«* 
THE RURAL. NEW-YORKER 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
Pekin Ducks;—Mange in Animals, etc. 
A. L., Atlanta, Ohio, asks a description of the 
Pekin duck; 2, a cure for mange in domestic 
animals; 3, how to procure the last report of 
the Signal Service Oflicer. 
Ans. 1. —The Pekin ducks were first exhib¬ 
ited in this Country at Hartford in 1873, having 
been first imported a year or two earlier from 
China, as their name suggests. They are larger 
in appearance than Aylesbury or Rouen, but 
seldom weigh more, as their fluffy feathering 
exaggerates the real size of their bodies. 
Their eggs are slightly larger than the Ayles¬ 
bury's and they average more white-shelled 
eggs. The body of the Pekin duck is well 
down behind, the legs being carried back 
further than those of other domesticated vari¬ 
eties, while their tails rise almost vertically. 
The position of the hinder-part of the body 
naturally makes the biijd carry its head 
high, makiug its neck apparently unusually 
long. The head is not quite as flat as the 
Aylesbury's, while they resemble each other iu 
color, being almost pure white, although the 
Pekin shows a creamy, yellowish shade on its 
under feathering. The hill is of a bright orange 
color; the legs a shade deeper, almost a bright 
red. The weight of an ordinary adult bird 
should be six or 6eveu pounds, but those ex¬ 
hibited at poultry shows arc often much larger. 
3- Mange or itch in the lower animals is 
always due to the presence of parasitic insects, 
which live in or upon the skin, finding their 
food in the watery or yellowish discharge which 
their bites cause to flow. They arc of several 
kinds, and hardly ever visible to the naked eye. 
The disease they produce is iu all eases ex¬ 
ceedingly contagious, being spread by healthy 
animals touching affected ones; by the nntes 
finding lodgment in the surroundings of dis¬ 
eased animaU and being thence transferred to 
sound ones, and sometimes by the insects 
being carried through the air from mangy 
to clean animals. In all its forma the disease 
is characterized by itching of the skin, and loss 
of hair ou the affected parts, which become 
covered with scabs. The treatment varies 
somewhat with the kind of animal affected. 
For the horse an efficacious remedy, in mild 
cases, is sulphur, 6 oz.; sperm or train oil, 1 
pint; spirits of turpentine, 8 oz.; mix and rub 
well into the skin with a flannel every third 
day for three or four weeks; in severe cases, 
take of compound sulphur ointment, 8 oz.; 
train or sperm oil, 1 pint; spirits of turpentine, 
3 oz.; mix and use as above. In all cases the 
affected parts should be thoroughly washed in 
warm water and the scabs broken and removed 
before the application of the remedy The 
diseased horse should also be separated from 
the others. The blankets should be destroyed, 
and every piece of harness, curry-comb, brush 
and other utensil that has touched the affected 
animal, as well as the manger, and all the sur¬ 
roundings should be thoroughly washed with 
carbolic soap, and, when dry, saturated with 
spirits of turpentine. Occasionally the dis¬ 
ease appears in ill-cared-for cattle on the face, 
head and neck. In such cases rub well into 
the affected parts an ointment made by mixing 
elecampaue root, 2 oz.; sulphur vivum, pow¬ 
dered, 2 oz. For mange in pigs use promptly 
carbolic acid diluted one drop tuten of water; 
petroleum or a strong decoction of tobacco. 
Mange in sheep takes the name of “ scab,” and 
is the worst disease that can affect them. The 
affected animals may be treated by giving each 
of them half an ounce of sulphur and one 
drachm of cream-of-tartar daily for two weeks. 
