E 
RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
®j)f 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
Culture and Preparation of IIorse-Kodiali, Etc. 
M. S. M., Lynhaoen River, Princess Anna 
GoVa ,, asks, 1, liow to raise arid prepare 
hqrse-radish; 2, cau asparagus beds bo remov¬ 
ed, or now ones be made from old beds, or do 
they become too thick after a while ; 3. is the 
Royal Mfg. Co., Broadway, this city, a reliable 
concern; 4, in our issue ol Jan. 25 was au ad¬ 
vertisement of J. T. Clymer, offering a recipe 
for increasing potato crops from 60 to 100 per 
cent., to be paid for after the crop had matur¬ 
ed, und he asks whether the party is trust¬ 
worthy, as be wrote to him, but received no an¬ 
swer. 
Ans.— Horse-radish will grow in any soil, 
but, as with most vegetables, the better the 
soil, the better the crop, and the host results 
can be obtained ouly when the plants are grown 
in very deep and rich gardeu mold. Markct- 
gardeuers iu the vicinity of New York general¬ 
ly grow horse-radish as a socoud crop; that is, 
the sets arc plauted between the rows of early 
cabbages, beets, or other crop, and the top 
subdued till Ibe growing crop has been remov¬ 
ed- The sets are thu slender roots from 
one-fourth to one-half inch thick.that are re¬ 
moved from the main roots wheu taken up in 
the fall. They may aiso be produced by plant¬ 
ing the '• crown" (that is a couple of inches of 
the top-end of the old root) iu the spring, from 
which will shoot out an abundance of just such 
roots as arc required lor sets. But whichever 
way they are growu, they are taken up in the 
fall, tied in bunches and either buried in the 
ground or kept in sand iu a cool cellar through 
the winter. On the opening of spring they are 
again taken up aud prepared for planting, 
which consists iu rubbing off the side roots 
with a j?icce of coarse cloth, aud in cutliug 
them off at the proper length—eight to twelve 
inches. Iu planting, make a hole at au angle 
of about 25 degrees, with a sharpened Btick. 
Into this hole drop the set and press the soil 
closely about it. Care should be taken to 
plant the set with the root-end downward, for 
though it will grow when reversed, it docs not 
attain as large a 6izo as wheu put right-end-up. 
The plants are 6et in rows one by two feet 
apart; if planted among another crop, the dis¬ 
tance cau be varied to suit the space. During 
summer the culture consists simply la keeping 
the patch clean by frequent hoeing. It is dug 
late iu the fall, care being taken to remove all 
small rootlets, as they will grow and prove 
troublesome weeds if allowed to remain in the 
ground. The sets for next year are cut from 
the marketable root6, and these are sold or 
stored in a cellar convenient for use. In Eu¬ 
rope, to facilitate the digging iu the fall, this 
vegetable is generally planted on raised beds 
two feet wide. When horse-radish is planted 
on very rich ground, under the most favorable 
circumstances, as much as four or live tons 
can be obtained per acre, but three or four 
tons may be considered a fair crop. Twenty 
sets planted every spring will be enough to 
supply an ordiuary family. In preparing the 
article for market, the rool6 arc tuken from 
the pit—the tops and small roots having been 
trimmed off before they wore stored iu the full— 
thrown iuto a wash-tub, and, with the aid 
of a scrubbing-brush, thoroughly cleaned. 
In this state the roots are sent to market. 
2. It is not practicable to plant old asparagus 
plants, as the room must necessarily be muti¬ 
lated to a greater or loss extent in digging 
them up. Strong one-year-old plants are best. 
The roots do not generally become too thick 
in the bed; the shoots become smaller in 
time, .because the roots lo^e vigor and the soil 
becomes exhausted. 8. We would advise our 
friends to have nothing to do with a firm with 
so magniloquent a name. 4. This is the first 
complaint we have heard in that connection. 
Malignant Anthrax. 
S. E. W., TiplinViUe, New Mexico, say: “ I found 
one of my work steers dead iu the corral and 
on opening the body I found the melt (spleen) 
very much enlarged with a portion of it de¬ 
cayed, or rather it would fall to pieces wheu 
handled and was covered with purple spots. 
