M*Y 42 
265 
raised. One bushel of good seed ought to pro¬ 
duce five or six thousand plants. 
Dorchester Co., Md. “ Dorset.” 
SALT FOR POTATOES; HEN MANURE 
FOR CORN. 
I noticed in a late Rural an item on 
sowing salt on potato land. Let me say that 
I have tried the same with nearly the same 
results, and would highly recommend sowing 
salt for any crop, especially wheat and oats. 
Last* season I sowed two acres of Spring 
wheat, and on it two barrels of salt and two 
of lime, leaving a corner without any, for 
the purpose of comparison. The result was a 
splendid crop on all excepting the unsalted 
and unlimed corner, on which there was 
scarcely any crop. I put on one barrel of salt 
per acre, and get the best results by sowing 
it early in Spring, while the snow is on the 
ground plowed the previous Fall. If the salt 
is hard and lumpy spread it on the barn 
floor and drive a roller over it; this is a quick 
way to pulverize it. I consider it as good a 
fertilizer as one can get for live times its cost. 
I also agree with the Rural’s answer to H. 
R. L.’s question in a late issue in regard 
to hen manure on coni. The way 1 treat 
mine is to loosen it up under the roost and let 
it dry; then 1 make it as line as I can with 
a fork; than mix three bushels of ashes, one 
of lime (slaked) to one of manure; then, last 
of all, I put on a peek of millet-seed and shut 
the hens in for a couple of days, in scratch¬ 
ing for the millet they just nicely pulverize 
the whole muss. Last year I used a large 
handful on the top of each hill, following the 
planter right up; the result was truly grati¬ 
fying. I hail a good chance to see the effects 
of the mixture, as a part of my corn-field 
was ou new ground and the other on ground 
that had been under the plow for years. 1 
treated the old ground as above, and my best 
corn was there. [We cannot altogether ap¬ 
prove of the mixing of hen manure, wood- 
ashes and lime so long before the application 
of the mixture to the crop. There is much 
risk that the ashes or lime will set free some of 
the ammonia (nitrogen) in the hen manure, 
thus causing the loss of its most valuable ingre¬ 
dient. If the mixture should become moist the 
loss would certainly l>e considerable.— Eds.] 
It seems to me if farmers, in a few wor ds, 
w'ould give their way of doing work anti their 
experience in farming some pet crop, together 
with the result, etc., it would perhaps put 
new ideas into the heads of some, and create 
a desire to try the same, and much benefit 
would be derived from it. e. g. s. 
Cuba, N. Y. 
farm (Tonnes. 
A GOOD HAY-RACK. 
[For Illustrations, sre page 29fi. ] 
The numerous styles of hay-rack that one 
may see ou different farms indicate that the 
best methods of constructing this indispeusuble 
device to the farmer is not generally under¬ 
stood. After constructing several hay-racks, 
1 have decided upon a plan which, whether it 
is absolutely best or not, is the best that I am 
able to devise. 
It is made of sound yellow pine, a timber 
that combines lightness, strength and elas¬ 
ticity—the qualities needed in a hay-rock. As 
will appear from tin* drawing, Fig. 1811, it is a 
flat, rack, the style that gives the lowest center 
of gravity to the load and necessitates the 
least high pitching. The main pieces are com¬ 
posed of 2xK joists, 16 feet long. The cross 
beams are of 2x4 scantling, and are cut about 
eight feet loug. The smaller cross-pieces that 
support the boards for the bottom, are I]ax4 
inches. To avoid boring holes through the joists 
and cross-beams, which unavoidably weakens 
them, damps made of inch round iron are 
used. These are put on as show n in Fig. UK) 
one arm passing ou ouch side of the joists, and 
through the cross-pieces at the bottom, where 
a piece ol' inch band iron having holes 
punched through it at the proper distances 
apart, is slipped over the ends of the damp, 
and the whole drawn tightly together by two 
nuts, as shown. To keep the beams from slip¬ 
ping on the joist a hole is bored an inch deep 
in the center of the edge of each, where they 
come together, and u pin is inserted, as shown 
by the dotted lines. 
The front standard, shown iu Fig. 191, has 
its side-piocos two inches thick, three inches 
wide at the bottom, tapered to two inches at 
the top. 1 had formerly found trouble in put¬ 
ting this so together that it did not soon be¬ 
come loose and shackling from the jar of the 
wagon. Pins would rattle out and bolts would 
lose their nuts and fall out also. The cross¬ 
pieces at the top, when mortised through the 
side-pieces, necessitated the removal of so 
much wood {is to weaken the latter seriously. 
To avoid this, I mortise them in but half an 
inch, and hold the sides together by passing 
one-fourth-inch rods through, as shown. To 
secure the side-pieces to the shaft at the bot¬ 
tom, so that they will neither break off nor 
work loose, I make the tenon but three-fourths 
of an inch long, with the mortise of corre¬ 
sponding depth, and pass an eight-inch 
machine bolt through from below, sinking 
the nut into the side-piece, as shown. The 
shafts may be made of 3x3 oak scantling. 
