MAY 4 
(Continued from page 285.) 
JOSEPH Cook thinks if a man had a dog 
which was in the habit of chewing, smoking 
and expectorating tobacco anywhere and at 
all hours, the animal would have a short life. 
Yet the same man never thinks of killinghim¬ 
self for the same offence... 
Uncj.e Esek, in the Century, says that in¬ 
dolence is a disease of the soul, laziness of 
the body... 
He says that the great struggle for life is 
first for bread, then butter on the bread, and 
at last sugar on the butter. This is the best 
any of ns can do.....* • • 
He says that all cunning men are dishonest, 
or will be the first good chance they get. 
He says that be does not believe in social 
providence. When a mule kicks a man and 
knocks him anywhere from eight to twenty 
feet off, he doesn’t lay it to the Lord; he says 
to himself “that man got a little too near the 
mule’’.. 
AMONG dwarf peas, there is no better kind 
than the American Wonder. It is within 
three days as early as the earliest tall smooth 
peas. The quality is best. 
A writer in the N. E. Homestead says that 
a succession of cabbage may be gained to 
some extent by different settings, but bettor 
by varieties. The later and more desirable 
kinds are not. early enough, even if set early, 
to insure maturity for the earliest and best 
market. He considers that three varieties are 
sufficient to meet all demands, in the order of 
succession—the Early Wiuningstadt, Hender¬ 
son’s Summer, aud Fottler’s Improved Bruns¬ 
wick. Some gardeners prefer the Jersey 
Wakefield to the Winningstadt for the very 
earliest; some set the New ark Early Flat 
Dutch in preference to Henderson’s Summer. 
There is, however, very Little difference or 
choice between the two bettor varieties. As 
soon as the Hendersons come to market , which 
will be a little later than the Wiuningstadt 
and Wakefield, they supplant these kinds, and 
they will in turn have to give way to the larg¬ 
er aud more showy Brunswick, but at about 
the same price. There is no doubt that the 
French Early Etampes is as early as auy, and 
that it is of superior quality, hut it is more 
shy, is apt to spot, and w ill not bear transpor¬ 
tation, or keep fresh as long as the other early, 
kinds mentioned.... 
We find the following in our respected 
contemporary, the New' England homestead: 
“A single neighborhood on Long Island sends 
300 to 500 live birds a week to the New York 
stores. One New' York village ships 50,000 to 
80,000 during a Summer.” Think of this I If 
ever the farmers of our country should make 
their voices heard ou any question, they should 
speak out against thus suicidal, unexcusable, 
inhuman vanity which makes the slaughter 
of our little birds profitable. 
There are a good many people w'ho are 
going to keep a sharp eye hereafter upon the 
politicians who are willing to sell themselves 
to a league of rum-sellers, and help to pro¬ 
mote their shameful aud deadly designs, says 
the Homestead. May their number's rapidly 
increase!... 
Dr. Clawson, of the Edinburgh Asylum 
for the Insane, is disposed to substitute milk 
for stimulants iu hospital practice.. In very 
acute eases, both < if depression and maniacal 
exaltation, when the disordered working of 
the brain tends ra j tidly to exhaust the strength, 
he relies more and more on milk and eggs 
made into liquid custards. 
W. H. Bowker thinks that S. C. “floats” 
will furnish phosphoric acid for future gener¬ 
ations. but that the man who warns to harvest 
liis crop iu September had better let them 
alone..... 
Mr. Henry Bill says that millions of dol¬ 
lars’ worth of manure are buried in the muck 
swamps of Connecticut, Its value will never 
be realized until it is hauled out to the hills 
aud exposed to the sun aud air. 
You would have cause for genuine happi¬ 
ness if you knew there w ere 100 loads of good 
muck in your barnyard, over which the cattle 
had been tramping all Winter. 
At the Michigan Agricultural College it is 
proposed to set a huckleberry plantation next 
Spring. 
Is there any reason why a sheep cannot be 
made to work a light dog-power for running 
the churn? Here iH a good chance to make 
capital out of the surplus energy of the old 
ram..... . 
How do you strain your milk s' If you use a 
cloth, how often do you wash it f Too much 
of the impurity of milk comes from the 
strainer... 
Prof. L. H. Bailey w'ell says the adorn¬ 
ment of rural homes should be considered a 
necessity rather than a luxury. As the 
country becomes older, aud natural windbreaks 
are.destroyed, it is, imperative that w'e ,plant 
for protection. The attractions of farm life 
for our sons and daughters are largely deter¬ 
mined by the character of the arrangement 
aud exterior adornment of the home aud farm 
premises. . 
d ; iu'njwl)ctc> 
RURAL SPECIAL REPORTS. 
