THE RURAL. fflEW-YOBIER. 
MARCH 3 
ashes; 100 or 200 bushels per acre might be 
used; but 10 or 20 are good in proportion. If 
unleached ashes e(m l>e procured for 25 cents 
a bushel, that is better than leached at 7% 
cents. Unleached contain 10 per cent of pot¬ 
ash and leached only 2 1 « per cent. 
FEEDING RYE TO MILCH COWS, ETC. 
D. D. C., Dayton, O. 1, What is the proper 
pronunciation of Houghton, as applied to 
Houghton Farm and Houghton Gooseberry? 
2. Is rye, ground tine, mixed with coarse 
wheat bran, a suitable mixture to feed for the 
production of milk? It is said here that the 
feeding of rye to milch cows will cause them 
to dry up. 
Ans. —1. Houghton is pronounced as How- 
ton or Hoton, as you please. 2. The rye and 
bran will be a good feed for producing milk for 
sale, but if butter is the object it will be light 
in color and of poor flavor. Nothing else 
gives so sweet a flavor to milk or blitter 
as com meal. Rye feed is largely used in 
milk dairies, and we have never heard or 
found that it had the effect of drying up the 
cows. 
DEPRAVED APPETITE IN SHEEP. 
./. V, D. P. P., Plain vUle, N. J. One of my 
sheep has a depraved appetite. She eats the 
tails of lambs just after their birth, and when 
other sheep are being delivered she will chew 
off the toes of the young before they are 
dropped. How should she be treated ? 
Ans. —This sheep should have two ounces 
of Epsom salts aud. after that has operated, 
one teaspoonful of Rochelle salts, aud one 
half as much ground ginger mixed with 
enough molasses to make a paste should be 
put on her tongue at the back every morning 
before she is fed. Any such depraved appe¬ 
tite as this is due to a derangement of the di¬ 
gestive organs, and should be treated by a 
saline purgative, with a tonic afterwards. 
“hard” water. 
M. M., Address lost .—All well water with us 
is very hard, cistern water soon becomes quite 
as hard as well water. What is the cause? 
Cisterns here are built of brick and cemented. 
Ans.— There are various reasons for water 
being hard. Any mineral matter dissolved in 
the water will make it hal'd, Tlius water from 
clay, slaty soil, slate rock, magnesian rocks or 
limestone, will all be hard. Water from a 
slate roof will be hard after dry weather during 
which the slate lias become weather-worn aud 
the soluble matter is washed off with the 
first rain. But cistern water is made hard 
mostly b} r the lime in the mortar and the clay 
of the brick, and it requires some yearn to get 
rid of the effects of these. Hard water gets soft 
by exposure to the air, aud that is why river 
water or spring water is usually soft. 
SALTING PORK WITHOUT BRINE. 
IF. II. W., Cranford, N. J. —Can hams and 
shoulders be salted sufficiently without putting 
them iu brine? 
Ans. —There is not the least difficulty in salt¬ 
ing hams and shoulders without putting them 
in brine, excepting that it is more laborious. 
The meat is well nibbed with a mixture of 10 
pounds of salt, four pounds of brown sugar 
and four ounces of saltpeter well mixed. The 
rubbing should be done every second day and 
the meat should lie kept with the flesh side up¬ 
wards. It may be kept, (n tubs or on a bench for 
three weeks when it will be ready for smoking. 
The above quantities are only for the pro¬ 
portions of the various ingredients. Enough 
should be used to thoroughly salt the meat. 
The above would be sufficient for 100 pounds of 
meat. More salt is required for dr}- salting 
than for pickling in brine. 
HYDRACLie RAMS. 
S. L., Sharon Center, N. Y.— At the Utica 
fair I saw a hydraulic ram for which the 
claim was made that it would raise water 30 
feet with a fall of four inches; I want to raise 
water 25 feet and have a fall of four feet. 
What kind of pipe should be used, and is the 
ram likely to be durable ? 
Ans. —No water ram will work well with 
a fall of only four inches; four feet is ample 
fall; the supply pipe which carries the water 
to the ram should be l 1 ^ inch in diameter; the 
discharge pipe may be half an inch. With water 
running constantly, lead pipe is perfectly safe 
aud the best. The rams are made and fitted 
lor the right kind of pipe. They are very 
durable and by occasionally emptying the air 
chamber, which in time gets full of water, they 
will work 25 years without repair, excepting 
perhaps for a new' valve. 