The steer seemed to die without a struggle- 
no symptoms, only a disposition to lag be¬ 
hind when driveu to the house ou the night 
previous. My stock graze ou the open prairie 
aud have good running water to drink. I fed 
some of the meat to my hogs aud, though they 
ate but little of it, fiv e ol them have died aud 
I expect to lose three or lour more, It made 
my dogs sick. Can you tell me what the dis¬ 
ease is ? Is it catching ? aud is there any rem¬ 
edy for it P One of my neighbors pronounced 
it Texan fever.” 
Ans.—T his is one of the many forms of 
anthrax and Is generally known us splenic ap¬ 
oplexy, Within the past year the Kuril has 
given very full information In regard to this 
disease, having devoted over a column of space 
to its consideration on two occasions. We 
will repeat for the benefit of those who can¬ 
not refer to back numbers, that all animals aud 
man are subject to the disease; that the dis¬ 
ease is usually contracted by cattle feeding on 
rich soils which are underlaid by an imper¬ 
vious subsoil; that the prevention consists in 
draining saeh lands or keeping the cattle from 
grazing ou them, particularly in spring and 
autumn. Treatment is generally unsatisfac¬ 
tory because the animals die so soon after they 
are observed to be sick. The disease may be 
contracted by people or other animals, but 
chiefly by contact with blood or other liquids 
from affected animals or by oating their flesh. 
It is very dangerous to open or skin animals 
which have died from this dieasc. The car¬ 
casses should be buried to provent contagion. 
Pearl Millet. 
G. H., Seneca, Nemaha Co., Kan. says: 1 
have recently received from the Department 
of Agriculture, a supply of pearl millet seed. 
If it is the productive forage plant that Peter 
Henderson says it is in a late Rural, it will be 
of great benefit to this State, not so much, 
however, In its green condition as when cured, 
for the difficulty with us stock raisers is more 
in procuring an abundance of fodder for the 
winter months, than in securing plenty of rich 
summer pasture. Wishing to give the pearl 
millet a fair and exhaustive trial, I would like 
to have the Rural’s opinion as to the proper 
time of sowiug it, aud the best way to culti¬ 
vate it by which satisfactory results can be ob¬ 
tained. Hore, labor is scarce and land abun¬ 
dant, so that the way that would give ns the 
largest amount of fodder for the least labor 
would be the best for ns. If intended as fodder 
for winter, wheu should it be cut, and what is 
the best way of curiDg it and putting it away 
for winter U6e P By the way, I think Com. Le 
Duo has done a good thing in attending per¬ 
sonally to the distribution of Department seeds, 
instead of furnishing them to members of 
Congress, who, too often, sent them as favors 
to political partisans and friends, without any 
regard to carrying out the intention of the De¬ 
partment. 
Ans. —Iu the above part of the country, poarl 
millet should be sown about May 20. It may 
be cut for the first time as early as the latter 
part of July. Then it will have time to make 
a grow til of from four to six feet before frost. 
We should advise planting in drills—the drills 
three feet apart, the seeds two feet apart iu 
the drills. It will not 6eed in that lati¬ 
tude, aud the last cutting may be made not un¬ 
til after the first frost. It should be cured 
precisely the &ame as corn. 
Dnhllti* and Gladioli. 
E. Ii., Oxford, Center, Ontario, asks : 1, will 
Dahlia cuttings bloom the first year if started 
early ? if so about what time in the season ? 
2, should flower buds be picked off to have 
them iu bloom about the 15th of September ; 
3, which will give (lie best flowers—cuttiugs or 
dry roots ; 4. does the size of Dahlia bulbs 
have any influence ou the flower, or will small 
bulbs produce as good flotvors as large ones ; 
5, at what time should dry bulbs be planted to 
be iu flower from the 15th of September to 10th 
of October ; (j, about what lime should Gladi¬ 
oli lie planted iu the open ground to bloom 
about 20th of September ; also, depth to be 
plauted ; 7, give names of twelve best varieties 
for exhibition purposes. 