Cnlifomin. 
Carpenteria, Santa Barbara Co., April 
14 . —There has been plenty of rain all through 
the past Winter. Just now it appears to be 
clearing away after the biggest rain in April 
since I came here. Grass and feed for stock 
never larger and greener at this time of year. 
Much of the early-sown gram is prostrated 
by the late storm. Have had almost 24 inches 
of rain for the season. Most of the com and 
“bean” land was in fine condition for the seed, 
but this storm will put the far mere at, work 
to mellow up the soil and kill the new crop of 
weeds. The prospect is fine for a good har¬ 
vest of most products of this section. 
o. N. C. 
Indiana. 
Pendleton, Madison Co.—There has been 
a rapid advance all along the line in breeds of 
stock. Twenty years ago the native scrub 
cattle were iu large majority; and were ready 
for market at four years, with an average 
weight of IKK) pounds. Short-horns had been 
introduced and intermingled; and ten years 
ago steers were sold at four years, weighing 
1,100 to 1,200 pounds. Now a majority are 
high grades, and it is uot unusual for a two- 
year-old to weigh as much and often more. 
Herefords, Galloways, and Aberdeen-Angus 
have since been introduced and the effect they 
will have on beef cuttle of the State, remains 
to be seen. I predict that hornless cattle will 
be in a majority before ten years. Domestic 
cattle have no more use for horns than pigs 
or sheep. ' s - w - H - 
New Jersey. 
Hareourton, Mercer Co.—Wheat and 
grass much better than at this time last year. 
Prospects for all kinds of fruit fair. Prices 
l ow _ w heat, 08 cents; corn, 40 cents; oats, 
85 to 40 cents; butter, 80 cents; eggs, 22 cents; 
potatoes, 05 cents. D. J. B. 
I\ew York. 
Johnstown, Fulton Co., April 20.—Some 
Rural seed have dona very well. The John¬ 
son Grass did not come up. The Thousand¬ 
fold Rye was partly destroyed by cold, but I 
saved about two quarts, which I sowed again, 
and it looks very well. Potatoes rotted very 
badly in our neighborhood, and are very high 
in price now'—75 cents a bushel. The Blush 
did uot rot at all. ft M. P. 
Willow Creek, Tompkins Co.—Not many 
potatoes on hand. They have rotted and 
frozen quite badly. Prices about 88 cents, 
tending upward. A. B. w. 
Hornellsvillk, Steuben Co., April 1!).— 
Potatoes in this section—a heavy potato dis¬ 
trict—have been mainly picked up, and the 
warehouses at Arkport, the main center for 
this vicinity, are nearly empty. What few 
are left are in good keeping condition, but 
prices are low—only 85 to 40 cents the extreme 
figures offered—but as inquiries are being 
made for seed, it looks as though they might 
lie higher, Kinds preferred here—Burbanks, 
Star and Late Hebron (W. E.). The Rural 
Blush is thought highly of as a first-class table 
potato, and very hardy, w'ith no signs of rot. 
Similar reports from Libert)', Avoca, Wallace, 
Coboctou Valley in this county, another large 
potato district. o. j. p, 
Vermont. 
Charlotte, Chittenden Co.—Stored pOta- 
toes not rotting iu this section. Stock on 
hand not large. Snowflakes ami Garfields 
were 75 cents a bushel, when other varieties 
were only 50 cents for the boston market. 
White Elephant, Burbank and that class are 
now fetching 37 cents, while Snowflake ami 
Garfield bring 55 cents. I am quite sure po¬ 
tatoes will advance iu this section after plant¬ 
ing time. o. H. A. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be nccumpmuod by Hie name 
and address of the writer to insure attention. Before 
ask I iik u question, please see If It Is not auswered In 
our ad vertlsIuK columns. Ask only a few questions at 
one time. Put questions on a separate piece of paper.) 
KEEPING SHEEP “ON SHARES.” 
A. S. (J., Hope Church, Pa ,—In the Fall of 
1884, a neighbor got me to allow two of his 
sheep to run with mine. Iu the Spring both 
had twins. He wants to take them home; 
ought he or I to have the increase, 
Ans. — The usual arrangement by which 
sheep are kept for an owner is that the keeper 
takes half the produce yearly; that is, half 
the wool and half t he increase. Iu this case, 
it is supposed that the keeper had the wool last 
Spring; if they had no lambs then, half their 
wool should belong to the owner, and to make 
the matter even now, the two years’ wool and 
lambs should be divided evenly, which would 
be fair to both parties. A great many sheep 
are kept in this way. 
ABOUT RASPBERRIES AND STRAWBERRIES. 
