422 
JULY 7 
tenance ration, are carbonic acid and water. 
This decomposition is an oxidation process, 
furnishing both force and heat. It is quite 
plain that the food has, in the example taken, 
been able to supply the needs of the animal 
body, at the same time furnishing essentially 
all the nitrogen to the solid and liquid ex¬ 
crements. 
This steer has succeeded, therefore, in ex¬ 
tracting food value without greatly diminish¬ 
ing the manure value, so far as the nitrogen 
is concerned. To be sure, the nitrogen of the 
digested protein comes from the animal in a 
different combination from that in which it 
existed in the food, and it is this very rear¬ 
rangement into simpler compounds that liber¬ 
ates force and beat to maiutain the animal 
body. The nitrogen is like water flowing over 
a mill-wheel—it does its work but is not lost. 
The nitrogen of the albuminoid rcnt>pears as 
urea, and a pound of nitrogen in urea is cer¬ 
tainly worth as much for manurial purposes as 
a pound of nitrogen in the cotton seed. 
If we take the case of a steer that is grow¬ 
ing aud fattening, then the digested albumin¬ 
oids are used also to produce lean meat and fat. 
The nitrogen that goes into the lean meat is 
Plan of First Story.—Fig. 365.—See 
Page 421. 
lost to the manure, but this is not the case 
when fat is formed. If an albuminoid breaks 
down to form fat. the nitrogen all goes into 
urea, none, of course, going into the fat. In 
brief, the indisputable conclusion of a very 
large amount of scientific work is this, that 
practically all the nitrogen not stored in the 
animal body nor used for milk production, re¬ 
appears in the solid and liquid excrements. 
Food value aud manure value do not have any 
necessary relation, for food value may be only 
force and not substance. 
State College, Pa. 
TILE DRAINAGE.—No. 8. 
W. I. CHAMBERLAIN. 
The Tools and Methods. 
The Tools. The standard works.on drain¬ 
age, French, Klippart, Waring and the Cyclo¬ 
paedias of Agriculture, draw their material 
and illustrations largely from English sources. 
They give figures of many and various tools, 
and surround the whole subject with difficulty, 
expense, and even with an air of mystery. 
Drainage is not a difficult science and art., and 
the necessary implements are few and simple, 
and should all (or at least all but the last three' 
be ou every farm. They are: the common plow, 
the shovel, the pick or mattock, the English 
spade, the long-handled scoop for cleaning out 
loose earth, the groove-cutter for cutting the 
final groove for the tales to lie in. and the span- 
level. Both the scoop and groove-cutter 
should be of the “pash ” or shovel sort rather 
than of the “pull" or hoe sort. You can do 
better execution with them, (see figures 368 
Groove Cutter.—Fig. 368. 
and 369). The English spade and the groove- 
cutter can be found in any good hardware 
store. If the long-handled scoop cannot, then 
a blacksmith can easily make it from a long- 
handled shovel by cutting it narrower and 
turning up its edges. The spade has a curved 
blade six inches wide and fourteen long. The 
groove-cutter is shown in figure 308, the scoop, 
in figure 369, and the span-level in figure 370. 
The other tools and implements need no fig¬ 
ures, as they are familiar. The spades of 
English make are far better than any I have 
yet seen of American make. The latter weigh 
nearly a pound more, and do not cut or wear 
THE RURAL HEW-YORKER. 
as well. And the lifting of one pound extra 
with every spadeful of dirt will amount to 
several tons in a week. 
Most of the authorities recommend the use 
of a very narrow “bottoming spade,” only 
three nr four inches wide, and tapering grad¬ 
ually towards the lower end. I used two dif¬ 
ferent. makes and sizes of them, till I found 
that the common English spade six inches 
wide was better and more rapid, even for the 
lower cut ol'the ditch. Nine meu out of ton 
will dig more rods with the latter, even though 
more earth must be lifted. Then, too, it per¬ 
mits one to stand and walk in the bottom of 
Long-Handled Scoop.— Fig. 369. 
the ditch’to clean it out and lay the tiles. 
Moreover, if you sti’ike a stone in digging, 
it is easier to take it out or pass around it. If 
the bottom of your ditch is six or seven inches 
wide, even if one side of it curves slightly 
around an obstruction, the groove-cutter cau 
cut a straight groove for the tiles (two inch or 
three inch), or at least lengthen the curve so 
that the tiles will fit at the joints. Fig. 371 
shows the narrow groove for the tiles curved 
around two large aud immovable stones, even 
without crooking the ditch itself except by 
the outline of the stones. In actual work this 
fact of having the bottom of the ditch six or 
seven inches wide is often a great help. It 
permits one to stand aud walk in it uotonly to 
clear out the earth aud cut thegroove, but also 
to stand in the drain aud lay the tiles by hand. 