A COW THAT SHOULD ‘* GO DRY.” 
W. E.Berkley Nights, N. J. —My cow 
“comes in”in March; for the last three days 
her milk is thick, whit© and stringy, just like 
sour milk, and it rattles w'hen milking. What 
should be done? 
Ans.—T his cow should go dry. A cow’s 
milk always changas and becomes thick, salty 
or albuminous when uear calving. But it 
would uot lie safe to dry her off at once. Milk 
her only half out each time, and give her no 
feed but dry hay. The indications are that 
there may be trouble with the udder when she 
is fresh again, aud you should watch her 
closely. If the udder becomes hard a pound of 
Epsom salts should be given at once. 
ASHES OF YOUNG OAK AND HICKORY. 
II- L. S. , Zanesville, O .—What is the value of 
White Oak and Hickory tops per cord, to lie 
burnt for the ashes to be used for fertilizing 
purposes ? 
Ans.— The young wood of all kinds of trees 
makes more ashes and the ashes are richer in 
potash than the old wood. In one cord of 
small oak wood there are 40 pounds of ashes, of 
which one-fifth is pure potash: eight pounds of 
potash are worth about 50 cents. Hickory has 
about double this quantity of ash or 80 pounds 
of which 22 pounds are potash. 
.MISCELLANEOUS. 
W. H. C., Block Island, P. I .—1, Is there a 
remedy for the onion maggot? 2, How much 
clover seed should he sovvu on an acre, and 
also how much Herd’s Grass seed ? o, How- 
many bushels of oats should be sown on an 
acre to yield the heaviest oats? i, What 
should be the feed of hens to induce them to 
lay in cold weather? 5, What is the best, grain 
feed for breeding cow-s in the Winter and how r 
much per head cau be given them with profit 
and safety ? 
Ans. —I, It would be a good plan to sow onions 
on some fresh bed hereafter. Salt applied when 
the plants are two or three inches high, at the 
rate of about three bushels to the acre, has 
been effective iu destroying the maggot. Try 
hall’-a-pint. of kerosene oil with six gallons of 
water applied through a rose sprinkler to the 
plants. The young plants will turn yellow 
when attacked by the maggot, aud all such 
should b*3 dug up and every maggot killed. 2. 
If Timothy alone, not less than 12 pounds. If 
with clover, five or six pounds. Glover with 
Timothy, about six pouuds. If alone, uot less 
than nine pounds. 3. Only good land will 
produce heavy oats. The best oats vve have 
ever raised received but one bushel of seed to 
the acre. On poor land vve have sown three 
bushels to the acre. 4. They should have warm, 
clean houses aud good care. If this is neg¬ 
lected, they will not lay, no matter what food 
is given t hem. We feed wheat during the 
mild Winter weather, wheat and corn (half and 
hall) iu colder weather aud corn alone iu the 
severest weather. Give them all the table 
scraps and green food (cabbage, etc.) you cau. 
Provide lime in the form of powdered clam or 
oyster shells, Provide dust baths; kerosene 
the perches; whitewash the houses. We feed 
momiugs aud nights only, as much as they 
will eat up clean. 5. Oats is the best grain; 
but some bran would be beneficial. One pint, 
a day is enough with good hay. 
P. VF. .S’., no address. — I. Will apple trees 
the bloom of which was killed last .Spring, 
bear this year, and will the destruction of the 
blossoms last year change the “ bearing year N 
of the trees? 2. Which is the most profitable 
Stock to raise for the near future ? 3. llow are 
horses likely to pay within the next half-dozep 
years? 4. Can a mare of about 1,100 pounds 
be bred to a stallion weighing 1,600 without 
injury? 
Ans. —1. Trees, the bloom of which w as de¬ 
stroyed last Spring, will probably bear more 
this 3 r ear than they otherwise would have done 
on the off year, but not. as a rule, sufficiently 
to change the bearing year permanently. 2. 