O. E. D,, Hampton , la.— 1. Canning fac¬ 
tories usually pay about six cents to eight 
cents for black raspberries aud eight to ten 
for red. 2. For strawberries they generally 
pay from four cents to six cents. The price 
varies in different locations, aud in different 
seasous in accordance with the relations of 
supply and demand. 2. The average yield 
per acre of raspberries ranges from 2,000 to 
3,001) quarts; strawberries from 8,000 t.0 4,000 
3. The average cost per acre of raising each is 
about *75 for raspberries, aud *100 for straw¬ 
berries, including picking. 4. One-quart glass 
cans cost *7 to *8 per 100; two-quart cans, $9 
to 810. 5. Cost of picking raspberries, l}4 to 
2 cents per quart; strawberries, 1 to \}i cent. 
COW-PEAS. 
P. P. IF., Milford , Del —The Southern cow 
pea will grow upon any good soil; 25 to 80 
bushels per acre is a usual crop. It is a valu¬ 
able grain for stock and, when ground with 
corn, makes a perfect grain food. It is really 
a species of bean (T)oliehos), and is more 
nutritious than peas; the hauliu is also exceed¬ 
ingly good fodder. The seed—two bushels per 
acre—is sown about corn planting time. For 
cows, this grain should be ground as above, 
aud au equal quantity of bran l>e added to it. 
If cut green, it is au excellent soiling crop, 
but is more valuable for the grain. There are 
about a dozen kinds; the “Whip-poor-will” 
and the Clay varieties are the most popular. 
Miscellaneous. 
A. T., Sprague, IF. T.—L Are the improve¬ 
ments, such as breaking, fencing, etc., on a 
homestead before “proving up,” and while, 
therefore, the title is still in the United States, 
taxable? 2. My hens suddenly appear droop¬ 
ing for a few days, and then all at once, drop 
dead. On opening them I find the liver 
swollen, anil on it and the heart are small 
cancere; what’s the matter? 
Ans.— U. S. lands cannot tie taxed. Any 
improvements belonging to the real estate, as 
houses, fences, orchards, etc., are, therefore, 
not taxable until the owner gets his [latent. 
2. There is no cure for this disease, which is 
anthrax or intestinal fever, and it affects the 
liver and heart, as iu this case, as well os the 
intestines. It is quite often caused by over¬ 
feeding, and is contagious. The only cure is 
prevention. 
S. It, C., Belle font aine, Ohio. —I have a 
piece of grouud 800x240 feet. My water sup¬ 
ply is at the middle of the other end. I wish 
to use a hand force pump, laying the pipe 
down the center, how many feet of lead pipe 
will be needed, ami how many feet of hose 
will throw water to each side of the plot? 
Ans. —If the pipe is lai! iu the middle of the 
plot for 200 feet, anil a connection made at. 100 
aud at 200 feet, and a hose 70 feet long is used, 
the water need only he thrown 50 feet, which 
can lx* done with a good force pump. Lead 
pipe is dear, aud the new rustless iron pipe 
made by W. T. Wells, 7 Cliff St., New York, 
is even more durable anil less costly than lead, 
and is, moreover, perfectly healthful. Pipe 1 1 , 
to lb) inch would be large enough. The larger 
the pipe, the less friction, but the more expense. 
N. L. A'., S. Dansville, N. F.—1. On dry, 
gravelly soil would Mupes’ fertilizer be a good 
application with farm manure? How much 
per acre? What would be the best kind for 
potatoes? 2. Which are the better farm 
scales—Jones’s or Osgood’s ? 
Ans. —1. Yes; Mapes or any other brand as 
good. If you use more farm manure, use less 
fertilizer. As a rule, in using chemicals with 
farm manure, we should use more bone aud 
less potash aud nitrogen. For potatoes, how¬ 
ever, a larger quantity of potash should he 
added. Now, if 20 terns of form manure are 
spread pol* acre, theu we should add about, 
two bugs of bone flour to one bag of sulphate 
of potash, or, say, four bags of kaiuit. For 
potatoes we deem it most desirable to turn the 
farm manure under in the Fall and to sow' the 
chemicaLs in the Spring. 2. Get either, and 
you will have no cause for grumbling. 
ft. It., Bloominglntrgh , AT. J.—The great- 
grand sire of my calf was a registered J ersey; 
its great granddain a half-blooded Ayrshire. 
Its granddam the result of this cross ; the 
grand-sire a registered Jersey; its dam was 
the offspring of the foregoiug cross aud its 
sire a registered Jersey, what is the calf and 
is it eligible to registry, 
i Ans. —The calf is seven-eighths Jersey. It 
has 87! j per cent, of Jersey blood. Its grand¬ 
dam took 50 per cent of Jersey blood from its 
sire. Its mother took 50 per cent, from the 
sire anil 25 per cent, from the dam, thus hav¬ 
ing 75 per cent, of Jersey blood. The calf 
took one-half its blood from the sire aud one- 
half from the dam, figuring as is usual iu 
such cases. This gives 50 per cent. Jersey 
from the sire aud 871'^ from the dam. It is 
not elegible to registry. 2. II. C. Carter, New 
York. 
