chord. IIorneClrele.Vnl.il. 
Silver W reulh. Creme de Is Creme, Vol. I. 
Household Melodies, Creme tie la Creme, Vol. II. 
VOL 1 Pianoforte Gem*. 
HoU-ehuld Melodies, Pianists' Album. 
\ol. II. Fountain of Gems. 
Shower of Pearls. Musical Treasure. 
World of 8oug. 
Suushln- of Song. 
Wreath of Gems. 
Full description ami contents sent on application. 
Pieces and accompaniments may he played ou Plano 
or Reed Organ. Mulled for ubove prices. 
OLIVER DITSON&CO., Boston, 
C. H. DITSON & CO. m Broadway, New York. 
A good plan for preserving a paper is to 
sew together the papers of each month; no 
one will then tear them up accidentally, as it 
will te evident to all that some one values 
them and intends to preserve them. Lay 
them in a straight pile with the first number 
of the mouth on top; the last one at the bot¬ 
tom, and sew through the backs with strong 
thread. 
The weather is very dry in some parts of 
the country, and very wet in others; notice 
the vegetation, and see what flowers are doing 
best. I learned one very dry season that 
Sweet Alyssum is a dry weather plaut, and 
since then have given it a hot, unshaded spot 
in which to grow. 
Read what Rufus Smith has to say ateut 
the Lady-bird in this number, and look for 
the larva among your plants if they are trou¬ 
bled with plant lice; most of you have seen 
the beetle, I suppose. Some writer has sug¬ 
gested raising these Lady-birds in the house 
to keep pot plants free from lice. 
tion; then you will discover a small, dark 
spot, and on opening them the fruit will be 
found to be wormy. In canning every cherry 
had to te pitted. 
The apple orchard was beautiful while in 
blossom. On the Fall Orange were found 
blossoms on what appeared to tethis year’s 
growth. The trees blossomed the whole length 
of the limbs, to the very tip eud. The apple 
crop will not be very heavy. My letter is get¬ 
ting rather long, and I will close. Next time 
I will write about a society that has been 
started out here for the benefit of young men 
and boys, to draw them away from the saloon 
and billiard-room. Your niece, 
Mason CO , Mich. BROWNIE. 
[The apple blossoms that appeared to be on 
wood of t his year’s growth, must have been 
on that of last year, as the new branches do 
uot grow until the blossoms have fallen. 
Many thanks for your generous wish about 
the raspberries and cream. 1 would enjoy 
them greatly. You send us a good report of 
fruits arid vegetables; and of work in school, 
too. How many flowers did you analyze in 
studying Botany? uncle mark.] 
Dear Uncle:— It has teen a long time since 
I wrote my last letter, and if 1 am still con¬ 
sidered one of the Cousins, I will try to te 
more prompt in writing in the future. This 
has been a very busy season for us. Our straw¬ 
berry crop was nearly all cut off by the late 
frost, and on the patch where we expected to 
have 2.000 quarts we bad 600, Having but a 
few, we picked them ourselves The crop 
never before looked so promising, but after 
the frost forty nine out of fifty were all black 
and soft. We had under cultivation the fol¬ 
lowing kiuds—Crescent, Hbarpless, Wilson, 
and Downer. The Crescent stood the frost 
tetter than any of the others. The Rharpless 
were all killed; the Downers and Wilsons 
nearly all. Now that 1 have talked strawber¬ 
ries long enough, I will tell you a little ateut 
my flowers. The Sweet Williams from the 
seed which you so kiudly sent mo, proved 
things of beauty; there are thirty different 
kinds but only six are double. We have two 
bunches of Hollyhocks, one is flesh colored 
and the other is salmon; both are very double. 
We have six catalpa and throe Niagara Grape 
seedlings Last Winter the catalpas were 
killed back three or four inches; now there 
area number of branches grown out around 
where the dead parts were cut off. Will they 
make well-formed trees. Your niece, 
Washington Co., R. 1. ellen barber. 
[if the catalpas are not well shaped, they 
can te trimmed and made so unless very 
crooked They sometimes grow in very edi 
and twisted shapes. uncle mark.] 
Pi.ssrUancou.si ^Uvcrtteing. 
■ FAY’S CELEBRATED 
Z + WATER-PROOF 
I MANILLA ROOFING 
m Resembles fine leather: for Roofs. Outside 
■ Waite and Inside in place of t luster. (JVery 
strong and durable. i'atn -rue with teetimo- 
_ trial* and wuiiLilre FK Kiri F.atabUshed 1866. 
Z W. It. FA V .V ((>., Camden, N. J. 
CaiH|wign Goods. 
„ We are lieadqn artels for open 
22 ^1\I !>Y NET WORK BANNERS, FLA08, 
l-f. Ws/p/’ Butts,Ctfici.Capt, HGnwts.Bliirts, 
pi?* I I Torcfien, FfCtirM. Trsnitparencle* 
and all lit mini i;tii hoiupviruu. 
CLUBS Brim.ltD. Art* WsnGri 
Gotnnletx KiwtliV Knit 
Karopli lladgi- If* .. 3 for 25e., l 
tin?., 0 lr. IvirtmltM of all Candi¬ 
dates. «1 7 .f 12 x 16. sample l<» ., * 
for 'S» 1 dnz. 60c . lot for $1, 
Our Trices defy rorupctition ! 
Send for Minnies and circulars. 
CAliTAl35J gAirOTACTUS’O CO., 
J0 Barclay St., New York. » 
85. & Bonanza. y-">. 
E01TT let your Fruit Set tut get ft* 
“DODGE ECONOMY DEIEE/^^^ 
for u • tint’. Capacity ^ 7 -^- 
to lo loo Ru. Apples C3 i E3 1 
alhv. Write Inline- ^ 77 3 | ]> lLL— rii——-- 
diatelv for circulars. P—i"J Uj J n 
S:l£t£e»myMar6e< m l -3.__.-U- 
•\ormal, Illinois. *•—■—II I' l.lrif 1 ' —- 
