JUNE 30 
s 
pect good for planting the crops. Cattle and 
hogs scarce and high. Labor scarce and poor; 
all the best hands on public woiks. Fruit 
prospects good. Early fruit will be affected 
by the dry weather. G. p. L. 
Wisconsin. 
Bloomingdale, June 8. —Corn is very small 
for this time of year. Weather cold and wet. 
Grass looks fine—will be a good crop if weather 
continues favorable until harvest. Apple trees 
on low ground badly damaged by freezing; no 
fruit on low ground; somo on high land This 
is a poor fruit country—Winter too cold. J n. 
(Querist, . 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
(Every query must be accompanied by the name 
n<l address of the writer to Insure attention.! 
MAKING SKIMMED MILK CHEESE. 
F. H.' A., Minnesota Junction. Wis .—What 
i s the best way to make cheese from skimmed 
milk from a Cooley Creamer? 
Ans.—S kim-milk cheese of a very good 
quality may be made as follows:—The milk is 
warmed to 80 degrees by heating a portion up 
to 100 aud addiug it to about three times as 
much of the milk as it comes from the coolers. 
It would not be advisable to let the milk 
stand, as it sours rapidly iu warm air after 
coming from the cooler, A wooden tub is the 
best for setting the curd as it retains the heat 
of the milk and hastens the action of the ren¬ 
net. The tub should have a spigot at the 
bottom with a strainer over the hole inside to 
let out the whey. The temperature should uot 
go over 80, and if a soft cheese is desired 72 
degrees would be better, When the milk has 
been thoroughly stirred and evenly wanned 
through, the rennet is well stirred into it. 
This is made by steeping the salted and dried 
stomach of an unweaned calf in warm water 
for 12 hours previously. For 100 quarts of 
milk at 80 degrees, half au ounce of rennet 
steeped in a pint and u-half of tepid water for 
12 horn’s should be sufficient. The curd should 
come in about 80 minutes; when the curd 
breaks as the finger is drawn through it, it is 
cut with a long blade; a piece of thin, straight 
hoop iron ground to an edge and put in a han¬ 
dle makes a good curd knife. The curd is cut 
in liues an inch apart both ways and is left 
for the whey to separate. After standing 20 
or 25 minutes, some of the whey is drawn off 
and heated to 150 or 100 degrees and enough 
of it poured over the cunl, which is well 
stirred with the hot whey to bring it up to 
100 degrees or until it is hot enough for the 
hand to bear comfortably. The tub is covered 
to keep in the heat and the curd left for 25 or 
80 minutes. The whey is again drawn off 
and the curd broken up finely with the hand; 
then the hot whey is returned; the whole 
stirred again and brought up to the former 
heat once more. The curd should lie stirred 
now and then to prevent it adhering together. 
The tub is then covered aud the curd left until 
it is hard enough to squeak when bitten by the 
teeth. A better test is the hot iron tost: this 
is to take an iron rod. as a stove poker, and 
make it black hot and not red: when the curd 
touched to this hot iron adheres and makes 
strings when drawn from it. the curd Is cooked 
enough. The whey is then drained off and 
the curd cooled and broken up line. Salt is 
mixed witli it at the rate of an ounce for 20 
pounds of milk, or the salt may lie added after¬ 
wards by rubbing it on the cheese. The curd 
is evenly mixed and put into the hoop. This 
is a wooden ring of the size the Chet's® is to bo. 
The ring is lined with a cloth which is folded 
down over the curd. The hoop is then put un¬ 
der a press aud pressed for 12 hours. It is then 
taken out carefully, wrapped in a fresh cloth, 
turned and again put in the press for 24 hours. 
It is then taken from the hoop, left to dry for an 
hour and thou well greased with lard or but¬ 
ter and put on a shelf and turned and rubbed 
daily for 40 or 00 days. No bandage is re¬ 
quired for homo-mude cheese. By using a hoop 
perforated at the side® aud with covers like 
those of a tiox at each end, the cheese may be 
made without pressing, if the curd is put iu 
warm and as soon as it is drained from the 
whey. The curd is dipped into the hoop, the 
bottom cover l>eing first put on; the top cover 
is then put on. After the curd has stood a 
few unuutes, the hoop is reversed and the 
curd falls to the bottom, aud by so reversing 
it several times after short intervals, the curd 
soon becomes Arm enough to bo taken from 
the hoop. If not salted before, it is now rub¬ 
bed and turned daily. 
KGG PUNCTURES ON KAKPHKRRY AND GRAPE. 
VINES, ETC. 
T. II. G., Tekamah, Neb., sends, for name of 
pest, specimens of raspberry and grape-vines 
which have been punctured by some insect 
which laid its eggs in the vines, and also a 
piece of apple twig injured by an insect. 
