JAN 6 
A lawsuit carried on in Detroit, Michigan, 
shows, according to the Michigan Farmer, 
that the nurserymen, Smith Bros., of Geneva, 
N. Y., are utterly unworthy of confidence and 
a disgrace to the business they are engaged in. 
Examink the bodies of plum aud peach 
trees. Be sure where gum is exuding that 
there are borers at work... 
Now sell your poorest poultry—cull the 
flock and keep the best for breeders and egg 
producers..... 
Professor .Johnson says that in all cases 
thought should go before work, and the intel¬ 
ligent workman always has a theory upon 
which his practice is planned. The more 
deeply, comprehensively and clearly he can 
think, the more economically and advanta¬ 
geously can he work..... 
That there is any opposition between science 
and art—between theory and practice, is a de¬ 
lusive error. They are necessarily in full 
harmony. It is often said of a machine that 
it was good in theory but failed in practice. 
This is as untrue as untrue can be. If a 
machine fail in practice, it is because it is 
imperfect in theory. 
RURAL SEED REPORTS. 
Connecticut. 
Willimantic, Windham Co., Dec. 23.— 
The Rural Celery came up well and looked 
flue until the advent of dry weather, then it 
stopped growing. Planted I6S kernels of 
Rural Dent Corn; 116 germinated and did 
well until the dry weather came just as the 
ears were setting. I got two bushtls of ears, 
but most of them were not well fill d. A few 
12 to 13 inches long and well filled I am saving 
for seed. Nine hollyhocks grew. The Gem 
Squashes failed through drought, w r. a. 
Nebraska. 
Crete, Salem Co., Dec. 30.—My Rural 
Corn did very well, contideriug the poor 
chance it had; some ears were 10 inches long. 
I think a great deal of it. My White Ele¬ 
phant potato did finely; 1 had two bushels. 
My wheat sown in Spring did not head. Hol¬ 
lyhocks fine. H. B. m. 
Crete, Salem Co., Dec 10.—Oui corn is 
nearly all gathered ; went from 35 to 50 
bushel s per acre. Oats went from 30 to 60 
bushels per acre; wheat from six to 12 bushels 
per acre. Potatoes were a big crop—from,200 
to 300 bushels per acre. M. B. M. 
IIIUioIk. 
Plato Center, Kane Co., Dec. 24 —The 
White Elopbaut was the best potato I have | 
ever raised. Found a medium-sized one which 
was planted on May 25, and on September it 
yielded 84 fine tubers, 10 or 12 of which 
weighed over a pound apiece, and four, 18 
ounces each. The cold rains and bugs de¬ 
stroyed a part of the Rural Corn last Spring, 
but we have some fine ears to plant next 
Spring. J. w. P. 
North Carolina. 
Williamston, Martin Co., Dec. 23.—Early 
in the month of May 1 planted a row of about 
30 feet iu Rural Branching Sorghum seeds— 
only three of these seeds germinated, and 
each hill therefrom had some 12 to 18 stalks. 
At the maturity of the seed heads I cut and 
weighed them, the yield being from three hills 
12^ pounds; and the seed, 1 think was larger 
and more plump thau those 1 planted. c. 
Si}c (Jlwmst. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name 
and address of the writer to insure attention.] 
FEED OK COW BEFORE AND AFTER CALV¬ 
ING, ETC 
E. H. C., Mattsville, Ind 1, In the absence 
of Spring grass what should be fed toayouug 
cow about to calf ? 2. Is G. E. Lemon, patent 
solicitor, whose card appeared iu a late Rural 
reliable f 8. Where can I get the new White 
Egg Turnip seed 1 
Ans. 1. As the period of calving approaches 
the cow’s system becomes much disturbed aud 
the circulation is considerably increased. The 
animal is taxed to the utmost to supply the 
blood needed for the development of the calf, 
and while in this condition a very slight 
cause, such as a cold or indigestion from over¬ 
feeding, may do u grout deal of mischief. 
It is therefore dangerous to feed grain to 
a cow for several weeks before calving. 
