THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
AUi. 23 
are Buffering accordingly. The squares on our 
cotton are dropping off as fast as they arc 
formed. Even if the cotton worm docs not 
come, we shall only make half a crop. The 
weather is cooler than last month, making it 
pleasanter for fodder pulling, which is now in 
progress. My second plantiug of ‘‘Blount's 
Prolific” is a sad failure, owing to the drought. 
o. G. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS 
Copyright. 
J. II., Olathe, Kan., asks for some information 
on the subject of copyright. 
Ans. —Copyright is a right conferred by law 
upon an author or his representative to the 
exclusive sale or use of his intellectual pro¬ 
ductions. It is only within comparatively re¬ 
cent times that the result of a man’s intellectual 
labors have been regarded as his property; the 
term having been previously applied solely to 
material objects. The first copyright act iu 
England, which secured to authors the right of 
property in iheir works, was passed iu Queen 
Anne’s reigu, in 17011. In this country laws 
wero passed by Connecticut and Massachusetts, 
in!783, Jjecaringtoautkors for specified periods, 
the exclusive property iu their literary pro¬ 
ductions, and prescribing penalties for its vio¬ 
lation. Similar laws were passed by Virginia in 
1785, by New York in 178(1 and by other States 
prior to the adoption of the Federal Constitu¬ 
tion in 1780. At present the authority over 
the whole subject rests in Congress. The first 
law on the matter passed by that body was in 
1790. The Act then passed was amended or 
altered in 1802, 1831,1850 and 1805. All statutes 
relating to copyright, however, were repealed 
by the general law of 1870, which, with an 
amendment passed in 1874, regulates the en¬ 
tire subject. The laws now iu force grant to 
any citizen or resident in the United States, 
who shall be the author, invoutor, designer, or 
proprietor of any book, map, chart, dramatic 
or musical composition, engraving, cut, print, 
or photograph or ucgatiye thereof, or of a 
painting, drawing, chromo, statue, or statuary, 
or of models or designs intended to be per¬ 
fected as works of flue art, the right to secure 
a copyright for 28 years from the time of re¬ 
cording the title. They also gave the right 
to a reuewal for himself, widow, or children 
for 14 years more, and authors may reserve 
the right to dramatize aud translate their own 
works. Iu order to secure a copyright every 
applicant is required to perform three acts :— 
1st, before publication, to trausuiit to the 
librarian of Congress at Washington a printed 
copy of the title of the book or other article, 
or a description of the paiuting, etc.; 2d, within 
ten days uller publication to send to the same 
office two copies of the book, etc., or, in case of 
a painting, etc., a photograph must be seut. 3d. 
Notice lor entry for copyright by the libra¬ 
rian must be 6tated in each book, or on each 
other article, and a failure to do this will pre¬ 
clude any action for infringement, while the 
publication of entry not actually made subjects 
the party to a penalty of $100. Two copies ot 
any new edition must be also sent to the 
librarian uuder a peualty of $33 for failing to 
do bo. The lee for securing a copyright is 50 
cents, to be paid to the librarian for recording 
the title, aud a copy of such record can be ob¬ 
tained for another half dollar. The librarian 
also receives 81 for recording aud certifying 
any assignment, and $1 for every copy of an as¬ 
signment furnished. It is also essential that 
the work should be original aud first published 
iu the United States, but a contemporaneous 
publication abroad will not prejudice the 
author’s rights. The penalty for infringement 
of tire copyright of a work is a forfeiture of 
every copy of the work printed, imported, 
etc., and the paymeut of such damages as may 
be recovered iu a civil action. In the case of 
maps, eugraviugs, etc., there is a forfeiture of 
the plates, sheets, etc., aud $1 for every 6heet 
in possession of the guilty party. Ornamental 
aud useful designs come within the scope of 
the patent laws, A brief article on a single 
sheet may be copyrighted as a book. Ency¬ 
clopedias, magazines, reviews and periodicals 
are protected tho Bamo as books. In practice 
newspapers arc not copyrighted, but either the 
entire newspaper or any article in it may 
be copyrighted iu the usual way. Extracts 
made from copyrighted books or periodicals 
duly credited, are always held to be legitimate 
exceptions to pirating. The laws of this 
country recognize no international copyright. 