ANSWERED BY PROF. C. V. RILEY. 
The raspberry and grape-vines prove to be 
infested by the eggs of the well-known Snowy 
Tree Cricket—CEcauthusniveus. Harris. Upon 
opening such infested canes the long, slender 
eggs of the cricket will he found lying dose 
together iu an irregular longitudinal row aud 
diagonally across the pith. The punctured 
vines almost invariably die and the injury 
thus caused is sometimes very serious. The 
eggs hatch during the month of May, and the 
young crickets,being partially carnivorous,are 
useful by preying upon plant lice aud eggs of 
other insects. AY hen more developed they be¬ 
come, however, very mischievous by cutting 
off during the night-time, the leaves and es¬ 
pecially the young berries of grape-vines. 
Cutting off and burning the punctured canes 
during the Winter time is tiie only remedy 
that can be recommended for this pest. The 
piece of apple twig is punctured by a quite 
different insect, viz: the Buffalo Tree-hopper 
(Ceresa bubalus. Fabr) belonging to the Order, 
Hemiptera. These egg punctures consist of a 
row, more or less straight, of little raised slits 
in the bark, each slit leading to a single, oval, 
dark-colored egg. The injury done by this 
insect is seldom very serious. 
A GOOD HOME-MADE FILTER. 
N. J. B., Cacdington, 0 .—What is the form 
of a good lilter for filtering rain water for cook¬ 
ing, drinking and other household purposes? 
A ns.— A very simple, filter. Fig. 355, may be 
made as follows: Take a clean oaken keg or 
small cask; put a false bottom in it with an 
opening covered by galvanized wire gauze, or 
a slate pierced with small holes, over which 
is laid a doubled fold of flannel. This space 
should be large enough to hold as much water 
Fig. 355. 
as need be drawn nt any one time—four inches 
in depth may be sufficient. Upon this lay three 
inches in depth of very cleanly washed sand; 
upon that, as much fine broken charcoal sifted 
and washed; upon that, pea gravel cleanly 
washed; over this should be placed some pieces 
of slate or coarse gravel to prevent it from 
being disturbed. The accompanying illustration 
shows how the filter is arranged. Stone jars 
are made with taps fitted in them for this pur¬ 
pose. The filtering layers may lie removed 
and washed or renewed as may tie reqmred 
WEAKNESS IN nORSE’S LOINS. 
M. W. A’., White Plains. —My horse is weak 
iu the loins, he eats heartily and looks well, 
but cannot guide his hind parts. I have been 
treating him for kidney complaint and think 
lie is improving. I bled him. used a liniment 
across his loins, and cleaned his sheath; what 
else should be done ? 
Ans.—C ontinue the same treatment. Feed 
bran mash, give no diuretics, but if necessary 
cooling laxative medicine, as four ounces of 
Glauber salts occasionally. Do not work him 
hard. The trouble may lie rheumatism and 
not the kidney disease, but the treatment will 
be judicious in either ease. If anything goes 
wrong in the passage or condition of the 
urine, give one ounce doses of sweet spirits of 
niter in linseed gruel. 
SYMPTOMS OF GLANDERS. 
A. C. IF,, iJodney, Miss. —From oue of the 
nostrils of my young mare some matter has 
been running for several mouths, how should 
she be treated? 
Ans. —Examine the nostril closely. If there 
are red spots, with bluish patches around them 
or raw ulcerated sores, the disease is the glan¬ 
ders. Another indication is a line of knots on 
the inner side of the jaws under the throat. 
Glanders is incurable, and as it is very con¬ 
tagious and fatal to man, a horse so diseased 
should lie killed and buried at one®. If there 
is nothing of this kind, give ounce doses of 
hyposulphite of soda daily for three or four 
weeks, nud sponge the nostrils with water iu 
which 10 drops of carbolic acid are mixed, 
SI’INAL MENINGITIS IN A HOG, 
L, B. E., Washington Co. —About four weeks 
ago my hog was taken sick; she was lying on 
her side, her head aud fore-legs moving back¬ 
ward aud forward. She couldn’t stand. She 
could, and cuu eat very well, aud can rise on 
her fore-feet and draw her hindquarters after 
her. She is gaining in flesh; what aiLs her? 
Ans. —This is caused by disease of the spinal 
cord or its covering membranes, and is known 
as spinal meningitis. Apply turpentine freely 
along the back. Give half a pint of linseed 
oil, and then one ounce of powdered eascarilla 
bark daily in the food. 
PRESERVING EGGS. 
E. J. A.. Greensboro, N. C .—What is the 
best way of preserving eggs? 