The scabs should be soaked in warm water, 
broken up and removed. Then the affected 
parts should lie dressed with a mixture of one 
quart of pine tar, one quart of raw linseed oil, 
and one ounce of creosote, well rubbed in. A 
flock really attacked by scab should be got rid 
of, as to cure the disease would cost more than 
tkeaheepai e worth- For mange in dogs use: oil 
of tar, one ounce; sulphur, one ounce; com¬ 
mon oil, one pint; allow the mixture to stand 
in the sun or near the fire for some time and 
frequently shake it. There is a multitude of 
other recipes for the malady in each class of 
animals, but many of them aro poisonous and 
therefore dangerous. The above may be em¬ 
ployed with safety, and are as efficacious as 
any others. 3. Apply to the member of Con¬ 
gress for your district for all government pub¬ 
lications, except for those issued from the De¬ 
partment of Agriculture. Gen. Lc Due has lately 
adopted tlm excellent rule of distributing 
directly from Washington all the publications 
from his Department. 
Hoop Pole Fanning, 
C. P. B., EdwardsoiUe, III., wants to plant 
about four acres of hickory nuts for hoop 
poles, and he asks if we think it would pay in 
connection with a general fruit farm. When 
should the nuts be planted, and what kinds will 
make the quickest growth and the best poles ? 
Kkb .—Plant the nuts 60 on after they are ripe 
this fall; if this cannot be done, keep them in 
moist sand during the winter and plant them 
early next spring. The rows should be far 
enough apart to admit of using a horse culti¬ 
vator, and the nuts should be about two iuebes 
apart in the rows and covered two inches deep 
with soil- Next fall dig the young plants up 
and shorten the tap-root to about half its ori¬ 
ginal length, then heel-in the plants in a dry 
place in the open ground and let them remain 
till spring. As early as the ground can be 
worked, set the plants iu rows six feet apart 
and about eighteen inches apart in the row. At 
this distance about nineteen or twenty thousand 
plants will be needed for the four acres. From 
this time forward but little attention is requir¬ 
ed, except culture and occasional pruning to 
make the plants grow straight and with but 
few side branches. As to varieties, the Shell- 
bark—Carya alba—is the most common, and 
nuts from it can perhaps be more easily obtained 
than from the other species. The Pig-nut—C. 
porciua—has a very tough wood, and is pre¬ 
ferred by many artisans to other kinds. The 
Mocker-nut—C, tomentosa—is also good. The 
latter prefers a light rich soil, the two former 
thrive on rather stiff and heavy lands. The 
Hickory is a slow grower for the first few years 
from the seed, but when it becomes well estab¬ 
lished, the growth is usually auite rapid. 
Whether the raisiug of hoop poles will pay 
better than to cultivate the land with some 
crops, we are not prepared to say. It will de¬ 
pend upon the character of the land, the cost 
of cultivation and the demands of the market. 
It should, however, be borne iu mind that the 
first crop of hoop poles is the most expensive, 
because less in number and longer iu coming to 
maturity. If the first cutting is properly done 
and at the right time of year, the stumps will 
throw up thrifty sprouts that will grow as 
large as the original stock in half the number 
, of years. The sccoud crop may be double that 
of the first, for each stock may be allowed to 
carry two or three stems. 
German-American Citizens and Gerninu Military 
Service. 
0. W., San Antonio, Texas, says that he left 
Germany' in 1872, at the age of 17, having ob¬ 
tained permission from the Government to 
travel iu this country until April, 1875, when 
he would have been old enough to appear be¬ 
fore the board of examiners who decide upon 
the fitness of young men to be enrolled in the 
army. Not wishing to return home at the ex¬ 
piration of tlie term mentioned in his permit 
to travel, lie settled iu this country and two 
years ago obtained u certificate of citizenship. 
Now the landrath of his native place iuforms 
him that he must pay $50 to secure exemption 
from military service iu case he returns to 
Germany, and he asks whether lie is now, being 
an American citizen, uuder any obligation to 
the German Government. 
Ans.—I n 1868 it was settled by a treaty be¬ 
tween the United States and the North Germau 
Union that if a citizen or subject was. after a 
residence of five years, naturalized in either 
country, he was to be deemed a citizeu of that 
country; that if he returned to the laud of his 
birth, lie could not be prosecuted for any crim¬ 
inal offence unless it was committed before his 
expatriation, and that by a residence of two 
years in the country to which he originally 
belonged, with no iutention of returning to 
the one of his adoption, he would be presumed 
to have renounced his naturalization there. 
