FE1 27 
(Continued from page 137.) 
nervous force and occupation have much to do 
with the feeding. There are plenty of boys 
of 75 pounds who eat as much as men of 140. 
Why are not animals much the same? The 
only safe way to feed stock is to watch each 
one and see what its needs are. 
An English farmer has found that hop vines, 
preserved in the silo, make a good cattle food. 
He proposes to grow hops wild for stock. 
Be careful about drying off the cows. The 
udder is not a meal bag or a milk can. Do 
not let it become inflamed. Milk often enough 
to keep the udder limp and cool. Better milk 
up to the time of calving than to have the 
udder hard and inflamed. 
l)f xt. 
TRANSCONTINENTAL LETTERS.— 
XLIX. 
MARY WAGER-FISHER. 
1 he finest farm in the White River Valley; 
a, profitable meadow; farm hands' homey- 
hiring them; domestic co-operation; pota¬ 
to digging; Indian and Chinese labor; a 
fratricide: twins among the Indians; a 
stoneless region. 
At the head of steamboat navigation on the 
White River, on the right-hand side, lies the 
finest farm in the val>°y—a domain of 1,100 
acres, owned by Mr u-d Mi's. T. M. A., both 
natives of Cortland County, N V. They came 
to the valley 2ti years ago, soon after their 
marriage, and have lived on this farm since 
that time. As I spent several days at then- 
hospitable dwelling, 1 am able to give some 
details of the life and work on the farm, that I 
found very interesting. 
Three hundred and twenty acres were taken 
up as a donation claim (a privilege no longer 
in operation) and the rest has been acquired 
by purchase. Five hundred acres are cleared 
and 280 are in meadow. It has cost from -840 
per acre up, to clear the laud, and the farms 
in this valley are held at $100 per acre. The 
meadows are cut once and yield three tons to 
the acre when in first-class condition. One 
meadow which was seeded 18 years ago 
and has been cut. annually since then, 
yielded the present season ai the rat© of 
2}-fc tons to the acre. When the grass 
shows thin in places, a dressing of barnyard 
manure is occasionally applied. About 000 
tons of hay were harvested this year, and the 
price received for hay during all these years 
has ranged from $7 to $17 per ton—$7 lining a 
‘‘bed rock 5 ' price. Four mowers are on the 
farm for the hay harvest, and from 25 to 35 
men are required to do the work iu the haying 
season. They ar e boarded at the farm, but 
bring their own blankets and sleep in the hay. 
There ore four large barns, but some of the 
hay is stacked outside, but under roof. One 
of Mr. A‘6sons—still a pupil in the University 
at Seattle—invented, last Summer, an arrange¬ 
ment to be used in connection with the hay 
fork, which dispenses with the labor of one 
man. The young fellow is full of inventive 
genius, and has a large, airy work-room iu the 
“wood-house” loft, in which to work out his 
ideas. A place in which to store fire-wood is an 
important adjunct to these valley farm-houses, 
and the cords and cords of cut wood that I 
saw piled up iu different places, bore testimony 
to the thrift of the farmers. The wood-house 
is a separate building, and painted like the 
dwelling. Another out-building iu corres¬ 
ponding style is the lodging-house of the farm 
hauds. It. has a sitting-room in which is a 
fire-place, where the men can dry their cloth¬ 
ing if wet, and enjoy the comfort of an open 
fire. They make their own beds, and care for 
their own rooms, and they were reported as 
keeping them iu good order. Occasionally a 
Klootchman (Indian woman) is hired to wipe 
up the floors and clean the windows. Dur¬ 
ing the Winter, four men are employed—one 
man for each bam—as cattle are stalled for 
fattening purposes. The barns have eaves, 
there are large tanks to hold rain water for 
all requirements. 
There is an Indian reservation a few miles 
from the farm, and Indians are employed, 
more or less, in the farm work and receive 
in haying the same wages as do white men, 
but are fed at a sepai’ate table. The wages 
paid during the last harvest ranged from $1 
to $1.35 a day. I asked Mrs. A. how they 
managed to secure so large an extra force for 
the haying season. She said that as the time 
approached, men began to come asking for 
work, and they were engaged until a sufficient 
number were secured. If Mr. A. was not 
about she hired them, and at night they com¬ 
pared notes to see how many each had en¬ 
gaged. She said that she had had so much ex¬ 
perience in hiring men, that she could now 
tell from the appearance of an applicant, 
whether lie was the kind of man they wunted 
THE RURAL fHW-t©RKER, 
or not. And 1 may as well put it in here, as 
later on, that probably one of the important 
factors in the success achieved on this farm 
has been, and still is, due to the efficient and 
intelligent co-operation of the two beads of 
the house. Mrs. A. is thoroughly conversant 
with all the details, keeps accounts and the 
bookkeeping is not small, and is as much in¬ 
terested in the making of a road, the building 
of a bridge, or the harvesting of a crop, as is 
her husband, and is thoroughly capable, iu 
his absence, of directing the men in their work. 