Ans. —There is no better way of preserving 
eggs than liming them. This is done by slak¬ 
ing some lime and adding water as if to make 
whitewash. Then pour off the clear liquid 
into a vessel aud put the eggs in it. When 
filled cover with a piece of cotton closely upon 
the eggs and put an inch in depth of the thick 
lime on the cloth; keep this covered with 
water. In a cool place, eggs may be kept well 
for several months in this way, 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
W. H. A., Utica, Minn. —1. One of my 
heifers "came in" a year ago. After milking 
her six or seven months she had garget in one 
teat; now she has it in all by spells. Some¬ 
times she milks all right, then she will yield 
hardly any milk from any teat. She isn’t 
with calf. I have given her four doses of 
saltpeter; can she tie cured or should she be 
fattened? 2. What should be done for chickens 
that are dying? They seem to be troubled in 
the throat: they open their mouths wide, are 
loose in the bowels and soon die. 3. When 
should young pigs be weaned. 
Ans. —1. Saltpeter is a very improper med¬ 
icine to give to any animal without the best 
of reasons, and then it is very—very—seldom 
required. Give the cow a pound of Epsom 
salts and bathe the udder with warm water 
with gentle rubbing and kneading. 2. It is 
quite possible the fowls have been overfed and 
suffer from indigestion. Give them only half 
rations for awhile and plenty of green feed. 
3. Young pigs may be weaned at four to six 
weeks old. Give them what milk can be 
spared and for the rest some thin slop of 
ground oats, bran and corn meal, but only a 
little at a time. 
R. J. W. M., Cool, Iowa .—1. Must commu¬ 
nications for the Rural be written only on 
one side of the paper? 2. If raspberry suckers 
are set out this Fall will they bear next year? 
3. Are Cuthbert and Lost Rabies identical? 4. 
Is there any variety of peach that will thrive 
here ? 
Ans. —1. In distributing “copy'’ among the 
compositors it has often to be cut into small 
“takes.” If there is writing on both sides of 
the sheet, this cannot be done without mining 
the “sense” on one side of the paper. Com¬ 
munications intended to be priuted should 
therefore always be written on only one side 
of the paper. Items so short that cutting is 
not desirable, may, however, be written on 
both sides by those who are economical with 
paper. 2. They will not bear-enough to boast 
of. 3. No. 4. Stump the World is the only 
peach that thrives well in Iowa, so far as 
we know. 
J. H. I\. Caledonia, Mich .—My three-weeks, 
old pigs were growing finely, when on visiting 
them one night, I found three sick. They 
would drop their bellies to the ground and 
quickly spring up: sometimes they would fall 
quite to the ground and squeal as if in pain 
for a minute, then jump up and stand with 
the backs sagged in. The sow—a large beast— 
was fed three times a day with a pail of slops 
—half sour milk and half dish-water—with a 
pint of ground sprouted wheat and four ears of 
corn at a feed; what should be the treatment? 
Ans.—A pply turpentine to the loins of the 
pigs. Give them each a small piece of salt¬ 
peter as large as a pea daily for a week. 
“Imptirer," Detaioare, Ohio., 1, asks the 
name of a described plant from our F. S. Dis¬ 
tribution; 2. the names of some choice, dis¬ 
tinct but not very high-priced Lilies. 
Ans. —1. 4\ T e must request you to send us 
leaves, flowers, or. better, both. There were so 
many kinds among the Rural Garden Treas¬ 
ures that it is mere guess-work to name one 
from a description. 2. Lilium caudiduin; L. 
Japouieuui longiflornm; L lancifolium album 
and ntbrum; L. tigrinuin flore-pleno; L. um- 
bellatiun; L. aurntum. These will tie found 
in florists’ or nurserymen's catalogues at from 
25 to 50 cents each. 
TO KEEP WOODCHUCKS FROM FRUIT TREES. 
J. S. B.. Nine Berlin. N. Y —Woodchucks 
gnaw my young fruit trees; would an applica¬ 
tion of pitch tar injure the trees? 
Ans. —Yes, the tar w ill injure the trees, aud 
sometimes kill them. The best way is to tie 
about the trunk strip laths or barrel staves, 
cut 1 *-tj or 2 feet long. These are a perfect 
protect ion from woodchucks, rabbits, mice nud 
borers, cheap and easily applied. The writer 
has used them for 15years in a large orchard, 
and never lost a tree from any of the above 
causes, while other orchards near him 
been almost ruined by them. 
L. N. T., Opel, Mo. —My horse was calked 
last Winter while moving; the place doesn’t 
seem to get any better; and the animal is 
sometimes lame: what is the proper treatment? 
Ans. —The calk has probably formed a sinus 
in the foot in which pus may be burrowing. 
The sore should be examined and if necessary 
probed and thoroughly cleansed. It may be 
necessary to cut away some of the horn and 
open the old wound. The treatment should be 
to cleanse the wound and inject compound 
tincture of benzoin or of myrrh and aloes and 
continue until it lien Is from the bottom. 
