THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
^ .RURAL SPECIAL REPORTS. 
Tennessee. 
Waverly, Humphreys Co , Feb. 21.—Very 
cold here and wheat badly killed. Corn is 
worth 40 cents; peanuts, our money crop, are 
low—from 50 to 60 cents—and farmers are 
complaining badly. J. W. s. 
Wisconsin. 
Menomonee, Dunn Co., Feb. 21.—I have 
been in Wisconsin 80 years and never witness¬ 
ed such cold weather as during the present 
season, the thermometer registering at one 
time 56 degrees below zero, and it has held 
steadily from MS to 45 Q for six weeks. Cat¬ 
tle. horses and sheep are doing remarkably 
well, and there is a good stock of hogs. Farm 
produce is generally low; but we had good 
crops so that we have realized about the same 
umount of money per acre as we have in other 
years—about $13.50 per acre, so that we are 
not very badly off. o. c. 
RURAL SEED REPORTS. 
Illinois. 
Mt. Palatine, Putnam Co.—Only a part 
of the Rural seeds are suitable for this part 
of the country. The coru is too much of a 
flint variety to suit us, although the yield 
was good. Both kinds of peas were good, and 
the yield was quite large. The tomatoes 
were all good, but some decayed worse than 
other*. The women folks took great delight 
in the Garden Treasures. The Blush Potato 
last season was better than the White Ele¬ 
phant. It was free from scab while other 
sorts, planted on the same ground, were quite 
rough. Catalpa trees are doing well—nearly 
three inches in diameter at the ground. c.G. 
Iowa. 
Mrntok, Bremen Co.—The White Elephant 
Potato is a treasure. I raised a good crop this 
last season. The Blush does not yield as well, 
and is more scattered in the hill. I am trying 
to acclimate the Rural Thoroughbred Flint 
corn. If it will get ripe here, I believe it will 
pay to raise. The Shoe-peg, Rural Dent and 
Rural Union Corns are failures with me. 
We have better oats than any that has been 
sent to me. 1 sowed all the wheat and rye 
that 1 have received from the Rural, last 
Fall, t shall watch them with care. I have 
no faith iu the wheat, for this is not a wheat- 
growiug country, e. e. f. 
Farragut, Fremont Co.—The garden and 
flower seeds sent me last year were all I could 
wish—beautiful, valuable and in every way 
desirable. I am just as anxious for the seeds 
for another year, as I am to have the paper, 
and the paper to me is invaluable. I heartily 
recommend it to all my neighbors. The 
Union Corn ripened in 100 days—ears large 
and sound. I will plant it again the coming 
season. The peas were the earliest and the 
best. The Garden Treasures afforded a wealth 
of foliage and flowers from an early Summer 
to late Fall. S. G. B. 
Michigan, 
Bay City, Bay Co.— I planted the Rural 
Union Corn May 16th. stalks from seven to 
nine feet high; ears large and yield big: fit 
to cut up on September 5th, Corn of the 
same kind, from a city subscriber, was planted 
June 15th; stalks slim, from nine to eleven 
feet high; ears slim and long; yield good; fit 
to cut October 1st. A neighbor planted the 
same kind on May 7th; stalks heavy, from 
seven to eight feet high. Did not get ripe. 
My oats did not amount to anything, as I 
treated them too well. Two of my neighbors 
got sr lend id oats and large yields from the 
same kind—the Black Champion. s. F. s. 
Minnesota. 
La Due, Hemy Co.— Last Spring I planted 
18 pounds of the Blush Potatoes on rolling, 
sandy land; the season was very wet, so that I 
had ten hills washed out by the heavy raius. 
I dug from the remainder 28 bushels of fine 
tubers, which are worth $4 per bushel, f. h. 
New Hampshire. 