Ans.— 1, They will flower, if not too weak, 
in September just before frost. 2, No. 3, Dry 
roots. 4, No, the 6izu ol the roots vary greatly 
with the variety ; if the roots are otherwise 
strong, the sizo will have no influence on 
the size of the flowers. 5, Dahlias do not usu¬ 
ally flower well till the nights become some¬ 
what cool ; so the time hero named is their 
natural period for flowering. They should be 
plauted about the middle of May, (5, The 25th 
of June. Six inches, If the corma are large 
and the soil, light i less iu proportion as the 
soil inclines to heaviness and the eoruis or bulbs 
are smaller. 7, Shakspeare, Princess Alice, 
Addison, Newton, Bonveuuto, Mary Stewart. 
Stella, Reine Blanche, Charles Dickens, Plicdre, 
Mad. Desportes, Rosea Perfect a. 
Apple I'omuce. 
S. L>., Galesburg, Mioh., a6ks, 1, what is the 
value of apple pomace as a fertilizer, and what 
is the best way of preparing it for that purpose; 
2, would it be practical to save it in silos for 
stock feed in winter; 3, whore can the best aud 
cheapest root-cutter be obtained. 
Ans.—A pple pomace is of very little value as 
a fertilizer; if used for that purpose, it would 
be best prepared by composting it with lime to 
neutralize 'he acid contained iu it, aud to 
hastcu decomposition, for while fresh, it would 
do more harm to vegetation than good. It may 
he very easily preserved iu barrels, casks or 
boxes, by packiug it down tightly, and is eaten 
eagerly in moderate quantities by horses, cat¬ 
tle, sheep and pigs, and R is undoubtedly a 
wholesome food for them unless given iu excess. 
One peek at a feed lias been given with boucfU 
to dairy cows, aud a bushel or two would bo a 
proper quantity for 40 or 50 Bheep. 'When kept 
In clean flour barrels, or crockery or sugar 
hogsheads, it will remain good during the 
whole winter. Or, it may be pitted just as 
roots are, which is, in fact, ensilage, 
Compensation for Service of Bulls. 
T. B. L., Camden, S. C., ask6 for precise 
information with regard to the rnle6 governing 
the stud service of bulls. A party engaged to 
secure him a calf for a specified sum; after 
the first leap of the bull, application was made 
for the sum agreed upon; and our correspon¬ 
dent inquires whether the debt was then due. 
Ans.— The services of stud animals, whether 
horses or bulls, are generally insured, aud if 
they fail, they are repeated without extra 
charge, hut the money is not returned. The 
custom is for the owner of the animal receiv¬ 
ing the service to pay on the performance; if 
necessary, the service is repeated until effec¬ 
tive. Iu the above case, the owner of the bull 
was right in requiring payment at the time of 
service. The insurance consisted in repeating 
the service in case of failure. 
Hyssop. 
M. L. J)., Sherman, N. T. asks, how is 
hyssop cultivated, and for what is it chiefly 
used; 2. is the plant now cultivated the same 
as that of which we read in the Scriptures f 
Ans. —IIys6op is a hardy perennial herb 
from 18 inches to two feet high. Sow the seed 
in the spring and set the youDg plants in rows 
a foot and a half apart. It is used in medi¬ 
cine as a gentle stimulaut. It promotes ex¬ 
pectoration of the mucus aud is used as a 
remedy for chronic catarrh. 2. The hyssop 
of the Scriptures is the caper tree—(Japparis 
spiuosa. It grows abundantly iu the coun¬ 
tries around the Mediterranean Sea. 
Grafting Wax. 
C. T., Millers oilte, Ohio, who inquired about 
grafting wax in our last issue, is hereby in¬ 
formed by L. A. R. that the following article 
cannot be beaten: Resin one pound; tallow 
two ounces. Melt together aud add one table- 
spoonful of turpentine and twe ounces of alco¬ 
hol well mixed, aud the wax is ready for use. 
Miiicellnneoii*. 
J. L. V., WiUcsbarre, Pa., asks where he 
cau get dynamite cartridges suitable for blow¬ 
ing up stumps, and where they are manu¬ 
factured. 