For I long ago abandoned the use of the too] 
called a “ tile-layer,” though I still own one. 
Each tile is examined quickly in the hand and 
laid by hand , as will lie described in another 
article; and the one that lays them steps on 
each as it is laid, to press it firmly into the 
groove, and see that it does not rock or wobble 
or get out of place. You can lav tiles faster 
and better by hand and standing in the ditch, 
than by using the tile-layer and standing above 
with one foot on each edge of the ditch. In 
either case the tilee should be distributed be¬ 
forehand conveniently along the edge of the 
ditch. 
The spau level, figure 370, is of home-made 
construction. It is made of two-inch battens, 
an inch thick, the legs “halved” together at 
the point of the A., aud bolted. It has two 
cross-pieces, also “halved” ou to the legs and 
fastened by screws or small, short bolts at d, <>, 
/aud g. It has a plumb line suspended from 
a, with a graduated scale marked on each of 
the cross-pieces. The legs should be each eight 
feet three inches long (half a rod) aud the span 
from b to c should be the same. The scales are 
graduated as follows: Stand the spau verti¬ 
cally ou a level floor aud mark the center 
points h and i. Thou raiso the leg at c half-au- 
inch: this will throw the lino towards / aud 
d on the cross-bars. The points where the line 
crosses the bars should be marked 1 on each 
cross-bar. Then raise the leg at <• half an inch 
more and mark the intersection of the line 
with the cross-bars, 2, 2. Then raise the leg at 
c another half inch and mark it 3, 3, aud so on- 
Each half-inch for this half-rod span, rep 
resents a fall of an inch to the rod. One ob¬ 
ject of having two cross-bars is to strengthen 
the level; another is to have two scales to road 
from. The upper one will always be above 
the line of the ditch and can bo easily read. 
If either bar is omitted, it had better be the 
lower one. Each degree (1,2.8, etc.) ou the 
scale will represent a fall of one inch to the 
Gutter Curved Around Stones.— Fig. 871. 
rod, (balf-au-inch to the half-rod.) The leg b 
should always be down stream in using the 
level. If the line swings to the right of h and 
i, you know you have struck au up-grade in 
your ditch, which must be corrected. The 
bottom of the ditch should be cut as true as pos¬ 
sible with the long-bandied scoop (Fig. 369). 
Then if your grade is one inch to the rod the 
lino should hang at about 1 on the scale each 
time the level is applied along the ditch. If 
the grade is two iuches to the rod it should 
hang at 2, and so on. 
The span level is designed simply for making 
the bottom of the drains uniform in grade. In 
laying out the field aud establishing the grades 
and the lines and positions of the mains and 
laterals, you may need to employ a surveyor 
with his theodolite for a day or two, or at 
least to have a good spirit level ou a tripod 
with sights and adjusting screw. 
Another article will treat of laying out a 
system of mains and laterals for thorough 
drainage. 
farm (Topics 
Pasture your jugs or else feed them plenty 
of grass. It will benefit them wonderfully. 
Look out for cockle-burs. Whenever a 
patch is noticed, stop the cultivator and pull 
them up by the roots. This is the plan prac¬ 
ticed on farms where no cockle-burs are per¬ 
mitted to rotnuiu, and it causes little trouble if 
commenced in time. 
Sow bui -kwheat. It is a most desirable crop. 
Put iu three-quarters of a bushel to the acre. 
Do it now. Give it clean, mellow, dr}- soil. 
Mix the manure well with the soil. 
Now that the strawberry season is iu its 
prime, compare notes with your neighbors aud 
see if you can in any way better your crop 
or improve n your varieties. 
Don’t get in your hay when greou or not 
dry enough. Bettor have it too dry thau too 
wet. A grout deal of valuable hay is spoiled 
every year by putting it in the barn before it 
is cured. Stock do not desire musty food any 
more than does man. and will not eat it, neither 
will as good results bo obtained from animals 
kept ou improperly prepared food. 
Clean out the droppings from the poultry 
houses, aud kerosene the perches at least once 
in two weeks, to keep oil’ vermin. 
Seeds of rutabagas may be sown even at 
this late da to. A pound of seed to the acre Ls 
enough. Sow in drills two feet apart or more, 
and thin out to ten inches iu the drill. 