No immoral publication can be protected by 
copyright. By the term a “ resident ” iu this 
country, it, meant a person who, at the time of 
securing a copyright, honestly intended to be¬ 
come a citizen of the United States. Should 
the bona-fide nature of the inteution be legally 
questioned, the matter must be decided by the 
verdict of a jury. 
• be .Most Instructive Reading for a Farmer. 
T. 1). B., Greenville, Ky., has about 10 
acreafcff poor land on a railroad where manure 
can be bought for two dollars per two-horse 
load, delivered; he is hard-pressed on account 
of having been crippled by rheumatism for a 
number of years, and ho asks what works on 
gardening and manures would it be advisable 
for him to buy, if he can manage to save the 
price of them. 
Ans. —We would be very glad to aid this 
persou or all such persons. Well-to-do or 
wealthy farmers or gardeners really stand 
less iu need of trustworthy advice than those 
who, like our friend, arc obliged to struggle 
hard for life’s needs. Wealthy people can af¬ 
ford to try experiments aud to make mistakes. 
But poor people are discouraged and crippled 
by failures. Tbero is no one book that will 
give him all desired information. Having but 
a few dollars to invest in tiiis way, we advise 
him to read the best agricultural and horti¬ 
cultural papers of the day rather than books 
which record the best methods of the past. 
Such papers record all important failures and 
successes of the current season; they tell what 
seeds aud plants arc improvements over older 
sorts—so that volumes foi the year are really 
the most complete compendium of general in¬ 
formation that can be procured. We would 
guard our questioner uguiust investing in new 
plants or 6eeds. These are sold at high prices 
aud are too often praised by agricultural 
papers far beyond their merits. But there 
arc hundreds to test 6uch novelties, the result 
of which is that the good and worthless are in 
course of a season or so easily determined. 
This is the main object of the Rural’s Experi¬ 
ment Grounds. We purchase or have sent 
to us all new plants of any promise and test 
them. Then wo report as to their real worth 
without the least regard to the interests of Hie 
introducers. But all the books aud periodiiWs 
published will not make poor land rich. Our 
friend must use manure if ho would raise pay¬ 
ing crops. 
Learning Telegraphy at Home. 
II. 8., Ashland, N. 1”.—being anxious to 
learn telegraphy aud unable to attend a place 
where it is taught, asks whether it can be learnt 
at home. 
Ans. —Telegraphy can be learned at home 
provided one can receive instruction of a skill¬ 
ed operator, othorwi6e not—at auy rate, not 
well enough to enable one to take charge of a 
wire. There are two things to be learnt in 
telegraphy : to send a message and to receive 
one. In sending a message the hand is the 
main agent, but to receive it the ear alone is 
employed, as nearly all instruments now in 
use record the message by sound and not by 
marks on paper. The alphabet, consisting of 
dots and dashes, Is delivered by the instrument 
as a succession of more or less rapid taps, aud 
to lcaru to distinguish the letters by these 
sounds, the learner must listen to them from a 
skilled operator iu order to get them correct¬ 
ly. It also requires a fine car. None but 
those who have a good ear for music should at¬ 
tempt to learn telegraphy. When the alpha¬ 
bet is once learned one can practice at home. 
But to do even this to any advantage, there 
must be two persons interested in the matter, 
each having an instrument and a battery set 
up in different parts of the house and the two 
connected with a wire. Thus equipped, aud 
with the necessary primary instruction, there 
is no objection to pursuing the study at home. 
Our correspondent can obtain all required in¬ 
formation from Smith’s Manual of Telegraphy, 
which cau be had through this office or by ad¬ 
dressing L. G. Tillitson «fc Co., Nos. 5 aud 7 
Dye 8t., N. Y., price 80 cents. Two instru¬ 
ments aud two batteries will cost $y, and will 
be furnished by the same firm. 
Treatment of Blood Warts, etc. 