Potatoes were being dug when I was there, 
the. work being done by Indians—men, women 
and children all iu the field. The bargaiu was 
made, of course, with one Indian who agreed 
to do the work at the rate of $(5 per acre, and 
a sack of flour. They also do most of the 
weeding, hut in clearing new land they are 
less desirable that the Chinese. The Chinese 
work in large bands, attend to the work with 
strict faithfulness and so accomplish it quick¬ 
ly. Like the Iudiaus, they camp and feed 
themselves, which is a great convenience to 
the employer. There was quite a camp of 
Iudiaus on the farm on the river bank, and on 
the morning after our arrival word cam© that 
a murder had Iteeu committed iu the camp on 
the previous evening—that one "Jim," a tall 
Indian, had been stabbed in the neck by his 
brother while drunk. Asa young woman was 
dying iu the camp from consumption, and as 
Mrs. A. wished to take to her something ap¬ 
petizing, we walked over to the scene of the 
tragedy. The laddie had never seen a dead 
human being, and 1 hesitated to have him ac¬ 
company us, as it seemed shocking that his 
first experience should lie that of a murdered 
man—auil 1 myself had never seen one. He 
was very desirous ol going, however, and 1 
thought, perhaps, the body might lie quite out 
of sight. But, as we reached the camp, we 
came at once upon the dead man who had 
been very decently cared for by his friends, 
and all traces of the crime hud lieen removed, 
save the inch-long cut in the neck—one of the 
men lifted the covering from the head suffici¬ 
ent for us to see the wound. The body was 
wrapped iu a bed quilt, and lay on the 
ground in the open air. At its feet sat 
the poor mother — suffering the double 
agony of one son murdered by another — 
and the latter was still asleep iu a tent,— 
not yet awakened from his drunken stupor 
and all unconscious oi his awful deed. The 
old woman sat bolt-upright, her eyes almost 
sightless from weeping, the tears streaming 
down her face, and she kept up a continuous 
monotone of wailing most pitiful to bear. 1 
was neve) - more touched at a spectacle ot grief, 
and the laddie who had quietly surveyed the 
dead Indian with no apparent emotion, was 
moved to tears by the heart-broken mother 
and sought to comfort her by giving her an 
apple which he had in hispooket. Ln the early 
evening of that day, I saw from the tower of 
the dwelling-house, the body borne away in a 
box, on the top of which sat the mother, whose 
wails rung tar out on the air. The murderer 
meantime had awakened, and stoleu away on 
horseback, but was. later on, apprehended. 
An amusing incident was connected with the 
affair. The Indian who hired a team and 
wagon to remove the body to the reservation, 
or place of burial, returned in the night, aud 
in passing a farm house a dog ran out and fright¬ 
ened the horses, and the wagon wheels ran over 
a stump. But neither wagon nor horses were 
injured, but when the man made out bis bill 
for expenses, he made a charge of $1.50 for 
having been so frightened! Mrs. A. told 
me that the Indians never rear twins. When 
there arejtwo children horn, the weaker one. re¬ 
gardless of sex, is killed. The Indians here 
are religiously looked after by the Roman 
Catholics, which religion "has had more than 
the ordinary success in converting them.” 
The Indians dig jtotatoes with a stick and 
theu- hands—an easy thing to do, os the soil is 
loose aud tine like the liest garden loam, aud 
entirely free from stones. I asked Mr. A. 
what led him to leave New York 8tate to 
farm on this coast, and he said, “I didn’t 
like the cold Winters there and I was tired 
of picking stones.'’ His wife said that their 
first cook-stove here burnt on the bottom in 
baking, aud she requested her husband to 
bring her a flat stone from the fields when he 
chanced upon one—as she had heard of house¬ 
wives making use of one under their baking tins. 
But in 2(i years he had not come across the 
stone. Potatoes yield 200 bushels to the acre 
iu a good season—the present season I wing very 
dry, there is only a half crop. The tubers 
until sacked are put into huge bins out-of-doors, 
undo- a roof built for the purpose. California 
absorbs a good many potatoes, and owing to the 
better price this year the half crop will tie more 
profitable by far than the full clop of last, year 
with a drugged market. On© farmer told me 
that last year he had fi,000 bushels aud the entire 
crop yielded him a profit of but $40! Indians 
plant, the potatoes and a Vermont plow' is used 
iu cultivating them 
RURAL SPECIAL REPORTS. 
Indiana. 