The rear standard is two inches thick, six 
inches wide at the hottom, tapered to three 
inches at the top. The arches are of ash, 
inches wide by soven-eigbths thick, I used for 
this purpose the felloes of a pair of old grain- 
drill wheels, which answered the purpose admir¬ 
ably. The ends are attached to the boards of 
the rack by short pieces of band-irou. bent at 
the proper angle one end of which is bolted 
to the arch and the other to the board. The 
slats are of pine, one inch by one-and-a-balf 
inch, and are bolted on with short carriage 
bolts. The boards are live inches wide, and 
are held in place by means of bolts at the ends. 
The bolts pass throgh pieces of inch band-irou 
placed across the boards and cut loug enough 
so that the cuds may be bent down over their 
edges. This prevents the boards from split¬ 
ting. In order to make the rack a little dish¬ 
ing I place short pieces two inches square 
between the joists and cross-beams at the ends 
of the rack, as shown iu Fig. 189. The rack is 
held iu place ou the wagon by blocks bolted 
to the outside of the joists on each side of the 
rear stakes. Elm. 
SUBSTITUTE FOR WIRE FENCES. 
At the present time wire seems to be the 
material par excellence for fences. It answers 
all purposes, besides being cheap, durable and 
easily put up. It offers so little resistance to 
the wind that snow is never deposited in drifts 
beside it. This is a great advantage, especially 
on uorth and south roads, which are often im¬ 
passable iu Winter. 
There is still a better and cheajxn' material 
that, can be used; and that is reds from the 
rolling mill, of which wire is made. Bessemer 
steel rods, No. 0, (throe-sixteenth of an inch iu 
diameter), will run 10 feet to the pound, and 
can be purchased for $00 a ton (2,240 pounds). 
They come in pieces of about 70 pounds each, 
and are very much stronger than fence wire, 
never having lieen weakened by the processes 
to which the latter is subjected in its manu¬ 
facture. These rods are made in several places 
in this country and are imported from Europe 
in very large quantities. 
Three rods, 10 inches apart, will make a 
fence four feet high and will cost less than 12 
cents a rod, not counting the freight. Will 
some one tell how to umkc a cheaper fence, or 
state the objections to this one? Why should 
the farmer, in addition to a “protective tariff,” 
pay for having these rods made into fence 
wire? 1 hopo to hear from others ou this im¬ 
portant subject. M. Crawford. 
Summit Co., O. 
'Pomo toxica l 
EASTER BEURRE. 
GEN. WM. H. NOBLE. 
The portraits of the Easter Beurrc and the 
outline iu the Rural of April 7 are very 
good for California Easter Beurre. But an 
Easter Beurre* grown in the East or France 
would never feel like claiming kinship with 
the robust growth of this fruit at the Golden 
Gate. The fact is, the Easter Beurrd aud 
W inter Nelis gain under the warm and long 
seasons of California and its irrigation a full¬ 
ness and tenderness of fiosh which 1 have 
never seen iu one specimen grown on the At¬ 
lantic Slope* or sent us from Franco. 
I wonder our friends iu Virginia and “way 
down South,” do not give this luscious fruit 
the benefit of their seasons and stock with it 
our Northern marts, all along from Fall to 
mid-winter. They might easily keep it until 
April. It would beat Floridu oranges for 
profit out of sight. Ou the Quince they could 
be got from the bud to fruitage quite as quick y 
as the Orange; almost assjiecdily as the Peach. 
1 send you an Easter Bourn) growu by my¬ 
self. It is an astray. By chance it was for¬ 
gotten in a drawer beneath some linen towels. 
It has thus stood a freezing temperature and 
is only a little wilted. I think it \v ill make 
you a rich and welcome morsel. [Somewhat 
shriveled, but tender, sweet aud juicy.— Eds.] 
If you want peai-s to last through the 
Winter keep them cold and dry in a drawer 
or box. Roll them iu some thin paper aud 
cover over loosely that you may inspect them 
from time to time. When they approach 
maturity bring them for a few days into a 
warm room to ripen. 
* “Our people are going to buy the KEMP 
MANURE SPREADER by the hundreds as 
soon as they introduced. A gentleman from 
Vermont, one from Tennessee, three from 
Canada and one from Michigan saw mine at 
work and all pronounced it a grand success." 
(M. W. Dunham), Seepage 299. 
THE NEW PATENT 
DUST-PROOF 
Stem Winding Open Face Case, 
MANUFACTURED BY THE 
American Watch Co., 
WALTHAM, MASS. 
This case is formed in one solid piece with¬ 
out joint or seam, opening in front only, thus 
avoiding the usual Cap, and securing greater 
strength and durability. 
These Watches are all open face. The bezel, 
into which an extra strong crystal is fitted 
with an especially prepared water-proof ce¬ 
ment, is attached to the case by screwing it 
thereon, and thus forms an air-tight junction 
with the body of the case, which is proof 
against dust and moisture. 