IU. M. 8., Jordan, AT. I', has a two-year-old 
mule that has two blood warts, one of which 
has grown to he quite a tumor, aud, 1, he asks 
what will remove them without injuring the 
mule; 2, he also wants to know what ails a 
horse that pants a great deal and does not 
sweat on a hot day. 
Ans. —1, A blood wart may be a daugerous 
thing to meddle with. If it Is an aneurism, or 
dilatation of an artery, nothing but compres¬ 
sion should be used, unless astringent washes, 
such as infusion of oak bark, or gulls, or solu¬ 
tion of sugar of lead, be used to encourage the 
effect of tho compress. As it is not stated in 
what part of the body the so-called warts exist, 
particular instructions cannot be given. If the 
warts are simply bleeding warts of the ordi¬ 
nary kind, caustic applications, such as solu¬ 
tion of nitrate of silver (30 grains to the ounce 
of water) or a stronger solution of sulphate of 
copper, or even hydrochloric acid reduced 
one-half with soft water, may be applied to 
surfaces. 2, The difficulty of breathing may 
bo caused by disease of the heart, iu which 
ease no treatment can be indicated. If it re¬ 
sults from an abuormal condition of the skin, 
sudorifica should be given—for instance, four 
ouuees of sulphur daily: or two ounces of 
sweet spirits of niter; or one ounce of acetate 
of potassa, either being given daily and con¬ 
tinued lor 10 days or longer, or until the skiu 
acts. The skiu should be well brushed three 
times a day; this will gpeatiy help to restore 
activity in it. 
Planting Strawberries, 
E. A. C., Steuben Co., N. J., desires to know 
(1) when is the best time to set out Strawber¬ 
ries, spring or fall, (2) what are the best vari¬ 
eties to try, (3) the price, (4) how to plant, etc. 
Ans. —All things considered, spring is the 
best time ; bnt if pot grown berries be planted 
from now until the middle of September, a fair 
crop may be anticipated for next summer; a 
good deal, however, depends upon whether 
they are properly grown iu pots. Unless the 
soil adheres, very little is gained by setting 
“pot-grown” plants. 2. Charles Downing, 
Triumph of Cumberland, Sbarplcss, Cham¬ 
pion, Kentucky (for late), Prouty's Seedling. 
3. From 50 to 75 cents per dozen. 4. Dig the 
6oil a foot in depth, and work in any well- 
rotted manure at haud; bone flour ami ashes 
are good. Set the plants one foot apart iu 
rows, the rows 18 iuches apart. This for gar¬ 
den culture. We would take this occasion to 
say that the establishments which advertise 
Small fruits iu our advertising columns, fur¬ 
nish catalogues which give all instructions in 
detail- These details we have published over 
and over again, so that it is not desirable to 
repeat them whenever inquiries are made. 
The catalogues or pamphlets will be mailed 
free to all applicants. 
Potash from Wood Ashes, 
G. 8.1)., LeSe nr, Minn., intending to make 
potash from wood ashes, asks how much will 
two iron kettles cost, capable of holding two 
barrels each; how many pounds of potash 
will 100 barrels of hard-wood ashes yield ; 
what is the present price of potash, by the 
barrel, iu New York. 
Ans. —Cast-iron kettles can be procured for 
about three cents per pound. A 70-gallon ket¬ 
tle for boiliug potash Should weigh about 600 
or 700 pounds. The yield of the ashes depends 
altogether upon the kinds of wood, and also 
upon the soil on which tho timber grew. Elm 
from rocky land yields the latest proportion 
of potash of auy wood; but swamp elm gives 
no more potash than some pine. Bird’s-eyo 
maple or yellow birch from rocky land, with 
elm intermingled, might yield from one to two 
barrels of potash to tho 100 barrels of ash. If 
the timber is mainlj’ oak, beech, soft maple, 
white birch, or such as grows on low vegeta¬ 
ble soil, the yield of potash will be very fight, 
perhaps not half a barrel to the hundred bar¬ 
rels of ashes. It all depends on the timber. 
