®J)f <$umst, 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
ItingH Tor lloc*; Scab Mltw, etc., etc. 
J. W. L., Smith's Grow, Kg.. asks: 1. 
Where can lie get l imrs for mischievous hogs, 
rings tljat can be inserted in their noses and 
taken out at pleasure, somewhat on (he prin¬ 
ciple of watch-chain rings? 2. In the West, 
small insects, found, in spring, under the skins 
of cattle, arc called “wolves.” lie inquires 
whether this is the right name, and the cause 
and remedy for the same ? If the fats and 
acids of animals, instead of being consigned to 
6inks and creeks were applied directly to the 
soil, he wants to know whether they would not 
produce us good au effect as if composted, so 
that the trouble ol this operation might be 
avoided ? 4. What is the best time to plow 
under weeds, grasses, ote., with a view to pro¬ 
ducing the bost fertilizing results Irom their 
decomposition ? 5. Where can be get the best 
pocket memorandum ? 
Ans.—1. We do not know of any rings that 
can be put into a pig’s nose and taken out at 
pleasure. Such a ring would be apt to be taken 
out at the pleasure of the pig. A “ ring ” can 
be made by a common blacksmith out of soft 
iron, and shaped like a long and thin horse¬ 
shoe nail, with a hole in the head through 
which it can be clinched and held fast in the 
pig’6 nose. Such a “ring” could be de¬ 
tached, if not worn out, and used on another 
hog. One like a watch or chain ring would 
catch at the ends and tear out or break? 2. 
The insects found under the skin of cattle are 
the same which cause scab in sheep and mange 
in hogs, dogs, etc. It is the A car us scabiei. It 
is a minute insect, scarcely discernible to the 
naked eye. The name “ wolves ” is not the 
correct one. It begins its ravages in small 
spots, which should be treated as soon as dis¬ 
covered, to prevent spreading. Carbolic acid, 
diluted one drop to ten of water, will kill the 
vermin. The parts should be softened and dry 
scabs be removed first by thorough washing with 
soap-suds. The wash of carbolic should be fol¬ 
lowed by the application of an ointment of 
hog’s lard and powdered sulphur, equal j>arts, 
or smearing with coal tar. In mild cases the 
latter might he the only remedy required, aud 
is preferable to the lard uud 6ulpbur. Cattle 
in good condition are not exempt from the 
attacks of mange, but those in poor condition 
are more liable, as the dry state of the skin 
6eems to mvite the contagion. The disease 
spreads by contagion, by cattle touching each 
other, rubbing, etc., and also by the mites be¬ 
ing carried in the an and lodging on the ani¬ 
mal. 3. As a rule, all manures can be utilized 
more economically by immediate mixing with 
the soil. This is especially true of such active 
principles as fats and acids. 4. When they 
have attained fall growth and before the seed 
is formed. 5. There is a great variety of these, 
and a selection can be made at any first-class 
bookstore. 
Moonshine. 
M. B., SmUhvUle, Ont., Canada, asks what 
effect has the moon upon vegetation, the kill¬ 
ing of animals, the setting of fence blocks, 
etc., etc. 
Ans. —We are disposed to treat with indulg¬ 
ence all time-honored beliefs honestly enter¬ 
tained on matters of practical concern, how¬ 
ever much they may lie opposed to the results 
of modern scientific investigations. Millions 
of men, who were no fools, have been con¬ 
vinced that lunar inllucnces were powerful for 
good or ill on human life and actions, Thou¬ 
sands have thought the same with regard to 
the stars; but stellar inlluences are fast dis¬ 
appearing from human imagination whore 
alone they ever had an existence. The moon, 
too, is in a fair way of being soon robbed of 
blame or credit for the result of men’s actions. 
Madhouse doctors already deny that she has 
any sensible effect upon the condition of their 
patients, although the very name of lunatics, 
which designates these, is derived from a sup¬ 
position that they were markedly affected by 
her phases. True it is that, the tides are known 
to be influenced by her movements ; but scien¬ 
tific investigations coincide with close practical 
experiments in proving that her influence on 
all human operations and their results, is in¬ 
appreciable. Itisuot impossible that light of 
all kinds has some effect on vegetation, and, 
perhaps, an infinitesimal influence on the de¬ 
composition of auiitial matter, but if this has 
any existence, it is so exceedingly small that 
hogs may he killed, fence posts set, aud all 
other human operations performed without 
any fear of ill results from lunar influcneee. 
It would be plcusaut to us to come out boldly 
against modern scientific incredulity, aud in 
support of the venerable notions entertained 
by our great-grand-mothers, but the remem¬ 
brance of G. W. and bis little hatchet restrains 
our longings. 
