as usual. I was sick one day, and my 15-year- 
old son, who had never bandied the digger be¬ 
fore, did the digging and got in more potatoes 
than I did the day before ! The boxes which 
we use save us much labor, and of course 
save the potatoes, as they are picked up into 
the boxes in the field and then are emptied 
out in the cellar. Pouring'them into a wagon 
and then shoveling them out again will bruise 
them more or less. We have used these 
boxes, largely, for eight or 10 years, and I 
notice this year that several of our neighbors 
have got them. In size they are 10x13x13 
inches, inside, and made very thin and light, 
with iron-bound corners, and hand holes in 
the ends. They hold a full bushel, stroke meas. 
ure, so we can set them one on top of another, 
three deep in the wagons, when they have a 
bushel in them. Thus we ^can get in 50 or 
more at once. On a pinch I have drawn in a 
load with part of the piles four deep. We 
have covers for them, simply pieces of board 
about 15x18 inches, but do not use them when 
rushing business as we are now doing. I am 
careful not to dig very far ahead of the pick¬ 
ers, and to draw in as soon as there is a load 
of full boxes. The covers are used when a 
load is dug for market, while the teams are 
away, or when a shower comes up suddenly. 
I have heard it urged against certain potato 
diggers that one must dig every other row, 
when using them, which was not handy. For 
three years we have dug every row, with 
my big digger, as I went along, 
with rows 32 inches, only, apart. This was 
some trouble, as there was very little room 
for one horse to walk in without getting on 
the potatoes. This year I tried digging every 
other row, and like it very much better. Wo 
can go right along without any bother, and 
two men picking up in a box between them 
will make better time, I find, when each has 
just one row to keep his eyes on. There 
should be no looking around or stalking 
around; but all should go just right ahead. 
The box is moved along on the ground between 
them where there are no potatoes, and hence 
none ever get left by being under the boxes, 
out of sight. No more digging every row as 
we go for me. 
CHRONIC COUGH OR TUBERCULOSIS IN COWS. 
B. G., Leicester , Mass.— One of my two 
cows I bought last spring. On her arrival I 
noticed that she coughed and in a short time 
the other one did the same. We are using the 
milk in our family. Does the cough affect it ? 
One is to come in soon; would it be safe to 
raise a calf from it ? Can I safely put other 
cows in the same stable or pasture? 
ANSWERED BY DR. F. L. KILBORNE. 
If the difficulty is simply a chronic cough, 
it is not very serious, and can probably be 
successfully treated. The milk from Such 
cows would be safe for cither family use or for 
the calf. But if the cough is thelresult of 
tuberculosis (consumption) there is no cure. 
In this case the milk would be unsafe for 
family use, but might be used to fatten the 
calf for veal. It would not bo advisable to 
raise a calf under such circumstances for 
breeding purposes. The stables can be made i 
perfectly safe by thoroughly scrubbing 
them out with a two or three per 
cent, solution of sulphuric acid; there 
would be little or no danger from the pasture. 
If possible have the cows examined by a com¬ 
petent veterinarian. If found tuberculous 
they should be destroyed. Both milk and 
flesh would be unsafe for family use. If a vet¬ 
erinarian cannot be readily obtained try the 
following course of treatment. A simple 
chronic cough should yield to the treatment, 
while tuberculosis would not. Hub the whole 
region of the throat once a week with a lini¬ 
ment of equal parts of turpentine, strong am¬ 
monia and raw linseed oil. Shake well before 
using and rub well into the skin for fifteen or 
twenty minutes. Internally, take one teaspoon¬ 
ful each of chlorate of potash, nitrate of potash 
and solid extract of belladonna, mix with suffi¬ 
cient molasses to make a thick paste, and smear 
well back upon the tongue and back teeth,three 
or four times daily. Unless the bowels are al¬ 
ready loose give one pound Epsom salts with 
one-half ounce ginger to move them. If there 
is no improvement after three or four weeks 
the cows are probably tuberculous. In the 
meantime the milk may be safely used if 
boiled. 
SPRAINED SHOULDER^ JOINT IN A HORSE. 
R. R. Bridgeport , Mo. —How should I treat 
the shoulder of a^ horse that has got a bad 
lameness in his right shoulder-joint by a con- I 
oussion received about four weeks ago. It 
was not so bad at the start, but as we have no 
veterinarian here, a neighbor applied a rowel 
just below the joint, and ever since the lame¬ 
ness has been so bad that the horse cannot 
stand at all on the leg. The injury was very 1 
probably aggravated by pouring turpentine I 
in the opening in the rowel, which made the I 
horse strike out his fore-log as if in great pain I 
for some time, so that I took out the rowel 
again. What should be the treatment? 