Nothing is required except good hay, with 
a few roots or two quarts of chopped 
potatoes daily: no meal whatever should 
be given. A bran slop should be given 
only when required as a laxative, and then 
a dose of two ounces of Epsom Salts should 
be mixed with it. Feeding grain stimulates 
the milk organs unduly and very frequently 
produces garget or congested udder. It is a 
great mistake to try t.o induce a large develop¬ 
ment of udder in the hope of obtaining a 
large milk yield afterwards. An hour or so 
after calving a pailful of bran slop with four 
ounces of Epsom Salts and a handful of salt dis¬ 
solved in it, will allay any feverish symptoms 
that may appear. It is advisable to greatly 
reduce or totally withhold feed from 12 to 2i 
hours after calving, only water wiih a hand¬ 
ful of bran stirred in it should be given. 
Then there may be fed one peck of raw roots, 
two quarts of wheat or rye bran and two 
quarts of corn meal with all the good hay she 
will eat. For the first few days wet the meal 
in warm water and give warm water to drink. 
2. Ye9 ; quite reliable, so far as we know. 
3. From almost any seedsman. Examine the 
catalogues “ noticed ” in the Rural. 
EXTRA-HARDY APPLES. 
G. IF. G., D. T., asks which four kinds of 
apples are the hardiest ? 
Ans. The varieties that are extra-hardy and 
at the same time thrifty, productive and of 
good quality are: Yellow Transparent ; 
senseu August; beautiful, very good, exceed¬ 
ingly productive, aud not likely to drop; 
trauports well fora Summer apple. Duchess of 
Olden burgh, a September apple, handsome, 
heavy-bearing; of fair quality; can be grown 
m re cheaply than potatoes, and brings a 
better price. Wealthy, the King of all hardy 
apples according to most of those who have 
tried it with otners equally hardy. Produc¬ 
tive, early bearing aud handsome; keeps well 
until March. Magog Red Streak, large, 
handsome and a good keeper until April; tree 
hardy, thrifty and a profuse bearer; would 
stand at the head of the list were it not for 
the Weal thy. To these may be addded Scott’s 
Winter, of medium size, heavily striped and 
sometimes covered with red. " Hard as a 
rock” until April—sour and only good for 
cooking. With the warmth of Spring it 
grows mild and rneliow and becomes a fine 
dessert apple; keeps well into July. Tree a 
true “ iron-dad,” a profuse bearer on alter¬ 
nate years, with a moderate crop on inter¬ 
mediate years. 
STORING ONIONS, ETC., IN WINTER. 
W. J. B., Salina, Kas .—What is a good 
way to store onions, turnips and beets iu the 
Winter? 
Ans. —Place onions on the tight floor of 
some barn or shed, spreading them out one to 
two feet deep. Allow them to freeze and 
then cover with about a foot or more of straw 
or hay; and do not disturb them until Spring. 
Do not allow them to thaw aud freeze altern¬ 
ately; this injures them. Beets aud turnips 
are best kept, perhaps, in a good cellar, if 
such you have, or they will keep well in pits. 
Dig out a place in the ground as deep and 
lot g as desirable and place the roots therein, 
allowing the pile to come above the surface 
of the ground, in a cone shape. Then throw 
the removed soil upon the pile previously 
covered with long straw, leaving a portiou of 
the straw to project at the top to afford ven¬ 
tilation. Depth of covering should be regu¬ 
lated by the intensity of the cold, being sure 
always to have euough to prevent freezing, 
A FERTILIZER “BONANZA.” 
IF. IF. F., Wadsville, O. —1. I can get 
stable manure ut 1*0 cents per large two-horse 
load, including hauling, etc. ; fresh ashes at 
eight cents per bushel, applied ; bone dust at 
1 10 per ton, applied. Whin his the most profit¬ 
able, and which is the next best f 2, Which 
requires the richest soil—straw berries or rasp¬ 
berries ? 
Ans. —I. if you can procure these manures at 
these rates you should be one of the happiest 
men and use all you can get of them. Many 
farmers pay four times as much. Now is 
your time to make your land rich. There is 
uo choice in this matter. Use all the mauure 
you can afford; then get all the ashes you can, 
and finally put on all the bone dust possible. 
Your land will thank you for the next 25 
years for 100 bushels of ashes aud 500 pounds of 
bone dust per acre, and you can then top-dress 
with the manure, 2. To get good crops of 
flue fruit both strawberries and raspberries 
require very rich soiL It can hardly be too | 
rich for either. 
SHROPSHIRE AND HAMPSHIRE DOWN SHEEP. 
IF. H. D ., Linesville, Pa .—Are the Shrop¬ 
shire aud Hampshire Down sheep the same 
breed? If uot, which is the better, woo), mut¬ 
ton and hardiness considered? 