Canker in Poultry, 
F. W., Philadelphia, Pa., asks what ails liis 
chickens aud a remedy for it. The eyelids be¬ 
come swollen and a thin, watery discharge glues 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
MARSH 29 
them together. The bowels are very loose; 
the inside of the mouth becomes coated with a 
hard, white substance that emits a nauseous 
odor. In some cases the coating becomes 60 
thick as to prevent the mouth Irom closing. 
The disease is very contagious. He at first 
mistook it for roup, hut found out his mistake 
on discovering that there was no discharge 
from the nose. 
Ans. —The disease is canker. It often ac¬ 
companies roup, and affects the eyes in a man¬ 
ner similar to roup; it is very contagious, and, 
unless apartments are purified by whitewash¬ 
ing or carbolic acid, it is liable to occur again. 
To cure : take a piece of hard wood, the size of 
a lead pencil, aud make one end spoon-shaped. 
With this remove the cankerous coating down 
to the raw flesh; then wash thoroughly with a 
solution of chlorate of potash, and anoint with 
vassaline or carbolic salve. Wash the eyes 
thoroughly, and anoint with the same. Re¬ 
peat this daily until cured. Give tincture of 
iron in the drinking-paus with the water, and 
soft feed ouly. In very severe cases, use a so¬ 
lution ol nitrate of silver in place of the potash. 
This must be used with great onre, however. 
A Hurfaee Tank, 
11. M., Huntsville, Ala., asks the best plan 
for building a water tank without the use of 
wood. The tank is to be on the surface of the 
ground and hold about GO barrels. 
Ans. — A water tank, or cistern, may he built 
above ground in the following mauner : Choose 
a slightly olevated spot, and dig out as much 
as may be required, throwing the earth in a 
heap around the foundation. Then procure 
hard brick aud water-lime mortar, made ol 
one part of hydraulic cement and three parts 
of sharp sand mixed quite soft, and build the 
tank iu the shape ol a cylinder. For GO bar¬ 
rels the tank should contain 240 cubic feet, 
which would he seven feet in diameter and 
about 6} foot deep. The tank should be plas¬ 
tered with clear hydraulic cement, half an inch 
thick, inside and out, mid the earth heaped 
up arouud it. A wooden or stone easing 
should be made arouud the cistern, to keep the 
water cool in the hot weather, and to strength¬ 
en it. 
Tanning a Mill'* Hide. 
S. L., Sharon Center, N. 1'., who had an in¬ 
quiry ou this subject iu a late Rokal. receives 
the following recipe from 1’. H. : “ If the hide 
is dry, &ouk it in salt water for one week ; then 
put it into lime water for a few days, stirring 
it up ont'* a day. When the hair is loose, 
scrape it off. Next put it into a kith made of 
hen dung uud water, to extract the lime; stir¬ 
ring it up ouce a day for two days. It is now 
ready for the tan. Make a liquor of oak or 
hemlock bark—oak is best—put the hide into 
it ; stir it up once a week for ten weeks. Then 
renew the liquor, aud continue the same pro¬ 
cess until the leather shows a uniform color clear 
through, which will be in about nine months. 
Gut the thick edge of the leather to test the 
color. When properly tanned, partly dry it 
and give it a coat of lard. Then dry it thor¬ 
oughly and it is ready for use. Apply the lard 
on the fleshy side. The work can be done by 
a steam tannery iu six weeks. 
The Muxkokn Duck, Aguili. 
U. L. 11., A'unda, jV. like many others, 
asks where he can get a few eggs of the Mus¬ 
koka duck; 2. where cau he get the Beauty of 
Ilebron potato, and its price per bushel or 
peck. 
Ans.— In answer to our inquiry about the 
Muskoka duck, Mrs. Annie L. Jack says that 
is the correct name, and that her description 
of the bird was quite accurate. Those iu her 
possession were presented to her by an old 
huntsman who periodically visits her neigh¬ 
borhood, Ou his next return she will find out 
all about the Muskoka, aud let our readers 
kuow whatever she may be able to learn. At 
present, she seems to have a close monopoly 
of Muskoka. 2. Of J. M. Thorburn & Co., 
15 John street, N. V.; price, #4 per bushel; 
$1.25 per peck. Hee advertisement iu last 
issue. 
Measuring Corn In a Crib. 