It is impossible to answer this question, except 
by a guess, especially us our friend has forgot¬ 
ten to mention his address, aud the post-mark 
is illegible. So far as stock-raising js con¬ 
cerned, a great deal depends on the location. 
3, Holies are a profitable stock on farms suited 
to them and in the hands of men who know 
how to breed and care for them. But what 
the demand for horses will be three or four 
years heuee no one can foresee. If there is 
another business crisis before then horses will 
be low, The price of horses is more affected than 
that of any other kind of stock by hard times. 
4. The disparity between a 1,100-pound mare 
and a 1,600-potnxd horse is try uo means suffi¬ 
cient to prohibit breeding them together. 
J. B. It., Hartford, Muh. —1. What is the 
best sort of grass seed for seeding a lawn on 
sandy soil and rut her shady? 2. What is the 
right way to prepare fence-posts with coal-tar? 
3, Which is the best sort of barbed "ware fence? 
Ans. —1. Red-Top aud Kentucky Blue Grass 
in equal proportions, at. the rate of a quarter 
of a pound to the square rod. A little White 
Clover added will make an improvement. 2. 
Coal-tar contains an acid which is injurious to 
timber unless some lime is mixed with it to 
neutralize the acid. The tar may then be 
made hot, and two coats given to the posts. 3. 
The Wash bum & Moen barbed fence is most 
extensively used; but the Iowa barbed fence is 
rapidly coming into favor. We find a plain 
wire fence sufficient if it is firmly put up. We 
have a barbed-wire fence on one side of a pas¬ 
ture. Thus far one cow has been injured, 
though uot seriously. 
P. B. P, Amenta, N, l'.—l am about mak¬ 
ing a farm roller in two sections of four feet 
each. Have obtained four mowing-maehine 
wheels for the heads, aud staves made from 
2 1 ;, -inch white oak plank about throe inches 
wide on the narrowest side, which I had in¬ 
tended to bolt fast to the heads; but A. W. 
says (page 66 R. N.-Y.) that “ the staves can 
be kept iu place by putting on tires.” Would 
you recommend this plan ? 
Ans. —The staves may be fitted outside the 
rims and will be held by the points made to 
help the draft. There will uot be much 
danger of the tire bands coining loose. But if 
this is an objection, plank heads may be bolted 
to the w heels and the staves fastened to these. 
Of the two methods we think the latter to be 
the better. A light tire of band iron may be 
put on the ends of the roller and bolted to each 
stave with a. carriage bolt. 
H. D. P., no address. —1. What is a remedy 
for lice on cattle? 2. On thoankle-joint of my 
four-year-old mare there is a soft swelling 
about one inch deep aud two inches across 
which has been “ coming on ” for two years 
without making' the animal lame; how- should 
it be treated ? 
Ans,— 1. For remedies for lice on live stock 
see last Rural, Iu addition to those men¬ 
tioned there a good one is composed of lard, 
six pai-ts, and sulphur, one part, well rubbed 
together and mixed, and rubbed on to the cat¬ 
tle where the lice arc found. This will do no 
harm if the cattle lick it. 2. The swelling is a 
wiudgall; it rarely causes lameness and is best 
left alone; but if you wish to remove it, try a 
baudage with a pad upon the swelling aud keep 
it wet with cold water. 
J. IF., Stephensburgh, N. J .— 1, Where can 
I get the Florist and Pomologist and the Sig¬ 
nal Service Reports ? 2, How should ground 
be prepared to plant currant seeds for raising 
seedlings? 
Ans, —1. The Florist and Pomologist from 
Kent, & Co., 23 Paternoster Row, London, 
E. C., England, The Signal Service Reports 
through the Member of Congress for your dis¬ 
trict or the Senator from your State, like all 
Other documents printed for public distribu¬ 
tion. 2. Just the same as you would to raise 
lettuce or beets or onions. There is no trouble. 
A good plan is to gather the seed when ripe, 
mix them with sand in a box, bury the box 
and sow sand and all in early Spring. Another 
good plan is to sow at once from the ripe 
fruit in frames out. of doors or in flower¬ 
pots in the house. 
N. J. P., Pulton, N. Y. —1. What is the 
value of hen manure gathered up once or 
twice a week and barreled, thu ammonia hi it 
living “fixed” by scattering over it a small 
quantity of land plaster? 2. Which is the best 
and hardiest grape for this section ? 3. Will the 
Pocklington and Wordeu do wellso far north? 