ANSWERED BY DR. F. L. KILBORNE. 
The rowel or seton should not be used in 
such cases of recent injury. It tends to in¬ 
crease the inflammation instead of relieving 
it, and, as shown by your experience, it often 
makes a long, troublesome case from a slight 
injury, which would usually soon recover 
under soothing measures. If at the outset the 
joint had been frequently bathed with cold 
water and kept covered with a wet bandage 
hung over the shoulder, and the animal had 
been kept quiet for a few days on a restricted, 
laxative diet, a recovery could usually be ex¬ 
pected with no further treatment. After 
the inflammation had mostly subsided and it 
became evident that such soothing measures 
were not likely to effect a recovery, then more 
active measures could have properly "been em¬ 
ployed, or liniments or even the blister or 
rowel. If there is still a deep, open sore wash 
it out daily with a two-per-cent, solution of 
carbolic acid. If nearly healed simply apply 
carbolated vaseline daily. Keep the animal 
quiet in a large box-stall or small yard. When 
the wound is well healed, if lameness continues 
after the heat and tenderness have nearly or 
quite subsided, apply the following liniment 
every other day : Equal parts each of strong 
ammonia, raw linseed oil and spirit. Shake 
well before using and rub well into the skin. 
If the skin becomes sore or blistered apply 
less frequently. A cantharides blister may be 
desirable later if the lameness is persistent. 
MAKING A WATER-TIGHT CELLAR. 
If. M. G., Cropseyville , N. Y. —We have a 
cemented cellar that does not keep the water 
out in time ofjoverflow of the stream near by. 
Is there any way of cementing it so as to ex¬ 
clude the water entirely ? 
Ans. —The cement of a cellar floor is not 
strong enough to resist the pressure of water 
in the soil. The cement gives way, and the 
water forces iteslf in. Even a brick floor, laid 
in cement will be forced up, and the water 
come through. The upward pressure of six feet 
of water in the soil would be equal to 375 pounds 
per square foot, so that to exclude the water 
from a cellar six feet deep the floor should 
bejjstrong enough to resist this pressure, 
and the walls have a proportionate strength 
from the floor upwards. But the cellar may 
be so constructed as to resist- pressure 
and cracking, and it can be treated so 
ns to resist percolation in the following man¬ 
ner. First the floor should be laid with a coat 
of cement concrete two inches thick, and this 
should be covered with a water-proof coating 
of tar sufficient to saturate this cement. Then 
a finishing coat of one inch or so may be laid 
upon this. Over this should be laid smooth 
boards closely fitting, and crosswise of these 
floor beams strong enough to resist the pres¬ 
sure of the water below; two-by-six timbers 
let into the wall of the cellar, to get a good 
bearing, will be strong enough. Over this 
any kind of floor may be laid to walk upon. 
The outside of the cellar wall should be coated 
with cement and painted with hot tar, to 
make a water-proof coating. The cellar will 
then be exactly the reverse of a cistern, and 
the water will not give any further trouble. 
CROSSING SWEET CORN, ETC. 
E. W. B., Long, Plain, Mass. —1. How is 
sweet corn crossed? 2. Is every kernel a new 
kind? 3. Will Ballard’s and Cory make a 
good cross? 4. Is the Springfield llaspberry a 
good early kind for market and home use? 5. 
Will it pay to set out the Jessica and Early 
Victor grapes for market? 6. What are two 
good sorts? 7. Is the Longfield a profitable 
apple for market? 
Ans. —1. Cut off the'tassel of either variety 
to be crossed as soon as it appears and before 
the pollen is ripe. As soon as the silk appears 
cut off the reserved tassel and shake it over 
the silk. When crossing is done in this small 
way it is necessary to protect the silk by thin 
strong paper. On a large scale, plant the.two 
varieties together and away from any other 
variety. Plant alternate rows of each and cut 
off all the tassels of one variety as soon as they 
can be seen. The pollen must then be sup¬ 
plied by the other. Of course the varieties 
must “tassel” and “silk” at the same time, 
otherwise it will be necessary to plant the 
later of the two kinds to be crossed earlier. 
2. Yes, every kernel will be a cross, though 
the effects of the cross may not appear, owing 
to the power of the mother variety to retain 
its characteristics. 3. This can be ascertained 
only by trial. It takes from three to five 
years’ selection after crossing to fully estab¬ 
lish a new variety. 4. It is an excellent early 
variety, with the advantage of thornless 
canes. 5. The R. N.-Y. does not think much 
of Jessica. 6. F. B. Hayes, Moore’s Early. 7. 
We do not know about the Longfield. 