Ans. —Dyuainite cartridges cau be got from 
Varney aud Doc, 61 Park Place this city. One 
of the most extensive manufacturers of them 
is the Atlantic Giaut Powder Co., located here 
also. As a rule it w ould be better to procure 
them through 6ome local dealer iu gun-pow¬ 
der aud other explosives. 
Mrs. F. T., Maine-, Broome Co., N. Y., asks 
where can she get an instrument for removing 
obstructions from a cow’s teat, such as that re¬ 
ferred to in Querist Department in our issue 
of the 3d inst. 
Ans. —Frora Whitman & Burrell. Little Falls, 
N. Y., or The Dairy Supply Co. of this city. 
Communications received for the week ending 
Saturday, May 10. 
\V. J. F.—J. b.-T. E. W.—A. L. J.—M. G. R.— 
Thanks.-M. L. D.-J. M. S—I. P. R.-E. 1). S.-G. 
G.. Jr,—W. J. B.—Frizzle Top.-\V. I. C-—C. D.- 
C. F—J. B. K.-M. L. W.-L. J. A—E. 8.—M. A. 
B.-S. C.-Mrs. F. M.—J. J. T.—D. W. C.-N. W. 
B. —C. F.—F. G.—Jenny Joy.—Clover Blossom.— 
Bob Steele,—T. H. R.—W. S. N.—F. C. K.—C. M.— 
C, II. It.—M. B.-Thanks.—R. N.—L. J. T.—Mrs. B. 
C. D.-L. U. R.—C. R. B.—T. H. O.-X.—L. R. M.— 
W. H. T.—A. J. B. 
(film'll tubm. 
to 6 
RURAL SPECIAL REPORTS. 
Kansas, La Cygue, Linn Co., May 4.—A 
mistake is frequently made by those coming 
West, in supposing that the more uneivilizod a 
location is, and the more remote from places 
of habitation, the better it is for a newcomer. 
Such is not the case. It is not necessary for 
immigrants to “rough it,” to secure success. 
The point that I wish to make is this: that to 
secure good land, cheap land, well timbered 
and abundantly watered land, it is not neces¬ 
sary to push West iu this State. As an instauce 
of the folly of going to the extreme of Horace. 
Greeley's advice, let me give the following: a 
party of some hundred came out to Kansas 
last spring, were dropped off the cars at their 
destination in the West and found themselves 
miles away from supplies of any kind. Not 
being particularly anxious to starve, they were 
compelled to stop a freight train on its way 
to Denver and take possession of several bar¬ 
rels of flour. The trouble with them was, they 
were not content with coming West, but had 
to go “ Wester.” It is a tact, that a great ma¬ 
jority of those wbo go so far West, return to a 
more easterly point. 
The county of Linn, where I live, is in the 
southeastern part of the State. It. is considered 
one of the most productive counties iu Kansas, 
aud is one of the oldest BCttled. Iu the times 
of the Kansas troubles, it attained considerable 
historical interest, it being a border count}' 
and consequently easy of access for the Mis¬ 
souri raiders, who overran it perhaps more 
than any other county in the State. The county 
is remarkably well w atered by the Marais DeB 
Cygne6 River and its tributary creeks which 
form many bells of rich, valuable and varied 
timber. In nearly all parts water is reached 
with very little labor, aud it has to be au unu¬ 
sually dry season for the wells to fail. All the 
staple crops can be, and arc raised, aud the 
average will compare favorably with that of 
any part of this immensely productive coun¬ 
try One peculiarity about this section is 
worthy of uote: there arc varieties of soil here 
precisely adapted to the successful growth of 
every kind of fruit, largo and small, early and 
late. I have seen the finest small fruits here, 
that I ever gazed upon, and Linn county can 
to-day boast of some of the handsomest apple 
and peach orchards. A significant fact under 
this head is that the earliest Poach there is, 
and a groat beauty at that, originated in this 
county. It is called “ Brice’s Early June," 
ripened June 5th last year, aud was originated 
by Dr. Brice of Mound City, the county-seat of 
Linu. 
