remember Philadelphia’s generous hospitality; 
and whatever may be the society’s ultimate 
fate, the convention of 1S8(3 will remain the 
most thoroughly enjoyable in the history of 
horticulture. e. l. taplin. 
tity of good milk. I have seen many such 
cows. 
Beef-making and milk-giving are natural 
functions of the cow. It is not contrary to 
the principles of breeding and is in accord 
with experience that these functions should 
be well developed in the same animal. It is 
unusual to find them both developed to a re¬ 
markable degree. In regard to these quali¬ 
ties, as well as to many others, the breeder 
may make his choice between efforts to reach 
remarkable excellence in one point or a fair 
degree of merit in two i >r more. It is clearly 
true that in many eases the latter effort is the 
wiser. 
Urging all breeders to select some one point, 
and seek to develop that to the greatest 
degree, is not wise. There is a demand for 
animals so developed—for horses with special 
fitness for heavy draught, or for fast trotting ; 
for cattle especially fitted for beef or for milk; 
for sheep remarkably developed in the way of 
either mutton or wool production ; but the 
largest number of users of either class desire 
animals reasonably well adapted for more 
than one purpose. The home best suited to 
the needs of farmers generally, or for most 
business purposes, is neither a heavy draught 
nor a typical roadster, and so of the other 
classes of animals, even to the hog, in breed¬ 
ing which too exclusive attention may 
be given to early maturity or to ability to 
lay on flesh. 
Aside from the farmers who keep cattle 
with almost sole reference to beef making, 
and the special dairymen, there is a vast num¬ 
ber who know what they are about when they 
insist on having cattle satisfactory, both as 
meat makers aud milk givers. Unquestion¬ 
ably its merit iu this double capacity has been 
a great cause of the widespread popularity of 
the Short-horn both in Great Britain uud iu 
this country, it is amazing that men will con¬ 
tinue to deny or ignore the fact that there are 
many thousands of pure-bred or high-grade 
Short-horn cows which are in a satisfactory 
degree, what it is denied there can possibly be, 
good general-purpose cows. There are many 
Short-born cows that are not good milkers, 
many that are not good beef animals, and 
many that ure both. The same is time iu 
some herds of cattle of a number of other 
breeds. On the University Farm there is to. 
day almndaut proof of this fact as to Short¬ 
horns. Of two Hereford cows one is a good 
milker, the other not ; a half-blood is well 
above the average. There is a half-blood 
Holstein steer, weighing over 1,650 pounds 
at 28 months, and a beef animal of 
superior quality ; a pure Ayrshire steer quite 
satisfactory iu beef merit. 
I recognize fully' the marked differences in 
the adaptations of different breeds and of dif¬ 
ferent animals belonging to the same breed, but 
dissent from the position that it is impractic¬ 
able or always unwise to secure development iu 
more than one direction in one breed or one 
animal. 
University of Illinois, Champaign, III. 
Sljc i) frits mu n. 
|)omol00ifbi. 
THE CALIFORNIA WAY OF CANNING 
FRUIT. 
Owing to the fact that all of the canned 
fruit of last season’s pack has left ttie State, 
§76 
SEPT 4 
HOW TO GROW THE BEST BEEF. 
mation to those unacquainted with the pro¬ 
cess. The Wheel of Fortune wiuged, and 
surmounted by a cornucopia, was finished in 
an hour and twenty minutes; it was about 
five feet high, and a very effective design. In 
the afternoon it was presented to Mr. Childs. 
In the afternoon the convention adjourned 
most unanimously to go to Bryn Mawr. They 
numbered about 750, and were taken out on a 
special train in two sections. They were wel¬ 
comed with the graceful hospitality for which 
Mr. Childs is famous, were given the freedom 
of the place, and were entertained with charm¬ 
ing music and an elaborate luncheon. Mi - . 
Childs was enthusiastically cheered, aud after 
shaking hands with the entire convention, he 
sent his happy guests back to town on their 
special train, 
Friday evening was devoted to essays and 
discussions on steam versus hot water, result¬ 
ing iu a majority for steam. Specialists were 
appointed to study the subject, and report 
upon it at the next meeting of the society to 
be held in Chicago. 