Crude potash is worth in the New York mar¬ 
ket 7) cents a pound. 
Points of Light Brahmas. 
F. M. C-, Kiddville, Mich., asks what are 
the points of Light. Brahmas, as regards plu¬ 
mage. 
Ans. —The points are briefly these : The 
feathers are prevailingly white, except those 
of the tail and the flight feathers at the extrem¬ 
ities of the wiDgs. Tho hackle, or feathers of 
the neck, are each tipped with black, forming 
a sort of arrow-head penciling, which should 
be very bright aud clear. The exterior of the 
“ fluff,” or the downy feather# which cover 
much of tho body, must bo pure white, but 
within it may he smoky. The yellow legs 
must bo feathered to the toes, that is t® the end 
of the outside, aud, if possible, of the middle 
toes. The feathers need not be perfectly white, 
but no other colored feathers but white and 
black (or gray on the legs) are admissible. 
Yellow on the cock is bad, aud brown or gray 
on the back, or dark feathes# anywhere, except 
where stated, are inadmissible in show coops. 
Miscellaneous. 
M. M. D., West Newton, Pa., sends a plant 
found on his pasture field, the like of which 
he never saw before, and asks its name. 
Ans. —Leucanthemum vulgar©—Daisey, Ox- 
eye Daisy, White-weed. It is rather singular 
that our inquirer has never noticed this weed 
before. It is a pest all over the oouutry, and 
it is not uncommon iu June and July to see 
fields quite white with its flowers. It is a per¬ 
ennial herb. Each flower bear# a great num¬ 
ber of seeds (Akenos), hence its rapid spread. 
It is a uative of Europe. A very effectual 
method of getting rid of it is by plowing about 
the 1st of July. Most of the flowers are then 
blooming. These are turned under before tho 
seeds are ripe, while the roots are killed by 
exposure to the hot sun. Treated hi this way, 
as a fallow manure they are also of some 
value. The laud may thou be sown to turnips 
or buckwheat, or kept bare until September 
and then prepared for wheal. 
F. Freedom, Pa., asks, 1st, what is the 
prospect for prices of apples this year? 2nd, 
whether the Fallawatcr is a good, reliable 
apple as far as its keeping qualities are con¬ 
cerned? It 6 c11b well in Pittsburg, in spring. 
Ans.—A s indicated by our Special Reports, 
throughout tho season, thu apple crop will, in 
tiie aggregate, be considerably short this year; 
but hem and there the yield is reported to be 
abuudaut. The prospect is, therefore, that 
prices, ou the whole, will be higher than last 
year, though iu some places the supply being 
large, the prices will be low. Au excellent way 
to ascertain the outlook for any crop, is to 
study the reports from different parts of the 
country a6 they appear weekly in our columns. 
2d. The Fallawater is essentially a market 
apple, having little to recommend it but its 
size, appearance and productiveness. It is a 
native of Pennsylvania, where it is a great 
favorite. Its keeping qualities are good; its 
season November and December, according to 
Warder; November to February, according to 
Downing. 
B. O. Aikin . S. C., asks how long do mosqui¬ 
tos live, and whether it is true that one kind 
bites in the day time only and another at night. 
Ans,— It takes about three weeks from the 
time when the egg is deposited by the female 
until the perfect insect is developed, and then 
tho latter's life is but of short duration, seldom 
lasting more, than a couple of weeks at the out¬ 
side, and often only as many days. A large 
mosquito, however, with two light spots on 
each wing, which is abundant and bites very 
fiercely in spring, is supposed to hibernate iu 
houses. Some specks are active by day, and 
others by night, while some are busy at either 
time. The day blood-suckers are found prin¬ 
cipally in maishes and damp woods and rarely 
in houses, and are of more brilliant colors than 
the nocturnal species. The female alone bites, 
the male passing a harmless life among flowers 
or in the woods aud marshes, and dying early. 
M. A. C., Attica., Mich., sends us samples of 
five sorts of winter wheat grown by him, 
namely: Imported Hungarian Amber, Gold 
Medal. Diehl, Clawson and Michigan Wick, and 
asks what we think of them. 