Hillsboro Co.—The Rural seeds of 1884 
were all tested except the oats. The Rural 
Union Corn was planted Juue 4th, and ri¬ 
pened up very much to my surprise. Planted 
85 kernels, 79 gei-minated, gave level culture, 
and husked 45 of the ears. Would undoubt¬ 
edly have had a bushel had it uot been for a 
neighbor’s cows which got in and destroyed 
a large quantity during one night. Although 
a dent com. I think it can be acclimated to 
ripen in New England, although it requires a 
very favorable season. The Cleveland R. 
N.-Y. and Horford’s M. G. Peas were planted 
JuneS, mildewed somewhat; but 1 gathered 
a pint of each. Cleveland’s is of no especial 
value as far as I can see, as I have had a 
number of kinds that ripen in fewer days. 
I k prefer Horsford’s. Have raised Carter’s 
Stratagem for two or three years; and it is 
the best pea. all things considered. It is not 
as early as some, but early enough for the 
average farmer’s garden, where a few days 
make no difference. The tomatoes were very 
good. In fact, some were the best I ever 
grew. The flowers were very fair. I was in 
hopes to get one of your new castor beans, 
but fortune did not favor me in that way. 
The only thing that wps in anyway noticeable 
was a remarkably large aud beautiful zinnia. 
E. A. fl. 
Wisconsin. 
Menomonee, Dunn Co.,Feb. 21.—'The Rural 
seeds have all done well, though some are not 
adapted to this section. The oats suit me well, 
yielding from 50 to 65 bushels per acre. The 
oats I got last year, though ripening late, 
yielded well. I got one bushel clean seed from 
the package you sent me. The peas were just 
what we wauted; I have saved all for seed. 
The coru was rather late, but I will try it 
again. o. c. 
[Every query must be accompanied by theuame 
and address of the writer to Insure attention. Before 
asking a question, please see If It Is not answered in 
our advertising columns. Ask only a few questions 
at one time.] _ 
TANNING A DOG SKIN, ETC. 
Wright, Saratoga Co., N. F.—t. How can 
I tan a dog skin with hair on, for mittens, 
and how without hair.' 2. In planting pota¬ 
toes by the Rural’s method, what fertilizer 
will give the best results on poor sandy laud? 
3. In sowing spriug wheat on poor, sandy soil, 
will a complete or special fertilizer pay best? 
Ans. —If the skin is freshly removed (if not 
soak in moderately-salted water until it is 
soft), lay it down, flesh side up, and, after re¬ 
moving all pieces of flesh with a sharp kuife, 
apply a heavy dressing of a mixture of equal 
parts of salt and alum, made very fine, and 
saturated with a mixture of two parts of water 
to one of muriatic acid. Double iu the edges 
all around till they meet, and then roll the 
skin up as compactly as possible, aud place it 
in some cool place. In 24 hours examine it, 
and if in any part the mixture has disappear¬ 
ed, apply a fresh quantity, and re-roll. After 
two days more, unroll and stretch on a smooth 
board or table, and with pieces of coarse 
pumice-stone, or rough brick with sharp 
edges, rub the skin until nearly dry. Then 
apply a thick suds of Ivory Soap, into which 
all the cotton seed oil has been placed, that 
it can be made to dissolve by brisk shakiug, 
and again rub till dry. If not sufficiently 
pliable, repeat the soap aud oil emuision and 
the rubbing till satisfactory. 2. A complete 
fetilizer containing from three to four per cent., 
of potash. 3. A complete fertilizer, but it 
should contain from six to eight per cent, 
of ammonia for wheat. 
BITTERNESS IN POTATOES. 
IF. H. T. t Bouton, Mass. —There has been 
much complaint of bitterness in potatoes for 
this market for the last two years; what pro¬ 
duces it? A friend attributes it to a chemical 
change that takes place while the potatoes are 
being transported on cars heated with kero¬ 
sene. Potatoes received in the ordinary cold 
car are all right. 