AILING PIGS. 
O. J. A., Tyre, N. V —I have a two-weeks- 
old litter of pigs that are strangely affected. 
First, their skin cracks open all over them; 
they meander about a short time then turn 
black and die. The disease attacks the knees 
and legs first, and spreads over the body in a 
few hours. Some of my hogs are similarly 
affected. The pigs were fed milk-swill and 
oat meal and they had the run of an orchard. 
What is a remedy ? 
ANSWERED BV COL. F. D. CURTIS. 
This disease could not be caused by the food 
the hogs now have. It is either the result of 
skin or blood poison. Lying in the mud would 
cause the skin-poison and if the udders of the 
sow were coated with the poisonous mud it 
would affect the pigs. Pigs are often thus pois¬ 
oned so that they cannot suck, owing to the 
inflammation of their lips and cheeks. The little 
pigs, in this case, no doubt followed their 
mother through the mud and in this way 
poisoned the skin of their legs. There may be 
a poisonous weed which does the michief, but 
most likely itds mud. The old hogs may have 
had a diet before now which has made impure 
blood, and this would surely affect the pigs. 
The fact that the old hogs were sore on the 
skin seems to point to mud poison or weed 
poison by contact. The pigs should be washed 
clean with soap-suds and then be smeared all 
over with salted grease and kept away from 
the mud. 
TREATMENT OF DAHLIA BULBS. 
P. D. K ., Yarmouth, N. S. —At what time 
in autumn should the dahlia bulbs be lifted,— 
immediately after the frost had killed the 
leaves, or had they better be protected 
where they are with a light covering till they 
ripen off? Should the bulbs be thoroughly 
dried before being put away into winter- 
quarters? What is the best manner of keep¬ 
ing them through the winter? I have tried 
keeping them in a moderately dry cellar, 
just free from frost, packed in oven dried 
sand, and also packed in dry, sifted coal ashes. 
They keep best in the ashes, but mauy of them 
rat. 
Ans. As soon as the frost has destroyed the 
leaves and stems, cut the dahlias close to the 
ground, and lift the tubers, and dry them a 
little in the sunshine, then store them close 
together but one deep on the floor of a cellar 
or on a shelf or elsewhere where they may 
be kept dry overhead and at the same time 
free from over-drying influences, as furnace 
heat or draft. There is do need of covering 
the tubers with earth, ashes or anything else 
providing the temperature of the cellar is not 
too low; not under 45 or over 55 degrees is a 
safe temperature. We should think your 
tubers diedofc old, or of a long-continued, cold, 
moist atmosphere. Let them rest on a com¬ 
mon earth floor with cellar temperature 
ranging from 45 to 50 degrees, and we think 
they will keep well enough. 
DIARRHEA IN A COLT 
W. A. Dorchester, Neb.— One of my mares 
that had the heaves but was otherwise in fine 
condition dropped a colt about May 1. The colt 
was smart and grew well for about a month. 
While on my way to a mill about six miles off 
I discovered that it had -diarrhea. On reach¬ 
ing the mill I gave it two raw eggs and two 
hours’ rest. It reached home with difficulty. 
It would not suck but drank a great quantity 
of water. I gave it strong coffee and flour, 
and as it was no better next day, I gave it a 
tablespoonful of brandy with water and sugar. 
It seemed to get along pretty well for a few 
days when it began to vomit. During each 
attack for a few days it would appear very 
sick. The mare was then deprived of grain 
and turned into a pasture where she is now. 
The colt appears to be getting better. What 
should have been the^treatment? 
Ans. After returning home the water 
should have been withheld and less medicine 
given. That evening a little sherry or brandy 
would have been beneficial, with a mustard 
poultice to the abdomen. In the morning, if 
the diarrhea continued, a'dcse of three table¬ 
spoonfuls of castor oil with a teaspoonful of 
laudanum might have been given with advan¬ 
tage. This with a few eggs would probably 
have been all the treatment necessary. The 
colt was too young to make such long drives. 
Miscellaneous. 
W. H. M., Jersey City , N. J. —For informa¬ 
tion regarding the reports of the N. J. Agri¬ 
cultural Society address Franklin Dye, Tren¬ 
ton. N. J. 
E.H.N., Hardwick, Mass. —I have some 
finely ground bone and some'muriate of potash 
with which I want to top-dress my meadows; 
should the application be made this fall or next 
spring ? 
Ans.— The Rural New-Yorker would 
advise next spring. 
L. C. L. J., N. Y. City —Has the Rural 
had any experience with creolin ? What in¬ 
sects will it destroy ? Where can it be pro¬ 
cured ? Of what strength should the solu¬ 
tion be ? 