4. Is E. P. Roe, of Cormvall-on-the-lludson, 
a reliable uui-serymau? 
Ans. —1. The value of hen manure made aud 
eared for in the manner stated is about 
#1 per UK) pouuds, or 60 cents a bushel, 100 
pounds containing 2}.. pounds of nitrogen, 
worth 62' cents; 1 pounds of potash, worth 
nine cents, aud three pounds of phosphoric 
acid, worth 30 cents. 2. Miner’s Victoria 
(white) we have found among the hardiest of 
viues. 3. The vine's you mention, if udupted to 
the soil, should stand as well as Concord. 4- 
Mr. Roe enjoys an excellent reputation. 
“ Amateur ,” Vamlalia, 111., 1, How- can I 
prevent moles from undermining my straw¬ 
berry bed? 2. Do moles rat the. white grub; if 
so, which do tho more injury ? 3. Are sifted 
hard coal ashes good for the garden ? 
Ans.— 1. Wc know of no letter way than 
by catching them iu traps. Pouring coal tar 
in the run before it enters the patch will in¬ 
duce them to furrow elsewhere. 2. Yes, we 
am of the opinion that the grub would harm 
the plants mom than the moles. 3. Yes. if 
the soil is heavy; they will serve to lighten it. 
They make good absorbents of liquid manure 
and, when saturated with it, form a good ap¬ 
plication to any soil, but especially to a heavy 
one, where they have a beneficial mechanical 
effect. 
B . B • C. MiddleU/unt, N. J. —Would it “do” 
to apply muriate of potash to pear trees that 
have borne several heavy crops, but which do 
not make a satisfactory growth? What other 
fertilizer would l»e appropriate? 
Ans.—W ithout considering the matter of 
expense, we should use farm manure, at the 
rate, of HI loads to the acre and then use potash 
iu some form, and ground raw bone at the rate 
of 300 pounds to the acre. The potash alone 
may serve. This cau Ik* ascertained only by 
trial. We have known small orchards greatly 
benefited by a spread of coarse salt, hay in 
which poultry was allowed to run and scratch. 
M. M. M., Dumont mile, Ohio. —What is the 
bast manure for potatoes on a clay soil? 
Ans.—J ust the same as for a light soil, so fur 
as food is enirrrucd. Any substance Mint will 
lighten a day soil Is desirable, as saud, leaf- 
mold or sandy muck. Long farm manure, 
straw, decayed corn-stalks, salt hay. if plowed 
under long enough before the crop is raised to 
enable it to become a part of the soil, would 
serve well to increase the yield. Potash, un¬ 
less the land already supplies it sufficiently, is 
an excellent special mamu'e for potatoes. 
./. O. .S'.. EHinwood, Kas ,—With prairie lmy 
at *3 per ton; “new process” oil-eake at $00 
per ton; bran at $12 per ton, and corn at 30 
cents per bushel or $10.70 per ton, how can I 
improve on the following ration to get the 
best results from my milch cows? Each cow 
gets daily all the hay she will eat. together with 
two quarts of bran, one pint, of oil-eake and 
a quart of dry com boiled soft before it is fed, 
Ans.—T he only improvement wo could sug¬ 
gest would be to double tho'quantity of bran, 
oil-cake and corn, which at the prices men¬ 
tioned can very well be afforded. 
J. L. D. Meredian, Texas. —What is tho 
process now in use for supplying milk to cus¬ 
tomers in bottles so as to keep it a number 
of days ? 
Ans. —Milk is delivered to consumer iu 
bottles now in several of the large cities; but 
it undergoes no process to keep it sweet an un¬ 
usual length of time. The milk is cooled in 
ice and is prepared for sale with the greatest 
attention to cleanliness, that is all. 
R. K. *4.. Whitney's Point, N. Y„ sends 
some pieces cut from a cherry tree bearing an 
abnormal growth and asks what it is. All the 
cherry trees thereabouts are similary affected. 
Ans. —This appears to be black-knot. The 
only remedy we know of is to cut away the 
excrescences as soon as they appear, and 
bum them. 