Ans. —The change that takes place is not at 
all due to heat from the stove, but to the ac¬ 
tion of light. When potatoes are exposed to a 
strong light, as notably when they protrude 
through the soil in the bill, or when left a 
short time in the sunlight after being dug, 
they become greened more or less, and this 
color is the result of a change in the composi¬ 
tion of the potato, aud the same bitter poison¬ 
ous principleis produced that exists in the vines 
and leaves, and when this has once developed, 
no leugth of time under the ground will re¬ 
move it. Potatoes when stored in a cellar, or 
while being transported in bulk, should al¬ 
ways be covered with something that will ex¬ 
clude the light. 
JOHNSON GRASS. 
O. V , Rollin , Mich. —Which is preferable— 
Johnson Grass or Alfalfa? 
ANSWERED BY PROF. W. J. BEAL, MICH. 
I see nothing promising in Johnson Grass 
for Michigan. It has wintered for several 
years, at the Agricultural College, and comes 
well from the seed, but the climate is too cool 
for a fine growth. If Alfalfa is used, it must 
be cut two or three times a year; before the 
stems get woody. The plants must have 
some time—two years—to get well started. I 
think this inquirer would do better to try 
Tall Oat Grass or Orchard Grass or Tall Fes¬ 
cue. The Oat Grass aud Orchard Grass cap 
be got very well of seedsmen. The other is 
likely to be mixed with impure seed. 
THE VALUE OF BONES AS A FERTILIZER. 
Subscriber, address mislaid. —L What is 
the value of bones as a fertilizer, and how 
should they be treated ? 2. Is the Wilson mill 
a good one ? 
Ans. —1. One buudred pounds of bones con¬ 
tain about 25 pounds of phosphoric acid, worth 
$1 50; somewhat over 2k, pounds of nitro¬ 
gen, worth 45 cents, and 37K pounds of lime, 
so they are well worth 60dents, providing they 
can be readily utilized. If burned, the nitro¬ 
gen is completely driven off, and all there is 
left is the lime and phosphoric acid, and at 
the same time they become crumbly aud much 
sooner decay. If you can get hard-wood 
ashes we should a lvise breaking the bones as 
fine as possible, and mixing them with twice 
their weight of ashes, and keeping the pile 
constantly wet for about two months. Shovel 
them over a few times, and they will become 
soluble. 2, We think Wilson Bros.' mill is a 
good one and will do what they claim for it. 
THE SAUNDERS’ RASPBERRY. 
E. H. C„ Bowmansdale, Pa. —Why is so lit¬ 
tle said about the Saunders’ Raspberry ? I 
have yet to find a red berry that equals it 
in beauty aud superbness of flavor. It is also 
productive and eoutiuuas bearing longer in 
the season than any other berry with which I 
am acquainted. It is a moderate grower,like 
the Brandywine—or probably uot quite so 
strong. I have never protected mine; yet I 
have never failed to secure a fair crop. It is 
the best amateur berry I know. 
Ans. —This is one of the late D. W. Her- 
stine’s Raspberries introduced some 10 years 
ago. It succeeds only here and there. Our 
plants have rarely borne fruit, as the canes 
have not endured the Winters. The fruit is of 
flue quality. 
Miscellaneoue. 
G. W. E., Ashland, Pa —1. Where can I 
get a Herrington potato digger? I bought a 
Monarch Manufacturing Co. digger for $20, 
and it isn't worth 20 cents? 2. Wbat kiud of 
fertilizer should I use on a red slate land, the 
sod of which was turned under last Fall, the 
fertilizer to be sown with the planter ? 
Ans.— 1. Of the Planter’s Hoe Co., Troy, N. 
Y. We showed up the Monarch digger, two 
or three times, a long time ago, and warned 
all to let it alone. 2. It is as impossible to tell 
what that land needs, from such a description, 
as it would be for a doctor to prescribe for a 
patient when the only symptom given is that 
he has red hair. It may need either one, of 
the three essentials for a crop, or it may need 
them all. It is only safe to say, in a general 
way, use one having from two to four per 
cent, of ammonia; six to ten per cent, of 
phosphoric acid, and from four to six per 
cent, of potash. At the same time, try each of 
these elements separately on small plots. 