P. IF., West Chester, Pa., asks for some 
rule for measuring the quantity of corn in a 
crib without the necessity of handling every 
bushel of it, 
Ans. —Measure the crib so as to get the cubic 
contents in feet. Three cubic feet of curs will 
make one bushel of shelled corn. For instance, 
a crib 16 feet long, four feet wide at the bot¬ 
tom and 6ix at the top, and seven feet from 
floor to top, will be measured as follows; the 
average width will be half the sum of the two 
widths, or fi ve feet.; multiply that by seven and 
by 16, which will give 560 cubic feet; U cubic 
feet is one lumped bushel, and two heaped 
bushels ought to make a bushel of shelled 
corn; theu divide 560 by three and the result 
will be 187. the contents in shelled corn. This 
rule needs (o be modified to suit different cir¬ 
cumstances. 
Injured Leg in a Cow. 
II. J. II.. Amsterdam, N. Y., says: “ Some 
weeks since I bad the misfortune to have one 
of my cows bitten in the limb by a bog. I think 
I have succeeded in taking the soreness out, 
still the cow lias not full control of her limb. 
The cords seem weak ; what can I apply to 
strengthen them ?” 
Ans. —In such a ease, we recommend dash- 
ing cold water on the afflicted limb, either from 
a small vessel or by means of a hose or foun¬ 
tain pump, to lie continued for three or four 
minutes and followed by vigorous friction with 
wisps of straw till the part is dried and a reac¬ 
tion takes place. In case the weather is too 
cold to use the water treatment, dry friction 
may answer, or the application of a stimula¬ 
ting liniment with friction or even a mustard 
paste. 
Remedy for Scours In Sheep, 
S. W. T., Ithaca, N. 3'., asks for a remedy 
for scours in a ewe: 
Ans.— Confinement, to dry food for a day or 
two often suffices. If the purging is severe, 
and especially if the voidings be accompanied 
with slime or blood, a gentle cathartic should 
he used, sin'll as half a druchm of rhubarb, an 
ounce of linseed oil, or half an ounce of Epsom 
sails for a lamb, and a proportionately heavier 
dose for a sheep. This should be always fol¬ 
lowed by an astringent, and in most cases, if 
the latter alone Is administered, a cure will be 
made. For this purpose use a quarter of an 
ounce of prepared chalk in Imlf a pint of tepid 
milk once a day for two or three days. An 
English sheep cordial, which is strongly rec¬ 
ommended, is the following: Take of prepared 
chalk one ounce; powdered catechu, half an 
ouuce; powdered ginger, two drachms, aud 
powdered opium, half a drachm; mix them with 
half a pint of peppermint water. Give two or 
three tablespoonfuls morning and night to a 
grown sheep, and half that quantity to a lamb. 
Any good drug store should supply the ingre¬ 
dients. 
lieu Manure for Corn. 
II. A. T., East Tray, WU., asks whether it 
will do to put ashes and hen manure in the 
hill before or after dropping the corn therein, 
without mixing the manure, with the soil. 
An 6. —A great deal of mischief is caused by 
placing hen manure, mixed or uumixed with 
ashes, in direct coutact with seed. This is too 
concentrated a fertilizer, and in most cases 
would seriously injure or entirely burn up the 
seed under such circumstances. A thin layer 
—say, half an inch—of soil should intervene be¬ 
tween the manure and the seed. If the. former, 
however, is mixed wltll about three or four 
times its bulk of loam, soil from the fence cor¬ 
ners or dry muck. I lie danger from its contact 
with the seed will be trilling. 
Wimh fur Fruit Tree*. 
W. H. II., Poughkeepsie, N. Y., says: “I shall 
scrape and wash a large number of apple trees 
this spring—will not a wash of caustic soda, 
with a little carbolic acid, be as good as the 
usual whale-oil soap and lime?” 
Ans. —We have never used whale-oil soap. 
Charles Downing recommends dissolving two 
pounds of potash In two gallons of water, to he 
applied with, a brush, 
HilON t 
J. J. Welch, Lamoille, AT. Y., asks whether 
there are any farmers in Livingston or the ad- 
joiniug counties, who use silos for preserving 
corn fodder. 
Ans. - We trust that any of our readers who 
may know of any conveniences of the kind in 
the section referred to, will communicate with 
our correspondent, as per above address. 
1*1 itu i.n Iu Numc. 
T. J. E., Puling, Texas: The flowers are so 
dried up and crumpled us to be unrecognizable; 
the “moss” is Tillandsia usneoides, lately fig¬ 
ured and described iu the Rukal. We will be 
glad to name native wild flowers for our 
readers, providing the flowers reach us in good 
condition. Plants or flowers to be sent by 
mail, should be packed in tin or light wooden 
boxes; pasteboard boxes in mail trausit are 
often bruised—as was the case in this instauee 
—as flat as a pancake, and the contents re¬ 
duced to a condition beyond discernment. 
Miscellaneous. 