To railroad men. travelers, miners, lumlier- 
meu and others who are almost constantly ex¬ 
posed and who have to make frequent reference 
to the watch, these qualities are of the utmost 
importance. • 
The following letters tell their own 
story: 
“Valdosta, Ga., July20, 1882, 
“ I sold one of your Patent Dust-Proof Cases 
about ten months ago, and the other day it came 
back to me with the request to make it wind 
easier. Ou examination 1 found that the stem 
was rusty, and I inquired into the cause of it. 
The gentleman stated to me that he was start¬ 
ing some saw-logs that hail lodged in the bend 
of the river, when his chain caught in a bush 
aud threw his watch into about twelve feet of 
water, and he was about two hours finding it. 
When he got it out it was running and he 
thought all right. Iu about three months he 
found that the stem was hard to turn and sent 
it to me. 
“ I can say that the watch is all that the 
company claims for it, and recommend it to all 
railroad and mill men. B. W. Bently.” 
“ Clinton, Iowa. April 29,1881. 
“ I wish you would send me a spring for the 
Win. Ellery Watch * * * By the wav this 
Ellery is a watch I sold m your Screw Bezel 
Case to a farmer last Fall. The first of Janu¬ 
ary he lost the watch in the woods, and found 
it this week in about one foot of water. It had 
lain three mouths aud over in snow and water, 
with but slight injury to the watch—only a 
hair-spring. C. S. Raymond.” 
The above were very severe tests, and dem¬ 
onstrate beyond a doubt that for any reasona¬ 
ble length of time during which a watch might 
be under water it would receive no injury 
whatever. 
We make these cases in both gold and silver, 
and ns a Perfectly Dust-Proof Stem Winding 
Watch Case, Ulialleiute the World to Produce 
its Equal. 
FOR SALE BY ALL FIRST-CLASS JEWELERS. 
MEADOW KING 
Mowing Machine. 
In all that goes to make up u Mowing Machine, the 
MEADOW KING has noo<|ual. The simplest, strong¬ 
est aud most durable Mower In the world. No Side- 
Draft, no weight on the horse’s neck. 
THE NEW GREGG REAPER, 
Embodies all the essential mechanical principles of 
the Meadow King Mower. It Is a single-wheel, light, 
standard Reaper. Send for Illustrated circulars. 
Address 
llltEfiG A CO„ Sole manufacturer.*, 
Truman*burg, N. Y. 
Also Manufacturers of Lawn Mowers, Plows, Ac. 
BUCKEYE 
~~ JUNIOR and SENIOR 
| k \ Lawn 
1 1 \ Mower. 
. f 
Easy to Work. 
Strong and Durable. 
Most Reliable Mower in Use. 
TRY ONE and YOU WILL BUY IT. 
Send for Illustrated Circulars to 
MAST. FOOS & CO 
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio. 
E ~ XCELSIORAND 
CLIPPER T" 
LAWN M0WERSA nd 
GUARANTEED /MOWERS 
BEST & CHEAPEST 10 to 20 in. 
URGE REDUCTION / HORSE 
IN PRICE ,as»%N50WERS 
NX 25 TO 40 IN. 
Lawn Mower*® 
FOURTEEN SIZES FOR HAND USE 
Weighing from 21 to 51 lbs. 
THREE SIZES for HORSE-POWER. 
GRAHAM, EMLEN~ & PASSMORE, 
Patentees and Manufacturers, 
631 MARKET ST.. PHILADELPHIA. PA. 
We are General Agents, and sell the above at 
Manufacturer's Prices at Rochester. N. Y.. or 
Chicago, Ill; Send for Catalogue and prices. 
HIRAM SIBLEY «Jk CO., 
Chicago, III. Rochester, N. X. 
PAYNE S FARM ENGINES 
OurtO-Horne Spark Arresting Threshing 
Engine has cut lOgduO feet Pine Lumber in 10 hours, 
will burn wood 6 feet long, coal, straw and era 
stalks, bond for Price List and Catalogue "A.” 
„ B. W. PAYNE & SONS, 
Box 341. Corning, X- Y. 
STEVEN'S FRENCH BUHR 
V * 1 FEED MILLS. 
/JfcfThe cheapest 
and best mills 
. N In the world. 
Prices and 
< M b I upwards, sub- 
u Hr jecc co cash dls- 
RhL count Send for 
hfi elrcul are to 
XIs i&r JLW5313 
J fi-i, Si Auburn. N. Y. 
Lgr ~ Mention this 
paper. 
I Has- 
Pamphlet 
mailed free. ‘■''Hr: 
Newark MaehinsCo., Newark, i' 
O. Formerly the rtnp*r>tow ng _ 
Agr. Imp. Mff. Co., Ungers town, Md. 
ONE OAL 
Address, TAYLOR MFC. CO. 
(Please Mentis ft thts Paptr.) C'liuinborabur^ Ha* 