The Prussian law, however, requires that, to 
lose the quality of a citizen of that country, it 
is necessary that the person who desires ex¬ 
patriation should, at his own request, receive 
a discharge from the obligations of citizenship 
—and this is not granted to males between the 
ages of 17 aud 25 years without a military cer¬ 
tificate that the application is not made to 
avoid the performance of military duty. This 
proviso of tlie Prussian Government seems 
now to be extended to the whole of the Ger¬ 
man Empire, or at any rate, to the smaller 
States more directly under Prussian influence. 
The matter is now causing some little difficulty 
between this country and Germany, but it is 
probable that the diplomatic correspondence 
which is at present being carried on with re¬ 
gard to the matter, will soon lead to a satisfac¬ 
tory settlement of the question. 
Remedy lor Garget. 
M. M. W.,—no address —asks what will cure 
garget In a cow’s bag. 
Ans.—I f the. evil is in its early stages, the 
simplest remedy is to put the calf with the 
oow, and let it suck and knock about I he udder 
as it pleases. Iu most cases this will relieve 
her from an excess of milk and disperse the 
lumps. II this fails, then if I he disease occurs, 
as iu this case, in hot weather, the udder 
should be well fomented with warm water 
three or four times a clay, after which it should 
be thoroughly dried and haml-rubbed. In 
order that the application of moisture may 
have the bc6t effect, it should be continuous 
for a considerable time. An excellent way to 
secure this end is to take an oil-cloth or India- 
rubber bag to fit the cow’s udder, or nearly so, 
coming up to the body, flaring at the top, aud 
held up by a strap passed over the animal’s 
back ; then fill this with soft water, say, of the 
temperature of 65 degrees. The water will 
gradually absorb the beat from the udder, 
and must be changed as often as it gets warm. 
Or, a cloth may be applied over the uddur and 
secured by bandages round the body, holes 
having been left for the teats. Tlie udder eau 
then be covered with wool or tow, which 
should be kept moist by renewed applications 
of water every hour. A moderate purge 
should also be administered, say, half a pound 
of Epsom salts, which may be beneficially fol¬ 
lowed up with two ounces of saltpeter in the 
water, morning and evening. Instead of this 
purge, however, an injection of about three 
pints of soft, blood-warm water, without any 
medication in it. is often preferable, asRniovcs 
the bowels without any irritation, dissolving 
the hard faeces and cooling off tlie intestines. 
If the first injection docs not operate in an 
hour or two, a second should be given, aud 
generally a repetition is beneficial in any event. 
The milk should be carefully drawn every four 
hours, and when the milking is attended with 
great pain, a siphon should he used. This 
treatment will usually prove successful in 
cases in which the disease can be cured with¬ 
out the aid of a skillful veterinary practitioner. 
If the disease has become so severe that his 
services are necessary, it is his business to pre¬ 
scribe the various medicines suitable for the 
different stages of the malady. 
Hair Ball in a Heifer'* Stomach. 
<S. E. H., Milton , Ivy., sends us a hair ball two 
inches in diameter, and weighing an ounce, 
taken after death from the stomach of a heifer, 
aud asks for some information as to the forma¬ 
tion of the Curiosity. 