Mexico, Miami Co.—Last Winter killed ad 
the peach, and a part of the apple trees, and 
badly injured those not killed outright. Ow¬ 
ing to the increasing severity of our Winters 
there is little hope in setting out new orchards. 
As our forests disappear, the cold increases. 
Artificial protection must he given by those 
determined to raise fruits, instead of the uat- 
tural protection offered by timber belts. Not 
uutil farmers set out shelter trees, can they 
expect to raise fruits successfully. N. b. g. 
Monrovia, Morgan Co., Feb. 12.—Of the 
“Flageolet Ben ns" 1 got about five pints, quite 
an acquisition for this locality. The “Prince 
of Wales Peas” produced a full crop. Of the 
Stratagem Pea those that grew produced fine 
peas. Corn no better than old sorts. I con¬ 
sider what I raised from the seeds received iu 
1885 worth more than the subscription price 
of the Rural, though it is the best agricul¬ 
tural paper I know. The practice of the Rc- 
ral’s system of potato culture has been worth 
more to me than the cost, of the Rural for 
one year. j. H. 
K&intax. 
Ayres City, Lyon Co.—The Cross-bred 
Corn grew of all sizes; some early, some late; 
but all too small for Kansas. Peas and toma¬ 
toes fine. Diehl-Mediterranean Wheat anil 
Thousand-fold Rye all winter-killed. Garden 
Treasures the finest flowers I ever saw. 
n. c. 
Sauna, Saliue Co., Feb. 5.—The weather 
w as so very cold that several hundred cattle, 
hogs and sheep perished in this county last 
month. The Stratagem aud Prince of Wales 
Peas aud also the tomatoes did well. The 50 
crosses of corn were ail a failure. The beans 
were killed by a little black bug that perforated 
the leaves. Johnson Grass too coarse and 
woody. Garden Treasures a failure; but we 
cannot do without the Rural. \v. b. 
Minnesota. 
Howard Lake, Wright Co.—We are much 
pleased with the Flageolet Beaus and the 
Prince of Wales aud Stratagem Peas. Most 
of the former ripened by the middle of August 
and were very fine-flavored—quite as good as 
the best Limas. Garden Treasures very pretty. 
m. e. b. 
.\<'.lirnMkn. 
Nebraska City, Otoe Co.— Although a 
fourth of the Diehl-Mediterranean Wheat 
froze out, I got over half a peck. I had also 
over a peck of the Thousand-fold Rye. Both 
were sow n again in the Fall and were looking 
well when Winter set in. N. R. 
Hew York. 
West Oneonto. Otsego Co.—The Prince 
of Wales Peas did splendidly; Stratagem 
not so good; Green Flageolet fine. To¬ 
matoes better than any we have had. The 
corn stalks grew from six to 12 font high, and 
set as many as six eai's apiece—too late, how¬ 
ever, for this section. Garden Treasures very 
fine. e. g. 
Pennsylvania. 
Indiana, Indiana Co. — The Rural New- 
Yorker Pea and Flageolet Bean for quality 
and productiveness could not b© excelled. 
Prince of Wales Pea productive, but of in¬ 
ferior quality. King Humbert. Tomato not 
valuable, but h good yielder. Rural Cross¬ 
bred Corn did well. 1 have about a bushel of 
very fine seed. \v. w. l. 
West Virginia. 
Newark, Wirt Co.—The Rural seeds did 
well. I got about a quart of Prince of Wales 
Peas. The flowers sent did not germinate 
well. The tomatoes bore abundantly, but the 
fruit was small. e. a. l. 
Wtocoiiain. 
K ETC HAM, Fond du Lac Co.—Owing to 
cold, wet weather corn and potatoes did not 
do well. With the lutter 1 followed the Rr 
ral system of flat culture, but mine rotted 
badly. Oats and wheat tine crops. Apples 
scarce. Rural corn too late. The oats rusted 
badly. Garden Treasures did well. Dairy 
business not a success hero last year, as prices 
ruled too low. Bogus dairy goods hurt dairy¬ 
men badly. Prices now: wheat, 80c.; corn, 
•flic.; oats, 30c.; barley, 40c.; potatoes,00c.; 
butter, 18c.; eggs, 17c.; dressed pork, $4.25 
per 100 pounds; cattle on foot, 8c. n. D. p. 
.Outagamie Co., Feb. 12.—Harvest scarcely 
an average, yet most farmers have enough 
aud to spare of most products. Rot has 
made potatoes Scarce. Apples plentiful, but 
they coine from New York and Michigan. 