Ans —These two sheep are not the same, 
although they are similar iu appearance, both 
having black faces and medium wool. The 
Hampshire is larger and has a finer wool thau 
the Shropshire. The Shropshire is the hardier 
sheep uud is better adapted to ordinary farrn- 
1 ing. The Hampshire requires better feediug 
and much sooner deteriorates under the neg¬ 
lect which a flock geuerally suffers in the or¬ 
dinary farm management. The Shropshire 
more nearly approaches the South Down in 
character, while the Hampshire is more like 
the larger mutton breeds; but it is a very flue 
sheep; too fine, in fact, for ordinary use. 
DURABLE WHITEWASH FOR OUTBUILDINGS. 
J. D. H., Crystal Springs, Miss, wants 
a durable whitewash for outside of rough 
boards. 
Ans —Common lime wash may be rendered 
very durable and water-proof by thinning the 
slaked lime to the proper consistency or 
fl uidity by adding skimmed milk. It may also 
be made durable by cutting up a pound of 
ordinary hard soap into each five gallons of 
the best litn?, and then thinning it down with 
hot water, and applying it hot. There are 
many other ways of rendering the wash dur¬ 
able by the use of complicated mixtures of 
boiled rice, glue, etc., but it is cheaper to give 
a fresh coat every Spring than to bother with 
them. When one hasn’t plenty of sweet 
skimmed milk, the soap mixture is the simplest 
and most easily made. 
TICKS ON CATTLE. 
R. II, Lawrence, Te^cas. —During Summer 
our cattle are greatly troubled with ticks. 
Will a mixture at the rate of one ounce of 
carbolic acid and a pound of hard soap rid 
the animals of the pests ? 
Ans —The mixture had better be made as 
follows: One ounce of carbolic acid; two 
pounds of soap, cut into slices aad dissolved 
in boiling water (two quarts), and halt a pint 
of kerosene oil. A very small proportion of 
carbolic acid is sufficient—one part to 40 of 
water. The mixture had better be put on 
with a stiff brush, a3 a common scrub-brush, 
and the lather left to dry on the hair. It will 
be an excellent preventive against other dis 
agreeable pests of your locality—the screw 
worm for instance. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
M. B. V., Bay Shore, N. Y. Has a land- 
owner a legal ri&ht to sell and cause to be 
removed a row of fine street trees growing 
outside the walk in front of his property, 
thereby lowering the value of the property of 
his neighbor across the way ? 
Ans. Each land-owner whose property 
extends along a road, owps to the middle 
of the road so far as his land stretches 
along the way. We do not know of any 
State law prohibiting such laud owner frem 
selling or removing the trees growing on his 
own side of the road, however much the act 
may depreciate his neighbor’s property. Vil¬ 
lage, towu and city ordinances, however, 
frequently regulate the treatment and dis¬ 
posal of street trees, and public sentiment 
should always protect such sources of general 
pleasure and ornamentation. 
F It. R., Dallas, Texas. What is a good 
work on pear culture, and also on orchard 
fruit culture in general ? 
Ans. Field's Pear Culture $1 25 for pear 
culture ; T homas’- American Fruit Culturist, 
$3.75. aud Downing’s Fruits and Fruit Treesof 
America, New Edition, $5, for fruit culture 
in general. AU can be had from the Ameri¬ 
can News Company, N. Y., or through the 
nearest book-store, 
IF. IF., Bainbridge, Pa. —In feeding linseed 
cake to milch cows how much should be given 
and how often? 
Ans —You can give two quarts in the morn¬ 
ing and the same at night. But if you feed 
this alone the butter—if you are making any 
—will be soft and of poor flavor. It would be 
better to give bran with the linseed meal. 
This meal is probably the “ new process meal ” 
aud if so has no oil in it. Then some corn 
meal should be given with it. 
R. H., Peoria, III. I see several advertise¬ 
ments of the “ Scout,” a new paper published 
by Williams & Bro., Detroit, Mich.; is it a 
catchpenny affair or a trustworthy enterprise. 
Ans. After investigation we refused to 
accept a lengthy advertisement of the “ Scout” 
for reasons quite satisfactory. 
D. M. D., New Providence, N. J. Can the 
Rural recommend the Peerless breach-load¬ 
ing gun advertised in the issue of Oct. 26. 
Ans. We would advise all persons to see 
aud examine any guu before purchasing it. 