Ans. —Such balls as this are peculiar to cattle 
and are found almost always either in the ru¬ 
men or first stomach or paunch, or, more rare¬ 
ly, in the abomasum or fourth stomach, which 
is the true digesting stomach. In the latter 
case the balls are composed exclusively of hair 
irregularly' matted aud held together by the 
mucus of the stomach. Those found iu the ru¬ 
men have generally a mixture of food or earthy 
matter iu their texture, and in the center 
a bit of nail, 6tone or wood; although some¬ 
times there is no distinct central body. They 
are generally round,but occasionally of various 
other forms and varying in weight from an 
ounce or two to six or seven pounds. Their 
presence where found is due to the babit 
which cattle and even very youug calves have 
of licking each other. A considerable quantity 
of hair is loosened by the rough tongue, the 
greater part of which is swallowed, aud tlie 
stomach seems gifted with the power of separ¬ 
ating this indigestible matter from the other 
substances it may contaiu. These hairs, which 
the stomach caniiot grind down, gradually ac¬ 
cumulate and form into hard masses often at a 
very early age of the animal. Generally 
various compounds of lime and silicious mat¬ 
ter can be detected iu the balls by chemical 
analysis, aud sometimes when the concretions 
are sawn asunder, the parts are so hard as to 
be capable of a considerable amount of polish. 
The effect these substances have upon the 
health of the animals is not yet clearly under¬ 
stood; but they are found oftener aud in 
greater numbers in ailiug than in healthy 
beasts. Whether they arc a cause or a conse¬ 
quence of impaired digestive powers, is some¬ 
what doubtful, but their presence in the 
stomach, often in considerable numbers, inii6t 
produce a sense of oppression and an impair¬ 
ment of appetite. 
Treatment of Asparagus, Etc. 
N. b'., Walnut, Crawford Co., Kan., has set 
out a bed of asparagus aud he would like to 
know, 1, how to treat the plants from now on ; 
2, what is the best way to keep onions during 
winter where there is no cellar in which to 
store them; 3, liis Millet headed out two weeks 
ago; when must it be cut for fodder; 4, how 
eau early potatoes best be kept from now until 
winter ; 5, he has just gathered a line crop of 
Concords, and he asks if any other variety of 
grapes would do well there. Hartford Prolific 
aud Isabella Lave been a failure with him. 
Ans —1. Asparagus should not be gat hered 
after the end of June. All shoots that may 
appear after that time should he allowed to 
grow, to strengthen the plants for next year. 
In the fall, when the tops have all turned yel¬ 
low, they should he cut off and removed, aud - 
a little later, the bed should be given a dress¬ 
ing of long-staple manure to remain on dur¬ 
ing .the winter. Near the end of March or 
in the beginning of April t ake off the longest 
straw and turn the rest, under with a digging 
fork, without injuring the roots. These should 
have four or five inches of soil over them. If I 
a thin dressing of guano is raked in just be- I 
fore the shoots appear, the crop will be much 
increased. A sprinkling of salt once a fortnight, 
as long as the plants are cut,will prove beneficial. 
2. Keep them frost-lice by covering them up 
with hay or straw on a barn floor, on a loft 
over a stable, or in a room. A few degrees of 
frost will do them no harm ; they should not 
have too warm a place. A temperature be¬ 
tween 30 and 40 degrees will be about right. 
3. Rightaway. 4. In a cool place in a barn. 
They can also be kept in a dry pit in the 
ground. 5. To experiment is the only safe 
■way of finding out what varieties of Grapes 
will succeed in a new locality. Whatever 
sorts prove successful in the neighborhood 
uuder similar conditions, would be likely to 
do well with our friend also. 
Growing Veiehes in Florida. 
I. S., Starke, Bradford Go., Fla., referring to 
a notice of the English vetch in a late issue of 
the Rurap, asks whether it would be likely to 
thrive in that locality in winter, as a green 
forage crop there at that season would lie a 
godsend; 2. where the seeds can be obtaiued? 
Ans.—H aving some doubts as to whether 
these vetches would do well eo far south, we 
consulted the Department of Agriculture at 
Washington on the subject, and Mr. E. A. Car¬ 
man, the acting Commissioner, has just written 
us that there is no doubt that the English vetch, 
both the spring aud winter varieties, will thrive 
iu winter In the latitude of Jacksonville, Fla., 
and no doubt somewhat farther to tlie south, too. 