E. .4. A , Speedwell, Va. —A cow of mine, 
which calved December 1st last, has not been 
doing well since calviug. Her feed has been 
one gallon of bran and corn-meal, and a few 
roots, with as much hay and corn fodder as 
she would eat daily. Her appetite is poor; 
she does not eat enough hay and fodder, and 
she looks gaunt, aud has fallen off iu flesh 
considerably. There is also a swelling under 
the jaw. What ails her, and what should be 
done for her? 
Ans, —The previous history of the case is 
necessary to enable one to state definitely the 
trouble, as to her condition wheu she calved, 
and whether the afterbirth was retained. The 
presumption is that it is a case of retained af¬ 
terbirth, in which the membrane has been left 
to putrify in the womb, with the absorptiou 
into the system of more or less of the putrid 
material, What is now wanted is to remove 
this poisonous matter, and tone up the system. 
Give one pound of Epsom salts to relax the 
bow'els, and then, t wice daily, two drams of sul¬ 
phate of iron, one ounce of gentian, and two 
ounces of nitrate of potash. 
C. D. Lb, West Newton, Mass. —I send you 
a box of beaus infested with little bugs, what 
are they, and how can they be killed? 
Ans. —They are beau weevils. They cau be 
killed by the use of sulphide of carbon, and 
should have been treated last Fall. But them 
into a jar or tight box, aud pour arnoug the 
quart a half teaspoonful of the liquid, aud 
cover close for a few hours. This insecticide 
is highly inflammable, so that it should not be 
exposed close to a light. 
A. J. M., Pope Valley, Cal .—1. What is the 
best method for destroying the Codling Moth? 
2. How does steeping seed wheat, in a solution 
of blue-stone, destroy smut on growing grain? 
Anb.— 1. There is no question but spraying 
the trees at the proper time with Paris-given 
or London purple is the cheapest and most 
effectual remedy yet devised; but great care 
should be used as these are deadly aud corro¬ 
sive poisons. Oue-fourth of a pound to 40 
gallous is sufficient and the Field Force Pump 
is one of the best implements with which to 
apply it. 2. The smut germs are sown on and 
with the seed, and steeping in this solution 
destroys them. 
J. W. 8,, Waverly, Tenn .—What is the best 
harrow to use on coru, aud is harrowing ad¬ 
visable? 
Ans. —When com is planted with a planter 
or drill so as to get it level with the surface, 
harrowing is a flue plau and clears it of all 
weeds. It can be continued until the plants 
are four or more inches high. Any of the 
smoothing harrow class — the Thomas is a 
good one. 
W. E . EL, Jr., Batavia, N. F., and others. 
—The market reports tell of a short price 
(drawback) on sugars, will the Rural please 
explaiu? 
Ans —The duty on imported sugar is from 
1% to 2)4 cents per pound, according to the 
grade. If the imported sugar is refined and 
shipped abroad, a drawback is allowed nearly 
equivalent to the duty.amouuting on the high¬ 
er grades to $2 85 per 100 pounds. The short 
price is the price paid for the sugar, after the 
drawback has been allowed, aud is therefore 
of interest only to foreigners and shippers. 
F. O., Conquest, N. V .—How cau 1 kill 
a willow hedge without digging it out? 
Ans. —It can be killed by an application of 
salt, but the roots would still be there: to pull 
and dig it out is the best way after all. 
Continued in Supplement., page 171. j 
DISCUSSION. 
F. G., Morrisonville, III.—On page 127 
I notice the query: ‘‘Is there a strawberry 
called the Laeon?’’ There is. I tested it last 
year. It proved to be a strong grower, with 
healthy foliage, free from rust or blight. 
Berries large, light scarlet, soft and very 
acid; but there are rnauv varieties much 
superior. 