G. T., Dodge Centre, Minn ,—My horse’s 
hind leg swells from the fetlock to the hock. 
When he stands for a time without exercise 
it swells to twice its regular size. The front 
of hock-joint, is cracked,aud there isau oozing 
from it. It is w'arm. Swelling goes down 
with work. 
Ans.—A pply to the cracked skin an oint- 
meut made of equal parts of spermaceti and 
almond oil. For the stocking of the legs see 
“Stock Leg in a Horse.” in the F. C. for Feb. 
20, 1886. Iu connection with medicinal treat¬ 
ment, daily exercise is very important. 
Subscriber (address m islaid). —1. Can pota¬ 
toes he so chilled that, although they have not 
been frozen, the)’ will not grow? 2. If hen 
manure is mixed with muck or loam and 
applied to corn in the hill, should the manure 
come indirect contact with the corn? 
Ans. —It is hard to say where the dividing 
line between a chill and a freeze would come 
in. As a rule, chilled potatoes which have 
tieen kept at a temperature close to freezing 
for a long time lose their vitality. 2. It is 
safer to interpose a thin layer of earth to pre¬ 
vent the possibility of “burning” the seed. 
G. II. /?., Big Rapids, Mich .—On a sandy 
gravelly soil, some of which has lieeu in grass 
for a while and some in corn, on which oats is 
to bo sown this Spring, with clover seed, Or¬ 
chard Grass and a little Timothy, how much 
seed per acre should be sown, and should 
there be any addition to the mixture? 
Ans. —Orchard Grass does not always do 
well with oats. Sow 2 to 2}‘f bushels. After¬ 
wards sow 10 quarts of clover. Timothy is 
considerably later than Orchard Grass. 
C. A. (no address ).—To break a mare 
of the habit of carrying her tongue out of her 
mouth, try other forms of bit to make sure 
that it is not due to the particular one in use. 
Otherwise we can only suggest that you make 
a sling for the tongue. A small sack placed 
over the free end of the tongue, with a string 
from each side to pass hack and be tied behind 
the ears, will answer the. purpose, 
IF. M ., Springer, .V. M. —Two of my horses 
became weuk in the back, dragged t heir hind 
legs. There was a stoppage of urine. Both 
died in a few days. What was the matter? 
Ans. —The symptoms would indicate some 
disease of the urinary organs, but they are too 
brief to enable us to say definitely or to rec¬ 
ommend any treatment. 
G. T. D., East Randolph, 17.—“Young 
plum trees that made a very rank growth last 
season” should be cut hack, as much or as 
little as one chooses; generally the less the better 
unless the branches interfere. Prune now. 2. 
The Woodason Bellows for blowing pyrethrum 
powder, etc*., on insect-infested plants, are the 
best. All leading seedsmen sell them. Price 
*1.00 to *1.50. 
“ SubscriberDansville, N. F,—Opinions 
differ ns to the best land of roosts for poultry. 
W’e prefer low roosts, not over 18 iuehes high, 
and made so broad at the top as to give the 
hens’ feet full rest and support. Auy wood 
that will not splinter is suitable. 
./, E. IF., Plica , jV. V.—For grinding boues 
Wilson’s patent boue and corn mill is au ex¬ 
cellent device. Different sizes are sold at 
different figures. Send for circulars to Wil¬ 
son Brothers, Eaton, l’a. 
O. B., South Haven, Mich .—The Great, 
American is one of Durand’s best varieties of 
strawberries, but it thrives only under the 
most favorable conditions, and we advise you 
to try it, iu a very small way. 
An Old Subscriber , Maspclh, L. I. —1. We 
have little confidence as to the curative pro¬ 
perties of the plant iuquired about. 2. 
“Copying” requires skill. Guo iu u hundred 
may make a little at it; the 99 will fail. 
J. D. T ., Brookside, N. ./.—The better way 
to “lime” low meadow land intended for crops, 
Is to do so before plowing. Theu harrow. 
This would be our wuy, though many would 
differ. 
T. A. P., South Bend, Ind. —So far as vve 
kuow the Jewell Strawberry is uot tender iu 
the bud “like the Sharpless.” 
U. 11. S., Frank!in Forks, Fa .—Downing’s 
Everbearing Mulberry is probably the best 
for your climate. 
-4. B, C., Maple, Mich. —The watermelon 
