016 45 
832 
THE BUBAL NEW-YOBJCEB. 
eyes, was dropped in the furrows 18 inches 
apart and covered with a hoe. The planting 
was done the last day of April. Thorough and 
clean culture was given and the bugs were kept 
well in band by the use of Paris-green in water, 
and on July 4, those who saw the crop pro¬ 
nounced it the most promising they bad ever 
seen. But the Flea-beetle came and in one 
week’s time blasted all my hopes of a big 
yield. I had no idea of what the trouble was 
until the Rural opened my eyes. At digging 
time I gathered 564 bushels of marketable po¬ 
tatoes and at least 75 bushels of rotten ones 
were left on the field. Two bushels of the 
first cut seed were rolled in sulphur. About a 
pound of the flour could be made to adhere to 
a bushel of seed. All the effect perceptible at 
digging time was that it had preserved the 
seed pieces entire. The potatoes in all parts 
of the field were remarkably smooth. Al¬ 
though beaten, I am not discouraged and shall 
try again. It was some consolation to know 
that I had the best in the neighborhood. A 
record of expenses showed the potatoes to 
have cost, when dug, 15 cents per bushel. 
This includes both interest and taxes on the 
land. But had I secured the yield promised 
before the Flea-beetle came, the cost would 
have been materially decreased. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name 
nd address of the writer to Insure attention. Before 
ask n't a question, please see If it Is not answered In 
our advertising columns. Ask only a few questions at 
one time. Put questlous on a separate piece of paper. 
CHEMISTRY OF FROSTED CORN FODDER. 
Several Subscribers .—Has any analysis 
ever been made of frosted corn fodder? 
Wherein is such fodder defective in feeding 
value? Please give a general idea of the ef¬ 
fect of frost upon fodders and other foods, 
and how, from a chemical point of view, such 
feed can be most economically used. 
ANSWERED BY PROF. F. H. STORER. 
It seems plain that the great damage done 
by a hard frost to corn fodder is due first of 
all to the tearing asunder of the cell-walls in 
the plant, by the expansion which occurs 
when the liquids in the cells are converted 
into ice. In order to do this laceration of the 
cells by frost, they must be tense and turgid, 
i. e., full and swollen with liquid at the mo¬ 
ment of freezing. It often happens that 
wilted corn fodder is not injured by frosts 
that destroy the standing crop; and some far¬ 
mers are, on this account, accustomed to cut 
their fodder as rapidly as possible in the after¬ 
noon when there is reason to believe that 
there may be a “black” f ost during the 
night. They sometimes even leave the fod¬ 
der lying in heaps upon the ground, when 
time presses and there is not enough help to 
put it into stooks. 
Even so small an amount of wilting that the 
eye cannot detect it may be sufficient to re¬ 
lieve the strain on the cell walls and save the 
crop. It is to be noted also, in respect to corn 
that is left standing during a frost, that the 
natural transpiration of moisture from the 
leaves carries away much heat and so helps to 
accelerate the freezing of the liquids within 
the leaves. It is probable that the mere act 
of freezing does not much injure the nutritive 
value of corn fodder. The real trouble comes 
after the frozen leaves have wilted, when the 
sugar in the plant begins to ferment. Before 
the frost, the saccharine juices in the corn 
fodder were naturally shielded from contact 
with the outer air by the unbroken cell-walls. 
When these walls are destroyed, by the act 
of freezing, the contents of the cells are laid 
open to the assaults of all manner of microbes 
which float about in the air; fermentation 
speedily sets in, and the sugar is quickly de¬ 
stroyed. But the nutritive value and paya¬ 
bility of corn fodder depend largely upon the 
sugar which is contained in it, and the de¬ 
struction of this sugar is a serious injury. 
It may readily be believed that the nutritive 
value of corn fodder suffers so little detriment 
by the act of freezing that the frozen stalks 
might probably be as useful as those which 
are sound, if it were but practicable immedi¬ 
ately to put them into an ice-house and to 
thaw them out by small portions, which 
should be fed to cattle before fermentation 
had time to set in. It is true of frozen vegeta¬ 
ble matters—such as beets and potatoes, for 
example—that they had better be fed put as 
soon after thawing a practicable because of 
the fermentation and decay which ensue 
when the lacerated cells are exposed to warm 
air. So, too, if frosted corn fodder could be 
packed in a silo while still frozen it might be 
saved from harm by putting it out of reach 
of the microscopic organisms which cause 
decay. 