Ans. —We do not know anything about Hun¬ 
garian Amber. The others are excellent sorts, 
Clawson on the generality of soils, will yield 
the heaviest crops. “ Wick ” will make the 
best flour, judging from that raised at the 
Rural Farm. In fact, wo have never raised a 
wheat that makes handsomer bread. Why call 
this “Michigan?” We would be glad to get 
the history of Wick, or, as it is sometimes 
written “ Wycke.” 
II. R. C., Perry, III., asks whether a bushel 
of barley is worth as much for feed as one of 
corn. 
Ans.—A bushel of barley is only 48 pounds, 
and is generally short of that weight; while a 
bushel of corn is 56 in nearly all the States, 
and generally overruns, so that it would re¬ 
quire seven bushels of barley to equal in weight 
six bushels of corn. We do not know of any 
experiments as to the relative nutritive value 
of the two grains. A little barley meal mixed 
with corn meal for pigs, is, however, thought 
by many farmers to make more and better pork 
than corn alone. 
n. J. B., Amsterdam, N. Y., asks, where can 
he get roots of the Cuthbert Raspberry. With 
him the Acme tomato has ripened before the 
Golden Rural. 
An 3.—Our friend is requested to wait two or 
three weeks. The reason for this request will 
then bo apparent. We are glad to receive re¬ 
ports alike whether favorable or unfavorable 
to the seeds we have distributed. We desire to 
disseminate only Improved varieties. We have 
pulled, up to this date, 10 Golden Rurals to one 
Acme. 
TV. H., Webb's Ford, N. C., asks how many 
pounds in a bushel of shelled corn. 
Ans.—I n New \ r ork 58 pounds are a bush¬ 
el of shelled corn; in California aud Nevada, 
52 pounds ; iu all the other States, 56 pounds; 
in Canada and Euglaud, 60 pounds. Iu a large 
part of New York, however, where farmers 
sell coru by the bushel, custom demands 60 
pounds. 
L. G. TV., Fan Suren, Ark., referring to the 
variety of Doura described in “ Notes from tho 
Rural Farm,” iu our issue of August 2d, asks, 
what variety is It that tillers so remarkably, 
and, when cut off, at once continues to grow as 
if it suffered no cheek iu consequence. 
Ans.— Sorghum cernuum. We shall give 
notes of our tests as soou as the crop matures. 
J. P., RaysviUe, Ind., seuds us a note dated 
August 1, but posi-marked August 5, asking 
whether he is too late iu enrolling himself 
among the competitors for the corn premiums. 
Ans.—W e regret to say that Aug. 1, was tho 
limit to the entries. 
F. H. I)., Corning, N. Y., sends leaves of a 
vine for name. 
Ans. —As well as wo can tell from a leaf only, 
this is Amphicarpiea monoiea—Pea vine—Hog 
Peanut. Please send us a flower and leaf. 
Communications received for the week ending 
Saturday, Aug. 16th, 
H. L. W., Thanks.—W. I. C.-J. R. K.-J. S.— 
L. R.—H. 8.—A. A. B.—E. W.—C. W. G.—N. S.— 
W. 13. D.—C. 31. C.-E. W.B.-W. C. G.—It. B. B.— 
E. E. B. 8.- E. G., Thanks.—J. 31. B.—J. K.—T. T. 
M—M. N. B.—A. C. II.-G. G.-J. L. G—W. C. 
B., Thanks.—D. S. M.—V. J. E.—J. B.—C. T.—A. 
W. M.-W. C. L.—T. H. E.-C. M. NY.—31. 31. W.— 
A. L. J.-Wm. N'.. Thanks.—A. W.—H. O. W.—W. 
K. W.-L. S. N.-L. B.—S. H.-F. A. G.—31. H. T. 
J. A. Van V.—31. E. W.—M. 31.—B. O.—S. A. 31.— 
W. F.—F. N. C.—L. A. B.—A. E. B.—H. E. S.—S. L. 
T. B. B.-W. L. O.-R. H. N--J. M. K.-T. H. 