L. M. N., Kalamazoo, Mich. —My four-year- 
old mare hasn’t eaten on an average, one mess 
of grain in two days for the last couple of 
weeks; she has fallen off in flesh, has a bad- 
smelling breath and breathes hard when at 
work: what ails her? 
Ans. —The mare has been overfed and suf¬ 
fers from indigestion and foul stomach. Give 
a pint of linseed oil and afterwards an ounce 
of hyposulphite of soda with as much pow¬ 
dered Peruvian bark daily for a week. Feed 
a bran mas! once a day and no grain, and be 
gin with grain again very slowly. 
R. M. T., Phillippi, IU. Fa.—My three- 
year-old horse has a red. angry-locking, grow¬ 
ing wart on the inside of his thigh; the skin 
has peeled off, and the animal looks miserable, 
not having yet shed his Winter coat. What 
should be the treatment? 
Ans. —The horse is out of condition. Give 
him a pint of linseed oil and repeat in two 
days after. Then give an ounce of hyposul¬ 
phite of soda daily for two weeks. Apply 
solution of blue vitriol (sulphate of coppei') to 
the wart, which is one of the kind called a 
bleeding wart. 
J. H. R., Macon Station, Ala.— Where can 
seed of Bermuda Grass be obtained and at 
what price? 
Ans. —The usual method of getting a stand 
of Bermuda Grass is to cut up the stems and 
sow broadcast and plow or harrow under. J. 
M. Thorburn & Co., 15 John Street, N. Y., 
sell the seed at ?2 per pound. Two to four 
pounds should be sown to the acre. 
R. J. B., Bremen, Ohio, sends insects on 
grape-vine shoots and asks their name. 
Ans. —No insects were found with the shoots, 
but from the description and condition of the 
buds it is probably the work of an aphis or 
green fly, as it is called. An emulsion of soap 
aud a tahlespoonful of kerosene added to two 
gallons of water sprayed upon the taxes, is a 
good remedy. 
G. IF D., Bii'minghani, Conn. —The leaves 
of my three-year-old peach trees are all curled 
and twice the natural thickness, what is the 
cause and a remedy? 
Ans. —The curl of the peach leaf is caused 
by a fungus. The remedy is to induce a vig¬ 
orous growth by manure, cultivation and cut¬ 
ting back in early Spring. 
T. B. H., Mooresrille. Ind —Only 150 plants 
of my Fultzo-Clawson wheat survived from 
050 grains: from 84 grains of Surprise wheat 
I have 19 or 20 living and looking well; on 
what basis will the premium awards be made? 
Ans. —We desire to know the number of 
grains planted and those that survived, the 
method of cultivation, size of plot, etc. 
.4. -4. H., Forest Hill, Mil. —I have my 
Niagara Grape seedlings in a box placed in the 
shade; bad I better plant them in a protected 
place whore thev can remain over Winter? 
Ans. —Yes. Be very careful not to injure 
the roots in transplanting. 
M. M. IF.. Dansvillf , Mich. , asks about 
bee books. 
Ans.—W e have repeatedly told all about 
bee books within the last couple of months, 
and must refer our friend to back numbers. 
G. IF. S’., Eureka Springs, Ark. —What are 
good late strawberries to follow Downing and 
Crescent? 
Ans. —Sharpless, James Vick. Manchester 
and Kentucky. 
H. C. F., Big Rapids, Mich., sends plant 
for name. 
Ans. —This seems to be the Choke Cherry— 
Prunus Virginians. 
“Josh." Boston.—How should chicory be ex¬ 
tirpated from a lawn? 
Ans.—P ull it out when the ground is wet. 
Communications Received fob the week Endin' a 
Saturday. Juno 28: 
\V. F. T.-L. S. E.-N B. P.-T. F. P.-E. W.—E. A.— 
T. R. H.—Q. A. M.—“Josh”—H. H. W.—H. M. S.—A. L. 
C„ thanks—A. W. L.—W. H. J.. thanks—M. W. H.— 
T .C. D.--M. \V, H,, several of the answers will be 
made under domestic economy.—A. G.—J. H. S.— 
H. J. V.—M. C —J. O. D., thauks—J. H.—C. M. C.-O- 
II. B —Mrs. H. G., leaves received; we cannot name 
them. The dark one may be Prr.llu— H. J. H.—J. F. R 
—J. A. O.—R, S.-E. A, H.-T, T. l,.-A. L. J.-J. T.— 
R. S.—A. G.-J. H. S.-J. A. C.-J. W. S.-L. E. F.-C.D 
F. G. C —F. D. C.—L. H. Pierce, we cannot name t e 
seeds of enr Gardtn 1r it suit**- G. 1.1.- A. I.- k 
(I 