On Saturday morning the final session was 
held to appoint a committee for the organiza¬ 
tion of the Hail Insurance Company. Chair¬ 
man, J. M. Jordan, St. Louis; II. A. Silbreeht, 
New York; J. G. Esler, New Jersey; J. C. 
Vauglrn, Chicago. This hail question is a very 
awkward one, as a national insurance while 
benefiting Western florists within the hail sec¬ 
tion, would merely impoverish Eastern men, 
who do not suffer from destructive storms of 
this character. On Saturday the Ladies’ Re¬ 
ception Committee, composed of Mrs. G. C. 
Evaus, Mrs. Mary BLssett Rumel, Mi’s. Robt. 
Craig aud Miss Ferguson, gave a drive to the 
visiting ladies, taking them through Fair- 
mount Park, calling at many' points of interest 
and including a charming luncheon at the Bel¬ 
mont Mansion. 
The business part of this convention con¬ 
tained much of interest aud value, while the 
social part was of unusual liberality. The 
only drawback, as some of the business-like 
members fear, is that it will provoke too much 
emulation among cities visited, and this can¬ 
not fail to be prejudicial to the society’s use¬ 
fulness, 
TT___ ^11 onfinnf f’ai‘1 fn lr\»lir 
it is probable that the greatest portion of the 
fruit grown this year—excepting the prunes, 
of course,—will be caimed. For my part I 
am sorry it is so, and for this reason, viz: it 
appeal’s that the fruit eanners, with all their 
perfected (?) appliances, are not able to make 
use of the fruit uulees it is hard, green, and 
unripe. They want it hard, so they can han¬ 
dle it with greater ease, greater economy, less 
waste, and to some uninitiated unfortunates 
those solid halves all standing out by them¬ 
selves look nicer in a jar than softer ones that 
necessarily press sluggishly upon each other 
and almost fall to pieces. But this same 
green, harsh-tasting fruit goes abroad among 
people who know how delicious good, ripe 
fruit, well preserved, is and the buyers con¬ 
sider themselves cheated out of their money 
when, upon opening a can of ‘’choice (?) Cali¬ 
fornia fruit,” they find this vile, unpalatable 
and very unwholesome stuff! No wonder 
then, that the people East, though admiring 
California’s fruit-growing advantages, all say 
that California fruit is insipid, lacks sweetness, 
aud is inferior to that which they grow at 
Santa Clara Co., Cal. p. le hardy. 
KEEPING PEARS. 
I save my Bartlett pears so that they make 
fine eating two months after those of my 
neighbors have gone. 1 take a stout box and 
line it with paper, almost any kind will 
answer. The bottom is covered on inch deep 
with wheat bran. The pears are carefully 
picked, wrapped separately in thin paper aud 
packed deeply in the bran until the bottom 
is covered. Then this layer is covered with 
bran to the depth of an inch, and another 
layer of pears is placed in the same way. This 
is continued until the box is full, when the 
cover is tacked on, and the box set away in a 
Magnificent mansions, amounting up even to 
.seven figures iu cost, have been erected; but 
more often, perhaps, the “fancy farmers” have 
prided themselves on the elaborate perfection 
of their barns and outbuildings, rather than 
on their dwelling houses. One of the most 
noteworthy, though not. the most recent case 
of this kind, is that of an enormous barn 
erected in the town of Great Barrington, near 
the village of that name in Berkshire County, 
Mass. This barn, though really one of the 
most costly and complete that has ever been 
built in America, has received very little no¬ 
tice in the agricultural press, and would per¬ 
haps have always remained obscure bad not 
its recent destructa on by fire, and the trial of 
the supposed incendiary attracted public at¬ 
tention. 