Begin uow to propagate hardy shrubs by 
layering. Select the lowest branches, strip 
off all but the terminal leaves and find out by 
bending the stem where you may insert it in 
the ground. Scoop out a place there, bend the 
branch dovvu to it and cover with earth 
enough to hold it firmly iu place. 
For tomato stakes use stems of young trees 
from one to two iuches iu diameter, making 
the larger end wedge-shaped, so as to more 
readily enter the ground. Three put in tri¬ 
angularly uud diverging upwards, suffice* for 
each plant. Cheap, coarse cord can then be 
tied horizontally about them to support the 
vines. This is a very simple and good plan. 
Plant cabbage. As a green food the stock 
will relish it next Winter. 
Don’t work too hard in the sun during the 
heat of the day. Avoid drinking much cold 
water, especially ice water, pat-meal water 
is very good for this time of the year. 
Millet may be sown. It is not too late 
even uow. Heeds sown uow will germinate in 
four oi* five days. 
Kill the currant worm by scattering over 
the bushes a mixture of a pint of white helle¬ 
bore, to a peck of sifted coal ashes. Cucum¬ 
ber bugs dislike soot as do most other insects. 
Sprinkle your vines with it if they make their 
appearance. 
Give the poultry careful attention. Supply 
them with fresh water every day, uud feed 
night aud morning regularly. Have a good, 
roomy and clean poultry house, and keep the 
nests filled with clean, bright straw. Change 
the food as often as once a week. 
In the vegetable garden reserve a few stout, 
healthy plants for seed. Every farmer can 
just as well raise a great many varitiee of 
seeds as to buy them. Gather them iu paper 
bags, uud lubel before storing away. A few 
dollars may be saved every year in this way, 
and fresh seed be insured. 
To kill the larvae of the peach borer during 
July auil August, and prevent egg-laying, 
apply to the huso of the trunks the following 
compound: To ten gallons of soft soap add ns 
much hot water; then stir in half-a-pint, of 
crude carbolic acid aud lot it stand over-night; 
next add throe times its bulk of water and it 
is ready for use. 
Sow the Winter’s supply of turnips. Sow 
one pound to the acre, or if by drill, one-half 
pound. Make drills one foot apart and thin 
to six inches. 
The time for budding lias arrived. Bo sure 
that the bark slips well before beginning work, 
aud only select good stout, healthy buds for 
budding. Bass fiber makesthe best and cheap¬ 
est bands. 
During this hot and uncomfortable weather 
give the stock on the farm good, pure, clean 
water. Cows that produce a good flow of 
milk require this treatment. 
Plant out the new crop of celery in rows 
three feet apart and six inches apart in the row. 
Page 421. 
Keep blackberries heavy with fruit, well 
tied up. Do not let the canes grow too tall 
but cut back. 
Keep the grape-vines tied up. Rose bugs 
and caterpillars must be hand-picked. If 
mildew comes on apply sulphur. 
Thin out over-loaded fruit trees. 
Prune needless shoots on the grape-vine. 
Rub them off as soon as they have attained a 
length of an inch or two. 
Mulch the ground under tho young fruit 
trees a few inches deep with chaff, long man¬ 
ure, half-rotten straw or anything that will 
hold tho moisture on the surface. 
Keep tho suckers off from the fruit trees. 
lineal topics. 
RURAL PRIZE SERIES, 
PROFITABLE FARMING FOR 
A POOR MAN. 
How to Become a Successful Farmer 
(The above ls the Milo of a series of essays, for the 
best of which premiums weru offered by the Rural. 
New-YorKKU last year, the object being to assist 
those farmers who have limited means or those hav¬ 
ing a small capital, about to engage In farming. 
They are for the most part written by those who 
have passed* through the trials of au Impoverished 
beginning to real success.) 
B. C. PARKER. 
I have long wished 1 were capable of writing 
up some of my experience for the Rural which 
1 have learned to prize so highly; butowing to 
my father having plenty of wood to chop in 
Winter aud other farm work to do in Hummer, 
I was kept out of school to help. Ho my sup 
ply of that indispensable education is too lim - 
itod 1 1 hope to write anything worthy of a 
place in your columns, but I have determined 
to try, and leave the result with you. 
[We think our friend’s experience in fann¬ 
ing ami ids mode of telliug it, are excellent, 
and have no doubt our readers will agree with 
us-in the opinion. It is not often we receive 
“copy”so legibly, grammatically and lucidly 
writteu, or so full of sound information. Eds.] 
I get somewhat out of patience with some 
of the writers for the Rural; they get in so 
much high-toned language, aud, like some of 