Our trees were mostly killed last. Winter aud 
Spring. We have, some Duchess, Wealthy, 
aud a few other hardy summer and fall 
kinds, but of good long-keeping, hardy, win¬ 
ter apples we have none. Prices of produce 
are: 80 cents per bushel for wheat; 40 cents 
for corn; 30 cents for oats; 00 to 75 cents for 
potatoes ; $4.50 to $5.00 per 100 pounds for 
dressed pork and beef. Hay from $10 to $12 
per ton. Butter, 20 cents; cheese, 14 cents; 
eggs, 20 cents per dozen; wood, $3 to $5 per 
cord. K n, 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must Be accompanied h.v the name 
and address of the writer to insure attention. Before 
asking a question, please see if it is not answered ln 
our advertising columns, Ask only a few questions at 
one timed _ 
fertilizer for potatoes, etc. 
H. H. B., Bloomfield, Mo. —1. Will Timothy 
and Red-Top do well if sowed in Spring? 2. 
Will they grow on sandy laud? 3. What fer¬ 
tilizer is best to produce a good crop of Irish 
potatoes ou saudy latyi in this climate? 
Ans.— 1. They should be sowed very early * 
in Spring, and then they will do well except 
in case of severe June droughts. They are 
both better if sown in Autumn, say the middle 
or last of September, or even later. 2. Very 
well, if uot too light aud (by, and even then 
Timothy does well if the land is fairly rich. 
3. A complete fertilizer, but one containing 
much potash. On many soils, a liberal appli¬ 
cation of ashes will double the crop. If 30 or 
40 bushels of hanl-wood ashes are used with a 
good brand of ammouiated phosphate, a good 
crop should be the result. On the light, lands 
of New Jersey, growers often use as much as 
l.iioo to l,5oo pounds per acre of a fertilizer 
containing from four to five per cent, of am¬ 
monia, from eight to ten per cent, of phos¬ 
phoric acid, and about seven jter cent, of pot¬ 
ash. Dr Combs reported a yield of nearly 
400 bushels per acre with such a fertilizer. We 
think a mulch would also pay on such soils. 
ROOF FOR BARN. 
D. J. B., Harbuurton , .V. J .—1 have a barn 
40x50 with 20-feet posts, covered in “48” with 
[tine shingles. They are now so decayed that 
they let the water through. I wish to cover 
the old roof aud I fear slate would be too 
heavy aud tin would need painting often, aud 
the barn being ou a nine foot basement is 
pretty high; is there anything like copper 
that would uot cost more than slate or tin 
($<> [ier square), that would not require paint¬ 
ing and that rats could not eat through when 
the barn is full of graiu? 
Axs,—If the rafters are sound we do not, be¬ 
lieve you eau get. n better roof than one of 
slate, or a comparatively cheaper one titan 
slate at $ti. Wo think that even a copper roof 
would need painting occasionally. But if you 
use Rossie paint aud a good raw oil, it would 
not need paint oftener than once iu front six 
to ten years. A slate roof well put on will 
last for a life-time without paint or repairs. 
AN AILING COW. 
W. E. E. (no address ),—A swelling as large 
as a man’s arm, on the lower jaw of a cow, 
extended from the angle of the jaw back to 
the gullet. The back part of the tongue was 
swollen so as to fill the mouth, so that she 
couldn't take feed or swallow anything. She 
was fat when attacked; three weeks after her 
touguc swelled she had a calf, aud is now so 
poor she can hardly walk: what is the matter ? 
Ans. —Knowing nothing of the nature of 
the swelling, weare unable to give a definite 
answer. From the description it may be due 
to one of several causes. No treatment can 
bo recommended. Although the case is now 
most likely a chronic one, if the cow is val¬ 
uable it would be well to call in a competent 
veterinary surgeon. 
Miscellaneous. 
IF. .1/., Mt. Gilead , Ohio. —]. Is Cole's New 
Agriculture of any value, and will it increase 
crops four-fold as lie claims ? 2. Is Eggino 
made by W. W. Claugh, good to feed poultry 
as a steady food? 3. Can eggs of Phoenix 
fowls be hail at reasonable prices for spring 
hatching? 
Ans. —1. There is no doubt much that is 
good in the trenching of land and the tilling 
of the trenches with stones or other material 
offering storage of water; but it is very ex¬ 
pensive and we doubt whether it is practica¬ 
ble, except perchance near large cities aud 
where land is very dear. We doubt whether 
it would increase the crops twofold. We un¬ 
derstand t he use of manure has had fully as 
much to do in producing the yields Mr. C. 
claims, as has the expensive preparation of 
the land. 2, We have never used or seen it. 
Good food containing a variety of grains and 
vegetables is the best steady diet, and this 
with good care should keep the hens healthy 
and profitable. 3. Wo don’t think t lie Phoenix 
fowls huve any vulue beyond mere ornament. 
We doubt whether eggs are for sale; as few 
specimens of the breed have as yet. been im¬ 
ported. 
E. O. C., Washington , Kans. —A late frost 
last May killed every bud ou my grape-vines 