This curious building (shown in the illustra¬ 
tion, Fig. 347.) was erected thirty-four years 
ago, ou his Brookside farm, by the late David 
Leavitt, the grandfather of its recent owner, 
Henry A. Leavitt, a broker at 1 Exchange 
Court, New York. The site chosen was both 
novel and convenient. The building, 200 by 
40 feet, spanned a ravine 200 feet in width and 
80 feet in depth, one wall forming a dam con¬ 
trolling the tine stream which runs through 
the ravine, and was employed to furnish mb- 
tive power to the numerous machines iu vari¬ 
ous parts of the building. The banks of the 
ravine on both sides, below the barn, were 
used for roadways, entering each of its three 
stories. The lower story was used chiefly as a 
manure vault, the second was for stabling, 
and the third for storage. But, besides these, 
there was both a complete grist-mill, and a 
wood-working shop, embracing saw-mill, 
planiug-mill, lathes, etc. There was a full 
equipment of farm machinery, including a 
com-sheller, which could shell, clean and Rag 
500 bushels a day, with an elevator of the same 
C'-. 
; SM - • 
A FARMERS’ PICNIC. 
IN FAVOR OF THE “GENERAL-PUR¬ 
POSE” COW. 
PROFESSOR G. E. MORROW. 
I am not able to agree with much that is be¬ 
ing written and published in favor of the po¬ 
sition that it is absurd and ridiculous to tff- 
tempt to breed any class of animals for more 
than one purpose. Especial argument, ridi¬ 
cule aud sarcasm have been directed against 
efforts to secure a good degree of merit as 
beef-makers and milk-givers in any breed of 
cows. None the less do I believe that it is de¬ 
sirable aud practicable to secure this result: 
thut for n large percentage of the farms of the 
United States cows of this class—“general- 
purpose” cows, if you please—would be bet¬ 
ter adapted than those with marked excellence 
for the one purpose, coupled wit.li inferiority 
for the other; and that there are vast num¬ 
bers of cows which do combine in a satisfac¬ 
tory degree good size, form and aptitude to 
lay ou flesh, with ability to give a good quau- 
Farmers in general hardly realize the extent 
to which their future success with cattle de¬ 
pends upon grading up to a high point. I re¬ 
fer now to feeding cattle, thut is, such as are 
bred mainly for meat production. Stock grow, 
iug aud general fanning are by mauy said not 
to be as remunerative as formerly. Over-pro¬ 
duction is said to he the cause of this. H‘ this 
applied to cattle, it is certaiuly not to the 
higher grades, but to the lower, for, uo mat¬ 
ter how hard the times, or how depressed the 
industries in general are, the higher classes of 
steers always sell quickly at good figures. 
Since the discovery—for it should take rank as 
one of the discoveries of the age—that it is 
more profl tabic to feed cattle for meat produc¬ 
tion from early calfhood up to the period 
when they rate as long yearlings or at most as 
two-year-olds or a little past, it is indispensable 
that high grading up be practiced, as we can¬ 
not have marketable steers at the ages named 
unless they arc bred from thoroughbred, or at- 
least high-grade stock. 
The notion entertained by many that youug 
beef (that is, of the age named) is to such a de¬ 
gree immature—called, derisivel}, “ baby 
beef”—as to be inuutritious, is a very palpable 
error. After the calf ceases to suckle its dam, 
depending thereafter upon food like that given 
to grown-up cattle, the meat ceases to be veal, 
and, iu every sense of the word, is beef, as nu¬ 
tritious from a long yearling as from a four- 
yoar-old. It contains the same fibriue and the 
meat juices are the same, though, of course, 
the liber is more tender than that of the ox, 
without being less nutritious. In fact, it is a 
question not yet settled at. just what age meat 
of any kind begins te> lose ground, iu point of 
nutritiousness, by reason of having too much 
age, becoming, as it is quite liable to, too hard 
in its fiber to be easily acted upon by the hu¬ 
man stomach. 
A BIG BARN. Fig. 347. 
cool, dry place. The fruit will retain its fine 
flavor and color. J. s. B. 
Hightstown. N. J. 
Slrfljitfjctiirf. 
A BIG BARN. 