How best to restore the palatableness of 
corn fodder which has been dried after freez¬ 
ing is a matter that needs to be studied at the 
farm. So far as the chemistry of the subject 
is concerned, the fodder could probably be 
made to serve a useful purpose when fed out 
in conjunction with cotton-seed meal, malt 
sprouts, shorts, gluten meal, or, better yet, 
with appropriate mixtures of one or another 
of these things and corn meal. 
I do not recall any analyses of frosted corn 
fodder, though some light has been thrown 
upon the subject by studies which have been 
made upon sorghum. 
WINTER APPLES FOR NORTHERN INDIANA. 
P. J., Bourbon, Ind.— Wbat three varieties 
of winter apples would it be advisable to 
plant for market here in Northern Indiana, 
where over half of our Ben Davis apples win¬ 
ter-killed three years ago? 
ANSWERED BY PRES. T. T. LYONS. 
Our friend does not state the character of 
his soil, and other essential particulars; nor 
yet whether the injury to the Ben Davis trees 
was general, or confined to a particular or¬ 
chard or locality. It is for this and other 
reasons, a grave question whether the exper¬ 
ience spoken of may not be too local or otuer- 
wise exceptional, or likely to be of too rare 
occurrence to warrant the abandonment of so 
thoroughly hardy a variety as Ben Davis. 
Assuming, however, that the experience re¬ 
ferred to shall justify such abandonment, 
the three desired substitutes may very rea¬ 
sonably be sought among the following kinds 
of well known hardiness, viz , Willow Twig, 
Rawle’s Janet, Grimes’s Golden, Jonathan, 
Golden Russet, (of Western New York) Law- 
ver, Northwestern Greening. Local exper¬ 
ience alone can suffice to determine the 
question of sufficiency for the purpose. 
Should the foregoing prove to lack the requis¬ 
ite hardiness, the alternative will be to join 
with or await the efforts of the Northwest, to 
elaborate a more hardy race of varieties, in¬ 
cluding the experiments of Prof. Budd, of 
Iowa, to create such from the outcome of his 
tests of imported Russian apples. 
KEEPING SHEEP ON SHARES. 
“Elva", Baltimore, Md .,—A buys 20 ewes 
to lamb in December and Jauuary. B, a 
neighboring farmer, keeps and cares for them 
on shares. What should his share be? What 
difference should be made if A supplied oats 
and linseed meal for feed? 
Ans.— In Michigan and other States where 
this system of letting sheep on shares is prac¬ 
ticed, the usual method is to give half the 
wool and half the increase or, in some in¬ 
stances, a flock of ewes will be let to “double” 
in three years; that is in such a case as the 
above, B will return the flock, as large again 
as when he took it, at the end of the third 
year. This is, when “B” furnishes all of the 
food. The price of the food mentioned would 
determine the amount due “B” from “A” to a 
large extent. We should think it ought to 
make one quarter difference in the returns to 
“A”. 
COAL TAR FOR ROOFS. 
R. J. L., Kenneth Square, Pa .—Is coal tar 
a good paint for metallic roofs ? If so, how 
should it be mixed and with what diluted ? 
Ans. — Coal tar does not adhere sufficiently 
to tin roofing; it becomes hard in a short time 
and then cracks and scales off. It does better 
on shingle roofs and if put on hot and well 
dusted with hydraulic cement it makes an ex¬ 
cellent covering. For tin roofs the best paint 
is a metallic one which oxidizes with the lin¬ 
seed oil, and having an affinity for the metal 
adheres firmly. The brown iron oxide paint 
with boiled linseed oil makes the best roofing 
paint, and if put on after the new roof has 
become a little rusty and it is renewed once 
in five years it is the most durable of all cov 
erings. 
BALED SILAGE. 
E. C. B., Wilmington , Vt .—Would it be 
practicable to bale silage tightly enough to 
make it keep? Has it ever been tried? 
Ans — Something of the kind has been tried 
with fair success in England. Silage is some¬ 
times packed in strong barrels or hogsheads 
and shipped to the cities where it is used to 
feed horses. Not much of this has ever been 
tried in this country, though it would un¬ 
doubtedly pay well if the silage could be 
packed so that it would keep. The “patent 
silage” frequently referred to in the Rural 
would undoubtedly keep. The hay presses 
made at the presept time are fully ftbje to 
bale tUe silage, 
Miscellaneous. 
“fff,” Oyster Bay, N. Y .—Who handles 
sweet cider on commission in New York? 