Ans. —The R. N.-Y. has had no experience 
with this insecticide. Perhaps some of our 
readers can help the inquirer. 
V. J. W. Waveland, Miss. —Where can I 
get a machine that will cut hay by hand pow¬ 
er 
Ans. —What kind of cutting is meant ? For 
mowing, there is no hand-power machine but 
the old-time scythe. For cutting hay into 
short lengths for stock feeding, there are sev¬ 
eral fodder cutters.advertised in the Rural. 
For cutting hay in the stack, that is, slicing 
off the stack, as T required for feeding, several 
hay-knives are in use. 
F. L. K., Freeland, Mich. —Is Phillips’s 
Spiral Corn-husker still made ? What sort of 
a machine is it ? 
Ans. —This implement is still made at Hud¬ 
son, N. Y. It is a somewhat complicated 
machine consisting of a frame about four feet 
long by two and a half feet wide, with a sys¬ 
tem of pickers and spiral grooves between 
which stalks are fed and divested of every ear. 
The machine costs $125 and requires a two- 
horse power. 
.7. .7. Toronto, Canada. —Are the Erie and 
Minnewaski blackberries hardy ? The Kitta- 
tinny freezes down here somewhat. I am go¬ 
ing into small fruit raising rather extensively 
and want to start with good sorts. 
Ans. —The Minnewaski is probably some¬ 
what hardier than the Kittatinny, though 
this remains to be proven. We cannot speak 
freely of the Erie from our own experience as 
yet. Our friend is admonished to wait, or to 
experiment with|both kinds for himself, before 
investing largely in either. 
.7. & S., Salem, N. J. —1. How can I pro¬ 
pagate English and Americau Clematises? 
2. How is Cercis Japonica propagated? 
Ans. —1. By English Clematises we pre¬ 
sume you mean such showy kinds as Lanugin¬ 
osa and Jackmanii. Propagate by cuttings 
of the balfj’ripe wood in summer or early fall, 
and by layers at any time; they can also be 
raised from seed but there is no certainty 
that the seedlings will resemble the parents. 
By American Clematises we presume you 
mean our wild species. Propagate these by 
seeds or layers. 2. By seeds. 
C. L. S., Hunter , N. Y. —1. My eight-year- 
old mare favored her right hind leg a little a 
few^days ago: now a swelling has appeared 
upon the inside of the hock, just below the 
joint. I suppose it is a spavin. I have been 
using a liniment made of one ounce of corro¬ 
sive sublimate, one ounce of camphor gum 
undone pint of turpentine; is there anything 
better? 2. Would Kendall’s spavin cure be 
any better? 
Ans. —1. Firing|the spavin with the hot iron 
would probably be the most satisfactory treat¬ 
ment. Employ only a competent veterinary 
surgeon to do the firing. Wo would not recom¬ 
mend the corrosive sublimate liniment you 
are using. 2. Yes; it would be preferable to 
the above liniment. 
G. W. S., Andover, Mass. —I have just 
bought a horse that has a new hoof growing. 
It is very nearly all new. There are about 
2)4 inches of old hoof at the toe. Recently 
the back cords of the leg have swollen consid¬ 
erably and seem very sore. I am bathing the 
cords in strong vinegar and salt, and to day I 
shall have a higli-heeled shoe put on. The 
inside of the foot seeming to rest on the cor¬ 
onet is swollen to the size of about three 
fingers. It looks to me like an enlargement of 
the coffin-bone. It isn’t very hard as yet; in 
fact it has only been there perhaps a week. 
When at rest the animal stands with this foot 
forward and in walking simply touches the 
toe. What should be the treatment ? 
Ans. —We would advise you to consult a com¬ 
petent veterinary surgeon at once, as such cases 
require a personal examination to treat them 
satisfactorily. A surgical operation will prob¬ 
ably be necessary. 
W. A. 77. Carlisle, Pa. —1. Would a mix¬ 
ture of half a ton of salt, half a ton of plaster 
and a ton of hard-wood ashes, make a com¬ 
plete fertilizer for wheat? 2. Would the ad¬ 
dition of cne ton of Baugh’s $25 superphosphate 
or a higher grade with the above liberate the 
ammonia in the superphosphate? 3. Would 
it be better to drill the field both ways, sowing 
the m ixlure one way and the superphosphate 
the other? 4. I have plowed under a good 
clover and Timothy sod, would 400 pounds of 
the mixture and phosphate be sufficient for 
an acre on limestone soil? 
Ans. —No, it would need nitrogen. If the 
ashes are leached, it would also need potash. 
2. A superphosphate, strictly speaking, does 
not contain ammonia but simply phosphoric 