In addition to the county-seat, there are two 
thriving business and live towns; La Cygnc 
aud Pleasanton, where are 6torcs which would 
do credit in their variety aud abundance of 
stock, as well as in their mode of conducting 
business, to any city, East or West. At the 
point I write from, La Cygnc, we are about 
sixty miles distant from Kausas City, the great 
center for Western trude and produce, aud 
you will thus see that iu this respect, we have 
au immense advantage over (hose who have 
pushed so far West. d. w. c. 
Missouri, Kingston Furnace, May 6.—Hogs 
have been so low the past winter that corn can 
no longer be raised eveu in the West at a figure 
at w'hich it can be profitably fed to them. The 
Granger consequently is iu trouble. He wishes 
to raise hogs, for they are easily raised, and 
their number aud weight are quickly increased 
or decreased, and then they are usually turned 
into cash at just that period of the year wheu 
tho proceeds will enable tbe producer to pay 
his taxes and buy the Christmas presents for 
his family. The necessity now is to find some 
food for hogs cheaper than corn. For one, I 
think I have found that food in alfalfa. In¬ 
stead of cutting it two or three times during 
the year for soiling, as the Rural stated it could 
be done, I cut it four times last year for hay, 
aud could easily have cut a fifth hay crop; for 
I pastured it. for 60 days after the fourth cut¬ 
ting. For soiling purposes I could have cut it 
to advantage every two weeks from April 15 to 
Dec. 1. I expect to cm each morning what I 
6hall feed the next day or next day but one, 
according as it sours. Run it through a cut¬ 
ting box as soon as mown; sprinkle it with 
meal or bran ; heap it up to sour and feed it 
three times a day. It has been the regular 
practice to do this in Germany for many years 
iu a climate as cold as Wisconsin. It we cau- 
not observe and learn something from our 
neighbors, wo ought to emigrate to China, 
where the practices of forefathers are sacred 
to their descendants for untold generations; 
but iu these days of change the example of the 
rapid improvement of the Japanese just across 
tho channel, might in time force a change for 
the better even there. N. w\ B. 
Ohio, Milicrsvilie, Sandusky Co., May 3.— 
Although the weather is a little too dry for 
oat6, yel a6 a rule the crop is np nicely. Prices 
of all kinds of graiu are low. Clover seed, per 
buBh., $3 50; wheat, per bush., SI; corn, 
shelled, 32c.; corn, in the car, 30c.; oats, 20c. 
Butter makers will not get very rich at the 
prices, from 6c. to 12c. per pound. Eggs, per 
doz., 9c.; wool, per pound, 25e. to 30c.; hogs, 
dressed. $8. Grass is up so as to furnish a liv¬ 
ing for the stock- The farmers arc bus}' plow¬ 
ing for corn, and if it does not rain there will 
bo considerable corn planted by the 10th of 
this mouth, which is early enough for this part, 
of (he country. Wheat looks splendid and it 
will well repay the fanners for their extra care 
last fall in cultivating the ground better and 
giving outlets to their ditches. Clawson is 
taking the lead here uow'. Pringle’s 6priug 
wheat i6 up three or fourinches and looks well. 
Potatoes are up also, but have to be covered 
up every night to keep them from freezing. I 
planted my tomato seeds a month ago iu boxes, 
and now- by tho time that we could have sowed 
the seeds out of doors, I shall have strong, 
healthy plants instead. Father and I have 
been trying a few experiments this sprlDg with 
potatoes. The variety is the Extra Early Ver¬ 
mont. To two rows we applied a handful of 
brau to the hill, as a writer in an agricultural 
paper had said that by this means he had in¬ 
creased his potato crop by one half. To the 
next two rows we applied leached ashes. Then 
we planted two more rows, putting half a pint 
of hen manure in each hill. Later on I will 
give the result of our experiment, if the Rural 
wishes. 0. F. 
[We are ahvays pleased to obtain any infor¬ 
mation likely to benefit or interest our friends. 
—Eds.J 
New York, Elmira, May 4. Our spring 
maintains its backward position, though the 
weather has been more favorable tho past 
week- Tbo period of “ full bloom” will bo at 