G. A. B., Groton City, N. Y.— In a late 
Farmers’ Club R. P. G. asks how much it 
would cost to bind a yearly volume of the 
Rural. I will tell how I bound mine at a 
cost of a few cents, and I think the volume is 
just as good, although it does uot look quite 
as nice, as those bound at a book bindery. I 
borrowed a hand-vise of a carpenter. Then I 
cut two boards, one a little smaller aDd the 
other a little larger than the Rural. Next I 
laid the numbers in order, those for ohe-half 
of a year together, as I thought it better to 
have the issues for a year in twm books in¬ 
stead of in one large, heavy one. After 1 had 
laid the numbers straight, I put a couple of 
sheets of blank paper on each side for fly 
leaves; next I put them between the boards 
and pressed them down with the vise. While 
they were iu this position, I took an old razor 
aud rut the edges up close to the smaller board. 
With a sharp, small awl 1 made five holes 
through the backs—for strings or cords; then 
I put some mucilage on the backs and stuck 
on a piece of paper that was large enough to 
go over ou the sides when they were taken 
out of the vise; but before I took them out I 
colored the trimmed edges with some Dia¬ 
mond dye. Next I took them out of the vise 
aud put some cord through the boles; then I 
cut some stiff pasteboard a little larger than 
the Kurals, and put paste on both sides of 
the paper that came over the back, and laid 
the pasteboard cm each side on top of the 
cords, for the covers. Next I put the book 
iu the vise again until the paste was dry. 
When I took it out, 1 pasted a piece of cloth on 
the hoc k aud a port of the way over on each 
of the covers. Then 1 took some wall paper 
and pasted it on each cover, aud let it come 
over ou the inside. Them I pasted the first fly 
leaf on to the cover and put the volume into 
the vise again to dry. The boards should be 
iu the vise when the pupers are put in, so that 
they will press smooth. When the volume is 
takeu out of the vise the last time, it is a nice 
book. 
I have bound a number of papers and mag¬ 
azines in this way, and find that after a little 
practice 1 cau do quite a nice job, and that it 
costs but very little. 
- »» » -- — ■ 
COMMCSlCATluNS RECKIValj KOU THE WEEK ENDINO 
Satuiiday. March iKsl. 
F.. W. N., auawered by inall.-T. H. A. K.-W. M. 
I.. G. W. 1..—E. W. G —S. L. Leonard, thanks.—P. 
W. C\—L. 8. Ely, thnuks. tn time.—O. W. C —Note. 
The Ken At, I* grvully baht nil tn Its answers to ques- 
I Ions. We have material enough to nil at least eight 
page*. G P. & Sous, thanks, we will endeavor to 
try the eorn.-.J.W. -J. F,—F G. W. will send.—C. 
W, O. J. L, H, U. C. C. - H. T. U.—A. J. O.-A. A B.- 
G. I,., thanks for Sweet William*. A. S„ thanks —A. 
U. 8.—T. H. H , Mmnks.-.I.N. 8.-8 H. M.-H. S.-F. 
G , good.—L. H.-C.H -L.H.-R.T.B.-R.O. C.,thanks. 
LO. R KL. II. S.-L. I... thanks.—I., s. F.-M. 1’." . 
—T.V.M.- P.J. B.-S. W.-J. W P,-G. W. C.-J. O. 
V. —A. 8., corn received.-rather late for climate of 
N Y. J.T.-J. W.-*E H. 8 -K. C. P.-W. P.-J. H. 
II -L. B.-H. C. W. IU J. C.-J. W. R-O H. C —W. 
H. T. 0. i'. .i i. n -i, W; B v. ii. \s. N. 8.- 
S. i‘. J.-J.c. K l‘.-l). T. A. s. (i. W. II,-SI. A. K. 
M. A. -A. S.-J. D.-O. F. W.J. T. S. W.-J. P. S.-S. 
H. M.-A. J. C.-J. W. S.-H. 8. C.—J. R.-J. W. S.—N. 
W. H.-E. H-8.-W. P. J.-C. W.-W.-W. H,-A. D.B 
—A, G. R.-B. B. 