.4. S., McHenry, III. Must the seeds of the 
Niagara Grape be frozen before they will 
grow ? 
Ans. No, not at alL We shall give full in¬ 
structions how best to grow them. 
Commumpatio*8 Ruck rvso roa thk wku h. sdi.ss 
Satu&oay. December SOl 
W O. G -D K. S.-H L -O, K D.-H >V.—J B.L 
—M B. U.-l. F. T F. H H . seeds received, lli«uks 
G. \V B. Mrs.G.H. A -W.W.F -H B. S —l-. K M. 
—R. >1. L H. E. B.-W. K. B. G. 11 S —SI. W, F — 
J.T.—Mrf.G. L K.-A. H.—H. S , you must like to 
jump at conclusions -A. L. Mck.. tile Rural sells 
nothing whatever. As soon as we IntTodU'-e new 
plants or seeds, we have done with them have 
never sold a seed or u plant—\V. J>. S. S. K. P.—1. tv. 
| O , th'inlf — E K. Hardin a valuable pap, r tuaiiRS— 
A. S. a.—Mr*. M. B., it is certain!, worthy, but weean 
rurely flud space for poetry—Mrs J. MeU., t "units— 
J S • — n. S. 8.-T. B. T.-J, A. It.-©. C. B.—It. A.B. 
J. B. a.—K. M W. J B.—J. B. M —N O. C —K. J. H. 
-A A. L -U C -J. A. F.^I A IL—S. It. W -L. A J 
—H S — Mrs M E. C., thanks —W.F. B.—\V. I C .will 
do our best—F. D C.—Leon—F. R R.— V V. B —E. M. 
8.-W. P.-G. A. F.-K. J K.-C B —W. B. H.—W B. 
J.—J.V.S.—H.S.—J.R.J.—J.H.—C.G.D.—GJS.P.—H.L.W. 
“ I had cl piece of clay 
ground which was the 
lumpiest piece I ever saw. 
I put the *ACME’ Pul¬ 
verizing Harrow j Clod 
Crusher and Leveler on 
it, cund after going over it 
once or twice , it was al¬ 
most as mellow as cun ash 
heap(See page 16 
this paper.) 
NJaJBRY. A 
r ANS 5S 
^OLD And S * } 
. 3-—v 
it very superior 
CME OF ThiX 
Kisd IS 
MADE 
*ITa. 
y AB -/ 
- V; 
Mr. _ • s’**- 
■ 9 - - 
Q. are there.' 
Q. IS A O.OLD 
Watch case ever 
LIED WITH OTHER V.ETltL 
TOREtMj'CE ITS COST, 
Add To itc 
UNDER Strength? 
JfNY OTHER 
gXyXEi I'yViEj M Paten, 
IN A SlMILAa\ 
manner ? 
Q.-W-r-t ,\h£ TmE 
FH.sr fa _ p.’iHTt TKir 
RECC--A. ENA f„A 
WatcA 
evl: >*Y 
- • 
Sv- 
■ 
w 
THE 
AV att£ p v 
T5e Jao?es 3oj> 
pact7!" ticlAidatt? 
CA.fe if really 
Better Than An Entire Gold One; 
It If 17 every TtSpcEr tveo-atlFul, CLf 
FOsi7p0.cc, and Af cenvepte'-’f 1 aipA it 
COSTS A GREAT DEAL lE5S MONEY. 
oi} ti?ii 
F armers 
RIEND Lever 
i 
Corn Planter. 
An Automatic Drill Attachment 
Iron Box Ends, the Best tor Check Rowers. 
Both Hand and Foot Levers. 
Gauqe Plates. Adjustable Seats. 
A Marvel of Strength and Beauty. 
Mention this paper, und address 
The Farmers Friend Mfg. Co. 
DAYTON. OHIO. 
Monarch and Young America 
COEN AJTD COB KILLS. 
OnW HUb mxAte wills 
CAST CAST STKlll. tfttlSHEE-S. 
Wju-mi.Md FU|Hrxr 5a nay iq 
l for ill pwrpcuc«. It'll! rrtrd 
falter, roa cisior, xaS *«r oug- 
er. S*tMtoct*a futraut.r.f. 
Also C ru SSetlor*. K«-.1 Cut- 
Cider Mills. Send fur cir¬ 
culars and prices. 
Manufactured bv v 
WHITMAN' AGRICULTURAL CO, 
8T. LOUIS. HO. 