J. R. J, Decatur, Macon Co., IU,., asks, 1, 
whether sheaf oats will make cows dry up, as 
he has been told by a ueighbor: 2, will such 
food make the milk bitter; 4. lie has a marc 
that for the last six or seven weeks has been 
growing poorer until he is afraid she will die. 
She seems in good health, and eats and drinks 
well. She is in foal. A friend says she is 
hide-bound. 
Ans.— Sheaf oats, as compared to grass or 
other more succulent food, will make cows 
dry up. and as compared to hay or cured corn¬ 
stalks, the oats in the sheaf not supplying 
sufficient succulence to offset the dry and un- 
nutritious character of the straw, 60 much 
bulk of straw must be eaten in order to get a 
moderate supply of oats that the average 
succulence falls below that of the forage 
enumerated above. If the oats were cut while 
comparatively green, they would afford much 
more milk. 2, If the straw is free from rust 
and foul weeds it will not make the milk bitter, 
as there is nothing impure, in clean oats to 
produce the effect. 3. The mare evidently 
requires more nutritious feed or her diges¬ 
tion is Impaired. Iu either case give her, 
twice a day. four quarts of wheat bran scalded, 
with plenty of oats or one quarter of a pound 
of Glauber salts every other day mixed with 
four quarts of dry bran. The salts will cor¬ 
rect, the condition of the stomach and gently 
act upon the urinary organs which treatment 
will soon tell npon the skin. If there is too 
much loosness of the bowls produced, hold up 
a few days. 
J. A. B.. Needham, Mass., desires our 
opinion as to the new breed of poultry called 
Plymouth Rock, and asks where can eggs be 
procured. 2, What breed would we recommend 
for “all-purposes" fowls? 3. Please men¬ 
tion several reliable small fruit-dealers. 
Ans.— We are much pleased with it. The 
fowls are gentle, mature early, arc good win¬ 
ter layers. Very little can lie said against 
them uud much in their favor. 2. At this 
time, and judging from our own experience, 
we should say Plymouth Rock. Mr. J. T. 
Lovett, a trustworthy dealer, offers an excel¬ 
lent strain of P. R. llis address is Cornwall- 
on-thc-Hudson. His advertisement appears 
in the Ri'kal. 3. Dr. F. M. Hcxamcr, New¬ 
castle, West. Co., N. Y.—E. P. Roc, Cornwall- 
on-tlft-Hudson, N. Y.—F. R. Pierson, Tarry- 
town, N. J., and a number of others. Wo do 
not believe that at the present time there is 
any other journal published which exercises 
more diligent and independent care. aB to the 
eluss of advertisements presented. Our friends 
may all of them consult these colums, there¬ 
fore, with a reasonable assurance that they 
will not be deceived. 
M. Me. Rloomoille, Seneca Co., Ohio, asks 
1. for what purpose was the last ecumenical 
council held at Rome; 2, whether the steeple 
of the buildings In which it assembled was 
struck with lightning during its session; 3, 
whether any of our readers knows of a crab 
apple the size of an ordinary Rambo apple, 
but flavored like a peach. 
Ans. —The last ecumenical council, opened 
by Piu6 IX on Dec. 8, 1869 in the Vatican 
basilica of St. Peter’s, was assembled mainly 
for the purpose of declaring the. infallibility 
of the pope, when speaking ex. cathedra, that 
is. in his official capacity as the head of Ills 
Church, on points connected with faitii and 
morals, 2. Wo do not remember to have 
heard of any unusual freaks Of lightning about 
the building in which the Catholic prelates 
assembled from all parts of the world. 3. ? 
S. W,, St. Clara. W. Va., asks what is the 
best variety of yellow corn, briefly considered 
in all its points? 
Ans. This depends largely on the soil and 
climate. On bottom lands of rich alluvial soil 
the best kind would bo some ol the larger va¬ 
rieties of yellow Dent, with medium-sized cobs 
and 16 to 22 rows of kernels, close set and deep. 
The ears of good length. If tin* soil is hilly 
and porous, the Dutton yellow a 12-rowed va¬ 
riety of bright, plump kernels; ears of good 
length. If very poor soil, the eight-rowed 
yellow ; small ears hut very prolific, with small 
stalks. Wc have seen fine crops of each of 
these varieties. The Dent and Dutton re¬ 
quire the longest time to mature. 
J. L. 11., Norfolk, Va,, asks for a preventive 
of rust ou turnips uud for the flower fly. 
Ans. —As far us wc know, no reliable jemedy 
is known for this disease. 2. Some Authomy- 
ians are called flower flies, and some, species of 
Colcoptera are culled flower beetles. The lat¬ 
ter may be shaken off the plants, gathered and 
destroyed. The flies lay their eggs on various 
parts of the plants; many remedies |»ave beet) 
A SUKFAOE TANK. 