T. H. HOSKINS, M. D. 
TnE disposition of many country-born men 
who have become wealthy in our cities to re¬ 
possess, enlarge and beautify the farm upon 
which they were born aud reared, or at any 
rate to retire to rural life as age approaches, 
is very noticeable among Americans. The 
“fancy farms” of such individuals have been 
the subject of much writing iu the agricul¬ 
tural journals, in which very different views 
of their influence upon the progress of agri¬ 
culture have been expressed. The fact prob¬ 
ably is, that, this point has received very lit¬ 
tle consideration from the parties most direct¬ 
ly interested in the matter. In most cases the 
ground of action has beau mainly, if not en¬ 
tirely, personal in its purposes. Either the 
rest and healthful repose of the quiet country 
have been sought, or some cherished idea of 
how a farm ought, to be carried on has lin¬ 
gered iu the mind from the days of youthful 
impatience aud disgust with the ancient con¬ 
servatism that is still found on so many farms, 
and is yet exciting like feelings in the breasts 
of so many youthful sons of the soil. 
New England is dotted over with these 
fancy farms, the elaborate and ornate char¬ 
acter of whose buildings uud surroundings 
marks them at once to the eyes of the passer¬ 
by. They abound especially in the Connec¬ 
ticut Valley, and the minor valleys of Western 
Massachusetts, a great number of whose sons 
have made themselves noted and wealthy in 
almost every branch of business enterprise. 
capacity. The thrasher had a straw-cutting 
attachment, which chaffed the straw as fast 
as delivered. In the arched dairy cellar, 20 
by 78, was a line of shafting with power¬ 
churning and butter-working apparatus. The 
hay was also pitched from the wagons to the 
mow by the same power, aud in fact the whole 
work was so planned and arranged by Mr. 
Wilkinson, who was at once the architect and 
farm superintendent, us to be done iu the 
most speedy aud economical way. The total 
cost was stated at upwards of 8100,000, 
Michael O’Connell, a farm hand, was sus¬ 
pected and arrested for the burning of this 
elaborate and costly structure, but has been 
acquitted of the crime. 
We have recently enjoyed a farmers’ picnic, 
under the management of the Western New 
York Agricultural Society. Professor I. P. 
Roberts’s lecture on this occasion was one of 
the best I have ever had the pleasure of listen¬ 
ing to. The Professor was taken to task iu a 
good-natured way, by one of our leading farm¬ 
ers, for stating that, farmers could wear gloves 
at man}' kinds of work—such as reaping, 
thrashing, etc. Nothing daunted, the Profes¬ 
sor replied—“I tell the girls that it the farmer 
boys do not know- how to protect their hands 
so that the girls will not be ashamed of them 
when tlie boys appear in society, the}' had bet¬ 
ter not marry them.” 
Certainly there is much to be learned about 
the care of hands on a farm. I have seen 
farmers’ hands so knotty, bruised and dis¬ 
torted as to cause us to pity the possessors. It 
is our duty to God aud man to preserve our 
comeliness of person, and a well-formed hand 
is to be desired. 
Professor Roberts said that the land-hold¬ 
ers would be the aristocracy of this country 
fifty years hence ; that some Englishman had 
said that this country produces enough milk 
each day to fill the canal from London to 
Birmingham. 
Farmers, remember that you are Americans, 
and that Americans are destined to lead the 
world in agriculture and commerce. Do not 
be satisfied to cultivate well the land; culti¬ 
vate your minds. Work less with your baud— 
more with your heads. Look sharp to your 
votes. If you confine yourselves too closely 
to the plow, wily politicians may defraud 
you of your birthright. 
President Hamilton said : * 1 ‘ Speed the {flow! 
If the plow uo longer turns the furrow, 
the factories of this broad land will close, 
the miners will hang up their idle tools, the 
railroad whistle will no longer be heard, and 
our steamships will rot at the wharves.” 
Altogether this was a pleasant and profita¬ 
ble gathering, and one to be long remembered 
Monroe Co., N. Y. Charles a. green. 
