4887 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
time the Black Spanish were exceedingly 
popular here until other aud better breeds 
crowded them out. Now they are again ap¬ 
pearing at poultry shows in moderate num¬ 
bers. The hens are noted for their Hue lay¬ 
ing qualities. They lay a good number of 
large, w hite-shelled eggs, ranking with the 
Leghorn in egg production. The Black Span¬ 
ish of the present day are said to be inferior 
to the older generation in laying qualities. 
The flesh is dry and inferior and the birds 
being slow in feathering are not considered 
hardy. 
in Tyrone, Pa., who prefers that his name 
should not be mentioned. 
“The specimen sent from Lewiston on the 
Snake River, Idaho, on Sept. 20, was received 
here Sept. 27, in good condition, but still 
green at the base. This had disappeared by 
Oct. .3, when the fruit was cut. and as it 
weighed 18 ounces, there was a taste apiece for 
quite a row of connoisseurs. The quality, 
which is the main thing, was rated high by 
Prof. J. A. Troop, of La Fayette, Ind., 
writes us: 
“On October 4th, I received by mail from J. 
H. Evans, Lewiston, Idaho, a specimen of the 
Idaho Pear, a seedling which originated at 
that place. In shape it resembles a quince 
more than a pear; but when it comes to the 
eating qualities I know of no variety of fall 
pear that surpasses it. it is rich, sweet and 
juicy, having that peculiar melting quality so 
desirable in a pear. The latitude where it is 
THE TAYLOR-PROLIFIC BLACK¬ 
BERRY. 
- ■ ~ '«• 
■ 
• ■ 
-v ; r V ,‘M$m 
IDAHO PEAR. From Nature. Fte. 444 
The Taylor and Snyder Blackberries. 
—My experience is but little, but favorable, 
with the Taylor Blackberry. The Snyder I 
have raised mostly, the Taylor being a little 
later. For three kinds 1 should say Erie, Sny¬ 
der and Taylor. p. m. augur. 
Middlefield, Conn. 
all; some placing it superior to Bartlett, while 
others thought it its equal. The very fine but¬ 
tery texture of the entire flesh pleased all 
highly. As to the form, size, color, and man¬ 
ner of growth, it is exceptional. As the out¬ 
line shows, it resembles a big apple more than 
a pear, aud yet at the second glance the sur¬ 
prised spectator cries out, “Why, that’s a 
pear!” Its clear, flue-toned, even yellow color, 
and something about the cut of the calyx and 
the stem, tell what it is. There are folds of 
crimping round the eye, uuusual in peat's. 
The measure of circumference was 10’• inches 
round its equator,’ and 11L over the ‘poles.’ 
Grafts received last spring for test of the be¬ 
havior of the variety here, grew well on seven 
different sorts of stocks, including the Mikado 
aud Chinese Sand Pears. Yet they were quite 
shriveled when received; but 24 bouts of soak¬ 
ing in water restored their plumpness and 
grown is 46 deg. 15 min. north, which would 
indicate that the tree is what we would term 
hardy. Still it may not prove so in cur prairie 
country, where it must withstand both ex¬ 
tremes of temperature.” 
THE IDAHO PEAR AGAIN, 
Though this pear will not lie offered for sale 
until next year, we are glad of an opportunity 
to present a portrait which shows its ebarac 
teristie shape far better than that which ap¬ 
peared in these columns Nov. 27 (page 793) of 
last year, then for the first brought to the 
notice of the public. It is altogether a re¬ 
markable pear, and we now emphatically re¬ 
peat what was then said, that it must have a 
future wherever it will thrive as it does iu the 
place of its uativity. There is uo other pear 
kuown to us that is more distinct in its shape 
uo other that is seedless. The flesh is nearly 
white aud exceedingly fine-grained, very ten¬ 
der and buttery, with a rich, subdued acid 
flavor. It is not so sweet as the Bartlett, but 
higher-flavored—more vinous. Even when 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
about muck. 
W. L. P., Cornwall , Ft.—Muck formed in 
a swamp of ash, elm, and soft maple trees is 
abundant. If this was composted with horse- 
seed bore some flue fruit and has continued 
bearing ever since. The pear now shown at 
Fig 444, with cross-soctiou ut 445, was received 
at this office Oct. 8th, from John H. Evaus, of 
Idaho, who picked it Sept. 24. He writes as 
follows: 
“I have been disappointed in not being able 
to send the Rural quite as tine specimens as I 
had hoped to send. Our orchards are suffer¬ 
ing from au iucursiou of the coddling moth. 
Last year many of them were infested to some 
extent, but rone were iu the orchard iu which 
our pear is growing; so we did not do uuything 
to counteract their work. The result is that 
mauy of our pears are wormy. In some cases 
it seems difficult to determine, when first ga¬ 
thered, that they are wormy, but after gather¬ 
ing the infested fruits ripen prematurely. I 
had determined on sending the Rural two 
that were beauties, weighing over 20 ounces 
each, but they proved to bo wormy, so 1 had 
to send two weighing about 16 ounces 
each. We have had an unfavorable fall tor 
fruit; the weather has been too cool. Grapes 
aud peaches are much inferior, and I presume 
the pears will not be of as good quality as 
those sent the paper last fall. 1 have -just sent 
four pears to New Jersey which weighed 19, 
21, and 23 ounces respectively.” 
The followiug letter about the Idaho Pear 
was received from oue of our.readers^living 
7i-U.Y 
IDAHO PEAR. Cross Section. Fig. 445 
bright, warm-looking color, and oiled paper 
caps retained it until they could receive sup¬ 
ply enough from the wood they were set on. 