Ans —Either J. G. Ward or S. R. & J. C. 
Mott, Warren St. New York 
DISCUSSION. 
VENTILATION ONCE MORE. 
J. H. D., Washingtonville, N. Y.— Hav¬ 
ing carefully read the articles on ventilation 
by Mr Jacobs and Mr. Hales, it may not be 
out of place to offer a few comments. Hav¬ 
ing had a severe attack of the ventilation 
fever in the past, I believe I can testify from 
personal experience. Mr. Hales remarks, “No 
poultry house of any pretention is complete 
without a ventilator at the top to cool the 
house and let in fresh air.” Now this is safe 
enough in summer; but in winter a top venti¬ 
lator is a dangerous institution. It certainly 
admits fresh air in such quantities that the 
fowls are exposed to a draught and this causes 
most of the trouble among them. Besides, 
the heat escapes too readily. Mr. Hales fur¬ 
ther remarks: “Farmers, as a rule, are slow 
to adopt new ideas. I go into many farmers’ 
poultry houses and try to convince the own¬ 
ers of the importance of ventilating; in some 
instances it is the first time they heard of 
such a thing and they improve their houses 
at once.” This is a surprise to me. I can 
find no such farmers here. They give plenty 
of air as a rule—in fact, some are altogether 
too careless about that. If they gave less air, 
their hens would no doubt appreciate the 
fact and lay more eggs. I travel many miles 
during the week gathering eggs from far¬ 
mers and can observe the condition under 
which fowls are kept and will state as an ab¬ 
solute fact, that I have found the most eggs, 
the best flocks and the least disease amoDg far¬ 
mers who kept their hens in cow-stables. If 
any believe cow-stables are ventilated, 
please let them come up here in Orange 
County and see for thomselves. The warmer 
a farmer can get his cow-stable the better it 
suits him and the cows. The hens say “Amen” 
too. I do not advocate keeping hens in cow- 
stables, however, but one should handle his 
hens as he does his cows, and I believe less 
roup and more eggs will be the result. A 
cow-stable is cleaned every day. Cows are 
left in the yard to drink a few hours and 
there is such an abundance of fresh air ad¬ 
mitted during those few hours, that ventila¬ 
tion seems out of place. Mr. Hales says, “It 
is all very well for those who clean their 
houses daily and pay great attention to their 
stock, watching for the least appearance of 
disease, to advise shutting up the house tight¬ 
ly all wint9r.” A house should be cleaned 
daily, there should also be proper roosts and 
a platform underneath, and plaster should be 
sprinkled thereon. It’s not hard work, and 
takes but a few minutes. 
As to Mr. Hales’s suggestion with regard to 
the construction of the ventilators, such have 
been often tried. I have traveled yearly in 
the fall and winter among breeders of fancy 
poultry and have seen fiiany beautifully con¬ 
structed houses and have also seen more roup 
and disease in these houses in one day than I 
have seen among the farmer poultrymen in 
years. Top ventilation]was the cause in most 
cases. It is well enough to advise a man who 
handles his ventilators properly; but a man 
who will not attend to cleaning his house, will 
never attend to the ventilation. 
I have four poultry houses on my farm. 
All styles of ventilators have been used, but 
the accidental cooping of 40 fowls in a smail 
house not ventilated, gave such good results 
that I was compelled to look into the matter 
more closely, and although my new house 
contains small tuoe ventilators, the ceiling is 
but six feet high and no top ventilation is 
given in winter. I feel rather like Mr. Jacobs 
—“I don’t know how to keep the air out.” 
In conclusion, I am always interested in 
what.Mr. Hales writes on poultry matters; but 
I regret I cannot indorse his position on the 
ventilation question—and trust he will give 
the matter a careful trial again. It is worthy 
of it. I know Mr. Jacobs is positive and 
radical in his statements: but some one must 
investigate these things and he seems to be, 
like “Barkis, willin’.” He has rudely upset 
some of our pet theories; but he has made us 
think, and that should help us in our own 
investigations. 
the trench system for sweet potatoes. 
C. C. W., Grand Bay, Ala.— A subscriber 
asks how the Rural’s trench system would 
probably work in raising sweet potatoes. 