Vetches arc not at all fastidious in regard to soil 
aud can be successfully cultivated iu a great 
variety of soils. There is no botanical differ¬ 
ence between the wiuter and spring sorts, and 
the seeds being identical in appearance, cau¬ 
tion is required in purchasing so as to get the 
right sort. The laud ou which the seed is 
sown should he dry and well sheltered, clean, 
aud in good heart, and should be further en¬ 
riched by plowing into it from 10 to 12 loads 
of farm-yard manure per acre. Not lees than 
3£ bushels of seed per acre should be sown, to 
which, iu England, some think it beneficial to 
add a bushel of wheat; but winter beaus are 
preferred to wheat by the best farmers. The 
land having been plowed rather deeply aud 
well harrowed, the seed is deposited in rows, 
either by a dpi 1 Hug-machine or by ribbing. The 
latter is considered %o best practice, aud the 
ribs should be at least a foot apart, aud rather 
deep that the roots may be developed before 
top-growth lakes place. 
Winter vetches are sown in Eugland in 
August, or as soon as the laud cau be cleared 
of the preceding crop, and as soon in spring 
as the state of the weather and laud will per¬ 
mit, the crop is hoed between the drills and 
top-dressed with, say, 40 bushels of soot or 
two hundredweights of guano per acre. The 
crop is ready for uscin May and June. Spring 
vetches sown there about the first of March 
are ready for use about the first of July, when 
winter vetches are just cleared off. Of this 
variety not less than four bushels of seed pur 
acre should be used, if sown broadcast, or 
three bushels if drilled iu. As vetches are in 
the best state for use wheu the seeds begin to 
form iu the pods, repeated sowings are made at 
intervals of about three weeks from the end of 
February until May. In the above locality ex¬ 
perience must determine the best time for sow¬ 
ing vetches, as the difference in climate be¬ 
tween that place and Great Britain will neces¬ 
sitate, no doubt, a considerable difference in 
this matter. 2. 8eed cau he procured from 
anv prominent seedsman, that of the English 
Grove Vetch being probably the best. 
The Junc-bug Anions Strawberries. 
A. S. H.. Elm Grove, W, Va., has a straw¬ 
berry patch in which he has found that a grub 
is destroying the ydauts. He contemplates 
setting out a large number of plants, but hesi¬ 
tates on account of the grub, and ho therefore 
asks if there is any means by which to exter¬ 
minate the pest without injuring the plants, 
Ans. —The grnb our friend mentions above 
is, in all probability, the larva of the June- 
bug or Dor-bug—Lachnosterna fusca—as it 
sometimes is very destructive to strawberry 
plants. The presence of the grub is iudicatcd 
by tlie withering of the plants, when, ou gently 
pulling them, they come out quite readily, the 
roots having been eaten off, and the mischief- 
maker may be found near the surface of the 
soi! directly uuder the plant. A slrawberry 
patch once thoroughly infested with this pest 
cannot be saved. Nothing can he applied that 
will kill the grubs without injuring the plants, 
and to attempt to dig the pests out is too ex¬ 
pensive and ineffective to bo practicable. 
Neither is it advisable to set strawberry 
plants on laud where the grub is found, for in 
ninety-nine cases in a hundred they will prove 
a failure. The best way is to raise hoed crops 
on such land for a couple of years prepara¬ 
tory to setting the strawberry plants, both 
to destroy those larvae that are already pres¬ 
ent and to prevent the beetles from laying 
their eggs, its they prefer grass land to cul¬ 
tivated land for that purpose. Or, the land 
may be fallowed for a season, and by frequent 
plowings the larva; exposed to the birds and to 
starvation. 
Treatment of Strawberries, Etc. 
■I. N. Mt. Vernon, N. Y., has a straw¬ 
berry bed on the place ho hires, which is sev¬ 
eral years old and did not bear very well this 
year. The berries are very nice, but the run¬ 
ners cover the ground. He asks, 1, what lie 
shall do with it to get a crop next year, if he 
remains thero ; 2, his Blackberries are very 
thick, how shall he transplant them; 3, a 