The growth is of good medium strength, erect, 
aud seems well ripened. Fruit spurs have 
formed in several cases together with good 
wood growth, showing a healthy tendency to 
early bearing. It is certainly a fruit of dis¬ 
tinctive qualities aud of great promise; and 
its origin in so far off and new a territory that 
it is something remarkable.” G. 
manure, slaked lime and plaster this fall, 
would it be iu a suitable condition for use on 
a clay-loam for corn or potatoes next season? 
Would it pay to haul the muck one-half mile 
tor the above purpose? 
ANSWERED BY HENRY STEWART. 
Muck upon which large trees, such as ash, 
(black ash probably) elm, (white) aud soft 
maple grow, is largely mixed with earth and 
differs considerably t in character^from k tli 
peat which is wholly vegetable matter and 
upon which only small bushes and rank herb¬ 
age grow. The difference is shown in the 
following analyses: 
ANALYSES OF SWAMP MUCK. 
Nos. 1. 2. 3. 4. 
Ppi> 
Moisture at 212°, 63.75 66.80 43.18 89.89 
Dry substance, -36 25 33.20 56.82 10.11 
Ash, 17.30 8.55 26.12 3 05 
Nitrogen, 0.75 1.09 0.97 0.26 
The ash of all these contained lime, phos¬ 
phoric acid and potash, but the nitrogen is the 
most valuable part. Some specially good 
samples have been found to coutain as much 
as three per cent, of nitrogen when air-dried 
and containing 25 to 30 per cent, of moisture. 
Ordinary good mixed stable manure con¬ 
tains only half of ooe per cent, of nitrogen or 
equal to 10 pounds to the ton, while the above 
analyses show that good muck contains from 
15 to 30 pounds of it. 
Now, all this shows that it is a difficult mat¬ 
ter to fix the value of any particular kind of 
muck without knowledge of its character. 
The kind of timber growing upon it, however, 
leads to the fair supposition that the muck in 
question is similar in composition to sample 
No. 3 in ahove table. This is worth at least 
$2 per ton for the nitrogen in it, and I have 
found that the nitrogen of muck is not difficult 
to make available by proper compostiDg. 
Three or four tons of muck, dried by three 
months’ exposure in heaps, composted with 
one ton of stable manure and five bushels of 
dry, air-slaked lime, have given equally good 
results on my fields with corn, clover and 
grass, as au equal quantity of ordinary stable 
manure. The compost was made as follows: 
the muck was dug in October aud thrown on 
the bank of the swamp in a long heap 
about three or four feet high. In December 
it was half dried and had become a loose, 
friable mass. This was spread in a layer six 
or eight inches deep and covered with air- 
slaked lime, a thin covering of muck was ’aid 
upon the lime, and manure fresh from the 
stables, was spread over this about three inches 
deep. The layers of muck and lime and man¬ 
ure were then repeated until the heap was fully 
fom* feet high when it was left to ferment 
and become quite hot. The heap was turned 
over in March, and in April was spread and 
plowed in and made au excellent crop of com. 
The spots where the heaps were made pro¬ 
duced an exceedingly rank growth of a very 
deep-green color. The compost gave equally 
good results upon clover. When it was used 
for potatoes the wire-worms badly injured 
the crops; indeed a great many of these pests 
were found in the ground uuder the heaps 
where they seemed to have gathered, and were 
collected and destroyed. From several years’ 
experience in the use of muck I am convinced 
that any farmer who can get it within half 
a mile of his farm may make the equivalent 
of 810 a day hauling muck,and any farmer who 
has it upon his farm misses a great opportuni¬ 
ty by neglecting to use it. 
A SUPPURATING SPLINT. 
.4. B. T ., MonteceUo, la .—My four-year-old 
mare while doing light, work around the farm 
last fall got lame in the back tendons of her 
left front leg. As soon as I noticed that she 
was lame I stopped working her. and applied 
various liuimeuts, to no good. Then I applied 
a series of fly blisters, as many as six or eight 
times, but they did no good. During this 
time she was lame only at times. About May 
1 she had a colt, and soon afterwards became 
so lame that she eouldu't step on the affected 
leg, and a bunch the size of a goose-egg gath¬ 
ered and broke on the leg. and it has been 
running ever since. The swelling has gone 
down a good'deal and the lameness is notice¬ 
able chiefly when she is trotting, but at some 
times it is worse than at others. The swelling 
is on the inside of the leg about midway be¬ 
tween the ankle and knee. What should be 
done for her ? 
Ans.— Evidently the trouble is a suppurat¬ 
ing splint or a small abcess formed from the 
pressure of a foreign body. Have the swelling 
carefully examined by a veterinary surgeon, 
or in the absence of such, the family physi¬ 
cian or surgeon, for any foreign body. Look 
carefully to the lower end of the small splint 
bone which may have been broken and be¬ 
come detached, acting as a foreign body. If 
the pus comes from a cavity, or has formed 
a pocket, the cavity or pocket must be opened 
at the bottom to allow free drainage of the 
discharge. Then if the swelling is very sore 
apply a poultice, sprinkling a few drops of 
carbolic acid or a little finely-powdered sul¬ 
phate of zinc or copper on the surface before 
applying. When the soreness has been most¬ 
ly relieved, or at once if not very sore, wash 
out carefully once daily with a solution of one- 
half ounce each zinc, sulphate aud lead acetate 
in a quart of water, bottled aud well shaken 
before using. Cover the sore with a little 
lintlor absorbent cotton aud apply a loose 
bandage. Rest, and a restricted laxative 