This question is one that has occurred to me 
from reading the various articles on the sub¬ 
ject in the R. 1S.-Y., and also the interesting 
reports of that contest. At this time I can 
only theorize upon the matter, but by this 
time pext yeai I intend to know something 
about it. If we select the early varieties of 
the sweets, such as grow close or in bunches, 
I can see no reason why the Rural’s trench 
system of culture should not apply with good 
results. They very certainly need moisture 
as "much as any other sort (we had a good 
lesson on that point in the spring of ’87). 
They would mature before the ground became 
compacted by rains or other causes and 
could be easily dug out, as they do not 
straggle: but for the late sorts, such as the 
Yellow Yam or the straggling ones, like the 
Brazilian, the trench system might not do so 
well; as for the yams the soil might become 
too firm to allow them to grow well, and ns 
for the others, they send their roots far and 
wide (I have seen them three feet long), and 
to get them out too many would be cut with 
the plow. The plan I have pursued for years 
in growing sweet as well as other sorts of 
potatoes, has been a sort of flat culture. I 
bed out my rows 3% feet with a turning plow, 
scatter the fertilizer almost broadcast and 
then re-bed, which mixes in the fertilizers and 
does not make a high ridge, but leaves the 
soil loose and light. 
I trust many Rural readers will try the 
trench system with sweet potatoes next 
season, and report the results. 
how often should a milch cow be fed. 
J. T., Rome, N. Y.—In regard to the ques¬ 
tion, how many times a day in winter 
should a dairy cow be fed, it depends upon 
the person who owns the cow. Some men 
say twice; others say three times; some say 
five times. All may be correct as the several 
Jots are fed by their respective owners. One 
fact is certain—a dairy cow should be full fed 
during the course of the day to make her do 
best for her keeping, and that too on a variety 
of feed. I always have wanted three meals 
daily, to perform what labor has been my lot 
to do through a life of more than threescore 
and ten, hence I am an advocate of feeding 
all animals three times daily, and to so do in 
a proper manner requires great skill and 
judgment in the feeder to give enough; also 
not to feed so lavishly as to cause waste. 
When animals are at pasture in summer, they 
graze frequently through the day, thus show¬ 
ing that in their natural habits their meals 
are not all taken at once, or twice daily, but 
at intervals as their nature seems to require, 
hence some feeders say give light feeds and as 
often as their appetite requires. Each farmer 
or breeder should watch closely the habits as 
also the requirements of his animals and feed 
and care for them so as to make them as com¬ 
fortable as possible to get the best profits from 
his herd. 
ladies discuss their contest. 
H. B. C., Watkins, N. Y.— I am highly in 
favor of the Women’s Potato Contest. The 
communication from Cortland Co. N. Y., in 
the issue of November 24, expresses my senti¬ 
ments perfectly (and 1 hope those of many 
more) although I am somewhat different from 
the writer, as I have never worked out-of- 
doors,all puttogether, a whole day in my life, 
but that makes no difference, for if I am go¬ 
ing to raise potatoes I am willing to do the 
work. This seems to me a fair proposition: 
let the soil be fitted ready for planting in the 
manner the contestant shall direct; then let 
her cut and plant the potatoes; also cultivate 
and Dug them, (it does not seem necessary for 
the lady to dig them, as digging has nothing 
to do with the yield.) This is no more than 
any woman in reasonable health can do with¬ 
out being a detriment but rather a benefit to 
her. This arrangement will give those who 
are willing to work, a fair chance, and those 
who are afraid of soiling their hands need not 
compete. I will send in my name as soon as I 
learn that I am not to be beaten by a man 
while another woman will get the credit. The 
Rural is always just, and let this be a genuine 
“potato contest between the women of 
America.” 
D. C. L., Cranberry, N. J.—In the Potato 
Special reference is made to the half-acre 
test on the new plot, and as the vines 
died so suddenly a considerable yield was not 
expected. We grow a good many potatoes 
in this part of the country and use many 
different kinds of fertilizers. I have seen 
vines quite yellow from one sort of fertilizer, 
and others green from other kinds, and yet the 
final yield would not vary much. I have asked 
myself why is this so and am inclined to the con¬ 
clusion that the phosphoric acid in the one 
case was from S. C. rock, while in the other it 
was from bone. If you have occasion to plant 
your poor land to potatoes this coming year, 
try some one fertilizer of which bone is the 
basis against one with a rock basis. You are 
no doubt aware of the immense quantities of 
acid required to dissolve rock as compared to 
bone. I believe the excess of acid is what makes 
the vines turn yellow At all events I have 
seent hese results, when both kinds of fertilizers 
have been used side by sjde and where pot sq 