R. A. O., Philadelphia, Pa. —How many 
pounds of milk on un average, from ordinary 
grade cows, are required to make a pound 
of butter ? 
Ans. —The average of an ordinary fair dairy 
of native cows would be about a pound of 
butter to 12 quarts of milk with good feeding. 
Good feeding would be plenty of good hay or 
com fodder with not less than four quarts 
of meal. 
IF. A. H.. Galway, N. F.—What is the beet 
use for coal ashes on the fami ! 
Ans.—I t is good for paths; good to use in 
composts; good as an absorbent of liquid ma¬ 
nure; good to spread about currant bushes or 
other fruits, exerting a beneficial meciianieal 
effect upon most soils. Its best use depends 
upon the peculiar needs of the home. We pre¬ 
fer to use it upon paths and the carriage drive. 
D. G.. Dart ford, TF/.s.—Where ran seeds of 
the Rural Ohater Hollyhock be obtained? 
Ans— This magnificent hollyhock is now in 
the hauds of our subscribers. All should re¬ 
member that it is a biennial and that new 
plants should lie grown every year to have 
flowers every year. 
I*,, Bennett, Web .—What is the cost of 
putting out a hedge by the rod and keeping it 
in good order for two years? 
Ans. —Arbor-vita* plants about a foot high 
can be purchased for about $6 per hundred; 
Japan Quince for Honey Locust, for $5. 
We cannot furnish the other items of expense. 
C. IF. B., Peer Will. Kan .—What is the ad¬ 
dress of a good paper devoted especially to 
sheep aud wool-growing? 
Ans. —Texas Wool Grower, monthly, $2. 
San Antonio, Texas. 
IF. M. L., Sheperdstown, IF. Fa.—How long 
is it from the time a mare is “ in season ” until 
she is “ in season ” again? 
Ans. This was stated on page 102 (Feb. 17) to 
lx* from three to four weeks. 
IF. A. H.» Galway, N. Y ,—Which is bettor 
for horses’feet—to stand on a well-littered floc r 
or on a bed of manure? 
Ans. —The horses’ feet should never stand iu 
manure. 
•J. C. I)., Valencia, Pa .—Should a dairy¬ 
man who wishes to sell milk give w*et or dry 
feed to his cows ? 
Ans. —Better to give the feed dry. 
A Subscriber , address mislaid. —Who manu¬ 
factures grain bags ? 
Ans. —E. S. Halstead, 60 Pearl Street, N. Y. 
Communications Received kok the week Ending 
Saturday, February 31. 
E. B.-C. V. H.-J. K. C.-D. D. L.-L. K. A. C. A.. Jr., 
thanks. Ye*, the men have truiblen on rhal carpet, 
though rarely. W. A. W. \V, c, 0. A. D. V. . 1 . M 
W. E. W,, we have not tried It. K. H.—H. S. M. .1. II 
B.-P. O. R. VV. n. M. \V. 8, -A. G. Q. H. A. C.-M 
by no means.—L. S. Robot, oats received thank.'.. 
What variety f—C. L.—R. P.. Jr. J. R D.—W. 8. R. 
H. N. H.-T. J. W.-8. N. H.—H. P.--R. W. F„ thank h. 
E. R. B. J. P.— A. A. P. (’.—A. D. II., bean* not re 
oelvecL 11 0 J.- J. it. 1:. k. s. c r J. .1. P. s J„ 
thanks.*-?, p. .m. r. .* 1 1 . k. i-.w . r,CLR. v 
11. A. -W. A, S.-.T. SI. MoC.- J. R. G.—W. n. N.-G. 8. 
—C. E. P.—W. P. B. A. 1,, 0., our experience la the 
aame u.h Mrs. Jack's. A. & L.—A. S. U. S, W.— Bigger 
H. W. A..I, (\— J. T. SI., thank*. A. M. K. L. D. 
0. F. L. T. E. II. A. M \V.—A, X. W. II. 8. (’. P. I.. 
J. II. K. w. si. D., thank*. Aunt Betsey, thanks for 
the suggestion. H. K. L. M. L. S. (Mrs.), thanks P.K. 
G. -J. H. X. 8, L, B,—W. F. II., thanks for plana—C. S' 
R.-A. L. J. 
